Day 10 - URI On A Diet

9:24 p.m. - No real post for today. I have a cold hence the URI (upper respiratory tract infection) in the title of this post. My nose is running and my head is throbbing with sinus pressure. Getting work done but that is about it. Had to force myself to eat and didn't take one of the doses of the medication because my timing is all off and I didn't want to take it too close bedtime. I don't know if the lack of appetite is from the cold or if the medication kicked in has really taken effect and I'm just not hungry. I will see what happens tomorrow. Now that I can eat veggies, I should be able to get my nutrients to stay healthy. I only ate about 360 calories today because I skipped a meal. I didn't eat breakfast until 11:30 and then I was really busy with work and that ran in to everybody coming home so I really didn't think about eating until Stan and Steven left for practice. So I ate at 6:00 p.m. I hope the dietitians doesn't yell at me when I show her my journal on Tuesday.

• 11:30 a.m. - Egg White Omelete (5 egg whites) with Spinach and onions - 143 calories.
• 6:00 p.m. - Ground beef crumbles, salad and dressing - 220 Calories

Total for day - 363 Calories

Day 9 - Self Sabotage A Thing of the Past

5:56 p.m. Self sabotage...that is something that I have always done to myself with a diet. It is something that you don't think about but every little bite of something is a calorie and has the ability to put weight on or prevent weight loss. I believe now I have the motivation not to sabotage myself while on this program. I know how I had sabotaged myself in the past but don't know really the reason why. Maybe it was that I felt a need that needed to be fulfilled, maybe it was immediate gratification, maybe it was just a weak moment. Whatever it is, I engaged in it more than I care to admit. Every diet I ever tried, I managed to sabotage myself and then moan the fact that I had no weight loss or gained at weigh in time. I think that led to my always giving up on the diet. This time I'm not going to let that happen. This afternoon, I drove through the Mickey D's drive through with Steven after school. We don't do that often but we were crunched for time between school and baseball practice (because of my lack of preparation to have something at the house for him to eat before hand, bad mommy!) and the smell of fries filled the car but you know what, I didn't snitch a one. I was not even tempted. I was shocked at myself about that actually, pleasantly though. On previous diets, I would always snitch a few and think that it was okay because they weren't "my fries" I was just having a couple. That is when I didn't totally submit and order myself a meal along with the kids. Yeesh...guess I was never really that committed before to loosing weight then, was I? The other good thing was that Steven didn't finish his chicken sandwhich and I didn't even given it another look. I will confess to finishing my kids' food in the past. Yes, it is a bad habit a mother gets into when the kids are small and then it is hard to give it up but when I think about that those little portions that I "cleaned up" were a lot of extra calories. So is it any wonder how some mom's put on weight over the years and can't get it off. Now that I think about it, I have done a lot of things over the years to sabotage my weight loss efforts (if you could call them efforts) and that also helped packed the pounds on. This is where I think the Medi Weightloss program is helping me get through these times. Maybe I would be able to resist the fires or finishing the sandwich at first but I think I have would eventually succumb and eat if I didn't have the support of the medication and the supplements, along my resolve to be accountable either to the clinic or here in this blog. The clinic is teaching me how to eat and giving me the support while I work on changing my relationship with food so I don't continue to sabotage myself.

8:30 a.m. Hard boiled eggs (2) 140 calories.
12:30 p.m. Spinach salad with 3 oz of Shrimp and vinaigrette dressing 175 calories.
6:00 p.m. Chicken 4 ounces 140

Day 8 - First Week Results Are In

12:36 p.m. Drum roll please: First week results are in. I lost 8 pounds. I feel vindicated that sticking to the plan like glue worked and now I know I can stick to it for a second week. Fortunately, I can add in some nonstarchy, low glycemic vegetables. I never thought I would be saying that I'm excited to have salad. Okay, salad with low fat, low sugar dressing but salad. Still supposed to eat 500 calories of protein a week and a now I can add 1/2 cup to 1 cup of vegetables with each meal. They gave me list of approved veggies. I call it rabbit food, which includes lettuce, cabbage, celery, broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, etc. I can expect to loose half of what I lost this week so 4 pounds... Week 2 here we go.

12:00 - Chicken salad (3 oz of Chicken) with Miracle Whip free and lettuce shreds, 6 peanuts. 162 calories.

Day 7 - Staying Strong

9:57 a.m. - I can't believe that I am on the 7th day and I have stuck with it. I can't say it was easy because there has been a gnawing hunger since day one that just kind of stays with you. I believe the medication takes the edge off slightly and that whatever works on the brain that tells you you are hungry but you don't have to eat is working. Whether that is psychological or chemically induced at this point, I really don't care. It is working! I am able to ignore the hunger signals and all the temptations around and that is a good thing and a big step forward for me. The program advises not to weight yourself except for once a week but I have to admit that I have snuck a few peaks at the scale just out of curiosity and even measured my waist but I will hold off on posting anything until the official weigh-in tomorrow at the clinic. I will say that I do feel different in the sense that being off sugar and starchy carbs has made me feel less bloated. Today, will be another test because Christmas break is over and it is back to the daily grind of school, baseball practice and my long weekend is over so I am back to the regular work schedule which was pretty much suspended because of the holidays since I started the program. I'm glad I was able to have that little bit of a head start while things were not so crazy and that will help me stay motivated through the crazy times. I have been typically a "stress eater" and I will employ different coping methods when I get stressed or harried. A regulated sleep schedule will also be implemented as sleep helps in the restorative process and also helps the appetite.

9:15 a.m. Hard boiled eggs (2) 140 calories

Day 6 - Me on a diet with Ghrelin and Leptin

10:00 a.m. Woke up this morning and had some coffee while reading the paper. In the USA section was an article featuring Dr. Oz. Seeing Dr. Oz reminded me of the book he wrote with Dr. Rozien, "You On A Diet." I bought it when first came out and read it almost cover to cover. I learned a lot about how weight works and began to practice some of the principles in the book. I think it was another time that I lost some weight that got be back down to the 170 mark but failed to be consistent and did not go beyond the 5-10 pound weight loss. The one thing that stands out in my mind is the part about the weight loss hormones ghrelin and leptin. According to the website pubmed.gov

Leptin and ghrelin are two hormones that have been recognized to have a major influence on energy balance. Leptin is a mediator of long-term regulation of energy balance, suppressing food intake and thereby inducing weight loss. Ghrelin on the other hand is a fast-acting hormone, seemingly playing a role in meal initiation. As a growing number of people suffer from obesity, understanding the mechanisms by which various hormones and neurotransmitters have influence on energy balance has been a subject of intensive research. In obese subjects the circulating level of the anorexigenic hormone leptin is increased, whereas surprisingly, the level of the orexigenic hormone ghrelin is decreased. It is now established that obese patients are leptin-resistant. However, the manner in which both the leptin and ghrelin systems contribute to the development or maintenance of obesity is as yet not clear.

So in other words grhelin bad/leptin good. Dr. Oz equated them to grhelin being a gremlin and leptin be a leprechaun. I guess that kind of gives you a visual to work with. Grhelin stimulates your appetite while leptin is the hormone that when stimulated tells you you are full and satisfied. Anyway, the idea is to stimulate more leptin secretion by your habits and food choices and reduce the habits and food choices that encourage grhelin secreation. Things that stimulate grhelin that are bad in patricular are lack of sleep (hello...night owl here). I recently did some more research on this issue. From WebMD "So what's the connection to sleep? "When you don't get enough sleep, it drives leptin levels down, which means you don't feel as satisfied after you eat. Lack of sleep also causes ghrelin levels to rise, which means your appetite is stimulated, so you want more food," Breus tells WebMD." I am totally guilty of not getting enough sleep. I usually use the late night quiet hours to chill out making cards and sometimes I am up until 1, 2 or even 3:00 in the morning. Not good for weight loss apparently and obviously a very major contributor to weight gain. From Running Times Magazine : "There are two hormones associated with sleep that influence eating behaviors: ghrelin and leptin. Ghrelin is the hormone that lets your body know you’re hungry. Leptin’s role is to send a message to stop eating when your body has had enough. When you’re sleep-deprived, your ghrelin level increases. At the same time leptin levels decrease. So you crave additional food while simultaneously not getting the proper message to stop eating. The extra calories and poor self-control soon follow."

Given this information, I am guessing I will have to stop my night owl ways at least until such time that I can consistently sleep in until 9 o'oclock every morning. Until I get get my sleep cycle regulated, the appetite suppressant I am on called phendimetrazine, is working on my nervous system to help suppress my appetite. For me personally, I need a crutch to help get me through the rough patch of decreasing calories to see significant weight loss to stay motivated. Note to myself to find the book and see if what Drs Oz and Rozien say about appetite suppresants.

Quick snapsot of You on A Diet Principles found HERE

2:00 p.m. I am encouraged in that I'm definitely feeling a difference. What normally has taken me weeks to to get to I am feeling it after 5 days. I am in the middle of day 6 and everything is working the way the dietitian said it would.

11:00 a.m. Egg White Omelet (4), Turkey Sausage (2) and Coffee 190 calories

2:00 p.m. Tuna fish salad 135 calories

Day 5 = Going good

5:15 - It is day 5. I made it through another round of a shopping trip and going out to lunch without blowing the plan. Brought my medication and supplements to take when we got to the restaurant and ordered the shrimp cocktail staying withing my parameters (such as they are). Bread was brought to the table and the kids had fries...because I am committed, I was not even tempted. I'm in moderate ketosis now and that means I'm burning fat. We will see when I go for my appointment on Tuesday. Actually, I have a doctor's appointment for an annual exam on Monday so my weight will be taken then. Company coming tonight and we are just doing desert so I think I'm pretty confident right now that I won't be tempted to touch what we are having. I will just eat a healthy dinner of chicken or tuna and should be good for the night.

9:30 - Hard boiled eggs (20) 140 calories

1:30 - Shrimp cocktail about 3 ounces 105 calories.

5:30 - Tuna fish salad 195

Total for the day: 440

Day 4 - Happy New Year

10:16 a.m. - Happy New Year! Enjoyable evening at home last night. Since I really could only eat protein, I hated the idea of going out but you know it was nice to stay home with the kids and play games. We ate dinner and played a game of Scrabble and then around 10 pm we made appetizers and played Tribond and then Steven and I played another game of Scrabble until the ball dropped in Times Square. We had Champagne (the kids had sparkling cider) and toasted the New Year. How did I do with the diet? Well all in all not too bad. I think the psychological factor of knowing I'm on the program and the supplements and medication helped me not blow it. I paced myself with food earlier in the day so and only had chicken for dinner so that I could have some shrimp as my appetizer while Stan, Steven and Carrie, had chips and dip and pizza rolls. I was temped with the chips but I snitched one and even though I handled the pizza rolls a couple of times, I did not take one. My normal routine when I was on a "diet" was snitch a few because, what would it hurt? Well that is why I look the way I look so with my new determination, I was not tempted. I did however, sneak a couple of bites of the chili I made for Dinner. I love chili and of course I had to taste it to see if it was seasoned right. Anyway, I made a chicken breast to have while the fam ate the chili and garlic bread. So overall, I think I was 75 cals over my 500 goal for the day. But since it was mostly protein I don't think the dietitian will yell at me.

10:31 p.m. Made it through day 4 not too bad. First day I tested my ketones and they were in the minimal range and that is good. Being in ketosis means I'm burning fat. I have to measure it every day. Not hard ...just pee on a test strip. Enjoyed the day lounging at home in the morning/early afternoon. Then Carrie and I set out for a little shopping/errands. I made it through taking her out for lunch at Fridays by ordering a grilled chicken dish with the glaze on the side. My thought was that since the dish came with a full breast instead of just 1/2 the breast, I would eat the 1/2 of the breast and box the rest to take home for either Stan or Steven to eat. I hate being one of those fussy people in a restaurant asking for special things so that was a good compromise for me. I also asked the waiter to bring a box immediately so I wouldn't be further tempted. The next challenge was the coffee shop at Barnes and Nobels. The sweet coffee drinks I usually drink have to become a thing of the past for me so while Carrie got her usual Strawberries and Cream frappuccino, I ordered a plain coffee and added the Splenda and half and half on my own and even then, I just drank half of it. Half and half has 1 carb per table spoon so that is okay for me to have in moderation. That at least replaced one habit with another. Headed home and played a game of Scrabble with Steven and then had my last meal, which was 3 ounces of Tuna with the Miracle Whip Free. Satisfied with that. Calories for the day were under the 500 at 385...but with my going over yesterday I think that is okay. It is probably even less than that because believe or not, I couldn't even eat the entire breakfast that I had planned out that would have put me to the 500. I made a 4 egg white "omelet" (with nothing in it can it be called an omelet?) and only ate about 3/4 of that and instead of the 2 turkey sausage patties I planned, I only ate 1 (it did help that they did not taste like real sausage and in which case I would have eaten both). So I deducted the one sausage patty but left the full count for the egg. Here's the count for the day.

Noon - Egg Whites (4) and 1 Turkey Sausage Patty 115 calories
4 p.m. - Chicken Breast 4 oz 140 calories
7:30 p.m. - Tuna salad 135 calories