An Update, Rethinking the Diet Plan and Some Crab

There’s nothing like a little minor surgery and a new job to shake things up at home and throw off your weight loss efforts and blogging schedule.

Surgery

I had the surgery on my right knee on November 29 and spent the following weekend recovering from a pain killer and anesthesia hangover. Morphine isn’t as much fun as people think. In fact, it made me puke in the hall of the recovery room, and on the way home in the car.

I was so out of it that I couldn’t read anything more challenging that People magazine…not that I had a copy around the house. I should have stocked up on videos, but just watched bad TV instead. After a couple of days, the pain killers were making me hyper, itchy and up all night. Thank goodness for Benadryl.

Post-Op and PT

At my post-op appointment, I found out that I have arthritis which makes the cartilage under my knee look like – this was the phrase used by my surgeon – "shredded crab meat." I also had a meniscus tear, so the doctor removed it, and a small ACL tear he left alone.

A week later I started physical therapy two times per week. I have a great guy, Mike, who makes me bend and stretch my knee on my own at home. And then he bends and pushes it even more when I’m there. No wonder PT stands for pain and torture.

I’ve improved very quickly. I can even ride the stationary bike. After overdoing it the other day (one hour on the bike, one hour in line to see Santa, and walking all over the mall) Mike told me to do no more than 30 minutes on the bike a day plus my exercises. He says that for rehabilitative purposes, overdoing it is a bad idea.

So much for trying to get back on my exercise plan to lose weight.

Where Does the Time Go?

Right after my surgery I started a job as a community manager at a major women’s social networking site. So between those 16 hours online and the four I have at PT (including driving time), there’s now 20 hours I don’t have to plan my food, exercise, read diet blogs for inspiration, eat healthfully, etc. Needless to say, it’s been hard to keep up with the Extreme Fat Smash Diet.

Add in all the holiday hoopla (school concerts, shopping and more shopping, writing holiday newsletters, etc.) and it’s been impossible to blog, too. So my apologies.

Still, even when I’m done with the PT and the holiday stuff (and all those parties and goodies that have been adding on the weight…sigh) I will be working four mornings a week, then immediately rushing off to take my daughter to school three of those days. It’s almost impossible to keep on the Extreme Fat Smash Diet Plan, take breaks, and eat every few hours. I know it’s a great idea and a good strategy for weight loss and healthy eating, it’s just hard to fit into my life right now.

Rethinking My Diet Plan

So dear reader, I’m thinking of leaving the Extreme Fat Smash/Celebrity Fit Club plan and trying another online diet that will fit my more hectic schedule and that won’t rely on working out as much. I just can’t exercise like I did over the summer, and planning is much harder now that I’m working more.

Yes, I’ll have to change my blog’s tagline to "Watch This Mama Lose It One Pound at a Time." Then again, I think any blog that talks about weight loss and motivates people to eat healthfully and exercise will be of interest to anyone no matter what diet they’re on. I hope you agree and stay on as a reader.

There are two diets I’m considering:

Weight Watchers, which I’ve had success with before
The Biggest Loser since I’m a big fan of the show.

I want to do more research on both and will wait for the New Year’s Resolutions promotions before signing up. I’ll cover my research and final decision in an upcoming post.

Until then I leave you with a Extreme Fat Smash Diet recipe in honor of my knee, a crab sandwich.

Crab Salad Sandwich

Ingredients:

3 oz. Imitation Crab
1/2 Tbsp. 1% Milk
1/8 cup Reduced Fat Sour Cream
1 tsp. Raw Chives
1/2 Tbsp. Chopped Green Onions
1 Tbsp. Chopped Red Bell Peppers
3/4 Tbsp. Del Monte Chili Sauce
1/2 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
1 Mixed Grain Hot Dog Bun
1 Tbsp. Fat Free Mayonnaise

Directions:

Combine mayo, sour cream, milk, chili sauce, green onions, red peppers and lemon juice. Whisk together to make dressing.
Mix dressing with crabmeat chunks.
Assemble sandwich with 3 ounces of crab mixture, sprinkled chives and roll.

Nutritional Information:

Calories 288
Fat 7 g
Carbs 36g
Fiber 2.4g
Protein 17 g

Weight Watcher’s POINTS = 6

To reduce points omit bun and serve on lettuce greens.

Click here for a full list of my Extreme Fat Smash Diet recipes.