Excellent Day!

I like the shirt-over-tee look.
Note the gold sneaks. First time wearing,
but I want to make sure they will be comfy 
for France.

Yesterday was my birthday, and many lucky things came together. It was sunny, and the warmest day so far this year. I spent the morning out in the garden, doing long-neglected chores. The only member of my globe-trotting family actually in town had locked in dinner and a movie with me for the evening. It stayed lovely and warm and we were able to sit outside for dinner. As it turns out, the movie Project Hail Mary was absolutely fabulous, a rare 5 stars from me. As my girl said, "competence porn and the cutest alien ever" made for a rousing end to the night. 

Prepping for my French trip is on my mind, especially how to manage eating while traveling. I used the day to experiment with some food.

 I've been really very good at eating to hit my goals. But, I live alone and mostly eat alone. That makes things way easier to control things. For my birthday, I decided to choose food first and track only after eating. I am curious - what choices will I make when I listen to my body and figure out what I really want? And, alcohol. I've been on the drug for 5 1/2 weeks, but I haven't had a drink. How would that go over?

I've noticed that I get hungrier much earlier in the day than before. With an ambitious protein target, I've started eating very early. I'm up between 6-7, and by 7:30 (or earlier) I have been eating either a cup of cottage cheese or half or a whole bottled protein shake. Then, after exercise and getting dressed, I have a second breakfast. So, on my birthday, I dutifully wolfed down a portion of cottage cheese before going off to the supermarket to replenish my fruit supply. I decided I could treat myself to a pastry, and browsed the selection. While an apple turnover has been my absolute favorite, I went with a standby - a blueberry scone. I found, when I did a gut check to see what feels good (as opposed to sounds good), the less sweet and fat but more filling alternative hit the mark. When I checked later, it turns out they are fairly even in terms of points-heavy and protein/fiber poor. 

The breakfasts kept me satisfied as I busied myself in the garden. I had lunch after noon, driven as much by the clock as hunger. I wanted to pace myself so that I would be hungry for an early dinner out. I had a simple meal of lean meat and fruit, no urge for carbs. In the late afternoon, I wanted a pick-me-up, and I had some delicious halvah. 

I picked the Irish bar based on wanting a good beer and the ability to sit outside. My poor vegan girl was stuck with side dishes, fries and spinach and mushrooms. As I went through the menu, I was sure I was hungry but equally sure I wouldn't be able to finish anything I ordered. Again, trying a gut check, imagining how I'd feel after eating anything. Fish and chips had been on my mind, but I didn't think that would work. I love their red meat entrees, beef stew and lamb stew, shepherds pie and corned beef and cabbage, but they seemed heavy for what was feeling like a summer day. So I ended up with a club sandwich, with a side salad. And a couple of my girl's fries. I didn't finish the beer (though it was wonderful) and took half the sandwich home, where it's today's lunch. 

After dinner, we stashed my leftovers in the car, and stopped at Ben and Jerry's before the movie. I got their smallest cup, chocolate fudge cake, and loved it but was satisfied before I was done. Very rare for me to toss unfinished ice cream in the trash! 

So when I tracked today, it ended up being 62 points! For reference, my daily allotment is 23 points, with roughly 20-30 points to spread over the week. So my birthday put me in the hole, I'm showing negative weekly points! But, a joy of Weight Watchers is a daily reset on the daily points (I've got another 23 today) and a weekly reset on the weekly extras. So I can't start a day or a week already behind. But, despite all the points, I made neither the protein nor fiber targets. 

What did I learn? That thinking "no rules" doesn't mean I'll go absolutely bonkers. It was just under 1600 calories. I regret nothing, except maybe the late-afternoon halvah (5 points). A tangerine or an apple would also have worked on my desire for a little sugar boost. I also noticed a real difference between what sounded good in the abstract, the kind of thing I used to really want, and how I imagined it would make me feel after I ate it. I have some data to base those imaginings on. I am pretty sure one of the reasons I didn't go bonkers is because of the sense of fullness that comes easily to me. There is a lag between eating and feeling my stomach, but my projecting forward of how I'll feel in the future is based on what's been happening recently. Also, eating slowly allows the feelings to catch up before I've gone too far.

In other news, my furnace broke the same time as my clothes dryer. The furnace is fixable, but four figures worth. The first couple of dryer repairmen I called told me mine is a piece of crap that they won't work on. (Word in the 'hood is most appliance repairmen are quirky curmudgeonly types. Give me a break, I respect experts in all fields, but I don't feel like catering or coddling.) I also owe taxes and have a big boatyard bill coming up. So I've decided to forego a dryer for the time being. I strung a clothesline in the back yard, and I've got a drying rack in the basement. Just a couple of blocks away is a nice lavanderia with a convenient and not terribly expense wash-and-fold service - I used that after my knee operation when I couldn't handle the basement stairs. So I'll limp along, perhaps until I get back from France.