Girl On A Diet

Friday Morning

First off, thanks for the nice comments you all left in my post yesterday!

So, I didn’t give in to my junk food cravings last night, which is amazing. Usually when they are THAT strong, I do give in. But I didn’t last night! Instead I had a grilled chicken breast for dinner along with some salad and more rice. (The extra rice seemed to satisfy my craving for junk).

I went and bought more of the root veggie medley at Trader Joe’s along with a package of butternut squash. I’m going to cook those up today for lunch… I feel like I didn’t eat enough veggies or fruit yesterday so I’ll try to make up for it today.

Now the question is, why on earth am I up so darn early this morning? Well, let’s see… I’ve been up since 4am, thanks to my downstairs drunken, psycho neighbors. One of the girls that lives downstairs was screaming her head off, then ran outside (in the 2 degree temp) while continuing to scream extremely loud. I would have been worried that someone was getting hurt, but it was the crazy, psycho type of screaming. That finally died down and I went back to sleep. Then a half hour later the same girl was pounding on the front door of her apartment, screaming her head off again and saying “LET ME IN!!!!” and hitting the walls and door so hard the building shook. I called the police at that point. Of course, by the time they got there, all had settled down. I don’t even think they answered the door for them.

And I couldn’t fall back asleep, although I’m still tired!! Damn neighbors… coupled with that and the other stuff that has been going on here lately, I cannot wait to get the heck out of here. My apartment is a disaster zone because I have too much stuff piled up everywhere and nowhere to put it all. I live in a somewhat large studio apartment here in Nashua, but I’ve definitely outgrown it. (My Tulsa apartment is huge and much nicer than this one). I want to move out of this apartment, but I need to figure out if I’m going to attempt to buy a place or continue renting. Supposedly now is the time to buy property! Then there is the question of if I’m going to keep my Tulsa apartment, since I don’t see myself going back there anytime soon.

Who knows? Even I don’t.

I’m going to attempt to go back to sleep for a couple more hours. I only got 5 hours of sleep and that simply isn’t enough! Especially since I have a busy day planned which includes a trip to the gym.

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Thursday

Well I know for a fact now that the mechanic I have a crush on doesn’t like me. I was down there today and he didn’t look my way once! The front desk guy on the other hand was checking me out like he normally does.

Oh well, I’ve kind of lost interest anyway. I’m hoping the next time I go down there that I’ll be another size or two down.

Anyway, I’ve done OK today with my diet. So far today I’ve had brown rice, roasted red pepper soup, some vanilla soy milk, a little cheese and a nectarine. I wanted to go exercise but my stomach is a little upset today so I’m not sure if it’ll be a good idea. I’m also craving greasy, crappy food right now like there is no tomorrow. I’m going to try extra hard not to give in.

Not much else to report! Except that I’m in a very blah type of mood right now. My mother died exactly 14 years ago today so I’m usually in a sort-of depressed mood on this day.

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Wednesday Update

I’ll start off this post by replying to a couple of your comments! One of you asked me if I’m still taking diet pills. The answer to that is “Nope!” They didn’t do anything for me and I was too afraid of taking the full recommended dosage. I have a bad history with taking any sort of stimulants - I’m a high-anxiety person to begin with and any type of pill that increases that response is just… bad.

As for dating my friend B… no. Not gonna happen. We’ve known each other for a few years now - since Feb or March of ‘05 in fact. But I was never ever attracted to him physically and still am not. Plus there are some other reasons I won’t ever date him, reasons I won’t get into here. But we have a lot of fun hanging out and playing pool together, that’s for sure! I wish he only thought of me as a good friend… but he doesn’t. It sucks in a way.

Moving onto today… there isn’t too much to report. I got up late, as I had trouble falling asleep last night and was exhausted this morning. I had my now-usual meal of brown rice for breakfast, which I can’t stop raving about. The stuff satisfies my blood sugar, hunger and cravings for hours and hours and hours. I want to try and add a fruit to my breakfast but the rice really fills me up. Anyway, for lunch I had the root vegetable medley- turnips, butternut squash and sweet potatoes, plus a couple ounces of cheese.

I’ll likely have a chicken breast and some sort of veggie for dinner. Yes, again. No drinking tonight though. I’m staying home, in fact, as I have plenty of work to do.

I didn’t weigh myself this morning because I forgot until it was too late.

As for non-weight related stuff: Tomorrow I’m taking my car in to have the brakes looked at. I’ll get to see the super-hot mechanic that I have a mad crush on. Looking forward to that…! I only wish I have lost more weight by now. I haven’t seen him since in late October, before I left to go back to Tulsa, OK. I had been hoping that the next time I saw him, I would be slimmed down considerably. Sure, I’m possibly 2-5 sizes smaller now, but… that’s not enough. Oh well!

Which reminds me: My jeans - which have been progressively getting looser over the past few weeks - are almost unwearable now. I have to constantly hitch them up. To the point that it’s getting ridiculous - and getting to be time to buy a new size.

In other news, it’s snowing out. Again. We’ve already broken snow total records here this season. And it’s only February. This is my sixth winter in New Hampshire, and I can honestly say that I’m getting sick of snow. Yeah, it’s totally beautiful and peaceful, but……

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“You’ve Lost Some Weight” And Snowwwwww

I heard those magic words from a friend of mine tonight… “Hey, you’ve lost some weight!”

This compliment came from my friend B, who also has a crush on me. But he has never lied to me about my weight. (In fact, he told me several months ago that I was “pudgy”). So I believe him.

Funnily enough, about 2 days ago, I suspected that I had lost some more weight. All of a sudden my lower stomach and waist area seem a lot smaller. When I put my hands on my hips, I feel a definite difference. But I wasn’t sure… until now.

I may get on the scale tomorrow morning, although I’m trying to avoid it for another month.

Moving on… I must say, my natural food plan is going very well. I am having no problems sticking to it and actually feel great! This is my third full day on the plan and I seriously feel as though I can do this infinitely.

So…… onto my snow rant. Sit back, as this will be long!

Today, the weather man was so wrong that it wasn’t even remotely funny. He predicted something along the lines of an inch of snow which would turn to rain tonight.

WRONG!

Anyway, I had an important errand to run this evening before going to play pool: I had to go to my mail center and pick up a crapload of packages. I still get free books sent to me for one of my other sites - Chicklitbooks.com, and I get a LOT OF THEM. Somehow I ended up on the mailing list for almost every publisher. I have a mailbox down at a local UPS store (formerly Mailboxes Etc) which I use as my mailing address for web-related stuff. I probably get around 100 books per month, give or take. I had not been down there to get any of the packages/books since September of ‘07.

Anyway, I knew it was snowing out, but I didn’t realize that there were already a couple of inches on the ground, not to mention the fact that it was near whiteout conditions. So anyway, I go outside to my car at about 6pm and instantly realized that this was not going to be fun. Granted, I am no longer nervous about driving in the snow (despite my bad accident in 2004), but I discovered that the roads were very slick, unplowed (because of the incorrect weather forecast), and my brakes were basically useless!! I live in an area that would be considered backroads of downtown Nashua, so they don’t get plowed or salted/sanded as often anyway.

I realized about 2 minutes into my drive that my brakes weren’t working. I almost turned around and went home (not that it would have been possible, given the road situation) but the UPS store said I HAD to get down there, they were running out of room. So I drove very carefully and slowly. I had a couple of near misses when I had to use my brakes but thankfully everything worked out OK.

So I made it down to my mail center, which is in a strip mall, and pulled into a spot which had a slight downward incline since the others were all taken. I went into the store and realized that I had literally 12+ trash bags full of packages I needed to figure out how to fit into my car. I called my friend B, who happened (by luck) to be nearby and he came to help me load up my car. (I promised him a ride downtown, where he was heading on the bus anyway, plus free drinks at the pool hall later).

We loaded 5 bags into my trunk and I promised the store owner that I would be back tomorrow to get the rest. Then because of the downward incline, I couldn’t back out of my spot. I don’t know if it’s my tires or what, but my car just slides all over the place and my tires spin if there is even a tiny bit of ice or snow. Thank GOD that B was there. He had to push me out of the spot. Then I drove home with B yapping in the passenger seat about how to drive. (He is a bad “back seat driver”. I always tell him that I have driven back and forth across the country multiple times and if I didn’t know how to drive by now, I’d be in serious trouble. He also always tells me how to get to his apartment as though I didn’t live in the complex next door to him for 2 years!)

The truth of the matter is, you can drive in almost any snow/ice conditions if you go slow enough. So I did, as I had no choice. There were a couple more close calls on the way home… some people were driving like complete morons.

I’m taking my car in tomorrow (where the super cute mechanic works) to see if something is wrong with my brakes or tires. I’ve never had such problems in simple snow with any other vehicle. Perhaps it’s time for some new tires?

I am just rambling on and on… I should go to bed, as it’s 1am!

Ah yes, and lastly… exercise. I worked out for 15 minutes on each machine today - spinning, treadmill then elliptical. I am definitely building and maintaining muscle because every time I go to the gym now, I can up the machines to the next level or two. I got up to level 8 on the spinning machine today! (2 1/2 weeks ago, level 1 and 2 winded me). Also, I have to work harder to get my heart rate up, which is EXCELLENT news.

I also got about 15 minutes of brisk snow-walking in when B and I walked down to the pool hall from my apartment.

I’m not going to lie… I had 3 shots of alcohol tonight. That is the only area in which I messed up in my diet/exercise plan. But I also had a full glass of water in between each shot along with a delicious grilled chicken and veggie meal. Plus I was on my feet for 3 hours playing pool.

A pretty active day, I’d say!

OK, bed time… I’m exhausted.

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Tuesday

Just a quick update… today my appetite has seemed to take yet another nosedive into oblivion.

For breakfast I had a bowl of brown organic rice. Right now, for lunch, I’m eating organic minestrone soup. I wanted to have some boiled vegetables with it but I just can’t find myself wanting to eat anything else (and I”m only 1/3 of the way through the soup!)

Oh well… not much to be done about this. For dinner I am thinking of getting some food to go at Chile’s - their grilled chicken breast meal with a salad, or maybe steamed shrimp with veggies. (Yum!) Since it’s Tuesday, I’m supposed to be going out to play pool tonight. Last week I stuck to water the whole time and I know I’ll have no problem doing the same this week.

My throat is feeling better… not 100% pain-free but almost. I’m planning to hit the gym shortly but probably will only work out for 35 minutes or so. I’m not eating enough to really do strenuous exercise at the moment.

Yet another winter storm is headed our way… as a matter of fact, looking at the radar, it’ll probably hit before I get home from the gym. Fun fun fun!

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Comment Replies

Hey I got some great comments in my last post (thanks for taking the time to reply) so I figured I would post them and reply to them here.

sounds pretty good to me, other than maybe a protein source at lunch? i feel like i’d be pretty full at least initially from what you’re planning to eat, just based on volume, but like i’d be hungry a couple of hours later.

Good point, and I did in fact add a low fat cheese stick to my lunch yesterday.

Are you going to try to cut down on the alcohol? I don’t mean to say this in a condescending way–I just think drinking with more moderation would correlate better with your new healthy eating plan. Plus I find alcohol always gives me the drunken munchies!!

Yep - I thought I had made it clear in my last post that I had stopped drinking. I haven’t had any alcohol in a few days now and plan to go at least 30 days without any.

Hey Rian, it seems like you are changing plans almost every week (getting rid of chemicals and not so much focus on exercise, before that it was lots of small meals and tons of exercise, before that it was cutting out dairy, before that it was low calorie, before that it was low carb…those are just the ones I remember). Each one has its good points, the one that works for me is lots of exercise and sort of grazing throughout the day without too many big meals - but maybe the reason you are having trouble seeing payoff is because your body doesn’t have time to adjust? If you are on super low-calorie, your body gets tricked into thinking you’re starving, so when you start eating regularly again, it stores everything up and you gain. A week’s worth of exercising a lot isn’t enough to build much, so you don’t QUITE make it to the part where you really see the payoff. Maybe I’m completely wrong, and you are just posting all sorts of ideas, but it seems like every time I check you’ve got a different plan. Maybe you’d have more success if you stuck to one plan for a couple of months? Just a thought.

You are right! The reason I keep switching plans is because I’m trying to find something I can do long-term. Like.. forever. I can’t do low carb for life because I want to build muscle. I can’t do extreme low fat for life because I’m never satisfied without just a little fat in my meal. I can’t cut out dairy altogether because I like it too much. I can’t do six meals per day (but I can do 4) because I’m not hungry enough for that. I can’t do high carbs because my blood sugar spikes too much. This new thing seems sustainable though… more on that below.

I think this is a good plan. Just stick with it and you will be sexy for summer!!!

That’s the idea!

I agree with Susan and SawSaw’s comments.
For example, let’s say you went out and had 3 cocktails (they range from 200-300 calories each; a shot of alcohol has about 100 calories) - 600-900 calories + drunken munchies that could add another 1000. When I used to drink I know I ate at least 500 calories of junk food despite my clean diet during the week. If you do that once per week, it would add up to about 5000-6000 calories (2 pounds of weight) per month!
You really do need to stick to one plan for at least a few months to see results.
I also wondered if you were still going to take the protein shake after your weight training.
I would not recommend the gatorade mix during exercise unless you get light-headed or hungry during the work-out. Otherwise the sugar could inhibit fat metabolism (your body can more easily - and preferably - use the sugar for energy). Also, I would drink it if you are doing cardio for more than 90 minutes.

I know… check out some of my older posts, they are all about how my drinking caused my weight gain in the first place. I know how bad alcohol is, but I face almost daily challenges from friends and lifestyle not to drink. However, in regards to switching my food plans… see below.

Anyway, you guys made some really good points. I think I can really stick with my new plan with no problem… this is my second official day on it fully and I’m feeling good. Plus the fact that I’m filling my body with healthy stuff is making me very happy… tons of veggies on this plan, which is excellent! And my blood sugar has remained pretty stable so far, even with me waiting 4-6 hours between meals.

As for alcohol… I’ve had no problem abstaining for the past couple of days. I have fully committed myself to not touching a drop of the stuff for at least a month! And if my weight begins falling off fast during the month, I’ll wait another few months to take another drink. I was in a social situation last night where I would normally be taking shots of Goldschlager… and guess what? I didn’t touch any.

So today’s meals so far are:

Breakfast - 1 serving organic brown rice, 2 servinigs of egg beaters
Lunch - 2 servings of organic steamed root veggies, 1 low fat cheese stick, 3/4 serving of roasted red pepper soup, half of a red apple

By the way… brown rice for breakfast is AMAZING. It is a very slow-releasing carbohydrate, which is excellent for my wonky blood sugar.

I have dinner plans tonight with old coworkers… I can’t wait to see them. We are going to the Outback Steakhouse, so I plan to get something grilled and delicious!

I really, truly feel as though I have FINALLY figured out a plan that works for me and is infinitely sustainable. I don’t feel deprived at all, plus I feel as though I am nourishing my body with wonderful healthy foods (which I am!) and still allowing for foods I can’t live without (like cheese). An occasional addition to a meal, like a baked potato, won’t “ruin” my diet, either, since it’s quite flexible!

And speaking of potatoes…… My “root vegetable medley” from Trader Joe’s is SIMPLY DELICIOUS!! I swear turnips, butternut squash and yams taste JUST LIKE BOILED POTATOES. For a potato addict like myself (who motly avoids them) this is FABULOUS NEWS.

Later update:

Well tonight’s dinner was canceled because everyone is sick with the damn plague around here! We had to reschedule for next Thursday. I am a little bummed because I was so looking forward to some intelligent conversation tonight. (The group of people I was supposed to meet tonight is from when I worked at an environmental company, so it mostly includes engineers and scientists.)

Yeah… I used to work at an environmental company as an Administrative Assistant. It was one of the best jobs I ever had. I made friends with a lot of the scientists and engineers when I was there, although I’m more of a creative type than anything. To this day, I find exceedingly logical type of thinkers fascinating.

Anyway, I have no idea what I’m having for dinner now… probably a boiled chicken breast and some salad or something.

On another note, I drove down to the gym to go work out today, but I was so caught up on my cell phone, trying to finalize and figure out tonight’s plans that I ended up turning around and coming home! I will definitely go tomorrow. I figure three days off should more than prepare me for a grueling workout. My throat still hurts, but not TOO much…

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