I'm NOT crazy...

... according to my doctor, there is a connection between my cutting way back on fat in my diet and my psycho mood swings. He recommended adding back in some of the 'good' fats which will actually help heal my liver. Also, he suggested vitamin D and, of course, exercise. Overall, he was very happy with the changes I have been making. Yay me!

Emotions...again

Well, I'm back on track with the eating and lost another pound already this week.


However, my BIG nemisis is back in action. Depression has been hitting me hard. I've especially been having problems with anger which is not the norm for me. I call it PMS on TNT. Then there are the self-esteem issues, and a great big helping of escape desire. Since I have not been turning to food (a huge deal!), my body has been craving sleep and trying to shut down. I'm going to get with my dr and see what adjustments we can make to my meds. Plus summer vacation is just around the corner which will be a relief from school stress. I just hope my poor family can hang in there with my mood swings. =s

Grrr...plateau

Well, last week I hit 6 pounds total weight lost. This week - nada. Now I know some plateaus are normal and part of the process, but I am pretty sure I caused this one.

I hit 2 speedbumps this week. One was 'making exceptions'. The other was getting sick. I knew these things would be problems as they have derailed my attempts in the past. Now I have to figure out strategies to overcome them.

Sat. I ate a breakfast bowl thing I had in the freezer. I didn't do it to abandon my diet. I just figured since I already bought it, might as well eat it. No sense wasting food. Another day I had some regular icecream instead of frozen yogurt. Just once couldn't hurt. Then I got sick, and nothing tastes right except sugar when I'm sick. David made cookies, and I had 2 instead of the 1 I had allowed myself before. Oh, and I had 2 the next day. Oops. No wonder I didn't loose weight this week.

Ok first of all I need to look at my not wanting to waste food and eating it just because it's there. I need to remember that it's going to waste on my hips too. So, I'm going to get rid of the food that I don't want to eat anymore that no one else in the family eats. (The stuff David and the girls like I can't get rid of just yet.)

Tougher problem. What to do when I'm sick and want comfort food. Suggestions my friends....

And lastly - beware of making exceptions. It's a slippery slope that ends in a plateau. (nice metaphor, huh?)

What I have learned... (think Veggie tales tune)

Let's see:

grain breads are good

'fake butter' in a squirt bottle is great stuff. It tastes good on corn on the cob and it can be used to make grilled chees. Now, I don't believe it has 0 fat grams so I pretend it's 1 gram for 5 squirts.

Fat-free cheese doesn't melt and tastes like plastic (it probably is) =S However, real cheese with squirt butter and grain bread and a handful of chex mix is still within the fat gram allotment for dinner.

McDonald's does not have an unbreaded chicken sandwich. (At least the one at our Walmart doesn't) My poor husband tried to get one for me when he was bringing home supper the other day. They offered to take the bun off - hardly the same thing!

I like manderine oranges - they call them "Little Cuteys" and I've actually eaten a half a bag of them in the last week.

Guess that's all for now - please send me all your low-fat tips. =)

Weekly Update

Alright - I met my first weight loss goal of 4 pounds gone! I know it's not much, but it was my first goal because that's how much I had gained this school year. The next goal is pre-baby weight which is 10 more pounds away. 'Small steps' is my motto.

I've been reading a book called One Meal at a Time. As the title suggests it talks about taking a week to work on getting the fat out of each meal . I read the whole thing, but when I get frustrated, I remind myself that I am only on week 2 and I do pretty much have breakfast and lunch mastered. I'm still working on adjusting dinner. It's more difficult since it involves the whole family and all of our tastes, preferences, and habits. The book also gives a daily fat gram recomendation as opposed to the 30% guideline I got from another book. That is more challanging since I can't just chow down on a box of chex mix. I have to start looking at portion control. Some days that's easier than others.

Well, I have a long way to go, but I'm on the road to recovery.

Minor Victory

Well, I came home today very edgy and overwhelmed about a situation at work.

Did I turn to my old tranquilizer food? Yes =s

Did I eat the 2 Milky Ways and quart of icecream I wanted? NO =-)

I had 3 granola bars and a handful of Teddy Grahams (all under my 30% fat limit) for a total of 11 fat grams.

I don't call that great, but it is a HUGE improvement over my past behavior.

oops

OK - not in the mood for true confessions, but let's just say weekends and holidays make eating healthy more challanging. Ah well, put it on my to do list - figure out how to eat healthy in these situations.