Day 12 - Down Another Pound!

Those 3+ pounds are gone, and I'm down another pound. Hoorah! That is now a total loss of 12.5 lbs. I am so excited.

BREAKFAST (8:30 am):

Banana Ricotta Hazelnut Toast:

1 slice whole grain toasted bread, topped with:
¼ cup low fat ricotta cheese
½ banana
2 TBSP whole hazelnuts
Sprinkled with cloves

I had my daily dark chocolate around 11 am. Wow, I didn't make it very long into the day before I had chocolate, huh?

LUNCH (1:00 pm):

Turkey Almond Pita:

½ cup fresh spinach and 1 chopped plum tomato
½ whole grain pita
3 oz roasted turkey breast
1 TBSP raw natural almond butter
Dash balsamic vinegar


SNACK (4:30 pm):

Minneola Almond Twist:

Wedges from 1 medium Minneola
½ cup non-fat cottage cheese
2 TBSP slivered almonds
Dash dried basil


DINNER (8:00 pm):

Avocado Crab Dip with Whole Grain Tortilla Chips:

(I made this one up myself!)

½ cup celery sticks, ½ cup all-natural salsa, 1/4 cup shredded carrots, 1/4 cup sliced red bell pepper, ½ cup chopped cucumber
1 serving whole grain tortilla chips
3 oz lump crab meat
½ of a medium avocado
Lime juice and chopped cilantro

Day 30 - Core Plan Complete

Today was Day 30! It feels like I have been on this diet much longer than that. No more weight loss this week, but I’m about to begin another 3-day Fast Forward this Wednesday-Friday, so that should change. TOTAL WEIGHT LOSS (30 DAYS): 8.5 pounds.

I’ve been much more careful today with the random snacking.

BREAKFAST (8:00 am)

Strawberry Green Tea Muesli:

1 cup strawberries, sliced
2/3 cup Kashi Go Lean
6 oz. vanilla yogurt
2 TBSP chopped peanuts
Green tea leaves



LUNCH (1:00 pm)

Mediterranean Broccoli Couscous Platter:

2 cups steamed broccoli
½ cup whole wheat couscous
3 oz cooked chicken
2 TBSP chopped pecans
1 TBSP lemon juice and dash pepper

I had my dark chocolate right after lunch.

SNACK (4:30 pm)

Minneola Almond Twist:

Wedges from 1 medium Minneola
½ cup non-fat cottage cheese
2 TBSP slivered almonds
Minneola zest and sprinkled with basil


DINNER (7:30 pm)

Wild Rice and Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Citrus Slaw:

4 romaine lettuce leaves, 1 cup shredded purple cabbage, 1/4 cup green onions
1/2 cup wild rice
3 oz cooked chicken
1 TBSP sesame oil
1 TBSP pineapple juice, 1 TBSP rice vinegar, dash pepper, and I added some celery seed.

Day 11 - I Love Grocery Shopping!

Due to the “media crazed” weather forecast of the imminent snow and ice storm headed for Ohio, I decided to not come home on my lunch break today. Therefore, I had 3 meals to prepare this morning before work (breakfast, lunch, and snack). I had 15 minutes in the kitchen, whipped out all of my ingredients, but I ran outta time to cook my Berry Almond French Toast and chop my veggies for my Turkey Almond Pita. I ended up wrapping up the veggies in foil, packed a knife, and kept the turkey and my ½ pita in 2 additional separate baggies. I hurried up and threw together the ingredients for the Banana Ricotta Hazelnut Toast instead and ran out the door. I learned yet again today how important it is to plan in advance for my meals...

That being said, I started looking over the recipes in the book again in preparation for my grocery shopping next weekend. I decided that I would make the same breakfasts, snacks, and lunches for a few days in a row (to cut down on prep time). Dinner will always be something new each day. A note about grocery shopping: I LOVE IT!! I’ve always loved planning out my meals, making a shopping list, going to the store, and coming home to place everything in my kitchen where I can easily find it. This is probably a huge reason why I am so in love with this plan.

Alright, onward to the fun part… THE FOOD! As I already mentioned, I had the Banana Ricotta Hazelnut Toast for breakfast around 8:30 am because it was easy to make. I’ve had this breakfast 3 times now, and I love it.

LUNCH (12:00 pm)

Turkey Walnut Pita:

1 cup spinach, ¼ cup chopped red onion, and 1 chopped plum tomato
½ whole grain pita
3 oz. Trader Joe’s roasted sliced turkey breast
2 TBSP walnuts
Cracked black pepper

I was supposed to have balsamic vinegar on this pita too, but I couldn’t figure out a way to transport it to work this morning. Maybe I’ll have to start leaving some in my cube at work. Here it is with all of the ingredients before proper assembly:



I had my daily dark chocolate indulgence right after lunch.

SNACK (4:00 pm)

Minneola Almond Twist:

Wedges from 1 medium Minneola
½ whole grain pita (omitted)
½ cup non-fat cottage cheese
2 TBSP slivered almonds
Minneola zest and sprinkled with basil

Great snack! It will be even better in the summer time (on days like today -- January in Ohio -- one can dream of summer...) I've noticed that my meals lately have been cool and refreshing, but I'm so darn cold every day. I need to make some hot meals to warm up.


DINNER (7:00 pm)

Avocado Tostadas:

1 cup chopped romaine lettuce (omitted), ¼ cup chopped onion, and 1 chopped plum tomato
2 soft whole corn tortillas
1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese (I subbed 1/2 cup leftover white and black beans)
¼ medium avocado
Chopped cilantro, fresh lime juice, and lime zest

This one was just OK. It needed more flavor. I might add cumin next time:




Tomorrow, I’m definitely having the Berry Almond French Toast for breakfast that I didn’t get to have today! I will have the Chicken Pesto Pita for lunch, Cinnamon Walnut Apple Crisp for a snack, and Ricotta Primavera Penne for dinner.