Weigh-In | 8.26.10

Today is my official Week 2 weigh-in!  I'm down 3 pounds!  If you're keeping score - that brings me to a total of 8 pounds! 

So, I have to admit.  I weigh myself CONSTANTLY.  Even when I'm not dieting (I hate that word).  I've heard you're really only supposed to do it once a week.  However, I pass by that scale and it makes me think, "Hmmm."  So I've been weighing myself at LEAST once a day!  Which means that yesterday I already knew how much weight I'd lost.  It was the same today.  RAWR!  Haha.  I was really hoping for another pound.....or two!  It's not a big deal - I'm happy with 3.  It's more than the "healthy recommendation."  This morning I was a little disappointed, though.  Oh well, moving on!  I know the things I've done wrong this week.

One thing I have trouble with is my evening meal.  I can do SO well all day!  I have my breakfasts and lunches all planned out.  I haven't been doing much extra snacking at work.  I pretty much stick to what I brought.  Dinner is harder.  I'm good at figuring out how many points are in what I cook, BUT, it's time consuming......and who wants to make the dinner process LONGER????  So, I've been kinda guessing a little.  No more!  My goal for the coming week is to either plan it in advance and try to figure it out, OR spend every little minute it takes to figure it out during the process.  It WILL be worth it.

I want to share a few sites that I like!  First off is the Hungry Girl website.  I LOVE her! :)  She takes restaurant foods that we love (and more) and puts her own healthy spin on them.  Click on her "Chew The Right Thing" tab and there is a whole archive of recipes!  It's great!  I have tried a few of her recipes - and they are very good!  She also has some books out, and is coming out with a TV show!  I have her book 200 Under 200.  And yes, that's 200 recipes under 200 calories!  I really need to crack that book and make some more of her recipes, since I'm in the game again....

Another site I've been using just about daily is The Daily Plate.  If I'm not sure of the nutrition info in a certain product, I just check on there!  They have restaurants listed and just about any food you buy at the store!  It's come in handy on those mornings I packed things for lunch and didn't have time to actually figure out it's points value.  Be careful, though.  Look first for the entries with the "verified" symbol.  If it's not there, check for multiple entries and compare.

Tomorrow my friend, Laci and I are going to get together and try to replicate a delicious wrap we've eaten at Salad Creations(Fajita Chicken Wrap).  Don't let those "healthy" sounding restaurants fool you!  Check the info!  I tried this wrap some time ago - and figured it was pretty low.  Uh....NO.  Even though it's a big one, it was around 16 points for that sucker!  NO thanks!  It's just grilled chicken, veggies, croutons, dressing and a tortilla!  So, we're only really going to tweak the wrap and the dressing.  That should take it down a LOT!  I'll post the outcome!

CONSTANT PEP-TALKS

So, now that I've embarked on this journey - I realize that I need constant pep-talks.  I'm constantly giving myself a pep-talk!  When I'm making food choices, when I need to exercise...all the time. 

I woke up at 6:30 on the dot this morning.  I immediately thought, "I feel really good!"  I slept SO well!  I know it's because I did Turbo Kick pretty close to bedtime last night.  So, I'm thinking, "I should really go out and run this morning."  I had just enough time.  I sat up on the edge of the bed and just sat there.  I knew I should go........but I was so torn between snuggling back underneath the covers with my hubby.  To sleep for a 1/2 hour.  I mean, was it really worth it??  I had to do the pep-talk.  After about 5 minutes, it worked.  I went out to do C25K.  It was challenging - since I started a new week today.  The running was upped on me today.  From 60 seconds at a time to 3 minutes.  That's a pretty good jump.  I mean, I've been conditioned to do over 3 miles before....but that was a while back!  It's rough starting over!  The cooler temperature totally helped me out this morning, though.  I REALLY need to start getting up and working out in the a.m.

So, it's confession time.  Some of you from Facebook know that I checked in at Little Mexico last night.  *sigh*  I didn't eat well.  Granted, Scott & I typically order fajitas and share them - and did so last night.  I guess it's not horrible if we're sharing.  However, the CHIPS get me every time!  I could probably LIVE on chips & salsa.  Of course, our waitress asks right out of the gate if we wanted cheese dip.  Dang it....OF COURSE I WANT CHEESE DIP!!!! Ha!  So, we got it, and it was so good!  I ate way too much of it.  I guess it's good to do that every once in a while, though.  As long as you're back in the game immediately!  I did work out last night - so I'm hoping it didn't completely sabotage me!

So, originally I had decided to weigh-in on Wednesdays, since that's the day I started.  Earlier this week I realized that I started Weight Watchers on a Thursday - so that should be my official weigh-in.  Tomorrow I will post the results.  Now I somehow need to get C25K on that schedule.  Then everything will be in sync.

It's A Learning Process...

So, this past Saturday, I was a workout FOOL!  I had made plans with my friend Anissa to run at 8 am, and I got up to do that...met her and we actually ended up walking.  We tried to run at the end, but my Couch25K app was goofing up.  So, we ran a little, but not much.  That was about an hour.  When I got home, I decided to finish up the C25K.  I did that, and thought I hadn't had enough, so I put in a Turbo Kick video and did that for an hour.  Crazy!  I really had to push myself through the Turbo Kick.  It was good to test my limits, though!  All in all, I worked out for nearly 3 hours!!!  Surprisingly enough, I actually felt like going to the pool afterward!  My sister-in-law and her kids took off and were at the pool for a few hours.  I swam a little...it was nice.  I hadn't been in the water ALLL summer!  It was great!  I think I'm going again this weekend!

Anywho - with all that extra activity, I earned lots of bonus food points.  In fact, I earned about 20!  I ate them all!!  Ridiculous!  My nephew kept talking about wanting to go to Coldstone...and even though I LOVE ice cream, I was like, "Oh man."  We did go - and I ended getting the "like it" size and ate it with out questioning too much.  When I got home later and figured out what I'd eaten.......I'd consumed 13 points with that little cup of ice cream.  I mean, hey....it was chocolate & peanut butter ice creams with Reese cups in it....and it was great.  Now, I'm not sure it was worth it.  I mean, on one hand, I'm thinking that I technically earned these points - and I'm allowed to eat them.  You don't HAVE to, though!  What if I hadn't?  How much MORE weight would I have lost???  *sigh*  Also - I totally could've ordered sorbet at Coldstone instead of ice cream.  How fun is that, though????  Blah.  Oh well, I had fun........and I'm moving on from it.  It's a learning process.........or re-learning for me....haha.

I do have that GREAT sore feeling though....I woke up yesterday and my hips hurt!  It wasn't a bad hurt, though...it was that good one....like, "I worked out hard..." results kind of pain.  I'm excited about pushing forward and accomplishing this goal!  :)  I think I may have more extreme exercise Saturdays!  I liked it! :)  I want to achieve it as fast as I can - but I also want to do it in a healthy way!  I'm already reaping the benefits.  I feel better, I've noticed that I'm walking faster, and I'm sleeping better!!!  Good stuff!  I can already see little teeny changes in my appearance.  That makes ya keep pressing on! 

Bring on the skinny girl! :)

The Zumba Verdict and more...

So, my friend, Amanda invited me to Zumba last night.  First off, Amanda is SO sweet.  She's one of those gals who ALWAYS makes you feel good about yourself!  I mean, she compliments me on the days that I'm like, "I sooooo don't deserve that!"  Haha.  So, Amanda is telling me that I'm going to LOOOOOVE Zumba.  Her friend told me the same thing.  What they're about to find out is......that I CAN'T DANCE.  HA!  See, I know Zumba is still pretty huge...and that LOTS of people LOVE it.....but, yeah....I knew it was gonna be awkward for me.

And it was.  Haha.  We secured our places in the back and we got started shortly after.  I quickly found myself VERY self-conscious.  That's just how I am.  I "like" to dance, but, I just don't like to dance in front of people.....and the moves were not super-simple to catch onto...at least for me.  So, yeah - again, couple that with the fact that I just feel like I look like a huge dork, and yeah...not FUN.  I mean, it wasn't HORRIBLE.  I just laughed at myself - which is the best approach, I believe.  I "tried."  Ha!  I HATED when we did moves that turned the class around and I ended up in front!  Sneaky little thing they do to the back dwellers...haha. 

So....I'm sure that after attending another class it would become easier....BUT, it's still just one of those things I don't know about.  I just didn't take to it like I did Turbo Kick.  Turbo Kick made me feel MUCH stronger...there was a little bit of dancing in it, but not enough that it made feel uncomfortable.  I think I got a much better workout with Turbo Kick.  I will probably go try Zumba again, but I doubt it's going to be a regular in my regimen.

After Zumba I decided I hadn't had enough.  I decided to go do a C25K run on the treadmill.  I normally HATE the treadmill, but, it was a change of scenery, so I actually enjoyed it.  So I got in a GREAT workout yesterday.  :)

I have a recipe for you!  :)  I mean, it's not SUPER low, but it was great for me last night!  It was a pretty good serving size and it was VERY filling.   I don't have a flashy name for it, but that's ok!  It's a dish that my mom used to make ALLLL the time when I still lived at home.  I got SOOOO burned out on it.  There came a time I probably said I would never eat it again.  Flash forward to me living on my own and having a couple of hungry people to feed.  FAST.  What did I reach for???

Spanish Rice w/Roast Beef
Servings:  4
Serving Size:  About 2 cups
WW Points Value:  9
* You could knock this down as low as 6 points if you split into 6 servings.  Maybe serve with a couple veggie sides?
** I will try to remember to post regular calories/fat/fiber content later, SORRY!

Ingredients:
1 box Rice-A-Roni (Spanish Rice style)
2 T butter or margarine (I used "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter")
1 can roast beef (drained & shredded)
1 can black beans (drained)
1 can Rotel (diced tomatoes w/green chilies)

Prepare rice according to package.  When it's time to add the tomatoes (I use less than the box directs), add all other ingredients and simmer 15 minutes.  Enjoy! 

Last night was the first time I used black beans in this dish.  After the first bite, my hubby and I agreed that it probably won't be made without them again!  They added a TON of fiber...which made us full faster.  Good stuff! :)  Even if you're not watching your weight, this is a great dish!  It's not "diet."  :)

Exercise In Unexpected Places...

So I got some exercise in last night!  I wasn't planning to, because I was joining "The Edge" at church on their "Road Rally."  It was kind of like the Amazing Race.  We had clues leading us to different places - which were mostly the homes of church members.  We ended up doing random challenges at every stop...from yard work, math problems, cleaning, getting down a little girl's "snap, boom, clap" chant to making soccer goals and more!  Along the way - I found myself running quite a bit!!!  Especially when one stop was in this awkward area and I knew we were gonna have to go out of our way to get to there.  We ended up parking and just flat out running to the shop when we hit a dead end in the alley!  It was then I thought, "Maximize this, girl."  So I ran as hard as I could...haha.  I remember saying to one of the girls - "Who needs Couch To 5K?"  Haha.  After all was said and done, my group came in 2nd place out of 4 groups.  My friend Ashley and I were on the same team again this year - so, we were pretty happy to improve this year.  We were DEAD LAST last year.  Haha.

It was good to see some of my Edge friends... I see them at church, but I haven't really attended the Edge this past year.  Good times! :)  It was just an added bonus to actually get in some exercise!  It doesn't always have to be "work!" 

Tonight I'm trying Zumba...we'll see what happens!  :)

Hey 5 Pounds....SEEEE YAAA!

Yep!  You read right! :)  I wasn't expecting that much......BUT, that's what the scale said!
Woo hoo! :)

Last night I finished week 1 of C25K.  I went out after I got back from home group.  Unless I'm crazy, that's the first time I've ever run at night.  It was so pretty out, the moon, clouds and stars were pretty awesome.  :)  I had a pretty good soundtrack as well.  Take It All, Glorious One, Madly, and How He Loves were in the mix and it was a great time to focus on the Lord.  :)  I'm not sure why - but when I'm running and listening to music, the lyrics are more powerful to me.....than they are when I'm just purely listening to music.  So.....with that said, I think I need to run MORE! :) Ha!

I did feel MUCH stronger last night....I ran faster, and my breathing is better.  I SO LOVE how I feel when I work out....but why is is such a struggle to get there sometimes?  Of course, I'm looking forward to a couple of workouts with friends.  That ALWAYS makes it easier.  I love my friends....so working out with one makes exercise more appealing! :)  Also - If I know someone else is counting on me to be there to work out, I'm there!  :)  So, tomorrow I'm going to my first Zumba class with my friend, Amanda.  I'm SOOOOOO not a dancer, so I'm a little skeptical.  I mean, I "like" to dance....just not in front of people so much...haha.  Not my thing.  :)  We'll see.

Brace Yourselves...

I'm eating carrots.  Ugh.  I mean, they're not TERRIBLE....they're just not all that great, either!  I don't particularly care for them raw....but, cooked?  Ugh.  Even worse!

I finally went to the store last night and stocked up on lots of healthy foods.  I bought some baby carrots because I know I need to eat more fruits and veggies.  Blah.  I need more variety, so I sit here and dunk them in ranch dressing, and kinda wriggle up my nose and eat them.  :::crunch....crunch:::  Maybe if I eat them enough, I'll learn to like them?  Probably not. ;)

So I didn't get to work out yesterday.  I sooo meant to get up early and do it yesterday, but the snooze button won that battle.  We went to a friend's house for dinner, and didn't get home until late, so, it just didn't work out.  You'll have that.  Tonight, it's on!  I WILL be finishing Week 1 of C25K! :)

Oh - and I have a Saturday exercise date!  My friend Anissa and I are going for a run!  :)

So Far, So Good...

So, it hasn't been quite a week since I started this journey, but, so far, so good. 

I don't have a LOT to report, but, I'm working on it.  It hasn't been quite a week, but, I've been working pretty hard.  I still don't have a great handle on the eating, but, it's coming along.  I have decided to follow the Weight Watchers plan.  It just seems like a good fit.  I've had this app on my phone for a long time called iWatchr, and it's GREAT.  I can log everything I eat, track all my guidelines, and it keeps track of how many points I have left for me.  One of my favorite features is that it saves the foods I eat and if I eat them again, I can just choose them from a list and log them!  Easy peasy!

I have exercised every day but Friday so far.  Well, and so far, today.  I have finished 2 of the 3 days in week 1 of Couch To 5K.  I'm hoping to complete Day 3 today.  If not, I'll do something....I have 1 more day left in my 1st week.  Saturday was fun - I had my niece over for the weekend.  I took her to see "Annie," on Friday.  We got up kind of early on Saturday.  I actually convinced her to try working out with me instead of watching Dora The Explorer. I put in a Turbo Kick DVD and she just about made it through the warm-up.  Haha.  I finished the hour long workout.  She mentioned that she wished I had an easier workout, so, I popped one in.  We just did certain segments of it - since you could choose which part of the body you wanted to work.  She did some of it...but, I was just surprised that I could pry a 6-year-old away from Dora!  Haha.  I think I may have to look for some kind of children's workout video for her!  I even convinced her to get up and go for 1/2 hour walk with me on Sunday morning before church!  I wanted to run, but I didn't think that would work with her.  So, we just took a nice walk and chatted.  She's so cute! :)

So, I am going to flat-out confess, I ate pizza AND Chinese over the weekend.  I probably ate too much of both....well, I know I did.  However, I am making positive changes.  I'm trying to eat more fruits & veggies.  The weekends have always been hard for me.  Always.  I do so much better through the week when I'm working.  I need to seriously go to the store and stock up on healthy foods!  I also need to start planning to get out of the house more.  Lately I've been in  "stay home and do nothing" mode on the weekends.  I need to break that.  Maybe I'll plan a hike next weekend....something.  We'll see. :)

I'll try to post on Wednesday what I lost.  I don't think it's going to be massive...but, hopefully I'll see a few pounds gone!

-Jo

Join Me...

So ok, I have a skinny girl living inside me.  I promise I'm not schizophrenic.
You see, this skinny girl has been with me pretty much all my life.  She's been trapped inside this fat girl's body.  She's dying to come out.  Seriously.  I think if I don't let her come out now - she's going to kill me.  Either that or obesity will.  So, if I decide to stay the way I am, either way, I'm gonna die.

I have been overweight since about age 7.  I think I started to eat my feelings around that age.  My parents went through a pretty bad divorce, and my mom, my sister and I moved from North Carolina back to WV to live with my grandparents.  Ya know, I LOVE my Mamaw's cooking, but let's just say it's "down home."  It's great!  In no way, shape, or form do I really actually blame my weight problems on either of these factors.  Let's just say they didn't help any, ok?

I could rattle on and tell you story after story of how my weight has affected my life.  I could go on and on and tell you how much better my life would be if I had been thin.  Eh.  Honestly, I love my life.  Aside from weight, are there things I'd like to change?  Sure!  However, I serve an amazing God, I have an awesome husband, and wonderful family & friends.  I have a great life.  Weight has NOT affected these good things in my life!

Ok, I'm not going to lie, this isn't an incredibly well thought out blog.  It may NEVER be.  It is, however, going to document the skinny girl's journey to freedom.  Let me tell you a little bit about the skinny girl.  We're not well acquainted, but, I do know the girl has STYLE!  All my life, I have in some way wanted to be "fashionable."  Even though I LOVE me some Lane Bryant, sometimes it just doesn't hit the spot.  I would LOVE to be able to go into a store and pick out just about anything (within reason haha) and know that it's going to look good!  Again, I try to be fashionable now....and I feel like sometimes I succeed.  Other times I get frustrated and don't really care.  I've always tried to play up my good attributes.  I've always kept good care of my hair.  I just about always accessorize in some way.  I LOVE accessories!  Not this this blog is AT ALL about this - but, I'm in the beginning stages of starting a store on Etsy selling handmade accessories.  And more.  Maybe I'll tell you more about that at some point.

That was a long paragraph - and I don't really care to change it.  Instead of eating my feelings right now - I'm writing them! 

So, this is actually day 2 of skinny girl's journey to freedom.  I don't have EVERYTHING planned out yet.  I've been kind of gearing up to do this for a while.  On Sunday at church, our youth intern's message talked about the impossible things in our lives - and how they are ALL possible with God.  He asked us to write something "impossible" in our lives on an index card.  At the end of the message, he asked us to come and shred that index card.  Symbolizing the fact that it's NOT impossible.  Totally true.  I actually didn't go up and shred anything.....I wrote down my weight problem, but, didn't shred it because at the time, I thought, "Eh...I KNOW that this is NOT impossible for me (with God)."  I didn't think there was a need to symbolize it, because I knew.  Maybe I should have.  It's still in my purse.  I'll shred it tomorrow at work...haha.

The reason I know it's not impossible?  I've lost SO MANY pounds over the years.  In the last 5 years I've had 2 successful weight-loss attempts using the Weight Watchers plan.  It's a really good plan.  Between the attempts, I lost a total of 80 pounds.  That sounds massive.  It was.  Except that I've gained it all back.  My latest attempt was last summer.  I had my wedding coming up, and I wanted to look my best.  I lost 30 pounds.  I ran and I took my now sister-in-law's Turbo Kick class.  I ate right.  I was so on-track and was ready to keep going after the wedding.  Somehow, I lost sight of that.  Maybe it was the endless food on the honeymoon?  All-inclusive resorts are amazing.......but, man...watch out!  There's food EVERYWHERE!  Who knows?  That may have just set me off.....and I QUICKLY fell back into bad habits.  I have explored the possibility of my birth control causing *some* of it, and I have recently switched after my doc said that it was highly probable.  I've never gained 30 pounds in one year.....so it was a concern.  I've always been a gradual gainer, or a maintainer.

So, yesterday was really day one.  I decided to go out and walk on my lunch.  I went out in the 90+ degree heat and I walked for 50 minutes.  I went home...and maybe this was a little extreme, but I went out for day one of the Couch To 5K program.  For anyone interested - go to C25K.com  If you have an iPhone, there's a great app under that name.  Day 2 (today), not as extreme, but, I fired up a Turbo Kick DVD.  I used to be able to do that stuff pretty well, but man....I am OUT OF SHAPE!  I couldn't believe it....I had to stop and rest.  It kind of made me mad!

So, again I say - I don't have a plan, but I'm formulating it.  I may do the Weight Watchers plan on my own.  I don't dig the meetings so much.  Most I've gone to are boring and I don't find myself getting much out of them.  Maybe it's the leaders?  I don't know.  As of now, I'm really just trying to be more conscious of what I'm putting in my mouth and exercising.  After all, food moderation and exercise are key.  I don't care what plan you're on.  It all comes back to that.

Well, I know this has been a very rambly post, but stay tuned and as the pounds come off!   I'm not sure what will actually happen here, but I'm anxious to start.  I'll share some great recipes that I come across or "invent."  I'll share how I'm working out.  New foods I try.  I'll share my success and God forbid, failures. 

Thanks for reading and hopefully joining me.  I can't wait to introduce you to the skinny girl!