A Successful Week - Yippee

I lost two pounds this week.  I'm happy.  That makes a total of 5 pounds since the first.  I'll take it.  It's so funny how I was hoping for more but I am ecstatic with any loss.  I do like to watch the Biggest Loser and wish I could lose eight or more pounds in a week.  But that is just not realistic.  I guess if I lived on a nice ranch and had a personal trainer pushing me every day and a kitchen fully stocked with healthy foods I could do it, too.  But I don't have that, and a loss is a loss and I will be grateful for any and all successes.

I know that walking helped with the weight loss this week.  As I said in my last post, I walked one day around the hills and then I walked two more times.  I usually walk for at least 40 minutes and I think it's about two miles.  I enjoy it, not so much the exercise,  but spending time talking with my friends is what excites me about the walk.  I guess that is why I never walk by myself - I need company.  

I am drinking more water, too.  Maybe not as much as I should. But everyday after I drink my coffee I make sure to down a couple glasses of water.  I also have water with every meal.  You know I love my coffee but I am even trying to drink less of that.

Today, however, I did have a melt down... a chocolate melt down!  I stopped in the store to get some things for dinner and bought those new Hershey Kisses with the air bubbles.  I ate about 10.  And they weren't even that good.  I think they put more sugar in them!  I need to throw the rest away.  Chocolate is one of those things I totally crave!!! I'm sure many people can relate to what I'm saying here.... right????  I have to find a better way to have my chocolate fix.  Hmm, have to get back to you on that one.

Another major fail this week was cheesecake.  My family was wanting a nice dessert and we decided to go get a piece of cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory.  I got a piece of White Chocolate Raspberry truffle.  Supper Yummy!!!!  I ate half and saved the rest for the next day.  After I ate the first half, I decided I would look up how many calories were in it.  Here is the link for their nutritional information so you can look at what you will order before you go there.  I expected to be surprised, but not shocked. My piece had 930 calories!!!  That's almost half a day's calories!!! Well, lesson learned.  No more cheesecake and always check calories before ordering.  I have a nice recipe for reduced fat cheesecake.  I'll have to dig it out and make it next time we are wanting a decadent dessert.  I'll post it when I find it.

I haven't talked much about my goals yet, probably because I haven't set any definite ones yet.  Being healthy and more active is the most important goal.  I don't want to put a specific number on weight loss because I don't know where I'll be happy.  I do know I want to be able to shop for clothes in any store I want, not just ones that carry special sizes.  Focus Karen, Focus!!!

Peace and Love,
Karen

Not a good week, Well not bad either.

I haven't posted anything in over a week and that is just too long.  I'm feeling unmotivated and discouraged already.  I guess I shouldn't, it's only the third week!   Focus, Karen, Focus.  Okay, things are not that bad.  I walked the hills Tuesday and my wonderful friend made me go up one of the steepest hills around here.  (But I still love her!)  And the good news... my butt muscles didn't hurt the next day! Yippee.  A small success, but I'll take it!

No.... I didn't loose any weight this week.  I didn't gain any either.  But I shouldn't expect any better after a weekend in Vegas, right??  I only had six or seven cocktails in 48 hours.  I was reading an online article at sparkpeople.com on alcohol and weight loss and how detrimental it is to my efforts.  It said that when the body is processing alcohol, it cannot break down foods properly so the food gets stored as body fat.  Also, alcohol contains 7 calories per gram and has no nutritional value.  The funny thing is, I already knew this about alcohol, as I think most people do.  So why do we ignore this information and continue to consume something that is not good for us.  I'm sure it's because they make us feel happy or we do it to be social.  I personally enjoy a yummy cosmopolitan made with fresh ingredients like the one at the Ignite Lounge at the Monte Carlo or the mojito at Diablo's Restaurant (made correctly, of course, with club soda instead of lemon lime soda).  I don't drink too often, but I think I'll drink even less now - maybe.  Read the article!!

I'm still struggling with drinking more water.  I realized this evening that I hadn't had a glass of water all day.  Just coffee.  So I am trying to down a couple glasses.  Tomorrow, I'm going to drink more water. 

Cheers,

Karen

Ugh... Cheese Puffs

So I haven't blogged since Sunday and it's Thursday already.  I guess it's hard to say something about yourself when it's not positive.  I do good sometimes.  Other times, not so good.  The other day I binged on some white cheddar cheese puffs.  They were yummy.  But I feel so bad about it that I have been thinking about those puffs for days.  I think the reason it has been bothering me so much, where last year I wouldn't have given it another thought, is because I know that I should put it to print here in my blog.  I'm embarrassed to do so.  I often have trouble stopping the snack attack.  But the whole reason I started this project of mine, besides changing to a healthier lifestyle, is to be accountable for may actions; responsible to my friends and family for how I behave.  Well... sort of.  I know the people who love me don't care that I ate a bunch of cheese puffs.  But I'm sure they would rather hear that I didn't and instead I grabbed an apple and enjoyed it just as much.  There is just something about crunching on something salty, cheesy, and bad for you.  Right?

Well enough about the damn puffs.  They are gone and will not be returning for awhile.

As far as exorcizing, I walked around my neighborhood with my friend Monday.  My neighborhood is very hilly.  It felt great doing it even though I got a little winded on the steeper parts.  But the next day and the day after that, my butt muscles were killing me.  Ha Ha!!  I walked a flat route Tuesday but by the time we reached the end of the walk I was so tired and my muscles were telling me to rest.  That part was easy.  My daughter came down with a bad cold and has been home from school for two days.  I'm hoping she will return to school tomorrow and I will be able to go for a walk in the morning.

Even though I didn't go out walking I felt I needed to be somewhat active at home.  I did do some yard work.  Moving things around the backyard and trying to kill a gopher (he's destroying my grass).  But it wasn't as much as it should have been.  I am finding it hard to motivate myself to move more.

My husband is doing better than me and that aggravates me.  I'm proud of him for putting his mind to it and working on his eating habits but why can't I get my head around the idea of eating better.  I know exactly how to do it.  I've been to enough diet programs and read enough articles on weight loss and even been successful in the past at losing weight.  So why is it coming easier for him.  I do, of course, have ideas on this, but they are all just excuses.  I don't want to post excuses.  Focus, Karen, focus!!!!!

I have my work cut out for me.
Love to all
Karen.

First Week Recap

We have been into 2012 for a whole week now.  Things are looking good.  I weighed myself this morning and lost three pounds.  I was hoping for more but I'm happy with three.  Of course, my husband weighed himself also and guess what, he lost more!! Surprise, suprise!  Twice as much!!! Six pounds!!!!!  Men, ugh!  Just kidding.  I'm proud of him.  He has been making small changes in his daily meals, not eating as much desserts and he cut way back on drinking beer.  Keep it up honey.

Today is supposed to be the last day of our vegetarian meals but I have nothing planned for dinner.  I'll see if I can make it happen.  Last night I had my first veggie burger.  I got them from Trader Joe's and it wasn't bad.  I could eat it again.  My daughter liked it with her first bite but after three or four bites she was done with it and gave in to the carnivore in her and got a regular hamburger.  She enjoyed every bite!  I'm proud of her for trying the vegetarian diet with me but I think she is done with veggies for a while. The other night I made Pasta with White Beans and Broccoli Pesto from the Every Day Food magazine.  It was tasty and I would make it again as a side dish without the beans.

I think our favorite meal of the week was the veggie flatbread pizza.  Probably because it is most like something we would normally eat.  Lunches were always a challenge.  We like our sandwiches with turkey or other lunchmeat.  But we had egg salad or spinach salads and they were great.

Last Wednesday, when my son had his wrestling match, I was challenged with how I was going to stay on my diet plan while not being home to prepare my dinner.  I ended up having a grilled veggie burrito from Baja Fresh.  It was delicious.  But I learned being vegetarian does not always mean healthy.  My burrito for instance was full of cheese and sour cream and don't forget the side of chips they give you.  And last night I served au gratin potatoes with our burgers.  Yummy, but not so good for weight loss.  I also found I ate a lot of bread and pasta even though I tried to make sure it was whole grain.

My plan from now on is to eat healthier in general.  Lots of lean protein and low carbs and whole grain. Increase my intake of fruits and vegetables.  Drink more water, drink less alcohol, and exorcize.   Sound familiar?  This should be everyones goals for a healthy lifestyle.  Now to put it in action...  Focus Karen, focus.

Peace,
Karen

P.S. A big thank you to everyone reading this and giving me positive feedback.  I have noticed that it helps me focus and encourages me to fight for my health.  Please keep posting and commenting.  I appreciate all my friends and family for their input.  Hugs.

Day 4 of 2012

So far so good!

It's the forth day of the new year and I am feeling positive about my choices. I started out the day with a two mile walk with a friend of mine. It felt good to be out walking, and the weather was beautiful, but I was tired three quarters of the way through. I guess that tells me how out of shape I am!!!! I plan on walking again Friday and hopefully I will keep on going.

Our vegetarian diet is on track and I'm not missing the meat (my daughter on the other hand just commented about a TV commercial showing a bacon burger! - Ha Ha). Tonight I tried spaghetti squash with marinara sauce. It was supposed to be spaghetti squash lasagna style which looked so good and had great reviews. But I didn't have enough time so I took some short cuts. I really want to try the lasagna style so I will make it another time.

Last night we made vegetable flatbread pizzas which were wonderful!!! I used the whole wheat lavash bread from Trader Joe's then topped them with a little sauce and mozzarella then we loaded up the veggies! Red onion, mushrooms, roasted red bell peppers, and spinach. We had fun making it and eating it. I think I could eat this every day!

Tomorrow I have a challenge. My son has a wrestling match tomorrow night and I won't be home to prepare my own dinner. I think we will be eating out. I might make my food in advanced and take it with me. Not sure how that will work. I'll have to think about this situation.....

Another challenge is drinking water. I should increase the amount of water I'm drinking every day but I tend to drink more coffee than water. Love that caffeine! But I don't drink sodas or other sugary drinks so I think that's a positive.

Yesterday, one of my friends on Facebook suggested having a word of the year rather than making a resolution. What a great idea. My word is FOCUS. I need to learn to focus not only on taking care of my health but other parts of my life including house work (which I hate), and planning ahead. Focus, Focus, FOCUS...

Peace and Focus

Karen

It Begins

Happy New Year. It was important to me to start this blog today, the start of the new year. I have always struggled with my weight and have decided to dedicate this year (and all the following years) to improving my health. Weight loss is the highest priority. I decided to start this blog as an opportunity to keep track of my accomplishments and failures (hopefully not too many of the latter). I also hope friends and family will use it to comment and give support and suggestions.

So it begins... I weighed myself this morning... ugh. No, I'm not going to post my weight. But I hope to report a loss by this time next week. My daughter and I are going to start the year by going vegetarian for a week. We are both excited about it but she is worried about missing the meat and I am worried about preparing it all for us as well as additional meals for the men in the house! But it's only one week.

My darling husband is also on the bandwagon and looking to improve his health as well. Doing it together should be helpful.

I have so much to say about what I want to happen, but I think I will take it one day at a time.

Thanks for checking in.... I am excited about this jouney.

Karen