Weekend Report #3

It has been a hectic weekend. Can I get a weekend from my weekend please?

First things first. I'm happy to report that I've lost another 1.4 pounds last week bringing up the grand total to: 56.3lbs lost. Which is pretty good considering I've been sick and haven't been doing much exercise. So, I'm doing a happy dance right now even though I'm exhausted from the weekend.

On Saturday, we had "Italian Thanksgiving". We're not going to make it to my husband's family's Thanksgiving gathering for three reasons. I love cooking so I want to cook the Thanksgiving feast (I know I'm sick, right?),I'm cooking it for my family's gathering this year, and it's too far to drive to just stop in when we have Mr. Grumpybutt. So I thought we'd have my husband's family over and do an early Thanksgiving type deal and so we did an Italian theme (hey, we're Italian, I thought it sounded like a good idea).

So I made lasagna bowls again... and again I forgot to get a picture of them. They seemed to be a big hit. Everyone ate it, no one horked it up, and no one keeled over and died. So that's a win for me. Then I made delicious garlic bread which I practically burnt. I'm really good at keeping so close an eye on it it doesn't seem to cook and then forgetting about it completely until I smell burnt coming from my oven. I also did a giant garden salad.

For dessert, I made 3ft's creation The Pumpkin Pizza again and I perfected it (carries along the Italian theme well, yes?). Instead of throwing chips on to the "sauce" I made a chocolate ganache and drizzled it over the top. Yes, I made the ganache with almond milk instead of milk or heavy cream and it turned out super delicious. You couldn't tell it was healthier for you. The crowd was a little apprehensive about trying it but did so because 3ft was so proud of his creation. It was a big hit and everyone loved it, telling 3ft he was a genius. He naturally ate up the attention.

Today, I threw together a new invention then Enchilasagna or Enchizagna. My husband likes the second name better -- I think I like the first. What do you guys think? It turned out super delicious and it only has about 175 calories and 8 grams of fat per piece. It was really filling and didn't taste like it was remotely healthier for you. I used 1/2lb lean ground beef and 1/2lb lean ground turkey.

If anyone wants to be a guinea cook and try out this recipe, just let me know. It was super easy to make, tastes super delicious, and it even has hidden veggies that pack it full of nutrition that you can't even taste!

Healthy Lifestyle - Day 157

Total Pounds Lost - 56.3

Weekend Report #2

Sorry about missing Sunday but holy moly I was busy this weekend. I left the house early yesterday morning and didn't get home til late and man was I beat.

On Saturday, I had 2 sick kids. 3ft had pneumonia and Grumpbutt had a cold. So that pretty much sucked up my day except for doing laundry and baking Cinnamon Mini Coffee Cakes for my brother-in-law's birthday.

Saturday was also my sister's birthday which we celebrated on Sunday with a family get together. I made her Triple Chocolate Brownies which she assures me she loves as well as got her a hand mixer -- she's getting into cooking. I like having something in common with her again.

We went to Applebees for her birthday dinner so our mom could buy her a drink. She just turned 12 (although she keeps trying to say it's 21 but I refuse to believe I'm that old). I got the Oriental Chicken Salad with Grilled chicken and I ordered it with the dressing on the side. Well. I got dressing on the side alright along with it swimming in dressing. When I asked what happened with the dressing being on the side the waitress looked at me like I was stupid and said it's right there. So, apparently I was specific enough that I didn't want ANY dressing on my salad, I wanted to do it myself. I was too hungry and tired of fighting with the misunderstanding waitress that I just ate it. WAY. TOO. MUCH. DRESSING. C'est la vie. Next time I'll be more explicit I guess. Although I'm not sure how.

I also had a few bites of birthday cake. It was pretty delicious with butter cream frosting -- my favorite. So, aside from the salad dressing incident the day went pretty good. And it was nice to hang out with my sister and her boyfriend. I don't get to see them very often.

*drum roll* As to how much weight I lost last week. Well, I lost 1 pound. With Halloween candy around, the extra baking, the horrible weather, birthdays, and sick kids I'll take 1 pound. Could've been worse. Could've been no pounds or gained pounds -- so I'm a happy camper. I've lost nearly 55 lbs total.

The highlight of the weekend: my sister told me my jeans made my butt look great. And that I was getting so skinny. Have I mentioned how much I love my sister?

Healthy Lifestyle - Day 152

Total Pounds Lost - 54.9

Really?...

Had a fairly heinous day yesterday. Started out normal enough. The family and I started running (actually driving -- yeah I know I'm hilarious) our errands yesterday. We had to hit Target, Costco, Safeway, and Blockbuster (actually we just needed to go inside and shop -- hitting them would have hurt our hands). Well Target went off without a hitch until we loaded up into the car and it refused to start.

The battery was dead. Like really dead. No clicking, no trying to turn over, no power... nothing.

Luckily the woman parked next to us was leaving too and let us steal some of her power to jump the car. We drove it to an AutoZone. The guy came out with the battery tester and sure enough it was a bad battery. 100 bucks later that we hadn't planned on spending following so closely to 90 bucks we hadn't planned on spending on a new tire we had a new battery.

However, don't you know, after we turned the car off to test the battery and then had to turn the car back on to go get the money, it started right up! RIGHT UP! We didn't want to push our luck so we got the new battery anyway because the husband commutes an hour and a half to work and then back again everyday.

I just have to say, the Moroccan Chicken w/ Almond Couscous was really good the first day but it was even more fabulous last night for dinner! I was going to save it for lunches but we didn't get back from our heinous battery nightmare and errands until after 5pm. We were hungry and it just needed to be heated up.

I climbed on the scale this morning. Guess what? I lost 3.8lbs this week! For a grand total of 31.1lbs lost!!! I'm in my pre-pregnancy range. The total suck of of it is this -- pants I wore before at this weight still don't fit. It's a total bummer what having a baby does to your body. So while I can fit into some of my pre-pregnancy pants my "skinny" jeans still remain elusive for the moment. I'll get there though, I'm on a roll (hold the butter. I crack myself up).

And a great big thanks to those who have been sending me recipes!!! I heart you all!

--Previous Day Tracking --

Exercise - Day Off.

Healthy Lifestyle - Day 82

Only Water - Day 77

Total Pounds Lost - 31.1

Meals:
Breakfast - bowl of FiberOne Honey Clusters w/ homemade Almond Milk
Lunch - McDonalds Classic Grilled Chicken Sandwich w/out mayo
Mid-Afternoon Snack - FiberOne Granola Bar and 1/2 peanut butter banana sandwich
Dinner - Moroccan Chicken and Almond Couscous and zucchini

Total Day Calories - 1152

Ta Da...Almond Milk!

I totally did it! I made Almond Milk from scratch. I ate it on my cereal this morning. It was so super good. And it was really easy. I did a standard batch just to see if I would like it. 1 cup almonds soaked over night, then rinsed and blended with 4 cups water. Then strain out the nut bits and ta da... Almond Milk! I also have almond meal to put in my delicious baked goods. Now I'm going to start playing with the recipe and make different flavors of it.

I'm a little bitter though. I went to Trader Joe's and bought a bag of Raw Almonds and paid 5 bucks for a pound. I went to Costco afterward (yesterday was my shopping day, I went to like 5 stores) and I found a 3lb bag for 9 bucks -- a much better deal. C'est la vie, I know for next time.



I also bought some chocolate covered almonds from Costco yesterday. They were so delicious and it totally satisfied the chocolate craving monster I've been battling for the last week. I savored them. Before the lifestyle change I would've horked them down and eaten half the ginormous container (3ft likes them too which is why I bought so much) without even batting an eye then cried as I watched the scale climb. Now I am portion smart and have self control and I was able to stop myself at a handful and ENJOY them. That's a major big deal for me.

--Previous Day Tracking --

Exercise - Day Off

Healthy Lifestyle - Day 76

Only Water - Day 71

Total Pounds Lost - 27.3

Meals:
Breakfast - peanut butter toast w/ banana and FiberOne Honey Clusters
Lunch - Southwestern Grilled Chicken Salad w/out cheese and dressing (McDonalds)
Mid-Afternoon Snack - Handful of chocolate covered Almonds and a FiberOne Granola Bar
Dinner - Cajun Chicken Sandwich w/ avocado instead of mayo and Homemade Jalapeno Potato Chips

Total Day Calories - 1140

Oy and Vey.

So much so it needs saying again. Oy and Vey.

Super busy weekend. On Sunday, the boys and I went with my folks to see my grandma. We left at 8am in the morning and didn't get home til 7pm last night. Super long day.

I started off all right enough. Had a light breakfast because I didn't know what the day was going to bring eating wise. Well that was my first mistake. Should've eaten more.

We didn't get to my grandma's house until 11:30(ish) (this is when we normally eat lunch -- we were hungry) my uncle didn't get there until 1. (we had to wait for him) Then, because my grandma wasn't feeling that well we were ordering out to bring it back to her house. We did Applebees. We didn't eat lunch until 2pm. No longer were we hungry but ravenous. And we all know this isn't a good sign. I inhaled my food. And ate more of it than I should of and still felt hungry. I pretty much felt hungry the rest of the day. I ate a couple tacos from Taco Bell when we stopped to get 3ft something for dinner on the way home. Then after we got the kids in bed, I got some Frosted Mini Wheats.

I finally had to force myself to back away from the cereal because I still was "feeling" hungry but I knew there was no way I should be. The day was a total fail. I was so exhausted, I didn't exercise and while my caloric goals are between 1400 and 1800 and I didn't go over, I still ate way too much! The only win is that when I stepped on the scale this morning to see what the damage was it'd only gone up 0.4lbs. I ate a lot of sodium yesterday too so I'm hoping its water weight.

I was lucky the damage wasn't worse. All the muscle I've gained, I guess. But I know I shouldn't push it anymore. Back to my normal schedule and normal eating habits. Weekends like last weekend kill me. I have a barbecue on the horizon for next weekend and I have no idea what the menu is so I'm apprehensive. Instead of getting too down on myself, I keep reminding myself that it's a lifestyle change NOT a diet and there is nothing to feel guilty about -- I'm living!

--Previous Day Tracking --

Exercise - Day Off

Healthy Lifestyle - Day 69

Only Water - Day 64

Total Pounds Lost - 25.4

Meals:
Breakfast - scrambled eggs and a slice of toast
Lunch - Split an Applebees Ultimate Trio w/my mom. Buffalo Wings, Dynamite Shrimp, and Steak Quesadilla Tower and a salad
Mid-Afternoon Snack - still full from lunch
Dinner - 2 Fresco Crunchy Tacos from Taco Bell
Evening Snack - Frosted Mini Wheats (no milk)

Total Day Calories - approx. 1600

The Weekend After...

It’s the Sunday after a major holiday -- time to get on the scale. Wait, let me rephrase that. It’s the Sunday after a major EATING holiday -- do I have to get on the scale?

*Cue suspenseful music*

I have to be honest. While it’s funnier to say I was filled with trepidation as I pulled out the scale and gingerly stepped on, it wouldn’t be the truth. I wasn’t worried. No, really, I wasn’t, for a few reasons.

Reason one: The mindset. I’m making a life change -- I’m not on a diet. So as the holidays come around, even the eating ones, I’m going to enjoy them. Sure, I didn’t eat the pie nor did I gorge out on the food -- not only was it a conscious choice but something I was incapable of doing without getting sick (it’s amazing how much your stomach shrinks when you lose a bunch of weight).

Reason two: I cooked the Thanksgiving Feast and the way I prepared the food -- using healthy choices that still taste delicious -- cut the calories in half for the entire meal. So while I ate a little more than I normally would’ve, I knew I wasn’t doing the damage that I normally could’ve.

Reason three: I worked out every day -- and I didn’t miss a day just because it was a holiday.

So armed with those three reasons, I pulled out the scale and happily hopped right on. Now I assumed I’d see that I’d maintained this week as I wasn’t on my best eating behavior, or even gone up a couple ounces. I looked at the numbers to find…

*booty shake*

…I lost 3.3 pounds over Thanksgiving! Now THAT is something to be thankful for.

I Remembered.

Sunday.

I used to dread its coming like dreading a pap smear -- a necessary evil but one I hate just the same. And now, I look forward to Sundays so I can track my progress and get inspiration to continue my epiphany for another week.

I still keep my scale buried in the closet. Not to avoid its taunting gaze but to keep me from getting on it daily to see how I’m doing. No one needs that kind of pressure. So every Sunday morning I dig it out, strip (every pound counts), and merrily hop on.

I gained *gasp* a whole .1 pound.

Ha!

I laughed gaily, bounced off the scale, buried it in my closet again and nonchalantly continued about my day. So what the pounds didn’t come off this week. They never do “this week” if you get my meaning and I know every week I can’t lose an average of five pounds. Besides the proof is in the fact that the jeans I bought last month are starting to get baggy and I work out with weights three times a week. Muscle weighs more than fat -- which is my mantra.

And even though I’ve gained weight *snicker* I’m still inspired to continue on my journey for two simple reasons: I haven’t felt this great or looked this good in YEARS.

I'm Ba-ack!

…and for those of you who haven’t passed out from the shock, let me catch you up.

Well, I didn’t realize it’s been over two months since I last posted an update on my progress with the epiphany. I didn’t forget, I’ve just been so into it, and other things in my life, that I sort of let it slide.

But…I didn’t let the life changes slide. So, let’s do a fast catch up. Hang on to your seats.

I have officially been on my life changing epiphany since the middle of June which (counts on fingers, subtracts some toes, and does the hokey pokey) makes it about five months now. And in the past five months, I’ve lost…

Are you ready? (drum roll please)

… a total of 76 pounds, 3 - 4 pants sizes (depends on the pants), 3 shirt sizes, and 3 bra sizes (in circumference, not cups)!

Can you say halfway to my goal? *does a booty shake*

How am I doing it? I eat approximately 1200 calories a day. As promised, I lost the first 20 pounds on the strict food plan, then chose to eat whatever I wanted as long as I adhered to the calorie count. I eat four to five small meals a day and I drink at least a gallon of water.

But my biggest crowning glory is the fact that I exercise every day -- so far 162 of them to be exact (yes I’m crazy, I keep count). And something weird happened. I stopped wishing the exercise video was over before it even really began -- which, let me tell you, made the video seem to last forever -- and started just enjoying the workout. It’s over before I know it and I’m a little sad when I’m done. Freak, right? I actually look forward to and like working out.

I really can’t believe the difference the 76 pound loss makes. Gone is the double chin and I have a collar bone! I had no idea. I can run after my three-year old son, three-feet-of-fun, and not get winded. And I feel prettier, sexier, and a whole lot healthier.

Now that I’ve gotten caught up with my progress I’ll for sure blog on Sundays as they are still weigh in days. Talk to you all next week!

More Pounds Bite the Dust

It’s Sunday again.

Funny how that works.

Cue suspenseful music.

I unearthed the dreaded scale from the dreary depths of my closet once again and stood upon it. Honestly, I wasn’t quite the drama queen this time and kept my eyes open the entire experience. I watched the little light blink and then did some blinking of my own.

301.8.

Now, while I wasn’t such a dork climbing on the scale this week, I’ll admit to still shrieking and doing a little dance as I jumped off it. I lost another 5.9 pounds! Suddenly, 150 pounds by next summer didn’t seem quite so daunting. I still prefer to think of it as seven pant sizes, though.

I know. I know. It won’t always be big numbers sloughing off. But it sure does help here in the beginning while I’m growing accustomed to these major lifestyle changes I’ve made. This also gets me that much closer to losing my first twenty pounds, which is when I’ll shake up my diet again and be a little less strenuous on what I can and can’t have.

As with anything you want to do for the long haul, you have to make it doable and be committed. The doing is coming pretty naturally so far and I’m definitely invested. And when the going gets tough, as I know it will, I have these lost 13.7 pounds to remind me of why it’s worth it.

Fabulous Finish to the Week

How did it get to be Sunday, already? Seems like just last week I pulled out the scale and dusted it off -- oh, that’s right, it was last week. So, as promised, I dragged out the scale again this morning and ignored its pleas for pity.

I closed my eyes, stood on it, took a deep breath -- and looked down.

Jumping Jelly Donuts! It read I weighed 307.7 pounds. I hopped off and then stepped back on and sure enough -- 307.7 blinked at me again. I’ve lost 7.8 pounds in the last week. I’ll confess I screamed. It was fabulous.

I realize I won’t get these results every Sunday, nor should I on a regular basis -- too much rapid weight loss is dangerous. However, I think it’s an awesome kickoff to my lifestyle change. The rigorous eating plan I’m following now is for the first twenty to twenty-five pounds, to get my body jumpstarted into weight loss mode. After I hit that first milestone, I plan on incorporating a less intensive meal plan so I can lose weight steadily while making sure it’s something I can live with on the long term. Food Nazi can equal Binge Blowout. This is something I want to avoid at all costs.

As for how the eating is going -- sticking to my regime on some days has been harder than others. But today it’s all been made worth it. My goals have been reaffirmed and I’ve got a definite spring to my step.

Being nearly eight pounds lighter will do that to a girl.

It's Complicated

One vital bit of information: no one, save for you readers and those who live with me, knows that I’ve become dedicated to getting fit and healthy. I’m so tired of hearing, “Oh, you’re going on another diet?” or, “Sure you’re dedicated. You were ‘dedicated’ to the last one too.”

And this, I’ve found, complicates things.

It was my friend’s birthday yesterday and a bunch of us took her out to lunch. It was the first time I’ve gone out to eat since I started waddling down the ‘healthy way’ path over two weeks ago. I wouldn’t have even gone except I felt really guilty about ‘being too sick’ for her birthday party. But…I wasn’t sure I could say no to the cake. For me, cake is like kryptonite.

Naturally she chose our favorite gourmet burger restaurant -- you know the kind with burgers as big as your head and french fries the size of your thumbs. Luckily for me, they had salads. Yum, right? So, as I stared longingly at the monster-heart-attack-on-a-plate pictures in the menu, I ordered a grilled chicken salad while everyone else greedily ordered greasy delicious goodness.

This presented a new challenge in the willpower adventure. Up until now, I’ve cooked, so that means everybody at home eats the same thing as I do. The only willpower required is making sure to cook something healthy. At the restaurant, no one ordered a salad but me. Now for the real test of my willpower -- watching them eat what I really wanted. And now for the newly discovered complication of not telling anyone of my epiphany -- the sharing offers.

Be proud.

Not only did I not steal the food off their plates, but I said no thank you when they offered me bites.

Small victory? Maybe. But each small victory gets me closer to my goal. I didn’t get to savor a burger and fries, but I sure savored my willpower on the way home.

The Horrible Truth

Today marks the two week anniversary of my lifestyle change epiphany -- two very busy weeks of implementing “The Great Plan of Attack.” And as promised, I have manned up and not only unearthed and dusted off the malevolent scale but also stood on it. Drum roll, please. I weigh, a whopping, scale groaning, how-did-I-ever-let-myself-get-this-heavy, 315.5 pounds. *THUD*

After I revived from passing out, and hurriedly put that-which-shall-not-be-named back in the closet, I started thinking, “Holy guacamole! If that’s what I weighed after two weeks of portion control, food rules, and exercise, can you imagine what I weighed previously?” I’d guess-timate that I lost at least five pounds from cutting my food intake in half, easily. But, be that as it may, my official start weight for this Herculean endeavor is going to be 315.5 pounds because I was too big a wuss to get on the scale any sooner. It could be worse I guess. I don’t know how, but it could be.

In true masochistic nature, I plan on digging that cursed scale out of its dark corner in the closet every Sunday and standing on it -- no matter how much it begs me not to. I figure keeping a weekly total of pounds lost and current weight will help keep me inspired, but I’m not going to be a slave to the numbers. So says the obsessive-compulsive girl who as we speak already has a graph of projected weekly weight loss totals and is making a color coded chart to record the actual weekly numbers.

This momentous occasion calls for a celebration. Cookie? Maybe in the olden days -- two weeks ago -- I’d have suggested a toast with delicious baked goods. Now? How about a shot of sugar-free lime JELLO? After all, nothing beats the sweet taste of getting fit and healthy.

A Necessary Evil

Doomsday is drawing ever closer. *cue suspenseful music* Every time I walk past the closet, I hear the scale laugh tauntingly from its burial ground. I’ve been successfully waging war on my food intake and have been having consecutive daily victories for over a week. I feel ready to up the ante and tackle a new evil.

Exercise.

I shudder just thinking about the “E” word but I know there is no way I’m going to come even remotely close to achieving my goals if I don’t start moving and grooving. I also had a nightmare about drowning in acres of loose sagging skin and I don’t want to look like I’m melting for real, which now makes exercise a high priority on my list. Must avoid loose skin at all costs. All costs.

For me everything starts on paper. So, you got it, I made a list. I wrote down all the areas I wanted to target. After I’d listed them out, I realized it would’ve been easier to have simple written: all of me.

I made a chart with the days of the week and what exercises I will do on which days. Every day I have crunches, push ups, and stretches, alternating days between Pilates, aerobics, and weights. The sight of it on paper is daunting, I know, but I did mention the drowning in flesh dream, right? Enough said.

Every good chart needs a rewards system in place, so it goes without saying that I have one. For every week I honestly complete the chart, I will treat myself to a little something just for me like a pedicure, new scented lotion (it’s an addiction, I can’t control it), or a new book and a bubble bath. I figure with as much hard work as I’m going to be putting forth, I should have the opportunity for some pampering too.

And So It Goes

I’ve had an epiphany!

Before we get to that, I should probably introduce myself. I’m a thirty-something woman, an average Jane if you will. Just a work-at-home mom who realized I was turning into a work-at-home planet complete with my own gravitational pull.

Now, after five years of steadily getting bigger and the myriad of excuses I’ve used to justify my size and lack of ambition to change it, I’ve finally decided to do something about it. No more whining and excuses -- I’m firmly taking hold of my own destiny and attacking it with zest!

I’m committing to making a “lifestyle” change, which is my fancy way of saying I’m putting my big butt on a healthy diet and rigorous exercise routine. My goal: to lose an entire person’s worth of weight. One whole person. Roughly 150 pounds. Wow.

I have no idea what I weigh exactly at this moment, although I know it’s clearly over 300 pounds. The thought of getting on a scale wakes me up screaming at night. Oh, I have a scale but it’s where it belongs -- hidden in the closet behind the Christmas decorations. I just have to work up to unearthing it and actually standing on it. You know next week, when I’ve gotten used to the whole concept. Right now, I don’t think I could take the groans and it saying, “Get off, you’re killing me!”

So hop along for the ride, it ought to be a fun one with lots of ups and downs. Okay, maybe ‘fun’ isn’t the word, but I can promise it’ll never be boring -- even if it’s like watching a train wreck.

Fasten your seatbelts -- it’s going to be a bumpy ride!