Super Proud of Me!

I ate really well today AND got in some fun exercise with my friend Holly at Zumba class! It is such a great feeling to do well on both food & exercise for the day.

BREAKFAST (8:30 am)

½ cup cottage cheese + ½ cup Dole peaches + 1 TBSP Justin’s Maple Almond Butter + 1 slice whole grain bread + dash nutmeg. Coffee w/ splash of milk

LUNCH (1:00 pm)

2 cups ginger broccoli slaw + 1 serving Back to Nature Organic Stoneground Wheat Crackers + 1 Trader Joe’s all natural beef hot dog, chopped + pickle relish, stadium mustard, diced onion, Trader Joe’s organic ketchup

SNACK (4:30 pm)

1 cup organic apple slices + 1 Laughing Cow Light Blue Cheese wedge + 1 TBSP Justin’s Maple Almond Butter + dash nutmeg

DINNER (7:30 pm) – Mexican!!

1 cup strained Pomi brand tomatoes + ¼ cup chopped red onion + ½ cup frozen corn + ¼ cup black beans + 2 Trader Joe’s all natural fully cooked meatballs + chopped avocado, dash cumin, chopped cilantro, lime juice

2 Week Crunch!

I have only 2 weeks left until my deadline, which also happens to be my son's birthday! Things have been absolutely crazy busy insane lately. I haven't been able to keep up with my blog...


BREAKFAST (8:30 am)

Blackberry Maple Almond Butter Toast:

2/3 cup frozen blackberries, thawed
1 slice whole grain bread, toasted
8 oz. organic skim milk
1 TBSP Justin's Maple Almond Butter
Dash nutmeg

Don't know why, but I just couldn't eat the full cup of berries.


LUNCH (1:30 pm)

Refried Bean Pita:

1 cup shredded purple cabbage, 1/2 cup all-natural salsa, 1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 of a whole grain pita
1/2 cup vegetarian refried beans
1/4 cup Wholly guacamole
Dash cumin

Again, I just couldn't think of what else to add in the pita to meet the full 2 cups of veggies that is required.

I had my daily dark chocolate right after lunch.


SNACK (4:30 pm)

Nutmeg Parfait:

No fruit (I planned on having a kiwi, but forgot my peeler)
No whole grain
6 oz. honey vanilla greek yogurt
2 TBSP slivered almonds
Dash nutmeg

I did the elliptical for 30 minutes after work.


DINNER (7:30 pm)

Lentil and Feta Cheese Salad with Confetti Rice:

1 cup fresh spinach, 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper, and 1/2 cup chopped zucchini (sauteed)
1/2 cup Trader Joe's cooked confetti rice (not whole grain, but so delicious!)
1/4 cup cooked lentils plus 1/4 cup feta cheese
1 TBSP olive oil for veggie saute
Lemongrass, garlic, ginger, white pepper, and tumeric in the rice

This dish was sooo yummy! I might try to make the confetti rice next time and use whole grain brown rice instead.

Busy Day Yesterday

I'm still having trouble putting random food in my mouth. Yesterday I had a handful of peanuts at work because someone conveniently brought in a "make-your-own brownie" buffet, and peanuts were one of the toppings. I also had a few pretzels while I was cooking dinner. The problem is that I'm starving when it is time to eat my next meal. I need to start eating sooner, like every 3-4 hours instead of every 5 hours. I am also going to do another FF phase starting in a few weeks on April 17 for 3 days.

BREAKFAST (8:30 am)

Peanut Butter Banana Toast with Milk:

¾ of a banana
1 slice whole grain bread, toasted
8 oz organic low-fat milk
2 TBSP Justin’s maple almond butter
Dash nutmeg


LUNCH (1:00 pm)

Panera Bread:

1 cup field greens & romaine lettuce, 1 chopped vine-ripened tomato, chopped cucumber, and red onion
Whole grain baguette
Black bean soup (black beans, vegetarian broth, onion, red bell pepper)
Balsamic vinaigrette for salad. Cilantro, garlic and cumin in soup.


SNACK (5:30 pm)

Coconut cream lara bar
8 oz organic low-fat milk

I had my daily dark chocolate during my snack today.

I jumped on the elliptical for 40 minutes after work.


DINNER (7:30 pm)

Spinach Orzo Pasta with Feta Cheese and Cranberries

1 cup sautéed spinach leaves, ¼ cup shredded carrots, ¼ cup sautéed diced red onion, plus ¼ cup dried cranberries sweetened with apple juice
½ cup whole grain orzo pasta
¼ cup herb and garlic feta cheese
2 TBSP pistachios
Dash balsamic vinegar

Love, love, loved this meal!!

Plus, I had a handful of chocolate chips after dinner.

Day 3 - Success

I'm so tired tonight. Other than a handful of animal crackers that I had after dinner, today was mostly successful. A quick post for the day:


BREAKFAST (8:30 am)

Cranberry Cashew Parfait:

1/4 cup dried cranberries
3/4 cup Kashi Go Lean cereal
6 oz. honey vanilla Greek yogurt
2 TBSP chopped cashews
Dash cinnamon


LUNCH (1:30 pm)

Thai Chicken Wrap:

1 cup chopped cucumber and 1 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 whole grain tortilla wrap
3 oz. cooked chicken breast
2 TBSP Justin's maple almond butter
Dash balsamic vinegar


I had my daily dark chocolate around 2:00 pm.


SNACK (5:30 pm)

Ginger Snap lara bar
8 oz. organic skim milk


I have found a new favorite lara bar, the ginger snap. It is so yummy!


DINNER (8:00 pm)

Zucchini and Black Bean Quesadillas:

1 cup sauteed zucchini, 1/2 cup sliced red onion, and 1/2 cup all-natural salsa
1 whole grain tortilla wrap
1/4 cup black beans plus 1/2 oz. cheese
1/4 of a medium avocado
Dash cumin

Day 1 - Starting Over Again

Wow... Other than the burger I had last Thursday, I've actually done quite well over the past few days that I have been missing again. My son was sick all last week with a double ear infection. It was the most awful thing to see his poor little eyes crying out in pain. I was off of work most of last week taking care of him since he could not go to daycare with a fever. What a relief that he is feeling better today.

I've absolutely had no time to post my Cinch meals over the past few days, but I'm attempting to start again. In exactly 30 days is my son's 2nd birthday and also the date that I set for myself back in January to reach my weight loss goal. I am 6 lbs away from that goal. Here goes the next 30 days! (And then, I'd like to start toning for summer...)

BREAKFAST (8:30 am)

Maple Almond Plum Toast with Milk:

1 plum, peeled and sliced
1 slice whole grain bread, toasted
8 oz. skim milk
1 TBSP Justin’s maple almond butter
Dash nutmeg

LUNCH (1:00 pm)

Asian Sesame Chicken Wrap:

1/2 cup sliced red bell pepper, 1 cup sugar snap peas, 1/2 cup shredded carrots
1 whole grain tortilla wrap
3 oz. cooked chicken breast
1/2 TBSP sesame oil plus 1 TBSP slivered almonds
Dash pepper


I had my daily dark chocolate right after lunch.


SNACK (4:30 pm)

Kimi Nutmeg Almond Crunch:

1 kiwi, peeled and sliced
No whole grain
1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese
2 TBSP slivered almonds
Dash nutmeg


WORKOUT (6:15 pm)

30 minute workout on the elliptical trainer


DINNER (7:00 pm)

Chicken Fajitas:

1/2 cup sauteed onion, 1/2 cup all-natural salsa, and 1 cup sauteed red, green, and yellow bell pepper strips
1 whole grain tortilla wrap
3 oz. cooked chicken breast
1/4 cup Wholly guacamole
Dash cumin

And I had about 8-10 tortilla chips while I was cooking. I was starving!

Day 2 - So Far, So Good

After my post yesterday, I tried to mentally "record" the many food decisions that I was faced with today. It started with breakfast when I toasted my bread in the cafeteria. "I saw the apple cinnamon crumb cakes all beautifully wrapped up in a bowl; I wondered how much the chocolate chip cookies were; I noticed they started adding hummus to the refrigerated case; I thought the type of flavored coffee they made for the day sounded yummy; I looked to see what the salad was for lunch today; the dept admin brought in banana bread and carrot cupcakes and told everyone to come and enjoy." All of this while I simply used the cafeteria toaster!!!

Around 9 am, I realized that I forgot to eat the side of hazelnuts that I brought with me. Around 11 am, I started thinking about my lunch, but managed to keep working hard on my projects, so I wouldn't eat it too early. After lunch, I reached for my desk drawer to have a 100 calorie dark chocolate bar, but I was out! I dug in my change purse for coins (since I never keep cash on me) with the thought that I would check the cafeteria vending machine for a hershey's dark chocolate bar (none available). I realized that I would just go without chocolate today. Then, around 3 pm, someone decided to buy 12 boxes of different kinds of ice cream bars, and the entire marketing department went to get one.

I'm sure there were more food decisions today, but man -- I am tired just thinking (and typing) about it. Amazing that I made it through unscathed:


BREAKFAST (7:30 am)

Banana Ricotta Hazelnut Toast:

½ banana
1 slice whole grain toasted bread
¼ cup low fat ricotta cheese
2 TBSP whole hazelnuts
Dash cinnamon


LUNCH (12:00 pm)

Baja Bean Salad with Whole Grain Tortilla Chips:

1 plum tomato chopped, 1 cup chopped cucumber, and 1/4 cup salsa
1 serving whole grain tortilla chips
1/2 cup kidney beans
1/4 cup Wholly guacamole
Dash cumin




SNACK (3:00 pm)

Apple, Gouda, and Chocolate Peanut Butter:

1 cup apple slices
No whole grain
1 Babybel gouda cheese
2 TBSP Justin's chocolate peanut butter
Dash cinnamon


I had my dark chocolate when I got home from a Dr. appt around 6:30.


DINNER (7:30 pm)

Cranberry Chickpea Orzo Salad:

1 cup sauteed spinach, 3/4 cup chopped zucchini, and 1/4 cup dried cranberries sweetened with apple juice
1/2 cup whole grain orzo pasta
1/2 cup organic chickpeas
2 TBSP slivered almonds
Dash red wine vinegar and dried parsley

Yes, I know the cranberries were technically a "no-no" since you're supposed to have only veggies for your lunch and dinner meals. BUT WHATEVER! Did you see the crazy day I had, and the yummy goodies I could have eaten?

Day 17 - New Favorite Breakfast

Today was slightly better. It certainly started out great with my new favorite breakfast:

BREAKFAST (8:00 am)

Fruity Waffle Sundae:

1 cup frozen Trader Joe's Very Berry Cherry Blend (cherries, blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries), thawed
1 Van’s brand whole grain waffle
¼ cup part-skim ricotta cheese
2 TBSP chopped pistachios
Dash Vietnamese cinnamon

I could eat this breakfast everyday. The Banana Ricotta Hazelnut Toast used to be my favorite, but this one is even better!




LUNCH (12:00 pm)

Mediterranean Lentils with Couscous:

1 cup chopped cucumber and 1 chopped plum tomato
½ cup whole wheat couscous
½ cup cooked lentils
1 TBSP olive oil
Minced garlic




SNACK (4:00 pm)

Cinnamon Yogurt with Apple & Peanut Butter:

1 Gala apple, sliced
6 oz. honey vanilla Greek yogurt
1 TBSP Justin’s all-natural chocolate peanut butter
Dash Vietnamese cinnamon


DINNER (7:30 pm)

Layered Bean Nachos:

3 celery stalks chopped, ½ cup shredded carrots, ½ cup shredded purple cabbage
Too many whole grain tortilla chips :/
½ cup vegetarian refried beans
¼ cup all-natural guacamole
Dash pepper

This alteration of nachos was very yummy!

Day 25 - Pre-Pregnancy Weight!

Apparently 4 days of being on the road and not completely following the Cinch plan didn’t derail my progress too much because the scale is down another pound! I am officially at my pre-pregnancy weight. I’m completely elated and super motivated to continue my weight loss journey on this plan. I also tried on a pair of jeans that my Aunt gave me months ago that I could not fit into at the time, and this morning they fit! I am truly amazed and happy with all of my hard work. By the end of this week, I will have lost 8.5 pounds in 4 weeks. And I am about to start all over again on the Fast Forward phase. I'm thinking that I will only do 3 days since that is what the author recommends in the book if you do it a second time. Next Tuesday through Thursday will be Days 1-3, and then I will do the Core plan for another 27 days, which should bring me to about March 23rd.

Today has been much better than yesterday. I went back to work, and luckily I have some fresh food left in my fridge that hasn’t gone bad yet.

BREAKFAST (8:30 am)

Dark Chocolate Oatmeal and Yogurt with Green Grapes:

1 cup green grapes
¼ cup whole oats
½ cup low-fat cottage cheese
¼ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
Dash cloves

Unfortunately, my green grapes were rubbery, so I didn’t eat many of them. The cottage cheese with a dash of cloves was better than I thought it would be.

LUNCH (1:30 pm)

Turkey (Chicken) Almond Pita:

(I subbed chicken since my turkey slices weren't defrosted from the freezer yet.)

½ cup fresh spinach, ¼ cup chopped cucumber, and ¼ cup chopped plum tomato
½ whole grain pita
3 oz cooked chicken
1 TBSP raw natural almond butter
Dash balsamic vinegar

This pita was awesome!



SNACK (4:30 pm)

Berries & Yogurt with Crackers & Peanut Butter:

(I halved the whole grain and plant-based fat portions of the recipe.)

1 cup frozen Trader Joe's Very Berry Cherry Blend (cherries, blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries), thawed
4 Trader Joe’s whole grain crackers
6 oz vanilla yogurt
1 TBSP Justin’s Honey Almond Butter
Dash cinnamon



DINNER (7:30 pm)

Tuna Pecan Pasta:

1 cup chopped green beans, 1/3 cup chopped onion, 2/3 cup chopped carrots (omitted mushrooms + increased carrots), and ¼ cup low sodium vegetable broth
½ cup cooked whole grain penne pasta
3 oz. canned tuna, in water
2 TBSP chopped pecans
Garlic, oregano, and basil. This time, I added a dash of balsamic vinegar.

I love this recipe too!

I started working on my upcoming grocery list for this weekend tonight as well. I'm trying some new recipes this time as well as some traditional favorites of both me & my husband while I have been on this plan.

Day 23 & 24 - Ugh

Yikes... the days slipped away, and unfortunately so did my diet.

DAY 23:

I certainly had all the best intentions, which is usually the case with breakfast:

BREAKFAST (9:00 am)

1 cup sliced strawberries
1 slice Nutty Oat bread, toasted (didn't have any whole grain bread available)
6 oz. vanilla yogurt
1 TBSP Justin's all-natural chocolate peanut butter
Dash cinnamon

What I really wanted for breakfast was a bowl of cereal, but there wasn't any milk, so thankfully I was able to use my yogurt that I bought during the beginning of our trip. I mixed the berries with the yogurt and cinnamon, and had the toast with PB. I think that I could eat the different varieties of the Justin's nut butters everyday.

LUNCH (12:30 pm) at Brayten's

Salad Bar:

Lettuce, broccoli, cucumbers, onion, 3 or 4 cherry tomatoes
Garlic toasted rye bread croutons (The best whole grain I could find...Is rye even a whole grain?)
Diced hard-boiled egg and 1/4 cup cottage cheese
7-8 black olives and 1 TBSP sunflower seeds
Pepper

It was hard finding something to eat on the menu that would fit the plan. Especially since I was distracted with my son who was wiggling around and did not want to sit still in his high chair. I was really hoping for a big bowl of vegetable soup, but the 3 soups of the day were something creamy with chicken, chili, and tomato. I still find myself eating a lot of cold foods. I want to start eating cooked veggies with lunches & dinners, but it's hard being on this plan and salads seem like the safest bet. Most veggies are cooked with added salt or sugar.

I had my dark chocolate around 2:00 pm.

I skipped the snack because I knew we were having another dinner where I wasn't sure that I could make the plan fit into the meal.

And then, dinner was where it all went South:

DINNER (6:30 pm):

Salad with orange French dressing
1 slice garlic bread
1 small piece of lasagna
And 4 more pieces chocolate from Charlie's candies...

I managed to skip the homemade cinnamon rolls with almond icing that everyone else was having for dessert, so there is a small victory. And I certainly wanted a bigger piece of lasagna (which was super delicious)!



DAY 24:

BREAKFAST (8:30 am)

Pecan Lara Bar
Cappucino with skim milk

LUNCH (12:00 pm)

Panera Bread:

1/2 Classic cafe salad
Whole grain baguette
Black bean soup
Olive oil in the balsamic vinaigrette dressing
Lots of spices in the dressing and soup

SNACK (4:00 pm)

At a gas station:

No fruit available
1 serving of my Dr. Cracker whole grain crackers
Low-fat string cheese
1 TBSP Justin's all-natural chocolate peanut butter
No seasonings/spices

And I had my dark chocolate right after my snack.

DINNER (7:00 pm)

I was so tired when we got home that I didn't feel like cooking, so I ate a frozen Lean Cuisine instead, the Butternut Squash Ravioli.

I'm so looking forward to getting back to the plan tomorrow.

Day 21 - On The Road

Today was pretty good considering that I was completely out of my element and traveling on the road. I packed quite a lot of Cinch friendly snacks to fill in the puzzle pieces for any meal that I might be missing. I packed dried veggies, whole grain crackers, Kashi Go Lean cereal, a few Lara bars, a few 100 calorie packs of raw natural almonds, and a few packs of the Justin's all-natural nut butters. And of course, my daily dark chocolate boxes of 100 calorie bars from Trader Joe's! I even gave a box to my Dad. Next to me, he is the biggest dark chocolate fan I know. Here is how the day went:

BREAKFAST (9:00 am)

McDonald's Fruit and Maple Oatmeal and Skim Milk

Dried cranberries and raisins and red & green apples
Oatmeal
1 jug of low-fat skim milk
100 calorie pack of raw almonds
Spices - probably a few in the oatmeal

At first bite, the oatmeal was VERY sweet. And then I noticed that McDonald's has kindly placed 2 nutrition labels on the side of their oatmeal container: 1 with brown sugar and 1 without the brown sugar. They must be anticipating people to order their oatmeal without the added brown sugar.

And the difference is? About 14 grams. Yikes. 32 total grams of sugar in this baby. I ate a little over half of it. Although, I certainly could have kept going because it was tasty. I paired it with skim milk and a package of almonds I stashed in my food & snacks bag.

LUNCH (2:00 pm) at Cracker Barrel

Salad, Cottage Cheese, and Toast:

2 cups tossed salad (lettuce, tomatoes, red onion only)
1 slice of wheat sourdough toast
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1 TBSP Justin's honey almond butter
Red wine vinegar for the salad

This was perfect for the Cinch plan! I was so proud of myself. Although the bread was probably not whole grain. And I did manage to sneak a bite of a biscuit at the table. Oh well...



A few hours later, we stopped at a Wal-mart to pick-up some misc. things we needed. While there, I bought some low-fat cottage cheese and vanilla yogurt to keep on hand at my parents' house. Shortly after Wal-mart, I had my 100 calories of dark chocolate.

SNACK (5:30 pm)

Chocolate Cookie Dough Lara Bar
8 oz skim milk

At my grandma's house, I was getting hungry for dinner. I also sneaked a slice of deli turkey and a piece of dark chocolate after my snack. Being accountable to "the cheater in me" stinks...

DINNER (8:00 pm)

Grilled Chicken Salad and Whole Grain Crackers with Almond Butter:

1 1/2 cups lettuce plus 1/4 cup Just Tomatoes Etc. dried veggies
1 serving Dr. Kracker whole grain crackers
3 oz cooked fajita chicken (I might have had more than 3 oz... yum)
1 TBSP Justin's honey almond butter
1 TBSP apple cider vinegar and Tastefully Simple Tomato and Pesto dried seasoning mixed spices

This was pretty good. I need to find a way to eat cooked veggies. I don't want to keep eating salads during this trip.



All in all, I didn't do too bad today.