Losing It…again!

I’m about 5 pounds away from my pre-pregnancy weight, however, my weight shifted around so much that clothes just don’t fit right.  I’d like to get into better shape before I do a shopping spree.  This time I will start with small goals for each week that will translate into a healthier living style.  Here’s the weeks and goals I came up with:

Week 1 – starting 1/7:

• Drink 32oz of water each day.  (Right now I’m lucky if I drink one glass of water – I drink milk, coffee, seltzer, and tea during the day but hardly any plain water).
• Do not eat anything after 9pm.
• Start using LoseIt.com again to track calories and exercise.

Week 2 – starting 1/14:

• Start 30 Day Shred video and do at least 3 days a week. (I bought this months ago and did it for 4 days straight before I stopped.  It’s a killer 20 minute workout that I should do while Toby is happy in his jumper.  Technically I should do 30 days straight for max results but I will aim for 3 days a week now.)
• Keep up with drinking 320z of water each day, tracking on LoseIt.com,  and not eating anything after 9pm.

Week 3 – starting 1/21:

• Increase water intake to 40oz each day.
• Eat 2 servings of fruit each day. 
• Keep up with doing Shred video 3x per week, tracking on LoseIt.com, and not eating anything after 9pm.

Week 4 – starting 1/28:

• Eat 1 serving of veggies each day.
• Keep up with drinking 400z of water each day, doing Shred video 3x per week, eating 2 servings of fruit each day, tracking on LoseIt.com, and not eating anything after 9pm.

This takes me to the end of the month so I will re-evaluate in early February to see what new goals I can add in or if I wasn’t being realistic with something.  Hopefully this will keep me on track :)

Source: addicted2success.com via Emily on Pinterest

 

 

Sixth Month – Losing It!

Not a lot to report this month…the pounds are barely coming off at this point so I’m not sure how much more weight I will lose unless I start working out a lot more.  I know I should be more active but it’s just a matter of following through at this point.

I’m SO close to 30 pounds total.  Weighed myself this AM and I’m officially down 29.8.  I know, it’s close enough to 30, but I want to actually see that number on the scale for it to be real.  I’m 6.2 pounds away from my weight loss goal but I have to be honest in thinking I won’t get there. 

With holidays coming up soon, I wonder how I’ll survive this year?  Last year was a complete downfall for me – I pigged out at every party and went out of control with cookies and pies and all the other good “cold weather” treats.  I remember my realization of how I needed to be healthy again was when I weighed myself Christmas Day.  I think the next few months are going to be rough…and I’m really hoping I can just stay at the weight I’m at now at least.

Well this was a pretty negative post, so let’s end with a few positives.  I think I’m officially down a pants size – all the jeans and dress pants I have purchased within the past few weeks are a size lower than what I normally wear.  It’s just frustrating depending upon the store – because sometimes I’m still in my normal size and then other times I’m not.  I did receive a ton of compliments on the form-fitting dress I wore to a wedding on Saturday – I know the results are showing but I still want to keep losing.

Stats:

• Down 2 pounds since last month
• Down 29.8 pounds total since March 27th

Fifth Month – Losing It!

Monthly weight loss re-cap time.  I’m disappointed again with the numbers but I’ve realized it’s going to be harder and harder to lose these last 10 pounds.  Technically I really only have about 7 more to go before I reach my goal, but I’m been fluctuating up and down the past 2 weeks and haven’t seen a significant loss in a while.  Here’s the stats:

• Down 4.2 pounds since last month
• Down a total of 27.8 pounds since March 27th

I feel great and a lot of my clothes are staring to get too loose.  I’m actually starting to put them in boxes to save them as maternity clothes for the future!  And best thing ever last week: Old Navy was having a jeans sale and I bought a pair in a size smaller – oh yeah!  I usually dread trying on jeans.

Some changes I’ve made to my weekday meal routine:

• I have had to cut back on snacks since I’m getting less calories as I lose weight.  It’s been a little hard to adjust lately, but I think I’m getting the hang of it.
• I switched to eating plain, regular oatmeal – no brown sugar, apples, cinnamon, etc.  It’s not as bland as I thought it would be and sometimes I use just a packet of Trevia to make it sweeter.
• I eat a cup of apple slices and a tablespoon of Better N’ Peanut Butter for breakfast, as well.  This combined with the oatmeal usually keeps me full until about noon or so.  I love this peanut butter – 100 calories and only 2.5 grams of fat per serving.  I found it at Trader Joe’s and it’s a little pricey at $4 a jar but it’s worth it.

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Goals for next month:

• Continue with exercising at least three times a week
• Try out the elliptical when I go to the gym with Sista
• Drink a Vitamin water each day at work – I bought a lot at Target when they were on sale last month and they’ve just been sitting in one of my drawers at work

C’mon last 7 pounds, let’s lose you!

Fourth Month – Losing It!

It’s the 27th of the month, which means it’s time to do my monthly recap for weight loss.  I didn’t have a huge loss this month which is disappointing, but at the same time I’m not surprised.  We had a lot of BBQ’s and dinner night outs in the past couple weeks and I definitely haven’t been exercising on a regular basis like I should.  From last month, I am down 3 pounds.  Ehhh…not great, but at least I didn’t gain anything.  Overall, I am down 23.6 pounds since March 27th.

A major positive, though – my favorite pair of black dress pants FINALLY fit.  I haven’t been able to wear these things in like 2 years.  It was such a good feeling to put them on last night to see how they were fitting and have absolutely no problem buttoning them up.  Very exciting to wear them to work today!  So at least my clothes are continuing to fit better if I’m not seeing major results on the scale right now.

Last weekend we went to a friend’s house for an annual summer party and everyone kept complimenting me, so it’s obvious the weight loss is showing now.  It’s definitely a motivator to keep going.  I told someone I still wanted to lose another 15-20 pounds and they were shocked.  I technically should probably lose closer to 30 based on the BMI for my height, but I’m being realistic and know I would miss my beer and carbs too much for that to happen :)

Things to focus on for next month:

• Get my butt back in gear and on the treadmill
• Actually use the exercise bands I bought at Target a couple weeks ago (yeah, they’re still in the package)
• Try out some new recipes from my recently purchased cookbook:

image courtesy of Amazon.com

• I’ve been eating enough fruits, but I really need to focus on getting enough veggies every day
• I haven’t been drinking coffee in the AM, but I keep forgetting to drink water with my oatmeal at work so I need to remember to do that
• Our office is moving to a new building and we’ll be on the 3rd floor, so I should start taking the stairs each day.

Let’s hope these little things can jumpstart my weight loss again –  the last thing I want right now is to hit a plateau!

Third Month - Losing It!

I technically should have weighed myself and did this post yesterday since I’m tracking months by the 27th, but this is close enough.  I weighed in this AM and I’ve stayed consistent since Saturday so I am making it official…I’ve lost 20.6 pounds since 3/27!  20 down…20 down!!!  I really can’t believe that number, but it feels SO good to write. 

I was looking at my old pictures to see if the difference is that noticeable…so here’s a pic from our trip to Florida last December.  It was probably when I was at my heaviest as it was right before the holidays:

And here’s a pic taken a couple weeks ago:

 

I know I’ve lost some weight, but it definitely doesn’t feel like a whole twenty pounds.  I can see that my cheeks are no longer super chubby and my chest is looking smaller (which is a good thing!), but I don’t see much else other than those differences in the pictures.  Though, I have noticed a lot of other changes this past month.  Lots of positives:

• My favorite pair of jeans fit and they look good – no muffin top whatsoever :)
• Last fall I bought a new pair of jeans that were just a little too tight…they were supposed to be my motivation to get in shape by the winter.  Well, it took much longer, but those jeans finally fit and I love them.
• I am comfortable wearing shorts again…no need to wear stretchy skirts every day.
• I went to Dress Barn last week to stock up on dresses for the weddings this summer and tried on everything in my normal size and they all zipped with no problem.  And one dress I bought a size down from what I normally wear.
• I can run at 5.5 mph for almost an entire song on my Gym playlist…I’m slowly building up my endurance but it’s really amazing how much longer I can run now and not feel like I’m going to collapse on the treadmill.
• I have lost 8.2 pounds since 5/27, so I managed to get back to losing an average of 2 pounds a week again.

So here’s all my stats:

• Started 3/27 w/counting calories on LoseIt.com
• 4/27 - Down 9.8 pounds
• 5/27 - Down another 2.6 pounds, 12.4 total
• 6/27 – Down another 8.2 pounds, 20.6 total

Some adjustments I have made:

• I started using “light” or “reduced fat” ingredients in my cooking instead of “fat-free”.  I’m trying to cut back on all the fake sugar and fat-free products are just loaded with them.  While light ingredients have slightly more calories, they typically don’t have all the added sugar so I’ve adjusted my recipes.
• I sometimes take a day off on the weekends and don’t track calories, especially when we have gone to a BBQ or friend’s for the day, but I’ve managed to stay on track and not overindulge.
• I love love love the Bolthouse Farm salad dressings – they are made with yogurt so they’re naturally healthy, and they’re very creamy so I like them better than normal dressings.  I also eat Bolthouse’s carrot chips – for some reason, I like them better than baby carrots.

 

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Things I need to work on for next month:

• I need to work more on weightlifting and toning.  I’m doing well with cardio but I need to start firming up!
• Continue with drinking more water at work.
• Keep eating fruit in the AM with my oatmeal at work – I’ve been slacking with this lately.
• Get used to eating Greek yogurt…I hate it alone but I’m trying to sneak it into smoothies since it’s much more nutritious than the Light N’ Fit yogurts I was previously eating.
• I have decided to increase my weight loss goal to 35 pounds total (was originally 30)…let’s see how I do for next month!

Second Month – Losing It!

Where did May go?????  I remember feeling like this last year since things were crazy right before the wedding, then the wedding happened and then we were off to Mexico for a week.  It was like May came and went in a week instead of 4 and that feeling has continued this year.  I love that we were able to go away to celebrate our anniversary, and I would hope to continue the tradition each year, but we may need to cut down and just do an extended weekend trip since I love the month of May and miss it!

Anyways, I should have done this post back on 5/27 since I started my weight loss plan on March 27th, but things have been busy and I really have been so unmotivated lately.  Work has a lot to do with it, but I will leave it at that.

To recap my second month of “Losing It”, let’s just say that going to an all-inclusive resort for a week will completely blow any weight loss goals you have.  Mudslide?  Sure!  Strawberry margarita?  Yes, please!  Desserts after EVERY single meal?  Why not!  I wouldn’t say I totally overindulged this time, but it was definitely a lot more food and calories than I was used to eating.  Since we knew what we were in for before we left, Hubby and I agreed that we would bring gym clothes with us and try to work out at least a couple times.  We ended up going to the gym once…but that was because we also went snorkeling (we did a TON of swimming) and walked around Tulum two other days of the trip, so overall I guess we had 3 decent work-outs.

Unfortunately the exercise didn’t seem to help, because I knew I had already gained a few pounds when the dress I wanted to wear the last night was not fitting like it did the week prior when I tried it on.  Before we left, it fit perfectly and I needed no help zipping it up.  In Mexico, the thing took 10 minutes to get into and once it was finally on, I felt so uncomfortable and changed immediately into something else.  It was frustrating because I remember feeling proud of myself when I tried it on at home and it fit well again, like it had 2 summers ago.

Once we got back home, I was disgusted with the scale.  In the week away, I put on the same amount of weight that it took me 2.5 weeks to lose.  Luckily it did come off pretty quickly once I started counting calories again, but I still didn’t end up losing much for my second month.  On 5/27, I was down another 2.6 pounds since 4/27, or 12.4 total since 3/27.  It’s been a very up and down past two weeks and I have a feeling it’s going to take a lot longer to lose these last 15 pounds.  Memorial Day weekend did not help me getting back into the swing of cutting back - BBQ’s, summer side dishes, ice cream, beers, and summer drinks do not help when you’re try to eat small, healthy portions. 

Trying to end this on a positive note…I have been drinking more water and seltzer during the day at work, so that’s an improvement.  And my favorite pair of jeans almost fit.  I could actually wear them comfortably now, but I think if I lose just another few pounds, they will look even better.  Goals for next month – I HAVE to get back on the treadmill and do it at least 3 times a week.  I also need to continue eating more fruits and veggies.  I’ve been better with it the past couple weeks but there are still some days where I don’t eat any fruits or veggies.

First Month – Losing It!

Last Christmas Day, I weighed myself after dinner and I remember being completely disgusted at the number on the scale.  (Don’t ask why I decided to weigh myself on Christmas).  I haven’t been that heavy since high school.  I know I gained some serious weight as I couldn’t fit into my favorite jeans since the fall and most of my button-down shirts were extremely tight, but I didn’t realize how many pounds I actually packed on.  It was that day I decided to stop being lazy and get back to a reasonable weight that would work for me. 

Right before New Year’s Eve I started to watch what I was eating a bit more, but I wasn’t seeing much progress after a few weeks.  I lost maybe a pound or two and was feeling pretty discouraged, especially after I started working out a few times a week.  I considered joining Weight Watchers online but I really didn’t want to pay the money each month, and I’ve also heard negative reviews about their new points system. 

Luckily, about a month ago, I found a website called Loseit.com through the message boards at Weddingbee.com.  A few girls said it’s worked for them as it tracked what they were eating, and the best part is it’s free to use.  I signed up to start a weight loss plan right away.  The basic idea is that you add in exactly what you eat throughout the day into their site and it will keep track of your calories.   When you first sign up, it calculates a calorie budget for you based on your age, current weight, height, and how much weight you wish to lose.  You can do a plan to lose 1 pound, 1.5 pounds or 2 pounds each week.   Several foods and their calorie contents are already in their database, but you always have the option to create custom foods if you need to.  You also add in the work-outs/exercise you do throughout the week, so the more you burn, the more calories you get to eat for the day.

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My plan is to lose 2 pounds per week and to lose 30 pounds overall.  If I do lose 2 a week, I would be on track to lose 30 by mid-July.  I started on 3/27 and have lost 9.8 pounds in a month (going by today, 4/27), so on average I am losing 2 pounds each week.  It’s really helped me keep track of what I’m eating and has me thinking more about appropriate portion and serving sizes.  The biggest changes I’ve had this past month:

• I am eating less snacks, and when I do snack, I’m counting the exact number of crackers or chips in a serving size so I only eat one serving.
• My portion size for dinner has been cut in half – I was eating a lot of unnecessary calories and probably tripling the amount of food I should have been eating. 
• I am full after eating just a little dinner and I don’t try to clean my entire plate now – if I’m full, I stop eating.
• I’m drinking more seltzer and less juice.
• I’m working out at least twice a week on the treadmill.  I’m actually able to jog for a few minutes without stopping which is a big improvement.
• I try to look up restaurant nutrition facts if I know we are going out somewhere so I know exactly how many calories are in a dish I’m considering.  If I know it’s going to make a big dent on my budget for the day, I eat a very small breakfast and lunch.

For this next month, I need to work on:

• Exercising a minimum of 4 times a week
• Drink at least 3 cups of water or seltzer throughout the day at work
• When we go out to a restaurant, only eat half of my meal – this should help me stop going over my calorie budget on weekends. 
• Eat more fruits and veggies instead of eating just crackers and cheese for snacks (I do highly recommend Laughing Cow cheese wedges, though – they’re amazing and only 35 calories for a wedge, which is the perfect amount of cheese for a serving of Wheat Thins!)

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I already feel better – not as sluggish and I have more energy at work throughout the day.  I’m able to walk faster and longer on the treadmill without getting tired and omg I actually enjoy jogging now – never thought that would happen!  I have a feeling I will probably hit a plateau soon but hopefully these goals can keep me going for the next month.