BACK TO CHICAGO

On Saturday I completed my weeklong visit to see my Mom and said farewell to the 'moderate' New York Winter Weather.  This was the view of the crystal clear skies as my plane headed into the airport after crossing Lake Michigan.

What the photo does not convey is the ambient temperature. When my plane touched down in Chicago (approximately 3.5 hours later than the initial arrival time) the outside temperature was 1°F. The forecast for the rest of the week degraded from there.  I mostly enjoyed my experience flying JetBlue for the first time. I enjoyed the full can of soft drink they served, the wide selection of snacks they offered (in comparison to Southwest Airlines) and I enjoyed the complimentary wifi. What I did not enjoy so much, was that after the plane landed in Chicago, we sat on the tarmac for approximately one hour. However, with the free wifi still fired up, all I did was watch netflix, so it really wasn't so bad. 

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Your Food Diary For:

Saturday, December 30, 2017

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Bagel, Lox and Cream Cheese	400	49	12	27	1,556	9
Trader Joe's Maple Brown Sugar Oatmeal	320	64	4	8	480	26
	720	113	16	35	2,036	35
L U N C H
Trader Joe's Soft 10 Grain Bread	180	30	5	8	320	2
Trader Joe's Sliced Cheese	220	0	18	12	360	0
	400	30	23	20	680	2
D I N N E R
Bagel, Lox and Cream Cheese	400	49	12	27	1,556	9
	400	49	12	27	1,556	9
S N A C K S
Brownies	300	47	12	4	231	27
JetBlue Terra Chips - Sweets and Blues	140	17	7	2	115	2
JetBlue Abby's - Chocolate chip cookies	120	21	4	2	0	13
Homemade Prosciutto Wrapped Asparagus	100	10	3	13	0	4
	660	95	26	21	346	46
Totals	2,180	287	77	103	4,618	92
Your Daily Goal	2,185	273	73	110	2,300	82
Remaining	5	-14	-4	7	-2,318	-10
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 255 extra calories from exercise today

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I thought my weight would have dropped more than the half pound that it did drop during my New York trip. But it is what it is. Sunday weight 239.9 lbs.

EXERCISE IS 1 STEP FORWARD

As I have tried to remind myself often, the secret to weight loss is alleged to be diet and exercise.  Less food in the diet combined with more time with exercise. Although I have falling short in the diet part of the equation lately, I had remained steadfast in my adherence to daily exercise. And then I skipped two days in a row on Monday and Tuesday. My fitbit step counter showed a grand total of 3842 steps on Tuesday. That anemic number is hard to achieve.  Assuming that one can move about and find the refrigerator or bathroom a few times over the course of a day, it is truly hard to accumulate such a small number of steps. I did much better yesterday.  My eating improved. My exercise recovered. Although it was 17°F when I set out for my urban hike with the idea of logging 10 miles, its as not until that I had logged 20 miles that I finished. My daughter who knows that I will never say 'no' to a request to 'take a walk' asked to walk to the store once I returned home from my twenty mile jaunt. By this time at night the temperature had fallen to about 14°F and we managed a late evening 3 mile hike. Sure, my legs felt like jelly at the end of the day. The feeling of accomplishment, no matter how dubious, is a good feeling indeed. I am on my way back from my short-lived despair. Exercise is 1 step forward...BUT a poor diet is 2 steps Back! If you are going to be eating poorly, you better at least be exercising. Everyone knows what to do. It's the 'doing' part that is so challenging.

This is what a 20 Mile Urban hike in Chicago looks like.

Your Food Diary For:

Wednesday, January 4, 2017

BREAKFAST	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
Kirkland - Pre-Cooked Bacon	200	0	15	15	875	0
Quaker - Grits - Instant - Original	600	132	0	12	1,860	0
	800	132	15	27	2,735	0
L U N C H
Medium - Anjou Pear, 2 pear	200	50	0	2	0	34
Kind - Blueberry Vanilla and Cashew Bar, 2	380	46	20	8	50	22
Sushi Spicy Shrimp With Brown Rice	400	46	18	19	640	6
	980	142	38	29	690	62
D I N N E R
Cream corn	120	28	0	0	0	0
Turkey Bolognese	300	15	15	23	1,550	8
Polish Kielbasa Smoked Sausage	400	5	35	16	1,342	2
	820	48	50	39	2,892	10
S N A C K S
Vita Coco - Pure Coconut Water, 32 oz	180	44	0	0	300	44
	180	44	0	0	300	44
Totals	2,780	366	103	95	6,617	116
Your Daily Goal	5,972	746	199	299	2,300	224
Remaining	3,192	380	96	204	-4,317	108
	Calories kcal	Carbs g	Fat g	Protein g	Sodium mg	Sugar g
	*You've earned 4,042 extra calories from exercise today

If every day were like today...   You'd weigh 188 lbs in 5 weeks     

       Your Exercise Diary for:

Wednesday, January 4, 2017

Cardiovascular	Minutes	Calories Burned
Twenty Mile Urban Hike	289	3,571
Three Mile Urban Hike	50	471
Daily Total / Goal	339 / 30	4,042 / 590
Weekly Total / Goal	340 / 210	4,092 / 4,130

Don't let the sunny blue skies fool you. It was bitter cold in Chicago on Wednesday.

That is not a flying saucer behind me. It is the Adler Planetarium.

It's not everyday that I go outside wearing two hats. Yesterday I wore my  balaclava under my ski cap.

CHILLY OUTSIDE - CHILI INSIDE

After finishing up with my customer around 1:30PM today I got into my car and used my GARMIN GPS to locate the nearest Panera Bread restaurant.  Last evening, while checking nutritional information posted by virtually every chain restaurant - I 'discovered' a 'Natural Turkey Chili with Beans' that looked tasty.   The caloric content really grabbed my attention.   Honestly, I couldn't believe that a bowl 1.5 Cups (402g) was only 280 Calories.   In the past I would have left my appointment and scooted over to Burger King or McDonalds (it is hard to drive more than 1/2 mile in parts of America and not find one of those restaurants)   Today, I navigated to the Panera Bread restaurant and enjoyed what seemed like the most delicious meal I can ever remember.  It is helpful to be truly hungry before sitting down to a meal.   I feel like I just landed on an exotic planet and I am discovering all its strange and new delicacies.    Sure, I know that this all sounds somewhat ridiculous - for the past many years I have been a victim of my laziness and stupidity.   I am experiencing my own personal Exodus out of a self-imposed slavery.  I am free.   Tomorrow I will weigh myself with my clothes on - as I was weighed in the doctors office.  I am curious to learn how much weight I have lost in this first week.   Happy New Year!

PANERA BREAD TURKEY CHILI WITH BEANS 280 CALORIES