Friday, August 31, 2007

Believe It Or Not

Honest to goodness, these things taste like Snickers!

Image courtesy of SlimFast.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

A Shiny New Look

Au Bon Pain has redesigned their web site, and I like it! The nutritional info is even more accessible, and I like the layout a lot better. Thank goodness ABP has some good choices for me on those days when I just have to get out of the building and grab lunch.

Not on the DL, Sadly

I just got my blood work back from my physical. Sad. My cholesterol went WAY up. Last time I had it checked, about 3 years ago, it was a nice, shiny, happy 182 or so. But now? Yikes. 262. That's not a number I'm proud of.... so I've got my work cut out for me. I'll have to go back for follow-up blood work in 3-6 months, and I've got to get that number down.

Dad's very interested in hearing all my stats now, cuz he wants to make sure I don't have the same experiences he had. Even though my cholesterol was high, I'm happy to report to him that my triglycerides are good, my blood glucose is normal, and that my HDL - the good cholesterol - is actually really good. It's just that my bad cholesterol is really bad. :-(

So, I shall soldier on, trying to live an increasingly fat-free life....

Sunday, August 19, 2007

My Swap-Out Dinner

I'm trying to make small adjustments in my cooking to reduce the amount of fat and sodium I use, and my experimenting is resulting in some pretty tasty meals.

Swap-out #1 -
I'm no longer cooking in olive oil, but instead am just using a small amount of olive oil-flavored cooking spray in my awesome non-stick skillet. This reduces the amount of fat, makes the final meal less oily (of course), and is cheaper!

Swap-out #2 -
I'm experimenting with different little flavor-toppers for things like veggies, rather than using margarine as a base.

Tonight, my dinner was:

Tilapia, crusted with black pepper and cumin.
Whole green beans, blanched and lightly dashed with garlic-infused rice vinegar.

This was so tasty! Light, fresh, with a little tangy zip -very low in fat and sodium, but totally filling!

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Truckin' Along

I'm still here..... even while not posting, I'm still on the WWWagon. Things have been going pretty well - I'm now down 8.4 pounds from my official starting weight, which is really more like almost 12 pounds from my highest point (cuz I gained a few there after starting).

It feels good... every day still brings its challenges, like Restaurant Week with its desserts included and pasta nights with tomato cream sauce, but I'm managing to balance it all out. I track all my points in my little online journal, so I know to step it up after a bad day.

I'm still about the worst person ever about making myself exercise, but I know that and scold myself enough for it already. I'm drinking LOTS of water, and because I'm on a medication that leeches potassium (and means I shouldn't have alcohol), I have dr's permission to drink fruit juice. So I've had fun trying out different kinds - surprisingly, passion fruit juice wasn't all that.

The really good side benefit of all of this is that - finally! - I've now tried on the dresses I'll be wearing at the upcoming weddings, and I actually think I look cute in them! Hooray for not hating how you look! :-)