Yesterday Isaac and I made our way to Northern Virginia for another round of house sitting. It was fun, but only for one night this time and we are headed back home today. We also have my uncles b-day party to stop by on the way home.
I am very behind on my posts, but here is dinner from Thursday night (I had the Whole Food’s salad/hot bar) and the photo that follows was breakfast from Friday Morning.
I had a bunch of prepared salads on top of greens and then tofu. Sesame grilled tofu and tofu curry. It doesn’t look all that appealing, but it was good.
Normal banana oats with some trail mix, flax, and crunchy pb.
Friday night we went to a Chili debate party. I brought some cornbread muffins (big ones and mini ones) which I made from Trader Joe’s brand Corn Bread mix. It was so sweet and good, with pieces of actual corn in it. We’ve had the box for so long so I was happy to get it out of our cabinet and it went perfectly with the chili my friend made. I drank a Pumking beer and one glass of wine.
Before we headed out early Saturday morning I made a quick egg white, veggie sausage, ezek english muffinwich.
I ate out for both lunch and dinner. Lunch was panera and dinner was thai. I was boring and didn’t take photos.
Tonight for dinner I had the left over thai and I got a picture! It was tofu and veggies. I love thai tofu – I know it’s fried and probably awful for you, but I still have a deep love for it. haha. And they served white rice, I wish they had brown, but they might have, actually – I forgot to ask. Opps.
There wasn’t much left over so I had a bowl of cereal as well. 1/2 cup puffed corn, 1/2 cup fiber one and 1/2 cup milk.
So on another note, UGH!!!
I’m a little discouraged because I don’t normally worry about the number on the scale so much – more about how I feel and fit in my clothes, But recently, I’ve weighed myself and realized I’ve put on some pounds. This is no good because just 2 months ago I weight 8 pounds less. It’s the most I’ve weighed in 5 years. I can tell in some of my clothes and now I really want to get back down to my normal size. I don’t know exactly what to attribute the weight gain to, perhaps being unemployed and staying home all day. I tend to eat more when I am at home- plus I was stressed looking for jobs. I did continue to run/workout though. However, I did stop doing my normal 30 minutes of walking – which I was done during my lunch break. Sometimes I wonder if I spend too much time online blogging or reading blogs, when I could be up doing something active?
Isaac said that maybe I’ve gained muscle… that would be cool, but I think that is it.
Basically, I just need to get back on track. Here are some ideas I have:
-Start walking on my lunch break again
-Pay more attention and be better with writing in my food journal
-Buy a food scale (I’ve never used one before)
-Add more protein to my diet
-Make sure I am drinking enough water
- Amp up my routine at the gym
If you all happen to have any ideas that I didn’t think of let me know.
Brittany Mullins, HHC
{ 13 comments… read them below or add one }
So many yummy eats!
Try not to let the number on the scale get to you! Try using measurments instead. That way, even if the # on the scale is higher, your lower measurements would show that you are more tone and have more muscle.
I can totes relate! It’s frustrating to gain weight and feel kinda out of control about it. I think all your ideas sound very good, but I would caution you on your use of the food scale. When you start weighing out veggies and condiments, you know you’ve gone too far. It can be maddening!
i think all of your ideas sound great!
another thing to think about getting your body fat percentage checked- this can tell you a lot more about your body composition and if the weight you’re gaining actually is muscle. right now i weigh more than i have in a couple of years, but my body fat is the lowest it’s ever been.
since you have a job and the stress has been eliminated from that, i think this will make a huge difference too. being stressed out releases chemicals that can adversely affect metabolism and appetite (which worries me since i’m stressed to the max right now).
hope you have a wonderful evening!
I bet a lot of it has to do with not working and being around the house a lot. I know when I am off from school or something I tend to eat more and you’re just less active naturally because you’re not walking from place to place. I think you’re ideas sound good! Maybe you are gaining muscle. Have you started running more recently?
hey! regarding your ? i try to eat it minimally (even though i really do love it!) just because it’s hard to digest if you don’t pair it correctly with other foods (one of my vegan friends was telling me about this, she only eats it once a week) and because it has been linked to breast cancer. i’ve already had some breast health issues in the past and don’t want to have to go through any of that again! so i just watch my portions and try to have it about once a week.
Megan – Thanks – good idea. I will take measurements and see.
Erin – I agree. I sincerely hope that I would never be that critical of calories, I just thought it might help with portioning things out…
fitnessista- That’s a good idea, I am going to check with the personal trainers at my gym. I think they will check your body fat for free. Also, I dont think you have too much to worry about – judging by your post today about working out when you are stressed will definitely help out. PLUS, I’ve got you in the my thoughts and hope you will not be stressed for long!
Also, thanks for answering my questions so quickly….I was just curious because I love tofu.
Hangry- I totally think it has a little something to do with being home all day, every day. I get bored and eat while sitting at the computer.. not a good combo. I have started running more though, maybe about 20 miles a week.
Well, unfortunately I’m late and all the good suggestions are taken! But I definitely agree with everyone and also would like to promote the food scale. Not only is it helpful in recognizing portion sizes, but it’s really handy even when you are in maintenance mode because it can be used for baking and when creating complicated recipes. I have one from the brand called Salter and use it all the time! People may criticize and say it’s “obsessive” but as long as your using it as a guide and not relying on it 100%, I don’t see a problem with it.
I know with me when I am running more, my legs get/feel bigger, especially my butt area and thighs. I hate it, but I love to run, so I deal.
Another idea would be to keep track of your success with measurements, not weight, so you could see what areas are changing. If your waist is getting smaller, but your arms are getting bigger or something, then you might be more inclined to be happy with the changes because it’s muscle?
I would suggest taking up some kind of hobby or reading at home as well to keep you from the extra eating throughout the day. I think it is def hard when your sched. changes and you are not as busy so it is def normal!
WHOLE FOODS LUNCH!!! Fabulous.
Your ideas sounds great; and the tips from the above comments are great as well!! You’ll be fine
You should probably make me one of those breakfast sammies.
Oh man- I was so sorry to read about your disappointment. The feeling that you have gained weight despite a healthy diet and regular exercise is the story of my life and it is the most frustrating thing in the enture world.
From reading your blog, it looks like you eat incredibly healthy and whole with reasonable portion sizes. And from the pictures I have seen, you look thin and amazing. I agree with the ladies who think you should get your body fat checked. You look great and eat well. I hope you will continue to do so and not worry about that number!
ditto what everyone else said – you look GREAT and you eat very mindfully and healthfully. It’s probably muscle or water weight – so try hard not to sweat it! Just keep up your great work!!!