Tidbits of Summer Learning

A few tidbits of learning from my weight loss this summer.

-Have a work out buddy.  Most of the summer I picked up a friend on the way to the gym.  It was fun to talk as we worked out and ever once and a while push each other until we were red in the face.  We haven’t been able to work out together the past few weeks and it has been harder for me. I need to give her a call and start meeting up again.

-Make an appointment with the gym.  Not literally, but pencil it in your planner.  I started the 30 Day shred and hope to start it back up again, but it is hard with a toddler and a crawler.  I have unlimited childcare when I go to the gym, so not a bad gig!  Working out at home with kids is a challenge. My two year old isn’t napping much any more so she likes to ‘work out’ with me.  Not the easiest task.  She likes to climb on my back when I am doing push ups, if I could do them with her on my back it wouldn’t be such a big deal, but not there yet.  It is cute to see her attempt jumping jacks, she jumps as her arms flail all over.

-Even though my weight loss is slow and some weeks minimal, it is not worth getting discouraged over.  I am working on a healthier life style as a whole not a fad fast way of dropping weight.  Been there done that.

-The weeks that I lifted weights and really pushed myself I lost more weight (go figure, trainermomma.com is right!).  Also the weeks that I was super strict about my eating I lost weight (go figure again!).

-Sometimes I have to re-commit and re-commit to my goals over and over again. I figure it is a part of life.  At least a part of my life.

-I learned that bananas have a ton of sugar.  My favorite banana combo: peanut butter and banana on a graham cracker, mmm.  If I want to keep within my carb goal, this  treat is out of picture.

-Earlier this year I was having a conversation with my younger sister.  I was sharing how I was discouraged about gaining so much weight with my pregnancies.  I stated how I was working out and working out and not getting anywhere.  I felt a bit in despair about the weight never coming off (I think we all have those moments somewhere along our weigh loss journey).  She told me, “You have lost weight before, you can do it again.  You have it in you.”  It was true.  I do have it in me.  We just need to remember on our low days, it has been done before, you can do it!!

Slimmer this Summer Week 12 Final Post

Well summer is drawing nigh and so is the Slimmer this Summer Challenge.  I enjoyed the challenge and loved that I had something to keep me motivated and on track.  Were their days that were off track and not fun, of course.  But overall I am pleased with the results.

My goals:

-Journal my meals

Over all I did pretty good about documenting all my food.  I had days where I was out and about where I didn’t access the computer and didn’t keep track.  I also had a handful of days where I wanted to eat foods I wouldn’t normally eat, but I tried to exercise moderation and be sensible.

Through this challenge I started using My Fitness Pal. I loved having this tool.  It was so helpful to me!  Much easier to get real with myself.  I will continue to do this over the next few months and onto the next challenge (will post details later)

-Be under 165g of Carbohydrates/day (with fiber adjustment)

This will always be a challenge for me.  I love food with carbs.  From veggies to sweets, carbs are what I love.  I know 165g of carbohydrates isn’t necessarily a ‘low carb’ diet, but it is a good guideline.  I will continue to work toward this as well.

-Exercise 5 times a week for 45-60 minutes

I faithfully exercised this whole challenge up until the end.  I even got in a good run yesterday.  I was 100% on this goal up until last week.  I hit a wall of exhaustion and I decided to rest before I got sick.  I am glad I did.  Although I did not get in 100% these last two weeks, I still got in 4 good work outs each of the last two weeks.

-10 glasses of water a day

Initially this was hard for me.  I have been dehydrated for too long!  Eventually it got easier and easier. I am glad this was a component of the challenge.  It helped me along the way!

-Run/walk a 5K in under 40 minutes GOAL MET!

Yeah, one goal accomplished!  After I met this goal I scaled back on running.  Over the past couple of weeks I started back up. I have a neck injury that gets most agitated when I run.  I was hoping to overcome my neck issues this summer, but it is still a work in progress.

Now when I run I push myself to do a 10 minute mile (but with slowing down once or twice for a short rest and drink of water. I am closer to an 11:20 min. mile), then walk another mile or so then finish off with another 10 minutes of running.

-Build a support network

Thanks to all who have supported and commented my blog posts along the way.  I have read and followed most of the other challengers this summer.  I tried to comment several times through the week and support others too.  Today for some reason again I was not able to comment on others blogs.  So just know I have been reading and I am so proud of all the work everyone has done in becoming healthier!!  I am so impressed and inspired by many of you!!

-lose an average of 2 lbs/week, 24lbs total

I lost a total of 13.4 lbs this summer.  11 under my goal, but I am happy with my results. I have more work to do, so I will keep trekking along!

This Summers Stats:

Measurement losses:

Neck: ½ inch

Chest: 2 ½ inches

Ribs: 3 inches

Waist: 1 inch

Belly: 2 inches

Hips: 2 inches

Calf: ½ inch

Arm: ¾ inch

Thigh 1 ½ inches

Beginning Weight: 201.3

Week 1: 198.6 (-2.7)

Week 2: 198.6 (0) No change

Week 3: 196.9 (-1.7) Total loss 4.4 lbs

Week 4: 193.9 (-3) Total loss 7.4

Week 5: 193.2 (-.5) Total loss 8.1   

Week 6: 193.3 (+.1) Total loss 8.0   

Week 7: 190.3 (-3) Total loss 11.0

Week 8: 191.7 (+1.4) Total loss 9.6

Week 9: 189.4 (-2.3) Total loss 11.9

Week 10: 188.3 (-1.1) Total loss 13

Week 11: 189.7 (+1.4) Total loss 11.6

Week 12: 187.9 (-1.8) Total loss 13.4

(22.1 loss since I began my journey in January)

Thanks for the awesome challenge Debbie and Mir!!!!

My goals:

-Journal my meals

-Be under 165g of Carbohydrates/day (with fiber adjustment)

-Exercise 5 times a week for 45-60 minutes

-10 glasses of water a day

-Run/walk a 5K in under 40 minutes GOAL MET!

-Build a support network

-lose an average of 2 lbs/week, 24lbs total

Beginning Weight: 201.3

Week 1: 198.6 (-2.7)

Week 2: 198.6 (0) No change

Week 3: 196.9 (-1.7) Total loss 4.4 lbs

Week 4: 193.9 (-3) Total loss 7.4

Week 5: 193.2 (-.5) Total loss 8.1   

Week 6: 193.3 (+.1) Total loss 8.0   

Week 7: 190.3 (-3) Total loss 11.0

Week 8: 191.7 (+1.4) Total loss 9.6

Week 9: 189.4 (-2.3) Total loss 11.9

Week 10: 188.3 (-1.1) Total loss 13

Week 11: 189.7 (+1.4) Total loss 11.6

(20.3 loss since I began my journey in January)

This week I have a gain, but I am grateful it is only 1.4lbs.  Could be worse.  I am pretty sure it is water weight anyway.  I feel bloated.

I started last week gung ho and excited to be moving!  On Monday I started Jillian’s 30 Day Shred.  It was easier than I anticipated.  I also went to the gym so I can meet my 45-60 minute goal.  I got to day four of the shred and my body was beginning to crash.  By Thursday I felt completely exhausted and I knew if I didn’t listen to my body and slow down I would be in trouble.

I only got in four workouts.  I was bummed to break my perfect exercise streak this summer of getting in my five+ workouts a week. Especially since there is only one week of the challenge left! Saturday I crashed for three hours not long after getting out of bed that morning.  My body has been fighting a bug for several weeks now and it has all caught up with me. So the rest was welcomed and needed.

I am feeling better today after taking four days off.  I decided to modify my goals a little bit starting next week.  I still want to get in 5 workouts a week, but I am modifying the time so on days that I just want to do the 30 day shred, I will limit my workout to just that if I am feeling too exhausted.

Food: carb count with fiber adjustment

Monday: 191

Tuesday: 170

Wednesday:214

Thursday:243

Friday: 138

Saturday: didn’t track, but slept most of the day, didn’t eat much.

Sunday: didn’t track ,but not a terrible day

Wow! After running the numbers I am lucky I didn’t gain more than a pound. I was in the red pretty much all week.  I had pasta on Monday and Tuesday and it is nearly impossible to not go over on carbs with pasta.  Then Wednesday and Thursday between the two days I ate a whole bag of peanut M&M’s.  They were Easter M&M’s I had tucked away.  I figured I had waited long enough to eat them.  I just could have used better judgment and not eaten them all!!!  That could have been what topped off my exhaustion, sending me whirling into a sugar coma!!

This week I am going to have a week with no sweets or goodies.  I am still allowing my protein shakes and fruit, but I have got to cut back on the goodies (my kids animal crackers, a jelly belly here and there, cookies, etc.) I am hoping it will get me back on track!

To view my food diary, visit myfitnesspal.com. 

Profile name: ambreee

Water Intake:

Did fine on water this week.

For all of those participating in Slimmer this Summer, Kudos!!  Hope you have a great final week!

Getting Specific...

When I created this blog I thought I would use if for reflection and as a tool for me to overcome my love of sugar.  I haven’t done much of that, but decided to do a little reflectingo today.  Please bear with me.

Since life is busy with two little ones at home I have blogged at a minimum this summer.  I was so happy to find the Slimmer this Summer Challenge.  So my blogging for the most part has just been my weekly check in for the challenge.

Some days I have little conversations with myself, like today for instance.  I saw a picture of me from the 4^th of July and I still cringe.  Even though I am losing weight, I still to me feel like I have such a long way to go.  My highest ever prior to children was 170lbs.  I worked really hard to stay down in the 150-160 range.  I always wanted to be around 130-140, no matter how hard I tried I have had difficulty return below 150.  Right now I am at 188 and it still feels so far away.  Enough of the pity party…. Moving on.

Like I have a dozen times (and probably will a few dozen more).  I have decided to buckle down even more.  I have goals and rewards for each ten pounds lost, but I decided I need to be even more specific. I was a special education teacher, prior to becoming a stay at home mom.  Something that I dealt with on a daily basis was goals.  It was drilled in my brain over and over how to write a “proper” goal.  It must be specific, measureable, attainable, action oriented, result oriented, and given a time frame.  Some people use the acronym SMAART.  But in the classroom our goals looked more like this:

IEP Goal/Objective Example:

From a baseline of  ___, the student will....

• perform a specific skill
• a specified number of times
• under specified conditions
• at a specified level of achievement
• for a specific length of time.

So how does that apply on my weigh loss journey today??? That is what I am trying to figure out.  I knew going into this summer challenge that losing 2lbs a week was attainable, but given my love of sweet things, and how I choose to conduct myself, it really isn’t happening.  An average of a pound a week is really more realistic with my sweet lifestyle.

So I turned to the numbers (Why does my brain have to be obsessed about numbers???).  I will be 34 years old in the first week of March.  That is 29 weeks from now.  Somewhere in my head I got the idea of getting down to 134lbs by my 34^th Birthday.  So as of today I would need to lose 54lbs in 29 weeks. 1.86lbs a week, so basically 2lbs a week.

Since the beginning of this challenge I have only lost 13lbs in 10 weeks.  So my average is running at 1.3lbs a week.  If I continue at this rate I will have lost 37.7lbs by my Birthday week.  Heck lets round it up to 38lbs, to make it a round 150lbs.  That would be great still, but not my 134 by 34.

I know I can lose an average of 2lbs a week, I just would have to give up sweets, or at least some sweets.  If any of you have ever glanced at my food diary at MFP, you will notice I have not given up all things sweet like many of you.  I eat something of a sweet nature every day. I know if I gave up even half of my sweets I would lose more rapidly.  For goodness sake.  I workout 5-6 times a week for 40-60 minutes.  I do this so I can eat sweets and still lose at a slow rate.  Hence my addiction to sugary goodness.

So here I am brainstorming at to how committed I am to getting down to 134 by 34.  Cutting back on all things sweet, is the key to kick things into gear.  I hesitate for two reasons.  1. I have done it before and I do lose more quickly.  When I go back to eating sweet things I gain so fast it isn’t even funny. Right now in my life I am not willing to give it up for good.  2.  I love sugary goodness!

My thoughts were to keep sweet things here and there and work hard on my workouts and lose at a slow pace.  I was hoping the slow pace would be closer to 2lbs a week.  So here I go again.  I am going to re-commit.  I am going to write a specific, measureable goal in hopes that I can pin this one!

Here we go:

By March 6^th 2012 I will weigh 134lbs.  This will be achieved by tracking my calories and carbs on MFP aiming for 1500 calories and under 165 grams of carbohydrates/day taking into account my fiber adjustments and eating my exercise calories if I choose to do so.  I will also work out 5 times a week for 40-60 minutes each session.  I will also be able to run a 10 minute mile with ease.

Benchmarks:

Lose 18lbs by Halloween: 170lbs

Lose 33lbs by Christmas: 155lbs

Lose 54lbs by Birthday: 134lbs

I guess I already did this when I wrote my original goals on my sidebar.  I just needed to add dates to clarify my vision.

I feel like I need to add something about sugar, but I am not sure what I am willing to commit to at this point.  I am thinking about going strict no sugary sweets every other week.  Maybe that will trick my system and I will be able to enjoy sweets occasionally and boost my weight loss.  I think I will give it a try and reevaluate in a month or so.

So feedback time:

How have you given up your favorite things/habits/addictions?  What works for you?

Thanks for being so awesome and supportive!

Week 10: Slimmer This Summer

My goals:

-Journal my meals

-Be under 165g of Carbohydrates/day (with fiber adjustment)

-Exercise 5 times a week for 45-60 minutes

-10 glasses of water a day

-Run/walk a 5K in under 40 minutes GOAL MET!

-Build a support network

-lose an average of 2 lbs/week, 24lbs total

Beginning Weight: 201.3

Week 1: 198.6 (-2.7)

Week 2: 198.6 (0) No change

Week 3: 196.9 (-1.7) Total loss 4.4 lbs

Week 4: 193.9 (-3) Total loss 7.4

Week 5: 193.2 (-.5) Total loss 8.1   

Week 6: 193.3 (+.1) Total loss 8.0   

Week 7: 190.3 (-3) Total loss 11.0

Week 8: 191.7 (+1.4) Total loss 9.6

Week 9: 189.4 (-2.3) Total loss 11.9

Week 10: 188.3 (-1.1) Total loss 13

(21.7 loss since I began my journey in January)

Since I met my last mini-goal, I indulged in my reward of a pedicure.  It was wonderful.  I sat back and relaxed. A rare treat in my life.

My mother-in-law went with me, as my father-in-law and sister-in-law watched the kiddos.  The salon we went to was in a nearby town.  The town was once all farmland, now it has turned into yuppyville on the outskirts of Boise.  I guess I can’t talk it down too much, after all it is where my in-laws live.

It is not very often that I get out and pamper myself.  I know there are some people out there that are good about making time to give themselves a little bit of a boost.  Something I should do more often.  Even if it is soaking and painting my own toes at home.

I had to chuckle and raise my eyebrows when I overheard this woman come in.  She was loud and made sure every one knew about her chipped toe nail.  She had a design painted on her large toe nail and when she noticed her chipped toe nail, she made a special trip just to get the toe nail trimmed and the design fixed.  She was a little over the top, but offered me entertainment as I sat and observed her bizarre behavior.  Alas, I was in yuppy-ville.

Food:

Monday: 169 carbs -28 fiber adjustment 141

Tuesday:193 carbs -54 fiber adjustment 139

Wednesday:158carbs –45 fiber adjustment 113

Thursday: Didn’t Track but wasn’t a terrible day

Friday: 212 carbs –42 fiber adjustment 170

Saturday:208 carbs -35 fiber adjustment 173

Sunday:175 carbs -13 fiber adjustment 162

To view my food diary, visit myfitnesspal.com. 

Profile name: ambreee

Exercise:

Still 100% with exercise. Whew!!

Over the weekend I purchased Jillian’s 30 Day Shred.  Yes, I am joining the bandwagon.  I have seen so many out there giving this a try with great success.  I could use mixing up my routine a bit.  The workouts are only 20 minutes, so I most likely will still be going to the gym to meet my goal of working out 45-60 min. 5 days a week.  I am not sure if I will be doing it early before the kids are out of bed, or in the evening.  Somehow??? I don’t know how I am going to work it in. This morning the kids were up for the day at 6am.  I am not a morning person, and I am not getting up earlier than that!  I hope to get a schedule worked out and do this for 30 days straight (minus Sunday, I don’t work out on Sundays. So we will see how it goes 34 days from now.  Wish me luck! I am a bit scared to face Jillian on a daily basis!

Water Intake:

Did good on water this week.

Measurements:

Weight	201.3	188.3	13
Neck	13.5	13.25	.25
Chest	43.5	41.5	2
Ribs	39	36.5	2.5
Waist	41	40.5	.5
Belly	46	44.5	1.5
Hips	45.5	44	1.5
Calf	16	15.5	.5
Arm	15	14.25	.75
	6/6/11 Start Measurements	8/15/11 Current	Difference

Hope all of you have a great week! 

Protein Bars: Strawberry Banana & Pumpkin Cheesecake

I have been experimenting in the kitchen.  Too keep my hypoglycemia at bay I like to keep high protein snacks on hand. I gave a few new recipes a whirl. For the recipes visit my other blog here:

Strawberry Banana Protein Bars

Pumpkin Protein Bars

Week 9: Slimmer This Summer

My goals:

-Journal my meals

-Be under 165g of Carbohydrates/day (with fiber adjustment)

-Exercise 5 times a week for 45-60 minutes

-10 glasses of water a day

-Run/walk a 5K in under 40 minutes GOAL MET!

-Build a support network

-lose an average of 2 lbs/week, 24lbs total

Beginning Weight: 201.3

Week 1: 198.6 (-2.7)

Week 2: 198.6 (0) No change

Week 3: 196.9 (-1.7) Total loss 4.4 lbs

Week 4: 193.9 (-3) Total loss 7.4

Week 5: 193.2 (-.5) Total loss 8.1   

Week 6: 193.3 (+.1) Total loss 8.0   

Week 7: 190.3 (-3) Total loss 11.0

Week 8: 191.7 (+1.4) Total loss 9.6

Week 9: 189.4 (-2.3) Total loss 11.9

(20.6 loss since I began my journey in January)

209: Start Weight

199: hair trim

189: pedicure

179: Weekend Road Trip

169: Bedroom makeover

159: family Pictures

149: New outfit

139: hair cut

129: special vacation

I have finally earned my next reward for hitting 189lbs. A pedicure!! I have been anticipating this all summer. For motivations sake I have not even taken off my ratty toe nail polish from a couple months back.

It took longer than I planned, but I am so happy to have made it!  Hopefully my in-laws will be able to babysit for me while I go out sometime this week and enjoy being pampered.  I am ten pounds away from my next reward of a weekend road trip!

Food:

I did good this week.  There is a direct correlation between keeping my carbs down and losing pounds. Dang!

Monday: 189 carbs -37 fiber adjustment 152

Tuesday:161 carbs -46 fiber adjustment 115

Wednesday:164 carbs -30 fiber adjustment 134

Thursday:162 carbs -50 fiber adjustment 112

Friday: 208 carbs –42 fiber adjustment 162

Saturday:210 carbs -50 fiber adjustment 160

Sunday:

To view my food diary, visit myfitnesspal.com. 

Profile name: ambreee

Exercise:

Still 100% with exercise. I got in 6 work outs! Yeah!

Water Intake:

Did good on water this week. Met my goal nearly every day.

Measurements:

I am still a little bloated, but my measurements have gone down some from last week.

Weight	201.3	189.4	11.9
Neck	13.5	13.25	.25
Chest	43.5	41.5	2
Ribs	39	36.5	2.5
Waist	41	40.5	.5
Belly	46	44.5	1.5
Hips	45.5	44	1.5
Calf	16	15.5	.5
Arm	15	14.25	.75
	6/6/11 Start Measurements	8/8/11 Current	difference

Here are updated photos:

Hooray for week 10!  Only two weeks left of the challenge!  Lets see if we can rip it up!