Onto consolidation!

I was feeling really light yesterday, so I looked forward to my weigh in!  I was delighted to see:

117.0!!!

That is after my first cheat meal (which I had last friday, a veggie panini and chips and queso!) and after my first day of consolidation.  So far I've had a piece of gluten free fiber bread and a cup of frozen strawberries each day.  And I haven't really gained any weight, yet... but it looks like I have quite the busy weekend with going out and brunches and stuff, so I'm kind of worried!  It will definitely be my first alcohol since 6/17, so I'm a bit nervous about getting really drunk really quick.

I've also been eating oat bran cookies, which are so much better than the galettes, especially with some sugar free strawberry jelly on them!  Plus I can make several ahead of time, which totally works for my schedule.

I'm looking forward to see if I can maintain 117 during this phase.  My jeans, which I haven't worn in years, look AMAZING now!

Under goal!!

I haven't weighed myself in almost a week because I haven't been at work (I've used my cheap home scale but I never trust it).  But I've been feeling skinny and my skinny clothes are fitting near perfect, and I tried on the jeans I've been wearing and was able to pull them down without unbuttoning!  So I was very much looking forward to returning to work today so I could weigh myself. 

118.9

Wow.  I'm soooo happy!  And I can't even have a cheat meal until this weekend, so I'm looking forward to seeing what the scale says on Friday.  I wish I could go shopping to celebrate, but I don't need to!  I have about 10 pairs of $150+ each jeans that haven't been worn in about 4 years.  Luckily they are still in style.  So my original goal was 120, and the Dukan website said I'd reach that on 07/15/2011.  I'm actually thinking that I can reach my ammended goal of 118 by that date! 

I have tried a few new things, like spaghetti squash alfredo (using the hungry girl alfredo sauce recipe), I've been making protein shakes with Syntrax Nectar powder, it has some amazing flavors, and unsweetened plain almond milk.  It makes for a 1 carb protein shake.  I've also learned that I can eat asparagus, a vegetable I previously despised, if I dip it in yellow mustard.  Which is far healthier than buttery sauce anyways! 

I'm off to do the happy dance!!

Oh no plateau...

Today the fancy work scale said 120.7... sigh.  But my body fat was down again, which is good!  I think I'm officially changing my goal from 120 to 117, as I'm now recalling that 120 was my panic weight back in my skinny days.  I was fine as long as I stayed under 120.  I just never even thought I'd see it again, which is why I didn't enter anything less into Dukan. 

Still no cheating, but I've added about half a cup of unsweetened plain almond milk.  It only has 3 grams of fat and 1 carb per cup, and my fat has been under 10 grams per day, so I figured I needed just a little bit more fat.  Plus milk has 12 grams of sugar per cup!  I've also had some days where I can't eat more than 800 calories.  And I can't force myself to eat veggies or yogurt when I'm not hungry.  Now I can eat an entire bag of tortilla chips when I'm not hungry - funny how that works. 

Let's see how this weekend goes.  T-8 days until my first cheat celebration meal!

Sweet victory... so close I can smell it!

Oh maybe that's not victory I smell, it's the sweet (sometimes) smell of ketosis!  The past few days my breath has rotated back and forth between smelling (and tasting) like maple syrup and acetone (nail polish remover).  I was actually worried about getting pulled over this weekend (4th of July in the US, and in Texas we have a "no refusal weekend", which requires anyone suspected of drinking and driving to submit to a breathalizer test) because my breath can totally be confused with the smell of alcohol.  Ketosis is a state that the body gets in when it is using stored fat for energy.  I believe the liver processes the fat then the kidneys process the byproduct and processing the byproduct creates the acetone smell.  But don't quote me on that description, I'm no doctor ;-)  Lots of people strive to stay in ketosis because it means their low carb diet is working and the fat is melting off.  Which could TOTALLY be true because this morning:

120.4!!!

Now, I will admit I got a hair cut and lost about 3 inches off my very thin hair, and I was wearing a skirt instead of lightweight pants.  But those combined shouldn't account for too much weight.  My original goal was 120 with an estimated completion date of 7/15/2011 but I think I'm still going to shoot for 118, much closer to my "skinny" weight.  I didn't eat anything new this weekend, but i did make a tofu scramble.  And I took one bite of it and spit it out and threw the rest out.  It tasted EXACTLY like scrambled eggs, which make me gag.  I think I'm officially done with tofu.  Actually, I did eat something new - artichokes!  I found some frozen ones at a fancy grocery store here and they are really good with some vinegar and garlic powder.  Today I had a "latte" for breakfast, I brought a salad, some grilled eggplant, some artichokes, a ff feta cheese and cherry tomato caprese style salad, and a slice of ff cheese.  I've been averaging 850-1000 calories and that is after forcing myself to eat sometimes.  And I am now fitting into ALL of my skinny jeans, and am now striving for another pair of jeans that I super shrunk.  They are a size 25 in 7FAMK - yikes!

Holy temptation!

Aside from my accidental dry roasted edamame cheat and a bowl of cabbage, I have stuck to this diet 100% for what has now been 16 days. Yesterday I tried out a new hair salon and while I was waiting for my stylist, I was offered a complimentary glass of wine.  I grudgingly turned that one down.  But today... it was a good friend's birthday brunch at my favorite buffet place that comes with unlimited champagne, my weakness.  So I ate a big Dukan approved diet breakfast prior to heading out and convinced myself that I would just drink coffee.  I even walked the buffet line trying to convince myself to have an early cheat meal.  Come on, enchiladas, sweet potato chips, unlimited guacamole, the most amazing desserts...  I'm not sure how but I stuck with coffee.  I am at 123 (at least last time I weighed) and I don't want to delay my goal of 120 longer than I have to.  Plus, my first celebration meal is scheduled for 7/15, less than two weeks away.  I am still debating what to do for my first celebration meal.  I'm thinking date night with the hubby.

I've been having a problem of not wanting to eat much of anything lately.  I don't really feel burned out, just not hungry!  Actually, I could pretty much live the rest of my life without eating any more tofu, but I've been that way long before this diet.  I keep having to force myself to have some yogurt or cottage cheese, or a big glass of milk.  One of my fav snacks lately has been a tub of 0% plain Greek yogurt with 2 tablespoons of sugar free jelly, and a packet of stevia.  Tastes just like sugary yogurt.  I'm going to try making a tofu scramble today or tomorrow.  And yesterday I made some "quesadillas" with the egg white/dry milk pancakes and fat free cheese.  Not bad, but definitely didn't fix my Mexican food cravings.  I've pretty much been living off those pancakes.  And I've just been eating oat bran dry.

I don't have any other social events planned in the next two weeks, so I shouldn't have to worry about any more temptation :)