Well I had another victory against the office goodies this afternoon, wahoo! It’s funny – for months they didn’t bother me, and now I’m back under their spell. Just goes to show you – weight loss is an ongoing battle! It definitely knows how to humble you. I also succeeded at the going away party! On the way there I had my pre workout snack: a new flavor of Luna Bar, Nutz Over Chocolate.

It was great! Luna is definitely my favorite type of bar. (Excuse my desperate need for a fresh manicure!) Pre Workout Snack was 180 calories, 24g carbs, 5g fat, and 10g protein.

At the bar I had my club soda and lime as planned. I didn’t miss a beat with the rest of my coworkers who were drinking and no one even noticed that I didn’t take a shot with the rest of the gang. Definitely a success!

Afterwards I headed over to CP to hit up some cardio. I really couldn’t keep focused on cardio today! I must have worked on every type of cardio machine – twice! Plus I ran the track and used free weights, did mat work – people must have thought I was crazy! After that I swam for a good 30 min. I loved it! Cardio Smorgas = 483 Calories Burned.

When I got home I made a quick dinner of smoked salmon, feta, tomatoes, capers, and spinach on a whole wheat tortilla.

I also had some frozen strawberries and frozen blueberries heated up over some 0% Fage with a little unsweetened coconut.

Dinner was 507 calories, 64g carbs, 17g fat, and 27g protein.

I’m really pleased with myself today – I did a good job meeting my goals! On my walk over to CP I noticed an exciting sign a few blocks from my apt:

If that’s not something sweet to dream about, I don’t know what is! Night!

I finally got back in the kitchen tonight to pack my lunch for tomorrow and cook dinner. It felt great! But first, a recap of the afternoon.
I successfully avoided the office goodies, whew! I don’t know why I’ve been having such a rough time with them lately. Some days they’re not even a speck on my radar, others it’s all I can think about. Anyway, I had an iced coffee around 4:30 to perk up.

I wasn’t hungry after my large lunch, so I headed over to the gym without a pre-workout snack. It was okay, but I wish I had gotten one – I was starving by the end of the night. I started out with cardio, and then jumped into a Pilates mat class, where I met CP’s Pilates teacher, Howard, who is the nicest guy ever! I used the pilates ring for the first time – that was interesting, haha! After class, I spoke to Howard about the Pilates Reformer classes that he teaches. He’s so positive and upbeat – I loved having him as a teacher in the large mat class, I can’t wait for a smaller reformer class! After the pilates class I did a bit more cardio, and then went for a swim. Even though I was at CP for close to 2.5 hrs, I loved every second of it. Pilates class and cardio = 450 calories burned.

On my way out of the gym, I realized I was starving and headed to the CP cafe for a snack. The choices were plentiful: anything and everything you could want! I liked how I picked my snack: I thought what have I eaten, what do I need to eat, re: food groups, fat, protein, carbs, etc. I decided on a banana to get some fruit in:

Snack was 94 calories, 24g carbs, 0g fat, and 1g protein.

When I got home I whipped up a new batch of chickpea cutlets from Veganomicon. These turned out to be the best of any batch I’ve made! Just incredibly delicious! I made a couple subs based on what I had in house: added fennel seed, extra paprika, left out garlic. Amazing. I had one of an Ezekiel hamburger bun (love) with ketchup for dipping. :)

Dinner was 393 calories, 56g carbs, 10g fat, and 26g protein.

This post has taken MUCH longer than it should have because I had to switch computers (luckily we have FIVE different ones in our small NYC apt – computer nerd bf) and upload pictures twice, boo. So I have to rush off to bed – but to close, here are some BEAUTIFUL flowers I saw today. I’m loving having my camera on me 24/7 because of the blog – I’m able to capture anything on a whim! Night!

Del Posto was A.MA.ZING!  It was such a special evening!  But first let me apologize for the lack of pictures on this post.  Yesterday afternoon got away from me, and Peter would have killed me if I pulled out my camera at the super fancy restaurant.  Sorry!

Yesterday afternoon, I grabbed two stressed induced handfuls of organic teddy grahams from the company stash.  I hate it when I do that – it’s completely mental – I was full from lunch and going to a great dinner…grr.  Ah well, weight loss has ups and downs.  Yesterday I read that weight loss is like tennis: even great tennis players lose points – that doesn’t matter.  It only matters whether you win more points than you lose.  I like that analogy – takes some of the pressure off. ~200 calories.

After work I went to Chelsea Piers - I’ve decided that Chelsea Piers is so amazing it deserves to be in pink. :)   On my way to the pool, I actually ran into my membership consultant – she was so nice – she knew me by name, asked if I needed anything, seemed genuinely concerned that I was happy.  Point, Chelsea Piers!  I swam for about 45 min, give or take.  First off, the pool is BEAUTIFUL.  Secondly, it felt soooo amazing to be in the water.  Now I remember why I loved it so much as a kid!  It was cool too, to see my pilates training impact my swimming technique and really take it to a whole new level.  I could feel my arms and legs stretching and lengthening with each stroke.  It was awesome!  I’m totally hooked.  I also got to use the whirlpool after my swim.  I put my hurty shin right up to the jet, and it felt so great.  Today, it doesn’t hurt nearly as much.  Point, Chelsea Piers!

After swimming and some errands around the apt, Peter and I met at Del Posto.  He’s leaving today for a long weekend (coming back on Monday) and wanted to have a special dinner out.  I wanted to split an appetizer, get an entree, and split a dessert.  It’s easier to get more courses at fancier restaurants without overdoing your calories because the portions are so much smaller – you just have to be careful about what it is your ordering and how it’s prepared.  But Peter wanted to get the five course tasting menu to really experience the restaurant – PLUS, he wanted me NOT to calorie count.  Well, we went back and forth for a good 15 min, until I gave in.  Who knows if/when we’ll be back to this amazing restaurant – and he was right, I really did want to experience it.

Again, I’m sorry about the pictures, but here’s what I had (remember, these are all tiny portions):

  • INSALATA di Primavera, Ricotta Glassata & Perilla
  • ORECCHIETTE with Lamb Neck Sausage, Morels & Spring Onion
  • Sheep’s Milk Ricotta NUDI with Sweet Pea Puree, Preserved Lemon & Tellicherry
  • Tomato & Cerignola Braised TUNA with Chipotle & Avocado
  • Chocolate Ricotta TORTINO with Toasted Sicilian Pistachios & Extra Virgin Olive Oil Gelatto

I also had a glass of wine.  I can’t even describe how amazing these dishes were.  Just incredible.  Not to mention there were 20 billion waiters, 5 different table settings, complementary appetizers, complementary cookies served with dessert, and the amazing views.  Just an amazing and very special night.

Since our dinner reservation didn’t start until 9:15, we were home at midnight, so a morning workout was out, boo.  Peter needed help packing, so I did that until I was running late.  Then I realized I had no readily available fruit for my oatmeal, boo.  So I grabbed an Ezekiel Cinnamon Raisin muffin and headed out the door.  At work, I topped it with two tbsp almond butter.

I had it with about 3/4c of hemp milk:

Breakfast was 448 calories, 57g carbs, 19g fat, and 17g protein.

I’m trying to get lunch with P this afternoon before his flight, but we’ll see if it happens.  As much as I’ll miss him it will be nice to have some alone, quiet time this week/weekend.  Plus, I’ll be able to really focus on my eating and exercise.  He can be a distraction sometimes. :P   Have a great day!

Ah, a Sunday without brunch is like a day without sunshine.  Since I did brunch both days last weekend, I decided to take it easy this weekend.  Plus when I eat a big brunch, it throws my eating schedule off for the rest of the day.  This morning I decided to just have a quick breakfast to get me out the door quick.  The plan for today is to do the dishes, head to a gym across town, go up to my apt to clean up and wash my sheets in preparation for a friend who’s crashing there this week, come home, make dinner, and pack lunch.  I’ve had a cool idea for dinner for a week or so now, but I haven’t had the time/energy/resources to make it happen.  Tonight might be the night!

So for breakfast, I had a 3/4c Ezekiel Cinnamon Raisin cereal, with 1/2c hemp milk, and 103g of banana:

Breakfast was 445 calories, 96g carbs, 3g fat, and 14g protein.

The reason why I’m headed cross town for the gym is because today will be my first day of swimming!  I swam on teams through grammar and high school, and swam for fun in college.  Swimming always gives me great tone all over – and it gives me time with my thoughts, which I really enjoy.  Today I’m just going to, no pun intended, test the waters.  I want to evaluate how much work I need to get back up to par.  For now, I’m not going to count swimming towards my calorie burns because I’m not up to a level that I can use swimming as a workout.  But until then, it’s going to be a fun weekend activity!

Since I’ll be heading straight from the gym to my apt to do errands and back down again, I’m not going to have the time or resources to have a sit down lunch.  So I’m just going to bring with me a bunch of snacks: apple, Clif bar, etc, maybe a sandwich.  I’ll fill you guys in this afternoon.

Also, as an FYI, I do take a multivitamin every day.  But I’ve been tracking my calcium intake and I haven’t been anywhere near the daily requirement.  So I’ve decided to start taking calcium supplements.  I feel like it’s the best way to ensure I’m getting what I need.  Have a great day!

Hey guys, quick post because I have to get to bed early so I can wake up for my 7 AM pilates class. I got out of work really late tonight, and went to Modell’s to get a bathing suit and swim goggles. I’ve been thinking about adding swimming to my workouts for a while, and I think I’ll kick it off this weekend! I’m really pleased that I’ve been expanding my workout routines – it’s really been very satisfying! My lunch was definitely too small – before I left work I had an iced coffee and a new flavor of Luna Bar: Chocolate Raspberry.

It was good, but not great – I could definitely taste both the chocolate and the raspberry, which I wasn’t expecting. Still, it could have been better. Snack was 190 calories, 27g carbs, 5g fat, and 9g protein.

When I got finally got back, I only had time for one thing: cook dinner or go to the gym. P told me to go to the gym (he knows how I get minus gym time :) ) so he ordered in sushi while I worked out. I did the Cardio Smorgasboard again, and I had an amazing workout! Awesome calorie burn! Cardio Smorgas = 558 calories burned.

Before I worked out, I had an Ezekiel English Muffin Cinnamon Raisin with a tbsp Almond Butter:

Pre Workout Snack was 175 calories, 21g carbs, 9g fat, and 7g protein.

The blog has allowed me to analyze my eating, and I’ve realized how often we eat out! I feel like that might be a product of New York – there’s always a new, delicious restaurant to try! I feel like I make good choice 90% of the time, so it’s okay. Let me know your thoughts…

For dinner, I had a bowl of miso (a great starter to fill up on) plus 2 salmon rolls, 4 tuna rolls, and 4 spinach rolls, and edamame.

Dinner was 387 calories, 50g carbs, 8g fat, and 31g protein.

Night all!