Fighting the Apple

Thanks for the tip on the almonds Hillbillylee! As for the whole bottle of wine - I know what you mean - one is never quite enough is it ;) Controlling my drinking is the biggest struggle for me - living off of salads and giving up the doughnuts is just fine with me - but cutting out the booze .... more difficult. Still, I am behaving very well really...
 
hillbillylee said:
wow a whole bottle of red wine. Ill pretend i have never done that. on the almonds you can grind them up in a food processor and it makes a passable flour. not that you would deep fry anything lol........
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if you crush up bran cereal ( or any kind of flake cereal) you can use it as a coating on chicken breasts, and cook it in the oven... then with a shot of cooking spray - -to me - it's better than fried ...throw some herbs into the cereal crushies and it's got even more flavor...

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red wine is good for your heart... a bottle of red wine, not so great for your waistline :) rather than cutting out completely, try cutting back a little.. one glass of red wine is under 150 calories i believe... so if you plan accordingly... :)
 
Ok Maleficent - I'll give that a go sometime! As for the wine, I do limit it most of the time - working shifts I have to - but when I get a few days off, its nice just to treat myself a little bit more. One way in which I limit my wine is by buying it (don't laugh) in 25 cl cans. Yes, I buy French red wine in little cans - its my daily 'ration'.
 
Not sure if it's available where you are - -but Vendange wines (a north american wine) sells several different varietals (the pinot grigio and the shiraz are both really good) in these little cardboardish type containers, each container holds exactly 3 glasses -and it's resealable as well...

the cans must be the same concept... i don't feel obligated to drink the entire bottle if i know it won't go bad or oxidize within a day... :)
 
Breakfast is a part of my fitness improvement. Before my lifestyle exchange, I was very bad with breakfast - i would more often than not skip it - sometimes not even taking the time to have a coffee before rushing off to work. If I did have breakfast at all, it would be a sugared refined cereal.

I couldn't see how skipping a meal could make you put on more weight! I now realise that I was wrong. I consider a good breakfast to be my most important meal of the day. I usually base it on a bowl of unrefined wholegrain cereals and semi skimmed milk (low fat milk, I know that its called by another name in the US) - often with an added chopped banana, more recently with almonds in their skins, or prunes, or often some low fat bio-yoghurt, sometimes a drizzle of honey. I usually wash this down with a grapefruit or other fruitjuice.

High fibre unrefined cereals fill you up for the entire morning, and sometimes longer - if I snack, its usually not in the mornings. Cereals that I alternate between for variety are:
  • All Bran
  • Multigrain Porridge
  • Wholegrain low fat Muesli
  • Bran Flakes
Fibre keeps your digestive systems running efficiently and in good health. It makes you feel good.

Diary.

Work day - 12 hour day shift. Got out of bed at 5:30 am.

Breakfast - All Bran cereals with semi skimmed milk, a chopped banana and some almonds and low fat yoghurt. Washed down with a grapefruit juice.

Exercise: Warm ups - stretches - 34 crunches.

Exercise: Cycled by road (up the bypass) 3 - 4 miles to work.

Lunch/Snacks: A drizzle of honey on bread, Canned sardines in olive oil on wholemeal bread, Organic tomato sandwiches -altogether 7 small slices of wholemeal bread. Plus fruit selection including apple, avocado pear, kumquats, clementines. Green tea.

Exercise: cycled 3 miles cross country home through the Forest. Got home at 8:15 pm.

Evening meal: Chicken breast meat in honey and mustard sauce with wholegrain rice. Followed by some low fat bio yoghurt.

Washed down with 25 cl of French red wine ;)
 
Well Mr. Ferret I never was big on breakfast either. everyone always told me but I never was hungry that early. Now having had My stomach wont let me sneak around it. As soon as i wake up my tum starts doing flip flops till I give it some little something. Even if its just a piece of bread. I have been following your post here and there. Its got me thinking i dont take in much fiber. I guess grains and fiber like bran and such always tasted like the box they are packaged in lol......
 
Petsercise! Its strange really - but the trigger that successfully motivated me to lose weight and get fit was buying a puppy! I knew that we were taking on a difficult and challenging breed that required an active responsibility - we had bought a siberian husky - and I took that responsibility very serious! I read up on all of the activities that you could use a husky with - canicross, bikejoring, dry rig racing, dog scootering, agility etc Maybe I could report more on them in future diary entries.

But the point is that for some people - dog ownership can be very beneficial to losing weight and keeping fit. I wouldn't want to encourage anyone to buy a fit young dog as a weightloss tool - then discard it when it becomes too troublesome, but for some of us, a dog makes the perfect companion for walking, jogging, hiking, or even cycling. As an introduction, I'm going to point to a link (a .pdf brochure file - needs acrobat or another pdf reader) launched by the Pet Health Council here in the UK. Slimmers might find the calorific values of dog exercising of interest. Click on to download the brochure.

Diary.

Got up for a 12 hour day shift at 5:40 am.

Breakfast: All Bran cereal with almonds, chopped banana, yogurt and skimmed milk - accompanied by a grapefruit juice.

Exercise: Warm ups - stretches - 36 crunches.

Drove to work - not enough time to spare for cycling.

Lunch/Snacks: Raw carrot baton sandwich (2 small slices of wholemeal bread), and a fruit selection - apple, grapes, apricots, a plum, a pear. Green tea.

Finished work and drove home 7:20 pm.

Evening meal: Fresh salad with cold new potatoes and canned sardines (in olive oil). Followed by low fat yogurt with plant stenols.

Exercise: Two and half mile jog through the forest with Wolfy on the canicross belt. I good run this evening!

A small can of French red wine after!
 
I know what's you mean about dogs. While I had mine I never had any weight problems.. I was walking him at 6 in the morning for an hour and again in the evening for an additional hour.. You couldn't gain weight if you wanted!! :p

I love your plan! You are kicking arse! It's funny how you eat a tonne of things that make you feel a million times better isn't it?

Curious.. Would you be up for a burger now? :)

Sday
 
I love your plan! You are kicking arse! It's funny how you eat a tonne of things that make you feel a million times better isn't it?

Curious.. Would you be up for a burger now?
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Hmmm a burger - could be tempted but not too much. I cook a lot of food outside on the gas barbie - and cook a lot of meats for the rest of the family - but I treat myself with scrumptious fish, mushrooms, corn, etc - I have plenty of lovely stuff to eat without fatty old burgers. When we are out for the day - no, I don't cave in at all, I'm quite proud of my new self control with regards to food - can't always say the same for booze though ;)

I have noticed that my tastes are changing - for example I much prefer a fruit juice, tea or water now to a fizzy sweetened drink. I don't miss cakes, tarts, biscuits, crisps etal. I do enjoy my food more now that I take time to think about what I am putting into my body, rather than snacking to satisfy craves for saturated fats.

Chips (french fries to Americans) do still smell lovely - especially with salt and vinegar, and I do sometimes nick just one from my kids... :)
 
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pets

That was a great brochure! I walk with my dog at least 4 nights a week. I used to walk with my kids, but walking with the dog is SO much better. If I walk with her, I almost never say a word the whole time we are out. With two 4-year-olds in the house, it is sometimes the only peace and quiet I get all day! :D
 
Glad that you enjoyed the brochure Twinmom2791! I might add some more features about doggy exercising later. My favourite is jogging with Wolfy cross country - him attached to me via a canicross or dog-jogging belt. Its hell when he spots squirrels or deer though!
 
The Tomato. I am a great believer in the tomato - especially at this time of year. I try and eat at least one medium sized tomato every day - they are nutritional diamonds. The properties of tomatos are believed to help prevent colorectal, prostate, breast, endometrial, lung, and pancreatic cancers; bloodclots, heart disease and aid bone health - amongst other health claims - a tomato a day ... keeps the doctor away! Don't believe me? for more. As for calories, carbs, sugars - I don't know, and don't care - tomatoes are good for you! I try and buy either organic or local grown - preferably ripened on the vine, whenever I can.

Diary.

Got up 5:45 am for another 12 hour day shift - I'm starting to wear out this week as it has been very hot, I still have my back pains - and allergy 'problems'. That combined with the long shifts is choking off some of my exercise ambitions this week.

Weekly weigh in - new weight of 152 pounds - lost two more pounds this week. Weight loss seems slower these days - but its almost certainly a good thing. I'm safely in the 'healthy' BMI range now anyway.

Breakfast: Wholewheat Muesli with added almonds, chopped banana, low fat bio yoghurt. With a glass of grapefruit juice.

Exercise: Warm ups, stretches, 36 crunches.

Drove to work.

Lunch/Snacks: Raw carrot baton sandwich (2 small slices of wholemeal bread), apple, tomato, apricots, grapes, clementines, a pear, a plum.

Finished work, drove home at 7:30 pm. I had an exercise day of rest today - worn out. Anyway, it is recommended that you do so, to allow muscle tissue to repair - at least thats my excuse ;) No jogging/running or cycling today - Mrs Ferret walked Wolfy.

Evening Meal: Salad with baby spinach leaves, some turkey ham, olives, etc. Followed by a low fat yoghurt with plant stenols. Green tea. Oh - then a snack of an avocado pear!

25 cl can of French red wine before bed...
 
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Jogging I presently jog a regular two and a half mile route through the local forest - at least twice a week. Some of the ground is very rough and uneven - more calories burnt! I have been jogging for less than a month - sometimes with Wolfy (attached to a jogging belt by his leash), sometimes on my own. Its great - I see red deer, roe deer, squirrels, rabbits, woodpeckers ...

Problem is - I have never been a runner. I am an asthmatic, I didn't like to compete even at school, never liked getting breathless - probably a part of the path that lead to me becoming overweight. As part of my new self development - I decided to remove that obstacle - and to try running. I felt self conscious, which is why I started out running in the forest rather than in the town.

I have been running more regularly the last few weeks - around four times per week. The last few runs have been magic - I'm simply not getting out of breath so much - I'm suddenly managing to run at a steady pace with far fewer breaks. I bought a cheap heart rate monitor today, and just took it for a spin - my heart rate was great - around 80% MRH - "aerobic base building rate". I'm easily pleased... Its another achievement in my weightloss / fitness plan.

Diary.

Got up 5:45 am for a shorter shift today (thank goodness!).

Breakfast - All Bran cereal, small chopped banana, almonds, yoghurt, semi skimmed milk. With a grapefruit juice.

Exercise: warm ups, stretches, 36 crunches.

Drove to work.

Lunch/Snacks: Raw carrot baton sandwich (two small slices of wholemeal bread), apple, tomato, kumquats, pear, grapes, apricots...

Finished work nice and early 2:15 pm.

Exercise: One hour Tai Chi lesson.

My back is killing me. Made appointment with a local 'naturopath'.

Evening meal: Chicken breast meat salad - with fresh raw beetroot, continental onions, baby spinach, 2 slices of wholemeal bread.

My back is really hurting - I had two 25 cl cans of French red wine - it did help! This back pain is ruining my 'feeling' of new fitness.

Exercise: Went for two and a half mile run through the forest with Wolfy. As posted at the top.

Green tea.
 
Canned wine- that's such a great concept...

What a great place you've got to go for a jog... i'd love all that nature-ness..
 
Thanks all - the support here is great! Maleficent - that I have previously taken in my local forest - its my favourite place! Oh, and of my jogging and walking partner Wolfy!
 
well if thats the only place you have to walk...... OK OK just kidding I really must visit the UK some day. Might take a stroll that way. theres no water in between here and there is there????? ahhh well ill bring my fishing pole just in case. Beautiful pup. I have had a few huskies in my day and they were great dogs. not known just for lying around. great for getting out of fenced yards lol.... keep it up.... hope the back is nothing serrious...
 
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