Shortage of Potassium

I've known since before my race that potassium is an important nutrient to keep stored in my body to avoid muscle cramps and to keep my body energized. I ran, literally, into a problem of not having enough potassium during the second run loop of my race and my legs were starting to cramp just out of the transition area. My sister asked me if I had enough electrolytes and I thought the food I had been eating had electrolytes and it didn't! She encouraged me to keep going until we got to the first mile mark to get some Gatorade. It took a while but definitely helped. I need to consume foods that have a high amount of potassium to help me with my electrolytes. I discovered a couple of years ago an allergy to bananas which is disappointing because I love bananas. So I need to find an alternative.

When I ask people about what foods are high in potassium, the only thing that pops in their heads are bananas. Well, like I said, that wasn't going to work for me. So I finally looked it up today.  Here are the top ten foods for Potassium:

Dried Apricots

1. Dried Herbs (Dried Chervil contains the most potassium with 4.7g (135% RDA) per 100g serving)
2. Avocados (100 grams will provide 485mg of potassium or 14% of the RDA)
3. Paprika and Dried Chili Powder (Paprika provides the most potassium with 2.3g (67% RDA) per 100 gram serving)
4. Cocoa Powder and Chocolate (Pure cocoa powder without any fat, milk, or sugar, provides the most potassium with 1.5 grams (44% RDA) in a 100g serving)
5. Dried Apricots ( apricots provide 1.9g (53%RDA) of potassium per 100g serving (about 20 dried apricots)
6. Pistachios (100 grams (~3/4cup) will provide 1g (30% RDA) of potassium)
7. Seeds (pumpkin and squash seeds contain about 919mg (26% RDA) of potassium per 100g serving)
8. Fish (Salmon provides 534mg (15% RDA) per 3 ounce serving)
9. Beans (White beans provide the most potassium with 561mg (16% RDA) per 100 gram serving
10. Dates (dates provide 696mg (20% RDA) per 100 gram)

Some of these foods I already like and already knew I needed to incorporate more of them into my diet because of the other health benefits. I think the easiest things for me to eat would be the apricots for a snack a few hours before a run and eat more fish. Dried herbs are definitely a plus because they do made food taste that much better. And who doesn't like chocolate but I've never had pure chocolate!

First Day of Week 3

Ugh!  I felt the anxiety creeping up on me about 20 minutes before noon. I need to figure out where this is coming from. But I did make it through my lunch only eating what I brought.

Lunch Today

My lunch box consisted of left over lasagna, a cheese stick, carrot sticks, and a small salad with lettuce, bell peppers and dried cranberries. I didn't end up eating the cheese stick and ended up eating an apple for an afternoon snack instead. I accompanied my lunch with a bottle of water. Oh and I had a Dum Dum for dessert.

I'm pretty proud of myself for food today. I did sneak two apple muffins, which were overly delicious, thanks to a coworker that made them yesterday. For breakfast I had some low sugar Quaker oatmeal made with skim milk. Dinner was a left over hamburger patty from last night (w/o bun), and then I made a small chicken sandwich and I had a handful of pretzels. 

It was getting really hard towards the end of the day when I really wanted one of the Peanut Butter Snickers that have been sitting in my candy dish at work. Has everybody had those? They are yummy. I managed to get through that time without touching one. I even made it past a trip to the gas station with only buying the much needed milk and gas.

The strangest feeling came over me during some idle time during my last hour of work. I felt...empty. I was hungry but I felt emotionally empty too. I wished I didn't need to keep sitting there waiting for the clock to turn 6. I think this is just the beginning of figuring out the true emotional reason why I eat. Here is to discovery!

I still need to pack my lunch for tomorrow. Probably left over lasagna again.

8 Months Later - Please Read

I took the week off from work so I could relax. After my 5k yesterday and sitting to talk with friends and family, I pause to reflect on the past eight months, what has changed and what challenges I still face. (I also included links on key words to past posts if you are interested.)

I am sitting in the same bedroom I wrote my first post from a little over eight months ago. I wish I could say I've been completely successful. Ofcourse there have been success but there have also been challenges I haven't been able to overcome yet. There have been  new experiences and falling into ruts and I've figured out this mental game is harder than it looks. 

My successes seem few and far between but they have been big to me. I finally got out of my butt rut. Although there is some time still spent on the couch, I am not there as much. I have been successful in getting into the idea of working out after work 3 to 4 times a day. Hell, I have even gotten to the point (some days) where I crave the exercise and am disappointed if it is raining or I have other plans for the day. I have run (walk/jog) two 5k runs in the past two weeks. I've run in the rain and it's not all that bad. On Monday, I ran over seven minutes without stopping out of the start line and I felt good. Couch to 5k has been really working for me...I think (this week I progress to week 4).

I've curbed my self-diagnosed depression. This spring has been so different from the few months after my hubby and I moved into our house last June. The days and weeks of him trying to pull me off my butt to get outside and work in the yard are a distant memory. There are weeks where watching the weather for the weekend almost becomes and obsession because I want it to be not raining so I can get into the yard. Our overgrown yard is slowly, but surely, getting under control. I think the enjoyment that exercise brings has been a huge help with this. I sleep so much better now because I am getting outside more. The fresh air has done me some good.

I have met some amazing friends through this world of blogging. The #priorfatpack was formed a few months ago through a furry of Twitter tweets among a small group of people that wanted to form a group that would have similar goals of getting healthy and losing weight in the process. One thing I have been doing more often lately is doing things that make me uncomfortable. The potluck The Pack had on Sunday night was one of those moments. I had originally invited a friend to come with me but I ended up going alone and boy, I was really nervous.... I am so HAPPY I went alone! I was uncomfy for a couple of minutes but was instantly drawn into the group like we had known each other for years. They were there to cheer me on when I crossed the finish line yesterday and I made sure I rang my cowbell loud whenever a pink-shirted member came around the corner! I am grateful for the support and love of The Pack. I make it almost sound like a cult! Maybe it will become a movement? Googling us will even come up with correct results!

Really at this point in the game, I thought I would have atleast been at 200lbs or less. To be honest, the scale hasn't moved much since the first week of this process. I try to live in denial, even yesterday, about why the scale hasn't moved in 8 months. I work out, burning at least a couple thousand calories a week. The scale should be moving but we all know it is not all about the calories expelled. It's just as importantly about the calories consumed. THIS has been the main struggle for me. I have not been really counting the calories with what I have been eating. Lunch with my friend Becky yesterday centered around talk of planning her wedding and my healthiness journey. I had expressed to her that I am working out but not losing any weight or inches. But I haven't gained weight or inches either. She asked if I was really watching what I was eating and I couldn't honestly give her the answer I wanted to give her. I wish I could have said "Yes" but it would have been a lie. My sister asked me the same question later in the evening while dinner was being prepared. 

I am not going to say it here today that I am going to start counting calories because I have said it before. It is just something that I need to do. I bite it, I write it (stolen from Jen over at Priorfatgirl).  The decision has been made. How long do they say it takes to make something a habit? Ofcourse everyone is different but from what I could find, 30-40 repetitions looks like a common comment. So that means if I track for a month or more, it should become a habit? That isn't too bad.  We will see where I am in 5 weeks!

I wanted to thank everyone for their support over the last 8 months. To my family and friends who donated to my ABTA run, thank you! To my priorfatpack, thank you! To my parents, thank you! To my sister, the Ironlady, thank you for your little words of encouragement. I wouldn't have been able to do it without you and I will still need your support in the future.

Changing Tastebuds?

Pat and I went to the grocery store tonight. I filled up the cart with good healthy foods. By the time we got home, it was after 8pm and I didn't feel like cooking.  It's ironic isn't it that I just went to the grocery store to stock my house and I didn't feel like cooking? So while I was cutting up a very delicious pineapple, Pat boiled some water to make some Velveeta Shells and Cheese, low fat addition.  I was weak and had some of his shells and cheese...and they made me gag to the point where I had to have Pat eat the rest of my bowl.  I used to eat that all the time in college, often with seasoned salt. I just couldn't bring myself to eat anymore than a couple of spoonfuls because they just didn't taste good. 

Don't shoot me but I also threw away a grande non-fat mocha from Starbucks this morning. I think I was dehydrated and all I really wanted was a big bottle of water. I feel like I wasted the 4 bucks I spent on that drink but it didn't taste good enough to me.

I wish I could get this way with soda (pop for all you MN people). I need to get to the point of it tasting like crap. Pat and I don't have it in the house anymore but I do find myself craving it often. I need to drink more milk as well. It will be interesting to see where my tastebuds take me.

I am planning on a few home cooked comfort foods this week. Beef stew is on the menu, as well as Turkey Tacos tomorrow night, and spicy chicken soup in the crockpot probably Thursday or Friday (let me know if you want the recipe, it's super simple). 

A Good Day

I had a good day today. I saw Miss Donna today. I gave her the link to this blog so hopefully I will have someone else reading it. While I was talking to her, I came up with a great idea for a blog entry..and then promptly lost it. Hopefully it will come back to me sometime during this next year.

I started off the day with some low sugar instant oatmeal with milk. I spent some of my early morning making lunch for my husband and me. My lunch today was a little later than usual, causing me to be very hungry when I actually sat down to eat my sammich on Johnnie Bread. I let myself have a snack of string cheese around 10am. Along with the sandwich, I had some pretzels and a handful of peanuts.

It's been two days since I've had any soda or caffeine. I've been drinking water throughout the day instead. The headaches are coming, I can feel it. It's also been over a week since I've had Subway for lunch. I used to do Subway 3-4 times a week because it's conveniently located across the street from the bank. The last time I lost weight, I pretty much stopped eating Subway except for once a week when I would allow myself a 6in sandwich.

For dinner tonight, I made a dinner salad and then two pieces of frozen pizza. I usually would eat 4 pieces, or half of the pizza while Pat would eat the other half. There are two pieces in the fridge right now, probably saved for dinner on Friday night. Tomorrow is Wicked so Pat and I are going out for dinner after work and before the show. Yay for Wicked.

On a side note, kind of, I did have a cookie after dinner. Does that make this good day a bad day?