Laurie's journal - Atkins plan (comments welcome)

[Desiree]

Uggh why did you have to say lawn! I guess I'll get to that tomorrow!

Despite being over the carb limit, you seem to be sticking to everything well! Keep up the good work there!

Just try to have a healthy and relaxing weekend!

Thanks for your post in my journal. Youve got some great ideas there, I think I will try them out!!

Have a great day!

 

[marsh0013]

hey laurie, i'm sorry that stress is still getting to you. but you're doing a great job planning ahead and packing lots of legal snacks for work. i know it doesn't seem right to eat extra, but if you are extra hungry from all this stress, it's good that you're eating. legal stuff of course . and you're sticking to that

hope you're having and continue to have a great weekend

 

[LAinSEA]

Friday: I did ever so much better staying on plan and under my carb limit than the day before. Just kept filling up the water glass and being really really busy at work helped. What didn't help was having to stay an extra hour - we were on after the Pac-10 tourney and the games went late again. Home after midnight.

Saturday: Up bright and early and off to the West-B test - the test you have to pass in Washington St. to be eligible for a teaching program. Things didn't go well from the time we left (on-time)...Mapquest was way off on the directions to the test site. Thankfully we had a map book in the car and were able to get there on time at 8:30am. Then you check in and sit until the test starts at 9am. You have 4 1/2 hours to complete 3 sections, reading, math, and writing including 2 essays. Let me just say I think I failed all sections. DH probably passed though. We get results in a few weeks. After the test, we both agreed our minds were mush. We stopped at Red Robin, a gourmet burger joint for lunch on the way home. I ordered a margarita (stopped at one, but easily could have kept going) and then just couldn't be "satiisfied" by ordering a "safe" salad - I wanted a burger. I got them to sub the regular bun for a whole-wheat one and had their bleu cheese burger with a side salad instead of fries. Not exactly as low carb as I'd normally choose but it tasted so good. When we got home, we discussed getting out and getting tough on the yard work...the discussion ended with us both falling asleep. Naps were definitely what was needed. A late dinner/snack later - turkey pastramie & cheese on low-carb wraps w/ranch dressing - and back to bed.

Sunday: I had a piece of leftover halibut for brunch and found that I really wasn't hungry for anything until we met our friend John for dinner downtown Seattle. They are running a special through many downtown restaurants this month - a fixed price of $25.00 for appetiser, entree and desert at restaurants that usually run in the $20+ range for entrees. We went to Etta - a wine bar restaurant near Pike Place Market. I had oysters on the half shell for appetiser, salmon w/cornbread pudding & steamed swiss chard and chocolate suffle tarte for desert with a glass of Snoqualmie Shiraz. The portions are great - not too big to overstuff you and not too small to leave you hungry. But my pulse raced and my skin crawled about 45 minutes later from the extra sugar in my blood stream. My, did it taste good - but 2 days worth of "cheating". I disappoint myself.

Monday: cottage cheese for brunch, a breve for a snack and salmon with shrimp stir fry - mixed oriental veggies at my folks for dinner. Popcorn shared with DH and the kitties later - well not really on plan but not too much over my carb limit.

Exercise: walked 45 minutes Sunday, Monday & Tuesday. Weather has cooperated so far. The yard work is still waiting.

 

[Desiree]

Wow. You really did have a full weekend! Sounds like you did have fun though! Good for you to stick with your exercises too!!

 

[Strings]

Laurie,

You probably did fine on the test. I always second guess myself. That dinner sounds wonderful. I'm sorry you felt so bad afteerwards. Great job keeping up with your exercise. The yardwork will wait. Naps are much more important.
Beth

 

[marsh0013]

laurie, your weekend sure looked crazy to me! no wonder you went off plan and cheated a couple of days. don't worry about it though, you're right back on track and sticking to your plan from now forward

i'm sorry you don't feel so confident about the west-b test. maybe you did better than you think. you never know, you could surprise yourself

hope you have a great day today

 

[LAinSEA]

Tuesday: Pretty busy day at work. Starting with having to kick the Mariners graphics operator out of my work space - again. I appreciate that he needs to prep for the season, but he knows what time I'm scheduled to start work and waiting a good 15-25 minutes everyday for him to finish up is getting very old. (Yeah, I'm also a little frustrated that the bosses' promise of getting to actutally do more remote events work is not coming to fruition. This guy makes 3x the rate I make and is not a very good operator, but is a good friend of the Mariners producer.)

Foodwise - I'm back on track as far a carbs go. Breakfast - low-carb roll, cottage cheese; snack - brie & salami; Lunch - green beans; snack - 1 oz macadamia & 1 oz almonds; Dinner - romaine salad w/bleu cheese, artichoke hearts and pork tenderloin. DH had steamed some mussels when I got home for a real treat. I really wasn't hungry but didn't fight sharing them with him.

Wednesday: Breakfast - low-carb roll, cottage cheese; snack - 1 oz macadamias & sugar free jelly bellies; Lunch - broccoli; Dinner - flank steak & romaine salad (not sure of the dressing); snacks (if I need them) - 1 oz almonds & cheese & salami.

Had to kick the M's operator off again...told him that I didn't have time to wait today - we had a graphics pass right at noon and I needed to update the latest graphics order for it and get ready quick. So only a 10 minute wait instead of 15-25. I'm also feeling a little under the weather - my throat feels like it's swelling up and I have a headache that won't go away with regular Advil. I'm hoping the latest bug that's going around the office will pass me by instead of hitting full strength. I'm so tired of getting colds.

DH has hopefully got the re-fi under control. If things go through we will go from a 30 yr to a 20 yr mortgage and still get the money to side the house.

Exercise: not this morning...will be back out tomorrow morning.
Water: Good but not great - got to get on it.

Ladies - thanks for your vote of confidence on the test. I'm trying not to think about it until the envelope arrives but I'm pretty much resigned to re-taking the math portion in a month or two.

 

[marsh0013]

hey laurie, that sucks that the mariners guy is staying late and making you have to be rushed. good for you for standing up to him though when you really needed to

i'm sorry that you're feeling under the weather . try to take care of yourself, whether that means extra medicine, time off from exercise, extra sleep, or all of the above. treat yourself well, you deserve it!

hope you're feeling better today, have a great day

 

[DoeWDW]

Laurie, maybe you should make it easier for that Mariners' graphics guy to leave. You could hover over him and sneeze repeatedly - might gross him out and get him to move. You could accidentally bump him and spill some water down his back.... I'm really not as evil as I sound.....honest!!

I hope the stress at work gets better soon! Good for you for staying as close to plan as possible. Your dinner out sounds wonderful and I don't think you should feel one bit guilty about it!!

 

[Desiree]

Laurie, Hope you are feeling better today. I thought I was coming down with something at the beginning of the week but it must have decided to go somewhere else. I've been taking my vitamins too so maybe that got rid of it quickly!

I like Doreen's idea of sneezing on the guy! I vote that you do that!

Have a great Friday and a great weekend!

 

[LAinSEA]

Today will be a good day - Mr. Negativity is off today (he and his "just got a big raise" wife are off to ski Whistler for the weekend - maybe they'll get stopped at the border on the way back in). I get to work with Charlie - he's terrific and so positive!

Thursday was insane around here - I guess that's why they call it March Madness. I'm pretty much done with college basketball right now and it's only day 2 of the tournament. My dad and I went in on a bracket together at his work and I skipped participating here. So far we've missed just one game. Here at FSN it's nuts - we had so much work to do and all the guys could think about was there own brackets. Mr. Negativity is an Arizona alum - I was so glad they lost (no, I didn't pick them to win either). I did not get a break all day yesterday - barely go to any of my bag of food. I wasn't real hungry either - it's hard to enjoy even my DH's good flank steak when you're having to eat and work. Hopefully today will be slower since we pretaped our early Detroit show last night.

I've been religious about taking my vitamins this week - skipped the walk (I'm feeling very guilty about it - raining horizontally yesterday, today sleeping in with my oldest kittie seemed better than braving the wind...) I'm hoping the extra rest will keep the swollen glands from becoming the full-blown croup the rest of the office has. DH said I was sleeping so hard at 9am he didn't have the heart to disturb me or Horatio.

Tomorrow is a yard work day and hopefully getting a coat of finish on the kitchen table and stools we bought weeks ago. I asked DH to vacuum and pick up inside today...we'll see just how far that goes.

Foodwise: I was well under my carb limit yesterday. Today, so far, I've had my low-carb roll and cottage cheese. The bag is packed with deviled eggs, salad, grilled chicken and a steamed veggie. I should be just fine if work doesn't get too crazy.

The Mariners graphics guy is off to Arizona for a couple of spring training games! As much as I'd like some warm sunshine...I know he won't see any of it from inside a refrigerated TV remote truck.

 

[LAinSEA]

Drat these double posts!

 

[DoeWDW]

Laurie, I sent you a PM. Glad to hear your weekend work will be more pleasant than usual!! I hope it rains on the Mariners guy!!

 

[Castillo Mom]

Hi Laurie, sorry I haven't been around for while, but you know how it is with work and all.

Wow, you've been doing great staying OP! That's a hard thing to do when you have a busy schedule. The good thing is that you plan ahead and I noticed you take your lunch with you to work pretty often. I need to do better in that area.

How are the kitties and your nieces? I remember you saying how much you missed them when you came back from your trip. Hopefully you'll get to see them. Take care!

 

[Desiree]

Wow.. that meal you posted sounds divine!!! Glad you have a little break from Mr. Negative too.

Hope you have a great and healthy Sunday!

 

[marsh0013]

laurie, you must be going nuts will all this march madness going on! i myself am *not* a fan of any kind of basketball, but i got roped into watching some last night with my best friend, she's a syracuse alum

i wouldn't stress about that walk you missed, if you were so out that dh didn't want to wake you, i'm sure your body appreciated the extra rest

i'm very glad to hear that you had a mr. negativity-free day! and i hope he had a horrible time . hope you're enjoyed your day away from him with charlie, i'm sure you did

hope you had a great weekend

 

[Strings]

Hi Laurie,

Hmm... Is there anyway we can submit a transfer request for Mr Negativity while he's not looking? I'm glad you at least got a short break from him. I hope you rested ths weekend. I don't envy you the next couple of weeks. Try to take care of yourself.

Beth

 

[R_Judy]

What a weekend! Don't beat yourself up over the test until you get the results. You probably did better than you think. Hope your week is a little less stressful. Keep up the good exercise.

 

[LAinSEA]

The weekend:

Friday - stayed on plan (didn't get to any nut snacks - didn't really need them). Got lots of water down throughout the work day (and spent most of the night up and down to the bathroom, a big deal when you have to carefully slip out from between a snoring husband and 3 comatose cats and then get back in and get comfortable again.)

Saturday - spring has definitely arrived here. DH made us some breakfast burritos w/scrambled eggs, ham & cheese inside a low-carb wrap. I got a real diet coke down and we started on the pruning. We've been in our home now for 12 years and the little plants we brought in during the past years are now getting to be big trees and shrubs. There are certain things I stay up on bi-yearly - the drawf box leaf euonymous in front and the boxwood in back, but the rest hadn't had a good pruning in a couple of years and it showed! I did the euonymous with the electronic shears (after mowing the lawn) and Jeff started on the aspen. We then decided (because of the coming siding project) that the pink jasmine vine that's been in about 6 years had to come out all together and take the trellis down off the house. It would have been difficult to save the vine - and it wasn't all the expensive to begin with...plus it liked to tunnel under the present siding - but it's hard to let a plant you've babied along go! I got started on the boxwood and Jeff started on the overgrown escalonia. The escalonia attacks back! It has to be done by hand - not with the electronic shears and it had gotten very bare and woody towards the bottom. Unfortunately we both have scratches and bruises from working between it and the neighbors fence. Before turning in we cut down Queen Elisabeth on the front fence and weeded the small flower bed in front of her. All I can say is Sunday morning I didn't feel like I could move...DH looked like I felt. Saturday night dinner was ribs and green beans (so good, DH had slow oven smoked them on Friday for a quick easy dinner on Saturday night). Later Tilda and I shared some popcorn - I know probably over my carbs for the day. Yes, a cat that loves popcorn!

Sunday: after breakfast of cottage cheese and advil and a long hot shower, we had almost hoped that the weather would turn wet...it didn't. No excuses, back out to the garden. More pruning...the mock orange (not budding out quite yet) and the forsythia (blooming) first along the lower tier of the large retaining wall. Then 2 deer chewed privets and reigning in the wisteria and then on to the flower carpet roses. Doubling the gloves ("fox gloves under leather) didn't keep the thorns from imbeding in the my fingers. Finished the front weeding and bed in front of the boxwood. Only pruning left are the "real" roses - DH's job. OH OUCH! do I now hurt or what? DH says let's go out for dinner. We both get quick showers and head out to forage for food. We end up at Outback - I have prime rib w/steamed veggies and a small caesar salad. DH has a cup of french onion soup and a large chicken caesar salad. The food and service were very good.

Monday: The inside has been neglected all weekend - do laundry - do vacumming - pick up, pick up, pick up...still doesn't look very clean. I need to spot clean carpets again and throw out old magazines and put more stuff away. DH has got our office completely topsy turvy again...Oh well - I just can't do it all. Take off for my folks in early afternoon and take care of some errands and make a quick walk through a nursery for some planting ideas (got to re-do the front garden and grass after the waterline replacement last summer and re-do the bad-grass infested perenial bed in the back along the green belt). Just takes time and $$$ - both are in short supply right now. Late lunch was a Dick's Deluxe burger (just half the bun). Mom and I walk up to yet another nursery while DH and Dad are playing basketball. Total walk time is about 45 minutes - not including browsing time. Dinner is pork roast, stir fried mixed veggies and green salad w/bleu cheese dressing. When we get home and feed the cats we both fall into bed and sleep!

Tuesday: So far so good, DH and I walked for about 45 minutes - added an extra block to the walk this morning to enjoy other people's gardens - everything is starting to bloom! Low-carb roll and breve for breakfast. Amazine how a breve fills me up. I haven't gotten into the cooler yet except for vitamins so lunch and dinner will be a surprise.

Mr. Negativity should be in soon to brag about Whistler (I'm hoping he broke his leg or something...sorry I'm so bad!). My schedule changes the second weekend in April to Wednesday through Saturday (no knowing what I'm going to do with a 10-hour shift on a Saturday with half the shows to produce - maybe I'll start writing my great American novel.)

Thanks Doe, Lisa, Marcia, Desiree and R_Judy for stopping by and keeping my spirits up, (and keeping me from overly cheating too much.) Lisa - without Jeff making and packing my lunch/dinner every work day, I don't know if I'd get any to eat at all - or be faced with a dash for fast food. One can't live on Subway wraps alone! Marcia - I'm not a big basketball fan either...the rest of the weekend took a toll on me and my dad's bracket - now were bottlenecked with everyone else. I like watching hockey with DH, NFL football and cheering for the Mariners.

Everyone - spring is moving eastward, I promise. If you don't believe me - I'll send along some of my monster weeds to prove it to you!

 

[Strings]

Hi Laurie,

I think you might win the prize for most exercise this weekend. I'm sore just reading about it. I bet the yard looks great. Your meals sound sensational. You DH can hang out with mine anytime. I hope Mr Negativity gets lost on his way home. Take care of yourself.


Beth