Getting back on track - PV Day

Morning Weigh in: 184.4 Lbs

Because I wasn't sure how much I weighed yesterday, I'm not sure how much weight I lost. Either way, it's a pretty good one :)  (Either 2.4 Lbs or 3 Lbs - Doesn't really matter as long as it's going down).

You cannot believe how much I want to be out of the 180's! I haven't been under in a very long time. It'll happen. I know it will :)

I decided to do 1 day PP/ 1 day PV for a few days. Just because I haven't had vegetables in a long time. So, i'm looking forward to my PV day today.

Breakfast: Coffee w/ non fat creamer w/ Activia Light
Lunch: 2 hot dogs w/ a little sauerkraut & Light Greek Yogurt w/ Cucumber Salad
Dinner: Sliced Beef w/ Taco Seasoning with Oat Bran Wrap w/ 2 Tbl non fat sour cream. Topped with a fresh tomato, parsley, garlic, hot pepper salsa.
Snack: 1 Activia Light & Cup of Tea & Salad, no dressing (cucumber, tomato and lettuce).

Taco Seasoned Beef w/ Fresh Salsa
Kinda ended up like pizza!

Great day. Feeling full. Loved dinner. The Oat Bran Wrap was good. Though i wasn't able to wrap anything in it because it would break apart. So what I did was just lay it down on a plate and put the beef on top, and then the salsa on top of the beef w/ the side of light sour cream. It was delicious! To me, next time, I will make the beef and salsa without the wrap. For one reason only, which is I would rather my Oat goes towards the Oat Cookie! Yep, I like that more! :) Especially with my cup of tea in the evening/morning. Don't get me wrong, the wrap was really good. It's just my preference with the cookie.

I wanted to do some exercise today, but didn't get the chance to do anything. Except running around 2 hyper boys all day! (I think i got a little exercise doing that!)  :)

Hope you all had a great Dukan Day. Looking forward to hearing about your day.

Dukan Loses?!?!

So, Dr. Dukan lost the law suit. People are saying that the Dukan diet is unhealthy. Lots of mixed reviews about the diet. No problem about whether it works or not. But the main problem is if it's healthy or not. And if it's good for you on the long term.
Have you ever wondered? Any thoughts about that?
Here's the link about losing the law suit if you're interested in reading it
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-14020154

I come from a family with a lot of "heart problem" issues and I've always wondered if this diet works for me, health wise. Although i LOVE how i can actually lose weight on it and feel good.

I'm not trying to encourage or discourage anybody about the diet. I'm just wondering how much you know and how much are you willing to risk? or if there are any health risks.

Just random thoughts! :)

Cruise Phase - 3rd day PP - Feeling Good!

Extremely busy day but although I'm exhausted, it was fun!  Feeling great after 3 days of PP. Feeling very comfortable with the food. Especially with the non fat, no carb, no calorie alternatives that I found. I still have to try out a few more things.

Breakfast: Non Fat Latte ( didn't have time to eat!)
Lunch: Shrimp in Alfredo Sauce (calorie free, non fat, no carb) over Miracle Noodles. I've got to say, this is the BEST thing ever!! It was soo good. I'm doing this again tomorrow for sure!

Cod Fillet with Miracle Noodles
& Alfredo Sauce

Snack: 1 Slice of cheese/ 1 diet Pepsi (haven't had that in such a long time)
Dinner: Cod Fillet grilled with a little salt and pepper & lemon juice, over miracle noodle w/ Alfredo sauce! AGAIN! yes, loving the sauce. And I'm still half way through the jar! ;) .. Cod is one of my favorite fish. It tasted really good with only salt, pepper and lemon juice. Should have more fish!

So, the shrimp Alfredo that i has for lunch, as i mentioned before, was really GOOD! I just sauteed the shrimp in a little olive oil spray (one spray) then added, salt, pepper and a dash of nutmeg.  When they were done I added the Alfredo Sauce, cooked it together (i used 2 TBL of sauce), then added the miracle noodles. It was tasty and I can't wait till tomorrow to have more, for lunch! :) hehe

I've noticed that I've also been eating less portions. Not intentionally. I just feel full and I stop. I used to eat a much more bigger portion.

I'm super happy to report that I feel a difference in my jeans today! After it being washed and in the dryer! (you know how they become a bit tight after) but it was actually loose! from the waist and the thigh areas. Also, I noticed today that I went a belt button down! I tried on a belt with my jeans and my waist was a bit smaller (one belt hole). - or whatever you call it. But I know you got what I'm trying to say! hehe

Hope you all had a great day. I'll be checking your blogs in a bit and see how you all are doing.

PP/ PV Rotation Days

I was wondering what PP/PV rotations you're using? I've been doing 1 day PP/ 1 day PV and I'm thinking of switching to 5PP/5PV... has anybody tried this? Any thoughts?

It seems a bit easier to do the 5PP/5PV with food preparation and having leftovers. And I think it might actually help with the weight loss.

Day 12 Quick Note - Emotional Eater?!

Sorry this is going to be fast. There has been no change in my weight. My day was pretty rough & soo many things happening in the wrong direction. Not talking totally about Dukan, but for the first time I realize that I AM AN EMOTIONAL EATER! I just ruined it. Ate things I wasn't supposed to it. 2 bread sticks, about a cup of rice crackers and a couple of bites of the White Sauce Pasta that I cooked for my family. Anyways, not good in any way. I have to admit I am disappointed in myself. It was a rough day, seriously. I know, no excuse to eat. Should've known better. 

I can't wait for this day to be over. Tomorrow is a new day. New way. Hopefully a new attitude towards the diet and the things that are going on.

Sorry for this post. But had to let it all out and be honest about everything.

Have a great day. 

Day 9 - Cruise Phase (PV)

Morning Weigh in: 184.2 Lbs (no no no no)!
Daily Gain : 0.4 Lbs
Total Weight Loss: 4.2 Lbs
Seriously? a GAIN?? Ohh, i was soo happy to be in the 183's and now back to the 184s. Could blame this on a few things but still, doesn't make me feel better.
Like, not enough food, digestive problems (constipation!) & almost that "TOM" . Between the last two reasons I feel very bloated and almost going to explode.
Ok, nothing I can do about the gain right now. I have to move on and concentrate on having a good day. After all, it's father's day!! Yay :) - We are going to celebrate it with the family. Big dinner and all. I made sure there's something for me to have, so i won't be going eating Non Dukan food. Good thing it's a PV day. Makes it easier for sure. 
Got to go now and prepare breakfast for my husband (in bed!) & let the boys give him his gift! Excited to see if he'll like it! :)

Happy Father's Day to all the great and wonderful dad's out there!
Hello, it's me again (I usually post the first part of my blog in the morning right after I weigh in! - Then finish it at the end of the day, when I'm supposedly done eating!) :)
So, here's how my day went :)

Breakfast:
- Cup of coffee w/ creamer
-  2 boiled eggs

Lunch:
- 2 home made burgers
- Sauteed Mushrooms - Using one spray of Olive Oil
- 2 slices of tomato
Dinner:
- 2 round tip steaks - slowly cooked
- 1/2 cup of non fat yogurt
- Mashed Cauliflower w/ a little non fat milk and 2 tbl non fat cream cheese

Sorry, got to cut this short now... Have a great day & I hope you had a wonderful Father's Day with your loved ones.

Day 8 - Cruise Phase (PP)

Morning Weigh In: 183.8 Lbs (YAY)
Daily Weight Loss: 0.6 Lbs
Total Weight Loss: 4.6 Lbs
Such a wonderful feeling. Too go down to the 183's! It's been a long time. And extremely happy that my PV day didn't affect my weight loss this time around :)

Breakfast:
- Cup of Coffee w/ Creamer
- 2 scrambled Eggs w/ 1 sausage

Snack:
- Cup of Tea

Lunch:
- (Check notes below)! :)

Dinner:
- 2 (thin) chicken breasts .. breaded with 2 tbl of Oat Bran
- A little light mayo & ketchup with it
- 2 Laughing cow non fat cheese wedges

A happy day for me for sure. The fact that I lost a little weight is fantastic. And really, it just made my day. I kinda skipped lunch today because I went to a fashion show. After the show they had an open buffet and guess what? I had NOTHING! There wasn't anything that I could eat so I just ended up having a cup of coffee :) - pretty cool, ha? lol  I'm proud of myself for not digging in the buffet. I usually like buffets and love to try everything there. I stuck to my grounds and had good self control.

Since I had an early dinner, I think I'm going to need some snacks for later. But I promise, they'll be Dukan friendly! :)

Have a great day everybody!

Day 4 Cruise Phase - (PP)

Morning weigh in: 186 Lbs
No change on weight this morning
Total Weight Loss: 2.4 Lbs
Disappointed. 4 days into cruise and I just managed to gain weight and not lose any. Not sure if I'm doing something wrong. Got to get back to basics and try harder. Try and mix up my food. Today is a PP day. I would hope to find a drop in my weight tomorrow.
Here's how my day went:
Breakfast:
- Cup of Tea
- 2 Hard Boiled Eggs
- 1 Tbls Labaneh
Lunch:
- Home made beef burger w/ a little ketchup
- 1 non fat laughing cow cheese wedge

Snack:
- 2 bites of donuts
- Green Tea
- Cup of Coffee
Dinner:
- Miracle Noodle Soup w/ chicken bits (hot sauce, soy sauce & ginger)
- A small bread bun :(  

Ahh, i just gave in and had 2 bites of donuts and the bread later on. Why why? I wasn't even feeling hungry. (i guess that's why I'm over weight! I eat when I'm not hungry!)

On the other hand, I did pretty well with water today!! Yay! Had lots to drink.
Oh well, tomorrow is a new day. Have a great day all.

Day 1 - Cruise Phase

Morning Weight: 184 Lbs
Total Weight Loss: 4.4 Lbs

First day on the Cruise Phase. Another hectic day! Been having a lot of these days lately! Oh well, it keeps me busy so i'm not really complaining. I thought i'd had more veggies today, but because i was on the go a lot, i mainly had protein.

I had:
- Store bought Roasted Chicken (part of the breast and a thigh)
- 1/2 tomato
- 1 small cucumber
- 1 small spoon of Nutella (bad bad bad)
- 3 slices of Mozzarella cheese
- 2 slices of cheddar cheese
- Non Fat Chai Latte

Trying to drink a lot of water. And again, i just realized I haven't been eating any Oat Bran! Will try and remember that.

Haven't been exercising lately, which is unfortunate. My schedule has been really awkward and I need to work more on trying to find some time to work out.

Survived Pizza!

Yes, you read it right! I survived pizza! and some good pizza if i may add! Gourmet Style umm, looked and smelled delicious. I didn't even have a bite! Soo proud of myself .. had to post it! :)

Have a great day everybody!

Day four of five - Attack Phase

Morning weigh in: 186.4 Lbs
Daily weight loss: Zero!
Total weight loss: 2.0 Lbs
So, no loss today. Bummer! But it kinda is the same way every time I'm in the 186's  - 185! It takes forever to get under 185. I can't even remember the last time I was under 185. I was hoping to lose 4 Lbs in the 5 days of Attack (what the chart said I should lose). I have one more day to go. So we'll see. I'll try and do better.
It was a rough day. Especially in the morning. Had a preschool activity with my 3yr old that lasted all morning. Couldn't eat anything. Came back got busy with the kids and took forever to prepare something to eat. It was very challenging. But I stuck to Dukan.

Here's what I had:
- Non Fat Latte
- 1/2 cup of Non Fat cottage cheese
- 2 Miracle Noodles
- Beef w/ a little soy sauce and fresh ginger
- A sip of beer/ before i realized that I can't have it! Only 1 sip, I promise! :)
- 1 non fat/sugar free ice cream

Still didn't manage to put in any workout. Before I started Dukan i was very active and did at least 4 days a week at the gym. Taking Cycling classes/body pump and general cardio. I took the month off from the gym to try and manage things around the house. I wanted to put in my treadmill (which is in the garage) and start working out on it, but I still didn't get to that. Maybe over the weekend.

Tomorrow will be a better day!

Day Three of Five - Attack Phase

Morning Weigh in: 186.4 Lbs
Weight Loss: 0.4 Lbs
Total Weight Loss: 2 Lbs

Was hoping for a little more weight loss, but that's ok. As long as it's going down! That's what I learned after trying soo many different diets. Focus on the weight loss no matter how little it may seem. It's heading in the right way for sure. Slowly at times but steadily! We'll see :)

First, a big thank you to "Veerukka" who follows my blog. She sent me an email with the P90X schedule/program. I'll share it with everybody in a different post soon.

As for the day, I got to admit i was hungry at different times throughout the days. Almost ate a bite of pumpkin spice bread which i made for my boys. But i was able to resist. I really need to prepare more Dukan Friendly. Makes it easier for sure.

Oh, as i'm writing this post i just realized i forgot to have my Oat Bran! It's important to have it. I got to rememeber eating it! :)

Here's what i had today:
- 2 hot dogs
- Non fat latte
- Salmon cakes (4) - Gluten Free & Dukan Approved!
- 2 fat free mozzarella cheese

Hope you are all doing well on Dukan. Keep us updated with your progress!

Cheers!

P90X

Got the P90X Dvd's, now i'm not really sure how to start. I found a lot of schedules online, but if anybody has any recommendations, please let me know. I'm thinking of starting next week. Also, i'm not sure what equipment i need to have for the workout.
I know i want to try and do the P90X, i just still don't know much about it and i need to research it more!

Back to Dukan!

Hello to all my dear Dukaneers! It's been a long time & after a few months of trying to figure out what I want for myself and after some craziness, I've decided to come back and start the Dukan Diet again. Hopefully this time it'll be different. Hoping to lose the weight that I need to lose using Dukan. I've tried it before and it really works! You just have to stick to it and do it right.

I've decided to start next Monday. I'm giving myself time to prepare what I need to start this journey again. One thing that I've learned from doing the Dukan before is that preparing your food is a key element to this diet. If you have the "allowed foods" available, you won't be looking for alternatives when you're hungry.

I mentioned on my last post that I've been tracking my calorie intake and exercise through a website called www.myfitnesspal.com and I'll still be doing that, even while on Dukan. It gives you a good idea about different nutrients in your food and how many calories you burn when you exercise. It's pretty cool.

See you Monday!

Way too slow! - Cruise Phase- PP

Morning Weigh in : 188 Lbs

Yes, weight is going down, but so awfully slowly. Not the diet problem, but me. Haven't stuck to Dukan 100% since i started it! I'm going to do it today. I'm going to make it my 1st REAL Dukan PP Day! Yes, that's the plan!

Breakfast:

- Cup of coffee with non fat milk

- Non fat fruit yogurt

Exercise:

- 1 hr of cycling/spinning class

- 20 minutes of cardio work out (Elliptical)

Lunch:

- Miracle Pasta with a little soy sauce, topped with a lean hamburger which was also topped with a fried egg! Yummy! That was really good!

Snack:

- 1 stick of non fat cheese

Dinner:

- Lunch was soo good that i made it again! It was delicious the 2nd time around too. Maybe I'll have this tomorrow too! :)

Snack:

- Non fat chocolate mousse

- a couple of bites of banana cream pie (without the cream, just a little crust)

I wanted to go through the day with NO mistakes! Didn't work out at the end :( i couldn't resist dessert after dinner (we had some people over).

Going to the gym was good today. I was a little weak though as i was recovering from a stomach bug or something since yesterday. So i definitely felt it at the gym, but i survived it! :)

Cruise Phase (PV)

Morning Weigh in: 188.4 Lbs

Not a big weight loss this morning, but it's down and i'll take it.

Breakfast:

- 1 soft pretzel (Bad)!

Snack:

- Non Fat Latte

Lunch:

- 3 slices of Oatbran and Flax meal bread w/ cream cheese

- Few slices of tomatoes

Snack:

- 1 fat free cheese stick

Dinner:

-  Shirataki noodles made with tomatoe sauce and ground lean beef (YUMMY)!

- 1/2 a Glass of Red Wine

No exercise today! Woke up with a really bad headache that lasted most of the afernoon! On the good side, i signed up for Bikram Hot Yoga!! Yes, i'm going to try it. I've read a lot about it and it's one of the best exercises to lose a lot of calories! So, why not try it?! right?? :) Did any of you try it? any thoughts on it?

Hopefully tomorrow i can make it to the gym and make up for today's lack of exercise!

Have a great day!

Survived the weekend! - Cruise Phase (PP)

Morning Weigh in  : 188.6 lbs  (Weight Gain)

Yes, i'm back up to the 188's .. ugh ... but it could've been worse. Today is a new day and i know it'll be a better day!

Here's what i had:

Breakfast:

- Cup of coffee

- 1 non fat fruit yogurt

Exercise:

- 1 hr cycling

- 20 minutes cardio / elleptical machine

Lunch:

- 2 eggs (sunny side up)

- 2 slices of ham

Snack:

- 1 fat free cheese stick

- 3 small slices of Oatbran Flaxmeal Bread w/ a little fat free whipped cream cheese (Thank you Charlotte for this amazing recipe! Find the recipe here.

Dinner:

- Grilled Skirt Steak

- 4 sticks of Asparagaus

- Baked Baby Bell Pepper

- Glass of Wine

I know it's supposed to be a PP day, but i ended up have vegetables for dinner. Overall it was a good day i think. Felt very energetic and ready for the day after my work out in the morning. Tomorrow i hit the gym again. Hopefully, i can manage a couple of hours. We'll see.

While surfing the net today i cam accross a very interesting way to make rice from califlour. Very simple and very easy. I still didn't try it, but i will SOON. Here's the link

http://video.about.com/lowcarbdiets/Low-Carb-Cauliflower-Rice.htm

if you give it a try, please let me know your feedback :)

Cruise Phase (PV)

Morning Weigh in: 189.5

Weight Gain: 0.7 Lbs (Yikes)

Wow, i really did mess up last night  & it showed on the scales this morning. Okay, i won't let this get to me. After all it's my bad judgement with food that caused this. Today is a new day. I should be doing better with a PV day (with my cravings that is) :)

Things that I've noticed:

• I have to eat better during the day, so i don't feel hungry and eat whatever i find in the evening
• I need to prepare some Dukan foods for snacking (which I've had non the last few days)
• Need to prepare some good desserts from all those wonderful recipes out there! Although i usually don't like dessert and sweets, i think being on this diet is bumping my cravings for sugary things!
• Need to drink more water!
• I"m going to try to boost up my exercise. Maybe i can put in some more time at the gym, after my 1 hr cycling class
• Stop telling myself one piece of this won't affect my weight (speaking of non dukan food). Does it happen to you? I've been doing it lately. Not good. And that explains the lack of weight loss!

Breakfast:

- Cup of Coffee w/ non fat creamer

Lunch:

-  2 egg omelet with mushrooms and 2% grated cheddar cheese

- Non fat, sugar free, chocolate mousse

Snack:

- 2 roasted chicken drum sticks (with no skin)

- Non fat latte

Dinner:

- Roasted Chicken Breast

- Sliced fresh mushroom w/ rosemary sauteed in a drop of olive oil (then wiped off).

Cruise Phase (PP)

Morning Weigh in : 188.8

 Since i haven't weighed myself in the last few days I'm not sure how much weight i gained or lost. But from my last weigh in i have added  0.4 lbs.

Breakfast:

- Cup of Coffee

- Oat Bran -made with water

Exercise:

- 1 hr of cycling

Lunch:

- 2 scrambled eggs w/ 1 tsp of shredded Parmesan cheese (2% fat)

Snack:

- Non Fat Chocolate Mousse

Dinner:

- 2 lean beef burgers with a little non fat feta cheese

- 3 small roasted beef chunk pieces

Had dinner much later than i usually do. Which resulted in me eating a lot! I was starving. My bad. But i had to run some errands with my hubby that took longer than expected. This is a very important thing to do. You have to eat well throughout the day and not let your self without food , because you'll get hungry eventually and you'll start eating more and whatever is around.

Work out was good. I"m happy that i managed to go cycling 2 days in a row. Will try my best to go tomorrow too. I'm aiming for at least 5 days a week at the gym. Hopefully I'll do that this week :) I feel soo great after a good work out! Even though my body is usually sore! :) 

Have a great Dukan Day everybody.

Update: messed up with food after i posted.

Finally Better

Thanks for all your emails/concerns about my health. I'm fine now but my two little boys (3 and 1) are now sick with a fever and same symptoms. Poor boys.

I've been sticking to Dukan as much as i can. And i think i did a good job doing that. My morning weigh in was 188.8 Lbs. Not too bad for not being 100% Dukan. I'll take it! :)

I'm thinking of starting 2 PP days tomorrow to make up for the last few days of PV.  I'll try my best to prepare for my PP days today, so i have everything i need right there. For my experience, it helps big time. If I'm hungry, i always find Dukan friendly food around! :)

Have a great Dukan Day!