A Sensible Dinner - Pearlieq's Journal

[Lesli54]

Good afternoon, Pearlieq!

Late getting to the journals and frozen to the bone. It is so cold down here and my field trip with DD7's class was mainly outside!

Yesterday and today look pretty good for you so far. Glad to see you are getting back to your pre-vacation mode. I like working from home and being around my children. Some days it gets to you and it really is a luxury, but I love it. As far as what you want to do for a job after this one ends, my suggestion is do what make you happy. If it is social work and it only lasts for a couple of years than go for it. If it is working at Lowe's than do that. As long as you are happy with your choice, it doesn't matter where you go or what you do. Take it from someone who hated a job so bad that I litterally found myself stressed out and crying before I even made it to work. It was my shortest job in history, 5 weeks and I was out of there.

Have a great day and keep up the excellent detox work.

 

[goldcupmom]

Sounds like you are back on track.....wish I could say the same for myself! LOL!!

Make sure you do what you want for a job and remember that if you don't like it you can change. I chose to stay home with my 3. It was not an easy decision, and not always an enjoyable one, but I"m glad I did. Now I'm thinking what I might like to do when they are gone.....GEE , I feel OLD!!!!

Bottom line is life's too short to be miserable.

 

[pearlieq]

5/13/05 - Step by Step

My morning is a bit thrown off today--I have to have a blood draw at 10am, and they're not sure if I'm supposed to fast or not, so I'm just going to fast so I don't have to make arrangements to do this again. I plan on getting an Egg McMuffin afterwards if I get out early enough. If not I'll probably grab brunch at Panera. Afterwards I'm going to do a bit some shopping (maybe some clothes ) and then go check out plants and rocks for our house.

10:10am

--1 Egg McMuffin
--3 prunes

The blood draw went fine--I love the nurse who does the blood draws--he's such a hoot and he's really good. I had a quiet breakfast at McD's while figuring out the total amount of decorative stone we're going to need (4.5 tons, for those playing along at home...) Afterwards I cruised a few stores--I got a couple of things at the Avenue, struck out at TJ Maxx, found out that none of the Old Navy stores around here carry plus sizes, and then found a few more things at Fashion Bug.

I was really happy because all of the tops I bought were 22/24 and the jeans I bought were 26! One size at a time, right? I did buy an 18/20 top to store away for later, but it was really cute and only $9. Off to Panera and the nurseries/landscape stores. If I'm feeling really ambitious maybe I'll cruise a couple of stores to try to find a filing cabinet.

2:15pm

--1 strawberry poppyseed salad with chicken
--1 3 1/2" piece sourdough baguette

5:15pm

--8 large strawberries
--1 string cheese
--1 ww english muffin
--1 T peanut butter

Off to Curves!!!

8:30pm

--1 cup cream of chicken soup
--1 large white roll
--1 grilled chicken breast
--1 cup satueed spinach and tomatoes in a vinagrette
--1 new potato
--2 bites DH's turkey club
--3/4 2" piece of carrot layer cake.

We tried the restaurant at the local golf course--it was awesome! We'll definitely be going there again. Tonight didn't get too out of control, mostly thanks to a good day, and I split my entree to take half home, but there are still a couple of restaurant rules I need to brush up on:

1.) No more than one serving of bread (1 small roll, 1 slice, etc.)
2.) Appetizers/bread OR dessert, not both.
3.) If I choose to order dessert, order something different and exquisite, and savor no more than half of the portion served.

 

[Lesli54]

Good morning Pearlieq! Still cold down here.

Glad to hear that WDW weight is gone. Didn't take too long for you to get your feet back on the ground. I have to go do bloodwork on Monday and really hate needles. Mine is a blood fasting so I expect to be thrown off too, I am just thankful that it is not too late in the morning.

Have a great day and keep up the excellent work!

 

[Lesli54]

Good morning Pearlieq! Looks like a beautiful day here. Hope it holds for tomorrow.

Looks like you had a great day yesterday. Have fun landscaping. I'll bet your lawn will look wonderful and inviting when you are finished. (It's also great exercise. )

 

[pearlieq]

5/14/05 - Weigh In

329.0 pounds--down 7.5 pounds from week.

I feel like I'm finally "back" and settled into my old routine. Happy to see the WDW weight gone and to be back on my downward trend.

Daily Averages:

Total Calories: 3376
Total Fat: 110g
Total Carbs: 461g
Total Fiber: 37g
Total Protein: 137g
Total Calories Burned: 3606
Total Days of Exercise: 4

Hopefully this will look much better next week. Goals for the following week are just to continue getting back to the routine and to keep up on exercise--I skipped a day this week and it's not something I care to repeat!

 

[goldcupmom]

Boy am I impressed!!! 7.5 in one week- WOW!!!!!

Even tho it was recent gain I have never been able to do that. WAY TO GO!!!!!

 

[pearlieq]

5/14/05 - It's Saturday Night, I Guess That Makes It Alright...

7:30am

--1 ww english muffin
--1 T. peanut butter
--1 apple

11:30am

--1 turkey BLT on sourdough (no mayo, left some bread behind)
--2/3 cup cut fruit

Lunch at a lovely cafe--I was happy to meet up with poor DH, who had to work today. I did a little shopping in the afternoon then came home and booked a Disney Cruise for next May. I already can't wait!!!

7:00pm

--1 small whole wheat roll
--1 T light cream cheese
--1 cup fruit punch

A little snack--I've been hungry for 3 hours and trying to ignore it. Not the best plan.

8:30pm

--1 1/2 cups chicken and vegetable stirfry
--1/4 cup rice
--1 scoop rainbow sherbet

I was really kind of bummed about this meal--I wanted a kid-size cheeseburger but they wouldn't give me one. The stir-fry was OK, but not what I wanted.

11:30pm

--3 slices on cheese pizza
--1 cup 1% milk
--1 sf pudding

Fun Saturday night snack--this is the first time in a long time I stopped at 3 pieces, usually I'm good for all 4. The nice part is due to moderation throughout the day this didn't push me over on calories.

 

[Lesli54]

Good morning Pearlieq! It is beautiful out, but looks a little windy.

Congrats on getting all the WDW weight off and then some.

Gotta go do the graduation thing. Talk to you later.

 

[pearlieq]

5/15/05

8:40am

--1 slice cheese pizza
--1 cup light fruit punch

DH is mowing the lawn, now, at not quite 9:30am--I'm sure the neighbors won't be speaking to us for a while now...

I'm sitting inside trying to figure out how many DVC points we can realistically afford to add on. We're never going to do anything to the house--we're going to spend it all on Disney!

I'm looking forward to this afternoon--DH and I are going to grab lunch at Maggianos and then go see Hitchikers Guide to the Galaxy.

12:30pm

--3 crispbreads
--1 1/2 fried chicken breasts with cheese and red sauce
--1/3 order Vesuvio potatoes
--3/4 cup spumoni
--3 1/2 small lemon cookies

I love Maggiano's! Terrible service, but incredible food. They weren't running the lunch menu today, but we still got a great meal. Afterwards we went to the movie theater and got in one of those ridiculous arguments over what time the movie was/how much time we were going to wait. I couldn't even tell you what exactly it was about, but we wound up coming home instead of seeing the movie. Maybe next weekend.

5:30pm

--1oz reduced fat pringles
--1 uncrustable grilled cheese

I've always wanted to try the grilled cheese Uncrustables. They were on sale and I was hungry so I succumbed. I tried on when I got home--ick! Not my bag--it's been a very long time since there was anything natural in those. We're having a Survivor party tonight. I feel a little bad for having two big meals in the same day, but I'm trying to keep tonight as reasonable as possible.

7pm

--6oz cocktail franks with barbecue glaze
--5 broccoli spears
--1 cup pineapple
--1 oz reduced fat pringles.

Very tasty--I wish I had more broccoli to dip in the leftover sauce. I know this looks not so great, but if you heard the choices discussed before we settled on this, it would look like I had bowl of watercress!

9pm

--1/2 oz reduced fat pringles
--1 south beach bar
--1 ww cheesecake

I did enjoy some snacks, but it didn't get too out of control. Glad to see Tom won--Katie was useless and rude!

 

[contempgal]

Spumoni! Oh how I love that stuff. I don't have it often but whenever I'm at a restaurant serving it, I have to get it. It's just too good to pass up.

You know, I didn't even realize the Survior finale was on tonight. My head seems to have been in the clouds of late. I was even flipping through channels last night and saw it and it didn't connect. Anyway, I do hope your party went well! I also hope you were happy with the outcome of the show.

Just as a side note...........I did want to tell you how much I enjoy reading your journal. I guess its because I can relate to you so well. Your humor and committment are inspiring! Keep up the good work.

 

[goldcupmom]

Sounds like your day went OK. Hope you had fun with your survivor party!

Spumoni....yum, yum, yum. And your broccoli sounds almost as good!

Have a great Monday!

 

[Lesli54]

Good morning Pearlieq!

Looks like your day went well yesterday. We taped Survivor and haven't had a chance to see it yet. Of course, after reading, now I know who wins.

Hope you have a great Monday!

 

[pearlieq]

5/16/05

--9:35am

--1 cup ff yogurt
--12 large strawberries
--1 small whole wheat roll
--1 T. chive cream cheese

Breakfast really late. The cleaning people were here this morning which throws everything off. I could have eaten before they came but I just didn't get off my duff and do it.

Sorry about spoiling Survivor for you, Lesli! I didn't even think about that possibility.

DH and I are considering doing an add-on to our DVC points. I called to talk to them today and there was literally no one who could speak with me. I was told to call back in "a couple of hours" not even a message taken! I was apalled. Frankly, when I attempt to give thousands of dollars to someone, I expect a bit of attention. Our guide finally called back a little bit ago--they're only offering incentives on 120 point add-ons, but I'm really not sure DH and I can use that many points. I could see using it if/when we have kids, but we're not really extended-family gathering type people, so most years it's going to be too much. We were hoping for 50 points, but there's no incentives for that. Not sure what we want to do here...

12:00pm

--1 south beach bar
--1 Lean Cuisine - roasted garlic chicken
--3 1/2 oz chicken breast
--1 small banana

I got super hungry this morning. I was on my way out the door to go buy the peaches and cream scones I saw and rejected at the store last night, and a Jimmy John's sub on the way home, when I figured, no, let me go into the kitchen and make something--this is just hunger talking. I wolfed down that South Beach bar really fast. I'll need to take my time on the rest of my lunch. Hopefully the extra chicken I added will keep me satisfied for a while.

2:30pm

--1/2 serving reduced fat Triscuits
--1 T. onion cream cheese
--2 1/2 cups Raisin Bran Crunch
--3/4 skim milk
--1 1/2 cup pasta with cheese
--1 ww cheesecake
--1 sf tapioca

I hope that's it. I'm pretty frustrated with myself right now--that was a good old fashioned carb binge. Not sure what's causing it, but I think it may be all the junk I've eaten in the last few weeks--I'm guessing it's kind of vicious cycle thing--you eat carbs, which make you crave carbs, which makes you eat carbs, and so on. My saving grace was that I usually keep the house pretty safe--I can still overeat, but at least my choices are more limited and lower calorie. Obviously it doesn't matter how low-cal something is if you eat the entire bag of it, but at least it's better than my house being stocked with Doritos and Oreos.

I can regroup. I did some housework this afternoon to keep myself busy. If I feel the need to overeat again I'll leave early for Curves and maybe stop by the library or something--get out of the house and away from the food. I'm going to have turkey taco salad tonight--DH will be having actual tacos but I'm going to try to save some calories and just have it as a salad with a low-carb tortilla on the side. That should be enough for me for the day.

6:30pm

--1 serving taco mix
--4 taco shells
--6 T reduced fat cheddar
--grape tomatoes and lettuce
--3 NSA muffins
--1 uncrustables grilled cheese

Well last night did not go that well. I couldn't stop eating--anything and everything just kept marching into my mouth. Plus, I realized the girls weren't going to be a Curves so I blew it off. It was a bad night.

9:00pm

--1/2 bag smart pop with 2/3 t. butter
--yellow cake with frosting scraped off
--1 Snickers bar
--2 sf popsicles

I'm in some kind of crazy eating mode--I don't know where the discipline and resolve I had went. I certainly don't want to gain the weight back, and I want to keep losing, but that's not going to happen on willy-nilly carb bingeing. I'm not sure how to pull myself together.

 

[contempgal]

I read the recipe you use for the turkey taco salad a few posts ago..........sounds delicious!

It's difficult getting away from those carbs. I still haven't done it yet. That's likely why I'm still tired so much. I guess it's a continual battle we will all have to fight.

How is the ww cheescake?

 

[pearlieq]

5/17/05 -

9:00am

--1 1/4 cups Raisin Bran Crunch
--1/2 cup milk

So we're off to another great start this morning, lolling in bed until 8:40 and then coming downstairs for a full bowl of sugary cereal. I'm not really sure how to stop this thing I've been doing for the last few weeks. I suppose all I can do is start back on one baby step at a time. My goal for today is to make it to Curves tonight. I want to try to be perfect, but I think this literally has to go one step at a time.

12:30

--1 country club, no mayo
--1/3 cucumber

I'm actually feeling a little better. I've done a lot of thinking this morning. I do want this. I do want to move forward. But I also need to understand it's not a race. I'm not being graded on this, there are no deadlines, no one is judging me. I need to make sure the changes I make really work for me, because I feel like whatever I'm going now I need to be prepared to do for life. I try so hard to be perfect that I forget about better.

One thing that struck me about the overeating I've been doing on and since the trip is the inordinate glee that comes with it--like I'm getting away with something or bucking some authority's rules. That's sort of strange since there is no authority, just me. I guess I need to figure out where I land between the me that ate 1800 calories a day and works out 7 days a week and the me that wants to stay home and order pizza.

It's been a nice day. I got the results from my blood test--my cholesterol and triglycerides are both down a bit from my last test and my liver function is perfect. That's a relief. I did a little "me proofing" of the kitchen. I got rid of the banana muffins and the rest of the baked pasta I've been stuffing down in binges. I also moved the Raisin Bran Crunch out of the pantry--I need to find a food bank to take that to. I meant to give it to the mail carrier last week but missed it when I was packing my bag. I may take another look through after lunch to see if I can get rid of any more trigger/binge foods. At least if I have to go out for junk I have time to talk myself out of it. I was happy that for the past few days, even when I was buying junk, I only bought single servings. I think that's a big help not to have half a box of cookies left over afterwards.

5:00pm

--1/2 bag popcorn
--1/3 T butter
--1 orange
--1 light string cheese

Off to Curves!

7:45pm

--1/2 turkey wrap with cheddar
--1/2 turkey wrap with American
--3/4 cup grape tomatoes
--1/3 cucumber

Awkward situation tonight. DH took the initiative to make dinner, which was really sweet, but he used the regular white tortrillas instead of the low carb ones and didn't really keep track of some of the ingredients. Still, it was so sweet and he was trying so I just ate it. It really wasn't too bad.

I had a nice time at Curves, and for some reason had extra energy when I got home, so I went to check the mail and kept on walking for another half an hour. It was such a nice night. I'm glad I had the energy and resolve to go.

The thing that I don't get is why I don't seem to have much control over this--today I'm having an awesome day. I feel happy, energetic, full of resolve, and haven't really felt the need to overeat. I don't really understand why--today is no different than yesterday when I had a pretty bad day. What gives?

 

[Lesli54]

Good morning Pearlieq!

I think you and I need to work together on getting back on track. My day yesterday was bad. I think it is all the running and quick fix foods, grab and go, anything easy that is doing me in. Like you, I want better, but it sure does seem hard to get there right now. Let's make a pact. We go back to square one and take it one day at a time, one meal at a time. Remember we are here for our health. Stock back up on the good foods and anytime we want some food, drink some water first, then exercise or busy ourselves until things pass.

Well, gotta go. I don't know how much checking in I will be able to do in London. But I will talk to you next Wednesday!


********Survivor*****
Got to watch the last episode last night. You didn't ruin it, I kind of figured Tom would win. I am glad it wasn't Katie. At least they didn't go for the person flying under the radar this time.

 

[calena]

Take it one day at a time. I also go on these crazy binges. Last week it was sugar stuff. I wish I had all the answers, but I don't. I find if I make time to workout then I feel less inclined to overeat. Rejoice in your good days and after a bad day, just have a new day be a good day. You are a You are worth it! GOOD LUCK.

 

[TPCShauna]

Hey Pearlie!

Sorry to hear you are struggling right now. Whatever it is that is working against you is getting us all. I've been craving carbs and chocolate and have been positively starving!

You are totally right . . . one step at a time. Make today's goal and then add on from there.

Good luck!

 

[contempgal]

Exactly! One Step At A Time.

I know its easier said than done. Just remember we are all in this together and we're here to help when needed. I have a tendancy to think about journaling and having to announce my "slip" to the board when fighting temptations. I've always had trouble staying focused and I keep telling myself that when I'm struggling. It motivates me (at least somewhat) to not fail again. We're stronger than that!

So here you go.........some motivation from me:

YOU CAN DO IT! I KNOW YOU CAN!

Be prepared to motivate me soon. We all go through it.