JUNKLESS IN JULY!

bisky

Hi -

I had another aha moment during my recovery walk today listening to Dr. Fuhrman on you tube. I am craving extra carbs because of the increased exercise. I need to be eating more fruit (again). I let this slide and was back down to 1-2 fruits a day. I have been choosing bread, candy and other carbs instead of fruit. Yesterday I swam 1000m, biked 6 miles and ran/walk 1.5 miles. I was starving by dinner time. I should have been eating fruit.

Brooks leaves July 6 for El Salvador for 8 days. I am going to go back on ETL starting tomorrow. It is much easier by myself to get started and then I can maintain. Making a big healthy salad to take to BBQ 4th of July party.

Mihani

Great title Donna, thanks for starting the thread. I will be with you getting back to ETL basics. I have been indulging in too many starchy carbs too. Bread and tortilla chips and pretzels. Not to mention the dreaded alcohol with all the summer gatherings. Your exercise blows me away though... well done!

I am going to the office tomorrow... will have the place to myself. Left early today since streets were already being shut down early this morning for the Independence Day celebrations and parade. Then the fireworks tonight. The suburbs have their displays on the 4th. I went to the downtown thing the first few years (35 some years ago) but it is way too big/crowded/hot for me nowadays. Plus it keeps me up past my bedtime! I was so tired today that I felt like my brain wasn't even functioning anyway. I am planning very early to bed.

I have lettuce and veggies for salads that I will get prepped tonight. It's too hot to think about cooking so I'll have to figure out something on the cooked veggies. I have lots of frozen veggies and greens, so I think I'll rely on one skillet bean/veggie concoctions for dinners the next week or two, that won't keep me over the stove more than a few minutes. Depending on what sauces/spices I add there is always variety of flavors.

y'all

bisky

Mihani - You belong in Texas! The title was Carla's suggestion and I hope to live up to it.

I use to like to go to work on holidays because it was quiet and I could get a lot done. I would rather be in the A/C at work right now than home.

I am going to wait until Thursday to prep everything but I have a lot of fruit and vegetables plus beans for now.

Happy 4th!

Carla_wfpb

The hummus pitas with strawberry sauce were yummy. Still snacking, but at least my actual meals will be better all week. Tonight is linguine alfredo w/ portobello mushrooms and greens. Looking forward to it.

I just signed up for a 2 day workshop on making simple clothing from hand woven fabric. It is going to get me out of the scarf and wrap rut with my weaving. I'm excited about taking it but it isn't until early September. There's another class in October on painting fiber prior to weaving and I will probably have to sign up for that this week too. The classes fill up quickly.

Donna, do you have any special plans for your birthday? How's the floor replacement going?

Mihani, I went to the big fireworks event downtown Vancouver only once. It was so crowded that I got very anxious and claustrophobic. We ended up walking to the next skytrain station to get back home because I just wanted to get away from everyone (which probably wasn't the best idea so late at night wandering through the city!). The farms around us usually light off some decent fireworks, so we'll catch the ones the do early and will be in bed before they really get going!

Mihani

Strawberry sauce sounds good Carla. One of my favorite restaurants has a big salad with chicken, candied walnuts, sliced strawberries, and a strawberry vinaigrette. I just have them hold the chicken, although I haven't been there in a couple years. Is Ruby afraid of the fireworks? How is she doing on her recovery?

That's exactly why I go in on weekends and holidays, Donna... just wish it wasn't nearly every weekend/holiday. How was your party? I didn't get my prep done. It has been SO hot the past couple days and without A/C it's really hard to motivate myself to stay in the kitchen. It is supposed to cool down a little after today, with much lower humidity. It's positively steaming out there right now.

Didn't do too well today, skipped lunch but ate popcorn and pretzels at the office. I have 2 beers left in the fridge which I will enjoy tonight and then I'm going to go all in 6 week plan. I really want to see the 150's again and I think I can be there by August 1st.

bisky

Mihani - Okay, after the beers are gone and Brooks is too lets go for it!

My 4th BBQ was very nice. My friend baked a small salmon just for me while everyone else was having steak, hotdogs and hamburgers. A couple of people after eating their hamburgers then wanted to know if there was more salmon. I brought a large salad and there was only watermelon for dessert! We rode our mtn bikes for over an hour and lap swam for 15 minute. It rained bringing down the temp here in San Antonio.

Mihani

Glad you had a nice time Donna. It has been so hot here I don't feel like doing anything lately. Supposed to be a bit more reasonable the next week. I am looking forward to autumn already!

I haven't even done my prep yet. I am planning to do it tonight so I can get back on salads.

Carla_wfpb

Happy Friday!

I enjoyed my mushroom linguine and managed to take a photo before eating it, so i'll pop a picture underneath. The upcoming meal plan includes a savory oats meal for dinner, so I'm interested in trying that out.

I finished the regression testing finally yesterday, but this weekend I'll be doing testing for a new product we're going to be launching soon. Testing something new is always more satisfying because there are more bugs to find and you don't know the software inside and out yet.

Tour de Fleece starts tomorrow so I'm going to spin my way through a bunch of beautiful fiber that has been adding up around here. After it's all spun I think I'll switch from spinning to weaving and knitting for a while so that I can use up the yarn.

Ruby did pretty well with the fireworks this year. She was a bit anxious, but she mostly wanted to go outside and bark at them.

What are you gals up to this weekend?

Carla_wfpb

Mihani

Very pretty dinner Carla! Good luck with work and spinning.

Will be working all weekend, but plan to do a little prep tonight and be ready to get busy tomorrow on ETL 6 week plan. I have been SO lax. I have more things this week though, drinks out with friends mid-week and a party on Saturday. Will do my best. Sigh... it would be so easy to be 100% if I didn't attempt this social life thing LOL

bisky

Carla that looks so good.

My floor replacement is not replaced yet. The guy came out and measured moisture in the cement and in some rooms it is almost 1/2 so they install next Thursday. We figured out a big problem with this house. The roof was replaced last year and the attic has little to no ventilation. It is about 135* up there so we have to have an attic fan and vents installed. A whole house attic fan does not work in San Antonio because it does not cool down enough at night to pull cooler air up there in this heat & humidity. It would just draw from the A/C and make out a/c work harder.

Brooks left for El Salvador yesterday. I was rather upset because it is such a violent country and he received no debriefing prior to going.

I played tennis this morning. Swimming has increased my upper body strength and made my tennis game stronger. I am cleaning out refrigerator and then going shopping for a few supplies for the week. Tonight before sunset taking dogs to park for walk. I ordered a dog stroller for the 2 small dogs because they overheat after 20 minutes of walking and then I have to carry them home. Tomorrow spinning on bike inside and walking dogs early before heat.

L - pita, hummus and 1/2 avocado
D - salad with beans and faro or Zoe's for salad and falafel.

Can't wait to see what you make with your yarn Carla. Buster is terrified of fireworks.
Mihani - I too have been very lax. Plan Sunday - Saturday ETL.

Mihani

That is scary Donna... sending you and Brooks lots of good wishes and prayers! Glad you are getting in lots of exercise and time with the pups.

Got my salad fixin's prepped today, finally, and all ready for 100% ETL starting tomorrow. I haven't been "bad" but certainly not anywhere close to 100% lately.

bisky

We are ready for our walk...hahaha!

Carla_wfpb

aww, they are so cute!

Mihani

LOL... looks like a fun walk! What cutie-pies.

Still not on track. Ugh! I am eating a lot of veggies though. Still getting into the pretzels. I must regain control.

bisky

I am still into chocolate and carbs. Eating lots of beans and hummus.

The small dogs quickly overheat in this humidity and heat and I got tired of either not taking them or ending up carrying them. Rained all day here. It is like a steam room outside.

Carla_wfpb

I haven't been on track either, and I have the headaches to show for it. Ugh. Going to make the stuffed peppers meal tonight that we should have had on Friday. The stuffing is already made so I just have to cut up the peppers, fill them, and bake them. I don't mind using the oven on a day like today. It is cool and overcast with a high of 71. It will be getting progressively warmer after today and getting up to the low 80s.

Picked a huge bowl of cherries from our pie cherry tree. There's probably 3 times as many more on the tree still. I don't know why the birds aren't feasting on them, but I'm happy they aren't! Since the orchard is in an enclosed space, I let Ruby free for a bit while I picked the cherries. She ended up eating cherries off of the bottom of the tree. She's healing up nicely and her checkup went well. The vet said she can be let outside free in 3 weeks.

Mihani

Yay for Ruby! Glad she's close to the end of her ordeal. Stuffed peppers sound really good. Still too hot here, although today it is a little better, in the 80's. I am happiest in 50 to 70 degrees.

I'm buried in work as always. I feel like maybe I'm getting a tiny bit of a grip on things, but it's tenuous at best, and probably all in my imagination.

bisky

After 3 days of rain the mosquitoes have multiplied. I gave Brooks my Aloe for El Salvador and forgot to buy more. It does repel mosquitoes but has to be applied every 3-4 hours. I would rather do that than pesticides.

So worried about Trump pulling out of Nato or threatening our allies. He has threatened before to pull out of Nato. Sorry political moment.

Fairly good day. I am trading my sugar free chocolate for a few pieces of good dark chocolate at the end of the day.

Mihani

Never heard of Aloe being a mosquito repellent, Donna. Interesting.

I made a big batch of E2 hummus a few nights ago and have been eating hummus and baby spinach sammiches on whole wheat flats for 3 nights. I don't seem to get tired of that. I am eating oatmeal for lunch. I just don't feel like eating real meals lately. I do, however, feel like eating blue corn chips and lara bars.

We have at least a dozen new clients over the past week and I am buried. I need to work on some of these files tonight so I'm off.

bisky

I discovered aloe works against Mosquitos recently. I bought a TJ's Aloe cream that I used after swimming. It looks like jelly and non greasy. I am usually covered in Mosquito bites by now despite using gross stuff like Off. I can actually go into the back yard in the morning and evening when the little buggers are the worst. I am on a fat free organic refried bean and baked corn tostado kick alternating with hummus & pita bread with salad thrown in here or there.

Mihani

Got a lot done last night and today, planning a big weekend of work and hope to get a little more on top of things. We're still facing the upgrade to all our software soon... that whole thing was weird they said they were ready then said oh... not so much. I am thinking by the end of July. Which is going to be a huge disruption but I sure hope it helps us with efficiency and keeping track of things.

I am planning a HUGE reset starting Saturday. Back to 6 week plan basics and quit messing around. I have my grocery list made and will do my prepping tomorrow evening. No Snacking, No Snacking, No Snacking shall be my motto! LOL

Carla_wfpb

Let's just say I have no good news regarding my food...

did finish a woven wrap though

bisky

Beautiful colors in your wrap Carla.

No good news here either. Wine and brownies for dessert. The floor looks horrible. Does not match the sample. Vice President of floor company and the the floor manufacture meeting with me tomorrow. Brooks still in El Salvador. I turn 60 tomorrow and that sounds so old. More wine. First time ever I drank a half a bottle of wine by myself. Okay take a look at the sample and what was put in. I was looking for a lighter color.

This is what I got:


I know they are going to try to talk me into accepting the floor. Answer is no. I was looking for a lighter color. MOrE WINE! Friends coming over for meeting to give moral support. I was so hoping it would be all done when Brooks got home from living in tent for almost 2 weeks.

Those long dark marks remind me of slugs in Italy.

Carla_wfpb

Donna, sorry about your 'slug' floor. It doesn't look like the sample at all. Nice to have friends that will come over and offer support! I hope you have a wonderful birthday! Will you celebrate with Brooks once he's home?

Mihani, I am not doing an ETL reset, but I do want to get back on track, so I'll be getting serious about prep this weekend and joining in on Monday with my meal plans. I hope you have a productive working weekend.

I am tired this morning. I stayed up until 2 am finishing a book. I'm not working today so I might have a nap in the afternoon. I'm also in a weaving groove and planning out my next project. I have a weaving class starting next Wednesday where I'll be using a more complicated loom than what I have.

Ruby is outside right now enjoying the cool morning in the shade. She's on 30 foot tether that swivels. It has to be away from all objects so she can't tangle herself up, but in the morning and then later in the afternoon, she can reach the shade of a tree and so gets to have some fresh air. I can see her from my office. The only time it becomes a problem is if our neighbor gets too close with his tractor and Ruby starts getting territorial. then I have to bring her in for a bit because she gets too riled up.

Happy Friday everyone!

bisky

Thank you Carla! So today started out with the VP of the flooring service, 4 installers and the head of installation, the saleswoman and the manager of the company that makes this floor. The VP brought the floor sample and everyone could see it did not match what was put in. The only person who was defensive was the person who is going to take a hit because his sample did not match the flooring...he tried to say it is hard to predict from a sample but my girlfriend who came over for moral support immediately said then you should have a picture of the floor installed on the back of your sample if the buyer can't tell from the sample what the floor will turn out to be. So they took out all the flooring of a back bedroom that was half laid and left the rest until I pick out something else. Sigh. such an ordeal.

My friend took me to my favorite place Zoe's kitchen for Cauliflower rice bowl with falafel. Later another friend took me to Zoe's again for dinner. No more wine or brownies.!

Best news, my step daughter called to wish me Happy Birthday! We were very close until her late teenage years and recently have become close again. Brooks even found a phone on base that allowed him to call today!

Mihani

Beautiful wrap, Carla! Hope you got caught up on some rest. I am bad about staying up too late when I start reading too.

Ugh, what a pain with the flooring, Donna. Glad they are going to make it right. I agree, it doesn't look at all like the sample. Happy Belated Birthday!!! Sorry I missed that. Sounds like it was a good day.

I was running a day behind getting back on track. Ready to go today. I prepped yesterday... red and green leaf lettuce, sliced radishes and carrots and shredded beets in the food processor, made a big batch of E2 hummus and got some lentil soup out of the freezer. Found some beautiful collards at the store yesterday so I'm looking forward to cooking those up tonight. I went to the farm market yesterday and got some really nice yellow squash and zucchini, tomatoes, cantaloupe, green beans. This week I'm going to concentrate on just getting back to eating better and no snacking, and will start the 6 week plan next week.

bisky

Wow, just wow. A little hectic here with flooring, big 6-0 and hubby returned last night from El Salvador. One of my friends defriended me because she thought I wasn't committed enough to MFP. I hadn't left messages or logged my food & exercise. Yikes! Why does this bother me?

Mihani

Yikes Donna... that's one of the reasons I don't bother with the main forums or my newsfeed. I still have quite a few friends from when I first started on MFP, but I never check my newsfeed or anything so I have lost track of everyone. It got to where I was spending more time on my newsfeed than I was actually trying to eat healthy and exercise... something had to give lol.

I thought I pulled lentil soup out of the freezer but it turned out it was cauliflower curry soup... I forgot about that stuff. Sooo tasty. Froze well.

Finally, a good day on track!!!

B - oatmeal with banana, cinnamon, a few walnuts, a splash of oat milk
L - big ol' salad topped with a dollop of E2 hummus and some 3-2-1 dressing
D - hummus flat with lots of spinach, cucumber, tomato, cup of soup, cantaloupe

No Snacks!

bisky

I agree Mihani....to much drama.
Good job getting back on plan. I have some friends that are supportive and positive and have lost a lot of weight...I would never defriend them just because they weren't around for a few weeks. Enough energy on that.

I had a swim lesson. It was informative and concise. My breathing is just fine, I need to work on my upper body stroke to increase my speed. I could tell this evening I was using more muscles in upper back and deltoids. I love it. Practice this week and then meet with her next Monday.

Stocked up on some good food at TJ's. Also detailed and reorganized Pantry. I have all beans, grains and nuts in front ready to grab. Pastas went high up on a shelf as well as dried fruits, candy (yes there is chocolate) and chips. I took everything out of pantry, vacuumed, steam cleaned and then wipe down. Good thing no evidence of any bugs or rodents. Then I got cheap very pretty yoga mats and lined the shelves with them plus matching bins from the dollar store.

Mihani

That's cool you took a swimming lesson Donna... I guess there's more to it than keeping your head above water! I used to love to swim, plan to start again someday. Congrats on your pantry reorganization. I love doing things like that. Straight up cleaning like dusting and vacuuming not so much.

Breakfast was some cantaloupe and a few walnuts. Too busy for lunch. Dinner was a cup of lentil cauliflower curry soup and a big salad with loads of veggies and a dollop of homemade E2 hummus, followed by some more cantaloupe.