I Guess I Really am Getting Smaller...

The quest for weight loss is still going on and I am still doing Weight Watchers although I feel that I have just begun "Phase 2".  No, that's not an actual Weight Watchers term but for me it means getting my sorry butt back on track and stopping this piddly half a pound weight loss nonsense and getting serious about it again. 

Sort of.

Anyway, I'm down 22 pounds and yes that is a good thing but really, it's averaged out to about a pound a week and that to me is not good.  Now calm down health nuts who are thinking that this is the way that we are supposed to lose weight.  I KNOW that, I just don't personally like it.  I would be happy with a little more each week like a pound and a half to two pounds BUT in order for that to start happening I guess I would have to stop eating icing right out of the can and chasing it down with a Coke!

Having said all that, I ordered a new bathing suit and a pair of track pants from the Disney Store online last week and they came in the mail today.  When I ordered, I was feeling optimistic - just  a little - and ordered the bathing suit in the smaller size than the website recommended for my measurements and you know what?  It looks AWESOME!!!  AND...I have to send the track pants back because they are too darn big!  Woo-Hoo-Again!!!  Can I get a hallelujah??  

It feels good to be shrinking...even slowly...

Twenty Pounds Lighter!

It's official...I have lost twenty pounds here on my Weight Watchers journey. As of this morning's meeting, I have lost 20.6 pounds. Not too shabby.

The thing is, I probably could have lost a lot more but this last month has been a slump for me. I just don't have the same enthusiasm that I had in the beginning. I would have loved to be 5 pounds further along but it's my own fault. Well, that and having what seems like a non-stop run of eating out/parties/whatnot that had me eating things that I should not.

So, with three weeks till graduation, I can only pray that I can drop those pesky five pounds and feel like I accomplished something that I wanted.

It wasn't the only reason I was there, but...

So I'm working at MOPS today and was flitting around here and there and I'm telling you, I got a lot of compliments! Seriously, I got compliments on my weight loss, my hair (which I just colored) and really, I was floating on a damn cloud and feeling all kinds of sassy!

Yes, it's shallow and all that because I was there working for the ministry and I was having a great time having people tell me how good I looked! It's not right, I tell you and yet...It just felt SO GOOD!!

What is wrong with me??? Oh, and here's something to think about, I have had several people tell me that my butt looks smaller and out of all of my body flaws, I never had an issue with my butt, but suddenly I do! I mean, how big was it before I started Weight Watchers??

So, I left there at noon, feeling really good about me and yet really bad about me at the same time. I loved the compliments and I'm glad that people are starting to notice the change in me and yet...petty and shallow.

Not a good combination...

Weight Watchers Update - Again

Okay, so I am cranking along on Weight Watchers but I have to admit, I've been slacking in a lot of ways. I haven't been on the website to track my food in WEEKS. I felt like I was getting a bit obsessive and I wanted to try and learn how to eat properly WITHOUT a cheat sheet.

So as of yesterday, I am down 19 pounds. I'm pretty excited. I still have another 20 that I want to lose but I know I'm going in the right direction. The thing is, I don't seem to understand what is up with my body. ON the weeks that I exercise a lot and watch what I eat, I lose, but not big. Last week, it was a FOOD FEST around here (as I stated in an earlier post) and yet I still went on to lost 2 pounds. I mean, I ate BROWNIE BITES for breakfast! I am SO not a good spokesperson for Weight Watchers with that one. Not my proudest moment.

The quest continues. I have 5 weeks until the graduation. I have to buckle down and get serious so I can be fabulous and sassy on graduation day. But then, what angle should I take? Do I buckle down and start tracking and exercising like a maniac or do I keep on relaxing and see what happens? I just don't know!

I still want a brownie bite...

Stop the eating machine, I want to get off!!!

Okay, so you know how I just got back from a weekend retreat to the mountains? I was so NOT thinking Weight Watchers for the majority of the weekend. I drank soda, they were giving us chocolate every time we turned around...how could I resist?? Plus, I didn't work out at all - just the walk to and from the cabin to the main lodge. So I went to my Weight Watchers meeting on Monday morning and gained .8 pound. I mean, it's less than a pound, but still, a gain.

So Monday afternoon rolls around and I have 15 people over for our monthly Disney fanatic meeting (or Mouseclub) and I made all sorts of yummy stuff because my Disney girls are skinny! So there were chocolate chip cookies, brownie bites with Mickey shaped marshmallow designs, cheese, pepperoni and crackers...and grapes. I sampled EVERYTHING!!

THEN because THAT wasn't enough, Tuesday morning I was a little bit stressed and ate the last 4 brownie bites for breakfast. I felt like crap. I took Nick out for lunch and we went to Chili's. I had a BBQ pork sandwich with steamed veggies and only ate half of the bun. I thought that was good...then came home and ate 3 chocolate chip cookies!

I mean...WHAT IN THE WORLD????

I'm sitting here right now watching the Biggest Loser eating some dark chocolate. I may need to get my jaw wired shut. Soon.

Ten Percent!!

It's official! I'm on the wall! My name, the date, it's all there.

I had my Weight Watchers meeting this morning. I actually played hooky last week because I was PMSing and had made some BAD eating decisions - meaning I ate my fabulous FRIED chicken parmesan with spaghetti and a big fat brownie for dessert one night and drank a gallon of full throttle Coke. Anyway, I went to my meeting this morning and lost THREE POUNDS and now have reached my 10% goal and got to sign my name on the big 10% Club board.

I have to admit, it's a small accomplishment, but I'm pretty proud of me.

Yeah!

But I don't feel that fat!

So last week I'm in the supermarket and I'm getting ready to check out and I see a rag sheet that has this horrid picture of Lisa Marie Presley on the cover that says "Lisa Marie Weighs 165 Pounds!" - or something very similar to that. Now, this picture is grainy, blurry and she looks HUGE. Why does this bother me so much?

Because that's how much I weighed a few weeks ago and didn't think I looked THAT bad!!

Tonight I'm sitting here watching "Celebrity Fit Club" and some actress that used to be on Baywatch looks pretty chunky and hideous and she's like 40 pounds thinner than me!

So what is wrong with me and my sense of perception if I don't see myself as looking as bad as these people who the general population would agree looked bad? I am two pounds away from my 10% challenge at Weight Watchers. I'm pretty excited about it and can only hope that I hit that soon. I'll get to put my name on the big wall. Ooohhh....Aaahhh!

It may be a small goal, but it's my goal. My own warped, stupid and apparently delusional goal. I mean, like it's gonna make any difference. I'm as fat as a really fat Lisa Marie, and I must have really, really heavy bones because the Baywatch chick weighs like 130 pounds and I feel like our bodies look similar.

I may have to get my eyes checked again soon!

*Today's Examiner.com article is on how to get your FREE copy of the History Channel's "America - the Story of Us". You can click HERE to read it! Thanks!*

It Really Is Fun!

Okay, so it's official...I got my membership to the YMCA. I went on Tuesday and finished my paperwork and got interviewed and then got a tour of the facility. There are two locations here in town and I was at the main one that is just ginormous but I think once Michael is back in school I will go to the smaller one.

There were two indoor pools and one outdoor pool, raquetball courts (SO not my thing), basketball courts (Another no for me), a walking track, several classrooms / studios for classes, a rock wall, locker rooms (a mens, a women's, a girls, a boys, AND a family one!), then there was the wellness area that had all of the machines and weights and equipment. It was wild. They have a nursery/preschool and a class for older kids like Michael's age who are too young to use the equipment yet. His class has a Foosball table, a lego table, games...and they do occasionally go on the rock wall or out to the playground.

Today I went and just did 45 minutes of miscellaneous stuff - 20 minutes on the treadmill, 20 minutes on the bike and 5 minutes with the weights. Tomorrow I'm going for my official orientation where I'll learn how to use all of the machines and how much weight I should use on each of them. I'm looking forward to that because I'm kind of a spaz with that sort of thing.

Nick laughed at me last night when I told him I went. Well, not AT me, just in general while he sang the Village People's "YMCA" song. But you know what, they were right...it is fun to stay there!!

Three week goal...

As many of you may already know, my younger son goes to year-round school while my older son is homeschooled. This schedule does work for us, especially for the next few weeks. Why? Michael is tracked out! Year-round school maintains a schedule of 9 weeks in, 3 weeks out. We are now in our track out segment and I couldn't be happier. I love how we really look forward to this time because we have hit a point where getting up is tiresome, homework is tiresome, etc. This schedule no longer effects Nick because he is getting ready to graduate and really has little work to do anyway.

So for the next three weeks what do I have in mind? Well, for starters, the extra hour or two of sleep each morning is going to be GLORIOUS! I am loving that. I haven't written for the Examiner in a couple of weeks so I need to get back to that. We are going to go to the movies at least once - either just me and Michael or Nick might take him (such a good big brother!). I'd like to drop another 6 pounds during this time off - one has nothing to do with the other, really, but it's a goal. I put in an application with the local YMCA to see about a discount membership and so I am hoping that it will come through in the next few weeks so that Michael and I can go together. They have a rock-climbing wall that he really wants to try. I want to go bowling one day - I'm a sucker for that.

I want to have Michael do something more than be home playing video games all day - although I'm sure he wouldn't mind if he did! The weather is supposed to be warmer next week and so I am hoping that it will motivate us to get up and get out a little bit more. I am so ready for this winter to end!!

I think I may have to take some time and clean out closets and dressers. Both boys have had a growth spurt and I know I saw some things in my drawers that I am just never going to wear again. This school break seems like a good time to get some of it done.

Anyone have any goals they are trying to reach lately??

Having fun with cooking

I had been feeling like I was in a cooking rut. I was bored with everything that I made and really, I found no joy in making dinners like I used to. Then I went on Weight Watchers and it got even more tiresome because no one wanted to eat "healthy" with me. I had complaints of things not being fried or not a thick enough sauce, blah, blah, blah.

So I was shopping a little over a week ago and picked up a Weight Watchers magazine that was all recipes - something like five ingredient/fifteen minute meals. To some this is not a big deal, but for me it is because I HATE following a recipe. They annoy me. I like to concoct and create. I'm very comfortable and at ease in my kitchen but like I said, lately, it was just a chore.

Some of the fun things I've found in this magazine are a recipe for a Greek-style pork tenderloin (Very yummy), a Southwestern Spinach Dip (Also yummy and satisfied my need for dip), a low-fat Caesar salad (very good) and Moroccan-style Salmon (not my favorite, but Frank & Michael loved it). Out of 191 recipes, I've gone through and checked off 120 of them that I would make. My goal is to try at least two new recipes a week.

Another fun meal I concocted the other night was a shrimp fajita portabello mushroom pizza. It was so easy and so filling and I will definitely be making it again. Here's the recipe (feel free to try this at home): 2 portabello mushroom caps (de-stemmed and scraped out), 4 oz. shrimp, 1/2 can of chopped tomatoes with green chiles, frozen sliced bell peppers with onions, low-fat shredded Mexican cheese (the 4 cheese blend), 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil and 1 tsp. of minced garlic.

Preheat oven to 400. When ready, place mushrooms on a greased cookie sheet and let cook for 7-10 minutes (or until slightly softened). Saute the garlic in the olive oil and then add the peppers and onions (I used about a cup of them). Cook for 3 minutes and then add the shrimp. Cook until shrimp is almost done then add the chopped tomatoes. Stir through to coat everything. Take mushrooms out of the oven and place your fajita mix in to each cap and then top with a little bit of the shredded cheese (or a lot, depending on how much you like). Bake for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and serve.

This was SO DANG GOOD! I was so full and so satisfied. I have some of the filling left over and so I ate it wrapped up in a whole wheat tortilla and that was nice, too.

Happy cooking, everyone!

Weight Watchers, Week 5

Okay, I'm starting to feel sassy again! I went to my meeting yesterday and was down another 2.8 pounds for a total of 10.4!! I got my second "5 lb" sticker and reached my first 5% goal! I feel really silly now for wanting to throw in the towel.

I've been working out - no more 3 hour workouts, though. You guys were totally right, that was not a smart move. So I'm walking, I'm occasionally doing the Power 90...I'm not thrilled with any of them but they are working, so I can't complain. The fact is...exercise works. I was talking to a friend about this yesterday and we're both like "Okay, so we realize what works here, eat less and exercise and you can lose weight." So we get this, we know this and yet...I still need that woman behind the desk to judge me so that I feel motivated!! How sick is that??? Well for now I'll deal with it because it is working. I think if I tried to go out on my own right now I would just lie to myself and not be as diligent and then be disappointed when I got on the scale.

So the journey continues...

Another Weight-Watchers Update

So last week I was ready to quit. I had had enough. I was constantly obsessing about every little thing that I ate. I felt horrible. My stomach hurt all the time...I mean, it just wasn't worth it to me.

I called about quitting but since I do their monthly pass and they had already done the charge for the month, I could not quit just yet. I mean I could, but I would still be paying. Monday morning I got up and went to the meeting. I figured, I'm paying, I might as well go.

FOUR AND A HALF POUNDS LOST!!!!

I almost did a happy dance right there on the scale, but there was a line, I felt a little weird, so I just did one in my head. I'm almost at eight pounds and I have to tell you, I don't see it. I mean, everything still fits the same. I wear the same outfit that I did for that very first weigh-in so that I'm consistent and it still fits the same! Well, the pants may be a little looser but not that much. When I lose two more pounds I will hit 5% of my goal and get a special star. Yeah!

So I'm gonna stick it out for a little bit longer. I am exercising. I didn't do it consistently last week and ended up doing a 3 hour workout in one day and believe me, my body complained BIG TIME. Note to self: spread out the workouts - you're not as young and bendy as you used to be!

I'm off to find the Advil now...

A Weight Watchers Super Bowl

I am not a sports fan in any capacity and yet every year I get sucked in to the Super Bowl. Most of the time I have no idea who is playing, I know not one players name. But I do enjoy the snacks.

As a confirmed foodie, I LOVE going all out on Super Bowl Sunday. Well this year presented a bit of a challenge because of the whole Weight Watchers thing. I was a bit bummed because I would not be able to do my usual but let me tell you, as I sit here Sunday night being pleasantly full, that I rock.

I made homemade pizza for Frank and Michael but for myself I did Portobella Mushroom cap pizzas. I took three of those mushroom caps (they're quite large - like the size of an English muffin), de-stemmed them, filled them with a little bit of tomato sauce (a chunky kind), topped them with a low fat, three-cheese Italian shredded cheese and I had lightly sauteed some bell peppers with onion and garlic. I put them in the oven to melt the cheese and let me tell you... they were SCRUMPTIOUS!!! I mean, I will definitely make these again.

Then, because I have to have meat, I grilled up some extra lean burgers and served them on these new Arnold's Sandwich Thins in multigrain variety. Some pickles, some salt-free ketchup and I am FULL! I do not feel deprived at all. Oh, and for dessert I had my three squares of Dove Dark Chocolate with 71% Cacao. It was a good diet day for this foodie.

It can be done, I guess. Of course it would have helped even more if I had maybe exercised a bit instead of sitting in my jammies all the live-long day.

*Today's Examiner.com article is on an on-line Physics of the Olympics class. You can read about it HERE. Thanks!*

Weight Watchers Update

Okay, so I finished week two on Weight Watchers and had a wee-bit more success than the first week. Praise the Lord! I went out in the dangerous cold and ice to get to my weigh in and lost three pounds. Yes, three whole pounds. That is WAY better than that lousy half a pound the first week.

So what's changed? Well, I told you that I had been exercising and doing the Walk Away the Pounds thing. I do a three-mile, high intensity walk. I did it five days last week. And you know what's weird? I'm not as hungry. That first week I was ready to start eating the furniture and now, I have it way more under control.

My total weight watchers goal is to lose 40 pounds. And that will put me at the high end of my weight range for my height. I still don't see how that's possible but whatever. Nick is graduating in June - EARLY June - and so as of right now I have about 16 weeks to lose 20 pounds. I would love to lose more than that but I'm being realistic. After seeing how slow this weight is going to come off, I have to have a goal that is within my reach. I have to get up and speak in front of several hundred people and so with 20 pounds off my short, fat body ought to make me feel a little bit better.

Why can't fat be the new thin?

Today's Examiner.com article is on the 2010 National African American Read-In in Raleigh. You can read about it HERE. Thanks!*

Back to Walking Away the Pounds

Week two on Weight Watchers. It's getting a bit better. What I have come to realize with great annoyance is that my body just refuses to let go of any weight unless I exercise. I am SO not an activity type of gal and so the fact that I have to not only eat less but to have to exercise on top of it, well, let's just say that it ticks me off.

So I pulled out the Walk Away the Pounds DVD and for the last few days I have been doing the three mile, high calorie burn walk. I will begrudgingly admit that I do feel good. I still wish that I had the treadmill back or could afford to go to the gym but that's not going to happen.

Actually, yesterday I bought a Dancing With the Stars toning workout DVD. It has 3 fifteen minute routines. I watched it yesterday and well, let's just say that I may very well hurt myself doing even the most "basic" of steps. I was a dancer back in the day but I guess I just don't even think that I could attempt some of these steps now.

Oh, well...I guess I'll just keep walking off those stupid pounds! Dang it!

*Today's Examiner.com article is on Groundhog Day activities at the Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh. You can read about it HERE. Thanks!*

Weight Watchers Rant

Okay, so last night I went for my first weigh-in at Weight Watchers.  One of the things that I usually love about starting a new diet - especially Weight Watchers - is that BIG number on the first week.  I mean, you are changing the way you eat, making healthier choices, blah, blah, blah.  So how did I do on the big first week?

A half a pound.

A half-a-freakin-stupid-pound.

Can I just tell you how much self control it took to not stomp out of the building as soon as I got off of the scale? I was PISSED.  Royally.  I did SO good this week.  I logged everything that I ate, I even at fruit (which I despise!), I stayed in my point range and then, even after going out for dinner with the girls Friday night, I didn't even use up my EXTRA points that you are allotted!  I gave up my coca-cola, I drank water like I had been wandering in the Sahara for a month!  I bought baked chips.  I skipped on the pizza.  I weighed my damn food.  And for what?

A half of a pound.

So now, as if that's not bad enough, I'll give you a little TMI - I can't even poo properly since going on this diet!  I eat more veggies than a person should have to, I eat the fruit, I'm drinking the water, and yet I can't poo!    What is up with that???

Pissed.  Beyond pissed.  So pissed that I want to hunt down every skinny person and slap them and force them to eat cake!  Life is so not fair.  At this rate I'll reach my goal weight when I'm 94.

Biggest Disappoinment - Biggest Loser Edition

So you all know of my love of NBC's "The Biggest Loser", right? Well, I am here to tell you that I will no longer be watching it. That's right, I am done.

**WARNING: SPOILER ALERT AHEAD!! IF YOU DID NOT WATCH LAST NIGHT'S EPISODE, DON'T READ ANY FURTHER!!!**

I GET the whole thing with reality shows that they think it's more fun to have someone to hate thrown in to the mix, and yes, sometimes it is. But here's my thing, I just cannot watch someone week after week that I find totally contemptible and watch this show reward them for it. I just can't. I don't find that entertaining and I have no need to waste two hours of TV time just to be aggravated. Maybe those of you who have been watching haven't been as annoyed, but me? I was flat out sick to my stomach last night.

Okay, to recap in case someone out there is shaking their heads as to what I'm talking about, here it goes: In the first week, a contestant (Tracy) collapsed on the first challenge. They had to air lift her to the hospital. She was in pretty serious condition and the man who they paired her up with on the show did everything humanly possible for HER so that she would get her chance to stay on the ranch and get the help that she needs. Quality guy. Week two, she is released from the hospital but with limited conditions - she cannot work out like the others. I'm sorry, but right there she should have been replaced and allowed to come back next season. I mean, CLEARLY she has some serious health issues and cannot compete like the others. But no, she was allowed to stay. At this point, you still kind of had sympathy for her.

Week three had her in full out crazy mode and this was the beginning of the end for me. These contestants are part of TEAMS and yet this woman kept making decisions that effected her team but without consulting her partner and he was stuck with her bad choices. She was reprimanded by the trainers for her actions and then, sure enough, next challenge comes up and she does it again. THEN as if that wasn't despicable enough, she is a liar. She flat out lied to other contestants in a way that was hurtful and then tried to play the victim. And whenever she's confronted, she starts to cry. Give me a break!!!

Last night, she's back and has even more health issues and pretty much is allowed to do no more than walk from her room to the living room! EXCUSE ME... at this point what is the purpose of her being on the show? Wouldn't it be in HER best interest to have her in the hospital? I mean, if you are not allowed to do more than simply walking from the bed to the couch, aren't you putting her in danger by leaving her there? I don't get it. And if she were even REMOTELY likable, I would probably have sympathy for her. But she is not. At the elimination round last night she and her partner were torn on who to vote off and she was rather adamant on her stand. As her partner I would have been like "LOOK! You have screwed with me for WEEKS. This time, I GET TO MAKE THE DECISION!" But he didn't and so he had to vote his friend off rather than make her do what she doesn't want to do! So not only is this guy doing the workouts for two people, but he doesn't even get a say in how they vote!

Sorry, but I am done. I can be annoyed and aggravated in SO MANY other ways. I do not need to sit in front of the TV for two hours to do it. Next week's show promised more of the same so sorry, Biggest Loser, you just lost a viewer.

So I'm Watching "The Biggest Loser" And...

Okay, you guys know how much I LOVE NBC's "The Biggest Loser", right? Well, tonight was the premier and I was so totally psyched. I made sure we were done with dinner early enough that it would be cleared away and I could totally focus when it came on. Everyone cooperated, things got put away and the TV was mine.

Here's the top ten things that went through my mind while I was watching:
1.) I REALLY need to get back on track with my half-marathon training
2.) I found a neat walking trail that Miss D and I could train on...I should
call her and tell her about it
3.) I thought it was really cool that they brought Dan back (he's a local)
4.) I hate challenges that require any movement on the beach (that was
tonight's first challenge)
5.) Look at my little 9 year old boy doing one-armed push ups! Clearly he
doesn't take after me
6.) When did the trainers get such filthy mouths? When did that become
appropriate prime time language even when it's bleeped out?
7.) Do I need new sneakers?
8.) My pedicure is chipped
9.) I could totally do my Walk Away the Pounds routine while watching this
10.) I need more milk to dunk my Milano cookies in

Is everyone seeing the problem here? I'm watching these people who are all 300+ pounds and I'm thinking in my mind "Tsk, tsk, tsk...how could they let themselves go like that?" WHILE I'm eating Milano cookies and milk!!! I'm here confessing it because I feel HORRIBLE that I was doing that! What in the world is wrong with me??

Stupidity, plain and simple.

So while I cheered everyone on and remembered that I SHOULD be working out, I ate. And missed my boy. He arrived safely. He called once from the road and then again once they arrived. I was proud of him.

Seven more days...

Diet Update

Okay, so we're in to week two of the diet and I got on the scale today and lost four whole pounds and 2 1/4 inches. Not too shabby! Actually, I was thrilled because I have not been exactly "on", if you know what I mean.

There was the Milky Way bar on Sunday night (Thank you, Michelle!), the four Hershey Kisses a day due to hormones, then there was the butter on the salmon last night...I mean, I have not been very strict with myself. BUT I still got results.

Today I went and swam for an hour with my friend Donna. And I use the term "swim" loosely. We do water aerobics - for the out of shape. There are times when I feel like I should be in a scene from "Cocoon"! I move slowly, I do the length of the pool, we use inflatable tubes, I mean, I am not going to be racing Michael Phelps any time soon. But believe it or not, the workout is really doing a lot of good. I mean, I am sore after it. It's a lot of kicking, my legs are continually in motion...I so wish that I had a pool of my own because this is a workout that I enjoy.

I'm still treadmilling but that's a really sweaty workout. The pool? Very cooling. It's nice to have options. So keep thinking thin for me. Four weeks to go!!!

Oh, the Humanity!

Today, day six of the South Beach Diet, day one of my period and what do I have to do?

I get stationed at the cake table at the graduation and it was my job to cut and serve cake to over 100 people.

The good news is that I did not eat ANY of the cake.

The bad news is that I was very crabby and wanted to throw it at people.

But I didn't.

Sigh.