Only Some Carbs

 Friday, March 4, 2022

Maybe the body does treat different carbs differently.  Or there is such a thing as carb shock when your body goes WTF when you give it something new, only to have it go unexpectedly to your benefit.  Dunno.  I had trepidation about what would happen with the lentil soup.  I've had lentils before, but given that I've been treading water lately I didn't know what to expect.  And what I got was ... fine?  Good even?  It didn't interfere with water disposal.  Nice drop this morning, almost back to where I was at the start of February.  Good things.  We'll see if today goes as well.

Also of note the last two days I have at times had some more pep in my step.  A little extra zip going up stairs.  Even felt like I could have jogged last evening coming home.  This is a VERY happy development after musings lately about how disappointed I've been in how I feel.  Again, we'll see if it continues, but it is nice to feel like I have extra power in the legs when climbing stairs for example.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Sausage lentil soup, toast, cottage cheese

Yes this is a repeat and I am fine with that.  Two left in the freezer for next week and I may make another batch just because it's stupid easy.

Dinner:  Home Run Inn deluxe frozen pizza, 12 oz Miller Lite

FAIL.  Pretty good tho.

Exercise:  Nope.  Woke up at 6:00 but wasn't real awake.  Warmth coming for tomorrow so I'm planning on taking extra time to get outside and be active.  Just maybe not at 0-dark-30.

40.6

Lentilly

 Thursday, March 3, 2022

New soup today.  Pretty good stuff.  I do need to add a bowl of it to yesterday's totals, since I did more than just sample it after it was done last night.

Nothing much else, just trying to make it through the week.  I did have pretty good physical pep this morning, but I have to say that mentally I am just not that into it.  Is problem.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Sausage lentil soup, toast, cottage cheese

Soup is italian sausage, lentils, carrot, tomato, onion, chicken broth, garlic, seasoning.  I thought it would need more seasoning but it doesn't.  Works just fine as is.  Big ol' bowl, too, I probably could have packaged up slightly less generous portions.

Dinner:  Taco bowl, popcorn, 12 oz All Day IPA

All good.

Exercise:  Nope.  Same ol.  Man it's going to suck making the DST switch soon.

42.6

Not Much Punished

Wednesday, March 2, 2022

Didn't pay a price for last night's dalliance with pizza.  Happy about that.  Definitely had visions of some water weight hanging around for a day or two.  It's easier to justify on Saturdays when I am (usually) much more active, but whew.

Read an interesting article this morning about the link between weight gain and being sleep deprived.  I knew some of the biological stuff, but it was nice to get the referesher course.  Definitely possible that my sleep has been inadequate lately and that's contributed to the hunger.  I use the term "the hunger" as a term of art -- I may not actually be hungry, I just have a relentless desire to eat.  Lots of ghrelin.

On another subject, need to make soup tonight as I am again completely out.  Have a new recipe to try, I hope it turns out!

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.  The hormonal balance is fine in the morning.

Lunch:  Soup and toast, cottage cheese

Standard.

Dinner:  Taco bowl, popcorn w extra butter, 12 oz All Day IPA

Good stuff.

Exercise:  Nope.  Same issues.

42.8

Unabated

Tuesday, March 1, 2022

Hungry tonight.  Didn't write any of this at lunch as I typically do, so I may be crankier than usual.  Dunno what it is but some days the switch flips and I want to eat EVERYTHING.  I'm only being saved by not having a lot of stuff on hand that would provide quick gratification.

February books are closed.  Didn't lose any weight, actually up a couple pounds but nothing significant.  Considering the spikes, not unhappy.  I ate a LOT of junk and didn't get much exercise.  Ready for warmer weather.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.  Fine in the mornings.

Lunch:  Soup and toast, cottage cheese

Same.

Dinner:  Soup and toast, Grando's veggie "street pizza", 12 oz All Day IPA

I had an extra serving of soup from this batch and figured I had better eat it.  Last one will be lunch tomorrow.  Have a new recipe on tap after that.  Ate the street pizza a little later - if I had planned earlier to eat it I would have skipped the toast.  Oh well.

LOL at this being 62g of carb.  Good grief.

Exercise:  Nope.  No progress.

43.2

It's The Knee

Monday, February 28, 2022

Last day of the month.  February has not been a success, but that's life.  At least this weekend wasn't quite as bad eating-wise.  Glad to not pay too steep a price for last night.

Was musing a while back about why I haven't had the pep to try jogging despite comparable weight loss to 2012-13.  Thinking about it lately, I really think it is the cumulative injuries, especially my knee.  It just has no strength, pretty sure I tore a ligament or two when I hurt it and while it's functional for basic stuff (and walking) I don't think I can push it.  Diet may also be a factor, still too many carbs, but the body is the biggest impediment.  But that's okay, I'm fine if I can just walk without restriction.  Don't need to run.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Soup and toast, cottage cheese

Standard.  I'll make hamburger vegetable one night this week for the freezer.

Dinner:  2 american 2 mexican tacos, bacon, 24 oz Miller Lite

My satiety switch is just broken right now.  Tacos weren't quite as fat and I ended up scrounging for easy stuff to eat.  Leftover bacon from the weekend did the trick.  Now, I just need to not get into the habit of having more than one beer.

Exercise:  Nope.  Got up at 6:00, which is good, but was rather tired.  Warmer temps are coming so I need to shift the schedule ffs.

45.0  

Talking Out

Sunday, February 27, 2022

Managed to talk myself out of working this morning.  I do have some things to be done around the house, but I sure do have a ton of work work to do.  Hopefully I can complete my chores and head in after lunch for a few hours.  We'll see.  I'm really good at talking myself into sloth.

Anyway, despite staying up way way way too late last night I don't feel bad this morning.  Easing into things is good for that.  I have the local news on and they just showed a graphic with the 7 day weather forecast, all seven days are slightly above freezing for highs.  Progress!  Still below average a bit but still, a positive sign.  We've been consistently cold since the first of the year with none of the occasional warmups that we see in some winters.  I'm ready to get back outside.

Scale was OK, down a little thanks probably to non-water.  Good news for a winter weekend day.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Definitely like it better in the insulated mug.  I'm going to have to make that switch at home too.

Lunch:  Ham soup and toast, Fage 5% yogurt plus blueberries and a sprinkle of sugar

Fresh batch of soup and toast both made last night.  Soup was more liquidy due to more liquid (duh) and probably less flour and potatoes.  Didn't measure anything.  Also had a thought - I wonder if anyone drinks seasoned chicken broth plus cream?  The liquid in this soup is so good.  Sure, I like the solid parts too a great deal, but it seems like it could be an easy wintertime beverage for keto people trying to up their fat.  Dunno.

Snack:  SF vanilla pudding w whole milk and unsweetened coconut

Eating stuff that was on hand produces some interesting choices.  Was enjoyable, if not good for me.  Kinda have 'the hunger' this afternoon.

Dinner:  Home tacos american style, Doritos, applesauce, 12 oz Miller Lite

Tasty but ldo not good for me.  Sunday dinners.

Also:  Wendy's single, fries, Frosty.  Sigh.

Exercise:  Nope.  Still way off on schedule.  Conditions were probably doable if cold, with a windchill in the single digits, I just haven't fixed the sleep.

42.6

Chicken Thoughts And Pork

Saturday, February 26, 2022

Lots of pork today.

Found myself pondering this morning.  I could have done without the chicken last night, it was fairly late when I ate it and it added 35-40g of carbs to my intake for the day.  Didn't take too much to determine that I went over the limit, didn't flush as much water as the day before despite a similar evening liquid intake.  The beans may also have contributed of course.  Stupid body biochemistry and stuff.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.  Full morning at the office so it was just like a regular workday.

Lunch:  2 egg omelet with cheddar cheese, biscuits and sausage gravy, bacon

Until lunch anyway.  Since I worked I didn't have time to make soup.  Maybe this evening.  Definitely enjoyed the breakfast feast though.

Dinner:  Thin crust home pizza w sausage and roasted red pepper, 12 oz All Day IPA, 12 oz Miller Lite

A very sausag-y day.  Kinda forgot about the pizza plan when I pulled the biscuits and gravy out of the freezer.  Oops.  Not unhappy though.  Turned out deeeelicious.

Exercise:  Nope.  No alarm this morning, woke up at 6:15 so not too bad.  I think temps are going to be more normal this week, if we don't get any precip that turns everything to ice maybe this will be the week to get out there again.  Definitely feeling the loss of conditioning.

44.2

More Beer More Water

Friday, February 25, 2022

Glad it's Friday.  Also glad, kinda, to have the return of getting rid of water even if that means getting up in the middle of the night.  For now I'm okay with that.  Still working on last week.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Soup and toast, cottage cheese

Standard.  All good.

Dinner:  Spicy beans w cheddar jack, air fried Aldi red bag chicken filets, 24 oz Miller Lite

Overcooked the chicken.  Two filets left in the bag.  And have I mentioned that this batch of beans is just exquisite?  3 jars left in the freezer, I'll be sad when they're gone.

Exercise:  Nope.  I may have been awake briefly at 4:45 but I was definitely not awake.  Need to go to bed earlier, been up too late reading Ukraine news.

43.6

Let's Keep The Easy Go

 Thursday, February 24, 2022

At least it's been a somewhat decent week for the eating.  Getting rid of last weekend's excess at a steady clip but still a ways to go and I'm definitely up for the month.  Gotta keep plugging.

I went to Aldi last night looking to get about ten things.  I walked out purchasing ... zero.  They had two, but I decided it wasn't worth waiting in line for the two things and the guac cups (one of the two) had an earlier expiry than the ones I bought more than a week ago.  Sigh.  Oh well.  I'll get a deal on a corned beef somewhere before St. Patrick's Day arrives.  And I probably won't become a regular Aldi shopper, it's just not that convenient.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Soup and toast, cottage cheese

Down to my last soup for tomorrow.  Opened the Daisy cottage cheese and it's definitely better than the store brand I bought last time.  Sure it's a lot more expensive, but the ingredients are clean and did I mention it tastes better?  I'll spend a couple extra bucks when it's warranted.

Dinner:  Taco bowl, popcorn, 12 oz All Day IPA, 12 oz Miller Lite

Not too often I have a 2nd beer on a weeknight.  Forgot to take a photo of the popcorn but it's always the same.

Exercise:  Nope.  Again woke up shortly before six without the alarm, which is good.  Again didn't get moving, which is not.

46.0

Saltony Is The New Irony

Wednesday, February 23, 2022

I am fully aware that after musing about salt I went and had a ton of it for dinner.  It happens.  There is always a lag due to my mental block about being not fond of throwing stuff out that's perfectly edible.  It's one thing if it's no good, but there was nothing wrong with last night's bacon etc.

I started by not salting my soup.  And that was fine.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Soup and toast, raspberries w a sprinkle of sugar

Last of the soup and a good thing, it wouldn't have been good tomorrow.  Makes me appreciate the freezer.  The raspberries weren't a whole lot better with a sprinkle (way less than a tsp) of sugar, glad they're gone.  That was 99 cents I'd like to have back.

Dinner:  Taco bowl, 5 strips bacon, 12 oz All Day IPA, popcorn

Quite a bit of food and it was all satisfactory.  Cleaned up the last of the bacon.  Decided to throw a little pepper on my popcorn, it was an enjoyable addition.  Never done that before.

Exercise:  Nope.   Waking up has been going a little better, just before my alarm at 6:00 today but that didn't translate to any kind of immediate action.

48.2

Is It Just ... Salt??

Tuesday, February 22, 2022

As I was eating way too many almonds last night, it hit me.  Is it just the salt?  

I mean, nearly all of the foods I eat to excess are loaded with salt.  Chips, chain pizza, nuts.  Is it more that I'm craving the salt than the actual item?  I'm not sure that's 100% it, especially in the case of pizza, but it may be a big big factor.  I occasionally crave sweet but not nearly as often.  Binges on sweet aren't as often, though I certainly can eat ice cream or cookies to excess.  Most of the time, though, it's salt.  And not always -- much of the time I can control my nut intake, for example.  But not always.  I can control my popcorn intake.

Hmm.  Something to ponder on some more.  But for now, I'm going to try dialing back the salt.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Soup and toast, raspberries

Standard, plus some fruit.  They were on sale this weekend.  They were ... uninspiring.  Not notably tasty or the least bit juicy, more fibrous and just blah.  Strawberries are better.

Dinner:  Leftover roast beef, tomato gravy, leftover bacon, roll with butter, 12 oz All Day IPA

Cleanup.  Still have bacon left but wiped out the beef, gravy and roll.  Going to let that sit a half hour and see how I feel - the satiety feeling has definitely NOT kicked in yet, which has been annoyingly common of late.

Add popcorn.

Exercise:  Nope.  Did get lots of sleep and woke up at a reasonable hour, so a little encouraged by that.  No end to winter in sight though.

50.8 

Let's Buckle

Monday, February 21, 2022

Time for the nose to hit the proverbial grindstone for a while.  So much to do.  Focus to regain.  I left fatigue (and general malaise) get the best of me somewhat, time for that to stop.  Let's go.

Very predictable large gain after yesterday's super blowout.  Mega blowout.  Awful, awful blowout.  At least I'm sure some of it will be disposed of today, though I have already seen some of it go and I was still way way up.  Focus dumbass.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Soup and toast

Standard.  A slightly bigger bowl of soup so no cottage cheese today.  I have two more containers of soup left to eat, then I have to eat the rest of what's in the freezer.  Definitely time to restock once I can get my hands on some decent ground beef.

Dinner:  2 mexican, 2 american tacos.  12 oz Miller Lite.  Smokehouse almonds

Yup.  Hit the spot.  I was quite hungry, kinda ran out of gas this afternoon.  Need better diet plus more sleep plus exercise.

Exercise:  Nope.  At least I wasn't hurting too bad this morning considering how late I got to sleep last night.  One of these days it'll warm up enough to melt the ice and clear the sidewalks.

53.4

Checking The Last

Sunday, February 20, 2022

Sigh.  Too much binge.  Going to spend a few minutes this morning studying the last extended one and see if I can learn anything about pulling myself out of it.

Breakfast:  Pancakes w butter and maple syrup, 6 strips Wright thick applewood bacon, coffee

This obv isn't it.  But anyway.  Bacon was past date so I figured that I needed to cook it up.  Pancakes from the freezer.

Lunch:  Ham soup, chicken sandwich

New batch of soup from yesterday.  I haven't been able to get the kind of ground beef I like from Meijer the last couple weeks, so I end up with ham instead.  Chicken is red bag from Aldi, first time trying it.  Good, but not transformative.  I'll eat up the rest of the bag but won't be in a huge rush to restock, I'm not that much of a chicken person anyway.

Snack:  Chips and onion dip.  Siete chips and salsa

Cleanup.  If I can just not buy them next week that'll be a win -- I tend to not eat what I do not have!

Dinner:  Roast, box potatoes, carrots, peaches, rolls w butter, 12 oz Miller Lite

Sunday dinners man.

Also:  Culvers concrete mixer, fries

Exercise:  Nope.  Overslept this morning.  Badly.  Really struggling with how to fix the schedule, as it's getting worse not better.

50.0

Just Repeating Myself

Saturday, February 19, 2022

Most repeated phrase in the history of this space?  If not it probably will be soon.  Say it.  TGIS.

Happy to have a nice relaxing morning and to have not paid a big price for last night's frozen pizza, which I enjoyed way too much.  More bad eating on tap this weekend, I am afraid, but hopefully I can get straight soon.  

Breakfast:  Apple fritters, coffee

Kind of a meltdown purchase yesterday.  Oh well.  I'll eat up the stuff I bought and it'll get better.

Lunch:  Taco bowl w cheese, salsa, sour cream and guac

Cleanup since I didn't eat this yesterday.  One of the better ones I have made - a little lighter on the sour cream, cooked on a new pan which I stuck under the broiler for 2 min after heated to melt cheese.  My biggest complaint with my own taco bowls is stuff gets cold, so if I make sure the meat is hot and I add less cold stuff it's better.  Also first try of Aldi guac cups, bought spicy.  Good, and I got 6 cups for less than the price of 4 on sale at Meijer.

Snack:  Chips and onion dip

Dinner:  Home pizza w sausage and red peppers, 24 oz All Day IPA

Tasty.  Might have a post-dinner drink, either a hard seltzer or a gin and light tonic.

Also had to test out the new batch of soup.  Not bad.

Exercise:  Nope.  Blowing up to 50mph out there, windchill was way below zero.  I did actually wake up at 6:00 again which was nice (no alarm), but didn't do anything for a long time after that so it hardly counts as a success.

47.2

Not The Day Of Action

Friday, February 18, 2022

Not too peppy today.  Got up without trouble which was nice considering the six hours of sleep or so, but that was pretty much the highlight.  I've eaten way too much sugar this week and need to dial it way back.  Too much other junk too.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Snack:  Donuts.  More than one.

At least they're gone now.  Held up remarkably well.

Lunch:  Soup and toast, cottage cheese

Standard.

Dinner:  Home Run Inn deluxe frozen pizza, 12 oz Miller Lite

Impulse buy, poor choice.  Could have eaten 20 minutes or more earlier if I had stuck with the plan.

Exercise:  Nope.  Blimp.

47.4

Full of Talk

 Thursday, February 17, 2022

Sigh, another binge.  I'm full of talk but the action has been very much lacking lately.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup

Snack:  Donuts

Darned good donuts.  Will be glad to see them gone.  Thought I took a photo but looks like NOPE.

Lunch:  Soup and toast

Given donuts decided to save the rest of the cottage cheese for tomorrow.

Dinner:  Pizza w sausage, green pepper and onion

New pizza place, just opened up this week.  Half a block away.  Back to having four places within two blocks.  Dangerous, dangerous territory.  May decide to have a beer too, we'll see.

Exercise:  Nope.  Schedule getting worse and worse.

44.6

Some HODLing Of The Wrong Kind

Wednesday, February 16, 2022

Getting rid of the weekend's excess hasn't been fast or obvious.  It's like the body is holding onto it for some reason.  No need to fear famine, body, I have food for weeks and there's lots of onboard stores that could be consumed.  Oh well.  It'll come.

On the bright side I have been averaging about a compliment per day lately, which is especially interesting because I don't see all that many people.  Provides some extra motivation, too, though there are definitely challenges in the form of excess work, stress and other stuff.  I would definitely be excited to drop ten pounds and be below my lowest weight in the last 10 years.  I'd be very excited to hit the milestone that's twenty or so pounds away.  And I'd be over the moon to hit my long time interim goal, but that would take about three really good months without the big setbacks and bad bad weekends.  So it may be a while.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Soup, toast, cottage cheese

Standard.  Very late today - 1:45 - so I was fairly hungry.

Snack:  Apple fritter.  

Office got a dozen very high quality donuts, I had one.  Will probably have another one tomorrow.  Bad.

Dinner:  Chopped sirloin w cheese, mushrooms and onions, mashed potatoes, garlic toast, salad with ranch, 32 oz Labatt

Also:  Wendy's double stack, small fries, chocolate frosty, smokehouse almonds.  Why do I have THE HUNGER.  All very good at least.

Exercise:  Nope.  Same deal.

43.4

Halfs

Tuesday, February 15, 2022

Past the halfway mark for the month.  Now, we just need to get there for the week.

Haven't noted that I had a bunch of water queued up to leave after this weekend, guess it's going to take longer than usual to wipe out the excesses.  So it goes.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Ham soup and toast, cottage cheese

Standard.  Last of the ham soup.  Back to hamburger for tomorrow.

Dinner:  Taco bowl - taco meat, shredded cheddar, sour cream, guac and salsa.  Siete grain free tortilla chips, 12 oz All Day IPA

Bumped up the meat and cheese, taking a new approach with that.  Eating the chips because I had one bag left, may be giving those up as part of an effort to dial back the carbs a bit once they are gone.  May end up drinking more Miller Lites too.  We will see.

Going to have some smokehouse almonds too.

Exercise:  Nope.  Not getting nearly enough sleep and making no progress on fixing the schedule.

44.4

How Many This Week

Monday, February 14, 2022

Happy whatever today is.  Monday.  A long, long day.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Standard

Lunch:  Ham soup and toast, cottage cheese

A typical lunch, this time with cottage cheese.  I bought a container (Meijer brand) since it was a lot cheaper than the precooked hard boiled eggs and I didn't boil any.  Nice to have a little extra boost of protein at lunch.  I bought large curd for the first time (was always small curd at our house growing up) because it was 4% fat instead of 1%.  I have no idea what the difference is otherwise.  

Dinner:  2 american style, 2 mexican style tacos

Didn't bother with a photo, went straight back to work and ate at my desk.  Not as fat as they have been lately but still good.

Exercise:  Nope.  About five hours of sleep or thereabouts.

46.4

You Don't Have To Be A Star

Sunday, February 13, 2022

No deep thoughts this morning.  Off to a slow and late start.  It's going to require a push to get myself out the door and to the office for some much needed work time.  

Paid the price for potatofest plus pizza, but it's just temporary.  Today won't help as I finish off some stuff and then have a Super Bowl party to attend this evening.  I've been treading water for the past three or four weeks and it would be a good time for another push.  

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.

Lunch:  Soup and air fryer fries with ranchified sour cream, chips and onion dip

Same as yesterday, just sour cream instead of NSA ketchup.  Finished the fries finally!

Snack:  Pizza toast (w cheddar and parm) and way too much of it

Dinner:  Sub sandwich, potato salad, chips and guac, bbq cocktail franks and wings, a carrot stick

Fourthmeal:  2x McDouble, vanilla shake

JFC what fail.  Awful.

Exercise:  Nope.  No progress on the schedule.

44.0

A Broken Record Is Right Exactly Once Per Week Or Something

Saturday, February 12, 2022

Say it with me.  With feeling.  TGIS.  TGIMFS.  

Whew.  Just ran out of (mental) steam this week.  And earlier than usual.  I did not come close to hitting my objectives for Thursday and Friday.  I'll have to make up for them some this weekend, but at least this morning I can take it easy and take comfort in the familiar routine home chores.  Bread is underway and I'll tackle a batch of soup shortly so I have some for lunch.

Speaking of which, trying to kick off 2MAD on the weekends today.  So far so good,  I'm obviously very familiar with the routine so it's not like I have to play some massive trick on my body.  Just have the mental side and (so far) that's no problem.  Of course there will be chips and onion dip ... and I had way too many last night, but at least I didn't pay a price on the scale this morning.   I have next week's menu mapped out already and am going to try a couple tweaks to the dinner plans.   Not major changes, just small mods that will hopefully allow me to be more consistent slightly less carby while still eating things I enjoy.

Breakfast:  Coffee

Yup.  I did get a small taste of honey during bread baking (gotta clean off that spoon before it goes in the dishwasher you know), but doubt it was more than ten calories.

Lunch:  Ham and potato soup, air fryer french fries w Heinz NSA ketchup

LOL, realized when I started eating that this is what the hoi polloi would call a "potato forward" meal.  Throw in some chips and onion dip later and it'll be a super potato-y day.  Anyway.  Fresh batch of soup right off the stove.  Loaf of bread for the week cooling in the background.  A good morning.

Dinner:  Home thin crust italian sausage pizza, 24 oz All Day IPA

Standard and very tasty.  Ran out of mozzarella so I threw on some cheddar and extra parm.  Oh, and yes I did have chips and onion dip earlier.

Exercise:  Nope.  Finally some slightly warmer weather in the long range forecast so I need to get cracking on getting that schedule fixed.  Got up at 7:00 today without issue, let's see if I can move that to 6:00 over the next week.  Not a very active day.

42.2