Update 12

Plan of attack-
okay, so I started my period, and I'm having crazy cravings. I'm a little afraid to get out the tape measure because I have no idea if I'm bloated or not. lol. Next week I'm going to try to stay on track better. All in all, this week I went to the max and ate some of my exercise points a number of days this week. I've got to get back to the green tea and protein powder regimen, but I just didn't do well with that this week. I did really great with working out though, which I hope will make up for all the bloaty, aunt flowy, chocolate cravy badness. I did a lot of cardio insanity and turbo fire type workouts.  Wish me luck with the weigh in this week. 



First measurements   (Jan 30, 2012)        -- Last week --   new measurements

Measure upper arm -              15.5        -     15           -15

Measure bust-                          48.5          -     46        -46

Measure under bust -              44            -    40              - 40

Measure waist -                        42            -     39        -39

Measure love handles -            52.5        -    48            -48

Measure hips -                          52            -     48.5      -48.5

Measure thigh -                        31           -     28          -28

Measure Waist to Hip Ratio - 80          -    80                -80

Most pushups (no stopping)  - 9         -    18               - 20

Most crunches (no stopping) - 30     -      70                -100

Inches lost this week - 0 (I'll take it. lol)
Total inches lost  since Jan 30- 22.5


How I ate - 



Daily points - I'm allowed 37, but I'm flexible so I'm aiming for between 32-37

• Monday -

protein powder-3
eBelskivers-8.5
rolls-5
lasaga-7
1/2 the habit charbroiled double burger- 8
fries etc - 5
wo snack-3

----
points used so far -39
Exercise - zumba 20   -20 min youtube vid   - 10 min youtube vid
water -

• Tuesday
  
  

pp-3
aebelskivers -7
wo snack- 3
so teriyaki chicken- 6
faux fried rice-5
4 chicken nuggets - 5
1 wonton pumpkin pies - 2

----points used so far -31
Exercise -  zumba - 15   - 28 mins youtube vid  - 10 min vid
water -

• Wednesday -

pp-3
aebelskivers-12
eggrolls-5
wo snack-3
 eggrolls-8
pumpkin pie -4


----points used so far -35
Exercise - zumba 40  - 45 mins various youtube vids
water -

• Thursday

peanut butter balls-3
french toast-5
wo snack - 3
eggrolls-5
cheesits-4
bar-2
Chicken Enchilada Casserole- 5
pumpkin pie- 4
aebleskivers-2
----points used so far -33

Exercise -zumba- 25 - misc workout vids youtube - 35
water -

• Friday -

cheesits-6
cheese-2
wrappers-5
chickeparm-7
wrappers-4
crackers-2
p&j-7
SO roast beef-6
chex and milk- 3
----points used so far -42
 Exercise -zumba-65-cardio-25
water -

• Saturday -

omelet-6
cinnamon bread-2
whipped ice cream sandwich -8
chicken-5
cheesits-5
bar-2
pizza-4
brownie-8
popcorn-3
----points used so far - 43
Exercise -zumba -20 - 47 mins youtube vids - 10 mins floorwork-
 water -

• Sunday -

bar-3
Turkey-3
turkeywrap-7
cheesits-5
yogurt-2
brownie-4
apple&peanut- 3
2 whipped ice cream sandwiches-4

stirfry-4

----points used so far - 35
Exercise - Zumba - uphill hike and walk - 60 mins

Feeling good about your weight loss

Another blogger I follow mentioned something in a post the  other day and I thought I'd share my thoughts on it with you.
She was complaining about being down, despite her weight loss, because of the large yet-to-be-lost numbers.

I think we all feel this way. It comes from looking at the big picture too long and hard. Well, I say screw the big picture! lol. Look at the little one.

Think to yourself  "This week I lost 1 lb. That's an awesome loss. I also found a workout I really love. Next week I'll do the same or better."

Don't focus on the 40 50 or 100 lbs left to lose. If you look at the big picture too often, it will feel impossible. But even that is not so horrible if you look at it the right way.
Personally, I have 75 lbs to lose (roughly). I'm 23 lbs down which means I'm 1/3 the way there. Awesome. I don't focus on the other 50 lbs, because they will depress me and might make me quit. After all, they say you can greatly improve your health by just losing 10% of your body weight. For most of us, that's about 20lbs or so. I'm coming up to my 10% and I'm excited to see it come and go, for my health, for my children, for my husband, and for my inner sense of sex appeal (which took a hit with my recent allergic reaction, but is coming back).
Focus on that 10%, then focus on the next. Don't focus on the big picture.

That's the only advice I have for you. Aim small, look at the negative in a positive way, and be proud of yourself for doing more now that you did during the years when you let yourself gain the weight. You'll feel much better about it.
Good luck everyone and I hope you have a great week of weight loss.

Week 7/8 Weigh In

Week Five

My plan of attack -


I feel I did pretty well this week. I ate all the points I should, and other than some fast food and a little snacking, I ate good foods.
This week I will focus on lowering my stress level, yeah right, and getting my schedule back on track so I can get everything done from writing, to cleaning, to playtime with my kids, and more. I need to focus on eating more healthy protein though. I'm also adding upper hips (love handles) to the measurements. I measured it the first week, but didn't mark it down, and since it's a problem spot, I think I should.



First measurements   (Jan 30, 2012)        -- Last week --   new measurements

Measure bust-                          48.5          -     47.5              - 47

Measure under bust -              44            -    42                 - 41

Measure waist -                        42            -     41                 - 40

Measure hips -                          52            -     50.5             - 50.5

Measure love handles -            52.5        -    ?                   - 50.5

Measure thigh -                        31           -     31               - 30.5

Measure upper arm -              15.5        -     15.5           -15.5

Measure Waist to Hip Ratio - 80          -    80                -80

Most pushups (no stopping)  - 9         -    10                  - 12

Most crunches (no stopping) - 30     -      35                - 37

Inches lost this week - 3
Total inches lost - 10.5


  How I ate -
Daily points - I'm allowed 39, but that's nuts, so I say 34 (but I'm flexible so I'm aiming for between 34-39.)

• Monday -

protein powder - 3
popcorn - 5
goldfish - 4
raisins - 0
pb&j - 10
1/2 TB bean burrito - 4 points
2 TB chicken tacos - 8
1bb brownie - 3

----
points used so far -37 points
Exercise - zumba live 55 mins zumba abs - 20 - floor work upper

water -

• Tuesday

protein powder - 3 points
chicken nuggets - 12 points
mac n cheese - 10
ramen noodles - 2 points
chicken stirfry - 4
BB brownie - 1 points
goldfish - 3 points
popcorn - 2 points
bread - 2
pb - 2
j - 0
----
points used so far - 41

Exercise - zumba 55 - zumba abs - 20 - floor abs
water -

• Wednesday -

pp  3
gfish 2
snack wasa 2.5
chick nugg 2 points
Applebees 1/2 chicken wonton tacos-7.5
1/2 chipotle lime chicken- 6.5
1/2 cheese cake shooter-5.5
1/2 cheeseburger slider -4
1 fry - 1 point
popcorn - 1 point

----points used so far - 35
Exercise - zumba tone & express 65 min total - floor work lower

water -

• Thursday

1/2 peanut butter brownie - 1
pp- 3
bread - 2
pb -2
j - 0
Healthy Choice BBQ Steak with Red Potatoes - 8
chicken - 3
zucchini, mushrooms, and herbs - 0
6 tiny potatoes 3
corn chex - 3 points
milk 1% - 3
popcorn - 3

----points used so far - 31

Exercise -zumba 50 walk 45 mins - floor work core
water -

• Friday -

chex - 2 points
fiber one chocolate bar- 2
Healthy Choice Orange Zest Chicken - 8 points
1/4 pbj - 3
2 tb chicken tacos fresco - 8
1/2 starbucks whoopie pie - 2.5
 Berry crumble - 8 points
 10 Pop chips - 1.5
----
points used so far - 35

Exercise -zumba 20 mins - floor work total body
water -

• Saturday -

1/2 Fiber One chocolate bar - 1
3 chicken nuggets - 4
Delights breakfast sandwich honey wheat- 5
2 tb tacos - 8 points
1 bite tb bean burrito - 2 point
spaghetti - 5
meat sauce - 3
popcorn - 3
FO bar -3
----
points used so far - 34

Exercise - zumba 55 - floor
 water -

• Sunday -

pp - 3
goldfish/chex - 5 points

Healthy Choice - Cafe Steamer - Grilled Chicken Pesto with Vegetables - 8
Trader Joes Gordita - 9 points
chicken tender - 2
avocado slices - 1
corn - 1 point
beans - 1.5
wonton strawberry pie -

----
points used so far - 30.5

Exercise - zumba 50

water -

Low point alternatives

I've found some alternatives for high point foods.

Love Ranch dressing?
Hidden Valley Ranch dressing - 4 points per 1 oz (2 Tbsp)
Alternative - Fat free sour cream & hidden valley ranch dip and dressing packet - 1 point per 1 oz (2 Tbsp)

Love Peanut butter?
Skippy Peanut butter - 5 points for 2 Tbsp
Better n Peanut Butter - 2 points for 2 tbsp

Chocolate spread?
Chocolate peanut butter spread - 5 points for 2 Tbsp
Philadelphia Indulgence Milk Chocolate -3 points for 2 Tbsp

Potato chips?
Lays - 4 points for 15 chips
Special K Cracker Chips - 3 points for 27 crackers
or...
Kettle Bakes lightly salted potato chips - 1 point for 1/4 bag

Chocolate cookies?
Oreos - 5 points for 3 cookies
Chocolate goldfish crackers - 3 points for 37 crackers

Fiddle Faddle?
Fiddle Faddle - 4 points for 1/2 cup
Jolly Time Healthy Pop Carmel Apple popcorn- 1 points for 1 cup
or...
Jolly Time Healthy Pop kettle corn - 1 point for 1 cup

Ice cream?
Hagen Daas Chocolate ice cream - 7 points for 1/2 cup
Skinny Cow Low Fat Fudge Pop -3 points for 2 pops
In fact, most Skinny Cow deserts are 3 points

Hot dogs?
Ball Park Hot Dogs - 5 points for 1 
Hebrew National 97% fat free beef franks - 1 point for 1

Corn tortillas?
Gurerro corn tortillas - 3 points for 2 tortillas
Mission whit or yellow corn tortillas - 1 point per tortilla
 
Bread?
Orowheat Nuttygrain bread - 2 points per slice
Natures Own 9 grain wheat bread - 1 point per slice

I hope you've enjoyed my version of eat this not that. And I hope you were able to find a replacement for your favorite high point food.

The importance of looking good

I really feel it's important, if you're serious about losing weight, to feel good about yourself. The better you feel about yourself, the better you'll want to feel, and the harder you'll work to feel that way. So here's what I'm doing to feel good about myself.

1. I got a haircut. (I'm also trying new styles that I hope will help me look and feel younger and thinner.)
2. I'm wearing makeup all the time. And not just every day hohum makeup. I'm watching youtube tutorials by makeup artists (and bored 15 year olds lol) to learn newer and prettier ways to wear my makeup.
3. I got new and very pretty underwear. You'd be surprised what a difference something like that can make in how you feel about your body.
4. I'm dressing nice. Ever day, whether I'm going out or not. 
5. I've refused to let myself look at the snacks my 1y/o and 3y/o eat as if I'm suffering by not eating them. Instead, I'm taking pride in my willpower, which helps me to have more willpower.
6. I refuse to kick myself when I eat something I shouldn't. That's the very behavior that kept me heavy after I had my daughter. 

Hopefully, this post will inspire you to make yourself look and feel pretty while you diet.

Oh, and this is also a great way to feel better about yourself when you go shopping for clothes. Do your hair, wear nice makeup, and wear your nicest underwear. You'll feel much better about yourself.