Happy Chinese New Year!!

Hello everyone! February 3rd was the start of the Chinese New Year. I read my Chinese horoscope (I'm a dog, imagine that) and it said that if I start an exercise regimen within the first week of the new year then I would be more likely to stick with it. So I started yesterday. I did cardio via my stepper. I went for 15 minutes and that was enough. The video I have is supposed to be for beginner beginners, but I felt it was more fast paced than it should have been. I know how stupid that sounds since cardio is usually not slow paced, but I thought it would give me more time to learn the steps before killing me. I'll stick with it and before ya know it I'll have a job teaching step aerobic classes. You can stop laughing now. :)
So, I wanted to share how my eating has been this week so far. I don't know if it's the snow and the stress of driving in it, but I have been so hungry. I have been wanting to eat everything in sight. I have not, though. I have restrained myself, but a feeling of unsatisfaction has been with me night and day. I don't know what to do about this feeling. I am not sure what will satisfy me. Today, I have decided to not count my calories and have a free day.  I have not overeaten at all, but I am about to bake browines so I am in the danger zone now. Hopefully I can just eat one. Although one browine is only a 2x2 sqaure. I am thinking that maybe I am having sugar withdrawls because I have been trying to cut refined sugar out of my diet. This has been a really hard process, but I am plugging along. I am hoping that one day all of this torture will be worth it. I will be healthier and happier.I have some tips that have worked for me that I want to share. Also, I have a few things that I want to try. I will promise to try all of these things and report back to you. I think that having a variety of options available helps to curb cravings. Dr. Oz and other experts believe sugar is killing us more than fat. They say that sugar causes problems with high blood pressure, cholesterol, and insulin resistance which causes diabetes. So there are a bunch of sugar substances out there that you should not eat. For those of you that are interested you can visit http://www.doctoroz.com/challenge/sugar-detox   and look at the hidden sugars area. I have found that cutting all these things out are impossible. The main reason why is because the Atkins shakes and bars have become a staple of mine and they contain some sugar substances like maltose. I have to be to work by 5 am and you are supposed to eat within thirty minutes of waking up. When I get to work, I drink an Atkins Milk Chocolate Delight shake. These are really good. They contain 160 calories, 10g of fat, 15g of protein, and 1g of sugar. I don't like the strawberry or vanilla, but the dark chocolate ones are good too. There is a mocha one, but I haven't tried it because I don't like coffee. The trick to these shakes I think is the high  protein content, plus they are very convenient for an early morning breakfast. I think the liquid helps to fill me up, too. Plus I drink a bottle of water right after. So by 5:30 am I am done with my breakfast. Then about 8:30 I have a light snack. I usually eat a piece of fruit like an apple or orange. I also eat some string cheese or I have a wedge of laughing cow cheeese on some multi grain wasa bread. You can get wasa bread at Wal Mart and it is like a big crunchy cracker. At 11:30 I have lunch. I eat whatever I want that is within 400 calories. By the time I get home I have half of my calories left and can have a good afternoon snack around 3:00 pm to help me fight hunger until dinner. My afternoon snack is usually about 250 calories and most of the time I have some nuts and half of a protein bar by Atkins. The protein bars are actually good. I can stomach them. My favorite is one the double chocolate caramel bar. However, there are other Atkins bars that are not protein bars. So make sure the protein content is at least 9g. If you want to try the bars for free you can join right now at www.Atkins.com and they will send you three free bars to try. Also, special K protein powder for water is good. The only flavor I like is the pink lemonade. I put the whole thing in one bottle of water. It is really sweet, so if you don't like the sweet you could use a half of a packet. The trick to this protein powder is to put in the water at least an hour before you want to drink it. It doesn't dissolve into the water instantly so letting it sit for a bit ensures you won't be drinking chunks of protein powder which is gross. If anyone has tried the Special K shakes can you let me know how they are?A couple of things I want to try are 100% pure coconut water (sold in health stores like GNC), Rocco's 88 calorie brownies, and psyllium tablets. I hear that vita coco is the best with nothing added, but coconut water replenishes electrolytes and has less fat and sugar than energy drinks like gatorade. Coconut water helps to detoxify the body, but coconut water is said to speed up metabolism which burns more fat and therefore aids in weight loss. See my previous post about the brownies. Psyllium tablets should be taken with a whole glass of water and is basically the same type of fiber found in broccoli and other vegetables. The tablet acts as a natural appetite suppressant and expands in the stomach like regular fiber causing the stomach to slow down the digestive process. If you have any tips that work for you or tips you want to try, please share with me. Like I said, I think it takes a variety of things working together to help aid weight loss. Thanks for reading!! Wish me luck in the coming week and pray for my safety if I have to continue to drive on icy streets.  I weigh in on Monday and I will let you know how that goes. Talk to you soon,
Tracie