The Experiment - Weekend Warrior
All last week I pretty much hovered at the same weight. This did not please me when it got to Friday. It really can take the wind out of a dieter's sails to go a whole week with no results. When it got to Friday I was a little extra disappointed because who ever loses weight on the weekend? Not me, I can tell you that....in fact, I tend to gain on the weekends. So I made a goal to lose a pound over the weekend. I figured I really had no plans except for going to the museum with my family to visit the Cartier exhibit and go to my brother's to dye Easter Eggs so there were few dieting distractions. My plan: Eat light, eat often, eat mostly proteins, and maybe exercise a little.Friday:
A bunch of boys came over to play video games. I knew they were coming and I knew that they were going to make cheesy pesto paninis sandwiches for dinner. What I did was make my dinner before they came over so I would not be tempted to dine with them. I had a panini but mine consisted of some Alpine Lace swiss cheese (the lowest calorie cheese I can think of), tomatoes, mustard and a light smearing of avocado. It was filling enough to keep me from wanting some of that wonderful cheesy goodness the boys were having, even though that pesto (homemade I might add) was smelling miiiighty good. I did indulge a little on the whole roasted chicken they brought. I figured what is the harm with a couple slivers of lean chicken breast? I managed to go to bed at about 9:30, thereby missing the late night snacking the gamer boys partook in.
Saturday:
I woke up at the same weight I was trying to move down from. This is not surprising or disappointing because I really had done nothing so far to lose any weight. I made what I thought was a perfect breakfast:
Spicy Egg Scramble
I took two eggs, about two tablespoons soy milk, 1 chopped jalapeno, a tsp ground ginger, a half tsp salt and a clove of garlic, chopped and placed it all in a bowl. I whipped it into a frenzy and dry fried it in a little frying pan, trusting the non-stick coating. I placed it all on top of a piece of whole wheat toast.
Calories: 275; Fat: 12g; Fiber: 4g; Protein: 18g
That powered me up with protein, had some fiber to keep me full for a while and some spice to boost my metabolism. I put aside a few slices of the chicken breast to snack on during the day.
I then did a bunch of laundry which my boyfriend offered to do but I thought I would do it myself to burn the calories. I carted the laundry basket up and down the stairs a few times. That being finished, I put some green tea bags in my water bottle and I headed out to the beach. My dog needs to lose a bit of weight too, so we decided to take a walk on the beach then do a smidge of hiking. We climbed up to the top of a lovely hill and reaped the benefits the view offered for a while. When I got home I was famished so I made a salad that used up the left over chicken carcass the boys left from the night before.
Chicken and garbanzo bean salad:
I tossed a bunch of lettuce, a can of garbanzo beans, 4 ounces of chicken breast, 2 tomatoes, 2 ounces of feta cheese, 10 kalamata olives, 2 ounces walnuts, 2 tablespoons capers in a bowl. I added 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil and 3 tablespoons balsalmic vinegar. I actually ATE only one and a half cups of this salad which was about a quarter to a fifth of the whole salad.
Total of whole salad: Calories: 961; Fat: 33g; Fiber: 25g; Protein: 53g
Since I only ate, at most, a quarter of this salad, it came out to under 200 calories but all that protein was great after a hike. After a short rest I went to my brother's for some Easter Egg dying. I had a nice cup of chamomile tea while there. When I got home I just went to bed at about 9:30.
Sunday:
I dont think I can ever come out of a weekend unscathed. There was, as always, diet distractions this day. It began very nice, I weighed in at a half pound down which is perfect. I made another tasty spicy egg scramble, this time without the toast. I met up with my family and we headed to the Legion of Honor, my favorite local museum, to check out the billions of dollars worth of Cartier jewelery on display. I figured this would be harmless because it is a calorie burner, walking around like you do at a museum. I did not count on having lunch. We decided to go to our usual post-museum lunch spot, the Beach Chalet. When we arrived at the restaurant they told us it would be an hour wait so we sat at the bar. I caved and got an Absolut Peppar Bloody Mary. It was so good! But I dont even want to know how many calories were in there. Once seated I took a look at the menu. Carbonara, French Dip, Corned Beef Hash, Steak Frites, Crab Cakes, Burgers, the list goes on. WHAT TO DO?? There werent even any real salads. They had Caesar Salad and a BLT Salad but those are not quiiite healthy. For that amount of calories I would rather just have the Steak Frites. I decided to only order from the appetizer menu figuring at least the portions would be smaller. I ordered Ahi Tuna Tartare. It came covered with a sweet aioli which is basically a mayonnaise but at least it was lean fish and not a huge portion. Some taro chips accompanied the tartare.
When I got home I was feeling a little regret for the Bloody Mary because it was calories I didnt need and it was making me feel lethargic. I spent rest of the afternoon online planning the trip to Maui that this whole diet if for. The boyfriend started to get restless and wanted to go out to eat. There was NO WAY that was happening so I had to think of something to quench his hunger. I rummaged through the refrigerator and found some ground turkey defrosting. I decided to make Turkey Chili
Turkey Chili:
1 pound lean ground turkey
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 small can corn
1 can stewed tomatoes
2 jalapenos, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
3 tbsp cumin
3 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp smoked paprika
1/4 cup chicken broth
(I would have added chili powder if I wasnt out of it)
This came out to be a total of 1281 calories, 33 grams of fat, 33 grams of fiber and 99 grams of protein. I ate none of it but I will have it for breakfast tomorrow. I would say a serving is about 1/5 of the meal meaning this meal is about 256 calories total with 20 grams of protein and 7 grams of fat and fiber each. Not too shabby.
Before I went to bed I had what I call my guilt-tea. I also call it poopy tea for reasons I will soon explain. It is actually called Super Slimming Tea. It comes with a warning on the label. I wont mince words. It is a laxative tea. There I said it. Be VERY careful when taking this tea because it takes about 8 hours before it kicks in and you will not want to be at work or in a car when it kicks in. I take it on days I have strayed from my diet. I take it before I go to bed and when I wake up I am feeling the effects of the tea. This passes pretty quickly and I am off to work with no problems. I do not know if this actually works to help move food out of your body faster or not but it makes me feel like it is doing something and that is good for my psyche. I do not take it all the time, and I do not recommend anyone do that. It would be uncomfortable and it seems unhealthy to be constantly in the bathroom. This is just my emergency fix, weather it works or not, I acutally do not know.
What I DO know is that I woke up Monday morning one pound down from when I woke up Saturday morning!! This is just fantastic. I feel a bit back on track and now I can face this week with more confidence that I will continue to lose weight. At least, I have more motivation. So, here is to a great week, everyone! I will worry about Easter Sunday Brunch at the end of the week....more distractions!!!
My plan this week is to eat pretty much only eggs and chicken because I have an abundance of both. The boyfriend grilled up a bunch of wonderful chicken breasts and I have a ton of hard boiled eggs from the dying event this weekend. I plan to make deviled eggs. A great snack full of protein and filling as well.
So far I have to lose 15 pounds in 60 days. Wish me luck!
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