Day One - January 1, 2012

I woke up today with one thought on my mind - get on the scale!  After a ruinous last few days at the office before Christmas chomping on chocolate, I had managed to lose ground and gain ounces over Christmas that last Sunday amounted to over four pounds.  This morning, I had no expectations of where my weight would be.  I had been more careful, generally speaking, and had experimented somewhat with this new way of eating but still gave myself permission to eat Chinese (homemade mind you) food two days ago. 


With eyes wide open, I gazed at the numbers jumping on the dial - I had lost four pounds.  Funny, I was pleased but then I thought, I had not yet seriously begun my new journey and had lost weight.  Where is my brain - I should have been jumping for joy.  That came a little later - after a shower to wake me up and a good breakfast of eggs and pancakes.  Yes, you read it right - eggs and pancakes.  I am in charge of my eating (a refreshing change) and balanced my carb choice (whole grain, homemade pancakes) with a good serving of protein (two eggs) plus blueberries and natural yoghurt.  It was delicious and I moved away from the table with a thrill I had made it through my first meal followed by the immediate knee jerk reaction - what about the next 1094?  Ha!  Need some tuning up in that realm!

Spent a beautiful afternoon in the sun in a local park watching the skaters glide over a picturesque lagoon with Viennese music hovering in the icy air.  Camera in hand, I snapped pictures of shadows and skate blades and a blue, blue sky reflected in a very caribean-blue river (or was that wishful thinking?).  My partner and I slipped and slided our way around the icy paths where, just months ago, we had played with our grandchildren in the fall leaves capped off with toasty marshmallows before sunset. 

Back home for a quick slurp of sweet potato and coconut milk soup (did I tell you my partner is the official chef in our home!) - all accepted menu items, I might add - accompanied by two Nairn Oak Cakes topped with organic peanut butter.  I loved it and was fueled for the next task - clearing some Christmas clutter. 

We had dinner out to celebrate the New Year and chose an Indian restaurant - A Taste of India.  Keeping in mind this was a celebration, I ordered cautiously but did not cheat myself out of butter chicken - just ate less of it and watched the carbs.  They offered us these super good chips made from chick pea flour and other than the extra measure of fat, they fit right in to my quest to avoid sugar and sugar-like foods. 

Then it was home to our cozy house with no crazy cravings to fight as I watched a little TV before more picture taking to capture my feelings/thoughts for Day One.  Symptom check:  eyes  clear; head clear, a few aches & pains (mostly muscle); high energy; happy.  All is good in Eileen-land!

AND, the picture -  a little bizarre, but I am accepting the fact that the high number on the scale is at least 98% a result of my eating habits.  It is on the table, fork and knife near by - a visual of my journey in 2012 toward a healthy, active retirement in the years to come - it is mostly about what I eat!

Join me tomorrow as more is revealed to me - and shared with you!