Jaclyn's diary

Fuunkymonk

New member
Okay, here goes:

I'm 21 years old, female, and 5'4". I believe I weigh about 240 pounds, roughly.

Ouch.

I want to lose 90 pounds and when I'm done I'd like to maintain a weight of 135-145 pounds, depending on what looks best on me (ie, where my curves are, what size chest and butt I have, because I don't want to be "skinny," I want to remain feminine. Having a curvy figure is much more important to me than being able to see my ribs.)

I want to do this in the period of a year or so, give or take (probably give) a few months.

How to: How to...how to...what a question. Well, first things first, I'm a ten year octo-lavo vegetarian (which by the way, at start will probably make you drop fifteen pounds...I can't imagine what I would look like if I ate meat.) I plan on losing the weight. So I eat eggs and dairy products, but no meat, poultry, or seafood. I plan on creating balanced harmonious vegetarian meals for myself, combined with exercise (I'm hoping to scrape together the cash for a membership to Curves after my ankle surgery) to aid me in losing weight. My college has an amazing advanced free gym, which I have used in the past, but I feel like something like Curves, which provides the support of other women will help. If I like Curves I'll still do walking and stretching, or visits to the school gym on days I don't go to Curves. I'm knocking out soda (oh, Dr.Pepper, how I will miss you...) and planning on drinking at least one gallon of water a day (yes, that means carrying around a jug of water.) I'm also going to pre-prepare snacks (like portioning bags of Cheerios, layering plain yogurt with fruit in snack size cups, and cutting up vegetables and putting them in bags to go) and I'm going to start drinking wheatgrass (yuck!) and adding spirutien to soy fruit smoothies on days I drink smoothies. I'm considering also using caffeine free Metabolife or Hydroxycut. Thoughts on these? Anyone tried them?

Who Can Help? Ugh, well unfortunately, deep down I know I'm the only one who can help myself. However, by reading a lot of these threads and seeing the support everyone is providing to each other I hope that YOU can help a little as well. My best friend, as much as I love her, is my height and about 105 pounds and a junk food junkie and exercisephobe. A few girls at work are big into fad diets, but I'm not interested in any of those, especially not the low carb ones, because they're unrealistic for vegetarians. So it's all me here.

How realistic are my goals? Well, I'm aiming to lose five pounds a month in a 1 year period, roughly, give or take few months (I calculate a year and 4 months to lose 80 pounds.) I think this is a safe and realistic, although painstaking goal.

When will I start? Today! Sort of...

Lets see...

I just got back from Christmas vacation at my mom's in my hometown 3 hours away. I have nothing in my house except for two gallons of soymilk, a bag of catfood, and junk junk junk! (Junk has so many preservatives that it lives forever!)

I had a tiny can (probably 3/4th of a cup) of pure apricot nectar, because that's all I have!

I stopped at Publix on my way to work and got a salad of romaine lettuce and 5 cherry tomatoes, with some Naturally Fresh honey mustard dressing and a little pre-made fruit cup, which had a few chunks of fresh pineapple, 5 fresh strawberries, and some kiwi slices. I ate it when I got to work (where I sit in a cubicle and do tech support,) and I dip the dressing fork dip trick.

Then I had to take a lunch break about 4 hours later, so I went back to Publix and got some of their premade veggie sushi, containing avacado, carrot, and cucumber and another little salad, this one with mandarin oranges on it and some Naturally Fresh ginger dressing. I also got a package of trail mix, thinking it would curb my urge to hit the vending machine in the break room later in the evening. I had my sushi and salad, and then I starting snacking on the trail mix, which has peanuts, almonds, cashews, raisins and little chocolate pieces...ugh...I ate a lot of it. The nut-raisin ratio was much high than the chocolate, but I'm not crazy about nuts, so of course I picked around them. So I feel a little defeated, even though I know the nuts have good protien and the raisins were also good...I have to work on my snacking. I desperately need to go grocery shopping and premake all of my own stuff, because buying already made things at the store is way too pricey...I spent $16 total on my meals for today. The good news is, I had my gallon of water!!! Yess!!!!! I must stick to this. I must I must I must. I can go grocery shopping Monday (work again all day tomorrow.) And I also have to do my Pilates video until I can figure out what's up with my ankle, which has been killing me all day long. I'm excited about feeling and looking better though! :D
 
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Glad to have you with us, you can do it. We'll be here when you need encouragement and a kick up the backside!!
 
Oh man, I went grocery shopping today...

$109 later and my fridge is full of healthy food!

Ugh, I'm a college student and I seriously can't afford this. But I want it so bad.

The good news is, since I spent all of my money on groceries and rent I have absolutely no money to go out to eat.

So, here's my menu for today:

I got a late start on the day (slept in until noon because I stayed up late to watch E.R. last night.) Went to Publix before work. Got home around 1:30, and I had to leave for work at like, 2:25, so I had to hustle.

I put all of my groceries away and then made a soy smoothie to drink while I packed my lunch/dinner to bring to work. Technically I didn't have breakfast since I went to the store right after I got up so I wouldn't get fast food with the girls at work.

Late Breakfast:
Soy Smoothie
1 1/2 cups of 8th Continent Vanilla soymilk, which next time I'll cut to a cup, since it was a little too milky.
1 cup of frozen berries (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries.)
1 can (I think it's less than 8 fl oz.) of pure peach nectar.

Lunch:
Premade a salad with spring mix blend and spinach leaves, sugar snap peas, cherry tomatoes, cucumber slices and baby carrots. Portioned some honey dijon dressing which I will fork dip.
Sugar free strawberry kiwi Jello cup

Snack:
I did the greatest thing!!! I bought low fat Dannon vanilla yogurt and fresh strawberries, raspberries and blueberries, with some clear cups and I made myself a fruit and yogurt parfait. I layered it and everything. It's so pretty. When I get home I'm going to make a bunch of them so they'll be ready to snack on. I also premade two other salads and portioned dressing. :p

I also brought one stick of string cheese for when my salty tooth takes over.

Dinner....I'm thinking I'll make some of my lowfat eggplant parm (I posted the recipe in the Recipes section.) We'll see...last night when I got home I wasn't hungry from all the fruit and vegetables I stuffed my face with...but I also had some of that trail mix...I did get really hungry around midnight though, but I didn't eat anything. I probably need something with protein. I got a bunch of Morningstar meat subsitutes, so maybe I'll have one of those with a salad. We'll see.

I'm also halfway through my gallon of water, but the top of the jug is much more narrow than the bottom of the jug. I'm definitely not feeling the caffeine withdrawl headaches as bad anymore, which is great. I bet in another week I'll be through with them completely, although the craving for Dr.Pepper is still there. We'll see how I feel when I'm at work during a weekday with the phones and faxes going off the hook and my boss screaming at everyone with a cigarette in one hand and a Dr. Pepper in the other.

Ahh! And I want to exercise so bad. It was beautiful out today, in the low 70s with the sun shining and a slight breeze, perfect for a walk around the park with my discman playing my new Ray Charles Greatest Hits, but the ankle is killing me. I was limping around Publix like a horse about to get shot. I'm going to call the doctor tomorrow and get my blood work done so we can talk about surgery. I did some crunches and girl push ups last night, but we all know cardio is the key.

More later...I'm liking this! :)
 
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Okay, so when I got home I was really hungry and I didn't want to go through the preperation of the eggplant, so I made a Morningstar Spicy Black Bean Burger, no bun or condiments, and I sliced a red delicious apple and some colby jack cheese cubes to munch on while the burger was cooking. I also made some Mock Deep Fried Chickpeas, which are just chickpeas roasted in the oven until crunchy and then sprinkled with red pepper, salt, oregano, and garlic powder. Only 136 calories for 1/2 a cup! I used a 15 oz can of chickpeas, which ended up making 1 cup, after losing a few of them to the bottom of the oven. So two servings, which is good, because it puts a hinge on overeating them. I haven't eaten them yet, but I portioned the two 1/2 cups and I'll probably snack on one later while I watch tv. I never ended up eating the string cheese or the Jello cup, so I saved some calories there. My ankle is throbbing with pain. I was sprinting to the bathroom at work because I was guzzling so much water and I snapped it again. I'm going to attempt to do some Pilates and then I'll toss a toy mouse around with the cat. I drank my gallon of water for the day! And now I'm sipping a diet Lime Green Tea Snapple, which has no calories or sugar and 1 carb. Just curious, does anyone know what the daily allotment of carbs is with those low carb diets like Atkins and South Beach. I'm not going to do either one of those diets because they're unconventional for a vegetarian and in my opinion, completely unhealthy, but I'd still like to know. Anyway, so far so good. Day 2 seems to have been a success!
 
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AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I went to do my Pilates video and it's been taped over! I didn't even know that was possible with an official video tape. Now what do I do?

I did 35 crunches and 15 girl pushups and some stretches....but I really wanted to watch the video so I could work out with guidance. Now I'm going to have to buy another one...I'm getting the DVD. I can't believe it-talk about a bump in the road...at least what's taped over it is two episodes of That 70s Show, so I have something to watch tonight. I'm also going to continue reading my new Chuck Palaniuk book, "Diary." Ugh...what a disappointment though, I wanted to watch tv and read after knowing I did some exercise today...crap.
 
Welcome....you sound like you have a strong commitment to yourself....keep with this attitude and you will reach your goals. Good luck to you,..and we are here to support you.
 
Day 3 begins.

I got another late start on the day, but that's okay, because in a week school will start and I'll constantly be going and going. My plans for today are to tidy up the apartment, try to make it to the gym, (if my ankle can't handle the treadmill I'll do some weight training and resistance machines,) play with my adorable cat Gideon, and feed myself delicious healthy meals and snacks. I just sat down to breakfast and I'm having:

Breakfast:
Small glass of orange juice
Scrambled Cheese and Chive Egg Beaters (probably about two whole eggs)
2 strips of Veggie Bacon (60 calories, 1 carb...4.5 grams of fat, but no saturated!)
A small bowl of fresh strawberries, blueberries, and rasperries (probably 6 of each berry)

Is that good? I wasn't sure if it was too much, but I figured it would be good to bulk up on protein for breakfast, and I'll add some to my lunch and then I can have my eggplant for dinner.

I'm still curious what everyone thinks of pills like Metabolife and Hydroxycut. I'm hesitant to try them, although a girl at work I know tried Hydroxycut and said it worked wonders for her, she's already skinny, so I don't know...

Okay, I'm going to start my day now!
 
I found some cool quotes, thought you guys might enjoy.

"Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a pauper." -Adelle Davis

"Thou shouldst eat to live;not live to eat." -Socrates

"They always say time changes everything, but you actually have to change them yourself." -Andy Warhol

"It's not that some people have willpower and some don't. It's that some people are ready to change and others are not." -James Gordon


I've also been observing the way my cat eats. We fill his bowl twice a day, once for breakfast and once for lunch, a half a cup of Hairball and Weight Management food each time, and leave it out all day. He grazes on it all day, but never finishes the whole thing. It seems to me that he only eats when he's hungry. And that is what we all need to be doing. Conducting ourselves in the manner of animals. The more I observe animals the more I see that I should conduct myself as one. Human beings have risen above animals, to the point where we try to control them, where we can justify slaughtering them. Human beings have also found ways of justifying destroying our earth and justifying slaughtering our own kind. Murder, brutality, war...these are all things that human beings have created. In the wild animals fight and kill only for means of survival. They take care of themselves and each other and mind their own business otherwise. I've been thinking a lot about my old roommates and how ridiculous the feud I have with them is. In my whole life I have never created an enemy and it bothers me that I do now. I know I should be the bigger person and settle the score, as it will be good for my mental health, which in turn will aide me in my quest for weight loss. Animals who fight with other animals don't continue to pick on each other. They have their fight and they walk away and never think of it again. And I know, their brains are less advanced than ours, but I'm a firm believer that animals are much much smarter than people give them credit for. My cat was seperated from his mother when he was a kitten and got so sick that he was near death when the woman I got him from found him. He lived in shelters until he was 8 months old when I adopted him and the vet says that judging from the scars he had on his body and the cloudiness of one of his eyes, it looks like the was often the victim of attacks from other cats. By nature one would assume that he would be cowardly and mean, but he is the sweetest little guy you'll ever meet. He doesn't scratch or bite or hiss. All he wants is love. He jumps on any available lap and purrs his little heart out. He loves to rub his head on people and when there are babies or small children around he gently plays with them and becomes very protective of them. He got a new start on life when he came to live with me and he graciously accepted it. I have many lessons to learn from him.
 
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Lunch:

A nice salad with spinach, arugula, snow peas, cucumbers, baby carrots, cherry tomatoes and a chopped up Morningstar Parmesan Ranch Chik Patty for protein (and flavor! They're sooooo good.) I fork dipped in some honey dijon dressing.

Glass of water. Still working on the gallon for the day.

Back to cleaning!
 
Just finished dinner. I made one portion of my low fat eggplant parm. Two slices of eggplant, lightly brushed with olive oil and roasted garlic, layered with two slices of red tomato, with garlic salt, on top of a slice of whole wheat bread and topped with 1/4 cup of skim mozzerella cheese. It was very good, but I'm still hungry. I'm going to give myself an hour and drink the rest of my gallon of water, and then if I'm still hungry I'll have some carrot sticks or a cup of sugar free Jello. I cleaned my house all day long and got pretty sweaty, so hopefully I burned some calories doing that. I still can't believe my Pilates video was taped over.
 
Oh you should have Jennifer, it was awesome! I don't know if Morningstar products are sold in Canada, but if you can find them I highly suggest them!
 
Welcome

Hi, Fuunkymonk,
You sound so, "pumped!" Good for you!

I had to laugh when you talked about watching your cat eat as a good way for people to behave toward food. My two cats are not such "good examples." At dinner time they knock each other over to get to their bowl first. And trust me, they lick their bowl clean!

Good luck and keep posting!

Totallyscrappy
 
Late night snack-

I got so hungry!!!

I had a sliced red delicious apple and spread peanut butter on the slices.

It was good and pretty satisfying.

I also had a sugar free Jello cup, only 10 calories, but not satisfying at all.

Now that my roommate is back in town it's going to be harder. She likes to eat and always has snacks around and she's going grocery shopping tomorrow.

But I'm going to try really hard.
 
Whatever your roommate brings in the house with her grocery shop,..just remember nothing will taste as good as the taste of success of loosing weight and reaching your goals...just in case, keep good diet snack alternatives in reach. BTW loved the quotes.
 
Thanks Jennifer, I know that you're totally right. She doesn't need to lose weight at all (she's 5'4" and 110 pounds!) but she does have stomach problems and the doctors always tell her that she'd feel a lot better if she ate better, but she's just like an overweight person who can't shake her bad habits. I'm hoping after she sees my diet making me look and feel better she'll join me, at least most of the time. And yes, those quotes were great. If I find anymore I'll put them up!!!
 
Okay, starting my day at 7:30 AM!

Breakfast:
Bowl of Bran Chex with sliced banana and a few blueberries
Small Glass of orange juice
 
Wow, long day at work!

Mid Morning Snack:
Cup of low fat vanilla yogurt with strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries.

Lunch:
Same as yesterday, nice salad with Morningstar Chik patty and fork dips of honey dijon.
Cup of sugar free Jello

Mid afternoon snack:
A string cheese and an apple.

Now I'm off to make dinner!
 
All right, finished dinner and it was a satisfying success!

Dinner:
2/3 cup of Morningstar Vegetarian Crumbles seasoned with taco sauce. (80 calories and 10 grams of protein!!!!!!)
Dollop of Reduced Fat Sour Cream.
Sprinkle of colby jack cheese.
Lots of chopped tomatoes and raw spinach.

And a Diet Green Tea Snapple.
 
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