One week in...

Well, I am one week in on this new fitness journey, and I can say, it is going well.  My doctor has me on a 1200 calorie a day diet restriction, and it is going well.  I thought I would be going out of my mind now laying in a corner dreaming about food.  However, that is not the case.  NO, instead I am sitting at my desk, researching foods and meal planning.  I love this new lifestyle, there are kinks yet to be worked out, but things are coming along fine.

I went to the doctor yesterday for my one week check in.  The doctor wanted to make sure I was doing what we had discussed and that I was not going to say one thing and the scale and body analysis another.  Well I am proud to report that the doctor was surprised with what she saw.  In the first week I lost 7.5 lbs!!!  Much more than just the pounds I lost, some other things changed, and I am happy about that as well.  Things that I have never thought about.  For instance, the number of calories my body needs a day to function at its peak dropped by 32, which is great, because it means that my weight also dropped.  Additionally, the amount of fat weight dropped more than the amount of water weight dropped, also a good thing.  It means I actually lost fat!!! (Celebrating inside)  The most universal piece of terminology is that my BMI (Body Mass Index) dropped an entire point as well.  All good news in my book.

The ends are greats, however the means to getting there was not as glorious.  Starting out I thought I would not be able to eat anything.  I mean I was at the store, thinking OMG, everything has SO many calories, something I have never given much consideration to before.  I had cravings, and wanted things I shouldn't have and didn't really know what to do about it.  There were days I was so concerned with not eating too many calories, that I did not eat enough.  Which I am sure contributed to the massive weight loss.  As the week went on, it became easier, but there are still daily struggles.  There was one day, I had eaten far less than my allotted 1200, so I thought I could "reward" myself with some ice cream.  I did, it tasted great!!! However, looking back I know it was not the best choice.  I used 260 calories on ice cream, that could have been used on fruit.  Its a learning process as well as a growth process.  I am in a place of transition.  Trying to help my body understand that just because I want it and can have it doesn't mean I should.

Trying new recipes has been fun.  I keep soup on hand either in the fridge or in single portions in the freezer.  I love soup!!! It also makes it easier if there were no leftover from dinner to take for lunch the next day.  I can grab soup and be on my way.  This way I am not tempted to cheat myself and hinder consistent progress.  I love chicken and veggie soup, its quick and easy to make and tastes great.  Additionally, you can have a large amount for not a large amount of calories.

My newest recipe is Fish Tacos!! Lets say YUM!!!

For my daughter and I alone we used the following:

1lb fish  (we used Swai/Basa)
2 tablespoons Blackening Seasoning (adjust to meet your tastes)
1 CanGreen Giant Southwestern Style Corn
Tortilla shells, hard or soft
Tomatoes

Lettuce

Cheese
Salsa
Sour Cream (Optional)

I seasoned the fish and cooked it stove top with a little non-stick cooking spray (0 calories), cook until done.  Depending on your fish this should only take 10-12 minutes.  Break the fish in pieces once removed from the pan.  Dice and cut veggies, serve as you would a regular taco.  

I am sure adding some cilantro, lime, and even jalapeno would make things even better!

I had my tacos on hard shells because they were 35 calories a shells versus the flour tortilla that was 100 calories per shell.  I still watched my portion size.  I was able to eat 4 tacos for a total of 340 calories.  I did not have cheese or sour cream on my tacos, and they were still delicious.  I think the next time instead of shredding the lettuce, I will use the lettuce as my shell.  That may afford me either cheese or sour cream...hmmm....

Exercising:

The exercising has been fun as well.  I have done a lot of walking, and will be hitting the gym tonight.  My commitment is to get exercise in at least 4 times a week.  I know for sure I will walk on Wednesday and go to the gym on Thursdays.  I am not sure what my other set two days will be, but I do know for sure, I will make it happen.

With one week down, and a lifetime to go, I think I am satisfied and will continue living to fine tune the treasure that I am...I will check in again next week!