The Friday Report

I know it's Sunday but hey, I'm a slacker.  I admit it.

Anyway.  I started out working my butt off with @Fit__Chick.  I don't remember the last time I sweat so much.  What made it even better is my friend Kecia decided to join me in the torture.  I didn't have to suffer alone. 

I followed Sunday's workout with water aerobics on Monday.  Who knew you could sweat in the pool?  The instructor was awesome and took the time to work with me one on one throughout the workout.  I'll definitely be making this part of my weekly routine.

The first week of this journey, I didn't work out.  The second week, I did Fit Chicks.  The third week, Fit Chicks and water aerobics.  Are we seeing a pattern here?  This week I plan to work on my goal of doing some type of physical activity at least three times a week.  Once I've established and maintained that routine for a while, we'll see about working in a few more days a week.

My nutrition plan of 1600 calories a day seems to be working for me.  I think my body is still getting used to existing on fewer calories so it seems like I'm constantly hungry.  But, I've armed myself with healthy snacks and lots of water to be able to make it through my day.  I'm also enjoying playing with my food; finding recipes that let me have all of my favorite foods and stay within my calorie goals is so much fun.

As a step to keep me from constantly weighing myself, I've left my scale at the office and the only time it comes out from under my desk is Friday morning for my weekly weigh in.  Well this Friday, my scale was very good to me.  I lost 8.4 lbs this week.  That brings my weight loss since the first of the month to 14.2 lbs and my total weight loss since the end of June to 19.8 lbs.  That's almost 20 lbs people.  Woohoo!!!!!  I can't wait till next week's weigh in when I'll check my measurements for the first time.  

The Silliest Thing

This is probably the silliest thing in the world to write about but this morning it made me happy so I decided to share. 

Let me start by saying, I hate belts.  Don’t know why, I just do.  I do understand that they are a necessity for some, like people with smaller hips and behind than me or those foolish boys that sag their pants down to their knees or those that feel that a belt completes a neat and pulled together outfit.  As for me, I hardly ever, let me take that back, NEVER wear anything tucked in so I don’t see the need, nobody sees my waist.

If you know me, you know I’m all about finding a bargain.  A few months ago, I got an awesome deal on some pants for work that I just couldn’t pass up.  The only catch, they were a size too big.  I figured, they’re cotton they’ll shrink.  But alas, so far they haven’t and I’ve actually had to resort to belt wearing to keep my pants up. 

When I was shopping for a belt, I refused to pay a lot of money for something I was sure was going to see very little use so off to Walmart I went.  I ended up in the men’s department and found a reversible belt that I’d be able to wear with whatever colors pants.  SCORE!!!  It just barely fit (i.e. the first hole) but it fit and it was a good price so I went with it.

Fast forward a few months to this morning.  Again, I know it’s silly to get excited about this but hey, I gotta find my joy somewhere.  When I got dressed this morning and put on a pair of my still not shrunk pants, I was able to fasten my belt on the fourth hole.  Woohoo!!!!  Something I’m doing is working because I’m definitely losing inches around my waist. 

Ok, so I’ve shared, now you can laugh at my silliness.  J

On My Plate - My Favorite Things Pt. 1

Since I’ve started with my healthier eating habits, I’ve found a few products that will forever more be mainstays in my kitchen.  I’d like to share some of my favorite things and I’ll start with Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Breeze.

For a while now, I’ve been drinking soy milk because I’m lactose intolerant and dairy isn’t always my friend.  Recently, I tried this almond milk.  OMG.  I will never go back to plain old soy.  And the bonus??? A whole 8 oz glass is only 40 calories.  It can be found in the diary case with the regular milk. 

My new favorite recipe using Almond Breeze is this scrumptious french toast.

¼ cup original egg beaters

2 tbs unsweetened vanilla almond breeze

½ tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla

1 packet splenda

Pinch of salt

3 slices light bread (I use Sara Lee 45 calories and delightful)

1. In a medium mixing bowl, thoroughly mix the first six ingredients.

2. Spray a frying pan with non-stick cooking spray. Pre-heat pan to medium.

3. Pour egg mixture into a plate and soak each side of bread for about 15 seconds (any longer and your bread will become mushy!)

4. Cook each side of the bread for two minutes on each side, or until browned.

Served with a few of my other favorite things, Smucker’s Sugar Free Breakfast Syrup and Jones Dairy Farm All Natural Turkey Sausage Links, this awesome breakfast is only 280 calories.

The Friday Report

I’ve been looking forward to this week’s weigh in for a few days because I’ve noticed that my face looks thinner and my clothes are fitting a bit looser around the middle.  I was concerned that I’ve been constantly hungry this week and it seemed that I ate a lot more than I did last week but I always met my calorie goal for the day, so no worries, right?? 

Imagine my disappointment when I stepped on the scale this morning and saw that I actually gained weight.  UGH!!!!!  I weighed in at 378.6, up 0.6 lbs.  I can’t let this derail me.  I’m going to keep going with my nutrition but make an effort to eat more “nutrient dense” (thanks Shelly) foods so that I’m not hungry and snacking all the time.  I’m also going to step it up with the exercise.  Last Sunday, I worked out with my friend @Fit__Chick and I’ll work out with her again this Sunday but I have to make an effort to exercise more.

The Friday Report

I started out saying I wouldn’t weigh myself constantly.  That once a month I’d weigh in and take measurements.  Yeah, well…..that ain’t happening.  I’m too impatient to wait a whole month to see my improvements (or failings).  So I’ve decided to stick with the once monthly measurements but every Friday I’ll weigh myself.  Starting today.

Today is a REALLY good day.  When I did the calculations to come up with how many calories I could have per day, I figured that cutting 1500 calories per day would mean an average loss of 3 lbs per week.  Except for one day this week (I misread the nutritional info for a restaurant L), I was actually between 200 – 400 calories under my 1600 calorie goal.  I guess that works for me because not only did I lose the anticipated and hoped for 3 lbs, I lost almost 3.5 more.  That’s right.  In eight days, I lost 6.4 lbs.  That also means that since my annual exam on June 21st, when I hit my all-time highest weight of 390 lbs, I’ve lost a total of 12 lbs.

Can you imagine my happy dance after I stepped off the scale? 

Well, now I know I can do this and I’m nothing but encouraged!!!!