Weigh in

Yesterday was another weigh in. I didn't do great, just 1/2 pound, but it was a loss! At this point, as long as I don't gain, I will be happy. I am actually surprised that I lost weight. We went out to eat twice on Saturday, and had a party on Friday at a friend's house!

So today, I decided I needed to have pizza for lunch. I need to work in the foods I really love (like pizza) a little better. I think that is part of my problem right now. I feel like I am eating the same crappy low cal foods all the time. The whole point of weight watchers is being able to eat foods you enjoy! And I actually did good today. I had pizza (dipped in ranch), chocolate milk, and a cookie for lunch and still stayed within my points for the day! So it is possible to eat the foods I like and still be "good." Granted, I had to keep myself moving the rest of the day so I didn't think about being hungry (and having fresh tomatoes from the garden that are zero points didn't hurt either).

I did something today that I haven't done in FOREVER!! I tucked in my shirt. I have ALWAYS worn big baggy clothes to hide my body and when I did tuck, I would blouse it out so it would still hide my belly! Well, today, I did a straight tuck with no blousing! Now, I am not going to say I looked great because I know I didn't. BUT even having the self confidence to do it was a MAJOR thing for me! I am not supermodel skinny but I am actually getting a little more comfortable with my body!

Happy Day!

My awesome sister just made my day!!! She called a while back asking if I wanted her clothes that she no longer fit in (she has also lost a lot of weight). I said sure thinking in my mind that there was no way they would fit but they would give me the motivation to lose weight so I could fit into them. I have always viewed her as super skinny and myself as...well...not so much! So I figured there was NO WAY I would fit into anything that she had fit into.

She dropped the clothes off today and guess what? They fit!!!!! So I got a double bonus. I have new clothes AND it really made me feel like all my hard work is paying off if I can fit into clothes that she has worn! Yipee!!!!

So now maybe I can start to accept that I am actually not big anymore. I can't believe how hard it is to change that mindset! I walk into a clothing store and automatically go to the women's section because that is where I have always shopped. But I can't get clothing there anymore that fits!

Waist not....???

I've always felt like I had a rather large waist. It is the part of my body that I hate the most. But it seems like I am finally starting to chip away at my waistline! Last time I did a competition, I went and got some size 12 pants. I haven't been wearing them because I have been lazy and have been lounging around in sweats. I put a pair on today and GUESS WHAT? They are too big!! They fit when I bought them! So, I got my trusty old belt out. I have never really worn a belt but had to buy one a couple of months ago to keep some of my pants from falling off. When I bought the belt, I could only do it up on the first hole. Well, today, I used the FOURTH hole!

I remember the last time I could squeeze into a size 8 pair of pants. It was about 16 years ago! And I remember being shocked that I fit into them! So if I can get down to a size 8.....WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

I think the hardest thing about weight loss is the first part. For me, I was already wearing clothing that was either snug or had elastic waistband so I didn't really notice a difference in my body size. But now, it seems like I am noticing change fairly regularly and it has been great! So if you are just starting and getting frustrated because you don't notice a difference, KEEP GOING!! You will start to notice change and it is the most AWESOME feeling in the world to know that all your hard work and determination are finally paying off!

Major milestone!!

I have officially lost 30 pounds since January! Yeah for me! My goal is to lose 36 pounds by the time I am done with this round and it looks like I am well on my way to accomplishing that goal! Why 36? Well, my ultimate goal is to not go over 150 (currently I am 151) after I am done. I figure if I go down to at least 145, then I have 5 pounds to play with. If I gain a couple of pounds, I can get back on track before I go over 150. And I would be thrilled with anything beyond the 36 pounds!

I actually lost 2 pounds this week so I am still loosing weight so maybe...

I don't know what my problem is with fat though. I keep gaining fat percentage. So I guess the weight I am losing must be muscle mass or something. So...I pulled Jillian back out! She kicked my butt on the last go round so I'm going to go with her again. I figured the walking I was doing was exercise so it was burning calories but I wasn't really doing anything to tone or build muscle mass. So back to my boring old work out in the front room bit!

It's good though because I have noticed my gutt starting to hang out a bit and she worked great on that last time. It could be too that my chest is disappearing so that makes my gutt show more!! Fair warning all you women out there. When you lose weight, you also lose chest!!

My daughter is funny. She just asked me who is winning the competition with my friend. I told her my friend was winning overall. Then she asked who had lost more weight, I told her my friend. She asked who had lost more fat, I said my friend. She said "So pretty much, she is kicking your butt on everything?" I said yes. She replied, "Mom, I really think you should start working out twice a day. Maybe go running AND do Jillian."

Off the wagon...

This post is dedicated to my friend who called this morning to tell me that she “fell off the wagon” this morning. First of all, you are doing AWESOME!!! Don’t let one bad morning frustrate you. Get back on the “wagon” and keep going! I have had that problem before. I have a bad morning and I figure,”Oh well, my day (or week) is shot anyway. I might as well enjoy myself.” Don’t do it! So you had a bad morning. Keep going! What do we do? We swiiiim, swiiiim....

So now back to my theory on keeping the house stocked with “diet friendly” snacks in the house. Yes, they cost more....up front. But I really believe that in the long run, they pay for themselves not so much in monetary ways but in physical well being.

I figured it out and I probably spend about $50 a month on diet snacks, Healthy Choice meals, etc. BUT, that $50 spent is in place of food that I would be eating (and therefore buying) anyway. Plus, being on a “diet” (uh, I mean, lifestyle change) I am actually eating less than I would before anyway. So being generous, I figure I would have spent AT LEAST $25 on the food I would be eating anyway in place of the diet foods I buy.

Okay, so now we’re down to $25 a month (at most) that I spend in addition to my normal food budget to have diet snacks around. That adds up to $300 a year. How many thousands of dollars am I saving on health care costs down the road that result from my being overweight/obese? Hard to say. Maybe nothing. But maybe....lots. I would rather not take the chance.

Let me give an example of how the little snacks can be helpful. The other day, I bought some Blue Bunny fudge bars that are actually 0 points (or 1 point if I eat 2). So if I really get crazy and go on a binge and eat, let’s say 10 fudge bars...guess what? I’ve only eaten 5 points! That chocolate chip cookie that just came out of the oven and looks so tantalizing costs that much by itself!

Oh, but wait! Weight Watchers has cookies that are one point a piece. So if I really have to have a cookie, I grab one of those instead of the 5 point cookie that just came out of my oven. They even have chocolate chip ones (though I wouldn’t highly recommend them, they’re alright but not the best). I WOULD recommend the peanut butter cookies. They are actually quite good, especially dipped in a glass of skim milk (total 3 points for the snack). Even with the milk, they’re still better than one “normal” cookie. And I get the milk which is more filling.

So I guess what I am saying is that the “cost” of these snacks is all relative. I may feel like they’re pinching my budget now, but I also think they are so worth it.

Weigh in

Alright! I have mellowed out since last week! Actually I got thinking about it and there were a few factors that contributed to my low loss last week. First, the week before, I actually lost 3 pounds because I weighed right after exercising and hadn't had lunch (our usual weigh in is mid morning prior to exercise). So if you split that up, it was actually not as bad of a week. It was also that time of the month (which could explain the temper tantrum) and I always retain a ton of water right at first. So, it wasn't really as bad of a week as I made it out to be.

This week, I lost a pound and a half but I did gain a slight amount of body fat. I am okay with that though because I had and AWESOME week! I know I did everything I could (which you'd think would make me MORE frustrated) so I will take what I get. We went out to dinner on Friday and had a party on Saturday and I stayed within my points BOTH days!!! How awesome is that? I think that is a first for me. I usually blow it on both of those, especially parties because it is really hard to know how much you are eating. Actually, I should say as far as I know I stayed within my points. I am not positive because I didn't have my handy dandy scale for the party but I guessed the best I could. So I was so proud of myself. Yay self!!

Weigh in

Half a pound? Half a stinkin' pound?!?!? All that work and watching what I ate for 1/2 a pound!!?!?!?!? UGH! Okay, it is still a loss. I should be happy. But I went from losing 2 pounds a week last time to basically nothing this time. I think I have hit that crappy plateau that you always hear about. I hate plateaus!! They suck!!

It wouldn't be so bad but the person I am doing it with keeps telling me that she really isn't even watching her points, just cutting back and she is dropping 2-3 pounds every dang week! Do I sound angry? Because I am! Not at her, but at my stupid body!

I know I will regret posting this tomorrow, but I don't really care right now! I said at the beginning of this I would be honest and this is how I feel right now!

Walking

Not much to report today. I have been doing pretty good with sticking to my points and exercising every day. I have found a GREAT way to get my exercise in with 5 little children. My kids LOVE to ride their bikes. So everyday, we have been going for long walks with them on their bikes. Monday through Thursday, we walk to get free lunch (a summer program for the kids) which is a 1.3 mile walk each way. My kids literally beg me to ride their bikes to this every day. It works great for me because I push the stroller with the babies in it which gives me a little more of a workout. (I actually tried it one day this week without the babies because my husband was home and I decided it really does give me a much better workout with the stroller.)

Today, we had a dentist appointment for two of the older kids. I asked them if they wanted to drive or ride bikes. They wanted to ride bikes so I got my walk in today (no stroller though so not as much of a workout as normal). I love it! I get things done and exercise in for me AND my kids at the same time. It does get a little hot but hey, it helps me sweat off a little more weight and fat, right? So that is my goal for the summer. Whenever we are going somewhere close enough to walk, weather permitting, we will walk (we'll see if that holds up when the temps are in the high 90's).

New find

I have, on occasion, tried Lean Cuisine meals, Smart Ones meals. I like them because if I pay attention while I am eating, it gives me a better sense of portions for when I make my own meals. But, I haven't been a real big fan of the taste and they don't seem very filling so I don't eat them very often. I found these Healthy Choice meals the other day and actually bought them for my husband. I had no food in my house and decided to give one a try. I really like them (especially baked instead of microwaved). They are very filling and the ones I have tried range from 4-6 points for the entire meal AND it comes with DESSERT!! Can't beat the dessert factor! They do have some that are up in the 8-10 point range so if you get them, make sure to check for the ones with lower calories. Another bonus - they are high in protein so they make a great after workout meal. They cost a little more but did I mention they have DESSERT?!?!?