New Start -Week 1

Tomorrow is Monday. I polished off the leftovers from July 4th and am ready for my new start. I have been putting off for too long starting and sticking with a way of eating that will help me lose weight. I am not starting a diet but, instead, an eating plan that I need to follow the rest of my life. As I get older, I am finding that I am gaining weight much easier and faster than before. I love to eat and am always thinking about what I will eat next. I consume mass quantities of food, especially at family parties. I have no full button at these events. I just eat and eat because it smells good, looks good, and tastes so good. I also think of all the hard work that went into making the food and I want to show how much I appreciate it. It seems like all the hard work of eating right during the week is seemingly undone by one family party on the weekend. To be honest, it's more like every weekend, whether there is a family party or not, I let myself eat whatever I want. That has got to stop.

I am going to follow my own plan which is a combination of South Beach/Zone/Jillian Michaels/Body for Life. I have studied all of them and they all have the same strategy for safe and healthy weight loss. Basically, I need to cut out bread, pasta, rice, tortillas, potatoes, and corn. I need to stick to lean proteins, fruits, vegetables, and beans. I need to eat between 4-6 small meals a day each with a balance of protein/carb/fat. I am also going to cut out full-fat cheese. Sometimes I tend to overdue it on the cheese and have a hard time digesting it. I am going to follow my plan even on the weekends. I want to enjoy family parties, so that is the only time I will let myself eat whatever I want without following my new plan. Family parties come up quite often. At least once or twice per month.=)

For breakfast I am going to have a protein shake. I use the Magic Bullet and it works great! My goal is to have the same thing for breakfast every day this week. I don't want to have to make a lot of choices. My shake has two scoops protein powder (140), 3/4 cup frozen blueberries (80), 1/2 Tbls. olive oil (60), and water. Total calories 280. It is so delicious!! I promise you cannot taste the olive oil. It just makes the shake richer and keeps me satiated a little longer. Does anyone have a great breakfast idea for me for week two? Please post a comment, email, or call me with your recipe for a fast and delicious breakfast.

For my first snack I am going to have a turkey roll-up. I just use romaine lettuce and mustard with my turkey. I roll it up, and eat it. It's a perfect snack. (60 for two)

For lunch I am going to have a salad with romaine, strawberries, cucumber, fat-free feta, grilled chicken and a homemade balsamic dressing. Again, I am going to have this everyday this week. I might change out the strawberries for grape tomatoes if I feel like it. Both are great. Please let me know your favorite lunch for week two. (400)

This next snack is my favorite. I hardboil a bunch of eggs. Then I throw out the yolks and fill the cavities with hummus. These are truly decadent and delicious. Two eggs with hummus are the perfect amount. (100)

For dinner I am going to make shrimp fajitas. I figure I can change out the shrimp for chicken or beef every night so it doesn't seem like I'm making the same thing. I am going to use three different colored bell peppers and lots of onion. We are going to have salsa, Fage 0% (greek yogurt as sour cream), and a side of refried beans. (500) If you have a delicious dinner option for week two, let me know. I don't know if Dominick will let me feed him the same thing every night. But we will see...

For dessert I am making sugar-free strawberry jello mixed with 2 cups Greek yogurt. I made it last week and Dominick loved it. It makes about six servings. The jello taste better and turns it a pretty pink color. It also turns the jello into a protein snack. Plus, a big serving is only 25 calories. Try it, you'll like it.

I just added up my calories for the day and they equal 1365 total. That's right where I want to be, give or take a hundred calories or so.

I'll be letting you know how I am doing in a daily post. Any hints, tips, encouragement or questions will be appreciated. Have a great day!