rambling on

 

Rambling on…..about nothing, really!   It is Friday….hurray! It has been a long week and I’m looking forward to the weekend.  I woke up early this morning, as usual about 3:15 a.m., and it was pouring down rain, but very warm. I love the sound of a gentle rain hitting on the roof, but I just couldn’t lay there and listen so I got up and started the coffee. I was hungry….not unusual these days because I seem to be waking up in the middle of the night hungry a lot, so I decided I would experiment with one of the apples that I bought this week.  I peeled it and sliced it up and just put the pieces in a bowl, sprinkled splenda and cinnamon on the top and popped it in the microwave for a couple of minutes.  WOW! It was delicious, at least to me anyway! The closest thing I’ve had to anything that even resembles a ‘dessert” in the past 2 ½ years has been Greek yogurt or some sugar-free jello on my birthday a couple of years ago, so this little warmed up apple tasted great!  It was a nice way to begin the day, especially when paired with a nice hot cup of coffee.

 

As I was sitting there, I thought… “I bet if I chopped up some apple and threw it in with my oatmeal for breakfast later that it would resemble the “Apples and cinnamon” type oatmeal that comes in the instant packages.  I eat only quick or old fashioned oats each day to save on the calories.  I decided I was going to try it later on.   BUT…..when it got time for breakfast, I took an apple out of the bag and happened to notice the nutrition information on the back of the bag.  EYE-OPENING to me!  I had absolutely NO IDEA that one small apple had 130 calories; I thought it was about 65!   YIKES!!!!  Why so many, I wonder????    I know that  130 calories doesn’t sound like a lot, but since I already ate one at 3:30, (actually it was so good I could have eaten 2 more), and I was going to have 225 calories worth of oatmeal with my shot of sugar-free French vanilla coffee creamer, I couldn’t justify adding another 130 calories to the oatmeal today.  I’ll have to try it another time, but I was just amazed at how many calories in a little apple. Who knew?  There are between 100-140 calories in a Greek Yogurt, so to think that the yogurt…with about 14 grams of protein is equal in calories to an apple was just a surprise to me. I guess I just assumed that it would be ok to eat all the fruit and vegetables I wanted and it wouldn’t be “that bad”, but  I really need to choose wisely which fruit I’ll splurge on. Melons, grapes, bananas….sweet corn, etc….can all add up calorie wise in a hurry, even though they are full of fiber and nutrients.   I had heard once that Weight Watchers considers all fruits and vegetables as “free” foods that can be eaten in any quantity.  Is this true???? I don’t know anything at all about the WW plan. Can someone enlighten me?  It would seem that unlimited fruit would cause me to gain weight, but perhaps it’s the way the body “burns” it or something.   Does anyone know???

 

In any case, the discovery was a reminder that we need to look for the “hidden” calories; those things that we don’t “count” in our daily total. Things like Ketchup, sweet and sour sauces, marinades, BBQ sauce….even “sugar free” gum or candies. It all adds up, so if you are “staying within your calorie allotment” and are not losing weight, (other than the expected plateaus), maybe you should look at all those ‘extra’s” that you eat without thinking.  For me…it’s WATERMELON!

 

On another note:  Took an early morning bike ride before work today. Admittedly, it wasn’t the “wisest” thing to do because I left at 6:45 am and it was still a bit too dark. I didn’t notice the darkness in my driveway because I have security lights up all over, but once I hit the dirt road beyond the yard, it was hard to see where I was going.  BUT….It was a gorgeous morning and I ventured on anyway. It can’t be dark for long, right???    The harvest moon is full, or near full, and was shining brightly and was just beautiful. The air was warm and smelled fresh after that early morning rain, and it was great to be on the bike and watch the darkness fade into daylight. Another nice way to begin my day.  I’m afraid, however, that those early morning rides/walks are coming to an end soon because of the increasing darkness each day.  Hopefully the weather will cooperate this weekend and I’ll get another few rides in. I hope you get a chance to enjoy the outdoors this weekend, even if it means just walking around your yard.

 

How did you begin your day….and what’s on your agenda for the weekend?  How are you going to keep on track? Whatever you do, make it a good one!