Day 8: Week 2

I weighed myself this morning and the scale says I lost 7 pounds. I was disappointed with this number but after thinking about it I realized that expecting to lose more than a pound a day is a little unrealistic. I’m hoping getting back on the treadmill will give me a boost as the thought of only losing 1-2 pounds a week is not pleasant. I’m too impatient !

So today begins the first day of week 2. Breakfast was a 170 calorie double chocolate muffin and black hazelnut coffee. Lunch was 200 calorie cup of cheddar broccoli rice. I didn’t find much broccoli in it and I forgot to bring veggies to work or I’d have added my own. Morning snack was my 120 calorie chocolate shake and afternoon was a 150 calorie chocolate caramel bar. Dinner was 250 calorie pouch of “fiesta macaroni and cheese”. It was sorta like mac & cheese made with nacho sauce. I’m finding the flavor of some entrees to be a little flat and I’m pretty sure it’s because I am used to ingesting a LOT more salt. I add romano cheese to my entrees here and there and that’s seems to elevate the flavor without adding a ton of salt.

On many Friday nights in the winter months my brother and his girlfriend go over to my mom’s and make homemade pizza. My niece Alyssa often comes over too. I had a rough week so I stopped by today. I did have a piece of pizza but the key is I only had ONE instead of 4 ! It was a strip about 2 inches wide and maybe 5 inches long and I’m ok with it. I’m 309 calories under the 1200 for the day and I doubt this one piece of pizza packed that many calories. Will I do this every week ? Absolutely not. I am supposed to have one “flex day” per week where I make my own meals rather than eating Nutrisystem food, so I do need to experience eating “real” food in appropriate portions. I also need to do a little more reading of the material they sent me as I need to pick up some of the items they call Power Fuels or Smart Carbs to incorporate into my daily meals.

It was good to get back to work today. The initial shock has worn off and we are resigned to our fate and taking steps to plan for the next chapter of our lives. What choice do we have ? I still don’t know if I will have a job or not so I’m actively searching for other openings in the company. A lot of people (management and non-management) were axed on Monday across the company, so there are a LOT of people looking for jobs now. Managers are typically given a minimum of 60 days to find a new position before they leave the payroll and those who were axed will have first consideration, which is fair. The non-management folks have the option to move to Florida or look for other open non-management jobs. Some folks in my office are clearly bitter and while I can understand how they feel it’s unfortunate that they’re directing their anger at the local managers (myself included) when we had no say in the decision. Folks who would normally greet me in the hall now do nothing but glare when I say hello. I couldn’t do that to someone I’ve worked with for 10, 20 or 30+ years.

As for me, I had my few days at home to mourn and now I’m determined to find the silver lining in this cloud. I’ve been wanting a change and I’d be ecstatic if I could keep my existing job but I’m also excited about the prospect of finding something else within the company. If that doesn’t happen then I hope some other company in my area sees my value and snaps me up !

On a positive note, it was 9 degrees when I left for work this morning and the temperature didn’t make it past 11 degrees all day ... and my pipes are fine !!! I was so relieved when I got home and turned on the kitchen faucet. The low for tonight is 8 ! It might be cold outside but I’m toasty warm inside ! Today and every day I am grateful for all that I have. God willing I’ll be able to keep it all !