Day 6 - Success still TBD

As the CSD comes to a close, I am pretty curious as to whether this is working. I followed the Cabbage Soup Diet to a tee with 2 exceptions - alcohol on Saturday night and a salad with 1 glass of white wine on Sunday. Could those really have thrown off my diet that much? I did read a few articles stating that the weight loss isnt apparent until Day 8 but the suspense is killing me! It's hard not to let the numbers on the scale haunt me, but I do feel like this is the kick in the ass that I needed. The perfect transition diet.

The first few days were tough....wait, let's be honest, they were excruciating! Temptations I never thought I'd have were haunting me 24/7. I consider myself to be more of a savory than sweet person...but I found myself CRAVING chocolate. All I wanted was a freshly baked cookie dipped in milk...or a s'more...or a chipwich......

But I held strong and the little devil on my shoulder got smaller and smaller. It's amazing what a little willpower can do. Alcohol was a toughie. It's not so much a craving for alcohol as it is peer pressure (or should I say self-pressure?). How much fun is going out to a bar with your friends when you're just drinking water? Thankfully I was working Friday night so no temptation there. But come Saturday night I said "F it" and had a couple cocktails. Of course with minimal food in my stomach I didn't need much...a couple BL's and vodka/sodas and I was good to go. Funny thing is, I didn't kick myself for it on Sunday morning. Court and I got up, played some tennis and hit up Joe's for a fresh salad and glass of wine. I felt great!

If my diet had ended on Saturday, this would've been the perfect transition back to a normal diet. I didn't take advantage of the hangover and shove a whole pizza in my mouth. Instead, I worked out, drank a lot of water, had a healthy salad and limited myself to 1 glass of wine. All in all, this is the diet that I've needed for a long time. A good swift kick in the butt to realize what I should be eating and how often I'd been eating what I shouldn't be. Sure, the occasional meatball sub is a necessity, but I've learned how to limit that craving and feed my body what it really needs.

Weigh-in isn't until Wednesday morning, but I'll be sure to stay on track until then. Can't wait for my cabbage soup for dinner tonight! (I know, it sounds crazy, and disgusting, but I'm hooked ot this feeling of being full on something totally healthy.) Try it! It's very odd yet...satisfying. Totally full and not hating myself for it? Yes, please!

The Cabbage Soup Diet

So the last month of summer didn't exactly go as planned. With cookouts, parties and the constant pressure to take advantage of every last gorgeous afternoon al fresco, it's hard to get back on track! I finally decided to take some drastic measures. The Cabbage Soup Diet - eek. Sounds gross, I know, but after a little research it became increasingly tempting. Sure there's a lot out there reminding you that crash diets never result in permanent weightloss, but there were also a lot of reviews encouraging it as a great jumping off point for a healthy diet (and a quick drop in 8-15 lb's).

7 days of a very restricted diet in addition to all the cabbage soup you can eat and all the water you can drink. I decided to take the plunge. I haven't quite figured out whether I have an advantage or disadvantage working in an office that provides endless amounts of food...

Starting Weight: 148 lbs

Day 1 - All the soup and fruit you can eat.
I got to work yesterday expecting to find ripe plums and peaches in the kitchen - it would be an easy Day 1. Instead I arrived empty handed to find only apples. Call me spoiled, but I don't exactly swoon for apples. I lucked out and found 2 red delicious apples...and quickly hid them at my desk. Surprisingly, the first apple filled me up. Followed by about 4 bottles of water and the distraction of a busy work day, I didn't experience one hunger pang before lunch. This is going to be eeeasy breezy!

I was dead. wrong. I sneak into the kitchen to grab a plate of freshly cut fruit and there it is...greek salad day. (Side note: I could eat greek salads every day of my life.) A glance to the prep area and I spot Jimmy whipping up a massive batch of guacamole and that can only mean one thing: tomorrow is fajita day! FML. I pile my plate with melon, mango, grapes, berries and pineapple and get the hell out of there. In a moment of weakness I frantically email my sister if it's ok to start the diet on Friday...but then I start shoving the fruit into my mouth and the temptation whithers. I'm ok...I'm going to stay on track. The rest of the day was water, water, unsweetened green tea, more water and that last red oh-so-delicious apple. 5pm and I've made it!

After work I hit the grocery store to buy the ingredients for my cabbage soup. My basket is filled with 2 very heavy heads of cabbage, green peppers, green onions, celery, mushrooms, chicken stock and 2 cans of diced tomatoes (I spiced it up and went for the fire roasted). Of course Courtney's basket is filled with all the ingredients for the most delicious mexican chicken. We get home and I start chopping up my veggies while Court digs into the tostitos and salsa...I almost lose it. I managed to keep my focus on the soup and start pounding the stuff as soon as the cabbage is cooked. Not so bad if I do say so myself! This is actually the type of soup I would make for a regular meal! Mind you, I would most definitely add some shredded parm and some fresh bread for dippage. 2 large bowls down and I'm so full that I dont even want to look at Court's mexican chicken. A bunch of water down the hatch and its off to bed!

Day 1 = success!
I can't stop thinking of Day 2 as Fajita Day but need to remind myself of how svelt I'll look for next weekend's wedding! Did I mention I'm going with my ex? Hence....the CSD

Lesson Learned....oops!

So...its 2pm and I've already gone over my daily point allowance! This is going to be a LOT harder than I anticipated. Lunch at work today didn't really appeal to me so my friend, Nicole, and I hit up Boloco. I went for the Mediterranean burrito (YUM). I thought I was being health-savvy (brown rice and wheat tortilla, por favor!), but boy was I completely and utterly wrong!

When I got back to my desk I looked up the WW points on the Boloco website...17 POINTS. Well, since my allowance is 22/day, I'm pretty much screwed for the rest of the day. In an attempt to redeem myself (and save points for some adult bevvies on the golf course) I booked it to the gym and power walked by butt off for a good 20 mins....burning a measly 200 calories = -2 points. Still doesn't bring me within my point allowance but I suppose I feel a little better about myself. (P.S. If you ever have that gross, up to your throat, I-ate-too-much feeling, do some kind of movement...I like to do lunges in the handicapped bathroom...get the digestion goin' if ya know what I mean). Well, since this whole blog is about my so-called "Quality of Life", I will continue to allow myself some frosty apres work beverages...I suppose I'll just have to be a little smarter about it. And tomorrow is a new day!
Lesson of the Day: Check point value before you supersize your meal

So I haven't exactly joined Weight Watchers, but I am using their point system. Here's an awesome points list to keep track http://www.quiddity.cc/rachel/diet/wwfoods.htm#L

Also, I found this formula to find out how many points you can consume each day:

1. Are you female?- 2 points; Male?- 8 points; A nursing mom?- 12 points
2. How old are you? 17-26- 4 points; 27-37- 3 points (Anyone older shouldnt have my lifestyle/be reading this blog)
3.What do you weigh? Enter the first two digits of your weight in pounds. (for example, if you weight 199, you will add 19 to your score)
4. How tall are you? Under 5’1- 0 points; 5’1-5’10- 1 points; Over 5’10- 2 points
5. How do you spend most of your day? Sitting down? 0 points; Occasionally sitting? 2 points; Walking most of the time? 4 points; Doing physically hard work most of the time? 6 points
Now add them all together and that’s your daily total.
**Add -1 point for every 100 calories you burn :)

Start Day!

Last night I had drinks with a friend who joined Weight Watchers to lose a couple lb's before her wedding. She's lost 16 lbs in just a couple months and looks great! I've always secretly been trying to lose a few pounds but my lifestyle isnt exactly conducive to weight loss...

As a 25 year old living in Boston, there are constant temptations to stear me from keeping a healthy lifestyle. Drinks or dinner with an old friend, Thursday Happy Hour, weekend cookouts, brunch, family-style Sunday dinners...the list goes on. When I look back at my average week, it seems that all I do is eat and drink! I loooove food. Sure, an occasional Taco Bell hangover stop is inevitable, but I mainly cook healthy and hearty meals for myself. I'm a fairly active person - living in a walking city forces you to be so - and I go through spurts of loving the gym.

Let's get into the numbers: I'm 25 years old; I weigh about 148 lbs and I'm 5'8. All in all, I'm not exactly the type of person you find writing a dieting blog. Most people would think I'm nuts to actually "diet" but I know what my body was like when I was in my early 20s and I'm determined to get back to that. I'm not looking to drop drastic weight...just slim down and tone up a bit. And, in my experience, that's just as hard.

So...I've decided to blog about my experience. Not only what I eat and what kind of weight I lose, but also the social aspects of trying to slim down. I've found it nearly impossible to lose a few lb's when you're drinking dollar drafts from 5-10pm every Thursday...and that's just the start of the weekend! So I'm hoping there are some people out there that can relate...I'm what I like to call a "Quality of Life Dieter." I'm here to find out if those two things can actually coexist. Fingers crossed!