So Ends the First Weekend

So, the weekend had its plusses and minuses. We ordered a large thin crust mushroom pizza from Monical's on the way home from work Friday and ate that as we watched Battle: Los Angeles.  We contemplated having dessert but that would have obviously entailed another trip out so we decided it wasn't worth it. 

Plus: We didn't have dessert and saved ourselves from calories since it would have required an additional trip.



We had decided to go down to Indianapolis and have another shopping day on Saturday. As Francisco pointed out, this has been the third weekend in a row we've gone shopping, so he's being driven positively batty...But I had this fantastic coupon for Soma, my new favorite store, that I didn't want to see go to waste, so I wanted to make sure we made it there before it expired.

Delicious coffee drinks from Einstein!



Generally, on a weekend morning, we start a pot of coffee then put on a TV show or watch part of a movie while we drink our morning coffee.  After about 45 minutes or so, we peel ourselves off the couch and gradually get showered and ready to begin the day.  With no morning coffee to enjoy, sitting on the couch and watching TV had little appeal as I just wanted to go out and get my coffee! We got ready to go, went to Einstein Bros. Bagel for breakfast, then headed south to Indy.

Minus: No more sllooww weekend mornings.

Plus: No more slow weekend mornings - got up and got the day going!

Fried Macaroni & Cheese and Skinny Grilled Artichoke

Now as soon as Francisco had heard me mention going to Indy, the first thing that popped into his mind was "The Cheesecake Factory"!  I tried to persuade him to think about other restaurants that we don't normally go to - or at the very least to reduce the number of items we ordered - since this restaurant is rather pricey in terms of both money and calories - and we managed to reach some kind of compromise, sort of.  He agreed that we didn't each need to get a slice of cheesecake. :-P So, we headed over for a late lunch after leaving Keystone Crossing and before shopping at the Fashion Mall.  As always, we had our obligatory minimum 5-10 minute wait to be seated.  I already knew that I wanted the Fried Macaroni and Cheese Balls, my absolute favorite thing on their menu - possibly over any of the desserts as well!  We tried to pick something light to go with that appetizer, so we checked out their new "Skinny" menu and opted for the grilled artichoke. This was something I had never tried before, and it was pretty tasty - although just as difficult to eat as I had always suspected. Also, there are usually two small loaves of bread that come to your table to munch on while you wait for your food. I had a slice of each while we waited, so I was plenty full by the time we polished off all that food.



Pineapple Upside Down Cheesecake = 1,000+ Calories



Saturday shopping spree!



I had pretty much convinced Francisco that we should just go and finish shopping and possibly stop back for a piece of cheesecake to go prior to driving home. Then the waitress appeared and plopped two menus down in front of us, "Are you ready for the best part?" We were helpless to resist. We ended up with a slice of Pineapple Upside Down Cheesecake. It was very, very good - but very, very bad. Especially after I got home and checked out the calorie information. For just my portion of the meal alone, I probably had close to 2,000 CALORIES. That is unbelievable. As I checked up on my all-time favorite appetizer of fried mac and cheese, I found a site that said, "you're better off eating a stick of butter" - since that appetizer clocks in at 1,570 calories.  Our cheesecake totaled close to 1,200 calories on its own.  We generally share food when we go out to eat, especially at places like this, but even sharing we were looking at a grotesque amount of calories.  What about the people who go in and order separate entrees and separate pieces of cheesecake? Do they have to roll them out of the restaurant? I understand the value of a "special treat", indulging in gourmet food at a restaurant you don't normally visit, but this is definitely not something to make a habit of.  We finished our shopping, burning off some of those calories as we hiked through the mall - I ended up with a decent haul and even got some books from Borders for a $1 each at what was possibly the last store location of this soon-to-be-extinct bookstore in Indiana. 



Panera Bread: Cinnamon Crunch Bagel
with Honey Walnut Cream Cheese



Sunday morning began similarly to the previous morning. Got up and got ready to go. We headed over to Panera Bread for breakfast then over to the movie theater to see Contagion. Given our current experiment, our choice in viewing entertainment might have been given more careful consideration.  Contagion is about a 'super-bug' that spreads worldwide, infecting most people who come into contact with it.  Now, an infected person could easily pass on their germs by preparing food in a restaurant without taking proper precautions. Plus, just being in a restaurant around other people puts one at a greater exposure to germs and increases the risk that you might catch something. 

Silver Dipper: Banana Split

We grabbed lunch afterwards at McAlister's Deli where we shared a Four Cheese Griller and some potato salad then headed home so Francisco could work on some homework. For dinner we polished off our leftovers from earlier in the week: La Scala and Monical's. We decided the trip out for dessert was worth it so we grabbed a banana split at Silver Dipper. 

 

I weighed in Friday night to see if there had been any significant change and there was a slight decline in my weight of 0.61%.  That represents a loss of less than one pound so that is likely due to just normal weight fluctuations. Although after this weekend, I wouldn't be surprised to see a more significant change in my next weigh-in. ;-) The most calories in this experiment so far were consumed on Saturday, which included that fateful visit to the Cheesecake Factory. The entire day totaled over 2,600 calories, 20% more than the next highest day.