Saturday, March 26, 2011

Day #86 Weigh In (So Close!) and Happiness!

This week I planned well, ate well, and worked 5 days (a lot of walking!) and it showed on the scale. I weighed 210.4 yesterday morning for a total loss of 39.6 lbs (so close to 40 lbs) and 2.2 lbs since my last weigh in two weeks ago. I know I gained weight during my vacation but I didn't want to weigh and know how much, so I actually lost more unknown weight than the 2.2 lb loss from the last weigh in and that makes me feel SO good!

Before bed last night I put on a tank top that used to fit me tight without thinking twice about it and when I looked in the mirror this morning I realized that it was HUGE, and not only that my panties are huge too! When I was on vacation I did a lot of shopping and one of the best purchases I made was getting new panties from Victoria's Secret (they actually fit) which I am going to take the tags off of now and wash.

I hope you have a great week!

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Day #83 Tracking calories again and being prepared

I've been doing well since I got back from vacation. At first I had a hard time adjusting to counting and logging calories again and eating conscientiously. My new target is 1488 calories. This is how i've done so far:

Saturday   1452
Sunday     1800
Monday   1564
Tuesday   1441
Today      1433

It's also TOM so i've been on heightened alert not to eat emotionally. I feel like 83 days later i'm doing really well. I've always been the type a person that succeeds at whatever they put their mind to but had been unsuccessful at changing WHY I eat. I still have a ways to go, but I'm a much happier person now, my marriage is stronger than ever before, and I can tell that people enjoy spending time with me more.

I have always lived a "fake it until you make it" life and have faked confidence for so long. Now I truly feel confident :-D!

This week I have been using my planning skills to help me succeed. I have been packing up leftovers to eat at lunch and packing my breakfast and snacks for the long days at work. This is what I packed for work and what my husband is making for dinner tomorrow:

Breakfast (132 calories):
1 c. Special K red berries cereal
1/4 cup lactose free fat free milk

Snack (50 calories):
5.5 oz strawberries (all that was left in the carton)

Lunch (500 calories):
Leftover tostadas (two crispy corn tortillas, 1/2 c. refried beans, ground beef, lettuce)

Snack (56 calories):
1 c. peeled and cubed cucumber
1 tbsp. hidden valley ranch

Dinner (604 calories):
Chicken and broccoli stir fry (home made by the hubby)
1 c. white rice
1 roll

Dessert (140 calories):
3 reduced fat chocolate chip cookies

Total Calories: 1482

I'm looking forward to this Friday's weigh day! I hope you're doing well :-)

Friday, March 18, 2011

Day #78 Chinese Buffet, Vacation Over, & Renewed Excitement

We're on our last leg of our drive home (~5 hrs) finally! We had an amazing time but it will be nice to get back into our routine. We picked up our dogs from my MIL's house and she wanted to eat at this new chinese buffet. I had a half a bowl of hot and sour soup, a half a cup of white rice with 1/8 cup of fried rice, two bites of each of the following: beef and broccoli, chicken and broccoli, and general tso chicken. I also had one spring roll and my fortune cookie. I know it's a lot of food and probably a lot of calories but I didn't feel stuffed or even full, I felt "just right". I really like the feeling right before fullness where I still feel "skinny", yet satisfied. This is the feeling I have been striving for during vacation since I didn't count calories. In general I have eaten half portions or shared and tried to stay away from the soft drinks.

When I first started this journey 78 days ago I was extremely motivated, I was doing a 5K on the treadmill every day I didn't work, I was always at or under my 1550 calories and drank a lot of water. After the move and eye surgery I got out of my routine and stopped working out. Working out with my sister showed me that I AM fit and I can workout without hurting my eyes. I mean, 4 miles, that's almost 6.5 kilometers! My legs feel so strong and I can see muscle definition and it feels AWESOME!

My goal when I lost 50 lbs was to go with a drastic hair color change, just for funsies. My sister convincd me to do it while I was there even though i'm "only" at 37 lbs lost and i'm so glad I did. I feel like a new person and have a renewed vigor for losing weight! My sister is down to 166 (we're both 5'8") and she looks so TINY. I was trying to find an online weight loss simulator but I don't need one, I can just look at my sister! She's such a good motivator. She convinced me that I CAN work out outside and not die so on my first day off i'm going to map out a 4 mile trail and walk it as often as possible. I also want to find a walking buddy who is willing to push me like my sister did. Whenever I felt like I couldn't go on my sister would force me to jog!

My plan for this week is not to weigh myself until next Friday (I don't want to know if I gained during the trip!). I'm going to go to the store and stock up on good foods and finish painting my gym so I can actually set it up and use it. I'm also going to try and adjust my caloric intake for the first time. The biggest loser does your current body weight times 7 and based on my last weigh in (212.6*7 = 1488.2) i'm going to try 1488 and see what it does for me. I'm going to give it two weeks to show me a loss just in case I gained before I decide if i'm going to stick to this formula.

I hope you have an AWESOME day!

Monday, March 14, 2011

Day #74 Exercise & Fun Times

Yesterday we went to a national forest and had a picnic and went hiking. We took a lot of awesome pics and had a great time :-)

Last night my sister and I walked another 4 miles. I walked on the uphill parts and jogged on the downhill parts (i'm a cheater!) and it took us an hour.

I haven't counted any calories since i've been here. I hadn't gained any weight up until yesterday and I haven't weighed since. I think it's almost TOM because I feel emotional, bloated and had severe cramps that woke me up last night. Whenever its TOM I gain a mysterious 5-10 lbs that go away as soon as it's over, leaving me feeling like a giant fatty mcfatterson in the process. I'm using a lot of positive self talk and staying away from the scale until I return to "normal".

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Day #72 Vacation Workout!

My sister is a drill sargeant when it comes to working out and we did a 4 mile speed walk uphill for the first half and downhill for the second half. I was wearing my hrm and my pulse was between 165 and 195 the entire time, mainly staying around 170s and 180s. The scenery was so beautiful it made the walk much more enjoyable! I'm really trying to appreciate the time I'm spending with everyone and having a blast!

Friday, March 11, 2011

Day #71 Weigh Day & cue music "Vacation all I ever wanted..."

Wow! I can't believe today is already day 71! I'm currently on vacation and enjoying the time off immensely :-D. I worked 101.5 hours in the last two weeks (over 8 days) and haven't been updating here regularly.

This morning I woke up and "only" did 25 mins on the elliptical. I haven't done any cardio machines since I had my surgery a little over a month ago because I was scared I would sweat in my eyes or rub my face and go blind so today was an awesome NSV!

Another NSV is this morning my husband was trying to lay his head on my lap and said that my hip was "too bony"! That made me feel really good :-D.

Now...on to the weigh in...I got on the scale and it said 209! I was so excited but didn't believe it...so I got on again (I shouldn't have gotten back on!) and it said 212.6. I got off and on a few times then made other people weigh then weighed myself again and each time it said 212.6 so I GUESS that's what I actually weigh. This equals a loss of 1.2 lbs from last week and 37.4 lbs overall! I'm THIS close to 40 lbs lost and I will get there, all in due time.

Hope you're having a great week!

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Day #66! Friday Weigh-In

This Friday I weighed 213.8! Down 0.4 lbs for the week and 36.2 overall :-D I knew that this week would be significantly lower loss because I lost so much last week and I was not disappointed! A loss is always awesome.

I have been working so much! I worked 5 days last week (65 hours) and i'm on my 3rd out of 4 in a row for this week. The compliments and people noticing the weight loss at work keep on coming and it definitely boosts me up.

Only a few more days until vacay! Hope you're having a good week!!!

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Day #63 Changes

For the last two weeks or so not a day has gone by where someone hasn't commented on my weight loss, and I feel it in my clothes, but when I look in the mirror my face still looks the same to me. Last night my husband was looking at a picture we took together Christmas Eve and told me that he could really tell a diference in my face. I didn't believe him so he suggested re-creating that shot, and when I looked at them side by side he was right! My face has always been the last area of my body to slim down so it was very exciting to see the progress!

I forgot to tell you the other day when I found those size 16 jeans, they come from this box:


I don't know if i'm stressed about our upcoming road trip because yesterday I just felt like I could never get full. My go to thing when I feel that way is to busy myself with physical labor, but after a 13 hr day of nursing I didn't have the energy. I was so exhausted I didn't even weigh my dinner last night, I just estimated my portion size (I tend to overestimate when I do this so that makes me feel a smidge better). Wednesday is my last shift before the big road trip starts! I can't wait to see my family!