I'm BAAAACKK!!
So, if you'll recall, last summer I was doing the Dukan Diet - a very strict, low carb/ high lean protein plan that worked well, but that I found hard to go back to once it was over. Admittedly, I didn't do the best job at actually fulfilling the 4th phase of the plan (wherein I was supposed to eat normally 6 days of the week and do a no carb day 1 day... yea... that didn't happen so much... at all).
Winter did a number on me as well... I start craving warm comfort food like cheezy pastas etc... and then in the Spring, I did a 10 week student teaching stint where I ate whatever I could get my hands on in the 20 minutes I had to actually eat during the day. I mean, I did what I could to be healthy... but the teachers' lounge is a notorious place for sweets and all manner of sinful food. I didn't fall TOO far off the wagon, but I backpedaled about 5-6 pounds since last year. BOO....
I thought about doing Dukan again - but I still haven't completely gotten over my aversion to cottage cheese and at the end of the day I just couldn't face it. SO, in the interest of expedience, I have decided to try the 17 day diet. I found the first phase (which is sort of like a food detox) very doable. I can eat lean chicken, turkey, and fish (no pork or beef unfortunately), unlimited veggies, and two servings of fruit per day (before 2pm). I can also have yogurt/ probiotic dairy products and stuff life salsa, condiments etc. as long as they are low sugar/ carb.
As I did last time, I'll try to post recipes and daily menus. :)
Here we go again!!
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Making Friends
Ok... so, this is sort of embarrassing... and I would be lying if I said that I didn't feel like sort of a loser for admitting it.. but I've lived in Chicago for 3.5 years and I really don't have any close girlfriends to show for it. Sad, right!?
Making friends, outside of a college-environment is incredibly difficult. People are busy... lots of people my age are married, working full-time, or parents! Finding fun, like-minded women to hang out with is like finding a needle in a proverbial haystack. Add to that the fact that I am naturally a homebody... and my dislike for crowded bars and clubs... it's ridiculous. I have a couple girls that I can call to hang out with... and a few that I really love and connect with - but life always interferes: kids, husbands, work, grad school, BLAH!!
Honestly, I'm yearning for the type of friendship that I had with my college BFFs... the kind where we'd laugh nonstop about stupid stuff that no one else understands, make late night trips to Wal-Mart and sing Backstreet Boys karaoke in aisle 3..... wear sweatpants and eat Nutella straight out of the jar.... the kind of friendship that doesn't require planning or penciling someone into your already-crammed datebook.
Does this kind of friendship exist in your late-20's?? Does anyone else feel this way??
Making friends, outside of a college-environment is incredibly difficult. People are busy... lots of people my age are married, working full-time, or parents! Finding fun, like-minded women to hang out with is like finding a needle in a proverbial haystack. Add to that the fact that I am naturally a homebody... and my dislike for crowded bars and clubs... it's ridiculous. I have a couple girls that I can call to hang out with... and a few that I really love and connect with - but life always interferes: kids, husbands, work, grad school, BLAH!!
Honestly, I'm yearning for the type of friendship that I had with my college BFFs... the kind where we'd laugh nonstop about stupid stuff that no one else understands, make late night trips to Wal-Mart and sing Backstreet Boys karaoke in aisle 3..... wear sweatpants and eat Nutella straight out of the jar.... the kind of friendship that doesn't require planning or penciling someone into your already-crammed datebook.
Does this kind of friendship exist in your late-20's?? Does anyone else feel this way??
Sunday, November 6, 2011
Not Dukan-Related - but noteworthy all the same.
So, remember when I said I was going to go back on Dukan to lose another 6 pounds... yea.... that didn't so much happen. Part of the reason is that Fall is my favorite season... and part of Fall, for me at least, is enjoying delicious food (most of it pumpkin flavored)... so, when I thought about going back on Dukan and not being able to enjoy honeycrisp apples, pumpkin-flavored coffee creamer, and all the other autumnal deliciousness, it made me quite sad. I don't like being sad, so I didn't do it.
HOWEVER, after I returned from my New York trip - I had gained about 4 pounds which put me back up to around 140. Some of this was due, I think, to irregularity (sorry, gross I know) but it was also due to the fact that it is illegal (or should be illegal) to go to NYC without enjoying NY style pizza, hot dogs from vendors replete with sauerkraut, ketchup and mustard, and honey roasted chestnuts. So, I ate those things. Lots of them. And, to be honest, I don't regret it at all.
Going to New York also gave me a chance to visit with BF's parents - two completely delightful people whose company I thoroughly enjoy - whereupon, they told us their secret to daily health and never getting sick. BF's mom described how each morning she gets out her trusty blender.... and throws in all the fruits and veggies they have available along with nuts (almonds, etc) and some raisins and craisins..... and they both drink it. Sounds simple right? Simple and GENIUS - they haven't had a cold in 2 years. SERIOUSLY. And, their skin is beautiful - they definitely don't look like they should or could have a 27-year-old son.
So, when we got back to Chicago, I decided to try it. BF has been saying that he wants to eat healthier.... so, I figured this might be an easy way to get a ton of fruits and veggies into our diet. For the past week, we've each had a fruit/veggie smoothie in the morning... and then we've eaten normally for the rest of the day (although, admittedly, I've been trying to eat a majority of fruits and veggies throughout the day - along with whole grains).
I've lost all the weight I gained. I'm back down to 135. Best of all, it has been completely painless. And, I have felt great - the smoothie really does fill you up for a quite a while in the morning, and it's really really tasty. :)
Here are some of the fruits and veggies I've tried in various combinations:
Apple
Pear
Tangerine
Banana
Strawberries
Carrots
Celery
Broccoli (BF has tried this, I have not yet)
Iceberg Lettuce
Along with adding:
Almonds
Walnuts
Raisins
Craisins
and a splash of unflavored soy milk.
The only suggestion that I have is that you try to make sure to have as many veggies as you do fruits - its tempting to put mostly fruits in there - but trust me, you won't taste the veggies as much as the fruit. You don't need any sort of sweetener either. The sweetness from the fruit is more than enough to make the smoothie taste really good.
Give it a try! You might be pleasantly surprised at the results!!
HOWEVER, after I returned from my New York trip - I had gained about 4 pounds which put me back up to around 140. Some of this was due, I think, to irregularity (sorry, gross I know) but it was also due to the fact that it is illegal (or should be illegal) to go to NYC without enjoying NY style pizza, hot dogs from vendors replete with sauerkraut, ketchup and mustard, and honey roasted chestnuts. So, I ate those things. Lots of them. And, to be honest, I don't regret it at all.
Going to New York also gave me a chance to visit with BF's parents - two completely delightful people whose company I thoroughly enjoy - whereupon, they told us their secret to daily health and never getting sick. BF's mom described how each morning she gets out her trusty blender.... and throws in all the fruits and veggies they have available along with nuts (almonds, etc) and some raisins and craisins..... and they both drink it. Sounds simple right? Simple and GENIUS - they haven't had a cold in 2 years. SERIOUSLY. And, their skin is beautiful - they definitely don't look like they should or could have a 27-year-old son.
So, when we got back to Chicago, I decided to try it. BF has been saying that he wants to eat healthier.... so, I figured this might be an easy way to get a ton of fruits and veggies into our diet. For the past week, we've each had a fruit/veggie smoothie in the morning... and then we've eaten normally for the rest of the day (although, admittedly, I've been trying to eat a majority of fruits and veggies throughout the day - along with whole grains).
I've lost all the weight I gained. I'm back down to 135. Best of all, it has been completely painless. And, I have felt great - the smoothie really does fill you up for a quite a while in the morning, and it's really really tasty. :)
Here are some of the fruits and veggies I've tried in various combinations:
Apple
Pear
Tangerine
Banana
Strawberries
Carrots
Celery
Broccoli (BF has tried this, I have not yet)
Iceberg Lettuce
Along with adding:
Almonds
Walnuts
Raisins
Craisins
and a splash of unflavored soy milk.
The only suggestion that I have is that you try to make sure to have as many veggies as you do fruits - its tempting to put mostly fruits in there - but trust me, you won't taste the veggies as much as the fruit. You don't need any sort of sweetener either. The sweetness from the fruit is more than enough to make the smoothie taste really good.
Give it a try! You might be pleasantly surprised at the results!!
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Here we go again!
I've decided - after stepping on the scale this morning - to do another round of Dukan. Over the past few weeks, I feel like I've been struggling more with keeping the weight off. I've not experienced a significant gain... but the weight is not staying off as effortlessly as before. It could be that I'm more stressed and hurried now that that work and school have started up again. And there's something about the onset of cooler weather that makes me want to surround myself with carbs and pumpkin-flavored desserts.... SO... in the interest of heading that carb-addiction off at the pass, I am going to Dukan it for a few days and put things back in perspective.
Also - we're heading to NYC at the end of October... and I want to look svelte and fabulous for the Big Apple. :) Yea, I just used the word "svelte".... get over it. Prepare yourselves for regular blog posts again - and new menus!! Since this is my second go-around, I'm going to try to be more inventive and daring with Dukan recipes. This should be fun!
In other news, Fall has officially hit Chicago. Summer ended rather abruptly - apparently Mother Nature decided to strictly observe the Labor Day Unofficial End of Summer... because the weather has been cool and intermittently rainy since then. I, personally, have NO issue whatsoever with this. I'm looking forward to yanking the ACs out of the windows soon and enjoying the crisp loveliness of my favorite season. I even went so far as to put my summer clothes away yesterday. It was a bold move - seeing as how seasons in the midwest are notoriously unpredictable.... oh, well.
School and work, as I mentioned, are back in full swing. School moreso than work really.... I'm not sure that there IS a "full swing" for work... it is what it is, I guess. Classes are going well so far - I only have one physical class that I have to go to every week, the other one is online. This means that, inevitably, I forget about it all week until the day all the assignments are due.... then I panic and work all day to get everything submitted in time. It's not really an effective construct for learning... but I'm sort of beyond the point of caring by now. Being able to attend class in jammies is CLEARLY more important than actually LEARNING stuff... duh.
So, tomorrow starts Dukan 2.0.... I will be improvising with the groceries I have for now. I only have to do 2 days of PP, and 17 of PP/PV.... so I'm not that concerned about it. I'm also going to try to get back into working out at least a few times a week. Jillian Michaels has been staring balefully at me from the dusty cover of her workout DVD..... quite creepy actually.
Also - we're heading to NYC at the end of October... and I want to look svelte and fabulous for the Big Apple. :) Yea, I just used the word "svelte".... get over it. Prepare yourselves for regular blog posts again - and new menus!! Since this is my second go-around, I'm going to try to be more inventive and daring with Dukan recipes. This should be fun!
In other news, Fall has officially hit Chicago. Summer ended rather abruptly - apparently Mother Nature decided to strictly observe the Labor Day Unofficial End of Summer... because the weather has been cool and intermittently rainy since then. I, personally, have NO issue whatsoever with this. I'm looking forward to yanking the ACs out of the windows soon and enjoying the crisp loveliness of my favorite season. I even went so far as to put my summer clothes away yesterday. It was a bold move - seeing as how seasons in the midwest are notoriously unpredictable.... oh, well.
School and work, as I mentioned, are back in full swing. School moreso than work really.... I'm not sure that there IS a "full swing" for work... it is what it is, I guess. Classes are going well so far - I only have one physical class that I have to go to every week, the other one is online. This means that, inevitably, I forget about it all week until the day all the assignments are due.... then I panic and work all day to get everything submitted in time. It's not really an effective construct for learning... but I'm sort of beyond the point of caring by now. Being able to attend class in jammies is CLEARLY more important than actually LEARNING stuff... duh.
So, tomorrow starts Dukan 2.0.... I will be improvising with the groceries I have for now. I only have to do 2 days of PP, and 17 of PP/PV.... so I'm not that concerned about it. I'm also going to try to get back into working out at least a few times a week. Jillian Michaels has been staring balefully at me from the dusty cover of her workout DVD..... quite creepy actually.
Monday, August 29, 2011
8 days
8 Days... that's all that's left of my "mini" summer vacay. Part of me is happy... as having nothing to do (literally nothing) is both relaxing and nerve-wracking for someone like me. Part of me is nervous too... I am now in the second year of my Master's program and the clock is ticking down towards student teaching, graduation, and actually getting a job. Obviously, I'm excited by all this.... but I'm nervous about the transition from teaching in theory, to teaching in practice. I'm hoping that it will be everything I have envisioned.... I guess only time will tell.
As a consolation, BF and I are planning some excursions this fall. Fall is, after all, my most favorite season. :-) In October, we are flying to New Jersey/ NYC to see BF's parents and visit for a few days. I'm very much looking forward to this as I've not been out there since BF and I first got together (which, if memory serves was in '06 or '07). I've also never had the pleasure of seeing New York in the Autumn... which, I've heard, is spectacularly beautiful.
For Labor Day, I (and perhaps BF) will be making the journey to Minnesota to see my sister and her husband. We will also be joined by our parents and various newly-engaged and newly-married cousins... which, I'm sure, won't be awkward or pressure-inducing at all for BF and myself. (Although, honestly, wouldn't mind a *little* pressure on BF on that front!!)
Diet-wise... I've been eating REALLY badly. So badly, in fact, that when I stepped on the scale this morning I honestly expected nuclear-level fallout. To my intense surprise... still holding steady at 135. It is incredible. I feel like a braggart saying all this.... but I swear, it's the truth and nothing but the truth. So, another testament to the efficacy of the Dukan method I guess. :)
Happy Monday everyone!
As a consolation, BF and I are planning some excursions this fall. Fall is, after all, my most favorite season. :-) In October, we are flying to New Jersey/ NYC to see BF's parents and visit for a few days. I'm very much looking forward to this as I've not been out there since BF and I first got together (which, if memory serves was in '06 or '07). I've also never had the pleasure of seeing New York in the Autumn... which, I've heard, is spectacularly beautiful.
For Labor Day, I (and perhaps BF) will be making the journey to Minnesota to see my sister and her husband. We will also be joined by our parents and various newly-engaged and newly-married cousins... which, I'm sure, won't be awkward or pressure-inducing at all for BF and myself. (Although, honestly, wouldn't mind a *little* pressure on BF on that front!!)
Diet-wise... I've been eating REALLY badly. So badly, in fact, that when I stepped on the scale this morning I honestly expected nuclear-level fallout. To my intense surprise... still holding steady at 135. It is incredible. I feel like a braggart saying all this.... but I swear, it's the truth and nothing but the truth. So, another testament to the efficacy of the Dukan method I guess. :)
Happy Monday everyone!
Monday, August 22, 2011
I'm BAAACK!!!
Oh friends... it has been FAR too long... I do apologize for my lengthy absence from the blogosphere. But, I'm back now... (and the villagers rejoiced! Huzzah!)
The last half of July went by very fast. I had a WONDERFUL vacation with my parents in the mountains. It was actually sort of funny - I had been to those same places about a million times growing up - but I might as well have been seeing them for the first time. It is sort of shameful how little attention I gave to the beautiful scenery when I was a kid/ teenager. I took lots of pictures.... and my parents and I got along VERY well, despite the tight quarters. I think we're already making plans on where we want to go next year - hopefully BF will be able to join us as well!!
Got back in August... shifted abruptly from having WAY too much to do.... to having absolutely nothing to do. While that might sound blissful and awesome, for someone like me... too much free time is just as stressful and disconcerting as too little. I've been trying to throw myself into home improvement projects.... this weekend, for instance, we had a little yard sale outside our apartment. I'm planning on going out today too, to see if I can sell some more stuff. I'm getting rid of a lot of my "fat" pants.... since, thanks to the Dukan Diet, I don't need them anymore.
Now to the question you've all been dying to know the answer to: has she gained any of the weight back?! I'm happy to say that the answer is NO! About halfway through my mountain odyssey, I gave up on sticking to the Stabilization phase exactly. I tried not to go off the deep end... but when you're out on vacation you want to live a little and have a nice time. So, I ate in moderation... had lots of salads... and tried to get as much exercise as I could. My mom and I made a point to bring a scale along on the trip... but after about the first 3 days, neither of us used it. I decided to gauge myself by how my clothes were fitting. When I got back to Chicago - I weighed myself on my home scale and saw that my weight was still - after 2 weeks of non-Dukan eating - holding steady at 135 (give or take a pound or so on any given day). Since being back, I've been eating normally. Not adhering to any sort of "plan" just eating like I normally would... and the weight has stayed off. I'm very pleased.... and it's nice to be able to eat what I want. Everything in moderation! :)
Stay tuned for some vacation pics!
(Happy now, Kathryn!?! hee hee!!)
The last half of July went by very fast. I had a WONDERFUL vacation with my parents in the mountains. It was actually sort of funny - I had been to those same places about a million times growing up - but I might as well have been seeing them for the first time. It is sort of shameful how little attention I gave to the beautiful scenery when I was a kid/ teenager. I took lots of pictures.... and my parents and I got along VERY well, despite the tight quarters. I think we're already making plans on where we want to go next year - hopefully BF will be able to join us as well!!
Got back in August... shifted abruptly from having WAY too much to do.... to having absolutely nothing to do. While that might sound blissful and awesome, for someone like me... too much free time is just as stressful and disconcerting as too little. I've been trying to throw myself into home improvement projects.... this weekend, for instance, we had a little yard sale outside our apartment. I'm planning on going out today too, to see if I can sell some more stuff. I'm getting rid of a lot of my "fat" pants.... since, thanks to the Dukan Diet, I don't need them anymore.
Now to the question you've all been dying to know the answer to: has she gained any of the weight back?! I'm happy to say that the answer is NO! About halfway through my mountain odyssey, I gave up on sticking to the Stabilization phase exactly. I tried not to go off the deep end... but when you're out on vacation you want to live a little and have a nice time. So, I ate in moderation... had lots of salads... and tried to get as much exercise as I could. My mom and I made a point to bring a scale along on the trip... but after about the first 3 days, neither of us used it. I decided to gauge myself by how my clothes were fitting. When I got back to Chicago - I weighed myself on my home scale and saw that my weight was still - after 2 weeks of non-Dukan eating - holding steady at 135 (give or take a pound or so on any given day). Since being back, I've been eating normally. Not adhering to any sort of "plan" just eating like I normally would... and the weight has stayed off. I'm very pleased.... and it's nice to be able to eat what I want. Everything in moderation! :)
Stay tuned for some vacation pics!
(Happy now, Kathryn!?! hee hee!!)
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Getting Ready to Go...
T-Minus 4 days until I'm on a plane to Iowa ... then it's off to the mountains! I'm starting to get excited... but I'm also completely overwhelmed by the amount of stuff I have to get done between now and then. I've been working as hard as I can to get as much school stuff done as humanly possible. For my Poly Sci class, I've only got one more written assignment, one quiz, and a proctored exam to do.... the other classes...don't ask. In addition, I've got laundry... cleaning.... grocery shopping for BF... packing.... and various work/ school appointments... plus, somewhere in there I want to make time to drop in on some dear friends who just had a baby girl! (Welcome to the world, Megan Joyce Feltes!!)
UGH!!!!
Truthfully, I should not be sitting here blogging when there are dishes to be put away and piles of laundry to be washed.... not to mention homework and packing to do. Oh well..... a few more minutes won't kill me I guess.
In other news, I got some truly ugly, but truly comfortable shoes today. I'm wearing them right now.... trying to break them in around the house before I road-test them on the trip. :)
UGH!!!!
Truthfully, I should not be sitting here blogging when there are dishes to be put away and piles of laundry to be washed.... not to mention homework and packing to do. Oh well..... a few more minutes won't kill me I guess.
In other news, I got some truly ugly, but truly comfortable shoes today. I'm wearing them right now.... trying to break them in around the house before I road-test them on the trip. :)
Oh, I also got my hair chopped off the other day.... I'm still adjusting to having it so short... but with the steamy weather, having less hair has been really nice! :)
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