Tracy's Journey to Health

Here's to 2012!

2012-01-01T22:35:00.000-05:00

Happy New Year everyone! I have been completely enjoying my time off since finishing up my student teaching. It was a very long, hard seven weeks but I am finally done AND managed to get an A in the class thanks to the good communication I had with my professor and coordinators at my college. They were able to see that it was obviously not true what the teacher was saying and what she was doing was very wrong. Anyway, I am so very glad it is behind me now and I officially have my Master's Degree and am waiting on my teaching certificate. Until then, and until I find a permanent position, I will be substitute teaching. I am really looking forward to it.

As far as my "Journey to Health" has been going, well the holidays took their toll on me again. I got down to 185 at the end of my student teaching and this morning on the 1st was back to 190. So still a 15 pound loss overall. And I am now ready to have 2012 be my year to becoming the healthy person I know I can be.

I have started another page with my 2012 goals on it (the link is on the right hand side). I am going to work on daily/weekly goals, monthly goals and then overall goals that I hope to accomplish in 2012. Some are small, some are really big, but I know if I put my mind to it I can accomplish anything. I really want to look back on this year as the year I took control of my life. Tomorrow I am meeting a friend at the gym to get started and hitting the grocery after for some healthy food...so here we go!

The countdown is on

2011-11-03T11:05:00.000-04:00

Yep, I'm still here. And I'm still managing to lose weight somehow, even though I am still doing bad on my tracking and my exercise. Luckily being a teacher does provide lots of exercise and I come home exhausted most nights from standing all day and running up and down the stairs. But unfortunately I think my reasons for weight loss have more to do with stress right now then anything else.

I know not a lot of people read this but I want to explain and maybe it will just make me feel better. In order to finish my masters degree I have to do two sets of student teaching. My first seven weeks was at a high school teaching business. I absolutely loved it and wished it would not end. I left there feeling on top of the world and could not wait to become a teacher. Starting at the beginning of October I went to teach 6th grade math. And it has been nothing but downhill since then.

I won't go into too many specifics but the teacher I am with has basically made me feel like dirt. After my first observation she said she doubted anyone would ever hire me and at the end of last week told me that some people either have it or they don't and I obviously didn't. I seriously cry every day on the way home. Sometimes I have to go to the bathroom and cry between classes. A few times I've broken down in front of her while she is giving me her wonderful "pep" talks but somehow I feel like that is what she is trying to do and have tried to stop. I went and talked to my college professor and my university supervisor and I think they've managed to make me see its all on her end and I shouldn't listen to what she is saying. Apparently the first teacher I was with said I was her best student teacher ever so that has to count for something, right?

I only have two more weeks of this to get through. Tomorrow is easy, its Friday so we do testing. Next week there is no students at the school Monday and Tuesday and she is out Thursday and Friday. So only one day with her next week. And then the last week I am only supposed to teach a few days and then start pulling back and letting her take the class back over. Gladly!!! After that I am graduated and can go find a job of my own. And hope she hasn't made me doubt my ability to teach too much.

Anyway...all that to say that I don't eat much at school because of my nerves. And when I do get home its just one meal and then I'm so tired I head to bed. So once this is all over with I will be able to blog more regularly, BUT I have a feeling I will really need to start watching my food and getting that exercise in. Especially with the holidays coming up. But I am looking forward to it! My little mini goal is to celebrate Christmas in the 170's. I think it can be done!

Still here plodding along!

2011-10-16T11:02:00.000-04:00

You know, I was so excited about starting this blog but I really am NOT good at maintaining it. How do people manage to post every single day when I can't even get one post up a week! It's been two weeks since I last posted. I really can't find the time to come here every couple of days and write a bit about what I've been doing? I know I am busy but I so enjoy reading other people's blogs and really wanted this to be something more than it is. I wanted new friendships and motivation and people to help me along this journey that understand where I am. But obviously I am not going to get that posting once or twice a month...any advice would be greatly appreciated!

That said I really have not been rocking my goals for Biz's Holiday Challenge either, but I have been trying and it is all I can ask for. I have managed to not gain weight over the past two weeks and even managed to lose .6. Not awe inspiring but without doing any tracking at all I am very pleased with that. My schedule makes it very easy to not overeat during the day. I am teaching 5 classes of 6th grade math and it is just non stop. And they have to be taken everywhere so it is up and down stairs constantly. I may not be making it to the gym, but I am certainly getting my exercise.

I have five more weeks of this and then I can start looking for my own job teaching. I am very excited about that. The one good thing is that I technically can't teach until Jan 1 when my teaching certificate will be processed. So from November 18th to then I will be off work and off school. That is six weeks that I can completely focus on myself and getting healthy. Right during the holiday season too so I am hoping that the lack of stress from work and school will help me to get through the holidays and come out the other side more in shape and weighing less!

So while I can't say I have done wonderful on my goals (especially the tracking, which I have already got back to today!) I have at least done them part of the time and I am not disappointed in myself. If I didn't have this challenge to lean on I could so easily be sitting here more out of shape and 14 pounds heavier instead of the opposite. Hope everyone else is having a great challenge too, I'm off to make my rounds of the blog world.

Finally finding my groove!

2011-09-25T10:06:00.000-04:00

Well, so much for posting more often. That is definitely my number one goal this week! I even had a decent week to blog about and still didn't sit down here and update.

So I guess I need to back up a bit on my challenge results for last week . My first goal is to lose "something" each week. Last week my weigh in was 195.6 for a loss of 1.4. That works for me! I wanted to track my WW points five days, I only tracked 2. Still better than the zero I did the week before. I also wanted to exercise five days, I got four days in! Overall a very successful week to me.

Now this week (week 2) of the challenge. My weigh in was 192.6 for a loss of 3 pounds! Wow, wow, wow. That also gave me my little star for losing 5% of my weight. Those little stars make me so happy. My next goal for 10% is 184.5. Seems so unreal I could be there soon after starting at 205.

Sorry, digressing a bit. Tracking was much better, I did five days out of seven. So I'm getting better. Working out...that's where I dropped the ball. I didn't even get one day in. So that is an area I really need to work on because I have big plans for next year in the fitness department. And I have already started off this week on the right foot because I just got back from the gym.

I don't know why but I feel I've finally gotten into the groove again of eating well and exercising. I just hope I can make it last through the holidays. I want to start out 2012 a better me! Good luck to everyone else on the challenge this week. Looking forward to seeing how everyone is doing.

New week - new me!

2011-09-11T09:04:00.000-04:00

I really need to get better at posting regular updates. Its again been a busy few weeks. I am now the actual "teacher" teaching in my classroom while the real teacher observes me, so I have been embracing lesson plans and smart aleck teenagers. I am still really enjoying it though so maybe this is what I am meant to do.

Food wise - only ok. I still do not eat a lot at school but tend to make up for it when I get home at night. And the scale has been hopping UP and down more than I like. One day I even was back up to 200 lbs, ack! But this morning I am again at 197.2, so I feel a little better about it. I need to be serious about tracking, that is why I am paying for WW Online, so why do I not just use it already?!? Exercise has been non existent but I am making a plan today to work on both food and exercise for the upcoming week.

I am once again entering Biz's holiday challenge. I believe it started Labor Day and will run through the 1st of January. My goals are to 1)just lose something each week, even if it is only .2, at least it is going down and 2)to exercise 5 days a week (no time limit this time, just get moving) and 3. to track my food 5 days a week. That last goal is a new one but I think it will really help me to get a handle on my eating. Of course ideally I am aiming for 7 days a week, but I am trying to work on my "all or nothing" mentality a bit.

Good luck to everyone else int he challenge and ..HERE WE GO!

TGIF

2011-08-26T19:26:00.000-04:00

I am sooooo glad it is Friday. This was my first full week doing my student teaching and it is hard to get used to being on my feet all day. I am working with high school kids and you cannot let up for a second with them. But I am absolutely loving it so far. I sometimes realize what a great time I'm having and hope that I have finally found my calling. Only took me 40 years!

I actually lost again this week without any exercise (which I am so trying to get back into). I have to be honest that on Thursday we were so busy with classes that I completely skipped lunch. I wonder if that contributed a bit to my Friday weigh in. But I was so ravenous when I got home that night I really felt like I made up for skipping that meal. I don't want to do that again though, it didn't make me feel very good.

We have a really busy weekend with two birthday partys and dinner at a good friend's house so that worries me a bit too. But I am just going to practice portion control as much as I can and really, really try to meet a friend at the gym Saturday and Sunday. Money is so tight with me not working for pay but I just keep holding on to that membership...sigh! Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!

Back Again

2011-08-20T10:56:00.000-04:00

Well I sort of disappeared for the entire month of July but I am going to try this again. I honestly can't say I did great in July, it was a pretty stressful and busy time, but I did attempt to be healthy. In the past six weeks I quit my job, went on a camping vacation, had some great time off with my daughter and began my student teaching. Somewhere along the way I managed to lose a little weight but I think it was more because of blistering hot and humid heat on my camping trip (that made me not want to eat or drink anything) and not having time to eat in the last week teaching. First time in a long time that I actually lost weight on a vacation instead of gained. But...I will take it for what it is, and being below 200 has really motivated me to stay that way for good!!!

I am really excited about doing my student teaching and for this first seven weeks I am helping an awesome teacher with her accounting and computer applications class. My bachelor's is in accounting so I feel pretty comfortable with it and I am enjoying this way more than I had hoped. She is teaching me so much I feel that I may actually be able to teach a class of my own someday. Because we're in the school all day I HAVE to plan my lunches and snacks because there is no where else to eat. And I only get 20 minutes. I think this is really going to help me and make me finally have a meal plan for the week. The only thing I have to watch is being ravenous when I get home and grabbing anything. So...on that note I am off to plan my meals for the week and have a good healthy grocery trip! I believe there is a gym trip in my future today also. If anyone happens to read this I hope everyone has a wonderful and healthy weekend!

101 Days Summer of Challenge Update Week #4

2011-06-27T14:02:00.000-04:00

Week 4 - My two goals for the challenge are to lose "something" each week and to work out at least 30 mins, 5 days a week. Goal #1 accomplished! I lost (again) 1.2 so that puts me at 202.6. I was very happy with that as I seemed to log in to WW each morning and manage to track breakfast and lunch, only to totally fail at dinner. We have been eating out a lot. But I have been trying to make better choices and obviously it is helping. I just need to work on tracking the entire day, even if I go over. I think that will ultimately help me make better choices AND see where I am going wrong.

Goal #2 - huh. A few years ago I was bending over to pick something up and when I straightened back up I had a very sharp pain in they right back area, just above my behind. It would not go away so I ended up at a chiropractor who said I had piriformis syndrome. They diagnosis was "pain, tingling, or numbness deep in the buttocks and along the sciatic nerve. Sitting down, stretching, climbing stairs, and performing squats usually increases pain." The treatment was going to her and having her literally dig her elbow into that area and push as hard as she could. It really, really hurt. And then I did stretches at home to help. Last week it came back. I was so upset. Some of the things I have read has said that doing exercise incorrectly can actually cause this. So now I have to wonder if I was doing something the wrong way and exacerbated this again. As of right now I am having my bf dig his elbow in (lovely feeling, NOT) and doing the stretches. But trying to do exercise would not be good until I get this under control. And then I wonder if I should get a trainer to check my form.

So I failed at this goal. But I am trying not to feel too bad because it is really out of my control. I didn't stay at home and sit on the couch and disregard getting my exercise in, I just CAN'T do it right now. Maybe I should come up with an alternate goal until I can resume exercise. It is getting better, I can tell. But when walking my dog for 15 minutes still ends in sharp pain, I know that it is not the time to try and start again.

In other news, I will be going out of town tonight until the 5th of July and I do not think I will have access to my computer until I get back. So I will not have a check in until probably week #6. We are going to Michigan to stay at a friend's cabin right on the lake and I am so looking forward to some time off! I have already talked to her and we are buying all our own food to cook and going for daily walks so I am not feeling too worried about it. And with all the running around maybe I'll manage to get my 30 minutes in each day too!

Hope everyone has a great week on the challenge and I'll be back on the 5th!

101 Days of Summer Challenge Update Week #3

2011-06-18T20:22:00.000-04:00

Well, after two+ years of neglecting my blog I have decided to try this again. Not much has changed in the past two years except I have managed to find an extra 10 pounds. When I did the Biggest Loser Blog Edition I started off weighing 195. A few weeks ago I found myself at 205, which is my highest weight ever. And it scared me enough to want to get serious. And then after reading about Biz's 101 Days of Summer Challenge it seemed like all the extra encouragement I needed.

The challenge is actually on its third week but life got in the way of me getting my blog going again so I am just now updating. My goals for the challenge are 1) to lose something each week. I don’t care if its .2 of a pound, I just want to weigh less than the week before and 2) to exercise 150 minutes each week (30 min 5 days).

Week 1 - Unfortunately I had some personal issues come up that didn't allow me to start this week. Very hard week in my life.

Week 2 - Worked out twice this week so did not make my goal of 150 minutes but did have a small loss. 1 out of 2!

Week 3 - DID IT!!! Work out exactly 150 minutes. I did do two 45 min days and 1 hour day, but at least I did it. And I am down from 205 to 203.8 so 1.2 pounds lost so far.

I know if I could just get my eating under control I would have much better results. My biggest probelm isn't what I eat its the quantity I eat it in. I have signed up again for Weight Watchers online and I'm hoping that will help me be more accountable.

Don't want to write too long of a post for my first one so I will be back soon to update how I am doing. Good luck to everyone else and I will be making my rounds of the other participants to cheer them on!

Week #8 Results

2009-03-06T08:59:00.002-05:00

My title's are so creative, aren't they? : ) Well, I utterly failed at posting more this week but I promise that will improve in the future. My new class started and it was a lot more work then I had anticipated, so it kept me tied up for most of the week. Luckily being so busy also helped me not recreate the food fest I had the previous week.

So this week I didn't get back to where I was but I am going down and that's the good thing. I weighed in at 184 for a loss of .5. Not exactly what I was hoping for, but as I said above the week didn't give me a lot of time for planning or exercising so I'm just glad it was a loss. I feel like I dodged a bullet this time by stopping the gain and getting right back on the wagon.

This weekend is going to be a bit challenging. I am off in a few hours to a scrapbook retreat up in Indiana. A friend of mine from Michigan flew in to go with me. They provide all the food for the weekend. Luckily it is pretty healthy and there is salad at both lunch and dinner. So I feel pretty confident that I can make good choices. I just have to stay away from the snack table and I'll be fine.

I'm so sorry I didn't get to make my rounds of everyone this week. I have plans when I get back on Sunday to just kick back and relax and catch up with everyone. Thanks to everyone for the comments on my last post. It is so nice to have the support and especially the kick in the pants to stick with it and not let a bad week be my downfall.

Week #7 Results

2009-02-26T15:12:00.001-05:00

Well, this week’s weigh in did not go as well as my previous ones. I basically hopped off the wagon last Friday, ran as far away from it as I could, and pretended like the last 7 weeks had never happened. It was not pretty. I made very, very bad choices. I ate out A LOT. And I exercised nada, zip, nothing.

I also disappeared off the blog world. I was even ashamed to read everyone else knowing how bad I was doing myself. Yes, as I’m typing that I realize how silly it is. Reading about everyone else’s week might have helped me get back on track a lot faster.

So what was the damage done? I weighed in at 184.5 for a 3.5 pound gain. Ouch! Actually though, I am not as upset with this as I thought I would be. Yes, I am disappointed in myself for going so out of control but I deserve every bit of that gain after the week I had. It almost amuses me that I freak out after losing “only” half a pound during a good week but a gain like this one and I’m just “eh.”

I have learned some things from this week though. One is that if I don’t go to the grocery and have healthy, easily accessible foods in the house I will not do well. I haven’t been to the grocery in almost two weeks, which led to the eating out, which led to one bad decision in a weak moment, which led to, “oh well, I’m done for the week, might as well go all out” decisions.

Two, is that weeks like this are going to happen. I will admit that I had a moment or two of wondering if I should just give up and try again in a month or so when things calm down. But this blog, and keeping up with everyone else and their progress, has helped me stick with it a lot longer this time.

And I don’t want to just give up because I’ve had one bad week. If that leads to several bad weeks I am going to end up right back at 195 or higher! I still have lost 10.5 pounds overall. If I have one bad week every time I lose 10 pounds, I think I’ll be okay with that.

The reality is that even after the Biggest Loser Blog contest is over I will not be at my goal weight. I still have quite a bit of a journey to go. And this process is about me getting healthy overall, not just losing weight. I think that will be ongoing even after I get to goal as I increase my exercising and try to move towards healthier whole foods.

I apologize to my team members for the bad number this week but I promise you will see it go right back down next week! I got my tracker back out today. I made the best of what I could find for breakfast this morning and had Subway for lunch. I will be tracking everything this week and getting my behind in gear on the exercising.

In addition I will be blogging as much as I can this week about how my days are going. I think being accountable to this has greatly helped me lose what I did the last few months, so I’m hoping it will help get me back on track also. Off to check on everyone else.

Week #6 Results

2009-02-20T08:51:00.001-05:00

Yesterday I weighed in at 181 for a loss of -1.5 this week. I feel like I really earned this. Even after not being able to accurately count my points for 3 days over the weekend, I really kicked it back into gear for the rest of the week.

The really awesome thing about last week was it made me see what it could be like for me on maintenance. That I can go out and enjoy time with my friends, make good choices without feeling deprived, and not beat myself up about what a horrible weekend I had come Monday.

I still feel a bit overwhelmed sometimes about how far I have to go but I am trying to focus on small steps and goals. I only have 5 more pounds until my first goal of 10%. And I am excited to be back in the 170’s again.

I do wish I had some idea of an end point but I really don’t want to put a number on my goal. I want to get to a weight where I look in the mirror and am happy with what I see. I have no idea what number that will be since its been so long since I’ve been there. Probably as a child! So I will just continue to focus on my little goals that I have for now and deal with that when I get closer.

Again, my main focus this week is going to be exercise. I know I am doing better than I was before but I would really like to get into a routine and I can’t seem to do that. Any ideas?

This Sunday I am going skiing and I am so excited. Its been quite a while since I’ve been and I’m not very good but I really enjoy it. I’ll try and get some pictures, hopefully of me standing up right and not on my behind! I am off to try and catch up on everyone; I’ve fallen way behind in my reading. Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Valentine's weekend

2009-02-15T21:58:00.006-05:00

Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's weekend. Enjoyment wise, it couldn't have been better. Food wise, I've had better days. : ( I honestly don't feel like I did horrible, but I know that I indulged a bit more then I should have.

Friday night my Mom and I took my nieces and my boyfriend's daughter to a tea party. This place was adorable! They let the girls (and grown ups) do a little dress up before going their table and the kids just had a blast with this. This was our table.

The lady brought us individual tea pots with different flavored teas. One was chocolate, which the younger crowd enjoyed, but I liked the one that had apples and cinnamon. They also brought trays of the most yummy finger foods. I had exactly one of everything, but that totaled eight things. They were pretty small and I did have 16 points left for the day but I honestly have no idea how to count them. This was the adult tray.

And here is my lovely hat. : )

Yesterday started out good and I had plans to cook a Valentine's dinner but my boyfriend surprised me by taking me to Outback. That is one of my favorite restaurants. I don't feel that I did too badly there either. I had a few pieces of the bread, my salad with dressing on the side, about 1/2 of a 6 oz steak and the French green beans. I had never had those before since I usually go for the loaded potato, they were really good.

That night we got together with friends and there were lots of munchies. Since we had eaten so early, I definitely ate too much there. But Saturday was my Super High Day so I was just going to move on and start fresh today.

Big sigh ... today at the last minute I went to a movie and then to the Olive Garden. I was so proud of myself for declining anything at the movies even though the popcorn smelled delicious. And at Olive Garden I had two big plates of salad, with my dressing on the side, and a flatbread grilled chicken appetizer. It had alfredo sauce on it, which I'm sure wasn't great, but I didn't finish the whole thing.

So three days of being pretty much completely off program BUT I feel like I really made good choices. I never once felt stuffed or like I had eaten too much. And that used to be a big problem with me. So I may not see much of or any loss this week, but I feel like I did good anyway. And I do have three days left to kick it in gear and see if I can pull something out of my hat. But if not ... eh. I'm okay with it this week.

And for anyone thinking about seeing it, Confessions of a Shopaholic is a really cute movie.

Week #5 Results

2009-02-12T19:23:00.002-05:00

Wendie rocks! I am definitely sticking to the plan again this week. I ended up only using 23 of my 35 flex points but apparently it worked. (I also exercised 4 times this week so I need to keep that up too.)

I weighed in this morning at 182.5 for a loss of 2.5 this week. I am sooooo happy! Its not that I wasn't happy about the other losses, I just felt like all the hard work I have put in should have been justified a bit. So now if/when the next few weeks are small losses again, I think this will keep me going. I am only 6.5 pounds away from my first goal of 10%. How exciting.

We had a beautiful day today. It was fairly warm, the sun was shining. And now I have total spring fever. I am just ready for nicer weather and to be outside. I'm not a cold weather person at all. And now I have the goal of being able to buy all new clothes this summer because mine don't fit. : )

For dinner tonight I bought a fresh salmon filet that was on sale for 4.99 a pound. It ended up being only 6 oz, which was 9 points. I just put salt and pepper on it and cooked it on the George Foreman. Wow, was it good. I have always liked salmon but just got it when eating out or in a can. I will definitely be buying this more.

One month measurements

2009-02-10T20:57:00.002-05:00

I took these again Sunday night but am just now getting around to posting them. I've read many other bloggers that have taken their measurements from the beginning and check them regularly. And when they have a stall in their weight loss usually the inches continue to go down. I think that would really help me because as you might have noticed previously, I get really discouraged when I'm doing everything right and the weight is not going down. I was pretty happy with these. The beginning measurements are in blue, 1 month in black.

Weight: 195 185 (-10)
BMI: 35 33 (-2)
R Arm: 13 1/2 13 (-1/2)
L Arm: 13 1/2 13 (-1/2)
Waist: 43 41 (-2)
Hips: 46 44 1/2 (-1.5)
R Calf: 16 1/2 16 (-1/2)
L Calf: 16 16 (0)
Chest: 43 1/242 (-1 1/2)

So that is a total of 6.5 inches gone. I don't really know what to compare that to as far as results but it looks good to me.

I did have one very cool NSV this week. I had bought a pair of size 16 jeans a few months ago and they fit perfectly. I can now take them off and on without even unbuttoning them. And today when I came home I took my cordaroy pants off without unbuttoning them either. I guess the waist really is where I've lost the most. I think I may have to go find some 14's. Yippee!

Goals Revisited

2009-02-08T17:53:00.003-05:00

So last Sunday I posted my goals for the week. I think I will keep these on a Sunday basis and then with my weigh in on Thursday that gives me two goals for the week at two different times and I don't feel so stressed on Wednesday.

So here is what I had aimed for last week and here is how I did ...

1. Exercise for 40 minutes at least 3 times a week. (I'd like to increase this to 4-5 times by the end of the month). I exercised on Monday for 40 minutes, Thursday for 46 minutes, and Saturday for 30 minutes. So I guess I fell 4 minutes short of my goal, but I'm still pretty happy with that. Exercise seems to be the hardest for me to get going.

2. Drink only one diet soft drink a day. (I stole this from TJ but it seemed like a really good one. I have already cut way back so I'd like to see how this works). Definitely didn't do too well at this. I think out of 7 days I had 3 days of only drinking one a day. I only drink diet now, but I could still do better at this.

3. Eat my five fruits and vegetables each day. (My week started on Thursday (now going from Sunday to Sunday so this didn't really pertain so I did not make it two days of my week so far but yesterday and today are on target). I got all five servings in 4 days out of 7. Again, not too great but I do notice I am making more of an effort to get them all in so I feel like I am improving.

4. Do a post at least every other day. (This helps me stay accountable too and I love reading everyone else). I posted on Sunday, Wednesday and Friday. Hmmm....close.

Okay, so out of all 4 goals I didn't complete one of them. But I do feel like aiming for them helped me make better choices. So I think my goal for this week will be the same four BUT my main goal will be to improve on what I did this week. Eventually I hope to be perfect at all of them but I will settle for improving on them for now.

I think slow, steady changes instead of my normal "all or nothing" attitude will help make these habits more of a lifestyle change that I can keep doing over the long term.

Week #4 Results

2009-02-06T09:15:00.002-05:00

Sorry, I am a day late but school work kept me busy, busy, busy yesterday. I am hoping to finally graduate this June but these last few classes are extremely time consuming.

My weigh in yesterday was 185 exactly. That gives me a -.5 loss for the week but brings me to exactly 10 pounds lost total. I was so happy to reach that 10 pound mark. And I am still feeling a little frustrated that the weight seems to be coming off so slowly now but it is coming off. Thanks again for all your comments, they really help me put things in perspective and keep going instead of throwing in the towel.

I did decide to change things up a bit with my WW plan. I am going to try the Wendie plan for a week and see how it goes. The last two weeks I have hardly used any of my 35 flex points, and I really don’t want my body to get used to that and then spike my weight up if I decide to use them one week. Even if it slows my weight loss down, I think I’ll be a lot happier this way. And I am making Saturday my Super High Day since that’s the day I tend to eat the most or want to eat out.

I also read a really good interview with Bob and Jillian here. And this is what my idol Jillian has to say “You can have a high-calorie day, but not a cheat day. I don't even like the word "cheat." It makes a person feel dirty. Forget that. Take a day out of your week and raise your calories up to 2,000. This way you can have some high-calorie foods but with boundaries so you don't wreck all your progress in one day. Additionally, you won't feel like you blew it and then beat yourself up.” That makes a lot of sense to me. And when I looked at her eating plan once I noticed she varied the amount of calories each day. So if its good enough for Jillian, it must be good for me. J

Yesterday was a great day food and exercise wise. I love to cook but it seems I never have much time but I am making an attempt at trying new recipes. I tried the Hungry Girl recipe for Chicken Alfredo last night using whole wheat pasta. It was so yummy! I used a garlic and herb Laughing Cow wedge instead of the original and added mushrooms for a veggie.

I am also obsessed with kale chips. I’ve read about them on various other blogs and since I love kale I finally tried them. They are addictive. And if you use Pam and no cheese they are zero points! Although I really enjoy 1 point of Parmesan sprinkled over the top.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. Temperatures are supposed to warm up here so I’m hoping to get out of the house for a bit. I’ll be back on Sunday at the latest for a weekend recap and to post my 1 month measurements. I’m pretty excited to see what they are.

Baby it's cold outside ...

2009-02-04T20:58:00.002-05:00

lol, I have been singing that all day for some strange reason. Yes, it is bitterly cold outside but usually I am grumpy and annoyed by it, not walking around singing. : )

I have been having a really rough week and I honestly don't know what I am going to see tomorrow morning. I did what I should NOT do and kept hopping on the scale every other day instead of waiting until my weigh in day. Saturday I was down a pound, Monday I was back up a half pound. Monday night I got annoyed at that and just started eating and eating and eating.

That is exactly what I always do. The weight loss slows down, I get discouraged and just give up. Of course Tuesday I was up a full pound from my last weigh in. Which usually would lead to me getting even more discouraged and having a complete free for all. But luckily, it did not this time. I got right back on track and had two fairly good days on plan even though I didn't count my points.

So I am not sure what tomorrow will bring. What I do know is that I am getting off the computer now and I'm planning out my food for tomorrow. I am going to count every bite that goes into my mouth tomorrow and I am going to come home and exercise. And I'm NOT giving up no matter what that scale says. I've come too far in the past 4 weeks to throw it all away.

Superbowl weekend

2009-02-01T17:10:00.002-05:00

The weekend has been really good so far. I spent most of yesterday doing homework but I finally managed to get 2 miles on my treadmill and that felt good. I seem to be doing wonderful food wise but really struggling with getting my exercise in.

I had planned on using part of my 35 flex points today at a Superbowl party but they had to cancel at the last minute because of an emergency. So I still have 4 points for the day now, but I may splurge a bit while watching the show.

TJ from TJ's Weigh or the Highway suggested everyone come up with some February goals and I think that is a good idea to keep me motivated. I am going to try to do them in week increments and see how I did at the end of each week and if possible do even better the next week. So here we go...

1. Exercise for 40 minutes at least 3 times a week. (I'd like to increase this to 4-5 times by the end of the month).

2. Drink only one diet soft drink a day. (I stole this from TJ but it seemed like a really good one. I have already cut way back so I'd like to see how this works).

3. Eat my five fruits and vegetables each day. (My week started on Thursday so I did not make it two days of my week so far but yesterday and today are on target).

4. Do a post at least every other day. (This helps me stay accountable too and I love reading everyone else).

Hope everyone else has a great Superbowl.

Week #3 Results

2009-01-29T12:37:00.000-05:00

Well, the good news is, today I weighed in at 185.5, for a loss of -1.5 this week. So that brings my total lost to -9.5 since I first started. So close to 10 pounds, I can’t wait to write that number next week.

The bad news is, I lost 1.5 pounds this week??? Now I know that is not a bad number and I’m really happy the scale is going down but I don’t get it. The first two weeks were not great on program weeks. There were at least two occasions each week that I went way over my points AND my flex points. And I lost more both times.

But this week I stayed within my 23 daily points every single day. I used only 12 of my 35 flex points this week on Saturday so I even had 23 that I could have used. I didn’t get to exercise 3 times this week like I wanted, but I did exercise twice and they were both really good workouts.
So, how did I have such a great week and this is my worst weight loss? Should I up my points a bit more or make sure I use my 35 each week to confuse my body? I found the papers for the Wendy program in some recipes last night so I thought about trying that to get different calories in each day. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I had this big plan that if I could lose at least two pounds a week I could be down to a really good weight in time for Derby this year. I have some friends from out of town that want to actually go to the Derby, which I never have been, and I wanted to shock them by how good I look. So I think that is adding to my disappointment a bit.

One thing I am very proud of though is that my frustration did not lead me to just say screw it today and eat whatever I wanted like it would have in the past. People here at work ordered out pizza today and I ate my packed lunch. And I’ve already tried to plan out my exercise this week to get in at least three or four good workouts.

I did some deep thinking on the way to work this morning and realized that even a 1.5 pound loss a week is 6 pounds a month and that adds up. But most of all I like the way I feel now. I like not having stomach problems from greasy food and overeating to the point of discomfort and feeling strong and healthy and proud of myself. So I’m nowhere close to giving up. And maybe next week will surprise me.

Yummy

2009-01-27T21:01:00.002-05:00

My order of PB2 finally came yesterday! I think the UPS man was afraid of how fast I grabbed it from him. : ) I was really worried I wasn't going to like it and end up with $40.00 worth of dried peanut butter but not the case at all.

I love peanut butter in all forms, it is probably one of my favorite foods, so I should have known. I had it last night smeared onto a Weight Watchers 1 point fudge bar, today in my steel cut oats, and then again tonight with another fudge bar. I got two jars of the chocolate PB2 but I haven't tried it yet.

I was stuck at home today because of a big ice storm in Louisville (yep, right there with you Shari!) so I spent the entire day on my behind doing homework. Stayed right within my points but I wish I had got some activity in. Tomorrow is my Boot Camp/Yoga day and I will have accomplished my goal of exercising three times this week. One more day until weigh in. It is really odd to me that I'm actually looking forward to it for a change. : )

Ow, ow, ow ...

2009-01-25T22:11:00.003-05:00

Hope everyone's weekend went well. I took a little break from the computer and enjoyed just hanging around this weekend. Food wise, did really well. I decided to have Saturday be my day to use my extra flex points and I think I used about 19 overall. So 16 left for the week in case something comes up. So far I am doing good in accomplishing my goal of not going over my points.

I did have something different for my breakfast this morning that was so good. I read about Angie's oatmeal all the time and it looks so good. So I ordered some PB2 and bought my oatmeal and was all ready to go yesterday. I rushed home Friday, no delivery. I checked online and it says it was rescheduled until tomorrow. Boo. I was so disappointed.

But I made the oats anyway and used real peanut butter, coconut, a few dates and a little brown sugar. It was delicious. I tried the steel cut oats this time but I have old fashioned oatmeal to try too. I thought the portion size looked so tiny I would be hungry again in an hour. But it filled me up and I wasn't hungry again until lunch. Guess I am a convert. I will hopefully let you know how it is with my PB2 on Tuesday.

One of my other goals this week was to exercise 3 times and add some strength training. Which is how I came up with my title above, because I've been saying it all day. I am a huge fan of the Biggest Loser and when I saw their two new videos at Sams last weekend I had to grab them. I tried them both yesterday and Bob pretty much kicked my behind all over the place. : ) I have always said I would prefer Jillian if I ever had a choice but wow, I have new found respect for Bob. Here are the two I got.

I am sore in muscles I didn't even know I had. But overall they were a lot of fun. The boot camp is using weights and it was hard but not too bad. I think I may need to get a little heavier weights. But the yoga was really rough. I never imagined yoga was that difficult. Now, he does say this is a weight loss yoga so I am assuming it was not like a normal relaxing yoga. But I was covered in sweat and shaking all over by the time it was done. And yep, I fully intend on doing them again tomorrow and Wednesday.

I am off to check up on everyone else. I am really enjoying the Biggest Loser Blog Edition so much and so far it has kept me motivated like nothing else has. Thanks to everyone who keeps up with me and leaves such encouraging comments, it really means a lot.

Week #2 Results

2009-01-22T18:56:00.001-05:00

Well, even after two out of control days I managed to lose -2.5 pounds. Yippee! I feel so good about that. I think having a couple rough days over the weekend made me really kick it in gear for the final three. I was diligent about my points, got in all my fruits and veggies and even exercised 3 times this week like I wanted to.

Now for next week here’s what my mini goals are. Exercise at least 3 times this week and add a few strength training workouts. Eat within all my points each day and do NOT go over my 35 extra flex points. Hopefully that will give me good results for week 3.

I am having a bit of a rough day tonight food wise. I made something I thought was going to be good for dinner that ended up being pretty blah. I only ate half of it so I still have three points left but I am feeling munchie and that’s never good.

Maybe that is something I can do as well this week. Try and work out a menu plan over the weekend and start sticking to it. Trying to figure out what to eat as the day goes on often gets me into trouble.

I can’t wait to go read about everyone else’s week and see how we all did. Go A-Team!

A post to read

2009-01-21T21:52:00.000-05:00

I just read the most amazing post written by Kud at Fabulously Fit. I had just written how I was having a hard time looking in the mirror each morning and really just hating what I see. My face is too bloated, my hair is dull and limp, my stomach sticks way out, my hips are too wide and on and on …

And then I started my round of blogs and this is the first one I clicked on. It’s well worth the read. And I still don’t know how to link but it is over on the right hand side of my page. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

The night before ...

2009-01-21T19:07:00.002-05:00

Okay, I am done eating for the night. Even with the two days I threw eating to the wind I managed to stay within my points the other five days. And I met my goal of exercising three times this week. I hope that is enough for a loss tomorrow morning. I am not even looking for a big loss, just something to keep me motivated going into week 3. And I’m just plain nervous about seeing that number.

I keep looking in the mirror expecting to see this new thinner person after losing 5 ½ pounds but I don’t see her yet. Well, duh. And I really don’t like the physical looks of the person I see now. Although I do like the new energy and attitude these past few weeks have already given me. Hopefully that is going to be motivating me all throughout the next 16 weeks. I already have images of all the cute outfits I am going to be able to wear this summer!

Weekend update

2009-01-19T20:09:00.002-05:00

Well, I am so glad this weekend is over. It was a wonderful weekend fun wise. Food wise, not so great. Saturday was my actual birthday so a bunch of us went out to dinner and then to a local bar. Food leading up to dinner was great. Dinner was great. We went to a mongolian BBQ restaurant that has the nutritional values on their website. They even offer lettuce cups to put the food in instead of rice or a tortilla. So I had chicken, shrimp, scallops, lots of veggies and the lettuce cups. Then we went to the bar and that's where everything went downhill. I don't think that the drink I had was too bad points wise, it was the quantity I had it in. I don't drink a lot but I had about 6 of these fruity concoctions and 3 shots. I counted about 3 points for each one. OUCH! I have to say though I had such a good time. I even voluntarily got up and sang at karoke and I never do that! : ) Afterwards the whole group went to Waffle House and I had a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich and 1/4 of a waffle. I counted about 3 points for the waffle and 11 for the sandwich. So that put me using 31 points over for the day. Not bad...even gave me 4 left for the week.

I think where I got off track was Sunday. We got home at about 5:00 in the morning so by the time I got up I just felt off all day. Not hungover at all, because I hate throwing up so I don't let myself get there, but just sluggish and not quite with it. I ended up going over my points by 27 that day. My downfall was a California Pizza from the grocery. It looked so innocent, chicken, white sauce, onions and garlic. I was starving and ate the whole thing. 24 points. Again, OUCH! So for the week I used 23 points I didn't have.

But today I was off work and I went to the grocery and got all sorts of good foods for the next week. I stayed right within my points, even a few under today. And I'm hoping to get off here and go exercise again. The odd thing about all this is that I'm not even upset that I went so off my points. Yes, I wish I had stopped after Saturday and gotten back on plan but I didn't and Sunday happened too. Its just that this time I don't want to have a few bad days and give up and gain it all back. I want to enjoy myself, which I did, and then continue on with my healthy way of living. It feels good not to beat myself up about it. Just knowing that I still did great the two days before that and I'm going to do great the three days after. Maybe some of this is starting to sink in and I'll be able to make the change to healthy for good this time.

I don't want to be too longwinded here but I did want to say how incredible everyone on Team Angie did last week. Wow! There are some very motivating and inspiring ladies out that. I especially want to say congrats to Shari who was the top winner for Team Angie. I really enjoy reading her because she is right here in my city. (And I would link to her but I don't know how yet!) So go Team Angie, here's to another awesome week!

Week #1 - Results

2009-01-15T21:11:00.002-05:00

I am so excited about this...I lost 5.5 pounds! Yippee. I am so proud of myself for everything I did this week to not just give up and stay where I am even through some rough times. And as I was hoping this loss is really motivating and encouraging me to keep going. We had my birthday potluck at lunch today and I was on such a high I watched everything I ate and journaled it as soon as I got back to my desk. And managed to stay exactly within my points today. The only day I am worried about is Saturday, that is when we are going OUT for my birthday. Thanks to some great suggestions on here I am hoping to be in control of that too.

One thing I really want to do this week is add some exercise. And so tonight before dinner I got on the treadmill for 40 minutes and went almost 2 miles. Very slow to a lot of you awesome runners out there, I know but that was including the warm up and cool down. And just starting out after not exercising for months and months, I guess that is not bad. I have already got my food ready for tomorrow and I am hoping to do another 40 minutes after work. But wow, did it wear me out. I am exhausted and ready for bed at 9:30.

The only bad thing about this week is that I unfortunately lose a point for going under 190. And then on Saturday I turn 38, which is another point. I think I am dropping to 24 this week and then 23 next week though instead of doing them both at once.

I've been surfing other blogs and it looks like Team Angie is doing great this week. I hope I was able to help in some way. There are a few ladies who had some rough times, and I know that has got to be difficult. And I am fully aware that at some point in this journey that is going to be me and I hope I handle it as wonderful as they did. Thanks for all the support so far, this has been a great week!

New year, same plan apparently

2009-01-13T20:51:00.002-05:00

Today was another day right on my points and this is one I'm incredibly proud of. I came home from work expecting to have a full 4-5 hours of homework when I get a phone call from the fraud department of my bank. Seems someone tried to access my account online and so the bank immediately closed all my accounts! So I had to run up to the local branch and reopen all of them and try to get everything switched over. My direct deposit goes into these accounts, I pay my bills from these accounts and I never carry cash because I always use my debit card. So now I'm stuck with no money at all until everything gets moved. Talk about stressed. All this would usually lead me to throwing in the towel and coming home to devour everything in my cabinets. But I am very proud that I did not. I made the dinner I planned and amazingly even skipped the dessert I had counted for just because I didn't feel like it. Now that I think about it that is very odd. Maybe I'm in shock... :)

I wanted to share something interesting I found when I was cleaning out stuff this weekend. It was a very eye-opening discovery. I have been to WW so many times over the years I have lost count. But in a box I found two old WW weigh in cards. One was from September of 2002. I was married then and living in Michigan. My starting weight was 190.2. I only have 12 weeks stamped but as of July 2003 I was down to 174.8. Guess I stopped and started a few times. The other card was from April 2004. Newly divorced and living back in Louisville. Starting weight was 189.0. Last weigh in was September 2004 at 168.6. Last March I started WW at 201.4, my highest weight ever. By May or June I had made it down to 179.0. So I have been losing and gaining these same 20 or so pounds for about 6 years. And who knows about the cards I didn't find from before 2002. I honestly did not realize I weighed this much as far back as 2002. In 1999 I weighed 165 for my wedding. That is the lowest number I can remember. Its a little sad I think. I'm not sure why this time is going to be any different. I'm sure I felt as optimistic and excited each one of those times and yet I'm here again. Maybe it will be staying accountable here that finally changes things. Or reading everyone else's journey and knowing I'm not alone with my struggles. Or maybe I've just finally had enough of the lumps and bumps and would like to see what I look like at a normal weight. Only thing I know is I am going to keep going forward as hard as I can and just keep getting back up and trying.

Busy times

2009-01-12T21:58:00.002-05:00

Sorry, didn't mean to disappear off the radar like that. I am currently taking classes online to finish up my bachelor's degree. I mistakenly thought I had a week break in between classes and discovered I most certainly did not. So I am a little behind and frantically catching up. Of course this is one of the harder classes so my days have mainly been working and coming straight home to study. Fun, fun, fun.

In more important news I am still doing fairly well with my points. I would like to say I'm doing great but I did have a bit of a problem on Saturday where I just decided to eat whatever I wanted. Not sure why, but I've had those days before and I'm sure I will again. In my meager defense we were at a friends house and the table was covered with all sorts of goodies and munchies. But last time I checked I am perfectly capable of saying no. The important thing is getting right back to it no matter how many bad days there are. That's what I've always have trouble with in the past. One day leads to two, leads to months, leads to the year being gone and me being exactly where I was. Not this time. On Sunday I jumped right back into journaling. And today was perfect on points too. I have already planned my food out for tomorrow and hopefully that will be the last night of my catching up with school also. I still have not added any exercise to my routine but I am hoping that will come next week.

I do have a few very challenging days coming up. Saturday is my birthday (yea!) but unfortunately that usually means a weeks worth of food (boo). On Thursday we are having a potluck at work. Luckily there are several people there in the New Year's diet mode so we are planning a very point friendly lunch. Then Saturday we are going out with friends and I picked a mongolian BBQ restaurant that I love that should also allow me to watch my points. Here's where I need some advice. What type of alcohol is WW friendly? I don't drink much but I would like to have a few this night. Any suggestions?

I peeked at the scale and it shows me going in the right direction. I am going to make my weigh-in Thursday instead of Wednesday to give me 3 days to get back on track after the weekends so I'm hoping to have an even better number by then. I will be visiting everyone's blogs and catching up in the next few days, but from the few I've seen Angie's team is doing awesome! I'll be so excited to add my number to the group.

Go Team Angie!

2009-01-07T22:18:00.002-05:00

I am so excited to be on Team Angie for the Biggest Loser Blog Edition. I have been reading her for a little over a year now and she is one of my favorite blogs. I have already gotten comments from several other team members and checked out their sites and I think we are going to do awesome and definitely win this thing!

I didn't get around to taking different before pictures yet but I did get my measurements and I want to try to keep up with them. I am going to take them once a month so if my weight loss stalls that will give me some motivation and show me I am on the right path. I did not weight today, I am going to start with the weight I gave for the Biggest Loser Challenge, which was on Sunday.

Weight: 195
BMI: 35
R Arm: 13 1/2 L Arm: 13 1/2
Waist: 43
Hips: 46
R Thigh: 22 3/4 L Thigh: 22 3/4
R Calf: 16 1/2 L Calf: 16
Chest: 43 1/2

As far as my first day on plan went, I am really happy with how I did. I get 25 points a day and I had exactly 25. I got in all my water and all my fruits and veggies. I didn't get any oil or dairy in, but I did take my Tums with calcium, so does that count? I am going to try and do better on those tomorrow. I also need to try and spread my points out a little better during the day. I came home and still had 13 left for dinner. I almost felt like I overate just because I needed to get them in. I also didn't exercise but I did do about 30 intermittent minutes of DDR with my boyfriend's daughter so I counted that as 1 activity point. I am planning on using my flex but not my activity points so we'll see how it goes.

I think its amazing how great I felt today. I know I haven't lost any weight yet but just the initial excitement of starting a plan and having a goal just made me feel better about myself. I tend to only keep this motivation for about 6 weeks and then I slide so this time I need to do something different to keep me going! Hopefully this challenge is going to be exactly what I need. Good luck everyone!

Getting ready

2009-01-06T19:34:00.002-05:00

Wow, I got comments! I was so excited. And I even got one from Angie of Angie all the Way, who is a big hero of mine. What she went through and how far she has come in spite of her obstacles is just amazing to me. Makes me realize I have no excuse to get my butt in gear and do it too. I now can see what people mean when they say having a blog like this motivates them to keep going and the people they meet inspire them and keep them accountable. And I've already found several more blogs that I want to keep up with, including someone in my city.

My official weigh in day is going to be on Wednesdays so I am going to start actually counting points tomorrow. I have been watching things for the past two days and honestly trying to get some bad stuff out of the house (yes, by eating it, I realize that kind of defeats the purpose!). But I have gone to the grocery and have stocked up on healthy food and I am ready to go. I will post all my stats tomorrow along with my points for the day. I am also going to take measurements tonight and hopefully take a better before picture.

Here are the weight loss goals I have now. I am going to work on them for the Biggest Loser challenge and then reevaluate them when it ends and see where I want to go and what I want to focus on then. I know at the moment I am mainly focused on losing weight but I also want to become healthier over the long term. And I honestly don't have an ending goal weight yet because I have no idea where it might be that I'm happy with myself. According to Weight Watchers for a 5'3 person my weight should be between 113 - 141. I think I'd be happy somewhere in that range. I certainly can't remember the last time I weighed even the high end of that so I'm looking forward to getting there.

Weight loss goals:
10% (19 pounds) 176
Wedding weight 165
Closer to 100 then 200 149

Non weight related goals:
Eat less sugar
Eat less processed food
Drink more water/less soft drinks (I love Diet Mt. Dew)
Exercise at least 3x a week

The Beginning

2009-01-04T22:35:00.002-05:00

Well, here is my first post. I have wanted to start a blog for quite a while but joining the Biggest Loser Blog Edition finally got me motivated to do it. I almost joined last time but missed out on the sign up date. And of course, I am still the same weight I was back then. I am so excited about doing this challenge. I am hoping following along with everyone else will be the kick in the pants I need to finally get myself on the right track to becoming the healthy person I know I can be. I have lurked on probably hundreds of blogs over the last several years and reading them is so inspiring.

As far as my background, I honestly can’t remember a time when I didn’t feel overweight. Even as a kid I was never skinny. I don’t think from looking at pictures that I was overweight, but I seemed to always be the “healthy” one in the group, while my friends were always petite and tiny. In high school I think I was at a very normal weight for my height (5’3) but again, I was always around very thin and petite people and that’s when I really started to be aware of it. Ever since then I have tried every diet known and I would do well for a while and then quit and gain every bit back plus more. I am not currently at my all time high weight but I am very close to it.

I am hoping this time will be the one that breaks the cycle and lets me get this weight off once and for all. I am going to follow weight watchers since I have had the most success with it and know the plan backwards and forwards. Unfortunately I really can’t afford the meetings right now so I am going to do it on my own. I am doing a few things different this time that I hope will motivate me and keep me going. The biggest one is this blog.

I think I probably should not be so long winded on my first post so I’ll wrap this up. I am going to come up with some short term and long term goals and post them in the next few days. I weighed in this morning to email my weight to the Biggest Loser challenge but I am going to start following the plan tomorrow.