Bye, bye, my American Pie

Tom made this pie.  I ate this pie.  It was my final "farewell to pie" slice.  

         So, until I can get back to my official pre-Thanksgiving weight  - which I refer to as my fighting weight - I'm on a  - geez, I hate that word! - let's just say I'm on a consumption watch.
        For any of you others who feel the need to go on a consumption watch and are physically and emotionally ready to step into Hell Week,  I'll share some of my consumption watching practices.  Some of this sharing may be presented in the format of advice, only 'cause that's the easiest way of getting it said.  (But if it looks like advice and anybody feels like trying it, feel free to.  Or not):
        1. Always eat  three adequate meals a day.  That is, each meal should provide sufficient fuel to get you to the next meal.  They say ("They" being that anonymous group that gets together and says things) that it's better to eat six small meals than three big meals.  Not for me, I'd end up eating six big meals. Nope, three meals, nothing in between unless you're about to have a spell.  That's a word Tom made up, as in :  "Patti, it's one o'clock, you better eat something  before you  have a spell".  A spell generally involves shakiness and a mood drop, I think due to a  drop in blood sugar, whatever that really is.
        2.  A good breakfast option is a bowl of protein Special K (10 grams of protein!  Wahoo!) piled with fruit and accompanied by  unsweetend vanilla almond milk (35 calories per cup - skim milk has 80 calories per cup; almond milk has 45% MDR calcium - skim milk only has 30%.  So program your brain to like almond milk on your cereal!)  Then, since I've saved all those calories with the Special K and the almond milk, I splurge with a 15 -calorie sprinkle of sugar - that's one sugar pack.  Sorry I like sugar.  I love sugar. Which tends to be my downfall.
        3.  For Hell Week lunches, I have myself convinced that a bag of frozen brussel sprouts and two (or more if you're a big hungry dude) 45-calorie hot dogs (45- calorie hot dogs do exist, I just can't remember what brand they are.  I think they're some kind of turkey frank), microwaved, salted and dipped in Hellmann's Dijonnaise Mustard are delectable.  For dessert, try a pink grapefruit peeled and eaten like an orange.
        4.  If you need a little break from  brussel sprouts and hot dogs, a small baked potato topped with one (or more, if you need 'em)  sunny-side up egg is good, too, with a huge side of spinach sprinkled with shredded (not grated!) parmesean and a little salad dressing.
        5.  I only eat light bread - 35 or 40  calories per slice.  I think it's  just  regular bread sliced thinner, but it does the trick to hold a sandwich together.  My standard sandwich:  
    1 or 2 slices of lunchmeat
    avocado slices
    sliced olives
    tomato slices
    onion slices
    a few shredded carrot pieces (I buy them buy the bag)
    a couple of romaine lettuce leaves
    a wedge of Laughing Cow Lite (35 calories  per wedge) cheese spread on the bread
    Hellmann's Dijonnaise also spread on the bread
Just be sure to wrap the whole thing tightly before you pack it!
       6.  I love the above sandwich served with kettle chips,  but I've hypnotized myself that salted raw cauliflower crowns are just as good as kettle chips.
        7.  If you're having a between-meals spell, a few turkey or ham (or both) & cheese wraps dipped in a little Hellman's Dijonnaise are good.  Use a romaine lettuce leaf for your wrap.  If the leaves are too narrow use two leaves as "bread" slices with the meat & cheese in between.
        8.  I usually just eat dinner as usual.  Except for dessert. No dessert.  8(
        9.  I never drink anything that has any calories.  Including alcohol.  I'm a teetotaler, but...
       10.  My sweet tooth  is my Achilles heel.  (It also causes me to mix my metaphores).   The old pink-grapefruit trick sometimes helps tamp down the craving, or maybe another bowl of cereal with fruit and a sugar packet helps,  or a slice of light bread with some fake butter spray and a little sugar and cinnamon will get me by.  But the only problem is, if I'm in a heavy jones mode for something  sweet and I try to substitute with something not so bad,  The not so bad thing doesn't satisfy my craving so I'll just keep eating more and more of it until it's become, by the quantity I've consumed, a bad thing, and I'm still craving a real sweet.   So with sweets, my best strategy is to just fight the craving for so many days, then I let myself cave and have a doughnut, or a bag of caramel creams, or something.
       11.  Sometimes you just have to tough it out.  Welcome to my Hell Week! If you're entering your own, well, "May the odds be ever in your favor."  (A quote from, aptly, "The Hunger Games").