Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Finally got my taxes done

Calories eaten yesterday: 1044
Fat: 18g (16%)
Carbs: 74g (29%)
Protein: 139g (54%)
Calories burned in exercise today: 29

Got my taxes done today. I went to H&R Block and say the lady I've seen the past few years. I got money back from both state and federal - a very small amount and both together equaled less than the tax prep fees. I made out a new federal W-4 to have an extra $10 taken out of each paycheck.

I am a stressball. I took 0.5mg of Xanax before my appointment and another 0.5 after.I feel like I'm going to binge, but in the meantime I have consumed a McChicken sandwich (no mayo) and a 1/4 pound cheeseburger from next door (no mayo and no fries). That's all comfort food due to stress. Now I want a peanut butter sandwich. This is in addition to my regular food.

I know I need to do a little bit of starving - not unhealthy anorexic starving for days on end; just enough to get my weight down. I need to learn to "embrace the hunger" as a friend instead of an enemy. Is it such a sin to want a flat stomach?

I'm bloated from all the food today and look like the Pillsbury Dough Girl again - but I'm still wanting to eat! Hunger doesn't even enter the equation.

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Monday, March 30, 2009

Thinspiration

Calories eaten yesterday: 684 (I'm never hungry after I stuff myself the previous day)
Fat: 14g (18%)
Carbs: 56g (33%)
Protein: 84g (49%)
Weight this morning: 135
Calories burned in exercise today: 395

I've got to cut calories. Food rules and ruins my life. I skipped my cottage cheese before my workout and just had my protein shake. I had another shake after as usual. No protein after a workout means precious muscle mass loss. I want to be thin, but certainly not a stick.

My workout was one hour of weight training (always my favorite), followed by 30 minutes on a stationary bike. I met my monthly step goal today quite easily so I figured I could do the bike. It doesn't count steps, but if I don't need the steps then it's okay. :) I walked to work from BART as usual for the extra calorie burn and bus fare savings.

I know something is wrong with my relationship with food. I know I binge and that means an unhealthy relationship with food. I've been looking up some "thinspiration" pics on the Web and Flickr. I printed out a few to help me stay on track. I have really let my eating and stomach get the best of me. This is a very bad thing when your metabolism is as low as mine. I need to eat in accordance with my metabolism and "eat to live" rather than "live to eat." I need to embrace the hunger and cravings my anti-depressant gives me and remind myself that it is not true hunger, just a fake hunger induced by the med.

There's not much more to say, or rather, there's a lot to say but I don't know how to express it. My thoughts are a jumble and if I say the wrong thing people would get worried and jump all over me. So I think I need to stay quiet until I can sort it all out.

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Sunday, March 29, 2009

Week 97 Weigh-In

Start: 154
Week 1: 150 (-4) - Week 2: 148.6 (-1.4)
Week 3: 146 (-2.6) - Week 4: 147.2 (+1.2)
Week 5: 145.6 (-1.6) - Week 6: 144 (-1.6)
Week 7: 143 (-1) - Week 8: 142.8 (-0.2)
Week 9: 143.6 (+0.8) - Week 10: 141.2 (-2.4)
Week 11: 143.8 (+2.6) - Week 12: 142.4 (-1.4)
Week 13: 142.4 (-0) - Week 14: 141.6 (-0.8)
Week 15: 139.4 (-2.2) - Week 16: 140 (+0.6)
Week 17: 139.2 (-0.8) - Week 18: 139 (-0.2)
Week 19: 138 (-1) - Week 20: 135.4 (-2.6)
Week 21: 137.2 (+1.8) - Week 22: 139.6 (+2.4)
Week 23: 143.2 (+3.6) - Week 24: 143.6 (+0.4)
Week 25: 137.6 (-6) - Week 26: 139.6 (+2)
Week 27: 142 (+2.4) - Week 28: 137.2 (-4.8)
Week 29: 137 (-0.2) - Week 30: 136.8 (-0.2)
Week 31: 142.2 (+5.4) - Week 32: 136.8 (-5.4)
Week 33: 137.8 (+1) - Week 34: 135.8 (-2)
Week 35: 137.6 (+1.8) - Week 36: 143.8 (+6.2)
Week 37: 142.8 (-1) - Week 38: 140 (-2.8)
Week 39: 142.4 (+2.4) - Week 40: 140.4 (-2)
Week 41: 139.6 (-0.8) - Week 42: 142 (+2.4)
Week 43: N/A - Week 44: 141 (-1)
Week 45: 138.8 (-2.2) - Week 46: 139.6 (+0.8)
Week 47: 133.6 (-6) - Week 48: 132.4 (-1.2)
Week 49: 138.6 (+6.2) - Week 50: 138.4 (-0.2)
Week 51: 138.8 (+0.4) - Week 52: 139.4 (+0.6)
Week 53: 137.8 (-1.6) - Week 54: 139.4 (+1.6)
Week 55: 137.6 (-1.8) - Week 56: 136.4 (-1.2)
Week 57: 136.6 (+0.2) - Week 58: 139.4 (+2.8)
Week 59: 136.6 (-2.8) - Week 60: 134.6 (-2)
Week 61: 137 (+2.4) - Week 62: 138.6 (+1.6)
Week 63: 137 (-1.6) - Week 64: 137 (-0)
Week 65: 141.8 (+4.8) - Week 66: 135.4 (-6.4)
Week 67: 136 (+0.6) - Week 68: 139.2 (+3.2)
Week 69: 137.2 (-2) - Week 70: 138.2 (+1)
Week 71: 136.4 (-1.8) - Week 72: 140 (+3.6)
Week 73: 139.4 (-0.6) - Week 74: 140 (+0.6)
Week 75: 137.6 (-2.4) - Week 76: 141.6 (+4)
Week 77: 136.4 (-5.2) - Week 78: 139 (+2.6)
Week 79: 138.2 (-0.8) - Week 80: 139.2 (+1)
Week 81: 139.4 (+0.2) - Week 82: 137.6 (-1.8)
Week 83: 137.8 (+0.2) - Week 84: 137.2 (-0.6)
Week 85: 137.2 (-0) - Week 86: 136.2 (-1)
Week 87: 140.6 (+4.4) - Week 88: 138.8 (-1.8)
Week 89: 139.4 (+0.6) - Week 90: 142 (+2.6)
Week 91: 135.6 (-6.4) - Week 92: 140 (+4.4)
Week 93: 138.8 (-1.2) - Week 94: 138.6 (-0.2)
Week 95: 137.2 (-1.4)- Week 96: 137.6 (+0.6)
Week 97: 139.8 (+2.2)
Total loss since starting low-fat: -14.2

Ok, now to catch up on other numbers.
Calories eaten Thursday: 1326
Fat: 22g (15%)
Carbs: 74g (22%)
Protein: 169g (51%)
Weight Thursday morning: 131
Calories burned in exercise Thursday: 131

Calories eaten Friday: 1503
Fat: 26g (16%)
Carbs: 84g (23%)
Protein: 150g (41%)
Weight Friday morning: 131.2
Calories burned in exercise Friday: 127

Weight Saturday morning: 133.4
Calories burned in exercise Saturday: 0

Calories burned in exercise today: 268

I am so fat and bloated today. I look like the Pillsbury Dough Girl.

I got the blood tests Friday. I'm having so many tests run that they took four vials. I'm having the results mailed to me, so it will be about two weeks to get them.

After the blood tests I went to Safeway I got some cottage cheese for my breakfast and bought a few groceries since I was there. Then I went home and put the groceries away, then went to my local Safeway for the rest of the stuff I need. I put those away, washed and cut a bunch of zuchini, got dinners packed for this coming week, scooped the cat's litter box, and swept the floor. Then I saw the chiropractor and came home.

Brad got his car back, so we took off for WalMart and bought some stuff, plus got refills on all the meds I buy there.

Saturday I ate horribly at church and after. I ate way too much of Becky's enchiladas and ate too many granola bars. I am such an addict!

We went of the Japanese place up the street for sake (Brad had the plum wine), then Geraldo's for super burritos (they were kind of rushing us because we got there so late and Brad had no money so didn't eat), then Starbucks and I had a short skinny latte, a mini chocolate chip cookie, and a chocolate banana Vivanno, and finally Applebee's. Brad bought wine for himself and a Mochatini for me; I bought one Mochatini for myself and also had the caramel apple dessert shooter. I didn't need anymore.

The bartender knows us and gave us a mucho size Mudslide (photo of a previous one). I didn't want it (1100 calories - there's a reason I don't order them!), but Brad helped me drink it. I had the whipped cream and part of the drink, though. :( I know the bartender was just being nice, but it wasn't needed or wanted.

I went home and ate two single serve containers of plain yogurt, one with a scoop of Muscle Milk Light mixed in, and a cup of cottage cheese. *sigh* I suck. Of course I am not hungry today.

I need to learn how to become anorexic, but still get some protein in. :-p

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Thursday, March 26, 2009

Finally weighed myself!

Calories eaten yesterday: 1183
Fat: 23g (18%)
Carbs: 83g (29%)
Protein: 153g (53%)
Calories burned in exercise today: 228

Brad & I at the Family Radio banquetHere's a photo of Brad and I at the banquet last Saturday. I meant to include this in yesterday's post but forgot. Click it for a larger photo. The quality isn't as great as I would like. It's a scan from a hard copy.

After a week of eating low-carb I am back at that craving point again. I've burned through my liver glycogen that got stocked up on Saturday. Most people burn through it in two days and get horrible cravings on day three. With my slow metabolism it takes me four day to burn through it so on day five I get the carb cravings.

There's no guarantee that I won't give in, but I've made it this far today. I do have a reality check to touch base on and that is that I weighed myself this morning! I was 131. I have seen better this late in the week, but I'll take it. Giving into the carb cravings would cause my weight to spike, but all I want right now is a big bag of tortilla chips or some peanut butter sandwiches. I'm craving starches, not sugars.

I'm getting my blood tests tomorrow - full thyroid, full iron, and full hormone. I'm setting the $400 Dad gave me aside to help pay for them. Even with the discount through my employer it is going to cost a bundle. Results will be mailed to me in 2-3 weeks.

Brad is supposed to get his car back from the shop tomorrow! Yippee!

Today's payday so I paid my rent and mail it off, paid a couple of bills, and made a good dent in my Discover card - got the table portion paid off at least. I need to save some money out to pay H&R Block or I'd pay off more bills. I have 12 hours of overtime on this check and I need every penny of it, plus money for the chiropractor and groceries. With dinner and drinks this Saturday what I have left won't cover it and I will likely have to cash Dad's check and dip into that for the tax prep.

Weekend plans:
Friday -
blood tests
chiropractor
grocery shopping

Saturday -
church
dinner at Geraldo's for burritos because it's a pay week (including tortilla chips!)
Mochatinis at Applebee's because it's a pay week

Hopefully I will have the courage to weigh-in this week!

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Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Week 97, Day 4 (again)

Calories eaten yesterday: 1161
Fat: 24g (19%)
Carbs: 75g (26%)
Protein: 161g (56%)
Calories burned in exercise today: 311

Went to the gym today. Did one hour of weight training (mostly upper body, some lower). I am tired so I just walked on the treadmill for 30 minutes. Walked to work from BART, another 30 minutes.

Set up an appointment with my chiropractor Friday. I have the arm pain again and it's very familiar. I also set up an appointment with H&R Block for my taxes. Still have more prep work to do before I can go in, so maybe this will kick me to do it.

Only one more night of the 112mcg of thyroid meds! I won't take them the night before the test, then start back on the 100mcg dose Friday night/Saturday morning.

I will weigh-in soon! I just need to get myself under control first! :-p

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Tuesday, March 24, 2009

11 million steps!

Calories eaten yesterday: 1129
Fat: 21g (17%)
Carbs: 79g (29%)
Protein: 141g (51%)
Calories burned in exercise today: 181

pub table dining setHere's a picture of my new pub table dining set. Click it for a larger photo.

Mail run into the City today. Exercise was walking to BART, and then from BART to work when I returned.

I hit 11 million steps today! Yay me. :) I started tracking August 22, 2006. I actually joined Walker Tracker on August 30, but my pedometer holds seven days of info so I could enter steps going back to August 22. 11 million steps equals about 4,861 miles based on my stride length.

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Monday, March 23, 2009

Dad is in a nursing home

Calories eaten yesterday: 975
Fat: 19g (17%)
Carbs: 72g (30%)
Protein: 127g (53%)
Calories burned in exercise today: 122

Dad and II finally checked my e-mail last night after getting a call from Eleanor saying that my sister (April) was trying to get ahold of me. She had left two voice mails (my phone was off for a good part of the weekend), and sent two e-mails (I don't check my e-mail on the weekend).

Anyway, the e-mail said that sometime late last week (no day was given) my Dad was put in a nursing home for a bedsore. Of course, having high blood sugar doesn't help him heal. So right now he is in a nursing home in Grants Pass. I think he's expected to stay for about a month.

The phone number was in the e-mail and April said to call. I did and Dad sounded quite chipper - I guess just happy for the phone call.

April doesn't want him to go home again. She wants him in a managed care facility in her area (Seattle).

Xena chews a plastic bagHere's a random photo of Xena chewing on a plastic bag. Brad put together my table and there were a lot of little plastic bags that the screws and stuff came in. Leave it to Xena to find one and chew on it.

Today's exercise was walking down Fruitvale to the 7-11 by the Alameda bridge. I bought some bottled water and then caught the bus into work. I was too tired to go to the gym and I was at work late because L didn't come in until a quarter past midnight. The thyroid meds are still wiping me out. I can't wait to get my blood tests and drop back to 100mcg. Tomorrow's plan to to get my mail in the City.

Yesterday after I decided not to go to the gym, I stayed up late doing food prep for my meals - opening and packaging tuna, washing and cutting veggies, and portioning cottage cheese. I got to bed around 2 a.m. finally.

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Sunday, March 22, 2009

Another bad weekend - no weigh-in

Calories burned in exercise today: 350

No weigh-in again, though I did peak at the scale today and it looks like I have gained a few pounds from my last weigh-in. :( I will do better next week! The banquet yesterday really threw me for a loop.

Friday I was busy! I did the laundry, then went grocery shopping. I came home, took out the trash, and did a complete litter box change for the cats. Meanwhile, Brad had dropped off the Bed, Bath, and Beyond box with the table and chairs in it. I unpacked the box, and took out the trash and recycling that resulted from it.

I ate horribly Saturday. The banquet was a carb and sugar-fest. I ate two of the appetizer salads, and the main course was so small that I had to fill up on rolls. I must have had five, with butter. I was SO hungry. :( Dessert was cheesecake and of course I gave in. One lady at our table didn't eat hers so when the whole thing was over I ate it. Probably 1000 calories worth of cheesecake. :(

When we got home from the banquet Brad put together the table and chairs I ordered from Bed, Bath, and Beyond, then we went to BB&B because I had a 20% off coupon that I could apply to this recent purchase - I got about $20 refunded to my credit card. :)

We ate dinner at the new table - low-carb (wheat gluten) pancakes and plantains. I know it's breakfast food but who cares. :) We finished up with the chocolate puddling made of plain yogurt and chocolate Muscle Milk Light. Yummy and not too sweet. :)

Of course I also pigged out right before bed. :(

Today Brad and I walked to work again - a more direct route this time. Down Fruitvale to International and then along International to 73rd. We turned down 73rd, went through the BART station, and walked down Hegenberger to work.

We stopped at Starbucks on the way. Brad had a breve latte and a chocolate croissant. I was tired and didn't want coffee so I got a double espresso. That didn't wake me up so I had another double. Then we went over to WalMart where we found a cheap TV tray that should work well as a bedside table. I still had my credit card with me from the refund yesterday so I used that to buy it. I also bought a plastic folder to hold my magazine since it can get really mauled in my backpack. Hopefully it will work.

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Thursday, March 19, 2009

More overtime

Calories eaten yesterday: 1349
Fat: 26g (18%)
Carbs: 84g (26%)
Protein: 189g (57%)
Calories burned in exercise today: 131

Fun fun. The woman who works the overnight shift, L, is sick again. No one could fill in for her last night so I stayed until 3 a.m. so she could get some rest. Then she drove me home and returned to work for a few hours until boss J came in (he'll let her leave early if he's there). L has the flu (running a temperature) so today is another 12 hour day for me. We can all only hope she's recovered by Sunday. I also have two 3 to 3 shifts coming up in mid-April when L is taking off for a couple days to go to a concert.

Today's overtime means that I will have to squeeze in laundry and groceries and enough sleep tomorrow. :( But I can't complain because I need the overtime desperately. I have a bunch of blood tests coming up next week and those are going to be very expensive.

I'm still afraid to get on the scale. I may or may not weigh-in this Sunday, but I certainly need to. I need to face the truth no matter how painful. The overtime is not helping my weight. I need to eat more when I work for 12 hours and I am craving peanut butter sandwiches and sugar something awful. I'm hungry and just want to pig out because - well, I'm a fat pig and that's what pigs do.

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Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Feeling wretched

Calories eaten yesterday: 1170
Fat: 20g (16%)
Carbs: 82g (29%)
Protein: 153g (53%)
Calories burned in exercise today: 344

Ok, I can't take it anymore! I'm moving up my blood tests to next week and as soon as they are over I am dropping my thyroid dose back to 100mcg. I am feeling absolutely wretched on 112mcg and after dragging myself through yet another workout today I just can't take it anymore. This will work out perfectly because I am also having a complete iron panel run on my next tests and next week is supposed to be my week off of the prescription iron; taking iron before an iron panel is not good as it can skew the results so I will also cut out my OTC iron pill and the liquid iron. I just want to feel good again and I was feeling pretty good at 100mcg!

Today I went to the gym and did exercises that I didn't do yesterday - some upper body and some lower. Then I did 30 minutes on the elliptical. I also dragged myself the 1.5 miles from BART to work.

The Pub Table Set from Bed, Bath, and Beyond (assembly required) arrived today! I hope it is not too hard to assemble. I will see if Brad can borrow the company truck and drop it off at my house along with the Walden Farms dressings that came earlier this week.

Anita called me last night to say that she can't give me a ride to church this Sabbath. I really don't want to get up before dawn so Oscar can give me a ride after taking a bus and BART, so I asked Brad if he could get me a ticket to the Family Radio 50th anniversary banquet this weekend. He could, so I will go to that instead of church this week. We will probably have to take the bus and BART there. It's in Berkeley this year.

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Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Calories eaten yesterday: 983 (no, that not a typo - I wasn't very hungry after all I ate last week)
Fat: 22g (21%)
Carbs: 69g (28%)
Protein: 126g (51%)
Calories burned in exercise today: 373

Happy St. Patrick's Day! Ok, so I get these blog entries posted late.

Made it to the gym today. I was tired so after an hour of weight training (upper and lower body) I just walked on the treadmill at 4.0mph - 2 miles. I also walked to work from the BART station, stopping at WalMart for more Crystal Light.

I really think the 112mcg of thyroid med are causing this tiredness. I felt SO much better on 100mcg. Who would think that 12 measly micrograms could make such a difference? I think once I have the blood tests done (April 3) then I will drop back to 100. I can't keep feeling like this forever and it's not getting better. 112mcg could be too low, but I suspect it's probably too high.

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Monday, March 16, 2009

Family Feud

Calories eaten yesterday: 729 (no, that isn't a typo; I ate way too much on Saturday and wasn't hungry)
Fat: 14g (18%)
Carbs: 48g (28%)
Protein: 92g (52%)
Calories burned in exercise today: 102

Forgot to set my alarm last night so I overslept and didn't make it to the gym. I walked down to BART, but even with my leg brace on, all the walking yesterday took it's toll and my knee was aching. I hopped to bus and took that to just past the airport, then walked the last 10 minutes in. Hopefully I can make it to the gym tomorrow. I know I have gained a ton of weight around my middle and I'm truly fat again. :(

Dad called April last night to get my phone number. April didn't have it at that moment, but called me and told me to call Dad. I did. First he told me how pleased I was at my behavior when I saw him last week. Um...Dad? I'm 38, not 13.

He then asked me if I had a credit card and I said yes and he asked if I paid the whole thing off every month. Um...no. Most people don't. Dad didn't send a February check so I had to put groceries on my credit card, and I never would have been able to afford a table and two chairs for my kitchen/dining room if I couldn't put it on credit and pay it back over time. Nobody every buys a house or car outright - you finance and pay it off over time. He reamed me saying that paying even one penny of interest meant I was living beyond my means. WTF???

He said maybe I need to eat less and go a bit hungry so I can pay off my credit card in full every month. How much less does he expect me to eat? I'm already starving on 1200-1300 calories a day. I can't cut back more without going mad.

He accused me of paying more rent at my current apartment. I corrected him that my rent had been raised at my old place so I had moved into this cheaper place. It was more than the old rent, but less than the new rent. (If you count paying for water I suppose it would be more expensive, but I have some control over that bill at least.)

All in all a very unpleasant call. I swear he is so out of touch with the reality of things here. There was no cost of living increase at my job this year, no doubt because donations are down due to the economy. I understand that, though it doesn't make paying rising grocery prices any easier. Tilapia (a kind of fish) was on sale last week for $3.99 a pound. This week it was still on sale, but was $4.99 a pound.

My doctor's bills, blood tests, and iron supplements and prescription are out of control. Am I supposed to let my health go to pot? I need to take care of myself, something I didn't do for the longest time. I want to feel well, damn it! I bought more liquid iron from the lady downstairs who does the health stuff (I ran out of it this weekend and needed more). Even with my 50% discount, that stuff is really expensive - my part came to $47 for two bottles, but what can I do when my ferritin is so low?

Ok, *sigh*, rant over.

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Sunday, March 15, 2009

My trip to Oregon

Last week was a lost cause. I binged while I was gone. I pigged out all the way there, while there, and all the way back. I was on plan last week on Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, then pigged out Wednesday and Thursday on my trip, was on plan Friday, and pigged out Saturday.

I have gained a lot of fat from eating way more than my poor metabolism can handle, so it's time to get serious again and cut way back on the calories. I am not very hungry today and after all I ate yesterday so I am eating light today. I haven't gone near my scale. I'm too afraid.

At least seeing Dad last Wednedsay was cool. I had to get up at 5:30 a.m. and Brad showed up in a company vehicle at 6 or 6:15. We were actually at the airport before 7 for my 8:45 a.m. flight. I wasn't going to check anything, but I ended up having to box up my toiletry kit because it had mouthwash and aerosol foot spray in it. When I flew back I left those with Mom and Bill and they mailed them back to me a day or two later.

When I arrived Mom and Bill already had Dad with them. We went out to dinner at JJ North's Buffet (all you can eat), and I ate way too many of the desserts. Some of what I ate was sugar-free or no-sugar-added but not all of it. :(

Then Mom, Bill, and I helped Dad shop for food at the Super Walmart. He sure eats things a diabetic has no business eating, such as cole slaw and fudge covered grahams.

Mom and Bill took me back to the hotel and took Dad home. They didn't get back until the wee hours of the morning because they had to put away all the stuff dad bought before coming back. The hotel offers breakfast in the morning so I pigged out on everything. Then someone who works there drove me to the airport to fly back.

I had to go through Portland both ways because Medford is a regional airport and doesn't have flights to Oakland. I had a cheeseburger and fries for lunch plus three glasses of wine on the way there, and an appetizer or just fries for lunch on the way back. Plus candy and a bunch or sugary and high-fat, high-carb crap both ways.

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I got some good exercise today. Brad and I set out from my apartment and ended up walking all the way to work via Alameda. Walker Tracker says we covered about 8 miles. Total calories: 461

Yesterday after church Brad and I walked to Southshore Mall - 1 hour 13 minutes and 3.8 miles. We went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond and ordered their 3-Piece Pub Table Set. I put it on my credit card. I've been talking about buying this sort of thing for a long time and it's time to just do it. It was $99.99 plus tax, but I can get a retroactive discount once I get coupons for them. I signed up for their coupons and they said to just bring in my receipt with whatever coupon.

Then we went to Applebee's. We sat at the bar because their was a waiting time for tables and we weren't having dinner. I had a Blood Mary (didn't care for it), then a Mochatini. Meanwhile I had begun chatting with the guy next to me. He ended up buying me a Mochatini (tres sweet!). Brad had a beer and a chicken caesar salad that took forever so the bartender gave him a second beer for free.

Then we hit Trader's Joe's and I bought a case of wine including one bottle each of each of their whites. Then I got a small nonfat, sugar-free raspberry latte from the coffee shop in borders since Starbucks was closed. We took the bus home and had tilapia, mixed veggies, cheese, and cottage cheese for dinner.

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Friday, March 13, 2009

Book review - The Thyroid Diet

The Thyroid Diet by Mary Shamon - I liked this book. I think that too many people who review this book are looking for the magic pill that will not just fix their thyroid, but magically make it easy to lose weight. Let's get one thing straight - even with your thyroid meds optimized, weight loss is still something that you have to work at, just like everyone else on the earth. And if your meds aren't optimized it is even harder.

So yes, Ms. Shamon does "rehash" the diet and exercise advice - these are necessary to everyone who wants to lose weight. She has compassion for those who aren't optimized and struggling with issues that make it harder for thyroid patients to lose weight - pain and fatigue that make exercise hard, a lower metabolism than the average person no matter what you do, etc.

She does address many issues that often appear in those weight thyroid disease, such as gluten sensitivity, yeast overgrowth, and adrenal issues. She addresses facts and myths about thyroid disease, and gives a little diet test to help you decide which way of eating is going to work best for you. I scored high on the carbohydrate section which means I need to eat lower carb.

The book mostly focused on people who are hypothyroid, mostly because most people who are hyperthyroid eventually become hyper through either removal of their thyroid or radiation to kill their thyroid, plus weight gain is more common in hypothyroidism than hyper.

For those who are hyperthyroid, you would be better off with Ms. Shamon's book Living Well with Graves' Disease and Hyperthyroidism.

She starts off with basic information on what hypothyroidism is and gives a quick self-test. The more items you check, the more chance it is that you have thyroid disease (either hypo or hyper).The next chapter includes a short (too short I think) discussion on optimal TSH levels. She does not address optimal Free T3 or Free T4 levels, but does discuss these as blood tests you might want to have done.

She gives advice of supplements and herbs that might aid with weight loss (again, there is no magic pill), including prescription pills, how to get in exercise even with pain and fatigue, and an eye opening calorie worksheet that estimates your base metabolic rate. Mine is incredibly low - around just 1200 calories a day! There is a large recipe section for those who like to cook. Each recipe includes calories, and grams of fat, carbohydrates, and protein.

At the back of the book is a huge section of resources. It has everything from helpful books and magazines, diet tools, allergy testing labs, cookbooks, fitness and exercise, help finding a good doctor, and help finding a personal trainer.

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Wednesday, March 11, 2009

What's Your Diet Personality?

sexy dieter
You are the Sexy Dieter. The Sexy Dieter is the person who places greater value on "looking good' than simply maintaining a healthy weight. Their mantra is "Do I look good naked?" Sexy Dieters tend to find success with weight loss programs that emphasize exercise along with a healthy diet.

From The Diet Channel. Take the quiz and post a comment about your diet personality!

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Monday, March 09, 2009

No weigh-in (I binged)

I fell off my diet and binged, so no nutrition stats for Thursday. :(
Weight Thursday morning: 130.2 (One week ago: 129.4)
Calories burned in exercise Thursday: 190

Calories eaten Friday: 855 (no, that's not a typo; after binging yesterday I wasn't very hungry)
Fat: 12g (13%)
Carbs: 42g (20%)
Protein: 64g (31%)
Weight Friday morning: n/a (One week ago: 129)
Calories burned in exercise Friday: 158

Weight Saturday morning: 136.6 (One week ago: 132)
Calories burned in exercise Saturday: 56

Calories burned in exercise Sunday: 0

Calories eaten yesterday: 595 (no, that's not a typo; I ate too much on Saturday and wasn't hungry.
Fat: 11g (18%)
Carbs: 53g (38%)
Protein: 63g (44%)

Weight this morning: n/a (One week ago: 133.4)
Calories burned in exercise today: 425

An interesting thing about how I feel cold all the time - when I overeat and binge and eat way more calories than my body needs (a number that makes me gain weight), I am not nearly as cold. Where a normal room temp for me would be 79 degrees, when I overeat I am comfortable at 73-75. Truly weird but it does appear that my metabolism picks up just a bit when I eat something like 5000 calories. Of course, it doesn't pick up enough to burn off all those extra calories.

Last week I had a horrible week food-wise. Thursday turned into a full-on binge, and Saturday turned the same way. I ended up at 7-11 late last night eating a donut twist and a package of chocolate mini donuts. The mini donuts ad 360 calories (60 calories per mini donut!), 22g of fat (15g saturated), and 37g net carbs. Yike! So I didn't weigh-in Sunday, and with my trip to Oregon this coming week I likely won't weigh-in next week either.

The overtime last week wore me out. I didn't go to the gym yesterday and Brad woke me up at 1 p.m.! I guess I was tired! I don't know when I got to bed and sleep but I figure I slept 11-13 hours!

Today I did make it to the gym and had a good workout. I did one hour of upper body weight training followed by 30 minutes of running on the treadmill at 5.2mph. I felt really good other than the fact that I used to be able to maintain a faster pace. I walked in to work from BART, another 30 minutes.

I am taking tomorrow off due to having to get up at 5:30 a.m. on Wednesday. I hope to make it to the gym tomorrow and do the packing that I need to. I'll only be gone 36 hours so I'll just leave two full bowls of food out of the cats. The fish will be okay as she fasts once a week anyway.

I won't be posting for the next week but I do have two posts written that will automatically post while I am gone. There's a fun diet quiz and a book review for The Thyroid Diet. Watch for those! :)

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Thursday, March 05, 2009

Overtime, Day 3

Calories eaten yesterday: 1218
Fat: 19g (14%)
Carbs: 116g (39%)
Protein: 135g (46%)
Weight this morning: 130.2 (One week ago: 129.4)
Calories burned in exercise today: 190

Third and last day of overtime today.

I am a complete failure food-wise. I woke up this morning and was SO hungry after doing so well yesterday. I ate my breakfast (turkey and cheese sandwich) plus two additional pieces of bread with zero-calorie jam. But I was still starving and could think of nothing else but eating. I stopped at Pac-N-Save for a two cup container of cottage cheese, then got a McChicken mini-meal at McDonald's (no mayo and of course Diet Coke to drink).

Then I went over to Burger King for their "Burger Shots" - two mini-burgers. I did get them with cheese. They would have been okay if they hadn't overdone the mustard. Yuck! They tried to give me fries because the order took so long but I turned them down on that. I didn't want more fries and don't like Burger King fries as much as McDonald's anyway. They took the fries out of my bag. There were a few left and I happily ate those.

Then I went to Starbucks for a skinny cinnamon dulce latte and decided to get the latte and coffee cake deal. They were out of the reduced-fat coffee cake so I got the regular. I looked up the nutrition info. online when I got to work and one piece of their coffee cake has 570 calories!!! That's the last time I eat that! It was good, but not worth 570 calories! Yikes! At least the reduced-fat cinnamon swirl coffee cake is "only" 330 calories. Next time I do that I won't get the "deal" if they don't have the reduced-fat kind.

When I got to work I had a few sweets from downstairs (the IT people keep candy around). Then I ate the two cups of cottage cheese I bought and that finally filled me up. Altogether it took over 2300 calories to give me a feeling a satiety - and that was just one "meal"! See how screwed up my hunger is (likely because of the anti-depressant I take)?

Weekend plans - I get off at 3 a.m. tomorrow morning (Friday). I'll go home and take a shower and go to bed. Friday the heater people are coming between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., then I have to do laundry. I also have to work grocery shopping in there at some point. I have no money so groceries will go on my credit card. :-p

Brad's care is still broken (he can't even get it into the shop - they are booked up!) so Anita will have to pick us up for church. After church I will bake oatmeal cookies to take to my Dad next week. I am thinking of mixing in some chocolate Muscle Milk to make chocolate oatmeal cookies.

Sunday is (hopefully) back to the gym. Be back Sunday afternoon with a full report!

I'm flying up to Oregon next week so I will be off work and offline for a few days. However, I have a couple of posts written and cued up to post automatically - a fun dieting quiz and a book review on The Thyroid Diet by Mary Shamon.

I'm taking next Tuesday off because my flight leaves early Wednesday morning and I come back Thursday afternoon.

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Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Overtime, Day 2

Calories eaten yesterday: 1232
Fat: 21g (16%)
Carbs: 117g (39%)
Protein: 134g (45%)
Weight this morning: 131.2 (One week ago: 131.6)
Calories burned in exercise today: 198

Tried to sleep in because I got to bed about 4 am this morning, but received a call from the heater guy setting up a time to come. While I wanted to give him the 12-4 pm window on Friday, I have to do laundry that day so I chose the 10 am-2 pm window. If they come early at least I can go to bed early that night.

Saw the building owner today and he says that he is working on the window bar issue. Hopefully they will get those installed in the back since that seems to be where the break-ins occur.

Another overtime shift today - 3 pm to 3 am again. I walked from my apartment out to Southshore shopping center for the exercise and steps, then took the bus in from there. Scattered rain showers today so I thought I'd have to take the bus most of the way to work, but the shower passed and I made it to Southshore before the next one came.

I see my Mom and her hubby and Dad next week in Oregon. I'm taking Tuesday off so I can get to bed early, I fly up early Wednesday morning, and fly back Thursday morning. It's a quick trip so I just need to find my large carry-on bag. It's buried somewhere in my closet.

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Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Overtime, Day 1

Calories eaten yesterday: 1281
Fat: 26g (18%)
Carbs: 94g (29%)
Protein: 169g (52%)
Weight this morning: 131.4 (One week ago: 131.8)
Calories burned in exercise today: 88

Went into San Francisco to check my mail. I knew the Shirataki noodles would be there. I even called the company and had my address changed and they are still sending it to my P.O. Box. So I had a heavy package to drag back across the Bay along with all my usual stuff.

I'm working overtime the rest of the week - 3 pm to 3 am today, tomorrow, and Thursday. I'll be getting a ride home of course since public transit doesn't run at that time.

Couldn't find Hydroxycut at WalMart (they were out), so I settled for MetaboLife Ultra, which looks similar and it supposed to both control appetite and boost metabolism.

I brought my Discover card with me today and decided to make some purchases. My GNC Gold Card expires this month, so I went on their Web site and with my discount they have Hydroxycut for about the same price as WalMart. I also decided to stock up on chocolate and banana whey protein powder since I will not be renewing my membership for a while.

While I was at it I checked the Walden Farms Website and found their 2-for-1 offer so I ordered 10 bottles of the Balsamic Vinaigrette dressing (my favorite). So I've run up my Discover card quite a bit now! Yikes!


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Monday, March 02, 2009

Week 96 Weigh-In

Start: 154
Week 1: 150 (-4) - Week 2: 148.6 (-1.4)
Week 3: 146 (-2.6) - Week 4: 147.2 (+1.2)
Week 5: 145.6 (-1.6) - Week 6: 144 (-1.6)
Week 7: 143 (-1) - Week 8: 142.8 (-0.2)
Week 9: 143.6 (+0.8) - Week 10: 141.2 (-2.4)
Week 11: 143.8 (+2.6) - Week 12: 142.4 (-1.4)
Week 13: 142.4 (-0) - Week 14: 141.6 (-0.8)
Week 15: 139.4 (-2.2) - Week 16: 140 (+0.6)
Week 17: 139.2 (-0.8) - Week 18: 139 (-0.2)
Week 19: 138 (-1) - Week 20: 135.4 (-2.6)
Week 21: 137.2 (+1.8) - Week 22: 139.6 (+2.4)
Week 23: 143.2 (+3.6) - Week 24: 143.6 (+0.4)
Week 25: 137.6 (-6) - Week 26: 139.6 (+2)
Week 27: 142 (+2.4) - Week 28: 137.2 (-4.8)
Week 29: 137 (-0.2) - Week 30: 136.8 (-0.2)
Week 31: 142.2 (+5.4) - Week 32: 136.8 (-5.4)
Week 33: 137.8 (+1) - Week 34: 135.8 (-2)
Week 35: 137.6 (+1.8) - Week 36: 143.8 (+6.2)
Week 37: 142.8 (-1) - Week 38: 140 (-2.8)
Week 39: 142.4 (+2.4) - Week 40: 140.4 (-2)
Week 41: 139.6 (-0.8) - Week 42: 142 (+2.4)
Week 43: N/A - Week 44: 141 (-1)
Week 45: 138.8 (-2.2) - Week 46: 139.6 (+0.8)
Week 47: 133.6 (-6) - Week 48: 132.4 (-1.2)
Week 49: 138.6 (+6.2) - Week 50: 138.4 (-0.2)
Week 51: 138.8 (+0.4) - Week 52: 139.4 (+0.6)
Week 53: 137.8 (-1.6) - Week 54: 139.4 (+1.6)
Week 55: 137.6 (-1.8) - Week 56: 136.4 (-1.2)
Week 57: 136.6 (+0.2) - Week 58: 139.4 (+2.8)
Week 59: 136.6 (-2.8) - Week 60: 134.6 (-2)
Week 61: 137 (+2.4) - Week 62: 138.6 (+1.6)
Week 63: 137 (-1.6) - Week 64: 137 (-0)
Week 65: 141.8 (+4.8) - Week 66: 135.4 (-6.4)
Week 67: 136 (+0.6) - Week 68: 139.2 (+3.2)
Week 69: 137.2 (-2) - Week 70: 138.2 (+1)
Week 71: 136.4 (-1.8) - Week 72: 140 (+3.6)
Week 73: 139.4 (-0.6) - Week 74: 140 (+0.6)
Week 75: 137.6 (-2.4) - Week 76: 141.6 (+4)
Week 77: 136.4 (-5.2) - Week 78: 139 (+2.6)
Week 79: 138.2 (-0.8) - Week 80: 139.2 (+1)
Week 81: 139.4 (+0.2) - Week 82: 137.6 (-1.8)
Week 83: 137.8 (+0.2) - Week 84: 137.2 (-0.6)
Week 85: 137.2 (-0) - Week 86: 136.2 (-1)
Week 87: 140.6 (+4.4) - Week 88: 138.8 (-1.8)
Week 89: 139.4 (+0.6) - Week 90: 142 (+2.6)
Week 91: 135.6 (-6.4) - Week 92: 140 (+4.4)
Week 93: 138.8 (-1.2) - Week 94: 138.6 (-0.2)
Week 95: 137.2 (-1.4)- Week 96: 137.6 (+0.6)
Total loss: -16.4

Ok, now to catch up on other numbers.

Calories eaten Thursday: 1341
Fat: 20g (14%)
Carbs: 99g (30%)
Protein: 146g (45%)
Weight Thursday morning: 128.4 (One week ago: 130.2)
Calories burned in exercise Thursday: 219

Calories eaten Friday: 1463
Fat: 28g (18%)
Carbs: 83g (23%)
Protein: 135g (38%)
Weight Friday morning: 129 (One week ago: 128.8)
Calories burned in exercise Friday: 70

Weight Saturday morning: 132 (One week ago: 132)
Calories burned in exercise Saturday: 140

Calories eaten Sunday: 1280
Fat: 26g (18%)
Carbs: 88g (27%)
Protein: 143g (44%)
Calories burned in exercise Sunday: 272

Weight this morning: 133.4 (One week ago: 133.6)
Calories burned in exercise today: 333

Friday I was very busy. With the overtime later this week I wanted to get everything done. I feel the Hydoxycut helped give me some extra energy to work. I defrosted some chicken breast in the freezer and stuck it in the oven. While it was cooking I went grocery shopping and bought tons of veggies and more salad. Cucumbers and zucchini were on sale, but the price of zucchini has gone up again. I also bought more chicken.

I came home, took the chicken out of the oven, and put the chicken I'd just bought in. While it was cooking I washed, cut, and portioned most of the veggies. I'll prep the rest this Friday for some food next week. Next week will be a short week because that is when I am flying to Oregon so I will be off for three days.

I scooped the cat's litter box and swept the floors. I set all the chicken I cooked in the fridge on paper towels to drain for 24 hours.

Brad came over a bit after 6 and I asked him to portion salad. He said he wanted me to do it sometimes. I helped him out and that seemed to calm him down. Brad decided he did not want to stay for the Fireproof movie after I told him what it was about.

Saturday morning we got up and had breakfast, but I was craving a biscuit so we went to McDonald's (10 minute walk from my house). Brad got a complete breakfast meal; I bought a biscuit sandwich and McGriddle, both with sausage, egg, and cheese.

Brad's car will be out of commission for a while; we got a ride to church from Anita. Since she was staying for the movie and we weren't we got Oscar to give us a ride to BART. We took that home. I did make a pit stop at the Subway by my house and get an oatmeal raisin cookie.

Foodwise at church I didn't do well. I ate four granola bars. At least we left before the potluck lunch.

At home I portioned the chicken I cooked Friday into individual baggies, put them all in a super large bag, and put them in the freezer. Brad also helped me clean the fish tank and change the water. Then I cleaned the dish drainer's mat since it was looking kind of moldy.

After this I felt like trying the new Japanese restaurant up the street for some sake. I hadn't had sake in years. We did that and I really enjoyed the sake. I saw plum wine on the menu as well and have never had that so I ordered a glass. I found it too sweet for my taste, though quite pleasant in all other respects. It tasted a lot like prune juice to me, though much lighter in color.

After that we walked down to the 50 bus (mostly for exercise but also to save some bus fare), then took the 50 to Applebee's. I had two Mochatinis and some iced tea (I put Splenda in it). Brad ordered beer (which I paid for), mozzarella sticks (which we shared, though he had most), and an ice cream shooter that the waiter made larger than usual because the kitchen was taking too long so he made it himself in a kid's cup. I had a few bites, but Brad had most.

Then we went to Geraldo's for burritos, which took three buses. Brad had a regular burrito and I paid for his Coke, and I had a super burrito. It really hit the spot. Very yummy. It took two buses and a short walk to get home.

At home we had a bit more to drink and I also ate a bit more even though I wasn't really hungry.

Sunday morning we got up and headed to the 11 bus. Then I realized that it only runs once an hour on Sundays. We found a 53 bus so we took it to BART. Brad rode with me, then peeled off at my stop for a train to visit his ex-wife and son in Martinez.

I worked out, doing mostly upper body and abs, then took the bus to work since it was raining.

Today I went to the gym again, doing a combo of upper and lower body work. It stopped raining long enough to walk from BART to work.

Yesterday was crazy busy at work, which is why I didn't get this post up. Dalet feeds were failing left and right, Taiwan wasn't getting our programming, London was calling, and assorted stations had problems.

There wasn't time to eat, so I took my cottage cheese back home and had a glass of wine instead! I did manage to inhale my salad and eat my chicken cold. From 7:30 pm until the end of my shift at 11 we had problem after problem, and when I came in this afternoon all the Dalet feeds were down - some sort of massive database failure. Fun fun.

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