Diet Train = Derailed

Well, I think the title says it all!  I have been horrible.  Ate fast food twice in the past three days and not just regular portions ....... large sized! I'm a mess and have no will power. 

Healthy Giveaway!

YAY! Here is a healthy giveaway you might want to get in on!  Head on over here to Bariatric Foodie to enter the giveaway consisting of Chike products.  I am not familiar with these products, but I looked at the site and it looks like it is a protein drink mix.  This looks like a pretty decent giveaway considering that you will get six (6) different flavors to try.  Plus, this is a good way to sample before you buy, because some of those protein drinks can be undesirable, to say the least. Good Luck! And, if you win please come back and let me know!!  

Also, while you over at Bariatric Foodie make sure to check out that Peanut Butter Cup Protein Frozen Pie Dessert!  That looks absolutely divine.  

Fat People & Suit Jackets

Yesterday my mom and I went shopping and had a girls day.  As we were out and about I was on the hunt for a suit jacket that I could wear to interviews, job fairs, and other events.  But after searching, I'm beginning to think that stores assume that fat people don't need jobs or do not deserve them.  I could only find two "suit jackets".

The first one I saw was almost like a sweat pant material.  Now, if I were the hiring manager and a potential employee showed up in that I would probably think "what are you wearing"! AND, on the other hand ......fat people should NOT be wearing clingy stretchy material.....how NOT flattering! Plus, the price was around $90.00 for this jacket.   The second one I really liked, but of course they didn't have any in my size. So, tonight I scoured the internet to find one.  I found many to choose from, but not any I wanted to pay for.  They ranged anywhere from $60-$100.  I finally came across this one on Target.com that didn't break the bank. ($29.99 + 5% discount for using Redcard)

Plus, to get free shipping I had to spend $50 so I got this shirt to wear with it or to work. ($21.99 + 5% discount for using Redcard)

Ho Hum! Diet Blues!

When you first start to diet, does anyone have trouble finding stuff to eat or find themselves not wanting to eat the wrong stuff so you don't.  Then, when you are at the point of starving you go towards all the wrong choices.

I felt like the Tasmanian Devil today b/c I didn't want to make bad choices, but I did.  I'm finding it really hard to follow my old school ww plan.  I hope I can get the hang of sooner than later! 

Any Suggestions?  I try to keep myself busy, but it is just so freaking HARD!

Meijer: Clearance Carmex Lip Balm ~ ONLY $0.59

Be on the look out for this AWESOME deal at Meijer.  I found Carmex Moisture Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm on clearance for $1.19 on an end-cap in the health and beauty department.

This could be a really inexpensive way to reward yourself for small goals that you have achieved in this diet adventure. 

Carmex Ultra Hydrating Lip Balm $1.19
Use the $0.30/1 any Carmex lip balm coupon found here
Plus, extra $0.30 off from Meijer double
Final Cost - ONLY $0.59!

GNC: Re-Body Hunger Chews

Well, Nevermind.........this will not be my "easy go to snack" when hunger calls!  These are Terrible, with a capital T! They taste like a orange Starburst on Steroids.  I couldn't even chew these completely.  I had to wash them down with water. Thankfully they were free! (see original post here)

So, with that being said I'm just going to continue with the SafSlim before meals.  That I can handle. 

Last Day for Sale at Meijers **Plus** 10/13 One Day Sale

I just wanted to remind all of you that today is the last day to get in on this awesome sale posted here.   Make sure to head out to your local Meijer ,if you haven't already, to pick up those essential items to make these recipes, Broccoli Slaw Meatloaf, and to portion control like this....................All on a budget!

Also, saw this deal that ends up to be pretty cheap when paired with printable coupon from coupons.com. 

Buy 2 Boxes of Betty Crocker Potatoes $1.80
Use the $0.50/2 Betty Crocker Boxed Potatoes found here
Final Cost $0.40 each wyb 2
(Meijer will double 2 like coupons, per transaction, up to $0.50)

AND, this deal.........

Buy 10 WW Smart Ones Frozen Dinners $18
Get $4 off instantly
Use the $4/10 any WW Smart Ones found here 
You Pay $10
Final Cost $1 each

PLUS, the Meijer One Day Sale going on 10/13/12.  Here are a couple things that stood out to me.

$0.39/lb. Bananas
Buy One Get TWO Free Thomas English Muffins 6 ct.
Buy Two 6-pack Pepsi or Mountain Dew (All Varieties) Get TWO Free

Healthy Coupons

I know a lot of coupons out there are basically for junk food.  It is very rare that you see coupons for healthy foods.  I think they are getting more common, but still hard to come by.  So as I was cruising around on coupons.com today for the 15th time, I noticed a lot of coupons that would be good to clip for diet shopping.  Here's a list.

1. $0.50/1 Box of Honey Nut Cheerios
2. $1/3 Boxes of Special K Cereal
3. $0.40/6 Yoplait Yogurt Cups (Void in LA, NJ, ND, NV & TN)
4. $0.50/2 Any flavor Yoplait® Greek yogurt (Void in LA, NJ, ND, NV & TN)
5. $0.70/1 Box of Special K Popcorn Chips
6. $1/1  Yoplait® Frozen Yogurt Original or Greek Pint or Frozen Novelty Carton
7. $1/1  MiO Liquid Water Enhancer
8. $1/2  Special K® Bars, Pastry Crisps and/or Kellogg's® Nutri-Grain® Cereal Bars
9. $1/2  Kashi® Chewy Granola Bars
10. $1/2  Kellogg's FiberPlus® Chewy Bars
11. $1/1  4-pack (3.2 oz) of any flavor Mott's® Snack & Go Applesauce pouches
12. $1/3  Boxes of any flavor Nature Valley® Granola Bars (5 count or larger), Nature Valley® Granola Thins....
13. $1/1  Package of ANY PERDUE® SHORT CUTS® Carved Chicken Breast Variety
14. $0.75/1  Any flavor/variety Cascadian Farm® product
15. $0.50/1  Flatout Thin Crust Pizza
16. $1/5  PowerBar® Products
17. $1/1  Any BonSavor Product including Tortillas, Pita, Naan & Wraps
18. $1/1  Any BonSavor Pita Product
19. $1/1  Any BonSavor Wrap Product
20. $1/1  Any BonSavor Naan Product.
21. $1/1  Fit Foodz product
22. $1/1  ZonePerfect® multipack
23. BOGO Buy new Cinnamon Brown Sugar or Chocolate belVita Breakfast Biscuits (8.8 oz), Get One FREE (up to $2.98)  - The cashier will just have to adjust the coupon if price is over $2.98.  So, if the deal is like the CVS deal posted here, you may have to pay $0.02 for the one box, depending on the cashier or store's coupon policy.   
24. $0.75/2  Campbell’s®100% Natural soups
25. $1/1  HORMEL® Refrigerated Entree. Any variety
26. $0.75/1  Any flavor Yoplait® Frozen Smoothie
27. $1/1  On any flavor of Torani Coffee Flavoring

Why Mail, Why?

Look what I got in the mail! 

I will not give in, I will not give up, it is only the second day!  Oh (sigh) mail, you make is so hard! 

Cheryl's Cookies......YUM! Sugar Cookies!

Healthy Giveaways!

I stumbled across this blog today, The World According to Eggface, and I noticed she posts a lot of giveaway contests that consist of healthy items. How Cool! One giveaway was a Nike gym bag filled with vitamins, products, reusable cups, and other goodies.   Go here to check some of her previous contests out.

Old School WW: First Day

Today I have official started old school Weight Watchers.  It seems like it took forever to get started on a regimen, but I feel like I had to work myself up to get going. So this is some of the food I had:

• belVita Breakfast Biscuit (Chocolate) - 4 points
• Broccoli Slaw Meatloaf - 3 points
• 1/2 c. Mushroom Bisque Soup - 3 points
• Taco Bell Beef Soft Taco - 5 points
• Taco Bell Pintos and Cheese - 3 points

GNC: SafSlim ~ Tried Today!

 I'm excited to share with you all that today I actually worked up the courage to jump on the SafSlim Re-Body Challenge freebie that I posted about here.  Before my lunch and dinner I took 1 tablespoon of the Berry Cream Fusion.  And, too my surprise it actually tasted good!  It had the consistency of a fat-free yogurt and it went down really smooth.  I didn't try the chews today only because I forgot, but I definitely could tell when I should have ate one to combat my cravings.  The only bad thing about this is each tablespoon is 2 old school WW points.  I'm not sure if I am going to incorporate this into my daily target points or not.  (Still thinking & debating.)

So....as I'm sitting here writing this post and I guess I am sort of confused by the directions.  I thought (only b/c I'm like a man when it comes to directions....who needs em!) that you take the SafSlim twice daily before meals and then eat a hunger chew when you had a craving.  But, the packaging makes it sound like you have to take a hunger chew AND a tablespoon of SafSlim twice daily before meals. The "For Best Results" above sounds more logical to me so I am going to follow that regimen.  The good thing about it is that the Re-Body Hunger Chews are 0 points on old school WW.  YAY!  That will be an easy go to snack when I hit rock bottom for the day. 

Like my Ikea eating utensils?!

Let me know if any of you have tried this yet????

Broccoli Slaw Meatloaf

Today I made Broccoli Slaw Meatloaf.  My mom makes this as meatballs and they are sooooo good!  So, today I sort of made my own version to fit with my old school ww plan.  I got the idea from the Hungry Girl - HG-Rific Taco Meat recipe.  Basically, I used mushrooms as a filler in the beef, then added the broccoli slaw, seasoned, and sort of formed into a rounded shape, then baked.  I was really surprised how much the mushrooms pumped up the volume of the meatloaf.  It could probably feed 3-4 people.  Check out the steps and pictures below. 

Ingrediants:

Fresh Mushrooms
Bagged Broccoli Slaw
Palm-Size Piece of Lean Ground Beef
1 egg white

Directions:

1.  Add the fresh mushrooms, egg white, and lean ground beef in a food processor and blend until mixed together.  

(I'm a Ninja..I'm a, I'm..I'm a Ninja!)

2.  Put meat mixture into a smaller bowl and stir in the broccoli slaw and any seasoning (salt & pepper, garlic powder, minced onion, etc.).  I used about a 1 1/2 cups of slaw. 

3.  Put the meat mixture in a small baking pan sprayed with non-stick olive oil spray and shape with either your hands or spatula.  ( I used the spatula b/c I don't like to touch meat!)

4.  Put in the oven for about 45-50 minutes at 350 degrees.   

Alright, So, I am not sure why there was so much grease in the bottom of the pan.  The only thing that I could think of was that the ground beef my mom gave me was a fattier cut because I only used a palm-sized amount!

5.  VIOLA! Easy Peasy!  Enjoy your meatloaf!

6 Old School WW Points.....Not too Bad!

I actually added Campbell's Mushroom Bisque Soup to the side so that I could dunk my meatloaf in it.  I wanted to really try this soup but for 1 cup it came to 6 points on the old school ww plan.  So, I opted out of eating it as a soup and took a 1/2 cup of it as a side.  (equaling 3 points)  I had such an experience making this! It never fails....if one thing goes right, two things have to go wrong! 

Exploded in the microwave! What a Mess! 

Go Here for Nutrition Facts & Other Varieties

BUT, everything was really really good and I got enough to taste the soup.  Afterwards I wasn't disappointed that I didn't get to eat it as a soup.  Sort of tasted like thick mushroom flavored cream (I know....it is Bisque!), but oh so good on my meatloaf! 

Revised: List of Long-Term Goals

 As mentioned in the post before, I have revised the old list.  Out with the "old" and in with the "new"!

Official Start Date : Thursday October 11, 2012
(5 pounds per month to hit goal)

November ~ Get hair extentions for the holidays - How Fun! :)

December ~ Never reward yourself with food .... Oh Boy, this is going to be hard! - Get my nails done for Christams.

January ~ Buy a Tredmill - good sales b/c of the new year

February ~ Get a Massage

March ~ New Outfit

April ~  TBD

May ~  TBD

Goals: 10/11/12 - 10/18/12

I know it's weird that I started a diet on Thursday, but I felt like it was now or never! So this week here are my goals....

1.  Be a little bit more active or less sedatary
2.  Track everything that goes in my pie hole!

So, I challenge everyone to track and be active with me!  I am still sticking with my original goal weight of 5 pounds a month as posted here. (Revision of list to come)  So, on that note, Good Luck and all of you have to help keep me accountable!  :)

Aldi's Thin Bread

I wanted to share that a while back I saw sandwich thins similar to Arnold Selects and those mentioned here at Aldi's.  They were actually really good and I didn't notice any difference in taste, plus, they were about 1/2 the price of the name-brand.  I'm thinking they were only priced around $1.49 per pack.

Fiber One 90 Calorie Brownie

Oh My Goodness.......Where have you been all my life?  Amazing!  These are the Fiber One 90 Calorie Brownie Line.  They come in a variety of Chocolate Brownie, Chocolate Peanut Butter Brownie, and Chocolate Chip Cookie.  The Chocolate Chip Cookie is definitely my favorite.  The Chocolate Brownie is good, but the Peanut Butter Brownie I found hits the gag reflex.  I think it is something to do with the PB! Yuck.

But, these bars are extremely moist, convenient, have 5 grams of dietary fiber in them, and are low in calories and WW points.  How can you go wrong!?

  

" Is it a cookie or a brownie? Does it matter? It's 90 calories!"

click on the image to enlarge

Well....

UGH! I stepped on the scale today and I am more shocked than I was originally when I started this journey in 2010.  I have gained 35 pounds since then!  I have to buckle down and lose weight!

I Say Potatoe.....You Say Po-ta-toe

Are you looking for a way to curb your carbs this holiday season?  OR Need something to help curb the temptation of home-made potatoes at dinner?  Well, I have the answer for you. 

The other night a friend and I were at the mall and we stopped into Bath and Body Works to look around.  We were smelling all of the candles and came across this one.....We opened it and and both went........EW!  It smells just like potatoes!!  I would have never guessed that a "Thanksgiving" titled candle would smell that way. 

So, head on out to your local Bath and Body Works to grab up your new diet tool!  Just sniff and enhale!

Lack of Words! *UPDATE*

Well, I lack words for this.....................................

Dear Emily,

Thank you for your interest in Starbucks and the position of store manager.
 

We have reviewed your resume and have decided not to move forward with your candidacy for this position. We encourage you to continue searching our Career Center at www.Starbucks.com/careers for new opportunities that may be a good match for your background.  
 

I am baffled that someone who posts something like this HERE can get a job, but I can not! Wow! I know I probably wasn't the best candidate for this, but I can't believe that someone who supposedly works for Starbucks as a store manager can't spell!