Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Day 12: Getting Out of Weekend Mode

Today was a very trying day for me. Coming back from such a fun weekend, straight into work mode made for a difficult challenge when sorting my calories. I made the mistake of not eating any breakfast, and I was really hungry by the time lunch rolled around. I ate a turkey sandwich - and that fixed the hunger. By the time I got home from work, though, I was really hungry again. I settled for 2 poached eggs on whole grain toast. As far as the day's worth of food goes, it wasn't too bad - but I ate 2 servings of carbs and protein over my daily allowance. That can't happen, and now it's time to get into overdrive.

I found myself wanting to snack tonight. I had a epiphany into why I was so hungry - I haven't been keeping up with my water intake. For my first week of the challenge, I was consuming close to 60 ozs of water every day. When I went away for the weekend, I barely got a glass or two in each day. Today was no better - only drinking 1 glass.

It's amazing how much a difference it makes on my hunger when I'm swallowing down tons of water. It's a lesson learned, and one that I have to keep up with every day if I have any hope of making it thru the rest of the challenge.

I looked thru all of the photos today from my weekend, and it was quite devastating. I went with 4 other girlfriends who are all very thin and beautiful. It's so not fun seeing my fat ass standing next to them - but it does make for more of that wonderful visual motivation I crave. I've decided I MUST do something about my god awful arms. My arm flab is the one part of my body I hate more than anything else. I look like I'm gonna take off when I move my arms around - it's just sickening!! I'm gonna talk to Kara about doing some extra work on my arms...yes, I know she's not a real person, I'm not off my rocker - it's just the way I can connect with my workout. I also might dust off my home gym and start doing some weight training.

Ok, well, till next time. :)

Monday, June 29, 2009

Weekend Update: I Failed :(

After a perfect week of doing exactly what I planned, the weekend of temptation was upon me - and I fell pray to the wickedness.

Friday evening, I along with 4 other women set off for a "Mommies only" weekend getaway. The plan was a 2 night stay in beautiful cabin by the lake. I had already made up my mind even before leaving that I was going to stray of course a little - as drinking was involved with the weekend's festivaties. The rest of the time, though, I planned on being as good as possible as far as my eating was concerned - and not over do it.

For the most part, I did pretty well. I consumed more alcohol than I origanally planned, but I wasn't too concerned with that. After getting a little "tipsy", I danced around the living room like a mad woman for a good 15 minutes - that's exercise!! As far as the food went, I did do quite a bit of snacking. Rather than snacking on potato chips and sweets, though, I focused on things like cucumber, hummus, spinach dip, etc. I didn't keep a count of the calories I consumed, but I'm pretty sure I went over my 450 cal daily allotment a little. Saturday was the worst day, as I had a hamburger for lunch. Again, I'm not going to beat myself up over it - as the burger was served with fries, and I had the willpower to not eat the fries and have them taken away.

This weekend was a test to my willpower in making it through the next 2 1/2 months. Did I pass? No, but I didn't completely fall of the wagon either. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity to get a way for a couple of days with some girlfriends, so enjoying myself for two days was the plan. I knew when I was messing up, conciously, which I look at as a very positive thing. I made sure I walked and I did plenty of swimming, so I at least managed to get some exercise in - not a total belly flop in my opinion.

One thing I did decide on the drive home yesterday was that I wasn't going to weigh myself this morning. I went back and forth on the idea all weekend. One part of me was telling me that I needed to see how much damage my binge weekend had done to me, but the other part was telling me that I would be too disappointed with myself if I'd gained weight - and I didn't need anything disheartening. I need to keep a positive mind thru my process, and constanly beating myself up over a weekend off wasn't the way to go. So, I decided that I have a week to make up for my weekend off, so by next Monday I can weigh in and hopefully be even more proud of my results.

Because I'm giving myself a week to mend any damage caused by my recreational activities, I'm also giving myself another week of 450 calories per day. I'm going to try and add some treadmill time a few times this week, in addition to my daily 30 minute workouts. Exercise really is going to be key in getting this excess fat off of my ass - and I've got to get off my fat ass in order to do it.

So, there's the weekend wrap up. Yeah, yeah, I sugar-coated my failure - I didn't stay strong when slapped with temptation - but come on, people, I'm only 1 week in!! I have a long way to go to get to victory, but one slight tumble isn't going to send me rolling all the way to the bottom of the hill!! I'm staying positive on this one!!

Till next time. ;)

Thursday, June 25, 2009

Day 8: Feeling Much Better

Today has been, yet again, another busy day - but I'm feeling much better. This morning, I had 2 slices of multi grain toast with 1/2 tablespoon of hummus on each slice. I had a peach for lunch, and I've been drinking plenty of water. Tonight, I had some steamed veggies mixed with some herbs and spices. For my protein, I had a poached egg with it. Sounds gross, right? Poached egg and steamed veggies? You know what? It was REALLY good. A poached egg has way less calories than a piece of meat - and the combination was surprisingly delicious. It's amazing the things you discover when trying to create a diet plan!!

Tonight I'm going to try 45 minutes of workout. I've been so tired the past couple of days, that I need to make the time up - so I'm going to up my workout time. I feel energetic today, so I'm excited about doing it. I know that Kara (my Wii Personal Trainer for any newbies) is going to give me a hard time - that bitch can be so mean to me - but I guess I deserve it. She will be reminded, though, that she also hasn't worked out for the past two days - so she can get off my back!! ;)

Just so you know, I'm going to be going away for the weekend - so there will be no posts for days 9 and 10. I will update the full weekend on Sunday, when I get home. I'm going to be spending the weekend with some friends at the lake - which means there will be tons of food, and tons of temptation. I'm feeling optimistic that I'm going to be just fine. Both mornings, I'm going to get up early and attempt a run - that will be interesting. If I don't make that, then a nice hike by the lake. Even though it's supposed to be a relaxing weekend, it's also a great opportunity to get some exercise in the sun - and have the time to do it.

So, until Sunday - :)

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Day 7: Exhausted...Again

Today has been another very long day. I have realized the past two days how tired I become with this diet - when really I'm used to a very fast past lifestyle. I put it down to the fact that my body isn't getting the fuel it needs to in order to keep up. Even though I should take this fatigue as a warning signal, I'm going to ponder on with what I'm doing.

I've been stupid the past couple of days to the fact that I'm saving my carbs and protein for my evening meal - when really I should be eating them in the morning, so that my body has fuel to get thru the day. I'm going to work on this experiment over the next couple of days by eating a carb for breakfast (such as toast) and then having some fruit, sticking with my fruit juice for lunch, and then having my protein with dinner with plenty of sustainable veggies - such as broccoli, cauliflower, etc.

I'm no good to myself if I'm to tired to do anything - and working out is just an excrutiating thought because I'm so damn tired. My body isn't going to work off any extra calories the way it is - it's conserving energy, and that's the last thing I want to be doing.

So, hopefully tomorrow will be better - I'll fuel myself up in the morning and be more energetic to get back to working out. My body can't live on Triscits and Hummus - it needs more, it just requires me to focus on what I'm choosing to put into my body.

I'll get this all figured out - I know I will. I'm not losing any willpower, in fact I'm just more motivated to overcome this little bump in the road...I WILL FIND A WAY!!

Till next time. :)

Day 6: A Day Late..Sorry

Yesterday was a super busy day for me, and I apologize for not getting to the blog - but a day late is better than never. I'll still post day 7 today - will just be later this evening.

Yesterday was a pretty hectic day for me - but I stayed on track. I drank plenty of water yesterday, and enjoyed a lunch of 12 wheat-thins topped with red pepper hummus..YUM!! Dinner last night was my first real meal in 5 days. I had a very small piece of steak (3ozs) and half a baked potato which I put a tablespoon of dairy free Smart Balance butter on. Even though I went above my 1 serving of carbs for the day - I stayed under my 450 calories - just about.

I slacked on my work-out last night, because I ended up falling asleep on the couch due to my exhausting day at work. I don't feel too bad about it, because at work I was walking pretty much all day - so I feel that I got some type of exercise in.

Eating dinner last night was interesting. My usual portion of a meal like that is a 8oz steak, a full baked potato LOADED with butter and cheese, and then a huge helping of green beans or corn (which my dear hubby cooks in tons of butter). I can usually eat a dinner like that with ease, and still manage to follow it up with a bowl of ice-cream. Last night, I barely made it through my dinner. I felt full after eating the steak and half a baked potato. This is huge progress to me because it's a possible sign that my stomach is shrinking and as long as I continue on this path, my body will adjust to being satisfied after much smaller portions - which is my ultimate goal.

I was also very satisfied after my lunch. I planned accordingly, only taking to work with me 12 wheat thins in a ziploc (which is a carb serving). The hummus I used very sparingly on each of the crackers. It curbed the hunger, left me satisfied, and gave me the energy I needed to get me thru my grueling day.

For those of you that have been sending me well wishes - THANK YOU!! It really makes me feel so pumped when I read the comments and supportive tweets. It's still very early in the process -but it's been a very pleasant and positive process thus far. I didn't want this to be a boring blog of what I've eaten, what I did to work out, etc - which I know that's how it's seeming - but I'm going to try and be more entertaining in the coming days. Just knowing that despite the lack of entertainment this blog is really bringing to the table - knowing that I'm inspiring some of you really pushes me forward - and I thank you for that.

Till later this evening. ;)

Monday, June 22, 2009

Day 5: Weight Update - SHOCKING!!

So, this morning was my first official weigh-in since the detox began on Thursday. I had to weigh myself a couple of times, cause I just couldn't believe it. My weight at 6:30 this morning was 245lbs!!! That's 4lbs lost in 4 days!!!

I was totally speechless, looking at the weight on the screen this morning. I got off, got back on, got off again, got back on - and everytime the dial went to 245.

Due to the fact that I spent 10 minutes staring at the scale this morning, I was running late for work and didn't eat the toast that I had planned on eating for breakfast. Instead, I'm going to add my carb to dinner. I'm going to bake some chicken (3ozs) tonight in the oven with some lemon pepper and then have a serving of brown rice and steamed veggies. For the rest of the day, I'm going to stick to the water, but when I get home I'm going to have a glass of fruit juice and later this evening I will probably have 1/2 cup of grapes. All of that should keep me in my 400-450 calorie range.

For the past four days, I've been focusing my work-out on cardio - cause that's what burns the most calories. Tonight, I'm going to follow Kara's recommendations and start working on my core-body, upper body, lower body, etc. Each day I will do a different workout and focus on a different part of my body. As long as I'm sweating my butt of at the end of the 30 minutes, I'll be ok - but if I do a workout that I feel doesn't get the heart pumping enough, I'll add an extra 15 minutes of cardio.

Well, even though it's really early to be posting day 5 information - I wanted to post my weight. I didn't do too bad in making a blog out of today...so I guess I'll be back tomorrow. :)

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Day 4: Still feeling great!! Next Weeks Plans

Yet again, another great day. I'm so sorry to disappoint those that were waiting for this fat lady to lose her cool during the hardest 4 days of her life..but fret not, there's still 56 days to go!!

Due to the fact that I knew I was going to eat some chicken with dinner tonight, I kept my daily intake to water only. I had 3 bottles of water, and currently working on my 4th. For dinner I had the chicken (seasoned with a 15 calorie rub) with a salad of lettuce, cucumber, onion, tomato and lemon juice/pepper dressing.

During the past 4 days my ultimate goals were to consume only fruit, veggies, and water and for my calorie intake to be around 350 calories. I kept with that goal every day. Even though I did have a small portion of chicken at dinner on the fourth day, my calorie intake stayed at the 350 calorie level.

Now the fun begins!! My plan for the next week is to add 1 carb and 1 protein each day. Not per meal, but just one serving of each to the entire day's menu. Examples of this is toast for breakfast, and a meat with dinner or meat and rice for dinner, or something along those lines. The rest of my diet will continue to be fruits, veggies, and water. No dairy will be added at this time. My calorie consumption each day should be between 400-450 calories. Another change this week will be the addition of steamed veggies, and more 'robust' veggies such as brocolli, cauliflower, carrots, romaine lettuce (rather than the iceburg I've been using), etc. These veggies offer much more nutritional value than the water based veggies I've consumed the past 4 days.

My ultimate goal over the this whole process is to detox and retrain my body. That will include slowly increasing my food intake each week until I reach the point where I consuming the "normal" 1200-1400 calories a day recommended for my current weight. This process is to give me the will power to control my portions and intake of junk foods. I have a very long way to go, but each day is a great achievement for me. I appreciate the support that I've already received - and look forward to sharing my journey on.

Wish me luck for the next week...till next time. ;)

Saturday, June 20, 2009

Day 3: Sticking to It!!

Another victorious day for me. I've decided that this has got to be a mind over matter experiment, cause surely I should be having some major issues and withdrawls by now, right? I didn't work out tonight, which is my first "slack off" but the eating hasn't slacked at all. The only reason I didn't work out tonight is because I received unexpected company - and I thought it kind of rude to excuse myself to work out. I could do it now, but I am very tired and feel like this one night isn't going to kill me. I've been very good with my eating - so there's no reason to think that this one night off from a work-out means total devastation.

This morning, I only had 1 cup of coffee. That's so unusual for me - but I was totally ok after having just 1 cup. I haven't eaten much today, I had an apple and some cucumber, but I have had a couple glasses of juice and 4 bottles of water. I honestly haven't felt hungry today. I'm not sure if it's my body adjusting to the very small amount of food, or something else. Due to this, tomorrow, I am going to eat a small amount of chicken at dinner. My husband's going to grill me up some boneless, skinless chicken to eat with my salad. Even though I'm thrilled that my body isn't tormenting me due to the lack of food, I'm a little worried about not feeling hungry. I'm hoping a little bit of protein will be good.

Tomorrow, I will update the next portion of the program, being that tomorrow is the last day of "detox"

Ok, so that's it for now. I'll update much more tomorrow.

Friday, June 19, 2009

Day 2: Feeling GREAT!!

So, I'm well into day 2 and not a single withdrawl symptom or problem thus far. Before I get into what's been going on today, let me post my info from yesterday.

Yesterday, I consumed a total of 343 calories. I worked out for 30 minutes last night. I drank 80 ozs of water and 18 ozs of organic juice. For dinner, I had a small salad with lemon juice as the dressing. I tell you something, I was really nervous about the no dressing thing, but lemon juice did exactly what I needed it to. It really gave the salad some zing - and it was delicious! I also added some pepper, so it was like a lemon-pepper type dressing.

I really thought that last night I was just going to be feening for something to eat, however that totally wasn't the case. By the time I went to bed last night, I felt satisfied and really good.

This morning, I woke up feeling great. I slept well, and didn't wake up starving. For breakfast I had a glass of organic, pure apple juice and 2 cups of coffee. That's 1 cup less than I had yesterday, so I'm pleased with that. My biggest accomplishment of the day was my lunch. I had a lunch date planned with an old friend, and I was petrified at how I was going to be at the restaurant. We ate at Jimmy John's (like Subway if you're not familiar with it) and I was AWESOME!! I had an "unwich" which is basically a sandwich but instead of using bread, they wrap it in lettuce leaves. What's even better was all I had in my unwich was veggies!! No dressing - and it was yummy!! (Really, no sarcasm here).

I've drank 2 bottles of water so far today. I feel energetic - ready to workout. I picked up a bag of apples at the store today to use for a snack or if I decide I need to eat something. Tonight, dinner will consist of what I had last night, a small salad with lemon juice and pepper as the dressing. I will have some juice later tonight. Before bed, I will have some lemon tea which I didn't have last night because I just felt full..LOL That's kind of funny to think, but I really was.

I don't know if I've just finally reached a point in my life where I'm ready to lose weight, or this is just too early for the evil bitch to kick in after not eating for a couple days, but I guess we will see. I'm a person that believes in mind over matter, so maybe I'm just telling myself that all this food is great and filling the spot...guess the results will soon tell.

Oh, and I haven't forgot about the photos..will get them posted soon!!

Till next time. :)

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Day 1: Plan for the First 4 Days and Starting Weight

So, yesterday I outlined my plan for the first 2 days, but after some serious consideration this morning and a lot of planning I've already tweaked my original plans. I stated in my previous post that my "detox" was going to last 2 days. Well, 2 days isn't long enough to accomplish anything, so I am extending my detox to 4 days. It makes sense in a way, being that I'm starting this plan on a Thursday which gives me a fresh start to start retraining my body on Monday.

Before I go any further, I have to get this out of the way. You've all probably heard it before, but to protect myself it must be said. I am not a weight loss professional. The experiment I will be conducting the next 60 days is on my own will. Before starting any form of weight loss program, seek advice from a medical professional. I am not guarenteeing any specific type results accompanied with the program that I am creating for myself. That is the point of an experiment, I will see if the program I create works.

Ok, now to the good stuff. I think I have the whole 60 day plan just about done, but I'm not going to post everything here. I will just do a quick outline of what the next 60 days will entail, and each day I will update my actual food intake/ exercise regimen and all of the feelings associated with it.

The plan will consist of a 4 day detox. The dextox will consist of a fruit/veg/water diet ONLY! I will not be consuming ANY protein (meat, dairy, etc) or carbs (breads, pastas, etc). The idea behind the detox is a starting process of flushing my body of "the bad stuff" and giving it a taste of "good stuff".

After the detox, I will very slowly start adding protein and carbs back into my diet. It is not safe to go an extended period of time without proper sources of protein or carbs, but choosing the right protein and carbs will be cruicial to my success. Remember, my whole point to this experiment isn't only to lose weight, but also 'retrain' my body to live and thrive on healthy foods so that the weight loss will be permanent.

This morning, I purchased a calorie counter/pedometer. This is going to be crucial in measuring how many calories I'm burning in a day. In order to lose 1lb of body fat, I have to burn off 3500 calories PLUS whatever calories I consume. I will more than likely notice a decrease in weight pretty quickly in the beginning, being that I will be consuming very few calories - but that will steady out once I get back up to the 1200-1400 calories I will be consuming once I'm in my "full throttle healthy" mode.

As far as exercise goes, I will be working out with my Wii Personal Trainer EVERY day!! I'm going to shoot for 30 minutes a day for the first week, and then slowly increase. By the end of the 60 days, my goal is to be up to 90 minutes a day. Even if I can't work out for 90 minutes all at once, 3 30 minute sessions will be just as affective. I will also be including other activities that are not planned, but will be in addition to the personal trainer workouts.

Ok, that's the program in a nutshell. So, let's get to my day one starting info. This morning, before consuming anything, I weighed myself. My starting weight is 249lbs. I'm not proud of that, but I'm not going to dwell on it - that's what I weigh from day one. I had a banana for breakfast and I did have a cup of coffee (but baby steps are key). I have drank a bottle of water, and now on my second bottle. Here in a few minutes I will be drinking a glass of organic, 100% pomegranete and blueberry cocktail. This is PURE juice, and NOT from concentrate. For dinner tonite, I will be sticking to my small salad with lemon juice dressing. I say dressing, but it's pure lemon juice - and just a drizzle. Before eating my salad, I will drink another bottle of water. Approximately 7pm tonite, I will do my 30 minute workout and follow that with a 6oz glass of oraganic apple juice (again, pure juice, not concentrate). Before bed tonight, I will drink a cup of lemon tea with some added lemon.

Here is what I look like on day 1. I will admit, I'm deeply embarressed by these photos - but you have to have a "before" to compare to the "after". (Excuse my bathroom mirror shots, but it was the best I could come up with)

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

As of right now, 2pm, I feel great. I really feel motivated. I don't feel hungry, despite my lack of food - but I think that the water is really helping out with that. It's very early in the game, so I'm sure the withdrawls and stuff will start soon - but I'm staying positive, thinking positive, and geared up for serious action.

Till later ;)

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

60 Day Rehab Starts Tomorrow

Ok, so I'm revoking my participation in the 60 day challenge sponsored by the Biggest Loser weight loss twins that I blogged about a couple of days ago. It's nothing personal against them, it's just that their competition requires purchasing all of their products for their program. That's not really a problem, but being that I'm wanting to blog everything that I'm doing - I feel I'm going to be infringing on their copyright laws if I buy their products and then give all their secrets away on here for free.

Don't fret, my loyal followers, just because I'm not going to be apart of their challenge doesn't mean I'm not going to do one. I am, but I'm taking on an approach that I will design myself - and then see if it works. Rather than looking at it as a 60 day challenge, I'm doing a 60 day rehab. The way I look at it, drug addicts go to rehab to break their addictions - so I should enroll myself in a form of rehab to rid my addiction to food.

How am I going to do it? You ask. I really have no outlined plan for the 60 days yet, but I'm going to throw together all of the research I've done on my own, as well as opinions and recommendations made by medical professionals and do what I have to do to shed some serious weight in the next 60 days and hopefully change my life forever.

I do know how I'm going to get the ball in motion: a total body detox. Addicts have to go thru detox to get rid of the 'junk' out of their system - so do food addicts. I know I'm not going to get all of the fat that's been globbed up over the past decade in a couple of days, but I've got to at least restart my body and retrain it to like things that are better for me. The detox is going to consist of a 2 day fruit/veg/liquid diet. Now, being that this intro doesn't satisfy things like complete protein (meat and dairy) and carbs from grains (breads, pastas, etc), it should only be done for 2 days max. After the first 2 days, protein and carbs will be introduced on the 3rd day in small doses. Here's my line-up for day 1 and 2:

Breakfast: Lemon tea and a banana
Lemon has great antioxident properties. It actually helps dissolve fat, and tea helps with cleaning the body both inside and out. Also, for caffeine junkies (like myself) it helps with that fact. Recent information has also shown me that caffeine may be a clogger to the system - but coupled with the right foods can actually help burn calories, as it speeds up the heart rate.

Banana's help curb hunger and have good vitamins needed for a low calorie body cleanse


Mid-Morning: Fruit juice/water
Juice from concentrate is loaded with sugar, so the fruit juice will need to be freshly squeezed. If using concentrate, dialute it with half water half juice

Lunch: Bottle of water (20 ozs) and small salad (no dressing)
Drinking a bottle of water before meals helps control hunger. The salad will consist of lettuce, cucumber, onions, and tomotoes. Lettuce, cucumber and onions are water based veggies so hardly any calories - but very filling. Tomotoes help add flavor and are loaded with vitamins. Even though it's hard, don't eat with dressing but try using some lemon juice instead for a little "zing" that's usually added with dressing.

Mid Afternoon: Bottle of water (20 ozs) or glass of water dialuted fruit juice (half water, half juice)

Dinner: Bottle of water (20 ozs) Small salad same as lunch - can add variations of veggies - but keep the serving to a small amount.
This information is the same as lunch.

Evening: Any piece of fruit or a glass of fruit juice

Before bed: Hot lemon tea or lemon water
The lemon tea will help break down fats while you sleep. If you can't handle caffeine before bed, just drink warm lemon water. The tea at this point is merely for taste, and the added benefits tea has to your skin and body.

Ok, I will be starting my official weigh-in tomorrow morning, and will click some pics of my nightmarish self in shorts and a sports bra. I will post the pics -but will add a cautionary statement ;)

Ok, till next time :)

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Preparing for the Challenge

So, two days from now I will hopefully be joining the 60 day challenge to some major weight loss. Am I getting all giddy inside? No. I never like to get ahead of myself - the way some of the emails have read, I wouldn't be surprised if Thursday gets here and I'm required to pay a hefty fee before I can join the challenge...which I won't. HOWEVER, I am mentally challenging myself for a 60 day challenge, so if it's not the Biggest Loser Boys challenge - it will be my own.

I'm looking at this challenge as a dare, or a competition. I'm only going to be competing with myself, but in reality I'm competing with my internal demons that have been telling me for years that I will never lose weight. I'm competing with the people that look at me with disgust and think "she'd lose weight if she quit eating so bad and did some exercise". I'm competing with the struggles of facing my family and friends and the looks in their eyes of pity and doubt. With all that competition, it's no wonder I'm having to pscyh myself up!

It's kind of weird to start a diet on a Thursday, but starting on a Monday hasn't worked - so why not? I am going to take photos of myself Thursday morning (in shorts and a tank top..ahhh), and I'm going to do my first "official" weigh in. Then my challenge begins - either mine or the Biggest Loser Boys...depending on what theirs turns out to be.

I guess we shall see which path I go - but either way, I'll share what I'm going to do and all of my progress...of course. Oh, and I'm sure there will be some laughs and vents along the way. ;)

Till next time!

Saturday, June 13, 2009

60 Day Weight Loss Challenge


One of my found benefits, it seems, to be on Twitter is the short bursts of advice I can get by being a part of the community. One of the "tweets" this morning perked my interest, and I had to check it out. The tweet involved the twins that won season 4 of Biggest Loser, and how they are starting to share their experiences. Another thing they are doing is hosting a 60 day challenge for weight loss. It involves subscribing to their weight loss program, but the benefits aren't only the fact of MAJOR weight loss - but also the chance to win a vacation!!


You know, by now, I'm not usually into fad diets or diet plans - but I like what these guys have to say..and obviously it worked for them. Between the two of them they lost 350lbs!! So, I think - what the hell, I'm gonna try this. I have no idea what's in store, and won't find out until June 18th - but I'm kinda excited. Wanted to share this new "thing" so when I start blogging about it - people will understand.


If you want more info, or are interested in joining the challenge, check out http://truthaboutdiets.com/blog/?p=39#comments


Till next time!!

Friday, June 12, 2009

My "Diet" Plan

Every once in a while, I read thru my older blogs to see what I've covered and what I can touch on next. Even though I've complained or commented on strategies I'm using - I've never really laid out exactly what it is I'm doing to help with my weight loss. So, for my new followers that are sitting there scratching your head and saying "what exactly is she doing to lose weight?" This blog post is for you:

First - I'm not on a diet. Diet, to me, is a short term solution to weight loss. In order to lose weight, and keep it off, your "diet" has to be a life change. If you have read this blog from the beginning, you know that I consider myself a "food addict". So, my life change is like any other addict - I have to take one day at a time and look at my food intake as if I was looking at another hit of crack. I'm not perfect, and I can't live on rabbit food alone - so I'm going to break down my goals that I'm trying to live by and stick to.

I am consuming 1200-1400 calories a day. I'm not a big calorie counter, so I try to break up each meal to around about 300 calories. That's 3 meals a day, and 2 snacks at around 150 calories each. I DON'T stress about it. If my hubby (who is the cook in my house) makes something that's not so healthy - I eat a very small portion of it. I don't tell myself I can't eat the things I love - I just eat less. I eat carbs, veggies, fruit, meat, dairy - all of it. I try to eat whole wheat, no white flours or sugars - but again, every once in a while is not going to kill me. I drink mostly water - but I'm a coffee addict. I do drink coffee (I already hear the gasps), but I drink it with a teaspoon of fat-free creamer, and no sugar. Black coffee has no calories, each cup that I drink has 2 calories! I avoid soda - and occasionally will have a diet soda, but not very often. I don't drink alcohol very often, but a drink now and then - yes. My drink of choice is Malibu and pepsi. I usually only drink at social gatherings - holidays mainly - but the occasional night out with the gals is a spiritual cleanse (I'm a mother of 3 remember) and so that sacrifice of calories on my soul is worth it.

As far as what I eat - I do try and eat fish 2 to 3 times a week. It's baked fish cooked with lemon or by itself. I try to eat liver at least once a week - sometimes every two weeks (it's not very popular in my house..LOL) I LOVE liver - but my kids, not so much. I keep fruit around that I like (pears, plums, peaches, apples, etc)- and eat 2 pieces a day. Ok, rather than tell you all the food I eat (yawn) - here's a sample menu for a day...

Breakfast: Either 2 pieces of whole wheat toast, or a bowl of cereal (with fat free milk).
Morning Snack: A piece of fruit
Lunch: Some kind of sandwich..ham, turkey, tuna, etc.
Afternoon snack: granola bar or piece of fruit
Dinner: Whatever my hubby is cooking - pretty much anything.. just portioned to an approx 300 calorie serving

I have tried to avoid evening snacks - but depending on how many calories I've consumed during the day I might have a bowl of ice-cream (uh, oh I hear the gasps again), or a couple of veggie crackers.

When it comes to exercise, there's only one thing I do. I use my Wii Fit 6 nights a week for about 30 minutes a session. I recently stopped using the exercises on the Wii Fit and "upgraded" to my Fitness Coach. I think the fitness coach offers a much more intense workout, and I burn a lot more calories that way. I also run after an 18 month old all day, I will occasionally take a drive to the mall just to walk around, and I also like swimming and skating (roller skating). I don't replace my Wii Fit workouts with any other activity, if I do something extra during the day - that's just extra workout. I do NOT weigh myself every day, as the Wii Fit suggests. I started out doing that, and it was so disheartening with the fluctuations - I chose to stick to a weekly weigh-in. I suggest anyone doing the Wii Fit that sees constant ups and downs to try the same thing -it's so much nicer to see the changes in a week anyway. There are days when I don't work out for various reasons, but I try to work out extra the next day to make up for it. If I don't, I DON'T stress...I can't be perfect ALL the time.

Ok - so that about sums it up. If there's something you want to know - ask. I'm not shy, I'll tell you what I think or answer you the best I can. At the beginning of my "journey" I weighed about 264lbs - that was in March. Now, 3 months later, I'm down to 250lbs. A 14lb loss may seem small to some of you, but I've had my ups to go with the downs. I've slacked off, I've had "bad days" - but I've kept going. I'm hoping this Twitter thing will work out - I'm doing what I can to find my motivation. Hopefully this time next year I'll be posting photos of me in a bathing suit like the commercials I love so much do...LOL Oh yeah, I've had 3 kids - will have to be a one piece.

Till next time. :)

My Twitter Crusade


I'm not really a new user of Twitter, I've been using Twitter for a while now - but on a personal level with friends, etc. I decided if I wanted to get my rants, raves, and messages out there - I needed something that could get some "followers" - so I started a new Twitter account: madfatwoman. My goal is to gain a trusty following there, and hopefully share and receive some wisdom thru this grueling process.


If you're following me on Twitter, or you're following this blog - spread the word for me. I would appreciate it. I am a person who thrives on approval and success - if I feel that my weight loss has some kind of positive impact on someone - anyone - then it makes it that much more worth the while. As my latest "tweet" exclaimed - I'm no Demi or Ashton - but I think I'm pretty entertaining (head starts to expand..LOL).


My goal is to reach 1000 followers...that's not too much to aspire to, if I can just stay away from the "earn money on Twitter" accounts - I might be able to do some good.
Oh - and on the subject of dieting - down another 3lbs!! WOO HOO!! Kara, my cyber personal trainer is very impressed with my progress, as am I. Thanks for the positive support, Kara!! ;)

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Feeling the Weight... Literally

This evening has been very contemplative for me. I spent a great day with my family, got to meet my new baby niece, and life was good. Then I got home, and hubby had made what I like to call "heart attack on a plate" for dinner. I'm not going to go into recipe sharing - but dinner was LOADED in meat and fat...something I should of walked away from the moment I laid eyes on it. Did I? NO!! UGH!! I'm so mad at myself.

I find myself in these predicaments all to often. I eat something I shouldn't, don't even work out to make up for it, and then wallow on how stupid it was. I've completely slacked on my work-outs for over a week now, and I really have no excuses. I've spent the evening pondering over my awful photos - and rather than taking the initative of going to work out, I pouted about how horrible I feel and look.

This self loathing actually started this morning, but my mind was taken off of it by my visit with family - I relived my feelings this evening after getting onto the computer. I had a dream last night where I was surrounded by boyfriends from the past - and they all looked at me in a disgusted way. They couldn't believe I had let myself go so bad. When I woke up this morning, I realized that my dream was my inner conscience telling me that I didn't always look this way - and I need to do something about it NOW!!

I'm surprised at the way I feel. Yes, I've been unhappy with my weight for years now, but have I ever really gotten depressed over the way I look? No. Honestly, in the back of my mind I've always told myself - "quit eating this crap, Joanna, you're never going to lose weight" but the thought fluttered away after my tub of ice-cream vanished. Now I've moved to a state of horror and sadness at the sight of myself. Is this a good thing? I think it can be. Most addiction experts state that a person will not kick their addiction until they have hit rock bottom. Am I there? Have I finally fallen as far as I'm willing to fall? You know what - I think it has.

I'm going to work out - right now.

Saturday, June 06, 2009

Visual Motivator

I really hate having my picture taken because I hate the way I look. This past week, my family took a trip to the zoo - and like is customary, I had my picture taken a few times. I cringed when I saw the photos. It's one thing to know that you're overweight when you see yourself in the mirror, but a totally devastating event when seeing a photo of yourself.

After looking through the photos, I decided that I need to cringe at the sight of myself everytime I reach for a "no-no" food item, or I think "missing one night of work-out won't hurt too much", and the best way to do that is to make sure my horrible photos are slapping me in the face at all times.


I picked out a few of the photos from my trip, and I've plastered them around so that while I'm in the kitchen I can see them. The visual motivation is a great way to think "ugh, I really hate looking that way" and gives me the energy I need to keep doing something about it.


Here is my "visual motivator" that boils my blood everytime I look at it - and keeps the crap out of my mouth: