Planned Cheating

So...

My DH and I have really been wanting to enjoy something we can't have on Ideal Protein.  We've been so good, and for the most part it hasn't even been that difficult to resist temptation.  We talked it over and decided that instead of giving in to random temptations, we should plan in advance for an off diet meal.  We wanted to make sure that we didn't end up blowing our meal on fast food--we really wanted to make sure it was something good.  So we came up with a few ideas, and even talked with our coach about minimizing the damage.  We figured if we have a "cheat date" every 1/4 of the way, that should be enough to help us get through.

Another thought behind this is that we want to make sure that the cheating is our choice--that we don't feel trapped into cheating when we don't want to.  We don't want to be pushed into cheating by well-meaning friends and family.  Nor because we didn't prepare our food in advance or we didn't feel like cooking.  We wanted to have something good, and be able to absolutely enjoy it.  No feelings of guilt or regret allowed.

So we did it.  We picked up our absolutely favorite pizza.  It was hot, greasy, and cheesy.  We found that our tastes have changed, and our wonderful pizza was just a mediocre dinner.  We overate a bit, but a lot less than we would have before the diet.  I even bought myself a small coke.  And it wasn't the same either.  It was just all right.

It's kind of funny though.  We felt relieved afterwards--like our fears of being overcome by the delicious carbs were just an overreaction.  No guilt.  No regret.  A little disappointment.  But plenty of relief.

We were careful not to have restricted food items that day or the following.  I'm sure we knocked ourselves out of ketosis, but we should be back in it in a few days.  So far there are no other side effects.  I'm sure we won't have as great of a weight loss in the upcoming week, but that's okay.  We are in this for the long haul and we want to make sure that we allow ourselves the very rare cheat.  Next time it will most certainly not be pizza.  Instead, we will probably enjoy some sushi.

Anyway, I'm glad we did it, and I'm glad to be back on track again.

And Depression Snuck Up On Me...

Here is a previously unpublished blog post I created a couple of weeks ago:

I know that I will always battle depression.  It has come fewer times and further between, but it is always there under the surface.  I took a couple of days off of work and really just fought it off.  It's been pretty rough.  I haven't been able to turn to my usual comfort--food.  Instead, I've had to just deal with it.  I've been able to not turn to eating as my coping mechanism, which has been great.  It's the small victories, right?  But I've also been really miserable.  I've been doubting myself and getting frustrated with everyone and everything.  And I've been very sad.  I have been on the verge of tears for about three days now.  I haven't cried, and I couldn't even tell you what it's about.  But I just feel vulnerable and tired.  I just want to crawl inside myself and hide for a few days, or weeks, or months.

But I'm slowly pulling myself back out of it.  I am getting back into my routine, and working hard to stay on track with Ideal Protein.  I'm not giving up.

One of my favorite bloggers is Jenny Lawson--The Bloggess.  She is so funny, but she has also been through anxiety and depression.  It helps to know that I'm not alone - that there are others who face depression.  I keep hoping every time things are going well that maybe I will be free of it.  Maybe I will turn around one day and see that years have passed rather than weeks or months.  But at least for now, I feel thankful that it is usually months rather than weeks.  And it isn't like it used to be either - it hits me, but I am still able to function for the most part.  And then it fades.  I know this too shall pass...

I'm feeling much better now.  I feel like myself.  Best yet--the depression didn't cause me to cheat on the diet!  Yay!  So I am still on track.  Depression isn't easy, but I think over time it has become more manageable.

Weigh In #6

I know I'm late posting this.  I actually weighed in on Monday, 10/14.

9/6/2013:  WI 1  -3.4
9/13/2013:  WI 2  -5.8
9/20/2013:  WI 3  -3.4
9/30/2013:  WI 4  -5.0
10/7/2013:  WI 5  -2.0
10/14/2013:  WI 6  -3.0

That brings my total weight loss to 22.6 pounds!

I'm very proud of my loss so far.  I'm almost 1/4 of the way through!  And my DH is right at 1/3 of the way to his goal!  I'm hoping to hit 25 pounds on Monday.  I can do this--I know I can keep moving forward and reach my goal :)

My Ideal Protein Pancake Day

So I needed a day of indulgence - or at least what felt like indulgence.  I decided to have pancakes for all three of my Ideal Protein meals.  I use an unrestricted pancake recipe, so I was able to have pancakes for breakfast, lunch, and snack!  It was sweet and pancakey and awesome!  It's an easy recipe to find - just google "Ideal Protein unrestricted pancake recipe"

The batter tends to be a little thick, so I add just a touch of water.  I also find it works  best if I spread out the batter a bit in my skillet--that way the pancakes aren't too thick.  I highly recommend using non-stick spray.  The finishing touch is the syrup--Walden Farms has absolutely killer pancake syrup.  It tastes like the real thing to me :)

I also like to microwave two slices of turkey bacon to have with my pancakes.  Since I'm doing pancakes all day, I only had the bacon with one meal.

I think it's great to find a way of indulging on the diet.  Find a couple of take out places that have delicious meat you can bring home once or twice a week.  Experiment with recipes and find some of your new favorite foods.  I think if I feel too deprived then I won't stick with it, so I make sure I don't feel deprived!

Yum!

Zucchini Chips

We've been experimenting with zucchini chips this past week.  I started with this recipe for baking zucchini chips in the oven.  They came out pretty good, but I found I couldn't fit many in the oven.  My DH also enjoyed the chips so I was having to make a lot for us both to eat.  The chips are thin so one zucchini makes a lot of chips.  The chips also shrink down a lot.  So after making a few batches, I splurged on a dehydrator.

And I made chips...

Yay!  Very lightly salted is good - you don't have to get fancy with them.  We've also enjoyed sea salt and freshly cracked pepper; Lawry's seasoned salt; salt and garlic powder; and celery salt.  They are all pretty good.  You have to watch the garlic powder--it comes out pretty strong.  They make for a nice, crunchy snack or side dish and they are veggies!

I have also dehydrated bell peppers.  They are pretty tasty on their own, but they are good in salads and soups.

Squash is pretty tasty too!  Eventually we would like to try our hand at jerky, and once I am able to eat fruit again, I'd love to make fruit chips and fruit leathers.

The dehydrator has been well worth the expense so far.

Weigh-In #5

9/6/2013:  WI 1  -3.4
9/13/2013:  WI 2  -5.8
9/20/2013:  WI 3  -3.4
9/30/2013:  WI 4  -5.0
10/7/2013:  WI 5  -2.0

That brings my total weight loss to 19.8 pounds!

I hit a milestone after the 3rd weigh-in - the most weight I've lost on a diet before now has been 12 pounds.  Usually it took me about three months to lose 12 pounds - and I lost that in about 3 weeks on Ideal Protein.

I'm feeling pretty good.  I don't really feel like I'm on a diet to be honest.  I eat plenty, and most of what I eat is pretty darn good.  My clothes are starting to fit a bit better too.  And I can tell in certain places when I look in the mirror that I've lost.

I am very happy with Ideal Protein.  It definitely helps me stay on track that I'm losing weight so quickly!

Eating Ideal Protein On a Short Trip

DH and I decided to take the kids to the beach.  We wanted to do a very quick trip while our daughter was in town.  We settled on Pensacola Beach - not too far a drive.  The key to our short trip on Ideal Protein was planning and preparation.  I knew we'd be gone for two days, so we needed to make our food in advance.  We would also have to be prepared for our kids - they wouldn't be eating what we're eating.

So the evening before the trip I made some Ideal Protein meals that I thought would travel well.  I made some muffins and broke a couple of shake packets as well as our mini blender.  I also made some small containers with IP Pudding and Jello.  We prepped some water bottles to bring with us and brought a small cooler.  I also wanted to bring some veggies, so I sliced up some cucumber and bell peppers and stored them in the cooler too.  We would only need to eat out for dinner once, and we were hoping to find a seafood place and have something boiled or baked.

The morning of the trip, I microwaved some turkey bacon for the journey.  We like to kind of snack during long drives and we wanted to make sure we didn't feel deprived.

The planning definitely paid off!  We really had a great time, and could relax without worrying about food.  We also saved a ton of money by not eating out every single meal.  We even had a picnic with the kids - they had turkey sandwiches and chips while we had our IP meals, veggies and even a little turkey.  The kids enjoyed mixing up some Mio flavors for their water bottles.

For dinner, we researched seafood restaurants in the area, and found a menu online.  It helped that we knew what we wanted going in.

It was well worth planning for!  We had a wonderful time.

Italian Inspired Chicken Soup Recipe

Our favorite soup is a kind of Italian Chicken Noodle soup.  Unfortunately, I can't use my usual potatoes, carrots, or noodles!  I didn't let that deter me--we wanted soup!  It came out pretty darn delicious.

Italian Inspired Chicken Soup Recipe:

• Chicken (your choice of white, dark or both!)
• Chicken Stock
• 2 celery ribs
• Green Bell Pepper, Red Bell Pepper
• Can of Stewed Tomatoes
• Garlic (as much or as little as you like! I love tons of garlic)
• Green Onions (3-4), chopped
• Salt, Pepper, Oregano, Basil - to taste
• Red Chili Pepper Paste (optional - just a squirt)

Throw your bell peppers and celery into a food processor or blender.  Put your chicken in a pot, and cover with the stock.  Add your veggies and seasonings.  Stir and bring to a simmer.  Simmer for at least an hour - I like to go for two.  

Enjoy!

Thoughts, Moods and Depression on Ideal Protein

So I've been on Ideal Protein for several weeks now.  I haven't cheated, and I've actually started to really enjoy cooking creatively.  I've losing weight at a really good rate too - as a matter of fact, I have now lost more weight on Ideal Protein than on any other diet.  I've lost in 3 weeks what normally took me 3 months to lose!  I haven't really felt many cravings; they've mostly gone away.

Another added benefit has been my mood.  I used to come home from work and feel too exhausted and depressed to cook.  So inevitably we'd end up eating out.  I was so sick of fast food.  But my mood these past two weeks has been really great.  I feel so good about how and what I'm eating.  I don't feel like cheating and I'm loving cooking!

There have been a few times that stuff has happened--stuff that would normally push me toward depression and darkness--but so far I've been able to bounce back quickly.  I don't feel like holding on to my bad moods.  I get angry or upset, but then I'm able to let it go.  It's a nice feeling.  I don't know if it will continue, but I feel kind of happy.