OK. I've enjoyed this forum so much I decided to start a log. I do most of my logging on computer so may just summarize here. I had a big long intro typed up with lots of details about my first few days of Leigh's challenge and lost it all so this initial post may be short.
I'm 48, married for 25 1/2 years now and have one daughter. I live in the Pacific Northwest rainy western Washington. By profession I'm an RN and work part time as an educator. I've exercised for many years now at least to the best of my ability with my weight. Health wise I have diabetes although well controlled, allergies, asthma and am obese.
My nutrition goals right now:
Weight/fat loss: I'm doing Leigh's 30 day challenge as an official participant although when all is said and done I don't know how well I'll qualify to stay in the running. I'm kind of modifying the challenge to meet my needs and goals while doing my best to do the Big Meals and have fun.
Right now my current goal is to increase my protein intake. I've done the limit your portion to the size of a deck of cards for so long I've been typically under 20% of my calories which is too low. It's only been a few days but the Big Meal challenge where you plan an entire days food and then divide it up is helping I think.
And of course there's the never ending issue of maintaining blood sugar control.
My exercise goals I'll talk about later I have been sick so am still on a rest week.
Big Meals: I've actually made 4 in two days and weighed and portioned them out to eat later in the week. This is one area where I'm modifying the Big Meal concept. I'm trying to limit my preparation of food to once daily and preplan everything but I like variety so am not eating the same thing all day long. So far so good with the exception of needing to treat some low blood sugars the last 24 hours. Now if I can just keep my family from eating my pre-portioned food. I'll post more about the meals later.
I'm camera and computer illiterate but was able to get hubby to take pics and he'll put them on a web page for me. I'll post a link when he's done along with stats. I did post stats on Leigh's page.
20-Oct-08 Calories 1480.03 Protein 120.95 Fat: 54.42 Carbs: 125.57
__________________ It all starts with the mind, but the thoughts, the intention aren't enough. Action needs to come next. Dream it, believe it, plan it, execute it, celebrate it. - Wendy
Breakfast: Kashi Go Lean, 2%milk, 1/2 banana
Snack: Creamer in black coffee
Lunch: Chicken, Potatoes, and Asparagus
Dinner: Ham, Broccoli, homemade mac and cheese
Busy day today. Worked half a day and then took my daughter to two dr's appts. They had to open up her gum and irrigate it out (she recently had her wisdom teeth out) and then she had a follow-up for a sinus infection that's not clearing up. So tomorrow she goes for a CT scan and then she'll need to go back to the Dr. next Monday for results and decide what to do next.
Still no exercise yet I'm still pretty wiped out from being sick. My antibiotics seem to be doing the trick though I'm doing better for the most part.
Surprisingly enough today ended up being a pretty good day eats wise as I had to alter my original plans to keep my blood sugar up and sometimes do all this on the fly. Things have been a little haywire--when I'm sick I have to really crank up the insulin and now that I'm on the mend I've been tending to go too low despite cutting back the insulin. I also totally forgot about adding in yogurt while on antibiotics so killed two birds with one stone.
Breakfast: greek yogurt, fruit(mixture of melon, pineapple blueberries), whole wheat mini bagel, light cream cheese
Snack: glucose tabs, 1/2 banana
Lunch: chicken and stuffing casserole, green salad, Balsamic vinaigrette
Dinner: Ham and veggie crustless quiche
Snack: Fat Free tapioca
One nice thing about preparing foods in advance is that I had options to sub for breakfast and lunch already in my fridge. Total cooking time was only once today I made the crustless quiche--basically Leigh's 1250 calorie veggie frittata although I used ham.
I was still within my calorie limit (I can go up to 1650 depending on activity) and actually got a fair bit of protein in despite needing to switch to carby foods. Still I'm happy with the 100 grams it's more than I typically was eating earlier.
Blood sugar: Meter lo/high: 62/123 Sensor lo/high: 65/131 Total insulin: 50.55
Exercise: 40 minutes stationary bike steady state cardio low intensity. I didn't want to push it too much this week.
Just a quick update. Had a longer post and hit and the wrong key and lost it.
It's kind of hard to eat your home-cooked prepared meal at work when you leave it sitting on the counter at home. But still could have done worse considering I had to buy lunch.
Breakfast: oatmeal, string cheese
Lunch: grilled teriyaki chicken sandwich
Snack: lite yogurt
Dinner: small slice each of pepperoni and canadian bacon/pineapple pizza, green salad, lite Balsamic vinaigrette
Snack: skipped not hungry
Ok this will be only a partial update right now as I can't find my tape measure anywhere. I am down 3 lbs this week. I think I've figured out how to add pics of my saved info so want to try now. Hopefully I will be back later with more info if I find my tape measure otherwise I'll have to wait on stats till after buy another one tomorrow.
This is a picture of the download from my continuous glucose sensor for the week. I am pasting to see them together with food on one page as I can make comparisons better but also thought techno geeks may find it interesting.
One good thing about eating one big meal is that I feel full faster. Variety in tastes and texture makes me crave more food. If you have heard about Shangri-La diet, it's the same principle. At least that's the way I feel.
To make protein requirement I put my protein in first thing. Like 8 oz chicken, some fat-free cheese, and eggs. Then I plan everything else around the protein to create a tasty meal. I think it works for me.
Your meals look very interesting. Enjoy the journey!
OK, I'm still trying to get all of this figured out. Hopefully will be able to post beginning and week one photos here.
I haven't been able to paste in my measurements chart at the same time but I'm down 3 lbs and on average 1 or 2 inches. Obviously a whoosh (I was about due for one) and water fluctuations but I'm not going to complain.
I haven't been able to paste in my measurements chart at the same time but I'm down 3 lbs and on average 1 or 2 inches. Obviously a whoosh (I was about due for one) and water fluctuations but I'm not going to complain.
Keep at it. It starts off as water and later turns into lipids.
I'm doing Leigh's 30 day challenge as an official participant
Lucky you!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by dianas
Right now my current goal is to increase my protein intake. I've done the limit your portion to the size of a deck of cards for so long I've been typically under 20% of my calories which is too low.
I think that deck of playing cards size is if you are eating 6 meals per day, the guidance per meal with that is about 20-25 gm protein. I've also been under with protein on the OBM, eating about 120-130 g ... I'm hungrier when that happens...
Etana I've been living by the ADA (American Diabetes Association) and AHA (American Heart Association) guidelines for so many years and they both tend to recommend lower protein ie 6-8 ounces for the whole day for women.
I use Crosstrainer to log my food/workouts. It's a purchased program but has a free trial.
My hubby found a screen shot capture program for me to use and I just take a screen shot of the crosstrainer summary. You can either do the whole page or just crop what you want. The program is called MWSnap3. I think it's free but I don't know the URL. When he gets home tonight I'll ask him.
Calories:1521 Protein:103.93 Fat:66 Carbs:125 Fiber:23 Exercise: Decided to use OPT training for a few weeks since I'm still a little under the weather. Did A1 and Recovery
Monday October 27, 2008
Calories: 1915 Protein:134 Fat:61 Carbs: 205 Fiber:23 Exercise: A2 plus 20 minutes of steady state cardio (stationary bike HR 70-75%) planned to do 40 but had to stop cause blood sugar tanked. Aggravating I thought I had cut back enough on the insulin but apparently not. Not sure why I'm having more trouble with lows right now what I'm eating isn't that much different than previously and it's also more consistent so theoretically sugars should be more stable not worse. Although I seem to recall having lows before when I'm on antibiotics.
My calories are over today by 265 calories for my max of 1650. My unplanned food for the low came to 270 calories all together. (Had a fruit snack for the sugar and it was still going to be 2 1/2 hours till dinner so needed extra to keep me up so had a Kashi Go Lean Bar). I decided not to cut back my dinner portions to compensate.
Nothing exciting food wise mainly pre-portioned leftovers although tonight I cooked a pork tenderloin roast. I also made some bread today a new recipe smells really good it's an oatmeal spice bread. It smells really good.
Tomorrow will be a long day at work so may not be back till Wednesday.
Just wanted to pop in with a brief summary of the last three days.
28-Oct-08 Calories 1634.01 Protein 66.46 Fat 80.57 Carbs: 166.12 Fiber: 8.12
Long work day. Tuesdays sometimes involve a business lunch and I didn't know how the evening would end up being or what was involved so didn't plan well. I did ok calorie wise but low on protein high on fat.
No exercise--planned day off
29-Oct-08 Calories: 1553.15 Protein: 99.77 Fat: 53.92 Carbs: 163.18 Fiber 14
Pork stir fry is the new meal (using leftover pork roast from Monday) and had other leftovers for lunch and breakfast. I also had a small piece of the oatmeal spice bread as part of my breakfast. It was pretty good. Exercise: OPT A1, 40 minutes steady state cardio
30-Oct-08 Calories: 1470.7 Protein: 126.1 Fat: 48.62 Carbs:139.21 Fiber: 19.71
New meal: chicken fajitas, mexican rice and black beans
Must admit I'm getting tired of leftovers although I am learning more about how much food/protein I need to have daily to increase my protein intake. Exercise: none today I had planned on either today or tomorrow being a rest day depending on how the two days went so I guess it's today. Was very busy today although it sure seems like I don't have a whole lot to show for it.
Here with a brief update regarding week 2. Overall things are going well and I'm happy with the weight and inches lost. I'm also pleased overall with my compliance. I've been preparing my food once daily as much as possible and with the exception of dinner one day everything has been according to plan. I have had to make ongoing adjustments based on blood sugars but that's just life with diabetes so I don't consider that as being off plan or screwing up.
My hubby hasn't been able to take photos yet and that's not something I can do myself so pics will probably be either late tonight or tomorrow. I will try and upload my charts here (I've had some trouble with that today. Not sure why it isn't working.)
Since the weekly summary above lists calories through today I just want to briefly update my exercise for the past two days.
Yesterday I did about 50 minutes of cardio--kickboxing. Probably not quite steady state but not really intervals either. Felt good although I could feel it in my ankle afterwards. Kind of weird the pain is like tendonitis which I've had a zillion times in other tendons but as near as I can tell this is coming from the achilles and started after I fell last week. I also did recovery as outlined in OPT.
Today I did A1 from OPT.
Today was also a refeed day but I have no idea if I did it right or not. Leigh's tips in the podcast were helpful. Thanks Leigh!!! I tried to eat extra carbs but keep things somewhat balanced and did spread things out over the day instead of piling them all into 6 hours. It looks like today was about 50% carbs, 30% fat, and 20% protein. My sugars were pretty decent though at least during the day despite all the extra food. That's a relief I usually don't eat anywhere near 280 grams of carb in a day I'm used to around 130 to 150 on average and rarely go over 200 grams. My sugar did spike to 264 but that was in the middle of the night before the refeed. I'm not sure why that happened although it may have been an adrenaline high from the exercise the evening before although I usually don't do that after cardio. Exercise and blood sugars can be kind of tricky. Sometimes I need to keep insulin the same or even take extra like for weight training because of adrenalin and such things. Other types of activity like endurance or cardio usually require less insulin. And of course there's enough times things don't go in the direction you expect. It's another of those areas where all you can do is test, test, test and react accordingly. This is one area where having the sensor is really helpful. It gives me sugar readings every 5 minutes so I can see trends. Right now it says my sugar is 166 and is going up at a rate of 20 to 40 points a minute. If that continues I'll know I need to take some extra insulin to cover tonight's workout.
It's past midnight so thought I'd post a pic of refeed sugars from pump and sensor download. I'm very happy with these numbers. How many times have I said thanks Leigh now? She's awesome.
Talk about adding another complicated variable to weight loss. It sounds like keeping your sugar levels are a bit of a struggle, but sounds like you've got a good handle on it.
Talk about adding another complicated variable to weight loss. It sounds like keeping your sugar levels are a bit of a struggle, but sounds like you've got a good handle on it.
I wouldn't say living with diabetes is a struggle I've had this for 20 some odd years now and I've been on insulin for at least the last 15. You get used to it and it's actually easier to make your insulin match your life than vice versa. When dealing with a constantly moving target being able to make changes on the fly is a good thing. Most of the time the day to day adjustments are a habit and I don't really think about them much. I'm on a pump so I can just push some buttons to change the insulin. But the past two weeks haven't been the norm for me what with being sick and making some changes to my diet. It doesn't bother me and I'm not complaining it is just part of my reality.
I'm glad I tried the refeed even if I most likely technically didn't need one right now. It was a good learning experience. It also goes to show that if I don't log I can pack away a lot of calories. Surprisingly enough my weight is actually down another pound today.
I know these are late but here are my beginning and week 2 pictures. Hopefully. This digital image stuff is way more complex than I ever imagined. And my hubby has actually done most of the work here. If I ever participate in another challenge I will have to pick up a cheap camera and figure out how to do this myself. That way I won't have to work around my hubby's schedule and availability. I also don't have to worry about doing something wrong to his $3000 camera.
I know they're not the same size but it's the closest I can get it.
Stayed on plan with food. I think instead of posting details I will stick to a summary on the weekends. I like that little chart.
Exercise: OPT A2. Recovery
November 3, 2008.
I think I'm getting sick again. I'm really nauseated and I think this sinus infection might be coming back. Unfortunately I can't get in to see a dr again till Thursday and they won't refill antibiotics without an appointment. I don't think it's the deficit if that bothers me it's usually different and not this pukey. Right now I'll be sticking to things like toast and soup and just taking it easy.
You are doing great! Sorry you are getting sick! Just take it easy... hopefully it will clear up quickly. Keep getting plenty of fluids!
I hear you about working around hubby's availabililty for pix. My hubby works rotating shifts, so some weeks he is on days, some evenings, some graveyard. And days off are not necessarily weekends. He was working Saturday... but is off today, for instance. So I pretty much HAVE to do the pix and measuring tape myself!
You'd like having your own camera... they pack a lot of features into even the cheaper cameras these days. I use an Olympus C-5050, which I bought used from KEH.com for $350 and it has the remote even. As much as I HATE taking pictures of myself, it is a good thing to do on a fat loss journey.
Love the look of your home gym! That's something I wish I had... maybe one of these days! Though I have accumulated some useful stuff like a ball, a step and some adjustable dumbbells for here at home.
Yeah for Crosstrainer... I got that back in 2006 and just love the program!
On protein... I never used to eat enough either. I started learning to do so on Precision Nutrition, but it took a while before it really started to become habit. I've felt better and been healthier since doing it though. It was a gradual process though, as I've never been much of a protein eater in the past. As someone else said, plan the protein first, then fill in your fats/carbs around it.
You are doing great! Sorry you are getting sick! Just take it easy... hopefully it will clear up quickly. Keep getting plenty of fluids!
I hear you about working around hubby's availabililty for pix. My hubby works rotating shifts, so some weeks he is on days, some evenings, some graveyard. And days off are not necessarily weekends. He was working Saturday... but is off today, for instance. So I pretty much HAVE to do the pix and measuring tape myself!
You'd like having your own camera... they pack a lot of features into even the cheaper cameras these days. I use an Olympus C-5050, which I bought used from KEH.com for $350 and it has the remote even. As much as I HATE taking pictures of myself, it is a good thing to do on a fat loss journey.
Love the look of your home gym! That's something I wish I had... maybe one of these days! Though I have accumulated some useful stuff like a ball, a step and some adjustable dumbbells for here at home.
Yeah for Crosstrainer... I got that back in 2006 and just love the program!
On protein... I never used to eat enough either. I started learning to do so on Precision Nutrition, but it took a while before it really started to become habit. I've felt better and been healthier since doing it though. It was a gradual process though, as I've never been much of a protein eater in the past. As someone else said, plan the protein first, then fill in your fats/carbs around it.
Anyway, feel better and keep up the good work!
Cynthia
Thanks for stopping by Cynthia I appreciate it. Actually somewhere here we have a cheap point and shoot it's just been so convenient to let hubby do it. I probably need to look into doing more myself though.
I can relate to your hubby's schedule. I'm a nurse and so for years I did various shifts, worked weekends, holidays etc. Now my job is clinic based and so it's more 9 to 5 and no more weekends, holidays, nights etc. I didn't know what to do with myself for a while after the switch.
I am most definately sick again the sinus infection is coming back with a vengeance. I was able to get an appointment with my PCP for tomorrow and will do that instead of the allergy specialist on Thursday. I could have seen someone today but I don't have any coverage at work and hate to cancel patients when I'm not contagious or only running a low grade temp. Nurses are terrible at taking sick days although I did take two days off sick the first time around.
These last two days have been off plan food wise although I don't remember the totals right now. I agree it's easier to start with the protein and fill in the rest. The counts may be a little under or over at the end of the day though as I'll just change the totals. If my chicken breast actually weighs 5 ounces instead of the 6 ounces I planned then I just make do with the 5 ounces I won't thaw or add an extra chicken breast to make the total. I've also been focusing on getting my protein in food. It would be easy enough to supplement with a protein bar or shake if needed but would rather wait and incorporate that later if needed. My first priority food wise is carb counting (not aiming for a certain total but need to know how many grams to dose insulin), second is calories, and third is protein.
Read through your log - interesting. Res not quite big enough piece of chicken - I keep a cooked ham in the fridge, and use it to up protein as needed. My standard is Harmel Spiral, toss the honey pack.
I agree infections are a bummer. I have to work keep averages from going more than 10 pts over my goals. Rob
Sorry to hear the sinus infection is coming back. Take it easy... and don't worry too much about being off plan, just do the best you can and recover!
Rob's suggestion is a good one... I usually keep some store bought oven roasted turkey breast around so I can up protein as needed. Hubby likes it, so it serves two purposes. Cottage cheese can work too, though I've found that I tend to be a bit more congested when I have that in my diet, so for the moment it is not present.
Real food is better than shakes generally, you got that right, but don't be afraid of incorporating the occasional protein shake either. I started out by using a lot of protein shakes or protein puddings to get my totals up, but then gradually went more to regular food. I still usually do one shake a day though. And if things get weird or I am particularly tired, two shakes.
I think I'm getting sick again. I'm really nauseated and I think this sinus infection might be coming back. Unfortunately I can't get in to see a dr again till Thursday and they won't refill antibiotics without an appointment. I don't think it's the deficit if that bothers me it's usually different and not this pukey. Right now I'll be sticking to things like toast and soup and just taking it easy.
Ick, about the sinus infection. That's the one thing with our recently lovely weather - my sinuses are bugging me again. I'm going in tomorrow for a flu shot (not an appointment, just a drop in). I'll have to make a point not to even hint that I'm not feeling well.
Thanks everybody for checking in I appreciate all the comments. I'm back on antibiotics a different one this time. Hopefully it'll do the trick for good.
I still need to get my flu shot. Usually our flu season here is late spring so actually mid to late November is the time my dr prefers us to get the shots.
Not much of an update this week due to illness. I am hopefully attaching pics, chart, food, etc. In brief down 1.5 lbs this week total of 5.5 lbs over 3 weeks. I've not really been doing OBM (One Big Meal) this week--there have been days I've used some convenience food like boxed potatoes and frozen pizza or my hubby has been in charge of food. But I did log all my food intake. It was enlightening. I tend to undereat when sick even with higher calorie foods consumed. Explains why I usually don't gain weight when ill.
I'm considering upping my calories for the remainder of this challenge. I'm pleased with the weight loss and it really hasn't been all that uncomfortable. I've been wondering though if losing almost 2 lbs a week while ill with a sinus infection could be part of the reason I'm still sick 4 weeks into this bug. On the other hand 1500 to 1700 calories is actually a decent amount of calories overall so I don't think I'm lacking in too many nutrients. I could still be just as sick and 5 lbs heavier today if I hadn't been eating at a deficit. I think I'll just play it by ear.
No exercise this week. Been trying to rest as much as possible.
I just realized the thumbnails didn't come in with titles. The first pic is the beginning photo, everything else is Week 3.
Diana's Journey to Health
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