Livin and Lovin the Low Carb Life

Summer 2010 - "After the Wedding"...

2010-07-14T15:10:00.001-07:00

Wow! So the wedding is FINALLY done and over with - and let me tell you, it was INCREDIBLE!!!!! So totally worth the blood, the sweat and the tears! :p

For our honeymoon, we drove from Indiana to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. It was GREAT! As for my eating habits, though, not so great! lol.

The month of June, leading up to my wedding - I was still eating fairly low carb - however there was a LOT of jimmy johns sandwiches WITH their breads involved...

Then the week of the honeymoon, all bets were off. I didn't eat any "junk" as far as processed convenient crap - but I enjoyed my fries, fried pickles, and tropical drinks.

We got back - and I got right back on track! Now - for many reasons - I have decided NOT to get on the scale. For me, I've finally come to the conclusion that the number on that little metal box does NOT dictate who I am or how I feel about myself. My clothes still fit (all be it a tiny bit tighter...but I still look good - I feel good - and that's what matters! I'm back to eating low carb because it's the ONLY way I WANT to live.

Granted, I may "indulge" here and there - but low-carb IS my life!

Now - one thing I really want to try keeping up with, on this blog, are new recipes I've tried. I got the most AWESOME book from amazon called "Pop It in the Toaster Oven to go along with our little black and decker toaster oven we bought post wedding.

Obviously I can not / will not repost the actual recipes here - but what I will do is tweak them to be low-carb. :)

Post more later!

2010

2010-04-26T05:49:00.001-07:00

Wow - so it has been a loooong time since I've posted!!! Don't worry, though, I'm still maintaining and going strong. I DID hit a few snags here lately - but low carb IS my life now and I always return within a day or two. It's funny - most people "cheat" (I call it "Indulge") and go BACK to eating junk and crap and gain all their weight because they feel "deprived" of those old foods. Me? I'm the opposite. I "Indulge" and actually feel like "what am I doing??? This isn't how I eat!" And go back to low carb eating because THAT is what is "second nature" to me anymore.
I'll finish more later :)
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Tuesday 16/February/2010

2010-02-16T17:35:00.000-08:00

Ok, I just want to have a post about some of my favorite low-carb sites.

One site and INCREDIBLE blog that seriously has helped me get to where I am today is Jimmy Moore's blog and podcasts:
Livin La Vida Lowcarb.com

Jimmy's Podcasts

Here is the forum I post to:
Low Carb Friends

The most AWESOME recipe sites:
Linda's Low Carb Recipes

Healthy Indulgences

Lowcarb diets.about.com

This one is actually more gluten-free and not really low-carb, per se - but still really good and can subsitute low-carb sweeteners in some of the recipes that call for agave:
Elana's Pantry

I will be back postin' more :)

Scales - a necessary evil

2010-02-03T06:16:00.001-08:00

I hate the scale. I love the scale. Really it is such a love/hate relationship. On New years eve this year, I "indulged" in a lot of crap and on New Year's Day, I weighed in at 170 lbs. That was only a few pounds over what I'd been maintaining since July of '09 but I didn't want to see that 7 in the middle...so I went back on induction and lost 5 pounds! Then on Monday, February 1st, the scale said 163.5!!! I was soooo excited!

Now fast forward 2 days - yes only two. This morning that evil scale said 167! WTF?? I weighed a few times and yup, I am back up 3.5 pounds. I don't get it. I have NOT overeaten - I haven't had ANY bad carbs that I can think of - except I had 1/4 of an orange monday and yesterday...could that really have done it?

I exercised on Monday night (3 miles - walk away the pounds) and 10 minutes of yoga last night...also I have been eating home made yogurt with real fruit and erythritol for breakfast - but I did that every day last week and DROPPED weight...

So anyways I dunno. I started this morning with eggs, bacon and sausage instead of my yogurt...so we shall see.

I know a lot of people say "not to obsess over the scale" and honestly I wish I didn't - but it truly is a necessary evil because when I don't, it goes up.
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Very Versatile Flax Seed Buns!

2010-01-19T08:41:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I FINALLY figured out how to make the PERFECT flax seed bun. :D

Last year I kept using the brown flax seed meal - which works fine - but is just a bit too grainy for my tastebuds...

So I bought some Bob's Red Mill Organic GOLDEN flaxseed meal.

And with a FABULOUS recipe I found on recipezaar - Low Carb Basic Flax Meal Bread - I have been happily experimenting with using it for other recipes.

First off THE recipe for the bread:
Makes 10 servings - 1/4 cup each

2 cups organic golden flaxseed meal
1 tbsp baking powder
1 pinch of salt
1 packet truvia (or erythritol / other artificial sweetener)

5 eggs, beaten
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup oil

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Spray baking pan with oil - I used the muffin top pan.
Combine dry ingredients. Combine wet ingredients.
Add wet to dry and combine well.
Let batter sit for a few minutes - but not too long - to thicken up.
Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, pour 1/4 cup mounds onto pan.
Bake for about 20 minutes.

The carb count depends on how you count your carbs. 2 tbsp of flax contains 4 g carbs and 4 g fiber - meaning it comes out to 0 net carbs...

Some people however just count exactly 1 carb per 2 tbsp serving and in that case these would come out to about 4g carbs per mound/slice.
(flax=32 servings/64 tbsp = 32g carbs)
(1 tbsp baking powder = 2g carbs)
(1 packet truvia, per atkin's art. sweetener rule = 1g carbs - however truvia should not have any affect on blood sugar)
(5 beaten eggs = 3g carbs)
And that's where I get - rounded up - about 4 g carbs per slice. 32+2+1+3= 38g carbs / 10 servings = 3.8 rounded = 4

Or, if you don't count net carbs and count ever carb as it is... - 64 tbsp of flax / 32 servings of 2 tbsp (which is the 2 cups) has 128 g carbs and 128 g fiber (per the label). Add the other carbs from the eggs, sweetener and baking powder and you're looking at 134 g carbs. Divide that by 10 and you're looking at 13.4 g carbs per slice. Just remember though, that flax is pretty much 100% fiber and that fiber does NOT affect blood sugar - thus the counting of the net carbs. :)

Flax Seed Bun/Bread French Toast

Take 1 flax seed bun:

Slice bun in half to make 2 slices:

Mix together the following:
2 eggs
2 tbsp heavy whipping cream
1/2 tsp vanilla OR almond extract
1 packet truvia
few shakes of cinnamon

Dip each slice of bun in the mixture then fry in butter on stovetop like you would french toast:

Once done, place on plate and mix together:
1 tbsp butter
1 tbsp heavy whipping cream
1 tbsp da vinci syrup

this "syrup" is a bit thin - but it works! you won't need all of it...
Here's the finished product:

Next I will post my cinnamon buns!!!

Using the right tools...

2010-01-16T11:58:00.000-08:00

Ok - so this year I am slowly trying to build up my kitchen tools. :)
There have been a few items I learned about last year that I REALLY wanted and I got two of them this month! :D

One of them is called a "Muffin Top Pan" - it is absolutely PERFECT for making hamburger buns / bread out of flax!!!

I found this at the HomeGoods store - but you can also get them off of Amazon (i love amazon! lol).

I will post about the flax seed buns I made with these muffin top pans - as well as the french toast - yup Gluten-Free, Sugar-Free, Low-Carb French Toast!

Next up is the AWESOME vegetable spiral slicer. This tool is FABULOUS and I will be posting a thread here soon on the zucchini noodles I made with it and made shrimp scampi. :D

Some other items I would love to buy this year are:
1. A Baguette Pan - which would be PERFECT to make my own home-made hot dog buns or "french loafs" for my beloved french dip sandwiches.

2. Ice Cream Maker - so that I can make my own ice cream (duh) with pure non-homogenized 100% grass fed whole milk from Traders Point Creamery

And for now that's all I have on my list...I'm also very excited, though - because I should be receiving soon from my INCREDIBLE best friend and matron of honor...she and her husband bought me a "Euro Cuisine Automatic Yogurt Maker". I found a link here as apparently Target Sells it: Yogurt Maker.

I am excited to use this - as I LOVE yogurt but am seriously trying to stay away from anything artificial and ESPECIALLY stay away from SOY!

So yeah - very excited this year. :)
I love being able to make all my own stuff from scratch - and ESPECIALLY making it from whole fresh REAL foods!

I know I won't be perfect all the time - such as we do eat out quite often...but, such as last night when we went to Red Robin - instead of asking for salad dressing I got oil and vinegar...now of course though I'm sure the oil is vegetable oil - but I guess it's the lesser of the evils, since almost ALL dressings are made with soybean oil. I'm also making my own mayo and dressings at home now. :D

Allright my lunch is ready so I'll post more later!

165.0!!

2010-01-14T11:14:00.001-08:00

Woohoo! So I got on the scale this morning and it said 165.0!! That is the lowest I've been in YEARS!!

I've been maintaining 168/169 now for a few months - and on new year's day I weighed in at 170...and I vowed to get back into ketosis - so I went back to Induction and 165 baby!! :)

Just had to share! :P
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166.5 lbs...

2010-01-13T05:57:00.001-08:00

Ok so for the past week now I have weighed in every morning at 166.5 lbs. Now don't get me wrong, I like seeing that number SO much more than the 197 that it was this time last year and am SO proud of my accomplishments...but it's a bit frustrating.

I've gone back to Induction levels for my carbs AND I've been working out and yet my body is apparantly trying to tell me "nope, sorry - this is where u are going to stay".

Now again, granted - I've been at 168 / 169 for about 3 months AND on new years I weighed in at 170. So the fact that I've gotten rid of those 3.5 pounds really makes me happy - but it's like, "c'mon - just 6.5 more! Ugh"...

Oh well though - I guess chalk it up to "beggers can't be choosers..." I LOVE that I'm in the 160's at all and that my lifestyle IS so healthy now :)

So I will just continue to do what I do and if/when my body decides to lose more well then I'll take it as a gift :)
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Wednesday 06/January/2010

2010-01-06T06:48:00.000-08:00

So I was unable to weigh in this morning - but as of yesterday, I weighed back down at 165.5!!! :)

One thing I am really concentrating on this year is staying away from soy products. I've just hear too many reasons why soy is NOT good for you plus it's absolutely awful for a newborn baby and my fiance and I will be TTC immediately after the wedding in June...so I will be making my own mayo and my own salad dressings.

I already made an avocado dressing at home which is very good for my first attempt but obviously not perfect. Since this is being sent from my blackberry I can not post the links to the recipes I used - but will soon :)

I also decided this year to get RID of my gym membership...last year - pretty much after my ear surgery, I stopped going to the gym and "killing myself on the machines"...for what pretty much seemed like no reason. Thing is - I've come to the conclusion that while exercise is VERY important - I can either A. Do it at home for free - an/or B. Find a free exercise class through Indy Parks, instead of paying $40/month to feel guilty over not using the darned membership! :P

So yeah. Lots of exciting things I have planned for me in 2010. Here are the promises I've made to commit to in 2010 (yeah, "resolutions"...lol)

1. I will do my best to remove soy from my diet when possible.
2. I will (and have) start taking pre-natal vitamins and keep myself as healthy as possible to be at an awesome "wedding weight" plus be healthy to start "Trying to Conceive".
3. I am going to try my best to limit the amount of time going online at work on my work computer (thank god for my crackberry!!)
4. I will also limit my time on my laptop at home at night (pet peeve of my fiances's)...
5. I am currently back on "induction" for Atkins and will stay on induction for the next two weeks and slowly make my way back up the rungs of OWL.
6. I will do my best to start saving $$$ and pay off our(my) credit card as much as possible.
8. I will add to this list as I see fit - well because I can! :P

I think that's all for now - that's a lot of typing on my blackberry and my thumbs are tired!! (See, already committing to number 3 on the list!) :)
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January 03, 2010

2010-01-03T13:47:00.000-08:00

Ok - so I'm not sure exactly how I will be keeping track of my exercise - but today I did 30 minutes of 2 mile WATP (walk away the pounds). plus 15 minutes of stretching/yoga (crunch dvd).

yesterday (Sat 02/Jan/10) = 30 minutes WATP.

Saturday 02/January/2010

2010-01-02T12:07:00.000-08:00

Ok...so today is the first day of INDUCTION 2010. It has been literally 1 year since I first did induction and with all the foods I added back in over the year - through OWL (ongoing weight loss) and Maintenance, I forgot how hard induction can be! lol.

I'm not doing bad, carb-wise - and as of 3 p.m. I've had about 1227 calories, 5 g carbs, 68 g protein and 97 g fat.
For breakfast I made an "Egg Creme" which I like - but I think I'll just make these without the raw eggs as I do prefer to actually have something to eat for breakfast and not just drink...however the rest of the "smoothie" will work great for induction!

Coffee Egg Creme sans Egg...
1 cup coffee
1 tbsp coconut oil (melt & then put in hot coffee)
2 tbsp heavy whipping cream (be careful with HWC on induction only allowed so much...)
1 tbsp Da Vinci Syrup (used hazelnut - also beware only "3 g" of carbs from sweeteners allowed per day on induction)

put everything in blender and blend! Originally this called for 2 tbsp coconut oil and 2 raw eggs - but that just adds up to way too much fat and calories for breakfast - and I'd honestly rather spread everything out throughout the day...so this comes out to:
coffee = 0 cals/0 carbs/ 0 fat
1 tbsp c.o. = 120 cals / 0 carbs / 12 fat
2 tbsp hwc = 100 cals / 1 carb / 10 fat
1 tbsp da vinci = 4 cals / 1 carb / 0 fat (i know it's listed as 0 but i count 1 carb since it's splenda)

= 224 cals, 2 carbs, 22 g fat (good fat!)

the unfortunate thing is that this morning I made it with TWO tbsp coconut oil and the 2 raw eggs and it came out to 484 cals, 3 carbs & 43 g fat...and while I know fat is GOOD for you - I still don't like going too crazy...and my fiance made me an omelet with cheese and spinach and so total for breakfast I think was a bit high: 717 cals, 5 g carbs, 36 g protein & 49 g fat. so that's why I'll cut it down just a bit. :P

Tonight I am making Salmon with Lemon Dill Butter but not before I do one of the new DVD's I have of Leslie Sansone's WATP (walk away the pounds)!

Will post more later! :P

2010-01-01T13:39:00.001-08:00

A red light just means a green light in a different direction :)
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January 01, 2010!!!!

2010-01-01T10:48:00.001-08:00

HAPPPPPPPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!!!!!

Wow 2009 is behind us and a new year is before us! I LOVE new years - I do! I'm all for making "new year resolutions" as the new year is a new beginning. I know some people may think new years resolutions are stupid or pointless...but for me and MILLIONS of other people - I believe they help you start a brand new year off right - and for those who stick to them and accomplish those goals - good for them!

Of course - I accomplished my new years resolution for 2009 DURING 2009...I finally lost (most) of the weight I'd gained back and gained a WHOLE new outlook on life and how to TRULY eat for MY body. Now - admittedly, I haven't been perfect but I've also come to realize it's more about learning how to LIVE and eat right - and that INCLUDES "indulging" every once in a while - while still living my new low-carb lifestyle day to day.

Now - the unfortunate thing is that my indulging last night on December 31, 2009 has made me wake up to a new number on the scale...as I woke up and the scale said 170...ACK! I've been maintaining my 167-169 weight loss since June now and I LIKE those numbers! lol...and since my fiance and I didn't wake up until 1 p.m. this afternoon...ok scratch that - I woke up at 1 p.m. - he's still IN bed! lol...but that's ok - anyways I woke up and will admit I just had three pieces of pizza for "breakfast"...yes - I know. bad me.

HOWEVER. I have always liked to also start "anew" on the first day of the week - as well as the first month of the year...so while I plan on eating low-carb tomorrow (Saturday, January 02nd) - my plan of attack to start off the new year right is to re-start atkins induction this Sunday, January 03rd.

I will stay on induction for the 2 weeks that it always asks for and then go up the rungs of OWL (ongoing weight loss) every new week. Last year I waited for every 3-5 pounds I dropped - but since I only honestly have 10 pounds to drop total - I figure I will do it weekly instead.

I ordered some new books and still have one more I need to order - and those are:
1. Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon.
2. Life Without Bread by Wolfgang Lutz

and the last one I really want to (need? lol) is: Eat Fat Lose Fat by Dr. Mary Enig and Sally Fallon.

What I LOVE about living the low-carb life is that it's SO easy and SO yummy...while I have gained back 4 pounds from "indulging" a little too much during the holidays - I HAVE to say that 4 pounds during the holidays is NOTHING compared to what I've done in the past and to what I know some people have done...But I will get it off and move on with my life.

NOW in other news...I am SO excited for 2010!! My wedding is in June - June 26, 2010 to be exact and then as soon as the wedding is over - my husband and I will start TTC (trying to conceive)!!!!!

And - THAT is why I need to (among many other reasons) - but why I need to keep up with my healthy new lifestyle - so I can learn how to eat right for my future children and make sure they live and are born healthy too!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE! HERE'S TO 2010!!!

Test

2009-12-27T14:14:00.001-08:00

This is a test to see if I can update via blackberry :)
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what's for lunch? Soup and Sandwich, please. :)

2009-12-18T10:18:00.000-08:00

Ok, have I mentioned before how much I LOVE atkins in that you can pretty much make *almost* anything low-carb, if you really try?... :D

I've been hankerin' to find a really good bread recipe in order to have sandwiches for lunch...and I FINALLY found one - here: Dark Rye Bread.

Usually, in the past, I would use Bob's Red Mill Whole Ground Flaxseed meal which is the flaxseed I've pretty much been buying all year...however I decided to try the Bob's Red Mill Organic Golden Flaxseed Meal instead and used THAT in the bread recipe instead...

It is SO much better with the golden flaxseed than the regular! At least for baking anyways! :)

So I made the bread last week in a regular meatloaf pan and I was able to cut it in half and then those two halves I cut into 4 slices each for a total of 8 slices of bread!

*note* I also used liquid stevia and not agave nector.

The entire bread recipe came out to:
1 cup almond meal = 24 g carbs, 12 g fiber
3/4 cup flax = according to the package it's 4 g carbs/4 g fiber per 2 tbsp which in net carbs = all fiber = 0 g net carbs...but I think it's 1 g usuable carbs and 3 g fiber...so count this as you want to.
3 eggs = 1.8 g carbs
1/2 tsp baking powder = 1.2 g carbs (just to round out the eggs)

= without counting any carbs from the flax seeds and counting the flax as all fiber then 27 g carbs and 12 g fiber = 15 g carbs for the entire thing and divide that by 8 = 1.875 carbs per slice (round up to about 2 g per slice!)

so for a sandwich with 2 slices of bread (which holds up VERY well and doesn't fall apart!) it's 4 g carbs!

SO the sandwich consisted of: 1 tbsp mayo, 1 slice provolone cheese, lettuce & all natural ham (no preservatives, no sugar, no nitrates or nitrites)...

The soup I made was VERY yummy...I started off by somewhat following the recipe found here: Cauliflower Bisque. But instead of using the stovetop, I used a crockpot and came up with this:

1 small cauliflower, cut into small chunks
a few leaves of leek, chopped
2 long celery stalks, choped
3 cups chicken broth
salt & pepper

+1 cup heavy cream (do not put in crockpot with above ingredients)

place those ingredients into the crockpot and put on high for 4 hours.

Once done, remove and place into a blender or food processor and puree soup.
Add about 1 cup heavy cream and more salt/pepper. Mix well. Serve immediately or works well as lunch the next day!

I love atkins!!! :D

Wow - it's almost been 1 full year...

2009-12-15T11:12:00.000-08:00

Since I decided to go low carb!

And I am so happy about my decision. :D

Now - granted, I haven't been perfect this year - but I've learned so much along the way. I've lost 30 pounds and gained SO much knowledge on how one is truly supposed to eat and nourish the body.

I've been in maintenenance now for about 5 months and have decided I'm very happy where I'm at. 166 - 169 (give or take, depending on the day). This time last year I was 197 lbs. I just did NOT understand why I could NOT lose weight...then I realized it's all about the insulin!

So I went low-carb and lost 30 pounds (give or take, lol). I've learned that I CAN live without certain things - but that I also don't have to completely give them up for the rest of my life either. This is probably one of the hardest lessons learned.

This lesson is huge for me because in the past I've always been an "all or nothing" type of person - and my personality comes off like that to everyone who knows me (except my fiance, that is, lol). Honestly, for the most part, I truly do live a low-carb lifestyle now...ordering my burgers without the bun - getting a salad with full fat blue cheese dressing as my side instead of fries...always usually saying no to anything with sugar. And I have learned how to maintain my weight by doing these things and eating FAT - yup even saturated fats!!!

But something I've done lately - and I'd say this is honestly about once a week - is that I can "indulge" and allow myself a piece of bread or a bun now and then when I go out for lunch or dinner. Now I do post to a couple different low-carb message boards online and I know that a lot of people would tell me how awful and horrible I am that I am "cheating" and admitting that I eat white bread now and again...because obviously white bread is NOT allowed on a low-carb diet - plus anything white really ISN'T good for you. However I also live in the real world where sometimes you're in a rush and don't want to eat your burger with a fork. Now, granted - again this is maybe ONCE A WEEK (literally, once a week, IF that...). And I know it will NOT turn into anything more than that because I'm very concious of it at all times. I've also allowed myself to indulge in a few other things throughout the year (more the last few months as I'm learning HOW to indulge)...but that's just it - it's truly about learning that it's OK to have 1 SMALL slice of cake for a celebration - but if you do you can NOT have anything else that's not "low-carb legal" that day or the next or really for a few more weeks...even Dr. Atkins said not to completely say no to everything for the rest of your life - and that's what I'm doing is learning how to "indulge" in certain foods here and there but live my lifestyle about 95% of the time low-carb.

Here are some things I've learned this year:

1. New Foods.
This one is huge for me as I've come to love almond flour and flax seed and cherry tomatoes and coconut milk...Foods I'd either never heard of before or used to hate or thought was too fattening have become absolute staples in my diet.

The almond flour, for example - I use it to make pancakes/waffles, sandwich bread, shortcake, cookies, cakes, muffins, its uses are incredible!

Flax seed - makes great pizza crusts and are SO good for you!

Coconut milk - fabulous smoothies, hot chocolate...

What I love about low-carb living and finding all these new foods is that I can pretty much make a substitution for ANYTHING I can think of! The only tru substitution I can't find yet is good ol' white potato fries - HOWEVER that being said, I LOVE sweet potato fries fried up in coconut oil!

2. I don't have to be "perfect"
This is another one that's HUGE for me...while I'm "perfect" low-carb most of the time - if I do indulge here and there - it's NOT going to kill me and I'm also NOT going to go back down the slippery slope to my old habits because I LOVE my new habits WAY too much!

3. I don't have to micromanage my diet!
This has always been one thing I've HATED about dieting and weight watchers and whatnot...and yes even low-carbing. For the first few months this year, 2009, yes I DID journal my food intake...but after a while I just learned what I can eat - should eat and what I can not. Every once in a while I'll feel the need to start writing down my food intake but never lasts more than a day...lol...but the great thing is - I've lost my weight AND maintained it withOUT having to micro-manage everything that goes into my body! I've finally just learned how to eat correctly!

4. I'm healthier than ever!
I got my levels check at my doc's and everything is great. 'nuff said!

5. I've become a much better cook and fiance
One thing that my fiance wanted me to do was to become more "womanly" around the house as far as chores go. I won't go into the other details about chores - but specifically the cooking, he used to do for us. Once I started low-carbing I found out how great and fun cooking truly can be! SO many things to make and it's all whole unprocessed foods!

So yeah. I do absolutely LOVE this lifestyle and I know for a fact I will NEVER EVER EVER go back to low-fat eating EVER again!

Quick results from sleep study...

2009-11-24T11:31:00.000-08:00

Ok - so my blood work came back yesterday and the doc said everything looks GREAT and there's NO anemia! That's GOOD news...but of course now I'm wondering then "what the hellll is wrong with my feet"? still no answer...

BUT - I got a phone call today from the hospital to set up a follow up appointment with the sleep specialist on January 4th! which I'm excited about but it sucks that that's 6 weeks away! ugh! so another month of bad sleep...

Then a little while after the call i got another email from my doctor saying that the specialist would be getting ahold of me. (duh! lol) - and the email said, "you move 6 times / hour" which to me basically says I move every 10 minutes - which SUCKS but isn't shocking. She also said that whatever treatment/medication the sleep center gives me for the RLS / PLMD (periodic limb movement disorder) will hopefully help the foot pain too.

course, I should also be getting the full results from the study in the mail within the next few weeks - i can't wait to see those!

So now it's just a wait and see!

My sleep study part deux...

2009-11-21T12:33:00.000-08:00

Ok - so last night I went to my sleep study. It was pretty much how I imagined it would be. I got there around 8:30 and the receptionist (of course) had NO information on me...but considering that it was only JUST set up yesterday, it's no surprise - but it was fine - they registered me and showed me to my room.

The nurse was super nice and listened to me babble on while I watched "Say Yes to the Dress" on TLC and she got me all set up with my millions of wires. I basically had two wires attached to each leg, two to each arm and a million on my head (yup in my hair) and down to my chest. There was also something put on my nose to monitor my breathing as MOST sleep studies deal with sleep apnea. I am 100% positive that's not a problem for me whatsoever as I do not snore nor do I talk in my sleep. My problem IS the RLS...

So around 11 we shut off the lights and I was woken up at 5:45. She asked me how long I think it took me to fall asleep and honestly I'd say maybe about 30 minutes or so. The problem isn't FALLING asleep - it's STAYING asleep...but I also told her that I woke up at LEAST 4 times during the night (which is the issue at hand) with all the tossing and turning I did. She also asked if it was better, worse or the same quality of sleep than I get at home - and honestly it was about the same.

So I'm really hoping that last night's sleep was my "normal" which I think it was - but obviously when you've got 20 million wires on you and you're trying to BE conscious OF your sleep - it's not exactly the same as being at home on a normal every day night. lol.

I'm very excited though to find out the results (obviously) and I should also have all my blood work back here shortly from my doc concerning the possible anemia.

I know it may sound like I'm HAPPY to find out that I'm anemic or that I have restless leg...believe me - it's not like that at all - it's more the fact that something has been wrong with me for SO long and I've FINALLY made the decision to have these things looked at instead of just "dealing" with them and thinking it's completely normal to have these issues...I think, too, a lot of why I never looked into these issues before is that I've never really thought that I HAD anything wrong with me. Only hypochondriacs have their issues looked at - but not me - "eh whatever" sort of attitude...but it's seriously just gotten to the point where I can NOT sleep.

Again - I've tried valerian root, melatonin, drinking wine before bed, OTC sleep aids...NOTHING helps. :(
All I am asking for is a full nights rest withOUT pulling all the covers off me and my fiance or kicking my cat or dog out of the bed - or punching and kicking and doing a tumbling act while I'm asleep. I want a full nights rest without CONSTANTLY waking up every hour on the hour. :(

So yeah! we shall see!

SLEEP STUDY!!!!

2009-11-20T16:47:00.000-08:00

Ok, so it is 7:45 p.m. Friday night...I will be leaving in 15 minutes to go to my sleep study!!! I finally got ahold of my doc today and they said they misplaced my paperwork and filed it away with my file. :( booo. so they immediately called and were able to get me in tonight! so I'm very excited!!!! I will FINALLY be able to "fix" whatever the hell is wrong with me. So I will (obviously) post about how it went tomorrow!

a'right all - I'm off!

Doctor's Appointment...and turkey day at work!

2009-11-19T12:25:00.000-08:00

So yesterday morning I went to my doc's appointment. I talked to her about doing a sleep study as well as what was going on with my feet / RLS, etc...

The nurse practitioner is the one I spoke to and she totally agreed that she thinks it's RLS (restless leg syndrome) as well. When I started telling her about my sensitive feet, however, she actually told me she thinks I may be iron deficiant or anemic. I had never thought about THAT before - but once I started doing a bit of research, it makes a LOT of sense! They took three vials of blood and she is doing a lot of tests on them to find out A. my CBC (complete blood count) to see if I truly am anemic (which she really thinks I am) as well as my Lipid panel (cholesterol, triglycerides, HDL, LDL, etc...), she's checking my Vitamin D levels and my thyroid as well. I am excited to get all the information back as I'd like to know what all these levels are! (yeah, I'm a nerd like that - lol) course, it's funny because my job entails dealing with all of this stuff so to have them ordered ON me and finally learn what they are - I think it's cool.

So. She also totally agreed that a sleep study would be a great thing to do and they were SUPPOSED to call me back yesterday and tell me when they had scheduled it - as it's SUPPOSED to be scheduled for either tomorrow night or saturday night...and it's driving me nuts right now because it's 3:30 Thursday and they STILL haven't called! I called and left a message - so I REALLY hope they call me back tonight. I just want to do this sleep study SO bad now and hope they can give me SOMETHING to aleviate this damned RLS at night! The last few nights I haven't used ANYTHING to try and sleep and I can't tell you how AWFUL the sleep has been. :(

I literally toss and turn so much it's like when you see a cartoon fish out of it's water bowl - flipping / flopping back and forth on the table...yeah - that's me only it's every single night while I'm in bed! YOU try sleeping like that! :(

There are meds out there that are supposed to really help with this and some people SWEAR by them. I just want to sleep, damnit!

So yeah. anyways. I'm just getting antsy right now. The office IS open til 7 p.m. tonight so they still have a while to call today - but if I don't hear, I'll try again in the morning as I REALLY want to get this rolling and do this this weekend!

Now - as far as the test results - I know those can take a few days. HOPEFULLY I get them tomorrow sometime - but I know it could be Monday or Tuesday before I receive them. I don't WANT to be anemic, by any means - but if I am it will totally explain a LOT.

For example - my feet. My feet are SO incredibly sensitive that I absolutely REFUSE to let anyone touch them. Just the THOUGHT of someone touching them makes my skin crawl. My fiance is always WANTING to give me a foot rub as he LOVES having his own rubbed - but I always tell him - he goes near my feet and I will kick him. They fall asleep on a daily basis (usually when I'm driving)...and that is also a sign of anemia. One thing I really need to start watching is crossing my legs. It's not a good thing to do anyways - and with my issues, it makes them worse. But I could cross (and uncross just to cross the other side...) all day! It'll be a very hard habit to break. So yeah. We shall see!

TURKEY DAY AT WORK...

So small blurb - but today we had a pitch in at work for Turkey Day next week. And I must say I did FABULOUS!!! I stuck to the meat - turkey & ham - and had a few deviled eggs, some raw vegees, some cheese ball, green beans - and while there was a huge table of desserts - I brought in my own Low-Carb, Sugar-Free Pumpkin Spice Cake bites (made them in a muffin pan) and oooooh was it yummy!

So yeah! I just wanted to share that Turkey Day CAN be done low-carb!

Course, the REAL challenge will be the REAL turkey day at his family's next week... :)

Why I choose Low-Carb living over low-fat living...

2009-11-15T07:11:00.001-08:00

Ok - so I've decided to post about why I choose to live a low-carb way of eating over low-fat. I have done both. As my very first post here from last year explains: My story - I did the "low-fat" thing for literally 13 years of my life (off and on)....

I DID lose 60 pounds on weight watchers (total over a few years) - and yes, I will be the first to say that it DOES work. However - when it came to MAINTENANCE it just did NOT work. Plus - in my own experience, weight watchers (and believe me guys, I had been to SO many different meetings and "leaders" that this is the same for all, in my own experience) - but weight watchers NEVER taught me how "bad" sugar is for the body. Instead it was taught to fear FAT and that SUGAR had little to NO impact on weight loss. :(

Of course, now that I know the TRUTH it almost pisses me off that I believed that for so long. Now - granted, again I DID lose 60 pounds (total after even roller-coastering ON weight watchers...) however once I was AT my goal weight - I could NOT keep it OFF. Maintenance was close to impossible. So after a while - no matter HOW many points I counted and how many fat grams I stayed away from - I ended up gaining back 40 of my lost 60 pounds. As that story I posted also states - in 2007, no matter HOW hard I tried - working out 4 - 5 times a week and counting my fat/fiber/calories...I couldn't lose ANYTHING - and no one believed me that I WAS trying.

But that's when I went to a new doctor and she diagnosed me with Insulin Resistance. Basically I learned that my body just does NOT deal with carbs and sugar the way a "normal" body does. THIS is why I couldn't lose weight - because I was eating the WRONG foods. Even though I thought I was eating "healthy" I really wasn't.
100 calorie snack packs - anything with high fructose corn syrup (POISON!!!!) and especially diet pop.

What I didn't know was that the SUGAR and JUNK I was putting into my body (even "low calorie" as it was) was just incredibly DAMAGING and that it was KEEPING ME FAT!

My doctor - when she told me I was Insulin Resistant - told me to "cut the carbs" and do atkins. I thought she was insane and didn't listen to her for a year - even after EVERY appointment during that year she kept telling me, "cut the carbs, cut the carbs"...I just wouldn't listen.

But then I did listen and I haven't looked back since! what's so freakin' AWESOME is the fact that - while I haven't actually hit my goal of 160 yet - I've MAINTAINED 166 (give or take a pound or two) for four months!!! all because I cut out grains and starchy vegetables!!!

And - what else I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE about atkins? It's SO versatile and SO many fabulous foods you can eat! It's NOT just "Meats, Eggs & Cheese" like everyone thinks. In fact I've NEVER eaten as many vegetables and fruits than I have on ATKINS!!!!!!

Just a quick rundown for those who don't know - Atkins is done in phases:
Induction Phase - 2 weeks - only the FIRST TWO WEEKS of changing your life do you eat like this. It's hard - but SO worth it and it's ONLY TWO WEEKS!

Induction Phase - eat up to 20 grams of carbs off of a specific list of foods out of the book - mainly all vegetables.

Phase 2 - OWL - Ongoing Weight Loss - You move up the "rungs" of the carbohydrate ladder adding in a few carbs here and there. (add 5 carbs per rung)
Rung 1 - Add in more vegees
Rung 2 - Dairy (no milk, as this is a whole other story - I am trying to get RAW milk)
Rung 3 - Nuts & Seeds
Rung 4 - Berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, cranberries)
Rung 5 - Low Carb Alcohol
Rung 6 - Beans & Legumes
Rung 7 - Higher fructose fruits - apples, kiwis, pears, peaches
Rung 8 - Starchy vegees - potatoes (yup potatoes!!!) and carrots
Rung 9 - Grains - Rice, Oatmeal, Quinoa

Phase 3 - Pre-Maintenance (where I am now)

and

Phase 4 - Maintenance

I LOVE LOVE LOVE this way of eating! I've learned to eat all NON-PROCESSED WHOLE FOODS that actually come from the EARTH and not from a box. I try to eat foods that do NOT have ingredients I can't pronounce. I try not to eat any foods that were chemically created in a lab somewhere.

Seriously - this is the absolute EASIEST and BEST way of eating. Also - one thing I haven't mentioned yet is the fact that I am eating REAL fat again!!! EVEN yup - i'm going to say it...SATURATED FAT!!!!! and my cholesterol levels have gone down - my triglycerides have leveled out and I'm HEALTHIER than ever! well as far as my diet is concerned...obviously, from my latest posts, I DO need to have my sleep issues looked at. :)

But seriously - if you come across this post and are considering a new diet plan - do NOT eat low-fat junk. GO LOW CARB! and learn how to eat a healthy unprocessed whole foods diet - you WON'T REGRET IT! :)

another post as a comment - lol - sleeping...

2009-11-12T10:46:00.000-08:00

So yeah - I'm at work - still can't comment back - so here's another post:

Yes - I absolutely agree as far as the wine goes. This is totally one road I do NOT want to go down. I like wine. I like beer. I like hard liquor. But only ONCE IN A WHILE and def. NOT an every day thing. Believe me - I KNOW that depending on wine to sleep every night would be an AWEFUL thing to become dependent on. I do NOT want to rely on it...it does help but again - it's exactly like relying on a sleeping pill.

So we shall see what my doc says. She might put me on ambien or something - but of course who knows til I see her. Again - that's something I'm not fond of the idea of doing - but we'll see. More than anything I am getting excited about doing a sleep study. Last night - for example - I napped a little on the couch before going to bed. Actually went into the bedroom around 9 - lay there all night and MAYBE got a total of about 3 hours of sleep?!!! I remember dreaming some - but seriously felt awake all night long. :(

Anymore it's actually making me irritable more at the FACT that I am not getting any sleep more than the "not getting sleep" itself. So yeah. allright - I really need to get back to work! :)

sleep study part deux...

2009-11-11T05:44:00.000-08:00

so yeah - i'm commenting to my last commenter as a post because - for some reason I can't reply to my comments here at work!

anywhooooo - yeah - the more and more that I think about it, I'm excited and hope my doctor is all for it (i'm sure she will be)...my sleep - well I also think a lot of it is "RLS" or restless leg syndrome. I've been doing a bit of research on it and I truly think THIS could be one of the reasons I'm up at night. I toss and turn allllll night long like crazy and literally am fearful that I'm going to punch my fiance in the head in the middle of the night for how much I toss and turn!

I also have child-hood fears that I still haven't gotten over (yes, i'm talking boogyman fears)...as a child, I was terrified of scary movies - and as an adult I still am - it's not as bad as it was when I was a kid, but yup - I'm still afraid of the dark. So put that together with the physical aspect of RLS and not sleeping and yeah - i'm petty much screwed at night! :(

there are some nights when I get SOME sleep - but honestly, for the most part - even on nights when I take valerian or melatonin or a OTC sleep aid, I still do NOT sleep!

Two nights ago I finally decided to try drinking a glass of red wine before bed...it helped the first night...I wouldn't say "worked" as in it wasn't a full night of unbroken sleep - but it was a much better sleep than "normal"...

However, last night I tried it again - and yeah - sleep sucked!

But - of course, too - obviously I do NOT want to have to use WINE to get to sleep at night!

My doc appointment isn't actually until December 9th but I'm going to call and see if I can get in earlier and also ask them specifically (while on the phone) about the sleep study/issues....

so we shall see! :)

Sleep Study...

2009-11-10T08:58:00.000-08:00

Ok - so I was talking with a friend here at work who just completed a sleep study. My fiance has told me before he thinks I should do one - and now, after talking with this friend and hearing about her experience with it - I am definitely going to talk to my doc next month about doing one.

My insomnia is just getting worse and worse. I've tried melatonin (only works sometimes) - I've tried valerian (again, only works sometimes) - of course I've tried over the counter sleep aids...I even tried last night to have a glass of wine before bed - which yes, it worked a little - but I do NOT want to get into the habit of having to have a glass of alcohol every night just to sleep!

Plus - this has been going on for just too damn long. YEARS if not decades! Something else she mentioned was "restless leg syndrome" which I have honestly thought about being a possibility before. I toss and turn SO much in the middle of the night I've drop-kicked my cat and dog off the bed without realizing it and I'm afraid of punching my fiance in the head in the middle of the night!!

So yeah - I've GOT to do something about this because A. I know that not sleeping can affect weight loss, B. I know that my not sleeping affects my mood at work and how I treat others... and C. damnit - I just want some sleep!!!!!!

so yeah. well that's all for now!

NO sleep and green smoothies...

2009-11-09T05:43:00.001-08:00

ok - so yeah - my sleep still sucks. After one week (not including the weekend...) of journaling my sleep:
Monday night / Tuesday Morning (Tuesday Nov 3) - not bad - had taken 6 mg Melatonin the night before, fell asleep on the couch around 10 - slept from about 11 p - 5 a - not too much tossing/turning - it was pretty good, actually! about an 8/10!

Tuesday night / Wednesday Morning (Wednesday Nov 4) - Night before sleep sucked - about a 4/10. woke up at 2, 4:30, 6:30 - tossed/turned all night. 6 mg Melatonin night before.

Wednesday night / Thursday Morning (Thursday Nov 5) - Night before sleep again, about 4/10 - woke up at 2, 3:30, 4:30 - tossed/turned all night. had extratime sleepy tea + valerian root (1000 mg)

Thursday night / Friday Morning (Friday nov 6) - Night before not too bad about a 6/10 - woke up once to use bathroom again around 6:30.

weekend, didn't journal.

Sunday night / Monday Morning (Monday Nov 9) - Night before SUCKED! didn't go to sleep til 1 a.m. - tossed/turned all night barely slept - about 2/10.

so yeah - that's normally how I sleep! it looks like the Melatonin worked last Monday night, but I did take it again Tuesday night and slept horribly. ugh.

I will figure something out.

GREEN SMOOTHIES

Ok - so I've decided I want to try and get more vegees in my diet - especially the leafy green kind. Now I love vegees - I just feel like I don't get enough in my diet.

So I bought some organic baby spinach and some kale yesterday.
Today I made this:

2 small leaves of organic Kale
about 6 small leaves of organic baby Spinach
about 1/4 cup organic frozen blueberries
1 scoop greens/whey vanilla protein powder
1 cup so delicious coconut milk beverage (unsweetened)
1 packet truvia

It wasn't bad! It wasn't as sweet as I'd like, but I will be tweaking it. Maybe more fruit? Need those anti-oxidants anyways...so yeah - we shall see! :D

SUGAR ADDICTION...and sleep

2009-11-03T11:47:00.001-08:00

Ok, so I truly 100% believe that SUGAR is an addictive substance. It's a powdery white substance that goes into your body and once it is in your bloodstream, you just crave MORE AND MORE AND MORE. It's a vicious cycle - and what is so aweful is that - unlike illegal drugs, sugar is SO widely accepted - and not only "accepted" but even FORCED upon us sometimes WITHOUT our knowledge!!

Now - since changing my lifestyle and becoming low-carb, this year - I have to say there've been many times when I've been "strong" and said NO to sugar...
Valentine's day, for example - my fiance and I went out with his family to Bucca Di Beppo (yes, that was hard enough, being an italian/pasta place!) - and EVERYONE ordered the Red Velvet Cake at the end of the meal. I didn't touch it at all - even with everyone saying "oh, c'mon - just one bite!" nope - didn't do it!

Then there was the time when - at work - I was working on an incredibly difficult project and the project manager came to me with a "peace offering" due to how difficult the project was and so brought me cookies from the cafeteria...I thanked her and once she left, I gave them to my co-workers! :D

Now - admittedly - on the day of my 30th birthday party, I DID "endulge" (ok, yeah, I binged) on red velvet cake (did I mention this is my favorite? lol) and brownies and cookies, etc. etc.

After the party, though, I got RIGHT back on track and lost the weight I'd gained during that binge.

Thing is, though, what truly really SUCKS is that no matter HOW much you say NO and how hard you try - the ADDICTION will ALWAYS be there! Again, I've been SO good - but I'll admit one of my BIGGEST issues is that I like sandwiches. They're simple - fast and easy. So last week I had real bread probably at least once a day for about 4-5 days straight last week. Granted, it was only ONE TIME per day (not for all three meals, but only ONE) - however the problem is the carbs IN that bread just seemed to keep sparking something...

And everyone knows that halloween was this past weekend. I bought candy I thought I wouldn't mow down on...wellllll - yeah. We had some left over and so in the past few days I've had at least ten mini snickers bars! ACK!

I'm not perfect and I know that - but it pisses me off that it's SO incredibly easy to just fall back into the habit like that!

Today - I actually decided to REALLY start journaling. I'm not doing it on here and probably won't share - but I'm keeping an actual JOURNAL that will also keep track of how I sleep at night (this is the main reason) as lately I've really been trying to figure out how to get my insomnia under control.

Some nights I sleep GREAT while other nights are aweful.

Last night, for example - I took two 3mg pills of melatonin and I actually think I slept pretty well. I fell asleep around 11 last night and don't remember waking up til around 5! that's HUGE for me. but the funny thing is - I ate three snickers last night alone!

So I'm just really curious to really document and figure out my sleep patterns - what I ate the day before - as well as my mood patterns...another thing is while I have horrible sleep at night - there are some days when, while driving home from work - I SERIOUSLY feel like falling asleep at the wheel!

That has been going on for at LEAST 10 years!

I'm still trying to figure out if maybe I'm deficiant in an amino acid or not.

So we shall see.

I'm sure I'll blog about some of my findings. Later!

quick 5-HTP update...

2009-11-02T07:47:00.000-08:00

ok - just wanted to post this real quick...so I've been taking the 5-HTP now for a week in hopes it will help my insomnia.

I think I am stopping it though...twice now, in the past week, I have had little anxiety attacks. Last night it was really bad...I was just sitting there watching TV with my fiance and all of a sudden it hit and I started having these horribly uncomfortable, unsettling and aweful thoughts racing through my head. I almost started shaking and just felt totally off.

so I googled 5-HTP side effects and came across some sites where people had this same issue. I really HATED the thoughts that were racing in my mind and hated the way I felt...it's not worth it just to try and get a full night's rest when I can use valerian root.

From everywhere I've read - this stuff really works for a LOT of people - and more power to them - but as far as me and MY experiment goes...yeah. Stopping the 5-HTP.

5-HTP update...

2009-10-26T11:16:00.000-07:00

Ok - so I just wanted to post a very quick update.
I started taking the 5-HTP on Thursday evening. I really didn't sleep that night - but I didn't expect it to work THAT fast...

Friday night & Ssaturday night - WOW! I actually slept through most of the night!

Sunday night was decent - but I woke up around 5 a.m. that I remember...

I don't know if I'd say i've had an AWESOME night's sleep the last 3...but I can tell you it was NOT broken up by me tossing and turning and waking up at 2, 4, 6...that I can remember - and THAT is saying a lot! :D

I am still just going to keep taking 100 mg for now - and maybe in a week and a half, after being on it for 2 weeks I might up it to two 200 mg pills.

But so far so good!

I would like to also add in L-Tyrosine for the focus issues...but we'll see. I REALLY need to cut down on spending $$. :P

wow...THIS is what eating FAT has done to me...

2009-10-25T10:55:00.000-07:00

Ok - so I went clothes shopping today. I've been "putting it off" mainly because we really don't have the extra $$$ to spend - BUT honestly I've only got like 2 pair of dress pants that even fit me any more - as all the rest are getting HUGE on me. Not that I'm complaining - but we just haven't had the $$$ to buy new clothes (and probably didn't today, but I'll figure it out - lol).

Anyways - I went to Kohl's and they were having their usual "lowest prices of the season" sale (you know - the one they have EVERY week, lol)...

I took this picture of me in a pair of SIZE 10 - yes I said SIZE 10!!!! slacks! and this AWESOME button down shirt while in the dressing room.

Normally I do NOT wear button down shirts because they don't lay right and the buttons always tend to "buckle out" and just don't look right because of my darned wide shoulders...but I bought this one because - if I do say so myself - it looked FABULOUS!!!

Now - here's my comparison shots...
Me - now - today - Sunday October 25, 2009 - 165 lbs

&

Me - beginning shot - January 03, 2009 - 197 lbs

Seriously THIS is what eating FAT has done to me?!!! It just kills me to think - WHY didn't I do this sooner??!!! I wasted YEARS of eating low-fat JUNK FOOD and never enough calories - always trying to do what "they" say to do...and yet I could NOT lose the weight...yet now I'm doing the OPPOSITE of what the gov't and the "food pyramid" says - I'm eating LOTS of yummy healthy for you FAT - yes even SATURATED fat. I do NOT eat grains (c'mon 6 servings a day???!!!!!!) - I eat TONS of red meat - and THIS is what it's done for me!!! :D

Who knew that actually EATING REAL food with FAT in it and NOT micromanaging every morsal of food that went into my mouth could do this?! lol. :D

It really is amazing. I will NEVER go back to ANY other way of eating EVER again! :D

The Diet Cure / Mood Cure pt 2

2009-10-23T08:53:00.000-07:00

Ok - so I have these books at home and I KNOW I'm going to have to order them off of amazon!

I'm a few chapters into the Diet Cure and it just makes SO much sense! Right now I'm only taking the 5-HTP. I got it yesterday in the mail and took one 100 mg pill last night around 5.

I think it was making me feel in a good mood last night - but that coulda just been placebo affect. lol

I didn't sleep at all last night - but I never do...I'm sure it'll take a while for it to really work into my system to get the sleep-thing goin' better. :D

Plus - I'm thinking I'll take 100 mg /day for the next two weeks then up it to 200 if I don't feel any different after two weeks.

But seriously - these books are just awesome. I think, too, I might look into L-Tyrosine in the future (for the focus thing) but not til after I completely finish these books and decide whether or not I truly need it.

that is all for now. later!

"The Mood Cure", 5-HTP and other vitamins...

2009-10-18T17:34:00.000-07:00

Ok so I try to take vitamins I think I need...obviously (for the most part) vitamins that people take are taken of their own accord and not necessarily what their doctor told them they need or are deficient of.

I WAS taking a multi-vitamin (centrum silver) but I threw those out today. I actually only took a few of those total and I haven't taken really any since my surgery. My ear doc told me to stop all vitamins two weeks prior to and two weeks post of my surgery...so the multi I'd only JUST bought before they told me to stop them...and really even when I began slowly bringing my vitamins back inTO my diet, I just didn't really start the multis...for some reason the centrum silver just makes me feel weird. :(
So as of right now I am NOT taking a multi-vitamin.

Here is the list of vitamins I currently take and why I THINK I need them...lol. :P

Omega-3 Fish Oil 1200 mg - 2/day (total 2400 mg) - 1 in the morning and 1 at night
One reason I take fish oil is because my eye doctor suggested I take Fish & Flaxseed for my dry eye.
Clinical studies also show that DHA and EPA help lower triglycerides, slow the buildup of atherosclerotic plaques, lower blood pressure slightly, as well as reduce the risk of death, heart attack, and arrhythmias.
Fish oil can also help with fat-burning.

Flaxseed oil - 1300 mg - 2/day (total 2400 mg) - 1 in the morning and 1 at night
Flaxseed is another omega-3 oil and again, my doc recommended I take this to help with the dry eye.
The cells of the body need omega 3 fatty acids because cell membranes are built from omega-3's and they help protect the membranes as well. The brain is largely composed of fats made from essential fatty acids and they are called phospholipids. These oils are essential for the function and structure of the brain. Cognition, memory, moods and concentration can be improved with these oils.

btw, I have dry eye since having lasik surgery done in 2003 (I am also on a prescription eye drop)...

Tonalin XS-CLA - 1 g - 5/day (total 5 g) - 2 at breakfast, 2 at lunch & 1 at dinner (only taking these for about 1 week now)
The first reason I started CLA is mainly for it's ability to reduce body fat. CLA is a fatty acid essential to the human body. It stands for Conjugated Linoleic Acid. Again, it has been shown - through studies - that CLA greatly helps reduce fat and promotes lean muscle mass.

Vitamin D - 2000iu - 2/day (total 4000 iu)
Basically, most people are deficient in Vitamin D. So knowing that I burn very easily from the sun - and the sun is the best source OF Vitamin D, I take this in pill form.

L-Glutamine Powder - 4500 mg/heaping tsp - 1/day - at breakfast in my hot tea or coffee
The first reason is that in the book, Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution - Dr. Atkins suggests using L-Glutamine to help with carb cravings.

NSI CoQ10 + Alpha Lipoic Acid + Acetyl L-Carnitine - 1/day at lunch

Acetyl L-Carnitine - 250 mg
Alpha Lipoic Acid - 250 mg
Co-Enzyme Q10 - 200 mg

L-Carnitine is known for being a nutrient that helps the body turn fat into energy - basically a fat burner.
Alpha Lipoic Acid is known for being a nutrient that helps the body convert glucose, blood sugar, into energy.
Co-Q10 helps fight diseases and helps with energy.

Super B Complex with C - 1/day - at lunch (I only JUST bought these yesterday...)
this has:

Vitamin C - 150 mg
Thiamin (Vitamin B1) - 10 mg
Riboflavin (Vitamin B2) - 10 mg
Niacin - 25 mg
Vitamin B6 - 4 mg
Folic Acid - 400 mg
Vitamin B12 - 15 mcg
Biotin - 30 mcg
Pantothenic Acid - 5.5 mg

B-Complex supports energy & helps offset stress. Plus it will help with the 5-HTP

And here's a list of what I JUST ordered and am waiting for these to arrive in the mail...
NSI BioAsteri Borage Oil - 1300 mg
NSI 5-HTP - 100 mg
NSI Green Tea Extract - 500 mg

The Borage Oil will help with fat burning alongside the CLA as it's a GLA - Gamma-Linolenic Acid

The 5-HTP is 5-Hydroxytryptophan is an amino acid that is used as an antidepressant, appetite suppressant and a sleep aid. I'm VERY excited about the sleep-aid part as it is supposed to help with Seratonin levels AND Melatonin levels.
My sleep is AWEFUL! I do have insomnia and some nights I'm lucky to get 3 hours total of sleep. Usually it's like this: "hey - it's 2 a.m....look it's 4 a.m....look at that it's 6 a.m...."

And the Green Tea Extract is for its anti-oxidant properties as well as fat-burning properties.

NOW - the "Mood Cure"...I have been researching this book all weekend - as it was suggested on my low-carb friends board (along with the 5-HTP. What I know about this book so far is it has REALLY helped a LOT Of people with their emotions and sleep habits. Now I'm not sure if I need to have the stress/anti-depressent properties, but I will admit some days I am TOTALLY stressed out, especially about money - so I think it'll be an added bonus...

Here's a link to the amazon page: The Mood Cure

Right now I've only reserved it at the library - but we will see, once I read it, if I decide to buy a copy.

WHEW. that was a long post! ok - time for sleep (haha, if i can get any...btw - I also use Valerian Root to sleep)..

A good saturday & I <3 Sam's Club!!!

2009-10-10T17:32:00.000-07:00

I had such a wonderful day today!

First - we had our most fabulous new washing machine delivered!!! When we moved into the house last year, we were 'blessed' with the house coming with ALL appliances...problem was - most of them were/are like 30some years old...we already replaced the nasty fridge with a beautiful side by side about 2 months ago...we still need to replace the dishwasher (but it does work for now. There was a washer & dryer in the basement - we got rid of the dryer immediately upon moving in as we had just bought a new dryer a year before while living in the apartment (had a washer that worked)...and got rid of that washer as it was pooping out on us, and we didn't want to drag it down the basement stairs in the house...so anywhoo - the washer that the house came with - started pooing out oil in the past couple of months, all over the floor (we need to really clean the floor) and we finally bought a new one the other night!
I'm usually not one to do the laundry (which he hates that I don't...) but I did ALL the laundry today and I LOVE this new machine! It's big enough to put our comforter in! whoohoo!

Then my fiance and I went to Menards and FINALLY got a new storm/screen door for our breezeway. Both doors in the breezeway needed/need to be replaced. We were only able to afford one - but we fixed the one that was the worst right now. Seriously - the door we replaced was falling apart and the screen had so many holes - and there wasn't a glass/storm window with the screen. it sucked. But that door is gone and the new one is AWESOME!!! :D
And I have to add that my incredible fiance spent alll afternoon installing it for me instead of watching his football! lol. :D

After we went to Menards, we went to Sam's club (right next door to Menards)...we've decided to finally really USE our deep freezer and try to stock up on meat when we can. I don't like the fact that I'm buying from Sam's - due to the fact that I'd MUCH rather eat all grass-fed beef/meat all the time - but we are on a strict budget and Sam's does have good prices on their meat...so I am turning a blind eye to knowing what commercialized meat goes through. :(

HOWEVER - that being said - I am SO happy with the amount of meat we bought today!
Ground Beef - about 6 pounds for about $14
Pork Chops - got about 14 big size chops for about $14 (these were on special)
Chicken - got about 8 big breasts for $10
Eye of Round Steaks - got 6 of these for $13
Spinach & Asiago Cheese Sausages - 18 for $9

So yeah - $60 for all that meat!!! And I LOVE having my food saver. Came straight home and portioned everything out into bags for the freezer.

This should hopefully last us about a month and a half! :D

Ok - that is all more later! :D

Boneless Buffalo Wings & Taco Salad

2009-10-09T17:09:00.000-07:00

Ok - so as promised, here is my post about the WONDERFUL induction-friendly boneless buffalo wings that I made. :D

I am also including pictures of the OMG incredible Taco Salad I had for dinner tonight.

So the Boneless Buffalo Wings that I made, I found here - on the thread for "Induction Food Porn" (about 1/3 of the way down on the page) on the LowCarbFriends.com website.

The side dish is "Fried Green Beans" - which was basically a bag of frozen green beans, fried in some olive oil with some seasoning (whatever you want) sprinkled on. Cook about 12-15 minutes.

So next...tonight I made the Zucchini Taco Bowl from the most fabulous Chleocatra's blog.

This bowl was SO crispy and OMG amazing!!!!

For the salad, I used:
Ground Beef
Shredded Lettuce
Shredded Cheese
Sour Cream
Pico De Gallo
Chopped Cilantro
Sliced Avocado

Here is the "dough" flattened out on the cookie sheet:

Here is the "dough" on the bowl, put back in the oven:

And here is the bowl out of the oven:

Finally - the finished product:

More and more every day i really truly love low-carb - because of recipes like this - I can practically make (almost) anything low-carb!!! :D

grrrr. hidden carbs...and re-commitment

2009-10-08T05:33:00.001-07:00

ok - so I keep bouncing back and forth from 165.5 to 169.

i HATE seeing that 169 stare at me on the scale. :(

I know I've been lax on my exercising lately...as I'd rather just get home and make dinner to make sure it's ready for my fiance when he gets home...

BUT I need to re-commit myself. both to exercising and counting carbs.

I've posted above a link to "My Daily Plate" Which I will TRY to keep updated - but no promises, lol...as I just find it so nice to NOT "micro-manage" my food anymore...

BUT I keep telling myself if I can even count for one week just to make sure I'm not eating hidden carbs - then I'm good to go...

For example - I realized this morning - I switched to the lower fat mayo at whole foods - and there's 2 g carbs in it! The higher fat/regular has none...
and, of course, I've been using my trader joe's bread a bit more than usual lately - specifically the last few days for breakfast - I prefer to eat my eggs as a SANDWICH...

so I entered in all my foods today on the daily plate and I just ate 12 carbs for breakfast! That doesn't include the 3 g fiber so it's only 9 net carbs for breakfast - but that's WAYYYYY too many.

So back to the freezer my bread goes (only to be used in emergencies) and this weekend, damnit, I am going to make some GOOD atkins revolution rolls/oopsie rolls to be able to eat my egg sandwiches with in the morning!!!!

Also...even though I have finally realized that fat *is* good for you - I do think I'm eating a little too much at breakfast...

This morning - adding everything up, I had 488 calories - 37 g fat - 12 g carbs - 2 g sugar - 3 g fiber - 27 g protein...

12 g of that fat came from the Jimmy Dean's sausage patties I went back to buying...as I stopped buying the sausage links from whole foods that are a LOT less lower in everything - AND there's no antibiotics, etc in them...but truth be told - we're a little strapped for cash and so forking out $5 / box at whole foods compared to $2.50 at wally world for the jimmy dean...yeah - it sucks.

so I'm going to have to either A. do the right thing and fork out the extra money OR find something else to have for breakfast, sausage wise...

One good thing is that my belt - which has holes around the entire belt...when I first started back in January, I could BARELY use the second set of holes...now I'm at the hole sets 5 and/or 6 depending on the jeans I am wearing! :D

But I just want to get down to 160 so dang bad! I NEED to re-evaluate - start counting again (even if it's just for a short while) and really re-commit back to exercising.

I REFUSE to start slipping back and gaining a little bit here and there. NO damnit. THIS is my new lifestyle - but I just again need to re-evaluate as I feel I've gotten a little lazy and lax and allow too many little "cheats" here and there.

So again - I don't promise that my daily plate will 100% be filled out ALL the time, but I'm going to try.

Same with my bodybuilding.com that I will repost in a bit too. :D

Boneless Buffalo Wings & CLA

2009-10-05T18:15:00.000-07:00

Tonight I made the most incredible boneless buffalo wings. I will post more about these later (with food-porn pics! lol).

They're not as good as buffalo wild wings, but they're damn close! now if only i could figure out a way to make buffalo chips low carb. hehe. :D

there's enough, too, left over from dinner for me to make a salad tomorrow :)

I ordered some CLA from vitacost.com today. I've been reading a LOT about how good CLA is for you - so all I can do is take it and see!

I will post my boneless buffalo wings soon! :D

Revolution Rolls, L-Glutamine & Fish Oil.

2009-10-04T17:23:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I tried making the Atkins Revolution rolls again and they just don't turn out the way I want them to. :(
when I finally DO figure it out, I will post pics. :P

So - this week I have decided to try and hit the gym 4 out of the 5 work-days this week.
I have a jar of L-Glutamine powder I need to use, as it has been known to help with weight loss. That, and - I need to keep on with really taking my fish oil day and night too.

I weighed in this morning at 165.5 and I am still in my size 12's. I have 5.5 pounds to go to get to my goal and I just want to be in those size 10's SO bad. It's been about 2.5 months now that I've been going between 165 and 169 and now it's time to start my weight moving again. So we shall see! :P

Just a quick post - Friday 02/Oct/2009

2009-10-02T07:26:00.000-07:00

Ok - so my last post was about all the whining I just felt I needed to get outta my body - lol. :)

This is a quick post to say that I am going to really start making sure I've got "convenience" foods (so to say) for this WOE so that I will make sure I have "easy" pick up and go lunches for work.

My thing is - due to the amount of people my company has hired as of lately - there's been a huge problem with parking. There's a 'remote' parking lot we can park at but I don't like to. I used to get here at 8:30 (left house at 8) and work til 5.

Now, though, i have to make sure to leave by 7:30 or else I don't get a parking spot where I want to...the PRO of this is that I also get to leave by 4:30 p.m. - but the con is I HATE waking up early in the morning! If I could just literally get up, get dressed and leave - I would!

But - I have to feed the cat (she eats in the basement)...get dressed...make breakfast...and try to have something ready to brown bag for lunch. If I don't - I usually end up spending $$$ at the cafeteria (and I'm just sick and tired of their food cuz it's always the same and I only have so many options there being low carb...most everything on the main line is fried carbage.)

SO. Normally - in the past, before finding this fabulous new woe - I was TOTALLY into convenience foods. Lean Cuisines & Smart Ones were my lifesaver! If not those then grab a sandwich and baked chips.

I've tried to have leftovers from the night before - but since I'm trying to save $$ on dinners I normally don't make enough. (I need to figure out something here, make more than needed at night...)

But one thing I TOTALLY miss are my sandwiches...I've tried the fabulous Chleocatra's OOPSIE rolls...Oopsie Rolls on Low Carb Friends

But they just don't turn out the way I want them to. :( (need more trials! lol)

I honestly didn't realize that this recipe came from the ORIGINAL Atkins Revolution Rolls. I will be trying these and posting how they come out.
Here's the link:
Atkins Diet Revolution Rolls

But I'm hoping, if I can get mine to turn out right - that these would be GREAT to have on hand for sandwiches at lunch time. The chips - now that's still something I need to figure out...

Another recipe I MUST try is one I found on the boards for Country Fried Steak.

I will let you know how these turn out! :D

Would you like some cheese with that WHINE!!???

2009-09-28T16:52:00.000-07:00

Ok - so I'm in need of a "whining" session. Sometimes I just want to scream and throw a tantrum like I'm a 2 year old in walmart.

I've posted many times about how much I absolutely LOVE my low-carb way of eating. I'm very happy that I've finally found what works in order to keep myself healthy and thin. I love how tasty this way of life is. I love how EASY this way of life is - in terms of NOT having to count anything anymore and worry about gaining weight, as long as I eat the things I know will not spike my insulin and make me fat...

However - that being said - i HATE the fact that I can't just eat WHATEVER I want. I HATE the fact that I can't go to Buffalo Wild Wings and get what I used to get...
Boneless (breaded) buffalo wings with a side order of cheesy buffalo chips (fried potatoes) & a beer.

I HATE the fact that I can't have oreos & milk at night like I used to.

It's not fair that I feel like I'm walking on eggshells just to keep my weight down.
The thing is - I'm so freakin' carb sensitive that even ONE "cheat meal" makes me gain weight. I do have them once in a blue moon - but I know I must get right back on track immediately or else I will gain all my weight back.

That's just it about my woe/lifestyle. I feel very fortunate to have FINALLY found what works - and I KNOW it works...it's just that - in this day and age of convenience and fast food - in order to keep my weight down and stay healthy, I can't partake in convenience foods.

And that's something else that sucks, because I work 40+ hours 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. and dangdit I want convenience! :P

BUT - with all of that whining said...the pros totally outweigh the cons.

Here are th cons I feel first...

CONS of Low-Carb Living:

Can't eat whatever I want, when I want.
I totally admit that I miss certain foods I can't eat anymore.
There are no "convenience" meals on this woe and everything has to be prepared in advance for lunch, or I spend $$ that I don't have to go out...
I can't eat how I used to in a pinch - specifically I can't just make a baked tater every single night for dinner...taters are too high in starch. :(
When I go out to eat, there's honestly only a FEW options that I can choose off of most menus

Pros of Low-Carb living:

I don't have to count any calories, points, fat grams, carbs, etc...as it is SO easy to know what to eat and what not to eat!
When I go out to a resteraunt, I can eat a YUMMY steak and vegee and not feel guilty over the steak - and instead feel satisfied and satiated!
Being 'allowed' to eat real fat and not being afraid of it!
Fat really flavors food!!!
I don't have to try at all anymore to actually LOSE weight. Maintaining my weight is a freakin' BREEZE (as long as I eat low-carb...)
Eating Low-Carb has really upped my interest in cooking and always finding new recipes to try...
In trying new recipes - I don't have to weigh/measure everything to make sure I know exactly how many calories/fat/points/carbs, etc...is in what I'm making.
I have been introduced to tons of new foods I'd have never tried in the past such as almond/nut flours, jicama, cherry tomatoes (I used to hate these, now I love them!)
I can eat nuts without feeling guilty!

So yeah...I could go on and on and on with the pros of this lifestyle - and THAT'S what keeps me going. Does it suck to think of the cons? Yes - there's no question...Do I miss junk food / convenience foods / chips, cookies, brownies, etc?...You bet your butt I do!
BUT again - it's not worth it. And I know that. That's the difference...

One of my favorite quotes ever is:
"Nothing worth doing ever came easy."

Ok - that is all. Just felt the need to whine! :P

Coconut Oil Candy

2009-09-20T18:56:00.000-07:00

Ok - so my latest recipe to try is coconut oil fudge. I decided to make them in candy molds to make them easier.

I found this recipe on the LowCarbFriends message board. I don't have the actual link to the post - but here is the recipe (tweaked to my own liking)

Chocolate Macadamia Nut Fudge:
4 T melted C Oil
3 squares of premium baking chocolate, melted (I used 85% Lindt Chocolate)
3 T of ground flax seeds
2 T of shredded coconut
Scoop of PP (I used Greens/Whey vanilla PP)
2 packets truvia
Whole Macadamia Nuts

I got 24 pieces

Melt the chocolate squares first - about 1 minute 30 seconds (I usually freeze mine so that's why so long - check your chocolate every 20 seconds or so...)
Add the coconut oil when there's about 20 seconds left and melt for another 20 seconds
Add the flax, coconut, protein powder & truvia - mix well.

In the candy molds, place 1 macadamia nut in each mold. Pour chocolate into each mold over the nuts.

Place mold in fridge for a few hours. Once solidified, take out and place in an airtight container. Keep in fridge or freezer as coconut oil melts at room temp.

Carb Count:
4 T melted C Oil (56 g fat, 0 g carbs)
3 squares of premium baking chocolate, melted (I used 85% Lindt Chocolate) (18 g fat, 5 g net carbs)
3 T of ground flax seeds (6.75 g fat, 2 g net carbs)
2 T of shredded coconut (9 g fat, 1.5 g net carbs)
Scoop of PP (I used Greens/Whey vanilla PP) (.5 g fat, 1 g fat)
2 packets truvia (1 g carbs)
Whole Macadamia Nuts - 24 (40 g fat, 2 g carbs)

total fat = 131.25
total carbs = 11.5 g carbs
24 pieces = 5.5 g fat & .5 g carbs per piece

Off Topic: Very Sad Day...

2009-09-14T17:56:00.000-07:00

Well - I thought today was actually a good day - as my mom called me this morning and told me my brother, who was hit by the economy like everyone else - has been unemployed for MONTHS - almost this entire year...finally got a job! I've been praying for him to get one (specially since he and his wife have a 1 year old). I was so very happy!!

But now.Today. 14 September 2009 - Patrick Swazye passed away from cancer at the age of 57. :(

I absolutely LOVED Dirty Dancing and hands down it is my absolute most favorite movie of ALL time. I know it by heart (literally used to be able to recite every word)...and have honest to god seen it THOUSANDS of times...I used to watch it and keep it on repeat (once I got the DVD, lol)

I remember the very first time I saw it, I was 8 years old. I was spending the night at my aunt's house - who was already a huge Patrick Swayze fan (as I was 8 but she was in her late 30's...). My mom told me I was way too young to watch it - but Aunt Linda brought it home (on VHS of course) and hooked up the two vcr's together to tape it for me...and I had that VHS copy until I broke it from watching it too many times! (probably when I was 18 or so...) and I bought the original DVD when it first came out - then I bought the special edition DVD too. And I even bought the Dirty Dancing 2 movie (which wasn't too bad)...but Patrick was in it.

I almost feel like a part of my childhood is gone now. :(

I know he has been very sick though, and I am happy that he is no longer in pain. Very sad day indeed.

Rest in peace, Johnny Castle. :)

Pizza & Beer on Atkins!!

2009-09-04T05:47:00.000-07:00

Yup - you heard that right - Pizza & Beer!

Nope - it's not store bought...in order to enjoy those types of foods, I have realized I have to home make them...

The beer is storebought (I LOVE my michelob ultras - at 2.6 g carbs per beer!)

But I have found the absolute BEST pizza crust.
I won't type out the recipe (as it's not mine), but the link to the most fabulous low-carb recipe site is here - Linda's Low-Carb Recipes. The pizza crust I used is Most Awesome Pizza Crust.

As for the sauce, I home made that too. I used a fabulous recipe I found on Recipezaar.com entitled "Pizzaria Pizza Sauce".

The only difference I made, however, is I didn't use any sugar - the wine makes it sweet enough.

On this pizza I am showing here, I used:
pizza sauce
sausage (range-free pork)
mozzarella cheese, shredded from a block of cheese
sliced roma tomatoes
diced yellow peppers

and omg it was FABULOUS!!! the crust, if made by the directions exactly is SO crispy and easily held!

it's AWESOME!

The carb count for this is as follows:
Crust = 6 g net carbs (8 g fiber) - remember, I doubled the recipe...
Sauce = 4 g carbs per 2 tbsp
cheese = 2 g carbs per 2 oz
1 sliced roma tomoato = 2 g carbs
diced yellow pepper = 2 g carbs
TOTAL = 16 g carbs (a little high, but I'm close to maintanance)

remember, depending on the toppings the carb count will vary.

But 19 total carbs for pizza AND beer??? I think I can handle that! :)

And, while it may look a little small compared to most serving sizes people are used to, remember, all the fiber in the flax seed will fill you up! I didn't need or want anymore after this meal - it fit the bill perfectly and I was absolutely 100% satisfied.

Waffles - Low Carb Style :D

2009-09-03T16:45:00.000-07:00

ok - so for my birthday i got the George Foreman Next Grilleration G5 grill - and I freakin' LOVE it!

I usually make pancakes on the weekends - my fiance's out of a box and mine, home-made. I want to share those with you now. :)

The syrup I use is Vermont Sugar Free Syrup

Here is the recipe:
(I double mine to fit in the grill - literally just double each ingredient otherwise, here it is "normal"...)

5 tbsp almond flour (need to use bob's red mill) - 6 carbs / 3 fiber = 3 net carbs
1 tbsp sour cream = .5 g carbs
1 tbsp so delicious coconut milk (unsweetened) (can use regular milk or water) = 0 g
1 tbsp chia seeds (optional, I use to add more fiber)
1/2 tsp baking powder = 1 g carbs
1 tsp oil (I use coconut, but can use any)
1 tsp Da Vinci Syrup - any flavor OR 1 packet of splenda + 1/4 tsp vanilla = 0 for da vinci, 1 for splenda

TOTAL = 4.5 g carbs and with chia seeds, tons of fiber! :)

Combine all ingredients and cook on griddle or skillet for pancakes or for waffles, use a waffle iron.

My 30th birthday.

2009-08-25T10:03:00.000-07:00

Ok - so as I posted, I am turning 30 on August 29th. I HAD planned on inviting a bunch of friends out to go to Dave & Busters ON the 29th.

Well...this past saturday (the 22nd) - my best friend and I planned to go out for lunch and then to see a movie. We went to Ruby Tuesdays and then saw The Time Traveler's Wife (FABULOUS movie, btw...)

I thought my fiance was going to be going fishing - as that's what he said his plans were for the day.

So I'm driving home from the movie and texting my fiance, telling him how great the movie was - and he asked me to park in front of the house, instead of on the side in the driveway, like I normally do.

So I did - whatever - didn't even think about it...walk in and SURPRISE!!!!!! He threw me a surprise birthday party! All of my friends and my parents were there. It was AWESOME!

Now, I had already planned that ON my birthday I was not going to care about low-carb and enjoy myself with foods I normally wouldn't eat.

So - since this was my birthday, I enjoyed myself immensly on saturday. They got me an INCREDIBLE cake - "Rent", "Wicked" and "Cats" on it. And it was my FAVORITE - red velvet.

I also had a few brownies, cookies, chips, etc...we went out that night and I had a long island iced tea and a real beer (not my low-carb beer lol)

It was great - I had an incredible time.

The next morning (sunday) I got on the scale and was 6 pounds up! ack! but I knew why (obviously) and was ok with it. I got RIGHT back on track and monday morning I was already down 2 (up a total of 4)...

This morning (Tuesday) I'm still up those 4 - so I am putting that as my weight right now.

Thing is though - while I enjoyed myself very much - I realized that I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE eating low-carb. I couldn't WAIT to get back to my fatty foods! lol

Seriously though - I know that I can NEVER go back to the way I used to eat. I enjoy my new lifestyle WAY too much.

so yeah - that is my "confession". No one is perfect (although I'm damn close! lol) I enjoyed my birthday and I am now back to my regularly scheduled program!

Pizza & Beer!!! :D

2009-08-22T07:28:00.000-07:00

I love low-carb. You all know that. I've said it over and over and over again!

On one of my atkins boards tha I post to - someone asked for "tips and tricks"...one of mine is - I have to find alternatives to foods I love - otherwise there might be a possibility of cheating and going for the gusto with the "real" thing...

I told this poster that in the past 8 months of me changing my lifestyle, I still eat BROWNIES, PIZZA, PANCAKES, BEER and even FRENCH "FRIES"...

How do I eat all of these indulging foods on ATKINS???!!! I mean - wait a minute, isn't atkins just "meats, eggs & cheese"? hahaha. yeah right um NO. not so much.

First off - for anyone who TRULY KNOWS that atkins involves TONS of yummy foods such as vegees, dairy, nuts, berries, alcohol, beans, fruit (yup, fruit!) and even potatoes and grains!

If you've never read the book and only "know" what you've heard - you're reading this going "that's not atkins!" but let me assure you it IS! Read the book. Dr. Atkins taught people how to eat WHOLE - UNPROCESSED foods and how to even eat the foods that everyone think is bad, because the INDUCTION phase tells you not to eat those foods. But the Induction phase is ONLY two weeks when you decide to start your new low-carb lifestyle. Then you climb the "rungs" of the ladder. Currently I am on rung 7 (fruit) but I have had a potato skin or two (my fiance is weird and doesn't eat the skin of his baked taters)...as well as some low-carb bread (rung 9)...

So anyways. I just wanted to share some of the things I eat such as PIZZA and BROWNIES so that you know you CAN eat those things again.

One more thing, though - before I get into those foods - you DO have to follow the rules of the carbohydrate ladder and only add these items/ingredients in small amounts, as per the "rung" you're on (for example, no almond flour until rung 3 - nuts) and concentrate more on your healthy fats, meats & VEGEES.

Now. I HAD to share my pizza I made last night. It was INCREDIBLE!!!

I was trying to figure out what we would do for dinner and thought I'd just stop by a pizza place and get my fiance a cheap $5 pizza. So I got that - but obviously I'm not going to eat a commercially made pizza with white bread crust!

So I went to my FAVORITE low-carb recipe website: Linda's Low-Carb Recipes and found a recipe for this Most Awesome Pizza Crust . I made this and while making it, I had sliced up 1 roma tomato and placed it in a bowl with some chopped up onions, basil & olive oil.

For the home made sauce I used this recipe off of recipezaar: Pizza Sauce.

Put that pizza sauce on the crust (which btw, is VERY crunchy!) - place the bruschetta mix (tomatoes, onions, oil) on the sauce - top with shredded mozzarella - bake for 15 minutes at 350 and enjoy!

And with that pizza I had my beloved Michelob Ultra beer (2.6 g carbs per 12 oz!)

I mean - really - low carb is freakin' FABULOUS! :D

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now - I'm sure you also saw "fries" up there in this post too.

I will talk about my "french fries" in my next post! hehe - so come back!

A new experiment...

2009-08-15T22:24:00.000-07:00

Ok - so I figured out that this damn rash is freakin' POISON IVY! ugh. :(

I'm EXTREMELY allergic to this crap and it got all over my body - including my face.

it SEEMS to be going away. :) I went to the doc and she had to give me prednisone - which is a steroid - which I didn't want to take because I know that prednisone leads to weight gain...

well - i've been on it for 3 days so far and good news is that i have NOT gained weight. :)

ok - so what is my new experiment? it's coconut oil. I've been using this fabulous oil now for about 3 months or so - but very sparingly - usually I only use about a tsp or so to fry my eggs in the morning. I have been up all night, tonight - reading about the MIRACLE benefits of coconut oil and I will definitely be upping my consumption to the 3 tbsp recommended daily.

Here's the site I've been on: http://coconutresearchcenter.org .

I am thinking I will definitely start making a smoothie every morning with my So Delicious Coconut Milk Beverage and adding 1 tbsp of coconut oil to that.

I will also be adding 1 tbsp of coconut oil to my oolong tea at work.

Then to my protein shake when I start going back to the gym (hopefully next week).

I also want to try using it as a pre-shampoo when I wash my hair,.

I will, obviously, post my findings!

laterz!

a hearing aid, a sunburn and a fish. :P

2009-08-10T05:59:00.000-07:00

Ok - so this isn't a weight loss post (my blog, doesn't have to be about it allll the time! hehe). But yeah - so as I posted recently, I had a tympanoplasty and a mastoidechtomy done on my right ear. It's still in the healing process and tomorrow is my next post-op appointment to see how it's healing.

My left ear - on the other hand - it's technically "healed" from last year's surgery of removing the tube that was still in the ear drum - and everything is "normal" in that ear - except for the hearing. I have hearing loss in both ears and this year I got the go-ahead from my ear doc to look into getting a hearing aid.

Well after a few run-arounds of trying to figure out whether or not my insurance would pay for the hearing aid (which it does not) - I got in contact with an INCREDIBLE service called Vocational Rehabilition. They were absolutely WONDERFUL and last thursday I got my very first hearing aid. It is a God Send. Seriously - This has got to be the most incredible invention known to man. I really didn't realize how seriously deaf I really am :(. So I picked it up Thursday afternoon and Friday, at work - it was just absolutely incredible. I could converse with people and NOT have to ask them "huh? sorry - could you repeat yourself???!!!" I absolutely LOVE having a hearing aid. :)

Now - Sunday...so Sunday we (me and my fiance) were invited out to go boating/fishing with a friend from work and her fiance. It was SO fun! Dan and I brought along our golden retreiver, Chloe - and we had a BLAST! Normally, our Pug, Petey, is the spoiled on - going places with us - but we knew that he wouldn't have fun and would be more of a nuisance. Chloe, on the other hand - was soooo happy and behaved so well. It was great. We also got her into the lake - which she had a BLAST in. So we went fishing - which I have NEVER done in my life. Well, ok - my mom swears I went when I was like 4 - but c'mon that was 26 years ago and I barely remember 2 years ago! lol. But Dan is into fishing - he's gone a few times this year by himself - and he was excited to go fishing with me, to see how I'd fend. Well - I must say I actually did pretty well for myself! I learned how to bait the hook by myself, cast the line - and I even caught fish like 6 times (we found a spot on the lake which was full of little striped bass - Dan swears that catching fish like that is a fluke and NORMALLY you catch ONE in a 4 hour period, if you're lucky - not one every time you cast your line! lol). But it was really fun - I must admit I enjoyed myself. Here's a picture of the very first fish I've ever caught in my life:

Now - on Saturday I had helped Dan take down a tree in our back yard - and I don't know if it was from that - or an allergic reaction of something, but I broke out on my face something bad...so of course - Sunday, when we were out fishing, I had sprayed my body with SPF50 to make sure I didn't get burned...well - even though I sprayed myself 3 times - i still got a few stripes here and there. One of my thigh (weird stripe) - one on the top of each foot - and on both shoulder blades on my back. AND of course...my face. So on top of breaking out on my face - I now have a sunburn too. It sucks. Hydrocortisone is my new best friend! lol. :P
So anyways - yup that was my weekend!
Laters!!

My ear Surgery...

2009-07-24T19:30:00.001-07:00

Ok - so in my last blog, I mentioned that I had an ear surgery done.

I had to have a "Tympanoplasty" and a "Mastoidechtomy" done to my right ear.

What does this have to do with my diet/exercise?

Well - the healing process will take about 6 - 8 weeks from the surgery and then about 4 months total for my hearing to get back to "normal"...at least this is the timeline my doctor has given me.

What sucks is I am SO looking forward to getting back to working out - but I honestly don't know if I'm going to be allowed to for a while. :(

My first post-op appointment will be this upcoming Thursday and I will talk to the doc about working out when I see him.

Now - about the surgery itself...basically I have had ear issues since I was 7 years old. I was 7 when they first put the first set of tubes in my ears - and my mom SWEARS that having done that helped me in school tremendously, as before I had this done, I was having troubles hearing the teachers and participating in class...but once I had it done - things changed and I was pretty much always an A & B student.

So - for the past 23 years, I have lived with A. not being able to get water in my ears - meaning earplugs every single time I would take a bath/shower - go swimming - even if I wanted to have a water balloon fight and B. if I WAS to get water in my ear...instant ear infection. It just became second nature to me as it was a part of my life.

Now - because of my ear issues, I've always had a little bit of trouble hearing people - but no real "hearing loss" to speak of until really this past year...

Last August - on my 29th birthday, actually ... I remember my left ear popping and thinking "oh great, another ear infection"...but this time it wasn't a 'normal' infection like I was always used to.

Along with the actual hearing loss - I also developed incredible Tinitus (ringing in the ears) - which will never go away, even with surgery. :(

So I found the most FANTASTIC ear doctor here in Indianapolis and after he looked at my ears and history - we decided that in that left ear the best plan of action was to take the tube out.

I knew that my RIGHT ear didn't have a tube in it anymore - and knew that it had a small hole where the tube had usually been placed - but no longer was there as there was the hole.

So anyways - I had that tube removed from the left ear and it healed nicely (according to the doc... :))

BUT once I had it removed - the hearing really started to go. In fact it got so bad last year that my fiance started to think I didn't like hanging out with his friends and it was straining our relationship until I myself realized that the REASON I was becoming "anti-social" was because of my hearing loss. I HATED trying to carry on conversations with people when I was CONSTANTLY turning my head to get them to talk directly to my ear and constantly saying, "what? can you please repeat yourself? what?"...so instead I didn't realize it - but I just started to decline to be in situations where I'd have to worry about BEING in a social setting. :(

Not only that - but my job started to suffer too. I started to really look anti-social at work and was even turned down for a promotion because I came off as "not a people person"...when I now know that it was BECAUSE of my hearing loss!

quick FYI - once I realized that, I started working on this issue with my supervisor, as far as communication goes - and I DID finally get a promotion I deserved - and I start this monday!!

So my surgery. Once the tube was removed from my left year last year - the doc really started to concentrate on my right ear. He told me of what needed to be done and what was actually WRONG with the ear drum (half of it was literally gone - the other half was all scar tissue from the YEARS of infections and needed to be removed...)

So we scheduled my surgery for July 21st. It is now July 24th. It's been 4 days since I had the surgery and I will be on a long road to recovery. I know this was absolutely NEEDED and I'm not wishing I hadn't had it done or anything like that - but I'm just going to put this out there - IT SUCKS!!!!! lol

so yeah. that's where I'm at right now. As for exercising - HOPEFULLY I'll be able to go back to the gym this year - but we shall see. I know I don't want to do anything to harm my healing - and I may end up having to cancel the membership all together until next year. :(

So anyways - I will post more later!

each and every pound, now, is a celebration!!!!

2009-07-24T06:14:00.000-07:00

wow. ok - so on tuesday of this week I had ear surgery done. I had a HUGE hole in half of my ear drum that needed repairing as well as all this scar tissue that needed removed...so I had that done on Tuesday.

Tuesday morning, at the hospital - I weighed in at 170.4 lbs - that's cool - I was good with that. :)

After my surgery - the nurses fed me apple sauce and sprite...yeah - i know i'm obsessing since i'm actually bringing that UP - but it's almost like a force-fed cheat. lol - but in all honesty it wasn't a big deal.

That afternoon when I got home, my mom (who'd been here with me and my fiance for the surgery) - went to go get my medication from the pharmacy and I asked her to go ahead and get me a sandwich from Jimmy Johns - yes - bread and all.

And so I had my FAVORITE JJ's sandwich - Beach Club - and enjoyed every bite of it! Now, granted, I did NOT eat any chips - which, in the past, I would have...

But it's seriously been over 7 months or longer that I've had Jimmy Johns - which I used to be addicted to! :)

That night I was good - and just had a steak caesar salad from O Charley's (no croutons)...

All was good the next day - wednesday - I weighed in at 171...ok - understandable

Wednesday night, however, my fiance REALLY wanted the new Tagalong blizzard from Dairy Queen...so he went and got a large and (gasp, confession time) I shared a bit of it with him...

So yesterday morning - Thursday - I weighed in at 173!!! ACK!!!!

So yesterday I go right back on track and this morning - 168. whew!

Now - I know that there's TONS of reasons why my weight goes up and down and up and down. And I know I should NOT be concerned if one day it's just a little higher (as long as it doesn't keep GOING higher EVERY day...).

It's funny - Dan (fiance) tells me NOT to scale hop every day - which is what a lot of other people say too - but for me, I NEED to. I NEED to keep myself in check to make sure that I'm NOT going up and up and up...when I'm NOT obsessing over the scale - my weight creeps up and before I know it, I'm at 200 pounds again.

I am *sooooooooo* close to 160 again it's awesome!

I have a pair of slacks in my closet - from when I weighed 160 - that I have been longing over for YEARS since I first weighed 160 and could wear them...and then started gaining back when I could no longer wear them...so they've been sitting there - staring at me - saying, "wear me...wear me..."

Well - I tried them on this morning - and O-MY-FREAKING-GOSH!!!!!! they actually pulled up and I was able to button them!!!!!! NOW - they were just a little tight - but seriously - maybe 5 more pounds and I can wear them again!!!!

I also pulled down all of my skinny jeans out of the attic the other day - and every single one of them - INCLUDING my favorite pair of "ass-jeans" (you know, the ones that make your ass look incredible!) which are a size 11 in juniors - fit like the old friends they are!

I'm just in absolute awe. THIS is how I'm supposed to live. THIS is how I'm supposed to eat (low-carb) and I will NEVER EVER EVER be at an unhappy weight again!

Now - due to my surgery I'm not allowed to exercise for a while. :(

BUT that doesn't mean I can't take walks (which I plan on doing til I can go back to the gym).

I WILL absolutely maintain (if not lose a bit more) before I DO go back to the gym - and once I'm back there - it'll FINALLY be time to tone up and focus on weight training.

Now, in all seriousness - ONCE I do get down to 160 pounds again - if I never lose anything else and stick at that for the rest of my life I'd be ecstatic. HOWEVER just the idea that I could actually weigh UNDER 160 is beyond my comprehension.

I'm turning 30 years old next month. All of my 20's was up and down and up and down on that freakin' scale. All of my 20's was also about finding out who I was and where I wanted to be with my life. And here I am - one month before I turn the big 30 and now that I've finally FOUND all those things

~I've finally gotten my eating habits under control and I know how to live a healthy life.
~I've finally found the most incredible man, and we're getting married, and we have an AWESOME house with our AWESOME dogs and we're planning on kids after the wedding...
~I've finally found the most AWESOME job (well, have had this for a while, lol) but I've also gotten a promotion to a job I have wanted for some time now...

And I must say - I pray and thank God every single day for all the blessings he's instilled in my life.

- Now that I've finally found all these things - I only have one thing to say about turning 30...

BRING IT ON!!!!!!

169 lbs. July 2009

2009-07-16T08:08:00.001-07:00

Wow. So my scale FINALLY says 169.0 lbs.

Sometimes I thought I'd never see that number again. It is absolutely amazing to me - the past 7 months - I've NEVER felt like I was "dieting" because there's never been a time where I was STARVING because I was only allowed so many calories during the day and didn't want to "go over"...I haven't been KILLING myself at the gym with cardio just to "burn off" the reeses peanut butter cups...

It is seriously incredibly amazing to me that THIS is the way to eat. It's funny too - I'm really reading up on REAL foods / WHOLE foods - that aren't chemically created...you know - the way people are SUPPOSED to eat...and the fact that it's SO easy - SO good for you and SO delicious - I'm almost pissed at myself that I didn't start this YEARS ago.

I know that one thing that will help me in the future NOT to gain back and yo-yo ever again is the understanding and knowledge that all those packaged foods out there - twinkies, pop tarts, oreos, 100 calorie snack packs and yes - even my beloved reeses peanut butter cups are for the most part pure chemicals!

It does suck sometimes cuz I know how GOOD those things tasted - but I've seriously gotten to the point now where I do NOT want to put ANYTHING chemical like that in my body!

Not only do I KNOW for an absolute FACT that I WILL weigh 160 pounds again - I also know that I will NEVER weigh 200 pounds (not including pregnancy weight)...but even then - I only plan on gaining the "recommended" 25 pounds - if that!

Plus - as much as part of me thinks I miss those packaged foods - the truth is I don't crave them at all any more. AND it's really opened me up to learn how to make my own healthier concoctions from almond flour and coconut flour.

I haven't made my own peanut butter cups yet but I do plan on doing those things when I get closer to my goal weight - to make sure that my body can handle real organic chocolate.

There is a new chocolate I've been eating (sssh don't tell anyone on the atkins board, lol) - but I found this INCREDIBLE dark chocolate truffle made with omega 3's at Whole Foods - and there's 4 truffles per package - I'm able to only eat ONE at a time...and it's like 4 carbs per truffle! :) and OMG do I savor every last bite. It's SOOOO good!

I also know that - once I'm in 'maintenance' I WILL eat bread again - which I'm looking forward to - but I also know I should NOT have bread at breakfast, lunch AND dinner.

plus - i LOVE my almond flour pancakes i make...and my home made jelly... :)

low-carb does NOT mean eggs, meat and cheese for the rest of my life. it means making SMART choices for my body that I know my body can physically handle.

deleted...

2009-07-11T14:18:00.000-07:00

deleted...

July 2009

2009-07-06T06:48:00.000-07:00

So last night, Monday 06/July I did yoga - for the SECOND NIGHT IN A ROW! :)

Sunday night I did Bob's Fat Burn Yoga (The Biggest Loser)
& last night I did a crunch yoga DVD.

I am actually starting to miss working out. I decided to put my gym membership on hold until September due to my ear surgery this month. But during this time, I'm going to really start researching new weight training routines so that once I'm good to go for exercise I will be set & ready!

I know, for me, I'm actually excited that once I start exercising again, MOST of my weight will have already been banished forever...and I actually FEEL like weight training will DO something for me. So I'm def. looking forward to getting back in the gym. Til then though...and at LEAST for the next two weeks til my surgery - I will be doing yoga. :)

Also - another thing - it's funny too...but in the past I was never one to take vitamins. Ever since starting Atkins, however, I've started a decent regimen of vitamins...but for the next two weeks I can not take ANY vitamins and really am only allowed to take my prescribed Metformin & my BC pills...and i'm even supposed to stop the metformin 5 days before surgery.

SO that also means I can't have that new whey protein shake I made the other day (which sucks cuz MAN is it yummy!)
And - I've also found a few new supplements I'd like to try - but again - nothing til at least 2 weeks after surgery...so until then - research, research, research! :)

Sunday, July 5, 2009

2009-07-05T15:27:00.000-07:00

Ok - so FIRST off...my exercise for the day:

15 minutes of using the punching/boxing bag + jumping jacks

20 minutes of Yoga with Bob (Biggest Loser)

NEXT: my food for the day

BREAKFAST (high-er carb...)

4 tbsp flax seed = 2.66 grams net carbs & 5.34 grams insoluble fiber

2 tbsp Smart Balance Peanut butter (w/flax) = 6 g carbs, 2 g fiber = 4 g net carbs

1/2 cup blackberries = 10 g carbs, 4 g fiber = 6 g net carbs

1 greens/whey/strawberry/coconut milk shake = 9.5 g carbs, 2.5 g fiber = 7 g net carbs

Wow - this WAS a bit high in carbs - but oh so good! :)

total carbs = 28.16 g carbs, 13.84 g fiber = 14.32 g net carbs

LUNCH

1 grass-fed/home-made bratwurst = 0 g carbs

1 cup canned spinach = 8 g carbs, 4 g fiber = 4 g carbs

total carbs = 4 g net carbs

DINNER

Halibut w/Basil Oil = 0 g carbs

1 stuffed Avocado = 14 g carbs, 8 g fiber = 6 g net carbs

TOTAL net carbs per day = 24.32 g carbs

TOTAL fiber for the day = 25.84 g carbs

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SECOND...

Ok - so I found this new FABULOUS store here in Indy (another health food store) and there I found this AWESOME book called, Cooking With Coconut Flour. I'm really excited because there's SO many AWESOME looking recipes in this book. :)

a'right - that's all for now. last post of the day. :)

later!

The Next Two Weeks...

2009-07-05T11:44:00.000-07:00

Ok - so the next two weeks are:

#1 - My last two weeks as a Desktop Publisher, as I've been promoted to Technical Administrator!!

#2 - The two weeks before my ear surgery. My doctor has advised me to stop taking all herbal supplements including my flax and fish oils & multi-vitamins. (I'm having a mastoidechtomy & tympanoplasty done on my right ear drum on July 21)...

SO. I have decided. Since I've NOT been counting my carbs for the past few months and really just been "eating healthy" as I've learned to do on Atkins...I am going to make a two week journal. First off - since this is my last two weeks as an hourly employee - which means once I'm salary, I'll no longer be paid for overtime - I DO plan on working as much overtime as I can.

AND - as I mentioned in a few posts back, I have placed my gym membership on hold...

I'm going to - for the next two weeks - take up pilates & yoga in my basement. I will work out 5 days a week for the next two weeks (10 days total). I am also moving up to the beans & legumes rung of atkins (rung 6).

AND I am putting my scale AWAY for the next two weeks.

I weighed in yesterday morning at 170 lbs exactly and that is my starting point for this two week experiment.

I will blog more later!

Cocnut Milk & Strawberry Greens Protein Shake

2009-07-05T07:32:00.000-07:00

Ok - so I've found this new AMAZING protein shake that I FINALLY love the taste of.

At the Whole Foods market here in Indy I found the So Delicious Coconut Milk which the unsweetened is only 1 gram carbs 0 g fiber per 8 0z glass. And the Greens & Whey Protein powder. What I love about this new powder I found is that it's not only a Protein powder - but it's also got TONS of vegees in it.

Ingredients:

8 oz So Delicious Coconut Milk - 1 g carbs, 0 fiber = 1 g net carbs

1/2 cup frozen berries (I used strawberries) - 6.5 g carbs, 1.5 g fiber = 5 g net carbs

1 scoop Greens & Whey Protein Powder = 2 g carbs, 1 g fiber = 1 g net carbs

So I pour 8 oz of the Coconut Milk into my blender. Add about 1/2 cup frozen strawberries - or any berry you want - (frozen works best). Add only 1 scoop of the Protein Powder. Blend!

It's THAT easy and sooooo yummy.

Total Carb Count:

9.5 g carbs / 2.5 g fiber = 7 g net carbs

The carb count obviously is different for the different berries you use. Blackberries are the lowest for carb count and highest in fiber... :) Blueberries have the highest amount of anti-oxidents.

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EDIT - Tuesday 07/July/07

Well, for some reason I can't reply to the comment - but I think you're right! I actually just blogged that I'm not going to have the whey protein for the next two weeks because of my surgery, and I've been advised to have NO vitamins or anything like that...but I didn't think of just the milk with the fruit...I will def. try this! :)

July 4th, 2009

2009-07-04T13:03:00.000-07:00

Ok - so lately I've been very interested in learning more about grass-fed beef & dairy, free-range chickens (eggs & meat) and organic foods.

I used to be the kind like, "really? organic? what's the flippin' difference?" But now I'm LEARNING what the flippin' difference is and it's freakin' scary!

Luckily, where I live - here in Indianapolis - I have a couple of different places I can shop for very good organic food. There's two Trader Joes (and I live 5 miles from one)...there's a dairy farm in the neighboring town of Zionsville called Traders Point Creamery which I can also buy their non-homogenized grass-fed dairy at the Fresh Market literally around the corner from my house...and we also have a Whole Foods too.

I plan on reading the book, "The Omnivore's Dilema" soon as I've read and heard from many people online that THIS is the book I NEED to read if I'm interested in learning more about our food industry.

I am still Low-Carb for life - but the more and more I learn about real nutrition - I'm loving all the information I learn about how to really eat! No more junk food. No more corn-fed/anti-biotic raised beef. Only REAL - WHOLE - NUTRITIOUS foods that actually DO something FOR my body. :)

Now - I usually shop at wally world every week for our groceries...one thing I am doing, though, is definitely NEVER EVER buying ANY kind of meat from there ever again! There are SO many places here in Indy to buy from the "little man" - many different butchers and I have access to farmers who sell grass-fed beef...I'm so excited and happy I've found this new way of eating!

I've also found a few websites online that I'm in LOVE with. Such as the blog for Healthy Indulgances. I made her coconut brownies today for the 4th of July BBQ we are having and I really really like them!

So anyways - just wanted to make a quick post as I haven't posted in a while.

My weight is holding steady at 170 right now - but I also have not exercised in a while...And I actually put my gym membership on hold until the end of September - due to the fact that a. it's summer...and i get lazy - lol...but mainly it's because I'm having ear surgery in July and won't be able to exercise anyways.

BUT I must say I am VERY happy that I've finally learned how to eat right - so that when I DO get back to the gym this fall - I won't have gained ANYTHING back and I'll BE HEALTHY!!!! :)

A'right well I gotsta get going.

Next up - I will post about a FABULOUS new smoothie I made this morning with Coconut Milk & Greens Whey Protein. :)

Later!

Totally Off Topic: Rest in Peace Michael Jackson

2009-06-25T17:24:00.000-07:00

I am sitting here - watching CNN as I'm sure many people are right now - 8:25 p.m. Eastern Standard time - Thursday June 25, 2009.

One of my absolute favorite entertainers of all time is dead. Michael Jackson. I'm just in complete shock. Throughout all the allegations, everything that could have ruined him - and practically did...yet his fans still loved him.

I know I did. I remember - when I was really young - about 8 or 9 (1987/1988) - when I first made best friends with Angie & Theresa (my childhood best friends) - our weekends CONSTANTLY consisted of watching his mini-movie "Moonwalker" and we'd tape up our fingers like he did. We loved him.

He was such an icon. He really was. I just hope that he has finally found peace for himself.

Rest In Peace.

May 2009...

2009-05-28T05:42:00.000-07:00

Ok - so I haven't blogged here in a while - just had TONS of things going on. I AM however still going VERY strong low-carb wise. I have weighed in now for 5 weeks straight at 175. Don't get me wrong, that's AWESOME - but also a little frustrating....of course, though - I also have NOT been exercising at all. Seriously just been VERY busy.

This morning, however, the scale dropped to 173!!!!! I can't believe it! I am ONLY 4 pounds away from 169!!!!! My clothes are starting to be soooo loose that I'm going to seriously need to start some shopping soon. I have my "skinny" pair of jeans that fit - but all my other jeans, I HAVE to wear with a belt. I'm down to about a size 12 right now (13 in juniors) and my 17's in juniors - I absolutely can't wear unless I have a belt on - and I'm ONLY wearing them because I don't have the money to go buy new jeans... :P

I can not express enough - though - how much low carb has saved my life. seriously. It's funny because a year ago if you'd have told me to go on atkins I'd have laughed at you...and in fact I DID laugh at the thought because my doctor is the one who TOLD me to do atkins. I didn't believe her - I mean after all - YEARS of low-fat dieting is what had been screamed into my brain and it's what EVERYONE out "there" says to do - that low-fat is the "only" way to go and that low carb is "bad" for you...

I have finally gotten to the point, though, that it's like - well..."they" have always said, "eat less, move more" meaning eat low fat and exercise like crazy in order to lose weight. I did that and yes, it works, but it's NOT sustainable...and if you're NOT eating low-fat and exercising like crazy, your body just gains it right back.

So I've started to think - maybe "they" WERE wrong! What the mainstream has always boraged us with has NOT worked - and finally I did what "they" said was "bad" and yet it's WORKING!!!!!!

Seriously - WTF is up with that? "Maybe it's all been a big fat lie"...there's no MAYBE to that. It HAS been a big fat lie!

Granted, 5 weeks now I've been the same weight, but I've NOT been exercising like I used to - and I'm eating REAL FOOD with omg, dare I say it - FAT content like i've never eaten before...but I'm NOT eating bread, grains, sugar, etc...and ya know what? I've MAINTAINED that weight! It hasn't flucutated at all! Until this morning when it went DOWN!

Now - do I miss sugar? Abso-freakin-lutely I do! I'm human...for the first 29 years of my life I LOVED sugary foods. Dan went to go get me dinner last night and he stopped off at dairy queen for himself...I had litterally ONE taste of his ice cream and yes, part of me wanted to eat his entire treat....it was like heaven in my mouth. But I said NO. I would NOT do it because it's not that that's a "bad" food...but it's because now I know WHY I can't have ice cream. Instead of just saying, "nope - can't have ice cream, it's 'bad'"...now I know that if I eat sugar it raises my insulin which in turn keeps me fat. And I've OBSESSED over my weight long enough to finally realize that THAT'S the key.

Plus, I'm NOT obsessing over losing weight like I used to. I think - in all honesty - THIS is what I'm talking about when I say that "low carb has saved my life". Mentally it's just AWESOME that I don't obsess over dieting like I used to. It honestly feels AMAZING to focus my energy on other things.

AND - the absolute best thing? I KNOW that by June of next year - my wedding - I WILL WEIGH 160 POUNDS OR LESS!!!!!!!!!!!

That just almost seems foreign to me since, well after the first time I got down to that weight on weight watchers - it just kept coming back no matter what I did. But the difference is now - I know WHY I need to do low-carb. I also know that I CAN "indulge" once in a blue moon - but that I CAN'T do it every day or even every week for that matter.

I FINALLY KNOW HOW TO EAT! :)

Sunday 03/May/2009

2009-05-03T07:14:00.001-07:00

Ok, so April I was VERY lazy...went to the gym a total of like 4 times...so I'm really hoping that in May I get my butt in GEAR!

On June 20th, my mom is coming down here so that we can see WICKED!! Since that's at 8 o'clock that night, I made an appointment at David's Bridal earlier in the day so I can try on bridal dresses...I have been there once already to try some on - and that was back in October - and that was also 22 pounds ago...SO this is definitely a motivation for me to hit the gym this month. :D

At the beginning of April I weighed 180 lbs. Now at the beginning of May I weigh 175 pounds. 5 pounds this month!!! that' AWESOME!! :) especially for being lazy and not working out a lot!

So I'm hoping - work out at least twice a week, if not three times a week - and HOPEFULLY by June 20th I can be down to 165. god - even thinking about that number has seemed SO out of reach since I gained all my weight back - but now - it's like at the tip of my fingers!!!!

Right now I'm wearing a size 13 - down from a 17 - and all my 13's are a BIT loose...I actually wore one of my three pieces of clothing in my closet that I've REFUSED to throw away because "one day they'll fit again"...it was a nice black and blue skirt. It didn't fit exctly as I will admit it's a side zipper an I had to leave about a half inch of it unzipped (shhhh don't tell) but it looked FABULOUS with the shirt I was wearing - and the fact that I haven't even been able to get it over my hips for the longest time?!! yeah - it's awesome

SO - for June 20th I am SERIOUSLY hoping I can be down to a size 11 (in 'real world' sizes and that'll mean i'm about a 14 in wedding dresses...

when I tried them on back in October, I was in a size 20 wedding dress! :(

so i HAVE to be in a 14.

Now - I really do NOT honestly think it'll happen - but omg - the wedding is a year away - if I could seriously be in a size 10 wedding dress??? (be a size 6 in real life) I think i'd seriously cry.

But I'd be SO happy if I could just get down to a 10/11 in the "real world" and a 14 in wedding - I'd stay at that forever. :)

I honestly can not tell you guys how happy I am to have found atkins - everything about it just makes sense.

AND i'm eating HEALTH foods - not junk food that i thought was healthy (100 calorie packs anyone? lol)

For example - this morning - I had:

2 tbsp flax seeds (1.5 g carbs, 2.5 g fiber)

1 egg white (.5 g carbs)

1/4 cup coconut milk (0 g carbs)

mix those first three ingredients in a bowl - microwave for 1 minute

take out and mix together more...add:

1 tbsp natural peanut butter (or almond butter, i've used both) (2 g carbs)

1 tbsp unsweetened organic shredded coconut (1 g carbs, 0.5 g fiber)

1/2 tbsp chia seeds (0 g carbs, 3 g fiber)

a few drops of stevia liquid sweetener (0 g carbs)

mix all that together in the bown and microwave for 30 minutes

take out and add:

1/4 cup coconut milk (0 g carbs)

1/2 cup berries - i used blackberries (6 g carbs, 3 g fiber)

TOTAL carbs: 11 grams carbs - 9 g fiber - 2 g net carbs

and it was FABULOUS!!!!!!! :P

see - atkins isn't all about meats, eggs and cheese. it's about learning what else is out there and how to treat your body right.

PLUS these new chia seeds I bought are freakin' CHOCK full of omegas! they're SO much healthier for you than flax (although flax is still good for you!) - but chia seeds are just CHOCK full of omegas.

one serving size is actually 1 full tablespoon but instead I only used 1/2 tbsp this morning because I plan on going to the gym later and trying 1/2 tbsp in my protein shake later. and at $16 for 30 tbsp...I want it to really last.

that's all - i think i'll post more this month - especially about exercising more.

ATKINS - my "magic weight loss pill"

2009-05-01T11:54:00.000-07:00

Ok - so the following was a thread i posted on the ADDB board about how much i LOVE LOVE LOVE atkins:

And thy name is ATKINS!!!!!

Seriously you guys...wow. This morning when I woke up I got on the scale (I check every other day or so...) and holy - I couldn't believe my eyes...175!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am 15 freakin' pounds away from my goal!!! NOT 36 like I was on January 1st!I have battled my weight for so long I've lost count of the amount of times I've lost weight only to gain it back.

But that's what low-fat DIETS do to ya...I have NEVER EVER found a way of eating that makes me HAPPY and I don't feel deprived on. So after I saw 175 on the scale - I got dressed and put on a skirt that I usually wear and it looked really good...so I thought to myself "hmmm I wonder"...so I pulled out one of the 3 pieces of clothing I have had sitting in my closet for that time of "just in case it ever fits again"...I've got 1 pair of slacks (size 11 juniors yet to get into) and 2 skirts all of which I LOVE too much to throw out even though for the LONGEST time they've not fit because I kept gaining weight back. Well, I put on one of the skirts - and i'm here at work, typing this WEARING THAT SKIRT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I can seriously TASTE the 160's!!!!! I WILL be 160 pounds (if not lower) for my wedding! I just honest to god can NOT believe that!!!! It still seriously blows my mind how EASY this way of life is - and it honest to god HAS become my "way of eating"...I don't even have to think about it. Do I want sugar? Yes - I fullheartedly admit that my brain still tells me, "ooooh that cake looks good. ooooh that cereal, poptarts, ice cream, starbucks frappuccino, etc...looks awesome!!!" yes - I absolutely still think about eating those things...however I've finally realized that I want to be healthy and thin so much more and I know that if I were to give in and eat those things #1 I'll get sick and #2 I'll gain weight plain and simple. If I really want to lose weight and feel good in my skin and my clothes, I HAVE to eat low-carb / low-sugar and continue following the rules of atkins. No ifs ands or butts.

And have I cheated in the 4 months that I've lost 21 pounds? Barely...admittedly I had some REAL ice cream at Kings Island last weekend - and I can't tell you how incredibly it tasted...BUT that was saturday night around 9 p.m. (and btw, I shared a SMALL bowl of it with Dan)...but sunday afternoon omg did I pay for it (and i'll leave it at that).But I LOVE LOVE LOVE this way of eating because I NEVER feel deprived! And when I do think about wanting something sugary - I always remember how literally sick it makes me because my body can NOT metabolize sugar. And when it does, I either get sick or gain weight.Since I lost a bulk amount of weight back in 2003/2004 (on weight watchers) I thought that THAT was the only way to lose weight (205 to 160)...but no matter HOW hard I tried I just couldn't get back into it because low-fat/high-carb (including candy/sugar) just always made me depressed and I'd always end up going back to eating junk...But the FAT and whole foods I eat - I don't WANT to eat junk food anymore (well, I want to but I know why NOT to)...it seriously blows my mind...and to think that in a few months I WILL be back down to 160 almost makes me want to cry because I was beginning to think it'd NEVER happen again. And not only have I finally found what to do to get skinny - I'm also HEALTHY. All my blood levels are NORMAL and I just feel incredible!

And, no I haven't lost NEARLY as fast as some people and some weeks I don't lose anything - but that's ok because I know that in continuing to eat this way I WILL GET TO MY GOAL and I don't even have to "try"...And the DIFFERENCE this time - how I KNOW I'm NOT going to gain this weight back that I've gotten rid of?...I don't feel guilty anymore. Food doesn't have that emotion over me that "oops - I screwed up - might as well completely ruin it". Not ONCE in the past 4 months have I felt like that - when that's how I've felt for sooooo long while on low-fat diets. Ok - off my soapbox now. To any newbies out there who are struggling because you just "CAN'T" give up your bread or sugary filled foods - just do it. all or nothing. THIS PLAN WORKS!

so yeah - I'm almost there and seriously I couldn't be happier!!! For YEARS after I lost my weight on weight watchers (and slowly but surely gained most of it back) - no matter HOW hard I tried and how long I counted points and did everything "perfect" - working out, eating right and GAINING weight...always trying to figure out what was going on - I finally HAVE figured out what was wrong with me. :(
It sucks that I am insulin resistant because - yes, I TOTALLY miss sugar - but now that I know that SUGAR is what makes me FAT (not actual fat!) - I've given it up and couldn't be happier!!!!!

I WILL weigh 160 lbs again! (if not less!!!!)

I'll also repost new pics once I can - now that i'm past 20!

3 months in. April 2009 - 05/April/2009

2009-04-05T17:36:00.000-07:00

Ok - so it has been 3 months now exactly. January - February - March.

It gets easier every day and I must say I LOVE LOVE LOVE living the low carb life. Seriously. Eating out is SO easy. Cooking dinner is SO easy. Lunch is still a bit hard - but that's only cuz lunch has always been hard for me - unless there's leftovers from the night before, then it's easy. lol. and Breakfast. VERY easy.

But I've come to the conclusion - finally - that I've actually found exactly what i've always been looking for. And that is a real true "way of eating for life" that is easy, healthy, and has a side effect of losing weight! haha.

But I've FINALLY given up sugar. Something I've wanted to do for such a VERY long time - even when i was doing low-fat dieting.

But I've come to the realization that - even if I only lost a half a pound every week for the next year, I will lost 26 pounds by this date next year - and I'll be PAST my goal of 160!

And I know there'll be weeks when i lose nothing - and weeks when i lose 2 or 3.

One thing, I know - is that it seems like i've been working out at the gym for YEARS now and yet i'm still only at 180 after gaining/losing/gaining/losing - mainly because my eating wasn't where it needed to be. But now I KNOW that sugar is the culprit. SUGAR is what keeps me fat. NOT fat!

But - now I feel that working out IS actually "worth it"...as in i'm not just wasting my time going to the gym anymore! lol

And yeah - some times it SUCKS that I can't go and have a reeses peanut butter cup - especially on holidays when those oh so awesome holiday reeses cups come out - but to me, being thin and HEALTHY is soooo much more important than a few seconds of "bliss" that would turn into regret.

I'm just so happy that I've finally found what works. And I don't feel the need to "tweak" anything.

PLUS 5 more pounds to lose and I can start eating berries again!!!! :P

That is how I'm doing the "rungs" of atkins.

196 - start / induction

191 - rung 1 (more vegees)

186 - rung 2 (dairy)

181 - rung 3 (nuts)

176 - rung 4 (berries)

171 - rung 5 (wine & low carb alcohol)

166 - rung 6 (legumes/beans)

167 - rung 7 (fruits other than berries)

161 (and goal) - rung 8 (starchy vegetables)

156 (god i hope i get that low) - rung 9 (whole grains)

180 lbs... 02/April/2009

2009-04-02T07:05:00.000-07:00

Ok - so first thing is that this week I've been lazy and I haven't gone to the gym at all this past week. Just been lazy.

Wednesday the 25th of March was the last day I went to the gym. I will get my ass back in gear asap - but yeah.

Now. I am at that "point" in my weight loss that I've seen so many times in my life. 180 lbs (give or take a pound or two depending on the day)...this morning I weighed in at 182 yet 4 days ago, on Monday morning, I weighed in at 178.5.

The thing is, about the 180 lb mark - this is the "point" where I usually get to and thing "great! I've done it! I'm soooooooooo close to 170 again...it's 'ok' if I get a little lax now"...

But it's not. I mean - literally - I can not tell you HOW MANY TIMES I have been here before and I always turn back.

Why? well - I think it's because I get lazy as well as normally frustrated (being usually on a low-fat diet)...

But I'm not eating low fat now (or ever again). I've finally found something that WORKS and I KNOW I will ABSOLUTELY get down to 170 and then down to 160. Thing is, though - I also know I ABSOLUTELY MUST work out in order to do that. I've been GREAT at working out for 3 months and it's now like that point in time when I feel like "ok, i've done good enough, can't I have a break?"

But after SO MANY FREAKIN' YEARS of doing this - I realize that I CAN'T have a break. A "Break" means getting lazy and going back to where I was before. And I REFUSE REFUSE REFUSE to go back there EVER AGAIN!

So yeah - I think this week has been a learning experience. I almost "needed" to go back and forth between 178 and 182 for the past few days to realize that 178 is where I should be - not 182. It's only a 4 pound difference and there's so many things it could be - but I need to get down to 178 so that my next goal is 176 then 174 then 170 before I know it.

more later!

Low Fat lies 25/March/2009

2009-03-25T06:39:00.000-07:00

Ok. So this may end up being just my personal opinion...but lately I've begun to get pissed about low-fat diets.

For example - last night I was watching The Biggest Loser on NBC like I do every Tuesday. I absolutely LOVE this show...but there was a segment where Bob (the trainer) was showing two of the contestents how to grill out and do it "low-fat"...he showed them a 98% fat free loin that DID look declicious - and I must say I'd TOTALLY eat - but after he made the kebobs (with mushrooms, peppers, onions and the meat) he was all, "now you can grill out without all the fat".

Now - I DO know and totally understand that FAT FREE / LOW FAT is the "mainstream" - and has been for the longest time - but really? Now that I've educated myself as well as physically SHOWN myself that eating fat IS good for you - it actually pisses me off that everyone out there DOES listen to the lie that "low fat / fat free" is the way to go. # 1 it really is SO incredibly unhealthy because - normally - fat free specifically usually means SO much added sugar. Low-Fat usually has added sugar too...and we all know that when you take away something you HAVE to ad something else to it.

so - when you take away FAT - you are left with carbs and sugar. it's absolutely MADDENING.
I know - for HALF if not ALL of my life - i've lived the "low-fat lie" myself because I didn't know better and that's what EVERYONE does - but now that I DO know better it really pisses me off to see all these people who think that eating "fat free" or "low fat" foods is healthy!!!!!!

ok, just needed to rant. more later.

14 pounds down!!!! 22/March/2009

2009-03-22T06:47:00.000-07:00

woohoo!!!!!!! I lost another 1.5 pounds this week!

I got on the scale this morning and 182 is what I saw! I am sooooo freakin' excited it's not even funny - I mean seriously - I have NEVER EVER EVER been on a "diet" where I didn't feel like I was "dieting"!!

It's rally funny, though, that I always used to be the hugest proponent I knew AGAINST the atkins/low carb diets and yet - Atkins is what's saving my life. Seriously.

And what I LOVE about eating low-carb?...

1. I don't have to weigh and measure everything. On weight watchers, I needed to know exactly the cup/tbsp, oz/gram, etc...of what I was making - and it actually made mealtimes dreadful - whereas now I can just make a recipe - and eat how much i need to feel SATISFIED and not just how much I can "afford" points wise.

2. Fat tastes wonderful!!! Ok, so while I'm still getting used to the taste of fat (i know i don't need to go crazy and buy the fattiest meat, which I don't) - just eating regular butter and regular mayo and all that stuff is AWESOME!!!

I also get to eat nuts without ANY guilt!

I can also have FULL FAT salad dressings and not those nasty fat free ones I used to convince myself I liked.

I can have avocados without guilt!

I can use olive oil and not have to measure out exactly 1 tbsp - or worry about adding it to my "points"...

Full fat cheese - compared to that NASTY fat free processed shit.

3. I can eat without feeling guilty!!! One of my biggest pet peeves of a low-fat diet is no matter what - even sometimes when eating a "healthy" low fat meal - you almost felt "guilty" for eating. I know a lot of it was going over points for the day "oh well - I screwed up - might as well chuck it all" which I know is insane - but that's how so many people think. Whereas now - no guilt!

4. I finally feel like I know what I'm doing!! haha. that's a funny one - but it's awesome cuz for sooooo long I've been looking for that "magic pill" and who hasn't?...but I finally found a true "woe" (way of eating) that I SIMPLE and something I CAN truly honestly do for LIFE!!!!!

I quit journaling a few weeks ago - and I'm STILL losing weight because I know what I'm doing! :P

5. I'm not constantly hungry. Eating fat for breakfast and lunch actually keeps me satiated througout the day and I don't find myself starving.

6. I'm actually burning fat! When i go to the gym, I know that what I'm doing is actually burning fat off of my body and not just burning the cookies off I had earlier...

7. No Cravings. I easily see all of the chocolates at the cash register and don't feel the "need" to eat one.

8. No more processed foods!!! I love the fact that about 93% of what I eat is NOT processed! I also COMPLETELY stay away from high fructose corn syrup...I know when i was on weight watchers - it didn't matter how processed something was or what the ingredients were - as long as the points were low, that's ALL that mattered...and the difference is AWESOME as far as flavor goes!

9. we're saving money! Our grocery bill has actually gone DOWN because we're no longer buying a lot of junk and pretty much only real foods - we've gone from about $150 / week down to about $100

I could go on and on but really - I couldn't be happier with my eating and exercise and I finally feel "good" about what I'm doing instead of constantly trying to "fix" what I feel is "wrong"...or trying to find a new way of eating - I HAVE found it - it's FABULOUS!!!!

Plus - I'm wearing jeans that I haven't worn in YEARS! my size 13 jeans fit COMFORTABLY and I just KNOW that those size 11 slacks in my closet, which I wore when I was 160 pounds - WILL FIT AGAIN!!! I've also got three skirts in there I can't WAIT to wear which will fit too!

I just can't say enough - it's awesome!!! 160 lbs, here I come!!!!!!

Frustration and Induction 19/March/2009

2009-03-19T07:49:00.000-07:00

Ok - so it has been 2.5 months now and I'm still at 184. That is what I weighed in at this morning - last night - last weekend...

I will admit - I AM ecstatic that i'm DOWN those 12 pounds - but at the same time, I'm very frustrated...The first week of March I was in the gym 5 days. Last week (second week) I had that "tom" and granted, didn't go - but this week, the third week - i've been back at the gym full force 3 times and i plan on making tonight my 4th time this week.

I'm honestly beginning to reallllly think about cutting out splenda / sweetness all together - which also includes my hot tea in the morning as well as my iced tea with lemon when I go out.

This will be hard - but I have to do SOMETHING. I'm SO close to being back in the 170's I can taste it - but at the same time it feels SOOO far away. :(

Now, one AWESOME thing is that I AM fitting into my two pair of size 13 juniors jeans again - which is AWESOME - but that scale won't budge.

I truly am beginning to think - for me - i'm so incredibly "insulin resistant" / have metobolic syndrome so bad that even the taste of sweet (whether it's got sugar or not) raises my insulin and becase of that I'm having a hard time actually LOSING the weight.

And that sucks because I LIKE all my splenda/liquid syrups but those might be making me stall.
Same with the almonds. I've moved up to the nuts ring - but I think I need to move back down to induction. At least for a week and see how that pans out. I want to try and go as "sweet free" as possible ofr Monday March 22 - Saturday march 28 and see if that helps - also with working out 5 times/week, obviously.

Now, they say that 3500 calories = 1 pound. I average only 500 calories burned per workout...and 5 days is ONLY 2500 calories, not 3500...so I'm going to have to up that by 200 calories a day - meaning I will have to do BOTH cardio AND resistance next week 5 x week.

I'm also going to go back to journaling religiously everything that goes in my mouth next week and figure out the protein/carbs/fat percentages.

well that is all as I need to get back to work.

I also plan on posting new pics soon.

LATER!

Happy St. Patty's Day!!! 17/March/2009

2009-03-17T06:39:00.000-07:00

Well, it's been a while since I've blogged - I know I really do WANT to blog more, but i'm lazy. lol.

One big update - while, for some reason - i'm not actually losing numbers on the scale, I AM wearing my size 13's in juniors again!!!! I am SO incredibly excited. I wore a pair yesterday to work which fit PERFECTLY and VERY comfortable. Today I'm wearing a pair that are also comfortable, compared to the fact that when i last tried them on, there was a good inch between the button and the button hole - but they're fitting too! :)

very excited.

Last week I didn't get any exercise in cuz of "tom"...but the week before I DID get in 5 days and this week I vow to as well (2 days down already!) - i'm involved in a 6 week 5 day/week exercise challenge on the addb board. I KNOW I will be back down to 160 this year and damnit - i WILL be a thin bride! :P

ok, well i will blog more later!

c-z ya!

Saturday 07/March/2009

2009-03-07T06:46:00.000-08:00

ok - so it's been a while since i've blogged - I've changed my ways a bit (although NOT my low-carb ways!)...but i'm now trying to keep track of my food/carb intake in an old weight watchers journal that I found that fits perfectly in my purse. I also FINALLY found a fabulous way to keep track of my gym stuff too (basically a yearly planner that fits in my purse).

So. I am thinking, from now on, I would like to really "blog" instead of just saying what my day was about, blah blah blah - but actually blog about things on my mind (as far as low carb living goes).

I have a few new foods I tried this past week and I took some pictures - but I need to find the time when i'm not feeling lazy to upload them and blog about 'em.

One was a pizza (ohmygod awesome!!!)

and this morning I made myself a whey protein pancake. It was VERY good - but the one thing that sucks about the pancake is that the syrup I used has sorbitol in it (13 g 'carbs/sorbitol' per 1/4 cup) - so I used 2 tbsp - counted 6 carbs.

Today we are going to pick up the newest member of our family - a Golden Retriever/Golden Lab mix puppy - she's about 3 - 4 months old and was rescued from a puppy mill. :(

So we're gonna REALLY have to show this lil girl a LOT of love.

But i'm excited and I think Petey (our pug) will be good with her.

a'right well, that is all - ttyl!!

FEBRUARY 2009

2009-02-26T06:11:00.000-08:00

Ok - so I FINALLY got on a scale yesterday. It wasn't HORRIBLE but it wasn't great either! :(...

I am trying to be as absolutely positive about it as possible though. :)

I got on the scale and it said 186. When I last weighed in on February 1st it said 188. Now - that IS two pounds - and the way I see it, had I NOT changed my ways of eating 2 months ago, I could have GAINED two pounds - easily....but - since I HAVE changed my lifestyle to be a low-carb lifestyle, I am down a TOTAL of 10 pounds! That is FABULOUS!!! ya know?

PLUS - the month of february is 4 weeks exactly. The first week of february I ONLY exercised on Thursday the 5th. The second week was great and I went to the gym Sunday the 8th, Tuesday the 10th, Thursday the 12th and Saturday the 14th...but then Sunday the 15th I woke up sick. :( and I stayed sick all that week...then Saturday the 21st I was feeling a bit better, but we were so darn busy I didn't get a chance to go to the gym. Same thing that Sunday - we ended up being so incredibly busy...Tuesday the 24th I actually went to the gym but forgot my gym shorts so I went home without exercising....

Last night - the 25th, I DID go and got a good workout in - but now, in 4 weeks that ONLY amounts to 6 total days out of 24 that I've worked out. So a 2 pound loss for that time frame is pretty good.

I am beginning to think, though, that I should change my name to "turtle"! seriously!...I am wondering if - all the years of "yo-yo" dieting has TOTALLY messed up my metabolism and THAT is why I am losing so slowly...if that is - that sucks - but I understand.

On the bright side - IF I tend to lose 1 pound a week - in 1 year, that'll be 52 pounds! Now, granted - I don't have 52 pounds to lose - I only really want to get back down to 160 which, from where I'm at now is 26 pounds - not 52...But I'd be happy getting to my goal mid summer. :)

By that time I can start looking for my wedding dress!

But anyways - 3 more days and a new month is ahead of us. First off, March means the beginning of Spring - which I can NOT begin to tell you how much I need winter to end.

But I think - for this upcoming week, I am going to cut out cheese. Or at least cut it down to ONLY once a day - if that. I want to see if that'll help - as the atkins book says that cheese can make people stall sometimes...

But one thing I DO know for sure is I absolutely LOVE living the low carb life. Seriously - I mean, c'mon - in 2 months I've LOST 10 pounds and didn't GAIN 10 pounds!
My clothes are fitting SO much better.
I FEEL fabulous...
and - I just KNOW now that THIS is the way I was meant to nourish my body.

more later!

Restaurants & Grocery Stores...

2009-02-25T13:04:00.000-08:00

Ok, right now I'm only going to quickly blog about restaurants and I will come back about grocery stores...

I just wanted to say...as far as going "low carb" - something I've noticed about restaurants is this...
You go to a restaurant and you see that they have FABULOUS steaks and fish and items you can eat on a low carb diet. However. Then it'll say, on top of the 'entrees' page...somethingl ike this:
"All entrees served with house salad and your choice of side:dirty mashed potatoes, daily wood-fired roasted potatoes, garden rice or our roasted vegetable of the day."

So - basically if you want one of their MEAT entrees, you have the choice of THREE different types of starches and then "our roasted vegetable of the day"...and SOMETIMES that is a starch as well (not always, but sometimes)...
And I don't know, but I think it's almost UNFAIR that people who CAN eat potatoes or rice have the choice between those three items OR the vegee - whereas people who CAN'T eat potatoes or rice ONLY get the choice of the "roasted vegetable of the day".

That just sucks.

that is all - more to talk about grocery stores later!

journaling...

2009-02-24T10:00:00.000-08:00

Ok. So I think I've decided - for this week only (maybe?) I will NOT be journaling my food intake.

why? well - as much as i DO like it - I want to see if I can make good choices and not "obsess" over journaling the way I normally do. I have not weighed myself now since Feb 1 - that's 3.5 weeks ago - and I DIDN'T plan on doing it again until next sunday (march 1) but I have a doc's appointment tomorrow and I'm having my blood work done again and I know they'll weigh me - so I will know tomorrow what I weigh...now last time I weighed - end of january - i was 188.

In all honestly - I'd be ecstatic with 183 and happy with 184. That would be a 4 or 5 pound loss in 3.5 weeks. We shall see! :)

but by NOT journaling - and learning my weight tomorrow, I will still weigh on sunday to see if i've changed in 4 days of not journaling.

we shall see!

Sunday February 22, 2009...today just sucks for some reason...

2009-02-22T13:38:00.000-08:00

Ok - I don't know why it does - maybe i'm feeling lonely because dan's at work today? I really don't know - but we woke up around 11 (late night last night) - he made me breakfast and then he left for work...so I watched some tv and then decided to figure out what i was gonna do at the gym - but I ended up not going to the gym because I just felt 'blah' like seriously depressed for some weird reason...no idea why - just sad and depressed. :(

My best friend, Jenn called me up and asked if I wanted to go meet her at a scrapbooking store - and so I did that - but got back and I'm just still in a funk. ugh.

don't know.??

anyways though - i'm still eating right and I really feel like I'm losing some. :)

anyways - dan's home with lunch so more later.

it's snowing outside but ti's sunny. :)

I HATE BEING SICK!!!!!!

2009-02-17T06:08:00.000-08:00

i called in sick to work today. my head is so stuffy. and i can't take my nyquil cuz there's 19 grams of carbs and 13 grams of sugar!!!!!!!

I'm going to go look today and see what i can find withOUT sugar in it...

so yesterday i put all my food intake into the daily plate.com and it really is still SO mind blowing that i can have all this FAT and LOSE weight!!!

I only had 1205 calories total (which that surprised me as well) and I burned 220 from the boxing dvd i have in the basement - fat wise I had 76 g total fat & 25 g carbs w/7 g fiber (so 18 grams of net carbs) and 89 grams of protein.

wow. just wow. yet my clothes fit FABULOUS!!

Quick Post - Common Cold / Didn't work out / new notch on belt!

2009-02-16T07:43:00.001-08:00

Quick post as i have a lot of work today. :)

Well - I woke up yesterday morning, Sunday th 15th with a cold. :(

So - because i felt like crap all day I didn't get my sunday work out in. That sucks. BUT I did go and buy myself a 40 pound heavy bag which is now in the basement!!!! So hopefully I'll feel a bit better tonight in order to use it and get a good boxing work out in. :)

One thing that sucks, though, is I bought some Nyquil like I ALWAYS do for colds and AFTER I took it last night, out of curiousity I looked at the ingredients...and yup - right there - in freakin' NYQUIL - HFCS. High. Fructose. Corn. Shit (syrup).

that freakin' SUCKS!! :(

oh well just ANOTHER lesson learned.

Now - this morning when I got dressed, I put my belt on and still only used it to the 3rd notch (which, when i FIRST bought this belt, I could only use the 1st notch!!!)...
Well, when i got to work and went to the washroom, I actually decided to try the 4th notch and low and behold - it fits and it's COMFORTABLE!!! WOOOOOHOOOO another notch on the belt!!!!

Two more weeks and I'll be able to get on that scale! On January 31st, the scale said 188.
What I'm HOPING for is at LEAST 183. 5 pounds this month would freakin' ROCK!!!!! :)

That is all - more later.

I posted this on the atkins diet bulletin board...

2009-02-14T19:52:00.000-08:00

and I have to share here too:

I kicked ASS tonight at dinner!!!!!

and I kicked ***!

So we (my fiance and I) went out for dinner with his parents (it's their anniversary) and his brother and brother's wife.

We went out to Bucca Di Beppo. For those who don't know - Bucca Di Beppo is ALL italian. I looked online first and decided on the "Chicken Saltimbocca" as THIS is what it says:

CHICKEN SALTIMBOCCA Sautéed chicken breasts layered with fresh sage and prosciutto, topped with artichoke hearts, our lemon butter sauce and capers.

Sounds PERFECT for atkins - right?...well - first off, I have to say - I didn't TOUCH the bread and oil they brought out (i LOVE bread with dipping oil...)

I had a good amount of the salad and then my dinner came out. First off there was only ONE chicken breast - even though it says breasts AND there was linguini on the plate! the menu didn't mention ANYTHING about any type of pasta with that dish!
And I didn't feel like sending it back, so instead I immediately asked for a box and placed the pasta in the box and gave it to his parents to take home.

So I had ONE piece of chicken - which WAS yummy - but only ONE piece.

However...his brother and sister-in-law got the stuffed Chicken Pesto dish and they got the large size to share - so there was three huge pieces of chicken...his brother's wife only had one of them and so he offered me half of the last one and while it WAS breaded, i tore all the breading off and had it with the pesto (which was AWESOME) and btw, it was only stuffed with some prosciutto. but it was VERY yummy...

so anyways NEXT up... - his bro's wife's birthday is next saturday and it said you could get a free cake if your birthday is within 7 days AND also get cake if your anniversary is today...so, of course - she asked for the cake AND his parents got cake too.

they brought out two plates with FOUR huge pieces of Red Velvet cake - my absolute FAVORITE EVER flavor of cake.

And, of course, they brought enough plates for everyone to share - and she gave me a plate and kept saying, "oh c'mon ONE bite won't hurt"...but NOPE. I did NOT give in. And I told her that. PLUS - my fiance kept having to tell his parents the reason i WASN'T eating the bread or the pasta or the cake is that i'm NOT diabetic yet - but I'm doing all I can to NOT be diabetic (i love him so muchh!!! )

he did tell me, too - after they all left and we were on our way home - his father (who, sorry to say, can be an idiot sometimes) after dan kept telling him that the reason I wasn't eating any of that stuff is that I don't want to end UP diabetic - his father said - i kid you not - "the food you eat doesn't make you diabetic"...wow. just wow.

but yeah. I was faced with bread & dipping oil, pasta AND Red Velvet cake - which apparently had REAL whip cream as the icing...

AND family members saying "oh c'mon...ONE bite won't hurt" - and Ya know what I did?...
I didn't touch ANY of it!!!!!!

it wasn't worth it and I knew that. PLUS i realized that what I DID have was VERY satisfying and - unlike probably 98% of people that ate there tonight - I wasn't leaving STUFFED and MISERABLE. I had a FABULOUS valentine's day!

AAAAAAAAAACK!!!! had a 37.5 g carb day yesterday!!

2009-02-12T09:22:00.000-08:00

ugh. yeah - so that sucks. No idea why - just did. Now, granted, TOM is here this week - so that COULD have a lot to do with it, but wow. 37.5 grams of carbs. ugh.

well - today is a new day and I will not let yesterday deter me. It was ONE day out of 40 days that I went that high. It COULD have been a lot worse. I COULD have gone for the ding dongs in the cabinet, but I didn't. It was all "low-carb" foods - just too many and I shouldn't have done it. But I did and now it's time to move on and say "hey, i'm human, I had ONE bad day".

I will NOT flatten the other 3 tires just because I had 1 flat...

I'm not even going to say that I'm "back on plan" because I have made this my lifestyle and I had one "off day" and that's ok.

Tonight is a gym night - I will do legs tonight and spinning too. I really love the spinning class there at LA fitness. The cardio machines up on the loft there are always WAAAAY too full and it's a pain to find the one I feel like doing. So tonight is legs and spinning! yay! :D

UGH...confession time.

2009-02-11T14:34:00.000-08:00

yeah. ugh. i'm typing this literally 10 minutes after i did it.

i binged. granted, it was a very small binge and ONLY 10 carbs worth...BUT i don't know why i just felt like eating...I WAS only going to have a "slice" of flax bread with some natural peanut butter and blueberries...but once i ate it i SOOOO wanted some milk so i had some mozzarella cheese - then i felt like having guacamole and had to have that with some pork rinds...

and now. ugh. :(

oh well though. i'm here - i'm confessing and it's passed. 1 "bad" thing in what - 40 days now? That's pretty damn good. All-be-it, bad.

At least all the food WAS low carb and TECHNICALLY "legal" on atkins...problem is i'm ONLY on rung 2 of owl - which is dairy. nuts and seeds (for the peanut butter) isn't until rung 3 and berries isn't until rung 4.

oh well. it's done. it's over and it's a lesson learned.

Valentine's Day dress...

2009-02-10T20:23:00.001-08:00

Ok - so Friday Dan and I are going out to Peterson's which is a very expensive Steak & Seafood place here in Indy...then on Saturday we are going to Bucca Di Beppo with his Brother, Sister-in-law and his parents (it's their anniversary)...

Thing is, I tried on my "little black dress" that I realllllly wanted to wear - and while it "fits" - meaning I can put it on...it's very tight. :(

I really shouldn't wear it until I hit about 170 lbs.

But at least it's something to look forward too!

I went to spinning class tonight at the gym and it was AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That is all. later!

Positive Re-enforcement

2009-02-10T10:18:00.000-08:00

quick and short blog:

So one of the girls at work today told me she can totally tell that I'm losing weight.

I LOVE hearing that from people - it just makes me feel so awesome!

3 more weeks until I can get on that scale. It's SO hard not to check now. but I won't!

more later!

L-Glutamine

2009-02-08T16:34:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I went and bought a little thing of powdered L-Glutamine. This is to help out with making sure I don't lose all the benefits from resistance training.

Here is information on WHY L-Glutamine is a great choice!

L-Glutamine

off to the Vitamin Shoppe for one more....

2009-02-08T05:54:00.000-08:00

Ok - so last night I was reading more on vitamins and I believe there is ONE more that I would like to start taking.

The Vitamin L-Glutamine. Aside from MANY great reasons to take it - the main two are this:

Exercise recovery: As stated before, L-glutamine will repair and preserve muscle tissue. Since exercise can cause microscopic tears in the muscles, which is needed to improve strength and endurance, your body will increase its demands on L-glutamine. Taking a supplement will help your body build more muscle instead of breaking tissue down for energy.

SUGAR CRAVINGS: According to Dr. Atkins’ book, Vita-Nutrient Solution (page 169), he states that when a “sugar urge emerges, take 1-2 grams of L-glutamine, preferably with some heavy cream and just a touch of nonsugar sweetener.” The immediate desire to eat something sweet will pass.”

So I def. think this one will help - especially for the exercise recovery.

Speaking OF exercise, I am a little upset that I didn't get to go to the gym yesterday - but it's cool - my parents were here and it took FOREVER for the windows guy to get to our house (just to tell us it's too damn expensive and we can't afford new windows...)

But I really wanted to start the "STTS" workout plan - "Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday & Saturday"

but - then again - I'd only just decided that on wednesday so last Sunday and Tuesday was already out...lol.

But this week is a brand new week. So, asides from cardio (which I will start doing 10 minutes of warm up + 20 minutes of 'hard' cardio after my resistance training) - I plan on really focusing on resistance training. I got a lot of GREAT ideas from www.bodybuilding.com that I am going to be using when I go now...I love that I've finally found "plans" on what to do when I go to the gym instead of going and not really knowing what to do.

A'ight that's all for now. Later!

Weber Grill, dessert and a MALL!

2009-02-07T17:40:00.000-08:00

Ok - so my parents came in to town today and we went downtown to the Circle Center mall and went to the Weber Grill for dinner. I had a very yummy Grilled Chicken with sundried tomatoes and spinach on the side. What sucked, though, was the bread basket on the table - which I did NOT touch but ooooooooh so wanted one. Unlike the other couple of times we've gone out - this time was much harder NOT to touch the bread basket. But I didn't do it. :)

Also - Dan had a beer - which looked REALLY good...and my mom ordered dessert that she and my dad shared - but it was this "trio" of desserts - a chocolate cake with hot fudge - a little tiny piece of key lime pie - and some apple pie - and OHHHHHHHHHHHH my god did I want some! but nope. I didn't even touch ONE.

THEN we went into the circle center mall and entered in RIGHT at the cinnabon and like three other chocolate stores right there all in one spot. i RAN from there asap!

for some reason I'm just TOTALLY craving sweets - of course, though - being SURROUNDED by all those sweets didn't exactly help...

but I made it through. NO carbs OR sugar tonight...so I am good! :)

it does suck though...but i know it's NOT worth it!

Cinnamon, CoQ10 & Bodybuilding.com

2009-02-06T15:09:00.000-08:00

Ok - so I've been reading a LOT about how Cinnamon can help you control your blood sugar as well as help you drop weight. I've also read about how CoQ10 gives you energy...

So I went to the Vitamin Shoppe here in town and got some MORE vitamins to take. :)

I really hope the Cinnamon helps - i love how the pills smell! lol.

But I am now taking:

Breakfast-time:

1 Women's One-a-day Multivitamin

1000 iu Vitamin D

1000 mg Fish Oil

500 mg Vitamin C

Lunchtime:

1000 mg Metformin (prescribed)

50 mg CoQ10

1000 mg Cinnamon

250 mg L-Carnitine

Dinnertime:

1000 mg Metformin (prescribed)

Actually - as for the Fish Oil - I was at the eye doctor's today and he told me that for my dry eyes issue that I have (which I now have prescribed eye drops for before I can get my left eye enhanced for lasik...) that Fish Oil and Flax Seed Oil are two essential vitamins I should be taking! I told him I already take the Fish Oil and that I eat Flax Seed as bread. :)

I have also made myself a profile over at Bodybuilding.com and I did this so I would have a place to put all of my workouts in from the gym. Plus - in the past, it's pretty much always been just cardio for me with a LITTLE bit of resistance training thrown in - but I really didn't know what I was doing. Plus - I've always liked to have a "plan of attack" so to speak when doing resistance training and that website has TONS of already made workouts as well as pics of workouts I can print off to know HOW to do them correctly. :)

As I stated in my last blog, I want to workout STTS and I figured, yesterday - why not start then? So yesterday, being Thursday - I went and did an upper body resistance training workout along with 20 minutes of cardio.

I'm also NOT TOUCHING THAT SCALE! Which is REALLY hard because my pants are getting VERY loose :) but I will NOT get on that scale until March 1st.

that's all for now! lataz!

STTS exercise...

2009-02-04T11:51:00.000-08:00

Ok - so I am going to challenge myself to workout "STTS" - meaning for the next THRE weeks, I will ONLY work out on:

Sunday

Tuesday

Thursday

Saturday

That is 4x/week and that will give me the 12 days needed to meet my goal this month. I REALLY hope I can do it!

exercise and vitamins

2009-02-04T06:54:00.001-08:00

Ok - so I've been taking a multi-vitamin for one of the first times in my adult life for a few weeks now, and this past week I've also introduced the following as well:

1000 mg Fish Oil (w/Vitamin E)
1000 mg Vitamin D
500 mg Vitamin C

these three are takin at breakfast with the Multivitamin.

Then between lunch and dinner, around 3 or so, I'm taking
L-Carnatine 500 mg with 10 mg Vitamin B6

not to mention, of course, my prescribed Metformin at 2000 mg/day (2 500 mg at lunch and 2 at dinner)

ANYWAYS...my multivitamin has the following in it:

Supplement Facts
Serving Size: One tablet
Amount Per Serving
% Daily Value
Vitamin A (10% as beta-carotene) - 2500 IU - 50%
Vitamin C - 60 mg -100%
Vitamin D - 800 IU - 200%
Vitamin E - 30 IU - 100%
Vitamin K - 25 mcg - 31%
Thiamin (B1) - 2.4 mg - 160%
Riboflavin (B2) - 2.7 mg - 159%
Niacin - 10 mg - 50%
Vitamin B6 - 3.2 mg - 160%
Folic Acid - 400 mcg - 100%
Vitamin B12 - 9.5 mcg - 158%
Biotin - 30 mcg - 10%
Pantothenic Acid - 5 mg - 50%
Calcium (elemental) - 300 mg - 30%
Iron - 18 mg - 100%
Magnesium - 50 mg - 13%
Zinc - 15 mg - 100%
Selenium - 20 mcg - 29%
Copper - 2 mg - 100%
Manganese - 2 mg - 100%
Chromium - 120 mcg - 100%
Guarana Blend: Guarana Seed (powder & extract), Caffeine - 180 mg

SO ANYWAYS...
I took all my vitamins this morning BEFORE eating and this happened like the second day I was taking JUST the multivitamin, but because I hadn't eaten yet - it only took a few minutes and yeah...it came right back up! ugh. :(

so I had to call in late to work and I let my stomach settle down a bit before I could eat half of my breakfast (as Petey, our pug, ate the other half when i wasn't watching! lol.)...

but yeah. so that's my vitamin post for the day. I LIKE the fact that I'm taking vitamins, but I have to learn how/when to take them.

EXERCISE

Ok - so exercise...I normally love exercise, when I'm doing it - but man, it takes me a LOT to get motivated to actually get my ass TO the gym at night. :(

I haven't gone in over a week and looking at my exercise blog for the year so far, it's been 1 month and 4 days into the year and I've only exercised 11 days out of 34 so far.

SO. I am challenging myself in February to try and hit at LEAST 12 days of exercise this month.
And consiering February is only 28 days and we're already in 4 days...that's only 24 days left in the month - so that's every other day of exercise. I CAN do it.

a'ight - i need to get to work.

LATERZ!!

NO-SCALE CHALLENGE

2009-02-03T07:36:00.000-08:00

Ok, so it is Tuesday February 3, 2009.

I weighed in on saturday and I was down 8 pounds :D!!!

However - I have decided, I am NOT going to weigh myself for one month. February is the shortest month of the year, so I can do this for 4 weeks.

I've put my scale high up in my hall closet and I'm NOT allowing myself to weigh in again until Sunday March 1, 2009.

I'll let you know how it goes! :D

"flax seed bun" OMG!!!

2009-02-01T17:39:00.000-08:00

ok - so i was making burgers tonight for dinner and eating a burger with a fork is getting "old" - i just really felt like I needed SOMETHING to put the burger between...so I googled and found this recipe on recipezaar:

VERY LOW CARB BUN

Here are pics of what my dinner looked like tonight:

Yeah - this is ABSOLUTELY a new "staple" in my low-carb diet...of course, I do think though that I'm going to be "good" and only allow myself this like maybe every OTHER day and only ONCE a day...it's pretty much PURE fiber as it is made from FlaxSeed but omg. I'm SO happy! :)

1 Month down... :)

2009-01-31T07:09:00.000-08:00

Well it is January 31, 2009. I have now officially been bread, pasta, potatoes & sugar free for 1 month (unfortunately though I did have HFCS in my mayo...learned that lesson).

But it's now been one month and I must say - this has got to be one of the absolute EASIEST "diets" I've ever followed that I seriously know will become my "way of eating" ...

1. I'm NEVER hungry - unlike low-fat diets where you almost HAD to feel those "hunger pains" to feel like it was working.

2. While I work out about 2 - 3 x per week, I'm not KILLING myself at the gym 5+x a week to make it feel like I'm "burning" all those calories away and not losing ANYTHING. :(

3. It's easy to go to restaurants now - other than saying no to the potato, lol.

4. I've only gotten "sick" twice this month - and in all honesty I think it's from too much fat...which is weird because I'm SUPPOSED to be eating fat...but oh well - two times in one month is SO much better than 4 x a week!!!

5. I LOVE LOVE LOVE eating REAL salad dressing instead of that plastic no-flavor nasty low-fat / fat free crap.

This Way Of Eating (woe) is just absolutely AWESOME and the funny thing is - I used to be one of those opponents of atkins, who would tell anyone who listened, "oh it's soooo bad for you. all that fat will clog your arteries, there's no WAY i could eat all that fat." you know all the things you've always heard about low-carb diets - but i'm a total and absolute convert and I must say I love love love it now!!! :)

I absolutely will continue this way for the rest of my life. I commit to that. And that's not saying that I'll NEVER have a potato again or brownies, because those things CAN be incorporated into this WOE but much later down the road.

Plus, there's a ton of no-flour no-sugar recipes out there that I CAN have that are probably just as good.

Well again, I'm 8 pounds down and I have 28 pounds to go. I know I won't lose 8 pounds per month - but if I could even do just 5 pounds per MONTH I'd be sooo happy! :) IF that becomes the case, I'll hit my goal in 6 months - July. I can deal with that - by then it'll really be time to start planning the wedding and damnit, I WILL be in a BEAUTIFUL dress that when I look in the mirror, and see pictures I LOVE myself and the weight i'll be at! :)

SNOW DAY part deux...

2009-01-28T09:05:00.000-08:00

Ok - so it's 12:00 p.m. and I just came back inside from shoveling the driveway.

I decided to put my heart rate monitor on and I burned 260 calories just shoveling the driveway!!!!

I actually feel like going to the spinning class tonight at the gym at 5:30 - but we'll see.

that's all. later!

SNOW DAY!!!!!!!

2009-01-28T05:52:00.000-08:00

wow - well there's 11 inches of snow outside right now and it's STILL snowing!!!!

yeah...i helped Dan get his car out of the driveway today - but my car is in the garage...and the snow on the actual driveway - in front of the garage - yeah i'm NOT shoveling that to get out today.

i called in to work - SNOW DAY!!!! i probably need a day off anyways - i have some awesome books I really want to read that I got from the library and haven't had the time to sit down and even start them yet:

"GOOD CALORIES / BAD CALORIES" by Gary Taubes & "SUGAR SHOCK" that i want to read as well.

I'm gonna take some pictures of this snow as our "first snow in our first house".

prolly post again later and post some pics too. later!!! :)

SOOOOO pissed at myself. :(

2009-01-27T06:17:00.000-08:00

This is the post I posted on the atkinsdietbullitenboard...

PLEASE LEARN FROM MY MISTAKES!!!!

I am SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO mad at myself right now.

I have ALWAYS been one to read ingredients lists - even before I started atkins - when I was on weight watchers or when I was just doing it "on my own" - i ALWAYS read ingredients lists (along with the nutritional information)...

But now I know why it has been 25 days and I ONLY lost 5 pounds my first week on atkins and haven't lost anything since. I am so mad, i want to cry...

BUT before I tell you why - I will say that the second I saw this, I threw the bottle out in the trash - no questions asked, even though the bottle was still pretty full and I hate "wasting" food...I didn't care - out in the trash it went this morning.

So before i even started atkins, I've ALWAYS looked at the ingredients list to make sure that what i'm buying does NOT contain ANY type of corn syrup - especially High Fructose Corn Syrup...

But yup - what was right there smack dab in the middle of the ingredients list of my wal-mart brand mayonnaise? yup - you guessed it. HFCS - or as I like to call it POISON!!!!!!!!!!

I don't know how or why I missed reading the ingredients when I first bought this (and, btw, this is my second bottle of this type of mayo this month) - but I am sooooooooooo mad and upset.

If this is the reason why I haven't lost anything, than I accept my mistake and understand why I haven't lost more than those first 5 pounds that first week.

But believe me - that POISON is absolutely OUT of my house and I am going to read EVERY SINGLE INGREDIENT of everything I buy now.

Which, again - I usually do - but for some reason I just didn't on this item - it has 0 g carbs/0 g sugar - but i just didn't look at the ingredients. :(

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's funny - those stupid commercials for HFCS - trying to convince everyone that it's "good" for you because it's the same, nutritionally as sugar - HA!!!! just because it's 'natural' doesn't mean it's healthy. Cocaine is 'natural' - marijauna is 'natural' - tobacco is 'natural' - yet NONE of that is "good" for you...and those commercials - the person saying it's "bad" doesn't know why - well, here's why:

Sugar spikes the insulin in your body. When you're Diabetic or Insulin Resistant (such as I am) - this is a VERY BAD THING because when insulin is spiked, it over-compensates for that extra insulin and it gets stored as fat in your body. When you eat any type of sugar - be it table sugar, HFCS, fructose, glucose, any type - you get hungrier and once your insulin spikes and CRASHES - you want more. It really is just like any other drug - you eat it - you need more - it's a never ending cycle. Just like when a smoker has a cigarrette and has tobacco in their system - it just makes you want more...

anywhoo - this is just a lesson learned and at least I found out now instead of 2, 4 or 6 months into this. it's OUT of my house FOREVER!

sunday 25/January/2009 - revisited...

2009-01-25T17:57:00.000-08:00

ok, so I know I posted today already, but I just feel like posting again! lol

well - today was one of those absolutely "blah" days. Dan and I woke up around 1 p.m. and literally laid around in the living room until around 5 p.m. when I finally decided it was time to go grocery shopping. I really DID want to go to the gym - but I did't. In fact I just didn't do ANYTHING except for the grocery shopping today.

So that's ok. It's one day. Tomorrow is the start of a new work week and tomorrow night I'll hit the gym.

I'm going to start and try something new with my eating journal...I'm going to try and include at the end of "TOTAL FOR THE DAY" where all my carbs actually came from, as per vegees. Technically I'm supposed to have about only 3 cups of vegees a day, but I'm supposed to have at LEAST 12 - 15 of my carbs for the day come from vegees. So that only leaves me 5 - 8 carbs left from meats/cheeses.

so we will see. :)

Sunday 25/January/2009 - back up 2.5

2009-01-25T09:39:00.000-08:00

We had our housewarming party on this night and while I didn't touch any alcohol, pita bread, or anything else that would have been in the absolute "no" category, I had:

1. some chicken wings

2. some meatballs (no breadcrumbs)

3. vegees (celery, broccoli, cauliflower)

4. a LOT of spinach artichoke dip (which apparantly was made of ONLY cream cheese, spinach & artichokes)

5. chicken fingers (removed all breading)

6. blue cheese dressing

So I did not write down what I had. I am starting brand new/fresh this morning, Sunday 25/January/2009.

I honestly don't think I did TOO bad - as I didn't overly stuff myself to where I felt miserable (which I normally do at parties) - and we had a FABULOUS turn out too. It was great!

Now, I got on the scale this morning and yesterday it said 189.5 whereas today it said 191.0.

I'm ok with that, for now - since last night I know I wasn't induction friendly (specially with the dip).

But I'm rearin' and ready to go today. I'm back on track and will be doing induction to a "T" as much as possible. :)

rules for this week:

1. I will NOT get on the scale until next saturday.

2. I will go to the gym at LEAST 3 (if not 4) times this week.

3. NO FRUIT OR SEEDS whatsoever. Induction foods only.

Plus, I have the two books waiting for me at the library right now, "SUGAR SHOCK" by Connie Bennet & "GOOD CALORIES, BAD CALORIES" by Gary Taubes. These are two books that Jimmy Moore talks about and I think they will help me educate myself EVEN MORE on why I need to be doing this for life. I also have another book on hold, but i'm in "line" for it at the library. I can't wait to read these books, but of course this branch of the library isn't open today (sunday) so I will have to wait until tomorrow.

Well, I'm off as my fiance is CRAVING a baconater from wendy's and I myself am thinkin' that sounds pretty darn good. :)

That and a side caesar salad.

later all!

189.5!! :) but we'll see...

2009-01-24T07:02:00.000-08:00

Ok - so this morning I woke up and I'm absolutely STARVING...so I get on the scale and it FINALLY said 189.5!! woohoo!! Course, I'm not going to go by that just yet - but it IS nice to see that number - ya know?

I'm not going by it yet mainly because I can tell I've got nothing in my body right now.

But it IS nice to see that number! :)

Tonight is our housewarming party (finally after 2 1/5 months! lol) - but we're making chicken wings (which i can have!!!) we'll have a cheese ball and tons of vegees...and my best friend is bringing her stuffed mushrooms, with some that won't have any breadcrumbs, just for me. :)

The party starts at 5 so hopefully I can get to the gym this afternoon after we've cleaned up and made sure the house is "perfect" for everyone...

But yeah - I've decided to give induction another full 2 weeks as this past week (technically my first rung of owl) I cheated and had peaches & sunflower seeds. :(

But I WILL do this and this time I'll do it "right". :)

that's all for now! latahz!

"Allergic to Sugar?"

2009-01-19T10:39:00.000-08:00

Ok - so It has now been 17 days that I have been on atkins. One thing that I have noticed is that my appetite has gone down very low. I'm just NOT as hungry as I used to be - in fact I used to feel hungry alllll day long - and now it really is only when my body says I'm hungry - not just my brain.

It is hard to stay away from sugar, still, mainly because it's more mental than anything. The fact that - for the past 29 years of my life, I've enjoyed MANY sugary foods - cookies, cake, candy bars, etc...etc...and I LOVE the way they TASTE. However - now that I've been learning to live low-carb and really educating myself ON living low carb - I really am beginning to wonder if I'm "allergic" to sugar.

Now, I don't get an "allergic reaction" such as breaking out or anything like that - but having Insulin Resistance keeps me from processing carbs & sugar the way "normal" people do (course, what is 'normal' anymore anyways?).

I've been listening to the podcasts of Jimmy Moore's now (livinlavidalowcarb) for the past 2 weeks - and he's had MANY interviews with doctors and specialists talking about low carb living and I'm seriously beginning to feel like I AM "allergic". When I eat sugar or high carb foods, granted my brain and even taste buds are happy - but the rest of my body is not.

I've been overweight most of my life, with a few stints here and there where I DID lose weight on low-fat diets, only to gain it all back.

The past few years, while I haven't been "perfect" - I've been eating the way I was taught with the weight watchers program - low fat, high carbs, high fiber. Now - granted, weight watchers IS fabulous program for those who's bodies can handle high carb foods and who CAN do low fat.
But - after years of struggling and feeling like I was eating "right" - eating whole grains, low fat, etc...I've come to realize that this 29 year old body WASN'T eating right. Not for the physics of my body anyways.

Now - as far as living low-carb / high-fat - I am still a bit confused as to what is "healthy" anymore - mainly because for SOOOO long I've been told how "low-fat" is the way to go and how "high-fat" is BAD for you.

And now that I AM living low-carb / high-fat - all the podcasts I've been listening to and the board I frequent (www.atkinsdietbullitenboard.com) and the atkins book is telling me differently.

Who do I believe? Well - even though low-fat HAS worked for me in the past - knowing that I've TRIED AND TRIED AND TRIED to lose weight on high-carb, low-fat diets and yet I CAN'T lose any weight doing it that way anymore - I guess it's now just trial and error. The only thing I guess I CAN do is try something new and see if this DOES work. right?

The last time I went to the doctor (in December) - she kept re-iterating to me "low-carb. low-carb." So I figure she MUST know something I don't. She told me to make another appointment in about 6 months or so after I've lost some more weight (only if I do low-carb, of course) and we'll get my blood work re-done.

That is one reason I'm doing this. I NEED that "goal" sorta thing - such as like when I was in school and I'd do homework to get to that graduation date - I need that goal of getting to the doctor's and having her tell me that I did things right.

I'm the type of person that needs that re-iteration and praise that what I'm doing IS good/right whatever you want to say. :)

Plus - damnit - my wedding is in 18 months. If I can just get back down to 160 (30 more pounds) in 18 months I would be SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO happy. :)

Oh well - that is all - I will write more later.

Induction is "done"...for now - on to "OWL" (ongoing weight loss)

2009-01-18T07:32:00.000-08:00

well - technically I've made it through the 2 week induction and I've lost 5 pounds (196 to 191) - i'm VERY happy with that loss - and I know part of me should continue with what is called "extended induction" - but I think i'm going to go ahead and add fruit back in this week. Just a little - just some raspberries and blueberries. and only 3 days this week.

Even though the "OWL" (ongoing weight loss) rung for fruit is like 4 weeks away - I seriously feel like I need some - but I'm going to be good and ONLY have berries (very low in carbs and high in fiber).

this week I will also be working out again - last week I didn't since it was TOM. I am also hiding my scale! I promise myself I will NOT get on that scale until next saturday.

I'm also changing up my breakfast. Instead of scrambled eggs (which I'm seriously sick and tired of. :( - I'm gonna have fried eggs (only 3 instead of 4).

I commit to go do 4 days of cardio and 3 days of weight training this week.

Hopefully I'll see another loss next saturday! :)

Saturday 17/January/2009

2009-01-17T17:35:00.001-08:00

so i went to the gym today...and i did a chest & arms workout (no cardio)...and halfway through i started feeling sick so i had to cut my workout short (i'd say i got about 90% in though) - but I 'ran' to the bathroom and left.

i went and bought myself a salad - came home and ate it - but the headache wouldn't go away. so i fell asleep and when i woke up (about 3 hour nap) i got up and still felt shaky...so i HAD to have some sort of sugar and I did NOT want to 'cheat' and have a cookie (although it did look tempting!) but i didn't - and instead I had some natural peanut butter & sugar free jelly - which seems to be helping - but now I'm sitting here - it's almost 9 o'clock and i'm just NOT hungry.

I HAVE to continue this low carb life - because I trust my doctor and she's the one who told me to go on it - and with all that i've read and listened to so far, I do NOT want to end up diabetic, which runs in my family and I'm "pre-diabetic" and pretty much in line for it. :(

as much as i miss sugar and some specific things (such as sushi) - i reallllly want to follow this through and really make it my lifestyle - and it'll be a few weeks until I can have fruit again - but i'm almost wondering if i should go ahead and add it back in to see if it helps.

anyways - we shall see. ttyl!

Friday 16/January/2009

2009-01-16T10:06:00.000-08:00

well - today there's really not a lot to blog about...I'm still weighing in at 191.0 - but i'm STILL in the middle of TOM too. I'm wondering - having had NO sugar if that's why TOM is a little longer than normal?...

anyways - because TOM is here I haven't exercised since Monday. I just don't exercise during this week.

things are going good though - i can definitely tell that my body IS changing - i HAVE lost 5 pounds and my jeans ARE looser. :)

even though the weight # hasn't gone down - i am VERY happy that I've given up the sugar and carbs - however, at the same time part of me IS mentally missing the sugar...i don't even think it's cravings - I think it's more just mentally saying - "you know, you've eaten sugar all your life and it hasn't physically KILLED you...and you know it won't ACTUALLY kill you...go on have a bit" but I know I can't. It's NOT healthy and while I won't drop dead from eating a cookie - if i keep eating sugar the way i used to - it will eventually kill me because i WILL eventually become diabetic if i DON'T stop eating sugar.

this is just as much a MENTAL journey as it is a physical one.

i really hope i get to that point when i look at sugar and it just absolutely disgusts me - but we'll see.

oh well that is all for now.

more later!

feelin' guilty (for about a minute) then feelin' FABULOUS!

2009-01-15T06:48:00.000-08:00

OK - so last night we went to BW3's (like we do on a weekly basis) - and last week I did good - had a bunless black and blue burger and a caesar salad...

well last night I had 12 wings with medium sauce (only 1 g carb per tbsp and no sugar) and a side salad with blue cheese dressing.

well, the "guilty" feelings came last night after we got home and I was lyin' around still feelin' a little full from dinner and I started thinkin' "man, i really messed up - i shouldn't have had WINGS!!! not on a 'diet'"....

but then i stopped myself and remembered - actually, I CAN have wings - in fact, wings are almost ENCOURAGED - skin and all! now, the sauce wasn't induction legal at all - but again, it only had 1 g carb per tbsp and NO sugar...so i got over those feelings pretty quickly.

then - this morning - well my weight really hasn't moved too much (i'm in the middle of TOM right now) - but I put on my jeans (which were a size big when i bought them to begin with) and the belt i've been wearing with them and instead of the 2nd set of holes - I HAD to go to the THIRD set of holes in the belt!!! I can't tell you how AWESOME that made me feel this morning!! :)

I know it's only been two weeks - and part of me feels like, "man, i've ONLY lost 5 pounds"...but the other way I'm looking at it is this: Had I NOT started atkins and I'd have KEPT trying the low-fat high-carb thing that I've always known - i could almost guarantee that I would NOT have lost even those 5 (and who knows - maybe have gained?!) and I definitely would NOT have been able to go down a set of holes in my belt.

I CAN do this. I WILL do this. I MUST do this for life.

Sugar and carbs are - unfortunately - the enemy for me. I DON'T need that sugar I used to eat. and the "good carbs" such as beans, whole grains and fruits - WILL eventually be re-introduced into my diet - but for now I'm staying in induction.

ttyl!!!

atkins' endulge bar

2009-01-14T08:51:00.000-08:00

ok - so TOM is here this week and i think THAT is why i've been craving sweets so dang bad.

now - i went ahead and purchased TWO of the atkins endulge bars over the weekend and placed them in my drawer at work. well - temptation got the better of me and I just had one - and MAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN was it omg GOOD! :P

Now - according to the package it's 19 grams of carbs but 8 grams of fiber and 9 grams of sugar alcohols with 1 gram of sugar...according to the "math" of subtracting fiber & sugar alcohols from the carb count - it comes out to 3 grams of net carbs (19-8-9= 2 + 1 gram of sugar= 3 grams net carbs).

technically I'm not supposed to have one of these until phase 2 and I'm still technically in induction - but man did my brain say i needed it! lol

and I figure - the bar, being 3 grams net carbs is SO much better than binging on something I shouldn't have otherwise - right? :)

so I had it - along with 2 boiled eggs and 2 no-sugar-added sweet gherkins - and maaaan was it good! :)

we'll see if i get sick from the sugar alcohols, as I really don't know how those will affect me - but I just felt like i needed to come on here and blog about it :)

i really do think, though, that i am absolutely going to buy me the sugar free / no sugar alcohol chocolate chips from carbsmart.com for occasions such as this.

Week 2 of Induction - Wednesday 14/January/2009

2009-01-14T07:17:00.000-08:00

well - it has been almost officially 2 weeks that I have been on atkins. I have not had ANY processed sugar (or even fruit) - ANY white flour - ANY processed carbs since Friday 02/January/2009.

while at times it's been "easy" - other times it has been hard.

I know that I'm going to continue doing induction for what they call "extended induction" for at least another week.

this morning I got on the scale and it said 190.5 - again, that is down from 196 two weeks ago.
that is - for me - AWESOME!!!!!! but - i do know that i NEED to really hit the gym harder.

I really did want to go to the gym and do weight training last night - but I ended up NOT because I went to the dentist yesterday and while there - i get SOOO comfy in the dentist chair (yeah, weird, i know....lol) - but I got sooo sleepy and a little mad about money (i have to have another crown done in april) that I went home and took a nap instead - then at 8 p.m. my show The Biggest Loser and then Law & Order SVU were on - and then it was time for bed.

so anyways - tonight I am DEFINITELY working out. whether it's at the gym or at home, I'm not sure yet (weather sucks ass outside right now!!!) but I WILL get at LEAST 30 minutes in tonight. :)

so anyways - not really too much else going on. so I'll update more later!

Induction Week 2 - Tuesday 13/January/2009

2009-01-13T08:11:00.000-08:00

Well - things are going good. :)
Really not too much to report today.

I went to the gym last night and did 30 minutes of cardio - but I KNOW I honestly NEED to really do resistance training and not as much cardio. I think that is what I'm really going to try and concentrate on is resistance training (along with some cardio) - but I'm not going to concentrate on cardio like i used to. EVERYONE keeps telling me that your body keeps burning calories after workouts when you have done resistance training because MUSCLE is what burns fat.

It is hard - but that's only because I don't have a "plan"...I have a few ideas from muscle and fitness but cardio is so much easier to do...however - that's my next step is to really put together some weight training sessions (course, I have to do this by myself because getting a trainer is WAY too damn expensive).

But I DO know I'm only supposed to workout each body part once a week (that'll help a lot! - meaning I won't feel like I HAVE to do a full body or anything...)

So I'm thinking 3 x week: 1 = legs. 2 = core. 3 = upper body/back

Then the other 2 x week I'll do cardio.

I CAN do this! :)

As far as atkins goes though, I must say while I'm still craving some fruit - I just love knowing that it has now been 12 days and I have not had ONE piece of chocolate - NO white flour - NO bread, pasta or potatoes. It's been hard one some days and easier on others - but I WILL do it! :) And i've got to just keep taking it absolutely ONE DAY AT A TIME!