Garlic Fries

Saturday was the 2013 SF Giants Fan Fest.. For food we treated ourselves to our first garlic fries of the season!

Half a serving Gordon Biersch Garlic Fries is about 7 points plus.. so hurray!

Golden Cristo Bites

Part of Disney's "Limited Time Magic," these delicious bites of Monte Cristo will 'glow' away the 1st of February atThe Stagedoor.

French Toast-y

or.. "corn is not a vegetable"

A little backstory: I don't like eating at McDonald's. I really don't. My weakness in the past has been the Sausage McGriddle. If you haven't had it, it's like this syrup infused english muffin-like thing with a sausage patty of some kind in between. It's also about 11 points plus. That's OK if you want to blow half a days allotment (I get 28 now) of points on that and the salty but addictive hash brown patty that comes with it. I know, that's what the weeklies are for.. Honestly? I am long past wanting to waste points on stuff like that. So. No McDonald's for me, thanks!

So, a few nights ago we're at our local Safeway Grocery, we came across this French Toast Griddles:

We've had the English Muffin ones and those are pretty good, as far as processed breakfast foods go. While those are 6 points plus, the French Toast Griddlers are 7 points plus. Sean just realized you have to use the calculator, as the Weight Watcher barcode app calculates them incorrectly as 6. Since they were on sale we picked up a box of each.

I know this stuff isn't ideal. Food should probably be as basic and process-free as possible. I'm not a nutritionist so I don't claim to know anything, OK? A good rule I like is if you can't pronounce it, it probably isn't basic.. not to mention: "enriched" or "Partially hydrogenated" or my favorite.. "High Fructose Corn Syrup." ugh.

Freaking Corn Syrup or High Fructose Corn Syrup is in practically everything.. everything processed, so you can't really get around it much (other than not eat processed food). BUT, if you're going to eat processed food (everything in moderation!) these French Toast Griddlers aren't too bad. It heats up quick from the freezer and then just give it a minute or so to not burn your fingers on the thing eating it.

The 'french toast' is almost just like French Toast made at home (with bread, egg and cinnamon) in texture. Soft and spongy. Whatever processed whatnot they use to make it and the glaze make for a sweet and syrupy(?) sandwich. The patty is your typical processed turkey patty made from turkey 'bits' or whatever. We'd probably do better to make our own French Toast so we don't eat all the processed stuff they use to make the 'french toast' part, but there's just the two of us, and we don't keep eggs in the house.

Like any sugar cereal, these Griddlers are not really healthy unless you have some milk or fruit with it. So I got my Skim Milk. I guess the turkey patty provides some protein, so that's something. Also, they are almost half the points of what you get at McDonald's. So I would highly recommend these to my friends hankering for their fast food fix.

I like them enough I'll help Sean finish the box but I won't go out of my way to buy them unless they're on sale. Like McDonald's, they aren't something you want to eat every morning, but yummy enough to want to treat yourself to something 'naughty' now and again.

edited for points correction at 840am

If I gain weight this week..

Happy Christmas Eve! I'm still tracking my food! But if I gain weight I got a good reason or two.. or three.. Could be the chocolate cravings I had last night (satisfied with 2 servings of Ghirardeli chocolate squares..) or..

Or it could be my choice for Christmas Eve breakfast at The Nickel:

Cameron's Puppy Pile. Cause I was craving pancakes & meat.. I ended up having half the fried egg.. that saved me a point (which came in handy for the sausage which is a full sized chicken apple sausage) and the pancakes.. buttermilk pancakes, that is.

Good Stuff and really hit the spot. I should be set for the rest of the day right?? ;P

Nickel Diner Breakfast Menu

Savor the Yumminess

, originally uploaded by meekorouse.

Running our bi-monthly errands is hungry work. I blew 12 points plus on this yummy and decadent version of The Habit's BBQ Bacon Char Burger for Sunday lunch. This is sans cheese, mayo or bun.. (they actually offer a lettuce wrapped option on their menu) so I don't have to stick with the BBQ chicken salad (at 11 pp) if I'm not wanting the big salad.

I did opt for a side salad tho.. (pictured in background) One thing if I ever do this again.. EAT THE SALAD FIRST!

I was depressed for the loss of that yummy grilled onion,bbq and bacon taste in my mouth once I ate the salad.. and part of what I enjoy about being naughty is being able to savor the yumminess!

Lesson hard learned..

lunches like this get me in trouble

lunches like this get me in trouble, originally uploaded by meekorouse.

Does this look like half my daily allotment of points plus?? It is..

Bagel Thin: 3 pp
black bean garden burger: 5 pp
Laughing Cow queso wedge: 1 pp
hickory bbq 1tblspn: 1 pp
smidgen of Kirkland salsa: 0 pp

1 oz Zapp's Chips: 4 pp

TOTAL: 14 pp (I'm allowed 29 daily)

Oh but yes it was yummy!

MorningStar Farms

MorningStar Farms Chipotle Black Bean Veggie Burger



We purchased a box at Costco.. it comes as 12 pack and each patty is about 120g or as it says on the box "1/4 pound size!" Whatever.. All I know is each one is 5 points plus so I heated one up and put a spoonful of Costco salsa (it's the only one we have left that didn't say "use within 7 days of opening" otherwise I'd have used the good stuff..)

I like morningstar farms veggie burgers.. I don't know why we thought we might not like these. I do. They are just a littlest bit 'spicy' (that's got to be the chipotle seasoning people) but I'm thinking if I had some fresh avacado or gaucamole, that would have gone well with it.. or maybe a spicier, hotter salsa.

It had a bit of chargrilled flavoring to the edge, I suppose to make it more "authentic" or something. Personally I don't want my veggie burger to taste like it was cooked with meat in it. When I want a real cheeseburger I'll eat a real cheeseburger.. when I want a veggie burger, I want a veggie burger.

Tonight I wanted a veggie burger. It was good!

Mango Chicken yum!

Sean & I were out running errands today and hit up the Baja Fresh in Atwater Village after our Costco run.. I ended up getting this yummy salad:


Mango Chipotle Chicken Salad
Tortilla shell filled with Romaine lettuce, chicken, avocado, Cotija cheese, mango salsa, and a chipotle glaze. Served with chipotle vinaigrette.

Hmmm.. I didn't notice any cheese.. maybe they forgot?? As it is I didn't need the cheese, nor the tortilla shell or the tortilla chips they hand out for no reason at all.

According to my weight watcher points plus tracker, the tortilla shell (that I didn't eat) was 12 points plus! I'm so glad I left it behind! The salad itself was pretty yummy. Rather than pouring that oily dressing on it, I added some pico de gallo from the salsa bar (the thing they have so you can dip the chips they give you). Between the salsa and the mango salsa it was just enough sweet and spicy. No need for salad dressing.

The points plus for the salad alone was 7 points plus so I would definitely order this again assuming I'm out & about near Costco and needing food.

Steak Salad from the Nickel Diner

Steak Salad from the Nickel Diner, originally uploaded by meekorouse.

Tonight's dinner was just the right thing! Huge Salad (hold the dressing!) accompanies a (approximately) 6oz steak. Served Medium.. it was yummy & juicy and provided just the right flavoring and juices to the salad and the iceberg lettuce wedge.

Sean made pancakes!

Sean made pancakes!, originally uploaded by meekorouse.

Sunday morning surprise: Sean decided he wanted to make some pancakes. We had picked up some Fiber One pancake mix a couple weeks back to give it a try.

This is the second time we've had them & I really like them. They're 5 points plus per serving (which is about 3 normal sized pancakes.. you remember 'normal size' right??)

I added a tablespoon of agave syrup for 2 points plus and some sliced banana (which is 0 pp on the new program).

Hurray for Sunday breakfast and for getting to eat like a regular person. =)

End of Week 9

07 Mar 2011: 203.2 lbs
28 Feb 2011: 204.5 lbs
21 Feb 2011: 206.0 lbs


I'm a little surprised since (along with a 5 points plus pint of Weider's Pear Cider) I had this yummy cheeseburger:

That was Saturday night at Clancy's Clubhouse in Anaheim.. My daily points plus is 29 and when the day was done.. I'd eaten a total of 45 pp (29 of them at dinner!)

We had walked over 20,000 steps at Disneyland but I think next time I'm going to skip the cider or something.. It was yummy and was grateful for the time to meet up with friends,(we don't see folks near as much since we moved to DTLA).

I managed to do some Walk it Out this morning; burned off about 300+ calories and unlocked some 'magic clocks' and a couple zodiac pieces. When I'm finished unlocking everything I'll most likely start a new profile and do it all over again.. along with other exercise of course.

Making Good Choices

Why the Gain??

Rather than losing any weight, I actually gained a half pound. I'm trying to keep myself accountable as to why I might have actually gone the wrong direction a little bit.

First of all, the past week I didn't do "Walk it Out" for most of the week/weekend before.. I was sick in bed from about Friday to Thursday this past week after Sean got released from Good Samaritan (we think I caught the flu somewhere). When I did feel better I tried to make up for it and did manage to get my walking in. I think I would have shown a bigger weight gain if I'd done nothing.

Along with the lack of exercise, my food choices weren't the best. I usually don't use my activity points or go in the hole if I can help it.

Thursday last week we had dinner at Starry Kitchen..


I thought I was doing OK but I got a wrap instead of a salad.. The "wrap" was a 13 inch flour tortilla which is about 10 points plus on its own!! Holy Cow.. I'm sticking with the salad from here on out.. That one mistake cost me a LOT of my accrued points.

Saturday I had a LOT of points left after going out to dinner at The Nickel.. (I ordered the 'eat your vegetables' without the mashed potatoes and it was still about 4 points plus (the buttermilk mashed potatoes would have cost about 15 points plus if I had allowed myself to have them). Since I had a bunch of points left over we headed to Big Man Bakes to get some minis.

I still don't know how many points the minis actually are.. but Sean weighed them at about 28g each. We guestimated them at 3 points plus.. I had 3. I was done for the day. I didn't use any activity points or weekly points. Still, that's about 9 points of minis vs. 3 servings of yogurt or.. 3 cups of cereal or 3 servings of Pop Chips or a tablespoon of guacamole and some chips, or a protein style In N Out burger. There's lots of things you can do with 9 points and I decided to treat myself to minis. Those are empty calories I just had.

Sunday night we had dinner at Urban Noodle which is like an Asian Fusion sort of place.. well it's a noodle place (not a Pho place) and I ordered Beef Chow Fun:

According to my tracker 1cup of Beef Chow Fun is 9 points plus.. so I measured that out onto my plate the best I could.. I also had a pork bun appetizer (which arrived after our dinner did) and that thankfully is about 5 points plus according to the tracker. I don't think what I had was very healthy but it was yummy.. and I have some leftover for today's lunch.

The weird thing is.. Sean & I would split the beef chow fun in the past (and have at least one appetizer) and I would manage to be full. I told Sean that I wasn't stuffed and I definitely could have eaten more.. so while the food is still good, having less of it didn't satisfy me and I blew all those points.

I think the thing for me would be to eat more salad or veggies and compliment that with some semi-bad choices. When I eat stuff like the chow fun, I should partner it with a side salad (assuming something like that is available) The good thing is Urban Noodle does have an Asian Chop Salad.. so I will give that a go next time..

and when I have something like 9 or 10 points left in the day I should probably lay off the mini cupcakes.. Once in a while is OK but having it be a 1/3 of my daily intake was not a good idea..

While I don't know if any of these choices were what contributed to me gaining weight it probably didn't help.. This whole thing is a learning experience though. I'm learning as I go.

Daytime Lion

along with regular walking I've been doing the "Walk it Out" game for the wii but carrying the exercise meter in my pocket to keep track of my activity time.

A couple days ago my "Personal Trainer: Walking" target was increased from 3,000 to 4,000. I did some housecleaning this morning along with some walking in place so I was able to get my 4000 step target by 10am.

After lunch I played "Walk it Out" which is like the wii fit meets the Sims: You walk in place for points, the points in turn can unlock routes on a virtual island, music tracks that you can later play while you walk, trees, streetlights & bridges. The steps on the wii game differ from my steps counted on the exercise meter, another reason to keep the meter in my pocket when I'm playing.

I got hungry for dinner earlier.. I only had 10 points plus left for the day without getting into the weekly allowance. I ended up picking up a turkey & ham salad from Ray's Old Bank Market. I asked for no cheese & dressing on the side:

It came with a little avocado which was easily removed. I picked the olives out as well. I would say it had about 2 olives worth of sliced black olives but I wanted the salad to be as low point as possible. I left the artichoke hearts (there was only 2 pieces) and the meat I guessed at 3oz/2oz of Boar's Head brand meat respectively.. (I'm pretty sure I over-estimated) I measured the dressing which was 1/4cup exactly.

Along with some Fiber One bars, I'm pretty full a couple hours later. Yay!

Treating myself

The original plan for Saturday was to head to Hollywood & Highland and walk down to the Egyptian Theater to see a Lord of the Rings (director's cut) movie marathon.. OK, the original original plan was to check out Art Weekend LA but then Sean got these tickets.. then our plans fell to the wayside as his work changed things.

Whatever, I started the day doing some walking (just in case) we ended up seeing the films. 10+ hours in a dark theater aren't conducive to exercise. So when we couldn't go we headed out after lunch to check out a few galleries.

Lunch was food from home.. I ended up having a Lean Cuisine Philly Style Steak & Cheese Panini which (if you go to their site) is just loaded w/ sodium. Otherwise I actually liked it. I heated it up (doesn't take long) and ended up eating it open face. It had plenty of meat on it.. (I forgot to take a photo of it before starting to eat so I only have a photo of half of it)


It reminded me (a little) of Trader Joe's Philly Cheese Steak pizza which I just LOVE and can't eat too often (and especially not these days).

For something sweet to finish it off, Sean had brought home some other WW novelty treats to try. These ones are in the old packaging and say "1point" on the box. They are actually 2 "points plus" but, much more affordable than those "4 Points plus" ice cream candy bars..

the bar image on the box is obviously not to scale. =)

It was pretty sweet and not too latte tasting.. I thought I tasted a caramel accent to it though. It's artificially flavored so it's no surprise it reminds me of those instant iced cappuccino mixes I would stir into my skim milk years ago.

For 2 points (plus) I'm not complaining..

I WILL be happy though when the new packaging comes out in the next month or so..


Day 20 Sat 22 Jan: "Personal Coach: Walking" daily steps: 8487 (@445pm) **EDIT** 10,341 @718pm
Day 19 Fri 21 Jan: "Personal Coach: Walking" daily steps: 10606