Monday, July 14th
Today's eats: 1634

Breakfast: 450 calories
1 toasted bread, 70g (172 calories)
1 slice low fat cheese (53 calories)
Plain yoghurt (100 calories)
1 giant red "delicious apple (125 calories

Lunch: 378 calories
15 saltine crackers (160 calories)
1 large rye bread, 60g (132 calories)
1 serving deli roast beef (33 calories)
1 teaspoon hot mustard (10 calories)
5 cucumber slices (10 calories)
1 small side salad, no dressing (33 calories)

Snack: 100 calories
1 chocolate chewy granola bar (100 calories)

Dinner: 526
Tenderloin steak (273 calories)
½ serving mashed potatoes (139 calories)
1 medium corn on the cob (70 calories)
Brocolli (34 calories)

Snack: 180 calories
1 chocolate chewy granola bar (100 calories)
1 orange (80 calories)

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x3, as recommended)

Exercise:
6 "puppy potty" trips (5 flights down & back up again per trip)
puppy playtime outside before nap time (x3 - about 10 minutes of playing tag, gentle tug-o-war, etc. Tires me out!)
15 minutes elliptical trainer
25 sit-ups

Tuesday, July 15th
Today's eats: 1514

Breakfast: 275 calories
1 toasted bread, 70g (172 calories)
1 slice low fat cheese (53 calories)
½ glass of orange juice (50 calories)

Snack: 278 calories
1 serving frozen yoghurt with pecans and caremel (155 calories)
1 very large delicious apple (123 calories)

Lunch: 460 calories
Pre-packed chicken noodle soup (300 calories)
15 saltine crackers (160 calories)

Dinner: 501 calories
Grilled chicken breast (155 calories)
Large serving brocolli (68 calories)
Mashed potatoes (278 calories)

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x3, as recommended)

Exercise:
7 "puppy potty" trips (35 flights of stairs up, 35 flights of stairs down)
puppy playtime (30 minutes total)
15 minutes elliptical trainer
25 sit-ups

Wow this little puppy is really wearing me out. He naps through the day and rides in a special puppy bag whenever I take him out, so he isn’t getting quite the same amount of exercise that I am . He still isn’t fully comfortable in his crate, so I can’t close the door and take a nap myself, which is very unfortunate. Last night I got a full 6 hours, I don’t know how it happened, but I am not complaining about it. I am hoping as he settles in more I will get a bit more rest. Still, he is so much fun to play with. He tires fairly quickly, though, which I guess is a good thing as I do too. Especially with all those stairs, oh my goodness; I thought I had prepared myself, but I was just delusional. He whines when I am on the elliptical as he sees the moving parts and wants to play with them. I have to use his leash to make sure he can’t reach me, as he is miserable if he has to be in another room (and I want to keep my eye on him as much as possible). I just don’t want to whack him in the head with one of my foot pedals or something.

I weigh in tomorrow and a part of me is dreading it. That visit to my mother-in-laws was better than most of the trips to her house as far as eating goes, but it still wasn’t very good (when considering I am trying to lose weight, not gain it). I limited myself and watched what I was eating, but I am very happy to be home again where I can see what is going into each meal I prepare.

COngrats on ur determination. I didnt even think of tracking the calories in the way u have. I do it in my head and maybe its not such a gd idea. I have a bad knee (13 ops and a 3rd recon and kneecap alignment surgery coming up) but i guess i should try a lil harder to get some exercise. I have a dog (7mth old Kelpie cross (farm dog) and we only get out for dog school- trying to curb his bad behaviour.

I have started to utilise the shake method like your hubby. I dont emotinal eat (sad or depressed) and i tend to actually become a non-eater. I can go days without much at all. It makes me atleast have some calories. I dont know how or if im doing the wrong thing but im consuming less then 1000cals a day. Every1 else around here is like 1400 plus. It is a very low calorie diet (VLCD). OPTISLIM VLCD. Its 3 shakes a day but iv taken the third out and replaced with a proper meal. Im 5'6, 75kg (?? 166ib). I want to lose 10kg by Oct. I did 30kg in like 4mths last year so i should be able to. Im confident that you will get to where you want to be too. Gdluck and keep up with the diary. It helps me so hopefully it helps u to keep focused.

Dee

DeDe23 ~ If I don’t write everything down, I forget things as the day progresses and then I sit there and scratch my head later. I have a little booklet that fits in my back pocket that I write everything in when I am not here at the house. Then I calculate everything using food labels and, in the case of some foods, fitday.com. Sometimes I have eaten under what I am allowing myself, in which case I usually have an extra snack.

Your dog is a fantastic way to get some extra exercise. A walk to the park or even just around the block and they seem really excited. My pup lets me know if he wants extra exercise or not by grabbing his toys and running from one end of the living room to the other over and over. When he does that, I know it’s time to go out again. Today I let him walk half way home from the vet (about 15 minutes, slowish pace for me, but really speed walking for him) and he was worn out. Of course after the stairs back into the condo, so was I

I am tempted to try the shakes once in a while, but the only real time I can have cheese is when my hubby isn’t around – this means I can never have it for dinner and only very rarely for lunch (he usually has lunch with me).

If you are consuming less than 1000 calories a day you are actually depriving your body of the energy it needs. I think the general rule of thumb is not to go below 1200 calories; it needs to convert energy from somewhere and, if push comes to shove, your muscles and your organs are also convertable into energy. I am not saying that this is happening, but it's something to consider when cutting calories. Not only that, but your body thinks that it is starving as a result of how low the calories are, and thus any energy you eat, it is going to hang onto to store into fat for when the next “famine” comes and you can’t eat as much. I would advise the sticky posts for determining calories (how many to eat to maintain versus how many to eat to lose weight). Really a fantastic guide.

Good luck!

Wednesday, July 16th
Today's eats: 1521

Breakfast: 252 calories
1 toasted bread, 70g (172 calories)
1 slice low fat cheese (53 calories)
1/4th of a medium apple (27 calories)

Snack: 225 calories
1 giant red apple, "delicious" variety (125 calories)
Plain yoghurt (100 calories)

Lunch: 378 calories
15 saltine crackers (160 calories)
1 large rye bread, 60g (132 calories)
1 serving deli roast beef (33 calories)
1 teaspoon hot mustard (10 calories)
5 cucumber slices (10 calories)
1 small side salad, no dressing (33 calories)

Dinner: 371 calories
30g salted tortia chips (135 calories)
125g ground chicken meat (130 calories)
Spicy seasoning (50 calories)
Veggies, the same amount I have in a side salad, but with just lettuce and cucumber (33 calories)
Cooked and drained onions (23 calories)

Snack: 295 calories
1 bag unsalted popcorn (215)
1 orange (80 calories)

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x3, as recommended)

Exercise:
Walking (30 minutes, regular pace)
15 minutes elliptical trainer
25 sit-ups

Thursday, July 17th
Today's eats: 1612

Breakfast: 325 calories
1 toasted bread, 70g (172 calories)
1 slice low fat cheese (53 calories)
1 chewy chocolate granola bar (100 calories)

Snack: 303 calories
1 giant red apple, "delicious" variety (125 calories)
25g whole wheat crisps (178 calories)

Lunch: 228 calories
1 large rye bread, 60g (132 calories)
1 serving deli honey turkey (43 calories)
1 teaspoon sweet mustard (10 calories)
5 cucumber slices (10 calories)
1 small side salad, no dressing (33 calories)

Dinner: 441 calories
30g salted tortia chips (135 calories)
125g ground chicken meat (130 calories)
Salsa (70 calories)
Spicy seasoning (50 calories)
Veggies (33 calories)
Cooked and drained onions (23 calories)

Snack: 315 calories
1 bag unsalted popcorn (215)
1 chewy chocolate granola bar (100 calories)

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x3, as recommended)

Exercise:
30 minutes walking, regular pace
35 flights up, 35 flights down (puppy breaks)
30 minutes playing with the puppy
15 minutes elliptical trainer
20 sit-ups & 10 crunches

I will have to weigh in on Friday (tomorrow). By the time it struck me that I needed to weigh in today I had eaten breakfast, snack, lunch and been out playing with the puppy for half the day. I’ll do my best to remember tomorrow. I have just been so tired and the first thing I do when I wake up is to take the puppy downstairs. That’s right, I don’t shower, eat, or anything. It’s all on hold, so I am disheveled and disgusting, but it’s better than having him poop inside.

I hope I will have a loss, but doubting it due to a combination of how I ate at my mother-in-laws and (warning: too much information incoming) my monthly visitor is due. So yeah, woo woo for bloating!

I weighed in at 198.8 - 1.1 must be my lucky number

Friday, July 18th
Today's eats: 1564

Breakfast: 275 calories
1 toasted bread, 70g (172 calories)
1 slice low fat cheese (53 calories)
½ glass of orange juice (50 calories)

Lunch: 460 calories
Pre-packed chicken noodle soup (300 calories) - this stuff is really, really tasty!
15 saltine crackers (160 calories)

Dinner: 551 calories
Grilled chicken breast (155 calories)
Large serving brocolli (68 calories)
BBQ sauce (50 calories)
Mashed potatoes (278 calories)

Snack: 278 calories
1 serving frozen yoghurt with pecans and caremel (155 calories)
1 very large delicious apple (123 calories)

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x2 - forgot the one with lunch)

Exercise:
6 "puppy potty" trips (30 flights of stairs up, 30 flights of stairs down)
puppy playtime & walking through the park (over an hour)
15 minutes elliptical trainer
25 sit-ups & 10 crunches

GOOD job ...KEEP up the GOOD WORK!!!

Thank you, Alta

Saturday, July 19th
Total eats: 1716 calories

Breakfast: 252 calories
Blueberry muffin (162 calories)
Orange juice (90 calories)

Lunch: 315 calories
6" sub sandwhich; smoked turkey on wheat bread with honey mustard, lettuce and cucumber (hold the mayo and bacon)

Snack: 275 calories
½ pack low sugar winegums (275 calories)

Dinner: 518 calories
2 vegetable eggrolls (268 calories)
1 cup veggie chop suey (250 calories)

Desert: 356 calories
Fruit salad (150 calories)
½ cup sweetened heavy whipped cream (206 calories)

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x2 - forgot the one with lunch)

Exercise:
7 "puppy potty" trips (35 flights of stairs up, 35 flights of stairs down)
puppy playtime & walking through the park (over an hour)
15 minutes elliptical trainer
25 sit-ups & 10 "squats"

Sunday, July 20th
Total eats: 1660 calories

Brunch: 501 calories
3 small eggs, scrambled, no milk (165 calories)
1 slice whole wheat toast (69 calories)
2 tablespoons reduced sugar strawberry jelly (68 calories)
1½ glasses orange juice (150 calories)
½ a medium pear (49 calories)

Snack: 285 calories
½ cup beef jerky slices – yes I am sharing snacks with the puppy (185 calories)
1 chocolate granola bar (100 calories)

Snack (again, several hours later): 356 calories
Fruit salad (150 calories)
½ cup sweetened heavy whipped cream (206 calories)

Dinner: 518 calories
2 vegetable eggrolls (268 calories)
1 cup veggie chop suey (250 calories)

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x2 - forgot the one with lunch)

Exercise:
4 "puppy potty" trips (20 flights of stairs up, 20 flights of stairs down)
puppy playtime & walking through the park (45 minutes - he was tuckered out today)
15 minutes elliptical trainer

Monday, July 21st
Total eats: 1626

Breakfast: 275 calories
1 toasted bread, 70g (172 calories)
1 slice low fat cheese (53 calories)
½ glass of orange juice (50 calories)

Lunch: 460 calories
Pre-packed chicken noodle soup (300 calories)
15 saltine crackers (160 calories)

Dinner: 471 calories
2 chicken hotdogs (303 calories)
2 hotdog buns with the center sliced open in kind of a \_/ shape (115 calories)
½ cup chopped onions, what can I say, I am a fan (30 calories)
1 tablespoon Heinz ketchup, lower sugar (15 calories) – couldn’t find this online so I just listed normal ketchup calories
10 slices cucumber (8 calories)

Snack: 420
1 small slice cherry cheesecake (420 calories)!

Suppliments:
Multivitamin (x1 tablet, recommended)
Calcium (x2 tablets, recommended)
Fish oil (x3, as recommended)

Exercise:
3 "puppy potty" trips (15 flights of stairs up, 15 flights of stairs down) - hubby took him down a couple of times while I was napping.
puppy playtime & walking through the park (45 minutes) - it rained on us today again
15 minutes elliptical trainer