Balance

So much to talk about today my friends! I had a successful weigh in this week. I lost 3.5 lbs for a total of 36 lbs overall and 3 inches off my body (most of that in my hips and thighs.. the two hardest spots!) for a total of 17 inches overall. This was a HUGE success not just for the scale going down. I have not journaled a meal in 2 weeks. I do not want to be tied down to calculating points for every bite that passes my lips for the rest of my life and I appear for now to be learning to listen to my body's signals. I took my daughter out to dinner last night and decided to splurge with the chicken strip dinner, mashed potatoes, garden salad and a Coke. I ate the salad first and was working on the potatoes when the server came over and asked me if the chicken strips were okay or did I need a take home container. It smacked me in the face that YES I did need a take home container.. my body was starting to say full already and I still had potatoes to eat. My Coke which used to be like a drug to me... drank not even a quarter of it. Next time I will just stick with water because at least that's free.. lol!

If I am going to talk about success then I need to talk about a pitfall. When I am busy and in the zone, the less I eat the less my body tells me I am hungry. When I look back on this week in my head I can see that I didn't really eat as much as I should have. My body brought this home to me in an in your face way on my walk with Roxy yesterday when I got dizzy. I went to a beautiful spot on lunch and got caught up in enjoying it and decided to use the bleachers for a little leg toning. Next thing you know I never ate lunch at all and the bowl of cereal I had at 8am finally stopped giving my body what it needed by 5pm. While I need to listen to my body I also need to remember that due to my history my body will go without food and not tell me I'm hungry if I don't pay attention.

Now I need your help everyone. I have an outing in about a month that I would like to lose 10 lbs in time for and reward myself with a new outfit. I know they say more than 2 lbs a week is not good for you but I would not have to loose much more than 2 lbs a week. Am I pushing to hard and loosing sight of the journey? It is getting harder with the end in sight, although I still haven't decided if I want to push a little farther past my original goal.

It is so hard in life to balance everything that you have to do, what you want to do and what you can do. Take time to hear the birds sing, enjoy the moment you're having instead of looking ahead to what's next and eat an unhealthy meal every once in awhile. After dinner last night my daughter said to me "Mom this was really nice. It was nice to veg out with you and just eat but not worry about it being healthy." Out of the mouth of babes as they say!

May this week bring you all success, strength, happiness, love and anything else you desire. Until then!

Half Way There

This week I lost 5 lbs! I also lost an additional 3.5 inches off my body overall. I have now lost a total of 32.5 lbs out of the 60 I would like to loose as a whole. I have had much success lately after really struggling with a mental plateau that manifested itself into a physical plateau. I feel really good about myself lately! I still struggle with accepting my body as it is and that will be a life long battle but I am getting better at loving myself. Sid and I have talked about not wanting to be single our whole lives and I am hoping my new attitude and image will lead to someone loving me someday as well all the health benefits that come with this!


I promised a before and after picture when I reached the halfway mark. I had a really hard time finding a picture of myself from around the time I started. And there were no full body pictures to be found so what I had was actually about a month before I started this journey and 10 lbs lighter but you get an idea. I am amazed at the different people I see. I was unhappy before and desperately trying to not show it. I did not allow people to see the me inside and I probably missed out on some happy moments because of it. I was still not comfortable enough to wear the tankini for my picture today but I see a happier more confident person in the after.

Thank you all again for such wonderful support on this journey and for taking it with Sid and I. It is hard to believe we are less than 6 months until Sid and I meet again in person and do our swimsuit photoshoot! Everyone have a healthy and happy week!

Spring

Spring is in the air here (at least here in the US)! There is the cleansing rains, the smell of fresh, damp, earth. Things are getting ready to come out of a winter borough and start living again.

Same here in my weight loss journey. I blogged earlier this week about starting over again. The previous week I had gained 4 lbs. I am proud to say that this week I lost 4.5 and another inch in my waist. My hips and thighs are still being stubborn but I didn't use pilates at all this week so I guess I can't be surprised. I put on my tankini the other day and that fit for the first time in 2 years! Frankly I was surprised to find I kept it but I am glad that I am. I was very active this week with walking, dancing and Zumba. Have any of you tried it yet?

I was VERY busy this week. I was buried at work but instead of letting that push me to a chocolate bar I instead was able to still keep committed to myself. I cooked dinner every night, I exercised and worked on talking positive about myself. I still feel silly when I do it but I am trying. We went to the movies last night and I managed to fend off the 3 very nice girls I had with that were pushing Twizzlers and Popcorn. (LOVE Twizzlers!)I am disappointed that I didn't get to try a new recipe this week and sorry I forgot to post one on the blog but hopefully next week will be a little better time wise.

I love summer but I am loving the "spring" feel I have right now. The feeling that I am learning about myself and hopefully making steps for my life to be complete in every way I want.

It is only 2.5 lbs until an updated picture. I don't know if I can do that all in the next week but I will try. I am not brave enough to put the tankini in the picture yet but I promise that I will post a new one soon and remember we have bathing suit shots coming up this summer when Sid and I meet again face to face!

Starting Over

Today is Monday which is a great day to start over I think! I had a not surprising gain on Saturday. I was upset and tweeted (if interested I am @mzkmkr123)about my frustration and lack of success. She is an amazing fount of positive encouragement for many (@laughitoff) who has a GREAT blog! She said for me to step back from the big picture and just aim for something small like losing 5 lbs and keeping it off. I know I have said this before but sometimes it takes another person saying it to make it hit home with me.

So today I start again and simpler. Sid I am sorry I let you down by failing at my 40 day challenge. You continue to inspire me with your dedication and success. You do not lose sight of what you want and how to get there!!

In keeping with starting over and keeping it simple I went back to something basic. I cooked dinner for the first time in a week. I made the Cashew Chicken with Rice recipe. We left off the cashews but it was amazing! (Leftovers tonight) A great way to have a Chinese dish without the 5 lb sodium bloat the next day. My daughter had complained about rice and celery but wound up liking it. And it was music to my ears to hear "Mom have you tried the bamboo shoots? They're great!".

We cleaned house top to bottom yesterday and I reconnected with a "simple" exercise. My daughter washed the floor and I dried it with a towel afterwards. Place the towel on the floor, step on towel and duck walk(quacking optional!)entire area to be dried. Simple pilates all!!

So I am happy this Monday to be recommitting to myself (I feel like a broken record) and I am asking all of you for a favor. If you don't hear from me how things are going please kick me ok?

Hoping this Monday finds you all relaxed and ready for a fantastic week!

National Cereal Day

Sunday is National Cereal Day. So to celebrate let's talk about one of the most common breakfast items that people eat. Walking down the cereal aisle at the store can be a dizzying experience! There is a variety of colors, shapes and characters jumping at you from boxes and bags.

You may have already heard that they place items they want to sell at eye level, but there is much more that goes into product advertising. Who isn't "Coocoo for Cocoa Puffs", feeling "GREEAATT", or starting their morning with a "Snap, Crackle, Pop"? I am an avid lover of Fruit Loops! That toucan makes some sweet cereal! I remember all the toys that would come in the box when I was a kid. 3 kids and one toy in the box made for some interesting mornings let me tell you!

But take away the cute characters, toy incentives and what are you left with? Something that isn't very healthy for you or filling. My daughter is always trying to ask for Cinnamon Toast Crunch. Who came up with that? Don't get me wrong but what person let alone kid needs to start their day with multiple servings of sugary squares. They may fortify it with vitamins but it is basically sugar squares. Same concept as those Baby Bottle Pops but that could be a WHOLE separate blog. Yes you may start your day with a spring after eating a heaping bowl of it but the crash you will feel shortly after that is going to be bad. Then you are going to need more sugar to perk up and the cycle continues.

Did you know that most cereal's have a serving size of 3/4 (30g) cup? Measure it out some time and see how small it is compared to what we just pour in a bowl. If you want something a little better for you look for the boxes that are a little plainer. Things that are healthy are not going to have a character, toy or big flashing sign. My opinion on life is that things you really need or are good for you are quiet. They don't need to advertise in a flashy way because their reputation will spread by word of mouth.

I'll let you in on a little secret. Some of the healthy stuff tastes HORRIBLE! But I have found many over the years that are not bad. Kashi makes some wonderful cereals but can be a little pricey. They are high in fiber and also make great snacks on the run. I personally endorse the Heart to Heart (better for you Cheerios), Peanut Butter Squares and Cinnamon Squares. I tried Special K cereal but just couldn't stomach it. Basically it is Frosted Flakes without the sugar.. no thanks.

Right now I eat Frosted Mini Wheats. Yes it has sugar but the fiber in it keeps my points down and fills me up longer.

Do you have a special cereal or healthy breakfast that you eat?

What Stresses You Out?

Hello again! I am stealing some time to write this because the topic for today is part of the reason I haven't been blogging and I realized just how much I miss it!

Right on the heels of my last success (literally) several things happened that all revolved around stress. Stress is my number one enemy and a common theme in my life. I am a single mom, my mother who has health problems lives with me and EVERYTHING falls to me. Shopping, house and property maintenance, dog care, daughter social life, and other things I cannot think of right now. I am sad to not have a partner in my life but honestly I can't imagine giving time to one more person right now. Add onto that I work full time and things just went up a whole nother level. There is no pity party here.. don't get me wrong! I am blessed to have what I do and so many others have it worse but that doesn't negate the fact that this generates a LOT of stress sometimes. I often feel like someone with the spinning plates and lately they have crashed down.

For those who don't know I also have an under active thyroid. Reading up on that I found that STRESS is a problem for that. It can actually counteract my medication and make it ineffective. Lovely.. now I'm stressed about being stressed..lol! In all seriousness though I think stress is the number one factor in me struggling with my weight. I am always trying to handle it better but the reality of it is I am a person who is "fine" "handling it all" "strong" until I crash and it all comes down.

I have had family issues lately, been sick and the stress has made my thyroid flare up. This led to not eating right, not being able to exercise, exhaustion and a bad mood in general. Then I remembered I don't have to do it alone in the weight loss journey. You all are there right along with me. Being positive makes me feel better even if I am faking it. (Yes.. I DO fake it sometimes)

All of us have stressors and things that cause us to falter. What is/are yours and how do you handle it? I am still sick, still busy beyond belief but SICK of letting the stress overwhelm me right now. So I am once again dusting myself off, and picking up again. I cannot do it all right now, exercise is hard when you are still not healthy but if I can even do one healthy thing each day then I am still in the journey. I am now taking the pressure off myself that I had been placing to lose the remaining 35 pounds ASAP. I allowed myself to be overwhelmed by the big picture and need to keep site of the small picture.

So I am back and for those of you feeling stressed or not so successful right now hang in there and know that you are not alone. And here's something to look forward too.. Spring is knocking on our doors to remind us that it's almost time for sunshine and warmer weather!