Category Archives: meal ideas
Day 281: Update on progress, 39 pounds off
Total weight loss: 39 pounds
In case you think I have fallen off the keto wagon, I have not. I have simply been overwhelmed by life and far too busy to blog. There is no chance for me to catch up on my daily progress, but here’s a recap:
When last I blogged, it was on the cusp of my son’s wedding. I blogged just before the celebratory dinners began. For the week or so before/after the wedding, I had cheat meals galore. In fact, I was off the plan.
The next week (the end of August), I started afresh. Before going off the keto plan, I had lost 38 pounds. I weighed myself before starting back on the plan, and was sad to see I had gained 4 pounds during my cheat fest. Sigh, back into the routine I went.
I stayed on the plan through September and October. Each week, I saw slow progress: 1.5 pounds down, .5 pounds up, 1 pounds down, .5 pounds up, etc. etc. No consistent loss or huge drops in my weight, but I did have at least one-two cheat meals or days a week (planned, and unplanned, depending on the week).
At my weigh in last Saturday, all the weight I gained in August was gone, plus one pound – total 5 pounds lost in September and 3 weeks of October. WHEW!
As an added bonus, I am in one size smaller in my work slacks. For some reason (the cut of the pants or whatever), I have not been able to get in a smaller size all these months. In jeans, I dropped a size long ago. Well, whatever the reason, the pants fit, so I must not quit. [bad pun, sorry]
There isn’t much to report from the past week. I have no new recipes or food ideas, and my meals have been somewhat boring, so I will begin my daily meal journal with tomorrow’s blog.
Oh, one thing I do have to report: I’ve had a stupendous amount of energy! From dawn til dusk, I’m going going going, and feel great! I guess a nearly 40-pound weight loss can relieve the body of a lot of stress. I know if I pick up something that weighs 40-50 pounds, I appreciate how heavy that is. I think it’s time to work more exercise into my routine. I feel very healthy now, and that will speed up weight loss and make me feel more energetic as well.
Goals – I’d like to get back to more inspirational meals. I’m going to spend this weekend investigating new ideas. I’m also thinking about recording my meals in myfitnesspal.com again and getting more regimented in my intake. I have been estimating carbs based on the fact that I’ve been doing it so long. I’d like to see how much leeway I’ve been allowing myself by not recording every meal in a food calculator.
Six months on Keto: thoughts and resolutions
Total weight loss: 35 pounds
For anything to be successful, one needs to look back over the successes and failures to plan for a better future.
Things I’ve learned:
Plan meals in advance
Always have keto-friendly snacks on hand
Always have keto-friendly cooking ingredients on hand
Remember which cheat meals didn’t satisfy
Keep a list of fast food keto-friendly foods in mind
Look at bread, rice, buns, tortillas, pasta, cakes, cookies, donuts, and other high carb food and think negative thoughts: “how pasty looking that is,” “it looks good, but it’ll make me feel lethargic and half-dead after I eat it,” “that rice under Chinese or Indian food, will make me gain, and really doesn’t have much flavor; cauliflower rice tastes just as good”
Even if you eat twice the amount of almonds you’ve planned, it’s still better than potato chips
Cheat meals/days must be thought out VERY carefully. Pick something that will really satisfy you and allow you to keep on the keto plan longer
Drink lots and lots and lots of water
Drinking no-carb alcohol may be okay, but keep it in limits. Over indulging makes me gain water weight and being drunk makes me really tempted to binge on whatever high carb party food is on the table.
There is ALMOST ALWAYS SOMETHING YOU CAN EAT in a fast food place or restaurant. For example, what about chicken marsala in an Italian place?
And there is usually some salad option anywhere you are. Burger joints, just remove the bun.
Mexican and Chinese restaurants give me the most difficulty, because any low carb option is not the reason I would go to the restaurant in the first place.
If you MUST go to a Chinese buffet (I attended a funeral dinner at one), you can find options, but they probably aren’t going to be your favorite General Tso’s. How about the salad bar choices? eggs? the insides of eggrolls, and I even ate the insides only of crab rangoons. Leaves quite a pile of discarded shells on the plate and look like you really waste food.
That’s all I can think of right now, but these ideas have helped me realize the first real weight loss I’ve achieved in more than 15 years! YAY KETO!
Day 192: Pizza lunch and some new lo-carb Indian food
Total weight loss: 31 1/2 pounds
Yesterday the entire work force got together for an emergency “fire” meeting at my boss’s house. On the way, I downed a quick low-carb yogurt and drank lots of water (I always seem to forget the importance of that).
At lunch, we were served some delicious pizza and salad. Oh yes, I forgot I DID have 2 mini donettes for a snack. It was not a good choice, but it was way way better than eating all the other bad choices that were being offered.
Back to the pizza. It was a chicken, pepper, very low sauce type, not sure what it was, but it was very good and the toppings were thick. I didn’t feel deprived not eating the crust.
I also had a small salad with a raspberry vinaigrette dressing. It was 7 grams of carbs per tbsp, so I ate very little.
After the meeting, Rick picked me up and was feeling poorly. He had a really high temperature. We headed home, where I had an almond snack and worked a bit. It sure is nice not rushing over to work on the rental house.
For dinner, I had 2 beddar cheddars and some of the leftovers from Rick’s meal. He made basmati rice (which I skipped), and tried a new kind of Indian food that was very low carb. It was Passage to India brand, Korma simmer sauce, and it was very good, even all by itself in my little bowl.
Dessert was the usual fake peanut butter cup.
Day 102: Pizza “Squasherole” – and a bad weigh-day
Today’s weight loss: +2.5 pounds!
Total weight loss: 24 pounds. Next weigh-in: Saturday, April 28th
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 85: Love those steak bites
Total weight loss: 21.5 pounds Next weigh-in: Saturday, April 7th
Work wasn’t quite as crazy as usual. The book is at the printer, and now we just need to update little details for our upcoming class. I had time to heat my eggs for breakfast, but didn’t really prepare for lunch, so I just ate a yogurt I found in the fridge.
After work, we decided to go to a local bar that has outdoor seating. It was a beautiful day, and we sat outside watching the traffic go by. I ordered the teriayaki steak bites, gave Rick my pita bread, and enjoyed 2 vodka and Diet Cokes. It was a relaxing and fun date.
The steak bites were delicious, but I hadn’t eaten much all day, so I had a handful of almonds before bed and and topped so 70% chocolate squares with natural peanut butter. I was still well under 20 grams of carbs for the day.
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 75: Hostess donettes are not worth the carb intake
Total weight loss: 21.5 pounds Next weigh-in: Sat., March 31st
Yesterday’s weigh-in put me in a happy mood. It’s slow progress, but the months add up and soon 21 pounds will be 42 and so on.
After weighing in, I had to get ready for work, and I didn’t have time to prepare for breakfast. Brandon picked me up and we went into work at 10. I did something extremely out of character. I went into the kitchen at work to get some water and there was a bag of Hostess chocolate donettes on the table for anyone to eat.
And I ate one!
This is the first time I’ve succumbed to a temptation like that in 10 and 1/2 weeks! It was gone in two bites, and I recorded it in my daily food diary: 8 grams of carbs.
Well, that was certainly anticlimactic. Those 2 little bites of processed junk food were equal to a hearty meal in carb count and were definitely not worth eating. I guess I had to get that rebellion out of my system. A lesson learned.
On to lunch time. The boss bought pizza for all of us Saturday OT workers. I ate 2 pieces with chicken toppings and one with pepperoni and Italian sausage. Of course I threw away the crust.
Later that evening at home, I made spaghetti squash and creamy alfredo and shrimp topping. The squash was tough to cut so I put it in the microwave for a few seconds, and…BLAST… the door flew open when the squash exploded. I salvaged what I could and cooked the rest properly in a pyrex dish AFTER cutting into pieces.
Dessert was sugar-free lime/cream cheese “cheese cake.”
I stayed up til nearly 3 a.m., I am really a nocturnal creature and I enjoy doing that every couple of weeks. I got hungry around midnight and ate 3 pita chips (now THAT’s control) with about 4 tbsp of crab dip. That filled up the rest of my carb allotment for the day.
Day 71: Taking stock of the past 10 weeks
Weight loss: 17.5 pounds; next weigh day: Sat., Mar 24th
I realized last night that I’m really getting the hang of this low-carb diet. It was around 10 pm, and I was done eating for the day. It occurred to me that I hadn’t entered any of my meals into the myfitnesspal.com website. I usually do it as the day progresses, so I can evaluate how many grams of carbs I have left.
I entered all the meals for the day at once, and, lo and behold, I was just about spot on for a carb count. I guess I can estimate what I’m eating pretty well at this point. More than two months into the plan, I think I’ve got it!
It also occurred to me that it’s been a very long time since I…
- Ate between meals
- Had cake, cookies, pies, or donuts
- Ate bread, bagels, buns
- Ate ice cream
- Ate pasta
- Had pizza with crust or french fries
It’s been 71 days, in fact.
I’ve found a nice pancake substitute, low carb tortillas, and pasta, rice, and potato substitutes (usually consisting of cauliflower). I’ve eaten a couple of squares of 70% chocolate. I’ve also had maybe 4 slices of low-carb bread.
This is definitely an big life change for me. And it has not been difficult at all, in terms of cravings. It has been more difficult to saunter into any restaurant or deli and easily order a meal. It takes some calculations and substitutions, but it isn’t too onerous.
And, as usual, I have to give a big shout out to Rick, who is keeping the house stocked with low-carb food items, cooking lots of burgers and chicken, and meeting me for lunches that help take the monotony out of having a salad at work every day.
Back to the food diary:
Yesterday began with eggs/sausage.
I skipped lunch AGAIN. The work deadlines keep me so busy (and I’m so OCD) that I forget to eat. I grabbed a handful of almonds at noon.
When I got home from work at 6:30, I ate the tops off of two leftover pieces of Albert’s pizza. I threw some eggs on the stove to boil, and headed to my office to work on web company issues. Then I needed to work on Dad’s affairs, again. I didn’t finish until 9 pm. I grabbed a vodka and Diet Coke and met Rick out on the deck.
While I was in my office, Rick barbecued some chicken. I cut up a couple of ounces and put it in 2 Mama Lupe’s tortillas with some cheese, salsa, and onion. They were great!
Oh, and I quickly peeled the hardboiled eggs and made up a dozen deviled eggs so I’d have snacks on hand. I ate about 4 of those as a pseudo dessert.