Have you tried these? Special K Flatbread Breakfast Sandwiches

In the past, I've talked about my need to eat a high-protein breakfast. Ever since I was a kid, I've known that high-carb breakfasts do nothing to curb my appetite or leave me satisfied. For me, cereal, pancakes, or a bagel does nothing. I often refer to high-carb breakfasts as the "anti-breakfast" because they leave me feeling hungry, often hungrier than I was before I ate. So, instead, I'm a hearty breakfast kind of girl-- eggs and toast, or my favorite, a breakfast sandwich.

When I first started losing weight, I ate low fat ham, egg beaters, and Weight Watcher's cheese on a light whole grain English muffin almost every morning. Now, I can only dream of having that kind of time in the mornings. I'm not sure I could wake up any sooner to prepare such an elaborate meal-- I mean, does my alarm clock even have the ability to work earlier than 6 AM? Hell, I'm lucky if I get the chance to make a protein shake for my long drive to work. Often, I end up eating some low-sugar oatmeal at the office (yup, all carbs) or woofing down a granola bar before court (again, all carbs). 

Well, the other day, I picked up a box of Special K's new Flatbread Breakfast Sandwiches from the frozen food section. These new breakfast sandwiches are part of Special K "Protein Effect" line. Let's just say, I hope Costco starts carrying them because I would not mind eating one of these sandwiches every morning. They only take just over a minute to heat in the microwave, so they are great for my morning routine. They taste a lot like the Dunkin' Donuts egg white flatbread sandwiches. The box boasts a multigrain flatbread with real eggs (and apparently the egg and cheese variety apparently has real tomatoes... woot?). I love the fluffy scrambled egg and spicy pepper jack cheese. I love that the bread doesn't get hard and chewy in the microwave. I especially love that these sandwiches only range from 4-6 WW Points+.  Special K makes three varieties:  1)   eggs with vegetables and pepper jack cheese; 2) ham, egg, and pepper jack cheese (the one I bought); and 3) sausage, egg, and cheese. I can guarantee you that I will be trying all three varieties. I can have a breakfast sandwich with sausage for only 6 WW points+?! Special K, I think I love you.

Weekly Weigh-in

As it turns out, last week was a mess. I couldn't workout post-op (something about blood pressure increasing bleeding? Gross.). I couldn't cook, so I had to depend on Dan to feed me (read: canned soup or takeout). I finally had to drag myself out of the house on Friday to go to court so of course I treated myself to lunch (French onion soup, barbecue chicken pizza, and a beer) since I finally got to eat my first meal of the day at 4:30 pm. On Saturday, I ate a burrito for breakfast, helped a friend move, got overly hungry, ate a slice of tomato pie as a "snack," then an egg roll and a Cuban sandwich (bad idea for the mouth). I remember sadly thinking to myself, "Have I eaten a fruit or vegetable all day?" Oh yes, and there were Oreos, but they were reduced fat-- because that totally makes it better. By Sunday, my body had grown accustomed to my terrible eating habits once again, and I convinced Dan that I NEEDED that Spicy McChicken sandwich I had been craving-- of course we had to share a small fry. There was Christmas decoration shopping and fried macaroni and cheese balls from the Cheesecake Factory (surprisingly, two of those filled me so much I had to resist the cake I contemplated from the start).  Finally, I topped it all off with a cheap, dry pecan roll topped with cinnamon ice cream. Don't judge me.

Just before I stepped on the scale this morning, I was not-so- surprised by a "visitor." It helps explain the cravings... and the mood swings... and the weight gain. I guess next week we will find out just how much I can blame on PMS. Until then, suffice it to know that I whined myself out of cooking the healthy dinner I planned for tonight and into getting Chinese food instead. I didn't even opt for the boring steamed selection or brown rice. Fortunately, I was still able to stay within my daily points allowance.  

This Week's Weight Loss:       - 0.4 lbs
New Weight Left to Lose:    14 lbs
TOTAL WEIGHT LOSS:     74 lbs

Feeling like Miss Piggy

On Tuesday, I had my impacted wisdom teeth removed. The first night after the surgery, I accidentally caught a glimpse in the mirror, and I was amazed at how the swollen side looked so different from my other side. It was as if I was looking at the old me (pre-weight loss) and my current self at the same time. In comparing the sides, I discovered smile lines, creases, and definitions in my jaw that I had never noticed before. My swollen side reminds me a bit of Miss Piggy with the round, puffy cheek. If only I had her style.

I can't wait until I feel like myself again. All this medicine has me feeling dazed yet still limited. I've been flooding my body with non-stop medicines between the antibiotics to fight infection, steroids for swelling, and medicine for the pain on top of my usual medicines. I'm shocked that all these drugs haven't managed to eat a whole in my stomach-- especially since I haven't been putting much into it. So far, I have eaten a lot of soup: chicken and stars, cream of broccoli, and matzo ball. Unfortunately, while I sit home recovering, I crave foods I see on TV:  a Thanksgiving sandwich with all the fixings on a roll, pizza, cake, and the list grows the longer I can't eat solid food. Yesterday, I really wanted a Thanksgiving sandwich. Who am I kidding? I can't even open my mouth more than an inch, let alone eat a sandwich! Dan brought me home a turkey dinner from a local diner with a piece of lemon cream cake. I was grateful for the treat, but after looking up the points, I really wish he hadn't. A single piece of cake packs 15 WW Points. So, I limited myself to only 1/3 of the slice and saved the rest for later. 

Lunch today  seems like a good time to eat the other 2/3 of the cake, right? That's right-- I just ate cake for lunch and feel so guilty. I swear, anyone else would lose weight while on a soft food diet. Not me! I'm sitting here eating creamy soup, mashed potatoes, and cake! To make myself feel better, I followed the cake with a bit of soup and a handful of cherry tomatoes. Still! Looks like my eating habits are starting to fit my new puffy face.

Weekly Weigh-in

I toyed with the idea of labeling this as my "Week 1" weigh-in because it is the end of my first week on the Weight Watcher's bandwagon again. However, I feel as though that would be deceiving since I'm not a  Weight Watcher's virgin. No matter what you want to call it, I'm pleased with the results. 

Based weigh-ins throughout the week, I was projected to lose around 6 pounds my first week back. That was BEFORE we went out on Saturday. I saved Saturday for my once weekly dining out excursion, and Dan and I explored Princeton for the first time with friends. I drank a daily allowance worth of WW points, ate delicious food at Teresa Caffe, and finished the night with a delightful cupcake from House of Cupcakes (a Cupcake Wars winner!). I tried to minimize the damage by making low-point yet filling decisions before we went out and made wiser choices at dinner. When all was said and done, I consumed approximately 66 WW points. YIKES! I was not going to let my points dictate my fun. I am happy to report that one day of fun did NOT sabotage my week.

This Week's Weight Loss:       4 lbs
New Weight Left to Lose:    13 lbs
TOTAL WEIGHT LOSS:     73 lbs

Muffin Top

No, I’m not talking about the tasty the muffin top of the tasty variety. 

 Unfortunately, this entry is  dedicated to the fashion faux pas.

Have you ever gotten dressed and known you were committing a fashion faux pas but said “To hell with it!” and left the house like that anyway?  Well, today was my first really occasion to do this, with the exception of that one time I wore brown leggings with a black outfit because I neglected to shave my legs before court, and they were all that was clean.  That time really doesn’t count because my strategy was to play as if I didn’t realize they weren’t black before I left the house if anyone said something.

Anyway, here is what happened:  For the first time in a week and a half, my firm required the attorneys to come into the office.  Well, I figured there wouldn’t be many people there, we had a Nor’easter hit the night before which dumped about nine inches of snow, many people haven’t had power for days, and the boss told us to dress in layers because we may not have heat or power.  Therefore, I rationalized wearing jeans to the office.  Fine; tons of people wore jeans today-- many even rocked a hooded sweatshirt like myself.

So, what’s the problem and thereby the point of this rambling story you ask? Well, I CAN’T wear jeans—they simply don’t fit.  I didn’t realize over the summer that I had outgrown my jeans because it was always too warm for them.  Now, my drastic weight gain is a depressing reality.  My pairs of everyday skinny jeans do not go over my thighs.  Putting them on resembles the strange jig I do to get into pantyhose.  Just image lots of strange stretching and accidental pinching of skin followed by lots of frustration and whining.  To make matters worse, my fat jeans are VERY, very tight.  We’re talking standard cut jeans two sizes bigger than my usual size.  Why is it that these 18 pounds only landed between my knees and my belly button?!  Like my thighs weren’t large enough!  

Well, what was I going to do?  It was snowy and I needed to wear snow boots.  Last winter, my snow boots barely fit over my thunder calves.  There was no way I was getting much under those now that I’m feeling like Fatty McButter Pants.  Well, knowing all my leggings were dirty-- after all, what else does a couch potato like myself wear when you’ve been stuck at home for the past 11 days?  Of course all my sweatpants, leggings, pajama pants, and all other pants with elastic waists are dirty!—I turned to my skin jeans and I did the stocking jig, laid on the bed, and whined a whole lot followed by even more self-loathing as I continued to get ready for work with my pants unbuttoned and unzipped in hopes that they would stretch.  There was even a point when I seriously contemplated at least making my hour commute with my pants undone. Yes, it was that bad.  Finally, I had to choose a shirt.  I changed my mind numerous times until I concluded that I needed to wear a loose flowing top to camouflage my CLEAR muffin top. All I could think about, well aside from the self-loathing, was  how I KNEW I shouldn’t leave the house looking like that.  I KNEW it looked bad.  Unfortunately, I also knew I didn’t have any other casual options.  In the end, I wore the pants anyway… muffin top and all.

I can’t tolerate it much longer.  Plus, I’m pretty sure that I can’t finagle my way into these pants much longer.  If I don’t want to go out and buy bigger pants, I need to do something.  Well, I’m cheap and disgusted, so I’m making a change.  Have you hit that point yet?  If so, I welcome you to join me in fighting back and saying “NO” to buying bigger pants—“NO” to muffin tops!   … even muffin tops of the tasty variety.  Seriously, those things are deceivingly high in points, even the reduced fat ones.  

I've Missed My Kitchen

Ever since Hurricane Sandy hit over a week ago, I've been on a comfort food kick. It all started once we became a make-shift shelter for friends displaced by the natural disaster. I wanted to make them feel a sense of home so I headed to the kitchen to show them my idea of comfort. I made chewy snickerdoodle cookies, homemade strawberry jelly sandwich cookies, a roasted chicken, and chicken pot pie soup with homemade biscuits. Once the guests were gone, I was still craving comfort foods. This week, I've made beef stew, baked ziti, and homemade Wendy's spicy chicken sandwiches. I've been cooking so much that the hubby has been complaining about the quantity of dirty dishes as he gorges himself on all the delicious leftovers.  

What's different? Why have I been in such a mood to cook? I'm sure it is partially emotional. The Jersey Shore area has been devastated by the recent storm. We know so many people who have lost so much in the past few weeks. Plus, the weather got cold suddenly, making it the perfect time for a simmering pot of stew or a bowl of soup. It's also due to that fact that most restaurants are closed due to the mass power outages, so we couldn't dine out. But I'm pretty sure that my sudden increase in cooking is due to my extra time home. The storm left my office without power for the last 10 days. Without my long hours and work commute, I have the time to plan meals, cook, and even track my points.

Let's talk about my weekly WW points allowance for a moment. I get 27 WW Points+ each day ...WAIT! WHAT?! 27 Points?! I've been giving myself 28. Oh, that's depressing. Well, this just emphasizes what I was about to say. I went back to counting points on Monday, and I have been drastically over my daily allowance each day... and that is while trying to make healthy decisions. At first, my daily overages were caused by not having a  kitchen stocked with WW-friendly foods. Other days, it was just a matter of deceivingly points-heavy dinner recipes. Oops! I can completely see where I was going wrong before and thus causing my drastic weight gain. 

Stay tuned, folks! This girl is on a mission. Now, forgive me while I go pout about the fact that my confusion about my daily point allowance now means I can't have that hot cocoa I was looking forward to before bed. Boo.

Have you seen this: Weight Watchers Barcode Scanner?

Did you hear that Weight Watchers recently released a barcode scanner? The mobile app allows Weight Watcher subscribers to use their phone's camera to scan the barcode (or enter the barcode number) on popular food labels. If the product is in their database, you will find an informational screen on the product like the image below. Then, you have the option to track the item. If you don't wish to track the item, the information is saved in your database for later.

Keep in mind, the app is still new so the database is still growing. I've noticed that the more popular diet foods are in the system. This morning, each of my breakfast items scanned in, making tracking so easy (and fun!). I scanned each item, then clicked "Track this item." It was AWESOME! As the Weight Watchers database continues to grow, this is going to make grocery shopping a breeze. No more sitting in the aisle calculating which cookies have lower points. 

It's been forever

I promised that I would keep this brief.

I miss my blog and my pants do too. I've gained 18 pounds since I started full-time at a law firm. That's right, I finally landed a full-time attorney position! With that good news came celebratory meals, lunch meetings, long hours, no time to grocery shop or workout, and no motivation to cook. I eat all the time, and I eat garbage. I cannot lie to myself and pretend I don't know what happened. Now, I want to get back on track. I want to lose these 18 pounds before we go on vacation in February. Hell, I want to lose them sooner, but I want to be practical.

I could really use some advice on living a "convenient" but healthy lifestyle. It needs to be quick and easy. Any tips?