tomorrow's the day of truth...

phew, i'm tired. it's been a couple of weeks since i worked day shift! the best thing about evenings is definitely sleeping in!!!

anyway, this is a short one... wish me luck at weigh in tomorrow!!! i think i'll need it.

Another weekend has come and gone...

Well my weekend was nice. Unfortunately i wasn't able to lick this cold in time for the weekend. in fact, it's still hanging around and i made the executive decision to call in sick for work. something i completely hate doing... but if i went i wouldn't have lasted the 12hrs i'm supposed to work tomorrow. i guess there's a reason we get sick time. i still managed to see alex all weekend. my germs didn't scare him off! i went and met him for lunch on friday, then we went to dinner, then he showed up saturday for a bit, and today we watched the movie "just friends" -it was funny. i recommend it! he and i have both entered a world cup (soccer) pool at my work... i feel bad for him. i'm not sure what he's going to do when his girlfriend kicks his butt in a soccer pool... i guess he'll get over it! HAHA!!!

my pillow is calling me. my nyquil is taking effect and i am starting to be able to breathe (i love breathing!!).

haven't posted my menus for the weekend... they definitely were NOT core... but within my points.

here's my plan for monday and tuesday:

Monday's Menu (subject to change depending on how i'm feeling)
Breakfast
*3/4 cup shredded wheat (2)
*1/2 cup skim milk (1)

Lunch
*1/2 cup FF cottage cheese (2)
*tomato, cucumber (0)
*chicken salad (3)
*watermelon (1)

Snack
*2 fruit snacks (2)

Dinner
*soy burger by blue menu (5)
*lettuce (in place of a bun) (0)
*condiments (1)
*1 1/2 cups strawberries (1)
*splenda (0)

Snack
*3/4 cup shredded wheat (2)
*1 cup skim milk (2)
*chocolate syrup (0)


Tuesday's Menu (working a 12hr day)
*** same as monday's menu with the exception of dinner**

Dinner
*1 cup whole wheat pasta (3)
*chicken breast (3)
*ww recipe tomato sauce, 1/4 cup (0)
* 1/4 cup ff cottage cheese (1)
*1 1/2 cup strawberries (1)


and there you have it... my meal plans for the next couple of days.

enjoy your manic monday, everyone!!











only 211 days until christmas!!!

The jury's in...

i was down 1.6lbs this week, bringing my grand total to 54.0lbs lost...not too shabby for ol' shrinking jen.

i had hoped i'd be down a little more... but all in time... as alex reminded me, i just need to keep up these better habits from this week and it will average out for a better loss in the long run... as long as i'm where i would like to be by michele's wedding... i won't be at my goal... but i'll be a lot closer.

thought i'd just post a couple of photos for all of my fans out there... (heehee).

Thursday... the good, the bad, and the ugly.

it's thursday... and i'm not too worried, i know the scales will show me down at weight watchers tonight.

i didn't post yesterday, but the menu was the same as tuesday pretty much... throw in some avocado at lunch and take away the cottage cheese at dinner... and there you have it.

well, time to evaluate the core plan from this week. i guess i won't officially know how i did until i step on their scales at weight watchers. mine at home are basically just a guideline to give me an indication of how i'm doing... theirs is the final word.

i feel good after doing core... i felt pretty pleased with myself all week, knowing i was only eating healthy foods... went the whole week without any bread, not too shabby for the shrinking girl herself!

i did start to feel somewhat restricted towards the end of the week... i'm not too sure why... the only thing i was really missing here at home was eating cheese and bread...

the bottom line is i'm going to stick to the mostly core foods and will adhere to some of the rules of core (ww pasta or brown rice, only one serving a day...)... but i'll allow myself weight watchers bread and cheese. i'll stick to fat free cottage cheese, and possibly fat free plain yogurt for now too... i can add the jam spread to the yogurt to make my own fruit yogurts.

i'm not posting a total menu plan for today because it's pretty sad... i know i almost starve myself until weigh in. i had 2 eggs first thing this morning, then for lunch (at 11:30, i don't like to eat past noon on weigh in day) i had lettuce, tomato, cucumber, avocado, and a little tiny bit of fat free honey dijon mustard salad dressing... pretty healthy... and enough calories to get me through the day.

of course after weigh in tonight is a different story... here is my plan

for dinner i'm going to get a footlong turkey sub from subway... it's going to be toasted and have the following toppings on it: cheese, turkey, lettuce, tomato, extra pickles, and black olives... and fat free honey mustard sauce on it and black pepper (hold the salt). i'll also get 3 cookies to bring home to enjoy! probably chocolate chip...

and that is my plan!!!

alex and i are going out to dinner tomorrow night... i can't wait! first, to see him... because i haven't seen much of him since his return from mexico... and then to go OUT to eat!!! i think we're going to go to montana's... i'll have either chicken fajitas or a pasta dish maybe... who knows!!!

of course he's finally feeling better and i seem to have a cold... the sore throat is gone (thank god, it was so painful for 2 nights i hardly slept! but last night i slept like a baby)... but now it's all nasal congestion... hopefully i can get that gone by tomorrow night so we could both be healthy, both be in the country, and both enjoy dinner!!! i can't WAIT to have a date with my boyfriend!!!

i'll update later after i know how weigh-in went... wish me luck, cross your fingers for me!

Tuesday's Menu

I've done it, I've gone on the treadmill for FOUR whole days in a row... tomorrow will be my 5th and last one planned until friday (so i'll just take thursday off)... i don't have set days to go on, i just have to plan around my shifts at work.

here's today's menu

breakfast
*2 eggs (4)
*1 banana(2)

Lunch
*lettuce, tomato, cucumber (0)
*2tbsp FF honey dijon salad drsg (1)
*3/4 cup FF cottage cheese (2)
*watermelon (1)

snack at work
*1/2 cup cajun roasted chick peas (2)
*2 fruit snacks (2)

Dinner
*1 cup ww pasta (3)
*1/2 cup weight watchers recipe pasta sauce (0)
*1 chicken breast (3)
*1/4 cup ff cottage cheese (1)
*1 1/2 cup strawberries (1)

Snack after work
*3 cups popcorn (1)
*watermelon (1)

*** i ran out of milk and won't get a chance to get any until thursday probably, so I'm taking calcium supplements for my milk servings.

Hard - CORE!

well, it's day 4 of my 'hard-core' week... still loving it. my pasta ran out so today i ventured to cook something new... i made a tofu stirfry (marinated the tofu in EVOO and garlic overnight)... cooked it with vegetables and garlic and oregano and red wine vinegar today... tastes pretty good from what i tasted! and i made cajun roasted chick peas... just roasted chick peas in the oven at 350F for 55min... they were soaked in EVOO and cajun spices ahead of time. they taste AWESOME!!!

going to post today's menu... since i know my mom still likes to keep track of what i'm eating! haha!

Holiday Monday's Menu
breakfast
*banana (2)
*3/4 cup shredded wheat (2)
* 1/2 cup skim milk (1)

Lunch
*lettuce, tomato, cucumber (0)
*2 tbsp FF honey dijon salad drsg (1)
*chicken salad (3)
*watermelon (1)

Snack at work
* 2 fruit snacks (2)
*1/2 cup cajun roasted chick peas (2)

Dinner
*tofu (4)
*vegetables (0)
*4 tsp EVOO (2)
*strawberries (1)

Snack after work
*3 cups popcorn (1)
* 1/2 cup skim milk (1)

off to work... have a good holiday everybody!!

Still going HardCore!!

Well, it's day 3 of my core-stint. I must say - I'm enjoying it. But i'm also not suffering from any severe sweets cravings... I'll post yesterday's menu, today's and tomorrow's here...

Saturday's Menu
Breakfast
*3/4 cup shredded wheat (2)
*1/2 cup skim milk (1)
*banana (2)

Lunch
*Lettuce, tomato, cucumber (0)
* 2 tbsp fat free blue menu honey dijon mustard salad dressing (1) <--- LOVE that drsg!!
*3/4 cup fat free cottage cheese (2)
*2 president's choice fruit leathers (2)

Afternoon Snack
*3 cups popcorn (1)
*2 fruit snacks/leathers (2)

Dinner
*1 cup ww pasta (3)
* 1 chicken breast (3)
*1/4 cup ff cottage cheese (1)
* 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil (EVOO for short) (1)
* 1 1/2 cups strawberries (1)

Bedtime snack after work
*1 cup milk with sugar free davinci chocolate syrup (2)
* 3 cups popcorn (1)
____________________________________________________

Sunday's Menu
Breakfast
*3/4 cup shredded wheat (2)
* 1/2 cup skim milk (1)
*1 banana (2)

Lunch
*lettuce, tomato, cucumber (0)
* 2 tbsp ff honey dijon mustard salad drsg (1)
* chicken salad ( 1/2 canned blue menu chicken with ff miracle whip) (3)
*WATERMELON! (1)

Snack
*2 fruit snacks (2)

Dinner
* 1 cup ww pasta (3)
*1 chicken breast (3)
*2 tsp EVOO (1)
*1/4 cup ff cottage cheese (1)
*garlic and black pepper (0)
*1 1/2 cups strawberries (1) with splenda (0)

Bedtime snack after work
*1 cup skim milk (2)
*3 cups popcorn (1)

___________________________________________________________

I'll post tomorrow's menu after i figure out what exactly it will be!!!

happy long weekend all you lucky people who don't have to work (like i do!).

It's CORE time...

so, had weigh-in today... I was down 1.8lbs... bringing my new total to 52.4lbs lost!!! go me!

and as per my day-planner... starting tomorrow I am going to try core for an entire week and see how it goes. as i said before though, i'm going to still count points as well... just because i actually enjoy it. so now my menus become very important... because this is new to me, so planning ahead of time will be essential for success i think. i've already made my chicken chili which is core... so i'll be good for taking dinner to work for the next 5 days (after tomorrow)... so here we go... friday's menu (i have friday off).

Friday's menu

Breakfast
*cream of wheat (2)
*sugar free fruit spread (0)

Lunch
*1/2 cup ff cottage cheese (2)
*grape tomatoes (0), cucumber slices (0), black pepper (0)


***** then i will go grocery shopping to buy more core foods***

Snack
*1/4 cup hummus (ww recipe) - (2)
*baby carrots (0)

Dinner
*1 cup ww pasta (3)
*chicken breast (3)
*grape tomatoes (0)
*2 tsp olive oil (2)
*1/4 cup ff cottage cheese (1)
*garlic (0)
*3/4 cup ff plain yogurt (2)
*splenda (0), sf jam spread (0)

a photo for your enjoyment

here's chicklet and me... after watching grey's anatomy tonight (the season finale... for anyone else who is a mcdreamy fan)... you'll know why i wanted to post a photo of cuddle time with chicklet (who is sleeping soundly in bed now, waiting for me to join!)... g'night!

Life is Good...

it's all good! well, besides the fact that my weight didn't change this week... (could be worse)... what's more important is.... ALEX IS HOME! yay yay yay!!! sometimes you don't realize how much you'll miss someone until they're actually gone... i fully understand this. i just feel so much happier knowing he's back in the city. it sounds like he had a fun trip... and he's home safe... and he's rested.... and had a good time... and that's what i care about! and the fact that HE'S HOME!!!

so, i realized this weekend that going to mom and dad's (aka HOME) is a good idea... i definitely stay on track while in pontypool... mom helps me with that and i'm more accountable with others around all weekend.

i'm working a 12hr day tomorrow, but 8hr days wed and thurs... i'll post menus then. for now - i need to HIT THE SACK!

this is shrinking jen, signing off. good night and god speed.

Someone Kick Me In the Butt... Please!!!!

i need a serious kick in the butt to get on the treadmill. If you'll notice my ticker... Michele and Jacob's wedding is only basically FOUR MONTHS away! let me share something with you....

<-- according to MVM.com this was me at my biggest <--- and this is me now. not a huge change considering i've lost 50lbs

<--- at this rate, this is where i'll be by the wedding. not small enough.

<--- i realistically COULD be here by the wedding if i do work HARD!


<--- and this is my WW target. I can't imagine being that small



Wednesday's Menu

Breakfast
*cream of wheat (2)

Snack - AM
*strawberries (1)

Lunch
*1/2 cup fat free cottage cheese (2)
*grape tomatoes (0)
*black pepper (0)

snack - PM
*WW cereal, individual servings from costco (2)
*1/2 cup skim milk (1)

Dinner
*chicken breast (3)
*steamed broccoli w/ garlic (0)

OR i'll give in to my constant sushi craving and have...
*sushi, 16 pieces (8)


*** i realize i haven't planned on eating my points today but that's because i've gone over every other day this week, i'd like to be under today and tomorrow (before weigh in... which might not be pretty!)


Have a good day, everyone. I miss Alex. It's so corny, but I have realized time and time again in the past year and a half or so... that he is totally and completely my best friend. I can say anything to him... and i do say anything and everything to him. just ask him!!! he'll be back from mexico on sunday night... only 4 more days!!!

it's 4:30 in the AM... are YOU sleeping?

4:30 in the morning. i'm at work. the rest of the world, or most of it, is sleeping... or so it feels to me. and here i am... working. i don't think shift workers get enough recognition. on fridays, everyone is so happy it's friday... they tell you "have a good weekend"... i hate hearing that when i have to WORK all weekend.

and noise by-laws only reflect the mon-fri people... i agree we need noise by-laws at night... especially when children have to sleep in order to get up for school and be well rested... but then during the day, who is protecting the people who are trying to sleep because they work nights? i'll tell you.... nobody! once i was trying to sleep for a night shift and the apt above me was sanding their floors... shook my whole apartment... it was horrible.

i try not to eat on night shifts, but i caved tonight. i ate a piece of cheese... okay, 2 pieces of cheese... and a minigo yogurt. i'm not even sure how many points minigos are.

after tonight's shift i'm off for 6 days. my plan of attack is to hit the treadmill tomorrow evening.... and then hardcore, TWICE on wednesday... and then again thursday morning... then have weigh-in on thursday.

maybe i should do a plan of a menu for tomorrow: (tuesday's menu)

Breakfast
*cream of wheat (2)
* jam (0)

Lunch
*1/2 cup fat free cottage cheese (2)
*grape tomatoes (0)
*black pepper (0)

Dinner
*sushi, 14 pieces (7)

**** plus food from tonight's shift... 2 pieces cheese (6), minigo (2) . plus 1.5 litres of water!!!!

Nights... not good for the weight loss!

i'm working nights right now. my last one is tonight, then i don't work more for a month... but still.... working them is definitely harder for weight loss. i just don't allow myself to eat during the night shift... although there are times when you feel like you could fall asleep... and eating a little something would help keep you awake... i choose to just drink crystal light instead.

i have resolved to not do a menu for my nights... basically when i get home from work i have a bowl of cereal... when i get up during the afternoon... i eat what i feel like. today i'll have a frozen dinner i think. maybe perogies. see? who knows!

all i know is i HATE nights. the light at the end of my tunnel? after tonight, i'm off for SIX WHOLE DAYS! i can't wait!!! and at the end of those 6 days off, i'm back to the grind.... but ALEX WILL BE HOME! so at least that's something for me to look forward to even though i'll be back to hell!!!

i have an interview tomorrow. wish me luck!

have i mentioned i miss alex? 6 more days until he's home! (he gets home late on sunday night).

stress... food... more stress... more food

well, my stress level has hit an all-time high it seems. work is entirely burning me out. the good news in all of this? a year or more ago i would have dealt with my stress by eating... and i just realized that i'm not doing that now. i see that as a positive thing!!!

so, okay... it's thursday, weigh-in day... and we all know what that means... starve yourself until after weigh-in. so what did i decide to try today? wendy's. yup.... haven't eaten fast food in a year... i had a spicy chicken sandwich (which IS a burger), and a baked potato... with cheese. have you ever heard that awful rumour that when your body isn't used to grease it rejects the food you've just eaten? or punishes you by requiring you to stay near your bathroom at all times? i figured my body would NEVER do that to me. i was wrong. my new-found healthy body rejected my wonderful wendy's meal. i'm feeling better now... but i don't think i'll be going back to greasey food in any less than a year!!! next week, back to subway on my thursday night!!! or maybe a pizza slice... hmmmm....

so i can plan tomorrow's menu... but i'm going out to dinner with people from work (happy CYC week by the way). but i'll post my plans up until dinner.

Friday's Menu

Breakfast
* cream of wheat (2)
* jam (0)

Snack
*3/4 cup fat free, plain yogurt (2)
*jam (0)
*spenda (0)

Lunch
*1/2 cup fat free cottage cheese (2)
*grape tomatoes (0)
*cucumber (0)
*black pepper (0)

*** this leaves me with plenty of points for dinner. I'm anticipating i'll have a salad... but with cheese and chicken on it or something... and i plan to have one beer (but no more, i'm driving..)

happy luke skywalker day, everyone!

may the 4th be with you!

Oh, how I miss thee...

You know what foods I miss... but am too afraid to ever go back to indulging in? here's a list... let me know if there's foods you miss.... or would miss if you chose to give them up...

1. pizza hut pizza
2. french fries - either from a pub/restaurant or chip truck! i LOVE fries.
3. buffalo chicken fingers from shoeless joe's - used to get them every week with alex! not good!!!
4. big ol' chocolate bars
5. nachos... with extra cheese on them
6. chinese food - only miss that sometimes though.
7. chicken pad thai
8. quiznos subs
9. cheesy baked potato from wendy's
10. spicy chicken sandwich from wendy's

and i think that's all for now... as i have cravings i will be sure to update this list!!

everyone, please wish me luck for weigh-in tomorrow! my eating has been messed up today due to not feeling well... but i have my appetite back now, let's hope i can control it through the evening!

sick...

i hate being sick. i really do. i left work today and felt sore all over, but figured it was just because of how busy i was at work today. here it is, 3:30am and i'm wide awake... i'm sore all over, my eyes hurt... and my throat feels like i was just screaming at a concert all night... and i'm nauseated. what is up with that? finally by 3am, when i realized i could only get 2.5hrs of sleep before work... i made the dreaded sick call to work. i hate doing that. they're so short staffed all the time on the unit... i hate inconveniencing anyone. such is life i suppose...

i was told today by someone very special that they read this thing on a regular (possibly daily) basis... big shout outs to that person... you know who you are... you rock.

i took gravol 10min ago and it's still not taking effect... this is nuts.

i hope the rest of the world is sleeping well and feeling well right now. i hate not feeling well... hate it. the stress that comes with calling in sick to work only makes being sick feel 10X worse.

sleep tight everyone.... maybe i'll be there soon myself!

Is it Friday yet??

I can't believe how tired I am. Work is too much... I'm exhausted!!!

Today's menu was the same as yesterday's, which will be the same as tomorrow's. This is what happens when you work 3 12hr day shifts in a row... you make a bit batch of chili and mexican rice and eat it all week long!!

If anyone can tell me how to get rid of my sweet tooth during times of stress... please share! I'm able to resist temptation so far... but I'd love to not have any temptation to resist!!!

Peace out, homes.

Manic Monday

What a long day. Glad it's over. I'm beat... I'm going to bed... for tomorrow's menu, please refer to today's, because when I get up tomorrow morning... I'm just going to pack the same things I did today!!!

Although, tomorrow I will NOT have a tim horton's muffin if they get brought onto the unit for CYC Week!!!

Good night, and God speed!!