Exercise!

So I found yet another interesting article, this time about exercise. It postulates that exercise in the 30-60 minute bursts often prescribed actually makes us fatter, and that continuous, lower rate exercise like walking or gardening is actually better for us, keeping things more "even". I found it interesting and thought you might too!

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1914857,00.html


As for me - I am still eating a Hot Pocket a day and it is working out pretty well! Hopefully the scale will be favorable tomorrow with my new mix of Hot Pockets and "home made" meals. I think this is a better mix. I have to say I feel a bit better actually! I am also writing everything down and measuring everything out (aka journaling). I think this will help with the margin of error or guesstimates that I was using previously. I was probably consuming more calories than I thought. And if you were wondering, a half a bottle of red wine is about 250 calories. I'm capping mine at a glass now! Toodaloo!

Time For An Adjustment

Ok, so I think its time to admit that Hot Pockets all day, every day may have not been the best idea. I mean, I do like the Hot Pocket, but its nice to have a little more variety.

So while I am not going to give up Hot Pockets completely, I really do want to lose 30 lbs - so its time for an adjustment. I think its time for a "regular" low calorie, low fat diet that corresponds to my calorie intake needs. I have done some research and this means that right now I need to consume around 1600 calories a day with a limit of 54 grams of fat per day. I will continue to use a combination of fresh foods including fruit and vegetables as well as convenience food such as Hot Pockets. I think its important to be realistic, knowing that some meals have to simply be convenient.

I will also be a bit more vigilant about getting in exercise at least 3 times per week, hopefully more. As I lose weight my calorie intake will also change, so I will be sure to make you aware of that along the way.

So while my diet will probably still include one Hot Pocket per day for the convenience factor, I will be adding in a lot more fresh or "home cooked" meals.

And I will still post weigh-ins on Thursday - so wish me luck!

"Plus Size" Model Kudos

I found this article on Facebook and just thought I had to pass it on. Its about a "plus" size model (who in actuality is a size 12-14 aka "regular" size large) who posed without being airbrushed or anything in Glamour Magazine. The magazine itself is getting lots of kudos for the picture, but I think the media in general should be more aware that people come in all sizes and that some men actually like some meat on a woman's bones. Shocking - I know!

http://www.glamour.com/health-fitness/blogs/vitamin-g/2009/08/on-the-cl-the-picture-you-cant.html

Hope you enjoyed. My week ended pretty well, getting through some tough emotions. I apologize if my last post was a little heavy. But there is more to life than a nutty diet and a woman trying to recapture size 8. That's why I thought the above article was fitting.

Enjoy your Saturday!

Life, Death and Hot Pockets

So, just to warn you, today's post may be a bit "heavy" for a Hot Pocket diet post. But its now August 19th which means, one year ago today my dad died. And my dad didn't just die, he committed suicide.

My dad was a goofy guy - this ending was completely out of character. I suppose he was really good at covering up just how depressed he was. I mean, he was the guy that would come up with something completely ridiculous like the Hot Pocket Diet. Though his diet may have consisted solely of Beyer's Ice Cream.

Everyone has those days that truly changed their life and this was one of them. I'd like to think I understand why he did what he did, but in reality I am sure I never will. But if anything good came out of it, I realized that I had to live my life differently than I was. I had to not be afraid of making myself happy, I had to not be afraid to make major changes in my life, simply - I needed to live myself.

So this whole Hot Pocket thing may sound completely absurd to you - but its just a way for me to try to reach a goal while being able to make people laugh and to laugh at myself in the process. It's a way to show that life doesn't have to be completely serious all the time, because we have enough to worry about. 20-30 extra pounds should be the least of it.

So there may not be a weigh-in this week or a lot of silly banter, but don't worry - I'm still eating my Hot Pockets and will be sure to update you on my progress. Right now though I have a few other things to be thankful for besides melty cheese in a pocket.

I think the following quote sums it up nicely:
"I hope it is true that a man can die and yet not only live in others but give them life, and not only life, but that great consciousness of life." Jack Kerouac

I now have that great consciousness of life and I have my dad to thank for it. I just wish I could have gotten that gift another way. But then I guess it wouldn't have the same effect.

Thanks for listening - I'll be back in a couple days.

Please check out www.afsp.org; www.trufoundation.org for more information about suicide and depression.

Ahh, Now Things Get Fun!

So, as you know, I am always asking for comments, and to be fair, I haven't asked for positive comments only! So I received the following anonymous comment that I would like to explore further...

"As a registered nurse, it is not surprising to me that you are having problems losing weight on this diet. While the calorie count might be in line with weight loss goals, the sodium level of products like these is extremely high. This is not at all healthy and can cause water retention leaving you bloated and heavier. You may think this is a fun pop culture experiment, but don't think that you are the next Jared from Subway. His experiment was at least healthy."

I am of course taking this comment as a nurse who is concerned for my health, and I am most appreciative of this. And yes, like most packaged food, sodium is indeed a concern. So of course this piqued my interest. Maybe she's right - perhaps this is the reason my weight stalled last week. So I of course investigated. Of all the hot pocket varieties in my freezer the HIGHEST amount of sodium was 760mg. That comes out to 32% of your suggested daily intake.

If you look at the nutritional info supplied by Subway, there are only two sandwich's that have less sodium than my highest sodium Hot Pocket. There is a chicken sandwich at 750mg of sodium (so it is 10mg less, but I would call that negligible) and the veggie sub at 410mg. This value is also without the addition of mayo or mustard. They would add 90mg or 55mg per teaspoon respectively.

http://www.subway.com/applications/NutritionInfo/nutritionlist.aspx?id=sandwich

Unfortunately, the Hot Pocket web site does not have their nutrition info spelled out, which is quite disappointing, but like I said, I have quite a few varieties in my freezer and have pretty much settled into these as my "normal eats" with the highest being 760mg. So that being said, if I have 3 (of my highest sodium) Hot Pockets a day, that would put me at 96% of my suggested daily intake of sodium.

To put things in further perspective a serving of Campbell's tomato soup has 880 mg of sodium. Lean Cuisine's Sesame Chicken has 640 mg of sodium. (yes sometimes they find their way into my freezer too)

I think we all realize that anything packaged and frozen is going to have sodium. Anything that has cold cuts on/in it is going to have sodium.

So how do I combat that? Well I only drink water (and one cup a coffee every morning). I also supplement with fruit, veggies and yogurt. Just like the "subway" diet, this diet is about convenience. Its about proving a point that you don't have to buy "diet" food for more money when you can find products with similar nutritional values. Its about the busy mom, dad, student, whatever that can't or simply isn't going to spend time cooking. It's about finding a way to limit your calorie intake while still actually enjoying what you are eating.

And like I said in a previous post, I'm much cuter than Jared. LOL. Only 26 lbs to go!

So keep the comments coming! All of them really are appreciated. Had this sodium issue not have been brought up, I may not have looked into it. Now I can feel even better about my Hot Pockets!

No loss this week :(

Well, I guess it had to happen. Last week must have been a freak weigh-in. After Disney and all, I did expect to gain a little. But not to worry - everyone has a week where they don't lose or have a slight gain. It just means you have to keep trying and not have 4 glasses of wine and baklava the night before weigh-in. LOL

Like I said - I give myself a couple nights a week of "real" food. Also - on average, one night a week I go out with a group of work friends and we pick a different nationality to dine on. Tonight is Polish Food. Not quite as diet friendly as say... Japanese food, but I will enjoy my pierogies! Or shall I say Potato Pockets!

And despite my non-loss, I'm in a great mood today. My honey and I had a lot of fun last night - and that's what really matters :)

Uuuuggghhhh!

Uuuuggghhhhh! I am so depressed! I took a sneak peek at the scale this morning and its not looking good. Can a few cookies really bring me back to where I started? I thought 3500 calories made up a lb?! I mean I have to reduce my diet by that to lose one, but it seems I only have to consume about 500 to gain one! Maybe I should have just waited til Thursday like I'm supposed to, but now I'm just down in the dumps. Oh - and there was a fly in my coffee this morning. Ewww. Its just been that kind of day and its not even noon yet!

I guess I will definitely be doing some exercise today. Maybe I will take the girls out for a walk - that could be fun!

Wish me luck - maybe it was just a fluke this morning. I sure hope so!

Home Made Cookies

So my honey made some home made (like really from scratch) cookies. He made chocolate chip cookies and my absolute favorite chocolate cookies with white chips. He then brought half of them to work and left the other half of them home with me and the girls.

Do you know how hard this is???? I think I had 3 already. Uuuggghhh. I am a woman. I have no will power against homemade chocolate cookies!

Looks like I am going to be having water and veggies for dinner to make up for my cookie gobbling today. I already had two Hot Pockets too - so I am sure I am approaching my calorie quota.

Seriously - why do I have to be one of those women that gains a pound just by thinking about dessert and it takes me a week of eating 1300 calories and exercise to loose half a pound!

Well it is about 110 degrees out so maybe I can go sweat off a cookie or two. The bright side is, once I eat them all there will be no more cookies left in the house!

The Panini Pocket Review

OK - so I tried the Panini pocket for lunch today. There are definately some pro's and con's to said pocket.

First of all, it tasted fine. I got the cheese steak panini and it basically tasted as expected. The crust however was a bit more pocket like than panini like. I think if they had used the formula that they use on the "soft subs" they may have gotten a little closer. Basically I expected the crust to be crispy on the outside yet thick enough to give it some "fluffiness". That didn't happen.

Perhaps the biggest negative is that a box actually only contains one meal. While it says that it is 220 calories and there are 2 servings on the box, that's really not the case. You have to cook the entire panini at once. So unless you have someone readily available to share it with, you actually have yourself a 440 calorie meal. It also says "more filling" on the box. Yeah - no kidding - I have to eat two servings at more calories - of course its going to be more filling. While the calzone pocket clearly states on the box that it is one meal, the panini pocket leads you to believe otherwise - and that's just not cool.

So unless the good folks at Hot Pockets can come up with a way to put the panini in two separate sleeves just like every other Hot Pocket they sell, I have to give this product a thumbs down. Oh and did I mention it costs more? So paying more for half the meals - not good my friends, not good.

It will be back to regular old Hot Pockets for me!

Yay Its Friday!

Not much new on the diet front - still following the plan. I did however purchase the new panini Hot Pocket. Not a pocket at all, but figured I'd try it. I'll definitely let you know how it is. I figured a little variety couldn't hurt. They say its the spice of life after all.

Overall I'm just happy that its Friday and its my weekend with the girls. They are starting to realize that I eat an awful lot of Hot Pockets - so its pretty funny. Hopefully we'll have some nice weather so we can do some fun stuff with them this weekend. Time to get out of the house and get some fresh air!

Happy Weekend Everyone!

So Tell Me More Crazy Hot Pocket Lady!

Ok, So I realize that at some point the topic of Hot Pocket's and diet alone will get a little old. So thought it might be nice to tell you ten fun facts about me! I hope this gets some of you who pop in to check to start to follow me and even comment sometimes. I can use all the support I can get!

So here we go!

1. Favorite TV Channel: HGTV. I watch it waaaaaayy too much. Candice Olsen is my favorite designer.

2. Favorite Color: I like reds - from pink to burgundy. and of course black. Its slimming you know!

3. Tattoos: Yes - have 'em, like 'em. I think good tattoo art is amazing. Some true artists of our time. I'll even post a pic of my big back tattoo :) My tattoo is of the Norse Goddess Freya with her blue cat given to her by Thor. She is standing on a bed of Lilies. I got it to represent my girls. So if you think about it - you can figure out their names pretty easily. LOL

And if you're wondering - losing about 20-25 lbs will get me back to that body - lol. We don't want a stretched out tattoo - eeewwww!

4. Latest Accomplishment: Gutting and redoing a 1920's home. It was what I could afford after getting divorced and it is now just how I like it. I feel like I gave it life again!

5. Charity of choice: American Foundation for Suicide Prevention - my dad actually committed suicide a year ago this August. Part of the reason for my weight gain I think. Its a great organization. Nobody should have to be stigmatized by depression etc. Suicide actually accounts for 13% of deaths in my Dad's age group. Way more than I ever thought and way too high.

6. Vice - besides food - I would have to say wine. Love it!! Learning about wines from different regions of the world and vintages is exciting to me.

7. Secret geeky love: I love watching election results. Especially presidential ones or ones that put the fate of the house or senate at stake. Blue, Red - which way will they go???

8. Places I'd like to visit: China, Japan, the end of Argentina so I can get on a boat and actually go to Antarctica, Egypt.

9. Some cool places I've been: Australia, most of Europe, Israel, Canada, took the train across the US (not by choice - but that's a whole other story!). Favorite Cities: Belfast, Prague, and my birthplace: NYC!

10. The meaning of life: My two girls. I honestly believe that you have no idea what love is until you have kids. I think all you parents out there would agree. If you are lucky enough to find your soul mate too - well I think then maybe you have found your heaven on earth.

So hopefully now you don't think I'm a total whack job that only eats Hot Pockets. In fact I think I am going to sub dinner and fourth meal tonite with a (sensible) dinner with my honey!

So please keep checking in - I'd love to hear from you!

Weigh-In Part Deux

So by some miracle I lost another 6 tenths of a pound! Even after my eating in Disney, a couple days back on track bought me back down! I feel a definite sense of relief! So that is 4.4 lbs overall in two weeks!! Hopefully another full week on the diet will make next week's weigh-in even more exciting! I have a wedding to go to next weekend too - so another couple of lbs lost would definitely make the dress look better!!

So now that I am back home its time to run some errands and of course buy some more Hot Pockets! I ran out of breakfast one so I had the chicken, bacon and cheese one for breakfast today. It was good - but not the breakfast taste I was looking for.

Then maybe I will let Jillian Michaels kick my butt again this afternoon before my honey gets home :)

Yard Work - Yuck

So for some reason it has been a super rainy summer, therefore causing jungle-like growth in my yard. I feel like all I do is weed my yard. I mean, it takes months for the pretty flowers and trees to grow, and in like 2 days there are weeds the size of small trees. So frustrating!!! So tonite we did some major yard work. I spent most of the night in that hunched over weed-pulling position while my honey was in the hunched over weed-whacking position. We should both have some pretty nice feeling backs tomorrow. I rinsed off, but I still have that creepy crawly buggy feeling - I hate that!

So, basically, I burned some calories in the yard, and it was a true Hot Pocket only day today. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the weigh-in is ok tomorrow after the vacation eating. I'll be sue to post results tomorrow morning!

Back On Track!

OK! Well we got home late last night and got a good night's sleep in our own bed for a change. I also had a whole day of Hot Pockets! Yum. I actually missed my crazy diet. There is just something so easy and comforting about it.

I am very nervous about weigh-in though! Even though we did lots of walking in Disney, we also ate (and drank) quite a bit. We had one really nice dinner at Artist's Point in the Wilderness Lodge. If you've never been there, put it on your list. Its one of those Disney gems geared towards adults. It's quiet, has a great wine list and just wonderful food. So that night we of course split a bottle of wine and shared a dessert too. We then headed over to Raeglan Road - a great Irish pub for a few more drinks and enjoyed some great traditional Irish music.

So basically - as hard as you try to eat well while on vacation - you definitely are not keeping it to 1400 calories a day. And yes - maybe it was silly of me to start a diet a week before going on vacation, but like I said - life happens and if we keep planning around things we'll never be on track.

But I am going to give myself to Thursday to weigh-in. Hopefully I will at least keep off my initial 3.8 lb loss. Wish me luck!

Hanging Out In The Airport

So my trip is coming to an end as I sit in the airport waiting for my flight to board. I have to say that I am looking forward to sleeping in my comfy bed and waking up to a delicious Hot Pocket tomorrow. I can't even believe it, but I missed having my Hot Pocket meals! Hopefully I made good food choices and did plenty of walking in the hot Florida sun.

So the blog will get back to its regular rhythm tomorrow - just wish me luck at weigh-in!

OH - and I almost forgot - there is a store at the Boardwalk Hotel at Disney that sells Hot Pockets! Bravo Disney!

Everything is Magical!

So I am in Disney right now, and well, following the Hot Pocket diet is pretty darn hard here. Especially with all the great restaurants. Hopefully all the walking we do in this muggy Florida weather will help balance things out a bit.

Though, as my honey and I were driving up to the Wilderness lodge for dinner last night we saw someone getting their luggage out of the car and they had an entire bag of Hot Pockets!!!! Maybe he knows about the diet! Are you out there? Are you a secret follower of this crazy blog?

I never did get the microwave I requested in my room either - adding extra difficulty to having said Hot Pockets. But not to worry, I have plenty at home waiting for me to enjoy them!

Happy Weekend!