Low Carb

Feller recently decided to switch to a low carb, high fat diet, after hearing from many people on his Internet Forum that it TOTALLY WORKS, FOR REALS, GUYS. He had been doing low carb and low fat, existing on mostly protein shakes, but when he heard people say that they were eating bacon and cheese and eggs EVERY DAY and losing weight, he was ALL. OVER. that shit.

In the spirit of solidarity, and the knowledge that I’m at my highest weight ever, I decided to join him. Also, he does all the cooking. I am making a few modifications to the diet he’s following though. His goal is to stay under 30 grams of carbs a day, which is about the amount of carbs in a can of soda. I’m less worried about a specific number, and more interested in cutting down/out the refined sugars I’m ingesting. I’m still eating a lot of fruit, which Feller has cut out, and the occasional pastry or french fry. I’ve also been eating a lot of salami and cheese as a meal. It’s been amazing.

So far, we’ve both been a little “let’s wait and see what happens” about this diet, because eating salami and cheese every day feels a little decadent. It’s been three or four weeks since I started, and I’m pretty happy to report that I’m down 6 or 7 pounds. I feel pretty good about it. I’m not sure that I can say this diet makes my body feel any better or worse than any other time I’ve tried eating healthily or that I have more energy or anything, but I certainly don’t hate my life eating this way. The first couple of days, all I wanted was some freaking macaroni and cheese, but those cravings have passed, and I don’t find it terribly difficult to avoid all those carbs I had been eating before.

Sometimes, it does get a little challenging figuring out snacks and munchies, but I’m getting there. I’ve been eating a lot of Trader Joe’s Roasted Seaweed Snack, which is delicious and salty and crunchy and has NO CARBS. I’ve also been keeping sugar free jello in the fridge, and we’re stocked up on beef jerky, so there are lots of tasty options if I feel the need to munch on something. Thankfully, though, all the protein has been keeping me fuller longer, so I haven’t been casually snacking as much as I used to.

This is been a great opportunity for Feller to experiment with his cooking, too. He found some super low carb Bisquick type stuff and sweetener and has been experimenting with quiche and ice cream and other foods we don’t normally eat. Tonight he grilled some portabello mushrooms topped with cheese and bacon for dinner, and we’ve been eating pizza made from low carb flour tortillas. Everything has been so delicious, and neither of us has really missed potato chips or regular pizza.

Also, Feller was pretty excited to find this article justifying this diet.

Before, not yet After

Every month, Shredheads poses a fitness challenge, and this month it’s taking your Before pictures.

I have Befores. They’re sitting on my phone, waiting for me to upload and share them but not yet. I’m not After yet, and I don’t want anyone to see me Before (for some reason Befores always look so much worse than I actually do).

But this week has been the start of me actually doing something about it. I’ve exercised every day this week (if you count cleaning as exercise) (and I totally do; have you ever tried putting a futon cover back on after washing it? STRENUOUS), and I plan on keeping up this streak for the next 27 days. I’ve 30 Day Shred sitting at home, and I have NO EXCUSE not to bust out a 20 minute workout. And this week, I’ve been so busy, that I haven’t been able to sit at home and veg or eat or anything that might derail this. Even though I totally want to; I have the last two discs of Moonlight waiting for me (stop judging me). Today, I’m even going to attempt doing two levels at once, for a 40 minute work out. I might also fall over dead, so if you don’t hear from me again, that’s why.

I’ve also been focusing on eating better. I’ve eaten more fruits and veggies in the last three days than I ever have before, and I’m also stocking my fridge with other good for me snacks: light yogurt and string cheese, walnuts, homemade pasta sauce with whole wheat macaroni, and the most delicious white bean and basil hummus I have ever eaten EVER. I’ve been eating A LOT, but it’s all been tons of watermelon or berries or cherries or peaches or celery or sugar snap peas or broccoli.

I’m feeling good. I’m EXHAUSTED, and I know more sleep will help with weight loss and stuff, and next week, I’m really going to focus on getting to bed by 10, but for now…I’m good.

Also, the times, they may be a-changing, so please send some prayers/thoughts/good vibrations my way that everything works out the way it should.

Also, also, this is pretty much the hottest blog post I’ve ever read. Who knew that I should have been blogging about all my college sexcapades all that time? And now, I’m having them with a feller I respect enough not to blog about his penis or how he fucks (hint: AWESOMELY). I think I missed my calling back then.

What a weekend

I was REALLY lazy this weekend (seriously, I was conscious on Sunday for a total of about 3 hours), but Saturday, I did drag my butt out of bed to head to Half Moon Bay to hang with one of my girlfriends. We had brunch, enjoyed the sunshine and wandered around downtown Half Moon Bay for a couple of hours. I ended up with a sunburn.

We drove into SF (yay one hour drive /sarcasm), prayed for close parking, FINALLY finding a space after driving around 10 minutes, accidentally driving up a majorly steep alley with no outlet, which resulted in having to SLOOOOOWLY back out into traffic. It took me about 10 minutes to squeeze into the TINY space, during which time I almost got ran over by the trolley, then we had a 5 minute walk to my friend’s apartment for sunblock and then on to the stores! We stopped for midday Beverages and had a fruitful hunt for dresses, though did not find one for her cocktail party this weekend.

And then I got a speeding ticket on my way home.

So, a slightly annoying, but overall good day and rest of the weekend.

Also, I am potentially going on Vacation to Hawaii in the next few months (I mean, I’m definitely taking myself on at least a vacation, but it might actually be a Vacation) (and also, I’m trying to go on a cruise next spring), and two things need to happen before then: saving money and getting fit. Saving money is going to be a pain, but not too difficult. I need to eat out less (she says as she’s about to order lunch) and cut out frivolous spending (good thing I just bought some new yarn!). Unfortunately, I have a speeding ticket to pay soonish, a dress to purchase, I can’t find my good yarn scissors, etc etc etc. Hopefully, I can get these couple of things taken care of in the next week or two and then REALLY REALLY focus on not spending money I don’t have to. Which means I might start drinking less. HAHAHAHAHA. No. I’ll just start drinking more cheap vodka.

UNFORTUNATELY, this also means that I’m not signing up for the pole dancing classes I was going to take (seriously, those women are in REDONKULOUS shape), nor am I going to join a yoga studio. Which means I’ll be running and using some of those (many MANY) workout DVD’s I own. I guess I’ll be spending a lot of quality time with 30 Day Shred and MTV Yoga and friends because taking my boobs bathing suit shopping just MIGHT be more frustrating than taking them bra shopping. And oh yeah! I need a new one of those TOO (MAH MONIES). I also need to make sure I’m eating better all the time. Bye bye, Target spinach & goat cheese pizza. Hello, cooking at home (SIGH) and keeping good, easy food handy (this will probably involve a lot of carrying food back and forth from my home fridge to my work fridge to the feller’s fridge).

And so, in the interest of being healthy, I ordered the meal that does not come with pasta, and I said no to the foccacia bread. Which was very hard. That shit is BOMB.

I love a man who cooks

The feller’s on this forum, and in the GRR Martin thread, they were all bitching about him never finishing the series and … something about lemon cake and how he talks about it a lot? I don’t know. Somehow that led to a mod challenge to make FROM SCRATCH a “feast fit for a king”, and the next thing I know the feller is planning his feast for that night. I, being a good girlfriend, volunteered to come reap the benefits assist. And OH MY GOD SO GOOD IN MAH MOUTH.

He made roast lamb with potatoes and carrots and salami, a salad with tomato, basil and mozzarella (and all of a sudden I’m missing No Anchovies pizza OM NOM NOM), and the most amazing lemon cake I’ve ever had EVER. And I don’t really like lemon pastries. I will eat any lemon flavored candy you hand me, but lemon cake? Not so much. This cake was THAT GOOD. I have DREAMT about that cake. AND! He made his own lemony icing, which was actually totally easy, but I probably would have bought some (but I also would have bought a box cake mix too)

Vacation, all I ever wanted

In June, I was supposed to head down to Rocky Point, Mexico for some relaxing on the beach and a Roger Clyne concert. Unfortunately, it seems that everyone else is bailing on that plan, and since I don’t think anyone will let me go to Mexico by myself, I think I’m going to hang out in Tucson instead. I mean, it’s practically the same thing! They’re both deserty. And hot. And I can stay someplace with a pool and relax in the sunshine without the ARGH! SAND! (and by “someplace” I do, of course, mean Pam and Keith’s house). Plus, I’ll be there with all my friends and since I won’t have an agenda and carefully planned out itinerary, I’ll get to go to all the places I always want to go but never have the time. Like the Meet Rack for God and cheap booze. And No Anchovies for beer and pizza. And Bianchi’s for yummy Italian food. And Eegee’s for delicious, icy heaven in my mouth. …I think I may have just found the reason why my weight loss efforts are for naught (actually, I already knew that; I fucking love food. Also, I’m kind of lazy).

Also, Memorial Day is coming up which is one of the seven holidays my company pays for, so I’ll actually get to have a holiday off! Unlike Martin Luther King Day or Cesar Chavez Day or President’s Day or Columbus Day. And I want to do something fun! I’m a little broke and the potential Tucson trip is soon after Memorial Day, so it’ll need to be something cheapish, but I would LOVE to take a little weekend trip somewhere close-ish and stay in a B&B and relax and WHATEVER I WANT. Realistically, I’d also be happy with lounging at home and finally, FINALLY watching Torchwood: Children of Earth, which has been sitting on my entertainment center for two months, but I haven’t had time to sit down and bust it out. (I’ve heard it’s totally gut-wrenching, so I wanna be able to watch it all in one sitting lest the anticiiiiiiiii-PATION kill me.) But there’s SO MUCH to do here, and the weather is FINALLY nice more often than it isn’t, so it feels like I SHOULD be out doing something awesome whenever I can, like a Napa wine tour! How awesome would that be?

(I totally have a more better post to be a posting, but that’ll take more time than I have at the mo’)