Saturday, July 31, 2010

Staying the course



I stayed the same this week 198 pounds. Honestly it is not surprising to me. I tend to stay the same weight for several weeks than go down a few pounds. I didn’t hit my goal of trying to get to 197 for this month. I have been reviewing my weight loss goals at the beginning of every other month to make sure I am on track. If I am within a 3-4lbs I will keep it the same-if not I adjust it. The weight directions is atleast going in the right direction.
It was last August that I got 226 on the scale and boy that is a scary sight. Someone had to remind me of it this past week when they posted some pictures on Facebook in the not so flattering shot of me. Let’s just say I am rather large chested and having size 44DDD do not do me any justice on my 5’2 inch frame. It is a good motivation picture not to go backwards and keep on trucking even when weight loss isn’t a straight journey.
I did pasta on Wednesday night this week and it didn’t trigger any cravings or set me off track which was wonderful. I also had a banana one day as well. I am going to go slow as I do this transition into phase 2-a phase 1.5 as some call it.

Here is the plan for the week
Drink 80-100 oz of water a day
Get in 5 days of exercise of atleast 30 minutes
Incorporate pasta one day this week
Have fruit atleast twice this week
Continue to Meal plan and keep the treats low in the house

Friday, July 30, 2010

Climb every mountain Thursday

I should like mountain climbers but I really don’t. Jillian Michaels likes them and says they are great for your arms and core. You get down into a plank or pushup position and run. I can only do about 20 at a time before I feel like I am going to die. She does a lot more in her workouts 3 sets of 60 yikes in her last chance workout. As she says getting skinny isn’t free so I need to continue working on them. I did do Last chance workout again yesterday on my big screen tv for the first time in months. It was great and I sweated my ass off.

Sometimes I like this journey is never going to end. I also did some tracking of my exercise in Jan and Feb I had over 700 minutes of exercising. March was a crazy month with my basement flooding and threw me off track. I need to get back to 700 minutes a month atleast. So I need to try to get to 40 minutes a day instead of the 25-30 I have been doing. I am going to try for the month of August to do it!! I have a week off in August and will be going away so I can probably get some good long walks in.

Food on Thursday was ok-I got really hungry mid afternoon we were having an all company meeting and they had some boring guest speakers so I ate 2 breakfast sausages after having a huge salad with ground turkey. Dinner was a nice mixture that we tried skinless chicken thighs with BBQ sauce mixed in with broccoli, mushroom and onions. Very good and I will try it again I have enough leftovers for dinner tomorrow night.

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Wednesday a little bit of pasta

As I continue to phase 2 this week on the South Beach diet I added in some pasta last night for dinner. I used the whole wheat pasta from Stop and shop. I had it with some tomatoes, tuna and onions. I also add in some cheddar cheese on top. It was like a tuna melt-very good food. I am going to try to keep pasta at only a couple of times a month thing. Luckily the pasta nor the banana yesterday triggered any cravings which I was really nervous about.

I didn’t get a chance to exercise yesterday as I was expecting new furniture and I really didn’t want to be in the middle of a workout when they came on by.

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Tuesday breakthroughs

I ate a banana for the first time in about 10 weeks and it was so good! The best part was it didn’t trigger any cravings. Food was good as well! Hard boiled eggs, chicken over salad for lunch and then more chicken plus leftover spinach casserole for dinner.

No snacking and peanut butter called me but I didn't answer as a I was watching Tony Robbins new show called Breakthroughs. It was a nice positive motivational TV show to watch with the boys.

Work is so busy and crazy lately plus I needed to sneak out to take one of the boys to the doctors for his annual wellness exam. My work out time was interrupted by my mom calling 5 minutes into my workout and I couldn’t get back into the groove. My work day ended up longer than I liked and the boys didn’t want to go swimming at 8pm.

I got my hotel confirmation for my annual trip to Vegas in the end of September . I need to step it up a notch as not many of my co-workers see except once or twice a year. I don't want to be known as the fat girl from the home office plus clients and everyone seems skinny in Vegas.

Tuesday, July 27, 2010

Biggest Loser Bob answers

I am a huge Biggest loser fan and love Bob Harper style to training and coaching everyone! He posted this on his facebook page-lots of folks have questions and Bob answers them.

So-So weekend but a good Monday

Weekend reflections
I was on such a high on Saturday for getting under 200lbs that I went in with a great action plan for dealing with my mother in laws birthday. I knew pizza was going to be on the menu so that plan was to scrape off the topping and put in on a salad. I brought some salad for the family however the pizza we got from Pizza hut and it was very thin crust. So the toppings don’t really come off. I have 3 slices of pepperoni pizza and the salad. Not ideal but better than eating thick crust pizza. I skipped the cake and simply had a cup of tea inside. Yeah me!!

My Saturday exercise was Turbo Sculpt from Beachbody. Oh my the number of lunges and squats on this is insane. A good insane I felt it the next day when I was walking up and down the stairs. Sunday exercise was an oldie but goodie from my DVD collection. I did Express Cardio from the Firm-this is a good 30 minute step aerobics program. She does have you doing high step at 14 inches but this nearly 200lb body and creaky knees don’t mix too well.

I did well with food all day until hubby left a bag of Doritos out and boy they called my name. I haven’t had any chips at all. You see chips are my weakness. I would eat a whole large bag of chips especially salt and vinegar flavor and down it with a ton of milk. It was totally mindless eating and I hated the feeling.

So Monday I got on my big girl pants and restarted over. Back to normal clean eating and I had a fantastic day. I had my hard boiled eggs, grilled chicken salad, chicken and spinach casserole plus some carrots. I wasn’t hungry afterwards. Evening time I spent with my 3 boys in the pool doing my pool walking and lots of jumping playing keep away for over an hour. A perfect way to end the day.

Monday, July 26, 2010

South Beach Diet menu planning week of July 26th

Here is the menu plan for the upcoming week as I am heading into Phase 2 on the South Beach diet
Monday Grilled chicken and Spinach casserole

Tuesday Tuna Tomato skillet with whole wheat pasta

Wednesday Chili

Thursday Chicken and broccoli stir fry

Fri Tilapia and a veggies on the side

Saturday Pizza bowl pizza bowl. I get a decent size soup bowl. Spray the bottom with oil, put a bit of mozzarella cheese, pick a couple of pepperonis from their pizzas, do some red onion, with more tomatoes and sauce

Sun Burgers (no bun for me) roasted green beans and zucchini fries

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Onderland is called



I am calling onderland this week! I got on the scale this morning and it actually said 198lbs. I haven’t been under 200lbs in 3 years. And the last couple of times was only a month or two before I spiraled out of control. In 2005 I got down to the high 170s doing South beach diet and the weight loss was much faster then. I had a life hiccup when my Dad got into a bad construction accident and the priority wasn’t me but him. The second time was in 2007 I was actually under 200lbs for almost 6 months when I was doing LA weightloss. I got there at the end of January and bounced around 15lbs to 185lbs for several months. By June when the boys got out of school and we were going to Disney I remember being 205lb. I had joined LA weightloss because I wanted not to the big fat maid of honor at my size 4 runner sister wedding . While the plan was expensive , it stopped working well for me once I lost 20lbs .

What helped this week

  • Blogging keeping myside accountable
  • Getting in 4 days of exercise this week for atleast 25 minutes each day
  • Miminal peanut butter!

I last time was I under 200lbs for a long long time- and believe I want to keep seeing onderland!!

So now that I am under 200lb!

  • I get to get my reward I am getting a new kickboxing DVD
  • My hubby and I had to challenge whoever got under 200lb first would get 7 30 minute massages over the next month. I won I won I won!!
  • Start adding back in fruits and whole grains! I am going to start transitioning to South Beach diet phase 2
  • Continue to Meal plan and keep the treats low in the house
  • Continue to shoot for 4-5 days of exercise a week

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Wednesday Carrot Cryin

I got upset about carrots yesterday.


I don’t know if I am overly stressed but my oldest son probably ate half a bag of carrots yesterday. While I love him to eat healthy-don’t overeat too much of my staples.


After talking about Consistency on Tuesday and having a plan-yesterday was totally thrown out of wack. My son’s bus was late and my boss called mandatory meeting at 9:15 to review a couple of projects I am working on. No time to exercise in between. So on to a plan B do a short workout after the mandatory meeting.


I did the Biggest Loser Cardio Max workout with Bob Harper-a quick 20 minute workout that is on exercise tv. It is usually not that hard but yesterday between the new work projects and working out later than normal I had a lot on my mind.


Food was good! Actually perfect no “treats” of peanut butter or cheese sticks. I am really hoping I see under 200 on the scale this week.

Breakfast Leftover Spinach Casserole
Lunch Ground turkey, salad and black beans mix
Dinner Crackslaw I had no soy sauce in the house so I made it with bbq sauce. It was really good and I will probably make it again with this
Snack Wanted some carrots being upset about the missing carrots. Decided I wasn’t really too hungry

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Tuesdays with Jillians

I am a huge Jillian Michaels fan. I like doing some of her workouts on exercise tv on demand.. I actually own one Last Chance workout with a cast a biggest loser. So yesterday was Last chance workout which is similar to the 30 day Shred workouts level one.

I needed some extra motivation so I turned to Hulu and watched an episode of Losing it with Jillian while I was working. It was the one with the single mom whose husband had died. Great episode and totally motivated to get my A game on for the day.

I was able to get some pool time last night with the boys-I did 30 minutes of pool walking and running while holding a 70 and 50lb boy at times.

The day ended with watching Jillian's show with a family whose Dad was really in denial and a 10 year old son with diabetes. The son really broke my heart luckily he ended up losing 25lbs. I hope that he will continue to be able to get the support and continue with the karate.

Food
Breakfast hard boil eggs
Lunch Ground turkey over a salad with black bean mix on the side
Snack Carrots
Dinner Baked chicken and spinach cottage cheese casserole

I did have 2 scoops of peanut butter during the day-eek peanute butter

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Consistency Consistency Consistency

What is your secret for staying consistent? Do I have a secret.... maybe maybe not

I think I am a naturally consistent type person - consistently on track or consistently off track, one or the other. That being said it it has gotten me over 200lbs.

1. Make it easy –Daily tracking of my food , plus I realize I can only track so much before I get overloaded and give up on it . I don’t bother with saying keeping a real detail track of my food. It is a good day or poor day.

2. Make it enjoyable - I try to make sure that the food I have in the house is healthy and delicious. If I'm enjoying the way I'm eating, there is no need to stray off the path. I also try to make sure to have some on-track "treats" available like the nuts, natural peanut butter and cheese sticks. The danger with these is having them too frequently.

3. Have a plan I make a menu plan each week even before I was in serious weight loss mode. I make sure I have plenty of the right meats-I make sure I have chicken breast, ground turkey in my freezer plus some veggie burgers. I stock up on frozen veggies as well for side dishes and even snacks.

I try to get my exercise right after the boys are on the school bus. I still have one son that is getting picked up Mon-Thurs for special needs school during the summer so this stil works and then I get my into my home office for work. If I don't get it done first thing in the morning it doesn't get done. I shoot for 5 days of exercise a day.

Rainy days and Mondays always get me down

I didn’t get a chance to exercise in the morning because the we getting some new carpet in the house so I was planning to exercise in the pool later. Thunderstorms all afternoon and into the evening got in my way. If I don’t exercise in the morning it doesn’t get done. Consider it a rest day.

Food was good I did sneak some French fries that I had made for the kids at dinner time. I have been making my black beans, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella ,red onion and the occasional avocado.

Monday, July 19, 2010

South Beach Diet menu planning week of July 19th

Menu Plan Monday
Here is the menu plan for the upcoming week and a couple of recipes


Monday South beach diet approved kielbasa , black bean ,tomato,onion salad


Tuesday Grilled chicken and Spinach,cottage cheese baked
16 oz cottage cheese1 eggs, beaten1 pkg. frozen chopped spinachDash of garlic salt
¼ cup of mozerella cheese
Mix together cottage cheese, eggs and flour. Add mozzarella cheese. Allow spinach to thaw until it can be broken apart in chunks. Add frozen chunks to mixture. Bake uncovered for 1 hour in a 350 degree oven.

Wednesday Crack slaw
1 lb ground turkey or beef 2 cloves garlic, minced3 green onions, sliced or yellow or red onions 1 lb broccoli slaw or regular coleslaw 1 TBSP lite soy sauceCrushed red pepper flakes, to taste (optional) mushrooms (optional) Add the meat, with the onions and mushrooms until brown Add the cole slaw mixture Add the soy sauce
I have also made this with just frozen broccoli and still very good

Thursday Pizza burgers
Throw tomato sauce, mozerella cheese, onion, mushrooms on top of a turkey burger and baked

Friday Clean out the fridge night leftover for me and probably sandwiches for the kids/hubby


Saturday Pizza bowl pizza bowl. I get a decent size soup bowl. Spray the bottom with oil, put a bit of mozerella cheese, pick a couple of pepperonis from their pizzas, do some red onion, lots of tomatos and a bit of sauce and some mozerella cheese on top


Sunday Steak, fried egg and green beans

Weekend check-in

Saturday we headed out to cub scout camp-out as a family. One of my sons doesn’t’ do well in sleeping in new places so the plan was to go home with him before lights out.
Each year we get McDonalds for the lunch time as everyone is getting settled in. I got their Chicken ranch salad. I haven’t had a McDonalds salad in a while and I don’t think I will get a salad going forward. The lettuce leaves were wilted and the grilled chicken was very dry. Yucky  I did put the dressing on the side because it is very high in calories. Next time I will bring my own salad or go the local pizza place and get a large salad which I absolutely love for a treat.
The day was very active-we did some swimming and hiking. Let say looking for a bunch of gold painted rocks is a hard workout in 90 degree heat.

Dinner was not pretty easy-I got 2 hamburgers with no bun. There were no veggies so it was a completely protein meal. I had brought some nuts and a cheese stick.


Sunday morning it was just one of the boys and me. I love one on one time with my boys. With 3 kids it is a little tough. I did a workout that I haven’t done in a while from Beachbody Turbo Sculpt. I think I will try to get it done once a week. I did it with 5lb weights and need to breakout my 8lb weights. I also got in 30 minutes of pool running as well.

Saturday, July 17, 2010

Dreams of onderland crushed

I am a slow loser and am so wanting and waiting to get into Onderland but alas it didn't happen again this week. I actually gained one stinky pound from 201 to 202 this week. Being the slow loser that I am it really doesn't suprise me that I go up and down in weight. One step forward, two steps back.

I have two mini rewards for getting to under 200-get a new kickboxing DVD Cathe Kickmax and also if I hit 200lbs before my hubby I got 7 30 minutes massages over the next month. He is close as well but is down over 40lbs since January.

What was it-was the getting into the peanut butter this week and eat those two hot dogs calling my name plus maybe some other bites licks and tastes.


Well I need to get myself back up and ready to kick some ass this upcoming week.

Drink 100 oz of water each day (allowing for 1 cup of coffee to count)
Eat 3 vegetables each day
Exercise 20 minutes each day
No peanut butter allowed!

Friday, July 16, 2010

7 tips for weight loss from Sparkpeople

Sparkpeople.com is one of my favorite websites to get some motivation a litte ass kicking some times. I came across a great article today. called 7 Strategies for Weight Loss Success. http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/...ow.asp?show=14

They are:

1. Always See Your Goals
Goals need attention. They need to be seen, heard and thought of often. So surround yourself with as many reminders as possible: on the refrigerator, computer, bathroom mirror and calendar.

I am bit a late with getting fit and fab by 40 but I want to be 147lbs by June 2010. I haven't been under 150 in atleast 10-12 years. another reason I started this blog was to remind myself daily.


2. Start Small
Quite possibly the biggest mistake people make is pushing the accelerator too soon. You can’t lose 20 pounds in one week. But you can lose one. Just as a plant has to start as a tiny seedling, you have to start with small steps and expect small results, which add up to bigger results over time.

I am the queen of slow losers so I am happy with 4-5lbs a month as long as it going down down down

3. Come Out of Seclusion
Have you ever achieved anything of real value all by yourself, without the support of anyone else? Probably not. Most people receive help, advice and ideas from others. Support, a sense of shared experience, encouragement, advice, and well-timed pep talks are all invaluable as you set off on your healthy lifestyle adventure, so get others to join in and support you in reaching your goals! (You've got this one down already because you are here! )


Yes sparkpeople and 3 fat chicks plus low carb friends are all places I hang out

4. Focus on Everyday Habits
The building blocks of a healthy lifestyle are forged in the smallest of actions you take every day and every week. Healthy choices can become as natural as brushing your teeth or locking the front door. Build your habits, one action at a time.

Takes 21 days to great a new habit

5. Never Stop Learning
A healthy lifestyle is a process—more of a journey than a destination. You can always learn more about nutrition, fitness, and even yourself that can help you be just a little bit better tomorrow.

6. Have Fun!
Who says getting healthy has to be a chore? Think of it as an exciting adventure of self-discovery that will help you build a more meaningful life. Enjoy the ride and find ways to make it fun, whether you join a sports league, subscribe to a fun fitness magazine, or buy yourself some new workout clothes. Make the best of it!

I actually like to workout and have fun with it. New clothes always good!!

7. Put it on Paper
Whether setting your first goals, tracking daily progress, or sharing your deepest thoughts in a journal, writing helps to crystallize your ideas, expose your fears, and paint a picture of real life. As a starting point, write down your goals, big and small, and the steps you'll take to make them reality

Yes that is another reason to start a blog

Thursday review

I woke up with a really bad sore throat so I really didn't have the desire to do any exercise. I have had a sore throat on and off the past few weeks.

Any ways it was an ok food day. Hubby had made the kids hot dogs the night before and there were two left over in crescent rolls. They called my name and won-argh this is the first time I had any bread product in over 2 months.

I pretty frustrated at myself for doing this. I hope it doesn't cause any cravings,

I had breakfast hard boiled eggs and lunch was some lean ground beef over a large salad and carrot sticks. Dinner was lean ground beef, broccoli, mushrooms and onions.

Thursday, July 15, 2010

Wednesday Wednesday

Wednesday was a good day. Food was good


Breakfast 2 hard boiled eggs, v8
Lunch leftover spinach cottage cheese casserole, ground turkey, and mozzarella cheese. black beans and tomatoes
Snack Cucumbers with caser dressing
Dinner made by my son! Pinto beans, grilled chicken and tomatoes and some cheese


Exercise was Chalene Johnson Turbo Jam from Beachbody. I did 25 minutes of Cardio Party one. One of my favorite workouts good music some decent kickboxing moves plus dancing

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

chewing my arm off Tuesday review

All day on Tuesday I wanted to chew off my arm because I am expecting my monthly friend any day now.


Breakfast 2 hard boiled eggs, v8

Lunch

Snack Cucumbers and carrots

Dinner Egg, turkey sausage and broccoli quiche

Then some peanut butter, an extra sausage and some too much cheese. I really get mad at myself when I do this.

I did Jillian Michaels Last chance workout the cardio portion. This is one of my favorite exercise videos.

Turnng 40 in 3 months

I have been on a misson since my last birthday to get fit and fab for my 40th birthday in October, I think I have been on every diet known to man kind since I was in my late teens and early 20s and dieted myself up from 130 to 226 over the last 20 years.

Last August with a trip pending to Las vegas for a convention I hit the scale at 226. I cried and cried-how did I let myself get this way. Being 5'2 inches tall that means I have over a 42 inch waist and I can't even tell you about my bubbies.

I went to really just making sure I was eating healthy and got down about 8 lbs in 3 weeks and those 8lbs were pretty much off until the holidays. I was doing a Sunday and Monday 2 day fast from when I did LA weight loss. I wasn't too bad but not too good either. I have a binge eating problem especially with chips and the salty food.

The New Year came and I was at 220-I had been reading the Alternate-Day Diet also known as Dr Johnson Upday down down diet. Basically you alternate 500 calorie days with higher 1800 days to make your metabolism rev up. I did that through April and had some success. I did the 500 calories a day on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays. The other days I ate what I needed to eat. I got down as a low as 206 in the 2nd week of March but but May I was back up to 214 again.

So after hitting the scale back at 214 on the 2nd Friday morning I decided to hit South Beach diet again I never to get rid of the bad carbs from my diet and focus on good carbs. I had a business trip to San Diego for conference on the folllowing Tuesday so I knew I wouldn't be the best either. My offical first day of South Diet phase one diet was on Fri May 14th. I am down to 201. I have lost 25 lbs since I started last August.

I am still doing South Diet and am my cravings have gone away. I have been on 2 business trips since May and I stayed on plan. I had a family weekend on the July 4th weekend which is normally called food camp.