Saturday, May 29, 2010
No Chocolate in the House
I haven't got any chocolate in the house - for maybe the first time ever. Last night I was OK with that (though I eyed the nuts, I knew I didn't need any sweets) and I was OK in the earlier morning. But now its making me nervous... The good news is my main source of chocolate - Dove Darks - is readily available at the 24-hour Giant. I fully intend to stop by eventually, but not now.
Friday, May 28, 2010
Facing the Holiday Weekend
Looking ahead to a long weekend with only minimal plans in place... what are we doing? What food should I keep around so I can do what I need to do?
I'll have to figure it out on the fly.
I'll have to figure it out on the fly.
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Got to Count
I slacked off this week on counting calories. Several events made it hard to estimate, and so I just blew it off and grabbed a number for the day.
The free iphone app I use has a limited database, and often is off when I check labels. If I graze at a party or food bar, it becomes very difficult to get portion size and an accurate count. But it's better than not counting.
Yesterday, I didn't log anything during the day but I just did and am disappointed in the result. I was fine till dinner, and went to a small chain restaurant for takeout. I was torn between two dishes, and took the one I was pretty sure had more calories. I had decided on dessert, and I got one of those huge bakery cookies. (I was treating and punishing myself simultaneously for not handling an adolescent incident properly.)
But had I looked things up first, I'm pretty sure the results would have been quite different. There was a whole TWO HUNDRED calories difference between the two dishes I was on the fence over. But the real topper was the cookie. According to the web site, one cookie has THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY calories!!! It wasn't even all that good. I ended up with as many calories as I did on the cruise. So unnecessary.
Know before you go. And count and plan. This is basic beginning-of-the-diet stuff, and when doing anything different from my same old routines, I better count first and eat later.
The free iphone app I use has a limited database, and often is off when I check labels. If I graze at a party or food bar, it becomes very difficult to get portion size and an accurate count. But it's better than not counting.
Yesterday, I didn't log anything during the day but I just did and am disappointed in the result. I was fine till dinner, and went to a small chain restaurant for takeout. I was torn between two dishes, and took the one I was pretty sure had more calories. I had decided on dessert, and I got one of those huge bakery cookies. (I was treating and punishing myself simultaneously for not handling an adolescent incident properly.)
But had I looked things up first, I'm pretty sure the results would have been quite different. There was a whole TWO HUNDRED calories difference between the two dishes I was on the fence over. But the real topper was the cookie. According to the web site, one cookie has THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY calories!!! It wasn't even all that good. I ended up with as many calories as I did on the cruise. So unnecessary.
Know before you go. And count and plan. This is basic beginning-of-the-diet stuff, and when doing anything different from my same old routines, I better count first and eat later.
Friday, May 21, 2010
I Found the Problem
Eating the whole 450 calorie bar of (absolutely terrific) chocolate bark with everything in it, instead of just a quarter of it like I'd planned. That was what made me go over calorie budget. So simple, really. Just eat a little bit of it and stop and I'd be fine.
Clearly, I can't be trusted to buy and have around good chocolate. On the other hand, I hate to spend any calories at all on mediocre chocolate. It appears the only thing I can manage to ration out are the Dove Darks. They are nearly perfection in their balance of darkness and sweetness and melt in your mouth texture. Yet, they are so familiar to me I can leave some in the package - I don't have to finish it all at once. And at 35 calories each, I can have a couple or a few. Rarely do I go nuts on them. But every now and then I want something different.
Maybe I need to find a candy store that sells individual filled chocolates. For like $2 each. That would cut down the buying and eating of them.
I love cookies and cakes more than straight candy, but the calories in those actually add up much faster than the calories of pure chocolate. A single big bakery chocolate chip cookie can easily be 300 or more calories on its own. I aim at no more than 150 calories worth of an evening treat.
Sigh. Have to keep working on how to balance having my candy and not eating it, too.
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Walking at lunch
"Why Mr. Olnutt! I never supposed a mere physical experience could be so exhilarating!"
My office was cold and stuffy. The day was grey and miserable. My knees hurt. My hand hurt. I was hunching over from cold and stress. I had a lot of work, but some thinking and planning that needed doing. I had to get out.
This is the walk I took today at lunch:
Route: Wash Monument
Activity: Walk
Shortened Google Maps URL: http://j.mp/cSHVkg
Started: May 18, 2010 12:07:51 PM
Walk Time: 33:34
Stopped Time: 0:00
Distance: 1.77 miles
Average: 18:57 /mile
Fastest Pace: 15:19 /mile
Climb: 112 feet
Calories: 145
I wasn't sure I was going to go because it was cold and rainy. But I brought my slicker into the office so it was an option, then I changed to the Nikes not because they were necessary but in case my feet got wet.
At first it was as nasty as I supposed. I had the slicker zipped and the hood up, even though it was not actually raining. I had planned to go in a different direction from my usual, just to shake things up. I hesitated on the direction once I got out there, because that meant starting with my back to the wind and I usually prefer to go upwind first - whether sailing, walking, or biking. But I stuck with my plan, thinking I would be warmer on the way back just from the exercise.
I work in one of the greatest places on earth. It's the capital of the free world, and my office sits on the nation's front yard, the National Mall. In one direction is the Capitol. In the other, the Washington Monument, and on down that direction are the other memorials and, in season, the cherry blossoms. I've just got to get out more and appreciate it.
I started out in the Ripley Garden, an absolute gem of a tiny little eden with a single queen in charge of it, the gardener I've seen for several years. She was pointing out a different forms of the same plant to tourists from the middle of the bed she was working in. I plowed past the carousel and the Hirschorn sculpture garden, gave a pass to the National Gallery's sculpture garden, and hung a left at the Natural History Museum, remembering an article I just read about the hominid exhibit there. Must get back there to see it - maybe with a kid? Oh joy, they are staying open until 7:30 pm this summer, according to their banner.
After a bit, I really opened up and started striding. I stood up straight and felt the muscles in my thighs stretching with every step. It felt good! The wind and the damp became exhilarating rather than depressing.
I like looking at the people I pass. There were the government gnomes like me, male and female all with their tags around their necks, usually in twos or threes talking as much as walking. There were the runners, lean and scantily clad, most often solo, usually with ipods in their ears. The school trips, with matching tshirts and all the kids ignoring the anxious chaperones sheepdogging them along. The earnest mid-westerners in sensible shoes and shoulder bags, paying their respects at the war memorials and gazing at the Constitution. The Japanese tourist turning the map and himself round and round trying to get oriented properly. The twenty-something with an enormous backpack striding along purposefully towards the expressway. The uniformed security guard at the Washington Monument stepping away for a cigarette break. The motorcycle escort for the limo with unknown flags on its fenders, running a red light and followed by a black SUV with lights flashing.
The base of the Washington Monument rests on a little hill. I can see the monument from my office, but the view from it is different from the view to it. I could see down the reflecting pool to the Lincoln Memorial, and to the Potomac and Virginia beyond it. I've walked all over that territory, especially a few years ago when I trained for the Avon Two-Day. Many places to go and things to see. It will be years before I get tired of this.
On the way back, I noticed the new little vegetable garden outside the Agriculture Department - I'd read about it in the Post. I passed through the Enid Haupt Garden, full of palm trees and other tropical delights in containers that have inspired some of my more dramatic gardening gestures. I loved feeling the brisk wind in my face and unzipped my slicker. I felt the mechanics of walking, the muscles moving, my spine straightening, and I wanted to go on for hours.
Alas, responsibilities won out and I went back in to work. But it was really good.
Monday, May 17, 2010
Keep Moving
"Keep movin' with a motion that'll make you want to get in your rowboat and row."
Line from Dan Hicks, "Where's the Money?"
This is the secret to burning mucho calories. Saturday was a new record (personal training, elliptical machine, three supermarkets, and a kids vs grownups soccer game). Made up for three pieces of pizza afterwards.
Sunday also was a good day. More food shopping, some laundry, cleaning, gardening and cooking. Far from a record but way above where today will come out. Today was a rainy day with no time for anything but actual work at work.
Keep movin' with a motion that'll make you want to--- (fill in your preference here).
Line from Dan Hicks, "Where's the Money?"
This is the secret to burning mucho calories. Saturday was a new record (personal training, elliptical machine, three supermarkets, and a kids vs grownups soccer game). Made up for three pieces of pizza afterwards.
Sunday also was a good day. More food shopping, some laundry, cleaning, gardening and cooking. Far from a record but way above where today will come out. Today was a rainy day with no time for anything but actual work at work.
Keep movin' with a motion that'll make you want to--- (fill in your preference here).
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Cooking for the Family
One of the hardest transitions I've made is switching to the mode of planning family meals. I've lived alone (mostly) since 1981, and I have only needed to satisfy myself in the kitchen. Since I happily eat almost anything, this was really easy to do. I fell out of the habit of having actual meals a long time ago. By that I mean, I didn't make multiple things for me to eat. I've been pretty much a one-dish consumer of food for decades. When asking myself "what's for dinner?" the answer would generally be one single word. Sometimes there were multiple ingredients, but it usually ended up all smooshed together.
Now, I've got to make family dinner four or five nights a week. We don't often sit down to eat on Friday or Saturdays, but I have very strong motivation to make sure we have dinner at the dining room table together. That means not only actually cooking, but shopping, storing, and planning how to pull it together when I don't usually get home from work until six.
I know most women end up doing this for a couple of decades without thinking too much about it - it's just the way life is for most people. But for me it was a shift, and so I've had to think my way through how to make it happen. For most of last year, I was thrilled to simply be able to put something on the table the kids would actually eat. I didn't think about what I wanted or what I was eating - no time or energy to spare for that. The fact is, the kids like things that are surprising to me, but each has their idiosyncrasies that add up to my believing at one point that there was no single food on the planet all three kids would eat. Except lobster, and I won't kill my meals myself, so that was not a possibility. Finally we've settled on a few acceptable meals in rotation, but if any one of them happens too often, they decide against it for a while. They like to cook, but not to make family meals. If I push too hard on the "if you don't like it, make your own friggin' food" then the whole sitting down together thing is going to fall apart.
At least I don't have anyone threatening to become a vegetarian - we're all pretty much meat-atarians. I read a lot about food production a few years ago, and I decided I would only eat meat from happy animals. That mostly meant farmer's market and Whole Foods meat. When I started cooking for the family, I had to compromise a lot on that. The kids vetoed "grass-fed milk" - don't like the taste. The extra money for happy meat seemed excessive when it was for six or more instead of one. Eggs and chickens we eat still had happy lives until they became food. Pork mostly graces our table in the form of sausage, and that is at least organic. Lamb is a staple for us, and most comes from New Zealand with acceptable production, and I can get local at Whole Foods for fairly reasonable prices. But beef--- I buy it on sale at Whole Foods when I can, but most of it is straight factory farming from CostCo. The price differential is just too much.
Most meals for the kids are meat and rice. Or meat and pasta. Or meat and bread. Less often, meat and potatoes. They like fish, and I'm trying to learn to cook it. (I like eating fish, but for some reason I've never liked dealing with uncooked fish. Some kind of phobia from fish gone bad in my past, I guess.) Grilled meats, curries (lamb and chicken), ground meat with sauce (spaghetti, sloppy joes, tacos), all work well. Strong preference for red meat over chicken or turkey. They don't eat vegetables. They do eat fruit, and I've just decided not to fight a battle over "try one bite".
Since I've been trying to lose weight, I've re-introduced vegetables to the dinner table. I don't do salads, since I often eat one for lunch. But cooked vegetables can be easy. I have my idea of how the meal ought to fit together, so I don't just pull a vegetable out at random. I only buy fresh vegetables when I have a definite plan to serve it as part of a meal in the next couple of days. I've thrown out too many slimy black vegies to just have them hanging around, and I can't compost for fear of rats. I'm fine with frozen vegies rather than none at all. I pretty much skip the rice or pasta and use the vegie as a vehicle for the sauce, if there is any. Sometimes I sneak vegies into the meat dish, in small discrete quantities, and always allow them to pick them out if they insist.
HS always takes a serving of vegetables. A pleasant surprise is that my oldest nephew has decided vegetables are a good thing. He always eats whatever I serve. Sometime in the last year he became interested in health and fitness, and clearly got the vegetables as miracle food story from somewhere.
This weekend I ended up with four trips to three different food stores. I spent five hundred dollars on mostly meat at CostCo, refilling the freezer. That will last a while. I got fruit and fresh vegies at Whole Foods, along with lunch supplies for myself, and I got canned goods and staples at the local regular supermarket. I wrote out menus for every day this week. There should be good variety to choose from for a few weeks into the future, but the hard work is figuring out what I have, moving it from the freezer to the fridge in advance, and filling in any gaps.
This is not quite a routine yet, but at least we're into a rhythm and I'm finding a balance between taking care of myself and everybody else too.
Now, I've got to make family dinner four or five nights a week. We don't often sit down to eat on Friday or Saturdays, but I have very strong motivation to make sure we have dinner at the dining room table together. That means not only actually cooking, but shopping, storing, and planning how to pull it together when I don't usually get home from work until six.
I know most women end up doing this for a couple of decades without thinking too much about it - it's just the way life is for most people. But for me it was a shift, and so I've had to think my way through how to make it happen. For most of last year, I was thrilled to simply be able to put something on the table the kids would actually eat. I didn't think about what I wanted or what I was eating - no time or energy to spare for that. The fact is, the kids like things that are surprising to me, but each has their idiosyncrasies that add up to my believing at one point that there was no single food on the planet all three kids would eat. Except lobster, and I won't kill my meals myself, so that was not a possibility. Finally we've settled on a few acceptable meals in rotation, but if any one of them happens too often, they decide against it for a while. They like to cook, but not to make family meals. If I push too hard on the "if you don't like it, make your own friggin' food" then the whole sitting down together thing is going to fall apart.
At least I don't have anyone threatening to become a vegetarian - we're all pretty much meat-atarians. I read a lot about food production a few years ago, and I decided I would only eat meat from happy animals. That mostly meant farmer's market and Whole Foods meat. When I started cooking for the family, I had to compromise a lot on that. The kids vetoed "grass-fed milk" - don't like the taste. The extra money for happy meat seemed excessive when it was for six or more instead of one. Eggs and chickens we eat still had happy lives until they became food. Pork mostly graces our table in the form of sausage, and that is at least organic. Lamb is a staple for us, and most comes from New Zealand with acceptable production, and I can get local at Whole Foods for fairly reasonable prices. But beef--- I buy it on sale at Whole Foods when I can, but most of it is straight factory farming from CostCo. The price differential is just too much.
Most meals for the kids are meat and rice. Or meat and pasta. Or meat and bread. Less often, meat and potatoes. They like fish, and I'm trying to learn to cook it. (I like eating fish, but for some reason I've never liked dealing with uncooked fish. Some kind of phobia from fish gone bad in my past, I guess.) Grilled meats, curries (lamb and chicken), ground meat with sauce (spaghetti, sloppy joes, tacos), all work well. Strong preference for red meat over chicken or turkey. They don't eat vegetables. They do eat fruit, and I've just decided not to fight a battle over "try one bite".
Since I've been trying to lose weight, I've re-introduced vegetables to the dinner table. I don't do salads, since I often eat one for lunch. But cooked vegetables can be easy. I have my idea of how the meal ought to fit together, so I don't just pull a vegetable out at random. I only buy fresh vegetables when I have a definite plan to serve it as part of a meal in the next couple of days. I've thrown out too many slimy black vegies to just have them hanging around, and I can't compost for fear of rats. I'm fine with frozen vegies rather than none at all. I pretty much skip the rice or pasta and use the vegie as a vehicle for the sauce, if there is any. Sometimes I sneak vegies into the meat dish, in small discrete quantities, and always allow them to pick them out if they insist.
HS always takes a serving of vegetables. A pleasant surprise is that my oldest nephew has decided vegetables are a good thing. He always eats whatever I serve. Sometime in the last year he became interested in health and fitness, and clearly got the vegetables as miracle food story from somewhere.
This weekend I ended up with four trips to three different food stores. I spent five hundred dollars on mostly meat at CostCo, refilling the freezer. That will last a while. I got fruit and fresh vegies at Whole Foods, along with lunch supplies for myself, and I got canned goods and staples at the local regular supermarket. I wrote out menus for every day this week. There should be good variety to choose from for a few weeks into the future, but the hard work is figuring out what I have, moving it from the freezer to the fridge in advance, and filling in any gaps.
This is not quite a routine yet, but at least we're into a rhythm and I'm finding a balance between taking care of myself and everybody else too.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Too Many Cookies
The title says it all. Except kid stress drives me to them, and besides my hand hurts so I deserve them, right?
I fell two weeks ago and bent my fingers on my right hand WAY back. Since they stopped getting better after a week I finally saw a doctor today. Nothing is broken, but it'll take a long time to heal, so I should go back and see them if my hand isn't better by September. Excuse me? September? Seriously? A whole summer of gardening, sailing and kayaking with a half useless hand? Oh yes, actually I'm supposed to maybe not use it so much.
Of course cookies will make everything better. Of course they will.
- iPhone uPdate
I fell two weeks ago and bent my fingers on my right hand WAY back. Since they stopped getting better after a week I finally saw a doctor today. Nothing is broken, but it'll take a long time to heal, so I should go back and see them if my hand isn't better by September. Excuse me? September? Seriously? A whole summer of gardening, sailing and kayaking with a half useless hand? Oh yes, actually I'm supposed to maybe not use it so much.
Of course cookies will make everything better. Of course they will.
- iPhone uPdate
Friday, May 7, 2010
What's Working, What's Not
I love data. I love looking at numbers and making them tell a story. That's partly why I love all my gadgets so much. My BodyMedia Fit (what a clunky name - that's why I call it my tracking device) collects all kinds of data. It uploads it to their website, and presents the info to me in attractive, well thought out graphical form. But it also allows you to download most of it (daily numbers, but not details during the day) into excel. What a playground of raw data for me to crunch into nice tasty bits of stories! I stayed up too late one night graphing how little sleep I get. That's a tale for another day. Now I want to show my calories in versus calories out since I got the device in January.
Because I can control what I eat and how much I move, everything on this graph is within my control. The blue lines are how many calories the device says I burned in 24 hours. I plotted the actual daily totals, and then to be able to really detect trends, I dropped in a moving seven day average as the thicker, smoother line. The red lines are how many calories I compute I eat each day, again with a moving average to smooth out daily variations and better show trends.
What do I learn from studying this graph? Only one day have I consumed more than I have eaten (on the cruise, of course) since I've been keeping track. So it makes sense I'm losing weight. I generally have been running about a 500 calorie deficit, so it also makes sense that I'm only losing weight very slowly.
I can also see that my vow to really focus on the fruits and vegetables, cut out the bread, and stop the sweets after 8 pm has been effective at dropping my calories recently. In the few days since I first did this graph, I've vowed to be more active every day, and indeed there is a recent upward trend. Today I was going to go for a lunchtime walk, but I foolishly stayed at my desk and worked instead.
I am surprised to see how much higher my daily activity levels were back in January - that is when I got back on the NerdicTrak, and going to the gym at lunch. I guess that really works. I really don't know if I can add that back in on a very regular basis now, however. Maybe on Sundays? Or maybe if I just stay out in the garden and work that will help just as much. It certainly is a great time of year to be active outdoors.
Looking at the data shows me what I am capable of and so it inspires me to get back to it. I would love to spend more time playing with the numbers, trying to gain insights - how about if I regress the calorie deficit against the change in my weight? I ought to be able to create a personalized equation for how big a gap I need to lose a pound. But I've already spent too much time this evening sitting still here in front of the computer. I need to get some sleep because I've got a very active day tomorrow!
Because I can control what I eat and how much I move, everything on this graph is within my control. The blue lines are how many calories the device says I burned in 24 hours. I plotted the actual daily totals, and then to be able to really detect trends, I dropped in a moving seven day average as the thicker, smoother line. The red lines are how many calories I compute I eat each day, again with a moving average to smooth out daily variations and better show trends.
What do I learn from studying this graph? Only one day have I consumed more than I have eaten (on the cruise, of course) since I've been keeping track. So it makes sense I'm losing weight. I generally have been running about a 500 calorie deficit, so it also makes sense that I'm only losing weight very slowly.
I can also see that my vow to really focus on the fruits and vegetables, cut out the bread, and stop the sweets after 8 pm has been effective at dropping my calories recently. In the few days since I first did this graph, I've vowed to be more active every day, and indeed there is a recent upward trend. Today I was going to go for a lunchtime walk, but I foolishly stayed at my desk and worked instead.
I am surprised to see how much higher my daily activity levels were back in January - that is when I got back on the NerdicTrak, and going to the gym at lunch. I guess that really works. I really don't know if I can add that back in on a very regular basis now, however. Maybe on Sundays? Or maybe if I just stay out in the garden and work that will help just as much. It certainly is a great time of year to be active outdoors.
Looking at the data shows me what I am capable of and so it inspires me to get back to it. I would love to spend more time playing with the numbers, trying to gain insights - how about if I regress the calorie deficit against the change in my weight? I ought to be able to create a personalized equation for how big a gap I need to lose a pound. But I've already spent too much time this evening sitting still here in front of the computer. I need to get some sleep because I've got a very active day tomorrow!
Sunday, May 2, 2010
A Day with Sun and Water
Yesterday was a very active day and I'm feeling a bit of the aftermath right now. I started with the gym, and then went directly up to the boat and sailed and then worked on it for a while. I was exhausted when I got home at 7:30 and pretty much just flopped on the couch until going to bed relatively early.
I wore three quarter sleeves, capris and a hat because I was afraid of the sun. I slathered all over before I left the house but still bundled up. It was cold enough on the water with a nice breeze blowing over 58 degree water that this was no burden. Still, I feel today the nice glow of slightly sunburned skin, in just small enough places with small enough severity it feels good.
My magic calorie counting device does not think I burn a lot of calories while underway sailing. I'd probably have to agree with it, yet the fresh air makes me hungry. Something to keep in mind as I move through the summer. The desire to have a beer to top off the sun and exercise was tremendous, but I just said no because it wasn't in the budget. It worked out. The beer called more faintly and for a shorter period of time than chocolate seems to.
Today is the garden day. I hope to significantly exceed the calorie burn of yesterday while maintaining the eating discipline - that might be harder because I'll have more eating options all day. But onward and upward (or downward on the scale I hope).
I wore three quarter sleeves, capris and a hat because I was afraid of the sun. I slathered all over before I left the house but still bundled up. It was cold enough on the water with a nice breeze blowing over 58 degree water that this was no burden. Still, I feel today the nice glow of slightly sunburned skin, in just small enough places with small enough severity it feels good.
My magic calorie counting device does not think I burn a lot of calories while underway sailing. I'd probably have to agree with it, yet the fresh air makes me hungry. Something to keep in mind as I move through the summer. The desire to have a beer to top off the sun and exercise was tremendous, but I just said no because it wasn't in the budget. It worked out. The beer called more faintly and for a shorter period of time than chocolate seems to.
Today is the garden day. I hope to significantly exceed the calorie burn of yesterday while maintaining the eating discipline - that might be harder because I'll have more eating options all day. But onward and upward (or downward on the scale I hope).
Saturday, May 1, 2010
Goals for the Weekend
To get our of my rut, I'm just going to set small, immediate, goals for the weekend. I can control what I do and what I eat - the scale will read whatever it wants.
Today, Saturday, I'll start at the gym an hour from now. I'm going to eat my ounce of cheese first. From the gym, I'll go to Whole Foods, where I will buy -- -- a salad from the salad bar for lunch for today. Fresh vegetables for tonight and for tomorrow - probably asparagus, and zucchini if it looks good, green beans if it doesn't. Maybe I'll buy a cooked chicken for tonight. I may not be eating with the folks tonight, and chicken and zucchini sounds good to me. The cooked chicken would be good for lunches as well.
Tomorrow night, Sunday, salmon and asparagus. Serve it with rice and an onion and tomato gravy. Buy a second salad for lunch tomorrow. Greens and some meat, but mostly greens.
Exercise will come today on the boat, but I bet my magic device will say that I don't burn lots of calories on the boat. Tomorrow, I'll mow the grass, and spend other time with laundry and gardening. The goal tomorrow is to keep moving. Let's see if I can get another record for calories in one day, by never sitting down the whole day. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other.
As I wake up, I am reminded by how I feel that I felt yesterday like I might be getting sick. So that could throw me off activities, but there is no reason it should throw off my eating. I have soups here, ready to eat. They are terrific calorie bargains. So plan b, if I go the poor pitiful Pearl route, is salads and cooked chicken and fresh vegetables plus soups. Lower on the activity, but still basic chores.
This is just for the next two days. Focus on the next two days and making my goals for them.
Another goal - do not get sunburned this weekend! Temperatures in the 80's are expected!
Today, Saturday, I'll start at the gym an hour from now. I'm going to eat my ounce of cheese first. From the gym, I'll go to Whole Foods, where I will buy -- -- a salad from the salad bar for lunch for today. Fresh vegetables for tonight and for tomorrow - probably asparagus, and zucchini if it looks good, green beans if it doesn't. Maybe I'll buy a cooked chicken for tonight. I may not be eating with the folks tonight, and chicken and zucchini sounds good to me. The cooked chicken would be good for lunches as well.
Tomorrow night, Sunday, salmon and asparagus. Serve it with rice and an onion and tomato gravy. Buy a second salad for lunch tomorrow. Greens and some meat, but mostly greens.
Exercise will come today on the boat, but I bet my magic device will say that I don't burn lots of calories on the boat. Tomorrow, I'll mow the grass, and spend other time with laundry and gardening. The goal tomorrow is to keep moving. Let's see if I can get another record for calories in one day, by never sitting down the whole day. Just keep putting one foot in front of the other.
As I wake up, I am reminded by how I feel that I felt yesterday like I might be getting sick. So that could throw me off activities, but there is no reason it should throw off my eating. I have soups here, ready to eat. They are terrific calorie bargains. So plan b, if I go the poor pitiful Pearl route, is salads and cooked chicken and fresh vegetables plus soups. Lower on the activity, but still basic chores.
This is just for the next two days. Focus on the next two days and making my goals for them.
Another goal - do not get sunburned this weekend! Temperatures in the 80's are expected!
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