The Biggest Loser Challenge-Week 3

This week was a disappointing week. I lost 0 lbs. A big, fat 0!!! It was the week of Christmas, so I guess I should be happy I didn't gain. But, I'm NOT happy. I've been working my butt off (literally it seems sometimes) and I want to see the results. Alas, today I have figured out there might be some light at the end of the tunnel. More to come on that later in the blog. First I will talk about my week.

Last Wednesday, me and the family went to Logan's Roadhouse to eat. I looked up what I wanted on their website before we went so I would be prepared. I ordered Teriyaki Chicken, a Caesar Salad, and Sauteed Mushrooms. I even had a small roll (so yummy) and all of that was only 600 calories. I was amazed. I felt very satisfied afterwards and was very proud of myself. The next night, we went out with Mom, Merritt, and Holly for Holly's birthday to Outback Steakhouse. Again, I planned out ahead of time what I would be eating. This has been my saving grace I think. Being prepared makes me feel in control and I'm not worrying if I'm underestimating the calories in something I eat(which we all do most of the time). I passed on the Alice Springs Chicken which I usually get because it had a whopping 1328 calories!!! I decided on an 8 oz. Teriyaki Sirloin Steak with sauteed mushrooms and a Caesar Salad again. This time I had a little more bread and had a few cheese fries, but much smaller portion than usual. I took some of the Steak home and the meal I ate AT the restaurant turned up to be about 800 calories. Still not bad at all for eating out at one of my favorite places and I still got to eat my favorite things.

The next day was Christmas Eve, an annual party at my mom's house with tons of yummy fixin's. I had already decided to allow myself a Coca-Cola to drink that day and it was GOOD!!! I didn't want to limit myself too much that day, but still practice restraint in the portion department. I did go over my calorie allotment, but I was ok with that. I did find out that the Coke made me crave more sugar, which I noticed immediately. I switched back to water immediately and have noticed a difference. I still LOVE Coke and will still drink it from time to time, but I have really figured out I love water too!

I believe I have a stress fracture in my foot from working out on my hard floor. David went and got me a mat to work out on, but has had to modify it a bit to keep it from being slippery, so I haven't been able to use it yet. My foot is mostly painful when I first get up in the morning, I have to limp at first to get going and then it pretty much gets ok. It doesn't cause me excruciating pain, so I just keep working out as usual. Holly told me to wrap it while I work out and then ice it afterwards. I don't want to injure it more, but I don't want to stop working out either.

Ok....back to the light at the end of the tunnel. I think the Biggest Loser Challenge game might have become uncalibrated correctly when it weighs me. This is not an excuse on my part. I noticed it last week before my weigh in. I would weigh myself sometimes through the week with my scale in my bedroom and it was always two or 3 pounds lower than the game. One day I was on the game, it figured my weight almost 5 lbs. less than the day before. What the Crap!! Then, when I did my weigh in the next day (Monday), I weighed in at my current weight. (Which is 3 1/2 lbs. more than the day before. That's the day it showed I had lost 0 pounds since the week before. Today (Wednesday) I weighed at the beginning of my workout and was one pound more than Monday's weigh-in. What the Crap again!!! I know my weight fluctuates, but not that bad!! So, I did an experiment.....today after I worked out I weighed on the scale in my bedroom and then I weighed using the Wii Fit Plus game. They were the exact same thing!!!! And they were closer to what I thought they should be after the hard work I've put in. They were 3 lbs. lower than my official game weigh in on Monday. So.....next week on Sunday, I'm gonna check to see what the Biggest Loser Challenge game says I weigh and compare it to the other two weigh-ins. If the BLC game is way different, then I will decide to use one of the two other weigh in methods. The BLC game lets you manually change your weight. So, the light at the end of the tunnel is that I believe I have lost 7lbs. since I have started, but OFFICIALLY, I have only lost 4 lbs. When I weigh in on January 3rd, I will have an official OFFICIAL weight loss number. I hope that all makes sense.

Total Weight Loss Since December 7th: 4 lbs.
Weight Loss Goal: 55 lbs.
Pounds to Goal: 51 lbs.

The Biggest Loser Challenge-Week 2

So, I knew when I got up this morning to do my weigh-in that it wasn't going to be the best weigh-in. I was bloated. Very bloated. Aunt Flo is supposed to come visit Wednesday so this was to be expected....I just hoped it would stay away until after my weigh-in. Alas, my weigh-in showed a 1 lb. weight loss for the week! Not horrible....I did lose, but I wanted to lose more. And I worked really hard this week. I worked out every day except for one and I followed my alloted calories to the tee. I still have not had a Coke since Sunday, December 5th. That's amazing for me! I've actually been craving more water than tea. I'm making a conscious effort to drink more water than tea even though tea is calorie free, because tea depletes my iron and I am a regular blood donor. I've even rubbed off on the girls. There has been no pop in the house for over two weeks and so they have been drinking water, tea, or milk. Madelyn even told me this morning that she really likes water. I was happy about that.

This week went well for my diet. Wednesday, my boss took our office out to eat at Ted's and I made different choices than I normally did. I still enjoyed myself, but instead of eating without reservation, I laid some boundaries. Instead of eating flour tortillas, I munched on ONE corn tortilla and mainly ate chips with salsa instead of chips with cheese sauce. Then I ordered my regular meal of Cheese Enchiladas, but I took off most of the chili sauce. It was still very filling and extremely enjoyable. It was a good lesson in how making a lifestyle change is not all about depriving yourself of all the good things....just taking the good things in moderation. I was completely satisfied.

Thursday, I had my first dealing with hunger. I had been eating normally, but I was extremely hungry that day which could have been my downfall. But I took Candy's advice and increased my water intake to make me feel full. It did the trick! I didn't give in to my hunger pangs and reach for something unhealthy.

Sunday, we went to my Grandma's for lunch and she had made a poblano pepper casserole, carrots, hot rolls, broccoli and cauliflower, and chips. I assume the casserole was fairly healthy as it contained lots of vegetables and chicken, but it had its fair amount of cheese. I made a point to eat around the cheese somewhat and filled my plate with vegetables to fill up. I did allow myself a whoe-wheat roll, but only one. I am a huge bread eater and would have loved to have a second roll, but chose not to.

This week will be a test as it contains Christmas, but I know I can succeed. I have already decided that I will allow myself a Coca-Cola at my mom's house on Christmas Eve. I'm so excited!! I will eat desserts.....I will just not gorge myself on them. I will also probably exercise a little more. I can do it!!

Total Weight Loss since December 7th: 4 lbs.
Weight Loss Goal: 55 lbs.
Pounds to Goal: 51 lbs.

The Biggest Loser Challenge-Week 1

December 7th was a changing day in my life. That's the day I decided it was going to be different. I have committed to a journey of weight loss and lifestyle change that I pray will benefit me in many ways.

I downloaded my calorie tracking application on December 9th. Everytime I eat, I stop and log my calories into my phone. It keeps me on the right track because I can see exactly what I'm eating. I haven't gone over my allotted daily calories once since I initiated it. I believe it will definitely be a factor in my journey.

I chose a Super Weight Loss program on the game. It's a 12 week program led by Jillian. My ultimate goal weight cannot be safely attained in 12 weeks, so I will start another one after I finish the first. I should be able to meet my goal after the second 12 week challenge. I set it up to work out 4 days a week for 40 minutes at a time to begin with. I think in a week or two, I will bump it up to 50 minutes. I plan to work out at least one more day on my own, just wanted to set small goals to start. The first week, I worked out 5 days. The workouts actually last about 49 minutes when you include the cooldown and the drink breaks. Every 5 minutes or so, the program stops for about 30 seconds for you to get a drink. I think this is very helpful and I take advantage of it every time. It helps me to drink a good amount of water throughout the day. There are several types of exercises the programs has you do. There is circuit training, boxing, yoga that I have encountered so far. I like the way it is mixed up. It doesn't get monotonous that way. Jillian is very much like herself on T.V. Because the Wii is so sensitive, she can tell if you are slowing down or not doing the exercise. She will call you on it and tell you to get back in gear. She's also very encouraging when you are working really hard! It's amazing how quickly you can see results! I'm not just talking about my body, but my strength. Tonight when I worked out, I could do two exercises from start to finish that I could not finish two days ago. That tells me I'm getting stronger!! What a motivator!

The first week went VERY well! I didn't feel deprived at all and I really can't remember a time that I even felt hungry during the day....maybe a little bit in the morning when I first get up. I have not had Coca-Cola since December 5th. That's amazing for me! I even engaged in the drinking of a beer, a couple of pieces of birthday cake, ice cream, all my favorites.....just in smaller portions! So, for the first weigh-in on December 13th:

I lost 3 pounds!!! Yippee!! I was very excited! I do know that 3 lbs. will probably NOT be the norm week after week. I'm prepared for that, but I'm going to push myself and try to lose 2 lbs./week. It will take hard work, but I'm up for it!

Total Weight Lost since December 7th: 3 lbs.
Weight Loss Goal: 55 lbs.
Pounds to Goal: 52 lbs.

Lifestyle Change

No I'm not going to the other side and trading my husband in for a wife....I mean a lifestyle change involving good food choices and exercise. My reasons for doing this are two. One is to obviously get in shape and two is to combat this new disease I have. More to come on that disease next week when I see the doctor. Anyway, David and I dropped our gym membership back in August so that we could bowl. I understand that one night of bowling is not equivalent in calorie burning to 3-5 nights at the gym. We wanted to bowl because we haven't in six years and we had really missed it. I also have always felt like if I was serious about losing weight and getting in shape, then I could make do with what I have. We have a treadmill that I do use occasionally....I just get very bored with it easily. I wish I had an elliptical. I fell in love with the elliptical when we were going to the gym on a regular basis. I want a really nice one that will last a very long time and they're NOT cheap!! So, a couple of weeks ago, I had seen the commercials for The Biggest Loser Challenge game on the Wii. It looked really fun. So I went and got it the next day. I turned it on that first night and was immediately impressed. There were tons of different things....health and lifestyle tips, activities you can just do on your own, 8-10 different programs consisting of 6, 8, or 12 week intervals. You can pick your trainer, Bob or Jillian and set it up for how many days a week you want to work out and for how long. There's a calendar for you to see what you are scheduled to do for the next week. There's a place to log your calories for the day. Many more things, but too numerous to mention. The first night I just played around on it and set up a profile. I didn't get serious about it until December the 7th! That's the day I caught the bug. I know people who have tried to lose weight over and over and over have said, "This time is different." But to me, THIS time is different. My main motivating factor is my health. I briefly mentioned this new friend I have recently been diagnosed with. It brings me extreme fatigue and joint pain as its main complications. I decided that I could combat these complications with regular exercise and changing my diet. I know that exercise releases endorphins which give you energy and makes you feel good. The fatigue sometimes brings with it mild depression which I believe will definitely be helped by the exercise and endorphins. And I'm sure the joint pain will be alleviated somewhat with the decrease in weight upon them. I have downloaded a free application for my phone which tracks my calories. Before I put anything in my mouth, I log it into my phone. Not once have I gone over my allotted calories. I believe it will be a definite asset.

I'm ready for the challenge!! I'm going to try and update my blog weekly with my progress, good or bad, on the days I weigh in, which are Mondays. I would appreciate the encouragement in my endeavor. Here we Go!!

Rhoda Family Pictures

This year, we wanted to do family Christmas pictures again, so a couple of weeks ago after church, we came home and changed out of our church clothes into our jammies. We found matching jammies for the girls and David and I both got Christmas-y looking sleeping pants. We chose two pictures that we sent out, but here are some others from the day. Merry Christmas!!

Madelyn's birthday at the Fair

It's a yearly tradition to go to the fair on Madelyn's birthday. Madelyn went to school and got out at 11:15. David picked her up and they went to lunch together. Then Meredith and I left work early and came home and got David and Madelyn to head to the fair. We met my dad (Grandpa Dino) out there as he is a fair junkie. We ate some junky, yummy food and the girls rode some rides. I think David and I decided that this year will be the last year that we do the fair tradition. It's so expensive and just plain nasty. Every table we came to to eat was disgusting. I couldn't even fathom sitting there. Every ride the girls got on, I was just gagging at the thought of the germs that were just sitting on those rides ready to hop on my clean girls. Gross!! All in all, it was a good day. Here are some pictures!

Madelyn's 6th Birthday party

I've been terrible at updating this blog lately. I have lots to say sometimes, it's just faster and easier to post to Facebook, but I am going to try to be better at it. I have actually posted since Madelyn's birthday in September, but I'm going to go back and include it since I'm somewhat using this blog as a chronological keepsake.

This year, we decided to do a Salon/Spa party for Madelyn. I have to say it was the least stressful and funnest party we have had so far. We had it at my house and I set up stations in the living room/kitchen area. We had a station for nails, one for makeup, and one for hair. My mom, sister, stepmom, and friend Melissa helped me out by working at the stations. I let Madelyn invite one friend for each year of her age. It was a good number, not too many. My stepmom and Melissa handled nails, Mom and Holly did the makeup, and I did hair. Hair was actually really fun. All the girls wanted me to curl their hair, so I put most of their hair up in a high ponytail and curled it. They looked gorgeous. You could tell they had a good time! When they were made-over, they would prance around the house like they were princesses. And of course, they were. The time went really fast and pretty soon the party was over and parents were coming to get their kids. The girls were so happy to show their parent their new look. In their little goodie bags, they received a hairbrush with a mirror, hair ties and headbands, nail polish, and makeup. It was actually pretty inexpensive and I honestly can't wait to do it for Meredith in a few years. Here are a few pictures from the day.