Esther’s Weight Loss Journey: Progress Report Week 16, 17
Esther has dropped another pound and is getting near her short term goal of 130. Her weight is now 132 - 
done another pound from my last progress report and down a total of 16 pounds! She managed to make it through a birthaday party in Boston (with girls who like their wine and food!) and the Entourage Premiere Party with flying colors. (Pics are of a svelte Esther doing pilates)
My interview with Esther:
Martha: I hear you are were at a birthday party in Boston. I know these girls like to eat and drink. How did 
you handle it?
Esther: I did better than in the past at the party. And on Sunday when all the leftovers were put out, I had one serving and then sat on the couch to avoid overindulging. Also, some of the girls hadn’t seen me since I started this journey and their positive reactions kept me wanting to stay on track.
Esther: I can’t wait for it to open. This should allow me to add another day of exercise every week and possibly some workouts before work. It is opening at the perfect time as once it gets cold I tend to work out less but since this will only be two blocks away I have no excuse !
Martha: Overall, do you feel like some of the changes you are making are a real lifestyle change?
Esther: The more progress I make the more motivated I get.
Martha: How was the Entourage party? Were you too busy stargazing to eat?
Esther: I only had 2 glasses of champagne and minimal appetizers due to my brother overseeing. (Esther’s brother is known as the “hawk” because he has the ability to see Esther eating/drinking from across the room!)
Esther: Yes. A work business dinner that will be serving Greek food (which I love) and Harvest in the Square on Thursday. (For those of you who aren’t aware of this event, it is a major food/drink fest. You get unlimited food and wine from the best restaurants in the Union Square area of NYC). I paid a lot of money for this ticket ($115)and want to enjoy myself. Martha: I agree that you should enjoy yourself. However try to be selective when deciding what to eat/drink. Pick your favorite foods. Don’t have the mentality that “I paid for this so I will eat as much as I can!”
| Esther's Goals for the Last Two Weeks | Did Esther Meet Her Goals? |
|---|---|
| 1. Continue with 1300-1400 calories | Close! Week 1: 1500 calories Week 2: 1375 calories |
| 2. Really try for 3 drinks a week (4 at the very most!!). | No. Week 1: 2 drinks one night and "too many" another night. Unquantifiable amount. Week 2: 6 drinks |
| 3. Exercise cardio 3 times a week, trainer 2 times a week and pilates 1-2 times a week. As much walking as possible. | Yes. Week 1: spin 3x, 1 training session, 1 pilates and 2 hour speed walks in central park. Week 2: spin 2x, 2 training sessions, 1 pilates sessions |
| 4. Don’t skip breakfast | Skipped it a few days |
| 5. Continue to increase fruits and veggies | Some days did well...but still needs to work on this |
| 6. Not to encourage the hermit life, try to eat out a little less this week!! | Yes |
| 7. Measure oil on salads when possible | No, but she is trying to use less |
5 days of Esther’s food records:
Saturday 
Breakfast
iced coffee
1 banana
Lunch
diet soda
WENDY’S cheeseburger
4 french fries
4 Swedish Fish
Dinner PARTY IN BOSTON (pic is of Paula and Esther at birthday party in Boston)
1 martini
4 glasses red wine
2 stuffed mushrooms, 2 crabcakes, 1 beef skewer
1/4 cup sesame noodles, 1 pot sticker
sm portion antipasto
handful pistacio nuts
1 brownie, 2 pieces chocolate (pic is of John and Lissy at Boston party. I used to teach aerobics with Lis over 15 years ago! Yikes)
Sunday
coffee
1/2 cup antipasto salad
1/4 cup chicken salad
1/2 cup stuffed mushrooms (w/sausage)
1 cracker
sm piece brie
grapes
Dinner
shirataki noodles w/ sardines, black olives
1 oreo cookie, 100 calorie pudding
Monday September 8th
Breakfast
4 oz 4% cottage cheese
iced coffee
Lunch
mixed salad w/ olive oil & vinegar
grilled chicken kebab
2oz feta cheese
Dinner
mixed salad w/ olive oil & vinegar
grilled lamb kebab
1 grilled chicken leg
1 cup orzo
Tuesday September 2
Breakfast
iced coffee
1/2 cup tuna salad (Eli’s)
Lunch
1 tomato w/ sea salt & vinegar
kashi entrée’ shrimp w/ veg & grains
iced tea ( unsweetened)
Dinner
The Pump - POPEYE
grilled chicken, tahini, spinach & brown rice
pellegrino
Friday September 5
iced coffee
Lunch
4 pieces sushi, 1 california roll
sm salad w/ japanese dressing
Dinner
grilled chicken breast
4 oz greek haloumi cheese
sharataki noodles
20 almonds
15 grapes
My comments on Esther’s food records and goals for the next 2 weeks:
1. Congrats on handling several potentially difficult situations well! Your average caloric intake was on track.
2. You also did quite well with the exercise. Sticking to your exercise goals for 17 weeks is impressive!
3. As suggested in previous posts, I need to see how many ounces of meat or protein you are consuming (on occasion). Keep in mind that an extra ounce of meat (50 calories) a day can make you gain 5 pounds a year! So pick up a food scale near where you live. BTW - they sell them at Gracious Homes near your apartment.
4. While the Pump restaurant has really healthy good food, your choice (Popeye) tends to be higher in calories and fat due to the tahinini sauce. I know that the calories aren’t posted on their menu yet, however it is my educated guess that this entree it is a little too high in calories for you. Make another choice that doesn’t contain tahini sauce - or a least get it on the side and use only 1Tablespoon. FYI- tahini sauce has 90 calories and 8 gm of fat per Tablespoon!
5. Be careful with the haloumi cheese. It contains 90 calories and 11 gm of fat per ounce!
6. You did well with adding in salads, but continue to work on addding in more cooked veggies at night. Aim for at least one fruit a day.
7. Continue with 1300-1400 calories and 2 private training sessions, 1 pilates session, 3 cardio sessions or more and as much walking as possible.
8. Enjoy the Harvest in the Sqaure… but don’t go crazy!
Share This Tags: birthday, Entourage, Esther, POPEYE, tahini, Union Square
weekend I celebrated my 
She declined all 
man friend, name forgotten, myself and Paula)
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