Doing the happy dance!

Well today marks my 6th week on Weight Watchers. I did my weekly weigh in this morning. I must admit I was a little bit nervous as I was out of town for four days and you all remember the 11 point scone incident. Well... I lost 2.2 pounds! I was totally shocked. I remember telling myself before stepping on the scale to have low expectations. Well, that is my second highest loss since I started. 2.2 pounds in one week. The most I have lost in one week is 2.4 pounds. I even got off the scales and tried it again as I just didn't believe that I could have lost that much while on vacation. Now I did stay on my plan while I was gone- but I also used a lot more of my "extra" points.
I am very happy. I have hit my first goal- to lose 10 pounds, and my second goal, to be below 150 pounds. I am 148.4

So, in celebration of my accomplishment I am scheduling a massage for myself. I have needed one for a long time. I told myself last August that I would get one when we finished painting the house. We finished painting last August and I still haven't gotten my massage! I must say that I am more proud of this accomplishment than the house though and I am going to get my massage!!!
My goals for next week

1. lift weights twice- elliptical three times
2. drink more water
3. TAKE MY VITAMINS DAILY
4. only drink one artificially sweetened beverage per week.

Kris is beautiful.

Cravings

What I would really like right now is a big bowl of my mom's homemade potato salad. And some gooey, cheesy lasagna. Some cheesecake from Patrizio's with the raspberry chocolate sauce. And baklava. With fried chicken. A big plate of nachos and cheese enchiladas or - better yet - enchiladas boom-boom. Some queso flameado and fresh made tortillas. And an order of Eggs Benedict. To be polished off with a big steamy mug of hot chocolate. And a cupcake with cream cheese icing.

This is why I should not forget to bring my breakfast with me to work.

I am doing my best to avoid the kitchen (they have cookies, pretzels, graham crackers and chips - all of which are on my HECK NO list) and behave until lunch. Then I'll run home and have the pasta I put together this morning.

Sometimes it is no fun being good. :(

Fence rejuvenating made the loss!

Well, the weigh in was good. I lost my .8 gain from the trip and a little more. I'm down 1lb. I even got to the gym this week. All my efforts were spent cleaning, stripping and restaining our fence and it looks fabulous. Almost like new! Think of all those activity points. Now I'm on to building a patio for a seating area and firepit. Whoohoo!

IndePOUNDance Day?

Ok - the last post got me thinking....we have two big huge hunkin bbqs coming up THIS WEEKEND. There will be lots of food. LOTS.

So, what are your strategies for handling the tempations, Ladies?

Vacation

Vacation was wonderful. We had a great time sightseeting, and relaxing, and eating out...

I did NOT do well eating. From day one it was pretty much a wash. However, I am committed to getting back on the right track tomorrow, first thing. I'm actually looking forward to it... I feel so much better when I'm eating well.

I'm not sure how to do better on vacation. I thought I'll have salads, and grilled chicken. But the prospects of lobster rolls, baked lobster, steak sandwiches, baked shrimp, and ice cream were just too much. I tried to stay away from fried food, which more or less worked. I had onion rings (a personal weakness) a couple of times, but that was about it.

So there we are. But I'm back, and ready to rock and roll. How is everyone else faring?

Day two was a wash...

Thanks for all the encouragement I received for starting back on my eating plan. It does seem a little restrictive, it's because I choose the easiest form of protein on my list for my snacks (hence a can of tuna a day if I don't have fresh on hand). I find it easier for myself if I limit my variety of foods, at least during this stage of my weight loss. As long as it is on my list and it's easy and quick to prepare, I'm for it. Losing weight for me takes so much mental energy! The less choices I have to make in a day of what to eat the more successful I think I will be. It is difficult to eat 5-6 mini meals a day! On my plan I can't skip any of the 5 meals. As long as I eat every 2 -3 hours, I'm not starving and my metabolism is continuously moving, which is important because right now it is so slow and it very, very, difficult for me to lose weight.

Day two: Not a good one for me. It started with lunch. I had a large garden salad with a piece of cod fish. I was full so I didn't eat my complex carb. Big mistake! I got busy with my day, and then took a nap and the next thing I knew I had missed my afternoon snack time and it was time to eat dinner and I was starving! I had a handful of pretzels, then I had too many simple carbs at dinner and my portion sizes were too large (even though the lean turkey burger was healthy. By that time I was so discouraged I went on a eating binge. I won't even tell you all I ate!

Today is a another day. I am determined to press through even when I screw up. I have to overcome this enslavement I have with food, somehow someway. I am feeling better from I bad cold I had so I am going to walk this afternoon. I will journal my meals at the end of the day. Thank you ladies for all your support and encouragement. I need it so badly right now.
Smiles,
Kimiko

Update

Hi ladies-
Sorry for the delay in the update department. I was crazy busy last week and on Friday I took off for Spokane and didn't have time to post. I did make time to weigh myself though. I lost 1.4 pounds for the week. That makes my total 8.2 pounds so far. I am pretty happy with that. I have to remind myself that it takes time to lose the weight. Sometimes I want instant results. Okay- My new workout routine is amazing and I am seeing results in just two weeks. The name of the program is The Power of Ten. I don't agree with everything this man says but he sure as a way of building muscle and doing it quickly. The whole concept is to lift weights slowly. Taking ten seconds to go up and ten seconds to come down. It is kind of like a Yoga weight workout. You really have to concentrate to do it. You want your muscles to burn out in about 6 to 8 repetitions. When they burn out you move on to your next exercise. The beauty of this program is you only lift 2 days a week. The author says that when you lift weights slowly you completely fatigue the muscle down to the core layers. You need a few days to recover from this. Working out more than twice a week doesn't give your body the time it needs to build new muscle and that has a detrimental effect to your success. He has an interesting view regarding aerobics but I personally love the weight lifting technique. I am lifting weights 2 times a week and doing the elliptical machine 3 days a week. I have new muscle definition in my triceps, shoulders and abs. My pants are getting loser and I managed to get myself into a pair of my "skinny" shorts. I still haven't gotten into THE skinny shorts but I am one step closer. My time in Spokane was difficult but I managed to stay on the program the whole time. Note to self and all others wanting to limit calories while on the road...... We went to McDonald for breakfast( I know, yuck!) on the way home. I decided to skip the egg McMuffin because I was sure it was way too fattening. I swung into Starbucks and picked up a pumpkin scone instead, congratulating myself for staying healthy. When I got home I checked online for the nutrition information regarding the scone so I could record it in my journal. The numbers worked out something like this.... Pumpkin scone 11 points Egg McMuffin 6 points. Yes it is true. I was so ticked off.
Live and learn I guess. Now that we are home I am glad to have a little more control over the food situation. I hope I can work off my scone before I weigh in on Friday!!

Have a good one!

Today's victory...

I am determined to take one day at a time in my weight loss journey. Today was the first day back on my eating plan since March. I did good job staying with in the perimeter of my eating plan. So I am proud of myself. Dinner time is always the hardest for me. I wasn't even tempted this time. I simply made two separate dinners, one for me and one for my family. I figure that this time around, if I am going to persevere to the end of my goal, I will need to journal more to give myself some kind of accountability. The eating plan that I am on doesn't focus on calories but rather the right foods for my body type and portion sizes. So here it is:
Breakfast:
1/2 cup of egg whites
1/2 cup of grapefruit
coffee w/ splenda
20 oz water

am snack:
3 oz of tuna (1/2 can)
1/2 cup of grapefruit
20 oz water

lunch:
garden salad w/ teaspoon of horshradish and water for dressing
piece of white fish
1 rice cake
20 oz water

afternoon snack
3 oz of tuna
1/2 cup of grapefruit
20 oz water

Dinner:
steamed thin sliced turkey breast w/ veggies
1/2 cup of rice
20 oz water

pm snack
thin sliced turkey breast 3 oz
1/2 cup of grapefruit

I knew this week would be tough

I knew this week was going to be tough and I got caught without a plan. We are having VBS at church in the evenings from 6-8 which is good since many of our folks work and could not help if we had it during the day. They even provided us a supper at 5. Here is the tough part. Our senior adults are providing the supper.

That in itself should not be cause for concern but our senior adults can cook. Tonight there was pasta salad, smoked brisket, beans, fresh tomatoes, ham, bread and cookies. I was not prepared. Matter of fact I failed. The brisket was so good and hot and I had just had to discipline Butch who was not behaving up to his usual standard so I ate over being upset and mad and rushed and managing three kids to get dressed and to church on time and planning the music lesson
and and and

Tomorrow I have a plan. I am going to eat a small healthy snack at home before we go. Matter of fact, I may just feed the kids at home and get to church at 5:30 and skip the supper all together. I will eat a small dinner when we get home at 8:30. Since I do not go to bed until 11 that gives me plenty of time to exercise.

Any more suggestions?

Down 58 glorious inches!

I have lost another 3.5 inches for the month! And that's with even gaining 1/2 an inch onto each of my thighs ( Building that muscle baby!) My body fat percentage has gone down a solid 7.7% too! That is, of course, all together. Out of the 62 pounds lost, 41 pounds of it was F A T pounds. UGH! So anyways, here they are, those wonderful, obedient, crazy, numbers. All together this is how it breaks down: 8 inches off of my bust, 10.5 inches off of my waist, 11.25 from my abdomen, 11.75 from my hips, 4 off of each of my thighs, and 4.25 off of each of my arms. I am smiling to myself. I am very content with my progress this month. Nearly six months ago if you would have told me that I'd be having these kinds of results, I wouldn't have believed it. But it's like the Curves ad is ringing true for me. Their slogan is, "Discover the power to amaze yourself". I'm just so, so happy. And it's awesome to see the pride in my husband's eyes. He's very proud of me as well. He's been telling me that more and more lately.

Straight to the Bottom!

It's nice to see signs of progress. Jeans I wore all through this spring are noticeably baggier. And today I had the great pleasure of finding out that I sink. Like a rock.

It's pretty well known that the more fat on your body, the more you float. Swimming around the time of my birthday (February) I noticed that I was pretty floaty. Swimming today, I could just stop treading and go straight to the bottom of the pool. It may seem little, but it makes me feel pretty good. I sink!

Whoohoo! Further proof that I'm on the right track!

There must be something in the water...

Or maybe it's how much that I drank yesterday. (If you didn't know me, that could sound kinda bad). Anyhow, I'm down another 1.8 for the week! 62 pounds baby! Exactly 62 pounds! I think it's the extra water weight coming off from my period. I don't know, I don't care. The number got smaller, and I am a happy camper! : )

Day 161: 1,730 calories, 9 glasses of water

Day 162: 1,640 calories, 12 glasses of water, workout

Day 163: 1,524 calories, 9 glasses of water, workout

Day 164: 1,626 calories, 12 glasses of water, workout

Day 165: 1,684 calories, 9 glasses of water

Day 166: 1,359 calories, 15 glasses of water, workout

Day 167: So far today, my coffee, cheerios, and a workout : )

Haven't posted in awhile!

Hey all you lovely ladies! I have been MIA for a bit, but I am here starting a new week with a renewed sense of purpose! My weight loss week starts on a Friday, because of my meetings for Prism. So...I am going to do these things this week:

1. Journal
2. Drink all my water
3. Measure my food
4. Work out at the YMCA more than 2 times
5. Stop envying Kristina
6. Get my nails painted
7. Make an appointment to get my hair cut
8. Start going to the Chiropractor
9. Buy brown rice, rice cakes and raw honey
10. Work in my garden
11. Take my bee pollen

My husband and I have restricted ourselves to only 30 minutes of internet time during the hours of 7 AM and 9 PM. This has been good, but I don't get as much time to blog as I used to. I am still checking the blog lots, though, but I try to do all my commenting at one time. Pray for me. I have a busy week coming up. I need my love tank filled so I can give it out to all who need it from me.

Love you guys. Wouldn't be here without you!

Jules

I'm down 60.2 and I've got a new outfit for my reunion! And I'm feelin' sassy!

I made it to my goal weight for my reunion! A very large goal was to lose 60 pounds by the third week of July. I've made it there, and it looks like I'll be able to surpass it now. Woo Hoo!!!
I was able to use my gift certificates today, that I had gotten for my birthday. I loaded up the boys and headed out to Target. Even though the kids were being rambuctious, I was having so much fun trying clothes on, that I hardly noticed. You guys... I was trying on size 12's and 10's in skirts! I ended up with the khaki one here in a size 10!!! It is snug, but I am not uncomfortable in it. In fact, with this new black blouse, and new platform shoes, I feel down right beautiful. Last month at the Spring Hurrah I was just so happy to be buying some size 14's. I wish I could articulate exactly what this means to me. I feel like celebrating. My reunion still isn't for another four weeks, but the clothes are snug, so if I lose more, it's okay. Even if I went, as is, I feel so great. : )

Help! I've Fallen Off the Wagon,...

and let's be honest, I was only on it for about a week. I'm feeling a little pathetic right now (sure sign my period is on its way). I'm not drinking my water, I'm eating things I have no business eating, in quantities that would feed an entire class of kindergarteners.

I'm sharing in an attempt to be honest and accountable. I haven't stepped on the scale in a few days, and I'm afraid to do it now. Not only will the news be bad because of my diet, but also because of the time of month.

I DID workout today. I found a yoga/pilates/weight training video that I like. I told my kids to nag me to exercise everyday. They might as well put their talent for nagging to good use. Ugh. There. I've confessed, which is one step better than my former pattern of just pretending everything is going swimmingly, when it's not.

I'm wondering if any of you ladies live close to me and might want to get together to walk, work out, roller blade, ride bikes, or something like that. Maybe we could set up a yahoo group to discuss things (like location) that we don't want to post on the internet? Just a thought.

Eating Out

I have now eaten out, and stayed in my calories successfully, several times.

Yesterday, lunch out at work was a small grilled chicken caesar salad. The chicken was gross and dry, and I was envying the other girls the steak on their salads, and the croutons. And the fact that their salads were large. While it may not have been the BEST choice (caesar dressing and parm cheese) it is certainly a HUGE step from what I would have chosen in the past (hello? Chicken parmesan, smothered in mozzarella, with a side of pasta?).

Today dinner out with a client- he chose. I wanted to go to Panera, and his response, "Isn't that the bread place?" told me no. (he's 13). We went to a little restaurant, and I got a tuna salad salad. You know. Tuna salad on top of salad. I guess it's tuna on top of salad, but whatever. It was good. I got the small. The dressing came and was oil and vinegar- I drained the oil off the top and used about 1 T of vinegar. I did ask for garlic bread- I can have a starch at dinner. Four slices came, and I? Queen of All Who Love Carbs? Ate one slice. And stopped. I had water to drink.

Over the weekend I ate out too. I made all kinds of different choices. When we went for ribs, I guesstimated two ounces. Now, I know that since I eyeballed, it was probably more. But I ate half of a half a rack. I ordered applesauce as a side instead of fries.

I'm thinking that the more I do this, the more it will become second nature. And eventually? I won't have to be scared of eating out. I still am, but the more success I have the better I feel. And the more I do this, the more I learn that healthy food does not equal gross food. It does not have to be fried to be good. That should be my mantra in life.

So, coming off of my gain on Monday, I'm finding that I an keep going, keep making good choices, and keep this up.

On another note, I'm going to Cape Cod this weekend for vacation. Friday to Wednesday. I plan to exercise at the hotel everyday (hello swimming!). I want know what your thoughts are on how to eat. I know a bunch of you have vacationed. Listen, I'm on vacation, I'm not going to be good all the time. But I also don't want to go off the deep end and regret it and feel gross. Any tips? Thoughts? Put calories in Sparkpeople? Journal? Skip journaling? I'm not sure what the best way to go is.

A big fat *MWAH* to all you guys. You are wonderful. Thank you. I probably won't post again til I get back, and I will let you know how it went.

Thank you for your kind words and thoughts

I just wanted to thank everyone for their kindness during this time. I'm still in shock and I don't think it has really become real to me that my Dad is gone. When you're scurring around to get the service organized and thank the people for coming, it is easy to deny the emotion of loss. This is a collage we put together of him. You can see he loved to have fun, was an athlete and artisan in woodworking. What a loss for the world and a gain for the kingdom.

The scale wasn't to unkind. I gained--------but only .8lb I can live with that. Today begins a new week.

For those who asked....

(I took this picture at the Seattle Arboretum, so pretty there and lots of walking trails, great place to get some outdoor exercise and it's free!)

Hi all,
Here is a little info on the Eating for Life program (EFL). You eat 6 meals per day, breakfast: mid morning meal: Lunch: Midafternoon meal: Dinner: Dessert.You always eat a portion of protein a portion of carbs and you eat a vegetable with at least two of your meals each day (and many of my carbs come from fruit, by choice). Currently, I am eating about 200 calories for all my meals except dinner, which is more like 350. You get one free day per week where you can eat whatever you want to. And that one day alone helps me through some of the toughest moments. I just look at whatever my craving is and think...only ____ days until I can eat that if I want to. The beauty of it is, usually by the time that day gets here, I don't want it anymore. But the promise of being able to if I want helps me beat those tough times. I started the program through Ediets.com, they give you an entire meal plan, recipes, grocery shopping lists, nutritionists you can call and talk to, support groups online, and all kinds of tools on their website. If anyone decides to join, go in first and put in your information (don't join, just give them your email), then wait about a week and they will send you an invite to join for cheaper than the listed price on the website. I joined for $2.99 per week for 12 weeks (total of $35.88 for 3 months, what a bargain!) You weigh in weekly and input that information, they then modify the plan if needed. The other bonus of this particular site is that if you don't like the plan you are on, you can change between all their plans whenever you want to. I did not sign up for this, but they also have workout plans you can join as well. I am already a workout junky so I don't need help in this area. I think that should bout do it, any questions??
Tina