Day 9 - 26: Travel, Eating :( - Healthy Baking

Fall is here! Yeah - I love that feeling of crispness in the air, color in the trees, diving under comforters, and starting fires! Downside lately has been way too much travel for work and dealing with some stressful home front activities. As noted in the daily summaries below - not too back but not great in terms of a strong finish...


Full Irish Breakfast (Wiki)



I cannot fully share the lure and dangers of the full Irish Breakfast... this is more than 100% of my daily calorie intake. The hotel I was staying at only had buffet no other options feasible. Practically no part of it is healthy - save the stewed tomato and cup of tea. A full fry-up contains on around 1,300 calories, which is an OMG moment. What would you eat here? Not to mention that there was also a bread bar (muffins, toast, etc.) Here's the full list:

Stress, Travel, & Biking

(Photo: Indoor Cycling Assoc. Website)

The past few months have been full of unusual and challenging events.  I like to think that I'm very good at handling stress - but my limits have been tested. 

What's happening...I have been to two family funerals, gone through job changes, new bosses, had a major shift to financial situation, major home remodeling and repair, supported kids through tough times, and yes, sad to say eaten my stress.

Traveling - Eating in Style

Sometimes one just needs to go with the flow and throw caution to the wind.

This past week has been just that.

Every meal in a restaurant - and some very nice ones at that. I didn't want to say no... so I said a few yeses! Knowing full well the potential implications...

Case in point, last nights dinner, at a french restaurant, Le Corange, was superb! I'm fairly certain that I consumed a weeks worth of calories in just one meal.

Care to dine vicariously?

I'm So Bad!!!

After nearly a year of making great choices - this past few weeks have been extremely challenging!

After sporting events, holiday parties at work, going away parties, neighborhood get together, entertaining.... seems like an old friend has come home for a visit.

That old friend is CARBS! ARGH. I thought I had broken up with you for good. How did you find me? I think it started with Chips and Salsa at a recent Bulls event. Last item was a pumpkin cake - to die for! You are wicked and evil. I'm so bad.

I'M SO BAD!!

After sharing with my son my recent food issues - he sent me this link - to Amy Schumer moment to the right. Hey - what's she doing inside my head for inspiration! Guess this means I'm not alone here. Had to share with my besties! My  girl friend said "Do we sound like that?" then paused and said "maybe yes!"

One Thing I Don't Want to Give-up

Yesterday my trainer learned that I have one can of diet coke a day. He was SHOCKED that I wasn't going soda pop free! 

I've largely given up added sugar, added salt, breads, rice, potatoes, pasta, cheese, oatmeal, cookies, cakes, fried foods, fast food, wine, martinis, junk food.... My gosh I'm eating tofu for breakfast! 

So despite his arguments about the impact of evil soda, I'm not giving it up (yet?) 

It's been a busy week and I reached a new milestone! Major non-scale victory.

Drum roll.... the great news is that inspired by the charity bike ride I supported last week, I was determined to set a new record on my bike. Sunday I headed out at 7:15AM and rode for nearly 3 hours! I covered just over 30 miles! It was a nice ride through the Cook Country Forest Preserves. I was so happy to have gone so much further than ever before and to feel exceptional during the ride and after the ride! 

Weekend ride - Putting on Miles!

Whoo Hoo - I'm a biker chick :) I love my bike!

Surviving Restaurants and Room Service

I'm challenged to say make healthy choices with all the treats and deliciousness that is surrounding me this week!  It's true that sticking to a healthy diet while eating in restaurants is not so easy, but it can be done.

The downside of business travel - eating out all the time. 

So there are a few ground rules I've given myself:

1) Check the potential calories before ordering. This helps me eliminate some options or determine just how much I can eat. 

City Walking.... Weekly Summary

For the past few days I've been working in Dublin. I brought my work out wear and have taken several long walks through the city - despite doctor warnings about taking too long of walks. It's pretty fun to explore someplace new. Lots to see, many paths to take.

The biggest challenge is not getting hit by the cars and so many bicyclists!

I have been pretty good about following my nutrition plan. However, one night we ended up at a french restaurant where I was determined to order food that I would have never eaten before. Laid before me was a trio of Irish game - including venison, duck, and quail. That's the photo below. It was divine! Luckily had gone for a 5 mile walk earlier in the day so I could indulge in this treat and still be under my calorie limit. (I did not log before I ate :) WOW did not know duck confit was so calorific.)

Treating myself to a french meal in Dublin. 

12 Mile Bike Ride - Weekly Summary

Ride Ataxia - July, 2015

Every now and then something exceptional happens. 

Today's Non-Scale Victory - completing a 12 mile bike ride in support of good cause.  Perfect weather, awesome location, and a great group to ride together. I surprised myself. Plus I didn't even mind about wearing those silly bike shorts and shirt (well not too much!)

Here is a shot of me crossing the line at the end of the race! I had lost track of the distance and was surprised to be at the end - I thought there were a few more miles to go. That was such a great feeling; to not be exhausted. 

Everyone was in such great spirits and I met really great people. Lots of inspiration around each turn.  Many people have challenges in their lives, that I can work to overcome my issues with weight is a blessing. 

Biking - part of my new routine. Never would have guessed that. 

Whoopsie - Weekly Update

I have been absent minded in posting my weekly summaries - so here are a whole bunch!

New Habit: my typical lunch.
Greens and protein

Good news - last few weeks I have continued to go down in weight. Last week, I logged a 4 pound loss! My total average is tracking to just over 2#/week so that is great news. 

I had an odd train of thought the other day - a friend was rationalizing for me that my weight loss should slow down because I've already lost nearly 70 pounds. Well that might be true - then again, I'm still obese and have a long way to go. Should it really be slowing down at this point? I hope not.

Big changes ahead....

It's been a great week! I decided to hit it again and as a result I feel so much better and the numbers show that. The elliptical is becoming less challenging. This week I was listening to music and working out on the elliptical when my trainer came up along side and said hello.   This I learned later because according to him, I didn't even notice that he was there and just kept on moving it! Now that is focused :)

The big change this week is saying adios to my trainer. Good-bye and a big THANK YOU for supporting me this far in my new leaf journey.  Here is a two-up photo with side-by-side of our first week working out and the last one. Note - smiling faces, we were a good team.  I'm going to assume that he's not happy to be leaving me - but proud of the success. Also note - Goodbye Double Chin! Five Seasons and my trainers have helped me drop 53 pounds so far this year - and it shows. 

Teresa's New Leaf - 5 Month Progress

One-derland - 58 pounds in 6 months

So happy this morning to have the scale dip below the 200 mark! I was at the health club with my trainer and was shocked to be under 200 - as I'd weighed in just a few days ago at 202. We usually one weigh in once a week - I guess we just had a feeling that today would be the day.

One-derland; aka <200# May, 2015

He gave me a high-five and I then turned to all the people working out and shouted 199!!! The other trainers gave me high fives - the men looked at me as if to say "what you're proud of that?" and in response I gave them the look that said 'HELL YES!" I've been working hard for this!
I'm almost halfway to my goal. I need to evaluate if the goal is realistic. I picked it because that weight will put me cleanly into the "average" BMI range. My weight loss has started to slow down - maybe because for the past month I've been a tad more focused on work and on my regime. None the less - I'm on track to have a great year turning over a new leaf!

Health Benefits - from the inside out!

With a focus on getting fit this year - I had a check-up with my doctor before starting my nutrition and exercise plan. Part of this was full set of blood work. Not surprising there were two measures that my Doctor was not pleased with - my cholesterol level (and particle size) and my Vitamin D level. 

30% reduction in LDL via Diet and Exercise!

My Cholesterol level and mix was way off - honestly it has been all of my adult life as far as I know.  It is common, maybe even inevitable that LDL, my bad cholesterol, would be in unhealthily high. I would say it's familial hypercholesterolemia, but whatever the reason, I have to get it under control. I would routinely see total cholesterol levels in the 300's - where the target is 200 or less. I have not wanted to take daily medication and I wasn't sure what I could achieve with diet and exercise alone.  

It was interesting that my cholesterol levels in January were the lowest I'd seen in a long time. That was 240 total - less than 300!. Then amazingly, the results from March were even lower. I was able to reduce the bad cholesterol by 30% - my total cholesterol was just 221! So close to "normal" range. Why is that?  

Food Choices - Old Favorites and New Habits

Source: http://www.afeastfortheeyes.net/

The other day I was mall-walking and the aroma from the Cinnabon was so overwhelming. It took me back to my childhood and a rich sugary-cinnamon breakfast treat. I recall some childhood foods which I would never dream of eating today nor ever serving to my kids.  One of these was a summertime treat from my Grandmother. She would place a generous portion of rich vanilla ice cream onto Rice Crispies for our breakfast! The other was a treat breakfast my  mother would prepare which centered around brown sugar/butter broiled onto white toast. A fast homemade Cinnabon! This would be 1/4" thick sugary sweetness. You can find the recipe here. My mom must not have been alone in preparing this rich treat - plus she always put a few eggs on the side, for balance :)

Week 6 Summary - WOW

There is no logic behind the success I had this week. I ate more, worked out less, and lost more.  Maybe the scale calibration was off - but for now WHOO HOO!

TOFU Galore!

Here's my summary for this week. I stuck to my meal and exercise plan. The new food for the year appears to be Tofu. I continued to mix it into my breakfast, it also makes an easy snack with salsa. I'm also adding it cubed onto my salads. I guess we are now eating TONS of tofu as we had more than 6 containers in the refrigerator at one time. Now that is a major change! So I continued to do a great job of hitting my protein percentage. One day I had birthday cake - and on that day the calorie intake was high - 1634 cals, but for the week I'm right on target!

No More Starbucks Trips

No More Starbucks for me!

Last month I met Joseph Pinnell from Five Seasons Sports Club. He mentioned wanting to inspire people to make even small changes that could have a big impact on their health.  I've found one such small change in my life and I've turned a new leaf.  Tracking my food intake has been helpful and insightful. 

Each morning, as I'm getting ready to head out the door, I thing "Why don't I treat myself at Starbucks?" The more I thought about that, the more interesting it became. Note that I don't say to myself, let's get that coffee! That's because:

• I don't drink coffee, nor my usual order (a non-fat latte, or Soy Chai) from anywhere other than Starbucks. I don't even drink coffee at home.
• That's because I don't crave coffee, I don't even really like it.
• Yup, I'm going for the pastries and the latte just comes along for the ride.
• I order it extra hot so that it will still be warm when I get wherever I'm going, but the truth is...
• .... I have to get extra-hot because I'm focused on getting the baked goods or breakfast sandwich first!
• So, insight, I'm treating myself to pastry NOT coffee. Although in reality it is often both.

OK Starbucks we're over. I won't say never again, but certainly not as often. 


I'm a tea girl. Plain, no milk or sugar please. 

And this decision is really good for me - take a look at the math...