Just popping in to say that I've lost 7 pounds since I last posted!  I started using the My Fitness Pal ap for my iPhone and it's helped a lot.  I've been eating around 2000 calories a day and working out 3x a week.

One month at Curves

I've been working out at Curves for a little over a month, and had my monthly weigh and measure today.  It's my "time of the month" so I probably should have put it off until next (I usually gain a few pounds of water weight during my period), but I was already a week late getting it done, so I didn't want to put it off any longer.  Only one pound lost, but I took off 4 inches!

Here are my Curves start stats (not too far off from the ones I did myself when I started the blog!)

03/21/11
Weight- 240
Bust- 46.50
Waist- 40.75
Abdomen- 51.50
Hip- 49.50
Thigh- 25.75
Arm- 14.50
Body fat- 40.90 (GAH!!!)

And today 04/27/11
Weight- 239
Bust- 46.50
Waist 40.50
Abdomen-50.50
Hip- 49.25
Thigh- 25.50
Arm-13.50
Body Fat- 40.80


-1lb
-4inches
-.10% body fat

For dinner tonight we had pan seared salmon and asparagus with maple-mustard sauce.  The mustard sauce is so easy to make.  It's out of my Betty Crocker cook book, but TF friendly.

For 2lbs of asparagus (cooked however you like it- for 1lb, half the recipe, of course)

2 TBSP real maple syrup
2 TBSP dijon mustard
2 TBSP olive oil

 Whisk together in a small bowl and drizzle over the cooked asparagus.  Yummy!

Indonesian Coconut Steak w/broccoli and kimchi

Howdy!  Since I last posted I've joined Curves (again!)  I signed up 3 weeks ago and was weighed and measured.  I had gained back the weight I had lost when I was a good girl and spent 2 weeks following EFLF to the letter.  So far I've dropped 3 pounds and my motivation is returning!  Currently at Curves the owner is doing the Weight Management program, which is quite a bit different than the EFLF program.  I think I'm going to meld the two a bit, by eating real food (instead of the WM suggestions of things like egg replacer and soy sausage- GAG!!) but restrict calories a little more than EFLF and go closer to the WM protein/carb/fat ratios.  I'm hoping this will make it a bit easier on me in terms of cost and time spent in the kitchen.

One change from the book I have been able to do a pretty good job of sticking with is carb reduction.  Used to be we ate a pretty typical meat/carb or starch/veggie at dinner, and I've found it very easy to do 2 veggies (usually one fermented) and a sald (plus a good sized portion of meat, of course) instead!  As a total carb addict, that's a pretty big step for me!  In the picture above I've got Indonesian Coconut Steak from the EFLF book (the book has you mix the coconut in, but then it gets like gray and icky looking- I find it more appealing garnished on top), some lightly cooked broccoli with a little pastured butter and salt, and some delicious fermented kimchi.  I also had a big salad with the Asian style dressing out of EFLF.  When I first started doing the curries and stir fries out of the book, I thought that I would really miss the rice that I would typically serve it on top of, but adding in the extra veggies and salads really fills us up!

Oops

Ah, I kind of fell off the face of the blogosphere there, didn't I?  Well, now you see one of many reasons why I'm not a professional blogger.  I kind of suck at it.  But I shall make it up to you with pictures!  (Who doesn't love pictures?!)

Plain grassfed whole milk yogurt for whey

 I made some whey to do ferments, since the ones at the health food store are so ridiculously expensive (I mean really, $12.99 for a PINT?!)  It was so easy, and the whey works SO much better than doubling the salt.  I did some sauerkraut, and it turned out great.

Yum!

 

And some gratuitous meatball action, because I adore meatballs.  These are from the Pioneer Woman's cookbook, they do have oatmeal, but super easy to use soaked instead of dry.

Yeah.  There's one missing.  I have to taste test, you know.

I made those mashed potatoes with the cream cheese left from the whey.  Wee!

So during my month and a half away, I gained back 4 of the 5 pounds I lost.  Then lost 3 of those 4.  So I'm almost back to where I left off.  We bought an Xbox360 and I've been playing Kinect Adventures most nights, it's actually a pretty good work out!

3 weeks (and change)

Well, although I "fell off the wagon," as they say, I did manage to lose another pound, for a total of 5 pounds in 3 weeks.  I haven't done well at all over the last 4 or 5 days (which I attribute largely to my first real post-partum period, which really threw my hormones for a loop!)  So, no more excuses, and back on the wagon tomorrow :) 

2 weeks

Two weeks, and one more pound lost.  I was hoping for a couple of more, but I had a hard time staying on the diet this past week, so I'll take one :)

My averages for the last 2 weeks are 2,213 calories a day, with 60% fat, 23% carbs, and 17% protein. 

So, positives and negatives-

Positive

• It definitely works, when followed to the letter!
• Plenty of calories so you don't feel hungry, even with eating 3 meals and no snacks
• Good, nutrient dense food that's all homemade; no processed "health food"

Negative

• Cost!  It's inordinately expensive, at least for me.  I think I've spent like $500 on food in two weeks, and I just do not have that kind of money.
• Time intensive.  Even as a stay at home mom, the amount of time necessary to follow it perfectly is a little overwhelming.  I can't imagine how people who work full-time could do the diet perfectly without being exhausted.  And, anything shortcut that cuts down on time (like pre-made ferments, kombucha, etc) increases the cost.

So, where does this leave me?  Hmmm.  I certainly plan to continue, but I'm going to have to make adjustments.  I just can't spend $800+ a month on food.  Coconut oil (high quality!) alone is ridiculously expensive, and if my husband and I follow the guidelines, we're supposed to be consuming 12 tbsps between us, just before meals!  And, even though I SAHM, that doesn't mean I'm home all the time.  With 4 kids, we're usually pretty busy :)  So, I also need to find ways to make it a little easier on myself.

Cost wise, here's what I'm thinking-

• No organic produce, outside of the "dirty dozen" (when available)
• Pastured chicken and pork, but conventional beef and lamb
• Keep eating eggs from my chickens, but supplement with conventional eggs when it's not enough
• Learn to make kombucha and ferments (time consuming, but kombucha is $3 or more a bottle, and ferments are $13 a pint!!!  Big money suck)
• Regular cheese instead of raw milk cheese

I'm not sure how to work with the time issue without increasing cost, any tips?

So, I'm going to try to do that (though I'm not sure what the heck to do for the rest of the month, since my food money is pretty much gone!!)  I'll certainly need to step outside of the recipes in the book to work with what I've got, but I'm going to do my best to keep to the basics; 2500 calories a day, 60% fat, 1-2 tbsps of coconut oil before each meal, fermented cod liver oil each morning.  I have found that as a nursing mom, I usually need a light afternoon snack (I usually do a couple ounces of cheese and a piece of fruit).

I also really need to start working out!

Staying on the wagon

Oh yikes, has it really been 6 days since I posted last?  See, this is why I could never be one of those official type bloggers, I'm no good at it!

I've been working hard to stay on the straight and narrow!  Friday some friends invited us over for tacos, and who can turn down tacos, especially when someone else is cooking?  Not me, that's for sure!  But I managed to show some restraint and not gorge myself.  Realistically, tacos aren't too bad; the worst about them is that the corn for the shells hasn't been soaked.  I probably should have skipped the white chocolate macademia nut cookies, but I did only have one...there...and then two more at home...hmmm.  You know, it's difficult going from eating as much as you want of whatever you want to eating with restraint.  I ponder at the time if I should own up to it, because it's a bit embarrassing, but struggling is a part of dieting (even a wonderful, filling diet like EFLF!) so I figure it's best to be honest.

I did great yesterday!  So that's good.  I did break down today and have some coffee, which I haven't had in weeks.  Baby steps!

Tomorrow will mark 2 weeks!  I'll do a weigh in (hopefully my little "cheats" haven't done too much damage!) and I'll talk a little about what I see as the pros and cons of the EFLF diet.