Diet and Weightloss

This week, I am actually going to do a post about Amber’s October Challenge. I was not so good about posing my progress, but I thought I should at least check in at the end.

When I started the October Challenge, my goal was to work through a 30-day program I have, in book form, called Thin Within. It is a grace-based approach to weight loss that involves dealing with your views about yourself and about God, with the goal of healing the things that compel us to emotional eating. It does not focus on calories, forbidden foods, etc, but on conscious eating – listening to our bodies, eating only when we are hungry and stopping when we are full.

Well, as you probably figured out from my lack of posting, I have had a terrible, horrible, awful, no good, very bad month. Things have been really stressful with D. I have not had any time for myself. I did not find or make the time to read Thin Within. I was also sick 4 times – yes, in 4.5 weeks – so my exercising was sporadic at best.

But that’s okay.

I did apply some of the concepts. I started listening to my body and tried to eat only when I was hungry, stopping when I was comfortably full, not stuffed. I also worked on correcting some of my faulty thinking.

I did a final weigh-in to see how I did during the challenge weight-wise, but the most important thing was the work I was doing inside. I firmly believe that this weight thing is all on the inside. Not just the fat, but the yucky things, the sadness and pain that makes some of us turn to food for comfort, the stressful days, the warped perceptions of food and of our bodies. There is so much one needs to get right before any weight loss plan will stick, for most of us anyway.

One of the most important concepts in Thin Within, at least that I have read so far, is the ability to forgive ourselves when we fall short of our weight loss goals and not beat ourselves up with the “club of condemnation.”

For example, I know that I did not do the things I wanted to this month, but I am not going to dwell on that. I am going to continue to build on the changes I made, until I achieve success.

I weighed myself this morning and I lost 3 pounds. That was without much exercise, and while being sick and having an overall stressful month. That was a recipe for weight-gain, so I need to focus on the small victory I had.

Another thing that I am keeping in mind is that if I continue to lose 3 pounds a month for the next year, I will weigh what I weighed when I got married more than 6 years ago. Thirteen months to lose what took 6 years to put on. That is not bad.

Sure, I would like to lose weight more rapidly, and I may yet, but I think that correcting my behaviors in a meaningful and sustainable way is going to be better in the long run.

Don’t get me wrong, I want to start exercising more and continue to change my eating habits, but pushing my self into a lifestyle that makes me miserable (ie fat-free cheese and rice cakes, instead of real food) will not be a lasting solution that I will stick with.

So, I didn’t hit my very ambitious goal, but I made some small changes that I can build on and lost 3 pounds during an extremely stressful time when I was also sick, which are two situations that make me want to eat comforting (fattening) foods, so I am feeling good about it.

Is it Thursday already?? I meant to post this on Monday, but we have all been sick around here this week, so I am way behind on things.

I don’t have too much to report on the October Weight Loss Challenge.

I decided that I would not weigh myself until the end because the scale is too self-defeating, so I have no numbers to report. I previously posted about my scale abandonment in, The Scale Is Not My Friend.

I did not start reading Thin Within right at the beginning of the challenge, as I had planned, but I am reading it now. Interestingly, the book also encourages “putting the scale in its proper place,” meaning, away where it cannot control me.

As for exercise, I did not start that right away, either, but I am doing it now.

I am, by nature, a procrastinator. Not such a good idea when my goal is to lose 10 pounds this month, though.

Oh well, I am on the right track now, and that is all that matters.

I hope to have a more inspiring post next week, when I am (hopefully) feeling better.

The other night, I realized the amount of weight that I have gained since Bob and I started dating is roughly equal to the weight of Little E.

If I carried around Little E, who is just over 50 pounds, all day long, I would be tired. I would ache. I would not be very happy.

No wonder I feel like that!

Can you imagine carrying around 50 pounds of whatever for an entire day? No wonder I have bad knees, a sore back, achy feet, and over all exhaustion.

I have always been overweight, so this additional weight is really talking a huge toll on my body.

Just as I was thinking about this, Amber, from Bringing Good Home, posted about her October weight loss challenge. Wow! What timing.

Back in July (July!) I announced that I was doing a 30-day weight loss program and I was going to post wellness tips on Wednesdays, etc, etc. Then I stopped as soon as I started.

Regular readers of this blog know I had a very difficult summer, and I am not beating myself up about getting off track, but now is time to get back on that horse.

The good news is I have not gained a singe pound in the past three months, so I am starting right where I left off.

Okay, so what are my goals for this challenge?

I am starting my 30-day program over from day 1, and this time I am sticking with it. It is a faith-based weight loss program called Thin Within. It focuses on only eating when you are truly hungry and stopping when you are comfortably full (not stuffed). More importantly, it focuses on the faith aspect of being overweight. For me, there is an obvious faith component to my problem of reaching for comforting foods when I am stressed out and overeating.

I also want to start walking daily. I have tried numerous exercise activities in my life and walking has always been my favorite, by far, and the only one that gave me good results. (Gee, I wonder if there is any correlation there!)

As far as weight loss, I would like to lose 10 pounds this month. I think that is doable, at my size. But more importantly, I would like to be able to fit back into my jeans comfortably. It is getting cold out!

Most importantly, I want to break the stronghold that overeating has had in my life and feel good about myself.

Amber is going to have challenge check-ins every Monday, so I will post my updates then, too, instead of on Wednesday, like I did before.

Head on over to Bringing Good Home if you want to join in.

It has been a few weeks since I posted a Weight Watchers Wednesday and now I have gone and changed the title.

As you may have guessed from those two facts, I am not doing so well with Weight Watchers.

Let me explain.

My problem, and why I am overweight, is that I am obsessed with food. It is my drug. It is my peace, my sanctuary, my release from the stresses of life. I think about it too much. I have an unhealthy relationship with food.

I feel like – for me – WW only increases my food obsession. I obsess about points and what I can afford to eat, and what I can’t. I find myself thinking about food even more, and that’s not helping.

In a lot of ways, this is a spiritual issue for me. I am not experiencing my full freedom in Christ if I still need to find refuge in food.

Anyway, I have started a new program. It is faith-based and I think it will better get to the heart of my real problem. The program is 30 days long, so I will report back then how it worked for me. (Obviously, the lifestyle change is ongoing after that.)

In the meantime, I still want to blog weekly with a post focused on body wellness, so I will continue (or start again) to do that.

And of course, I will still post yummy, healthy recipes, too.

I don’t want to just look good. I know I can get there with WW because I did it before. I want to feel good. I want to be free from this obsession with food and the roller coaster of emotional highs and lows that comes with it.

I have to note here, on the plus side, I have not gained anything since the last time I weighed myself even though I stopped tracking points.

Now, here is a recipe from Dr. Andrew Weil. (When my husband and I went on our honeymoon, Dr. Weil had just been at the B&B we stayed at the day before.) It uses real food and has 10 g of protein.

Chocolate Ricotta

Ingredients:
1/2 cup lowfat ricotta cheese
2 tbsp mild honey
2 tbsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Instructions:
1. Combine all the ingredients in a food processor and process until smooth.
2. Scoop into small dessert dishes and serve.

Nutritional Information:
Makes 2 servings (~ 1/4 cup)
Per serving:
145 calories
3 g total fat (2 g sat)
11 mg cholesterol
24 g carbohydrate
10 g protein
2 g fiber
100 mg sodium

That I was going to do a Weight Watchers Wednesday post yesterday, but I didn’t.

I am lame. Sorry. I just can’t seem to make the time to blog. I would like to, but I just can’t. It’s only a season, though, and I thank you for bearing with me.

Anyway, as for WW, I kind of got away from the plan when things with the D got really bad and when I was working overtime with him after his diagnosis.

The good news is, I did not gain a pound! In fact, I lost a pound.

Even though I put my scale away, I wanted to check in and I was pleasantly surprised.

With this weight loss thing, every day is a new day and a new chance to get it right. Time is going to move forward anyway, so I might as well try to do something right with it. The alternative is to get less healthy and more fat in the coming days, weeks, and months, right?

I think the fact that I did not gain during such a stressful time is a great sign that I am making meaningful changes.

And I will continue to make more now that I am refocusing on taking care of me.

Onward!

Well, I don’t have weight gain/loss numbers to report, since I put away my scale, but I feel like I have gained a little.

I know that I have been eating a lot of junk food. There are several factors at work there, not the least of which is my stress over the situation with The D. He has been really difficult lately, but I think things are starting to turn around and we are meeting with a doctor tomorrow, who specializes in behavior plans for children with ODD. (I’ll update more about The D in a different post.)

It hit me the night before last that I was really turning to food in my stress and now that I am aware of it, I am going to put a stop to it.

That brings me to my second reason – I do not have the right foods around to go to. For one, I let junk in my house. For two, I don’t have the good foods that are readily accessible.

Step one for me is to make a shopping list and get to the store.

This was a real reminder of how key menu planning is for my weight loss success. If I do not have a good plan, I default to bad behaviors.

Wow, as I typed that I realized that is why The D needs a behavior plan.

So, I’m feeling good about moving forward, even though the past week was not so hot.

I don’t really have a recipe this week, but I have a fun food tip to share. On Monday, I came home from shopping for way too long with my mom and sister and I was completely famished. Fortunately, we had left over rice and cooked boneless skinless chicken breast. I threw them (carefully measured portions, of course) into a pan coated with cooking spray, some onions and some frozen peas. I added a little soy sauce and cooked until heated through. Delicious and light, yet filling!

I finally got around to posting a Weight Watchers Wednesday post! It feels like it has been too long.

Let me get right to it. I do not have a gain/loss to report because I put my scale away.

I don’t go to WW meetings; I have the Weight Watchers at Home kit. So, I do not have to have weekly weigh-ins, but I usually weight myself once a week.

A couple of weeks ago, I was in the bathroom and I got on the scale. I do not know why. It was not my weigh day and, worse yet, I was getting my period, which means I usually gain about 2 pounds.

Well, I had gained about 2 pounds, but my irrational, emotion-driven brain (at least the irrational, emotion-driven side of my brain) immediately started the self-defeating talk. I was able to reason my way through it, but it was not a fun time for me.

Why does that little plastic doodad have so much power?

Why do we give it so much power?

That same morning, I came across this article: The Toss-Your-Scale Diet Plan.

You’re sailing along in life, feeling pretty good about everything, even your body. No, it isn’t perfect, but it is yours and it is doing what it’s supposed to do — mowing the lawn, ironing your skirt, playing baseball with the kids. Then you get on the scale. You weigh more than you thought you did, and within a nanosecond, the scary voice in your mind begins to rant: “You’re fat, you’re a failure, you don’t deserve to feel good about anything!” Suddenly everything that was right before you stepped on the scale is wrong.

Most of us have experienced this shocking self-esteem swing, and although we hate it, we don’t see any way out. But I do. The solution is to just stop weighing yourself. Throw away your scale.

So, I did. Well, I put away my scale.

And I feel great!

I don’t need a scale to tell me when I am losing weight. I have clothes that will feel looser. I have an image in the mirror that will look better. I have a husband whose eyes will tell me all I need to know. (Though, his eyes already tell me all I need to know, which is that he loves me no matter how I look. But, still.)

If I stick to my healthy eating plan (yeah, I mean diet) and keep adding in more exercise, the weight will keep coming off and I don’t need a scale for validation.

I know this is radical and goes against our very nature, but at least read the article. The writer totally understands the mind of a crazy, weight-obsessed woman.

I will weigh myself again after I lose a pants size or two, just so I can celebrate the victory (and, no, I do not mean with a triple-scoop, hot fudge sundae), but no more obsessing over those little numbers that own me.

Or should I say, used to own me.

Okay, here’s a recipe.

Weight Watchers Banana-Oatmeal Bread. 4 Points.

I made this, but I added cinnamon and vanilla. It’s just weird to me that they were not already in the recipe.

The kids loved it. I thought the texture was slightly rubbery, but it was over all, pretty good.

This week, I planned Weight Watchers recipes for dinner every night. Things have been really hectic and I just don’t want to have to deal with trying to calculate my points for each meal.

Monday: Turkey Enchilada Pie (4 points), served with Avacado (2 points for 1/4) and salsa (0 points).

Tuesday: Parmesan Pea Risotto (5 points) (recipe below)

Wednesday: Baked Macaroni and Cheese (5 points) (recipe is at the bottom of that post)

Thursday: Leftovers

Friday: Broccoli and Cheddar Quiche (5 points)

Saturday: Slow Cooker Red Beans and Barley (4 points) (I always add chili powder and cumin to this recipe)

Parmesan Pea Risotto

1/2 cup water
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic, minced
1 1/2 cup arborio rice
5 cup reduced-sodium, fat-free chicken broth
2 piece bay leaf
1 cup frozen green peas, thawed
1 tablespoon parsley
4 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp reduced-calorie margarine

Heat water in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté 2 minutes. Add rice and cook until translucent, stirring constantly, about 2 minutes. Add 1/2 cup of broth and bay leaves and simmer until liquid is absorbed, stirring constantly. Add remaining chicken broth, 1/2 cup at a time, waiting until liquid is absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup (our risotto takes about 20 minutes to cook from the time the first liquid is added). Remove bay leaves, fold in peas and cook until hot, about 1 minute. Remove from heat; fold in parsley, Parmesan cheese and margarine. Season to taste with salt and pepper and spoon risotto into shallow bowls; serve hot.

Makes 4 hearty servings
Points per serving: 5

For more Menu Plan Monday, visit Organizing Junkie.

I finally have a few minutes to post this. It has been hectic around here lately for some reason.

Let me get right to it. This past week I did not gain or lose. I am okay with that for two reasons. One, hello, I said I did not gain! And two, my husband said I feel different. I thought so too, but now I have third party confirmation. No, wait. I guess that would be second party confirmation. Whatever. Anyway, good things are happening, it just didn’t show up on the scale. I’m okay with that.

I do have a couple of things I want to focus on – goals, if you will – for the week.

First, my menu plan next Monday is going to be all Weight Watchers recipes. I need to completely break away from my old dinner menus and focus on the plan. Fortunately, my husband loves to eat healthy and enjoys it when I cook WW recipes.

The second is exercise. I know. We all hate it. If we didn’t, we would not be fat.

In my case though, I have the added problem of a bad knee, so even when I do want to exercise, I have to take it s-l-o-w. More like, s—l—o—w. And it drives me c—r—a—z—y!

But I am resolving here and now to start that process with more commitment. My goal is to work up to walking for one hour per day and doing strength training twice per week. (Eventually, which is a long way off, probably, I want to do a 1.5 hour walk and 3 days of strength training, but let’s not get too crazy here.)

I am fortunate in that I can take a walk any time I please because I am home with the kids all day. However, walking with a curious 4-year-old is not exactly the kind of exercise I am looking for.

In order to keep my knee healthy (and not be unable to walk the following day) I am going to start small, maybe a 15 minute walk in the morning before my husband goes to work. If it feels okay for the rest of the day, I’ll do another one that evening.

I want so badly to just jump right in, but I know I will regret it. A few months ago, I bought this really cheesy George Foreman workout DVD on clearance and the kids and I started doing it every day. My knee was killing me, but I pushed through and kept at it. Big mistake! It only got worse. Then I ended up quitting completely.

The exercise component is key for me, and the hardest. My eating habits are not that bad. (I’m not just saying that.) And the small changes that I do need to make, I can live with. But exercise I just hate. Add knee pain and forget it!

Okay, so here is my recipe. Actually, there are two.

First, the don’t-eat-this-ever recipe. Whole-wheat macaroni and cheese. When I was doing core, I made this. It was so disgusting, we could not even finish eating it. The worst part: if you are not on core, it is 6 points! (My personal rule is to not waste points on food that tastes like dirty socks.)

Second, the good macaroni and cheese recipe. This is from the Weight Watchers website, too, but I can’t find a link. (I have a printed copy.) I am pretty sure this is the one I made that we both liked.

Baked Macaroni and Cheese

12 oz uncooked elbow macaroni
1/2 cup fat-free sour cream
12 oz fat-free evaporated milk
8 oz low-fat cheddar or colby cheese, shredded
1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
2 Tbsp dried bread crumbs
2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350.

Cook pasta according to directions. Drain and transfer to a large bowl. While pasta is still hot, stir in sour cream; set aside.

Heat milk in a small sauce pan over medium heat until tiny bubbles appear just around the edges (known as scalding). Reduce heat to low, add cheese and simmer until cheese melts, stirring constantly with wire whisk, about 2 minutes; remove from heat and stir in mustard, salt, pepper, and nutmeg.

Add cheese mixture to the pasta; mix well. Transfer to a 4-quart casserole dish.

Combine bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese; sprinkle over pasta.

Bake until top is golden, about 30 minutes. Yields 1 cup per serving.

Servings: 8
Points: 5

Well, my second week of Weight Watchers did not go as well as the first. I actually gained a pound and a half last week. Ugh!

I am not going to let it get me down, though. I am not going to get discouraged and quit. It was a setback, but I am still down 2 1/2 pounds from two weeks ago when I started, so I need to just press on.

This week’s recipe is a sweet treat that goes great with tea (or coffee). I put this in the slow cooker last Sunday before church and returned home to a delicious tea-time snack.

Slow Cooker Blueberry Coffee Cake

* 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
* 1/3 cup sugar
* 1/2 tsp baking soda
* 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
* 1/4 tsp table salt
* 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
* 1 large egg(s), beaten
* 1/2 cup plain fat-free yogurt
* 2 Tbsp canola oil
* 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
* 1 cup blueberries
* 2 sprays cooking spray
* 1 Tbsp powdered sugar

Combine both flours, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl. Combine egg, yogurt, oil and vanilla extract in a small bowl; stir well. Beat egg mixture into flour mixture with a wooden spoon until smooth; stir in blueberries.

Coat a 2-quart round soufflé dish with cooking spray; spoon batter into dish. Coat a sheet of aluminum foil with cooking spray; cover dish tightly with foil, coated side-down, so no water seeps in.

Pour 2 cups of hot water into a 5-quart or larger slow cooker; place covered baking dish in slow cooker. Cover slow cooker; cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours. Remove baking dish and cool on wire rack for 5 minutes. Turn cake upside down onto a wire rack to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar before slicing into 8 pieces. Yields 1 slice per serving.

Points per slice: 3