Playing hookie today

Last night's dinner before our show

Because I had plenty of my day's food allowance left at tea time yesterday, I wasn't overly worried about eating out before going to our comedy gig. We chose a Japanese restaurant near my work place and even though it was still only just before 6pm, it was quite busy. I think that's always a sign that it's a good place to eat. And it didn't disappoint. I had king prawns in a garlic butter and coriander sauce, with green beans in chilli flakes, accompanied by steamed rice. It was gorgeous. No started or dessert meant that I did okay for calories, even allowing that there was definitely butter in the beans, as well as the obviously named "garlic butter sauce."

The gig was good craic, and I had enough calories left when I got home to have some crackerbread and low fat cheese triangles. I was hungry by then. I ended up using all of my exercise calories though, which I'd hoped not to do. But at least they were there, to be used if necesssary.

Today, TMM and I went to visit his folks. We were both off work, so it felt like playing truant. We started the day by having breakfast in our usual cafe. I had scrambled eggs on toast, with mushrooms and tomatoes. I didn't have the fry. Wow! That's a first in a while that I've been able to go into that place and nod order the fry up. I'm glad I kept it lighter though. It was enough to fill me, but meant I could have lunch at the out-laws' without worrying about over shooting my allowance. 

Once there, I felt under scrutiny at lunch time. They are lovely people, but my MIL is very pass-remarkable. She comments on absolutely everything. She noticed my weight loss and was very positive about it. All good. But when they are all eating, I feel very much as if I am being a pain in the ass when I don't want to eat what they are eating. So if she's making sandwiches, chances are I don't want white bread, spread with margarine, filled with whatever is on the go. She doesn't mean to sabotage my eating plan for the day, but she just doesn't really understand what is healthy and what is not. She genuinely believes that those sandwiches are a relatively healthy choice. I made my own lunch today. I'm too in the zone at the moment, to let a little social awkwardness about not eating what everybody else is, push me off track. So TMM and I went to the shop, and I was able to get roughly what I'd normally eat at lunchtime at work. I got an apple, cherry tomatoes and a cucumber and chopped them all up in a bowl. Of course, she had to comment, and steal a tomato. And, petty bastard that I am, I resented giving up the tomato (one toady tomato, out of 250g) because all I could think was, "You're having your sandwiches, and your pick of whatever else is in your cupboards, but you still covet some of my smaller offerings! How rude!" And she didn't mean it like that at all. But, because I was feeling a bit under the microscope, I was over sensitive. 

Having eaten breakfast, and then had a light lunch, after our visit, I was hungry at tea time, but only had about 600 cals left, to stay within 1200. I decided on a veggie curry with cauli rice.

Mushroom, spinach and green bean curry, with cauliflower rice

This was gorgeous, especially as there was loads of it, all within allowance and very filling. It's about my fifth time having cauliflower rice in a week and a half, and TMM is starting to complain about the smells I'm creating. But, as my best friend's mum used to say, "You can't eat good food and shite scenty soap!" I do have to admit though, that I smell at both ends, breath of garlic, bum of vegetal matter. Still, think of all that fibre in my diet! I had a totally meat-free day today. First in quite a while.

As to the meal itself, it was very tastey and I'm not ashamed to say that I used a curry sauce. I've no doubt that it's too high in both salt and sugar. It works out okay in cals though. Still, I can't be a saint all the time, and if the worst thing I do is to use a premade curry sauce powder once in a while, I'll do alright. And I'm not going to beat myself up, it was hard enough this evening when TMM bought a tub of gorgeous, luxury ice cream (of a well known brand) while I got none! It used to be quite the wee routine that we had, getting a tub each and settling in to watch something on telly. And I haven't done that for over seven months now. I think I've had ice cream about three times in that whole time, always just a small scoop or two at a restarant, never the unrestrained amount I'd have at home. I have to keep telling myself that to earn the amount of ice cream I'd really like (just to be clear, about a litre) I'd have to run for approximately four hours. For me, that's more than a half marathon, just to eat some ice cream in the gorb-like fashion I favour.

Now, on to my main obsession at the moment, other than the new running shoes that is. We were in the shopping centre before going to see the out-laws and called in to Dunnes. I like some of their clothes, and am in a very clothes frame of mind recently. ("No," I hear you gasp, on a violent intake of breath. "Surely not! You've hardly mentioned clothes this last few weeks!" You say, sarcastically.) I need long sleeved tee shirts, because work is baltic this week, so I bought them in a size fourteen. I haven't tried them on. It doen't matter if they are a little tight, as I'll be wearing them under jumpers and fleeces. But something tells me they'll fit better than I originally thought (I wasn't for buying size sixteens coz I think I'll move out of them before Winter is over, and as I said yesterday, I don't want to wear stuff that doesn't look good, when I've worked so hard to get my body in to better shape) I tried on a coat. A big, cozy one, in a sort of Parka style, with a fur trimmed hood. It was a size fourteen. It fitted. It fitted well. Wow! Seriously? First the jeans in a fourteen, now that coat. I'm seriously looking normal these days! I was tempted to buy it, just because it fit. But I don't need it, much as I really liked it. So I restrained myself. And I have just bought the new trainers, so I really can't justify more money going out of the bank.

On the new shoes front, everything I've read suggests that they are going to take some getting used to. A few articles are saying that there's an adjustment period of at least four weeks, which involves walking around the house in them for the first week or so, then running very short distances in them, necessitating carrying my other trainers to change into. Do I have the patience for that? I am thinking that I will take them out for a short spin in the morning before work. I have a half hour planned. I have been wearing them in the house today and yesterday. 

Wadda ya mean, my feet look weird???

They are awkward to wriggle my toes into initially. Goodness knows how I will manage to do it at 5.30am. But they are a cozy, comfy fit, and easy to walk around in. I think they will feel a bit weird out on the streets. I'm KT Taped and ready to go, so I'll see how I feel in the morning.