New beginnings

I have been horrible about keeping up on all of the blogging. I wish I were more tech savvy so that I could be more consistent. Thank you all of always being so forgiving. Well, I'm definitely losing some weight. The best part is that others are noticing. It becomes like a drug. The more that people compliment me, the harder I want to work. I have this drive in me that's incredible. I have been running in the morning and trying to squeeze in a workout at night. I really wanna work out a couple of times a day more consistently. This weather has me feeling kinda blah right now and working out really pumps me up. Every time I get stressed out I want to run to my escape...exercise. Some of my favorite exercises to do are on the Nintendo Wii Fit Plus. If you do not own the Wii Fit Plus, check out this preview: 

Another favorite workout of mine is Zumba. I am a horrible dancer, but when I dance with Zumba, I feel like I could win Dancing with the Stars! It is a fantastic combination different dances from hip hop to african to belly dancing. Right now I am doing the Zumba Core. It is very reasonably priced as well.  Check out this preview: 

I want to share one other idea with you. Something that I found on Pinterest. Take two red solo cups and mark one as "EXERCISES"  and the other as "DONE"  Take popsicle sticks and write one exercise on each stick with varying repetitions. This will allow you to see how much you have accomplished with your workouts throughout the day. 



I hope that some of these tips are encouraging to you and to others. Never give up. It doesn't matter how times you fall off the wagon, what matters is how many times will get back up. 

New Year, New Me

So, last night I met with my trainer/life coach/sister in law. We sat down and discussed a lot of my hangups. Meaning, things that have nothing to do with diet or exercise that are getting in the way of my being successful. I'm currently working two jobs, dealing with medical issues, as well as 2/3 kids being in therapy...one for Asperger's and the other developmental issues. So my sleep is little and my stress level is through the roof. With the second job, I've had no time/energy to work out anymore. Because I'm not sleeping, I'm eating to stay awake and drinking caffeine constantly. I'm sabotaging myself. I realize that through all of this, I'm not taking care of myself and I'm not allowing God to work in this situation. I'm taking all of this load on myself. I'm not allowing God to teach me to have more faith and to fully rely on him. God has always taken care of me and my family and  there is no reason why He would ever stop. So, I'm letting go of one of my jobs to get the old me back. The "me" that was happy, ready to do whatever God willed for my life, and to get myself in shape to do whatever God would have me to do. So, lesson learned. It's not always about the actual diet and exercise. Sometimes, well in my case a lot of times, it's the unresolved issues in your life that are holding you back. I can't fix the outward until I fix the inward. With God's help, we will beat this together. It's gonna take a lot of time, hard work, and soul searching. Loving that I'm starting fresh....with a better outlook.

My progress

So, as of July 1st. I'm down 32 lbs. I have a long road ahead of me because I still have 68 to lose. Excited to get back into my workouts hopefully tomorrow. I had a minor injury that is being checked today to see if it's all healed up. I am so excited to start back up. I really need to kick it  into gear. I want to have 50 of the 68 lbs. gone by summer. I know that's a high goal, but I'm sick of making excuses and saying, "It's too hard. It's time to suck it up and start saying, "It's too hard to continue living my life like this and shortening my life expectancy all because I want to be lazy and not proactive." Time to take back my life and be happy. Time to not be on the rollercoaster of emotions all of the time because I don't love myself in this skin. Brandon, Em, Logan, YOU ARE WORTH IT! YOU ARE WORTH IT ON THE DAYS THAT MOMMY DOESN'T FEEL SHE IS! YOU ARE WORTH ALL OF THIS HARD WORK.

More progress!

So, I lost more weight! Last week, I got a little off track, but this week's weigh in showed I fixed it and lost some more. No more messin' up like that! I had a rough week and to keep a long story short, had to finally be put on a couple muscle relaxers to fix me up. Once I finally broke down and got that taken care of, my weight loss started back up again. I am looking forward to being 70 lbs. lighter by Christmas. That's my goal anyway. I noticed something tonight that I thought I would share. When I don't get enough sleep and have to push myself to stay awake, I turn to food. When I'm talking about the stresses in my life to my husband, I'm opening the fridge. I have zeroed in on a few problems here and here are my solutions. Sleep whenever I can (day or night) and run when I'm stressing and talk to my husband when I'm done running. Then I can talk to him with a clear head and not be over emotional no matter what it is. My body is starting to crave exercise like it never has. I feel horrible when I don't exercise. Physically that is. My body demands the exercise. I'm really excited about my future. I'm starting to feel some self worth. It's not that losing weight will fix all of your problems, but when you are over 100 lbs. overweight, you can't make wise decisions or really care and love yourself. I'm to the point now that I can finally walk into a room and not feel like everyone is staring at the "fat girl". I still have TONS of weight to lose, but every time I see that number going down, I realize that I'm just that much closer. Every time the number goes down, I'm gonna work harder. So excited about what God is acheiving in my life through this weight loss. Feel free to click on any of the links on my page (I do get paid a little, with every click even if you don't participate in the promotions). Have a blessed week everyone.

Progress so far

My last weigh in was last Tuesday and I was down even more. I'm not allowed to reveal how much because I'm going to be part of a weight loss/healthy eating class and the teacher wants me to keep it a secret. The great thing is that I'm down! When I first started, I thought, "One hundred pounds is sooo much to lose!" It is no longer 1oo lbs. to lose, I will tell you that. lol. Clothes are getting looser and I'm in a good place mentally. If I eat something that I shouldn't, my body feels pretty slump all day. It's just becoming not worth it to cheat anymore. It's great! I actually had Starbucks the other day and didn't mess up my whole calorie count! I was so excited to know that I could still go out for Starbucks with friends and not overdo it! I got the Iced Mocha Light Blended Coffee, w/out syrup or whipped cream and it was still really tasty! It was only 110 calories! I went to Denny's before and nothing looked good on the whole menu! I knew that I wasn't going to pay that much to see the scale go the wrong way on the next weigh in. There are still TONS of places I can eat and be well within my calorie count for the day. On Friday night, I went to Bdubs and got the Naked Tenders and a side salad. With Spicy Garlic sauce of course! You can treat yourself without killing your calories for the day. I still have some foods that I have to stay completely away from because I know that I will overeat them. Pizza and soft chocolate chip cookies are the two main ones. I hope that a lot of people are reading this, because I want you to know that you can do it. IF I CAN DO THIS, YOU DEFINITELY CAN DO IT! Thanks to my hubby for checking in on me and asking if I'm counting the food that I'm eating and such. I'll blog again soon. Hopefully with pictures. :)

Report on the Weigh In

Well last week was great! I lost 5 lbs.! I really needed a good jumpstart to encourage me. I really watched all of my calories and worked out 30 minutes 5x last week. I deserved every lost pound. I'm working on drinking more water this week. Shooting for a gallon a day. I know it sounds crazy, but my body will love me for it. I noticed today that I had much more endurance in my workout today. I had tons of energy afterward. It's crazy how just one week could have me so pumped. I'm not spending an arm and a leg to eat healthier either. I get the 90 calorie buns and make a turkey burger for lunch or eat a 4 oz chicken breast with cottage cheese and a salad. I will never be the girl that can starve myself or anything crazy like that. I like to eat! Obviously, that's what got me here to begin with. I just eat smarter. I know exactly what I'm putting into my body before it's on my plate. When I'm tempted to cheat, I just tell myself, "It's just food, is it really worth it?" I treat myself too. After shopping around (checking all the calorie counts) online at different places, I got a 150 calorie regular ice cream cone from McDonalds. You can eat at all of the places you ate before, just be smart. I know I can't walk in now and get an Angus burger. I know it is temporary pleasure, then I'm going to feel awful both physically and mentally for eating it. It's weird how your mindset changes. I have so much more energy. Last week, Aunt Flo (ask a friend if you don't know) came to visit. I was surprised I could move! Let alone work out for five days and eat healthy. Now I know that I can do this in any setting. Next weigh in is Saturday. I'm so excited!

Another Great Recipe!

This is a great breakfast recipe!

2-3 egg whites
chopped onion
green peppers
one slice of turkey breast lunchmeat
one slice of cheese
a little "dash" of Mrs.Dash Table Blend

Mix the egg whites in a bowl with just a few drops of water (replacing the milk). Pour into small skillet over medium heat. When the egg starts to form, put in the Mrs. Dash, onion, green peppers, lunchmeat, and cheese (in that order). Cook until bottom is done (roughly 4-6 minutes). Fold it in half. Cook each side another 2-3 min.



It is sooooooooooo yummy and pair this up with fruit and you have a great, healthy breakfast!
Thanks to my sister-in-law, Destiny for sharing this with me. :)

A low calorie yummy dessert!

Doesn't this look amazing? This would be great to take to a get together or make for dessert at home. The best part is that it's only 105 calories per serving (1/2 cup)! How exciting is that? Here is the link to the recipe:

http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/creamy-apple-nut-salad-10000001935314/

Feeling a little defeated

I could sit and make excuses that are probably valid ones to everyone else, but I've gotten so much heavier in the past few months. A lot of it is due to stress, but it boils down to me not being proactive and me not taking charge of the being the best I can be. I wanted to write this post in case anyone has ever been in my position. I really need to kick it into gear. There are so many risk factors for being overweight. Some of these include:

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  Heart disease



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  Type 2 Diabetes



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  Sleep apnea



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  Certain types of cancer



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  Strokes



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  Osteoarthritis



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  Many many other risk factors

This is so heartbreaking for me to sit here and list all of these. I really believe though that making it real and typing these facts out will really help me. I really need to write down my daily agenda and see where I can be more active when completing my daily tasks. I have to get healthy. I love my husband and kids so much and I can't bear the thought of putting them through any of these horrible medical issues, because I made a choice to not take care of myself. Taking baby steps this week in the right direction, but application is the key to all of the great resources that I'm receiving this week. If anyone has any comments on how I could add exercise to my daily routine, I would love it! Also, any low calorie, budget friendly recipes are great! As always encouragement and support from everyone is what's gonna be a huge part of getting me where I need to be.

Food Diary 2/23/11

My goal today is to push more fluids. After reviewing the past couple of days, I'm not drinking enough.

Breakfast: two blueberry waffles plain (190 cal.) and a banana (108 cal.) one bottle of water

Food Diary 2/22/11

Breakfast: two servings of egg beaters (60 cal), three slices of turkey bacon (90 cal.) --did not use any oil this time. Dannon light n fit toasted coconut vanilla yogurt (80 cal), one bottle of water.

Snack: 12 oz. bottle of berry gatorade (80 cal.), one bottle of water, 4 hershey kisses.

Lunch: Progresso Light Vegetable Rotini (140 cal.) one little bag of pretzels (60 cal.) a half bottle of water (gotta work on that fluid intake)

Snack: well altogether I probably had 9 hershey's kisses (200 cal.), one bag of pretzels (60 cal.)
Later on, Fit and Active Light Popcorn - five cups (100 cal.)

Dinner: Progresso Light Chicken and Dumplings (160 cal.), 90 cal. cinn. rice cakes, one bottle of water.

Food Diary

I've decided to start posting what I have been eating throughout the day so that I am made accountable for everything I have in my diet. I'll edit this to put the rest of what I eat today.


Today:
Breakfast: One bottle of water, one serving size of egg beaters (30 cal.), two slices of turkey bacon (60 cal.), cooked in a half a tbsp of veg. oil (60 cal.), 1 cup of Dannon Light n Fit Toasted Coconut Vanilla yogurt (80 cal.).

Snack: FIT AND ACTIVE Cinna-Swirl rice cake minis (90 cal.), one bottle of water

Lunch: Progresso Light Santa Fe Style Chicken Soup (160 cal.) one bottle of water, serving size of pretzels (60 cal.)

Snack: 90 cal. pack of Cinna-Swirl rice cake minis and 6 Hershey Kisses --- :(

Dinner: Progresso Italian Meatball Soup (160 cal.)

Before I went to bed I had yet another 90 cal. pack of the rice cake minis....ugh!

Apologies to my followers

I offer my sincere apologies for not continuing to post like I seriously intended to do. Since my last post, I had my third baby. He is now five months old and it's time for me to get my butt back in gear and get this weight off. I am nursing my son and working five days a week, but no excuses. My kids mean more to me than anything and I have to be healthy for them. I have to show them the importance of eating well and having an active lifestyle. My energy level has dropped to an all-time low. I have got to get this weight off so that I can do more with my life. Someone approached me at church about being in a Biggest Loser contest with some other women. I think it's a great idea because it holds me accountable. I'm hoping to post some yummy recipes on here as well. I'm back!

Current weight: 230 lbs.
Goal weight: 130 lbs.

Christian Workout Mix (for a mix of cardio and weight training)

1. I Will Not Be Moved ~ Natalie Grant
2. Stomp ~ Kirk Franklin
3. Catchafire (Whoopsie Daisy) ~ Toby Mac
4. Feelin' So Fly ~ Toby Mac
5. Burn For You ~ Toby Mac
6. Captured ~ Natalie Grant
7. Live For Today ~ Natalie Grant
8. Shackles (Praise You) ~ Mary Mary
9. Gone ~ Toby Mac
10. Get Down ~ Audio Adrenaline

***MORE TO COME AT A LATER DATE!!!***

Awakened!

God has opened my eyes. I'm never going to be able to use this weightloss as a testimony if I do these crash diets to lose the weight. I need to pray and exercise more, and eat better. God is testing me to see if I'm going to give this situation over to him or if I'm going to try to do it all by myself. I can't do it by myself. I want to be able to give Him the glory for the victory. I didn't start out as well as I could've today. I'm committing to a mile walk EVERY DAY. It doesn't sound like much, but I have the Biggest Loser bootcamp DVD and I've done it. Only level one, but I can do it. I plan on doing that as well as the walking. I think that it will be relaxing and time to reflect. God requires a time every day for me to be silent and let His Holy Spirit speak to me. This would be the perfect time. If any of you have suggestions or encouraging words, please let them in the comment box. I need all of it to be successful, but first and foremost....I'm letting God take over.

Just the beginning...

Well, today marks the beginning of my journey; my journey to lose weight. I am tired of being "the fat girl". I've been that girl for my entire life. I have a gorgeous husband and kids and I've always felt like I didn't fit in with them. This picture is one of my body about two weeks ago. I love to eat. That is one of the biggest problems that I am having. It's more like an addiction. I'm trying to control it but it's not easy. Today, I tried a crash diet, which is horrible, but I'm so desperate. I can't be fat. It's not acceptable in our society. Fat girls don't get anywhere in life...we all know that. I remember how hard it was for me to get jobs and I believe that it had everything to do with my weight. I didn't work out today so I feel pretty lame. I have got to kill myself working out tomorrow. Last night, I worked out with a beautiful friend of mine and I just kept thinking...what am I doing here? I can't keep up with her! So, we will see how this goes. Thanks for reading my blog and feel free to leave comments.