170.0 A Little Less Lunch!

I got that pound off in a couple of days and it wasn't that hard and sure didn't take very long. Remember when I was in the weight losing mode rather than maintenance, how I would be stuck forever at the same weight? Why is it that now I can turn things around in a couple of days?

Well, for one thing, my body has a new set point and I know a couple of tricks that I never really trusted when I was losing. A little less lunch is an obvious plateau breaker for me now, and I just go back to some of the old habits that I had strayed from lately. The raw carrots are out on the counter as I make dinner again, spinach again, less snacking even on popcorn, and apples when the hunger bug bites.

I think we are going to go to the movies today and then meet friends for dinner. After reading how many calories are in unbuttered movie popcorn, I'm thinking about bringing my own, since we do have plenty :)! The restaurant we have chosen has a simple, great tasting salmon entree so I won't even open the menu. Old tricks are turning out to be very good tricks.

170.2 Popcorn Lovers Unite!

We have house guests and as it came time to offer a little food as an appetizer, I mentioned carrots and snap peas (my favorites), and then I said, "and we do have popcorn". Well, you would have thought I had offered manna from heaven. They are in the family room as I write, enjoying, loving the popcorn. Thankfully it is still fresh and tasty. Maybe we'll buy another "Bin Buster" of Vic's Lite Salt, Lite popcorn. Who knew it would be so popular!

Okay, so the weight has bumped up a little. Let's see if I can't get it down a pound or two just for a little insurance.

168.4 The Leg Cramp Connection

We are having friends over later today to play a little bridge and then go out to eat. Guess what we are offering to munch on while we play! You got it! Popcorn!

Yesterday I finally got back in the pool to do my water therapy and during the night leg cramps drove me nuts. Because it has been pretty cold out here (comparatively speaking), I hadn't been doing my water exercise for about three weeks. And, I hadn't been bothered by leg cramps at night. After yesterday's foray into the water I'm sad to say that they are back. I have a hunch that my physical therapist will be able to help me with this. Even though it's a beautiful day, I'm not getting in the pool today. Maybe playing bridge will be my exercise for the day. It definitely exercises my brain!

168.4 Popcorn, Anyone?

The box is sitting on the floor of our dining room. You can't see it unless you look for it, but it's there. And it is still full of popcorn even though both Jeff and I have been nibbling away at it.

I just went online to see about recipes using popcorn. I got so excited when I saw one for popcorn chicken. Um, duh! It was a recipe for frying chicken with so much fat and flour, etc., that hunks of fried stuff resembling pop corn was what it was all about. You know, like seeing popcorn shrimp on a menu? No, there is no popcorn in that either.

But having glimpsed so many recipes using popcorn mixed will sweets, everything from chocolate sauce, to orange slices candy, to caramel, to marshmallows, to cinnamon candies, eating plain low salt popcorn is about as exciting as drinking a glass of warm water.

So, if you have any ideas for cooking with popcorn that don't involve sugar, let me know. I've got a lot of popcorn here. I can try out lots of recipes!

169.0 Laughing All The Way To The Bank

About six months ago, Jeff and I discovered a great snack. It's Vic's Lite, Lite Salt Popcorn. It has only 40 calories/cup and the salt content is very low. But it was fairly expensive and frequently unavailable at the only store near us that carried it. So Jeff went on line and ordered it in bulk. He's very proud because he got it for about a third of the cost (including shipping) that we were paying at the grocery store.

So, when I walked into the house today after doing all sorts of errands and things, there sat a cardboard shipping box that measured 14"h x 16"w filled with popcorn. What will we do with all of this popcorn before it gets stale? Suddenly having so much of it so available makes it not quite so appealing.

It's great popcorn and who doesn't like to save money, but 4 pounds of popcorn is a lot of popcorn. Pretty soon I'll be posting breakfast, lunch, and dinner ideas featuring, you guessed it, popcorn.

170.2 Probable Truth

Jeff says it's the low salt popcorn I ate last night that's responsible for that .2 of pound that's hanging on.:) How can I argue? As I wrote in a recent post, it's always something. But I'm beginning to believe that I may have done this! This 80 pound loss is still hard for me to visualize. If I think about that photo of 5 pounds of fat (taken in a doctor's office waiting room) and multiply it by 16, it gives me a way to look at it. But was that really a part of my body, all of it at one time, everyday, for years? Just like the popcorn last night, it's hard to argue with a probable truth.