week 3 here i come.
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mercurysfire
Posts: 144 Member
so i have a weak spot. if i dont see something i can totally ignore it. out of sight out of mind. i mean i know it's still there- i'm not a dog. but i find it really easy to pretend or just not even think about it. and then i get lazy. so maybe i'm more of a cat.
this week's food challenge. plan a menu and a shopping list. it's a good habit to get into anyway saving you time and money. i try to do it, but some weeks it just doesn't get done and i end up scrambling around after work or the gym or just saying "screw it- let's go out." mexican food abounds here and everyone is eager to keep the chips and salsa flowing. i could eat my weight in chips and salsa.
if you're really into extra credit, put your meals and recipes on index cards with the serving sizes and nutritional data- breakfast lunch dinner snacks (however you tend to break up your food) and then mix n match at the beginning of your week to create the menu. make a game out of it if you really wanna. (world's healthiest Cake Walk anyone?) and they don't have to be 2 hours-at-the-stove recipe ordeals. one of our staples is colds cuts, cheese and fruit. it counts as a meal.
the mental challenge- start breaking a bad habit. whatever it is. i have trigger foods out the wazoo. carbs mostly. (see chips and salsa.) but also salt. i used to loooooove salt. i don't add it everything anymore but some days i just cant get enough. then my snacking gets out of control. hello weight gain. but then they become habitual. right now i have 2 habits i really really need to break. walks to 7-11 at lunch, and ice cream at night. it would be fine if it were just occasional, but it's not. and it just makes this whole process harder. so this coming week, i am going to steer clear of 7-11. just period. there's nothing there that i need. and i am not going to buy any ice cream this week. hubs will be pouty about it, but we both need to scale back on the popcicles.
physical challenge- do a short yoga sequence. just 1 or two poses for about 3 minutes (do more if you want!). you can find them all over the internet from 1st time ever beginner poses to chinese acrobat poses. try them after a workout to cool down and stretch. while i don't personally subscribe to the philosphy and new age stuff behind yoga, it is a great way to stretch out and calm the mind after putting your body through the wringer. my favorite sequence:
sun salutation
triangle pose
warrior pose
deep lunge
pigeon
downward dog
repeat on the other side
i usually take about 15 minutes for this sequence total. you can take longer to deepen the stretch or work on trouble spots (this is a great sequence if you have a desk job). just be careful, move slow, and pay attention to where you're feeling the stretch. you should feel it in the muscles- not the connective tissues.
this week's food challenge. plan a menu and a shopping list. it's a good habit to get into anyway saving you time and money. i try to do it, but some weeks it just doesn't get done and i end up scrambling around after work or the gym or just saying "screw it- let's go out." mexican food abounds here and everyone is eager to keep the chips and salsa flowing. i could eat my weight in chips and salsa.
if you're really into extra credit, put your meals and recipes on index cards with the serving sizes and nutritional data- breakfast lunch dinner snacks (however you tend to break up your food) and then mix n match at the beginning of your week to create the menu. make a game out of it if you really wanna. (world's healthiest Cake Walk anyone?) and they don't have to be 2 hours-at-the-stove recipe ordeals. one of our staples is colds cuts, cheese and fruit. it counts as a meal.
the mental challenge- start breaking a bad habit. whatever it is. i have trigger foods out the wazoo. carbs mostly. (see chips and salsa.) but also salt. i used to loooooove salt. i don't add it everything anymore but some days i just cant get enough. then my snacking gets out of control. hello weight gain. but then they become habitual. right now i have 2 habits i really really need to break. walks to 7-11 at lunch, and ice cream at night. it would be fine if it were just occasional, but it's not. and it just makes this whole process harder. so this coming week, i am going to steer clear of 7-11. just period. there's nothing there that i need. and i am not going to buy any ice cream this week. hubs will be pouty about it, but we both need to scale back on the popcicles.
physical challenge- do a short yoga sequence. just 1 or two poses for about 3 minutes (do more if you want!). you can find them all over the internet from 1st time ever beginner poses to chinese acrobat poses. try them after a workout to cool down and stretch. while i don't personally subscribe to the philosphy and new age stuff behind yoga, it is a great way to stretch out and calm the mind after putting your body through the wringer. my favorite sequence:
sun salutation
triangle pose
warrior pose
deep lunge
pigeon
downward dog
repeat on the other side
i usually take about 15 minutes for this sequence total. you can take longer to deepen the stretch or work on trouble spots (this is a great sequence if you have a desk job). just be careful, move slow, and pay attention to where you're feeling the stretch. you should feel it in the muscles- not the connective tissues.
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Mercurysfire,
Yours was the first board topic I read when I found MFP. Your inspiration and ideas are great motivation for me. I appreciate the effort you put into helping us. Sharing your own experiences makes me more comfortable in this public format that otherwise could be intimidating. I'm sure other members feel the same, so, THANK YOU! You're a GREAT MFP Friend.
Just finished talking to another friend about planning meals and your timely topic of creating a deck-of-meals for planning and shopping is COOL! I'm going to work on it today.
I had cut out cold cuts at home. I know they are high in sodium and since I have a couple stints in my heart I try to avoid sodium. But, I found if I'm craving anything it is the fresh, delicious taste of a cool sandwich and I've stopped into Subway and Schlosky's in the last couple of weeks. I'm reconsidering my options and I'm going to test my homemade version and see if I can control my sodium better than the drive-thru.
My neice has invited me to go to a yoga class with her. I'm going to try it at home first. I'll save money and do the stretching before my regular workout. I like the variety approach I've heard shared here.
Thanks again, have a healthy weekend and I can't wait to read your posts in the future.0 -
cnce again your post came in a timely manner. I was at the grocery story yesterday and was just shoving things in my shopping cart without a plan. Since the move I have been hitting fast food places and not making healthy choices. If my menus were thought out and planned I would probably be able to steer clear of bad choices out of obligation.
I lost 30 pounds once and I ate ice cream everyday. I love ice cream. It is about portion, lol. That being said, that is not what I am going to avoid. The habit I need to work on is actual logging, I know it works but I have been so busy settling in that my once great routine has been put on the way side, Once I get settled in my office I will have my own fridge so I do not have to worry about finding something to eat. I will have prepared it in advance.
Yesterday I ended my swim with water yoga. Same principle as yoga. Feels great in the water. This last post has inspired me to put it in my water routines. I swim and do some water aerobics now I will just plan my other moves. Yesterday was just a whim. But today will be part of a plan!0 -
i am so glad you guys are finding these helpful.
i actually made a shopping list this friday and stuck to it. but then sunday hubs got pouty about the ice cream. so i got some. you are right- it's portion control. i can be trusted with a bowl of ice cream. or a spoon and carton of ice cream running around in the freezer. a spoonful and spoonful there, all of a sudden i've eaten a pint. the menu and a shopping list has been such a money and time saver for me (when I have bothered to do it) because when i don't- i end up going waaaaay over my grocery budget. which is dumb because there's only 2 of us. seriously. our grocery budget should be way less. but we also seem to be eating out a couple of times a week, which eats up the budget too. wednesdays we eat with hubs' son, and then friday or saturday night we've been eating with hubs' mom. she only live a couple of miles away but she's been having a lot of health problems this year so she isn't getting out much except when someone drives her. and the only place she ever wants to eat dinner is this mexican joint theyve been going to since the beginning of time. cue chips n salsa. ugh. next time, i'm going to pass them down to the other side of the table. let someone else eat them.
so i have my menu for the week. i spent a couple of hours in the kitchen last night, but it beats an hour in the kitchen every night. all i have to do is cut up my fruit and throw stuff together. i know what's in it and how many calories and i don't have to guess. and in the long run it saves me time when i have the least time to be stumbling around trying to fix a meal. at night after work and a workout. (i also tend to "test" whatever is cooking if i'm tired...)
I tried out a half-remembered cooking tip i stumbled across somewhere a while back and decided to try it out. i poached a bunch of chicken last night night in some chicken broth and left over asada marinade, lime juice, whatever sounded good. all in all around 1 cup of liquid in the bottom of a roasting pan. after i took out the chicken there was a lot of liquid in there and i realized a. that would go great in the soup i was making b. there was a lot of fat. i poured it all into a bowl and stuck in the freezer for about 15 minutes or so. all the grease floated to the top and hardened enough to scoop off with a spoon. tah dah! healthier chicken soup.
morning glory- i think you are the most optimistic person i've run across in a long time. it makes me smile. i remember at time when i felt like that, and i am working my way back there. it makes me happy that i can share and help someone out. i never really thought about it, but i guess there is a lot of salt in cold cuts and cheese, and everything else too. even if you buy the raw meat to fix at home somehow they figure out how to salt it up. "plumping" they call it.... no wonder it's sold by the pound. eggs are also a good protein (depending on how your doc feels about them), but really any kind of meat will do. cold cuts are cheap and easy. but a roasted something or other (chicken, pork, or shrimp or something or if your doc is ok with red meat) is also fantastic. or tuna or canned salmon. (although i guess they're salty too?) quick recipe because it popped into my brain-
roasted chicken or canned tuna or salmon
greek yogurt
celery (diced up, roasted if you prefer)
sundried tomatoes
roasted red peppers (or just fresh ones are yummy too)
sliced almonds
greek seasoning (or herbs de provence is also very good and has no salt)
i have also thrown in chopped baby carrots too
mix it all up in your preferred proportions and let mellow overnite if you can. or at least an hour. it gets better as it sits.
makes a great salad or sandwich and has a very fresh crisp taste. good summer food.
i'm thinking of painting a chalkboard onto our pantry for menu plans and shopping lists. and also so i can keep track of things we ran out of. it's irritating when you think you have an ingredient just to realize no, you ate the last one the night before....
misty- i am intrigued by water yoga. it sounds heavenly and i think im going to have to try it tonite if i can. i'm getting tired of the arc trainer and i think that sonce i've cut my time down anyway, i can probably burn the same amount of calories swimming as i was on there. so relaxing. but i do miss listening to music while i exercise when i swim. it makes the time go by so much faster and gives me something to pace myself by.
moving is always difficult for me when it comes to the kitchen. it takes weeks before i have all my cooking stuff together because it's the last thing that gets packed (and always in a hurry). so you eat out. or you go to the grocery store and eat already made food. or hot pockets. it's such a relief to get that first homemade meal. it tastes awesome no matter what it is.
so now i'm looking forward to swimming tonite. especially since it's going to a balmy 100 freaking degrees after work. that pool sounds better and better.... 0
