Week 13, Day 2

I exercised during all but two commercial breaks last night during the Biggest Loser two-hour finale. So why do I feel fat today? I really want to meet my 50 pounds of additional weight loss by March 27, so I really need to hit it hard each day between now and then. Only 107 days left, a little more than 15 weeks. So I need to lose about one pound every other day or about 3-1/2 pounds a week. Can I make it? I don't know now. I might have gotten too optimistic when I set that goal.

Eating has been a bit messed up, though. My stomach has been burning yesterday and today. Usually I eat something like crackers or soup or something to make it feel better, and I tried that last night. But nothing is working. All I did was add calories I don't need. Ugh. I've had a sandwich and two yogurts to eat today. I don't know what I'll do for dinner. I want a big salad, but I don't have the ingredients and can't get out because of the snow. I have some frozen veggies. I think I might add some cheese and have that for dinner.

SUBWAY AND THE BIGGEST LOSER
I watched the Biggest Loser finale last night, of course. It turned out pretty much like I expected. Danny won. Liz didn't make it into the final three. And two of the contestants looked like skeletons -- Rebecca and Tracey. But the pleasant surprise was what Subway is doing for Shay. She started out so big...476 pounds, and lost 172 pounds. Great job! But that still puts her at 306 pounds. So Subway is offering her $1000 per pound she loses between now and the finale of the next season of Biggest Loser. A 100 pound loss could mean $100,000 in her pocket. That's a great incentive! The reality is that it's a great marketing gimmick. But that's potentially a huge amount of money for them to spend, so I can't help but believe that at some level they really do care. Not only that, but the 2009 Zagat Fast-Food Survey has rated the Subway brand as the #1 overall provider of “Healthy Options”. Check out their online nutrition information for each menu item.

TODAY'S TIP:
Adding even a little bit of walking to your routine each day can help burn calories and boosts your weight loss. And it doesn't have to be hard to add a bit more walking. Prevention magazine suggests these simple ways to increase your steps without spending a lot of time:

* Walk around the perimeter of the grocery store at least once before heading toward the items you need.
* Move in place whenever you're talking on the phone.
* Go through or around the entire shopping mall instead of parking near the store you need.
* Take a walk around the block at lunch and after dinner.

Week 12, Day 7

I know there are men who read this blog. But I just have to say something. It's diet-related, I swear. -- I HATE the hormonal "issues" that come once a month. Honest to God, I would have killed last night for a chocolate bar. Today I'm tired, run down, bithcy, and I still want chocolate. How can I lose weight if once a month I have The Beast to deal with? Ugh!

And now I must confess to you. I DID give in to the chocolate craving. Today after I dropped Adam off at work, I stopped by Burger King. (I had Doggie with me, so I couldn't go to a grocery store.) I got a salad (lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, cheese, no dressing) and a piece of Hershey's pie. Three bites of the pie were enough to make me feel human again. In fact, it was almost too much since I'm not used to sweet stuff anymore. It probably helped that I ate the salad first so at least I wasn't eating the pie out of hunger. The rest is going in the freezer to stay put until next month when undoubtedly The Beast will strike again.

Here's another confession. I have only done a few leg lifts today. In my defense, I have had work to do all day. I'm a freelance writer, and though I don't go to an office, I do still need to be disciplined enough to work. Besides, The Beast has made me really tired. That and the snow blowers came at 3 o'clock this morning to remove snow from the sidewalk right outside my window. I know, I know. That's a poor excuse for being so sedentary today. And to make myself feel better about being a slug, I'm going to try to at least put a few miles in on the bike this evening and some weight work with my arms. But truthfully, I don't think it will be much.

Today's Tip:
Prevention Magazine has an awesome website with a Body Mass Index calculator, a health tracker, quizzes, all kinds of helpful tips and ideas, and some great informative articles. One of the things I found that made me feel better is from a slideshow titled, "Foods Not to Ditch When You Diet". They said that pasta is actually not a bad thing. I suppose they don't mean plate after plate of it like you can get at Olive Garden's "never-ending pasta" event. But still, having some isn't bad.

Prevention says, "Cooked pasta and rice are about 70% water--and eating fluid-rich foods keeps you fuller longer, compared with dry foods, according to research from the British Nutrition Foundation. Like bread, the carbs in pasta boost serotonin to help curb overeating.The proper portion of pasta is ½ cup cooked, or about the size of an ice-cream scoop. Choose whole grain varieties for filling fiber, and add grilled chicken and lots of veggies to bulk up your dish even more."