Discouraged, but hanging in there!

I'm beginning to get discouraged with my weight loss (as I often do) because it isn't going fast enough. Deep down I know that this is ridiculous as 1-2 pounds each week is normal, but I can't help it. I feel as though I've lost nothing this week and I know it is my own fault for eating so terribly. It's times like these when I just need a little push to keep things going. Here are a few great motivational quotes that really put things in perspective:

• "It's not whether you get knocked down; it's whether you get up."
• "You must begin to think of yourself as becoming the person you want to be."
• "You must do the thing you think you cannot do."
• "You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there."
• "The difference between try and triumph is just a little umph!"
• "The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking places."

Little quotes like that help keep me strong and my goals in sight :).

Anyways, today was a busy busy day.

I went to the pharmacy to get some prescriptions filled. From there, Mikey and I went to the Burke Museum, which I had to visit for an extra credit opportunity in my Archaeology class. That took quite a bit of time as I had to go to certain portions of the museum to take notes, but luckily I have been there before, so I had at least a feeling of where I needed to be.

We didn't get around to eating until after the museum :(. I was really hungry. We decided to go to the Macaroni Grill on the way home, and boy am I glad we did! It was so yummy in my tummy :). I I immediately ordered a cup of black coffee because it was cold and rainy out (for as beautiful as it was out yesterday, it was equally as ugly today) To eat I got:

• Honey Balsamic Chicken: Grilled chicken with honey balsamic glaze. Served with sun-dried tomato capellini pasta and grilled broccoli (though my broccoli was most definitely steamed)

The entire dish is 640 calories which is really low considering how much food you get. I could only eat half! I also snacked on the delicious salty, rosemary bread they bring to the table.

• 1/2 Honey Balsamic Chicken (320cal)
• Rosemary bread (130cal)

=450 calories

We actually went to the gym this evening! I love getting in work outs and I'm going to make a better effort to get them in every day as I know they will expedite the weight loss process.

By the way, I think I should touch on my weight loss goals a bit. I'm not exactly sure how much weight I want to lose (I know I originally said something like 10 pounds but I've lost around there and I'm still not happy with my weight), but what I do know is what I want to look like. I want a strong, healthy body with less fat :). So, this could mean that I don't lose much more weight, but instead build more muscle (which in turn burns fat!). 

In the interest of being completely honest with myself, I decided I might as well post my weight/measurements/body fat. Right now my body fat is around 20% (as tested at home with a printable tape measure, hah so may or may not be completely accurate though it claims to be fairly accurate), and I'd like it to be around 18%. I weigh 133 lbs at 5'7" and my measurements are:

waist (at narrowest part): 26"

hips (at widest part): 36"

wrist (at narrowest): 5.8"

neck: 12" (I think? This was hard to do)

calf (with weight on dominant leg at widest part): 13.1"

Thigh (widest part of upper thigh- ugh the worst): 20"

I feel like these look better in writing than on my body.

Questions/comments/opinions/advice on my weight loss/whatever would be greatly appreciated :D!

ANYWAYS, at the gym I had a hard cardio workout on the elliptical. It was going really well until 2.75 miles in when I developed a ridiculous cramp that felt as if was being stabbed in the abdomen and my vision began to blur. It started to get hard to breathe and I knew what was coming next if I didn't stop- I was going to pass out. So, I somehow managed to finish the third mile, and then I couldn't even handle a cool down. I stumbled my way to the mat and collapsed. I'm fairly certain this was all due to the fact that I really needed to eat as I had just burned roughly the same amount of calories I had eaten all day.

My workout was still pretty good despite the disastrous end. I did 3 miles in 24:45. That's 8:15/mile. I burned 310 calories.

When we got home I immediately made a big ol' nutrient-dense green smoothie.

It made me feel SO much better! The mix included:

• 1 big banana (110cal)
• 1 small original yogurt with strawberries that I had from Red Mango in the freezer (100cal)
• 2/3 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (27cal)
• 2 big lacinato kale leaves (negligible)
• 2 tbsp creamy natural peanut butter (190cal)
• 3 ice cubes

=427 calories

You just cannot comprehend how amazing and revitalizing that smoothie was!

A bit later, after a couple hours of lab write-ups, I decided to have dinner. I tried to make it SUPER calorie-dense since I clearly was in need of calories. I had my leftovers from earlier, half a sandwich, some applesauce, and a pickle:

• 1/2 Honey Balsamic Chicken (320cal)
• 1/2 Moroccan Carrot, Goat Cheese, and Green Olive Tapenade Sandwich (290cal)
• GoGo squeeZ applesauce in "appleapple" (60cal)
• Claussen pickle (5cal)

=675 calories- It was soooo much food, ack! I'm full.

=1422 calorie - 310 calories burned

=1112 net calories for the day

Thai Food is the Best Food

Well, I didn't post my eats yesterday for a couple of reasons. The first is that I only ate *one* meal yesterday :/. I didn't get around to eating until dinner at like 9pm! The second reason is that I have no pictures as Mikey and I went out for dinner to Barrio- a fun, trendy, Mexican restaurant. It was a great dinner! We got a chips and salsa appetizer to share and then I got two small plates for dinner:

• fire roasted tomato-habanero salsa with tortilla chips
• chile braised pork belly: green apple-jicama slaw and caramelized pineapple (from the appetizer menu- the piece of meat was probably 2 inches wide and an inch or so tall, so it was fairly small)
• half caesar: chilled romaine, shaved radish, grilled croutons, manchego cheese with chimayo chile- caesar dressing

I also got a cocktail:

• lado del sur: el jimador reposado, mint, grapefruit, lemon, agave, regan’s orange bitters

The pork belly was out-of-this-world good! It paired so nicely with the crunchy slaw and sweet pineapple. The caesar salad was also amazing. I normally don't order caesar salads at restaurants because they usually have a terribly creamy dressing that tastes nothing like any of the components that make it up; however, our waiter assured me that in this caesar you could taste the anchovies, dijon, etc. I'm glad I listened because It was great! It had a great lemon-y tang that went so well with the radishes (which, by the way, were an AWESOME addition to a caesar salad).

The cocktail was really tasty. I loved the sourness from the grapefruit. I also enjoyed crushing up the fresh mint in my glass :).

Despite the fact that the desserts looked amazing (homemade churros!), we were both far too full. We had a really fun time and will DEFINITELY be back!

So, now that that's out of the way we can move on to today!

When I got up this morning at like 11am, I decided on a delectable bowl of Bran Buds with a nanner and some creamy peanut butter for breakfast/lunch. It was wonderful! Bananas and peanut butter were made for one another, were they not?

• 1 cup All-Bran Bran Buds (210cal)
• 1 big banana (100cal)
• 1 tbsp creamy peanut butter (90cal)
• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (40cal)

=440 calories

This afternoon we went over to Mikey's parents' house to help his mom take some pictures for her real estate website. It was SUCH a gorgeous day today! Clear blue skies, sun sining down, absolute perfection. Afterwards, his parents took us to one of our very favorite restaurants for dinner, Silver Spoon! It's a great local Thai place that has excellent food. I don't really like not counting my calories 2 days in a row, but how could I turn down free Thai food?! I love all Asian food, but especially Thai. I'm a spice-lover and I always get the absolute hottest they offer (5 star here), and then ask for the spice tray on the side too! I got:

• Baby Corn Delight: sauteed tofu with baby corn, bamboo shoots, mushrooms, bell pepper, and onion, stir-fried with oyster sauce and light soy sauce

It was a fairly healthy option I thought. I also opted from brown rice over white. We also got an appetizer of crab rangoons but I only had one. I ate half of my meal and had the rest packaged up to eat later. These are obviously guesses for the calorie calculations:

• 1/2 Baby Corn Delight (300cal)
• about 1/2 cup of brown rice (175cal)
• 1 crab rangoon (70cal)

=545 calories

When I got home, I saw my Everything Cookies looking up at me and had to have one. It was salty and crunchy and chocolatey and I don't regret it one bit!

• Everything Cookie (220cal)

My midnight snack tonight was my leftovers :P

• 1/2 Baby Corn Delight (300cal)
• 1/2 cup brown rice (175cal)

=475 calories

=1680 calories

WOWZA, hah, ah well... tomorrow is a new day!

Is it Friday yet?

Since my classes are late on thursdays (1:30-3:30), I ate lunch beforehand! I had half of a Moroccan Carrot Sandwich, a deliciously sweet and juicy Pink Lady apple, and some Wheat Thins Multigrain chips. Dee-licious!

• 1/2 Moroccan Carrot Sandwich (290cal)
• 174g Pink Lady apple (90cal)
• 1 oz. Wheat Thins Multigrain Chips (120cal)

=500 calories

After class Mikey and I had to go pick up his car from the dealership because one of the hoses in the engine blew up yesterday spraying coolant al over the inside :(. But it's all fixed now!

For dinner I was in a cereal kind of mood. I had a nice bowl of Bran Buds with a banana!

• 1 cup All-Bran Bran Buds (210cal)
• 1/2 cup skim milk (45cal)
• 113g banana (101cal)

=356 calories

I finished my paper (oh yeah!), and in a bit, Mikey and I are going to the midnight showing of Alice in Wonderland in IMAX 3D tonight! I can't wait! It feels like Friday today, too bad I still have class in the morning :(.

Clearly this isn't enough calories so I know I'll probably be having something when I get back from the movie. I'll update tomorrow about what I had.

=856 calories thus far today

EDIT: I decided it would just be best to update this post with my eats. By the way, the movie was EXCELLENT and I highly recommend it (especially in IMAX 3D)!

I decided on a pre-cooked Shepherd's Pie (really Cottage Pie) because the last time I had one I was blown away with how incredibly good it was. And not just "Oh, for a pre-cooked meal that's good." It's delicious for any meal (though it looks like a sloppy mess, I know)! I also had a Pink Lady apple since the apple I had for lunch was so yummy!

• Shepherd's Pie (430cal)
• 171g Pink Lady apple (88cal)

=518 calories

=1374 calories for the day!

Too FEW Calories?!

This morning began with a wonderful breakfast which I made last night!
A delicious and creamy bowl of overnight oats:

Add the first three ingredients to a bowl, mix, cover, and refrigerate overnight. I added in the other ingredients this morning.

• 1/3 cup raw rolled oats (113cal)
• 1/3 cup 0% Greek Gods Yogurt (49cal)
• 1/3 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (I use Almond Breeze) (13cal)
• 1 tbsp White Chocolate Wonderful Peanut Butter- warmed in the microwave and mixed with a couple of tbsp of almond milk (90cal)
• 1 tbsp Strawberry Freezerves (45cal)
• 1/4 cup Back to Nature Classic Granola (100cal)

=410 calories

Lunch was also prepared yesterday (for the most part)! It was a delicious Moroccan carrot sandwich with creamy goat cheese and green olive tapenade on pumpernickel bread. You can find the recipe for it HERE on my other blog!

• Moroccan Carrot Sandwich with Goat Cheese and Green Olive Tapenade (around 580cal)

=580 calories

This evening Mikey and I actually went to the *gym* for the first time in a month, hah. I had a really good workout! I did 4 miles on the elliptical in 34:45, and then did a nice 5 minute cool down. My heart monitor read 506 calories burned! I was pretty excited because that meant I could have a feast of a dinner!

After debating what to eat for about half an hour after we got home, I finally decided on a humongous stir-fry for dinner! The mix included: shirataki noodles, red pepper, mung beans, enoki mushrooms, carrots, green onions, onions, garlic, tofu, all sauteed in sesame oil, and a sauce made from shoyu soy sauce, mirin, and oyster sauce. It made two rather large servings. For both servings:

• 1 package shirataki noodles (40cal)
• 198g extra-firm tofu (180cal)
• 2 tbsp sesame oil (260cal)
• 1/2 package enoki mushrooms (22cal)
• 1 medium carrot (25cal)
• 1 red bell pepper (30cal)
• 1/4 of a yellow onion (16cal)
• 1/2 package mung beans (15cal)
• 2 tbsp oyster sauce (50cal)
• 2 tsp mirin (17cal)
• 2 tsp shoyu soy sauce (10cal)

=665 calories/2 = 332 calories per serving

• I also had 113g of a blood orange (57cal)

=389 calories... seriously, I'm in awe of how low-cal this was. It was the world's most filling meal.

Clearly my surprisingly calorie-lacking dinner was not enough food after my heavy workout, but it was far too filling for me to eat more :/.

=1379 calories for the day - 506 calories from workout

=873 net calories- horrible 

Skipper!

On Tuesdays I have only one class which is at 9:30am, but today, I just wasn't up to going so I skipped! It's only the second class I've missed all quarter, and it's just a lecture class so I know it won't be a big deal. I spent the morning lounging around playing flash games.

For lunch (brunch even? It was like 11am) I had a big ol' bowl of Life cereal (which is definitely one of my all-time favorites). But, for some reason I completely neglected to take a picture of it :/. Anyways, the calorie count came out to 380.

Dinner was a delectable salad with poached eggs! I love runny eggs on salads; it add a whole new dimension of flavor and texture. The silly part is that I had planned on soft-boiling the eggs, but then realized that I just cracked them into little ramekins. I guess I subconsciously wanted poached eggs instead? Hah. Well, regardless, it was still super tasty!

• Mixed green and herbs (5cal)
• 2 little campari tomatoes (20cal)
• 1/2 medium avocado (80cal)
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (120cal)
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar (15cal)
• a ton of sea salt and some freshly ground pepper
• 2 large eggs, poached (148cal)
• sprinkling of parmigiana reggiano (negligible)

=388 calories

My midnight snack this evening was rather large since I still needed a bunch of calories. I had a nummy (shut up it's a word!) apple with Nuttzo, an some trail mix I made with cashews, dark chocolate M&Ms, and dried cranberries. Delicious!

• 1 little Honeycrisp apple (60cal)
• 1 tbsp Nuttzo mixed with some unsweetened vanilla almond milk to make a nice nut butter sauce (90cal)
• 21g dark chocolate M&Ms (105cal)
• 3 tbsp salted roasted cashews (170cal)
• 8g dried cranberries (20cal)

=445 calories

=1213 calories for the day

So Sorry! I'm back.

Warning: Killer long post ahead!

I apologize for not posting this weekend but my eating was rather erratic. I decided that Saturday was going to be a cheat day because a) I haven't had one in a bit, and b) I deserve it; I mean, I've lost like 10 pounds since the end of January.
So, for lunch on Saturday I had a giant bowl of cereal and it was wonderful! For dinner, Mikey and I decided to try out a new place! We went to Cactus, a Tex-Mex style restaurant where we were greeted with some salty tortilla chips and a pretty stellar salsa (I'm a chips and salsa connoisseur in case you didn't know). I ordered a glass of Sangria (I RARELY indulge in alcohol) and it was just alright. I would have liked it to have had other fruits besides just oranges and limes but I clearly just need to try my hand at making my own. Mikey and I shared a tiny cup of their Seafood Chowder which was loaded with rockfish, clams, corn, and more. It was creamy and delicious but pretty rich. For dinner I ordered the Butternut Squash Enchiladas because I had heard a lot of good things about them (Butternut Squash Enchilada- Crisp white corn tortillas with Jack and goat cheeses, sautéed spinach, roasted butternut squash, caramelized onions, manchamanteles mole and guacamole). They were quite good, but weren't at all what I expected. They were not in enchilada form, but rather a tower of layered fried tortillas, and the fillings. They were, however, super filling and I ate only half and had the rest boxed up. After our meal we were presented with a complimentary Caramel Flan by the manager since it was our first visit! It was so creamy and wonderful that I managed to choke down a few bites even though I felt like I was going to blow up from all of the food! After all that I still managed to finish off the rest of my meal in the wee hours of the morning before heading to bed.
Friday I certainly felt the effects of overindulging and woke up still feeling full. I didn't eat anything until dinner, but Mikey and I did go on a nice 5 mile walk around Greenlake in the afternoon where I took some pictures of the gorgeous cherry blossoms and tulips for my mom:

And a dorky looking photo of me in front of the lake with the mountains in the background:

For dinner we went to the Macaroni Grill where we were served a delicious rosemary bread with olive oil for dipping. I held off on the olive oil minus one taste, but could not hold back on the tasty bread! I ordered a soup and salad for dinner:

• Amalfi Chicken Soup- Slow-roasted chicken with garden vegetables and Parmesan-filled sacchetti pasta in a chicken broth with fresh lemon zest (420cal)
• Warm Spinach Salad- Fresh spinach wilted and tossed with prosciutto, roasted garlic, fresh lemon and extra virgin olive oil. Topped with toasted goat cheese (330cal)
• Bread (maybe 250cal?)

=1000ish calories for the day

Well today I decided to get back into the groove of things and started the day out with breakfast- SOUND THE ALARMS! Yes, *I* ate breakfast! A delicious, nutritious, and filling one at that! I had to get up SUPERRR early to finish up a paper and decided why not? By the way, the sunrise this morning was simply gorgeous:

My breakfast was a wonderful bowl of oatmeal:

• 1/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats (75cal)
• 55g banana (49cal)
• 1/4 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk (10cal)
• 1 tbsp Nuttzo (90cal)
• 1 tbsp Strawberry Freezerves (45cal)
• 2 tbsp Back to Nature Classic Granola (50cal)

=314 calories

After class, Mikey and I went to Specialty's Cafe for lunch. I got one of the featured soups which was Spicy Lentil Dahl. It was really tasty with great Indian flavors, but rather thick and I decided it would be better over some rice with a spoonful of greek yogurt. I ate only about a quarter of it, but took the rest home. I also bought a cup of fruit which ended up being less than stellar. I think the fruit was out of season :(. I ate the few pineapple pieces, strawberries, and grapes out of it and left the remaining 3/4 of the cup uneaten (the cantaloupe, honeydew, and watermelon). We stopped by Pasta & Co. on or way back to the car and I picked up some delicious pasta salad (Hazelnut Tortellini with Toasted Almond Slivers, Feta Cheese, Olives and Artichokes) to eat later. They had some samples out so I tried a chip with salsa, half a cracker with cheese and quince paste, and a bite of the pasta salad before I decided to purchase some.

• Lentil Soup (maybe 50cal?)
• Fruit (about 40cal)
• Samples (around 100cal)

=190 calories- I just wasn't that hungry; I guess it was the oatmeal from breakfast!

Dinner tonight was my leftover lentil dahl with chips for dipping, the pasta salad I bought earlier, a pickle (obviously Claussen- the best brand by a long shot), and a GoGo SqueeZ in appleapple flavor.

• Lentil Dahl (200ish cal)
• Pasta Salad (300 cal?)
• Apple sauce (60cal)
• 1 oz. Food Should Taste Good Multi-grain chips (140cal)

=700 calories

=1204 calories for the day

Nothin' New

Nothing interesting to report. My classes were all complete wastes of time today, which is quite perturbing, but at least it's Friday! Unfortunately, I have a TON of homework to do this weekend (2 papers, a lab report, and 3 posts to an online discussion board).


After my delicious salad last night, I knew I wanted a similar one for lunch! This one included mixed herbs and greens, toasted pine nuts, tomato, avocado, and 2 eggs that were in between hard and soft boiled. Topped with a simple dressing of extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar (and lots of salt and pepper).

• 2 eggs, softish-boiled (148cal)
• 22g pine nuts, toasted (139cal)
• 40g avocado, chopped (76cal)
• 1 sweet campari tomato, chopped (10cal)
• mixed greens/herbs (5cal)
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (120cal)
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar (15cal)

=513 calories

Dinner was a mish-mosh of delicious but random items:

• Homemade Oreo-not pictured because I decided to eat it on a whim while fixing up my tasting plate :) (110cal)
• GoGo SqueeZ in appleapple flavor topped with a sprinkling of ground flax (60cal)
• 148g grapefruit sections (62cal)
• 3 tbsp salted roasted cashews (170cal)
• 1 slice Orowheat Master's Best Winter Wheat, toasted (90cal)
• 1 tbsp Nuttzo (90cal)
• 1 tsp Strawberry Freezerves (15cal)

=597 calories

=1110 calories for the day