Yesterday I washed my car (by hand) and ate reasonably all day. Today, although I had every intention of either hitting the gym or popping in the Zumba disc on Wii neither happened...I did however clean (and rearrange) my kitchen, clear out a bookcase, load stuff in the attic, grocery shop, hang pictures and sweep the hardwoods. I'm counting that for the day!
I was so excited when I got to the grocery store today, I walked in and immediately was greeted with the intoxicating smell of fresh peaches (my all time favorite fruit)! Although I would have LOVED to buy them in bulk I had to limit myself to only two, for some reason fresh peaches give me fever blisters if I eat too many so I limit myself to a few each summer. However, if I cook them they don't bother me and I have a recipe for a slow cooker peach crumble with an oatmeal crust...DELICIOUS! I also enjoy canned peaches with cottage cheese but canned peaches just can't live up to the deliciousness that is a perfectly ripe fresh summer peach! That might actually be my all time favorite food...with the exception of all my favorites at Thai Bistro!
But today I stocked up on some of my other favorites as well...blueberries, bananas, apples, mini Babybel-Light, string cheese, roasted chicken, sliced turkey breast, Boca burgers, okra, edamame, and more. Hitting another store tomorrow for strawberries (that's the plan at least). I'll also finish cleaning my house. Still have lots of laundry to fold, two closets to organize (my personal closet and the hall/shoe/gift closet), a linen closet to sort and hardwood floors to scrub (sounds fun right)?
Yesterday I prepared all my meals at home, I'd forgotten how many varieties of frozen vegetables I had in the freezer. I've been in a lima bean phase lately, I think they remind me of my grandmother's butter beans. I always looked forward to them at Thanksgiving and Christmas. Therefore I was ecstatic to open my freezer and find that I had 2 boxes!
Today I went out to dinner with my Mom and a friend, to our favorite Greek restaurant. Normally I would devour the pita bread (at least most of the basket) and likely order a shrimp pizza with creamed spinach (quite delicious) or flounder Athenian (stuffed with creamed spinach and feta). I made a few compromises this evening. Indulged in a couple of small pieces of pita, it's really too delicious not to enjoy, and then ordered the chicken gyro. Grilled chicken, lettuce, and tomato on a pita with tzatziki sauce on the side (and yes, I did use approximately 1.5 tablespoons of the sauce). I ordered greek vegetables instead of fries, I actually prefer their vegetables over the fries so no compromise there! I'm sure there will be days when I order the shrimp pizza, with the spinach, or the flounder dish...I will not deprive myself of the things I love and enjoy...however, I will learn to enjoy them in smaller amounts and I won't order them every time I visit.
I'm feeling like I'm on the right track again. I know there is muscle memory but I wonder if there is "taste memory"? I'm actually craving healthier foods, brown rice with LeSeur early peas, salads with strawberries and mandarin oranges, blueberries, peach-strawberry smoothies (homemade), strawberries with dark chocolate, and more! I can't wait to see what new recipes I can create...the ideas are already tooling around in my head!
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Day 1: A New Beginning
Start small, dream big...wonderful advice I recently received that I am actively incorporating into my life! I have lots of dreams and big ideas for my life...I'm working on some and starting (or re-starting) one TODAY! I've never been happy with my body and I am going to change that!
A little about me...I'm stubborn, sarcastic and my own worst critic. I am learning to put myself first and to take care of ME! I would ideally like to lose 40 pounds, though I have never lived my life by the scale and will not be starting that now. I will use how I feel, my increasing endurance and what my body is telling me as my true scale. I was doing a great job October-January, I lost over 15 pounds, was down a dress size, could knock out 3 miles easily...then I got injured. Tore an intercostal muscle and was completely sidelined for a few weeks. Of course, nothing in life is easy but for some reason...February-May was completely chaotic. I was Chairing the Walk to Defeat ALS in my city, learned my youngest sister was exhibiting similar symptoms to our Grandmother's prior to her ALS diagnosis and starting work on a Bachelor Auction for the ALS Association. The good news is that my sister does not have ALS but an autoimmune disease that is completely manageable, she's pretty much back to her normal after 5 plasmapheresis treatments (like dialysis but filters antibodies from the blood not waste)! Working out never made it back into my routine.
That changes TODAY! Yes, the weight loss was exciting but I was more motivated by the way I felt, the endurance I had gained, the way my clothes were fitting and the muscle tone I was developing. My journey will be affected by my own blood disorder. I can't make enough red blood cells, my body is lacking an enzyme used in the Kreb cycle so I don't produce or use energy efficiently and my hemoglobin can't carry oxygen effectively. The only treatments are routine blood transfusions, approximately 6-8 weeks apart. I've dealt with this all my life and can read my body well, though sometimes my stubborness kicks in and I'll push a transfusion an extra week.
So...this will be my documentation of my journey. Eat less, move more (simple right)? Yeah, I know...easier said than done. Because the heat will keep me indoors and I can't stand doing cardio at the gym 5 days a week, I'll enlist my Wii. I have some great "games" for it and I LOVE Zumba (I've been dancing since I was 2). I'm using SparkPeople to help track my nutritional intake and workouts (used them before I was injured and really liked it, especially the Android app). So...here I go, you are welcome to follow my journey (or join in and tell me what works for you)!
A little about me...I'm stubborn, sarcastic and my own worst critic. I am learning to put myself first and to take care of ME! I would ideally like to lose 40 pounds, though I have never lived my life by the scale and will not be starting that now. I will use how I feel, my increasing endurance and what my body is telling me as my true scale. I was doing a great job October-January, I lost over 15 pounds, was down a dress size, could knock out 3 miles easily...then I got injured. Tore an intercostal muscle and was completely sidelined for a few weeks. Of course, nothing in life is easy but for some reason...February-May was completely chaotic. I was Chairing the Walk to Defeat ALS in my city, learned my youngest sister was exhibiting similar symptoms to our Grandmother's prior to her ALS diagnosis and starting work on a Bachelor Auction for the ALS Association. The good news is that my sister does not have ALS but an autoimmune disease that is completely manageable, she's pretty much back to her normal after 5 plasmapheresis treatments (like dialysis but filters antibodies from the blood not waste)! Working out never made it back into my routine.
That changes TODAY! Yes, the weight loss was exciting but I was more motivated by the way I felt, the endurance I had gained, the way my clothes were fitting and the muscle tone I was developing. My journey will be affected by my own blood disorder. I can't make enough red blood cells, my body is lacking an enzyme used in the Kreb cycle so I don't produce or use energy efficiently and my hemoglobin can't carry oxygen effectively. The only treatments are routine blood transfusions, approximately 6-8 weeks apart. I've dealt with this all my life and can read my body well, though sometimes my stubborness kicks in and I'll push a transfusion an extra week.
So...this will be my documentation of my journey. Eat less, move more (simple right)? Yeah, I know...easier said than done. Because the heat will keep me indoors and I can't stand doing cardio at the gym 5 days a week, I'll enlist my Wii. I have some great "games" for it and I LOVE Zumba (I've been dancing since I was 2). I'm using SparkPeople to help track my nutritional intake and workouts (used them before I was injured and really liked it, especially the Android app). So...here I go, you are welcome to follow my journey (or join in and tell me what works for you)!
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