Hi Buns,
I thought about you today while I was at the art store. I bought a zentangle book. It looks like big fun. I bought some fancy (not too) colored pencils, too.
![smile :)](./images/smilies/smile.gif)
Oh yay! you're going to have fun! Zentangle is absolutely my favorite free time activity! do a search on FB and you'll find lots of groups where people can display their art. Fun! What book did you get?
I was thinking about you too, actually, with this MWL template for my daily eating! I copied the MWL guidelines from that page in the forums, then applied it to yesterday's meals.
Here is yesterday's food:
B: cooked grapenuts and berries
S: saltines and sliced carrot
L: lentil stew over rice
D: soba noodle soup w.vegs
S: white bread toasted w/pea puree spread
Program outlined in the MWL book, page 60. 1. Eliminate All Animal Foods
2. Eliminate All Oils(possibly oil in the ingredients of the bread I ate)
![Neutral :|](./images/smilies/icon_neutral.gif)
but I didn't add any fats or oils TO my foods
3. Eliminate All High Fat Plant Foods: Nuts, Nut Butters, Seeds, Seed Butters, Avocados, Coconut, & Olives.
4. Eliminate All Flour Productsate bread and saltines
5. Eat Whole Grains and Potatoeswhite rice
![Neutral :|](./images/smilies/icon_neutral.gif)
but whole wheat bread
6. Eat LegumesLentils and rice
7. Make Green & Yellow Vegetables One-Half to One-Third of your mealasparagus and cucumber w.lunch; stir fry vegs w.dinner
8. Eat Uncooked Foodsraw cucumber and carrot slices
9. Restrict Fresh Fruit to No More Than Two Servings a Day, and Avoid Dried Fruit, Fruit Puree, and Fruit JuiceBerries, One serving at breakfast
10. Use Simple Sugar Sparinglyhalf a tsp in my tea 2x throughout the day
Get some exercise
moderate walking, about 2,500 steps. Oh...wait! my resistance bands! I did a few trial exercises with each level. so...
![Mr. Green :mrgreen:](./images/smilies/icon_mrgreen.gif)
Hey! This might actually get me closer to full compliance. Thanks for the great idea, Moonlight!
At the end of the day, though I felt fully satiated, My Fitness Pal wouldn't let me load my diary because of too few calories! LOL so I toasted a couple pieces of bread and spread some of that delicious pea puree spread from Forks Over Knives PLT samwich recipe. It is DELICIOUS! And that got my calories over 1,100 for the day.
Here's the thing. If I did three or four days in a row of really low calories, THEN My Fitness Pal should give me the heads up. There is nothing at all wrong with having the occasional low calorie day. Once a week? Couple times a month? Actually, it's similar to really maxing out the cardio, getting your heart rate WAY beyond the max for your age for just a little bit. The extra burn amps up your calorie burnage, and I think bringing in quite a low calorie count helps your body release fat as well. But this habit of freaking out when my calories are below 1,000 calories for ONE DAY? Puhleeze.
Which also brings up the value, or lack thereof, of tabulating calories. It takes you outside of your actual need. I didn't NEED that toast and pea spread, though it tasted good and I didn't end up feeling stuffed or anything. I would have been happy ending my intake at the mid 900 calorie level. Similar to a few weeks ago when I made kelp noodles, which have 3 calories per serving, but they really are filling. Nicely suited for a late meal. But My Fitness Pal wouldn't let me log that day's diary with that few calories.
I started a thread on the Menu forum, back in January. Tracking my overall meals helped me see my pattern of eating off plan on the weekends. But that didn't get the weight loss moving, so I decided to look at my caloric intake...
My eyes were opened quite nicely. No more imagining that some foods have zero calories. E.g. a handful of cinnamon bears, and realizing it's 500 calories
![eek :eek:](./images/smilies/eek.gif)
or really seeing the calorie impact that my beloved extra dark chocolate has...well, I may give up cinnamon bears forever, but the chocolate? I used to indulge in a few squares every day. Then I moved all sweets and treats to only the weekends, and chocolate tastes SO MUCH BETTER when you've gone many days without having any. So I was eating a full bar of extra dark chocolate over the weekend. Half on Saturday, half on Sunday. Until I saw the calories, and especially the fat percentage AND some of it sat fat! And I cut the servings in half. One Saturday I didn't even HAVE any chocolate
![Shocked :shock:](./images/smilies/icon_eek.gif)
and I have half a bar sitting at home, left from this past weekend, when I took in so much less than usual. So counting calories has helped me see just what impact each food has on my overall eating, and that's good. It has prompted me to adjust things a bit, and that's really good. I'll probably continue with it for a while, but I must say "pshaw!" to the little "lecture" My Fitness Pal gives me when I have a low calorie day. If my energy is high, and I don't feel hungry, why should I feel obligated to have a snack JUST in order to raise my calories for the day?
Still having that sensation of food not being all that interesting. I mean, I'm getting hungry, and I'm eating, and food tastes good when I eat. Dal especially is a current favorite! yum! I'm fixing food and parceling it out to individual meals. But seriously, I can't think of anything I've GOT to have. Cravings are gone.
Now I've got to think about my resistance to consistent exercise.
this is THE area where I need to improve the most. With a foot that is pretty much out of commission, and dr's orders not to walk or run as my main exercise, I have to use non-weight bearing exercises for my cardio. Swimming is great and I've been in the water several times this month. A commitment to every other day would be GREAT. Also, just got some resistance bands and will use them. I can do all of those exercises off my feet. But again, the COMMITMENT. I've simply got to get it in my head that 30 ish minutes of moving my butt is NON NEGOTIABLE. I am not a fan of Dr Oz, but he had some good advice "a 30 minute walk every day, no excuses"
well, walking is out
![Crying or Very sad :cry:](./images/smilies/icon_cry.gif)
but why not "30 minutes of exercise every day, no excuses"? Hmmm?
I recently had a conversation with an acquaintance in her 60's. She is now having two physical therapy sessions a week. Why? Because she has fallen down 19 times in the past two years.
![Shocked :shock:](./images/smilies/icon_eek.gif)
Also she told me just standing in her shower, her legs would quiver with the effort.
![eek :eek:](./images/smilies/eek.gif)
She is less than 10 years older than me. What caused her to have such weakness and lack of balance? The fact that she didn't MOVE enough! And this is a gal who owns an RV and goes out rock hunting with her honey now and then. But her lack of exercise created a weak, frail OLD woman who should be vital and energetic and strong. Thankfully she found the cause and is doing something about it. But dang! If I don't want to be there 10 years from now, I'd better get a move on.
okay this is a long post. I'll go for now.