Meal Plan for Feb 1st

Breakfast:  packet of oatmeal, banana and coffee (w/cream and sugar)
Snack:  apple with TBSP of peanutbutter
Lunch:  4 oz chicken with veggie soup and 1/2 cup brown rice added to the soup
Snack:  hummus with veggies and 94% fat free microwave popcorn
Dinner:  veggie burger, collard greens/onion/garlic sauteed in a little bit of olive oil and a baked potato with 1 tsp butter and 1 TBSP of sour cream

The total points for this is roughly 29 points, which is right around what I should be having.  I'm also going to try and exercise again.

Another good day!

I did well today.  I didn't stick quite to what I was going to eat but the calorie intake was roughly the same.  Here is what I ended up eating:

Breakfast: Toast w/ a little butter and one egg and two egg whites
coffee with cream and sugar

Snack:  banana

Lunch:  1/2 turkey sandwich with a little mayo
veggie soup with about 1/4 cup of added rice

snack:  94% fat free microwave popcorn
a few handfuls of fishy crackers
2 tortilla chips

Dinner:  Lasagna and green beans
two bites of a granola bar

All these "bites" of something or just "2 or 3" of something all has to do with me having samples of my kid's snacks.  I'm not going to get upset about a few bites here and there for now, but my goal is to stop sampling food I wasn't planning on eating in the first place.

All in all - a great day!!  Oh, and if you've read my post from earlier today I should let you know that I'm VERY sore....Jillian beat me up GOOD!

Sweating

A forty five minute Jillian Michael's "Cardio Blast" workout is DONE!
I dropped my older two kids off at preschool, stuck the little one in front of a video, and I got my workout in. 
Today is a victory. 
However, it was hard to put the DVD in and do it in the first place.  The "mother's guilt" set in and I thought, "I should be playing with my daughter right now instead of sticking her in front of the t.v.", but I had to change that thinking and tell myself "it's OK!".  I also looked around at a dirty kitchen, living room, bathroom etc. and thought, I really need to get some cleaning done.  I then had to tell myself, "it will get done later and you'll feel better about yourself for exercising."
So it's a victory because a. I put the DVD IN in the first place, and b. I completed the workout.

I AM going to lose this weight!!!!!!

I DID IT!!!

I stuck to my plan today AND I managed to get in a 40 minute aerobic workout.  I wasn't absolutely perfect (a little extra dessert and lasagna), but it was close and I'm VERY proud of myself!!!

Tomorrow's Meal Plan:

You know what?  I'm going to do the exact same thing as today, minus the dessert.  This means I'll be able to have a little bit more "healthy" food during the day.  I'll probably add a glass or milk and a yogurt. I'm also going to try to get in at least 30 minutes of cardio.  Oh, and coffee...I forgot about that...one cup of coffee w/ a little cream and sugar. :-)

Wish me luck!

Team Hoyt: I Can Only Imagine - CAN

Reality Check and a Plan

Wow, the Holiday season coupled with Winter is sure doing a number on me.  What's the date now, January 29th!?, and I finally feel like I'm mentally getting back in the game.  I'm either going to do this or I'm not, it's that simple.  I'm sorry if I seem like a crazy person to some of you with all my back and forth thought patterns, ideas and strategies for weight loss.  One of the reasons I wanted to do this blog (in addition, to having it be a way of keeping myself held accountable) was that I wanted it to be a place people could come to and read about one person's day to day triumphs and struggles on a weight loss journey.
Just last week People magazine put out an issue called "Half My Size."  It was all these success stories of how people lost a ton of weight, and it truly WAS inspiring and made me think, "YES, *I*  CAN do this!"  However, the thing I don't like about those stories and other ones like them, is there is no mention of the day back in November of last year when Betty Lou had a setback and ate half a bakery and how she felt like I failure on her diet and it took everything she had to rise above it, or how in May of last year Joe Schmo didn't get to exercise for a whole weekend and it took him a full week to get back on track again, or how Sally May had plans to exercise and then two of her three kids ended up getting sick, and at the end of the day she was proud of herself for managing to brush her teeth. 
I'm not making up excuses for myself but I will tell you right now that if I were working and on some type of a schedule, and I wasn't in the kitchen most of the day either preparing food, feeding people or cleaning up, this journey that I'm on would be a WHOLE lot easier.  But it is what it is.  I can't exercise for hours and hours each day to lose the weight, and as healthy as I try to feed my children, I am ALWAYS going to be surrounded by extra food because of them.  So I'm going to do my best and I'm going to have to be happy with that.

So what the heck is my plan now?  I'm taking it one day at a time.  I went to the gym today and did 40 minutes of cardio (burning 500 calories) and I lifted some weights (working mainly on chest/back and triceps/biceps).  I also HAVE TO commit to sticking to an eating plan.  For this ONE week I'm going to post what I'm going to eat the following day and then at the end of that day I'll post as to whether or not I stuck with it.  Please GOD let me stick to this ONE WEEK goal I have for myself!!

Here it is - My meal plan for Sunday, January 30th (Oh, I should mention that I'm going to let Sunday be the day I can have a dessert, and I have to eat it with my husband :-)  I need to get used to having dessert and then stopping, so Sunday is the day for dessert with the family.)
 Weight Watchers is what I'm used to using to keep track of the amount of food I should eat in a day.  This day is roughly 26-27 points, and I should be having 28 points per day.  SO, even with the dessert this day is right on track :-)

Breakfast:  1 egg with two egg whites on a slice of Ezekiel bread (toasted) with a little butter
Snack:  apple with a TBSP of peanut butter
Lunch:  4oz chicken breast (cooked in a little olive oil), with veggie/rice soup (probably 1 1/2 cups)
Snack:  1/4 cup almonds with an orange
Dinner:  One serving of lasagna with brussel sprouts
Dessert:  One "No Pudge Fudge Brownie" with 1/2 cup strawberry ice cream

Wish me luck and if you pray, say a prayer for me!!

Oh my head!

I had great plans for myself this week in terms of exercise, but a three day migraine has all but ruined those plans.  I exercised my butt of (well not completely off, maybe a centimeter?) on Saturday, didn't get around to exercising on Sunday, and was going to do an aerobics DVD Monday morning.  Well, a migraine spoiled that on Monday, and then on Tuesday, and now today.  It's now 9pm on Wednesday night and my head is finally feeling okay, however I feel like if I make any sudden movements the pain is going to come back again.  Tomorrow is a new day and my plan is to do some low impact aerobics at some point in the day while my kids watch a movie.  I'm just nervous though because the aerobics on Saturday may have been what caused this mess in the first place.  It seems like I get headaches after I do any type of higher intensity working out i.e., aerobics or running, which is why I'm going to keep the impact low and pray that my head doesn't start pounding, or  fall off.  Hey, but doesn't the human head weigh like 20 pounds?  That could be an easy 20 pound loss...maybe I should jump around a lot! :-)

I've started exercising - AGAIN

This past week I shoveled a lot, did a bit of cardio with my kids the other day, and did about 40 minutes of cardio today.  I haven't wanted to go to the gym, so I'm doing my aerobic DVDs at home.  I also tried out my new, "Dancing with the Stars" DVD today.  I tried doing the Paso Doble - pronounced Paso Doblay.   I've been sitting here paused in thought for a few moments trying to figure out what to write next about how THAT went.  Um, let's just say people might have been "doblayed over" laughing watching me do the Paso Doble.  :-)  It felt great to work out though. 

I'm feeling a lot better emotionally these days and I'm excited to be getting back on track again.

A Bit of Reality

This article pretty much breaks it all down into a nice neat little package.  After reading it I realize that if I want to lose a significant amount of weight by summer I need to quit my lollygagging, start exercising A LOT more, and knock off all the "extras" that I've been eating.  


Following a Cardio Plan for Weight Loss - For Dummies

I Apologize

To anyone who has been following this blog and has been looking to me as their motivation and inspiration, I apologize.  I apologize for all but abandoning this blog, AND for dropping the ball, falling off the wagon, quitting the fight (however you want to say it).  There is no other way to say this except to be honest, I have been battling with some pretty significant depression and writing in this blog either wasn't or just couldn't be a priority.  It's not that I've totally "let myself go" and am not monitoring my diet anymore, I am.  I just didn't have it in me to write about it.
Anyway, I went on a retreat this past weekend and the theme of the weekend was "Alive Again".  I left a lot of baggage back at that retreat house and I'm feeling really good again.  I've attached a video of one of the songs that was played this past weekend on the retreat.  There is a line at the very end of the song that says: "This is the first. day. of the rest of your life!"  Today is that day.  I'm picking up and moving forward with joy and hope (and hopefully a lot less fat in the months to come :-)!!

Cabin Fever!

My kids have been sick with a stomach bug and I've been in the house for two days.  I'm doing good on my diet, but not great.  It's tough when you're stuck inside with sick kids, and don't have much else to do but be bored and eat.  I was also very blue yesterday and I just didn't have the motivation to do much of anything.  The good news is that I haven't had any desserts, the bad thing is all my snacking and overeating in general.  All in all I'm doing well given the circumstances (oh, and we're getting a huge snowstorm tonight and school has already been canceled for tomorrow...looks like one more day inside.....a person could really start losing it :-).  In a "perfect" world I wouldn't have these life obstacles getting in the way of my "fighting fat".  I would be able to get out of the house when I wanted, exercise when I wanted, eat the way I want because I wouldn't be confined to the house with both good and bad choice foods, I would be motivated to exercise because I wouldn't have both internal and external factors bringing me down, and I would be in a good routine.  However, the world is FAR from perfect and I'm doing the best I can with the life I have.  My own husband even said at dinner, "Doesn't winter just want to make you pig out?"  Believe me, he's on my side and is VERY helpful to me (he basically shoved me out the door the other day and made me go to the gym), but something about this weather and being stuck inside really does just make you want to eat.
Anyway, I'm watching "The Biggest Loser" right now and getting my weekly dose of motivation.  The good news is that I'm not sitting here eating while watching the show like I used to do.  I'd sit down with a bowl of ice cream and watch these poor people pass out on their treadmills.  At least I'm not being so rude anymore!  Ha!

Made it through the weekend

I made it through the weekend without a dessert and was able to exercise yesterday.  It feels good to have some structure again.  I did weigh myself and I've gained 6 pounds (in three weeks), but I'm still at a 9 pound loss from when I started.  Anyway, the new year is here and I AM going to achieve a 40 pound loss by this time next year!!

The Party is OVER

 It's a shame that special events, celebrations, holidays etc.,  have to be surrounded by rich and highly fattening food (and alcohol).  In trying to figure out why I associate "fun" with "food" I realized that it's because I've been conditioned to think this way, we all have.  I think part of why I have trouble getting back on track after the holiday season is 1., I crave what I've been eating (sugary, carby and rich foods), and 2., the holiday season is just more fun in general than every day life and honestly, who wouldn't want the party to continue??  Maybe the party can't go on forever, but the food sure can...and it has been...and it needs to stop!
Apparently my life is extremely boring because I keep turning to the "fun food" to keep the party going (the party for ONE!).  I have to figure out how to have "fun" on a daily basis, without my "fun food" AND to try and find a way to make the holiday season (which could last all year if I let it) more fulfilling, without the need to binge eat.  I'm sure by now you've figured out that I'm having some trouble getting back on the "fat fight" wagon. :-)
Last night I decided that TODAY is the day that the party ends (have I already make this statement in another post??  Well, I'm not perfect so I'm saying it again!).  I'm back on my  NO sugar diet that I was doing well just up until Thanksgiving and then was kind of sort of doing up until the week before Christmas.  While on that diet I was  1. able to remain focused on my goal of wanting to lose weight, 2. I was actually losing weight and 3. After about a week on it, I wasn't craving sugar as much anymore and I was feeling A LOT better both physically and mentally.  So far so good....it's 1pm and I'm doing well.  There are no excuses right now and there is fear of failure that I have no choice but to overcome.  I'm tired of not putting my full dedication into something because of the fear of failure.  I'll never know if I can lose this weight unless I try, and try hard.
Keep fighting everyone...we CAN do this!

First Ourselves

This is an email I received from "First Ourselves" this morning.  I loved it and thought it was appropriate to share here.

Daily Encouragement for you on January 4, 2011:

"We practice bravery when we resist the pull to run – or indulge – and instead stay. We practice humility when we embrace our very human neediness as something precious, tender, and valuable rather than something shameful. We practice grace when we hold our human neediness lightly and see beyond to the divinity underneath. "

Happy New Year!!

Hello to all and happy new year!  So far so good for 2011 (we're just going to forget about the end of 2010 :-).  I exercised today and didn't have any desserts.  Come on fat fighters, we can do this!!!!!!!!!!