Day 30: Baby Step Lessons

Baby Step Lessons

Q: Where have I been?
A: Bleeding. Just allot of bleeding, pain and surgery.

Don't worry, I'm fine. But a lesson was learned. I had some complications that made it impossible for me to have my LEEP surgery as scheduled. Turns out, the complication, likely has to do with a change in my diet. Sometimes when I start to lose weight my body will respond in a kind of over-reacting-manner to the new lifestyle change. It happened in 2003 after I loss 30+ lbs on Jenny Craig. However, this time around, I believe it had to do with eliminating about 70% of process foods and gluten from my diet. I did it over a span of 2 weeks , but I must have eliminated the processed foods and gluten too quickly, because my body essentially went through a form of "withdrawal," with a severe hormonal imbalance, so-to-speak.

I spoke with my Doctor about it and he said that "our bodies develop a dependance to the hormones and chemicals found in process foods and eliminating them drastically can have a negative effect on our bodies."

He recommended that I spend at least a year slowly tapering away my intake of process foods and gluten, "a baby steps approach." He said that "especially a person like yourself [me] who is dependent on process foods with a strong sensitivity to hormonal changes, should take a long-term approach to weening yourself off the process foods and gluten, rather than a sudden stop."

So I did have my surgery, and it went well, but in order to get my body to stop "over-reacting," I had to double up on my daily hormone regiment. I ate without a care to the processed foods but tried not to overindulge. My skin turned into a teenager and I felt bloated. I was sedentary for about 10 days. I feared I had gained back the 4 lbs. I worked so hard to lose -- only to be pleasantly surprised to lose an additional 1.5 lbs.

Whoohoo!

Moral of the story: Baby steps when making a BIG diet change and don't worry about weight gain when you're sick -- just get better.

Wheat Wars: The Phantom Wheat Menace™

Photo by lusi at http://www.sxc.hu/photo/1148243

Is wheat bread bad for your diet?
Many dietitians, health magazines and doctors will say that it is bad for your diet and that the long-held belief wheat bread is better for you and healthier for your diet is all just a myth.

According to author Dr. William Davis of the book "Wheat Belly" claims that wheat is addictive as crack cocaine:
"There's something in modern wheat called gliadin that was changed by the geneticists to change the properties of this plant, mostly to increase yield," Davis said. "The unintended effect is that it increases appetite ... for junk ... so, people can't help themselves." He added that wheat consumption can lead to feelings of "incessant hunger." CBS News, http://www.digtriad.com/news/local/article/262600/57/Author-Wheat-Is-As-Addictive-As-Crack 

Is this a sensational method to sell a book? Possibly. However, this hasn't been the first time I've heard accounts about diets that suggest to lose weight, you need to simply cut out ALL wheat products. Dr. William Davis says on his blog, that to remove wheat from your diet overnight is like removing a splinter:
"Remove wheat, like removing a splinter that makes your finger hot, sore, and open to infection, and the body needs to readjust to this new lifestyle." -- http://www.wheatbellyblog.com/ on January 12, 2013 blog entry entitled Nutritional supplements in the wake of wheat elimination

My original dietitian in 2009 tried to get me to follow a similar method for bowel health. SHAPE magazine author, Jennipher Walter says:
"Don't be fooled by wheat-bread products. If the package doesn't specifically say "100-percent whole wheat,” then it's probably mostly white bread with just a little wheat flour mixed in for marketing. Also: Make sure each slice has at least 2 grams of fiber—another mark of a truly healthy bread." -- http://www.shape.com/healthy-eating/diet-tips/50-seemingly-healthy-foods-are-bad-you?page=22, SHAPE Magazine.

Even Dr. Oz is jumping into this fray of the Wheat Wars, with a November 2012 article about Dr. William Davis's book stating:
"Whether it comes in the form of organic, sprouted multigrain bread, a squishy white loaf or a strand of spaghetti, all wheat is bad for you, says cardiologist William Davis, MD, author of the bestselling book Wheat Belly. Davis claims that today’s wheat is both addictive and toxic. By eliminating what he calls “Frankenwheat” from your diet, you’ll dramatically shrink your belly and also ward off or reverse myriad health problems." -- http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/todays-wheat-making-you-gain-weight, DoctorOz.com

 It has been suggested to me that as a migraine sufferer I should eliminate the gluten and all wheat products as well. Well that's a challenge, isn't it. I do have a loaf of millet bread in the fridge for the upcoming week to try … I'll tell you what I think of it, and I will see if I can't eliminate wheat from my diet and see if it makes a difference. In the mean time, the war rages on and here's a funny from Stephen Colbert (warning, it is a little crass, not suitable for all ages):

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Thought for Food - Wheat Addictions
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog Video Archive

Day 18: Focus on Change, Not the Results

What happened to day 7-17? Life.
I stayed with my program and I've lost 3 lbs. It's been hard to get back into the swing of things, but I think I've found my rhythm. I was going to do a safety edition of my daily posts, but I've decided it should be a Royale Decree™.

Anyhow, I am not here to talk about food or safety. I'm here to talk about challenges -- medical challenges to be more specific. I spoke of a challenge I would be facing this year and it is a medical one. I am having surgery on Monday, and though I am not concerned about the surgery itself, I am concerned about sitting around on my backside for a few days. Unlike a cold or the flu, I know this is coming, so I am going to have to prepare.

I want to be sure that I don't get up often on my recovery day and that all my food and drink are healthy and nutritious -- and easily accessible. I am doing this, because I know my surgery might affect my metabolism. I don't know if this is a biological fact, but it seems that everything I do affects my metabolism. So part of me wouldn't be surprised if surgery does … hold on let's see what the interwebs say … according to Toshiedar L at http://www.traineo.com/topics/3540, my surgery will cause stress no matter what, emotional stress is what it sounds like. Toshiedar L suggests that I focus on keeping my vitamins and nutrients high and invest in things that decrease inflammation, speed wound healing and increase my immune system. Keep all my meals small but frequent.

Good advice for any diet, I imagine. So hopefully this small bump in the road won't make it harder to reach my goal. However a "goal" that focuses on just the results will distract me from what I really want, which is "change." I heard a quote the other day that I've thought about for days now:


"If you focus on results, you will never change. If you focus on change, you will get results."
–– Jack Dixon

So my new "goal" is the "change" I am going to to make for my body and my life. I want to change the way I eat, drink and live, so I can change into a healthier and leaner me with fewer health problems — and that's a good plan. Period.

Photo by miqueias at http://www.sxc.hu/photo/971651

Royale Decree™ #12

Dreaming Away Your Fat
Disclaimer: I am no expert, and some of my tip is experimental, but you are welcome to try it. Do not attempt this trick if you are allergic to water (sarcasm) or are unable to sweat. Actually, I know someone who can't sweat … however, water is still good for you. It may not work for everybody. I give this trick no guarantee of success, but it is worth trying. This trick can help you lose extra pounds of fat so long as you are eating right, not cheating on you plan, and exercising daily.

It is a scientific fact that when you lose weight, the lost fat or "burned" fat leaves the body in three ways: sweat, urine and vapor when you exhale carbon dioxide (http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/human-biology/lost-weight1.htm).

In the same way water turns into steam when you heat it up, your fat transforms into sweat, urine and vapor when you exhale carbon dioxide allowing it to leave the body (which is why it is good to stay hydrated with pure water and exercise often).

So here's the weird fat burning tip: I used to do this all the time when I was trying to burn fat in 2010-2011. I called it "dreaming away your fat." I would drink as much water as I could before I went to sleep each night. I made sure that I got 8 house of sleep and if I had to get up in the middle of the night to relieve myself of all that water I drank before bed, I made sure to drink as much water as I could before I went back to bed. This trick always helped me burn 0.5-1 or more pounds of fat (especially if I didn't cheat on my plan, ate right, and exercised during the day).

In addition to this trick, I sometimes wore as many clothes as I could before I went to bed so I could sweat in my sleep. This can be hard and uncomfortable to do. This trick always helped me burn ANOTHER 0.5-1 or more pounds of fat, in addition to the water trick.

So give it a whirl, you never know how much you can lose, in your dreams!

Photo by nkzs at http://www.sxc.hu/photo/966608

Royale Decree™ #11

Born Again Muse
I've always known that I inspire people. I know that people often hear my ideas and run with them, without giving me credit — whatever. For a while I often thought of becoming a professional muse or "consultant." As I was driving, the radio station I was listening to quoted Mark Twain, just before they played Katy Perry's song "Firework":

“The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.”

–– Mark Twain

So I hope that I have inspired you to get healthy. That I've inspired you to take the high road in healthy weight loss as opposed to the low and dangerous paths like HCG, starvation or fad dieting.

Trust me, I know how hard it is to take the longer path to success. There is nothing more tempting then wanting to just drop $400+ on a quick fix, like HCG. I think about it all the time, but I know IT DOESN'T LAST! My diet approach can last if you allow it too. It will teach you to think about what you are eating and drinking. It will make you understand your body and how it works and when things don't go quite right, what you can do about it.

Everyday is loaded with it's challenges when it comes to eating healthy. Somedays are fantastic, and you actually feel proud of what you've accomplished. Other days feel awful and all you want to do is eat a double serving of Talenti and munch on Pirate Booty -- I know that was me yesterday, see for yourself:

Not so great day. I blame a severe headache, which is not an excuse, but it is just the reason I let the day happen the way it did.

In terms of sodium, I did awesome! In terms of everything else, I did very poorly. However, I did have a severe headache, which is no excuse. When I have a severe headache, nothing matters and all I want is junk food or to overindulge. Since I had done so well this week, I decided to give myself a break, which is ABSOLUTELY OKAY TO DO, but don't do it all the time.

So today, I started over. There will be no Talenti tonight, but maybe later in the week. So remember you hold the light to your own firework. I am just here to inspire myself and you, to do your best, everyday! Go gett'm!

Royale Decree™ #10

Make Breakfast Awesome!
There is nothing like a good, hearty breakfast! So make it the most important meal of the day. Make it 45% of your total dietary intake. Make it yummy and satisfying.

Start with egg whites, real bacon bits and cheddar cheese on sprouted wheat toast and then marry it with a cup of Greek vanilla yogurt with clover honey and apple granola!

Easy! And tasty!

Royale Decree™ #9

Pasta, Pasta!

I love pasta. If you choose to diet with frozen "diet" food entrees, you will find it very easy to enjoy pasta, because MOST of the entrees are pasta. However, looking back at my original plan designed in 2009, Diet Royale™ The Originale, I found an important notation, which will sadly limit your pasta intake, BIG TIME.

The important notation, found in the Tips box, states:
"4. Only have one serving of bread a day.
5. Only have two servings of pasta A MONTH.
6. No more than 3 servings of rice or potatoes a week."
- Diet Royale™ The Originale published by M.E. Gober on FatSecret.com

This is an important notation because it was advice I had received from a dietitian early on. My doctor at the time warned me that I was borderline diabetic and assigned me a medical dietician or "life coach." His plan instructed me to only have 1 serving of bread a day, only have 2 servings of pasta A MONTH and no more than 3 servings of rice and potatoes a week. I recall it had something to do with the way our bodies process food in our intestine and that these three carb and starch heavy foods can sit in our gut for a long time, weighing us down. So try to keep this in mind as you plan your meals. Pasta should now be considered a treat. Rice noodles are okay, but only 3 times a week.

Craving Noodles? Your best option in the "diet" frozen food category with simulated pasta is Thai Style Chicken and Rice Noodles by Weight Watchers.

Photo credit by BrokenArts of http://www.sxc.hu/photo/193246

Day 06: Dealing With My Head

I think I miss counted and today is actually day 7. However, in light of the new year and not to confuse myself and everyone, I am just going to count this as Day 06, as in Day 06 of the new year. Technicals, who needs them?

Today is a lazy day. I am at Activity Level I: Sedentary. I might motivate myself in about 2-3 hours to jump to Activity Level II or III, and go for a brisk walk. See Chapter 4: Fit As A King for the meaning of these Activity Levels. I've been trying to maintain an Activity Level of II this week, which means working out 3 times. So far, so good.

I had a severe headache last night and this morning. My medication for treating them makes me groggy and tired. I need to pick up my perscription for this medication, and the CVS is across the street, about a mile on foot. So that will be good to walk. Regardless, this is what I was talking about, in regards to the challenges I will face, and what it will take to stay on the path to health and a fabulous dress size. 

By the way ... looking for a quick and easy lunch without the extensive thought process, for only a few extra calories and we're talking about 20-40, choosing a fully packed Lunchables is a wise choice. For only 350 calories, you can enjoy a quick well balanced meal for under $4. Below is what I had yesterday for lunch. It was called the Turkey and Cheddar Sandwich Sub pack. It came with a small turkey and cheddar sub with low fat mayo, apple sauce, oreo cookies, and Kool-aide. Yum! I hope you are doing well on your diets today. Be well. 

Day 05: Get Thee a Playlist

I find the best exercise happens when you have a good playlist to workout to. I use Spotify. This is not a promotion, but for a small $9.99 a month I have unlimited songs I can take with me on my mobile devices and even temporarily store a playlist to my device, for offline usage. There are other companies like this I imagine, but regardless of what you do, get yourself a playlist you can listen too as you workout. This is mine on Spotify. Click the link below to listen to the playlist Workout NOW!!! on Spotify:
http://open.spotify.com/user/128009102/playlist/4iGuXU1VewUpqVQNoabpTP

ALSO ... this breakfast was 699 calories. Based on my Daily Empire (breakdown of calories per meal), I am allowed 654 calories for breakfast. Since I am over, I will lighten up my Queen Snack, Prince Lunch and Princess Snack by 15 calories. I don't want to skim on my Pauper Dinner and Peasant Snack, because I will need those allocated calories for my good night's rest. That's how I juggle when I go over allocated calories.

Day 04: Falling Down, Doesn't Mean You Can't Get Back Up Again

Wow, is it really only Day 4? I thought I was on Day 5. Guess that is tomorrow. I has been an amazingly weird week ... it was up, down, and all around, but I really did try my best to follow my plan, or at least get myself to start thinking in that direction. I know there will be many challenges. The migraine-headaches for one. Today I had a pretty severe headache. Because of my ordeal last month with the 50 day migraine-headache, my headaches get me a little worried that it might come back. The downside is when I have headaches as severe as a level 5 and up (1-10), all I can focus on is the pain and making it stop. Sometimes this means food. It never means run a mile or two ... unfortunately. It often means rest and sedative activity. Long story short, they always put a crimp in my diet plans. In addition to this, I am a woman and having a monthly reminder that "I LOVE SWEETS!!!" allot, doesn't help either. A woman's menstrual cycle can screw with their appetite, weight, emotional state and will power. It is enough to derail any diet. Unfortunately when I am in the middle of all that madness I can't allow myself to "cheat" as it were on my diet plan, but it does happen. So that is one of the many challenges I personally face, and I am sure millions of other women do too. But tomorrow morning when I rise, I will go for a brisk walk again. I need to measure the distance of my path. As apart of my overall goal of a fabulous dress size, my other goal is getting back to the point of run walking a 45 min. 5k. I am not a fast runner due to my asthma, but that was a personal best. I know I am likely back at 60 mins. We'll see. But whatever I do, the point is to keep trying.

Remember, "always do your best" means that if you fall down, you can always get back up again, dust yourself off and "do you best" at trying again.

Royale Decree™ #8

Protein Pro-Farts?

So you're drinking 8 oz. of water with every 3 grams of fiber you intake … but you're still farting. Where's the gas coming from? Protein.

If you use protein shakes to increase your protein, the protein in that shake has been broken down to it's lowest level for faster processing by your body so it can use it fast! Which is why protein shakes are excellent post workout meals because your body doesn't have to waste energy digesting it and can put it to use quickly! Sadly, the side effect is gas. But what can do about that and still maintain a high protein diet?

It could be your protein shakes have lactose in them and you are intolerant. According to the Whey Protein Institute: "Individuals with lactose intolerance should select a pure whey protein isolate, which has less than 0.1 gram of lactose per tablespoon (20 grams). Research has shown that most people with lactose intolerance have no trouble taking this very small amount of lactose. Individuals with lactose intolerance should avoid whey protein concentrates as they usually contain lactose and the amount can vary greatly from product to product."

Believe it or not Mayo clinic recommends you get 175 grams of protein a day! Most diets will tell you to follow the protein math formula based on your body weight: weight in pounds x 0.37 =  Minimum grams of protein you need daily as found in Chapter 3: The Full House and the Royale Flush™.

Remember to take it easy on the protein, I don't recommend drastically increasing your intake overnight. I suggest gradual increases. Keep in mind that too much protein can harm your body, making your kidneys work overtime, loss of calcium and even agitate allergies.

So please take baby steps when increasing your protein intake and watch the lactose. It's not a cure, but it might help.

History Repeats Itself, Plan Originale 2010

This is the Diet Royale™ The Originale plan ... :)
I weighed 166.0 lb on Wednesday, November 17, 2010. That was my best weight when I plateaued originally. My original diet was posted on FatSecret here in 2010: http://www.fatsecret.com/diets/member-diet/Default.aspx?dietid=234656

I reset my account to start over with the 2nd edition of Diet Royale™.

Royale Decree™ #7

Blueberries Kings and Queens
According to ShaeLee Chatterton of LiveStrong.com

"One cup of fresh blueberries provides your body with 114 mg of potassium. Oregon State University reports that in 2004 the Food and Nutrition Board of the Institute of Medicine established the adequate intake of potassium at 4,700 mg per day from age 14 and up."

Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/457845-potassium-levels-in-blueberries/#ixzz2H2Io78Jv

So that blueberry bagel you are eating, which doesn't list potassium, DOES have potassium in it! Whoohoo! The Berry Kingdom is awesome, isn't it? :)

Royale Decree™ #6

Sleepin' Is Always a WIN

Getting 8 hours of sleep every night can help you to lose weight. So many researchers will tell you that getting plenty of sleep will help you shed the pounds. Here is one study: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/17/sleep-weight-loss_n_1891171.html

Having trouble sleeping? http://www.wikihow.com/Fall-Asleep

Royale Decree™ #5

Become a King or a Queen Quickly

Diet Royale™ has a website where you can download all the forms mentioned in this diet method. All forms will now be available to download from here: https://sites.google.com/site/dietroyale/chapter-3-the-full-house-and-the-royale-flush

The site includes the latest form called your Daily Empire, designed to help you better plan your Diet Royale day! Looks a little something like this:

Royale Decree™ #4

Apples help you to burn calories.
An apple a day keeps the doctor away ... wow, they weren't kidding. You don't have to be a nutritional guru to know that apples are good for you. It's one of 15 foods known to burn calories. Take a look at this snazzy list: http://lifehacker.com/331319/fifteen-foods-that-burn-more-calories-than-they-contain

Day 03: Meal Planning

Well I took my own advice and created a meal plan for the day -- you can now get your own planner to start using by downloading it from Chapter 10 HERE. I ate what I had at home, because we are on a budget and can't really go shopping for new foods. I also just did all the dishes and I didn't want to do anymore. So that sort of dictated my day. My walk was about 2.5 miles this morning. I feel good and energized.

I spent my day formatting that PDF for your use. If you look at Day 3's meal plan ... you see dinner can be tricky. I know what you're thinking ... Canned Peas ... for dinner. Okay?

Well I have some leftovers in the fridge I'd like to get rid of. I don't want to do any extra cooking right now, so I eat what I have. I've been more creative than this in the past for dinner. Sometimes the easiest way to do a 250-300 calorie dinner, is eating one of the frozen "diet" dinners I mention or sip on a Muscle Milk. Salad works too. The hardest part in the beginning, is getting used to small or light dinners. Most people end their day with a really big meal. However, that's not an option in this plan.

If you are going to end your day big, do it sparingly, no more than once a week. Don't eat light the following morning to compensate, just eat better, and increase your activity and water. 

Good luck and happy new year!

Chapter 10: Royale Meal Planner

The task of writing down everything you eat and drink can be daunting. In addition to logging your foods it becomes even more daunting to have to list all the Nutrition Facts about your food -- well sort of. What you list and what you don't list is COMPLETELY UP TO YOU. There is an easy online source for you to do it at http://www.fatsecret.com, which I found INCREDIBLY useful and easy to do. Plus it can go with you and your mobile devices.

However, if you want to do it the Diet Royale™ way (or as I like to say "The Queen's Way"), I've made you a planner you can easily fill out, save and print out to your heart's content. No membership required. No fees. It's completely free. All you need is a recent version of Acrobat (I think it is compatible with 7 and up), and time to think about what you are going to eat.

Download The Royale Meal Planner PDF here.

It looks something like this.

This is a sample of the planner. This is Day 03. This is not a perfect menu,
but it gives you an idea of how the tables work.

It Doesn't Have To Be Perfect
The sample menu is merely a sample of my Day 03. Word of caution, it doesn't have to be perfect. I found it was virtually impossible to have a perfect day. I tried many different ways to get a perfect day and I think I struck gold once meeting all my Magic Numbers. That was almost 2 years ago, and I don't know if I kept the formula. Plus, I recall it wasn't very satisfying.

You don't want to starve yourself. You don't want to punish yourself because Dinner may be a little bigger than Lunch. Simply do your best. The point is behind the planner is to get you to pay attention to the foods you eat and know how much of each nutritional value you are getting.

You will find it very hard to keep your Carbohydrates (Carbs) levels low, while keeping you Sodium level low too. I found the fewer the Carbs, the higher the Sodium is in some foods. Don't worry about it. Don't fuss over it. Just know it is going to happen. If I had to pick, I would choose lower Sodium.

Do I Have To Plan Every Day?
You can, but you don't have too. I would recommend doing this for a few months, until you have an idea of what to eat and not eat on your own. In 2010, I pretty much kept a daily log. There were days I forgot or days I didn't want to. There were days I was sometimes too busy. However, I found I was more successful about keeping on track if I made a daily meal plan.

A Word About Potassium
Like I mentioned in Chapter 3: The Full House and the Royale Flush™, potassium is often not listed on Nutrition Facts, because it is not required by the FDA for food companies to list it. You are often times going to have to leave this field blank, do some research, or make an educated guess. That is all I can tell you. When I can't find potassium on a food, I sometimes put a standard 50 mgs for most foods that are healthy and organic. Junk food I just leave blank. These are places you can look online to find out how much potassium might be in your food:
http://www.vaughns-1-pagers.com/food/potassium-foods.htm
http://www.healthaliciousness.com/articles/food-sources-of-potassium.php
http://www.drugs.com/cg/potassium-content-of-foods-list.html
http://www.dietandfitnesstoday.com/potassium.php

So take it easy. The Royale Meal Planner is not the end-all-be-all of planners. It is simply a tool you can use to help you on your way. Good luck

Chapter 9: Patents of Nobility

Remember all that math you had to do? Well this is the place where I will upload worksheets that should help you do the math in a simpler manner.

All forms will now be available to download from here: https://sites.google.com/site/dietroyale/chapter-3-the-full-house-and-the-royale-flush

Follow this link to download the Patents of Nobility worksheet and others.
You should be able to fill in the form fields to create some of your numbers.

A Patent of Nobility in literal terms is in this context 'patent' refers to the actual document (often a very formal letter) appointing a person an aristocrat. However, in terms of the Diet Royale™, it is simply your form for figuring out your Magic Numbers.

This is that the worksheet looks like for me:

This is a sample of my worksheet. You will be able to fill in the fields to create your own. Update every 10 lbs. loss.

If you didn't download it from up top, you can Download the Patents of Nobility PDF worksheet here.

You will need to refer to Chapter 3: The Full House and the Royale Flush™ to help you with some of the figures.

Don't forget to download the daily empire found on  https://sites.google.com/site/dietroyale/chapter-3-the-full-house-and-the-royale-flush . It will help you figure out how to break down your calories in the Diet Royale Way!

Easily figure out your allocated calories for each meal, simply by entering your total calories on this worksheet.

Day 02: New Year's Eve & Pizza

So today went really well ... for the most part. I had Muscle Milk, a banana, Greek Yogurt with peaches, and 8 oz. of V8 Splash for breakfast. About 510 calories, and a great way to start the day. For snack, I had 170 calories in roasted almonds. For lunch I had chicken noodle soup, 8 oz. of Naked Blue Machine and 8 oz. of V8 Splash. I believe (without my daily planner in front of me) it was about 300 calories. The soup pushed my sodium levels past what I wanted, but it wasn't bad. For my second snack I had canned peaches. For me this might have been a bad idea. I find my stomach processes fruit really fast, so within an hour I was super hungry. Painfully hungry. I got home and I hadn't decided on dinner ... but the future Hubs wanted pizza.

Well I let it go, because 'heck, it was New Year's Eve, and only day 2.' I let the pizza win. One last hurrah, with the knowledge I would walk first thing New Year's Day.

By the way, as of yesterday morning, I weighed in at 188.8 down from 190. I am not going to weigh in today, because I know the pizza likely pushed me back to 190 ... and I'd rather not look and upset myself. I will save my next weigh in for the up coming Sunday or Monday.

So Day 03 is here, and I started it out with a good night's sleep. Woke up and did my body photos, for progress checking, and am preparing to go for a brisk walk.

I am going to have a frozen "diet" meal for breakfast. I recommend if you are going to have a pre-prepared "diet" entree, it be first thing in the morning, when you get to dine like a King. Remember, they are packed with sodium. So it is better to eat it in the morning so you can burn through it and flush it out with PLENTY OF WATER!!!

Good luck, and happy new year.