Back To Basics

It  has been a while since I shared a food post with you guys.   I have been customizing my own meals due to my temporary break-up with Jenny Craig.  Not to fear, I will soon be back on JC but my budget hasn't allowed it.   I can't wait.  In the interim I will continue eating as healthy as possible.   I haven't weighed myself since my last JC weigh-in (before I went on vacation).  I promise to give you guys an update early next week.  I will also post a progress picture next week so you can see the changes in my body, or lack thereof.

My Food Journal for 7/16/2014


BREAKFAST
Oatmeal has become a breakfast staple for me.  Prior to starting this health journey, I NEVER ate breakfast.   This is a big step for me.  (120 calories)

LUNCH
I opted for a Lean Cuisine meal.  The Grilled Chicken Pasta Primavera (220 calories), it was actually pretty tasty.  This particular Lean Cuisine meal is from their spa collection.  I did notice that the veggies looked to be fresher than other LCs I've tried in the past.  I accompanied my meal with a big bowl of spring mix.

SNACK  

Light & Fit Peach Yogurt (80 calories).

DINNER

Yesterday was a breakfast for dinner kinda night.  I went for two poached eggs (although it looks like only one egg -one of those suckers popped before I could take a picture), a piece of wheat toast and some avocado.  It was delicious.  Fun fact about me:  I love poached eggs!!  (300 calories)

ACTIVITY

I am so upset at myself for not working-out.  :(  

Working Around My Jenny Craig Food Schedule--Day 9

BREAKFAST/LUNCH

I often travel for work... and by travel, I mean drive to different cities in Southern California...nothing too far. Yesterday however; was an exception.  I drove from Downtown Los Angeles (which is where my office is located) to Oxnard, CA.  Oxnard is a small city in Ventura County, approximately 2 hours away.  I knew that not having a fridge and/or microwave handy was going to be an issue.   I made sure to plan ahead and decided to indulge in healthy alternatives.  I started my morning with my usual cup of coffee.   Around 9:30 am I ate a Yoplait Light Yogurt, boston cream pie flavor, if you must know. :)   I also packed a small container of grapes and my handy-dandy White Cheddar Popcorn to ensure I was covered for the day. The yogurt and coffee held me up for most of my day, but on my way home, which was around 1:00 pm my hunger reared its ugly head.  So instead of stopping at a fast food joint, which would have been the norm, I munched away on grapes and White Cheddar Popcorn.   I arrived home around 3:30 pm, worked out for about 40 minutes and decided on breakfast for lunch--so Sunshine Sandwich it was!



DINNER
So for dinner, I had a Turkey Burger.  Yes, I know it's a lunch item but the day started off weird to begin with, so what the heck!  Here's a picture of my dinner:

ACTIVITY

P.S.  I ended my night with a glass of Mirassou Pinot Noir.  After a hectic day, it was just what I needed.

Week 2 on Jenny Craig--Day 8

You probably already know that my weigh-in was yesterday, if not please refer to my last post Weigh-In.   I lost a total of 5.4 lbs.  The weight loss was just the motivation I needed to continue my journey with Jenny Craig.   Now that I know that my body is responding to the program I am even more excited to keep going. Last night, my consultant and I talked about different ways to offset the cost of the program.  So this week, I will be incorporating store-bought breakfast items to my diet.  My consultant advised me to alternate between Jenny Craig Breakfasts, Oatmeal and Cereal (healthy cereal, of course...for example, Special K).  I decided to start Week 2 with a Jenny Craig Breakfast.  I am planning to have Special K for breakfast tomorrow.

BREAKFAST
The Breakfast Scramble was delicious!  I added some Sriracha to that baby and it was heavenly! A must try!!!

SNACK/VITAMIN

This week I switched it up and decided on the Oatmeal Raisin Anytime Bars instead.  It's safe to say that my palate appreciates this flavor over the Vanilla Chocolate Crisp.  Too bad they are only here for a limited time. :(    Both flavors look the same but the taste is no where near similar.  The Oatmeal bars are softer and less dense, whereas the Vanilla bars are doughy and chewy.

LUNCH

Oh my God.  I accidentally brought a Jenny Craig dinner item instead of lunch.  Thank heavens for my awesome consultant, she made sure to tell me that I was welcome to switch between dinner and lunches on occasion, as long as I kept my caloric intake under 1200.  Although, my lunch entree was accidental, it ended up working out.  I had the Homestyle Chicken Casserole with a side of baby spinach.  It was a creamy mix of penne pasta, bits of ham, broccoli, carrots and strips of chicken.  Pretty awesome if you ask me. Due to my unprecedented lunch hiccup, I will be having a lunch item for dinner.  The turkey burger is already on my mind. 

DINNER

Turkey Burger-and as usual it was amazing!

I would love to hear your results thus far!!!  What are your were you Week 1 weigh-in results?

My Twenties Made Me Fat

Weekends are the Devil--Day 5 & 6

I was dreading the weekend because I knew that it would be harder to stay on track.  Yesterday, my husband's family had a Father Day's BBQ.  I knew that eating the right thing was going to be a challenge, and so I did what any responsible JC dieter would do.  I starved myself!  Joking.  As usual, I slept in and arose around 10am.  Saturday Mornings are the best!  As soon as I got up I headed straight for my stationary bike and got to business, 45 minutes later I had completed my work-out  For breakfast/lunch, I decided to sautée some spinach, tomatoes, onion and fresh garlic.  I literally had a mountain of spinach for breakfast.   It was surprisingly tasty and satisfying.

Jenny Craig Day 5

BREAKFAST/LUNCH

DINNER

We got to my husband's family gathering around 4:30pm.   To my demise, the spread looked amazing! I headed straight for the fruit platter and loaded up on watermelon and grapes.   I skipped the chips and dip.  Success!  But then the real challenge came......picking out my food.   Here's the result of my impaired judgment:  1 grilled rib, a hefty serving of chimol (salvadoran salad made with tomatoes, onion, cucumber, cilantro and lime juice=volumetrics), a minuscule serving of rice, about 1/4 of a cup's worth.   I was full!  It's all about making the right choices.   I also took my +Jenny Craig White Cheddar Popcorn.   I didn' feel deprived.   Oh, and I enjoyed several glasses of wine *blushing*.   All in all, I think I did well.  Jenny Craig is definitely shifting the way I look at food and that's a good thing.     I totally forgot to take a picture of my meal.


ACTIVITY

Jenny Craig Day 6

BREAKFAST
Today is a new day and I'm back on track.  I had the Florentine Breakfast Pizzas, which btw were delicious!

LUNCH

The Chicken Sandwich was pretty good.   I decided to steam some cabbage, mushrooms and carrots.  I also helped myself to a side of pickles and cherry tomatoes. Oh, and a bit of salsa!  Please excuse the unaesthetic plate.  I was so hungry and as you can see, I ended up creating a mountain on my plate.  I enjoyed the Chicken Sandwich but IMO, the Turkey Burger is much more delicious.  

DINNER

Now, dinner was just amazing! I added red peppers and onions to my Rising Crust Pizza.  I really enjoyed this meal.  I had a side of spinach with my pizza.  It felt like I was cheating...it was so yummy! One of my fave +Jenny Craig meals thus far.

ACTIVITY

No exercise for this girl on Day 6.  :(   

My Twenties Made Fat-- Jenny Craig will make me healthy- Day 1

In an attempt to keep myself accountable, I will take you on my journey with Jenny Craig.  This is not my first time on the plan.  I gave Jenny Craig my first go in 2010.   I lost around 15 lbs in one month but decided to stop due to the high cost of the program.  Needless to say, I am back (for obvious reasons).

Here are some details regarding my current physical standing:
29 years old

Height 5'5

Weight 189

I will post updated picture and weight information next Monday, June 17th

My weight at 20 years old was 130 lbs....waaahhh!! I know, I know.... I should have, would have, could have but I didn't.... the important thing is that I am ready for change!!!  I can do this!! We can do this!! Let's do it together ladies!!!! 

Jenny Craig Menu-Day 1

BREAKFAST
For breakfast I had Jenny's Sunshine Sandwich, black coffee and a nectarine. It was a bit bland for my taste...but then again, what can you expect from a 210 calorie breakfast sandwich.  All in all, it was okay. Here is a picture of my meal:

SNACK/VITAMIN

A couple hours after breakfast I had the pleasure of consuming a sweet doughy protein-type bar, that Jenny Craig calls Anytime Bar--It wasn't the bad, it wasn't great.  Again, this is diet food... I need to keep reminding myself.

LUNCH

Zesty Tortellini Soup for lunch with a green salad/no dressing and baby carrots.   The soup itself is very rich and hearty.  The tortellini is drenched in tomato based meat sauce.  It was flavorful but lacked the salt kick in my opinion.  It left me feeling full and satisfied.

DINNER

Jenny Craig teaches you about Volumizing; it term used by Jenny Craig consultants, to help encourage the consumption of additional veggies.  Volumizing also helps people like you and me get creative with Jenny cuisine.  Consultants provide you with a list of unlimited veggies that you are allowed to consume.   For example, yesterday I had the Chicken Pasta Parmesan for dinner.   I decide to volumize by doing the following:

I heated up a pan and added a spritz of pam. I then sauteed some bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes and fresh garlic.  I seasoned it with garlic salt, seasoning salt and fresh ground pepper.  After the veggies were al dente I dropped in the Chicken Pasta Parmesan and mixed it all together.  The result was a much tastier filling version of the original meal   I paired it with a green salad...and wallah!!!! Dinner was served.

DESSERT

Since I skipped out on my milk serving for breakfast I decide to treat myself to Jenny's chocolate cakes and an ice cold glass of non-fat milk.  YUM!!  This one speaks for itself:

AND JUST LIKE THAT, DAY 1 WAS A SUCCESS!

xo.