Treasure's new life: a journal

[cangal]

What the system at Sparkpeople.com has you do is input your goals (for this particular site it's a goal weight and mine happens to be 115lbs).

Was this your weight when you did triathlons? I'm asking because your LBM is around 159lbs (if you see my above post). That means that all of your organs, blood, muscle, bones etc (everything but fat) weighs around 159 lbs. I expect that if you are going to start training for triathlons again your muscle mass will increase and it will be hard to hit that 115 mark.

I think that this is where goal setting will help, so if you 246 lbs, reach for 220, than 200 and so on and so on. That way you can set your next goal on the way you are feeling and go from there.

Please don't take this as me trying to discourage you, I applaud you for everything that you are doing. I just want to make sure that you are setting yourself up for success!

 

[kitstreasure]

Cangal, you're not discouraging me, hon, not at all. My weight when I was doing triathlons and swimming competitively varied between 103 and 120 depending on season and training cycle. That's why I was aiming for 115. I'm a bit older, etc. so I'm aiming for the high end of my "fighting" weight. I am aiming more for fitness markers than a specific weight, but I had to quantify my goal so... But I think I will play with the system and see what I can do about calorie range.


Edited to add:
I just tried changing my goal and my date for reaching it and it took my calorie range up to 1290-1640 with an additional caloric burn of 1880 kcal/wk. (New goal is 221 by 3/13/13)

 

[kitstreasure]

Dinner:
4oz Baby Spring Mix
1/2c Fat Free Refried Beans
1/2c Extra Lean Ground Beef Taco meat
2oz Wholly Guacamole
1/4c Salsa
2 Mission Fajita tortillas
Totals: Calories: 712 Carbs: 70 Fat: 31 Protein: 39

Daily Totals:
Calories: 1827
Carbs: 235
Fat: 78
Protein: 85
Water: 81 ozs

YAY! I actually remembered to eat today... Here's hoping I can keep it up! (BTW, me remembering to eat is your fault, Cangal! Talking about it with you reminded me to do it.)

 

[kitstreasure]

Okay, Cangal, looks like you were on the mark about my calories... Yesterday I went a bit over Sparkpeople.com's recommended range and I woke up absolutely ravenous this morning. Though, I think I need to cut back on my caffeine b/c as I was cooking I was drinking my 1 cup of cappuccino and by the time it was gone, I wasn't hungry anymore. So, that returns to the top of the list of things to get rid of in my diet. So far, I've cut out all junk food, and as I said before I used to drink sodas like a redneck drinks beer... (Not too long ago I was drinking as much as a 36pack of Mt. Dew a day, from there I went down to about a 12pk a day of Sprite. I've not had a soda now in 2-3 months.)

Breakfast this morning:
2 eggs
2 egg whites
1/2c Spinach
1c Mushrooms
1/2c Salsa
1c cappuccino
24oz Water
Totals: 361 calories, 38g carbs, 18g Fat, 29g Protein, Fiber 8g

 

[cangal]

Hi Treasure,

You are doing fantastic with your log!

By the sounds of it, you pretty much drank sodas all day and didn't really eat much food? If this is the case you will have to remember that it will take a bit of time for your metabolism to kick start again. When you don’t eat your metabolism slows down to conserve energy. If your body is used to running on little to no food it will take some time for it to adjust. You are doing everything right though!

If you are used to drinking so many beverages a day, or looking to cut out the cappuccino, you could always make protein smoothies. That way you are still getting your requirements in and it can count as a meal if you forget to eat.

 

[kitstreasure]

Can you recommend a protein powder that doesn't have coconut oil in it? (It's all I can taste in the ones I've tried that have it in it, and I'm opposed to eating Hawaiian Tropic.) Or a protein smoothie recipe that doesn't rely on a protein powder?

No, I ate as well as drinking the soda, it's just that that was ALL I drank. The reason I'm looking to cut out my cappuccino (besides 100 empty calories), is because I drink what my family calls "jet fuel". To make my coffee make a full coffee cup of espresso, add 1 serving of powdered cappuccino (instead of milk and sugar), and 2 of the Stok coffee additives. Needless to say, there's enough caffeine in one cup of my cappuccino to power a small town, a fighter jet, or an aircraft carrier. LOL. (Who needs appetite suppressants?) I fully admit that I'm a caffeine addict, but that's come from YEARS of extremely high caffeine consumption. Until the past few days, I've been having 2-4 cups of this a day, spread out across the day, which could be part of why I was never hungry and would forget to eat. I have been fairly successful at switching to water, and I've gone to drinking a cup of chicken broth for when I want a cup of coffee later in the day, but if I don't have at least one cup I get a HELLA migraine.

Thanks again for your help, Cangal.

 

[cangal]

Can you recommend a protein powder that doesn't have coconut oil in it? (It's all I can taste in the ones I've tried that have it in it, and I'm opposed to eating Hawaiian Tropic.) Or a protein smoothie recipe that doesn't rely on a protein powder?

I can't recommend a PP as I don't notice the coconut oil myself, but that would be a good thread to start on here. This board is full of sponsors and I'm sure Needto or someone can suggest something for you.

Do you eat dairy products? You can use skim milk or yogurt for a protein source. I personally use greek yogurt or Almond milk. You can add berries, greens, soooo many things. what type of flavors do you like?

No, I ate as well as drinking the soda, it's just that that was ALL I drank. The reason I'm looking to cut out my cappuccino (besides 100 empty calories), is because I drink what my family calls "jet fuel". To make my coffee make a full coffee cup of espresso, add 1 serving of powdered cappuccino (instead of milk and sugar), and 2 of the Stok coffee additives. Needless to say, there's enough caffeine in one cup of my cappuccino to power a small town, a fighter jet, or an aircraft carrier. LOL. (Who needs appetite suppressants?) I fully admit that I'm a caffeine addict, but that's come from YEARS of extremely high caffeine consumption. Until the past few days, I've been having 2-4 cups of this a day, spread out across the day, which could be part of why I was never hungry and would forget to eat. I have been fairly successful at switching to water, and I've gone to drinking a cup of chicken broth for when I want a cup of coffee later in the day, but if I don't have at least one cup I get a HELLA migraine.

I'm of no use here either! I myself have to have a cup a day or I get a nasty migraine. Sometimes it's so bad that a pain killer doesn't even take the edge off

Thanks again for your help, Cangal.

I have limited myself to a cup a day, but if I don't have it before noon, I have a nasty nasty headache by 3 or 4 pm

 

[kitstreasure]

I love me some dairy! I make my own greek yogurt... (Here it's almost $5 for the pint) I've been reducing my dairy intake since I made this decision, cause well, it's just not as nutrient dense as I would prefer, ya know? Now in a smoothie or shake....

As for flavors, I HATE coconut in all shapes, forms, functions and concepts when it comes to food. I'd let you shoot me before I'd let you feed me coconut. Otherwise, I love all fruits, most melons, and the majority of veggies. (My dislike list is short.) I don't really care for raspberries/blackberries in smoothies cause of the seeds, otherwise it's just about open season on fruit. (The tropical ones are hard to get as I'm 45 minutes from my nearest grocery store of any kind and that's in a town/city of 9k people.) Chia seeds aren't available in my area at all... (Even the nearest GNC doesn't carry them and that's the closest thing to a healthfood store for more than two hours from me.) Now, I don't buy any fruit juices but I have a Vitamix for complete food juices.

 

[kitstreasure]

Breakfast this morning:
2 eggs
2 egg whites
1/2c Spinach
1c Mushrooms
1/2c Salsa
1c cappuccino
24oz Water
Totals: 361 calories, 38g carbs, 18g Fat, 29g Protein

Mid-morning snack:
Gala apple
2Tbsp Peanut butter
Totals: 255 Calories, 19g carbs, 18g Fat, 9g Protein

Lunch:
8oz boneless skinless chicken breast
1/2c Green Bell Pepper
1/4c Yellow onion
2 White Corn tortillas
Totals: 364 calories, 24g Carbs, 7g Fat, 51g Protein

Snack:
Gala Apple
2 Tbsp Peanut Butter

Dinner:
5oz BSCB (Boneless, skinless chicken breast)
1c Black Beans
1/2c Brown Rice
2 Tbsp Salsa
Totals: 485 Calories, 68g Carbs, 5g fat, 42g Protein

Which gives me the daily totals of:
Calories: 1464 (Suggested range: 1290-1640)
Carbs: 149g (145-266) <----- Seems kinda high from my vague memories of what my coach had me eating?
Fats: 48g (29-64)
Protein: 130g (60-144) <------ Is this a bit low?

Hmmmm... To have Dessert or not to have dessert?

 

[RADAR]

Breakfast this morning:
2 eggs
2 egg whites
1/2c Spinach
1c Mushrooms
1/2c Salsa
1c cappuccino
24oz Water
Totals: 361 calories, 38g carbs, 18g Fat, 29g Protein

Mid-morning snack:
Gala apple
2Tbsp Peanut butter
Totals: 255 Calories, 19g carbs, 18g Fat, 9g Protein

Lunch:
8oz boneless skinless chicken breast
1/2c Green Bell Pepper
1/4c Yellow onion
2 White Corn tortillas
Totals: 364 calories, 24g Carbs, 7g Fat, 51g Protein

Snack:
Gala Apple
2 Tbsp Peanut Butter

Dinner:
5oz BSCB (Boneless, skinless chicken breast)
1c Black Beans
1/2c Brown Rice
2 Tbsp Salsa
Totals: 485 Calories, 68g Carbs, 5g fat, 42g Protein

Which gives me the daily totals of:
Calories: 1464 (Suggested range: 1290-1640)
Carbs: 149g (145-266) <----- Seems kinda high from my vague memories of what my coach had me eating?
Fats: 48g (29-64)
Protein: 130g (60-144) <------ Is this a bit low?

Hmmmm... To have Dessert or not to have dessert?

eat a freaking apple.