Having fun and Uh Oh, Restaurants!
I don't intend to let the posts go so far between, but some days I feel like I don't have much new to say and I don't want to bore anyone.
Last week was another solid week, no problems with food cravings. I finally loosened things up by adding 1 cup of microwave popcorn into the mix. That was actually plenty to get a good amount of flavor and by the time I hit the bottom of the bowl I was sick of the hulls and salt anyway. It felt really good to eat that because I wanted it and I had the calories to spare.
I am still struggling to keep my calorie intake up to a level where I am in the best place metabolically. At first I was thinking it wasn't as big a deal as going way over budget would be, but it is something I want to work on going forward. I just need to work on healthy extra calories instead of junk.
Over the weekend I was faced with my first (two) experiences eating out while counting calories. Saturday we went to see Lake Michigan, which was roaring like an ocean with 40MPH winds. The waves were crashing some 20 ft up onto the cliffs where we were carefully standing on thick ice looking in awe at it all.
Brrrrr! After we left that beautiful spot we decided to have dinner at a restaurant known for their italian food, namely pizza and pasta. I opted for the fgrilled chicken sandwhich which came with a side of fries. I quickly looked up calories for fries and wanted to cry. I eyeballed a 3 ounce portion based on the size of a small fry from McDonalds. I ate them slowly, enjoying them immensely. Part of me wanted to eat all of them, but I decided to stick to it and be happy that I got to enjoy the ones I did. I took the rest home, planning on warming them up in small servings over the next day or two. After being so cold for so long, and still being within budget, I decided to have a glass of wine. That is bad news. My inhibitions went way down and I ended up finishing those fries all that same night, which put me over budget. I chalked it up to a valuable lesson. Not only did the wine add unneccesary calories but it made my resolve weaken tremendously. I will be more careful next time, or just pass on the alcohol altogether.
Sunday my husband said he would like to get something to eat; get out of the house and use up some restaurant gift cards we got for Christmas. One is for a craft burger and brew place. I don't particularly like it because their food is so loaded with calories that it almost makes me have to have a salad in order to stay in budget. I decided I would have the fish tacos without aoli before we went. As it turns out, they were so busy that we didn't end up eating there anyway; so we found a Famous Daves BBQ joint across town to try. It smelled amazing the minute we got out of the car. The simply awesome thing about Famous Daves is they have calorie counts right on the menu! I opted for the BBQ pulled chicken sandwich and a side of grilled pineapple. If you haven't tried that pineapple you have to! It is grilled on a smokey grill and topped with just a hint of what tasted like cayenne pepper. So good and only 90 calories for two pineapple "steaks". I felt so satisfied, and once I logged my calories I was "in the zone" with my calories, leaving me some wiggle room by bedtime to have my usually snack of fresh cheese. Sunday felt good to me. I was so happy that I could navigate that without needing to eat salad. Don't get me wrong, a fresh salad is fine, but there's a time and a place. Winter doesn't generally make me want to eat salad.
So I am learning. I can go to restaurants and still stay in budget. I worked out both weekend days so that I could be sure I wouldn't have to be quite as strict with my calories.
I feel like this is doable. I don't feel deprived, but it does make me more aware of how often I was eating out of habit (nibbling while I prepare food especially) and eating when I wasn't hungry. I will take a closer look at my calorie deficit and see if I want to push my meals and snacks closer together or leave them how they are but add more calories. Work is the questionable part, how frequently I can eat is dictated by the customer flow. I don't want to over think it. For now I'm doing OK but I want to see a good number on the scale when I weigh in on Wednesday! I will consider the first 2 weeks experiemental, and I can tweak anything I need to in order to keep myself challenged, growing (er, shrinking) and changing.
As a side, this may the longest I've ever stuck to a New Year's resolution. How fun!
Last week was another solid week, no problems with food cravings. I finally loosened things up by adding 1 cup of microwave popcorn into the mix. That was actually plenty to get a good amount of flavor and by the time I hit the bottom of the bowl I was sick of the hulls and salt anyway. It felt really good to eat that because I wanted it and I had the calories to spare.
I am still struggling to keep my calorie intake up to a level where I am in the best place metabolically. At first I was thinking it wasn't as big a deal as going way over budget would be, but it is something I want to work on going forward. I just need to work on healthy extra calories instead of junk.
Over the weekend I was faced with my first (two) experiences eating out while counting calories. Saturday we went to see Lake Michigan, which was roaring like an ocean with 40MPH winds. The waves were crashing some 20 ft up onto the cliffs where we were carefully standing on thick ice looking in awe at it all.
 |
| My husband and son standing on ice on top of the cliff. My anxiety was in hyperdrive that day |
Brrrrr! After we left that beautiful spot we decided to have dinner at a restaurant known for their italian food, namely pizza and pasta. I opted for the fgrilled chicken sandwhich which came with a side of fries. I quickly looked up calories for fries and wanted to cry. I eyeballed a 3 ounce portion based on the size of a small fry from McDonalds. I ate them slowly, enjoying them immensely. Part of me wanted to eat all of them, but I decided to stick to it and be happy that I got to enjoy the ones I did. I took the rest home, planning on warming them up in small servings over the next day or two. After being so cold for so long, and still being within budget, I decided to have a glass of wine. That is bad news. My inhibitions went way down and I ended up finishing those fries all that same night, which put me over budget. I chalked it up to a valuable lesson. Not only did the wine add unneccesary calories but it made my resolve weaken tremendously. I will be more careful next time, or just pass on the alcohol altogether.
Sunday my husband said he would like to get something to eat; get out of the house and use up some restaurant gift cards we got for Christmas. One is for a craft burger and brew place. I don't particularly like it because their food is so loaded with calories that it almost makes me have to have a salad in order to stay in budget. I decided I would have the fish tacos without aoli before we went. As it turns out, they were so busy that we didn't end up eating there anyway; so we found a Famous Daves BBQ joint across town to try. It smelled amazing the minute we got out of the car. The simply awesome thing about Famous Daves is they have calorie counts right on the menu! I opted for the BBQ pulled chicken sandwich and a side of grilled pineapple. If you haven't tried that pineapple you have to! It is grilled on a smokey grill and topped with just a hint of what tasted like cayenne pepper. So good and only 90 calories for two pineapple "steaks". I felt so satisfied, and once I logged my calories I was "in the zone" with my calories, leaving me some wiggle room by bedtime to have my usually snack of fresh cheese. Sunday felt good to me. I was so happy that I could navigate that without needing to eat salad. Don't get me wrong, a fresh salad is fine, but there's a time and a place. Winter doesn't generally make me want to eat salad.
So I am learning. I can go to restaurants and still stay in budget. I worked out both weekend days so that I could be sure I wouldn't have to be quite as strict with my calories.
I feel like this is doable. I don't feel deprived, but it does make me more aware of how often I was eating out of habit (nibbling while I prepare food especially) and eating when I wasn't hungry. I will take a closer look at my calorie deficit and see if I want to push my meals and snacks closer together or leave them how they are but add more calories. Work is the questionable part, how frequently I can eat is dictated by the customer flow. I don't want to over think it. For now I'm doing OK but I want to see a good number on the scale when I weigh in on Wednesday! I will consider the first 2 weeks experiemental, and I can tweak anything I need to in order to keep myself challenged, growing (er, shrinking) and changing.
As a side, this may the longest I've ever stuck to a New Year's resolution. How fun!
Awesome for sticking to it!
ReplyDeleteThank you Neca!
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