I woke up early this morning...

My friend Kate challenged me to start waking up at 5am to get more things done in the day. So this morning, I woke up early! I didn't quite make it up at 5, when my alarm went off, but Kate gave me a call at 5:30 to see if I was up and I did roll out of bed then. So I've been up for a little over an hour now. I started my morning with some time in the Word, which I haven't done in a long time. It is such an important part of my day, and yet it seems to be the first thing that gets dropped. It's also, I'm pretty sure, a big part of how my day goes, since my focus tends to be better aligned with God's plan for my life when I start out my day talking to Him. Anyway, it was good to start out the day that way.

So now I've read my Bible and blogged my thoughts on the reading today (somehow thinking "out loud" helps my thoughts be a little more focused just after I wake up in the morning!) and I've got 100 calories under my belt for breakfast. I figured I'd try recording my calories again. I haven't been very consistent (with anything in my life lately, sadly), but today is a new day, right? I'm starting up again. So we're 100 calories and 1 WW point into the day and I'm going to go tackle the treadmill for a while.

It's amazing just how quiet the house is before everyone else gets up. I hope I can keep this early morning routine going.

Soooo good... and only 1 point!

Last night I experimented with Mexican Hot Chocolate and came up with this concoction.... it is SOOO good and is only 1 point! Woohoo! It was so good I had some this morning, too....

Decadent Mexican Hot Chocolate:

1 packet Swiss Miss No Sugar Added Cocoa
.5 T. ground cinnamon
.5 T. sugar free vanilla syrup
.25 C. ground Elements of Spice Gluttony sprinkles
1 T. fiber powder

Makes 8 oz.
In a mug combine ingredients (save out sprinkles if using whipped topping) and mix with 8 oz. hot water. Stir and enjoy! (Before serving, top with whipped topping and sprinkles if desired.)

*yawn!*

I'm tired. I've been in bed most of the day (or perched on a chair in front of my space heater in the craft room, but not really doing much crafting because I feel miserable!) and I'm still tired. Tomorrow I'm supposed to take Ellie to Erika's so I get some time to run errands, but I might not even feel like driving! I'm not sure which would be worse... driving around in my miserable state, or trying to fend off the cranky toddler at home who's been cooped up for too long. I'm hoping I'll feel up to driving. Plus, I have some things I REALLY need to get done in town!

As for today, I am not sure where I sit on the water front. I tried drinking a nalgene of water, and decided that it definitely has to be carbonated or hot for me to drink it. I just couldn't choke down plain cold water, no matter how much I tried! So I went back to tea drinking this evening, and I'm on my third or so mug of it now, and I think Leif gave me some tea this morning, but it might have been yesterday. It's all sort of running together. I did have some soda, as mentioned earlier, too. As far as I can tell, because the soda I drink is calorie free, aspartame free, caffeine free, and sodium free, it's just as hydrating as water, so should be okay. The problem with soda is the additives, but this stuff is pretty minimal.

For calories, points, etc., I am good. I'm a little low on protein (in the 30-40 range instead of 50-60) but I'm not too worried about it. Everything else is where it ought to be. I ended the day at 18.7 points, which I'm counting close enough to 19 to call good. I'm not in the mood for another. 4 bowl of veggie soup tonight, and I've got 1139 calories for the day. I'm good.

Speaking of good, let me say GOODnight. =D I'm tired.

Ugh.

I feel AWFUL. I made it through my class tonight just fine, but as soon as I got home, I felt like a truck ran over me. Luckily (though I'm sad about it) the class I was taking tomorrow night got cancelled, so I can have a break and get some early shut eye. I'm going to skip playgroup too, so I should have a lazy day of rest and recoup that will help. I hope.

I went over on points today (21) but stayed under 1300 calories, so I'm calling it good. Actually, I haven't gone over yet, but I think a skinny cow ice cream sandwich would feel a whole lot better on my throat than a bunch of strawberries, so I'm doing it.

Oh no... now that I wrote that I'm having second thoughts! But I need to seat something before I go to bed and my throat is not interested in strawberries, nor my taste buds interested in vegetable soup this late in the evening. I want something light and sweet, that is cool and soothing. Can you hear me debating this with myself? Do I go for what will feel and taste good because I'm sick, or do I pull out a 60 calorie, .4 points can of vegetable soup and eat what will just feel good on the throat??? *sigh*

Why do I suddenly feel like the decision has just been made and not the way I wanted it?

UPDATED: I went for the soup. Bah.
That leaves me at 1148 cals, 23 g. fat, 40 g. fiber, 19.1 points, plenty of fluids, and no exercise, unless you count watching TV from my bed. I don't.

A note on starvation...

(That sounds awful, doesn't it!)

I think the reason WW would caution you to eat ALL of your points is because if you are only tracking points and not calories separately, you could very well not get enough calories in with just the points. That's what I noticed when I started calculating points. I could eat 24 points and not even have 1000 calories in. Your body doesn't go into starvation mode based on points, but based on calories. Because I'm tracking both I know I'm doing okay because I got over 1100 calories. I would actually be scared to do just the WW points for myself, because I know that I would not get enough calories in each day. Because I am still more concerned about getting an appropriate balance of calories, fat, protein, and fiber at this point than I am getting a certain number of points, I think I'm okay. If I get to 19 points in a day and am still under 1100 calories, I will eat more to get up over 1100 calories, even if it means I eat more points. The calories are just more important, especially if I'm exercising.

Thanks for the food for thought!

And I have a feeling pretty much all my calories will come from fluids today, given how much my throat hurts. I will be eating plenty of soup, and lots of hot beverages. Lots of tea again today! Yesterday I had over 3.5 liters of fluids, and I think I'll be around that today again, given that the only time my throat doesn't hurt is when I am sipping a hot beverage!

First Hike!

We went for the first hike of the year today! At Susan Beth's suggestion, we headed up to Madison Buffalo Jump. I stuck Ellie in the pack and we headed down the trail to the top of the cliff. The fwp's website says there's only a mile of trails, but the one we took was definitely longer than a mile! We went up to the cliff you can see from the observatory (we went around the back of the hill and then hiked along the top of it to the cliff) and then headed over to the next cliff, just a little further. I had Ellie in the pack on my back (sheesh! That girl is getting heavy at almost 30 lbs!) for the hike up, but she walked most of the way back on her own. Still, we ended up hiking for an hour and a half, not counting the time we spent at the top taking pictures, about 15 minutes. So it was a good workout, and according to Spark People I burned about 630 calories. Add that to the 70 calories I burned gardening earlier in the day and I end the day exercised 700 calories off! If I remember correctly, that gives me an extra 7 WW points, which is good, because today I need them...

I was doing pretty well until we decided to make a Buffalo Jump Bump night of it and picked up a pizza for dinner and ate it in the car on the way out to the hike. I ate 3 pieces. That alone cost me 17 points. Add that to the other points I had today and I ended with (*gasp!*) 30 points today. But subtract 7 for my exercise and it's only 23 points, and considering I haven't used ANY of my 35 extra points until today, I'm not too worried about those extra 4 I'm using today. I did enjoy the pizza quite a bit, and I did work pretty hard lugging that 30 lb pack to the top of the cliff! I always hate the first hike of the season for that reason. I always feel like I'm going to die and today was no exception. Next time Leif gets to carry the pack.

So that's sort of where I am today. 30 points, 1560 calories, 52 g. fat, 24 g. fiber, and 2 liters water. Definitely over what I eat most days, but I don't feel like it's too excessive for a little splurge on an outing with the family. Just so long as the splurges stay few and far between.

Just for the record...

I have lost 1.4 of my 2 lb weight gain this week. That's encouraging. I have also stuck with my 19 points daily for the last 3 days, and maybe that's what has helped. In any event, I feel empowered because I didn't think I could stick to 19 points and I have. I feel like I could do anything! As of today, day 4 on WW, I still have 300 calories and 3.2 points. And that's AFTER eating at Costco for lunch (half a turkey wrap) and Domino's pizza (one slice) for dinner. I've been doing really well when it comes to eating at home, but I wasn't sure how the points would work out once I started eating out. But now I have twice in one day and it's okay! I'm even still under 25 g. for fat today, though I still need 6 g. of fiber before my day is done. So I'm going to eat some yummy strawberries (that will take me to 5 f/v) and see where I am after that. But I think today I will be fine. And if worst comes to worst (though I doubt it) I have 2.5 exercise points from today because we just got done riding the bike for 45 minutes! It was a 10 mile ride and it felt great! And I still haven't touched the 35 bonus points for the week. I'm hoping I can get away without needing to use them OR the exercise points at all. We'll see. But so far, so good.

Low Fat Spinach Lasagna (5 points)

Tonight I made a new variation of our traditional lasagna. We dropped the meat from the lasagna a couple years ago, but tonight I did a few other things differently, too. It was definitely different from our usual cheese-laden dish, but it was good! Here's the recipe...

Ingredients:
2 C. Cottage Cheese (pureed to get all the curds smooth)
2 C. Shredded Parmesan Cheese
2 C. Fresh Spinach
3 Egg Whites
------------------------------
2 C. Diced Tomatoes
4 C. Tomato Sauce
1 T. Fiber Powder
------------------------------
6 Lasagna Noodles

Directions:
Combine cheeses, eggs, and spinach together in a bowl. In a separate bowl, combine tomatoes, tomato sauce, and fiber powder.

In a glass 9x13 baking dish, place a layer of sauce, then a layer (3) of DRY noodles, then a layer (1/2) of the cheese mixture. Repeat, then finish the top with a layer of sauce.

Cover with foil and bake at 350 for 1 hour. Uncover and sprinkle with additional cheese (parmesan or mozzarella, according to your liking) and bake uncovered for 15 minutes more.

Let cool for about 15 minutes before serving. Makes 8 servings.

The best part about this lasagna is that it's only 5 points for a pretty generous serving. AND it only has 275 calories, 7 g. fat, 4 g. fiber, and 22 g. protein! I've been having a little trouble finding high protein, low calorie options. But this was great! I'll make it again, for sure.

Well...

... despite my discouragement, I didn't eat myself out of house and home. I wanted to. I really did. But I didn't do it. In fact, I didn't even really head for comfort food when I was feeling down, unless you call two egg whites and a cucumber comfort food. I personally don't. I did make cookies with Ellie for the first time today. She enjoyed it. They were even healthy cookies, too. They didn't turn out as well as I'd hoped (I replaced all the sugar with Splenda), so I'll work on the recipe a bit. Maybe I'll just try half sugar and half Splenda next time. They tasted fine, they just were too dry. BUT... they are only 25 calories each, and 1 cookie is 0 WW points. 3 cookies is only 1 point. So I'm okay with them being a little dry. And I'll still work with the recipe until I get them to turn out like I want them to.

So I just finished eating an ice cream cone and that brings me to today's total. I'm ending my day at 1106 calories, 22 g. fat, 26 g. fiber, and 19.7 WW points. I didn't exercise today (that's where my discouragement kicked in) and I only drank about half my water. But I didn't over eat, and that is a huge first step for me on a day that I am down and out and discouraged.

Tomorrow I've got Zoe from 9:30 to 1:30. We'll see what the weather does, but maybe the sun will come out and we'll get 40 degree weather I can take the girls for a walk in. We'll have to see, but that's what I'm hoping for. I'm just no good for indoor exercise this time of year. I want it to be sunny and I want to be OUTSIDE!

Let's See...

So I figured up my points, adding them up so that I have the most points possible (e.g. 2 C. soup counted as 2 C. instead of two 1 C. servings) and here's where I currently stand for today...

Breakfast = 3.6
Lunch = 1.6
Snack = 1.5
Dinner = 9.3

That puts me at 16 points for the day. As for calories and all that jazz, I am currently at 949 calories, 11 g. fat, and 26 g. fiber. That includes dinner AND dessert with friends. I guess it can indeed be done.

So tonight's challenge is... to find a snack that is equal to about 250-300 calories and 3 or fewer points. Game on.

UPDATED: 3/4 of a Healthy Choice Fudge Bar is .8 points. Add that to 2.2 points for a cup of hot chocolate wtih 1 T. fiber powder and you've got a day that finishes at 19 points and 1165 calories. And I'm okay with that.

19 points per day

WW Quiz to determine your daily point allowance...

1. Are you
female?- score 2
Male?- score 8
A nursing mom?- score 12

2. How old are you?
17-26- score 4
27-37- score 3
38-47- score 2
48-58- score 1
over 58- score 0

3.What do you weigh?
Enter the first two digits of your weight in pounds.
(for example, if you weight 199, you will add 19 to your score)
118.... score 11

4. How tall are you?
Under 5’1- score 0
5’1-5’10- score 1
Over 5’10- score 2

5. How do you spend most of your day?
Sitting down? score 0
Occasionally sitting? score 2
Walking most of the time? score 4
Doing physically hard work most of the time? score 6
(I gave myself 3 on this one)

Now add them all together and that’s your daily total.

2+3+11+3=19 points per day

More thoughts on WW

Well, this evening I've been thinking more and more about WW. Not necessarily giving up my calorie counting, but at least trying to stay within the WW points during the day. You know, revising some of what I eat so that it is the best possible. So I did a little research and learned that because I am under 150 lbs I am only allowed 18-23 points. Eek! So now I REALLY don't know that I can do that!

But I am going to try to calculate both the points and the calories (etc.) for a while, at least, and then try to eat more of the lower point foods.

There does seem to be one GIANT flaw with the WW points system, though. Capping the fiber at 4 g. See, if I eat 1 serving of soup at 60 calories, 0 g. fat, and 4 g. fiber, it's .39 points. It rounds to zero. But if I eat 2 servings of it, it's 120 calories, 0 g. fat, and 8 g. fiber. It ought to weigh in at .8 points, rounding to 1. But it doesn't. Not by any calculator I've found, including just the plain old WW formula. Because the fiber is capped at 4, 2 servings of soup figure in at 1.59 points, which rounds to 2. So do you just count every individual serving separately, even if you eat them at the same time? If not, how long do you have to wait between servings for them to count separately? The same with my high fiber and flax bread. One serving is 1 point (almost exactly) but 2 servings is 3 points (almost exactly) because the fiber is capped at 4, when I'm getting 10 grams. It just seems like a flaw in the system. Any thoughts?

Weight Watchers?

Just out of curiosity, I decided to check what I've been eating each day with a Weight Watcher point calculator. I don't know how you CAN eat on WW! I limit myself to under 1300 calories a day and try to stay between 25 and 30 grams of fat. That's only about 20% of my calories from fat.

So according to the WW points, a normal day for me is 27/28 points. A day in the 1100 calorie range is 25. How on EARTH are you supposed to stay under 24 points a day?? I haven't a clue how you do that. I know that Spark People says you shouldn't drop below 1200 calories, even for a small person with a small frame. If you drop below 1000 calories your body goes into starvation mode and starts storing the extra calories as fat.

So what's a girl to do?