I don't know if I mentioned it before, but my coworkers and I have a "dinner club." We spend so much time eating on campus, and we're so spread out, that a few years ago this club got started to act as a way to spend some quality non-work time together and to eat a good meal. So, at the beginning of the semester, one person sends out the typical e-mail looking for those interested and comes up with a schedule based on everyone's availability throughout the semester. We take turns hosting the others for dinner and send out our menu a few days in advance so that people will know what they're about to walk into. It's obviously not mandatory to go to every one, but most people try to go to as many as possible...I mean, hey, it's more free home cooked meals! We don't claim to be chefs, nor do we expect a gourmet meal from people. This week, it was my turn to cook...and I am generally known for going all out. I like to theme my dinners - 1. I think it makes it more fun and 2. it makes it easier to pick a menu. Last semester I hosted the day before Halloween so I made a whole Halloween themed dinner. Bloody Barbecued ribs, deviled eyeballs, scarily good cheesy potatoes, Halloween tortilla chips (homemade) and guaca-moldy...you get the idea. Last spring I went French...cheese fondue, Boeuf Bourguignon, and chocolate fondue. The problem this causes is...how the heck am I going to top myself?!?! It's been a bit of a crazy, somewhat stressful few weeks back after spring break. I wasn't really looking forward to cooking for mass amounts of people...there are about a dozen people in dinner club. But, it was my turn and I'd already rescheduled my date so I didn't want to do it again. I was trying to come up with something that would be tasty, but as easy as possible. So, I decided on a good old down-home meal: slow cooked roast beef (cooked in my crock pot with onion soup mix for about 10 hours), mashed potatoes, corn, asparagus, and a homemade apple pie. Unfortunately, between the business and then difficulty making a decision on the menu, I didn't get to send it out until the evening before. And then on Friday I didn't feel well - massive, massive headache. I ended up going home from work early because my headache got so bad I thought I was going to throw up. Thankfully, the meat had already been cooking, the corn and asparagus were both super simple, so the only things I had to spend much time on were the pie and the mashed potatoes. I took a long nap and felt slightly better - at least well enough that I could finish cooking. I barely got them done in time, but it was well worth the wait. However, somehow either the date or my late menu caused some issues and only two of my coworkers showed up for dinner club. I had cooked enough food for 12. That was a looooooot of leftovers. Thankfully, it was super tasty, and reasonably healthy.
A few weeks ago I wrote about having the dreaded problem of "The Day of the Empty Stomach" where no matter what/how much I ate I was still hungry. This week I've encountered the (just as deadly) "Day of the Full Stomach" where I didn't feel like eating at all. Saturday, the day after dinner club, I woke up still not feeling well. I spent most of the day in bed reading, and after that I went to the couch to watch tv. It was after 5:00pm before I ate anything. And even then, I had a small amount of leftover roast beef and potatoes...and felt stuffed. Now, you'd think that it would be a good thing, but really it's not. You need sustenance to keep your body going...and frankly the few days after a "full stomach" day, you are usually famished. Thankfully, that wasn't exactly the case this time.
Sunday, wasn't quite as bad as Saturday, but I still didn't really feel much like eating. My headache FINALLY went away...I guess a whole lot of hours sleeping were the cure. I was able to eat a banana and granola bar before heading out to see a movie. After the movie, I was really hungry so I ate some more leftovers, but again, I felt stuffed after not eating much.
And, I haven't made much of a dent in the leftovers...anyone in my area is free to come take some!!
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 11: -0.8
Total weight loss: -20.8 lbs
Current weight: 236.4
Oh, and I think I officially have some Weight Watcher meeting friends!! Last week a girl sat next to me and told me that I looked like Spring and it made her happy. This week she sat next to me again and complimented me on my hair cut and said she'd meant to tell me last week. While the ladies (and one or two gentlemen on occasion) at my meeting are friendly and welcoming, they don't often do much to befriend me and I usually sit by myself. Funnily enough, I think I've realized the division of the room...one side of the room almost all work in secondary ed, the other side works at the college level, and the middle works elsewhere. It just kind of happens naturally, too. Anyway, so my new friend, Sabrina, is super friendly and she and another lady (whose name I have yet to learn cause she wasn't wearing a name tag) actually spent time talking to me today! Yay friends!
Monday, March 26, 2012
Monday, March 19, 2012
War! (Huh!) What is it good for?
Our body is constantly warring with itself, which makes life interesting sometimes. Your head and your heart are often at odds with each other. Sometimes your head says, "let's go exercise", but your body says, "Screw You!" But, for me, one of the worst body wars is that between the mouth and the stomach. That point while you're eating that your stomach says, "I'm full - no more food!" but your mouth says, "But it tastes sooooooo gooooooooood....". Or even your brain and your mouth...your brain says, "you don't need seconds" or "you don't need to eat that piece of cake" or "you're really not hungry, you're just bored", but your mouth says, "But it tastes soooooo gooooooooooood..." Let's face it...our mouths are kind of evil! They are always getting us into trouble! I mean, the bad food choices that we make are usually because of our mouths...not our stomachs! The stomach doesn't care what we put in it as long as it isn't empty! The mouth is the real traitor here!
I went to an Indian restaurant this week - I saved up all my extra points and made myself make good choices through the week so that I could have lunch there on Friday. I haven't done the math to see how many points it was officially worth, but I don't think it was too bad. And I only ate one piece of naan! The problem was, though, that it was a buffet...and it tasted soooooo goooooooood. I hadn't been there for months, if not longer, and I'd had a small breakfast, and it was a little later than my usual lunch time....and it tasted soooooooo gooooooooooood. My mouth kept saying, "more! more! more! more!" but my stomach was saying, "ummm...I'm getting a little full down here, not sure how much more I can hold...". Despite the war, I think I did reasonably well. I'm sure that I ate more than I should have, but it wasn't as much as I used to eat, which is a big step in the right direction.
My body also had a war with the clock this week. Between catching up after the break, several evening commitments, and just overall not adjusting to the time change, I simply haven't had the time or the energy to do much working out. I got a little bit in on the yoga ball (despite my friends making fun of me for how perverted it looks refilling it - and despite falling off of it last night and hitting my head off the floor...ouch!), but not as much as I would have liked. I guess we'll see how that reflects on the scale!
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 10: -1.8
Total weight loss: -20 lbs
Current weight: 237.2
So it was a good weight loss week, but I know that I didn't track or exercise like I should have - so goal this week is to get back on track with my tracking...and to not fall on my head anymore...seriously, it REALLY HURTS!
I went to an Indian restaurant this week - I saved up all my extra points and made myself make good choices through the week so that I could have lunch there on Friday. I haven't done the math to see how many points it was officially worth, but I don't think it was too bad. And I only ate one piece of naan! The problem was, though, that it was a buffet...and it tasted soooooo goooooooood. I hadn't been there for months, if not longer, and I'd had a small breakfast, and it was a little later than my usual lunch time....and it tasted soooooooo gooooooooooood. My mouth kept saying, "more! more! more! more!" but my stomach was saying, "ummm...I'm getting a little full down here, not sure how much more I can hold...". Despite the war, I think I did reasonably well. I'm sure that I ate more than I should have, but it wasn't as much as I used to eat, which is a big step in the right direction.
My body also had a war with the clock this week. Between catching up after the break, several evening commitments, and just overall not adjusting to the time change, I simply haven't had the time or the energy to do much working out. I got a little bit in on the yoga ball (despite my friends making fun of me for how perverted it looks refilling it - and despite falling off of it last night and hitting my head off the floor...ouch!), but not as much as I would have liked. I guess we'll see how that reflects on the scale!
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 10: -1.8
Total weight loss: -20 lbs
Current weight: 237.2
So it was a good weight loss week, but I know that I didn't track or exercise like I should have - so goal this week is to get back on track with my tracking...and to not fall on my head anymore...seriously, it REALLY HURTS!
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Choose Your Attitude
I got a Bravo! star this week!! At the meetings, they like to celebrate not only weight losses, but good behavior changes/exciting things you share. At some meetings, only the leader will give them out, but at mine she likes all the people in the class to give them to each other, too. So this week we were talking about Negative Talk. Everyone does it - we are always harder on ourselves. We beat up on ourselves for little things, we feel guilty for a single bad choice, and then we let the whole day/week go to waste. We started talking about things that we do/ways to avoid or fix our negative talk. Some people said that they try to be more conscious of it and talk to themselves the way their best friends would talk to them. One girl said that she started writing down every time she said something negative about herself.
Ironically, I had just started trying to consciously change my attitude around my weight loss. I told them that I had started to choose my attitude. I had a good day on Monday (not that the other days were bad) and I walked into the center feeling really good. I started to get that nervous feeling about the weigh-in because while I watched what I ate and made sure that I still got a work-out in while I was at home, I didn't really track. Just before I stepped onto the scale I said to myself, "you know what? you came in here feeling really good and no matter what that scale says, you should still feel really good." And I did! I was up a little bit, but I stepped off the scale still smiling. It was less than a pound and frankly could've been attributed to several things. It could have been a difference in the scales from the meeting at home and this center, it could have been because I ate lunch at 2:30 instead of my normal noon, it could've been water weight, or any number of other uncontrollable factors. Regardless, I've still lost almost 20 pounds since January! I have a lot to feel good about, and I wasn't going to let that tiny setback affect my mood. I had another small moment where I considered not allowing myself to go to the store to buy a new pair of pants (I had a coupon!) since I had gained, but then I told myself I was being stupid. Why would I deny myself buying a pair of pants, when the ones that I had on were getting quite baggy in the legs, because of less than a pound?
The others in the meeting were so proud of me and loved my idea of CHOOSING my attitude. There are so many things in life that we tend to get bummed about because WE ALLOW IT. I've started trying this in my life outside of my weight loss, too. When someone says something annoying or bothersome, I try to just ignore it, change the subject, or be extra sweet in return. It's made my week a lot more enjoyable!
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 9: +0.8
Total weight loss: -18.2 lbs
Current weight: 239
Ironically, I had just started trying to consciously change my attitude around my weight loss. I told them that I had started to choose my attitude. I had a good day on Monday (not that the other days were bad) and I walked into the center feeling really good. I started to get that nervous feeling about the weigh-in because while I watched what I ate and made sure that I still got a work-out in while I was at home, I didn't really track. Just before I stepped onto the scale I said to myself, "you know what? you came in here feeling really good and no matter what that scale says, you should still feel really good." And I did! I was up a little bit, but I stepped off the scale still smiling. It was less than a pound and frankly could've been attributed to several things. It could have been a difference in the scales from the meeting at home and this center, it could have been because I ate lunch at 2:30 instead of my normal noon, it could've been water weight, or any number of other uncontrollable factors. Regardless, I've still lost almost 20 pounds since January! I have a lot to feel good about, and I wasn't going to let that tiny setback affect my mood. I had another small moment where I considered not allowing myself to go to the store to buy a new pair of pants (I had a coupon!) since I had gained, but then I told myself I was being stupid. Why would I deny myself buying a pair of pants, when the ones that I had on were getting quite baggy in the legs, because of less than a pound?
The others in the meeting were so proud of me and loved my idea of CHOOSING my attitude. There are so many things in life that we tend to get bummed about because WE ALLOW IT. I've started trying this in my life outside of my weight loss, too. When someone says something annoying or bothersome, I try to just ignore it, change the subject, or be extra sweet in return. It's made my week a lot more enjoyable!
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 9: +0.8
Total weight loss: -18.2 lbs
Current weight: 239
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Spring Break Edition!
"Will there be a post this week?" has been the most popular question of late. Why? Because I'm on spring break!! Woohoo! While most of my students were going to exciting places like Fort Lauderdale, New York City, and the Bahamas, I went to...Ohio. But that's where I wanted to be! I came home to see the family and just spend some time away from campus. After my crazy last weekend, I really needed the time away, but the trip has presented its own set of challenges.
My family is extremely supportive of my journey (if we're friends on Facebook, you should check out all of their awesome comments on my posts) and they have made the trip as easy for me as possible. Prior to my leaving school, Mom told me that she was going to the store and wanted to know what I needed her to pick up for me to eat. It caught me off guard, but I told her to just get some fruits and veggies and I'd get anything else I could think of when I got home. Well, it wasn't until I got home that I realized everything I was going to need. When you go stay somewhere else for a fairly significant amount of time, you realize how much you take everything in your own house for granted. Luckily, I thought to bring some of my WW shake packets to help me get in my dairy, as well as my new fav Fiber One bars. (Super tasty, GREAT source of fiber, but they will definitely keep you regular...that may be TMI, but it's the truth.) But you don't think of all the little things, the giant bag of individually separated servings of baked chips I have - the packets of tuna fish - the dining hall where I at least have all my lunches - etc. I was hungry for lunch today and thought "hmm...I can't have my usual chicken salad because it would take way too long to make it - and we don't have any light bread or turkey for a sandwich...". What to do?? So, I had to make a run to the store to pick up some stuff. I certainly didn't mind, especially since the store is only a few blocks away from the house, but it's just those things that you take for granted in your own home.
The trip home itself wasn't bad - I took some grapes and I stopped at the gas station and got some baked chips and half a turkey sub for the ride home (it's a 3 1/2 hour drive and I hadn't had lunch yet). And each night Mom has made sure to either ask me what I want for dinner ahead of time, or make sure that she's making something I can eat. But, another challenge has still been that my daily schedule is interrupted. At work I have a pretty structured life...I live by my calendar. I eat breakfast first thing in the morning, I eat lunch at noon, and I try to eat dinner between 5:30-7 depending on after work meetings and my work outs. That is definitely not the schedule I keep at home. To start with, I'm on vacay...I let myself sleep in! Now, "sleeping in" means sleeping until 10:00am, not the sleeping until 1:00pm that it used to be. But, it still means I'm getting a later start on my day. I'm still eating a small breakfast when I get up, but it's pushing my lunch back a bit then. So now I'm eating lunch around 2:00...and then eating dinner around 7. It's just taking some getting used to. I got spoiled with my structure and having almost all of my meals prepared for me and now I see what it's like for others.
The other big challenge I have had so far is that my exercise routine pretty much centers around the tv...whether it's the Dancing with the Stars video or the Wii dancing, it needs the tv. There is a tv in my bedroom, but generally not enough room to exercise. And the tv in the living room is shared by the whole family, which makes it difficult to get my exercise in on my normal schedule too. The fam has been great about letting me get it in, (and actually doing it with me!) but I still feel bad taking up their tv time, and even more so about taking up the whole living room. So, I've been doing what I can and then supplementing it with more work on the yoga ball. I almost forgot that I had bought one years ago until my sister reminded me that it was still deflated in the box. So, I used all my hot air and blew it up! I've been showing them all the crazy exercises I do on it, but who else but your family won't make fun of you for the strange positions you put yourself in while exercising? And thankfully, younger brother gave me a great idea to enhance one of the exercises I already did!
Overall, my trip hasn't been too difficult, I just need to learn how to not be so spoiled! There is a Weight Watcher meeting here, but it's on Tuesday unlike my normal Monday. At least I can still go weigh in and it won't be too far off from my normal time! Let's hope their scales aren't too different from my regular...
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 8: -3.6
Total weight loss: -19 lbs
Current weight: 238.2
My family is extremely supportive of my journey (if we're friends on Facebook, you should check out all of their awesome comments on my posts) and they have made the trip as easy for me as possible. Prior to my leaving school, Mom told me that she was going to the store and wanted to know what I needed her to pick up for me to eat. It caught me off guard, but I told her to just get some fruits and veggies and I'd get anything else I could think of when I got home. Well, it wasn't until I got home that I realized everything I was going to need. When you go stay somewhere else for a fairly significant amount of time, you realize how much you take everything in your own house for granted. Luckily, I thought to bring some of my WW shake packets to help me get in my dairy, as well as my new fav Fiber One bars. (Super tasty, GREAT source of fiber, but they will definitely keep you regular...that may be TMI, but it's the truth.) But you don't think of all the little things, the giant bag of individually separated servings of baked chips I have - the packets of tuna fish - the dining hall where I at least have all my lunches - etc. I was hungry for lunch today and thought "hmm...I can't have my usual chicken salad because it would take way too long to make it - and we don't have any light bread or turkey for a sandwich...". What to do?? So, I had to make a run to the store to pick up some stuff. I certainly didn't mind, especially since the store is only a few blocks away from the house, but it's just those things that you take for granted in your own home.
The trip home itself wasn't bad - I took some grapes and I stopped at the gas station and got some baked chips and half a turkey sub for the ride home (it's a 3 1/2 hour drive and I hadn't had lunch yet). And each night Mom has made sure to either ask me what I want for dinner ahead of time, or make sure that she's making something I can eat. But, another challenge has still been that my daily schedule is interrupted. At work I have a pretty structured life...I live by my calendar. I eat breakfast first thing in the morning, I eat lunch at noon, and I try to eat dinner between 5:30-7 depending on after work meetings and my work outs. That is definitely not the schedule I keep at home. To start with, I'm on vacay...I let myself sleep in! Now, "sleeping in" means sleeping until 10:00am, not the sleeping until 1:00pm that it used to be. But, it still means I'm getting a later start on my day. I'm still eating a small breakfast when I get up, but it's pushing my lunch back a bit then. So now I'm eating lunch around 2:00...and then eating dinner around 7. It's just taking some getting used to. I got spoiled with my structure and having almost all of my meals prepared for me and now I see what it's like for others.
The other big challenge I have had so far is that my exercise routine pretty much centers around the tv...whether it's the Dancing with the Stars video or the Wii dancing, it needs the tv. There is a tv in my bedroom, but generally not enough room to exercise. And the tv in the living room is shared by the whole family, which makes it difficult to get my exercise in on my normal schedule too. The fam has been great about letting me get it in, (and actually doing it with me!) but I still feel bad taking up their tv time, and even more so about taking up the whole living room. So, I've been doing what I can and then supplementing it with more work on the yoga ball. I almost forgot that I had bought one years ago until my sister reminded me that it was still deflated in the box. So, I used all my hot air and blew it up! I've been showing them all the crazy exercises I do on it, but who else but your family won't make fun of you for the strange positions you put yourself in while exercising? And thankfully, younger brother gave me a great idea to enhance one of the exercises I already did!
Overall, my trip hasn't been too difficult, I just need to learn how to not be so spoiled! There is a Weight Watcher meeting here, but it's on Tuesday unlike my normal Monday. At least I can still go weigh in and it won't be too far off from my normal time! Let's hope their scales aren't too different from my regular...
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 8: -3.6
Total weight loss: -19 lbs
Current weight: 238.2
Monday, February 27, 2012
Success is in the eye of the beholder
This was not a great week. Well, the weekdays were fine, nothing special, but this weekend sucked. As part of my job I have to take turns doing evening/weekend emergency response. I am fortunate that the part of campus in which I work is generally well-behaved, but this weekend the whole campus was a little rough...and of course I was the one on duty for my area. What made things difficult on me as far as this journey goes, wasn't so much the temptation to eat bad things or even the "stress eating", but the sheer bad timing of everything. I've mentioned in several posts about how easy the dining hall has made things for me with their always having a healthy option, posting the nutritional facts online, etc. But I haven't mentioned what makes things difficult: their hours don't revolve around my hunger/sleep schedule! This is especially key on duty weekends when I'm getting called out at all hours of the day and night.
Friday night I only had a couple calls, but they were spaced out so that I only got sleep in 2-3 hour increments. I ended up sleeping in until around 12:30. I ended up having my first meal around 4:00 - my first mistake. It was such a late lunch that I wasn't ready for dinner until quite late. However, by the time I was hungry for dinner, I was in the midst of Saturday night duty calls. Let's just say it was a really late night and not only did I then have to find myself dinner, but I had to do it in between my calls. Not easy and I mostly just ended up snacking - baked chips, some fruit, popcorn, healthy-ish stuff, but not an actual meal. I was up really late and again ended up sleeping until 1. I decided I was going to eat earlier, so I went onto the food services web site and looked at all the tasty things they were having for brunch. I used my WW app to check the points, decided what I was going to get before I went, and then realized that it was 1:57 and the buffet closes at 2. I had essentially no food in the fridge and the only thing open was the grill...which makes burgers, chicken tenders, grilled cheese sandwiches, cheesesteaks, etc. So, I made the best choice that I could, and had it with a side of celery sticks. Then, again, come dinner time I wasn't hungry and by the time I was ready for food it was 8 and they were closing. I looked at a bunch of take-out menus...I had a serious hankering for a steak salad, but couldn't find one anywhere that sounded appetizing. So, instead of making a bad choice, I made an egg, light toast, and turkey bacon.
I've had the last two days to contemplate how this upset in my normal schedule will reflect on the scale on Monday, and I've come to an important conclusion...I don't care. I mean, I don't WANT to gain anything, but it won't really bother me if I do. Because I know that I was dealt a bad hand this weekend and that I did the best that I could, and that's all that I can ask of myself. I have decided that regardless of what happens on the scale, I'm going to concentrate on celebrating my small victories this week.
1. When I had the choice of all the tasty, yet unhealthy, offerings at the grill and my head, taste buds, and stomach were all saying "CHEESEBURGER!!!"...my mouth said "Grilled Chicken sandwich, please"
2. When it was 2am and I was still awake and really hungry and already in my car, I could have easily driven to the 24-hour McDonalds...and I honestly considered it...but then I thought of the picture from the doctors office of the year old hamburger that looked brand new and I pointed my car home instead.
3. Sunday, after two very late nights and little uninterrupted sleep, when I easily could have spent the day on the couch or in my bed, I made myself get up, do a little light cleaning in my apartment, and I still played Just Dance to get my exercise in since I missed it on Saturday.
4. This week I exercised at least 5 days...and each day I exceeded my goal.
5. Instead of ordering take-out, or eating the box of macaroni and cheese sitting in my cabinet, I chose the egg sandwich and turkey bacon.
6. There are two chocolate bars and half an ice-cream cake in my freezer that went untouched.
7. I tried a Zumba CD this week with a friend and it was super fun! I may just really buy myself the Zumba for Wii after I get paid.
8. I went to my RAs program where there was pizza, cake, and ice cream and I didn't eat ANYTHING.
9. Aside from this weekend when I needed to stay awake, I have significantly reduced the amount of pop I drink.
10. I just measured myself for the first time since I began and I have lost 1.5 inches off my waist, 1 inch from my hips, 1 inch from my bust, and 2 inches from my thighs.
11. I have lost 15.6 pounds in 6 weeks!!
and last, but certainly not least,
12. I have the most fantastic support system a person could ask for. Honestly, after I submitted my first post I thought I was crazy for starting this blog and sharing it with everyone, but I think it's the smartest thing I could have done.
So, no matter what the scale says, I'm counting this week as a success!
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 7: +0.2
Total weight loss: -1546 lbs
Current weight: 241.8
Only up by 0.2?? After the week I had, I will take it and not complain!!! Especially since I discovered today that one of my favorite snacks costs more points than what I originally thought.....wwwwaaaayyyyyy more points. And I ate it almost every day this week...no more pretzels and hummus for me!
Friday night I only had a couple calls, but they were spaced out so that I only got sleep in 2-3 hour increments. I ended up sleeping in until around 12:30. I ended up having my first meal around 4:00 - my first mistake. It was such a late lunch that I wasn't ready for dinner until quite late. However, by the time I was hungry for dinner, I was in the midst of Saturday night duty calls. Let's just say it was a really late night and not only did I then have to find myself dinner, but I had to do it in between my calls. Not easy and I mostly just ended up snacking - baked chips, some fruit, popcorn, healthy-ish stuff, but not an actual meal. I was up really late and again ended up sleeping until 1. I decided I was going to eat earlier, so I went onto the food services web site and looked at all the tasty things they were having for brunch. I used my WW app to check the points, decided what I was going to get before I went, and then realized that it was 1:57 and the buffet closes at 2. I had essentially no food in the fridge and the only thing open was the grill...which makes burgers, chicken tenders, grilled cheese sandwiches, cheesesteaks, etc. So, I made the best choice that I could, and had it with a side of celery sticks. Then, again, come dinner time I wasn't hungry and by the time I was ready for food it was 8 and they were closing. I looked at a bunch of take-out menus...I had a serious hankering for a steak salad, but couldn't find one anywhere that sounded appetizing. So, instead of making a bad choice, I made an egg, light toast, and turkey bacon.
I've had the last two days to contemplate how this upset in my normal schedule will reflect on the scale on Monday, and I've come to an important conclusion...I don't care. I mean, I don't WANT to gain anything, but it won't really bother me if I do. Because I know that I was dealt a bad hand this weekend and that I did the best that I could, and that's all that I can ask of myself. I have decided that regardless of what happens on the scale, I'm going to concentrate on celebrating my small victories this week.
1. When I had the choice of all the tasty, yet unhealthy, offerings at the grill and my head, taste buds, and stomach were all saying "CHEESEBURGER!!!"...my mouth said "Grilled Chicken sandwich, please"
2. When it was 2am and I was still awake and really hungry and already in my car, I could have easily driven to the 24-hour McDonalds...and I honestly considered it...but then I thought of the picture from the doctors office of the year old hamburger that looked brand new and I pointed my car home instead.
3. Sunday, after two very late nights and little uninterrupted sleep, when I easily could have spent the day on the couch or in my bed, I made myself get up, do a little light cleaning in my apartment, and I still played Just Dance to get my exercise in since I missed it on Saturday.
4. This week I exercised at least 5 days...and each day I exceeded my goal.
5. Instead of ordering take-out, or eating the box of macaroni and cheese sitting in my cabinet, I chose the egg sandwich and turkey bacon.
6. There are two chocolate bars and half an ice-cream cake in my freezer that went untouched.
7. I tried a Zumba CD this week with a friend and it was super fun! I may just really buy myself the Zumba for Wii after I get paid.
8. I went to my RAs program where there was pizza, cake, and ice cream and I didn't eat ANYTHING.
9. Aside from this weekend when I needed to stay awake, I have significantly reduced the amount of pop I drink.
10. I just measured myself for the first time since I began and I have lost 1.5 inches off my waist, 1 inch from my hips, 1 inch from my bust, and 2 inches from my thighs.
11. I have lost 15.6 pounds in 6 weeks!!
and last, but certainly not least,
12. I have the most fantastic support system a person could ask for. Honestly, after I submitted my first post I thought I was crazy for starting this blog and sharing it with everyone, but I think it's the smartest thing I could have done.
So, no matter what the scale says, I'm counting this week as a success!
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 7: +0.2
Total weight loss: -1546 lbs
Current weight: 241.8
Only up by 0.2?? After the week I had, I will take it and not complain!!! Especially since I discovered today that one of my favorite snacks costs more points than what I originally thought.....wwwwaaaayyyyyy more points. And I ate it almost every day this week...no more pretzels and hummus for me!
Monday, February 20, 2012
Some days are better than others...
Have you ever had one of those days where you feel like you just can't eat enough?? I'm having one of those days...it's currently Sunday and all day long I have felt like I was starving! I woke up and was famished (which almost never happens) - I made a nice breakfast of two eggs, breakfast potatoes (both made with 0 point Pam spray instead of butter), and 5 slices of turkey bacon. It was so tasty, but less than an hour later I felt like I was hungry again. Not bored hungry - legit hungry. I had a late breakfast...ate somewhere around 11 or so. Between then and dinner, I ate two bowls of grapes, a serving of pretzel sticks with Laughing Cow Light French Onion cheese, and a banana. Still hungry. I had dinner around 6:30 where I had a cup of brown rice and my own stir fry (eye of round steak bits, broccoli, green beans, carrots, and tomatoes cooked in some butter with garlic salt, salt, and pepper). I felt so full and satisfied after I ate it, but here it is only about an hour after eating it and I feel like I haven't had dinner yet. I have a whole 4 points left to eat today, and I am just baffled at how some days I can eat barely anything and feel full all day, but others I can eat every hour and still feel hungry! Bodies are weird.
Overall, the week as a whole was pretty good. Valentine's Day was a little difficult from an emotional eating standpoint, but I handled it pretty well. I tried to embrace the holiday, though I am a singleton, choosing to celebrate those that I love. However, in doing what I thought was one of the coolest things I'll ever do, I managed to slightly depress myself. I went to see Casablanca in an old theatre. It was seriously cool, but at the same time seriously awkward as I was literally the only person there by myself. I tried not to let it get to me, but afterwards I had a serious case of emotional hunger. But, I let myself have a Weight Watcher fudge bar, and that was it. I decided that I would make some sweets, but to share with others and not eat them myself. I may have gone a little overboard...
I love to bake...and I love to decorate what I bake...so I got a little fancy. I was unsure what kind of cake to make, and I had a lot of friends to feed, so I made two cakes. I experimented with making layered cakes, which makes icing them pretty difficult. I tried my hardest not to lick the fingers while decorating and pretty much just tried to do the neatest job possible so I wasn't even tempted! It worked out pretty well, actually. (If you'd like to see my cakes, you'll have to check out my Confectionery Capers blog to see the update on there soon.)
I had a friend come to visit this weekend and thankfully she let me know early on in the week that she wanted to go to Mad Mex (a Mexican restaurant, if you couldn't figure that out) while she was in town. I ate well through the week, but it was good to know that I needed to behave if I was going to eat there this weekend. I was able to save all of my extra weekly points, as well as get in some extra exercise, so that I could eat my burrito on Friday. The most important thing I noticed, though, was that while I was eating my burrito I was getting full faster than I used to. Definitely a good thing!!
So can I have my burrito and eat it too? Monday's meeting will surely tell...
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 6: -2.8
Total weight loss: -15.6 lbs
Current weight: 241.6
Apparently I can!! And, I have officially lost over 5% of my initial body weight!! So, I guess it's time for a photo update...
Original picture from a few weeks ago... Me tonight...
Not a huge difference, but a noticeable one! :-)
Overall, the week as a whole was pretty good. Valentine's Day was a little difficult from an emotional eating standpoint, but I handled it pretty well. I tried to embrace the holiday, though I am a singleton, choosing to celebrate those that I love. However, in doing what I thought was one of the coolest things I'll ever do, I managed to slightly depress myself. I went to see Casablanca in an old theatre. It was seriously cool, but at the same time seriously awkward as I was literally the only person there by myself. I tried not to let it get to me, but afterwards I had a serious case of emotional hunger. But, I let myself have a Weight Watcher fudge bar, and that was it. I decided that I would make some sweets, but to share with others and not eat them myself. I may have gone a little overboard...
I love to bake...and I love to decorate what I bake...so I got a little fancy. I was unsure what kind of cake to make, and I had a lot of friends to feed, so I made two cakes. I experimented with making layered cakes, which makes icing them pretty difficult. I tried my hardest not to lick the fingers while decorating and pretty much just tried to do the neatest job possible so I wasn't even tempted! It worked out pretty well, actually. (If you'd like to see my cakes, you'll have to check out my Confectionery Capers blog to see the update on there soon.)
I had a friend come to visit this weekend and thankfully she let me know early on in the week that she wanted to go to Mad Mex (a Mexican restaurant, if you couldn't figure that out) while she was in town. I ate well through the week, but it was good to know that I needed to behave if I was going to eat there this weekend. I was able to save all of my extra weekly points, as well as get in some extra exercise, so that I could eat my burrito on Friday. The most important thing I noticed, though, was that while I was eating my burrito I was getting full faster than I used to. Definitely a good thing!!
So can I have my burrito and eat it too? Monday's meeting will surely tell...
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 6: -2.8
Total weight loss: -15.6 lbs
Current weight: 241.6
Apparently I can!! And, I have officially lost over 5% of my initial body weight!! So, I guess it's time for a photo update...
Original picture from a few weeks ago... Me tonight...
Not a huge difference, but a noticeable one! :-)
Monday, February 13, 2012
I'm in Love...
Since Valentine's Day (or Singles Awareness Day, as I like to call it) is this week, I thought I'd share a few thoughts about my rekindled romance...with my kitchen. I've always had a strange love for kitchenware - even when I was younger I got a kids "cookbook" and loved it...I was always trying to find reasons to make things out of it. I think at some point in high school I may have even asked for a food dehydrator for Christmas because Trevor had one and I liked it...
My first year working here, I actually cooked quite a bit. I almost always made dinner myself, and usually cooked all three meals per day on the weekends. During my second year, I got a little lazier and started eating more in the dining halls...and never really looked back. Now, there is nothing wrong with eating in the dining halls - the food here is actually quite good - it's just so much easier to make not healthy choices there. Go to the all-you-care-to-eat buffet and have a chicken breast and vegetables or go to the a-la-cart side and get pizza, or a burrito, or a burger just as easily? So, needless to say, I made a lot of unhealthy food choices in the following few years. Oh, I still cooked every once in a while, but it was mostly only if I was inviting friends over and usually on the weekends. After a long day at work, I just wanted to be able to eat and relax and not have to worry about cooking.
Well, if you haven't noticed, I'm quite committed to this journey. I mean, would I broadcast my weight to the world if I wasn't?? So, besides making better choices when I do eat in the dining hall, I've decided to try to cook more. Especially on the weekends, because then I can divide up the extras into single serving containers and save them. That way, I can have the convenience of the dining hall, but the nutrition and taste of homemade! So, I've renewed my love affair with my kitchen.
This weekend I made pasta sauce with shredded chicken in it - YUM!! I can't express to you enough how good it was! I mean, I pride myself on my tasty sauce (thanks, Mom), but this was more than just the actual taste of it. This is one of those foods that, for me, carries memories with it. Memories of home, of my Nannie, and of my childhood. I had been craving it for a while, and (thankfully) making my own sauce means not too many points. Adding the chicken also added a little protein to what would normally be a carb-fest. I wasn't prepared for how much I would enjoy it...I seriously could have eaten the whole pot by itself! I didn't...but I could have. I was a good little girl and measured out my sauce so that I didn't overdo it. But I already can't wait to eat it again!
I also made a roast with my wonderful crock pot. That was actually what inspired this post...I originally thought of writing a love note to my crock pot, but it hasn't quite earned that badge of honor yet. I mean, I do love it, but it hasn't quite reached the "love note" status. My favorite thing about the crock pot is its ease - around noon I put in a couple cut up potatoes, some baby carrots, a roast, and an onion. I added a little garlic salt, salt, pepper, and parsley. Splash in some water, turn the baby on, and then just leave it alone. You can let it go for hours...I let mine cook for about 7 (it was actually done in around 5, but the longer you leave it the more tender it gets). I checked in once or twice just to see how tender the meat was, but there's zero fuss. And it tastes soooo good!! And even better, it made enough for several more days! So I packed up a few individual containers in the fridge and put the rest in the freezer for another time.
After my cooking this weekend, my tummy is a happy camper and I have officially remembered why I love my kitchen. Now let's just see how much the scale liked my kitchen...
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 5: -2.0
Total weight loss: -12.8 lbs
Current weight: 244.4
I'd say the scale likes my kitchen!! Oh, and my new in"cent"ive program has been helping a lot!! I highly recommend...I only added $3 this week, but that's a vast improvement for me. I track pretty much every day, just not necessarily the WHOLE day...so baby steps!
My first year working here, I actually cooked quite a bit. I almost always made dinner myself, and usually cooked all three meals per day on the weekends. During my second year, I got a little lazier and started eating more in the dining halls...and never really looked back. Now, there is nothing wrong with eating in the dining halls - the food here is actually quite good - it's just so much easier to make not healthy choices there. Go to the all-you-care-to-eat buffet and have a chicken breast and vegetables or go to the a-la-cart side and get pizza, or a burrito, or a burger just as easily? So, needless to say, I made a lot of unhealthy food choices in the following few years. Oh, I still cooked every once in a while, but it was mostly only if I was inviting friends over and usually on the weekends. After a long day at work, I just wanted to be able to eat and relax and not have to worry about cooking.
Well, if you haven't noticed, I'm quite committed to this journey. I mean, would I broadcast my weight to the world if I wasn't?? So, besides making better choices when I do eat in the dining hall, I've decided to try to cook more. Especially on the weekends, because then I can divide up the extras into single serving containers and save them. That way, I can have the convenience of the dining hall, but the nutrition and taste of homemade! So, I've renewed my love affair with my kitchen.
This weekend I made pasta sauce with shredded chicken in it - YUM!! I can't express to you enough how good it was! I mean, I pride myself on my tasty sauce (thanks, Mom), but this was more than just the actual taste of it. This is one of those foods that, for me, carries memories with it. Memories of home, of my Nannie, and of my childhood. I had been craving it for a while, and (thankfully) making my own sauce means not too many points. Adding the chicken also added a little protein to what would normally be a carb-fest. I wasn't prepared for how much I would enjoy it...I seriously could have eaten the whole pot by itself! I didn't...but I could have. I was a good little girl and measured out my sauce so that I didn't overdo it. But I already can't wait to eat it again!
I also made a roast with my wonderful crock pot. That was actually what inspired this post...I originally thought of writing a love note to my crock pot, but it hasn't quite earned that badge of honor yet. I mean, I do love it, but it hasn't quite reached the "love note" status. My favorite thing about the crock pot is its ease - around noon I put in a couple cut up potatoes, some baby carrots, a roast, and an onion. I added a little garlic salt, salt, pepper, and parsley. Splash in some water, turn the baby on, and then just leave it alone. You can let it go for hours...I let mine cook for about 7 (it was actually done in around 5, but the longer you leave it the more tender it gets). I checked in once or twice just to see how tender the meat was, but there's zero fuss. And it tastes soooo good!! And even better, it made enough for several more days! So I packed up a few individual containers in the fridge and put the rest in the freezer for another time.
After my cooking this weekend, my tummy is a happy camper and I have officially remembered why I love my kitchen. Now let's just see how much the scale liked my kitchen...
Initial weight: 257.2
Week 5: -2.0
Total weight loss: -12.8 lbs
Current weight: 244.4
I'd say the scale likes my kitchen!! Oh, and my new in"cent"ive program has been helping a lot!! I highly recommend...I only added $3 this week, but that's a vast improvement for me. I track pretty much every day, just not necessarily the WHOLE day...so baby steps!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)