lionpaw's Journal

Breaking the plateau at last?
Oct 29 2009 05:25

Well I can't be sure I've broken through my year-long 240 plateau, but I did officially go below 235 yesterday (I count my trend line as my actual weight).  More significantly, IMO, I also ran my second full mile yesterday.  By that, I mean that I had never been able to jog an entire mile without stopping until *this week* and now I've done it twice.  Going back to the track this morning, so we'll see if I can repeat my performance again.

I'm an Examiner!
Sep 14 2009 18:54

I'm now the Knoxville RPG Examiner.  Check me out at: http://www.examiner.com/x-23475-Knoxville-RPG-Examiner

Thanks!

Back! At least for now.
Aug 23 2009 09:12

Back!  Dunno how active I'll be, but I hope to use CC to check my iron and calcium intake periodically.  Currently, I'm in vet school (yay!).  My plans are to bike to school (about 4.5 miles), exercise for ~30 minutes before class, shower at the exercise center, and then study all day.  It'll be an overall downshift in my daily activity level, but there's no real way to get around that.  I hope to get in the occasional dog walk and I'm going to try to find the rock climbing wall on campus and play around on it occasionally.  Wish me luck!

Plateau
Oct 25 2008 11:10

Wow, been a while since I posted a journal entry.

Been busy with volunteering.  A lot of get-out-the-vote effort, registering people to vote, distributing flyers, a little canvassing.  Also doing lots of projects at work.  I'm now the radiology go-to person as well as the lab test equipment person, and I just took on the job of writing new pamphlets for us too.  Fun!

Anyway, still at a plateau.  Got 241.5 today, of course that was after breakfast, but still, it's probably mostly correct (and I don't want to quibble over a pound or two here or there).  But I'm logging again, which is a good first step I think.  I think I know what the problems were.  In addition to eating too little for a little while, we then ended up with LOTS of candy in the house - gee, is there some candy-related holiday coming up? - and I was very bad about the candy.  I am actually planning to go pick up some of those candy pumpkins today - lots and lots and lots of them! - but I will limit myself.  They are SO good; I really should savor them, and only eat a few at a time.  But anyhow, being better about the candy will hopefully lead to me being better about the carbs generally, which should get me back on track.

I'm also scheduled to talk to a nutritionist on the 17th of November, and I have all kinds of questions lined up.  I really want to do this right.  If I can get back on track I might even make it under 220 by the end of the year, which would be nice.  My original dream of being my goal weight by my next birthday is pretty much out the window at this point, but no biggy; the *important* thing is that by my next birthday I will be timmer than I have been for at *least* ... gosh, probably 17 or 18 years!  Incredible.  I already weigh less than I did when I was 15.  How sad is THAT?

Well, off to work.  Not sure about lunch today.  Not hungry right now.  Will probably down a fiber bar to keep me until after work (4 pm) and then hop over to the grocery store and pick up a really late lunch.

List meme.
Aug 30 2008 21:38

Food Quiz!

1.If you have to choose between locally grown or organic, which do you usually choose?
locally grown.

2.Favorite way to prepare potatoes:
Not at all.  I do not like them, Sam I Am!

3. Do you press your tofu before preparing/cooking it (if you eat soy)?
I don't prepare my tofu.  I've had it but I haven't cooked with it.

4.Name your favorite recipe that is a tradition in your family:

Chicken cutlets.  Mm-mm.

5.Any food allergies?
Not that I know of.

6.When you want to go to a fancy dinner, where do you go?
Outback, Ruby Tuesday's, Applebees, O'Charleys, Chili's, Uno's, Crazyfire.  For the really fancy stuff, Kanki.

7.When you have a cold, what do you crave?

Chicken noodle soup, or spicy mexican.  When I've gotten to the craving spicy mexican I know I'm getting better.

8.What kind of water do you drink?

Filtered water.  At home it's the Primo bottles you buy from the store; at work there's a filter pitcher in the fridge.  I also drink Propel and Vitamin water.  I know people argue that tap water is safe and cheap and whatever; I drink filtered water because tap water tastes nasty here.

9. Name a flavor of soda you'd love to see:
They have all the flavors of soda I like.  There's even kiwi strawberry, and watermelon!

10.If the recipes you ate as a child were compiled into a cookbook, what would the title be?
7 Tasty Meals.  (Trying new things was not my forte.)

11.If you were allowed to grow one food that can't grow in your climate, what would it be?
Almost everything grows here; North Carolina has a good growing season.  (What it doesn't have is good soil.  It's all clay.)  But I don't garden.  If I did, I'd go for bell peppers, cucumbers, carrots, apples, pears, apricots, bananas, and herbs.

12.Favorite type of mushroom?
Dunno.  Haven't really tried them enough to know the difference.

13.Most frustrating part of your kitchen?
Lack of space, both counter and sink.  Also lack of storage.  In general, its tiny-ness, I guess.

14.Last food you burned?
Technically the last hamburger helper I made was a little burnt.  Meh.  I like my food a little on the dark side.  ;)

15.Usual response to a veg*n's favorite question, "But where do you get your protein?" Being an omnivore myself, I get my protein from all kinds of places: fish, chicken, turkey, beef, pork, lamb, bison, egg, milk, soy, beans, nuts, lentils, and whole grains.  Also protein bars.

16.If you were baking your own birthday cake today, what flavor would it be?
Either marble with mocha icing, or carrot cake with cream cheese icing.

17.Favorite brand of chocolate chips?
Toll House.

18.You have $200 of your tax return reserved for Williams Sonoma- What do you buy?
Nothing.  I go to the local restaurant supply place instead.  :D  Williams Sonoma is SO overpriced.

19.Do you plan your menus in advance? Any tips to share?
I do, although I didn't used to.  I'm a big-time roleplayer (D&D, Mutants and Masterminds, Ironclaw, that kind of thing), so I made myself a random chart of favorite meals.  There are three categories: beef, chicken, and other, and between 7 and 10 choices in each.  Pick a category, roll a d20, and see what you get.  I do this about once a week and pick out the week's dinner choices.

20.You have 3 minutes before you have to leave the house and you're starving- What do you eat?
A protein bar, fiber bar, or meal replacement bar, depending on my calorie needs.  Alternately, grab some carrots to eat in the car.

21. If Martha Stewart, Paula Deen, and Rachel Ray got into a fight, who would win and how?
I love Paula and Rachel, but Martha would win.  I might come to the defense of the other two, though.  In a fist-fight, that is.  In a cookoff, I gotta go with Rachel for savory and Paula for sweet.

22.If you eat oatmeal, what do you add to it before serving?
I eat it as is; of course, I'm usually making the maple brown sugar flavor of Quaker's weight control oatmeal.  If I make it plain, I usually add some brown sugar.

23. If you got to travel to one country and learn all the traditional dishes there, where would you go (ignore commitments in your current place of residence)?
Oo.  China, followed closely by India.

24.Favorite late night snack?
I try not to snack at night.  If I do it's typically something sweet.

25.Favorite summertime food?
Salad.

26.Favorite food-related magazine?
Does the little zinelet that Kraft puts out count?  It's got recipes you make with boxes/bags of Kraft stuff, so that they're healthy and yummy and nutritious but easy.

27.Which do you prefer: shoyu, tamari, conventional soy sauce, or Bragg's Aminos?
I've only used conventional soy sauces.

28.What vegetable or fruit do you dislike the most?
Potatoes.

29. Name a holiday food you look forward to all year long:

Oh, I have a holiday food weakness for every holiday.  For Christmas it's my dad's homemade fudge.  For Thanksgiving it's candied sweet potatoes.  For Halloween it's those little mallow pumpkins.  For Easter, Cadbury cream eggs.
_________________________

**I've eaten 46 out of 100!
1) Copy this list into your own blog, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Post a comment here once you’ve finished and link your post back to this one.
5) Pass it on!


1. Natto
2. Green Smoothie
3. Tofu Scramble
4. Haggis
5. Mangosteen
6. Creme brulee
7. Fondue
8. Marmite/Vegemite
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Nachos
12. Authentic soba noodles
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo Gobi
15. Taco from a street cart
16. Boba Tea
17. Black truffle
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Gyoza
20. Vanilla ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Ceviche
24. Rice and beans
25. Knish
26. Raw scotch bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Caviar
29. Baklava
30. Pate
31. Wasabi peas - I've had wasabi and nooooo thanks!  Too hot for me
32. Chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Mango lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Mulled cider
37. Scones with buttery spread and jam - in England, even!
38. Vodka jelly
39. Gumbo
40. Fast food french fries
41. Raw Brownies
42. Fresh Garbanzo Beans
43. Dahl
44. Homemade Soymilk
45. Wine from a bottle worth $120 or more
46. Stroopwafle
47. Samosas
48. Vegetable Sushi
49. Glazed doughnut
50. Seaweed
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Tofurkey
54. Sheese -- What the heck is sheese?
55. Cotton candy
56. Gnocchi - too much potato
57. Piña colada - had it once, not likely to try again
58. Birch beer
59. Scrapple
60. Carob chips - bleh
61. S’mores
62. Soy curls
63. Chickpea cutlets
64. Curry - don't like it
65. Durian - only as a flavor in Thai candy.
66. Homemade sausages
67. Churros, elephant ears, or funnel cake
68. Smoked tofu
69. Fried plantain
70. Mochi
71. Gazpacho
72. Warm chocolate chip cookies
73. Absinthe - this isn't legal here - not sure where you'd find it.
74. Corn on the cob
75. Whipped cream, straight from the can
76. Pomegranate [just the juice]
77. Fauxstess Cupcake
78. Mashed potatoes with gravy - yes, and in memory of my mother I will eat them again, once a year, just to make sure I still don't like them
79. Jerky
80. Croissants
81. French onion soup
82. Savory crepes
83. Tings
84. A meal at Candle 79
85. Moussaka
86. Sprouted grains or seeds
87. Macaroni and cheese
88. Flowers - I assume rose hip tea counts?
89. Matzoh ball soup
90. White chocolate
91. Seitan
92. Kimchi
93. Butterscotch chips - mmm mmm!
94. Yellow watermelon
95. Chili with chocolate
96. Bagel and Tofutti
97. Potato milk
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee - not a coffee drinker.  Love the smell, hate the taste.
100. Raw cookie dough

Breaking the plateau
Aug 27 2008 22:27

Okay so drinking water helped but it didn't bring me back down below 240.  (In fact it stopped right AT 240).  So.

I think, what with all my muscle building, I may be underestimating my BMR.  I'm going to raise my calorie goal back to 2000 and plan to exercise more.  In theory, with just work, I'm burning 2600+ calories a day, so even on 2000 a day and no exercise I should still be losing, albeit slower than I'd like.

Besides, I like exercising.  I like walking my dog, and I like lifting weights.  When my hip is healed I'll go back to doing wii fit leg exercises, 'cause I like those too.  (Gonna keep resting it for a few more weeks, because when I tried doing some stand-on-one-leg things with the wii fit my hip said 'ow ow stop!' so I think it's not quite 100% yet.)

My other project is going to have to be my application to vet school.  I've got one class listed as 'incomplete' that I need to clear up before I finish applying, because two schools on my list require it, including the one IN THIS STATE which was the whole reason I took the class in the first place.  So far the professor has been uncommunicative by email.  May have to resort to phone.  Would REALLY like to have my application done and processed by the 2nd of September.  (Due date is 2nd Oct.)

Phew!  Juggling weight loss and work and volunteering and volunteering and applying to vet school doesn't leave me much time for the other thing I need to get done, which is to talk to some medical professionals about some things.  I gotta say, I'm glad I don't have any kids.

Frustration - but not letting it rule my life
Aug 23 2008 06:20

Ok so I broke 240 and was under for about 4 or 5 days running.  Now all of a sudden I'm back to 241.  I'm pretty sure it's salt-related, but still, it's very frustrating, and this morning I will not have access to a bathroom so I can't start my normal water-drinking campaign until I get home.

But, it's not going to rule my life.  I am frustrated, but I have other callings to consider, and today, I am going to go register voters!  Today, I get off my butt and DO something politically, rather than just jaw about it.  Yay volunteering!

No Pocky??
Aug 14 2008 23:22

There are many things I have searched for in the calorie count database and been unsurprised not to find.  But pocky?  They don't even have ye basic pocky?  C'mon!

My plateau seems to be nearing an end.  Energy to exercise has returned, along with the healing of the hip, so that has helped immensely.  I must remember to avoid working morning - evening - morning - evening - morning weeks.  That much back and forth completely sucks the wind out of me, and I end up spending my time at home asleep instead of exercising.

Oh, and we finally got some wrist weights.  Tried them out tonight on the wii doing step aerobics.  It went fine.  Hopefully I burned more calories than I otherwise would have.

Plus 2, minus 1
Aug 03 2008 22:25

Today's ups:  1) Fit comfortably into old pants I haven't been able to wear in a long time.  2) Had very tasty 860 calorie pizza for dinner (this was about half of a 12" pizza, put together at home on top of Boboli thin crust).

Today's down: I pulled a muscle or something in my right hip yesterday - probably from 40 minutes of Wii step aerobics with 15 minutes of walking the dog, all this AFTER a day of work - but I haven't been able to do any kind of exercise today.  I know it's okay to take a day off; I'm worried my hip will still hurt tomorrow when I have to be walking around at work for 8 hours.  Oh well - Ibuprofen, rest, and the heating pad are in my future.

Stumbling along next to the wagon
Jul 28 2008 10:13

Been slipping a little recently.  Late dinners with high sodium and, in some cases, far too many calories, have made my weight wobble around this last week like some sort of bobblehead doll.

I blame our freaky schedules.  My schedule last week flipped back and forth from morning to evening shift, screwing up my normal routine.  Additionally, Chris has had to stay late several nights to deal with random problems that have come up, meaning he got home too late to do any cooking.  I have tried to take a hand in the cooking myself, but the schedule flipping left me too tired to exercise let alone cook.

I have to credit my job, however; after all, I stay so active at work that even with all my stumbling I'm still losing weight, just less quickly than normal.

Today, however, is a new day, at the beginning of a new week, and I don't have to be at work until 4 pm, so I have the whole morning and the beginning of the afternoon to do healthy stuff, like walk the dog and exercise.  I'll plan to cook dinner tomorrow, since I have the morning shift, and then I can exercise in the morning the rest of the week, since I will be working the afternoon shifts the rest of the week.

So here's to catching up to the wagon and leaping back on.