30 lbs!

As of today, I have lost 30 pounds since beginning this weight loss journey. What a crazy accomplishment. I am feeling great, and have a more positive view of my body than I have had in a long time. I'm 15 lbs away from the lowest I've weighed since college. It's an exciting thing, for sure. Feeling and seeing the results is what keeps me motivated, even when I want to scarf down stuff that really isn't good for me at all. I am finally realizing that I AM WORTH IT. I am worth losing weight. Worth feeling beautiful. Worth feeling in control of this part of my life. Worth feeling happy.

So, in honor of losing 30 pounds, here are some other things that weight 30 pounds.

20 cartons of eggs

 

 

 this creepy fish

 

10 cans of Crisco

 

three Madi-dogs

almost 4 gallons of water.

So, there you have it. That is what I was carrying around on my body. Today is a new day, though. Here's to losing another 10 and getting to do a fun "things that weigh 40 pounds" post!

Transitioning from Maintenance to Loss

After an initial freakout, I settled nicely into Phase 3. Instead of following 1,000 blogs and forums and different advice, I just decided to do it my way, add foods in slowly, and enjoy eating again. I have settled nicely at my LDW (last drops weight) for a few weeks now. This past week I even enjoyed carbs again for the first time in a long time...even though they made me feel way too full and tired and yucky in some ways.

Overall, I've maintained my 26 pound weight loss since I started this journey about 2 months ag. But, now I'm looking at the scale and ready to get it moving in the right direction (down) again. I've set a goal to lose anohter 5 lbs before I go on my trip to Chicago to pet and play with penguins. Which, that's in just over 3 weeks, so I need to get my butt in gear. That means working out (either at home or at the gym, but probably at the gym if I want to really be successful) and writing down everything I eat. Before it was easier in some ways. Less calories in=weight loss. While I know the formula is the formula, I really don't have 500 calories a day I can cut right now. So, instead I am going to eat really clean and really healthy and workout for 45 minutes-an hour at least 5 times a week. And by working out, I mean I need to get a sweat on and actually burn calories instead of just walking aimlessly around the track at the gym.

I feel like I'm starting all over on weight loss again; there is so much still I want to lose and so far still to go. Life, in general, is crazy right now. I'm fighting a cold and am exhausted, so I just want to sleep, not take good care of my body. But, I also know that to be another 20 lbs lighter would be amazing and make me feel like a totally different person. Now is NOT the time to lose my motivation.

Week One: Updating on P3

Well, I think I made it through week 1 of P3 successfully. They give you 2 pounds on either end of your ending weight to flux in, and I think I've hit all of them. Since I weighed in so early today (oh, Sunday, I think I'm going to start banning the scale on you), I'm not really sure if I should be doing a correction day or not. I was as good as I think I could have been yesterday, but maybe over-indulged in some spinach dip (with a fork, not chips) last night at dinner. Plus eating later than normal. Plus not getting nearly enough water in. It made for a bad combo. Instead of freaking out, I'm going to eat really clean today and hope for the best tomorrow on the scale, even though we are eating out with friends for lunch.

This phase has been difficult and tricky. It's not the emotional excitement of losing weight every day; instead it's the fear of jumping on the scale and it suddenly having something very different than what you thought it was going to say going on. It's about learning what my body can have and not have (and when to say no to cheese. I've been eating a lot of cheese. the day after I eat cheese my body seems to go up). While I haven't had to do a realy correction day yet, depending on the scale it may be tomorrow.

I have 11 days before my mom comes to town. I would love to stabilize about 2 pounds under where I am right now before that happens. So, off to drink some more water and not snack this morning. Or this afternoon. Or ever again. Weekends are definitely the hardest part of this whole thing!!

Learning My New Normal

The first few days of this phase have been hard. It's been and up and down game on the scale, and it's been frustrating and difficult in a lot of ways. I've shed a few tears and had a few freak out moments. What I've discovered is that this is a lifestyle change. For a minute I think I had forgotten that. I thought I lost 26 lbs and I would at least have that while I worked on losing more. Not so, though. I still have to be careful. I still have to learn HOW to eat right and make smart choices. I have to learn that not everything will work with my body and not to eat EVERYTHING at once. It's been a struggle. I quickly gained a pound and a half. Talked to my friend Pam yesterday and realized maybe, for the first time ever, I wasn't eating enough fat in my diet. Really tried to add more for dinner last night. Was down a 1.2 this morning and just a little over the baseline I'm supposed to use for this phase. They give you 2 pounds either way of your last weigh in. 2 pounds under is exciting. 2 pounds over kind of makes me want to puke :)

So, here's to learning. Hopefully stabilizing quickly so I don't have to worry too much about what I'm putting in my body. with every bite. And hopefully next time someone has Pizza X bread sticks, I can eat one, because those are YUMMY!

Real Food is Yum

Yesterday was a scary day for me in a lot of ways. I went out to eat. It was awesome. I incorporated more food back into my diet. It was awesome. I was terrified I would be up 3 lbs on the scale this morning. Mentally I expected that. I had stuffed mushrooms. I had Parmesan chicken. I had salad with cheese. I had sweet potato tots. I had a lot of food. Over 1200 calories.

I also did my Jillian Michaels DVD for the first time in probably a year. I would say I made it through 93% of it. Why do these things always start with push ups? I am such a weakling.

Anyway, I stepped on the scale this morning. And was down. .2 but I was down. I broke through another barrier. I got my t-shirt I've been wanting. I hit my second goal. On phase 3. I know there will still be a lot of ups and downs on this process, but I am a happy girl this morning.

I also made some great egg/ham/cheese muffins for breakfast this week. I did the math and they are 65 calories each. A serving is 2. So for breakfast I had two of those and 6 ounces of pure cranberry juice. I am a happy Emily today.

Here is the recipe:
6 eggs
2 egg whites
1/4 cup milk
1/2 cup diced ham
1/2 cup shredded cheddar
salt & pepper to taste.

Blend eggs and milk and set aside. Spray a 12 count muffin tin with pam or oil to keep eggs from sticking (this only 1/2 worked for me). Add ham and cheese in even amounts to the bottom of each muffin. Cover with egg mixture until 2/3 full.

Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick in the middle of each comes out clean. Let sit in the muffin tin for 5 minutes. Remove and enjoy!

Next time I will add more veggies and maybe some hot sauce to the top. I have breakfasts now for the next 6 days! YAY!

Days 40 & 41: Wrapping up P2

Well, here we are. The end of P2. Today was actually my first day of P3. I ate some yummy food for lunch, and am drinking lots of water now. It seems strange to think that I am here, trying to get my brain around maintaining my weight instead of continuing to lose. I would like to lose another 25 pounds, so it's a strange place to be. I know this is an important part of my journey, but it's going to be hard. I'd like to say the next few weeks are going to be a lot of fun. But, I think they're going to be a lot more difficult than even the first 40 days were. It's going to take a lot more mental energy to stay focused and interested in this part of the program. With only a few things I'm not supposed to eat, they are the things I really want to eat: namely sweets and breads/carbs. But, I don't want to shoot myself in the foot and not be able to stabilize.

This morning was exciting, though. It was the first day people at church really noticed that I had been losing weight. It might have just been because of the outfit, but whatever it was, I will take it.

So, without further ado, here are the stats from my first round of this program.

Pounds Lost: 25.8
Inches off Waist: 7.5
Inches of Bust: 7
Inches of Arm: 1.5
Inches of Leg: 3.3
Total Inches Lost: 18.3 

All in all, I will take it, even though I was a pound short of my goal for this round. (So close, but so far).

Day 39: The Emotional Side

I will admit I was a little freaked out when I woke up this morning to small gain, given that it was my first dropless day. It scared me, but then I realized I didn't eat dinner until almost 9 and I'm not convinced the tomato paste I used was 100% on program. And I tried miracle noodles for the first time last night (they were good, but maybe not the smartest idea this close to the end of P2).

So today is all about water and being on program. Fighting through the hunger. I would really like to get that last pound off and I have two more weigh ins to do it (I'm counting my Sunday AM weigh in since I will have been on program all day Saturday).

The next phase is going to be an emotional roller-coaster for me. I know they give you a 2 pound window to flux in, but I just don't want to. I want to continue to lose. I want to get down another 15-20 lbs. Realistically, my goal is another 10 before my birthday at the end of April.  I'm not sure how that will work with the diet, but I'm sure going to try. Continuing to eat healthy and working out will be key.

Healthy 2013 is off to a great start, but I still have so far to go!