Kristen's Journal

[KristenKP]

Sat 2/19

Weird day; I was out all afternoon, so only ended up having breakfast and dinner. I was hungry but there just wasn't any place to stop...I was gambling at a casino. ;-) Oh well!

Breakfast: coffee w/ skim milk
the last of the ooky WW cereal

Dinner: steak (used Chicago seasoning rub, very good)
baked potato with ff margarine and salt and a pinch of parmesan cheese (1 pt)
steamed broccoli

The broccoli was a new attempt, and it came out VERY well. I cut up a fresh head into small stalks and laid them around on a dinner plate. Sprinkled it with salt, pepper, toasted onion powder and garlic powder, and wrapped it in saran wrap. Cooked that for five minutes in the microwave on high, and voila! It was cooked but not limp, and very, very green and tasty. I'll do that again, no problem!

WPAs used: 27
WPAs left: 8

[KristenKP]

Sun 2/20

Wow, I have been shopping, shopping, and cooking ,cooking, cooking today!

First we hit Bed, Bath & Beyond. Mental note: NEVER go there WITH Hubby again. We do much better when we're alone, but together, we enable each other to buy all kinds of extras we don't need but would someday like to have.

Case in point: we walked out today with a new toaster/broiler. Now, we already HAVE a perfectly functional toaster, but apparently because I lamented that the broiler doesn't work in our oven, we had to get one RIGHTTHISMINUTE. ;-)

We also walked out with a new immersion blender, another roasting pan, some insulated cookie sheets, serving spoons, and a new pillow for Hubby so he stops stealing mine. Riiiiiiiight, like that'll happen.

Then we hit Jewel, and I bought all kinds of crazy things, including my very first corned beef brisket, which is currently cooking in the crockpot. *crosses fingers it works*

Then, because Hubby is going to be gone this week but will be back on Thursday, I also decided to re-stock on Babchi's spaghetti sauce, so that is happily percolating on the stove. And my first batch of baked oatmeal is in the oven.

AND, I'm still contemplating making fruit salad. AND, I made myself a big brunch.

However, I goofed on getting everything going, and there's no way the corned beef will be ready by dinnertime. So I think we're going to end up having pasta (ww for me, white for Hubby), and the corned beef will have to wait until tomorrow.

Here's what I've eaten so far today.

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk

Brunch: scrambled eggs with foxpoint seasoning (yummy!) and a handful of low-fast shredded cheddar cheese (1pt)
2 slices applewood-smoked canadian bacon
1 lite eng muffin w/1 section Laughing Cow cheese Light (2 pts)

APs earned: 1
APs used: 1

WPAs used: 29
WPAs left: 6

ETA: Oh nooooOOOOOOOO!!!! I just re-checked the Core Food List -- corned beef isn't listed!!!

Oh, CRUD. I have three-and-a-half pounds of it currently cooking in my crockpot!!!!

ARGHHHHHHH.

[KristenKP]

Just to fill in the blanks for consistency, last night's dinner was ww pasta with my homemade sauce and a big salad with ff honey mustard dressing.

And now I've got LOTS of ww pasta to use up -- which will become "lazy lasagna" tonight -- and even more corned-beef-that's-not-Core. I think Hubby will have that tonight, and whatever he doesn't want me to save for him is going to get wrapped up and taken into work for everyone there. They all like when I bring in food anyway -- goodness knows my meatloaf was a big hit!

Anyhoo, this is what I'm eatin' today.

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
shredded wheat & bran w/skim milk, cinnamon and a pkt of splenda

Snack: banana

Lunch:
tuna on ww bread with sprouts (note: I sued foxpoint, toasted onion and celery seed in the tuna. Interesting light taste!)
ff yogurt
salad w/sprouts, soy cheese and ff honey mustard
d. Coke shortie

Snack (if needed): kiwi

Dinner: lazy lasagna (ww penne, ff ricotta, ground beef, spinach and homemade tomato sauce, and low-fat mozz cheese on top for 2 pts)
spinach

APs earned: 2
APs used: 2

WPAs used: 30
WPAs left: 5

[KristenKP]

Tue 2/22

Breakfast: oatmeal
coffee w/ skim milk

Snack (maybe): banana

Lunch (to be):
lazy lasagna (5 pts= 2 for the skim mozz cheese, 3 for the ww penne)
salad w/ ff honey mustard
ff yogurt
d.Coke

Hmmm, I just realized I'm having a friend over to dinner and I'll be making roasted sweet potatoes with the roasted garlic chicken, which will put me at two pasta/potatoes for the day. This is the first time I've done that! I guess I'll have to count the points of the pasta in lunch, then. Bummer -- I'll be more careful of that for the rest of my dinners this week -- I'm planning on having the lasagna for lunch all week!

Dinner:
chicken thighs with olive oil and spices, 20 cloves of garlic, onions, carrots, parsnips and sweet potatoes, all roasted and moist and yummmmm...my favorite Core meal EVER

Snack: homemade fruit salad (canteloupe, watermelon and pineapple)

APs earned: 2
APs used: 2

WPAs left: 2
WPAs used: 33

Will be back later to update actual lunch foods eaten, more APs, and dinner... Done!

[KristenKP]

General notes and musings:

I haven't used my paper tracker at all this week, but I have been good about marking things down here. So I think I will make this my "official" journaling place.

And as such, I think I need to set up a format to track the things I struggle to get my daily fill of -- for instance, my fruits and veggies. Oil, dairy, water -- those are no problem for me to get in every day; those are automatic for me.

But veggies...I can't tell sometimes if I am getting my 5 in because I don't measure, and likely the amount I have with dinner or a meal is more than one serving's worth. I've been stuck, weirdly, in thinking I need five *varieties* of fruits and veggies every day, and that's not correct. It's five SERVINGS, at the minimum.

So I think my format is going to look like this (for C&P'ing in the future)...

+++++

Breakfast:

Lunch:

Dinner:


F/V:

APs earned:

Total extra points used today:
APs used:
WPAs used:

WPAs used total:
WPAs left:

Notes:

++++++

That should cover it.

[KristenKP]

Note: I know I've exceeded my WPAs this week, but honestly, I don't care. I'm going to continue counting and tracking and eating what I have planned today, which will use up about 6 points. Big deal! I pretty much think I'll be gaining tonight at weigh-in anyway because I've been a little sloppy with WPAs all week, including the Chocolate Extravaganza on Saturday, and my TOM just started today with a BANG. I haven't felt this bloated and sluggish in a while...

So I'm going to stick to my planned meals, which do include WPAs I don't have, and be done with it. It's a heck of a lot better than going off-plan altogether, after all!

Yeah, I live RIGHT ON THE EDGE OF DANGER. ;-)


Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
fruit salad

Snack: light eng muff w/ pb (3 pts)

(By rights, I could have included that as breakfast, although I ate the fruit salad at home and brought the muffin in and ate it at work.)

Snack2: banana (at 11:30, just couldn't wait for lunch)

Lunch: lazy lasagna (2 pts for the mozz)
1/3 fruit salad (it's a good-sized Tupperware of it)

ETA: Had my weigh-in at meeting tonight: down another 1.4 pounds!!!!! Yahoooo!

I truly did NOT think I would lose this week, not after the Chocolate Extravaganza and exceeding my WPAs and getting TOM. But there's something to be said for sticking with the program even after you think you've gone overboard, and this loss is proof positive of that. I could have given up at any point this week, but I didn't, and I'm glad I made that choice.

Dinner: 2 peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches (7 points)
2 slices full-fat American Cheese (4 points)

F/Vs: fruit salad, banana, homemade tomato sauce, more fruit salad

APs earned: 2
APs used: 2

WPAs used today: 3+2+7+4-2 = 14

WPAs used total:way over 35
WPAs left: way less than 0

35 new WPAs tomorrow! Whoohoo! ;-)

[KristenKP]

Thur 2/24

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
fruit salad
1 light eng muff w/1 wedge Laughing Cow Light (2 pts)

Snack: banana

Lunch: leftover chicken thigh w/sweet potato, carrots, parsnips, onion and garlic
ff flavored yogurt
shortie d. Coke

Dinner: meatloaf
squash brushed with 2 T. maple syrup, orange peel, s&p, then roasted for one hour - YUM! (1 pt)
Cheesy Broccoli (from the Turnaround Cookbook) Yum yum! (used 2% cheddar, so 2 pts)


F/V: fruit salad, banana, carrots & parsnips & onions, squash, broccoli

APs earned: 1

Total extra points used today: 5
APs used: 1
WPAs used: 4

WPAs used total: 4
WPAs left: 31

Notes: I really liked the two recipes for broccoli and squash I tried tonight -- the squash was converted from the 50 Ways to Cook Everything, and the broccoli was from Turnaround. For some reason, the meatloaf was too soft, but I didn't do anything differently so who knows? I only had one small piece tonight.

No grains/starches with dinner, but everything cooked at different times tonight and I am more than satisfied. I was thinking I might have popcorn but the truth is my tummy is still full so I won't eat again.

[KristenKP]

Fri 2/25

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
low-fat waffle with 1 T peanut butter (3 pts)

Snack: banana

Lunch: lazy lasagna (2 pts for low-fat mozz)
shortie d. Coke
ff yogurt
1/2 giant navel orange (the rest will slowly disappear at my desk this afternoon ;-))

Dinner: tilapia marinated in teriyaki and fresh ginger, then baked in foil with shallots, scallions and broccoli
quinoa
blanched and grilled asparagus

Snack: 94% ff popcorn

F/V: banana, tomato sauce, giant navel orange, broccoli, asparagus

APs earned: 2

Total extra points used today: 3+2
APs used: 2
WPAs used: 3

WPAs used total: 7
WPAs left: 28

Notes: Man, it really helps to slow down and enjoy your food; about 2/3 of the way through my lasagna I was SURE it would not be enough to satisfy me. So I grabbed the yogurt and began alternating bites of each, and concentrating on the conversations around me. I was beginning to feel satisfied before I started in on my "snack" orange, but I had a few slices before I finally stopped, finally feeling satisfied.

Mmm, am very excited to make dinner tonight: I'm planning on baked tilapia, quinoa and asparagus -- all new foods for me to attempt to cook!

Note after dinner: YUCK. Will never make tilapia or quinoa again. Both were terrible!

[KristenKP]

Sat 2/26

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
scrambled eggs w/soy cheese
english muffin w/laughing cow cheese (2 pts)

Lunch: met w/friends at Sweet Tomatoes
huge salad
baked potato w/whipped marg and sprinkle of parm cheese (2.5 pts)
orange slices

Dinner:
homemade crab cakes (1.5 pts for the breadcrumbs)
steamed broccoli w/sauteed garlic
couscous

F/V: salad and more salad, orange, broccoli

APs earned: 0

Total extra points used today: 2+2.5+1.5 = 6
APs used: 0
WPAs used: 6

WPAs used total: 13
WPAs left: 12

Notes: The crab cakes were EXCELLENT. Will definitely make them again.

Hmmm, I'm zipping through points quickly. Need to be more conscious of that tomorrow.

[KristenKP]

Sun 2/27

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
bits and pieces of the fruit salad I cut up for the week

Brunch: tomato soup
crab salad sandwich on lite eng muffin w/soy cheese on top (yum, I still had a hankering for crab after last night LOL) (1pt)

Snack: fruit salad (came out great!)

Dinner: roasted chicken thighs, sweet potatoes, carrots and garlic in one pan
roasted brussel sprouts with oil and balsamic vinegar in the other

Snack: 94% fatfree popcorn
glass of skim milk (which I also always have with dinner)

F/V: fruit salad, tomato soup, fruit salad, brussel sprouts, carrots

APs earned: 0

Total extra points used today: 1
APs used: 0
WPAs used: 1

WPAs used total: 14
WPAs left: 21

Note: Hahaha, I'm so bad at math! I was beginning to panic a little at the thought of only having 12 WPAs left, and I couldn't figure out how I had ripped through them so fast! Then I re-did the math just now -- 35 minus 13 is TWENTY-TWO, not twelve! Hahahahahaha!

I love when I do absolute bonehead moves like this.

I need to make sure I get more F&V's today.

Note2: Wow, the brussels sprouts were YUMMY! They burned some, so I know they don't need to be in for 1/4 hour again; 20 minutes at 400 ought to do it.

I also found my new favorite grocery store: Fresh Market Store in Northbrook. AMAZING produce section, tons of good-looking meat, and hundreds of different ethnic foods and grains and kosher stuff, as well as all the normal food items. I'll be going there every week from now on...

[KristenKP]

Mon 2/28

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
low-fat waffle w/ peanut butter (3pts)

Snack: banana

Lunch: lazy lasagna w/ground beef, ww noodles, and low-fat mozz cheese (2pts)
fruit salad
shortie d. Coke

Dinner: flank steak marinated in cumin, soy sauce and garlic
roasted red bell peppers and asparagus
kasha

Snack: glass of skim milk
WW chocolate chocolate-chip muffin (3 pts)
1 T of peanut butter (2 pts)

F/V: banana, fruit salad, tomato sauce, peppers, asparagus

APs earned: 1
(It's snowing today, so I don't think Coworker and I will be able to go on our walks during break today. So no APs, and no escape from the office! OH NO!!

1:30pm update: Still snowing lightly. Doggone it!

3:30pm update: got 1 walk in, hurray!)

Total extra points used today: 3+2 = 5 + 5= 10
APs used: 1
WPAs used: 9

WPAs used total: 13
WPAs left: 22

Note: OMG, red bell peppers are AWESOME! I've only had the green ones, and that was years ago. Reds are SO sweet!

[KristenKP]

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
3 bites of puffed rice cereal (Ptui! It was mush in milk in two seconds! Will never eat again!)

Snack: banana

Lunch: tunafish w/sprouts on ww bread (2 pts)
tomato soup
giant navel orange
shortie d. Coke

Dinner: couscous "fried rice" with chicken thigh, peas, carrots, onions, green onions and soy sauce

Snack: ff yogurt, fruit salad

F/V: banana, tomato soup, orange, peas and carrots, fruit salad

APs earned: 2

Total extra points used today: 2
APs used: 2
WPAs used: 0

WPAs used total: 13
WPAs left: 22

Note: I also attempted to make pumpkin soup with dinner, but it came out TERRIBLE. I threw it away.

I tell you, practically skipping breakfast has thrown my whole day out of whack. I just don't feel remotely satisfied, and I haven't all day. Mmmm, maybe some dairy and another fruit. Hey, maybe I'll try one of those smoothies everyone keeps talking about!

Note2: Okay, smoothies suck too. But I found something, and finally I'm satisfied! Gotta remember to get my dairy in each day, or I'm miserable.

[KristenKP]

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
lite eng muffin w/ pb (3pts)

Lunch: tunafish w/sprouts on ww bread (2 pts)
ff yogurt
slice regular-fat processed cheese (2 pts)
partial navel orange, fruit salad
shortie d. Coke

Dinner: scrambled eggs w/soy cheese
eng muffin w/ laughing cow cheese (2pts)

Snack: popcorn w/ spray and sugar

F/V: orange, fruit salad

APs earned: 2

Total extra points used today: 2+3+2+2 = 9
APs used: 2
WPAs used: 7

WPAs used total: 20
WPAs left: 15

Note: Wow, did not eat nearly enough F&V or oil or protein today. Must plan better for weigh-in days.

That said, I lost another 2.6 pounds!! Which brings my total to 15.4 !!!

YEAH!

Note2: Not eating enough during the day came back to bite me in the butt last night. That popcorn did nothing to kill the munchies urge -- I was even eyeing the luxury chocolate in the cabinet! And I had the points to use, so I could have, I just...I knew it wasn't because I had a true hankering for the chocolate, I wanted it just to fill a hole because I'd been careless all day about eating the 8HG. So instead I went to bed. Yay me!

[KristenKP]

Thur 3/3

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
lite eng muffin w/pb (3pts)

snack: banana

Lunch: last of the lazy lasagna (2pts)
ff yogurt
shortie d. Coke

snack: giant navel orange

Dinner: pork tenderloin medallions with mustard and rosemary
roasted brussel sprouts with olve oil
steamed carrots
bulgur with garlic, onions, spinach and Canadian bacon

Snack: skim milk
94% ff popcorn


F/V: banana, tomato sauce, orange, carrots, brussel sprouts

APs earned: 2

Total extra points used today: 3+2 = 5
APs used: 2
WPAs used: 3

WPAs used total: 3
WPAs left: 32

Notes: The bulgur came out terrible. The next time I make it, I'll just do it plain and add stuff later. Also, I MUST make all grains with chicken stock; plain water SUCKS.

[KristenKP]

Fri 3/4

Breakfast: coffee w/skim milk
lite eng muffin w/laughing cow cheese (2pts)

Heh, went with cheese for my morning spread for variety's sake. Let's see how long it tides me over. ;-)

(Answer: pretty long! I onyl had the banana because I was worried it would go bad, right there on my desk. LOL)

snack: banana

Lunch: couscous w/carrots, peas, onions, baby corn, and chicken thigh
slice of whole-fat cheese (2 pts)
shortie d. Coke

(Man, that couscous Filled. Me. Up. I didn't even touch my yogurt, soup or orange!)

Dinner: oven-baked halibut
brown rice
broccoli
glass of skim milk

Snack: navel orange

Later snack: PB&J (5 pts)
skim milk

F/V: banana, carrots/peas/baby corn/onion, broccoli, orange

APs earned: 2

Total extra points used today: 2+2+5 = 9
APs used: 2
WPAs used: 7

WPAs used total: 3+7 = 10
WPAs left: 35-3-7 = 25

Notes: Heh, I feel so virtuous; the bulgur came out crappy last night, so it couldn't be my leftovers for today as I had planned. So instead I just whipped up some couscous, steamed veggies, and a skinless chicken thigh, and am throwing it all together for a lunch.

Never thought I'd be sauteeing chicken and onions at 6:45 am before...I am a TOTALLY different woman on Core! ROFL!