August ETL
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Didn't have a very good day in the office, very stressed and feeling pretty hopeless. Every file I touch turns out to have complications and nothing gets done. On the bright side, I didn't let it affect my ETL day, so that part is good. Had my melon for breakfast and the usual salad for lunch. Very low calories today, just not up for eating much dinner, but I made some sauteed squash, carrots and onion (no oil used a non-stick pan and the squash created enough water to keep things from sticking) so I'm eating a bit of that. It turned out tasty, I just used a little garlic powder, oregano and black pepper to season it while it was cooking.
Waiting for a load of laundry to get done and I'm going to crash. I want to be back in the office early. I am starting to hate my job.0 -
Up and showered and ready to head to work. I had a bowl of lentil soup from the freezer stash for breakfast. Odd breakfast but I wanted something warm and filling with some protein after being so low on calories yesterday. Just wanted to check in real quick, I haven't been weighing myself every day like I usually would because the numbers tend to make or break my day. So week 1 of the 6 week plan results: 5.5 pounds. I'm happy with that.0
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I just noticed my last message got cut off by the iPhone app. So annoying. BTW, I was in the middle of saying I was going to eat take out once a week, lol. The cut off makes it sound like I'm going to be eating it every day.
Anyway, day 4 of the strict program and I'm not gonna lie, getting sick of giant salads and bean stew. I could have planned it better. I bought some peppers and black beans and I'm going to make a very veggie heavy chill today that will help me get more non-salad veggies in. I may stick to crudités for my raw vegetables for a few days.
Mihani, 5.5 lbs is great! You must be pleased! I'll be happy to lose half that much.
I realized today how lucky I am to live in the neighbourhood I do. Zero fast food, zero doughnut shops, and about a million juice bars and gyms. Not to mention two fully vegan restaurants within walking distance and several more places with extensive vegan options. Health and fitness is a very big deal here!0 -
Peas, that neighbourhood sounds like a dream come true!!! Nice when you have support from unsuspecting places. Vegan takeout sounds like an awesome occasional option too!!
Wow Mihani, you are on fire!!!!!!!!!! That just woke me up a bit. That's amazing. Although I hear you, we are talking a lot lately about how every single file has problems, none of straightforward!!! It makes for long weekends with little feeling of success.
Speaking of, hang in there Jean. That sounds awful but hopefully you can get through thinking "this too shall pass" and that it will hopefully be a rotten phase that won't last too long. I do know what you mean though, it's probably worse feeling like it is out of your (and your co-workers') hands.
I got in some exercise and healthy-eating on Saturday but Sunday we had an afternoon wedding. The veggie option was indian, which was DELICIOUS, but very rich and heavy. And then I couldn't say no to dessert. So I sort of bombed yesterday. My workout also made me realize how out of shape I am because I feel so sore again! I need to be exercising more than once a week though, even if it is just walking on the treadmill. Our dog is the slowest walker in the world... Anyway, I am hoping to buckle down this week like you, Mihani!0 -
Hi all. In recovery mode right now from a weekend where my emotions drove my eating choices. ;( Friday night my DD had planned to have her first ever "friend" birthday party. Out of the 6 of her closest friends that said they were coming only one showed up. She was completely crushed. I was so hurt for her and really mad at the girls that said they were coming and were going to spend the night and then didn't even have the manners to call her and let her know. We wound up with a whole lot of leftover pizza and other goodies in the house that were not the best idea. Then, Saturday and Sunday were spent running all day getting together back to school stuff with lunches on the go. By the time we finally made it home Sunday night I was wiped and hadn't had time to even plan anything for dinner. So, we picked up Chipotle and I enjoyed it along with a much needed glass of wine. Back to it today. I haven't been working so hard just to let this past weekend become the norm!
I did manage to spend some time prepping more food for this week. Three crock pot meals that will save my butt and my meal plan. Soccer starts up in full force and we will be on the go for at least three nights during the week. These will be essential to successful "pizza free" weeks. I am looking forward to getting back to feeling better and more energetic. Amazing how eating so freely can make you feel so bad.
Still loving my Polar A300! I love it mostly because it beeps at me when I need to get up and move. Seriously, I think that in and of itself is worth it. There is an awful lot you can do with this gadget and I am not sure I will ever have it totally figured out....speaking of that.. .it just beeped at me, so, gotta move!
Check back later - have great days!0 -
I'm ba-ack... My holidays were wonderful and totally relaxing, but it's good to be back into a routine - I actually was looking forward to work today...???? Wait; what???
Good for you, Mihani!! I am on my day 3 the 6-week plan -- I ALSO started on a Saturday.... I was REALLY headachy on the first day, but yesterday wasn't really all that bad at all, and today I think it'll be just fine...
This morning the scale tells me that I'm already down 4.2 lbs. YES PLEASE!!! That's what will keep me going. Progress!! My weight was creeping back up and it was time to say ENOUGH!!!
And it's funny that you had lentil soup for breakfast. I've been really craving the OSG red lentil & kale soup. I really need to make that again, it was so tasty!!
I haven't been working out as regularly for the last few weeks. Need to get back into the habit. I did do 80 squats the other day for no reason. It really wasn't hard at all, so maybe I should shoot for 150. And I want to start doing the same thing with push ups, bench dips, crunches and lunges. I'd really like to be able to do 100 push ups, and 200 of everything else, and I'd like to do it every single day. Gonna start building myself up tomorrow. Today I'm focusing on groceries and meal prep...
I had one of the best salads ever on my day 1... SO GOOD! I made guacamole with cherry tomatoes, lime juice, avocado, paprika, cumin and cayenne pepper, then I added 1 green onion, 1/2 of a red pepper, 3 stalks of celery and a whole bunch of chopped up romaine - probably about 4 cups. YUM!!!! That was one BIG salad!! I will definitely be making that again!!! I could have added black beans, too - but I was without a car and on limited groceries, so I made do...
I also had a really wonderful smoothie too - might be my new favorite. Coconut water, 2 bananas, spinach and frozen cherries. It was SOOOOOOOO good!! It turns muddy, but I think it just looked chocolatey.
Peas WOW - walking distance to vegan restaurants!! That's incredible!! I have NOTHING like that here AT ALL.... :P
Mmmm... thanks for the idea of a veggie chili -- I should definitely make that, too!!
Alright, I've gotta get to it. Have a wonderful day everyone!!0 -
Oh, and New, that SUCKS about the bday party. That was completely ignorant of people not to call and say they couldn't make it; for whatever reason. My DD has a summer bday too, and I get that it's hard to coordinate a party with holidays all over the place, but at least have the consideration to let people know!!!0
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Peas, I wish I had more vegan options close by. Or maybe I don’t lol. How did your chili turn out?
Lia, I really don’t know what is going on with our cases lately, but I just wish I could take a file, get it done and off my desk, and lately nothing seems to get done. I’m in a holding pattern on so many things. Very frustrating! And I can soooo relate on feeling out of shape. I decided to take on the 30 day shred last night and even with cheating some of the sets it was brutal lol. I really need to stick with it and build myself back up. I’ve let myself go far too long and have to acknowledge I’m starting from scratch when it comes to fitness. Seems like you are going to weddings every week this summer!
Laura, that is awful about your daughter’s party. Poor thing. Hope she’s feeling better now. Great job prepping some dinners for the week. I find being prepared is such a huge help.
Welcome back Karrie! Is the treehouse all finished? Wow, great start on the 6 week plan! I made the red lentil kale soup during my cooking spree a couple weeks ago and froze 6 containers. It freezes well. I have liked all the soups I’ve tried from OSG actually, the 10 spice veggie is decadently delicious. I don't know why, but starting the 6 week plan on a Saturday seemed to make a difference in getting through that first week. Now I'm thinking it's Tuesday and I'm almost halfway through week 2 already.
I brought some files home to work on last night, but got home later than anticipated and then a thunderstorm rolled in, and while I was debating on whether I wanted to fire up the computer while it was going on I crashed on the couch. It was only 7:30 so I woke up at 1:00 and need to get back to bed for a couple hours.
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Lovin' all the motivated peeps in here this month!! There's something in the air (or maybe in the water...)
Mihani I do NOT know how you do it. And then to find time to cook and freeze food in advance on top of all your crazy hours!! I barely have time to cook for today!!!
That's good to know about the 10-spice soup. I've not tried that one yet, and I might not have if you hadn't just given it a gold star.
The treehouse is not done yet. It's 90% done on the exterior - it just needs soffits and the windows and door need to be framed in. Then the exterior is complete. After that, we just need to insulate and panel in the interior, and that will also be complete. So it's REALLY close. There won't be any decorating done this year, but I'm going to measure the windows and sew some curtains over the winter, and I'm going to make some matching cushions for the benches that we'll be building next year.
My dad has been gone on holidays for 3 weeks now, so we haven't been doing any construction. But it's nice, because it gave me time to hang out with my kids at the lake. He should be back either today or tomorrow, so construction will resume soon, I'm sure.
I ruined my salad yesterday. I made the guacamole salad again because I liked it so much, but I accidentally spilled the cayenne pepper into it, so instead of just a dash, I ended up with somewhere between 1/2 tsp to a full tsp. It really wasn't anywhere near as enjoyable, but I made myself finish it anyway, because I didn't want to waste all those veggies!! (It smelled so much better than it tasted...) Oh well, I won't be making that mistake again!!!
Got a bunch of groceries last night for the next 2-3 days. Tonight I'm going to make a coleslaw with cabbage, beets, carrots and whatever else (can't remember) and the dressing is made with a juiced orange & a lemon. Sounded tasty, so I hope it really is. If it's worth sharing, I'll post the receipe tomorrow...
I'm down another full pound this morning, putting my day 4 total weight loss at 5.4lbs. Yahoo! It's this initial fantastic loss that really motivates me to keep going. I'm now only .2 lbs higher than my last MFP check-in. Thank goodness!! I'm already feeling better - less bloated, and I've already noticed that my skin is looking nicer; in a week or two it'll be amazing!!
I hope you all have a fabulous day!!0 -
Hey guys!! So nice to have you back, Karrie! Sounds like you're off to a wicked start too! Too bad about all the cayenne lol. I LOVE cherries in smoothies!
SOOO proud of everyone here. Just in case no one tells you that. I am super impressed and big fans of you guys. It is not easy to have completed what you have completed!!!!
Man, Laura, that is just awful about your poor daughter's party. I hope the girls have apologized or made up for it. Seems like so many people (and parents) are in their own worlds....
I also feel constant pangs for wine every single day!!
Mihani, I'm not sure what's going on. It seems that now that it's busy, and when there is no time for problems, that there are dozens of problems lol. Oh well. I'm trying to stay on top of my sleep! How are your hands btw?!?!
I'm terrified of weighing myself because I feel like I'm still too inconsistent but maybe I will give myself a target weigh in day for next Friday. I need some more smoothies in my life I think!0 -
Karrie, I like having everyone motivated at once too, it feeds my ETL mojo! That sounds like one nice treehouse in the making. Sorry about your salad, I hate when things like that happen. You are doing amazing on your first week, 5.4 pounds… wow!
Lia, my hands are holding up. I was wearing the brace at night, but lately I have been forgetting it because I’ve been sleeping on the couch in the family room to stay with my old shepherd. I haven’t let her go up and down the stairs for a long time for fear she will fall. I was barricading her in the family room at night, but she’s getting so old now I feel worse than ever leaving her alone at night. I figure I’m at work all day, and a lot of the time when I’m home I am upstairs in my office, so it’s about the only time I get to hang out with her and it makes her happy.
I agree with you about sleep, it is so much easier to make good choices when I’m not worn out and thinking food will give me energy. I’m amazed how much more energy I have now in my second week. I’m wide awake from the time I get up until time for bed, and I am sleeping great.
Another good ETL day behind me, yay! I had an unintentional cheat though. My sister in law brought me some of her homemade gazpacho, which is delicious, and I ate it before I realized it probably had oil in it. She said it did have olive oil, but not a lot so I just skipped my serving of nuts for the day. It was only one cup, so I’m not worried.
I am not going to try the 30DS again tonight, my legs are really sore. I’m going to take the boy dog out for a walk and stretch my legs.
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Well, I made it through the 5 days of strict ETL while my husband was gone. Now he's back and of course wants takeout, lol. I'm going with it but choosing a salad instead of my usual vegan club sandwich.
I think the best thing about my little 5 day challenge was remembering how much I love fruit. I would much rather have watermelon or raspberries now than a low quality sugary cookie or candy.
I think I will continue at about 80-90%, getting my fruits and veggies in and eating soup and/or salad for lunches, plus cooking without oil. I do miss my protein smoothies in the morning, though.
Oh, and I lost about 2lb, which is a happy bonus!
Keep up the great work everybody!0 -
whats_her_name wrote: »Lovin' all the motivated peeps in here this month!!
I wish I was one of them.
There is lots of motivation and optimism here this month. Eventually, I will get some of that going, too.
I've been addicted on and off to nicorette gum for almost 25 years. I'd say for more than half that time, it's been off.... I'll go several years without, then some situation will just 'cause' me to go into a store, and grab a box, and it's game on again. I'd been without for a very long time, this time... and I consciously decided, that going back on the gum was a good idea, to curb binging. This was one of the worst ideas I've ever had. It was working famously, then, it wasn't. I started binging, anyways, and as with all my addictions, ramped up the gum consumption to epic proportions, and am back consuming mass quantities of Diet Dr Pepper, as well. For the last month or so, I've been binging beyond any previous levels, as well. Almost literally to the point of driving from store to store, fast food place to fast food place, binging.
So, if there's any good news from all this.... I have kicked the gum for about a week... and I realized, that I am extremely good at kicking habits.... I simply decided it was time to stop, and I did. I can and will do the same thing with the Diet Dr Pepper ( again ) and will then, start the process of making radical dietary changes ( because, that's what I do..... )
I don't have any idea what the 'ultimate' solution is... ( didn't Dr Phil write a diet book with 'ultimate solution' in the title? :huh: )
Anyhow, I seem to be in the binge loop pretty bad at the moment, and I'm not feeling any immediate change coming. I figure something will trip around the end of August, and I'll be off the DDP, and working on some serious dietary changes.
Truly though, I just don't get me, at all. I mean, really, WTF?
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Great results for your 5 days Peas! I agree about the fruit. I don't think I could do this without the unlimited fruit.
Sloth, we all think you are cute awkward. I'm sure you will rally and get yourself back to your good habits.
Had a good day today, but I was tired. After just boasting about how energetic I was last night. That's what I get for being boastful I guess. I am going to bed a bit earlier tonight. I was up later than I intended last night, when out for my walk I stopped to visit with a neighbor on the last lap to home and it was dark before I left there.
Speaking of, I've had dinner and it is time to hit the sidewalks with the boy dog. He's really enjoying being walked more regularly. I may have created a monster, but if he gets me off my butt and out walking that's okay. Until winter when he will be sorely disappointed that I don't plan to go out in the ice and snow with him.
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It just occurred to me... I don't think I want the typical, it's ok, it's not your fault support. I think I'd rather be told straight up... WTF is wrong with you?
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Sloth, I think it's not that rare, and not about you being a bad or dumb person! I have always had trouble with binges too!! It's not like you don't have willpower, just something else is up maybe?
Maybe rather than trying to stop or go cold turkey or whatever, just try to figure out what's going through your mind while binging? Are you stressed or tired? Or feeling guilty? Or just think you deserve a reward?
Honestly, not trying to sound like a preacher or a shrink, but I have read so much about it and some tidbits have helped. Well it's always somewhat helpful but so much harder in practice. I do find realizing what or why I'm doing it does help (ie. I eat really fast and more if I feel guilty because it's like I'm trying to hide the evidence lol).
If you know there is a certain time of night it happens, you have to replace it with another activity (write emails, walk around the block, play a video game, whatever).
I am also of the thought that I sort of need the mood to strike. It hit me the other day that I've been dieting for 14 years straight and I feel burnt out. I'm really trying to change my thinking (which is not easy) away from thinking "You shouldn't be doing this" because then I do it times 10!0 -
sloth3toes wrote: »whats_her_name wrote: »Lovin' all the motivated peeps in here this month!!
Truly though, I just don't get me, at all. I mean, really, WTF?
I think I say this to myself daily, like what the heck is wrong with you, you hate being overweight but don't stop eating?! And I honestly think it's making it worse though. I know I need to be more positive somehow!0 -
I don't think anyone here wants to beat you up Sloth. But you are doing a pretty good job doing it to yourself. Like Lia, I'm more likely to commiserate since I have the same issues. Lia, those are some great ideas, I need to keep those in mind when the inevitable precarious moments come.
So far so good on the 6 week plan though. Today I had some organic kale chips, vegan cheese flavor. I read the ingredients and the cheese flavoring was made with cashews, no oil, so I figured that was my serving of nuts. I still don't like kale chips, I love kale, but not chips. I keep thinking I should like them though, so every few months I have to try them again. The only ones I've tried that I actually sort of liked are the Brad's brand and they are like $7 for a container of them which is ridiculous. The ones I've tried to make myself have been total fails. I also had 2 brown rice cakes, which was just a snacky moment and shouldn't have happened, but as snacks go I'm not worried about them and they were my starch serving for the day. First time I've broken into a snack though, so that was a little bit of a warning that I might be starting to think I can get away with things and I need to keep that in check.
Tomorrow is day 7 of week 2... woohoo!
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Maybe rather than trying to stop or go cold turkey or whatever, just try to figure out what's going through your mind while binging? Are you stressed or tired? Or feeling guilty? Or just think you deserve a reward?
First of all, I'm not trying to dominate or jack this thread in any way... I feel foolish enough as it is, talking about this.
Lia, I'm not really a thinking guy. I believe I've said before, I've never really felt that knowing the cause has any real bearing on the 'cure' for any of my addictions. Case in point... I remember going through a quit smoking program in high school, where we were supposed to understand our 'feelings' when we craved a cigarette, stuff like that. I failed miserably. I continued to smoke for another 15 years, until I quit drinking, and then quit smoking. And, when I quit drinking, it was pretty much the same thing... I dwelled on what I perceived were the causes ( read.... blame ) of my drinking for 15 years, and only when I realized that it made no difference why I drank, only that I needed to stop, did I then stop.
I think it's my personal way of dealing with things, and I really don't think the reason why I'm doing this is all that relevant. Now that said... you've got me thinking about why I'm doing it, which can't hurt.... and furthermore, I can't claim a whole lot of success losing weight, ( or more importantly, keeping it off ) my way. Now, about keeping it off.... I've been through this cycle 3 or 4 times over the last 10 years or so. I can lose the bulk of the weight, and go into a reasonable maintenance 'program...' for a total of about 2 yrs. Then, I stop going to the gym, and quickly start eating crap again. This time, is the worst... I am completely off the rails this time, like I said, drivethru to drivethru, insanity.
I fully realize I can only keep this up for a limited time... And I quite simply HAVE to go into a 'diet' phase with some kind of radical first move... for motivation... and the juicing last time, made me feel good, and gave some instant gratification, which I'm all about.... Then, I'll probably settle back into salads, etc, for awhile. What sort of baffles me, is the 2 yr thing.... I'm pretty sure, this is about the 3rd time at the 2 yr mark, I've derailed.
Now, back to your original thought, about why....? It could be any of your suggestions. It could be something to do with 2 yrs.. so, time to binge and screw it all up again.... but, that just sounds a bit silly. I may have been facing a lot more stress than I acknowledged, with all the boy's recruiting stuff, and too many disappointments, etc.... and there's a bit of a lull, at least it's less hectic for a bit, but he's still not committed to a school, and everyone around him who is going to a US school is committed.... I could go on and on about this... but, it's about the only thing I can think of that could be a factor. But, even if that's a contributing factor in why I'm doing this... it's not something I can control. He's doing what he can to get recruited, and I'm doing what I can to help.
I really think what I might need is just a good swift kick in the @$$.
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I guess I just meant that I think it has to go beyond "oh crap, I'm binging again... I have to stop doing it" because obviously then we all would lol. That is strange about the 2 year mark though... maybe your inner rebellion.
I have had a good week too actually, although far from ETL perfect. I'm still striving to get better though and I keep telling myself "you eat plant-based, you eat plant-based" and hoping that I will convince myself lol.
Mihani, wow!!! I feel like this is the best streak you've had in awhile maybe?! That's awesome, you are really doing it!!!! Woohoo!! Very inspiring. I'm trying to band wagon along with you!0
