Eating Update

I shared with you all last week that I was planning to start eating better, as well as begin to keep track of what I'm eating and the calories. Here are a few things I've learned in the last week and a half:

• I thought I had some sort of an idea as to the calories of things, but I was waaaayyy off. For example, I made a sandwich, and the mayo and pickles calories were nearly as much as the turkey and cheese combined. Yikes!
• Speaking of, there are a lot of "hidden" calories I seem to consume in a day, like coffee creamer. One tablespoon is 30 calories and I drink A LOT of coffee and never measured the creamer. I'm estimating an upwards of two hundred calories just in creamer each day, as I know I put in more than one tablespoon. Now, I'm measuring the one and calling it good.
• It takes a lot of self-control for me not to eat when I'm bored. Seriously. I feel like I'm beginning to do a better job of recognizing when I'm really hungry, then trying to make better snack choices like yogurt or fruit.
• Kids' comfort foods are  NOT healthy. Last week I made mac-n-cheese and hot dogs for lunch on day. The mac-n-cheese alone was nearly 300 calories! Same goes for burgers-nearly 500 when you begin to add things up!
• I don't eat nearly enough vegetables, so the kids don't either. We have go to start doing a better job of that!
• I have to be more thoughtful about how I fuel my body each day. My calorie ranges anywhere from 1050-1400. That's a big difference. Based on my age and size I probably need to be around 1200 a day. Take for example: we went out for breakfast once and the calories of that pretty much equalled a typical dinner, that means, I needed to eat lighter at dinner to compensate. 

I have lost nearly five pounds though, which is a good start. If I could lose five more I'd be sitting at my target weight and where I was about a year ago. Any substantial change is going to take a purposeful effort and it's going to have to be maintainable. I'm working to find a good balance that works for my life now.