Last night's dinner was a basil-stuffed chicken. It was delicious, but difficult to cook because of the thickness of the chicken breasts. Next time we make it we are thinking we just will serve the stuffing as a sauce over top of chicken breast strips instead of full pieces.
My husband is getting nauseous in the morning from all the eggs for breakfast, so I think Monday he will be returning to the normal BFC plan.
We are both concerned about the absence of fiber in this plan, but I'm going to stick with it and do the one menu plan for myself (I don't care if I eat the same thing for days on end, where my husband tires of things very quickly).
I do wish Jorge would lay off the pungent cheeses. :P
Weigh in for week one is Monday, so we will see how it did. I weighed myself on Wednesday and had gone up a half pound.
Friday, January 04, 2013
Tuesday, January 01, 2013
Olive meatloaf for dinner
Side is mashed cauliflower.
I'm not a big olive fan, so I didn't care for it. My husband is the opposite when it comes to olives and he really liked it. Shallot was too much for the mash. Next time we won't bother with the food processor and will only sauté the cauli.
I'm not a big olive fan, so I didn't care for it. My husband is the opposite when it comes to olives and he really liked it. Shallot was too much for the mash. Next time we won't bother with the food processor and will only sauté the cauli.
VIP for 2013
My husband and I are back at it! We were already planning to rejoin the world of the BFC after the holidays, then Jorge sent out the email about the One Menu system and we jumped on it. I think part of our problem in the past has been trying to plan meals, but this takes that issue out of the equation. Buy it, cook it, eat it, but don't think about it!
From what I've seen so far it's basically a 10/3 system instead of a 15/6, but the real value is in new menus each week. Groceries were a little more than our usual but we've been living on basic staples for a while anyway.
Day one was a success. Happy New Year! May your 2013 be your best year ever!
From what I've seen so far it's basically a 10/3 system instead of a 15/6, but the real value is in new menus each week. Groceries were a little more than our usual but we've been living on basic staples for a while anyway.
Day one was a success. Happy New Year! May your 2013 be your best year ever!
Thursday, August 16, 2012
Another one bites the dust
I *had* enjoyed using MyFitnessPal to track what I eat on my iPhone, but when I logged in today I saw they'd messed around with my goals (again). Looking into it, they now FORCE you to plan your day around calories.. so you set your carbs as a percentage of your total calories. Thanks but no thanks!
I was thinking of going back to the 5/16 sheets anyway. When I finish the iOS app I'm making for work maybe I can at least make a quick and dirty tracker app for myself. I will miss the barcode scanning, though! For now I'll keep MyFitnessPal on my phone just to record my weight and measurements.
Summer I've been 60% neglectful of the BFC, I'd guess. These evil Frozen Yogurt shops keep popping up everywhere, and Dunkin Donuts brought back my favorite egg bagel (and that Jalapeño cream cheese is so good!). But on the other hand I look at the sugar count of everything I eat, even when I'm misbehaving, so at least I'm aware of what I'm doing instead of trying to enjoy ignorance. And I do think I make better choices than I used to when I didn't realize just how much sugar was in everything.
I'm trying to get back to it, though. A bunch of the things that have been causing me stress are coming to their conclusions, so I'm expecting my discipline to return. My skin hasn't been happy with all the sugar, and I've got a beach trip in about 9 days, so time to buckle down! I've been mostly good all week, except Monday I had a Hostess cupcake and some popcorn because we were staying up late waiting for something and I just didn't know what to do with myself.
My husband wanted McDonald's last night, after nothing in the house sounded appetizing. I had already eaten but since we'd mentioned going for milkshakes he was surprised when I only ordered a coffee. He apologized that we were at McDonald's with no 'reward' in it for me. I told my husband last night, "I've got to control my own impulses, not yours."
That means I need to be able to look at a batch of hot cookies or a tray of fast food or my friends going to Yogurt City after martial arts training and just say, "Okay, you enjoy that!" And that's on me to do. I can't rely on everyone else not to put the temptations in front of me.
There aren't many BFC friendly snacks in the house these days, though, so I do need to get some string cheese or sliced turkey, etc., to have when I feel the urge to snack.
I read a quote this morning: "The answer to exhaustion isn't rest; it's wholeheartedness."
I feel like that applies for me in so many things I'm trying to do right now.
I was thinking of going back to the 5/16 sheets anyway. When I finish the iOS app I'm making for work maybe I can at least make a quick and dirty tracker app for myself. I will miss the barcode scanning, though! For now I'll keep MyFitnessPal on my phone just to record my weight and measurements.
Summer I've been 60% neglectful of the BFC, I'd guess. These evil Frozen Yogurt shops keep popping up everywhere, and Dunkin Donuts brought back my favorite egg bagel (and that Jalapeño cream cheese is so good!). But on the other hand I look at the sugar count of everything I eat, even when I'm misbehaving, so at least I'm aware of what I'm doing instead of trying to enjoy ignorance. And I do think I make better choices than I used to when I didn't realize just how much sugar was in everything.
I'm trying to get back to it, though. A bunch of the things that have been causing me stress are coming to their conclusions, so I'm expecting my discipline to return. My skin hasn't been happy with all the sugar, and I've got a beach trip in about 9 days, so time to buckle down! I've been mostly good all week, except Monday I had a Hostess cupcake and some popcorn because we were staying up late waiting for something and I just didn't know what to do with myself.
My husband wanted McDonald's last night, after nothing in the house sounded appetizing. I had already eaten but since we'd mentioned going for milkshakes he was surprised when I only ordered a coffee. He apologized that we were at McDonald's with no 'reward' in it for me. I told my husband last night, "I've got to control my own impulses, not yours."
That means I need to be able to look at a batch of hot cookies or a tray of fast food or my friends going to Yogurt City after martial arts training and just say, "Okay, you enjoy that!" And that's on me to do. I can't rely on everyone else not to put the temptations in front of me.
There aren't many BFC friendly snacks in the house these days, though, so I do need to get some string cheese or sliced turkey, etc., to have when I feel the urge to snack.
I read a quote this morning: "The answer to exhaustion isn't rest; it's wholeheartedness."
I feel like that applies for me in so many things I'm trying to do right now.
Friday, June 01, 2012
Tangible Results
Okay, let's see what I can do with the two weeks left until the Family Reunion!
I've been pretty much good all week (Wednesday I had a soy latte not thinking that the soymilk was probably sweetened - 12g sugar, damn!), and last night when my husband wanted Burger King I made myself a fried egg sandwich even though it was late and I just wanted to give into the Call of the Carbs.
This morning I tried a new cereal I found at Shop Rite yesterday. They haven't had the F-Factor in a few months (don't know why, I kept buying out their stock..), so I've had to try some new things. There's the Optimum Slim I reviewed earlier this year, and I saw something labeled "Honey Nut" so I grabbed that. I love me some Honey Nut Cheerios and I wish there was something that tasted as good that was permissible. So these were "Gluten Free Cereal Honey Nut Rings" by "Glutino" - not too bad! I don't care for the smell of them but they taste pretty good. They remind me more of the peach-colored Apple Jacks than Honey Nut Cheerios but that's not a bad thing. They're 4/2 with only one gram of fiber, though, so I dunno if I'd go for them instead of the Optimum Slim. Plus the box was $4.99 instead of the $3.99 of the Slim.
I also picked up more of the Think Thin bars. I got a TON of the snack sized ones in Cookies & Cream and Chocolate Toffee Nut. I bought them off amazon untasted because we couldn't find them around, and I have to say I'm not a fan of them. Taste too much like protein bars to me. The Chocolate Dipped Nuts meal bar tastes like actual food so it's a winner, and I picked up a half dozen more on sale at Shop Rite yesterday (the only place we can find them other than Trader Joe's where they cost too much).
Cannot WAIT for our Whole Foods to open. I need some more options, please!
Lunch will be a turkey sandwich with sliced cheese, mayo and baby spinach on a Stop & Shop brand Sandwich thin (the name brands all have HFCS in theirs but the Stop & Shop don't, go figure!). Probably some string cheese.
Dinner tonight will probably be more nachos. I think I'll steam some spinach and include that, to get more nutrition out of it, other than fat and protein. ;) Otherwise it's just a 6g fiber meal.
Saturday is supposed to be pretty warm so I'm thinking it's time to make some ice cream! If my husband doesn't have a preference I'll make the Mocha Chip ice cream. If he does have a preference we'll probably end up with mint chip.
I'll weigh myself at my next chance, do all the measurements in MyFitnessPal progress, and we'll see how far I can go in two weeks!
I've been pretty much good all week (Wednesday I had a soy latte not thinking that the soymilk was probably sweetened - 12g sugar, damn!), and last night when my husband wanted Burger King I made myself a fried egg sandwich even though it was late and I just wanted to give into the Call of the Carbs.
This morning I tried a new cereal I found at Shop Rite yesterday. They haven't had the F-Factor in a few months (don't know why, I kept buying out their stock..), so I've had to try some new things. There's the Optimum Slim I reviewed earlier this year, and I saw something labeled "Honey Nut" so I grabbed that. I love me some Honey Nut Cheerios and I wish there was something that tasted as good that was permissible. So these were "Gluten Free Cereal Honey Nut Rings" by "Glutino" - not too bad! I don't care for the smell of them but they taste pretty good. They remind me more of the peach-colored Apple Jacks than Honey Nut Cheerios but that's not a bad thing. They're 4/2 with only one gram of fiber, though, so I dunno if I'd go for them instead of the Optimum Slim. Plus the box was $4.99 instead of the $3.99 of the Slim.
I also picked up more of the Think Thin bars. I got a TON of the snack sized ones in Cookies & Cream and Chocolate Toffee Nut. I bought them off amazon untasted because we couldn't find them around, and I have to say I'm not a fan of them. Taste too much like protein bars to me. The Chocolate Dipped Nuts meal bar tastes like actual food so it's a winner, and I picked up a half dozen more on sale at Shop Rite yesterday (the only place we can find them other than Trader Joe's where they cost too much).
Cannot WAIT for our Whole Foods to open. I need some more options, please!
Lunch will be a turkey sandwich with sliced cheese, mayo and baby spinach on a Stop & Shop brand Sandwich thin (the name brands all have HFCS in theirs but the Stop & Shop don't, go figure!). Probably some string cheese.
Dinner tonight will probably be more nachos. I think I'll steam some spinach and include that, to get more nutrition out of it, other than fat and protein. ;) Otherwise it's just a 6g fiber meal.
Saturday is supposed to be pretty warm so I'm thinking it's time to make some ice cream! If my husband doesn't have a preference I'll make the Mocha Chip ice cream. If he does have a preference we'll probably end up with mint chip.
I'll weigh myself at my next chance, do all the measurements in MyFitnessPal progress, and we'll see how far I can go in two weeks!
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Summer is Here
As I look back over May, I see it largely as a difficult month to stay on track. But every month, really, is difficult if you focus on what you can't have.
There was Mother's Day, followed quickly by my mother's birthday, and that meant cakes and such. We ignored their sweets on Mother's Day but gave in to the chocolate layer cake on her birthday and since then have been struggling to get back on target.
I'd be really good all day, and then at dinner or just after I'd just crumble.
Then the guys from our UK office sent me two boxes of chocolates. One box was easy to resist, since I'm not crazy about chocolate and the texture was too thick and hard to swallow for me. The second box was a tray of Ferrero Rocher. I don't know if I'd ever even tried them before, but that tray was gone in under 48 hours. Not all to me, thank goodness, but plenty of it. Made easier by the lack of nutritional information on the package.
I may have said this before, but I heard about a study that says we only have *so* much self control, so that if we are using it for one activity, we will crumble against other temptations. The example given was that of a person being seated in front of a comedian and told, no matter what, not to laugh. The person focuses on that task and then a big piece of cake is placed in front of them. They are using all their self control on the task given that they don't even notice they've eaten the cake!
I can see the truth of this reflected in my own behavior. On a craving-filled day there's nothing I want more than ice cream or cookies or, ahem, a big bag of chocolate covered raisins. And on a day when something is stressing me out? Boom. Walls are down, and I'm halfway through the bag of Raisinets before I know what hit me.
On a good day I'm a BFC angel and can resist the sweets in the break room. I still don't know if I could resist Ferrero Rocher.
The good thing is, though, that I make the healthiest decisions I am able to at any point. I know where the sugar and the sweeteners hide and I avoid it. Even if I crumble and have a big plate of fries with my burger, I'm drinking club soda or water with lime. I still eat a BFC-approved breakfast every day. When I get up and start right at least I have the opportunity to make it a good day. The rest is up to me.
Yesterday I had a modified mug muffin (after it's cooked I add a 1/2cup of almond milk and a 1/4cup of wild blueberries), which I made in a glass storage container because I was running late. It's still good after my 20m commute! Lunch was two supreme crunch tacos from Taco Bell (would have made chicken salad if I hadn't been running late). I had a think thin chocolate covered nuts protein bar before my martial arts class. I had planned to make myself some eggs and bacon when I got home but by the time I was out of the shower my back was killing me and I couldn't imagine standing long enough to cook (and then washing the pans) so I made dessert instead: 1/6 of a sugar free angel food cake, 1/2c of strawberries and whipped cream. So not much fiber yesterday but still a success! My first fully successful day in a while.
Today I got up early enough to make eggs and bacon, which I had with one piece of Ener-G tapioca bread and coffee. Lunch will be that chicken salad (made with mayonnaise and relish to be quick) on a Joseph's pita with some baby spinach. I am so tempted to plant a garden this summer because I am sick of buying spinach just to find it gross and wet in the bag before the expiration date! Dinner tonight will be nachos, made with Bite Size tostitos, a rotisserie chicken, Nature's Promise chipotle salsa, this "taco dip" sauce we found, sliced peppers, cheese, sour cream and onions. Oh and black olives and shredded cheddar. If you pile on the chicken at least you get your protein and it's something my husband will readily eat. I just need to find a way to add more fiber to it.
I've been tracking my food with MyFitnessPal on my phone but I need to come back to their full website regularly, since the app doesn't give a total for each meal, just for the day. It's easy to think you still have room for another two helpings of carbs when you see 80/120 in the daily report, even though you technically had a serving of carbs at every meal! I'm going to try to find an email address I can send a suggestion to for totaling up each meal.
Okay, so I posted at the beginning of May and at the end. I'll try to do better in June, posting shorter posts, more photos of meals, more recipes and less info dumps!
There was Mother's Day, followed quickly by my mother's birthday, and that meant cakes and such. We ignored their sweets on Mother's Day but gave in to the chocolate layer cake on her birthday and since then have been struggling to get back on target.
I'd be really good all day, and then at dinner or just after I'd just crumble.
Then the guys from our UK office sent me two boxes of chocolates. One box was easy to resist, since I'm not crazy about chocolate and the texture was too thick and hard to swallow for me. The second box was a tray of Ferrero Rocher. I don't know if I'd ever even tried them before, but that tray was gone in under 48 hours. Not all to me, thank goodness, but plenty of it. Made easier by the lack of nutritional information on the package.
I may have said this before, but I heard about a study that says we only have *so* much self control, so that if we are using it for one activity, we will crumble against other temptations. The example given was that of a person being seated in front of a comedian and told, no matter what, not to laugh. The person focuses on that task and then a big piece of cake is placed in front of them. They are using all their self control on the task given that they don't even notice they've eaten the cake!
I can see the truth of this reflected in my own behavior. On a craving-filled day there's nothing I want more than ice cream or cookies or, ahem, a big bag of chocolate covered raisins. And on a day when something is stressing me out? Boom. Walls are down, and I'm halfway through the bag of Raisinets before I know what hit me.
On a good day I'm a BFC angel and can resist the sweets in the break room. I still don't know if I could resist Ferrero Rocher.
The good thing is, though, that I make the healthiest decisions I am able to at any point. I know where the sugar and the sweeteners hide and I avoid it. Even if I crumble and have a big plate of fries with my burger, I'm drinking club soda or water with lime. I still eat a BFC-approved breakfast every day. When I get up and start right at least I have the opportunity to make it a good day. The rest is up to me.
Yesterday I had a modified mug muffin (after it's cooked I add a 1/2cup of almond milk and a 1/4cup of wild blueberries), which I made in a glass storage container because I was running late. It's still good after my 20m commute! Lunch was two supreme crunch tacos from Taco Bell (would have made chicken salad if I hadn't been running late). I had a think thin chocolate covered nuts protein bar before my martial arts class. I had planned to make myself some eggs and bacon when I got home but by the time I was out of the shower my back was killing me and I couldn't imagine standing long enough to cook (and then washing the pans) so I made dessert instead: 1/6 of a sugar free angel food cake, 1/2c of strawberries and whipped cream. So not much fiber yesterday but still a success! My first fully successful day in a while.
Today I got up early enough to make eggs and bacon, which I had with one piece of Ener-G tapioca bread and coffee. Lunch will be that chicken salad (made with mayonnaise and relish to be quick) on a Joseph's pita with some baby spinach. I am so tempted to plant a garden this summer because I am sick of buying spinach just to find it gross and wet in the bag before the expiration date! Dinner tonight will be nachos, made with Bite Size tostitos, a rotisserie chicken, Nature's Promise chipotle salsa, this "taco dip" sauce we found, sliced peppers, cheese, sour cream and onions. Oh and black olives and shredded cheddar. If you pile on the chicken at least you get your protein and it's something my husband will readily eat. I just need to find a way to add more fiber to it.
I've been tracking my food with MyFitnessPal on my phone but I need to come back to their full website regularly, since the app doesn't give a total for each meal, just for the day. It's easy to think you still have room for another two helpings of carbs when you see 80/120 in the daily report, even though you technically had a serving of carbs at every meal! I'm going to try to find an email address I can send a suggestion to for totaling up each meal.
Okay, so I posted at the beginning of May and at the end. I'll try to do better in June, posting shorter posts, more photos of meals, more recipes and less info dumps!
Tuesday, May 01, 2012
Holding Steady, Doing Well
Yesterday was my birthday. We went out with friends on Saturday night and I had shrimp scampi with broccoli at dinner. I did have frozen yogurt for dessert, but that's because I'd never been to a Peach Wave before and I wanted to try it out. It was good, though not amazing, so I should be okay even though they built one right in the center of our town. We have an ice cream maker and the java chip recipe I found last year is amazing.
We also found Clemmy's ice cream! It's horribly overpriced (the whole store we got it from is, but they're the only local source of Xylitol). I had a few spoonfuls of chocolate on Sunday night and it was right on par with the ice cream we made. Honestly if I've got the time to make it the homemade ice cream is a bargain compared to $6/pint. :P We also got some Vanilla so I'll maybe have some with some blueberries later this week.
First we have to finish my birthday cake! We made the flourless chocolate cake (with black beans) again, but we doubled the frosting recipe. Should not have. Oh, we were nauseous after from all the extra Xylitol (we also licked the spatulas...)! So we will take it slow finishing the cake. We put fresh raspberries on it which were delicious!
Saw The Pirates! Band of Misfits yesterday. It was super cute, but I'm probably not going to be happy with a movie until I get back to see Hunger Games again with my husband. Now it's just a matter of being stubborn. We were going to see that last night but some friends want to see it too so we'll see it this Sunday. We did try the Kay's Chili Nacho Cheese snacks on Saturday while we were cooking, and they're really good! So we'll have those at the movies this weekend (we forgot to pack them last night so we had Burger King Chicken Strips for dinner and a club soda from the theater).
AMC theaters is really bad about providing Nutritional Information. I was given a really out of date binder last night when I asked, but it did confirm what I pretty much already knew: their pizza is out (88g carbs for a personal) a small popcorn is still too big for one person (IIRC: 70g), two people could split the nachos (~65g) and be okay (except they're gross) and the chicken breast tenders (34g) are really the only tasty option. That's assuming the sugar (which they don't print the info for) is on par with chicken strips from other places. They do now serve unsweetened iced tea (0.5g), but my husband and I both wanted something carbonated. So us low carbers and those who have no choice, like diabetics, are still SOL when it comes to theater food unless we ignore theater policies and sneak in our own food (no one's ever dropped the apathy long enough to try and take mine away anyway).
A Little Caesar's is opening nearby soon, and there are actually a few tasty options to be had, according to their website nutrition info. Hot wings, with the exception of BBQ, are all close to 0/0, the baby pans are OK, a slice of anything but the pineapple pizzas is fine, and 2-3 cheesy breadsticks are also OK as a meal. Cool! They're right by my martial arts school so I'm sure there'll be some after-class gatherings there. The Yogurt Town also opening next door, I'm assuming, is less accessible but maybe they'll be smart and serve coffee, too.
My standard breakfast lately has been the flax mug muffin with blueberries and almond milk, then lunch is usually a joseph's pita with turkey, spinach and avocado. Dinner varies. Tonight I think we're getting another rotisserie chicken, which I will try to not eat before I can add some veggies to my plate (like last post).
My arms and thighs are not shedding weight like my stomach (my stomach measurement is beyond my goal as of this morning), so I've gotta try and figure out a way to work on them. My arms I know some exercises for but my legs really ought to be benefiting from my martial arts and I'm not sure why they aren't.
We also found Clemmy's ice cream! It's horribly overpriced (the whole store we got it from is, but they're the only local source of Xylitol). I had a few spoonfuls of chocolate on Sunday night and it was right on par with the ice cream we made. Honestly if I've got the time to make it the homemade ice cream is a bargain compared to $6/pint. :P We also got some Vanilla so I'll maybe have some with some blueberries later this week.
First we have to finish my birthday cake! We made the flourless chocolate cake (with black beans) again, but we doubled the frosting recipe. Should not have. Oh, we were nauseous after from all the extra Xylitol (we also licked the spatulas...)! So we will take it slow finishing the cake. We put fresh raspberries on it which were delicious!
Saw The Pirates! Band of Misfits yesterday. It was super cute, but I'm probably not going to be happy with a movie until I get back to see Hunger Games again with my husband. Now it's just a matter of being stubborn. We were going to see that last night but some friends want to see it too so we'll see it this Sunday. We did try the Kay's Chili Nacho Cheese snacks on Saturday while we were cooking, and they're really good! So we'll have those at the movies this weekend (we forgot to pack them last night so we had Burger King Chicken Strips for dinner and a club soda from the theater).
AMC theaters is really bad about providing Nutritional Information. I was given a really out of date binder last night when I asked, but it did confirm what I pretty much already knew: their pizza is out (88g carbs for a personal) a small popcorn is still too big for one person (IIRC: 70g), two people could split the nachos (~65g) and be okay (except they're gross) and the chicken breast tenders (34g) are really the only tasty option. That's assuming the sugar (which they don't print the info for) is on par with chicken strips from other places. They do now serve unsweetened iced tea (0.5g), but my husband and I both wanted something carbonated. So us low carbers and those who have no choice, like diabetics, are still SOL when it comes to theater food unless we ignore theater policies and sneak in our own food (no one's ever dropped the apathy long enough to try and take mine away anyway).
A Little Caesar's is opening nearby soon, and there are actually a few tasty options to be had, according to their website nutrition info. Hot wings, with the exception of BBQ, are all close to 0/0, the baby pans are OK, a slice of anything but the pineapple pizzas is fine, and 2-3 cheesy breadsticks are also OK as a meal. Cool! They're right by my martial arts school so I'm sure there'll be some after-class gatherings there. The Yogurt Town also opening next door, I'm assuming, is less accessible but maybe they'll be smart and serve coffee, too.
My standard breakfast lately has been the flax mug muffin with blueberries and almond milk, then lunch is usually a joseph's pita with turkey, spinach and avocado. Dinner varies. Tonight I think we're getting another rotisserie chicken, which I will try to not eat before I can add some veggies to my plate (like last post).
My arms and thighs are not shedding weight like my stomach (my stomach measurement is beyond my goal as of this morning), so I've gotta try and figure out a way to work on them. My arms I know some exercises for but my legs really ought to be benefiting from my martial arts and I'm not sure why they aren't.
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