Part 2, Day 1

Part 2 started off for me in kind of a less exciting way than Part 1. I sorta forgot all about it until later in the day. I guess this is why long term dieting is so hard. We, well I, get bored. I get the instant gratification from losing the first few pounds and then it just starts to get kind of... blah. Need to figure out a way to get past that phase and keep pushing forward. Sigh....

I decided on a goal weight for the next 2 weeks. As of this morning I am 2 lbs away from that goal weight (I was 3 lbs away last Friday.) I kind of have a feeling though that I may be back to being 3 lbs away after my poor performance today. =/

9:00am: WW Blueberry Muffin

1:30pm: Half Chicken Salad & Half Greek Chicken Wrap - St. Tropez Bakery
** Yum. This was a great lunch after a very nice walk along Hwy 101 with my diet/exercise partner extraordinaire. For anyone in San Diego I highly recommend this spot for breakfast and/or lunch. http://www.sttropezbistro.com/
Although a warning to anyone on a diet with a sweet tooth - try to avoid going near the bakery case. You will be very tempted with the delicious looking pastries and things in there. I am proud to say that today we resisted the temptation =)

5:00pm: Yogurtland Frozen Yogurt
** After a somewhat rough day (not including the walk) I decided that I needed some fro yo to make me feel better. Sprinkes are like therapy. What? It's better than going to get blacked out or something! Geez.

6:30pm: 711 Sushi
** So this is when things start to get a bit out of control. I was forced to go to 711 because SOMEONE (not me) had to have mac & cheese for dinner and we were out of milk. So once I was there I spotted my favorite quickie sushi on the shelf and I just could not resist. I'm weak, I know.

7:30pm: Fiber Gourmet Mac & Cheese and Chicken
** I told you I was out of control. I was pretty full at this point and really didn't need to eat anything else for the night. But once again SOMEONE was hungry and had to have it. So I slaved over the stove like I was some sort of 1950's housewife and made that someone his dinner. Once it was all done I had to have at least some. I didn't take a huge portion or anything but I just didn't need to have it in the first place. Oh well.

So that was Day 1 of Part 2 of my diet, challenge, whatever. Not great by any means. But life goes on. Tomorrow will definitely be a good day. Gotta stay positive, right?

**BTW that someone up there goes by the name of Tim. And I was totally kidding. I can't blame him for my bad decisions. Although I can definitely blame him for those cheese fries a few days ago. C'mon pal.

5 lb Challenge: Day 2

Day 2 Weight: X - 2.5 lbs

As much as I would like to, I cannot officially celebrate this as my halfway point. My body has a very quick reaction to, well to anything really. Basically my weight fluctuates by 2-3 lbs daily. So just depending on the next few days of eating I could potentially hit my goal early... but the real challenge is to keep it at that weight and then keep going for more. Does that make sense?
Nonetheless, losing 2.5 lbs is a great feeling! With that dreaded happy hour out of the way now I am feeling confident and ready to keep this up.

Just another thought about the diet. Because of my sort of extreme personality I usually tend to go for a much quicker type of weight loss. Like... it's Monday and I need to lose 10 lbs by Friday - that type of thing. We all know that the faster you lose the weight, the faster you will put it right back on. That's why fad diets are not really so good for you. They do not teach you a realistic long term way to eat. It's just a quick fix. Instant gratification.
Since I don't have any major events coming up right now there is no reason for me to go the quick fix diet route. I know I'll be better off in the long run by doing it this way. However, if anyone is looking for some quickie diets with great results let me know. I'll give you scoop.

10:00am: Egg Beaters Omelet w/Corn, Jalapenos, & Fat Free Feta

2:00pm: Handful of Pomegranate Arils (seeds)

4:00pm: Homemade Cottage Cheese w/ Persian Cucumbers & Cherry Tomatoes
** My wonderful mother is nice enough to make homemade cottage cheese for me once in a while. I think it's absolutely delicious and could probably eat it everyday if I had it.
I make this little salad with regular low fat cottage cheese too. The key is to season it with salt and pepper. It's a great and refreshing snack or meal. Great if you are looking for a light lunch.

5:00pm: A few slices of dried pineapple with chili

7:30pm: Artichoke Penne Pasta and Asparagus
** This pasta dish turned out quite delicious. It is made with Gerties Artichoke Tapenade from Costco. I found the recipe on the jar but made a few changes to lower the calorie count. It called for penne pasta, butter, parmesan cheese, and of course the tapenade. I used Fiber Gourmet Penne, Reduced Fat Parmesan, and Brummel and Brown Spread in place of the butter. Brummel and Brown is so good as a butter substitute. It's perfect for baking, cooking, whatever. And the stats are even better... 45 cals per serving.
I saute the asparagus in a pan with some olive oil cooking spray, lemon juice, garlic powder, and Vegeta Gourmet Seasoning. Right before I serve it I sprinkle with a little bit of Reduced Fat Parm.

9:00pm: Yogurtland Fro Yo
** I am very proud to say that I made this dessert as diet friendly as possible. I checked the nutritional info and picked the 2 of the flavors with lowest calories. Then I weighed it out to make sure I didn't get more than I needed. And of no toppings. I do love my chocolate sprinkles (rainbow ones too) but it was just as delicious without them - I promise. It came out to around 110 calories. Totally worth it.

I feel pretty good about my day today. I also got in a great workout thanks to my favorite trainer/bff. I do feel like I ate a little bit on the heavy side in the evening and it may show up on the scale tomorrow. Anyway, I'm not too worried.

One last thing... And this one is important so listen up!! I need to do a little makeover on my Ipod Shuffle and I need your help. I'm looking to put together a super motivating super fun workout mix. So please send me your favorite workout songs. Anything that will keep me on that treadmill just a few minutes longer. Post a comment, send me an email, facebook me, whatever! Once I have it all together I'll post it on here so that you guys can use it too if you'd like. Check out the video below if you need some inspiration. =)

I am depending on you guys so pleeeease don't let me down! Thank you thank you thank you!

Eating In

Since I went to the grocery store yesterday and obvi purchased way more than I was supposed to, the goal for today is to eat all meals at home. With no job and almost nothing to do but job search, there really is no reason this should be a problem. Especially since I have a ridiculous amount of leftovers from last night. Like a lot.

8:30am: Egg Beaters Omelette w/Jalapenos & Reduced Fat Feta and a Persian Cucumber
** Delicious but somewhat small breakfast. I'll probably have some yogurt soon. A little tip for anyone watching their sodium intake... I almost always use Morton Lite Salt instead of real salt. It's got like 50% less sodium (or something close to that) than regular salt. Totally tastes the same and no one ever notices the difference when I use it in recipes. Very low pt meal. 2-3 pts.

1:00pm: Turkey & Pickle Sandwich; Israeli Salad
** I am stuffed. Such a good lunch. My sandwich was made with my low cal Sara Lee Bread, Light Miracle Whip, Dijonnaise mustard, oven roasted turkey, and a pickle.
My version of an Israeli Salad consists of: cherry tomatoes, Persian cucumbers, fat free feta. Dressing: EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil - yes I watch Rachael Ray. I'm unemployed leave me alone.) So... EVOO, rice vinegar, lemon juice, and a splash of balsamic. Season with salt & pep.
Very satisfied. May even hold off eating again until dinner. Although I would love something sweet. After a salty meal like that I almost always want something sweet. Like maybe a WW or Skinny Cow ice cream treat. Mmmmmm....

3:00pm: WW 2pt Chocolate Cookie Dough Ice Cream
Thank God for portion control packaging. Otherwise I'd sit here and eat a whole carton of this.

6:00pm: Light String Cheese and Leftover Asparagus & Red Pepper (from last night's dinner)
** I was starving. I can definitely say that knowing I'd have to put whatever I ate in the journal stopped me from doing anything terrible. Like having 3 string cheeses instead of just 1. So... yay me!

7:00pm: Leftover Cheese Rotini from last night
** Still good tonight. I added a little bit of garlic pasta sauce to it just to switch things up. I forgot to mention last night that the pasta I used to make this recipe is Fiber Gourmet pasta. This is by far the best high fiber light pasta I have ever tried. Only 2 pts per serving and definitely tastes just as good as the real thing. So far I have not been able to find this in stores anywhere so I order it online. It is definitely worth the extra effort of ordering online. If you're placing an order make sure to also get their Mac & Cheese. It's so so so good and totally diet friendly. www.fibergourmet.com

8:00pm: Fiber One Yogurt
**Good for breakfast, snack, dessert... whenever!

Mission for the day accomplished. No money spent on food and overall a good day of eating.

Also - if anyone wants any of the recipes for the foods I'm eating or questions about where to find anything please let me know! I love being able to help people out when it comes to eating healthy. Or just eating in general.

Thanks for reading! See you soon.

PS... Another added benefit I have discovered from doing this is that once I post for the day it pretty much stops me from any late night snacking. Cause I mean if I eat after I post then when would I write about it? And if I don't write about it then I'd be lying! =)