Birthday Weight Goal, Achieved and More!

It's been a while, a long while since I updated this blog. My birthday month of July has passed and in 26 days, my fitness account on Instagram, @whenyouloseyouwin, will celebrate its first anniversary.

So what has happened so far?

Well, for starters, in the survey/poll I posted when I started this blog, I can tell that one person who voted that I'd be heavier than 150 lbs by July 19, that I definitely didn't have a relapse and bounced, ironically enough, "backwards", to that.

To be honest, July did not come easy for me. It had actually been very challenging since the end of April. It was in April that I first went down to less than 118 lbs and what followed was a series of ups and downs due to family gatherings and vacations. My consolation? Well at least I was, and still am, already in the healthy weight range.

My chocolate and ice cream-loving better half celebrated his birthday a day before mine so what was expected was two straight days' worth of food coupons, discounts and freebies from restaurants. Here are two photos clearly depicting what happened on Day 1, July 18, my hubby's day:

Hubby had a coupon at Elephant Bar and a discount card so that's where we headed for dinner after work. Upon finding out that he could actually have a free meal and that there's no price limit to such, naturally, he ordered the most expensive one that he liked. I don't remember the exact name of the entree but it has steak, lobster, veggies and shrimp.

As for mine, I was craving for pasta so I ended up with a dish that has shrimp and white sauce. Again, I don't remember the name of the dish and I'm currently far too lazy to go to their website and give justice to this post. Don't judge. It's my day off as of this writing :p

The following day was my birthday and I, well, for lack of a better term, "clocked in" at 119.2 lbs. Here's a photographic evidence (not rigged, I swear) from my FitBit app:

My original weight goal when I started my fitness account on Instagram was 138 lbs by this date. *big grin*

And here's a photo of what transpired during that day, this time, at Kome, that Chinese-Japanese buffet restaurant in Daly City:

Food Coma.

Not for anything weight-related but after this trip to Kome, hubby and I swore it'd be a looong while before we find ourselves in this restaurant. Why? Well, aside from the disappointment of seeing ridiculously long lines at the Chinese buffet table (Who starts a buffet with dessert?) and people cutting lines, my favorite Japanese rolls were not available. Then again, this was not meant to be a restaurant review so I'd cut this one short.

So anyway, the next few days after my birthday found us down in SoCal. I would let you judge for yourself what occurred from July 20-24:

I swear we tried to start our vacation by having something healthy for breakfast before our flight. This was, if I remember it correctly, approximately 353 calories :)

The following day found us at San Pedro Fish Markets and Restaurant having this c/o a relative. Not in picture was the tilapia and ceviche we had with this.

At the Disney California Adventure Park having this enormous turkey leg. Disclaimer: We shared one leg for dinner. And a chimichanga.

Post-Universal Studios the day after Disney, we had dinner at Kalye Hits and for the two of us, had two cups of steamed rice, a stick of Betamax (pig blood), a dozen pieces of Kwek-kwek (quail eggs dipped in orange-colored batter and fried), an order of Beef Pares (sweet beef stew) and vinegar and brown (caramelized flour with soy sauce) dipping sauce.

We now know that no trip to Los Angeles is ever complete without going to a Porto's Bakery branch. We found ourselves both in the Glendale and Burbank branch, on July 21 and July 23, respectively.

We ordered their famous cheese rolls (at 238 calories/roll) and guava cheese roll (did not bother to find out how huge this one is, calories-wise). We demolished our Glendale order, all 12 pieces, in 14 hours!

Started at 433 steps at the Disneyland gate. Went back to the hotel with over 18,000 steps.

What was the damage then? Upon returning to the crib, I immediately weighed myself and saw a whopping 124 lbs! No biggie, truth be told. It was expected :p

The next day, my theory (well, it's actually a scientific fact) of how being in a hot area adds weight, water weight to be exact, was proven once again. My morning weight saw me at 122 lbs. The day after saw me at 121 lbs.

Fast-forward to August 1st, I'm back to my birthday weight of 119.2 lbs.

What then?

Well, since the scale is not really the be-all and end-all of fitness, my goal is to be at my most toned and my fittest by August 27, just in time for @whenyouloseyouwin's first anniversary, provided that I'm not, well, pregnant by then (starting my fertility consultations after my lab work today so I really need to finish this blog ASAP! lol).

'Til next time then! :)

Eat More, Weigh Less

This post is actually the second part of my blog with the inversed title "Eat Less, Weigh More".  Why a Part 2, you may ask. It's because I felt like I wasn't able to explain fully and clearly why I said eating less could mean a possible weight gain. Through a quick chat (more of a series of Instagram comments with @emmahmay (thanks, sweetie!), I, myself, found the right words.

It's all about your metabolism.

As what I had first quoted at the first part of this blog last month, About.com states that metabolism is the chemical process that establishes "the rate at which your body burns calories". Short of going into health gobbledygook, let's put things this way: You've probably already heard or googled health products or food (hello, cinnamon and cayenne pepper!) that boosts your metabolism. You have also probably been given dozens of tips regarding metabolism-boosting exercises and the when's and how's involved. The how's are mostly regarding getting your body to not move or exercise in the same manner over long periods of time; that we need to "shock" or "trick" it against getting used to a routine every now and then.

Guess what? It's the same with food, especially with how much you consume per day.

Many people find it easier to believe or fall into thinking that eating less alone is the key to weight loss. While it is true that cutting calories AND exercising more do lead to significant weight changes, it is highly important to establish when the cutting of calories should stop.

My personal minimum benchmark is 1,220 calories. At my age of 28, height of 5'2 1/2 and weight as of my last weigh-in yesterday of 129.8 lbs (Yey! Closer, make that "a lot closer", to my second goal weight of 125 lbs!), Livestrong MyPlate tells me that in order to continuously lose a pound more, I should only consume 1,159 calories. Please do note, however, that I set my activity level (another category fitness/calorie tracker apps like MyPlate and myfitnesspal use to determine calorie goal) to "sedentary" here if only to challenge myself to move more, even if I know I am no longer sedentary (I exercise five to six times a week and walk and stand for four hours straight on work days).

So how much have I been eating? Well, over the past two weeks, I have definitely been eating more than 1,220 calories! At one point, I think I reached 1,700 calories (This was the day I finally passed my behind-the-wheel driving exam at DMV after two tries! I had a Jollibee chickenjoy-spaghetti meal along with a banana langka pie!). But I am still losing. How? I drive my metabolism crazy, that's how!

On days that I am truly sedentary (Day off from work and from exercise... Yes! I have exercise "rest days" too in order to allow my body to recover!) or during detox days (hello, smoothie!), I do follow what my calorie tracker apps dictate. On weekly date nights and/or binge days, I allow myself to go over my set calorie goal, eat whatever would make health nuts' eyes roll, and go crazy at the gym, the "crazy" depending on how much I am over.

For instance, since I noticed I burn 10-17 calories per minute on the elliptical or while doing any kind of cardios, I extend my cardios for a minute more if I am over 10 calories. So if I'm over a 300 calories, you can bet your glutes off that I'll be at the gym for 30 minutes more.

But going back to food and metabolism, like exercise, when conditioned, the body needs to be challenged every now and then to test how well it has responded to your conditioning. If you keep on feeding it the same kind and same low amount of food everyday, for long periods of time, chances are, you'll no longer lose weight. The mental torture you've been subjecting yourself will eventually become nothing more than a routine for your body that has already gotten used to it.

So eat more. Take risks. Shock your body. Get your metabolism off the couch and get it working overtime each time you shock it! It doesn't hurt to have a bite of this and that. The key to fitness and weight loss is not eating less alone. It is moderation. Moderate, not low, amount of calories or portions. Moderate exercise. Moderate frequency in shocking meals and workouts.

Still not convinced? Follow me on Instagram @whenyouloseyouwin and see my exercises, my food and my progress!

Eat Less, Weigh More

Yesterday, I saw the above picture in my Instagram post/news feed. I thought, "Finally! Someone gets it!"

The "it" is the world's biggest weight loss misconception: You have to eat less in order to weigh less.

The principle is actually not entirely wrong especially when you consciously make the decision to cut in half a daily consumption of 3,000 calories. What can make it misleading is the word "less".

To understand why "less" can be utterly misleading, you have to first know and accept that there are factors governing a successful weight loss. I'm not a weight loss expert but based on experience and from what I read, among the most important factors are height, weight, level of daily activity (sedentary, lightly active, moderately active, highly active), age, and weekly weight loss goal.

Before I proceed to discussing the factors mentioned, let me make this clear: If you are still not within a regular-normal weight range, the numbers, whether numbers on the scale or elsewhere, DO matter.

Going back to the factors mentioned above, a lot of people think there's a standard number of calories one must consume in order to achieve a huge weight loss, nevermind that this actual weight loss is achieved in such a short period of time that it is nothing short of drastic. I remember watching Dancing With The Stars (DWTS) when Kirstie Alley first appeared on it a few years back. She said part of the reason she joined it was to lose weight. And lose the weight she did. For a while, I thought, wow, she really was burning those pounds away through regular vigorous movements. And then, when I heard she was just consuming 1,200 calories a day, I just had to stop the wow's. Close to the 60s in age and spending hours in rehearsal, like what Instagrammer mandagetsfit said in the caption of her picture above, "she was practically running on an empty tank".

Then there's this person who I used to follow and used to follow me back on my fitness account on Instagram. We're of the same height (5'3) and while I started my weight loss journey at 180 lbs in August of 2012, she started hers months before at over 200+ lbs. In her profile, she indicated that she had already lost over 30 or 40 lbs. Like my wow's for Kirstie, however, those stopped coming out of my mouth when I saw she was consuming no more than 800 calories/day. I must be a decade or so older than her but only 800 calories a day for someone who's probably studying and working at the same time? Only 800 calories for someone like her who's heavier than me? That. Can't. Be. Right.

But I kept my mouth shut about her eating habits. One day she complained of being stuck in that dreaded weight loss plateau. Worse, after a few weeks, she gained weight. A lot of people, myself included, tried to tell her that it couldn't possibly just be muscle weight anymore; that she had to do more cardios than what she had been doing (she said she dislikes it). For the life of me, I still did not mention anything about her eating habits.

Needless to say, my comments to her post got deleted. Either it was an Instagram bug or it was on purpose. For whatever the reason, I also found out she "unfollowed" me. I "unfollowed her back".

Short of making this blog post about her, let me go back once again to what mandagetsfit said about metabolism: Do not inflict undue damage to your metabolism. About.com says metabolism is the chemical process that establishes "the rate at which your body burns calories". So it goes without saying that without the right amount of food to digest and to turn into energy, like a factory, the body shuts down to stock up on whatever amount of energy it still has in order to continue life. This process is what happens when our metabolism slows down, making us plateau or worse, gain weight.

So I urge all of you to know and stick to your true numbers. These are your yardstick to a successful and healthy weight loss. There are a number of smartphone apps and websites online like Livestrong.com, Livestrong My Plate and MyFitnessPal that help determine these numbers.  Use these to your advantage! They're within your fingertips and easily at your disposal.

What's more, do not shock your body. Take it one step at a time. Have you ever heard of the phrase "slowly but surely"? I'm sure you have so do things gradually. Condition your body to slowly cut down the calories. But don't be afraid to eat more! Honestly? I'll be more afraid if I start eating less. My personal threshold is 1,220 calories. At 137.4 lbs now, my calorie counter dictates that if I were sedentary, I should eat 1,199 calories in order to lose a pound a week. But I'm no longer sedentary. I've conditioned my body to move more in order to eat more.

At the end of the day, learn, as well, to listen to your body. Nourish it and let it rest when needed. If you only work around processes that are sustainable, before you know it, you're at your goal!

Why I Am On This Weight Loss Journey

It's my unofficial day off today or the extension of my official days off (called in sick due to a pulled lower back muscle... ouch!). During the latter, I had a couple of aunts and a couple of friends who expressed two very different opinions regarding my progress: one group said I could push further down to 120 lbs for my ideal weight (instead of my goal of 125 lbs) and one group said "tama na" (stop already).

Before I express my decision and thoughts about those, let me tell you a story:

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who weighed "just right" and had two overweight parents. She was told her mom gained weight due to pregnancy. Overtime, when her mom quit her job to become a full-time housewife and mother, she learned that it was because of the latter. And liters of Coke. As for her dad, she had learned to passively accept that people like him gain the weight with age. The passive acceptance, however, turned to fear, when she learned at 15 that her father was diagnosed with diabetes.

Both of these parents of hers used to be really slim. During her puberty years, her mom told her she passed on to her genes that produce more-than-the-average-size breasts. Those genes worked to her advantage when, upon graduating from high school, she got invited to represent her community in her city's local beauty pageant. She placed 2nd. Or 1st runner-up. She was almost 17, 5 foot 3 inches and 117 lbs. The year was 2001.

When she entered college months after the beauty pageant, she gained about 5-8 lbs. It was her first time to realize how much 5-8 lbs can change one's image to people. She thought she still looked fine and was still within the ideal weight range for her height and age and yet, to people, a 5-8 lb-weight gain is a disappointment. In June 2001, she was between 122-125 lbs.

Once she graduated from college in 2005, she entered the workforce as a part-time call center agent in the morning. In the afternoon, all the way to 9 pm, she's back in school, studying law as a post-graduate degree. She didn't really like coffee so much so for four years in the call center industry and just a year in law school, she sought refuge in food to keep her awake and energized. In 2007, she complained to her friends of being 150 lbs.

In 2008, almost two years after her mom died with diabetic coma (yes, diabetes) as the primary cause, her politically active news writer of a father was diagnosed with end-stage kidney failure due to his 15-year-old diabetes.

It's also in the same year that she met her then future husband. He accepted her even if she admitted to him that she's overweight and was heavier than him. He didn't mind that he's taller and more active in the gym. In August of that year, he invited her to an "international romantic date" in Disneyworld. From there, they travelled to where he lives in California. At one of the mall bathroom weighing scales during one fine day in August of 2008, she found out she was 169 lbs.

2009 came and her weight reached 175 lbs. Her man proposed on Christmas Day in 2008 and she knew she needed to lose some LBs. It was a promise to her wedding couturier that brought a 6-lb weight loss on her wedding day. On January 24, 2010, she was 5'3, and a 169-lb bride.

When her 6-month stay in the US on a tourist visa came to an end, she brought back to her native country not only prayers for a speedy immigrant visa processing but 16 extra pounds of which, gave her acid reflux, and, according to her OB-GYN, prevented her from conceiving immediately. She was told not to worry so much; that if she and her husband had already been trying for a year and nothing happened, that's when she should start thinking of treatments.

Having nothing else to do during the year-long processing of her papers aside from taking care of her sick father, she thought of enrolling at a gym just 4 minutes away, on foot, from their house. She took baby steps, steps that progressed to leaps when her required medical exam for the visa came closer. She had heard of horror stories about people either getting the processing of their papers delayed or their applications denied due to various health conditions so she changed certain things where her diet and activity were concerned.

For her breakfast and dinner, instead of eating rice with viand, she replaced rice with oatmeal (oats cooked to the consistency/stickiness of rice). Her only meal with rice was during lunch. Thirty minutes after dinner, she would head down to the gym.

The lifestyle change paid off: She passed the medical exam. In July 2011, she went back to California at a lighter weight of 155 lbs.

A month passed and her hormones went awry. It was her first time to experience irregular menstrual cycles. She was told it's due to either the change in environment or her rapid weight loss. Or both.

When she was finally with a job, her weight shot up 10 lbs. Her state ID indicated that she was 165 lbs.

It was at 165 lbs in May of 2012 that she found she was 5 weeks pregnant. She immediately submitted a notice of resignation as the happiness of finally conceiving was more important to her and her husband. The happiness didn't last though as she eventually lost the pregnancy due to a missed miscarriage. She had a D&C on June 30 during which, her declared weight in the hospital form was 175 lbs.

In August, a month before renewing her gym membership, she was at 180 lbs. She prepped for her return to the gym by doing at least 60 spread-out body squats daily. She also stuck to having no more than 3 cups of rice per day and on some days, cut it to two cups due to her oatmeal arrozcaldo (see my oatmeal arrozcaldo blog entry*****) breakfast.

In September of 2012, she and her husband went to Las Vegas. Because she had already started calorie counting via Livestrong's MyPlate iPhone app, imagine being in the Sin City, gluttony and all, eating only in Panda Express due to their disclosed nutritional info and out of Cheesecake Factory's Skinnylicious Menu! By the end of that month, she was down to 177 lbs.

Months passed and another vacation opportunity arrived: They were headed to New York in the second week of December! She knew this would take her away from her calorie counting app so she worked extremely hard to get to a low weight, a weight that's low enough to accommodate reasonable holiday weight gain. A few hours before her flight on December 14, she was still huffing and puffing at the gym. She was 151 lbs.

The vacation was actually her husband's business trip so while he was at the office, she was at the hotel gym, trying to burn the calories that racked up during their dinner adventures in New York. By the end of the trip a day before Christmas of 2012, she was 153 lbs.

The first day of 2013 came and she's down to 150 lbs. 150 lbs! Her husband had never seen her that light, ever! It was supposedly a 3rd wedding anniversary to her husband: for him to see her that light! The "gift" came 23 days early!

On January 3, she started working for a new company. She had to tell the administrative officer if she could change her declared weight when she signed the contract in November (165 lbs). Her new weight on that day? 149 lbs.

It was also on January 3 that she tried on various pieces of uniform from the office stock room. She was given several pieces to wear while waiting for the arrival of her ordered uniform, if she ordered at all.

A week later, during her fingerprinting, at the security office she had to request another weight change. She explained to the officer that she had already lost 3 lbs ever since her start date. She was asked if it's because of stress on the job. She said that she's merely actively trying to lose weight and that walking more than 10,000 steps/day because of her new role contributed to it.

Another week passed and she received a letter from the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) that her state ID had been cancelled. She knew and eventually confirmed that it was inadvertently/mistakenly cancelled due to a typographical error. Her trip to DMV was a stressful 2-hour weight that was only made okay by the fact that she was able to change her declared weight of 165 lbs on her old ID to 145 lbs.

It's now the end of January. She still has not ordered her uniform. She figures, she's only going to order once she's between 120-135 lbs. She can pay for alteration any time on her already loose temporary uniform. She called in sick due to a pulled lower back muscle (she blames the squats she did the other day). She's 138.4 lbs now. No longer either obese or overweight; finally in the regular weight range.

The end.......

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is nowhere to be seen yet. My stand on what should be my goal weight now that I'm 138.4 lbs? For starters, I'm 3.4 lbs away from my first goal weight of 135 lbs. Which makes me 13.4 lbs away from my current goal weight of 125 or 18.4 lbs away from my aunts' 120-lb campaign. Well, it actually all depends on whether or not I become pregnant. For each day that I learn I am not pregnant, I feel like I'm always in a marathon: I run faster, jump higher, squat lower, lift heavier in order to get to a low enough weight that's ideal for pregnancy and for my health.

So yes. I'm trying to lose weight to become pregnant again. I'm trying to lose weight to accommodate, just like last Christmas, a healthy or a reasonable enough weight gain once I successfully conceive again. More importantly, I'm trying to lose weight and have a sustainable and healthy lifestyle change for my own health  - a health that I consider as my most important tool in living longer for my loved ones who need me and who love me.

5 Rules to Easy 2-3 Lbs Off in a Month

Yep. You read it right. I bet you mostly caught the words "easy" and "month". Just a disclaimer though: If you still eat over 3,000 calories' worth of fatty, greasy food, this is definitely not for you. Though the word "easy" here can truly be misleading, I acknowledge that there is no sustainable shortcut to weight loss and fitness. This set of rules, however, is worth adding to your fitness and weight loss regimen. The relative ease of these rules separates the truly determined from the simply lazy.

RECIPE: Oatmeal Arroz Caldo

OATMEAL ARROZ CALDO

I'm no health expert but when articles from all over and your own experience tell you that oats are good, then oats are, indeed, good.

Oats are the best thing that can ever happen to one's diet. According to Wikipedia, these contain more soluble fiber than any other grain. And what good does fiber do? It essentially makes us feel full thereby effectively curbing any more craving. What's more, certain studies have shown that it may actually help in lowering one's cholesterol. Between my hubby and I, I'm the oatmeal person. My husband's heart belongs to cereal (well, Quaker OATS cereal). He's taller and lighter than me (weight's regular) but it seems that my previously non-stop consumption of oatmeal a few months back has kicked his cholesterol level to the curb. Mine's at a regular level, his' is borderline high!

But okay, this blog post is not about our eating habits and our sad weight comparison. It is about that oatmeal dish that I still have every now and then for either breakfast or dinner.

OATMEAL ARROZ CALDO

"Arroz" means rice in Spanish, while "caldo" means broth. Basically, arroz caldo, a staple popular in former Spanish colony, the Philippines, is a rice broth or otherwise known as the Filipino-style congee.

The Philippines, being geographically close to China, has a lot of Chinese dishes in its cuisine and Arroz Caldo happens to be a Spanish-sounding "Filipinized" congee made of sticky rice, chicken broth, chicken, garlic, pepper and onion.

Now for someone like me who grew up to this but is on a quest to lose the LBs due to health concerns, rice can be a little tricky due to its calorie and sugar level. Thankfully, I discovered (and friends concur) that oatmeal can be of the same sticky consistency as rice as long as the oats are not swimming in water. And since I don't like the traditional breakfast oatmeal with the fruits, nuts, sugar and milk (I don't have a sweet tooth), I thought of making my own Oatmeal Arroz Caldo.

Here's the recipe of what I have been eating for the last two years:

1/2 cup dry of Quaker Oats Quick 1-Minute Oats  -  150 calories

1/2 boiled egg  -  39-40 calories

1/2 link microwaved chicken hamonado sausage (or the tastiest chicken sausage you can find in the deli/grocery)  -  115 calories (I buy Martin Purefoods' Chicken Hamonado Longanisa in the US)

1/2 tsp of powdered ginger (McCormick or any other brand)

generous sprinkles of dried minced onion and granulated garlic (McCormick or any other brand)

a dash of pepper to taste

chili powder (optional)

1. Pour hot water into a soup bowl, add the oats, ginger, onion and garlic

2. Add the sliced boiled egg and sliced chicken hamonado

**Makes 1 serving (304-305 calories/serving)

I know health nuts will surely chastise me for adding sausage in this dish (preservatives!) but hey! It's fast. filling, low in sugar and works for my palate. I am also not preventing anyone from going the extra mile by boiling their own chicken and adding it to this dish.

Pinoy Fare I'm Looking Forward to Eating!

Hubby and I only have nine days left before our flight to the Philippines so let me just say that over the past few weeks, my mind couldn't stop thinking about food  -  mostly Filipino food.

Sinigang na Baboy

There was a day I craved painfully for sinigang (tamarind soup) that the moment I tricked my husband into stopping by the nearby Asian store at our area, I grabbed more than just the Sinigang with Gabi mix from Knorr: I gleefully grabbed a bunch of water spinach leaves (kangkong for us Pinoys!) not for the sinigang (I have bok choy leaves or pechay for that!) but for another typical rural Filipino fare: Boiled Kangkong with Bagoong (Shrimp or Fish Paste  -  I like Shrimp Paste or alamang better).

Boracay Garden & Grill in South San Francisco, CA

A few days prior to cooking Sinigang na Baboy, we went to this place called Boracay Garden & Grill near downtown South San Francisco where we had the Filipino version of Chop suey (sauteed vegetables and meat with thick sauce) and Lumpiang Shanghai (the Philippines' version of egg rolls and/or spring rolls).

And even if I am normally not a fan of Pinoy dessert, my pregnancy hormone just pushed me to purchase, a few days later, not one but two Pinoy snacks from a friend who jokingly once told us that it must have been because of his Palitaw (Flattened Sweet Rice Cake often dipped in sugar and coconut) that we were finally able to conceive. Anyway, apart from his Palitaw that hubby really loves, I also bought Hopiang Ube, a purple yam-filled Pinoy pastry of Chinese origins.

Going back to the countdown to our flight, now that it has started with my luggage almost full, I intend to take back with me to the US more than a year's worth of food-gasmic memories enough to cover for me until our next vacation. After all, one thing my tastebuds have learned in the US is that Jollibee is never the same anywhere else; you just can't duplicate that "langhap-sarap" (Filipino for "delicious aroma/smell") flavor. All those being said, allow me to cover ground for food guru Andrew Zimmern's declaration that "Filipino food is the 'next big thing'".

If I were to show a foreigner why abovementioned statement is legit, I'd have him/her eat:

Lechon Manok from Baliwag

1. Baliwag's Lechon Manok. Or Roast Chicken. I'm very sure that anyone who dips the delectably marinated and fragrant juicy chicken leg in Mang Tomas lechon sauce (not necessarily Baliwag's sauce, I think) and pairs it with steamed white rice will have, afterwards, gone from food heaven and returned to tell a wonderful experience. Coming in close, taste-wise, is Andok's version. It's just slightly more pricey and sometimes a little dry. Either way, roast chicken, Pinoy-style (with tanglad or lemon grass leaves and/or pandan leaves mixed with Sprite for marinade)? It's my "manna" from heaven! Whole Chicken Price: $7.00-9.00

Jollibee's Famous Slogan

Jollibee's Chickenjoy

2. Jollibee Chickenjoy. A half Pinoy I worked with at Bank of America bows down to Jollibee's fried chicken. He said it surely can't be compared to KFC's. Obviously, this guy hasn't been to the Philippines where, many would argue, chicken is cooked and flavored so uniquely and generously well (refer to #1) that big chains like KFC, Jollibee and Mcdonald's (Yes! Mcdo serves fried chicken there!) are neck and neck in the fried chicken business. Why I said such is a reference to my earlier statement that no one can just duplicate that "langhap-sarap" flavor even if it's the same company with the only perceived difference being is location. Apparently, "location" can't just be underestimated when it comes to food as the ingredients are different therefore the taste a little varied and the food practices either more strict or more lenient (Jollibee's "langhap sarap" campaign can't be, uh, "smelled", upon entering a branch in the US unlike in the Philippines). I don't even like Pizza Hut or KFC anymore (that could change once I switch time zones) even with the fact that I now reside in these food chains' country of origin. It's only Goldilocks (I live five blocks away from the nearest branch!) that has been able, in my opinion, to maintain the consistency of the taste of the food it serves. 2-Piece Chicken with Rice Price: $3.00-4.00

Siomai House

3. Siomai House's Pork and Shrimp Siomai. Shao Mai, siumai. Whatever the Chinese agrees on or decides as the correct spelling and pronunciation for this dumpling (just one of the many versions of the Western meatball), however I tweak my own recipe and ask the food gods for favor, no other dumpling can beat Siomai House's product. It's basically a fragrant ball of crushed shrimp and ground pork that's nothing too strong in taste that even dialysis patients like my dad are allowed to eat. Their chili garlic blends well with calamansi (Filipino lime) and soy sauce that a serving (four pieces) or two is more than enough to fill my happy tummy. 4-Piece Siomai Serving Price: $0.50-0.70

Bihon Guisado or Pansit Bihon

4. Pansit Bihon/Bihon Guisado. I really, really want to recommend Amber Golden Plate Restaurant's Bihon Guisado but it's just a little too inconvenient, money-wise and wait time-wise that I'm sure my foreigner friend would happily settle for a lesser known restaurant's version. Suffice to say, one only has to mix thin rice noodles with Filipino Chopsuey ingredients and broth (minus the cornstarch) and have calamansi or soy sauce to taste ready to understand why Filipino-Chinese say the dish lengthens one's life: If mixed well with the right ingredients and secret spices (my dad's not-so-secret ingredient: brown sugar!), it's flavorful enough to make one emotionally happy after consumption. It's also arguably complete where "nutrition" is concerned, as it has protein (meat), carbs (noodles) and fiber (veggies). :) Price depends on size and location: $1.50-10.00

Sticks (apparently, one can't have just one stick!) of Chicken
Isaw served in cups filled with vinegar in UP Diliman.

5. UP Diliman's Isaw, etc. Okay, so at this point, maybe one can already tell that I'm not so much of a health nut but at this number, I'm happy to declare that I'm a food adventure freak! So maybe I haven't eaten (yet) a grasshopper or a live worm (probably not) but "isaw", simply put, is either chicken or pig intestine. The Diliman campus of the University of the Philippines (UP) is famous for its cheap and clean (seriously!) barbecued delicacies, particularly those what Pinoys think as edible parts of chickens and pigs that are otherwise thrown away or set aside as dog food particularly in the US. These delicacies that include but not limited to Isaw (I love "Betamax" or Grilled Coagulated Pig's Blood in particular) are sold by vendors in street stalls in the afternoon. Many people have written why UP Diliman's Isaw is famous. I'd say it's mostly because a.) I'm a proud alumna of the university; b.) the barbecue marinade caters to my sometimes sweet tooth; and c.) I love their dipping sauce served in small cups which is basically vinegar ingeniously mixed with red onions (considering I hate onions to the highest heavens!) and other flavor enhancers that I drink it afterwards (thus my acid reflux...lol). Price depends, again, on serving size and location. In UP, it's between $0.25 to $1.00

Super Supreme Stuffed Crust

6. Pizza Hut Philippines' Stuffed Crust Hawaiian Supreme. I recall a high school classmate saying that Pizza Hut Indonesia has the better pizza (than the Philippines'). Since I haven't been there and I'd have to taste (and smell) to believe, I'd settle towards comparing Pizza Hut US and Pizza Hut Philippines. Or maybe not. No food fights here but my admittedly limited or maybe "enough" experience with Pizza Hut in the US is not really that great. US branches are mostly limited to delivery and pick-ups and I have yet to see a bistro-style Pizza Hut like those that are in the Philippines. As for my choice of pizza? Well, for starters, I grew up loving Hawaiian Supreme but I'm mostly biased towards Pizza Hut Philippines's "melt-in-your-mouth mozzarella cheese baked in a crust laced with a hint of garlic butter". I have yet to eat one in the US that's at par with this kind of food-gasm. Pan Pizza Price: $8.00 to $18

Rodic's famous Tapsilog

7. Rodic's Tapsilog. Shaved beef mixed in garlic rice topped with sunny side-up egg? I just died and went to food heaven! Seriously speaking, this was my typical treat for myself while I was a student in UP Diliman. Rodic's slightly sweet version of quick-fried beef strips (tapa or the "tap" in tapsilog) served with garlic rice (sinangag or "si") and fried egg (itlog or "log") may be a little bit on the expensive side for students and those living on a tight budget but it's definitely worth the little cholesterol ingested, I promise. :) Price: $2.00

______________________________________

So maybe I'm not the most reliable, information-wise and tastebud-wise but one thing that makes eating above dishes so much worth the experience is the Filipinos' way of saying "Kain tayo!" or "Let's eat!". I've tried expressing such to my foreign colleagues but full comprehension somehow just ends where difference in culture begins. A typical Filipino may not have much food in the table but he'd, for sure, gleefully share whatever he has with anyone and that, for me, makes eating a truly enjoyable experience. It also doesn't hurt if the food is cooked well, Filipino-style. *wink*

Weight Loss Journey: I must be doing something right

When I was 16, I joined Rosas ng Santa Rosa (Santa Rosa City, Laguna). Back then I considered my weight of either 110 lbs or 117 lbs and my waistline of 27 inches as "chubby", proportions-wise. Ah! Who was I kidding?! THAT was slim. THAT was just right. Compared to what happened, 10 years after.

I am 16 going on 17.. lalala

Older? Check. Wiser? I'm now 26 (turning 27 next month!) and apparently, none the wiser when it comes to fitness ever since I started to pack on the LBs. Thankfully, I've proven that my brain cells are still working hard enough (in spite of all the fat.. ugh..) to push me to go to the gym and spend an hour on average there four to as much as seven times a week. The "wisdom comes with age" adage also applies to how I've started soliciting advice from health and fitness experts, virtual and human alike.

So allow me to come clean and browse through the details of my weight loss journey:

June 2001

The Rosas ng Santa Rosa winner declined from competing as Santa Rosa's representative to the 2001 Miss Laguna pageant. I was first runner-up so I was next in line. From 117 lbs, I "ballooned" to 121 lbs. The gay coordinator, with fierce determination in his eyes, spoke of how he'd make me lose weight. Nyarr... To make the long story short, I didn't compete. I had to make the most out of my freshman year in UP Diliman.

Creative shots for the UP Diliman College of Arts
and Letters 2005 yearbook

2004

From 135 lbs, I went back to 121 or 124 lbs. Then gained ALL the pounds back and more. I somehow managed to cut the "more" to clock in at 135 lbs in time for my graduation picture. The secret? NOT the Atkins Diet that everyone was raving about during that time. Mine's the Cabbage Soup Diet. lol.

2005-2006

Law School + Call Center Job + Santa Rosa to Diliman travel = P-O-U-N-D-S. I would wake up between 3-3:30 AM. Go to work at 4 AM. Clock in before 5 in Makati after travelling from Santa Rosa in Laguna. My job as a survey taker enabled me to take my food and my books at my workstation provided that the customer did not hear me munching or talking about Philippine legal terms. At 1 PM, work would have already ended and I would have already started drinking my first of four cups of free coffee at the office to study for my evening law classes. I badly needed to stay awake. At 4 PM, I'd already be on my way to the University of the Philippines in Diliman. Classes were from 6 PM-9 PM. I'd go home immediately after... well, most of the time. The "some of the time" involved dinner with law school classmates at notorious Diliman, Katipunan and Kalayaan Avenue resto must-gos. Usually back at home at 11:30 PM. I still would have to study. In order to stay awake, I would often turn to food.

Summer of 2007

I remember complaining to my PinoyExchange (PEx) friends about being 150 lbs.

3rd Quarter, 2007

Enrolled, for the second time, at Slimmer's World. I was heartbroken and I needed to feel good. I turned to shoe shopping, a fab haircut and intense workout sessions. While the first two served their purpose for a long time, the latter lasted four days (with huge gaps in between) until my month-long membership expired.

July 2008

I bought an elliptical machine after pressures from my dad that I should look good for Sergs. The "I-should-look-good-for-Sergs" part was more than enough to convince me that Sergs, my then-boyfriend-now-hubby, was-and-still-is on dad's good side. My PEx friend Andrea warned that I should not just let it gather dust.

At Walt Disney World in Florida in August 2008

August 2008

First "international" date in the US with my then-boyfriend-now-hubby, Sergs. There was a weighing scale in one of the public toilets in a mall in San Bruno in California. My weight registered as 159+ lbs.

January-March 2009

175 lbs. I blamed my 2-month Nicaragua business trip for my weight gain. I professed, adamantly, that even with my separation from my elliptical, I did try my very best to not let the fact that a driver took me to the office and back to the hotel everyday and that food there's delicious (rice with beans, their Gallopintos, plus pork and cheese) make me gain weight. I did half/semi-push ups on my hotel room's bathroom counter. I jogged (once) on one of Nicaragua's beaches. Yes. I did try. Really, I did.

May 2009

Signed up with a wedding gown designer. Begged that I be allowed a more than reasonable period to lose weight before my first fitting. I showed up on that day completely putting to waste the expensive corset I bought and was wearing just because I had a heavy dinner.

(The rest of) 2009

My "fitness" regimen included going to my graveyard shift at work without eating dinner. I'd buy Vitamin Water (the one that says "Reduce") and pair it with bola-bola siopao from 7-Eleven. I'd then spend the rest of my shift believing that since I was a language trainer who spent most of her time standing up, walking and hauling heavy training modules, I was actually "fit".

Wedding Day!

January 2010

With my wedding a few weeks away, my fiance and I decided to spend or maximize what little time we have left to at least say goodbye to some holiday poundage. We went to the gym every other day and tried to outdo each other's cardio efforts and lo and behold! It worked! Two weeks before the wedding, when we published our pre-nup shoot pics on Facebook, our friends posted comments about my weight loss. I was still in denial but became a believer when, a week later, during my final fitting with my couturier, they had to adjust my gown as I lost an inch on my arms and two inches on my waist. From 175 lbs, I went down to 169 lbs.

February-August 2010

Sinful treat at Red Lobster
in 2010

Big food servings (US size), no exercise (I had way too many excuses), cold weather (I was at the Bay Area!). It came as no surprise why I went from a promising 169 lbs to a scary 185 lbs. For the first time in my adult life, I had a weight-related health problem: GERD. Short for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease or acid reflux, taking Omeprazole capsules twice a day became part of my routine.

August-November 2010

I was back in Manila, waiting for the approval of my spouse petition and 185 lbs. I missed my husband and dealt with my dad's health issues (he was in and out of the hospital every month from August to November), thus resorting to emotional eating. I enrolled myself again at the gym just outside our condominium the moment I returned. But at the same time, I had pizza and all other types of junk food delivered and feasted on Pinoy food that I missed while in the US! I knew I was getting absolutely insufficient exercise  -  not a noteworthy improvement from my sedentary lifestyle while in South San Francisco.

My medical exam's not-so-secret weapons

November 2010-present

When dad, thankfully (and finally!), stopped from having monthly hospitalizations, I resolved to do something about my weight. My husband arrived for a 10-day Christmas vacation and on the day he went back to the US, what I thought was a bun in my oven turned out to be no more than a hysterical pregnancy. It was the final nail to my coffin of weight-related denials and procrastination. I was tired of seeing pregnancy announcements of friends who got married after my January 2010 wedding. I was tired of the wisecracks about my weight. I wanted (and still want) to pass the medical exam for my immigrant visa application and return to the US in tip-top baby-making shape.

For the love of spice :)

More than a week ago, I got the good news about the schedule of my immigrant visa interview at the US Embassy and the expected medical exam requirement. Luckily, Pearl, a friend who happens to be a registered nurse, shared tips on how I can prepare. Let me now share what I've been doing every single day:

Morning Routine/Breakfast:

Can lower one's
blood pressure!

• Before having breakfast, I do 10-20 squats :D
• 5 teaspoonfuls of Quaker Oats Instant Oatmeal turned into my own version of Arroz Caldo (hot water, McCormick powdered ginger, McCormick granulated garlic, a dash of pepper and less than 1/8 teaspoon of iodized salt)
• 1 CDO California Chicken Hotdog with Cheese (microwaved, NOT fried)
• 1 boiled egg
• 1 apple
• 2-3 glasses of cold drinking water
• 1 Centrum vitamins

Lunchtime Routine/Meal:

• 1 cup rice
• Viand (fish, veggies, chicken.... NO pork...but sometimes I indulge on Siomai House's pork siomai :D)
• 2-3 glasses of cold drinking water
• 1 cup Fit 'N Right pineapple snack or 1 banana
• 10-20 more squats

Evening Routine/Dinner:

My choice of gym equipment...

Forgiving on the calves, knees and thighs.

• 5 teaspoonfuls of Quaker Oats Instant Oatmeal turned into my own version of Arroz Caldo (hot water, McCormick powdered ginger, McCormick granulated garlic, a dash of pepper and less than 1/8 teaspoon of iodized salt) <---------- basically acting as my low-cal rice replacement
• Viand: a little bit of meat - fish (sardines or Tilapia)/chicken and/or veggies
• 2 glasses of cold drinking water
• Stretching
• 10 minutes of low intensity cardios for warm-up (either on the crossramp at  level 10 for incline and 9 for resistance or on the treadmill with power walking at 3.8 miles/hour for the first nine minutes and 20 seconds, gradually going down to 3.6-3.4 miles/hour for the last few seconds)
• More water
• 20-30 minutes of weight training (60 squats with 3-lb dumbbells included)
• More water
• 15-30 minutes of high intensity cardios (usually on the crossramp at level 10 for incline and 9 for resistance or on the elliptical at 8 for resistance)
• More water
• 200 mL Bear Brand Sterilized Milk (to keep my acid reflux at bay and to help me sleep)

At 165 lbs, a few weeks ago.

As of this typing, I'm a week away from my medical exam and tipping the scale at 161.5 lbs with my Body Mass Index (BMI or ratio of fat in our body) significantly lowered (YAY!). I feel lighter, cleaner and healthier. My ideal weight is 137 lbs but I'm realistically gunning for two more pounds of weight loss before my exam and 10 or 11 more off my weight after that (in time for my birthday on July 19  -  my birthday gift for myself!). Yes. These are all just for the time being.

In the end, my decision to push myself to lose weight does not really rely heavily on what other people see and think. My husband makes me feel secure every step of the way. :) I want to live longer, simply put. And it's all about having a realistic goal and seeking for healthy ways to achieve it. It's all about healthy, tasty, nutritious food on smaller/fewer proportions and ways to burn it. You are what you eat and/or burn, as they say, and that is me wishing to not see 173 or 185 lbs on my frame anymore. I'd rather be a promising 158 lbs on her journey to becoming a fit 137 lbs.

Blog Challenge Day 7

A picture of someone who has the biggest impact on you

My husband takes the cake here for the following reasons:

1. I used to go to mass only when I feel like it. Now I'm happy to say that I attend mass regularly every Sunday. Hubby's influence.
2. When buying food, price is now secondary to sodium content. Hubby's influence.
3. I go to the gym at least 4x/week. Hubby's influence.
4. I regularly check Yahoo! News for sports competition spoilers (who needs Pay-per-view?) and interesting features. Hubby's influence.
5. Rock music now has a place in my listening repertoire. Hubby's influence.
6. I now look forward to comedy and action hero flicks (Transformers, The Hangover, etc.). Hubby's influence.
7. I don't trust public transport drivers in the Philippines anymore. Hubby's influence.
8. I laugh and smile more. Because of him. :)