work to be done

[grace2]

Hi!

My name is Lauren and I'm a full-time doctoral student working on my dissertation. I am blessed with a wonderful family and some terrific friends who are very supportive of my work and life. After teaching full-time with Teach for America the last two years, I am taking a break and completing my dissertation. I loved teaching my middle schoolers. They are so full of energy and ideas! My days were non-stop and I was constantly in motion. Working on my dissertation I have been sitting at my computer and eating junk food! It shows. One of my friends told me about SBD and I am grateful.

So, I started P1 Feb 25. I'm one week into P2 and it's going well, except for the half an apple that made me feel so funky after eating it. I tried again a couple times and found it much better with cottage cheese than with PB. I've lost about 9 pounds to date. Sitting at 136 and would like to get to 122. Food tastes better to me these days and I really like having veggies with my breakfast!

Hope everyone has a good weekend. My thoughts and prayers are especially with those in Japan and the Middle East.

Lauren

[Chris55]

Welcome to SB! It's nice to hear about someone who actually likes middle school students! It's great that you have so much energy and are getting that dissertation finished. What an accomplishment that will be.

Adding your new carbs back in Phase 2 is where you learn about what your body likes and doesn't like. You might need to have your apple with cheese, or for dessert after dinner. Or switch to a different fruit. I kept my new additions to late in the day at first and that helped. I still can't eat grains at breakfast - they make me hungry/munchy all day long. Occasionally I'll have them, but I have to really watch it the rest of the day. So it's good that you're figuring out what works for you - it will help you a lot in the long run.

[grace2]

Thanks for the welcome and good advice, Chris!

[grace2]

It was a pretty good day on the beach today. I am enjoying meals more! Feeling pretty energized; bit of bloat after the apple, maybe not so late in the afternoon would be better. On P2 have tried apple and sweet potato. Sweet potato worked well; not a lot, several slices steamed. Apple has been the bloating one, although not with cottage cheese until today. Now working on raspberries. Next up barley, steel cut oats, or whole grain cereal.

B: 1 egg, 1 turkey sausage patty, 1/3 cup refried beans, green beans, soy milk
L: chili (lots of beans & ground turkey) with slice of cheese, lots of celery stalks, 15 almonds
S: 1/2 apple, cottage cheese
D: green beans, snap peas, turkey, huge salad with 2T ranch, garbanzo beans
S: plain yogurt with a bit of SF lemon jello; 8 raspberries, milk

drank herbal tea, water through the day

Exercise: vigorous 30 minute walk with some faster intervals

[grace2]

Like reading everyone's journals and all the tips from the veteran SB folks! good day today: more dissertation work; time with hubby at church; watched an old flick together: Starman

B: chili, celery, soy milk
L: chicken, huge salad w/ 2T Ranch, couple baby carrots - probably shouldn't have added them yet
D: chicken breast, stir-fry veggies
S: yogurt w/ SF lemon jello, raspberries, milk

herbal tea and H2O

I am less hungry these days - yay! Checked out SB Chicken soup recipes. May make soup or chili tomorrow. Love having chili: it's yummy any time of day! Found steel cut oats to try in a few days.

My old Hodgson Mill hot cereal looks SB-friendly: oats, unprocessed wheat bran, milled flaxseed, soy grits, untoasted wheat germ, cracked whole wheat. Per serving: Total fat: 3g [trans fat 0mg], Cholesterol: 0mg, Sodium: 0mg, Dietary fiber: 6g, Sugars: 1g, Protein: 7g. Used to eat too large a serving with vanilla yogurt and craisins. No wonder I packed on the lbs!

[grace2]

Feels like it's going well. Meals are becoming more automatic, which is a good thing for me as I start out. I actually look forward to eating something I have tried before and enjoyed!

B: chili, snap peas (love snap peas with an egg and garbanzo beans at B!), carrots
S: almonds
L: chili, lots of celery sticks, LF soy milk
S: cottage cheese, raspberries
D: salmon, huge salad w/ Ranch, snap peas
S: Greek yogurt w/ dash of lemon SF FF jello, blueberries, FF milk

Exercised yesterday: aerobic walking with light weight that I toss, then upper body lifting. Want to get some exercise most days. I always feel better (and taller) afterwards.

[grace2]

Yay - like having more energy and healthy food choices! It's so good to have better health as I work on my dissertation

yesterday:
B: egg, turkey sausage, snap peas, chick peas, LF soy milk
L: chili w/ cheese, carrots
S: LF cottage cheese, 1/2 apple, few blueberries
D: halibut, stir-fry veggies
S: Greek yogurt w/ FF, SF lemon jello, blueberries

today:
B: chili, celery sticks, LF soy milk
L: salmon, salad, chick peas, 2T Ranch
S: cottage cheese, 1/2 apple, blueberries

herbal tea, water

Back to my diss!

[grace2]

This will be a quick check-in!

yesterday:
B: chili w/ cheese, carrots, LF soy milk
L: not sure, but it was SBD: either chili or fish w/ 2c veggies
D: salmon, salad w/ 2T Ranch, snap peas
S: Greek yogurt, FF SF raspberry jello, raspberries, blueberries
S: dab of steel cut oats, dab of cottage cheese, 1/2 apple

today:
B: chili w/ cheese, carrots, celery, LF soy milk
L: ground turkey, snap peas
S: at baby shower: 1/2 chicken salad sandwich on pumpernickel, veggies w/ 1T Ranch, small piece of cake
D: salmon, 2c green beans w/ 1T Ranch

still:
S: Greek yogurt w/ FF SF jello, berries, FF milk or
1 oz steel cut oats, cottage cheese, 1/2 apple, FF milk

water, herbal tea

The little piece of cake tasted okay, but isn't making me want more - yay! Brought cookies home for DH, but I don't want them

[lakegran2]

Don't we love finding SB? ............ great food ....fewer cravings......lots of energy
I love your enthusiasm.
Your menus sound great! .... remember we are here when you need a little support.

[grace2]

Thanks, Lakegran! I have enjoyed reading your posts to everyone. And, yes, the support is wonderful!

[grace2]

Checking in! Clothes feel better and I can fit into some things hanging in the back of my closet...

yesterday:
B: egg, sausage, snap peas, refried beans, lf soy milk
L: chili, cheese, carrots, celery
S: 15 almonds
D: chicken, sweet potato, green beans w/ ranch
S: yogurt w/ ff sf jello, berries
herbal tea, water

Had a nice time at church and running errands after.

today:
B: egg, sausage, refried beans, snap peas, lf soy milk
L: salmon, salad w/ ranch, carrots
S: dab of steel cut oats, dab of cottage cheese, 1/4 apple
D: chicken, veggie stirfry, few slices of sweet potato, ff milk
herbal tea, water

Will probably have dessert later. Maybe yogurt with ff sf jello sprinkled in or a piece of twilight delight chocolate and some nuts. Bought the chocolate a week ago and haven't tried it yet. I used to crave chocolate, so very wary Still haven't bought splenda, anything similar, sf jam or syrup. Not sure if that stuff will work for me.

[grace2]

Good seeing the posts of veterans and newbies!

Lots of continual work on my dissertation (my usual plan each day for the next few weeks). Had a bit of a panic when it looked like I lost a lot of edits, but got through the confusion and double-checked everything. Now saving the document in about 8 places instead of 4.

Today:
B: egg, chicken, green beans w/ olive oil, chick peas, lf soy milk
L: chicken, green beans, salad w/ ranch, chick peas
S: dab of steel cut oats, cottage cheese, 1/4 apple, ff milk with sf ff cocoa
D: cod, stir fry veggies
S: Greek yogurt w/ sf ff jello sprinkle, blueberries

Need to make some chili!

[grace2]

Thinking about health and life. Christin - thanks for inspiring me with your posts about the way rice had a hold on you. Thanks, too, Oldpjams!

In the past I have been way more concerned about appearance than health; the "do I look good?" syndrome. Never had issues with food and weight until, maybe, my forties. Before that I could eat anything I wanted and still be pretty skinny. I wasn't a junk food eater; didn't grow up that way. Rarely had dessert or over ate. Things changed and, while I exercised, food got to a bad place. I tried Body for Life and WW, but just starved myself of the good foods. My eating may have been a bit better, but cravings, etc were certainly there. I admit, I started SBD partly because I want to look better. BUT, now I want to feel better and have a healthy way of eating. On WW, I was between 128 and 132, but wasn't healthy. Way too few good foods - mostly just a lot of lettuce. I have a goal weight, 125ish, but will really have to see what "good and healthy" feels like, rather than set a specific number. I like Oldpjams' advice on having times when your body and weight are in peak shape and other times when you're resting. I have to remember that 122 is a number I looked at decades ago. It's vanity really, like, "can I do it?" Not, "is it good for me?" Weighing that amount may not be good for me anymore; I'm part of the menopausal, well over 50 group

Funny experiment: ffsf hot chocolate mix with ff milk. put in a bit of raspberry jello (no davinci or torani syrup). drank some hot: ok. leftover: stuck it in the frig; now I have have raspberry jello chunks in my "cold hot chocolate." looks weird and it's lumpy

So, on to the menu and back to my dissertation! Thanks, everybody!

B: chili, celery, lf soy milk
L: chicken, green beans w/ caesar dsg, refried beans
still to go:
S: cottage cheese, oats, fruit
D: protein, salad w/ dsg, veggies
S: dab of ffsf pudding with yogurt, berries

[ladybugmom]

Yummy, chunky cocoa! Isn't experimenting with food fun? I am glad that what I wrote was helpful to you. Have fun on the beach today!

Christin

[amalfi_girl]

I love your "goal weight" in your sig block. Good luck!!