Day 14: Back on Track

 

Day 14 of Nutrisystem 2.0 started off with a beautiful sunrise. I was going to post it to my Instagram and Facebook but someone had beat me to it, so it seemed pointless. I'm just glad I got to see it and I can post it here for me to enjoy ! We had this beautiful sky but the day turned gray and rainy, as predicted !

Breakfast was a 260 calorie Jimmy Dean Delights breakfast sandwich. These are becoming a habit, but it also gives me a break from yogurt. Morning snack was a 120 calorie vanilla shake. Lunch was a chef salad and 220 calorie pepperoni pizza melt. Afternoon snack was 80 calorie cottage cheese and 60 calorie diced peaches. The entire can of peaches would be 110 calories but there was no way I could eat an entire can. Dinner was a 210 calorie broccoli & cheese stuffed chicken breast with freshly roasted carrots and some green beans. Evening snack was a 140 calorie chocolate cupcake. Total calories for the day are 1090.

Last night I successfully avoided the bedtime snacking that had crept back in over the long weekend. It helped that I ate dinner later and had a very large serving of veggies. Next time I shop I plan to buy larger bags of green beans and broccoli so that I can cook larger quantities. I bought bags that you can just throw in the microwave and steam in bag, but the serving is too small. I'm taking a break from brussel sprouts as I'm just not enjoying them, so it'll be green beans, broccoli and carrots for now. 

I woke up feeling renewed and ready to start working harder at this. Maybe lazy weekends aren't such a bad thing ! I put a 35 minute walk on my iFit schedule for lunchtime but opted for a shorter 20 minutes of intervals. I didn't really want to tie up most of my lunch break on the treadmill. As I was doing the intervals (1 minute at 2.8 mph with 1 minute at 2.4 mph in between) I felt "thin". I just felt like my belly is flatter and I don't feel so bloated. This feeling is NOT supported by the mirror, as I'm still fat, but it's a step in the right direction. Before I got back on the plan I was feeling huge, uncomfortable and bloated all the time. I feel a bit more energetic (during the week .. lol) and it seems like the treadmill is getting slightly easier. My lunchtime workout was a repeat of one I first completed on February 14, 2019. I weighed about 278 at that time. Today I'm at 239. I decided to brave the 35 minute walk after work. I told myself it may be long but the speed is a steady 2.6 mph and I think know I can do this. I did complete the workout but I started to struggle about 19 minutes in, as there was some 4, 5 and 6% inclines. I stepped off the treadmill for a few seconds to turn my fan on and at about 22 minutes I had to put my hands on the rails. That lasted about 75 seconds and I was able to take them off for the remainder of the workout. I'm pretty proud because this is the longest workout I've done since June of 2022 and it's the first time the estimated calorie burn was over 200 ! I may try to repeat it once a week because it challenged me, we'll see. Today, with warm ups and cool downs, I spent 61 minutes on the treadmill ! I also exceeded 10k steps for the first time in many months ! This is huge and I'm really happy. It may not be an every day thing but the goal here is to push myself and I feel like I did that today. This is where I want to be ! I really, really wanted to stop but I stared at the 70 pound bear sitting on my treadmill and I repeated "I'm coming back for you, baby" and kept on going until the end. I need to get to 234 pounds to earn the 70 pound bear back and that goal is in sight !

There is one thing that is for sure: I'm not doing this again. I am not going to become a yo-yo dieter with "fat clothes" and "thin clothes". I don't plan to change my eating habits once I get to 160 or below. I plan to continue eating Nutrisystem food as long as I can afford it. It costs me about $10 a day for 3 meals and a snack, and that's pretty reasonable. I also plan to continue my exercise goals. One behavior I have to get away from is "treating" myself with food. I know that food should never be a reward, yet I still find myself thinking that way. It helps that I no longer go to the casino, because every Saturday I undid all the progress I made during the week. The only thing I miss about the casino is my mom. None of the rest matters. 

The nice thing about long weekends is they're followed by short weeks ! Tomorrow is Wednesday already ! I'm planning a trip to Christmas Tree Shops and the grocery store on Saturday since the weather looks to be good. I'm getting low on coffee and coffee syrups so I'm going to get what I can at CTS before I resort to an Amazon order. Sunday has the possibility of snow so that'll be my day to get things done around the house.

When I changed my sheets yesterday I put flannel sheets on it. It was SO nice to get into a cozy warm bed. Nothing beats flannel on cold winter nights. On that note, I'm headed to bed. Today was just a fantastic day and I hope the rest of the week is the same ! Tomorrow is weigh in, so I'm hoping for good news !