Category Archives: Cheese
Day 99: Back to work, one bad choice
Total weight loss: 26.5 pounds. Next weigh-in: Saturday, April 21st
Tuesday it was back to work for me. I haven’t been working the keto plan as well as I used to be. I eat too little, I splurged on the wrap yesterday, I went totally off while sick last week, and I’m not planning good, nutritious meals and lunches. Time to get back on track. (I AM losing pounds and inches; however, so that part is A-OK!)
I was up several times in the night because the hospital kept calling to update me on my dad’s condition. Is that an excuse for what followed? Maybe.
I went back to work and started in on meetings and deadlines. I took time to heat my McRick breakfast of eggs, sausage, and cheese. There was a public workshop taking place in the conference room and lots and lots of bagels and large, inviting Dunkin Donut’s muffins for employees and students.
I think you know what happened.
I ate a huge, sugar-topped, chocolate chip muffin.
I was tired, my dad may be dying, I didn’t want to be back at work, blah de blah blah. I ate the friggin’ muffin and relished every bite.
Then the carbs took effect. I was really really tired. Sluggish. Muddle-headed. I felt just awful – physically and psychologically.
An hour or so later, I made 2 beddar cheddars. I felt a little better, but still logey. I looked up the bad news on these muffins here. For a cheat “meal,” it was a really bad choice — 81 net carbs. Sigh.
After work, Rick and I went up to the hospital to see my dad. He didn’t seem as bad as I expected. He may pull through this latest crisis, after all.
We headed home, and I skipped dinner. I wasn’t very hungry and I had lots of phone calls to make. I think in my head I decided to minimize the carb damage by skipping dinner, but I was hungry in a couple of hours. I made a “comfort food” concoction made up of a cup of spaghetti squash and a cheese mixture I threw together: sauteed onions in butter, heavy cream, cream cheese and grated cheese. It was bland, but did the trick.
Tomorrow: BACK ON TRACK!
Day 95: Weigh day again
Total weight loss: +1 pound Total weight loss: 26.5 pounds. Next weigh-in: Saturday, April 21st
After having the really successful 6 pound loss a couple of days ago, I was fearing this weigh-in. I just assumed the big loss was a fluke caused by sickness and dehydration, and that all 6 pounds would be back today. Well….it wasn’t and they weren’t! I did regain one pound, but no big deal. I’m really geeked about the whole experience and flying high today because….
I lost a size!
Yes, last night I was going over to my niece’s for a bonfire and I decided to get out the next size smaller blue jeans. The ones I’ve been wearing have been feeling very very baggy this week, but I knew it was only a couple of weeks ago that I tried on a smaller size and still couldn’t snap them closed. I pulled out 2 pair, and VOILA! I had some “new” clothes to wear. And, for the first time, someone actually noticed that I was losing weight. My nephew said he thought I looked different. Thanks, Todd.
So, if this trend continues, about every three months, I could be down one size. That makes me very happy.
Back to the food report:
Yesterday was Friday. I slept in, then worked on a brochure for a client until noon. Rick and I went to Leon’s for brunch, where I had a really juicy M.O.P. burger. That stands for mushroom, onion, peppers…which were grilled and added to the top of my burger, along with some melted swiss cheese. I skipped the fries and subbed a salad with blue cheese. It was filling and delicious.
After lunch, we hit the Home Depot for supplies, then worked on molding and a new address plate for the front porch.
I skipped dinner and took a long nap. I’m still not completely over the flu, but just need to nap now and again. At 9 pm, we went over Marsha’s for the bon fire, and I ate some of her delicious Frank’s red hot buffalo chicken dip (with a spoon, not chips) and about 1/4 of taco salad. I drank one vodka/Diet Coke, since I was the designated driver. We had fun out by the fire until 1 a.m., then headed home.
I am completely off kilter in my sleeping schedule. I’ve always been a true night owl, and vacation usually sees me back to my old schedule. I stayed up until 3:30 a.m. watching tv and playing around online. I ate 2 70% chocolate squares topped with natural peanut butter for a snack.
Day 89: Working through the disappointment
Total weight loss: 21.5 pounds Next weigh-in: Saturday, April 14th
After yesterday’s weigh-in, I debated having a cheat day, or even just a cheat meal. We were at breakfast, and I ordered eggs with cheese and onions. My meal came with toast and hash browns. I don’t particularly care for hash browns, but this restaurant also offers potato pancakes as a substitution. I ordered them.
When the meal came, I stared down the pancakes. I really really like them, and I was still reeling from the zero loss disappointment. Should I just have a cheat day? Naw. I gave them to Rick. I think I need to NOT cheat when it’s an emotional decision. If I’m having a cheat day, it’s going to be because it was a planned maneuver to restart my metabolism.
We worked on the rental house all day. I finished grouting tile, painted a door, put on new door hardware, tried to unstop a drain, put an electric box cover on, and painted a fence.
In between chores, Rick ran up to Del Taco and got me the mucho grande burrito, or whatever it’s called. I skipped the tortilla.
Back home, we were both pretty tired, but our own house needs work, too. We started cleaning off the deck and getting the yard ship-shape. By then it was late, and I was too tired to cook. I had a handful of almonds and joined Rick outside by the bonfire for a drink. Afterwards, I heated up grilled chicken in a Flat Out tortillas with the usual garnishments. We had some chocolate mousse for dessert.
I made it through the disappointment. I’m going to beat this fat or die trying.
Day 88: A big fat ZERO
Today’s weight loss: ZERO
Total weight loss: 21.5 pounds Next weigh-in: Saturday, April 14th
AARRRGGGHHHH.
I’m tired of agonizing over what I could be doing wrong. My clothes are getting looser. That’s a plus. But, man oh man, I would sure love to see more progress when I get on the scale.
So, I’ll just keep keeping on. No alternative.
Yesterday was my numero uno vacation day. We started out eating at a new diner. I ordered the cheese omelet with onions and a side of bacon. It was great! The cheese/onion combination was very “pieorgi-like,” so I asked for a side of sour cream and it was even better. The bacon was also thin and crispy, just the way I like it. I finished my Friday NYT crossword, and declared it a wonderful beginning to my vacation week.
>We were off on lots of errands after that. When we got home, I wasn’t really hungry for lunch, so I had some almonds.
Rick napped, I relaxed and watched some “The Good Wife” episodes. It was nice just hanging out for a couple of hours.
Later in the evening, I joined Rick out on the deck. I wanted to have a vodka/diet drink, but hadn’t eaten much, so I made some ham, cream cheese, and onion pinwheels. You know, the kind mom made in the 60’s. You roll them up, then cut them and they look like little pinwheels…or eyeballs, if you ask me. Anyway, it was something I thought of the other night when trying to find a conveyance to get the cream cheese into my mouth without just eating it out of the package. Apparently, my family members think it’s an odd thing to do.
For dinner (at 9 pm!), I chopped up a bit of the chicken Rick had grilled. I put it in a large low carb flat bread and topped with cheese, onions, salsa, and sour cream. Those are my go-to toppings for just about everything.
Dessert was 2 pieced of 70% chocolate topped with organic peanut butter. I think I went over about 4 carbs.
Day 80: Anyone else like cream cheese?
Total weight loss: 21.5 pounds Next weigh-in: tomorrow!
I started work at 8 a.m. Another crazy day at work, another missed breakfast.
At noon, Rick took me to get coney dogs at the local diner. I asked for them without buns, and all was well.
Around 4, I ate the usual handful of almonds.
At 7:30 p.m., I left work tired and hungry. Thankfully, I had a serving of Indian butter chicken and cauliflower rice left over.
Around 9 p.m, I wanted a little snack. I still had about 8 carbs left. I ate 3 oz of cream cheese. Odd, I know, but delicious.
As a side note, I found this about the benefits of eating cream cheese. Okay, it was a site for pregnant women, but the bennies still hold true for the rest of us.
Benefits of cream cheeses:
Cream cheeses, unlike other unsafe cheeses are made from pasteurized milk which makes it safe to eat.- They are a good source of protein.
- Calcium and phosphorous content of cream cheeses can be trusted highly in preventing bone decalcification.
- The carbohydrate content of cream cheeses is in a minimum extent so would not add on weight to your body.
- They have considerable amount of vitamin A.
I was still well under carb count (and calorie count) for the day. I just hope I don’t UNDER do it and trigger starvation mode (if it even exists!).
Day 78: Yummy chicken tacos
Total weight loss: 21.5 pounds Next weigh-in: Sat., March 31st
I finally started the day with breakfast. I made time to heat yesterday’s uneaten eggs and sausage.
Rick and I went out for lunch again. I’ve really enjoyed taking an hour and leaving work to hang out with Rick. All of these young friends of mine that have died recently have made an impact on many of my decisions. I used to work 10 hours and eat at my desk while working. Now I say the heck with that and I leave for an enjoyable lunch with my husband.
We went to the local diner and I ordered the jalapeno chicken club. I just told the waitress to keep the bun and I enjoyed a large grilled chicken breast topped with bacon, jalapeno cheese, and tomato.
Eating a full breakfast and healthy lunch left me with no need for a snack during the afternoon. I was pretty hungry by 6 p.m., but before going home, we stopped by to visit my dad. He’s not looking very good, and obviously wanted to sleep, so we didn’t stay long.
My new bicycle seat was delivered today, so Rick helped me mount it to my bike, and I took a quick ride. It felt much better than my old seat, and I look forward to getting some exercise when it warms up a little outside.
By the time we were done, it was nearly 8 p.m. I chopped up some leftover chicken and filled 3 Mama Lupe’s shells with the chicken, onions, cheese, salsa, and sour cream. The tacos were really really good and a quick, nutritious dinner. I skipped dessert and was well under on my carb count.
Day 68: Beautiful weather: time to get out the bicycle
Weight loss: 17.5 pounds; next weigh day: Sat., Mar 24th
It was a beautiful Saturday and we had lots of work ahead of us: more garage cleaning, plus finishing that floor tile. I also needed to to bills, arrange some of my dad’s paperwork, and, in general, get some of my affairs in order.
Rick arose earlier than I did (no surprise) and ate breakfast alone. I showered and got right to my desk. Around noon, I decided to have brunch at Del Taco. Rick was off riding his bike and met me there.
I ordered a steak taco Asada and a chicken taco and removed both tortillas. That did not assuage my hunger in the least. I looked around online to see what else was recommended low-carb fare at Del Taco. They didn’t have the taco salad on their menu, so I went with another choice: a beef burrito. It was made up of seasoned ground beef, cheese, onions, and sour cream.
I unrolled my giant tortilla and found that it was very similar to eating a taco salad with no shell. It was really really delicious, so I have now fortunately added another fast food menu option to my growing list. I plan to be on the keto diet for around a year until I reach my goal. It’s always nice to have some choices along the way.
I finally got to the tiling I’ve been attempting to finish. Unfortunately, I was one or two tiles short, and Rick couldn’t get them at the local Home Depot. We’ll have to go to the one in Canton tomorrow. We did get another truck load of Salvation army donations together and will deliver those tomorrow, as well.
It was a gorgeous day and we both enjoyed working outside. By the time we got home and unloaded the truck, it was close to 8 pm, and I had been hungry for hours. I took a quick spin on my bike, just to get my sea legs back. Then I set out to find a meal idea.
Rick said he felt like hotdogs. I felt like something more, and wanted to make him a treat because he had worked so hard. I looked around online for “keto appetizers,” keto snacks,” then started thinking…doesn’t macaroni and cheese sound great with hotdogs? My next search for “keto macaroni and cheese cauliflower” did the trick. I just KNEW cauliflower would be involved. I made this recipe for Mokafoni and Cheese.
I was a little short on the cream cheese, so I subbed with a little parmesan. It was a hit! I’m going to add it to my list of favorite keto recipes, since mac and cheese is an old comfort food of mine.
While the mock and cheese was baking, I took a glass of vodka and Diet Coke outside and sat with Rick under the gazebo. I didn’t want to miss a March summer night. We ate a late meal and skipped dessert.
Day 67: Seeing progress–a good weigh day
Today’s weight loss: 2.5 pounds; total weight loss: 17.5
I was relieved and happy to see the numbers starting to go down for a change. It still seems like slow progress, but as Rick says, it’s going in the right direction.
TGIF. I worked four 10-hr days Monday thru Thursday, so my weekend began yesterday. Rick and I started our day at the Toast diner. I tried a 3-cheese mushroom omelet with a side order of crispy bacon, and it was very tasty. I forgot how much I used to enjoy mushrooms with my eggs.
Around noon, we worked on cleaning out the garage and I skipped lunch. After going to the funeral home to see a coworker whose mother passed away, I was tired and hungry and didn’t feel like doing much, including tiling the floor as I had originally planned. We stopped to get some groceries then headed home.
I heated up 2 Beddar Cheddars with a side of almonds and had a quick nap.
I didn’t have much for dinner: some microwaved cheese chips with guacamole.
A few hours later, I had quite a few carbs left so I made 2 pieces of low carb toast with almond butter.
Day 64: More than two months on keto
Weight loss: 15 pounds; next weigh-in: Mar 17th
I don’t know that I’m too happy to have only lost 15 pounds in 2 months. Then again, it’s better than gaining.
Yesterday was a typical day at work, rush rush rush to meet the book printing deadline. I ate my egg breakfast at my desk, then took a 1/2 hour around 1 pm to have 2 Beddar Cheddar sausages. I had the usual almond snack between breakfast and lunch. Later in the afternoon, I had a low-carb blueberry yogurt.
I made sure to drink plenty of water again. I only made it to 6 glasses, but it’s better than I usually do.
I didn’t get home until about 7. I was perplexed as to what to make for dinner, then remembered I had tortillas and cheese, so I put together some quesadillas.
I was sure that I hadn’t had too many carbs, so I made two. After eating our chocolate mousse dessert, I added up my carbs and I was 6 grams over for the day. Damn. That extra quesadilla that I really didn’t need nor want was exactly 6 grams. You live and learn.
Day 60: Bad weigh-in; time for a cheat day!
Today’s weight loss: PLUS TWO – ACK; total weight loss: 15 pounds
Well, I certainly wasn’t expecting that! I’ve been carefully counting my carbs and I’ve been under all week. My clothes are getting looser and I feel great. Why oh why did I GAIN?
I was actually UNDER carbs by about 6 yesterday, and probably didn’t drink enough water. I’ve been reading up on reasons for weight gain in keto, and I’ve found a lot about the importance of eating enough fat, avoiding being UNDER carb count, and drinking more water. I think it’s time for a re-set and a better effort.
I’ve been avoiding it, but it’s time: I’m going on a cheat day today to see if I can get my metabolism moving. I’m also going to be sure to eat enough and drink more water in the coming week. If I’m going to work the keto plan, I need to do it right. On other diets, not eating as much as the allotted amount may work, but that hinders progress on keto (or so I’ve been reading, anyway).
Yesterday started with my usual breakfast. For lunch, we met George and Beccy at the Twisted Rooster. I ordered the Diablo burger, which was topped with pepper jack cheese, jalapeno bacon, hay stack onions, and a chipotle aioli. I removed the onions because they were breaded, and most of my sauce was stuck to them, so I asked for a small dish with more. I HOPE this aioli didn’t have any weird ingredients of sweeteners, but there was no way to find out. And, of course, I removed the bun, as well, and gave Rick my fries.
The burger was good. the jalapeno bacon added quite a bit of flavor. After the bun and onions were removed, it didn’t look like much of a meal for $8, but it was quite filling – almost like eating a steak.
The bad part about a meal like this is the unknown quantity of ingredients that will mess up my carb counth. Was the spicy burger filled with any kind of high-carb ingredient? What about the jalapeno bacon? Sounds safe, because bacon is a-okay, but who knows if there is some kind of hidden carb in it? I think I’m going to lay off the unknown menu items for a bit and stick to eating at home for the next week, where I know exactly what I’m eating.
Later in the afternoon, I was working on websites and had a handful of almonds and a dish of sugar free jello. Rick felt a cold coming on and took a nap. Around 8 pm, we were both hungry, so I made a late dinner of quesadillas using Mama Lupe’s tortillas.
They turned out very well, and I was well under 20 grams of carbs for the daily count.