Category: Health and Fitness

Daily Food Diary – Day 360 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is Day 360 of my Daily Food Diary – my 360th consecutive day of   diligently tracking everything I have consumed.  🎇

I have noted a number of benefits that I have recognized from this exercise.  The win that I am celebrating today is the positive use I have made of the internet to source out helpful nutritional information.  We hear so much about how detrimental the internet can be to us.  It never fails to amaze me how useful it can be as well.

Workout videos on You Tube have been invaluable to me over the past four years. Now I have branched out to ‘yeast free’ recipes, nutritional information, health supplements, and more.  👍 

My current Daily WINS  are probably relatable for many:

1) Enjoying these days between Christmas and New Year’s when meals are simple and easy with plentiful leftovers on hand.

2) Relaxing with a good book or a new Christmas Jigsaw puzzle.

Maybe not quite so relatable if your  children received ‘some parental assistance required’ Christmas gifts from Grandpa & Grandma. 🤭

3) A fresh blanket of snow that turns the world into a winter wonderland.

Especially if you are a ‘Queen of the Snow‘ Dog!

Daily Food Diary – Day 306

Breakfast:

(1) c coffee (2)

(1) paratha (240)

(1) tbsp jam (50)

(1) tbsp peanut butter (105)

Snacks:

(1/2) c broth (5)

(3) chocolates (210)

(1) pc Christmas cake (240)

(1) c tea

(36) Oz water

Supper:

(5) pierogis (283)

(3) Oz sausage (285)

(1) cabbage roll (120)

(1/2) Oz onion chip dip (20)

Total consumed calories: 1560

Total used calories: 175

(30) minutes aerobics (175)

Total net calories: 1389

Net calorie goal: 1208 – 1389 = 181 over 👎

Thats it for today.  take care and have a great day!😁💗

May your day, and the days to come, be magical for you and yours! 💞

Daily Food Diary – Day 359 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is Day 359 of my Daily Food Diary. ☺️

Six days left to go!

Yesterday after we got back from brunch and gift giving at Genie and Alec’s, we settled in  for a peaceful afternoon with Molly. 

My afternoon snack consisted of one Gin and Tonic and three delectable chocolates.  Our supper was leftover Chinese Food from Dan & Amanda’s visit followed by a cup of hot tea.  Again, for the second day in a row – no calories were counted. 

Today is Boxing Day in Canada.  Traditionally, people would rush out today to take advantage of  post Christmas sales. (A tradition that I consistently avoided).

I prefer the rest, relax, and recover tradition.

Enjoying memories of Maddy’s very first Annual Boxing Day Sleepover… this year she will be at work hosting little ones on their way home from Boxing Day sleepovers. 💞
And,  indulging in my annual Christmas Jigsaw puzzle event.

I will also be getting into  Recovery Mode by doing my aerobics this morning and heading outdoors for some fresh air this afternoon. 

It is time to start rebuilding so that I am ready to head into the new year  with the strength and stamina to work on reaching my AMAZING, FABULOUS, GINORMOUS 2026 HEALTH AND FITNESS GOAL!

Take care and have a great day! 🤗💞

Daily Food Diary – Day 358 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is the 358th Day that I have posted my Daily Food Diary without one miss!🤩

Today is also Christmas Day so I am going rogue – sharing a bit of our Christmas with you.

Christmas Eve / Genie’s Birthday – Following a full supper of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing, roasted vegetables, cabbage rolls, cranberries, buns/yorkshire pudding Brazilian cheese buns, Genie opened her presents and we shared in her birthday cake.
This morning we returned for a quick brunch of pancakes, bacon, ham, and fruit.  Following which, we headed down to Genie &  Alec’s suite to open gifts.

Family Christmas 2025 was a merry,  relaxing, loving, Peace on Earth success.   

Appreciation for Alec’s Mom for opening up her house to all of us for the past two days and for taking the lead in the kitchen to ensure all went smoothly for Alec & Genie’s first run at hosting the holidays.

Kudos to Alec and Genie for the festive decorations, the efficient set up, and of course the hosting duties served up with their sparkling  enthusiasm,  kindness, and consideration.

The wins for the day… it was all wins.  After three days of hosting Baccardi and Cornelius, Molly even ‘won’ a bit of personal time while we were out. 

It’s been exhausting..

My Daily Food Diary roundup win..

The balance and confidence to set aside the calorie counter for Christmas Eve  & Christmas Day.  I am enjoying all of the foods and treats of the season – in moderation and with a reasonable amount of caution. (Unlimited sugar is not my friend 🙄 even at Christmas.

Merry Christmas From Our House To Yours! 🎄🎁

Daily Food Diary – Day 357 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is Day 357 of my Daily Food Diary! Eight more days to go! 💗 

Today is Christmas Eve and we are already well into the holiday wins!

1) Last night we had a final evening visit with son Dan and family.  Amanda and I whipped up a quick supper of comfort foods.  Dan & Dan took over the kitchen to do the after supper clean up. Teamwork at its finest.  👍

2) Today we celebrate granddaughter Genevieve’s 22nd birthday!  Every day that we are blessed to have our sweet Genie in our lives is a win. 🎂

3) Tonight we head over to Genie & Alec’s to enjoy their first official Christmas/birthday supper. 🎄

My Daily Food Diary roundup win is an easy one today…

Despite my Christmas baking and amazing contributions by son Dan… I have been mindful of keeping the treat consumption to a minimum so far!  Moderation is today’s Daily Food Diary WIN.

Daily Food Diary:

Breakfast:

(1)  c coffee (2)

(1) c cheerios (147)

(1/4)  c 2% milk (28)

Snacks:

(1) gin & tonic (130)

(15) Lays lightly salted chips (218)

(1) pc. Chocolate coconut dessert bar (170)

Supper:

(4) Cheemo pierogis (227)

(1/2) Oz onion chip dip (20)

(1) cabbage rolls (120)

(3) Oz Drake sausage (285)

Total consumed calories: 1347

Total used calories: 0

Total net calories: 1347

Net calorie goal: 1208 – 1347 = 139 over 👎

That’s it for today.  Take care and have a beautiful,  loving, peace on earth/good will toward all, Merry Christmas Eve! 🎄🎇🎁

Daily Food Diary – Day 355 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is Day 355 of my Daily Food Diary! 😄

There are 10 DAYS left of 2025 and 10 Days before I meet my goal of maintaining and posting my Daily Food Diary for a full year!

Being retired and somewhat of a homebody hermit, meeting my goal has not been that challenging, for the most part.

Trying to do my Daily Food Diary today, with a lap full of small dogs, is a little more challenging than usual this morning.

My WINS for the Day today:

1) Wrapping ALL of our Christmas gifts yesterday!  There are a few things about the Christmas Season that I really do enjoy.  Wrestling wrapping paper, ribbons, and tape is NOT one of them.  But, I am done for 2025 so YAY!

2) Son Dan & Family arrived safe and sound yesterday.  So good to see all of them, including Gabby, who is at the University of Alberta in Edmonton this year (working on completing her Psychology degree).

Gabby, Dan, Cason, Amanda, & Lucas!

3) A feel good yesterday and a great night sleep. (8 solid hours – slept like a rock!)

BONUS WIN – Maintaining peace and joy despite vacuum cleaner dying AND one perfectly aimed fling of Molly’s tail taking out a full can of rootbeer and sending rootbeer foam flying from the coffee table to the carpet, to the wood floor, to the sofa, to the wall, stool, desk, Cason, and Gabby. 

My Daily Food Diary WIN for the day..

Cutting back (significantly) on sugar this year.  For most, this would be a good thing, for me it is great! With multiple lung issues (asthma, bronchiectasis, and COPD) plus an allergy to yeast – sugar is a bad thing – and a big weakness of mine! Especially CAKE with frosting! This year cake was minimal. 👍💪😉

Daily Food Diary – Day 355

Breakfast:

(1) c coffee (2)

(2) fried eggs (160)

(3) slices bacon (130)

(2) potato patties (240)

(4) slices tomato (11)

Snacks:

(1) butter tart (100)

(3) Oz red wine (75)

(48) Oz water

Supper:

(1) c Chicken Gumbo Soup (140)

(5) soda crackers (63)

(1) tortilla wrap (170)

(5) slices shaved Pillers ham (60)

(1 1/2) Oz marble cheese (170)

(1/4) sliced red onion (21)

Total consumed calories: 1342

Total used calories: 0

Total net calories: 1342

Net calories goal: 1208 – 1342 = 134 over 👎

That’s it for today.  Take care and have a great day! 😁💓

Daily Food Diary – Day 354 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is Day 354 of my Daily Food Diary! 🌺

Yesterday after I posted my blog, I hit a setback of sorts on my way to recovery.   I did get the livingroom floor done, decorations up, and some general tidying up done before I crashed.  My surgical wound was swollen and ITCHY and I was just exhausted.  Fortunately, today I am back on track and I feel just FINE!

So,  for today’s wins:

1) I feel FINE!

2) Dan, Amanda, and family are on the road and the roads are in relatively good shape today.  (Much better than usual these days!)  We are looking forward to seeing them and their pups.

Bacardii & Cornelius

3) We have sunshine today! Once again,  Dan and Molly walked without me due to the cold and the poor walking conditions which I am not quite ready to tackle – but it is uplifting to see the sunshine, nonetheless!

My Daily Food Diary roundup WIN for the day…

Balance – Balancing calories, protein, cholesterol (saturated fats), and collagen was a challenge for sure – but it  is something that I have, and continue to, work on!

Air fried chicken wings – high in collagen, protein and calories – relatively low in fat. 🤷‍♀️

Daily Food Diary – Day 354

Breakfast:

(1) c coffee (2)

(3) crumpets (240)

(2) tsp butter (69)

(1) tbsp jam (50)

Lunch:

(2) Harvest hotdogs (320)

(8) Hint of Lime tortilla chips (200)

(1) pc Christmas cake (240)

Supper:

(1 1/2) c stirfry with beefsteak, vegetables, and udon noodles  (714)

Total consumed calories: 1835

Total used calories: 0

Total net calories: 1835

Net calories goal: 1208 – 1835 = 627 over 👎

That’s it for today.  Take care and have a great Sunday! 🤨💞

Daily Food Diary – Day 353 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is Day 353 of my Daily Food Diary! 🧨

Christmas is finally starting to come together at our house.  I have some Christmas baking done. We have  most of the cleaning done.  And we have all of the presents bought –  including Genie’s Chritmas Eve/birthday present.   Tonight, I will break open a bit of Christmas cheer and get them wrapped.

A bit of Christmas decor – I like to keep it subtle.

My wins for today include:

1) Feeling fine and healing nicely!

2) Sleeping well every night since the surgery. 

3) Staying indoors to wash the living room floor this morning while Dan took Molly  for a very frigid walk through the snow and over the ice this morning!

Molly seemed to take offense at that last win? I was sure they would both be grateful not to have to wait for me to keep up with them. 😕

My Daily Food Diary win for the day…

Getting better at planning meals to work for the day that I (and/or  Dan) are facing. 

  • Serving up a nutritious  breakfast on Dan’s golf days
  • Including more protein on days when I am doing weight workouts or when one of us is in healing mode
  • Planning healthy, nutritious, but light suppers on hot summer days (avoiding those “I’m not hungry NOW but I’ll snarf down a family size bag of chips LATER”  scenerios)
  • Being extra mindful to avoid  ANY yeast, sugar, palm oil or the like if I have outings or appointments booked for the next day

Daily Food Diary – Day 353

Breakfast:

(1) c coffee (2)

(3) crumpets (240)

(2) tsp butter (69)

(1) tbsp jam (50)

Snacks:

(1) c caramel corn (170)

(1) pc Christmas cake (240)

(1/3) c mixed nuts (216)

(48) Oz water

Supper:

(1/4) tortierre (400)

(1) c mashed potatoes (113)

(1/2) c creamed corn (70)

(5) olives (38)

Total consumed calories: 1608

Total used calories: 0

Total net calories: 1608

Net calories goal: 1208 – 1608 = 400 over 👎

That’s it for today.  Take care and have a great day! 🥳💞

Daily Food Diary – Day 352 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is the 352nd day of my Daily Food diary! 💪

Today I have four really cool Daily wins to report!

First off, granddaughter Genie messaged her Mom (Jen) and I about how her Christmas Eve supper meal plan is coming together!

It is so heartwarming that our newlyweds are so enthusiastic about hosting their first Christmas.  The first of many no doubt! 💞

Second & Third wins of the day!  Getting a call from son Dan last night asking how my recovery was going.  We had a long fun chat about everything from soup to nuts – the nuts being in our annual Christmas bake-off which has been meeting with limited success for both of us this year. 😂 And,  this morning Dan’s wife Amanda has been texting about their pre- Christmas visit (and my limited standing in our family).  Apparently, being the MATRIARCH doesn’t guarantee the over reaching authority it once did. 🤣🤣🤣

Life is an adventure with Amanda & Dan 💞

Forth, last, and not at all least – Daughter Jen stopped by last night to deliver a tortierre (ground pork pie) for our supper tonight.  We had a nice short chat as her fiancé was waiting in the truck for her.

Jennifer & Tanner 💞

My win for my Daily Food Diary is a mega win today.  As part of my overall fitness lifestyle, being mindful of whatI consume and making small adjustments as I see fit has proven to have so many benefits – not the least of which has been:

1) Improving my confidence,  which made my recent hospital visit so much easier than it would have been otherwise.

2) Improving my physical strength and fitness level,  so that my recovery is coming along better than I anticipated.

3) Improving my overall wellbeing,  so that my discomfort is minimal!  All of the painkillers and most of the anti-inflammatory drugs that the surgeon prescribed will go back to the pharmacy for disposal.

Daily Food Diary – Day 352

Breakfast:

(1) c coffee (2)

(2) poached eggs (114)

(2) potato patties (240)

(3) pc bacon (130)

Snacks:

(48) Oz water

(1) pc Christmas cake (240)

(1/2) c caramel corn (85)

(1) butter tart (100)

Supper:

(1) Hungry Man Chicken Cutlet Dinner (520)

Total consumed calories: 1431

Total used calories: 0

Total net calories: 1431

Net calories goal: 1208 – 1431 = 223 over 👎

That’s it for today.  Take care and have a great day! 💞💝

Daily Food Diary – Day 351 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is Day 351 of my Daily Food Diary and I am still on track for a perfect run of 365 days! 😁

I have plenty of wins to celebrate today!

First and foremost, my hernia surgery is behind me.  I do NOT do hospitals well,  but I was fortunate that Dan plugged through the latest experience with me.  

Second, despite yesterday’s ‘Alberta Clipper’ which apparently is a heavy freezing rain followed by plunging temperatures and a major blizzard – our family (and our vehicles) survived it with no major issue. (Our power didn’t even go out, while that was the norm in much of the city.)

And third..Yay for warm winter outerwear and the new snowblower we got last year.  Dan got our walks, patio, and area behind our garage cleared up in an hour.  (Plus did in front of and behind a couple of our neighbours’ homes.)

For my Daily Food Diary  December Wrap-up Win of the Day  I would have to go with focusing on nutritional values.  This morning,  Dan made me an awesome breakfast of poached eggs, bacon, and potato patties.  An abundance of protein to help me heal from my surgery – easy peasey!

Daily Food Diary – Day 351

Breakfast:

(2) bags iv  fluid

Lunch:

(1/2) lemon lime popsicle (20)

Snacks:

(36) Oz water

(1) pc Christmas cake (240)

(15) lightly salted Lays chips (218)

(1) pc puffed wheat cake (130)

Supper:

(1) Big Mac no bun (463)

(1/2) small fries (115)

(4) chicken nuggets (133)

Total consumed calories: 1319

Total used calories: 0

Total net calories: 1319

Net calories goal: 1208 – 1319 = 111 over 👎

Daily Food Diary – Day 350 of 365

by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is Day 350 of my Daily Food Diary.  💝

My  first win for the day is ‘Yay, I am home from the hospital, the operation was relatively uneventful, and I am not too much the worse for wear. ”  The anesthesiologist ultimately decided to go with a spinal freezing instead of the general that was planned as it would be easier on my lungs.

My second win for the day, was having Dan with me for most of my hospital stay, picking up a couple of prescriptions on the way home, and detouring to McDonalds to pick  up a late breakfast/early supper for both of us. 

My Daily Food Diary win was being able to easily handle any fasting and diet restrictions that needed to be made over the past couple of days.   Easy peasy!

Today it is 32 years to the day since my father passed away.  We were fortunate to have had him for the time that we did and none of us would have wished for him to suffer the effects of cancer for another day.  That being said,  losing him  so close to Christmas, in the midst of carols and festive decorations,  was beyond difficult. Today my thoughts are with my father and with all those who are mourning the loss of a  loved one during this holiday season. My heart truly goes out to you.

My Dad and my son Dan

Daily Food Diary – Day 350

Breakfast:

(1) c coffee (2)

(1) Denver wrap with 2 eggs, ham, shredded marble cheese, green onions, salsa (537)

(36) Oz water

Supper:

(3) chicken drumsticks (420)

(1/2) pks Ramen noodles (190)

(10) asparagus spears (33)

(2) teaspoons butter (68)

Total consumed calories: 1250

Total used calories: 1208

(30) minutes aerobics (171)

(30) min treadmill (71)

Total net calories: 1008

Net calories goal: 1208 – 1008 = 200 under 👍

That’s it for today. Take care and have a great day! 💞🤗

My huge bonus win for the day was receiving this beautiful bouquet from my friends Dwight and Jackie. 💞