getting back on the wagon

I know i haven't talked about my weight loss in forever. That's because I've just kinda lost motivation. I lost the first 20 pounds semi easy and I'm struggling to get past this 5 pounds that keep going off and on. If you remember, this January i posted to the world how much i weighed (169 pounds if you don't remember), and mentioned that it was the heaviest I've ever been in my life, including when i was pregnant with any one of my three children. I joined Weight Watchers, I started exercising a little bit, started taking my vitamins, and started living the healthy life i was supposed to. I even started running. I started training for a 5K that turned out to not be a 5K but a 5 mile. I got halfway into my training and turkey hunting season came up. I was no longer able to stick to my morning running schedule and DarRell's small window of hunting. I fell off the wagon. I didn't make it to that 5 mile run (although i have plenty of reasons why, but seriously, they weren't the REAL reason why i didn't run it). Truthfully, i haven't been running since. Not a real run anyways. I got to a point in weight loss where my clothes starting fitting better, and had to, in fact, go and buy, get this... 2 sizes smaller! Right now i weigh in at about 145, give or take on the day. I hover up or down a few pounds and haven't made it lower than 144 yet. This is great news for me! Depending on the day, I've lost 25 pounds! However, I'm not near what my goal weight was for myself. Even when I've reconsidered what i want to weight now, I'm still not there. I would love to loose another 10 pounds or so. I haven't counted "points" in several months (which makes me wonder why I'm even still paying for my subscription to WW online). I've been eating better, but when i splurge, i make sure i splurge good. So, I've decided that i need to get back on that wagon. It's going to take baby steps. Lots of baby steps.

So, this is where The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans comes into play once again. Right now they are doing a challenge on making good health habits. by taking 21 days to form a new good habit. Right now, it's not focused primarily on weight loss but more into incorporating a few good habits into my life which will make a good impact on my weight loss goal. I've been thinking about what good habits i need to make in my life that will help in getting me to my goal weight and helping me stay there when I've reached it, and most importantly, just being more healthy in general.

I've decided that I don't want to overwhelm myself with tons of goals, whether they be easy or hard. I'd be setting myself up for failure at best. So I'm going to settling on four of what i believe to be most important to me at this time. So here it goes...

1. Taking my daily vitamins. Yes, i know this should be super easy. But truthfully, anything i find healthy, i hate doing. It's a glitch in me that i see happening all the time... i guess a bit of self destruction going on there. Not good... but it's the truth. So what better goal to have than to have one that SHOULD be easy just to prove to myself that i can do it. And what makes it even easier is that i found a daily vitamin that i can stomach and so happens to be really yummy. Thank goodness for children gummy vitamins, otherwise this would be a much more challenging and HARD goal for me.
2. Eating my daily servings of fruits and veggies. Or should it be veggies AND fruits... fruits being the hard part for me. Seriously, this is not a hard goal for me at all. I've been living off of salsa for the last month or so and loving every minute of it. And what's making it even easier is that gardens are starting to produce boatloads of veggies right now. I know i shouldn't make my goals a given, that making them so easy will also set me up for failure also since I'm not making any progress. Thus, the addition of adding in fruits. I'm super lucky if i get in my daily serving of fruit in one week, little alone in one day. I'm not a big fruit eater. I think i got worse at it when i started WW after finding out that most fruits have points where as lots of veggies were free. Yes, i think this goal will be a bit harder for me.
3. Drinking more water. Another easy one for me if i actually make a effort at doing it. I used to be so good at this, drinking at least 64-80oz or more a day. I got used to the constant trips to the bathroom and knew when i needed to drink more by just the way i was feeling. Don't ask me what happened to fall off that wagon, I'm just not sure what happened. Right now, my intake is approximately 32-48oz a day. Not even close to what is normally advised for everyone. I know what i need to do and how to do it, it's just the matter of doing it.
4. Eating breakfast EVERY day. I know, it should be easy. And seriously, i know better. But there is that part of me that STILL thinks that if i don't eat breakfast, then i'm not eating as much throughout the day calorie wise. But i KNOW that if i eat breakfast, it kick starts my metabolism. It gives me that extra punch to help burn calories longer in given day then if i don't. I know that it doesn't matter much what i eat for breakfast (well, it does... but lets face it, any kind of breakfast is better than no breakfast right?), i just gotta do it. And yet, i find myself NOT eating breakfast just because of the fact that i want that milkshake later in the day and i'm making up for it calorie wise by not eating breakfast. Twisted thinking but true. Even though i know what i'm supposed to do, i justify it anyways. Definately the harder of my four goals.

Although these four goals I've chosen aren't things that i need to work super hard at achieving, They are some of my most important goals to help me in my journey of a healthy lifestyle and helping me get to where i want to be in life, health and weight wise. Like i said, it's all about baby steps. These baby steps are going to lead to bigger and better steps and before i know it, I'll be out running that 5 mile next year... you wait and see!

True Confessions Monday

1. Today is the first day of Summer Vacation. After several (all ready?) meltdowns this morning, it's going to be a difficult 3 months.

2. Both Daylon and Rianne are a bit down and mopey. Oddly enough, they miss school terribly, especially Daylon.

3. Sam is having the hardest transition. I don't think he likes his brother and sister cutting in on HIS time.

4. I've been under a LOT of stress lately.

5. I've lost 3 pounds in the last 5 days.

6. I love that I've lost 3 pounds, I just hate the stress that caused the loss.

7. I think i have a whole new crop of grey hairs coming in because of it.

8. I haven't done any tracking points in WW for about a month. I started back up on Thursday. It feels good to know what i need to do again instead of just taking my chances. But i feel like I'm on the right track even when I'm not tracking.

9. I haven't done any deliberate exercising for over a month either. I've lost all motivation and it sucks.

10. I hit my 20 pound loss this last week (and the week before but i gained it back after the Memorial Day Weekend feasts)

11. I have 13 more pounds to loose before i hit the top of my weight goal. 18 more pounds to hit the bottom part of weight goal.

12. I CAN'T WAIT!!!

13. Even though i know i won't hit it by my 35th birthday in a month and a half, which was my plan, I know that I will be at least 20 pounds lighter than i was last year at that time.

14. I really need to start exercising again. I hope the summer will give me back some motivation.

15. I'm sure the new challenge starting up next week over at The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans is going to help with the motivation too. GO TEAM YELLOW!!!!

frustrated

Today marked the end of The Shrinking Jeans, Shrink into Summer challenge. I admit, i haven't been keeping up on it like i should be. I didn't hit my goal during those two months. I was about 2.5 lbs off. I did however lose 7.4 pounds. And frankly a loss is a loss right? I didn't come out on top of what i started out as so i consider it a win.

Also, i earned this:

a while back. I honestly can't wait till i trade it in for a 20lb loss button. Just a few more pounds to go.

I beleive it's time to get back into the swing of things again. So, here go a few confessions:

*I haven't run for over 2 weeks now and i feel like i'm completely out of it.

In fact, i haven't done any exercising for quite some time now.

I'm in need of some serious motivation.

*I haven't done any tracking of points on WW for almost that long.

It's showing in my weight loss... or lack there of...

Tomarrow starts a new week. A perfect time to start new don't you think?

*I think i've given up on my goal to run/walk the 5 mile milk run in July.

It seems so beyond my reach right now.

*I just bought 2 bags of puffy Cheetos yesterday.

Sadly, that's all i had for dinner last night too (although i didn't eat the whole bag(s))

*I'm finding that with the warmer weather also comes a greater challenge to eat right.

I've got summer cravings coming in hard, and most of them aren't exactly the best. I'm hoping that once my garden starts throwing out it's bounty, things will get easier.

So... that's it, i guess. I'm a bit frustrated with my lack of motivation right now. I'm hoping that swift kick in the rear end is in my near future, i could really use it.

One More Mile

One More Mile Running has these cool shirts.

They are made out of this wick-lite diamond knit fabric.

It's super light and stretchy and soft.

Even better is the slogans they put on their shirts.
Here are a few i like:

This one is pretty good too!
and my all time favorite....

I'm thinking I might want to get that one for my 5 mile run in July.

*****

For a chance to win one, enter here at Shrinking Jeans.

Shred It!

What can i say, i'm serious about loosing this weight.

And lately I'm lacking in the motivation area.

The sisters (and guy) over at Shrinking Jeans are having a 30 Shred challenge.

(Did i mention before that these guys are great at motivation?)

This is a serious challenge even though it's only a 20 minute workout.

I borrowed a copy from my neighbor (who is in the process of moving! WHAAA!!!)

and for the two days that i did it, i lost ONE pound!!!!

(then life got in the way... AKA the kids came down with the plague again)

WOW!!!

So now that i KNOW it works, i'm up for the challenge again...

and i'm ready to die those 20 minutes every day.

bring it on.

Confession...
I've fallen off the bandwagon.
True, i am loosing weight.
But i keep putting it on in the same week also.
So, technically, does that count as loosing?
I'm not so sure it does.

That is why i love this place --> The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans. I need the motivation. And they a wonderful at handing it out... by the bucketfuls.

They are starting a new challenge today. Check them out! I am so there!!!

it's a loss

Yesterday at the Sisterhood was the end of the first week of a three week weightloss challenge. I weighed in yesterday mornng (even though this morning is my "official" weight-in for WW) and I am proud to shout out a 2.2lb loss! Whoohooo! I was actually quite shocked to see the loss (and one of the biggest weekly losses i've had) considering i used EVERY weekly point i had and never worked out once.

On another note, when i weighed in for WW this morning, i hit my 5% goal weight. The 5% goal means I've lost just under 10lbs since starting exactly 6 weeks ago, and a total of almost 12lbs since the first of January. The 5% goal also means that my daily points have dropped *EAK*!

Also, on the Sisterhood, they are having a recipe carnival. I haven't gotten any recipes that are low cal/low fat/low whatever, but here is my favorite meal:

Homemade Pizzas

*1 Flatout bread - i like to use the multi-grain w/flax - 1pt (depending on the different flavors available, it can range between one to two points for WW)
*1/4 cup pizza sauce - i use Contadina brand and 1/4 cup is almost too much - 0pt
*1/3 pizza blend cheese - 2pt
*sliced tomato - 0pt
*mushroom - 0pt
*1 cup chopped artichokes (I LOVE artichokes... and a lot of them) - 1pt
*1 tsp olive oil - 1pt
*baby greens or spinich - 0pt
*chopped chicken breast - about 1/2 breast - 1.5pt

Pop it in the toaster oven till crisp.
Total WW points: 6.5
it also checks off: 1 dairy, 1 oil, and approx. 4 veggies

True Confessions Monday

* I have refrained from weighing myself all week long. I'm looking for that genuine surprise on weigh-in day whether it be a gain or a loss (please be a loss, please be a loss, please be a loss...)

* I had dinner with our wonderful neighbors last night. It was really good for the soul

* Speaking of good for the soul... so was the girls night out last week. I miss having girlfriends. Thanks Heather and Loraine!

* I've been staying within my WW points pretty well but i feel like I've been cheating by going into my weekly points every day.

* I haven't exercised for nearly a week. I just can't find the motivation

* My "big" pants are fitting loose now. That makes me so happy

* I'm afraid that now that my "big" pants loose, I'm going to start slacking more

* I've been really bad getting in my water every day... even for WW standards

* I have a new found love for bananas (and apples and grapes... MMMM, thanks Heather. The fruit salad was a hit!)

* I found out that planning my dinner first and then working my WW points around that makes for staying within my points much easier

* I spent double on groceries last month trying to put more fresh fruits and veggies and healthier foods into our diet

* Did I mention that eating healthier is more expensive?

* My goal this month (besides loosing weight) is to cut our food bill back down to budget

challenges and goals

Yup, I'm still here. And I'm still on my "weight loss journey".
I've found a great place to go for a bit more motivation (thank you Kim). I love this place. I like to go there when I'm feeling a bit unmotivated or when i think about giving up and wanting to eat everything in sight. It doesn't stop the cravings but it does help keep me sabotaging myself.

They have a NEW challenge starting today and i'm sooo up for it. I do better when i have something motivating me to do it. Somehow me doing this alone just isn't enough.

So today I'm weighing in (and I will tomarrow too for my "official" weigh in), and hopefully in 3 weeks, i'll be 5lbs lighter. I'm thinking that is a very realistic goal, unlike what i'm thinking deep down hoping it's going to be more like a 10lb loss. I'm not sure i can hit it, considering i've lost only about 2 1/2lbs in the last 3 weeks, but i'm going to give it a really good try.

But one thing is for sure, i WILL be in the 150's!

HOLY CRAP!!!!!!!!

a Reece's Peanut Butter Heart is 4 points!!!! (and it so didn't taste THAT good)

even worse: a Whopper Mushroom Swiss Steakhouse burger is 20 points! YES!!! 20 points!!!! Almost my complete daily point worth.

Kiss 10.5 of my weekly points goodbye!

*sigh* I thought i would just vent a bit. I feel better now... sort of.

RANDOM thoughts...

...about my weightloss adventures and being a Weight Watchers girl.

*eating healthy isn't necessarily hard for me, except for the fact that at least once a week i have HORRENDOUS cravings. That's when it gets hard for me.

*I've decided that i like to keep track of what I'm eating. But after eating out with DarRell for lunch, I've decided that it's so much harder to track WW points that way.

*my food bill has gone up due to the fact that i need to keep going to the store for fresh fruits and vegetables every few days.

*I've finally found a multi-vitamin that i can take that doesn't make me sick and really tastes good. You ready for this? Children's gummy vitamins.

*I've found i drink way more water than what i "need" without any trouble at all. 64oz a day is nothing for me to get down.

*I'd much rather spend my WW points on meat and vegetables than on sweets. But it's the white breads and fried foods I'm really missing.

*I love eating breakfast. Who would've thought.

*I'm a bit disappointed in the amount of weight I've lost so far. I think i may be setting my expectations a bit too high (amount of lbs i want to loose a week/month) but on the other hand, my final goal seems very reasonable.

*I wish my mom was still on WW. She'd be a great buddy to compare notes with.

*some of the ladies on the WW message boards are VERY snarky and VERY mean. BLECK! I thought the message boards were all about support, not a place to pick apart the way someone accidentally miss-spelled something.

*it's hard to loose weight when everyone you live with is on the skinny side and need all the calories they can get.

*Daylon is my best support. He's a healthy eater and keeps me motivated by asking if we have certain things in the house for snacks. His favorite is Dannon Light & Fit vanilla yogurt with strawberries and blueberries. It happens to be one of my favorites too.

*DarRell bought(OK, traded work for product) me a great pair of walking/running shoes. I love them.

*I've never wanted to go work out in a gym so much in my life as i do now. What's stopping me? I don't want to go alone. For now I'll stick with my treadmill and the open road but i have some serious issues with motivation right now.

*my cravings hit me hardest in the afternoon. From about 1:00pm-4:30pm. It is then, that i want to sit down with a big bag of Cheetos and a Mt. Dew and pig out.

*I'm completely off Mt. Dew

*Thursday is my weigh-in day. (but as of today, i am down 7.8lbs since the first of January with almost 2 full weeks on WW).

*I WILL be at my goal weight by my 35th birthday

SUCCESS!!!!!!!!!

YES!!!!!!!!!!
We are now potty trained!
COMPLETELY!
Dry nights, dry naps, no accidents!

Sam Rules!

It was a combination of new underware, hershey kisses, and nightly trips to the firehouse. I forgot how much fun the diaper switch to underware is! We took a trip to Wal-Mart and got some he really like (the Cars ones), ones that i thought were cute (rocketship ones) and then some like Daylon's (boxer briefs). Sam prefers the Cars ones over any of the others unless Daylon is around, then he has to look like his big brother. It's just too cute.

Today we took our first trip to town diaperless. I've been scared to death to take him anywhere without him being in a diaper. I just haven't been wanting to deal with the accidents. But since he's been dry consistenly for the last few days, i thought i'd give it a go. He's a champ!

Rewards were/are Hershey kisses every time he goes potty. It works like a charm since the kid is addicted to them. He knows that if he wants a HK then he'll have to go potty. It turns out its a perfect incentive.

If we've had a REALLY good day, DarRell takes him down to the firehouse after dinner to see the "weeoo's". He gets so pumped up with the whole thing.

____________________________________

on the weight loss front, things are going well. I am down a complete 6lbs! It's been one full month since i started getting serious. I'm kinda looking forward to working out and eating right to see it all come off. I can't really see much a difference in myself but the scales say they do, so i'll take their word on it!

Official

It's official. I'm now a member of Weight Watchers Online. I'm hoping that this is what's going to help get the weight off a bit easier. So far, today anyways, i've done quite well. I had a hard time staying full for the first two meals but dinner i ended up super full and still had a few points to spare. I can see this is going to take a bit more of planning meals ahead of time but i think it may work out great. I'm actually looking forward to weigh-in next week to see how much i loose. Keeping my fingers crossed that it's in the negitive direction.