I completed Day 3 of the fat fast with only a couple of small bumps. I stole a couple of french fries from my kids when I let them have lunch at McDonald's yesterday. We were out for a few hours, and I had to let them eat. Unfortunately that was the closest place, since we were at Wal-Mart waiting to get our Christmas photos taken. And then last night, shortly before bed, those darn mini cupcakes called my name again. And well, I don't want them to go to waste. So I ate one. This morning I weighed myself, and I've lost another pound. I am now at 117.4lbs. The last time I weighed this was before my first child was born, almost 9 years ago. I don't want to go back to the horrible eating I've been doing, but I know I can't stick to this diet forever. So I'm thinking I'm going to modify some things, and/or maybe do the fat fast every second day, just to keep my body in ketosis. I'd also like to start incorporating exercise this week, so today we're going to walk to church, even though it's pretty chilly out.
I want to continue to lose 1-2lbs a week, so I'm going to try not to beat myself up if I don't see a loss every single day. It's great that I got to where I am. I never thought I would lose 8lbs in 3 days, but I did, so I know I have to be prepared to not lose much over the next couple of days, especially with increasing my calorie intake.
I'm going to also try to remember not to overdo it at the gym, or during exercising. I will even limit myself to 30 minutes a day to start, because I don't want to go too crazy and then get frustrated when I don't lose. I don't want to burn myself out. I will figure out a way to lose these excess 65+ lbs.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Saturday, December 3, 2011
The Fat Fast - Not for everybody, but it's working for me!
Today is day 3 on the Atkins Fat Fast. I am thoroughly impressed with the results, and am thinking I may just push myself to four, or even five days. One thing I definitely need to remember though, is to pick up multivitamins while out today. I know I am depriving my body of important nutrients, and I don't want to cause problems on that end. That being said, I weighed myself this morning, and found I was down another 3lbs. I am now at 118.5lbs. I cannot believe that I have managed to lose about 7lbs in 2 days. This just blows my mind. Seeing results helps motivate me to want to stick it out a little longer, even though I am missing food like crazy.
I noticed that a lot of the foods on the fat fast are more on the savory side than the sweet. So I had a little goof up yesterday, because I was craving so bad. A few days ago we bought red velvet mini cupcakes. Like the day before I started the fast. So it makes sense that I can't stop thinking about them. Well, my youngest daughter was given one as a treat last night, but she didn't finish it, and I noticed it sitting on the table after she went to bed. Without even thinking, I snatched it up and ate it. Whoops. What feels good though, is that even with that goof, I managed to lose weight. But, of course it brought along another problem. I just put some sugar back in my diet and I. want. more. So this morning, I made a sweet breakfast. 2 tablespoons of sour cream (= 100cal), 2 tablespoons of whipping cream (= 100cal) and 2 tablespoons of cream cheese (= 90 cal), plus a little vanilla and maybe a half tablespoon of coconut. And a packet of stevia. Whipped it all together and ended up with a sort of a coconut mousse. It's not bad. It is definitely better with the sweetener than it was without. It is hard getting past the aftertaste. But it's the closest I can get it seems. I'm not sure what's on the meal plan for the rest of the day. I have 700 calories ahead of me. I'm thinking of maybe making a tuna and egg salad, and diving that up into multiple servings. I think today's meals will be 300, 200, 300, 200. We will be out for a while this afternoon, so I'm going to bag a serving of macadamia nuts, and snack on those while out. Then I'll make a 500-calorie salad and divide it into two. That will be my dinner and evening snack. Sounds simple enough I think. The other issue I'm having is I know I should be increasing my water intake, like 300%. And I know I've been drinking more water than I was. But I'm still feeling like it's not enough. So I am going to push myself to get more water in today. And I'm not going to commit to 4 or 5 days. I will decide tomorrow whether I am going to continue. For now, I'm just going to look to today, and completing day 3. It's always easier to talk about how we'll follow a diet than it is to actually stick to it. I am hoping for no slip ups today, but will remember that this is a big change for me, and I shouldn't beat myself up if I can't make it past today.
I noticed that a lot of the foods on the fat fast are more on the savory side than the sweet. So I had a little goof up yesterday, because I was craving so bad. A few days ago we bought red velvet mini cupcakes. Like the day before I started the fast. So it makes sense that I can't stop thinking about them. Well, my youngest daughter was given one as a treat last night, but she didn't finish it, and I noticed it sitting on the table after she went to bed. Without even thinking, I snatched it up and ate it. Whoops. What feels good though, is that even with that goof, I managed to lose weight. But, of course it brought along another problem. I just put some sugar back in my diet and I. want. more. So this morning, I made a sweet breakfast. 2 tablespoons of sour cream (= 100cal), 2 tablespoons of whipping cream (= 100cal) and 2 tablespoons of cream cheese (= 90 cal), plus a little vanilla and maybe a half tablespoon of coconut. And a packet of stevia. Whipped it all together and ended up with a sort of a coconut mousse. It's not bad. It is definitely better with the sweetener than it was without. It is hard getting past the aftertaste. But it's the closest I can get it seems. I'm not sure what's on the meal plan for the rest of the day. I have 700 calories ahead of me. I'm thinking of maybe making a tuna and egg salad, and diving that up into multiple servings. I think today's meals will be 300, 200, 300, 200. We will be out for a while this afternoon, so I'm going to bag a serving of macadamia nuts, and snack on those while out. Then I'll make a 500-calorie salad and divide it into two. That will be my dinner and evening snack. Sounds simple enough I think. The other issue I'm having is I know I should be increasing my water intake, like 300%. And I know I've been drinking more water than I was. But I'm still feeling like it's not enough. So I am going to push myself to get more water in today. And I'm not going to commit to 4 or 5 days. I will decide tomorrow whether I am going to continue. For now, I'm just going to look to today, and completing day 3. It's always easier to talk about how we'll follow a diet than it is to actually stick to it. I am hoping for no slip ups today, but will remember that this is a big change for me, and I shouldn't beat myself up if I can't make it past today.
Friday, December 2, 2011
December 1st - New Month, New Plans
I have been steadily adding more and more wheat to my diet, despite reading articles about how addictive it is, and how it stays in your system, clogging your intestines for up to 72 hours (or more, depending on just how slow the body moves waste through). It is really hard to make a full time commitment to remove staples from a household, especially when there's four other people in the home who don't necessarily need to eliminate said staples, but maybe just cut down. It doesn't help that by bringing wheat back into my diet, it just makes the cravings worse, and causes me to want to eat every wheaty thing I can find: cereals, breads, pastas, cakes and cookies. This past week has been a slippery downhill slope.
On the plus side (possibly), a friend pointed me in the direction of the Atkins Fat Fast. I read a blog about a woman who was in the midst of a Fat Fast, and read a few different articles on what it's about and what it does. Essentially, a Fat Fast is exactly that. You fast on nothing but fat. This is supposed to be a way for stubborn bodies to kickstart ketosis and help boost metabolism to get weight loss started, or continued if it has plateaued. I have not lost any weight in all these months of diet and exercise, and so I find myself here, attempting a 3-day fat fast. Yesterday was my first day, and it had it's challenges, but one of the good things about the fat fast is that you are so limited to what you can have, and most of those foods are simple foods. Basically it works like this. You cut your calorie intake to 1000 calories a day. This is close to starvation mode. But those 1000 calories are supposed to be up to 90% fat. What you end up doing is telling your body that you have too much fat, and so it starts to work to burn the fat off. But not just the fat you consume, it will also start burning up your fat stores. It seems that typical results can be about 2-5lbs during the fast, and you can choose to fast for 3-5 days, but shouldn't fast longer than 5 days, because the fast is highly deficient in proteins and vitamins. What Dr. Atkins suggests is dividing your 1000-calorie-a-day allotment into 5 200-calorie mini-meals. Some examples of a single serving are:
One ounce of macadamia nuts (approximately 1/4 cup or about 12 good sized nuts)
One ounce of pecans fried in butter
2 slices of bacon
1/4 medium avocado, mixed with 1 tbsp mayo, a drop of lemon, and some chili powder, served on a couple of pork rinds, in lettuce wrap, or eat with a spoon
2 1/2 oz of heavy whipped cream, artificially sweetened
2 egg yolks mixed with 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1/2 medium avocado
1 oz chicken, shrimp, egg or other flaked meat, plus 3 times the normal amount of mayonnaise
2 tablespoons of unsalted, unsweetened peanut butter
2 tablespoons of cream cheese
(I've gotten all of these from other blogs and articles, so if any are wrong, please feel free to correct me)
Yesterday I goofed, on my first day. I thought I had read on one site that 4 slices of bacon was one serving. It didn't even occur to me to read the nutritional facts. I thought it was so great eating so much for breakfast. Then I looked when I was finished. Oops. That cut my meals down to four. My second meal was an ounce of macadamia nuts. My third meal was one tablespoon of peanut butter and one tablespoon of cream cheese. And my last meal was one tablespoon of cream cheese and 1/2 an ounce of macadamia nuts. The hunger pangs haven't been as strong as I thought they'd be, but they are definitely there. I woke up late last night because I heard my oldest daughter get out of bed. After that it was a bit of a struggle to go back to sleep, with the ache in my belly. But when I woke up, the pain wasn't any worse than yesterday. So this morning for breakfast I'm having a 1/4 of an avocado and a cup of coffee with a teaspoon of coconut oil. I'm not sure what I'll have the rest of the day, but I will probably make up some tuna salad and figure out how to divide it up. I need to purchase a kitchen scale, because some of these things go by weight alone, and I know nothing of what a single ounce of tuna looks like.
I weighed myself yesterday, a little late in the morning. I can't remember if I'd already had breakfast or not. I was at 225.6lbs. This morning I weighed myself. The scale read 221.5lbs. I'm interested to see what tomorrow's will say.
I cannot see myself doing this past 3 days. This is hard work. And it is especially hard feeding my children and not being able to eat with them. But I am working hard to make sure I make through day 3 (tomorrow), and then I will have to be mindful of what I eat for the next few days after that. Meaning I will need to eat lean, and not pig out on all kinds of junk and carbs, because that will just reverse the effects of the fat fast, and I don't want these days to go to waste.
On the plus side (possibly), a friend pointed me in the direction of the Atkins Fat Fast. I read a blog about a woman who was in the midst of a Fat Fast, and read a few different articles on what it's about and what it does. Essentially, a Fat Fast is exactly that. You fast on nothing but fat. This is supposed to be a way for stubborn bodies to kickstart ketosis and help boost metabolism to get weight loss started, or continued if it has plateaued. I have not lost any weight in all these months of diet and exercise, and so I find myself here, attempting a 3-day fat fast. Yesterday was my first day, and it had it's challenges, but one of the good things about the fat fast is that you are so limited to what you can have, and most of those foods are simple foods. Basically it works like this. You cut your calorie intake to 1000 calories a day. This is close to starvation mode. But those 1000 calories are supposed to be up to 90% fat. What you end up doing is telling your body that you have too much fat, and so it starts to work to burn the fat off. But not just the fat you consume, it will also start burning up your fat stores. It seems that typical results can be about 2-5lbs during the fast, and you can choose to fast for 3-5 days, but shouldn't fast longer than 5 days, because the fast is highly deficient in proteins and vitamins. What Dr. Atkins suggests is dividing your 1000-calorie-a-day allotment into 5 200-calorie mini-meals. Some examples of a single serving are:
One ounce of macadamia nuts (approximately 1/4 cup or about 12 good sized nuts)
One ounce of pecans fried in butter
2 slices of bacon
1/4 medium avocado, mixed with 1 tbsp mayo, a drop of lemon, and some chili powder, served on a couple of pork rinds, in lettuce wrap, or eat with a spoon
2 1/2 oz of heavy whipped cream, artificially sweetened
2 egg yolks mixed with 1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1/2 medium avocado
1 oz chicken, shrimp, egg or other flaked meat, plus 3 times the normal amount of mayonnaise
2 tablespoons of unsalted, unsweetened peanut butter
2 tablespoons of cream cheese
(I've gotten all of these from other blogs and articles, so if any are wrong, please feel free to correct me)
Yesterday I goofed, on my first day. I thought I had read on one site that 4 slices of bacon was one serving. It didn't even occur to me to read the nutritional facts. I thought it was so great eating so much for breakfast. Then I looked when I was finished. Oops. That cut my meals down to four. My second meal was an ounce of macadamia nuts. My third meal was one tablespoon of peanut butter and one tablespoon of cream cheese. And my last meal was one tablespoon of cream cheese and 1/2 an ounce of macadamia nuts. The hunger pangs haven't been as strong as I thought they'd be, but they are definitely there. I woke up late last night because I heard my oldest daughter get out of bed. After that it was a bit of a struggle to go back to sleep, with the ache in my belly. But when I woke up, the pain wasn't any worse than yesterday. So this morning for breakfast I'm having a 1/4 of an avocado and a cup of coffee with a teaspoon of coconut oil. I'm not sure what I'll have the rest of the day, but I will probably make up some tuna salad and figure out how to divide it up. I need to purchase a kitchen scale, because some of these things go by weight alone, and I know nothing of what a single ounce of tuna looks like.
I weighed myself yesterday, a little late in the morning. I can't remember if I'd already had breakfast or not. I was at 225.6lbs. This morning I weighed myself. The scale read 221.5lbs. I'm interested to see what tomorrow's will say.
I cannot see myself doing this past 3 days. This is hard work. And it is especially hard feeding my children and not being able to eat with them. But I am working hard to make sure I make through day 3 (tomorrow), and then I will have to be mindful of what I eat for the next few days after that. Meaning I will need to eat lean, and not pig out on all kinds of junk and carbs, because that will just reverse the effects of the fat fast, and I don't want these days to go to waste.
Monday, November 21, 2011
Week Long Challenge Over - New Lifestyle Just Beginning
I made an oopsie on my last post. I was actually on Day 4, to technically I was already over the hump. It made the rest of the week go by pretty quickly. On the downside, I "cheated" on day 6. I had a nanaimo bar for dessert. Then yesterday, which was my last day on my challenge, I had a lot of running around to do, and just gave up and ate at McDonald's. It was a shame too, because yesterday was my lowest weight check in, 220.6lbs. And today I weighed in at 221.6lbs. But this week taught me a lesson. I never took the time to look at what I was eating. And what I was eating was wheat. Lots and lots of wheat. Cereals, toast, waffles, pancakes for breakfasts, sandwiches for lunch, pastas for dinner. Today was a perfect example of a typical day. I had a bowl of cereal for breakfast. I had eggs and toast for lunch. And we had pizza for supper. I don't want to continue down this path. I am making a conscious decision to significantly reduce my wheat intake, and to look for alternative foods. It will continue to be a daily challenge to change up our meals, but I feel like this is an important step to getting healthier. Tomorrow, I am not going to be completely wheat free, but I think I will restrict myself to having one meal with wheat. Breakfast and lunch will be wheat free.
I am hoping to start going back to the gym this week. Or at least start working out at home. Or both. I actually miss the gym. Weird. But it's good head-clearing time. Tomorrow will be a busy day with errands, but possibly Wednesday and/or Thursday, I will start up again. Maybe even tomorrow, if I squeeze in a work out after the kids go to bed. I need to step up. I need to lose this weight. So help me, I will lose the weight.
I am hoping to start going back to the gym this week. Or at least start working out at home. Or both. I actually miss the gym. Weird. But it's good head-clearing time. Tomorrow will be a busy day with errands, but possibly Wednesday and/or Thursday, I will start up again. Maybe even tomorrow, if I squeeze in a work out after the kids go to bed. I need to step up. I need to lose this weight. So help me, I will lose the weight.
Friday, November 18, 2011
Day 3 - A Little Slip
I didn't weigh myself today. I was discouraged by yesterday's number and didn't feel like doing that to myself again. I will weigh myself tomorrow though.
So far, the hardest thing about being wheat free is missing the bread. I haven't had a sandwich in days. I miss pancakes and cakes and pasta too, but the lack of bread is the worst. I am pretty sure I won't go wheat free full time, once this week is over, but I do see how much was in my diet, and so I do intend to cut down.
Meals have been fairly manageable. We have been eating a lot of chicken. I really like rice vermicelli, but my oldest daughter seems to have a problem with it. I saw a spinach variety that I am tempted to try, and make a spaghetti with. Overall, I'm finding that it's not as hard to cut wheat out as I originally thought. I a almost over the halfway hump. And I am actually almost looking forward to weighing myself at the end of the week.
So far, the hardest thing about being wheat free is missing the bread. I haven't had a sandwich in days. I miss pancakes and cakes and pasta too, but the lack of bread is the worst. I am pretty sure I won't go wheat free full time, once this week is over, but I do see how much was in my diet, and so I do intend to cut down.
Meals have been fairly manageable. We have been eating a lot of chicken. I really like rice vermicelli, but my oldest daughter seems to have a problem with it. I saw a spinach variety that I am tempted to try, and make a spaghetti with. Overall, I'm finding that it's not as hard to cut wheat out as I originally thought. I a almost over the halfway hump. And I am actually almost looking forward to weighing myself at the end of the week.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Wheat Free, Day 2. The Challenge Continues
I don't know about getting any exercise in this week, but it is still early, things could change.
Today was a little easier with the wheat free challenge. I already had it in my head last night that I was going to have oatmeal today for breakfast, and I did. Lunch was a little tricky, because I am sure I'll get sick of having salads every day. Looking around the fridge and freezer, I came up with an idea. Have you seen those Double Down sandwiches from KFC? It's two pieces of chicken filets, used as the "bread" of the sandwich, with bacon and cheese in the middle. I made something similar, but not with chicken. I used two low fat beef patties, and put cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle and some dressing in the middle. It was really good, but not quite as filling as I'd hoped. It's been a little over an hour since I ate, and I'm hungry. Now what?
Tonight will be a challenge for me. We are going to my in-laws to visit my niece, who had a birthday last week, and I assume we're sticking around for supper. They don't know about my new diet, and I feel weird calling and telling them, and asking them to try to go wheat free for me. So, I'll probably eat a little something before I go, and if I can't eat what everyone else is, I'll just wait and have something else when I get home. Should be all good. I hope.
I went on the scale this morning. I know it's not good to weigh yourself daily because your weight fluctuates quite a bit. And it doesn't really help that I had already started eating breakfast when I thought about it, so I had some heavy oatmeal in me. But the scale tipped up to 224.4lbs. I'm not happy, but I'm not going to give up until at least 7 days. I only have 5 to go, I CAN do this.
Today was a little easier with the wheat free challenge. I already had it in my head last night that I was going to have oatmeal today for breakfast, and I did. Lunch was a little tricky, because I am sure I'll get sick of having salads every day. Looking around the fridge and freezer, I came up with an idea. Have you seen those Double Down sandwiches from KFC? It's two pieces of chicken filets, used as the "bread" of the sandwich, with bacon and cheese in the middle. I made something similar, but not with chicken. I used two low fat beef patties, and put cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle and some dressing in the middle. It was really good, but not quite as filling as I'd hoped. It's been a little over an hour since I ate, and I'm hungry. Now what?
Tonight will be a challenge for me. We are going to my in-laws to visit my niece, who had a birthday last week, and I assume we're sticking around for supper. They don't know about my new diet, and I feel weird calling and telling them, and asking them to try to go wheat free for me. So, I'll probably eat a little something before I go, and if I can't eat what everyone else is, I'll just wait and have something else when I get home. Should be all good. I hope.
I went on the scale this morning. I know it's not good to weigh yourself daily because your weight fluctuates quite a bit. And it doesn't really help that I had already started eating breakfast when I thought about it, so I had some heavy oatmeal in me. But the scale tipped up to 224.4lbs. I'm not happy, but I'm not going to give up until at least 7 days. I only have 5 to go, I CAN do this.
Monday, November 14, 2011
A New Day, A New Beginning, Saying Goodbye to Wheat
Three months is a long time to go without updates. It's like starting fresh I suppose. I didn't quit. I got busy. I got frustrated. Then I quit. Then I started again. And this is the cycle my life took.
I started going to the gym. A big thing for me. I even went to a low impact cardio class a couple times a week. For a week. Stopped going. Then started again. And then I started going just for the treadmill. The problem I had was that I was seeing NO results. I know it takes time. I know it won't happen overnight. But the longer that scale showed no change, the more angry I got. And it really didn't help that when I went to the doctor last month, I found out that my scale is (WAY) off, and I actually weigh 10 POUNDS more than I thought. How awful is that?!?! Not only am I not losing, but now I've GAINED. Not really, but that's how it felt. And I gave up. Resigned myself to the fact that I will be fat forever. And Halloween came. Guess where half the kids' candy (mostly chocolate) has gone? In fact, yesterday was the first day I didn't eat any chocolate. Amazing feat for me. I was really impressed when I realized it late last night. And then of course all I could think about was chocolate. Didn't have any though. Score one for me.
Yesterday, while sitting home, after doing a good deal of house work, I spotted a link a friend posted, about a Wisconsin cardiologist who says that wheat is the culprit when it comes to a great deal of illness, diseases and obesity. He says wheat is killing our insides. But the way he says it makes a lot of sense. And it goes along with all those people who are ill because of gluten issues and are now on gluten-free diets. It made sense. On top of that, there is a Vancouver journalist who has decided to go wheat free and track her progress in a blog. On the spot, I decided that I am going to challenge myself. Dr. Davis' book says most people will stop having withdrawal symptoms and start to feel better by day 5. The journalist said she could notice the changes by day 3.
Today is day 1 for me. I am going to go 7 days without wheat, but I'm not going to do much else above that. I struggled a bit today. It took a while to figure out a good meal for breakfast. Most sausage contains wheat, did you know that? I didn't. Well, local to our community, we have farmer sausage. I don't know if all farmer sausage is wheat free, but I was lucky enough that the sausage I had, that was already cooked in my fridge from a meal a couple of days ago, is, in fact, wheat free. So I was able to make eggs and farmer sausage and tomatoes. It's a good, hearty breakfast, and one I thoroughly enjoyed eating. The only downside is preparation. I am not a morning eater. I have a hard time just eating simple things like cereal, toast or even granola bars. But now that they're all off the table, I don't have a lot of choices. For this reason, I will not cut out oats. I have to at least be able to have oatmeal in the morning. I can only take so many eggs. I will have to come up with more creative items for breakfast foods.
Lunch and dinner are slightly easier to experiment with. I can have rye bread (checking to make sure no wheat is added), and then of course meats and vegetables. Lunch was a simple salad - red leaf lettuce, chopped turkey lunch meat, and small cubes of cheese, and Italian dressing. Supper was a breeze - roast chicken and potatoes, and gluten-free gravy, which I found on this website. It will take a few tries to make a perfect gravy this way, but it was really good for a first try.
So Day 1 is over. I weighed myself this morning. On my new scale. I am 221.8lbs. I am not expecting a big change in weight over the next 7 days, but it would be nice to see something. Even half a pound might just make me ecstatic.
I started going to the gym. A big thing for me. I even went to a low impact cardio class a couple times a week. For a week. Stopped going. Then started again. And then I started going just for the treadmill. The problem I had was that I was seeing NO results. I know it takes time. I know it won't happen overnight. But the longer that scale showed no change, the more angry I got. And it really didn't help that when I went to the doctor last month, I found out that my scale is (WAY) off, and I actually weigh 10 POUNDS more than I thought. How awful is that?!?! Not only am I not losing, but now I've GAINED. Not really, but that's how it felt. And I gave up. Resigned myself to the fact that I will be fat forever. And Halloween came. Guess where half the kids' candy (mostly chocolate) has gone? In fact, yesterday was the first day I didn't eat any chocolate. Amazing feat for me. I was really impressed when I realized it late last night. And then of course all I could think about was chocolate. Didn't have any though. Score one for me.
Yesterday, while sitting home, after doing a good deal of house work, I spotted a link a friend posted, about a Wisconsin cardiologist who says that wheat is the culprit when it comes to a great deal of illness, diseases and obesity. He says wheat is killing our insides. But the way he says it makes a lot of sense. And it goes along with all those people who are ill because of gluten issues and are now on gluten-free diets. It made sense. On top of that, there is a Vancouver journalist who has decided to go wheat free and track her progress in a blog. On the spot, I decided that I am going to challenge myself. Dr. Davis' book says most people will stop having withdrawal symptoms and start to feel better by day 5. The journalist said she could notice the changes by day 3.
Today is day 1 for me. I am going to go 7 days without wheat, but I'm not going to do much else above that. I struggled a bit today. It took a while to figure out a good meal for breakfast. Most sausage contains wheat, did you know that? I didn't. Well, local to our community, we have farmer sausage. I don't know if all farmer sausage is wheat free, but I was lucky enough that the sausage I had, that was already cooked in my fridge from a meal a couple of days ago, is, in fact, wheat free. So I was able to make eggs and farmer sausage and tomatoes. It's a good, hearty breakfast, and one I thoroughly enjoyed eating. The only downside is preparation. I am not a morning eater. I have a hard time just eating simple things like cereal, toast or even granola bars. But now that they're all off the table, I don't have a lot of choices. For this reason, I will not cut out oats. I have to at least be able to have oatmeal in the morning. I can only take so many eggs. I will have to come up with more creative items for breakfast foods.
Lunch and dinner are slightly easier to experiment with. I can have rye bread (checking to make sure no wheat is added), and then of course meats and vegetables. Lunch was a simple salad - red leaf lettuce, chopped turkey lunch meat, and small cubes of cheese, and Italian dressing. Supper was a breeze - roast chicken and potatoes, and gluten-free gravy, which I found on this website. It will take a few tries to make a perfect gravy this way, but it was really good for a first try.
So Day 1 is over. I weighed myself this morning. On my new scale. I am 221.8lbs. I am not expecting a big change in weight over the next 7 days, but it would be nice to see something. Even half a pound might just make me ecstatic.
Friday, August 19, 2011
I LOVE (HATE) TABATA!
Have you ever heard of the tabata method of working out? Wikipedia explains it like this:
A popular regimen based on a 1996 study[2] uses 20 seconds of ultra-intense exercise (at an intensity of about 170% of VO2max) followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated continuously for 4 minutes (8 cycles).
It is a high-intensity interval training. You have to work your hardest on an exercise, you get very little rest, and then you go again. You keep track of your total "score", and the next time, you try to beat it. What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. In one of the videos I watched, they said this type of exercise is not meant for beginners. Even if you are in fairly good shape, it's a good idea not to overdo it on this type of training. It may not feel like it at the time, but it is a killer workout, even with something basic like crunches. That being said, I spend about 15-20 minutes doing tabata training, with different exercises. Some examples are crunches, planks with arm raises, squats, and leg lifts. It is insanely intense. I am out of breath every time I do it. My heart is racing. I do these types of training every second night. I've done it twice. Tonight is my night off. I was supposed to go walking today, but I was out visiting a friend for most of the afternoon, and didn't feel like moving in the evening.
I haven't lost anything in a while. I've slowly been going up in weight. I have been eating healthy (yesterday not included), and I have been managing my portions well. I have been keeping my water intake high. I am trying to tell myself that I am gaining muscle, and soon I will the numbers on the scale go down, but it is hard not to get discouraged when the numbers go up instead of just staying the same.
I wonder if my calorie intake is too low. I have a hard time eating more than three meals a day. Today I had a shake for breakfast, around 10:30am. I don't think I ate again until around 3, I had some leftover pizza (about half a slice). Then I had dinner at about 7pm, leftover spaghetti in alfredo sauce, with shredded cheddar cheese. And then two cookies and a few bites of ice cream for dessert. I am pretty sure that even with the unhealthy foods, I still didn't take in the amount of calories I should be consuming in a day. I am really going to have to work on that. After all, diet is a large contributor to weight loss.
I have plans tomorrow morning, so I am hoping that being awake and out and about early will help with my energy level, get me out and get some walking done. I will try and stay off the scale until Monday, and hopefully I will have bought a new scale by then. I am also thinking of taking my measurements again on Monday, to see if anything has changed.
I think my exercise regime is getting better, but my meal plans are getting worse. I need to figure out how to balance the two, I need to be strict with myself. I can do this. It's approximately 13-14 months until my wedding. That should be enough time to lose the 50-70lbs I want to lose.
A popular regimen based on a 1996 study[2] uses 20 seconds of ultra-intense exercise (at an intensity of about 170% of VO2max) followed by 10 seconds of rest, repeated continuously for 4 minutes (8 cycles).
It is a high-intensity interval training. You have to work your hardest on an exercise, you get very little rest, and then you go again. You keep track of your total "score", and the next time, you try to beat it. What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. In one of the videos I watched, they said this type of exercise is not meant for beginners. Even if you are in fairly good shape, it's a good idea not to overdo it on this type of training. It may not feel like it at the time, but it is a killer workout, even with something basic like crunches. That being said, I spend about 15-20 minutes doing tabata training, with different exercises. Some examples are crunches, planks with arm raises, squats, and leg lifts. It is insanely intense. I am out of breath every time I do it. My heart is racing. I do these types of training every second night. I've done it twice. Tonight is my night off. I was supposed to go walking today, but I was out visiting a friend for most of the afternoon, and didn't feel like moving in the evening.
I haven't lost anything in a while. I've slowly been going up in weight. I have been eating healthy (yesterday not included), and I have been managing my portions well. I have been keeping my water intake high. I am trying to tell myself that I am gaining muscle, and soon I will the numbers on the scale go down, but it is hard not to get discouraged when the numbers go up instead of just staying the same.
I wonder if my calorie intake is too low. I have a hard time eating more than three meals a day. Today I had a shake for breakfast, around 10:30am. I don't think I ate again until around 3, I had some leftover pizza (about half a slice). Then I had dinner at about 7pm, leftover spaghetti in alfredo sauce, with shredded cheddar cheese. And then two cookies and a few bites of ice cream for dessert. I am pretty sure that even with the unhealthy foods, I still didn't take in the amount of calories I should be consuming in a day. I am really going to have to work on that. After all, diet is a large contributor to weight loss.
I have plans tomorrow morning, so I am hoping that being awake and out and about early will help with my energy level, get me out and get some walking done. I will try and stay off the scale until Monday, and hopefully I will have bought a new scale by then. I am also thinking of taking my measurements again on Monday, to see if anything has changed.
I think my exercise regime is getting better, but my meal plans are getting worse. I need to figure out how to balance the two, I need to be strict with myself. I can do this. It's approximately 13-14 months until my wedding. That should be enough time to lose the 50-70lbs I want to lose.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
It Burns!
Okay, gonna make this quick because it's after midnight already, and I swore I'd start going to bed early. I keep forgetting to sit down in the morning to work out my meal plan. I need to try and remember to set aside time each day to do that. That being said, even without one, I've been doing pretty good. Especially with all the fresh food in the house. Here's today's meal plan:
Breakfast:
9am - 1 cup oatmeal, made with brown sugar, cinnamon and raisins
Midmorning snack:
I didn't have one today, I went to church! (more about that later)
Lunch:
1:30pm - salad with chopped tomatoes, cucumbers and mushrooms
basil parmesan salad dressing
Afternoon snack:
I don't recall having one actually
Dinner:
6:30pm - leftover squash
mixed veggies
pork loin chop
Evening snack:
11:45pm - banana with 1 tbsp peanut butter
(this was my post-workout snack)
I am positive I didn't eat enough today. I know I need to make sure I'm getting those between-meals snacks in. I will work on that, as part of my keeping to a meal plan. I think I should keep a little notebook with me at all times. Write down my plans for that day, and also what I actually eat. I think that might help keep me on track.
I forgot to weigh in again today, so I guess my new weigh in will be Mondays. Fingers crossed I remember! As for the church comment... Well, I didn't grow up going to church. I wanted to as a kid, but my parents never took me. I don't know if it was laziness or lack of interest or what. I was always curious about church. I felt like I believed in God, and I wanted to know more, but I didn't really have the means. Fast forward to 2003, when my first child was born. I wanted her baptised. I looked in the phone book for churches in my area, and called the first one that called out to me. I asked questions, and found out that at this specific church, they do not do child baptisms. They believe the individual should make their own decision on whether to be baptised. What they do practice, however, is child dedication. This is more of a promise of the parents, to raise their child in the faith, in the eyes of the Lord. The pastor suggested I come to a service to see if they were a good fit. I loved it there. It is all very casual. They have a slogan. Something along the lines of "faded jeans and broken lives welcome". They even do a coffee break about halfway through the service. Great, great church. And so, after becoming a regular attender, I had my first child dedicated on her first birthday. It was wonderous. He came to my house and did the ceremony during her birthday party. Amazing, amazing job. With my second child, she was adopted, so hers wasn't done on her first birthday. I believe hers was done shortly after she turned 2, a few months after the adoption was final. My youngest daughter.... she hasn't had one. When I became pregnant with her, almost 3 years ago, I became very sick. I had pretty intense morning (all day) sickness, and couldn't get out of bed most days. I stopped going to church so I could rest. Even after she was born though, I didn't start going again. There always seemed to be an excuse. The fiance was working, or the kids didn't want to go, or the baby's schedule didn't allow for it. It's atrocious that I missed out on church for this long. I had gotten pretty involved, becoming a member of the children's ministry by helping in the nursery, I was going to the mom's group every week, with two babies in tow, one carseat in each hand. And then slowly I became less and less involved. And after spending so much time away, I started feeling like I didn't belong anymore. I still consider that place "my church", I just don't attend. Well, until today. I took the leap. I mentioned to the kids, and they actually got excited. I was eager to attempt to put my youngest into the childcare room to see how she would handle it. As it turns out, school aged kids get to sit in on the service in the summer, because there's no program for them until the fall. So instead, they were allowed to stay with their sister in the 2s room. Things went great in church. It felt wonderful to worship again. I even stood up to pray, during a special prayer. And then I was called to the nursery. My youngest had fallen and bumped her head, and no amount of consoling or distracting was working. Even with her sisters there, she wouldn't calm down. I stayed with her for a while, encouraged her to play, even sat while she had a snack. Every time I tried to sneak out, she'd catch me, tears welled up in her eyes. So we all went back to the service together. I sat against the back wall with my kids. They colored and stayed mostly quiet while I tried to pay attention to the rest of the service. (I don't remember what it was about so I guess they had my attention more than he did, sadly). What this means for me, though, is that I feel like I am improving in all aspects of my life. I am eating better, healthier, I am exercising, I am focusing my energy on family, and I am strengthening my faith. I want my pastor to marry us when we finally set a date. But that's not the only reason I'm going. I truly feel touched by God. I feel so much love at church. I even got to speak to the pastor's wife, who welcomed me back with open arms. I needed that. I believe that my going back to church will actually help me stay on track with my diet and exercise. I'm not sure how it's all linked, but I feel that it is.
So on top of that, I did a great workout tonight. I probably didn't push myself as hard as two nights ago, but I tried something new, and I'm sure I'll feel it tomorrow. I used my Better Belly Yoga DVD. Yoga is all about breathing. I think I am naturally a fast breather. Also, I almost constantly have a stuffed nose due to allergies. They say to breathe through your nose, but I just can't do that all the time. Aside from that, I really enjoyed the exercises. There were 3 10-minutes series on there, I only got as far as halfway through the second one, and then I found a bonus workout, and did that one too. Then I went ahead and did some of my own exercises, crunches, plank, can't even remember what else now. But I was downstairs for an hour, so it must have been a good workout. Tomorrow we're heading down to the park that I want to get married at. I am hoping to get a bunch of walking in. I may even take a walk while the youngest is napping in the afternoon.
Even though my mornings are pretty slow going, I feel like I'm getting more and more energy. The fact that I'm able to do these workouts after being up with my kids all day, instead of just going to bed, it fills me with pride. I am hopeful that I will see the numbers on the scale tip lower, but even if they don't, I will not stop.
Oh, and speaking of pride. I was craving a can of Coke all day, and I stayed away from it. Yay will power!
Breakfast:
9am - 1 cup oatmeal, made with brown sugar, cinnamon and raisins
Midmorning snack:
I didn't have one today, I went to church! (more about that later)
Lunch:
1:30pm - salad with chopped tomatoes, cucumbers and mushrooms
basil parmesan salad dressing
Afternoon snack:
I don't recall having one actually
Dinner:
6:30pm - leftover squash
mixed veggies
pork loin chop
Evening snack:
11:45pm - banana with 1 tbsp peanut butter
(this was my post-workout snack)
I am positive I didn't eat enough today. I know I need to make sure I'm getting those between-meals snacks in. I will work on that, as part of my keeping to a meal plan. I think I should keep a little notebook with me at all times. Write down my plans for that day, and also what I actually eat. I think that might help keep me on track.
I forgot to weigh in again today, so I guess my new weigh in will be Mondays. Fingers crossed I remember! As for the church comment... Well, I didn't grow up going to church. I wanted to as a kid, but my parents never took me. I don't know if it was laziness or lack of interest or what. I was always curious about church. I felt like I believed in God, and I wanted to know more, but I didn't really have the means. Fast forward to 2003, when my first child was born. I wanted her baptised. I looked in the phone book for churches in my area, and called the first one that called out to me. I asked questions, and found out that at this specific church, they do not do child baptisms. They believe the individual should make their own decision on whether to be baptised. What they do practice, however, is child dedication. This is more of a promise of the parents, to raise their child in the faith, in the eyes of the Lord. The pastor suggested I come to a service to see if they were a good fit. I loved it there. It is all very casual. They have a slogan. Something along the lines of "faded jeans and broken lives welcome". They even do a coffee break about halfway through the service. Great, great church. And so, after becoming a regular attender, I had my first child dedicated on her first birthday. It was wonderous. He came to my house and did the ceremony during her birthday party. Amazing, amazing job. With my second child, she was adopted, so hers wasn't done on her first birthday. I believe hers was done shortly after she turned 2, a few months after the adoption was final. My youngest daughter.... she hasn't had one. When I became pregnant with her, almost 3 years ago, I became very sick. I had pretty intense morning (all day) sickness, and couldn't get out of bed most days. I stopped going to church so I could rest. Even after she was born though, I didn't start going again. There always seemed to be an excuse. The fiance was working, or the kids didn't want to go, or the baby's schedule didn't allow for it. It's atrocious that I missed out on church for this long. I had gotten pretty involved, becoming a member of the children's ministry by helping in the nursery, I was going to the mom's group every week, with two babies in tow, one carseat in each hand. And then slowly I became less and less involved. And after spending so much time away, I started feeling like I didn't belong anymore. I still consider that place "my church", I just don't attend. Well, until today. I took the leap. I mentioned to the kids, and they actually got excited. I was eager to attempt to put my youngest into the childcare room to see how she would handle it. As it turns out, school aged kids get to sit in on the service in the summer, because there's no program for them until the fall. So instead, they were allowed to stay with their sister in the 2s room. Things went great in church. It felt wonderful to worship again. I even stood up to pray, during a special prayer. And then I was called to the nursery. My youngest had fallen and bumped her head, and no amount of consoling or distracting was working. Even with her sisters there, she wouldn't calm down. I stayed with her for a while, encouraged her to play, even sat while she had a snack. Every time I tried to sneak out, she'd catch me, tears welled up in her eyes. So we all went back to the service together. I sat against the back wall with my kids. They colored and stayed mostly quiet while I tried to pay attention to the rest of the service. (I don't remember what it was about so I guess they had my attention more than he did, sadly). What this means for me, though, is that I feel like I am improving in all aspects of my life. I am eating better, healthier, I am exercising, I am focusing my energy on family, and I am strengthening my faith. I want my pastor to marry us when we finally set a date. But that's not the only reason I'm going. I truly feel touched by God. I feel so much love at church. I even got to speak to the pastor's wife, who welcomed me back with open arms. I needed that. I believe that my going back to church will actually help me stay on track with my diet and exercise. I'm not sure how it's all linked, but I feel that it is.
So on top of that, I did a great workout tonight. I probably didn't push myself as hard as two nights ago, but I tried something new, and I'm sure I'll feel it tomorrow. I used my Better Belly Yoga DVD. Yoga is all about breathing. I think I am naturally a fast breather. Also, I almost constantly have a stuffed nose due to allergies. They say to breathe through your nose, but I just can't do that all the time. Aside from that, I really enjoyed the exercises. There were 3 10-minutes series on there, I only got as far as halfway through the second one, and then I found a bonus workout, and did that one too. Then I went ahead and did some of my own exercises, crunches, plank, can't even remember what else now. But I was downstairs for an hour, so it must have been a good workout. Tomorrow we're heading down to the park that I want to get married at. I am hoping to get a bunch of walking in. I may even take a walk while the youngest is napping in the afternoon.
Even though my mornings are pretty slow going, I feel like I'm getting more and more energy. The fact that I'm able to do these workouts after being up with my kids all day, instead of just going to bed, it fills me with pride. I am hopeful that I will see the numbers on the scale tip lower, but even if they don't, I will not stop.
Oh, and speaking of pride. I was craving a can of Coke all day, and I stayed away from it. Yay will power!
Saturday, August 13, 2011
It's a Brand New Day Folks!
I weighed in this morning, and according to my scale, I have gained. But, I ate breakfast before I weighed myself, and even though it was a liquid breakfast, I choose to believe that's why my weight is off. I am not discouraged by this. I believe that I will gain muscle before I lose more weight. I'm okay with that. I also did my measurements last night. They are astounding.
Measurements:
Chest: 45 inches
Waist: 44 inches
Hips: 52 inches
Butt: 50.5 inches
Thigh: 29 inches
Calf: 16 inches
Arm: 16 inches
Those are some huge numbers there! In two weeks, I will do my measurements again, because I know it's not all about the weight, but where you lose your inches too. I don't know what I'll do if I don't see results.
I realized today that there's actually been three workouts this week. So almost every second day already. The first one was in my living room, and was only about 20 minutes long. But then we moved the kids from the basement up to the main floor, so all three are sharing one bedroom now (yes we have a tiny house), and my basement is pretty much a rec room now, except no real furniture. It's carpeted and I have colorful anti-fatigue mats down there, so I exercise on those.
I found my exercise video while cleaning out my TV unit. It's called Better Belly Yoga. I'm going to do that workout tonight. I think it says it has 3 10-minute workouts, so I will probably do all three, and then possibly repeat, or just do some of my own stuff afterward.
My meal plan for the day is as follows:
Breakfast
8am - slim fast shake with 1 tsp of peanut butter
Midmorning snack
10:30am - one banana
Lunch
1:30pm - slim fast shake
Afternoon snack
3:30pm - 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 tsp honey
2 tsp raisins
2 tsp almonds
Supper
6:30pm - baked chicken breast
Amazing Butternut Squash
mixed veggies
Evening snack
8:00pm - 1/2 cup grapes
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
Measurements:
Chest: 45 inches
Waist: 44 inches
Hips: 52 inches
Butt: 50.5 inches
Thigh: 29 inches
Calf: 16 inches
Arm: 16 inches
Those are some huge numbers there! In two weeks, I will do my measurements again, because I know it's not all about the weight, but where you lose your inches too. I don't know what I'll do if I don't see results.
I realized today that there's actually been three workouts this week. So almost every second day already. The first one was in my living room, and was only about 20 minutes long. But then we moved the kids from the basement up to the main floor, so all three are sharing one bedroom now (yes we have a tiny house), and my basement is pretty much a rec room now, except no real furniture. It's carpeted and I have colorful anti-fatigue mats down there, so I exercise on those.
I found my exercise video while cleaning out my TV unit. It's called Better Belly Yoga. I'm going to do that workout tonight. I think it says it has 3 10-minute workouts, so I will probably do all three, and then possibly repeat, or just do some of my own stuff afterward.
My meal plan for the day is as follows:
Breakfast
8am - slim fast shake with 1 tsp of peanut butter
Midmorning snack
10:30am - one banana
Lunch
1:30pm - slim fast shake
Afternoon snack
3:30pm - 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 tsp honey
2 tsp raisins
2 tsp almonds
Supper
6:30pm - baked chicken breast
Amazing Butternut Squash
mixed veggies
Evening snack
8:00pm - 1/2 cup grapes
1/4 cup mozzarella cheese
I May Not Be Posting, But I'm Still Working
The last week has been hard. I have been doing really well on my food intake. A few little treats here and there, but no overdoing it. I'm trying to cut down on my carb intake. The biggest problem of the last week though, was that we didn't have a lot of food in the house, and what we did have was not exactly healthy. Mostly a lot of convenience foods. I wish I could be one of those do-it-all moms who makes her own bread, pasta, jams, etc. I just don't do that stuff. I'm sure I have the time, I just don't have the motivation. I know it would be healthier than store bought. But I just can't force myself to do it. What I'm doing now is hard enough.
I haven't started going to the gym yet. I have, however, started working out at home. Two workouts now, the second one was tonight. I don't know names of everything I do, but I did write down all the exercises I did tonight, with the exception of my warm up and cool down. I bought a workout DVD. It's So You Think You Can Dance - Get Fit. Turns out, I can't dance. I have no rhythm. I have no coordination. I could not keep up. I lost myself in the warm up phase, and when it got into the first workout (hip hop), I quit. I think I need to lose some pounds before I can really get into that one. Too much of my junk gets in the way, and even "simple" things like jumping jacks are hard. The good news, I worked out for about an hour tonight. It hurt. I was sweaty. I cooled down outside, walking 10 laps around part of my front yard. Then I treated myself to a post-workout snack of two cookies (healthier ones, I swear) and a carrot.
More good news is that we went grocery shopping today. Aside from a few convenience foods we bought for the kids, and a couple of frozen dinners, pretty much everything was geared toward weight loss. I bought lemons to slice and put in my water. I bought a 4kg box of chicken breasts. I bought tons of fresh fruits and veggies, and one large bag of frozen vegetables. I am really excited about continuing on this journey. I just wish I could remember to write up my daily meal plans in the mornings! Fingers crossed tomorrow will be that day.
I took my measurements today, and took some before pictures. Tomorrow I will do a new weigh in, and I will try to stick to only weighing in once a week. And now, I need to chug a litre of water, and crash.
I haven't started going to the gym yet. I have, however, started working out at home. Two workouts now, the second one was tonight. I don't know names of everything I do, but I did write down all the exercises I did tonight, with the exception of my warm up and cool down. I bought a workout DVD. It's So You Think You Can Dance - Get Fit. Turns out, I can't dance. I have no rhythm. I have no coordination. I could not keep up. I lost myself in the warm up phase, and when it got into the first workout (hip hop), I quit. I think I need to lose some pounds before I can really get into that one. Too much of my junk gets in the way, and even "simple" things like jumping jacks are hard. The good news, I worked out for about an hour tonight. It hurt. I was sweaty. I cooled down outside, walking 10 laps around part of my front yard. Then I treated myself to a post-workout snack of two cookies (healthier ones, I swear) and a carrot.
More good news is that we went grocery shopping today. Aside from a few convenience foods we bought for the kids, and a couple of frozen dinners, pretty much everything was geared toward weight loss. I bought lemons to slice and put in my water. I bought a 4kg box of chicken breasts. I bought tons of fresh fruits and veggies, and one large bag of frozen vegetables. I am really excited about continuing on this journey. I just wish I could remember to write up my daily meal plans in the mornings! Fingers crossed tomorrow will be that day.
I took my measurements today, and took some before pictures. Tomorrow I will do a new weigh in, and I will try to stick to only weighing in once a week. And now, I need to chug a litre of water, and crash.
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Crap, it happened again. But no more!
The last two weeks have been a bit rocky. We've been so busy, sent the big kids to camp for a week and had a semi relaxing time, even though I missed them like crazy. Then we took a trip to Kenora for a day, and had a blast out there. And the most important news. Yesterday the "hubby", which I use to refer to my baby daddy, but we aren't actually married, he PROPOSED yesterday! That's right folks. I am an engaged woman now! So, this brought into effect the wedding planner in me. I can see my wedding in my mind's eye. And in my mind's eye, I am not this horribly fat, gross thing. I don't mind being a bit on the bigger side. I don't imagine I'll ever be *petite*. I believe I am one of those "big boned" gals that just can't ever become a size 0. But I definitely need to lose at least 50lbs before my wedding next year. So starting today, I'm a new me. I use my engagement ring as motivation. I've been eating healthy today, or at least healthier than what I've been eating the last couple of weeks. I've even been exercising for a good portion of the day. I did a bunch of abs, thighs and butt exercises for about 20 minutes while my youngest was napping. I danced while making supper. I inflated my exercise ball, and bounced during my meal. I've increased my water intake, drinking almost 2 litres in the last three hours. I will have one more snack in about half an hour. I hope to send the kids to bed in about an hour. Tomorrow I'm going walking with my close friend at the park that I'm hoping to get married at. I'm also hoping to go to the gym while my youngest naps, and do some free weights for a bit, or maybe even do some swimming. I am going to keep this up, because I refuse to be a fat bride. I'm going to take pictures and do measurements tonight after the kids are in bed. My plan is to exercise at least one hour every day. It doesn't have to be all at the same time, but at least one cumulative hour daily. Even on days when I give myself junk to eat, I won't stop exercising. Something simple like bouncing on the ball, as long as it's enough to raise my heartrate some, will be enough for me.
Hopefully, I will remember to keep updating my blog with my daily progress. Tomorrow I will post my weight and measurements.
Hopefully, I will remember to keep updating my blog with my daily progress. Tomorrow I will post my weight and measurements.
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Whoops, I fell off the wagon
I cannot believe it's been two and a half weeks since I wrote here. It didn't feel like that long. But the last few weeks have been a downhill spiral, and have also been incredibly busy. I hadn't started any sort of exercise regime, and then I had trips and outings and all kinds of goings on. I was on a road trip for three days, and ate a lot of crap. I did try to find healthier alternatives when dining out, but sometimes you just really need to treat yourself. I am back now, though, and I am ready to get down to business.
Okay, well, food wise, I don't have a lot of options right now. We don't have money to do a good food shop, and we're low on healthy items, so I will have to pick and choose this week what will work and what won't. I will have to quit the pop again, and I really REALLY need to up my water intake, because I'm definitely not drinking enough water. I'd like to pick up some lemons and start putting lemon slices into my water bottles for a bit of flavor. Maybe lemon and a bit of mint. Mmm sounds good actually.
I have found a couple of videos on Youtube, that I will use to start as part of my workout routine. They are short videos, but they really work you. I have one ab video and one butt busting video that are in my faves, and once I can *master* those, I will add to my routine. I also know it's good to alternate things, so I will have to find things to do for my arms, legs, back, etc. I will also work to incorporate more walking in.
My two older girls were sent off to camp today. They will be gone for 6 days. It was a hard day for me, sending them off to strangers. This is the first time they've slept somewhere away from home that wasn't with family. I'm sure they're doing fine, they're at camp together, but I can't help but worry about my 8 year old momma's girl. I also need to figure out what I'm going to do with my week.
Tomorrow I'm going to get my stuff back on track. I will start up my daily meal plans again, I will weigh and measure myself again. It will almost be like a new start. I am going to get serious about this. The two small workout videos I watched were 20 minutes, collectively, and they kicked my butt. I am seriously out of shape. I have to fix this. I hate the way I feel, I hate the way I look. I am tired of being the fat chick. And I do not want to be this big whenever I finally get married and need to pick out a wedding dress. These things, and my kids, are my motivation for finally changing my lifestyle. I will get on track. And when I'm starting to lose sight of things, I will come back to this entry and hopefully pump myself back up again.
Today is done, tomorrow is new.
Okay, well, food wise, I don't have a lot of options right now. We don't have money to do a good food shop, and we're low on healthy items, so I will have to pick and choose this week what will work and what won't. I will have to quit the pop again, and I really REALLY need to up my water intake, because I'm definitely not drinking enough water. I'd like to pick up some lemons and start putting lemon slices into my water bottles for a bit of flavor. Maybe lemon and a bit of mint. Mmm sounds good actually.
I have found a couple of videos on Youtube, that I will use to start as part of my workout routine. They are short videos, but they really work you. I have one ab video and one butt busting video that are in my faves, and once I can *master* those, I will add to my routine. I also know it's good to alternate things, so I will have to find things to do for my arms, legs, back, etc. I will also work to incorporate more walking in.
My two older girls were sent off to camp today. They will be gone for 6 days. It was a hard day for me, sending them off to strangers. This is the first time they've slept somewhere away from home that wasn't with family. I'm sure they're doing fine, they're at camp together, but I can't help but worry about my 8 year old momma's girl. I also need to figure out what I'm going to do with my week.
Tomorrow I'm going to get my stuff back on track. I will start up my daily meal plans again, I will weigh and measure myself again. It will almost be like a new start. I am going to get serious about this. The two small workout videos I watched were 20 minutes, collectively, and they kicked my butt. I am seriously out of shape. I have to fix this. I hate the way I feel, I hate the way I look. I am tired of being the fat chick. And I do not want to be this big whenever I finally get married and need to pick out a wedding dress. These things, and my kids, are my motivation for finally changing my lifestyle. I will get on track. And when I'm starting to lose sight of things, I will come back to this entry and hopefully pump myself back up again.
Today is done, tomorrow is new.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Day 9 - Nothing Day
I had a very blah day today. I wasn't interested in eating. I forced myself to have a piece of toast when I made my toddler's breakfast. I didn't snack on anything, and didn't eat lunch until 1:30, after a short, unsuccessful nap. An egg salad sandwich with cheese. Nothing on the side. Then I had another nap, after I sent the toddler to bed. Then I made cream of mushroom soup for supper, had it with a few saltine crackers. After supper, I had a bowl of yogurt with granola, pumpkin seeds and almonds, and ate a handful of cashews on the side. That's all folks. It's 10:30pm, and all three kids are still awake, and all I want to do is go back to bed. But I told myself I'd get some exercises in before that, so I really want them to go to bed, so I can exercise and go to bed.
On a completely unrelated note, today was the first episode of Big Brother 13. I LOVE that show! And I am so excited about the twists that have been introduced this year. If you haven't watched the first episode, stop reading now. This is a spoiler alert. Click next, and move on to another blog. Okay, so any BB fan knows that this season, there are 8 new house guests and 6 returning duos. I pretty much called who was coming into the house, and while I'm only happy about 2 of the duos, I feel like the third couple will bring some awesome drama to the house. The first couple to come into the house was....Brendon and Rachel, from last year. I've only just learned of the drama of their lives since leaving the house (Brendon's penis is all over the web, feel free to look it up, because I'm NOT posting a link!). They got engaged on Valentine's Day, and are planning on getting married in September. I thought they wouldn't be coming into the house because Rachel supposedly has a wedding show coming up on Spike network I believe. I absolutely cannot stand Rachel, but I have to admit that she makes the show interesting. I wish they were leaving first... So the second duo to enter the house was Jeff and Jordan (from season 11)! Oh, how I love that couple! They are the sweetest people, even their ignorance is sweet. It's so hard not to love them. I love that they're still a couple. I wonder if he'd consider proposing on the show, since that's where they met... The third duo was the one I was most excited about. My absolute favorite houseguest in all 13 years of the show's existence, Evel Dick is BACK! I am so over the moon for that guy! I don't care if he's 10, 15, or 20 years older than I am, I freaking love him! Not so crazy about his daughter, but she's on the show too. And she died her hair black, or really dark brown. I don't like it. And apparently they haven't spoken since they left the show 3 years ago, and she's not happy about being in the house with him again, but she wants more money. Anyway, with the return of Big Brother, I see a lot of late nights in my future, as I plan on catching some live feeds and chatting away with fellow fans. It's going to be a great summer! I just hope I can lose weight at the same time!
On a completely unrelated note, today was the first episode of Big Brother 13. I LOVE that show! And I am so excited about the twists that have been introduced this year. If you haven't watched the first episode, stop reading now. This is a spoiler alert. Click next, and move on to another blog. Okay, so any BB fan knows that this season, there are 8 new house guests and 6 returning duos. I pretty much called who was coming into the house, and while I'm only happy about 2 of the duos, I feel like the third couple will bring some awesome drama to the house. The first couple to come into the house was....Brendon and Rachel, from last year. I've only just learned of the drama of their lives since leaving the house (Brendon's penis is all over the web, feel free to look it up, because I'm NOT posting a link!). They got engaged on Valentine's Day, and are planning on getting married in September. I thought they wouldn't be coming into the house because Rachel supposedly has a wedding show coming up on Spike network I believe. I absolutely cannot stand Rachel, but I have to admit that she makes the show interesting. I wish they were leaving first... So the second duo to enter the house was Jeff and Jordan (from season 11)! Oh, how I love that couple! They are the sweetest people, even their ignorance is sweet. It's so hard not to love them. I love that they're still a couple. I wonder if he'd consider proposing on the show, since that's where they met... The third duo was the one I was most excited about. My absolute favorite houseguest in all 13 years of the show's existence, Evel Dick is BACK! I am so over the moon for that guy! I don't care if he's 10, 15, or 20 years older than I am, I freaking love him! Not so crazy about his daughter, but she's on the show too. And she died her hair black, or really dark brown. I don't like it. And apparently they haven't spoken since they left the show 3 years ago, and she's not happy about being in the house with him again, but she wants more money. Anyway, with the return of Big Brother, I see a lot of late nights in my future, as I plan on catching some live feeds and chatting away with fellow fans. It's going to be a great summer! I just hope I can lose weight at the same time!
I Cheated. Baaaad Me
I have been doing so well avoiding fatty and fried foods, and sweets. Okay, had been doing well. Then the hubs brought home a cake tonight, because he had a craving. And I had a piece. I won't have any more though, because it wasn't even good cake. Such a shame to cheat and have it be a disappointment. On the plus side, I got more exercise in today. I took the kids to a park that was further than the ones we usually go to. It's a bigger park that has two play structures, sandboxes, swings, and a wading pool, plus lots of space to run around. And run around I did. Had to follow the toddler on one structure, then the next, then she wanted to swing, and ride the teeter totter, and back to the structure. It was a good day though. Hot, but cloudy, and then light rain to cool things off. And for even more exercise, I had to carry the toddler home most of the way. But I worked up a good sweat, so I was proud that I actually took the effort to take them and have a good afternoon.
I believe I followed my meal plan pretty closely today, but I didn't drink my entire smoothie, and I put it in the fridge, and now it looks funny, so I might just have to dump it. My evening snack ended up not being the plum and seeds, because I had freaking cake. My dinner was perogies and sauteed mushrooms. Tomorrow will be better. I just really need to push myself to get more exercise in. I would LOVE to be able to wear a bikini next year.
I believe I followed my meal plan pretty closely today, but I didn't drink my entire smoothie, and I put it in the fridge, and now it looks funny, so I might just have to dump it. My evening snack ended up not being the plum and seeds, because I had freaking cake. My dinner was perogies and sauteed mushrooms. Tomorrow will be better. I just really need to push myself to get more exercise in. I would LOVE to be able to wear a bikini next year.
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Day 8 - Weigh In Day
Some changes to yesterday's menu include: I missed my afternoon snack, or maybe I had something else, I have already forgotten. Supper was the same except we had wax beans instead of green beans. My evening snack did not include cashews, but I did have some Crispy Minis rice crisps after my watermelon. I also didn't have celery sticks with my lunch, just the sandwich was enough for me.
I forgot to weigh myself until just before starting this post, so it could be slightly off, even though I've only had a light breakfast so far. But it looks like I haven't lost any weight since my last weigh in. I am still at 213lbs. It's still the lowest I've been without being pregnant in the last 9 years, but it shows me that changing my diet simply is not enough. I do have to get on to the exercise portion of my lifestyle change. I even brought out the mats from my daughter's room last night and set them up in the living room. I am hoping to take my kids to the wading pool near by this afternoon, though I don't know if it's open yet. At the very least, I will get a good walk in, and the kids can play at the playground. And I am hoping to do some exercising in the early evening, maybe a workout video or just some basics, sit-ups, and butt exercises.
Day 8 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
8:30am - one hard boiled egg, with a sprinkle of salt
Mid-morning snack:
10:30am - berry smoothie
1/3 cup frozen raspberries
1/3 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
Lunch:
2pm - 1/2 cup bean salad
celery sticks with cream cheese for dipping
6 white mushrooms
Afternoon snack:
3pm - 1 cup popcorn
1/4 cup cashews
Supper:
5:30pm - boiled perogies
light sour cream
undecided vegetable
Evening snack:
7pm - 1 plum
2 tablspoons pumpkin seeds
I forgot to weigh myself until just before starting this post, so it could be slightly off, even though I've only had a light breakfast so far. But it looks like I haven't lost any weight since my last weigh in. I am still at 213lbs. It's still the lowest I've been without being pregnant in the last 9 years, but it shows me that changing my diet simply is not enough. I do have to get on to the exercise portion of my lifestyle change. I even brought out the mats from my daughter's room last night and set them up in the living room. I am hoping to take my kids to the wading pool near by this afternoon, though I don't know if it's open yet. At the very least, I will get a good walk in, and the kids can play at the playground. And I am hoping to do some exercising in the early evening, maybe a workout video or just some basics, sit-ups, and butt exercises.
Day 8 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
8:30am - one hard boiled egg, with a sprinkle of salt
Mid-morning snack:
10:30am - berry smoothie
1/3 cup frozen raspberries
1/3 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
Lunch:
2pm - 1/2 cup bean salad
celery sticks with cream cheese for dipping
6 white mushrooms
Afternoon snack:
3pm - 1 cup popcorn
1/4 cup cashews
Supper:
5:30pm - boiled perogies
light sour cream
undecided vegetable
Evening snack:
7pm - 1 plum
2 tablspoons pumpkin seeds
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Good Morning Day 7
The not-so-great thing about toddlers is you never know how they're going to sleep at night. My toddler woke up around 12:30am, and it took about 10 minutes to get her back to sleep. Not really long, but enough to mess with my sleep cycle. Even worse is that she woke me up at 6am. When that happens, it just makes me so tired for the rest of the day. So even though we were able to snooze on the couch for a while, and when her big sister woke up, she took her downstairs to play, I still couldn't drag my carcass off the couch, and continued to snooze until about 9:30. And then, even though I was awake, I continued to sit on the couch and be lazy for another hour. So now it is 11am and I am just having breakfast. Not good at all. And I'm not even hungry, so I'm forcing myself to eat, which means I'm eating super sloooooowly. On the plus side, I'm finishing up week one of my new healthy lifestyle, and even without exercise, I am starting to feel better about myself. I had plenty of temptations at my mom's house last night (chips, ice cream, pop), and I didn't even have a taste. I think I'll be okay.
Day 7 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
11am - banana yogurt
granola
pumpkin seeds
Lunch:
1pm - egg salad sandwich
celery sticks
Afternoon snack:
3pm - berry smoothie
1/3 cup frozen raspberries
1/3 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
Supper:
5:30pm - baked chicken breasts
pesto parmesan pasta
green beans
Evening snack:
7pm - watermelon
1/4 cup cashews
I want to take the kids out today, but I have a feeling we'll do a lot of cleaning instead. The living room, the kitchen, my bedroom and the van are at the top of my list. I'm going on a road trip next week, and the van hasn't been thoroughly cleaned out since our last road trip, last year. Yuck. At least the kids can play outside while I clean.
Day 7 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
11am - banana yogurt
granola
pumpkin seeds
Lunch:
1pm - egg salad sandwich
celery sticks
Afternoon snack:
3pm - berry smoothie
1/3 cup frozen raspberries
1/3 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
Supper:
5:30pm - baked chicken breasts
pesto parmesan pasta
green beans
Evening snack:
7pm - watermelon
1/4 cup cashews
I want to take the kids out today, but I have a feeling we'll do a lot of cleaning instead. The living room, the kitchen, my bedroom and the van are at the top of my list. I'm going on a road trip next week, and the van hasn't been thoroughly cleaned out since our last road trip, last year. Yuck. At least the kids can play outside while I clean.
End of Day 6
Despite not following my plan, I think I did okay today. I definitely showed restraint! Lunch was late, because I was frustrated with my hard boiled eggs not peeling easily. Then I had a somewhat late nap with my daughter. We didn't get up until almost 5:30pm. I grabbed a handful of almonds to eat on the way to my mom's. My mother had already eaten by that point, because they had ordered take out. There were a few pieces of chicken and some potato and macaroni salad left, but no fries. Fine for me, but my poor kids ended up eating all kinds of junk. I even tried to stop at the store to pick up wedges, but the one I went to didn't have them. So I ate one piece of white meat, ripped as much skin off as I could, and had a few bites of macaroni salad. My aunt bought frozen treats for dessert, fortunately she had a healthy alternative: fat free strawberry banana smoothie bars. I ate about half of one before my daughter took it from me, and then traded it with her sister. Quite the little dessert stealer my kid is. We got to my mom's late, so we left late, not getting home until close to 10pm. We stopped so the hubs could get a coffee, and I got a chicken wrap, since I was still hungry. And even though it was so late when we got home, we still had our cheesecake filled strawberries for dessert. Wow, were they ever good! I definitely need to make those again. We had 5 each, so no overdoing it there. Very very tasty.
Exercise was at a minimum today. The kids are already starting to get restless, even with the busy weekend we had, so I think we'll be looking for something to do tomorrow. Hubs doesn't work Mondays and Tuesdays, so it's good to get in some family time when he's home and we don't have to be home in time for him to go to work. I really hope that I can get a good routine going. And no, I didn't take those mats out of my baby's room. I will have to try to remember tomorrow.
Cleaning is a good old fashioned form of exercise right? I have a lot of cleaning to get done tomorrow. The living room looks like it threw up on itself, and the dishes are sky high. I have a couple loads of laundry to fold, and a couple more to wash. I would also like to rearrange the big kids' room, and possibly move the baby down there, even if just for one night, to try it out. Could be a good way to get some extra sleep. Maybe.
Exercise was at a minimum today. The kids are already starting to get restless, even with the busy weekend we had, so I think we'll be looking for something to do tomorrow. Hubs doesn't work Mondays and Tuesdays, so it's good to get in some family time when he's home and we don't have to be home in time for him to go to work. I really hope that I can get a good routine going. And no, I didn't take those mats out of my baby's room. I will have to try to remember tomorrow.
Cleaning is a good old fashioned form of exercise right? I have a lot of cleaning to get done tomorrow. The living room looks like it threw up on itself, and the dishes are sky high. I have a couple loads of laundry to fold, and a couple more to wash. I would also like to rearrange the big kids' room, and possibly move the baby down there, even if just for one night, to try it out. Could be a good way to get some extra sleep. Maybe.
Monday, July 4, 2011
Day 6 - Truckin' Along
Good morning, and happy 4th to my American readers! Yeah, I doubt I have any readers, never mind American ones. It's all good. Today has started off okay. Again no exercise yet, but it's still early. I had a late breakfast, so it will push things back a little bit, but I can adapt. We might be going to my mother's for supper this evening, so I will have to plan accordingly.
Day 6 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
10am - 1 hard boiled egg
1 pear
1 peanut butter granola bar
Lunch:
12pm - smoked chicken sandwich
2 slices of marble cheese
5 green olives
2 tablespoons of almonds
Afternoon snack:
3pm - banana yogurt
2 tablespoons of granola
Supper:
6pm (I hope): TBA
Evening snack:
8pm - cheesecake stuffed strawberries
Someone posted this recipe on Facebook, and I then shared it with my slimmies group. My friend made some yesterday, with her own variations (using Splenda instead of powdered sugar and crystal light drink crystals for extra flavor) and she said they were fabulous. I don't have Splenda, but I do have stevia, so I will be using that, and possibly some Crystal Light powder, if I still have any. I'm going to make mine right away, and let them chill until tonight, because I think they'll taste better that way.
My exercise regimen still hasn't started, I fear. I know I should get into some sort of routine, but I just haven't quite been able to start. I feel like once I get over that hump, things will get better. In the meantime, it is good to know that just changing my eating habits is having an effect on my weight. I don't even really feel like I'm missing out on anything, because the things I make, and the foods I snack on, are all things I enjoy. My granola bars may not be the healthiest ones out there (dipped in chocolate kind), but they are healthier than eating a candy bar, and they satisfy the chocolate cravings. I haven't even been tempted to touch that fudge that's just sitting in the fridge... well, yet.
Day 6 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
10am - 1 hard boiled egg
1 pear
1 peanut butter granola bar
Lunch:
12pm - smoked chicken sandwich
2 slices of marble cheese
5 green olives
2 tablespoons of almonds
Afternoon snack:
3pm - banana yogurt
2 tablespoons of granola
Supper:
6pm (I hope): TBA
Evening snack:
8pm - cheesecake stuffed strawberries
Someone posted this recipe on Facebook, and I then shared it with my slimmies group. My friend made some yesterday, with her own variations (using Splenda instead of powdered sugar and crystal light drink crystals for extra flavor) and she said they were fabulous. I don't have Splenda, but I do have stevia, so I will be using that, and possibly some Crystal Light powder, if I still have any. I'm going to make mine right away, and let them chill until tonight, because I think they'll taste better that way.
My exercise regimen still hasn't started, I fear. I know I should get into some sort of routine, but I just haven't quite been able to start. I feel like once I get over that hump, things will get better. In the meantime, it is good to know that just changing my eating habits is having an effect on my weight. I don't even really feel like I'm missing out on anything, because the things I make, and the foods I snack on, are all things I enjoy. My granola bars may not be the healthiest ones out there (dipped in chocolate kind), but they are healthier than eating a candy bar, and they satisfy the chocolate cravings. I haven't even been tempted to touch that fudge that's just sitting in the fridge... well, yet.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
The End of Day 5
This is what happens when I miss a day. I forget. Most of yesterday went as planned. I didn't have the afternoon bean salad snack. I can't remember if I had a snack at all. Dinner was what I wanted it to be, but I did also add parmesan cheese and bacon bits. I didn't have the evening snack I posted. I'm sure I had something else, but I've forgotten what. I had a couple Peak Freans banana chocolate cookies, they were really good. I don't know if I had anything else. I didn't write up a meal plan this morning, so I found it harder to find things to eat when it wasn't laid out for me. I will have to make sure to do this every day from now on, because I don't want to stray from my course.
Day 5 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
9am - 1/3 cup strawberry yogurt
2 tablespoons granola
1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons cashews
Mid-morning snack:
11:30am - 3/4 of a toaster waffle with peanut butter
Lunch:
1:30pm - two slices of smoked chicken
12 wheat thins crackers
light vegetable cream cheese for dipping
Afternoon snack:
I don't think I had one
Supper:
5:30pm - salisbury steak
garlic parmesan mashed potatoes
baby carrots
2 tablespoons melted Cheez Whiz with fresh chopped dill, used on top of potatoes and carrots
Evening snack:
7pm - 2 slices watermelon
Second evening snack:
9pm - half my daughter's nougat bar (tried to resist, but couldn't)
I was extremely lazy today. =( Shame on me. I did no exercising, and in fact spent a lot of time in bed, or lying or sitting on the couch. It has been a long weekend, and I was up late again last night, so I feel like I really needed to recoup. I do feel better, and I'm hoping to go to bed at a decent hour tonight. I probably won't wake up early tomorrow, but I may leave the kids with their dad and take my first solo trip to the gym. It actually sounds like a really good idea. I should look for my ipod...
Sundays are the days we had said we would do weigh ins on the FB group, but everybody started on different days, and I think we've all decided to do weekly weigh ins, so everybody's going to do it on different days. I will do my next weigh in on day 8. Every Wednesday will by my weigh in day. It'll be hard waiting another three days, but I can do it. I keep forgetting to take the anti-fatigue mats out of my daughter's room too, so that I can have them in the mornings for workouts. I will have to make a note to do that tomorrow. For now, it's time to try and catch some of those elusive zzz's.
Day 5 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
9am - 1/3 cup strawberry yogurt
2 tablespoons granola
1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons cashews
Mid-morning snack:
11:30am - 3/4 of a toaster waffle with peanut butter
Lunch:
1:30pm - two slices of smoked chicken
12 wheat thins crackers
light vegetable cream cheese for dipping
Afternoon snack:
I don't think I had one
Supper:
5:30pm - salisbury steak
garlic parmesan mashed potatoes
baby carrots
2 tablespoons melted Cheez Whiz with fresh chopped dill, used on top of potatoes and carrots
Evening snack:
7pm - 2 slices watermelon
Second evening snack:
9pm - half my daughter's nougat bar (tried to resist, but couldn't)
I was extremely lazy today. =( Shame on me. I did no exercising, and in fact spent a lot of time in bed, or lying or sitting on the couch. It has been a long weekend, and I was up late again last night, so I feel like I really needed to recoup. I do feel better, and I'm hoping to go to bed at a decent hour tonight. I probably won't wake up early tomorrow, but I may leave the kids with their dad and take my first solo trip to the gym. It actually sounds like a really good idea. I should look for my ipod...
Sundays are the days we had said we would do weigh ins on the FB group, but everybody started on different days, and I think we've all decided to do weekly weigh ins, so everybody's going to do it on different days. I will do my next weigh in on day 8. Every Wednesday will by my weigh in day. It'll be hard waiting another three days, but I can do it. I keep forgetting to take the anti-fatigue mats out of my daughter's room too, so that I can have them in the mornings for workouts. I will have to make a note to do that tomorrow. For now, it's time to try and catch some of those elusive zzz's.
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Day 4 and a Recap of Day 3
Yesterday didn't go quite as planned. It is hard to plan snack and meal times when you're out, and especially when you're out at new places. We went to the Royal Canadian Mint as part of our Canada Day celebrations in the morning. Because of the festivities, I didn't have a midmorning snack. We picked up lunch at Wendy's (I did pick a healthier wrap, but also got fries, just a small though) and came home to eat at around noon. I had a nap while the kids hung out with their father, and then my youngest woke me up so she could have a nap. I got some laundry and cleaning done, and was too busy to even think about an afternoon snack until almost 5. So we had supper around 5:30pm. I did have what I planned to have, but also had celery sticks with light roasted vegetable cream cheese. When my youngest finally woke up, we went out to the park to join in the Canada Day festivities and wait for fireworks. By the time we got there, it was after 9 and everybody was hungry, so we grabbed smokie dogs. I know, not the healthiest option, but it tasted soooo good! I did also snack a bit on a granola bar later, while waiting for fireworks to start. And then, on the way home, we stopped at this ice cream place and I picked up chocolate malts for us to share. I probably ate half of one, so again, not the healthiest choice, but still so yummy.
Despite my setbacks yesterday, and even though I'm not supposed to weigh myself until tomorrow, I couldn't help myself and I stepped on the scale today. Honestly, I didn't expect to see a change, because I really don't feel like I've made a lot of changes the last few days. BUT....I lost 2 lbs! Incredible! There is nothing like seeing that scale tip a little less when you step on it to get your motivation up! I am even more excited about sticking to this meal plan, creating smaller portions, and getting in more exercise (which I'm still working on).
Today could be another one of those difficult days. We are headed to the park in less than an hour to get our picture taken. My sister's cousin was in a major accident a week or so ago, and she broke her neck. She is recovering, slowly, but the doctors are saying she'll never walk again. And she will have to be in hospital for 6 months. She is still in ICU, but makes improvements daily, I've heard. So, as a result of this, a lot of people have come forward with their own plans for raising money for Maranda and her family. One such lady is a photographer and will be taking pictures in the park today. $50 gets you a 30 minute session, and the 6 best pictures will be put on a disc. All money made today and tomorrow will go to Maranda's family, to help with the kids and to purchase a wheelchair. We are due for pictures anyway, and it seems there's no better time to do it, than when it's for a good cause and helps out my family in some small way. It is the least I can do. Okay, so the point was that we'll be out and about again today, so snacking could become difficult. I will make sure to pack some snacks and maybe even a picnic lunch to eliminate the urge to buy takeout food. With that in mind, I should go and get ready now then!
Day 4 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
10am - 1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
1 tablespoon almonds
1 tablespoon cashews
No midmorning snack today since breakfast was so late
Lunch:
1pm - chicken sandwich on rye bread with cheese
baby carrots
sliced cucumbers
Afternoon snack:
3pm - bean salad
Supper:
5:30pm - grilled chicken caesar salad
light salad dressing
shredded marble cheese
Evening snack:
7pm - sliced strawberries
diced pear
strawberry yogurt for dipping
Despite my setbacks yesterday, and even though I'm not supposed to weigh myself until tomorrow, I couldn't help myself and I stepped on the scale today. Honestly, I didn't expect to see a change, because I really don't feel like I've made a lot of changes the last few days. BUT....I lost 2 lbs! Incredible! There is nothing like seeing that scale tip a little less when you step on it to get your motivation up! I am even more excited about sticking to this meal plan, creating smaller portions, and getting in more exercise (which I'm still working on).
Today could be another one of those difficult days. We are headed to the park in less than an hour to get our picture taken. My sister's cousin was in a major accident a week or so ago, and she broke her neck. She is recovering, slowly, but the doctors are saying she'll never walk again. And she will have to be in hospital for 6 months. She is still in ICU, but makes improvements daily, I've heard. So, as a result of this, a lot of people have come forward with their own plans for raising money for Maranda and her family. One such lady is a photographer and will be taking pictures in the park today. $50 gets you a 30 minute session, and the 6 best pictures will be put on a disc. All money made today and tomorrow will go to Maranda's family, to help with the kids and to purchase a wheelchair. We are due for pictures anyway, and it seems there's no better time to do it, than when it's for a good cause and helps out my family in some small way. It is the least I can do. Okay, so the point was that we'll be out and about again today, so snacking could become difficult. I will make sure to pack some snacks and maybe even a picnic lunch to eliminate the urge to buy takeout food. With that in mind, I should go and get ready now then!
Day 4 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
10am - 1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
1 tablespoon pumpkin seeds
1 tablespoon almonds
1 tablespoon cashews
No midmorning snack today since breakfast was so late
Lunch:
1pm - chicken sandwich on rye bread with cheese
baby carrots
sliced cucumbers
Afternoon snack:
3pm - bean salad
Supper:
5:30pm - grilled chicken caesar salad
light salad dressing
shredded marble cheese
Evening snack:
7pm - sliced strawberries
diced pear
strawberry yogurt for dipping
Friday, July 1, 2011
Day 3 - Happy Birthday Canada!
Today is going to be a test of my planning skills. Because we will be out and about for a lot of the day, I have to make sure to book in time for eating, and to have appropriate snacking foods in between meals.
I didn't get to exercise this morning. My youngest decided she didn't want to sleep in, and she woke up before I'd fully woken myself up. Fortunately, today will be filled with tons of walking already, so I'm not really worried about missing.
Day 3 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
8:30am - 1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
2 tablespoons fruit and nut granola
2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
1 tablespoon almonds
Mid-morning snack:
10am - dried mango pieces
Lunch:
11:30am - We'll be eating out, so I will try to find the healthiest options
Afternoon snack:
2pm - celery sticks and peanut butter
Supper:
5pm - turkey and cheese sandwich on rye bread
1 slice of tomato
1 pickle on the side
Evening snack:
7pm - Crispy minis rice snacks
Now, if only I could finish my breakfast quickly and get packing for our day!
I didn't get to exercise this morning. My youngest decided she didn't want to sleep in, and she woke up before I'd fully woken myself up. Fortunately, today will be filled with tons of walking already, so I'm not really worried about missing.
Day 3 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
8:30am - 1/2 cup vanilla yogurt
2 tablespoons fruit and nut granola
2 tablespoons pumpkin seeds
1 tablespoon almonds
Mid-morning snack:
10am - dried mango pieces
Lunch:
11:30am - We'll be eating out, so I will try to find the healthiest options
Afternoon snack:
2pm - celery sticks and peanut butter
Supper:
5pm - turkey and cheese sandwich on rye bread
1 slice of tomato
1 pickle on the side
Evening snack:
7pm - Crispy minis rice snacks
Now, if only I could finish my breakfast quickly and get packing for our day!
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Recap of Day 2
I'm starting to think I should post twice a day, first with my plans for the day, and my meal plan, and then again at the end of the day to post my exercise and any changes I may have made.
I missed out on my snacks today. It was my older daughters' last day of school, and they were out at 11:30, so I picked them up and we went grocery shopping. Time to put healthy food in our house! I was still pretty confident that I'd get home in time to have lunch at a reasonable hour, but we ended up shopping until close to 1:30, and then I actually had to make my lunch, so I probably didn't eat until closer to 2. Then I took a nap, because my youngest daughter was napping. And of course the late lunch and late nap led to a later supper and evening snack. I had originally wanted to have grilled chicken caesar salad, but we didn't pick up the chicken breast I wanted, so I had to settle. I made the girls instant noodles with veggies mixed in, and they had cut up wieners with theirs, but I had mine without. I had probably a half a cup of noodles and veggies, and then munched on a bowl of baby carrots with light caesar dressing. I think tomorrow I'm going to hard boil some eggs and leave them in the fridge for quick protein snacks.
I did a bit of "cheating" today. We went to the carnival last weekend, and I bought fudge. I let myself have a couple of bites tonight, since I missed out on so many snacks. I am very careful not to get carried away, and will be limiting the amount of junk I ingest. I have also done really well on cutting pop out of my diet again. I haven't had any since I started, and I don't miss it. I'm not drinking enough water. I know that already. Despite the intense heat and humidity the last few days, I just haven't really felt thirsty. Today I did have a canned iced tea, which I'm sure is just as bad as pop, but I also drank a couple glasses of water, and even a cup of tea with just one teaspoon of honey. I bought stevia packets, and will probably try some in tomorrow's tea.
As for exercise, well I walked for over an hour in the grocery store. I also did some exercises in front of the TV tonight. Not excessive, but it was long enough for me to break a sweat and breathe a bit harder. My plan now is to go to bed right away, and wake up early to exercise a bit more and have a shower before the kids wake up.
Even though I haven't made any really drastic changes, I am already starting to feel better. I have more confidence in myself, and I feel like I can really stick to this. As long as I can get more rigorous exercise routines in, I'm sure I'll start to see those pounds melt away! I am really curious about this Sunday's weigh in. I don't want to weigh myself every day and not see the numbers change, but I really want to see the numbers change!
What I'm really excited about, is that I added two of my friends to the Facebook group, who have been bugging me about being weight loss buddies with them. One of them finally put up her intro and her stats today, and will be starting her new lifestyle this Saturday. I'm so happy that I will not only have the Facebook support, but also the support of two real life close friends. I can feel that things are going to change, and only for the better!
I missed out on my snacks today. It was my older daughters' last day of school, and they were out at 11:30, so I picked them up and we went grocery shopping. Time to put healthy food in our house! I was still pretty confident that I'd get home in time to have lunch at a reasonable hour, but we ended up shopping until close to 1:30, and then I actually had to make my lunch, so I probably didn't eat until closer to 2. Then I took a nap, because my youngest daughter was napping. And of course the late lunch and late nap led to a later supper and evening snack. I had originally wanted to have grilled chicken caesar salad, but we didn't pick up the chicken breast I wanted, so I had to settle. I made the girls instant noodles with veggies mixed in, and they had cut up wieners with theirs, but I had mine without. I had probably a half a cup of noodles and veggies, and then munched on a bowl of baby carrots with light caesar dressing. I think tomorrow I'm going to hard boil some eggs and leave them in the fridge for quick protein snacks.
I did a bit of "cheating" today. We went to the carnival last weekend, and I bought fudge. I let myself have a couple of bites tonight, since I missed out on so many snacks. I am very careful not to get carried away, and will be limiting the amount of junk I ingest. I have also done really well on cutting pop out of my diet again. I haven't had any since I started, and I don't miss it. I'm not drinking enough water. I know that already. Despite the intense heat and humidity the last few days, I just haven't really felt thirsty. Today I did have a canned iced tea, which I'm sure is just as bad as pop, but I also drank a couple glasses of water, and even a cup of tea with just one teaspoon of honey. I bought stevia packets, and will probably try some in tomorrow's tea.
As for exercise, well I walked for over an hour in the grocery store. I also did some exercises in front of the TV tonight. Not excessive, but it was long enough for me to break a sweat and breathe a bit harder. My plan now is to go to bed right away, and wake up early to exercise a bit more and have a shower before the kids wake up.
Even though I haven't made any really drastic changes, I am already starting to feel better. I have more confidence in myself, and I feel like I can really stick to this. As long as I can get more rigorous exercise routines in, I'm sure I'll start to see those pounds melt away! I am really curious about this Sunday's weigh in. I don't want to weigh myself every day and not see the numbers change, but I really want to see the numbers change!
What I'm really excited about, is that I added two of my friends to the Facebook group, who have been bugging me about being weight loss buddies with them. One of them finally put up her intro and her stats today, and will be starting her new lifestyle this Saturday. I'm so happy that I will not only have the Facebook support, but also the support of two real life close friends. I can feel that things are going to change, and only for the better!
Recap of Day 1 - Getting into Day 2
I think yesterday was a good start to this new lifestyle. I followed my meal plan pretty closely, except for missing my evening snack. As for exercise, we did go to the park (a 5-10 minute walk), and I kept moving while we were there, helping kids on the monkey bars, pushing them on the swing, chasing around my toddler, and doing step ups when everyone was busy. And then after summer, we all did some pretty rigorous cleaning in the living room. My plan for today was to wake up at 6am and get a workout and a shower in before the kids woke up, but I was awake later than I wanted to be last night, and I just couldn't pull my lazy ass out of bed this morning. That is something I definitely need to work harder on.
Day 2 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
8:30am - one package instant oatmeal, apples and cinnamon, made with 1/4 cup milk & 1/4 cup water
1 cup of apple juice
Mid-morning snack:
10:30am - 2 pieces of marble cheese, cut in half
2 tablespoons peanut butter
4 crackers
7 pieces of Real Fruit fruit snacks
Lunch:
1:30pm - tuna salad sandwich
Afternoon snack:
missed it because of my late lunch
Supper:
6pm - small bowl chinese noodles with peas and corn
Evening snack:
7pm - 1 cup carrots
light caesar salad dressing for dipping
My plans for exercise today are up in the air. Probably I'll just do some dancing in my living room with the kids in the evening. As for weigh-ins, they will happen once a week on Sundays. I'm not looking forward to the weigh-ins, but who is? ;)
Day 2 Meal Plan
Breakfast:
8:30am - one package instant oatmeal, apples and cinnamon, made with 1/4 cup milk & 1/4 cup water
1 cup of apple juice
Mid-morning snack:
10:30am - 2 pieces of marble cheese, cut in half
2 tablespoons peanut butter
4 crackers
7 pieces of Real Fruit fruit snacks
Lunch:
1:30pm - tuna salad sandwich
Afternoon snack:
missed it because of my late lunch
Supper:
6pm - small bowl chinese noodles with peas and corn
Evening snack:
7pm - 1 cup carrots
light caesar salad dressing for dipping
My plans for exercise today are up in the air. Probably I'll just do some dancing in my living room with the kids in the evening. As for weigh-ins, they will happen once a week on Sundays. I'm not looking forward to the weigh-ins, but who is? ;)
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Day 1 - I'm on a mission
From the time I was young, I have struggled with my weight. I blame my difficult childhood and my strict and often cruel stepfather, but the truth is, I've learned a lot of bad eating habits, like stress eating, and my addiction to junk food. I am 31 years old, and I weigh over 200lbs. I have weighed the same thing for the last 9 years, since before I got pregnant with my first child. I was fortunate enough that I never gained too much (between 20-30lbs for each), and since it was pretty much all baby, I always got back to my pre-pregnancy weight within 6 weeks postpartum.
I have tried diets, I have tried exercise, I have cut out sweets and pop, but I never see results quickly enough. Or, I see results and give myself a "free" day, which turns into a free week, etc. I had a hard time seeing the bigger picture. It's not just about looking better, it's about feeling better, being healthy, and being active with my kids.
I am serious this time around. I want to get down to my goal weight: 150lbs. I know it needs to get done. This time I will have some help. I have a friend on Facebook who has been having her own health issues, and has started her own healthy eating plan. She was sharing with us how the last time she followed a diabetic diet, she lost 60lbs in 2 months. Safely! Granted, she worked her butt off. Lots and lots of exercise, strict meal plan. I am pretty sure I won't lose weight as fast as she did, but I will work at it. Nothing comes easy.
My goal with this blog is to track my progress. I don't know how strict my meal plan will be, but my main goal is portion control and smaller, frequent meals. Exercise will start slowly. I need to work my way up. But with the help of this blog, and my friend's Facebook group, I should have all the support and tools I need to adjust my way of life.
Today is day 1. Below are my current stats and meal plan for the day. I will attempt to put together my meal plan every morning, with the hope that this will deter any unnecessary snacking, or eating foods I shouldn't.
Weight: 215lbs (interesting since it seems I've already lost 4lbs since the last time I weighed myself and I'm not sure how)
Measurements: to be posted when I find my tape measure
Breakfast:
9am - 2 eggs, scrambled, a sprinkling of marble cheese on top
1 piece rye toast, lightly buttered
1 cup of milk
Mid-morning snack:
10:30am - approximately 1 cup of strawberries with banana yogurt for dipping
Lunch:
12:30pm - 1 cup vegetable soup
3 onion flavored crackers
Afternoon snack:
3pm - fruit smoothie:
1/3 cup frozen blueberries
1/3 cup frozen raspberries
1/2 cup yogurt
1/2 cup milk
Supper:
5pm - slice of lean roast beef
1 cup of green beans
1/2 cup mashed potatoes
Evening snack:
7pm - I missed tonight's snack, as I was visiting with family and completely forgot.
Putting together a meal plan is harder than I thought. And that's just for one day! Hopefully I'll get to go grocery shopping this weekend and pick up more things that I'll be able to use to help eat healthier. Now, along with eating healthy, I need to incorporate regular exercise into my diet. My plan is to take the girls to the park this afternoon or evening, after my youngest has a nap. I'll get a walk, they'll get to play. Whatever exercise I do, will be added to each daily post.
One of my biggest downfalls is pop. Pepsi, coke, it doesn't matter. I need my caffeine. I don't drink coffee, and the coffee I do drink is the heavily sugared kind. So I need to get creative with the beverages. My goal will be to alternate ice cold water with hot tea, sweetened with a teaspoon of honey. I have a large variety of teas, so I shouldn't get bored with those.
If anyone out there is reading this, welcome to my journey. If I come across good, healthy recipes, I will post them. If anyone has suggestions or tips on anything I discuss, by all means, please share. Welcome to Mission: Slimpossible!
I have tried diets, I have tried exercise, I have cut out sweets and pop, but I never see results quickly enough. Or, I see results and give myself a "free" day, which turns into a free week, etc. I had a hard time seeing the bigger picture. It's not just about looking better, it's about feeling better, being healthy, and being active with my kids.
I am serious this time around. I want to get down to my goal weight: 150lbs. I know it needs to get done. This time I will have some help. I have a friend on Facebook who has been having her own health issues, and has started her own healthy eating plan. She was sharing with us how the last time she followed a diabetic diet, she lost 60lbs in 2 months. Safely! Granted, she worked her butt off. Lots and lots of exercise, strict meal plan. I am pretty sure I won't lose weight as fast as she did, but I will work at it. Nothing comes easy.
My goal with this blog is to track my progress. I don't know how strict my meal plan will be, but my main goal is portion control and smaller, frequent meals. Exercise will start slowly. I need to work my way up. But with the help of this blog, and my friend's Facebook group, I should have all the support and tools I need to adjust my way of life.
Today is day 1. Below are my current stats and meal plan for the day. I will attempt to put together my meal plan every morning, with the hope that this will deter any unnecessary snacking, or eating foods I shouldn't.
Weight: 215lbs (interesting since it seems I've already lost 4lbs since the last time I weighed myself and I'm not sure how)
Measurements: to be posted when I find my tape measure
Breakfast:
9am - 2 eggs, scrambled, a sprinkling of marble cheese on top
1 piece rye toast, lightly buttered
1 cup of milk
Mid-morning snack:
10:30am - approximately 1 cup of strawberries with banana yogurt for dipping
Lunch:
12:30pm - 1 cup vegetable soup
3 onion flavored crackers
Afternoon snack:
3pm - fruit smoothie:
1/3 cup frozen blueberries
1/3 cup frozen raspberries
1/2 cup yogurt
1/2 cup milk
Supper:
5pm - slice of lean roast beef
1 cup of green beans
1/2 cup mashed potatoes
Evening snack:
7pm - I missed tonight's snack, as I was visiting with family and completely forgot.
Putting together a meal plan is harder than I thought. And that's just for one day! Hopefully I'll get to go grocery shopping this weekend and pick up more things that I'll be able to use to help eat healthier. Now, along with eating healthy, I need to incorporate regular exercise into my diet. My plan is to take the girls to the park this afternoon or evening, after my youngest has a nap. I'll get a walk, they'll get to play. Whatever exercise I do, will be added to each daily post.
One of my biggest downfalls is pop. Pepsi, coke, it doesn't matter. I need my caffeine. I don't drink coffee, and the coffee I do drink is the heavily sugared kind. So I need to get creative with the beverages. My goal will be to alternate ice cold water with hot tea, sweetened with a teaspoon of honey. I have a large variety of teas, so I shouldn't get bored with those.
If anyone out there is reading this, welcome to my journey. If I come across good, healthy recipes, I will post them. If anyone has suggestions or tips on anything I discuss, by all means, please share. Welcome to Mission: Slimpossible!
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