This Just In!

I got an award! I can't believe it! I'm so honored! Wow... I feel like a "REAL" blogger!

Thanks to Sylvia @ Big Steps 2 Take, I have my first official blog award! I never knew I could be so happy about such a thing! It feels great.

The rules of the award are that I have to tell you 7 things that you don't know about me yet...

1.  I am a published poet.  I haven't written any poetry in years, but when I was young I had several of my poems published.
2.  My dream car is a fully restored Jeep Grand Wagoneer.  I'd take that over a luxury car anyday.
3.  I have a Bachelors in Speech Comm. and a teaching certificate in Special Education and Elementary Education, but I'm not currently using any of them in my employment.
4.  My husband can make me laugh even when I'm angry, which of course, only makes me angrier.
5.  I suffered from insomnia from age 12-16.  I finally learned how to fall asleep by focusing on my breathing on my own.
6.  I didn't grow up with a religious foundation.  My limited experiences were with the Baptist church and Unitarian Universalist church.  I'd always considered myself to be spiritual, but never religious.  I did not expect to become a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints before 6 months ago, but I'm so glad I did.

The 2nd rule is that I have to pass the award on to seven other Beautiful Bloggers!  You know, this is tough because I'm seeing that most of the people I want to give it to have just recently received it from others, but I'm just gonna go with it!

1.  One Year, 1.5 Pounds per Week, One Day at a Time - Sarah is also trying to lose weight so she can have babies! 
2.  Confessions of a (Recovering) Compulsive Eater - I've never even commented on her blog, but I have been reading it for a long time.  Good stuff!
3.  Anonymous Fat Girl - This is another one of my long-time favorites!  I love her no-nonsense attitude and she shares some amazing Clean Eating recipes. 
4.  JewliaGoulia - Julia has lost over 75 pounds in the past 5 months!  She is amazing.
5.  Endurance Isn't Only Physical - This woman has lost 126 pounds!  SERIOUSLY!  Tricia totally gives me hope that I can reach my goals.
6.  Flabby McGee - I just love this blog!  She is so funny and I can totally relate to her!
7.  Peanut Butter and Jenny - Jenny is dealing with ED from a different perspective from me, but I love how she works on achieving a balance.  Plus, she is obsessed with Peanut Butter and how could you not love someone like that?

I hope you'll check these guys out!

Top Secret

Que the spy music...

The information I'm about to share with you is strictly confidential.  It is my secret to success...  Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you-

My Daily Meal Plan:

Weight Watchers allows you to eat whatever you want as long as you stay within your points.  If you wanna blow all of your points on Haagen-Dazs, you can.  However, they do have a few Good Health Guidelines that they recommend you follow.  And well folks, I think they're pretty darn smart, so that's where I begin my plan for the week.

Breakfast:     TOTAL 10 pts.
Dairy 1pt.
Fruit 1pt.
Whole Grains and Protein of some fashion 8pts.

Lunch:     TOTAL 11pts.
Dairy (yogurt or pudding) 2pts.
Fruit 1pt.
1 serving of Veggies 0-1pt.
Whole Grains and Lean Protein of some fashion 7-8 pts.

Dinner:     TOTAL 12 pts.
Dairy 1pt.
2 servings of Veggies 0-2 pts.
2 servings of Healthy Oils 2 pts.
Whole Grains and Lean Protein of some fashion 7-9 pts.

Snacks:      TOTAL 3 pts.
Basically whatever floats my boat.  Hummus, Popcorn, Nuts, Cereal...


And that's it in a nutshell.  I pretty much eat the same breakfast and lunch all week but mix up the fruits and veggies for some variety.  I leave the snacks open so I can just eat what sounds good to me that day.  I plan several dinners that fall within my points range and make enough for left overs so I'm not cooking everyday.  Tomorrow I'll share more about what I'm eating for lunch these days!

This message will self-destruct in 10... 9... 8...

Week 1 Weigh-In

Current Weight:  303.4 lbs
Loss:  -3.8 lbs
Total Loss:  -3.8 lbs
Emotion:  Satisfied

It was a rollercoaster of a week.  I'm super glad I lost, but still a little disappointed.  I can't help it!  I know it could have been much more impressive!  I can't change last week, but I can have a better week.  I'm off to a good start!  Especially now that I'm not feeling attached to the toilet!  Sorry.

Oh a different note, it feels a little strange being back in the WW meetings.  I'm not going on my usual Tuesday night, so it's a totally new group of people who think I'm brand new.  However, the leader is the same and she treats me like I've been there forever.  I'm sure it will get better, but I was super uncomfortable tonight.  I'm seriously considering moving to the Tuesday night meeting again.  We'll see.

Does anyone have a kick in the pants to give me?  I need one.

Preparation

TMI Alert:  I've been throwing up since last night.  I think my homemade guacamole and squash/zucchini slices didn't agree with me.  The vomiting is over, but now the issue has moved *ahem* south.  I hate vomiting and I hate being sick.

Today is weigh-in day!  I'm really not sure what to expect.  So I'm basically not allowing myself to expect anything.  I don't want to be disappointed.  I doubt there will be a gain, but you never know!  I still haven't replaced the watch battery in my scale at home so I have no idea where I'm at.  I'll try to get that posted tonight!

So, onto the business at hand.  After a few days of struggling last week, I determined that I would need to be better prepared for the week ahead.  I have to make this lifestyle change fit in to my routine or else it isn't going to work.  I'm going to be sharing things throughout the week that will help me stay on track.

I don't know about you but I've found that if I have a good breakfast, I will stay on my plan for the rest of the day.  I don't know if it's about metabolism or if it's just mental.  I know that when I have breakfast, I feel like I'm off to a good start and it motivates me to keep it going.  And on the same token, when I don't eat breakfast, I feel like I've already screwed up the day and it can throw the whole day off...  Like Friday.

I'm not a morning person.  I'm doing good to get up and get to work on time most days, so breakfast can't be a big production.  That's why I spent about an hour Saturday morning making a big batch of whole grain waffles.  I then froze them.  When I get up, I can throw it in the toaster, slather on a Tbsp. of Nutella and grab a piece of fruit.  I can even eat it in the car if necessary.  That combined with a glass of milk and I've got a completely satisfying breakfast.

Speaking of milk, I got some Almond Milk last week because there was an awesome coupon and you know what?  I think it's super yummy!  It's lower in calories, fat, sugar, etc. than even regular fat free milk.

What did you have for breakfast?

Confession

I really don't want to do this.

I don't want to have to tell you about how far off plan I found myself yesterday.  I don't want to admit to having Burger King and then later two bowls of brown rice with margarine and parmesan cheese.  UGH.

But in an effort to be true to this process and hold myself accountable, I have to come clean.

Why did it happen?

1.  I wasn't prepared the last two days and I think it threw me off.  I didn't have breakfast at all Friday, then ate a very low point lunch from Subway, and then in a moment of frustration and hunger decided to sabotage it all and get Burger King for dinner.  For Pete's Sake!  That's pretty much the WORST place I could have picked to eat.

2.  Because I'm gonna screw up from time to time.  I can give up or I can keep going.

I choose to keep going.

I got up this morning with a new attitude and I've had two good meals and I'm right on target for the day.  My indiscretion may keep me from seeing a loss on the scale Monday, so I'm prepared for that.

I'm approaching next week from a whole new angle.  I've already got a plan!  I will be sharing that with you next week, so stay tuned!

In the meantime, tell me- What are you most likely to break plan for?

A Big Deal

One of my favorite weight-loss blogs is Jack Sh*t, Getting Fit.  Jack is hilarious and straight forward- and I appreciate that.  He regularly does posts like this or this and they crack me up!

A few weeks ago, Jack asked his readers to write their own white notecards about why they want to get fit.  It has turned into a whole series called Why I do this here (W.I.D.T.H.).  I was super excited to visit his blog today and see that my card was featured in his latest post.

And you know what?  It was just the reminder I needed today.  It brought back my motivation.  I started to get really down on myself last night- how surprising!  I had to keep telling myself- "You are trying to change your entire lifestyle!  It's going to be tough and it's not going to be pretty!  Hang in there and keep up the good work."

What is your motivation?

Will Power

I felt it start to give last night.  That little urge.  It was late, and I was still awake and I wanted to eat...

But I wasn't hungry.

So, I wrestled with myself.  I had 2.5 of my daily points left and all 35 of my "bonus" points.  I could easily eat something without technically going off plan.  But that's the rub.  Did I need to eat anything?  No.  I just wanted to eat something.  I kept thinking, "I should be in bed." 

Then I remembered that I had some slices of 2% Swiss Cheese, so I pulled out two and ate them.  I shared some with the dogs.  But I still wasn't satisfied.  Back to the fridge...  I pulled out a container of cream cheese and ate the last remaining tsp.  I wondered "why did we save that with only a tsp of cream cheese left?"  And then I heard, "Go to bed."

So I did.

I got up this morning and figured out my points first thing.  It was miniscule.  I had exhausted my points for the day, plus one.  So now I still have 34 bonus points at my disposal for the week, should I desire to use them.  But I really don't want to.

Once I finished on WW.com, I was running late.  I left the house without my breakfast or lunch, without my water, and in frustration. 

Oh, no!  I'm not going to let this get me down.  Yes, it's a red flag.  I should proceed with caution.  But I'm not going to let last night or this morning ruin this for me.  It's too important.  And I'm doing a good job, darn it!  It doesn't have to be perfect to be good.

So, here's the plan.  I've got some yogurt stashed here at work.  Going to go eat that now.  It's okay that I don't have some whole grain cereal or fruit to mix with it.  Something is way better than nothing.  Then, I'm going to pick up Subway for lunch.  Then I'm going to get a new color and haircut (thanks Taryn) and I'm going to feel good and be happy.  When that's done, I'm headed to the grocery store for a few more things to stash at work so I'm prepared for days like today.

What's your plan?