Week 2, Day 4

Today was much better than yesterday. I had energy, despite being up half the night with a dog who's afraid of the storms.

For breakfast, I had:

• Boiled Egg
• Bacon
• Half an avocado
• Water

For lunch, I had:

• Leftover lamb chops
• Steamed broccoli
• Roasted Beets

For dinner, I had

• Oatmeal with blueberries
• Bacon
• Water

For snacks I had plums. Too many plums! Our plums are so sweet and I go out there to pick them and can't stop eating them!

Week 2, Day 3

• Oatmeal, blueberries
• Water

For lunch, I had:

• One slice of smoked brisket
• Water

For dinner, I had:

• Leftover stir fry (rice with chicken and a few veggies)
• Steamed artichoke (from the garden)
• Coleslaw with cabbage from the garden

It was funny because I used the same coleslaw dressing I've always used and both of us commented about how sweet it seemed. After having cut way back on sugar for 10 days now, things really do seem sweeter.

Protein

I've never thought much about the suggested requirements for protein each day but with the new eating plan, I figured I should begin at least being aware of the protein I'm eating. On the days we have meat, I'm not concerned but on a day like yesterday, I doubt I got as much protein as I needed.

Recommendations I've seen suggest 46 grams for women.

Yesterday's lunch of sardines, crackers, blueberries and almonds was 32 grams.

Last night's dinner had probably 2 grams so I had a total of about 34 grams of protein yesterday.

Chia seeds contain 3 grams of protein per tablespoon. I can add that to my morning oatmeal and end up with about 10 grams (oatmeal, blueberries and chia seeds).

On my daily list of foods, I can start tracking my protein intake too, til I'm comfortable enough to know I'm getting the recommended amount.

So long as we're eating meat with a meal, I don't think I'm going to run short but those days I don't have a lot of meat, I may need to pay attention to adding a boiled egg or something like that to increase my protein intake.

Week 2, Day 1

Today has been a busy day but one of those kinds of days when I seem to work all day and have little to show for it. Vince wasn't coming home for lunch today, which is rare, so I had all day to get things done. I started with moving the furniture off the rugs and vacuuming everything. Then I cleaned out a couple of cabinets and before I knew it, it was past lunch time and I had never stopped for breakfast.

Since Vince wasn't coming home for lunch, I was able to have anything I wanted for lunch so don't be surprised at my choices -- it's what I love!

For lunch, I had:

• A can of sardines
• Crackers
• Blueberries
• Almonds
• Water

For dinner, I had:

• Hummus that I made
• Raw carrots
• A few crackers
• Water

All day I meant to have an orange and never got around to that either. There's always tomorrow!

Week 2, Day 1

Here we go into Week #2. The bad news first . . we had to run to town to drop Vince's car off at the shop, went to a couple of grocery stores and then grabbed Mexican food on the way home. I have been drinking water like crazy at home (well water) but I'm not real crazy about the taste of the city water here so I drank a Dr. Pepper. I know I could add lemon but I didn't. Now I wish I had just had water, or better yet, I kinda wish we had just eaten at home.

For breakfast, I had:

• Oatmeal with blueberries
• Water

For lunch, I had:

• Chicken & Dressing
• Green Beans
• Water

For dinner, I had:

• Chile Relleno 
• Rice
• Chips & Salsa
• Dr. Pepper

I'll do better tomorrow!  :)

Week 1 Weigh In

Week 1:   3.2 pounds lost

I know that rate isn't sustainable but the first week is always more than normal. I'll be happy to lose 1 to 2 pounds per week.

Week 1, Day 6

We're almost to the end of Week #1. It hasn't been bad. It's really been quite easy . . I think because it's more than . . Ughh! I need to lose weight! While I'm happy to be learning so much about the foods we eat, where those we trust us have failed us, mostly due to money and power . . I'm also a little aggravated at myself for blindly eating and drinking and never paying more attention to what I was putting in my body.

When you stop to think about life, and leaving the spiritual aspect out of it, what's the most important thing you can do? I think it's take care of yourself physically and mentally. Our families are important to us and what good are we to them if they're having to care for us? Our kids grow up to have their own kids and sure, they'll be happy to assist us when we're old but they shouldn't be having to assist us when you're not quite elderly . . simply because we haven't taken care of ourselves as we should have.

For many of us, our jobs/careers are important but we can't effectively do that if we'er not feeling our best.

In my mind, the quality of life matters a lot. I'm pretty blessed to almost always feel good but a few days of an aching back or a virus of some kind and I realize quickly how important good health is.

What we eat and what we put into our bodies is something that is totally within our control. We need to teach our children and grandchildren the importance of healthy eating. I'm thinking that there was a time, before fast food, too much sugar and too much sodium, when healthy eating was all folks knew to do . . they didn't have a lot of choices. Then fast food and sugary drinks came along and it was so easy and so tasty and then an entire generation grew up thinking that was the right way to eat.

It's all so much to think about  . .

For breakfast, we had:

• Flour Tortillas (homemade)
• Scrambled eggs (from our chickens)
• Bacon (that I cured and smoked)

Vince added grated cheese and salsa but I left those off.

On weekends, we have a later breakfast, and then an earlier dinner, around 2:00 and then just snack for dinner.

For dinner, we had:

• Grilled lamb chops
• Pinto Beans
• Kale chips (from the garden)
• Raw carrots & squash (from the garden) with green goddess dip