Monday, May 30, 2011

Weekly Check-In (Beginning Week 3)

This week I lost another 1.5 pounds, bringing up my total pounds lost to 13 and my current weight to 204! Only five more pounds to go until I am officially in 1-DER LAND! Yay!

The next couple weeks should be very interesting. The kids and I are leaving tomorrow to spend a week and a half in Iowa with family. Tomorrow will be the first travel day I've really spent on 1,500 calories, as before, I had not ever made myself follow those strict guidelines on trips. The nice thing about going to Iowa is that four of us (including me) are on "diets", and the way we do meals will be vastly different than in the past. It will be interesting to see what happens on Friday, though. Friday is Adventureland (amusement park) day. Can you even purchase healthy food at an amusement park?! But surely anything one eats is offset by all the walking, right?

We'll see next Monday.

Friday, May 27, 2011

Mommy's Night Out (On a Diet)

I am going out to dinner with a couple friends tonight. This is the first time I've ever put this much research and planning into one meal. Normally, we just figure out what sounds good and then order it without thought of caloric intake. Today, I researched possible menu options (even with dessert and soda) for 3 different restaurants so that I'd be prepared and better equipped to stay within my remaining calories. I also budgeted my calories for the other two meals of the day and did 60 minutes of Wii Free Step for a few extra allotted calories. I'm proving to myself that I can still go out with my friends to restaurants, enjoy good food (and chocolate cake! and soda!) and still remain within my calories for the day. It just takes a little planning on my part.

Monday, May 23, 2011

More Substitutions

I had tried some Splenda sweetener in my hot tea last week and found that it....fizzed.  Hmmm.  I'm not entirely positive, but I don't think tea is supposed to fizz.  My mom recommended that I try Truvia, so I picked some up at the store yesterday (yikes! $5 for a little jar).  With the Splenda, you are supposed to use equal amounts to what sugar your recipe calls for, so I assumed it would be the same with the Truvia. I couldn't have been more wrong.  As I normally put in 3 spoonfuls of sugar in my tea, I added 3 spoonfuls of Truvia and was delighted that it did not fizz.  Yay!  Until I took a sip.  Whoa, Mama!  Apparently, considerably less is more with regard to the Truvia.  A spoonful will much more than suffice.  I guess that $5 jar might just last longer than I thought....

Weekly Check-In

Did my weekly weigh-in this morning.  Going by what I weighed last week (206), I only lost half a pound.  BUT, considering I gained 2 lbs toward the end of the week last week, I actually lost 2.5 lbs this week---since Thursday, in fact.  Every little bit helps!

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Born to Soar

 The following is something I wrote back in September and I was reminded of it today.  I think I am finally ready to soar.



Yesterday, I had an epiphany.

For almost a week now, I’ve been faithfully keeping track of what I eat and how much I exercise.  It hasn’t necessarily been enjoyable.  I never have been the type to critically analyze and calculate every single piece of food I put into my body.  Nor have I been one who thrives on exercise.  So it is little shock to anyone why I’m in the terrible shape I am.  But that wasn’t my epiphany.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a writer.  My earliest memories of writing take me back to the 5th grade when I began writing down certain dreams I had and then embellishing them.  Then, in sixth grade, my class received a writing assignment.  We were shown several pictures and told to write a story about one of them.  I don’t remember how much time we had to work on these stories.  But I distinctly remember coming home from school that day and immediately getting to work on mine.  From the time I came home from school until the time I went to bed each night, and then all day on weekends, I wrote.  When the time was up, I still wasn’t finished.  So my teacher gave me a little extra time after I submitted an outline of my story to her.  Once finished, I had somehow worked each of the pictures into the plot line of my story.  The day we received them back, before handing them out, the teacher made an announcement.  She typically did not give out A+ grades because she believed that there was always room for improvement.  However, she felt that one student deserved an A + grade for their story.  Without revealing whom had earned this high honor, she instead began to read the opening of the chosen story.  It was mine.  Everyone immediately knew it was mine as well because of the deep shade of red I turned.  All through junior high and high school, and even somewhat into my college years, I spent many hours during and after school writing story after story.  Then, after my babies were born, there weren’t enough hours in the day for sleep or showering, let alone writing.  I set it aside, telling myself that I’d pick it up again when the kids were older.  Now, they are older and time is still at a premium.  But that wasn’t my epiphany.

In my life, I’ve sat through at least twenty-five years of Sunday school, attended a Bible college for eight years (yes, I crammed 4 years of study into 8), and have watched each and every VeggieTale countless times.  I know God made me and loves me very much.  I know that I am fearfully and wonderfully made.  I’ve known this for 31 years (I’m not counting the other four years of my life because let’s face it, who remembers much before they’re four?).  But somehow knowing it and knowing it were two different things for me.   And that was my epiphany. 

Because God loves me enough to send His Son Jesus to die for me, and because I am fearfully and wonderfully made, I am beautiful in His sight.  I am worthwhile.  I matter.

I realized that because I matter, I don’t want to be overweight any longer.  I don’t want to keep setting a bad example for my children.  Therefore, I am actually excited about this new weight loss journey I’m on.  And so if using a website to keep track of everything I eat and each time I exercise helps me to finally lose the weight once and for all and reach a healthy me, then I am excited about it!  I deserve to be healthy.  I deserve to be happy.

I also realized that because I deserve to be happy, it was a mistake to put away a gift that God gave me.  To that end, over the weekend I began writing again.  Each day, I’ve spent a few hours writing--losing myself in a world entirely of my own making.  I’m not just doing this for my own pleasure and enjoyment, however.  I want to use this gift to glorify the One who gave it to me, whatever happens.  Whatever comes from it.  Even if nothing comes of it but a closer walk with Him.

My epiphany was that I was born to soar--we all were.  And I’ve decided to spread my wings and let my Heavenly Father teach me to fly.

Substitutions

I've been at a loss as to what exactly to call this whole journey I'm on.  Typically, when we think of a "diet" we think of a starting point and an end goal.  My end goal is to weigh 125 lbs.  But this is so much more than a "diet".  It's not something I can check off and then move on with life.  Lose weight?  Check.  Did it, don't have to worry about food again.  Well, yes and no.  I may not live the rest of my life consuming only 1,500 calories a day, but it certainly doesn't mean I get to go back to eating whatever I want again.  Especially given that I am in my mid-30s now, about to turn 36---the last year of my mid-30s.  Next year, I'll officially be in my "late 30s", with 40 knocking on the door.  So this is more of a diet/lifestyle change I'm working to affect.

One of the lessons I've learned over the last (almost) two weeks is that I need to be extremely picky about what I put in my mouth.  Do I really want to expend my calories on X when I can have Y?  For example, today we went to a pool party.  The menu was hotdogs, which are high in calories and are not my favorite food anyway.  So I had to decide if I wanted to spend my calories on something I don't love or not.  And I chose not.  Before we left, I packed myself a peanut-butter sandwich on honey wheat bread, a baggie of sweet pepper slices, and a couple 100-calorie packs.  For munching at the pool, I packed baby carrots (instead of the chips everyone else had) and plenty of water.  Doing this enabled me to have a Rice Krispie treat square.  When I got home and figured up my calories, I realized I had a little less than 500 calories left for the day--which made dinner kind of interesting.  I just figured I'd probably be over on my calories for the day.  However, instead of being upside down, I got out my book of fast food nutrition information, looked up Burger King, and found something to eat that was less than my remaining calories.  Yes, it meant that I had a salad instead of a burger.  But that's okay.  The salad was tasty, filling, and I have the added satisfaction of knowing that I remained within my allotted calories for the day even while at a party, and even while eating out! 

And that is far more satisfying than any cheeseburger could ever be.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

Not a Slave to Style

In my junk mailbox in my email account was an email from a food magazine I recently signed up for with the headline, "Fit Back Into Your Skinny Jeans!"  Why on earth would I want to wear skinny jeans? I'm almost thirty-six years old with four children, for crying out loud!  Skinny jeans are just a fad for teenagers--albeit skinny ones (seeing heavy people in skinny jeans is about as flattering as seeing them in Lycra).  Regardless of who does or does not wear them, they are a fashion fad that really ought to just go away.  I mean, seriously.  If one's pants are so tight that one has to lay down on a flat surface in order to button the things, perhaps better judgment ought to be exercised with regard to one's clothing options. 

I have never been a slave to style.  Well, I guess there were those couple years in high school when I tight-rolled my jeans, and there was that one pair of Guess! jeans that I bought in college.  But since I purchased the latter at a factory outlet store and they fit me better than any other pair of jeans I've ever owned, I'm not counting that one.

Style, for me, is whatever is comfortable.  I own--and wear--things that I'm sure are not necessarily the most flattering styles for me, but if they are pretty and comfortable to me, then I'm satisfied.  There is just no way you can convince me that skinny jeans are comfortable.  So, instead of being that slave to style, I prefer to be an Original.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Just Call Me the Biggest Loser!

Okay, I admit it. I'm impatient. My weigh-in wasn't until tomorrow, but I just couldn't wait any longer. I've been an EXTREMELY good girl this last week and just had to find out how that translated to the scale. Now, the number I'm about to give was taken from the Wii Fit, not from the doctor's scale. And I was wearing my pajamas, not fully-clothed in jeans and tennis shoes. You ready?

Over the last 6 days, I've LOST 11 LBS!!!!

The scale at the doctor's office said I weighed 217 lbs. The Wii scale today said I weigh 206. And apparently, I've lost 5 lbs since my last weigh-in on the Wii. ROCK ON, BABY!

So that goal of 20lbs down by August? Over half-way there, baby. I couldn't have gotten a better anniversary present (Happy 13th anniversary, Troy!).

Friday, May 13, 2011

Weight Loss Goals

The following are my weight loss goals. I will indicate whether or not they were met.


Starting Weight - 217 pounds

Weight Loss Goal # 1 -  Lose 20 pounds by August 30, 2011 (weighing 197)

Weight Loss Goal # 2 - Lose 42 pounds by December 31, 2011 (weighing 175)

Weight Loss Goal # 3 - Lose 67 pounds by April 17, 2012 (weighing 150)

Weight Loss Goal # 4 - Lose 92 pounds by August 7, 2012 (weighing 125)

Ending Weight (Goal) - 125 pounds

Tuesday, May 10, 2011

A Hard Reality

Today I had to visit the doctor for a particular (minor) issue and, of course, did the regular weigh-in and blood pressure check.  If I haven't blogged on this site for a long time, it's been almost as long since I concerned myself at all with my diet and exercise.  And today, that was evident.  My weight had crept up to 217, and I tried to brush it aside, telling myself that it wasn't really that high because I was wearing jeans and tennis shoes.  But the fact remains that I've put on all of the weight I lost, and probably more.  Ever since my bout with pre-ecclampsia with my first pregnancy, I have loathed with a passion having my blood pressure measured.  Undoubtedly, the electric machines are used and let's face it....those things are brutal!  Talk about having the life squeezed out of you!  Anyway, the technician looked at my readout with a frown on his face and then announced, "Your blood pressure is elevated today."  I felt like saying, "Duh!  My arm was about squeezed in half!"  Once again, I was trying to rationalize it away.  Whether my BP was high today because of the stress of going to the doctor or having my arm mercilessly squeezed, it was still high.  Which means that, as a minimum, I am borderline hypertensive.  Not good!  After I was ushered into my little waiting room, I sat in a daze, and I realized---perhaps for the first time---the seriousness of the situation.  Yes, I've long hated the way I look, and I've long known that I need to lose weight.  But I finally realized today how very serious this actually is.  I'm sure if I were to do that Biggest Loser test where they calculate your actual age based on health, it would probably make me cry.  I feel as if I was doused today with a very cold, bracing bucket of water.  This is a hard reality to face.

HOWEVER.  Like the Biggest Loser contestants, I can choose to do something about this.  I can turn my health around.  While I cannot spend 6-8 hours in a gym like they do (and really, I'm not entirely sure it's healthy in the long run to lose 80-100 lbs in a matter of weeks), I can get up off my hiney and do 30 minutes a day.  I can monitor what I'm eating and be vigilant about logging my calories on MyFitnessPal.com.  I can choose healthier food options.  To that end, I went online and looked up the nutritional guides to every major restaurant we typically eat in, printed them out, and put them in a binder to be left in the car.  This way, I can make informed decisions on healthy menu options even when we're eating out.  I can know in a glance that if I really want to splurge on that Olive Garden dinner or the Raisin' Cane box o' goodies, I'll basically be eating vegetable sticks and cereal the other meals of the day. 

So now it's time to set a goal for myself.  We are unable to attend language school this fall, but we are still working and praying to be funded in time to begin our language study in January, 2012.  My weight loss goal for the end of December---yes, even with holidays in there---is to lose 42 lbs.  This would put me at 175 lbs, almost half-way to my goal weight of 130 lbs.  It will be difficult.  And I'm sure I'll suffer setbacks.  But know I can do this.  I can change that hard reality into something great.