Friday, March 22, 2013

Changing The Way I Eat Week 4

I'm either on day 22 or day 23 (believe it's day 23) of eating differently, and unlike the last three weeks, I don't think I'll be updating daily. I've been under 1500mg of sodium each day except the one I posted about in one of my entries previously (where I barely went over).

I've also given up caffeine in the last 23 days, and I don't miss it. To be honest, I don't know why I ever went back to drinking caffeine when I gave it up before (probably because I thought I could handle it). Either way, I don't drink coffee, so that's also why it's been easy(ier) to give it up.

I'm anticipating my first day of blowing my sodium intake on Easter (March 31st). It's ok to eat more every now and then, but the important part is sticking to it (which I've done).

Saturday, March 16, 2013

Movie Drought Is Over

It's been a while since I've last been to the movies, or at least it seems like it's been a while. In truth, it's been a couple of weeks since I went to the Best Picture Showcase at AMC (which was the last time I had been to the movies). I would have gone sooner, but I was waiting for my new glasses to come in. I didn't go to the movies yesterday (Friday), but I did go on Wednesday and I saw Oz: The Great and Powerful.

I won't go into detail what the movie was about, I'll just say that I felt disappointed after seeing the movie. It wasn't as good as I thought it would be which is why I feel that way. If your a fan of visual effects, then you'll probably want to see this movie in 3D, but I didn't find it necessary and saw it in regular 2D. I found the story at times to be a bit rushed, and at times I felt the movie dragged (was slow) in parts, particularly the beginning of the movie.

Overall, if I had to rate the movie, I'd say the movie was ok/average.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Changing The Way I Eat - Week 3 (Updated Daily)

Today marks the beginning of week three. Week three of eating better that is, or a low sodium diet, if you want to put a label on it. It's also the beginning of week #3 with no caffeine. Since I've started this diet of mine, my anxiety level seems to have dropped, and all around I feel better, which is a good sign that it's working (or at least I think it is).

Day 15 - For breakfast, I had a glass of yogurt (not sure calories, but sodium wise, was the same 150mg to 170mg), and some of my trail mix (140 calories, 0mg). For lunch, I had 2 servings of brown rice (300 calories, 0mg), and two tablespoons of Creamy Chipotle Ranch (170 calories, 150mg).

For dinner, I had a peanut butter & boysenberry jam sandwich (on a bagel. Not sure the calories for the bread, but it had 140mg of sodium). The peanut butter I had half the serving, (so again not sure calories wise, but sodium wise, 70mg). I also had a tortilla (171mg of sodium), a tablespoon of mayo (not sure calorie wise, but 70mg), and a cheese (not sure calorie wise, but 180mg). I also had a banana (102 calories, 1mg)

Day 16 - For breakfast, I had Honey Nut Cheerios Medley Crunch. (160 calories, 120mg) and the milk (120 calories,150mg). For lunch, I actually had a snack of my peanuts and my trail mix (300 calories, 0mg).

For dinner, I had a serving of pasta (not sure on the calories, but 0mg), two tablespoons of Chipotle Creamy Ranch (170 calories, 150mg), turkey meat (660 calories, 285mg), a tortilla (not sure calories, 171mg), a piece of cheese (not sure calories, 180mg), and a tablespoon of Spicy Chipotle Pepper (25 calories, 85mg).

Day 17 - For breakfast, I had Honey Nut Cheerios Medley Crunch. (160 calories, 120mg) and the milk (120 calories,150mg). For lunch, I actually had a snack of my peanuts and my trail mix (300 calories, 0mg). For lunch, I didn't have anything to eat.

I had an early dinner instead. I had a chicken sandwich (the tendercrisp one with Honey Mustard), and a street taco, with water (ate at Carl's Jr. before going to the store). Sodium wise, that was 1270mg, which put me slightly over the 1500 mark, which isn't bad.

Day 18 - I didn't have a chance to eat breakfast this morning, as I got up and gave myself a haircut and then went to church. For lunch, I had a rice cake (chocolate) (60 calories, 40mg), some chips (130 calories, 10mg per serving), two tablespoons of mayo (200 calories, 140mg), and a trail mix granola bar (140 calories, 65mg).

For Dinner, I had two turkey burgers (660 calories, 285mg), two tortillas instead of buns (171mg each), two tablespoons of mayo (200 calories, 140mg), and two slices of Swiss cheese  (50mg). I also had potatoes with no seasoning (0mg) and a tablespoon of spicy chipotle pepper spread (25 calories, 85mg).

Day 19 - Had a bowl of cinnamon life cereal (120 calories, 150mg) and milk (120 calories, 150mg).

I forgot to update the rest of day 19 and day 20, so I won't go ahead and put what I ate, but that for the two days, I did stay under 1500 mg.

Day 21 - I didn't eat anything in the morning. Instead I ate a late lunch/early dinner. I had a small Lobster Salad sub from Quiznos. I had it on the Artisan Wheat Bread. I don't know how much sodium it had, but it was less than the 1,090 sodium that's on the nutrition menu (the bread listed on Quiznos website is 1,090), so at the very most, that's what mine was, but wheat is lower in sodium. Either way, for the day, I'm below 1500mg of sodium for the day. I had wheat noodles (0mg) with two tablespoons of mayo (200 calories, 140mg), and banana chips.

Thursday, March 7, 2013

Changing The Way I Eat - Week 2 (Updated Daily)

Today marks the beginning of day 8. I've now stuck to my lifestyle change (I don't really want to refer to it as a diet, because that would imply I'm going to come off of it at some point, and that is not my intention). My intention is to stick with this permanently. With that said, I will now go forward with each day as I did last week, and like last week, I will update daily.

Day 8 - For breakfast, I had 120 calories in the milk, 150mg of sodium, and Cinnamon Jacks 150 calories, 130mg of sodium. For lunch, I had a bowl of Success brown rice (300 calories, 0mg of sodium), 2 tbsp of Marie's Caesar dressing (170 calories, 150mg), a slice of swiss cheese (35mg), a banana (102 calories, 1mg), Yoplait Light Yogurt (Blueberry Patch, 90 calories, 80mg), and a Fiber One Chewy Bar (Chocolate, 90 calories, 80mg).

For Dinner, I had  I had two burgers (no buns), nothing added to it (just chili powder, not as much as yesterday, around 60mg worth). Calories (380 per burger, 75mg per burger). Had two slices of swiss cheese (35mg each), couple of fresh sliced Jalapenos, a bowl of Success brown rice (300 calories, 0mg of sodium), and Chipotle Creamy Chipotle Ranch (2 tbsp. 170 calories, 150mg). I also had two glasses (8 oz. of Sierra Mist, putting me below my goal of 1500mg of sodium for the day once again).

Day 9 - For breakfast, I had 90 calories or less in milk (skim), 135mg, and Cinnamon Jacks 150 calories, 130mg of sodium. For lunch, I had a light lunch. I had a banana (102 calories, 1mg), Yoplait Light Yogurt (Strawberry, 90 calories, 80mg), and I had a Nestle Strawberry Milk (360 calories, 260mg), along with around 40 pieces of unsalted pieces of peanuts (160 calories, 0mg).

For Dinner, I had three potatoes (fresh, 330 calories, low in sodium, will replace with amount later). I added a little of the chili powder (less than 100mg worth), and added some cilantro (2mg). I added two tablespoon's of Marie's Caesar's dressing (170 calories, 150mg), and added two tablespoons of the new Spicy Chipotle Pepper Sandwich Spread & Dip (50 calories, 170mg). I also had three glasses (8 oz.) of Diet Sierra Mist (0 calories, 105mg).

Day 10 - For breakfast, I had 1/2 cup Oatmeal (with water) for breakfast. Cinnamon Oatmeal to be exact. Results were 220mg Sodium, and 160 calories. For lunch, I had a Fiber One Chewy Bar (Chocolate, 90 calories, 80mg), a Yoplait Light Yogurt (Strawberry, 90 calories, 80mg), and a banana (102 calories, 1mg).

For dinner, I made a package of fresh chicken (180x4=720 calories, 70x4=280mg), a plate of pasta (400 calories, 20mg), two pieces of swiss cheese (140calories, 70mg), and two tablespoons of Chipotle Creamy Ranch (170 calories, 150mg), and two tablespoons of Spicy Chipotle Pepper Sandwich Spread & Dip (50 calories, 170mg). For drink, I had water.

Day 11 -  For breakfast, I had 90 calories or less in milk (skim), 135mg, and Cinnamon Jacks 150 calories, 130mg of sodium. For lunch, I had a Fiber One Chewy Bar (Chocolate, 90 calories, 80mg), a Yoplait Light Yogurt (Harvest Peach, 90 calories, 80mg), a banana (102 calories, 1mg), and unsalted peanuts (20 pieces, 80 calories, 0mg).

For dinner, I made a package of extra lean ground pork (150x5=750 calories, 120mg), same amount of noodles as last night (400 calories, 20mg), three pieces of cheese (210 calories, 105mg), two tablespoons of Chipotle Creamy Ranch (170 calories, 150mg), and two tablespoons of Spicy Chipotle Ranch Sandich Spread & Dip (50 calories, 170mg).

Day 12 - For breakfast, I had 90 calories or less in milk (skim), 135mg, and Cinnamon Jacks 150 calories, 130mg of sodium. For lunch, I had a banana (102 calories, 1mg), a Strawberry Yoplait Light Yogurt (90 calories, 80mg), a Hidden Valley Trail Mix Bar (not sure calories, 65mg).

For dinner, I had another serving of noodles (400 calories, 20mg), four potatoes (no salt added, 440 calories, 0mg), two tablespoons of  Caesar Dressing (170 calories, 150mg), two tablespoons of Chipotle Ranch (170 calories, 150mg), and a tablespoon of the Spicy Chipotle Pepper Spread & Dip (25 calories, 85mg). I also had three glasses of Diet Sierra Mist (0 calories, 105mg).

Day 13- For breakfast, I had 90 calories or less in milk (skim), 135mg, and Honey Nut Cheerios (Medley Crunch), 160 calories, 120mg of sodium. For lunch, I had the same Trail Mix Bar (140 calories, 65mg), a yogurt, Peach (90 calories, 80mg), and half a banana (51 calories, 1mg).

 For dinner, I had chicken (fresh chicken cooked at home). Didn't add any salt, just added chili powder (a tablespoon worth). That added 100-120mg worth of sodium, the chicken itself, 75mg of sodium for 4 oz of chicken, which I think mine was, or double that. I had a salad (20mg), with two and a half tablespoons of Caesar dressing (255 calories, 225mg), a tortilla (171mg), and half a tablespoon of Spicy Chipotle Pepper Spread & Dip (12.5 calories, 42.5mg), and I also had a glass of yogurt (Strawberry, not sure on the calories, but sodium was anywhere from 150mg to 170mg).

Day 14 - For breakfast, I had a glass of yogurt (not sure calories, but sodium wise, was the same 150mg to 170mg), and had a banana. For lunch, I was at the movies, so had a bag of banana chips (150 calories, 0mg), and Milk Chocolate Almonds (220 calories, 80mg). I had a Dasani water bottle (0mg, obviously).

For dinner, I'm having a couple of turkey burgers (not sure on the calories, but sodium wise, around 150mg each). I had a salad (20mg) with Chipotle Ranch dressing (170 calories, 150mg), a tortilla (171mg), a slice of cheese (180mg), a tablespoon of Chipotle Pepper Spread & Dip (25 calories, 85mg), and 4 glasses of diet Sierra Mist (0 calories, 140mg).

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Reducing Stress


Stress. It exists in many different situations. Some are easier to get rid of than others. There are natural stresses (job, car, etc.), then there are the ones you can't really change because of not having the financial means to do so. For me, that would be living where I'm at. I live with my father, but I feel very stressed out living here. My goal this year is to move out (somehow). Not sure how I can do that as of yet, as I'm without a job and a car of my own at the moment, but that's my goal and my mindset (to move out).

Road To Wrestlemania Looks More Clear

After last night's Raw. I'm looking forward to ordering the ppv as I normally do, but I'm not sure exactly how I feel about the card so far. I think it's fairly decent, but could be stronger, especially considering it's being held in the stadium where the Jets and Giants play. Then again, I can see why the card isn't as strong, as next year is Wrestlemania 30.

Anyways, the card so far looks like this:
John Cena vs. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson (WWE Championship Match)
Jack Swagger vs. Alberto Del Rio (World Heavyweight Championship Match)
CM Punk vs. The Undertaker (The Streak; Taker 20-0 going in)

Those are just the matches announced. My prediction for the rest of the card:
The Miz vs. Antonio Cesaro (U.S. Championship Match)
Ryback vs. Mark Henry
Randy Orton, Sheamus, and Big Show vs. The Shield
Daniel Bryan vs. Kane (winner gets tag team belts), or they'll face some sort of tag team and defend the belts, but a Daniel Bryan vs. Kane match makes more sense.

Friday, March 1, 2013

Changing The Way I Eat - Week 1 (Updated Daily)

As a result of my eye pressure, and the fact it can be lowered, and the fact I've been trying to lose weight (but haven't handled the foot aspect part very well prior, I have before), I've decided to keep a blog entry (updated daily for the next few weeks, and if possible, longer).

My goal is to eat at the minimum 1500mg of sodium a day, and at or less than 2,000 calories a day and see what that does both weight wise and other areas.

Yesterday morning (day 1), I didn't eat anything, and didn't eat anything until the afternoon. Had a slice of bread, two pieces of ham, and cheese, and a bag of Sunchips.

Just to put it in perspective, these are the results (sodium & calories wise)

French Onion bag Sunchips - 210 calories, 240mg sodium
2 Slices of Ham - 50 calories, 600mg sodium
1 slice of cheese - 60 calories, 200mg sodium

What I take from that, is eating processed foods, is not good, haha. So I probably can't stick to that 1500mg of sodium a day, but I can limit my in take of sodium whenever I get the chance. Would be easier if I was working, but I'm not.

For dinner last night, I ate at Corky's Kitchen & Bakery, and had a Basa Filet with rice, steamed vegetables, and a dinner roll. For my drinks, I normally would have ordered a soda with caffeine in it, but I had Sprite instead, and I'm on my third day now with no caffeine. I cut it out at one point when I had an anxiety/panic attack and have made the decision to cut it out once again.