Day 8

I had a great day. I survived the fellowship at Bible study picking a helping of raw veggies and a helping of fresh fruit and a small portion of quiche. I passed on the brownies, two types of cookies and the chocolate that were also for the taking. My day rounded out about 1530 calories...so within my goal with eating somewhere else... I'll take it.
My workout was a total of 62 mins. a 1.35 mile run without stopping followed by intervals for just over another mile, 2 min run, 1 min walk, 3 min run, 1 min walk, 3 min run, 1 min walk, 2 min run....walk the 1.5-2 miles home. It was gorgeous out. Not to hot or cold. Just right. Which in turn made breathing through it all much easier.
I also went for a 40 min walk at night with my friend Dawn and Noah. That was more about catching up and chatting though than anything else.
So overall a good day, filled with good food choices and a good workout.

Day 7

(Let me start by apologizing to anyone reading these posts...I know they are boring, but I need the accountability to help me with my goals and to see where I make process over the next few weeks. So Sorry of these bore you to tears.)

Today was a pretty good day. I finally got an email back from my boot camp instructor. She agreed that I needed to write everything that I eat down and believes I will see a difference. Also to make sure I am doing my cardio at a minimum 3 times a week. Basically all stuff that I already knew and agreed to do over this next month already. She really believes that I can get below 200lbs...I guess I just need to start believing it myself. It's time. The best part about her email was that she recognized how hard I do try at boot camp and she thinks that I can work just as hard at home too. I am starting to believe this part. I just need to rekindle that inner will and stop beating myself up when I do have an off day or make a mistake.

Today I feel like I made good choices. We even had lunch out at a Thai restaurant but I choose to have an appetizer that consisted of 8 prawn shrimp and a good helping of bell peppers, onions, basil and garlic in oyster sauce and Thai peppers. It was delicious and less than 400 calories total from what I can gather when I put it into sparkpeople. I did allow myself to have less than .5 cup of ice cream but from now on until I am under 200lbs I am seriously going to be more thoughtful of not having these indulgences.

Dinner was a large salad with just a little bit of balsamic vinegar on the side, a small portion of homemade meatloaf and an ear of sweet corn. It was good.

So all in all I finished around 1450 calories which is in my range.
I did 60 min boot camp.
I set some goals... including getting my journal ready for tracking as I go starting tomorrow, and I set goals for tomorrow.
I am not going to measure myself again until right before I start boot camp again on the 21st.

I have to be very mindful of exercising the next two weeks without boot camp to hold me accountable and help me out. but I believe I will do it.

Day 5 and 6

Sat. I actually did good...right up until the point that I decided to go to a crop and stay up till midnight which is way past my bedtime. Up until super time I had 1536 calories. If I would have gone to bed at my normal time, I would have been golden, but I choose to try and do something for myself by going to the crop and needless to say I got hungry. I should have packed a snack, I should have gone out or ran home to find a better choice. I want to kick myself because I let myself have 2 small pieces of pizza and 4 tiny donuts because I was hungry and that what was available to eat. i hated myself for it every minute, but at the same time I knew if I ran home or out, I would probably have just came home and went to bed...and I wanted to work on my scrapbook. I am not even going to take the energy to find out how many calories that put me over...I would probably really want to die if I knew for certain. I have a fairly good guess, and it makes me sick.
I did however enjoy scrap-booking and finally got all the pictures from my cruise and stop at Busch Gardens back in 2008 onto paper...now I just need to journal and put the finishing touches on. I enjoyed every minute of it besides the 10 mins I was stuffing my face. And I was actually proud that I went out and took some time for myself...just wish I would have planned ahead and had something more nutritious to snack on. But this is a learning process. I believe I will apply this new thought to my Tuesday morning Bible studies where there is also a 15 min fellowship with everything but healthy food besides the fruit that some people do bring. So I will try bringing something more healthy or only allowing myself to take fruit and veggies.

Sunday I didn't do much better, but now I can understand where the unnecessary calories are coming from and make the necessary changes. I had roughly 1779 calories today. As much as I hate it I think I am going to try and write all of my food down in a journal as I go throughout the day. Since I haven't been adding them up until night, i need to track them better to be able to make the adjustments. I HATE Tracking, but I do understand the importance of it and i do believe it will help. Let's be honest though...I KNEW the Frito's and Cheese dip that I decided to have this weekend WAS NOT good for me or the calorie count, so I pretty much knew I would be over.
I don't know why I sabotage myself sometimes. Really that is how I feel. I am a work in progress and I do believe that I WILL do better this week. And YES there will be NO more Frito's :)

So I have for the last few months picked up this Magazine called CLEAN EATING. I really am interested in the whole process of it, the "simplicity" of it, and seriously interested in how some of the recipes would taste because even though all of the ingredients are natural, some of the descriptions sound horrible. However, with that said, I am so sick of eating the same things I could scream! I think that is part of the reason that I revert to eating things that are horrible for you.
In the magazine there are two sections that part of me so wants to try. One of them is 10 recipes for $66.00 and the other is a two week eating plan with your 3 meals a day and 2 snacks, all figured out for you nutrition wise and serving sizes...but the best part is that both sections have the grocery list of the things you need! Plus the section with the 2 weeks of meals uses the ingredients throughout the week and includes using the "left over" portions from the meals the day before! So that would mean less waste, less groceries, no guess work, and no side tracked shopping in the store! I so want to do it...but I am so scared about buying a bunch of food that taste horrible in the recipes and either trying to eat something else in place of it, and throwing the money and food away if it is bad. So I need to think about it. There is not much left in the house so I need to make the decision soon. The other scary part is that the grocery stores here do not always have the things you need in stock! which could throw the process off.

Decisions, decisions. Being Healthy is hard...at least to start, but I believe it will get easier with time. My hope is that I will learn to cook healthier things and more importantly eat those things, using natural ingredients and things from scratch. I want to limit or eliminate the amount of processed food that we buy.

Good news is that I get almost 5 hours back in my week from not going to the Chiropractor, so I am praying to use those hours wisely! Please pray for me to keep focused this week, making good sound decisions when it comes to food, and working out (I only have my workout class on MONDAY of this week and then I have the next 2 weeks off because of spring break...so these next two weeks will require me to work out on my own.) Your prayers and encouraging words and support are welcome. Thank you for all the advice and comments you have left so far. I have read all of them. Hope you all have a happy healthy week!

Day 4

HMMMM what to say about today.

Boot camp was a good workout. 60 mins of triceps and back with burst of cardio. My hips were still hurting, but I seemed to do better today than other days this last month.

Last day of Chiropractic appointments. Thank Goodness! So glad to be done going there not only for the time I will get back in my day, but for not having to talk to the chiropractor. I swear I had the same conversation with him 3 times a week since last MAY! Plus this will be able to allow my child to get a good uninterrupted morning nap, and if I play my cards right and can start doing it, I might just throw him in the jogging stroller when I get home from boot camp (since he seems to want to take a nap most days at this time) and hit the pavement for some extra burned calories. This would be a complete bonus because I am already sweaty and gross, not to mention warmed up from class...this might just work out to my benefit! We will see come Monday, or Wed. of this coming week.

My calories were above where I needed to be today. I had a friend and her kids over all day. We ate out at subway...did pretty good, until I got the Sweet tea! I never knew how many calories that crap has! Not that I ever get it, I just didn't feel like pop, and I perfer Fresh brewed tea to the stuff on the tap...but I will get unsweetened from the tap next time! Dang...that really threw me off.

And tonight because my husband was so good to put up with me and my moods all week, I gave in to having brats. Should have bought the kind I didn't like because yes I had 2...only one bun, which I should have given up, but the real kicker was the Frito's and cheese along with the 1 beer we had to go with it.

So needless to say I was over today. the total was roughly 2391 calories...so 700-800 calories over the high end of my daily goal. Thankfully I did work out even though that doesn't make up for the calories.

Lessoned learned. Don't underestimate the calories in drinks! This is why I caved and went back to Diet pop. I gave it up cold turkey Jan 1 and haven't touched the stuff for 2 months, but the problem was I then started picking up cans of regular soda! I don't know what it is about the carbonation that I crave, but man I need to find a balance. So this last week I went back to diet to get rid of the extra calories and sugar, but I felt way better off the stuff...so I am debating what to do again. I have only allowed myself 2 or less cans a day (which is more than my 1 can of regular a day!)...but maybe I need to down it to only 1 can every few days or just flat out none and learn to live with out it. That decision is yet to come...I will keep you posted.

Lesson of the day...plan ahead when you have friends over! You might snack less....but I seem to go over in my meals. Need to keep the balance.

Day 3.

Nothing exciting today. I actually did not work out. I spent last night trying to compose an email to the boot camp instructor who wrote to me stating that i should decide on a goal. Yup nothing like calling the fat girl out. So what should have been a very peaceful and relaxing night since my hubby was at work and the kid was asleep turned into a 30 minute flat out balling session while typing an email that tried to convey that I was not whining or looking for pity. That I knew I had faults, and by no means do "everything" required to loose weight and that I resolved to work on it more since the first of this month. Nothing like having to admit to someone, "Hey I am Fat, and I know it...Thanks for pointing it out."
So I balled and balled and when I finally finished balling and calming down I felt like i could go to sleep...until...

I realized the cat hadn't been around and I couldn't find him. Something told me to check the sliding door and sure enough the damn cat not only opened the glass door but the screen door and let himself out! Did I mention that the husband was at work with no chance of coming home because there was an exercise going on AND the kid was sleeping? Yeah so I couldn't really leave the house to go hunt the neighborhood. But after a minute or two of calling his name I grabbed the treat bag and found batteries for the flash light and walked around a little bit. After 10 mins or so of calling his name and shining the dang flash light I came back home because I was afraid one of the neighbors would call the cops for me shining a flashlight around their houses....so I stood in the backyard. About to call it a night and just pray he would come back, I turned around and there he walks up on the lanai and sits down like it was no big deal he was out and about. Damn Cat.

So needless to say i couldn't fall asleep right away, and when I finally did I only ended up with about 4 hours of sleep before my son decided to wake up and fill his diaper so much it started to leak. Really? It is an Overnight diaper at that! How much pee can one kid have at night...

Then my hubby came home and crawled into bed. So my day began at 4:30am. I have fought a headache all day. I don't know if it is from the lack of sleep. The crying, Or my neck being out of place...but it is probably a combination of all three. I also had a doctor's appointment and a husband on a different shift. So the workout got skipped. Don't get me wrong i could have done it...begrudgingly... but that is not how I want to work out. I want to enjoy doing it and feel good while I do it. So I resolved that I will make up the workout. Either by adding an extra workout to one day, taking today as my day off instead of Sunday, or dividing the time up between other days.

I stayed within my allotted calories today, although I was near the higher end of the scale at 1519.
Breakfast: Skim milk and special k protein bar
Snack: Banana and 1oz beef jerky
Lunch: Roast Beef Sandwich with provolone cheese on one slice low cal whole wheat bread and mustard.
Snack: 2 servings of ritz bitz....I know bad choice here...I let myself go to long without eating and got to hungry. Note to self to plan better.
Dinner: 3/4 cup (dry) Old fashioned Oatmeal (made with water) with 2 Tbsp of brown sugar and a dash of milk - Oh how I forgot how good real oatmeal is! i hate the microwave stuff so I always forget on good the old stuff is!
I have gotten my water in for the last 3 days. So on that note I am doing good.

I finished the WW magazine today too, but nothing really impressive to report. It is helping keep my focus though to read about healthy choices. I am still a work in progress, but this is a good beginning.

We will see how the  "goal" will go. The instructor said she had something in mind for me, but wanted to hear my ideas first. i haven't heard back from her yet. Pray for me that if she mentions it tomorrow I won't cry my eyes out in front of her or at boot camp. I am not a strong person when it comes to talking about these things face to face with people I don't know really well. So please just say a prayer.

On a good side note. The Doc. at my appointment today gave me the thumbs up and told me I should be all set and good to go for whenever we decided we wanted to try and get pregnant again. The damage I had for over a year since my son was born is no longer bothering me thanks to pushing the doctor to give me a steroid shot to calm the nerve down. So this is an exciting time. We are NOT trying right now, but before the year is up, I hope that we have good news to share.

Day 2

Today did not start out with a bang. I went to boot camp and got weighed in. I weighed exactly the same as last month, so good for not gaining
(which doesn't seem to be my problem since I never really gain...I just don't loose....I have not gained anything since having a baby if you need clarification...that is where the majority of my extra weight is still from, although I understand by now, I am obviously not doing something right or I would have lost it by now)
however, my inches were not the same. Needless to say I didn't write them down because most were almost exactly the same...but the one that pissed me off was my belly button measurement. According to her measurements I gained 3.5 inches in my belly in 4 weeks...but according to my measurements I am the same. I could tell that the tape measure was to low in the back though when she was doing the measurements, and no I am not trying to make excuses, I could just tell....so of course I am pissed because I look like a big fatty...or at least that is how I felt. I am going to have another friend remeasure me...and yes she does it for a living too, to see what she comes up with...It just doesn't make since how I can not gain weight but gain 3.5 inches in my tummy. oh well moving on
That set the mood for my morning. I was so pissy that I actually considered not joining the boot camp again next month. I mean hell, why am I paying and seeing numbers like that? After I calmed down and thought about everything however, I know it is best for me to stay in the class. I have gained a ton of strength from it and overall i just feel better going, well at least most days. Plus it is the only class around that offers child care.  That really is a big catcher. I don't have a ton of time to go at night, unless I want to skip out on the few hours a night we get to spend as a family, and I have never been a person who enjoys working out at night anyways so I think I would just dread that. Plus almost all of the classes i would like to go to are during the day...and that means a babysitter...upon which I don't have.
So my conclusion is to really work hard at some changes this next month and see how the results add up. If the numbers don't move much though I might just cry my damn eyes out. Seriously.
Today was another good day food wise.
Breakfast: 1 cup of Skim milk and 1 Special K protein bar
Snack: A few celery stalks and 1 Tbsp of peanut butter
Lunch: 2 slices low cal whole wheat bread with 2 thin slices provolone, 2  oz chicken lunch meat and 1 Tbsp of light mayo
Snack: Granola bar
Dinner: 1 Small grilled pork chop with Greek spices, 1/2 cup stuffing, and a portion of mixed frozen veges (broccoli, peas and carrots)
Snack 1.5 cups cold skim milk 1 small
Definitely within my calorie limit and on the low side of it at that with 1262

I also did the 60 min boot camp with legs and shoulders today. so that is good although i have no idea how to even begin the calorie burn count on that and the "boot camp" button on sparkpeople would give me 800 and some calories burned which I feel is just to many....so I don't know, maybe I am wrong.

I haven't got to look up an article yet, but plan to after finishing this post and well let you know tomorrow if I find anything good.

Today ended better than it started. I am determined to not let my attitude from this morning sabotage me for a week. I need to be proud of what I am doing.

The plan for tomorrow is to try to get a good run/walk in again during my son's morning nap and while the hubby is sleeping (yes he is on a different shift for a few days) so pray my kid wants a nap early before it is to hot!

Just found this article... http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/nutrition_articles.asp?id=1605

Day 1.

Today I fell successful. I think that I have hit every part of my goal. I stayed within my calories and had 3 healthier meals. I worked out for 70 mins. I read half of a Weight Watchers Magazine this morning while my son was eating breakfast. So overall it was a good day.

For the sake of this being the first day of the challenge I even took my measurements...which I am torn about sharing on here, but I feel that it is part of the process so here they are in all of my horror of making these numbers public.

Starting Weight: 220.4 lbs
Chest: 41 inches
Ribs (below chest) 39 inches
True waist 36 inches
Waist at belly button 39 inches
Hips 47 inches
Thigh 29 inches
Arm 12.5 inches

I will have a good estimate if these numbers are accurate by Friday when I weigh in and get measured at my boot camp work out, but I wanted to have a starting point for the first day.

I think that it is also important to mention how far I have come since last July. So here are my measurements from July 2010

Starting Weight: 229 lbs

Chest: 42.5 inches

Ribs (below chest) 40 inches (she doesn't measure this but I know it was at least 40 at one time after birth)

True waist 38.25 inches

Waist at belly button 46.5 inches

Hips 49.5 inches

Thigh 30 inches

Arm 13.5 inches 

So to date I have lost 8.6lbs and 16.75 inches. That doesn't seem like much when you look at how much I have left to go and how long it took me to loose it but I am proud of every ounce of it. Sure I could have made more changes, ate better, worked out more, but I didn't. I am not going to sit here and make up a bunch of excuses but needless to say I was and still am adjusting to my life as a mother. That new title entailed numerous changes...some small some huge, some good some not so good.

Now that my son is a little older and I have a little less quilt leaving him, or listening to him cry if my walk goes a little longer than he would like, I am ready to make some changes for myself. 

So today Noah and I went for a run/walk. I walked a few minutes to warm up and get adjusted, and then ran 1 mile, walked .5 miles, ran another mile and then walked about 2 more miles. It felt good. Refreshing. granted my hips were killing me toward the end of the 2nd mile of running, but I did it. My son slept through the first 45 minutes of the workout and happily sat in his stroller for the remainder. The timing of his nap turned out perfectly today.

I made good choices today when it came to food. Breakfast was a Special K protein bar and a cup of skim milk, Lunch was a string cheese and a WW yogurt, and lunch was scrambled eggs, toast and a small helping of corn beef and hash. Morning snack was a piece of coffee cake and 2 cups of fresh fruit at Bible study and my afternoon snack was 3 celery stalks and 1 Tbsp of Peanut Butter.  I stayed within my calorie range for my weight loss goals.

I read half of a WW magazine, although nothing overly exciting to report right now. I am watching the biggest loser while I type this and that is inspiration enough. If people who are that over weight can move and make better choices than so can I. And I found this fun little calendar on Sparkpeople : http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/calendar_2007-03.pdf
 I hope all of you had a day full of good choices! Thanks for all of the tips and advice!