If the Giants hadn't stunk so badly today, Sunday would have turned out to be dang near perfect. I got to sleep late for the second day in a row, I kept my dietary intake under control, shopping got done, a HUGE pot of chili was made, and after the Giants shit the bed, I went for a record-paced 2.5-mile lap around the lake. Oh, yeah! I also went and joined a gym.
There were a few other things I was going to cover tonight, but due to not writing them down they fell by the wayside.
Cya tomorrow,
M
What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Egg McMuffin and coffee
Lunch ~ A salad with butter lettuce, 1/2 a tomato, celery, about 3 oz. of chopped chicken, toasted pepitas and chipotle lime dressing
Snack ~ Fiber One bar
Dinner ~ A bowl of chili, with a dollop of reduced-fat sour cream
Exercise ~ 2.5 miles around the lake in a record 44 minutes
Hiya, kids. It's a very lazy Saturday and I slept in late and I've been a couch potato all day. I was going to go check out a local gym or two, but tomorrow is another day. I need some veg out time. I visited the local Y the other day only to find out that it is much more expensive than I remember. For about half as much I can join LA Fitness or, for even less, Planet Fitness. I'll be sure to take care of that on Sunday.
Tonight we have a gig at our new favorite place, Shenanigans. It's a nice, smallish Irish bar/restaurant where the regulars, mostly in their 50's, enjoy oldies. We are more than happy to oblige. Last time we were there, we did the whole three hours straight without a break. It was that much fun. That was a first for us. Nothing better than soused middle-aged folks dancing and singing along. I'll work off a bunch of calories being roadie, performer and sound tech tonight so that will serve as my workout.
Tomorrow I will make a big batch of my turkey chili to enjoy while watching some football. We'll let you know how it turns out.
Cya then,
M
What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Cereal w/almond milk and 1/2 a banana
Lunch ~ A Fiber One bar and a salad w/butter lettuce, avocado, tomato, canellini beans, toasted pumpkin seeds and my Spicy Chipotle-Lime Dressing only made with lemon out of necessity.
Dinner ~ TBD, but I am thinking either a veggie burger or a salmon burger.
Exercise ~ 3 hours of performing tonight, plus lugging around the equipment.
I had a hell of a time getting around the lake just a few days ago. I had to take a break, my muscles ached, and I was winded. Tonight after dinner I set out to conquer Lake Parsippany all the same. Once I hit the one-mile mark, at around fifteen minutes, I was surprised at how "not bad" I felt. I could never say I felt "good" after walking a mile, so I will say I felt particularly "not bad".
I thought I would take a breather at this bench I like that overlooks the lake at one and a half miles. Nope. Still feeling like I can plow through. And so I did. I did the whole 2.5-mile route in exactly 45 minutes. That is damn near the best ever. A far cry from the last time. By my best estimate, that burned at least 420 calories.
Cya tomorrow,
M
What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ One egg and 1 oz. of lean ham on a multi-grain sandwich round
Lunch ~ One can of Progresso Lite Chicken Noodle Soup
Snack ~ One banana
Dinner ~ This here looks like many dinner photos I have posted in TDT195. It is tilapia over spinach and canellini beans with a tomato lemon basil sauce. The reason you see this so often is that it is easy and one of my favorites.
Exercise ~ 2.5 miles at 3.3MPH
Okay. I've told the world I was staying away from red meat. I've had it three times in the last nine days. If this were the major leagues, I'd be batting .666 and win a batting title. Unfortunately, here in TDT19land it's just sad. I had lunch today with my best friend Doug at the iconic NJ diner, Tic Tock. I went in with the intention of having a Greek salad. On the specials there was steak on Greek salad. Without thinking, I ordered it. It was good. I ate half. There's my disclosure. So sue me. I made up for it at dinner and yes, I drew the cow.
I was finally able to harvest enough cherry tomatoes to actually do something with them, other than eat two or three right off the vine. Dinner tonight was vegetarian in light of the lunch scenario. What you see here is an all roasted, warm salad of cauliflower, eggplant and my wee little tomatoes, tossed in basil (from my garden) vinaigrette. Very delicious and very satisfying.
Cya on Friday the 13th,
M
What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Cereal and banana w/almond milk
Lunch ~ Pea soup and the steak Greek Salad
Dinner ~ See above
Exercise ~ For the first day since I started, I didn't get in any exercise. I'll double up some day soon.
It's Hump Day! Is anyone else tired of that already? I like the commercial, but I hear people every Wednesday saying the above words. Now I am guilty of the same thing for the sake of a cheap and easy title for today's blog.
I'm feeling pretty good about my efforts so far. I will be changing up my exercise routine by re-joining the local YMCA. The one in Mountain Lakes NJ is quite nice. I'd like to get some weight training in and develop muscle mass. My understanding is that when I finally go for my surgery to remove the excess hanging skin, lean toned muscles will not only make the surgery go easier, but recovery quicker and my appearance much better. The months ahead will be the hardest I've worked at this so far.
Cya tomorrow,
M
What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Cereal w/banana and almond milk. Coffee
Lunch ~ Turkey, mustard and pickles on a multi-grain sandwich round.
Dinner ~ Here you see is a one-pan meal that I whipped up on the fly. It was supposed to be chicken and cashew lettuce cups, but the cashews in the fridge miraculously turned into almonds. Call the Enquirer! It's a miracle! I paired it with broccoli.
Exercise ~ 2 mile Sansone walking video. By my estimates, these burn anywhere between 350 and 400 calories.
Tabitha has forever been after me about my use of artificial sweeteners. Splenda has long been my poison of choice... and therein lies the rub. Apparently, it could be my poison. The more I read on the science of artificial sweeteners and how they are metabolized, the more I think I should walk away. Studies have shown that a key ingredient in Splenda, sucralose, supposedly turns to something quite different when it reaches 88ºF... formaldehyde. Well at least if it kills me, I will be well preserved.
Entire books have been written on the subject of the whole Splenda/FDA "cover up". Formaldehyde poisoning expresses itself in Multiple Sclerosis-like symptoms and muscle deterioration. Symptoms that seem to reverse somewhat upon exclusion of the artificial sweeter.
I take my coffee sweet, love my Snapple Diet Peach Iced Tea and turning to actual sugar doesn't seem like a viable alternative, given its caloric impact. And before you suggest it in the comments section, I flat out do not like Stevia. It leaves an odd aftertaste.
My take on this was always that I didn't consume enough of it to make a difference. I'm still not sure I do, but it's on my radar. It would be a pity to morph myself into a fit corpse or, ironically, a fit disabled person. What to do? What to do?
Cya tomorrow,
M
What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ Cereal with almond milk
Lunch ~ Starbucks Protein Bistro Box and a Skinny Decaf Caramel Macchiato
Dinner ~ Thai Shrimp Bisque and some brown rice. This recipe ROCKED. Click the link and make it for your family. The brown rice was a very good addition.
Exercise ~ 2 mile Sansone walking video
Just firing off a quick report so you can get back to your Monday Night Football or 2 Broke Girls or whatever you kids watch these days. Today was uneventful. I managed to get in everything that I needed to, despite being hugely busy with work and chores around the house.
One thing of note, though. I had two meals today in sandwich form. This was the result of poor planning. I knew how busy I would be and didn't have on hand what I needed to steer clear of bread. I managed to eat well and stay well within my caloric guidelines, as fuzzy as they may be, but this is how things start to fall apart. Fail to plan and you plan to fail, the old saying goes. I'm mindful of this and will act accordingly.
Cya Tuesday,
M
What I ate today and how I exercised:
Breakfast ~ One egg and avocado on a whole grain sandwich round. My coffee
Lunch ~ A salad w/peppers, celery, avocado and mustard roasted garlic vinaigrette
Snack ~ One super delicious Jazz apple
Dinner ~ Garden Burger on a whole grain roll and a cup of last night's crab soup
Exercise ~ 2 mile Sansone walking video
