Tough Stuff!

Wow, Maintenance is tough stuff! Much harder than loosing the 40+lbs! I never thought it would be so difficult.

I know I have been missing lately, but I think I was a bit down on myself. I gained a couple lbs over a couple weeks. I have now lost them again after getting my head screwed on straight! My downfall has been chocolate and lack of sleep and stress. All of those things combined have sabatoged my efforts!

Then it was time to grocery shop and I decided to be more structured and shop with recipes in mind. I printed out a number of good recipes for dinner and made my list. My recipes have been great and our daughter has loved them! I used the crock-pot once and will use it again this weekend. All of my recipes have come from Cooking Light or Weight Watchers. I will share some more soon. I hope to continue this method, so maybe I will share each recipe I choose when grocery shopping time.

On another note, I am hosting 10 people for Thanksgiving! My entire menu (aside from what others are bringing) is from the recent WW Magazine! I will share with you how it all tastes!

Stove-Top Macaroni and Cheese with Roasted Tomatoes

Another great recipe! I got this from Cookinglight.com (through myrecipes). I made it last night and even my three year old loved it! I used store bought bread crumbs instead of making them and did not put the red pepper flakes in.


In Step 4, the macaroni mixture is cooked over medium-low heat so the cheese won't become stringy and the sauce, grainy.

Yield
8 servings (serving size: 1 cup)

Ingredients
3 cups halved cherry tomatoes
Cooking spray
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 ounces sourdough bread, torn into pieces
1 teaspoon butter, melted
12 ounces large elbow macaroni
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded extrasharp cheddar cheese
1/4 cup egg substitute
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 (12-ounce) can evaporated low-fat milk

Preparation
Preheat oven to 375°. Place tomatoes in a 13 x 9-inch baking dish coated with cooking spray. Sprinkle with black pepper. Bake at 375° for 30 minutes or until browned, stirring occasionally.

While tomatoes cook, place bread in a food processor; pulse 2 times or until crumbly. Toss crumbs with melted butter. Sprinkle the crumbs on a baking sheet, and bake at 375° for 12 minutes or until golden, stirring frequently.

Cook macaroni in boiling water 7 minutes; drain. Return macaroni to pan; place over medium-low heat. Add cheese and remaining ingredients; cook 4 minutes or until cheese melts, stirring constantly. Stir in tomatoes. Sprinkle each serving with about 3 tablespoons breadcrumbs.

Nutritional Information
Calories: 357 (29% from fat)
Fat: 11.4g (sat 6.6g,mono 3.1g,poly 0.8g)
Protein: 18.1g
Carbohydrate: 45.2g
Fiber: 2g
Cholesterol: 33mg
Iron: 2.7mg
Sodium: 669mg
Calcium: 350mg

Weight Watchers Rewards program

Weight Watchers has a new rewards program for buying their products. Here is a link to the program:

http://www.wwincrediblerewards.com/

It looks like a great idea! You can turn in your credits for products from their online catalog. I have not looked through the catalog yet. However, the way to claim your credits is definitely old school! I went to the link to submit credits, expecting to enter the UPC from the package (that is how Pampers does it!). Well, you have to actually print the form, cut out the UPC and mail it in. I know, probably doesn't sound like much, but I would rather just enter the UPC and throw my package away! If I can get myself to remember to keep the packaging and cut out the UPC I might go ahead and start doing it. I do buy a lot of WW products!

Starbucks: Portobello Mushroom Piadini

Amt Per Serving
Calories 370
Fat Calories 160
Total Fat (g) 18
Saturated Fat (g) 9
Trans Fat (g) 0
Cholesterol (mg) 150
Sodium (mg) 650
Total Carbohydrates (g) 39
Fiber (g) 2
Sugars (g) 4
Protein (g) 14
Vitamin A 25 %
Vitamin C 40 %
Calcium 10 %
Iron 20 %

Last week I decided to try this and it was delicious! I did not check its Nutritional Value and assumed it was similar to the Spinach Feta Wrap I love so much! I had one again this morning and decided to check the Nutritional Value. Well, here it is. And it is not close to the 5 points the wrap is. This is: 9 points

I am very disappointed. I try not to go over 5 points when I splurge on breakfast. My breakfast is usually only 3 points. So I just ate half of my daily points on breakfast. AHHH~~~

Jason's progress

Okay, so I don't know what weight he started at, or what weight he is at, but I know he is working hard! But now he has another motive. He is testing for a few police departments in November. And he has to be able to run 1.5 miles. So, he is jogging on a daily basis, and doing sit ups and jumping jacks. He is working hard and I am very proud of him.

Now, for our rewards, things have changed. No more Hawaii and my camera was so cheap we couldn't resist. So, we both need new rewards. We are going to Disneyland in February. So, I am thinking I get a spa visit or he gets golf.

I would love other ideas for our rewards, share them please!!!

I think the scale is broken!!!!

Or, water and no wine makes a bigger difference then I thought it did!!

At my WW meeting on Saturday I was a little concerned. I was 132.8 last week and expected to go up more this week. Well, on Saturday I was 131.6. I really, REALLY think the scale was broken. But, oh well!! It is the same scale I used last week.

But, then I realized the changes I made last week maybe made a bigger difference then I expected. First, I have rarely had wine in the evening. Jason is not drinking wine, and is jogging (for other reasons now, more on that later) so I am not drinking either. That one or two glasses of wine in the evening makes a HUGE difference! Also, my water intake has been awesome! I have a 1.5L water bottle I am chugging out of on a regular basis!

So, even though I can't keep my hand out of my co-workers peanut M&Ms, I am still loosing!

Update

Yeah! I lost 2lbs last week! I buckled down and got back into the swing of my journaling. I never really realized what a difference it makes when you slack. I have also been trying harder to fit that walk in! I walked 40 min at lunch today with my sister!

7lbs to go until I get my camera!!

Oh, and we are not going to Hawaii now, but we are still working towards our goals! I still get the camera and we still need to decide what Jason gets.

In other news, Starbucks has some new breakfast items that sound great! And it appears they might be keeping around the Spinach Feta wrap!!

A new challenge!

I had a new challenge (or 'bet') thrown at me this weekend! I am staying perfectly at my current weight. However, I am not exercising and would not mind loosing a bit more and toning my body.

A bit of history before I get to the bet. My husband and I are hitting the beaches of Hawaii November 28 for 5 days. We are going with family, but leaving our darling daughter with grandma and grandpa. I have been on the look out for a great tankini of some sort, something I have not done in ages! I need a tankini to hide the post-baby and post-weightloss stretch marks!! And prefer to have a skirt type bottom to hide my thighs. But, if I win the bet I hope my thighs are long gone!!!

The other half of the bet is my husband. Last year he lost a significant amount of weight in a short amount of time by just not eating much. It was very unhealthy, but he was doing it for a deal his dad made with him. A year later he has gained it all back plus some.

THE BET
I loose 9lbs, get to 125lbs, he looses 29lbs (I won't divulge his stats here without his permission). If I get there first, I get the new camera I want before our vacation. If he gets there he gets to play a $125 round of golf in Poipu, Hawaii on our vacation. The deadline: November 20, 2008
I am holding my husband to his promise that he do it in a healthy way and it is a true lifestyle change, and if he gains it back within a year, I get something (hopefully I already have the camera by then!!)


I plan (or hope) to keep my readers up to date on our little bet. I want my camera!! I gotta get my booty moving!

HG’s 1-Point Chocolate Peanut Butter Fudge

I made these this weekend for a family BBQ and they got rave reviews!! They were so good, but it is hard to eat just one!


Hungry Girl Fudge...UNPUDGED!
Hungry Girl has done it again. Armed with nothing but pumpkin, some brownie mix and a VERY lowfat PB, she’s whipped up a version of chocolate peanut butter fudge that's so low in calories and fat, it'll make you cry tears of joy. Here's the secret recipe...

Ingredients:
2 cups canned pure pumpkin
1 box Betty Crocker Fudge Brownies Mix (the 18.3-oz. Family Size box)
2 tbsp. Better ‘n Peanut Butter, room temperature

Directions:Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine pumpkin with the brownie mix in a large bowl; stir until smooth (do not add anything else). Spray a small baking pan (8" X 8" work best - no larger!) with nonstick cooking spray and pour in the mixture. Spoon 2 tbsp. of Better ‘n Peanut Butter (room temperature) on top and use a knife to swirl peanut butter around. Cook for approximately 35 minutes. The batter will remain very thick and fudgy, and it should look undercooked. Remove from oven. Cover with aluminum foil and let cool in fridge for a couple of hours. Cut into 36 squares and serve.

Serving Size: 1 piece (approx. 1.3 oz.)
Calories: 63
Fat: 1g
Sodium: 56mg
Carbs: 13.5g
Fiber: 1g
Sugars: 9g
Protein: 1g

* 1 Point!

A 10 POINT COOKIE!

YIKES!!

I was in the mood for a cookie today. I got up and jogged and did ballet this morning and felt like I deserved it. So, I got a Snickerdoodle at Starbucks. WOW! That Snicker doodle was 10 points!!

No more cookies at Starbucks for me!

Wii Fit

My lovely husband purchased the Wii Fit balance board for me the day it was released. A week and a half later I finally tried it. Wow! It is fun! And, it tells you if you are weak or have bad balance, or just suck!! I only tried a few things so far. The thing that I don't like is each exercise does not last very long, and you have to pick the controller and push (A) to do it again. But it does keep track of how long you actually did the exercises. I hope to get a chance to do it more!

The funniest part is the soccer heading game! It is hard, I missed a lot of balls! Then, you not only have balls coming at you, you have shoes coming at you that you have to dodge. Lets just say if that was real life, being hit in the face with about a dozen shoes, I would be unconscious!

Fit Flop (review)

I was asked how I am liking the FitFlops. I love them! They are cute! On Saturday I wore them around the mall, and here I am at work on Monday and my calves still hurt! My legs are definitely sore after wearing them, so they are doing something! I am not wearing them all the time or using them as my sole source for strengthening, but they are a great add-on.

Not Easy!!

Wow, this Lifetime stuff is not easy!

It is funny, our WW leader has said a couple times how people loose weight on a diet, then they can go back to eating "normal"!! What is "normal". But I think that mentality is hard to beat. I have had numerous moments over the last couple weeks where I thought to myself, I can eat what I want now!! BUT, I am then smart enough to catch myself and limit the portion!

Changing my life at 30 has not been easy. My whole life I have eaten fast food, eaten a lot, and never really thought about what or how much I ate. As a kid I was very active, so pounds never really added up. Then I got married, got a job sitting at a computer all day, and life just "got in the way". Well, this is life! Life should be taking care of yourself!!!

HUNGRY GIRL!!

I love this book!! I pre-ordered it and received it on April 29. You can find it at Amazon

I get a newsletter from Hungry Girl daily and I read it all the way through. She has some great recipe ideas and food finds! I have the link to the website on the sidebar of this blog.

This book is awesome! The WW points are not printed in the book, but are available on the Hungry Girl website. I haven't tried anything from the book yet, but plan to maybe make one of the soups to freeze servings of! And I never thought Fiber One cereal could be used for so much!

My Story in Pictures

July 2006

November 2006

July 2007

January 2008

April 2008

What did I do today??

Every Saturday morning for the last 10 months I have gotten myself out of bed at 6:05 am and driven myself to Weight Watchers (with a quick stop at Starbucks on the way!!). I then get home about 7:45 am, just as my daughter finishes her breakfast.

Today, when I got home I sat down to tell my daughter what I did this morning. This is what I said,

"Trinity, you know what mommy did today"
Her answer (humorous): "You went to the store and bought food" (I did do that too, after WW!)
My response: "I became a healthy woman for you"

That is what I have spent 10 months doing and what I will continue to do. I became a healthy woman for my child. I want to be a healthy example to her.

LIFETIME!!!

Wow! That is all I can say, WOW!

Remember when I cried in the dressing room? Now I have cried in front of the Weight Watchers receptionist! When she wrote down that 136 in Week 6, my eyes instantly started to water. I could not believe it. I had done it. Almost 10 months to the day from my first WW meeting. I have lost 40lbs. My daughter does not even weigh 40lbs!!!

From the day in July 2006 when I decided I needed to be healthy for myself and my family, I have lost almost exaclty 60lbs.

I now can attend WW meetings for free and have a very cool Lifetime Membership card to carry with me. I will carry that card proudly everyday. I will attend meetings proudly every week, to keep me on track and stay a healthy person.

The FitFlop

I was walking by Lady Foot Locker the other day and saw this great thing in the window, some very cute thongs, they were white with pink straps. They were on a pair of very long, lean legs, and the woman had on pink boy cut panties. Then, I started to read the poster and look at the product. Then I came home and did an online google search and came across The FitFlop and decided to Google more and look for reviews. I found some great reviews.

What is The FitFlop you might ask? Good question! It is supposed to help build muscle in your legs and core. The salesman at Lady Foot Locker said it would even help my posture over time. Below is a move from The FitFlop website showing how they work.

I went back and decided to try on a pair and maybe give them a shot. The reviews were good and I thought "Why not??" If nothing else, I had a cute pair of thongs for the summer! I tried them on, and they were very comfortable. Yes, I bought them!

To use:

The salesman at Lady Foot Locker said to start with one hour a day, because he said you will feel it and feel like you had a hard workout and be sore. Then, he suggested 2 hours a day, 3 days a week once you are used to them.

I am going to walk around the mall a bit this evening, wearing them for the first time. I will update you on how I like them.

Are you whistling at me?????

All my life I have had friends that have been looked at and whistled at. While I know it is not all that flattering, I have always wished it were me being whistled at. Well, last week and again today I was honked at and got hoots and hollars from 20-something year old males as they drove by. Yeah, while not exactly the best age group, but it still gave me inspiration! For the first time in a long time I felt very sexy and attractive.

Maintenance: Week Five

This past Saturday I had my week 5 weigh in for maintenance. As long I am not 2lbs over my goal weight next Saturday I will officially be a Lifetime Member of Weight Watchers. I will be an "after"!!!

Challenges of Maintenance

Wow, this is when all you have learned really tests you. I have struggled a little and at some points think I don't need to worry about my points anymore. Then I kick myself in the butt and remind myself why I am doing this.

At first I wanted to still loose, so went down a point as the point quiz online suggested. So, I was to 19 points. Then after much consideration and reading some other stories of maintenance I decided I needed to really use these six weeks to learn to maintain my new weight. Then, maybe in a few months I can loose more if I want.

I have also started exercising again since getting sick. I have been jogging, and I must say, I love it! It is sure easier to jog when you aren't lugging around 60 extra lbs! I hope to continue to improve my exercise routine and tone my new body. I think my desire to loose more is some of the fat pockets I still have, but I think the exercise could fix that.

So, I am now allowed 23 points. That has added a new challenge in my head. I feel like that is a lot and I am worried about eating enough. I need to plan a little more, to ensure I am eating good, while also getting my points, and not adding 'bad' points!

WI

I stayed steady!!

I missed my first weigh in after reaching my goal because I was away for work. I weighed in this morning and I was right now! No gain and no loss. I thought for sure I had gained.

I DID IT!!

My original goal I set for myself was 135lbs. As I have lost I figured I could get to 130lbs. 135 is within a normal range for my height, so I have decided I am at my goal, however, I am still counting points towards loss, and hope to loose that last 5. Then I will be on the WW Maintenance plan. I have to maintain atleast 136 for 6 weeks, then I will become a life time member and WI atleast once a month.

I feel great! And .... I bought two pairs of pants yesterday. Drum Roll Please .... Size 6!!!!

No, I haven't quit!

I have just been taking a break! Not by choice! I have been battling a viral vertigo for the last two weeks. I did get weighed at the Dr last Thursday and I was down 3lbs, but after being sick to my stomach and then slowly getting back to eating regularly, I am not going to believe that until I weigh in on Saturday. But, I have learned some lessons. I snack too much. I have been doing a great job eating my points, and sometimes feel like I am under. Also, no coffee or alcohol this entire time.

Chicken Enchilada Casserole

Another great recipe! I fixed this last night for my sister and Jason. We all liked it! It does take awhile to prep it and get it ready to put in the stove.

http://www.bettycrocker.com/Recipes/Recipe.aspx?recipeId=44701

1 boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into thin bite-size strips
1/2 medium red bell pepper, finely chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1 can (18.5 oz) Progresso® Light Southwestern-style vegetable soup
1/4 cup uncooked instant brown rice
1 oz fat-free cream cheese, cut into cubes
3 tablespoons Old El Paso® fat-free refried beans (from 16-oz can)
4 corn tortillas (6 inch)
1/3 cup shredded reduced-fat mild Cheddar cheese

1. Heat oven to 350°F. In 12-inch nonstick skillet, cook chicken and bell pepper over medium-high heat 4 to 6 minutes, stirring constantly, until chicken begins to brown and bell pepper is crisp-tender. Sprinkle with cumin.

2. Stir in soup. Heat to boiling. Stir in rice; reduce heat to low. Cover; cook 10 minutes or until rice is tender.

3. Stir cream cheese into chicken mixture until well blended. Spread 1 tablespoon of the refried beans on 1 tortilla; place, beans side up, in bottom of ungreased 1-quart casserole. Top with 1 cup chicken mixture; sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of the cheese. Repeat 2 times. Top with remaining tortilla; sprinkle with remaining cheese.

4. Cover; bake 20 to 25 minutes or until mixture is hot and cheese is melted.

Nutrition Information
1 Serving: Calories 250 (Calories from Fat 35); Total Fat 3 1/2g (Saturated Fat 1g, Trans Fat 0g); Cholesterol 30mg; Sodium 880mg; Total Carbohydrate 35g (Dietary Fiber 6g, Sugars 4g); Protein 19g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 35%; Vitamin C 30%; Calcium 15%; Iron 10% Exchanges: 2 Starch; 1/2 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 2 Very Lean Meat Carbohydrate Choices: 2 *Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

POINTS® value of 4.

Do-Ahead
Make the casserole up to 24 hours ahead of baking, and store covered in the refrigerator. Since you'll be baking a cold casserole, expect the bake time to be a few minutes longer.

Weigh In

Today I weighed in a day early. I am going out of town for the weekend, and wanted to still get my weigh in done. I felt like I made some bad food decisions this week, but the scale didn't think so!! My stats:

Current weight: 139.6!!

I broke through another "decade"!

Also, I have set my goal, 130. So I am less then 10 lbs from my goal.

Lastly, I have done awesome working out this week. My week looked like this:
Saturday: Dancing with the Stars
Sunday: Walked 60 minutes
Monday: Yoga Booty Ballet
Tuesday: off
Wednesday: Firm DVD
Thursday: off
Friday: Yoga Booty Ballet (A different one).

Trader Joe's

I love Trader Joe's and buy a lot of their products. I have found them to be low in point values and very tasty. Here are a couple of my favorites:

Pasta Medley (add some shrimp and TJ Red Curry Sauce)
Edamame
Veggie Sticks (my daughter loves them too!)
Kids Yogurt
Ceasar Just Chicken
Pizza Sauce
Oatmeal
Everything crackers
Chicken and Beef Mini tacos

Also, in trying to figure out points values after I have already thrown away the packaging I found this website:
Trader Joe's Nutritional Values

It is very helpful in entering the information into the WW Online tools and figure out my points.

Great Workout!!

I love Dancing with the Stars and wish Jason and I could take a ballroom dancing class. So, when I saw this DVD I just had to pick it up! It was $14.99 at Target. You can get it for $9.99 at Amazon.com

It was a blast! Some parts I was a little uncoordinated, but over all I had a good time and it went by very fast! The next day I had some soreness, so I know it was doing something!!

OH MY!!

I don't know what else to title this post. I have had many titles run through my head, and this is what I typed!

Have you ever cried in a dressing room? I have, many times. Usually, it is because I couldn't find something to wear that looked good on me. The sizes I thought should fit, were too small and didn't look good. And the next size up was too big. And honestly, the next size up embarassed me.

Well, today I went to buy myself a few things. I need a swimsuit (going to do a river fitness class once a week at a pool by us that has a lazy river, the class uses the river as resistance). And, I need some workout clothes. I am going to start doing some DVDs at home, and plan to try the new Dancing with the Starts Cardio DVD, I will review it here after I try it.

So, the point of this post. I cried again today in a dressing room, because the size that I decided to try on for kicks, not knowing how it would fit, fit me well. And, I even had room, AND, it looked good! So, I bought a very cute, casual weekend outfit. And a workout take top with built in bra!

The size you ask?? Remember a few posts back when I said I wasn't going to buy much more until I hit size 8?? Well, I better go start spending!!! I have hit size 8 ladies and gentlemen! I haven't worn anything in a size 8 since college.

Chicken Taco Chili

This recipe is so awesome!! It was posted at my WW meeting and I tried it on Sunday. Trinity was not thrilled with it, and Jason had to add pepper (it was spicy enough for me!), but he inhaled it! And, it is great for leftovers, as I am currently eating it for lunch!!

1 can Kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 can Pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 can Black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can diced tomatoes
1 package taco seasoning (I used Chicken taco seasoning, was an accident, but very tasty!)
1 chicken breast (I used three small ones)

Mix it together in crock pot, and cook for 4 hours (on high).
Shred chicken before serving (pull apart with a fork).

Serve! It was awesome! I added onions and garlic to it. Probably could add a lot more!

Weigh In

Just a few days late, but I weighed in on Saturday morning. I weighed 141.4, with a total weight loss of 32lbs. I am trying to decide what my goal weight will be. I also need to get my butt in gear and start a good exercise routine.

All in all, I am feeling great!!

Update

I have been so horrible about updating both my blogs. I made 30 lbs two weeks ago. After a rough week recently I gained .8lbs, so just over my 30lbs mark, but I plan to loose that, plus some this week!

I hope to start that workout routine I have been meaning to start!

Oh, and stop reading now if you don't want to hear personal details.......





I am back to my B Cup size bra I wore in college!!! I bought new ones yesterday and I love it!!