NROL - Week 22 - Wednesday

Last day of feeling sorry for myself. I'm going out to lunch with a friend and I will be back on plan tomorrow. There is no more junk in the house, except for that bag of M&Ms I bought myself a few months ago and haven't opened. I can't believe it. All the crap I've eaten in the last week and those are still there. I did make a promise to myself though - I wasn't going to eat them until I had a plan.

Hyper IB, 4x10 with 60 second rests today.

[superset w/ full rest]:
squat 4x10x55
Romanian deadlift w/ shrug 4x10x55

[superset w/ full rest]:
Bulgarian split-squat 4x10x10 (per leg)
step-up 4x10x10 (per leg)

reverse crunch 3x15xbw

With all the garbage I've eaten today, it's very easy to see how we (Americans) have gotten so fat. Dinner alone was over maintenance calories for me, and I didn't even bat an eye.

NROL - Week 22 - Tuesday

I didn't exercise today. I just didn't feel like it. Damn this funk. And I tried to make pancakes this morning and screwed up the recipe. "How does one screw up a batch of Jiffy pancakes?" you ask. I meant to cut the recipe in half, and I did cut the amount of Jiffy mix in half, but I used the whole amount of milk. Then I tried to thicken it up and made it too thick to even pour, so I tossed it all, ticked off that I can't even get pancakes right. So I had no bake cookies for breakfast. We're out of those now, thankfully.

Ugh. Just ugh!!

NROL - Week 22 - Monday

I am so mad at myself!!!!!!! I started off great then had such a crappy morning that I lost it by lunch time, then things continued to get worse. I don't even freaking care what I eat for the rest of the day. It's just little stuff getting to me, which makes it completely ridiculous that I can't hold it together long enough to get through a stressful day. I don't know why things are getting to me this way, either. It's not the cold I had - which I'm not even sure was really a cold. If I didn't know better, I'd say there was something stuffed up my nose. I cannot unblock it at all. Nasal sprays, Vicks, blowing, even a Neti pot - useless!

So, breakfast was typical, and I packed appropriate snacks for the drive to Virginia. I was running late, my son's new DVD player wasn't working, I had to drop off the recycling in the rain - that all made me grumpy. The lab techs were rude and weren't going to let me get my blood drawn because if my stuffy nose. I had to call the bone marrow place and my contact is out of the office until next Monday. I was getting upset because I didn't want to have made a second useless trip. I called a number on the switchboard thingy and finally got a human voice in the main marrow office (I think) and talked to them, and told me it "should be fine" to give them my blood. Whatever. The phelbotomist who was pissy when I got there got ready to draw my blood, and I was sure she'd stick me hard on purpose, just because I was defensive. But I never felt the needle so that was a ray of freaking sunshine.

Then on the way home, I stopped at Burger King and got a Whopper & fries. Frak it, I didn't care. I was going to have a salad but it's hard to choke down bland stuff with my nose the way it is. Greasy meat isn't much better but I was at least able to taste the onion. So then I was mad for eating crap, so I ate a stupid granola bar. Then, I got to the post office to mail a package and they were closed. By now, I'm really annoyed and decided that my crappy day needed ice cream. So when I got home, I had ice cream. And no bake cookies. And more no bake cookies. And now here I am, somewhere between not caring and hating myself.

Today was HyperIA, 5x5 with 90 seconds rests.

[superset w/ full rest]:
db incline press 5x5x25
Yates row 5x5x65

[superset w/ full rest]:
db shoulder press 5x5x20
inverted row - 5x5xbw - I love these!! Ok, not love but I like them a lot better than lat pulls. I need to do some flexibility work because my arm felt a little tight. And for the record, I can't pull myself all the way up, so there's lots of room to improve

[superset w/ full rest]:
bb close grip bench press 5x5x50
high pull 5x5x50

Swiss ball crunch 3x15x30

NROL - Week 21 - Sunday

151 today, that's up 2 pounds from my last weigh in. I'm not shocked. That's what happens when I eat too much junk. I'm going to be weighing (and measuring) again on Thursday, for the new year.

No exercise today. I didn't have any scheduled but since I skipped yesterday, I was hoping I'd feel well enough to do something. But I don't.

7:45 AM - coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda

9:30 AM - egg salad sandwich; I made this with horseradish sauce, hoping to clear my sinuses because nothing else is working

12:15 PM - pickle

12:40 PM - Havarti cheese, California blend mixed vegetables, chicken breast

2:45 PM - almonds

4:30 PM - corn, grilled hamburger w/ onion, Havarti cheese, mustard, ketchup & horseradish sauce

Calories - 1478
Carbs - 102 (23 fiber)
Protein - 86
Fat - 83
C/P/F Ratio - 27.3/22.9/49.8

NROL - Week 21 - Saturday

I did have cardio scheduled today but this cold is kicking my ass. I ended up snorting saline last night to get some relief from the plugged up nose. I took medicines that didn't even dent the pain in my head. I feel like I've been sick an awful lot this year, and I'm getting tired of it.

8:30 AM - coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda; for some reason, the coffee has tasted pretty sweet the last couple days, so I didn't put the 1/2 teaspoon of granular in; it's still sweet so I might try just 2 drops of liquid next time; I'm sure it's all due to my messed up taste buds

10:45 AM - hard boiled eggs; I only ate these because I had to eat something

12:20 PM - turkey breast w/ mayo & cheese on tortilla

5:15 PM - brown rice w/ onion & turkey; I'm so sick of turkey

6:55 PM - ice cream; I debated having this and hated myself for eating it when I didn't need it; to my surprise, I actually put it in my tracker, instead of ignoring it like I wanted to

Calories - 1583
Carbs - 106 (10 fiber)
Protein - 119
Fat - 71
C/P/F Ratio - 27.6/31/41.5

NROL - Week 21 - Friday

Sick. My son and I have something. It's minor - stuffy head and lack of energy, mostly. Eating was horrible today. Nothing has any taste. My body isn't hungry but my mouth is. I'm mad about it but just can't get a handle on it. I just want to chill out (which is what we did most of the day - even had a good nap). My workout sucked today as a result.

Hyper IB, 3x15 with 30 second rests today, which I hate on on a good day.

[superset w/ full rest]:
squat 3x15x40
Romanian deadlift w/ shrug 3x15x40

[superset w/ full rest]:
Bulgarian split-squat 3x15xbw (per leg) - no weights, as I had absolutely no energy
step-up 3x15xbw (per leg) - no weights, as I had absolutely no energy

reverse crunch 3x15xbw

NROL - Week 21 - Thursday

No exercise today. The TV is occupied and there are toys all over my floor. This is why I worked out Sunday :)

I have to say, I am absolutely convinced that too much sugar makes me ill. I felt horrible most of the night and just the thought of eating anything too sweet makes me gag right now. The only "good" thing is that it makes me crave water like crazy, so I drink it, but really, isn't that a sign of something diabetes related??

Not really much to report today. I ate some things that weren't so great but I didn't make myself as sick as yesterday.

NROL - Week 21 - Wednesday

Today was HyperIA, 4x10 with 60 seconds rests.

[superset w/ full rest]:
db incline press 4x10x20
Yates row 4x10x45

[superset w/ full rest]:
db shoulder press 4x10x15
wide grip lat pull down 4x10x62 - good riddance to these - I am switching to inverted rows on Monday

[superset w/ full rest]:
bb close grip bench press 4x10x40
high pull 4x10x40

Swiss ball crunch 3x15x30


Food today was chaotic, at best. I started off as usual but it was so hectic today, with a trip to Virginia I had to make (more about that in a minute), then I had to come home and make treats for Santa. Between eating on the road and sampling my goodies, I've given up trying to keep track. I feel a little guilty but not too much. I'm also learning that sugar (especially lots of it) makes me really, really sick. I get nauseated and nothing tastes good. I'm just now (it's 3:30 PM as I type this) getting my first cup of coffee for the day and it tastes horrible because of the sugar I've already had while baking. I think I'll leave those no bake cookies (the major sugar culprit) to my husband.

So, about my trip to Virginia. I don't know if I mentioned this before, but I am on my third round of testing to be a blood marrow/stem cell donor. I got on the donor registry back in May, when it was free (normally it's about $52, but they were having some sort of drive). I signed up, they sent a kit for a swab from my cheek, and I sent that in. I received a phone call last month that I am a 6 out of 6 antigen match for someone. I went in for my first blood draw on December 4, and received another call Monday. I am a 10 out of 10 match for this person, so they want a second set of blood tests. The lab is 90 minutes away, so I packed my kid up and went up today, after confirming that the kit for collecting samples had arrived there. When I got there, I was told they couldn't collect the blood today because the lab won't be open tomorrow (all samples are overnighted by FedEx to the analysis lab). I was pretty bummed that I'd wasted my time and gas, just to have to go back up next week (Monday, I think). Then I realized that I could be the one needing a blood marrow transplant. I told that whiny voice in my head to STFU, then got on with my day. But anyway, I'd promised my son we'd get McDonald's if he was a good boy, and he was. I did eat a salad, but then I ate his hashbrowns and that screwed my whole day up. Oh well.

NROL - Week 21 - Tuesday

Turbo Jam Cardio Party Mix 2 today. I didn't want to do it - I considered doing the 20 Minute Workout or nothing at all - because I woke up with a stuffy and runny nose. I also have a headache, so I must have picked something up. My son was complaining yesterday that he had a headache and was super clingy. Other than that, though, we're fine.

8:00 AM - hard boiled egg

10:25 AM - California blend mixed vegetables, roasted chicken (dark meat)

12:30 PM - coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda

1:55 PM - grilled cheese sandwich; my son ate a quarter of this, the little sneak

5:30 PM - a chicken nugget I snagged from the refrigerator while I was cooking; not logged

6:15 PM - skillet lasagna; I didn't log any of this because I was way too lazy and rushed to bother

No numbers today.

NROL - Week 21 - Monday

I take back everything I said in my rushed blog about yesterday. I feel so crappy! At the time, I just enjoyed myself and didn't worry about what I was eating, but when I went to bed, I felt totally sick from all the chocolate stuff. It was like a delayed reaction. Blah! I don't feel guilty, no, but bloated and nauseated for sure. I don't drink alcohol because I don't like the after effects. I don't like the physical effects of eating too much chocolate. I think I'm going to have to treat them the same. Bummer.

Hyper IB, 5x5 with 90 second rests today.

[superset w/ full rest]:
squat 5x5x60
Romanian deadlift w/ shrug 5x5x60

[superset w/ full rest]:
Bulgarian split-squat 5x5x15 (per leg)
step-up 5x5x15 (per leg)

reverse crunch 3x15xbw

8:15 AM - apple & cottage cheese

11:30 AM - turkey bacon, toast, scrambled eggs w/ onion, green pepper & salsa

4:00 PM - green beans w/ margarine & roasted chicken (dark meat)

8:35 PM - egg salad sandwich; I feel all icky from the chocolate still and didn't want to eat, but I was really under my minimum for the day

Calories - 1277
Carbs - 108 (28 fiber)
Protein - 109
Fat - 49
C/P/F Ratio - 32.9/33.4/33.8

NROL - Week 20 - Sunday

I did my cardio today (TJCP Mix 2) because I know I won't get to do it Thursday. I expect my son to take over the tv for his new Wii games. So, I got it out of the way today.

Oh, and no change in weight this week - still at 149. That's fine.

We're having lunch at a friend's house today so there will be no numbers. I'll write down everything I eat at home, and log that, but I'm just going to enjoy myself at lunch and keep it reasonable.

9:40 AM - eggs w/ toast, coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda

11:05 AM - pumpkin flax granola bar

Okay, I snacked all day at my friend's house. It was good. No guilt here. I had the best time I've had in a long time.

NROL - Week 20 - Saturday

Turbo Jam Cardio Party Mix 2 again, probably the most intense effort so far.

Oh, I forgot to post the picture of my homemade lat pull apparatus yesterday. Maybe someday I'll buy a real pulley system, but I doubt it. I hate cable exercises. I am definitely dumping lat pulls after next week. Anyway, here it is:



I kneel on the floor to do the exercises. Don't mind my crooked picture. Every time I open the freezer lid, I bump it.

10:00 AM - cottage cheese

12:20 PM - turkey bacon, eggs, banana, coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda

2:15 PM - pork rinds; I haven't had these in a long time, and my husband wanted to try the new salt & vinegar variety; fortunately, I wasn't crazy about them

4:15-ish PM - I took a few bites of roasted chicken and I pulled it off the bone, then a piece of green pepper while I was chopping

6:30 PM - homemade chili; I had 2 bowls, plus 1 bite of my son's banana

No numbers today because I didn't measure the chili.

NROL - Week 20 - Friday

Today was HyperIA, 3x15 with 30 seconds rests.

[superset w/ full rest]:
db incline press 3x15x20 - I don't remember doing these at 20 pounds last time I did 3x15 - it was hard!!!
Yates row 3x15x42

[superset w/ full rest]:
db shoulder press 3x15x10
wide grip lat pull down 3x15x56

[superset w/ full rest]:
bb close grip bench press 3x15x30
high pull 3x15x30

Swiss ball crunch 3x15x30

6:20 AM - apple & cottage cheese

10:40 AM - grilled cheese sandwich, coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda; I was late getting this meal because I was at my son's school for an assembly - he was Student of the Month, baby's first award

1:15 PM - roast w/ onion, green pepper & sour cream

4:30 PM - coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda, carrots, mozzarella string cheese

8:45 PM - roast w/ onion, green pepper & sour cream

Calories - 1362
Carbs - 92 (17 fiber)
Protein - 128
Fat - 57
C/P/F Ratio - 26.4/36.8/36.8

NROL - Week 20 - Thursday

Turbo Jam Cardio Party Mix 2 today. I still love this workout.

I'm thinking about making a change to the current lat pulldown situation. I've been doing lat pulls from the beginning, when they are specified and when the program calls for a pull up. I'm not really making much progress, and I think that's due to the awkward set up (which I'll post a picture of with tomorrow's blog). So after next week, I think I'm going to switch to inverted rows. I saw a Craig Ballantyne video that reviews the progression to a pull/chin up and these rows seem to be an acceptable substitution for lat pulls (and pull/chin ups, in the beginning). After next week, I'll be halfway through Hypertrophy I, so that is a good time to make this change. Plus, it will free up weight plates and I can push myelf better with the other exercises in this routine.

9:30 AM - apple & cottage cheese, coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda

11:45 AM - turkey bacon, scrambled eggs w/ onion, green pepper & salsa

2:45 PM - cream cheese & salsa on tortilla

6:40 PM - fried chicken wings & broccoli w/ light Italian dressing

Calories - 1139
Carbs - 85 (19 fiber)
Protein - 101
Fat - 41
C/P/F Ratio - 30.5/36.1/33.4

NROL - Week 20 - Wednesday

I'm still a bit disappointed with myself over last night's bad decisions. I don't know if it started with the piece of candy or not measuring dinner. One of those set me off. It wasn't horrible - I did write down everything I ate so I feel good about being honest.

After dinner today, I couldn't tell if I was still hungry. My mind definitely wanted more food but I don't think my body needed it.

Today was Hyper IB, 4x10 with 60 second rests. I messed up my neck a bit during squats because near the end of my first set, I coughed really hard. I hate this dry air. I need to find a place for the humidifier so it's not grinding in my ear all night.

[superset w/ full rest]:
squat 4x10x50
Romanian deadlift w/ shrug 4x10x50

[superset w/ full rest]:
Bulgarian split-squat 4x10x10 (per leg)
step-up 4x10x10 (per leg)

reverse crunch 3x15xbw

6:35 AM - apple & cottage cheese

9:25 AM - turkey bacon, toast, scrambled eggs w/ onion, green pepper & salsa

10:00 AM - coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda

12:45 PM - turkey meatballs & carrots

3:35 PM - carrots & mozzarella cheese

6:00 PM - roast, onions & broccoli w/ sour cream, coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda

Calories - 1582
Carbs - 107 (20 fiber)
Protein - 141
Fat - 64
C/P/F Ratio - 27.3/36/36.7

NROL - Week 20 - Tuesday

Turbo Jam Cardio Party Mix 2 again. I still love it. Today I put a lot more effort into it and it was really fun. Except for coughing up something gross at the beginning. The air in my house is dry so I get congested at night and cough a lot. Today was particularly bad but I lived through it. Ick.

I've been thinking about whether or not I want to continue the New Rules of Lifting program. I'm on the fourth routine, and almost halfway through the year long schedule. I like it, in general, but sometimes (like the 3x15 w/ 30 second rest days) I just want to throw the book out the window. Which would be difficult because mine is in e-book format. There are other things I want to try - Rippetoe's Starting Strength, Ballantyne's Turbulence Training, Cressey's Maximum Strength. My limited equipment makes it hard for me to do a lot of things, especially if there's a short rest period in between exericise - supersets are even rougher! I don't have enough time to swap out plates. On the one hand, I feel like I'd be letting myself down if I don't complete the whole year of NROL. On the other hand, I've already made some good progress - not necessarily in strength gains but I think my body is changing shape. I've noticed my butt is definitely rounder and I tried on a size medium T shirt yesterday and it fit beautifully. I also want to finish this program just so I can say I did. It's not an easy program. I am going to stick with it for a while longer, for sure. I have the rest of Hyper I to get through, then Hyper II, before the routine I've really been looking forward to - Strength I. I know I can always give those other programs (plus P90X and ChaLEAN Extreme) - I have the rest of my life to exercise.

7:55 AM - apple & cottage cheese

9:45 AM - coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda; buying that travel mug was a smart move - the extra few ounces and insulation pretty much sets me up for being able to drink my 4 cups all day long, rather than just in 2 hours

10:40 AM - chicken breast w/ cheese & taco sauce on tortilla

12:55 PM - almonds

2:55 PM - chicken breast, carrots & ranch dressing; this was actually my son's leftover dinner from yesterday - not a whole lot, just a bite of chicken and two pieces of carrot w/ a little dressing; I added more carrots though

5:00 PM - chocolate; I ate one small piece while I was cooking dinner, to see if I really could eat just 1 piece

5:20 PM - homemade chicken & dumplings; I didn't measure this but I had 2 bowls; I'm worried that not measuring, and eating a piece of chocolate, are going to put me into "screw it" mode, especially since it's still so early in the evening; Still, I need to learn to not freak out when I can't/don't measure thing out

8:30 PM - crackers w/ cheese; I had two of those packs with the six cracker sandwiches; oh, and ice cream

No numbers today, obviously. Plenty of guilt, though!

NROL - Week 20 - Monday

Today was HyperIA, 5x5 with 90 seconds rests. I don't like waiting so long in between sets. It takes forever to finish.

[superset w/ full rest]:
db incline press 5x5x20
Yates row 5x5x65

[superset w/ full rest]:
db shoulder press 5x5x20
wide grip lat pull down 5x5x72

[superset w/ full rest]:
bb close grip bench press 5x5x50
high pull 5x5x50

Swiss ball crunch 3x15x30

6:25 AM - apple & cottage cheese

10:30 AM - round steak w/ onion, green pepper & sour cream, coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda

2:55 PM - tuna, onion & cheese sandwich, peanut butter fudge; I feel guilty for eating two pieces of fudge - eating fudge at all, actually - and I'm still hungry

6:05 PM - roasted chicken breast (w/ skin), broccoli; I made a butter & herb rub for the chicken and I have no idea how much of that I actually ingested after all is said and done, so I'm packing up for the night

Calories - 1498
Carbs - 98 (18 fiber)
Protein - 146
Fat - 62
C/P/F Ratio - 25.5/38/36.5

NROL - Week 19 - Sunday

Up 1 pound this week, to 149. I'm not in any way surprised. This weeks PMS-induced hunger wasn't really diet friendly. I'm really hungry today, too, but I think it's because I'm irritable. I'm trying to fix a printer problem on a computer 700 miles away and my four year old won't shut up while my phone rings constantly.

At one point in the evening, I got the garbage bag full of ice cream out of the freezer and looked at the options. They were all king sized, and there isn't any one to share them with. The lowest of the calories was 270. 390 for my favorite. I put them back in the freezer until there's a day when I'm really under my calorie goal.

7:45 AM- coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda; the half-and-half is working out well - I'm drinking an almost perfect cup of coffee right now. I actually bought a new coffee (travel) mug today and the spout is so small that it takes forever to drink the 12 ounces. Fortunately, it's well insulated and stays warm as long as I need it!

10:00 AM - apple & cottage cheese

11:55 AM - round steak (pan seared in canola oil) w/ sour cream, onion, green pepper & cheese on tortilla; this was so wonderful and tasty and filling - 366 calories for the whole thing, which is pretty good, I think

1:05 PM - carrots; I don't know why I eat these - I get immediate hiccups

2:10 PM - pumpkin flax granola bar; I'm really hungry

5:05 PM - turkey bacon, coffee w/ half-and-half & Splenda, scrambled eggs w/ onion, green pepper & taco sauce; still hungry!!! GRRR!

7:20 PM - grilled cheese sandwich w/ mayo & onion

Calories - 1668
Carbs - 147 (25 fiber)
Protein - 113
Fat - 70
C/P/F Ratio - 35.2/27.2/37.6

NROL - Week 19 - Saturday

Cardio Party again today. I still love that workout. My energy was good (even though I didn't eat first) and my coordination is getting much better. I'm pleased.

What I'm not so pleased with is the night time eating. I am convinced that I'm not really hungry. I think some of it is just wanting something warm. I am cold all the time and food warms me. I need to switch to tea at night, instead of food.

I'm still at a loss on the light table cream. I've checked every store here and none of them carry it anymore. The best compromise, for now, is half-n-half. I'm not thrilled with the calories (40 per 2 tbs) but if my coffee taste okay with just half a serving, that will be good enough. I'm picky about my coffee, but not a coffee snob. I drink instant coffee, for crying out loud. But the creaminess has to be right. [After having a few cups with just 1 tbs h-n-h, it's perfect. So, in terms of calories and cost, it works out great!]

I think I feel a binge coming on. Every time I open the freezer and see my son's candy (which has been in there since we got home from New York - along with the bag of M&Ms I bought for myself weeks and weeks ago), I want to eat it all. I look at it and just know, without any doubt, that before the end of the month, I will have eaten all of it, probably in one sitting. I just know it. That bothers me.

10:00 AM - cottage cheese & apple w/ cinnamon & Splenda, coffee w/ half-n-half & Splenda

12:40 PM - chicken w/ cream cheese & turkey bacon, carrots

4:10 PM - coffee w/ half-n-half & Splenda; I'm freezing!!

5:55 PM - turkey bacon, scrambled eggs w/ green pepper, onion & taco sauce, toast

8:40 PM - air-popped popcorn, peanut butter fudge

Calories - 1640
Carbs - 122 (19 fiber)
Protein - 124
Fat - 67
C/P/F Ratio - 30.7/31.2/38.1

NROL - Week 19 - Friday

Last night's cheese filled bacon roll: tastes good but very, very messy. I used way too much filling. I'll cut it in half next time, and hopefully I'll be able to roll it properly.

Today's workout was HyperIB, 3x15 with 30 second rests. I hate this workout. Hyper IA was hard enough with these parameters, but throw in Bulgarian split squats (which I can't do more than 5 of at a time without crying) and step ups, it turns into iron cardio. DO NOT LIKE!!!

[superset w/ full rest]:
squat 3x15x40
Romanian deadlift w/ shrug 3x15x40

[superset w/ full rest]:
Bulgarian split-squat 3x15x10 (per leg)
step-up 3x15x10 (per leg)

reverse crunch 3x15xbw

6:20 AM - apple & cottage cheese

9:10 AM - turkey bacon, scrambled eggs w/ green pepper, onion & salsa, coffee w/ skim milk & Splenda

12:00 PM - chicken w/ cream cheese & turkey bacon, broccoli

2:55 PM - cucumber salad & pork tenderloin

6:45 PM - round steak w/ onion & green pepper, mixed vegetables, hot chocolate

9:20 PM - grilled cheese sandwich w/ mayonnaise

Calories - 1742
Carbs - 133 (26 fiber)
Protein - 171
Fat - 60
C/P/F Ratio - 30.2/38.9/30.9

NROL - Week 19 - Thursday

Turbo Jam Cardio Party Mix 2 today. Again, I should have eaten beforehand but I got through it with good intensity.

We don't have to worry about me becoming addicted to that Swiss Miss Diet hot chocolate. I hated it. It didn't dissolve well and it had a funny taste to it. I had to add some Splenda and Capella flavor drops to be able to drink it. My husband can have the rest. He liked it.

9:10 AM - mozzarella cheese; I just needed something while my breakfast cooked

9:50 AM - chicken w/ cream cheese & turkey bacon, sweet potato

10:20 AM - coffee w/ cream & Splenda

11:55 AM - cantaloupe (594) & cottage cheese (206)

12:15 PM - coffee w/ skim milk & Splenda; I'm not sure I like it with the milk, but I definitely put too much Splenda in it!

2:55 PM - carrots & mozzarella string cheese

3:35 PM - homemade peanut butter fudge; I only ate one piece this time, only because there were two pieces left and my son wanted one

5:30 PM - pork loin w/ green beans & balsamic dressing

9:00 PM - Cheese Filled Bacon Roll; I used colby cheese, low fat cream cheese, minced jalapenos and turkey bacon; I was a bad, bad girl but when I saw this, my mouth watered and I knew I was done for!!! It's all good though. This part of me just trying to be normal. It's been a relatively high calorie week but I'm okay with that. Do I expect to see loss on the scale when I weigh in Sunday? Of course not. Any feelings of guilt I've had this week are gone, though.

Calories - 1896
Carbs - 127 (19 fiber)
Protein - 152
Fat - 85
C/P/F Ratio - 27.1/32.3/40.6

NROL - Week 19 - Wednesday

I'm pretty bummed. The main grocery store I use doesn't carry my light table cream any more. None of the other stores carry it, or anything similar. I liked it because it was cheaper and had fewer calories than heavy cream. Now, I could either start using heavy cream and use half a serving or I could use skim milk, which I buy anyway. I don't really care for skim milk in my coffee. I don't know what to do. If I buy heavy cream and go with half a serving, it will be fewer calories than my light table cream and last twice as long. Or I could skip the expense altogether and use the milk. Not an appealing option. Maybe I'll try the heavy cream and see how that goes. First my bread (which I found at our other grocery store, thank goodness) now my cream!!

A new item I discovered today - Swiss Miss Diet Hot Chocolate. Only 25 calories, 4 carbs (1 fiber), 2 protein. With a tablespoon of cream, it's killer! More expensive than I like, so it will only be a once in a while thing here.

Today was HyperIA, 4x10 with 60 second rests. I like this better than 3x15 with 30 second rests but not as much as any form of 5x5. And I swear, I am sick to death of lat pulls. If Santa is good to me and brings me an Iron Gym (or builds me one), I am going to swap out immediately for negative chin/pull ups. My homemade lat pull contraption is so awkward and I just get sick of it. I hate lat pulls.

[superset w/ full rest]:
db incline press 4x10x20
Yates row 4x10x60

[superset w/ full rest]:
db shoulder press 4x10x15
wide grip lat pull down 4x10x68 (I absolutely have to drop the weight next round - I had to pause after every 3-4 reps)

[superset w/ full rest]:
bb close grip bench press 4x10x40
high pull 4x10x30

Swiss ball crunch 3x15x20

6:30 AM - cantaloupe & cottage cheese

8:40 AM - chicken breast & brown rice salad

10:00 AM - coffee w/ cream & Splenda

12:40 PM - three-cheese chicken quesadilla

4:40 PM - fried chicken wings & mixed vegetables

7:35 PM - broccoli; I ate an entire 12 ounce bag of broccoli, hoping it would fill me up enough

8:30 PM - hot chocolate w/ cream; I deliberately waited until close to bedtime to drink this, so I'd only drink one cup

Calories - 1594
Carbs - 137 (28 fiber)
Protein - 143
Fat - 53
C/P/F Ratio - 34.3/35.8/30

NROL - Week 19 - Tuesday

Turbo Jam Cardio Party Mix 2 today. I should have eaten before I started because I was really dragging.

I am so tired of thinking about food constantly. The last three days have been rough. I am never satisfied.

7:50 AM - apple & cottage cheese

8:45 AM - coffee w/ cream & Splenda

10:15 AM - chicken breast, brown rice salad

1:30 PM - tuna & cucumber salad w/ Caesar vinaigrette dressing

2:55 PM - homemade low carb peanut butter fudge; again, another hungry day and I feel really guilty for eating 2 pieces - I need to learn to just eat 1

6:20 PM - scrambled eggs w/ onion, green pepper & salsa, tea w/ Splenda, turkey bacon

9:15 PM - grilled cheese sandwich; again - ugh! I am so over this extreme hunger thing

Actually, my numbers aren't really that bad today. Ok, pity party over!

Calories - 1768
Carbs - 132 (17 fiber)
Protein - 147
Fat - 76
C/P/F Ratio - 29.3/32.7/37.9

NROL - Week 19 - Monday

Today's workout was HyperIB, 5x5 with 90 second rests. I love 5x5s!

[superset w/ full rest]:
squat 5x5x60
Romanian deadlift w/ shrug 5x5x70

[superset w/ full rest]:
Bulgarian split-squat 5x5x15 (per leg)
step-up 5x5x15 (per leg)

reverse crunch 3x15xbw

6:20 AM - apple & cottage cheese

9:10 AM - brown rice salad, leftover roast; man I was starving after my workout and I had tons of things to do before I could eat this meal

9:45 AM - coffee w/ cream & Splenda

1:10 PM - chicken breast, lettuce, salsa & sour cream

2:55 PM - homemade low carb fudge; I do feel guilty for eating 2 pieces today but I'm hungry!!

6:20 PM - tea w/ Splenda, stuffed peppers (ground beef, tomato sauce, cream cheese, pinto beans); I am so hungry today, I just want to cry; all I can think about is food and I'm trying to figure out what else I might want tonight that isn't going to do too much damage; I'm just glad I'm freezing my butt off, otherwise I'd probably eat ice cream

8:30 PM - grilled cheese sandwich; I've been trying to avoid starchy carbs after 3 PM but I just can't do it tonight; I was going to lose my mind if I didn't get something warm and filling into my stomach; I do feel a little guilty but screw it

Calories - 2134
Carbs - 165 (33 fiber)
Protein - 161
Fat - 104
C/P/F Ratio - 29.4/28.7/41.9

NROL - Week 18 - Sunday

148 today, half a pound down from my last good weigh in two (or was it three?) weeks ago. I'll take it. In a way, I'm pleased that I got rid of the water weight from last week, but I'm also disappointed I'm not losing faster. And of course, I know I'm losing at a healthy pace in a healthy manner but it's still frustrating. I have absolutely nothing to beat myself up about, and yet I do. Heck, last night when I wanted ice cream and changed my mind, I should have been proud of myself for that. Instead, I was mad that I denied myself something I could have handled. And I know I could have! I just can't win LOL

9:45 AM - apple & cottage cheese, coffee w/ cream & Splenda

11:50 AM - mozzarella string cheese, brown rice salad

2:30 PM - chicken & broccoli w/ cream cheese

6:15 PM - turkey bacon, scrambled eggs w/ onion, green pepper & salsa

8:00 PM - homemade low carb peanut butter fudge; okay, I had two pieces and they were gooooooooooood and guilt-free

Calories - 1729
Carbs - 111 (14 fiber)
Protein - 134
Fat - 81
C/P/F Ratio - 26/31.4/42.6

Peanut Butter Fudge Recipe

I found this on Lowcarbfriends.com several years ago and loved it. I finally made it again today.

1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup granular Splenda
2 oz cream cheese
2 scoops vanilla whey protein powder
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 ounce natural almonds (or 16 almonds)

Melt butter and whisk in Splenda. Add cream cheese and whisk until melted and well mixed. Whisk in protein powder and remove from heat. Stir in peanut butter until well blended. Pour into 8x8 pan lined with wax paper. Chill until semi soft, then cut into 16 pieces. Press 1 almond into the middle of each square and return to refrigerator until fully set.

Nutritional information for my particular ingredients, per piece:

Calories - 134.4
Carbs - 3.7 (0.8 fiber)
Protein - 5.1
Fat - 11.2

NROL - Week 18 - Saturday

Damn it, I had my stuff typed up and accidentally hit the Clear Content button instead of Save Note. Stupid Scribe Fire extension! Those buttons should not be next to each other.

No Turbo Jam today. I was exhausted and still a little sore from Wednesday. I did manage 30 minutes on the Wii Fit but nothing overly aerobic. I did a couple balance games, a really slow version of step aerobics, and some boxing. Oh, and a yoga pose, because I let my son pick out an activity for me. He likes the yoga.

7:50 AM - homemade protein shake (coffee w/ cream & Splena, egg & vanilla protein powder); way too sweet - I'll ditch the Splenda next time

9:20 AM - orange; just a piece leftover from my son's breakfast

10:20 AM - brown rice salad w/ chicken breast, coffee w/ cream & Splenda

1:20 PM - turkey, salsa & cream cheese on tortilla; I think the brown rice is giving me problems because again, all I could think about was eating after I had it

3:20 PM - carrots

6:30 PM - chicken & broccoli w/ cream cheese, tea w/ skim milk & Splenda

I couldn't decide if I wanted more dinner (later on) or ice cream. I ended up not eating anything else, as I wasn't super hungry.

Calories - 1351
Carbs - 99 (18 fiber)
Protein - 132
Fat - 47
C/P/F Ratio - 29.4/39/31.6

NROL - Week 18 - Friday

Today was HyperIA, 3x15 with 30 second rests. THIS WORKOUT SUCKED!!!!!! It was so freaking hard because it was so fast, meaning so little time between sets. Ugh. I hated it. HATED IT!!! But I really felt like I pushed myself hard, so that counts for something.

[superset w/ full rest]:
db incline press 3x15x20
Yates row 3x15x50 (I think I need to back off the weight on this one - my grip was sucky)

[superset w/ full rest]:
db shoulder press 3x15x10 (you'd think 10 pounds is weenie - no, it's not!! Not with 15 reps and only 30 seconds before you lat pull)
wide grip lat pull down
1x15x68
2x15x62

[superset w/ full rest]:
bb close grip bench press 3x15x30 (good triceps exercise!!)
high pull
1x15x20
2x15x30

Swiss ball crunch 3x15x20

6:25 AM - banana & cottage cheese

9:00 AM - chicken breast w/ onion, cheese, taco sauce on tortilla

9:30 AM - coffee w/ cream & Splenda

1:00 PM - brown rice salad w/ chicken breast

3:05 PM - turkey sandwich w/ mayo & mustard; that rice did nothing for my hunger at all

5:45 PM - pork loin w/ lettuce & Caesar vinaigrette dressing

9:00 PM - turkey w/ cream cheese & salsa on tortilla

Another hungry day!

Calories - 1803
Carbs - 139 (25 fiber)
Protein - 193
Fat - 53
C/P/F Ratio - 30.5/42.2/27.3

NROL - Week 18 - Thursday

My legs are killing me today! Damn all those exercises yesterday. I managed to get through Turbo Jam (Cardio Party Mix 2) well enough but I had to drive to Virginia this morning and every time I got out of the car, my legs and butt cursed me loudly.

7:50 AM - apple & cottage cheese

9:15 AM - granola bar (pumpkin flax); I'm glad I brought this with me - halfway to Virginia I was was starving

1:40 PM - grilled cheese sandwich w/ onion, mayo, turkey & mustard; this was so good - better than any burger I would have picked up on the way home

3:30 PM - coffee w/ cream & Splenda

6:20 PM - scrambled eggs w/ onion, green pepper, cheese & taco sauce, turkey bacon

8:25 PM - broccoli & cauliflower w/ mayo & mustard dip

Calories - 1555
Carbs - 119 (18 fiber)
Protein - 124
Fat - 69
C/P/F Ratio - 29.8/31.1/39.1

NROL - Week 18 - Wednesday

Today's workout was Hypertrophy IB, 4x10 with 60 second rests. I did not enjoy this workout as much as IA. That last pair of exercises sucks. It takes forever because there are two sides. I got really sweaty.

[superset w/ full rest]:
squat 4x10x50
Romanian deadlift w/ shrug 4x10x50

[superset w/ full rest]:
Bulgarian split-squat 4x10x10 (per leg)
step-up 4x10x10 (per leg)

reverse crunch 3x15xbw

6:25 AM - apple & cottage cheese

8:50 AM - waffles w/ peanut butter, coffee w/ cream & Splenda

12:00 PM - pasta, tuna & peas w/ Caesar vinaigrette dressing; this was really good and next time I'll throw in some chopped celery and onion for crunch

3:35 PM - cauliflower & broccoli w/ Ranch dressing & sour cream dip, tea w/ skim milk & Splenda

7:00 PM - scrambled eggs w/ cheese & taco sauce, turkey bacon, tea w/ skim milk & Splenda

I was HUNGRY today!!!

Calories - 1909
Carbs - 168 (22 fiber)
Protein - 134
Fat - 76
C/P/F Ratio - 35.6/28.3/36.1

NROL - Week 18 - Tuesday

153.5 today. That's up 5 pounds LOL Stupid interstate food! I'm not stressed about it at all.

Turbo Jam Cardio Party Mix 2 today, and I almost had the moves perfect! There were a couple times I was distracted but I'm definitely getting the hang of it! I also did Ab Jam (standing segment only) and the 3-mile WATP video (5/3035 miles "traveled" so far). I don't know if this is going to be typical - 90 minutes of cardio + 10 minutes of abs is a bit much. Maybe once in a while when I'm feeling froggy.

9:15 AM - apple & cottage cheese; I finally went shopping

12:45 PM - chicken tortilla soup (w/ salsa, sour cream, taco sauce, mozzarella cheese), coffee w/ cream & Splenda

4:30 PM - coffee w/ cream & Splenda

6:00 PM - fried chicken wings, fresh broccoli, cauliflower, carrots w/ ranch dressing

9:00 PM - almonds, mozzarella cheese

Calories - 1532
Carbs - 97 (19 fiber)
Protein- 132
Fat - 70
C/P/F Ratio - 25/34.1/40.9

NROL - Week 18 - Monday

My trip went well. There's not much to say about it. I think I behaved myself in the food department. The only day I ate badly was yesterday, on the way home. It was a lack of planning on my part, but I'm not going to feel guilty about it or even dwell on it. For Thanksgiving, I ate small portions, and discovered that chocolate makes me queasy. Sugar shock, I think. I didn't binge at all. I'm proud of myself.

I forgot to weigh in today. It's been total chaos since we got home last night, and I was trying to make sure my new workout fit in the time I had before taking my son to school.

Today's workout was Hypertrophy IA, 5x5 with 90 second rest intervals. I loved this workout. Except for the lat pulls. I never want to do another freaking lat pull again. I'd been subbing lat pulls for pull/chin ups because a) I can't do either and b) I don't have the equipment. But I'm going to get a doorway bar and start doing negative or assisted pull/chin ups. Unfortunately, lat pulls are written into this portion of NROL so I have to wait until it says pull/chin ups.

[superset w/ full rest]:
db incline press 5x5x20 (too easy, but I was out of weight plates - I set up all my equipment so I don't waste time in between sets but I think with 90 seconds, I'll be able to swap out next time)
Yates row
1x5x50
4x5x65

[superset w/ full rest]:
db shoulder press 5x5x20 (too easy)
wide grip lat pull down 5x5x72

[superset w/ full rest]:
bb close grip bench press 5x5x40 (too easy)
high pull 5x5x40

Swiss ball crunch 3x15x20

I also did a 2 mile Walk Away The Pounds segment. Since I'm pretty sedentary during the day, I figured I'd throw in a walk every day. To make things fun, I want to "walk" to my best friend's house in California, 3035 miles away. This was the first time I'd done any WATP and this particular segment was on the boring side, but I have 2 other WATP videos, including one that's kind of kickboxy. So I'm hopeful. I really like this kickboxing stuff.

6:10 AM - mozzarella cheese; I haven't shopped yet so I grabbed whatever for breakfast

10:55 AM - scrambled eggs w/ sour cream, taco sauce, American cheese on tortilla, coffee w/ cream & Splenda; I know it was a long time since eating last but I was running around like a mad woman today trying to get things done

2:50 PM - carrots, mozzarella cheese, coffee w/ cream & Splenda

7:00 PM - turkey meatballs, broccoli

Not the greatest day for calories. I was just so busy. It will be better tomorrow.

Calories - 1171
Carbs - 80 (24 fiber)
Protein - 86
Fat - 59
C/P/F Ratio - 26.7/28.8/44.6