Weekly Weigh In: Hello 2teens!

Hello, again!  The past couple of weeks have been pretty hectic, with a sudden, fast-paced project at work, parties, and dates with Matthew.  :)

I am still working on making healthier choices at parties and when we're out on a date, but the rest of the time, I've tracked pretty well, and lost weight to prove it!  As of this morning, I'm in the 2teens! Yay!

Weight: 217.2
Exercise: minimal
Water: about half my goal

Goals for this week:
Weight: 1 pound loss
Exercise: 3 twenty minute walks
Water: 64 oz. per day

I can do it!

Bye bye, arm flab

Okay, I know this is gross, but when I used to do my hair, I would notice the flabby, gross bits of nastiness hanging off my upper arms.  This morning, when I was putting on my workout clothes and pulling my hair into a pony tail, I noticed, Hey, there's no gross stuff on my arms anymore.  Now, yes, I still would like to see my arms get more toned, but come on, you have to admit, this is awesome.  I think all those push ups, mountain climbers, and plank walk outs that make me curse at the aerobics video chick are making a difference!

Slightly Elevated Blood Sugar

My aunt was recently diagnosed with type II diabetes, and this was definitely a wake up call for me.  We are similar in  many ways, but one of them is our love of unhealthy foods.  In my teenage years, when I headed to her house, I would pick up a package of cookies and the two of us would eat them all in a weekend.  We both love high fat, delicious foods, and this love of food has had a negative effect on both of our bodies.

When I went to see the doctor last month, she ran a full chemical panel on me.  I got the results today, and it turns out, my blood sugar was high.  Not high enough for me to be considered diabetic, but five points above the "normal range" at 104.  65-99 is considered normal and 125 or higher is considered diabetic.  I believe this makes me "pre-diabetic." Oof.  Pre-diabetic at the age of 26.  That's a wake-up call if I've ever had one.

Dr. Bettina told me in the office visit, "Rachel, overall, you seem to be a healthy girl.  Is it a good idea to get your weight in check now?  Yes." She reaffirmed this statement on my test results with an impersonal, "Strongly recommend: Healthy diet. Regular exercise. Weight reduction."  Well, Dr. Bettina, I'm workin' on it.

Weekly Weigh In: Week 44

I was sick this week (feeling much better now, thank you).  The general inability to taste anything might have had something to do with my weight loss this week, but that's okay.  I did NO exercise this week, since I felt   exhausted and boneless most of the week.  I did not track my foods well either.

This week, though, is a brand-spanking-new week, and I have already tracked my breakfast. ;) My plan for today is a twenty minute walk with Matthew and the doggles this evening after dinner.  I will drink water throughout the day from my straw cup. We don't know why, but anecdotal evidence seems to support that people will drink more from a cup with a straw.   I know it's true for me.  I feel like I'm getting up to refill that thing every fifteen minutes. 

Snacking on fruits and veggies is a huge score for me, since I do feel full all day long and it cuts down on the gigantic portions I used to eat at dinner and lunch. Also, when I was doing myfitnesspal, I would track those babies, and it was frustrating to see my calorie count going higher when I was eating something healthy.  Now, I understand that healthy foods also have calories and when my points for the day are gone and I eat a salad I am still adding calories to my body, but WW makes me feel so much better about it because I don't get any extra points for fruits and veggies.  It's wonderful! 

Back to the being sick this week, I felt sick for five (5) days.  Matthew, my sweetheart of a hubby, is still sick, and got sick the Thursday of week before last.  I think that taking a multi-vitamin and eating all my fruits and veggies is boosting my immune system.  I was thinking I would be sick all week this week, but I'm feeling almost entirely better today, and I was only a little bit sick! Yay! 

Now down to the nitty-gritty. 

Progress: 

Weight: 220.4 (I'd like to point out that this number has a zero for its last digit.  Next week, I hope that it will be in the teens!)

Exercise:  A big fat negatory on this one.  Sorry guys.  I'll do better this week.  

Water: I didn't track, but it still feels like not enough. 

Goals:

Weight: At least a one pound loss.  Two-teens, here I come! 

Exercise: Imma say...two high intensity (BeFitin90) and three low intensity (walks with Matthew) 

Water: 64 ounces a day, every day this week. 

Weekly Weigh In

This past week, I was in Las Vegas for work.  Surprisingly, this wasn't the train-wreck for my diet  lifestyle change I thought it would be.  Eating out every day was not too bad, and I ate fatty meals only once or twice on our trip.  I mainly stuck with foods like fish tacos, a delicious roasted peach and Gorgonzola salad, and shrimp Baja salad.  These meals were delicious and tasty too! 

I raved to Matthew about that peach salad, and when I logged on to my Weight Watchers app this morning, there it was:  the recipe for Arugula, Peach, and Goat Cheese Salad.  

Makes 4 servings

15 minutes prep time

WW Points Plus: 4 per serving

3 medium peaches, ripe but not mushy

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbsp red wine vinegar (apple cider or balsamic would each taste good too)

1/4 tsp table salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

6 cups, arugula

1/2 small red onion, sliced thinly

1/4 cup semisoft goat cheese, crumbled

1/4 cups dry roasted pistachios, coarsely chopped

Peel and pit one peach; cut into chunks.  Cut remaining peaches into thin slices or wedges; set aside. Put peach chunks, oil, vinegar, salt, and pepper in a blender; blend until smooth and set aside.  Place arugula, onion, and peach slices in a large serving bowl; drizzle with dressing and gently toss to coat.  Sprinkle with cheese and nuts; grind some extra black pepper over the top if desired.  Yields about 2 cups of salad mixture and tablespoon each cheese and nuts per serving. 

You could use mango or apricots instead of peaches, or roast your peaches for a new level of flavor.  It's a delicious twist on the basic green salad.

*This is a Weight Watchers' recipe and not mine.  I do not take credit for this idea.* 

So, this week, I didn't track meals like I should (even when I'm out of town), but I did make some progress. I lost two pounds.  I ate fairly healthily, with the exception of an In-n-Out burger one night, a few Cokes during the week, and a piece of coconut cream pie.  I worked out by swimming about 20 minutes one day and walking three miles one day (it was a four day trip).  I am fairly proud of myself, and felt it was pretty easy to pick back up Saturday: tracking my foods, exercising, and knowing I still made progress over the week. 

Weight: 223.0

Exercise: good 'nuff

Water: Not enough for Vegas.  It's really hot and dry there.  This is one place I would really need to improve if I were there on a regular basis.  By the time we left, I had dried, chapped lips and dried out skin.  

Total weight loss so far according to my Weight Watcher's app: 9 pounds (apparently I was at 232 at some point).

Weekly Weigh-in

Starting Weight Watchers again is a whole new interesting experience. A lot of the meals I've made are delicious, and low in points, and it hasn't felt like much of a sacrifice over the last week.  The last time I did the program, I ate the same foods I normally did, but ate less of them.  Typically this would get me really, really, really hungry, then I would try to be happy with a bratwurst and half cup of potato salad.  Not surprisingly, this didn't work.  But this time, I took Weight Watchers' advice and got a lot of fruit and veggies (somewhere around 10 pounds for the week, if you can believe it) to eat with meals and as snacks.

Obviously, snacking on fruits and veggies helps me meet my daily serving recommendation, but it also allows me to eat whenever I feel a tinge of hunger.  Eating all the time, but good things, is helping me take smaller servings of high point-value foods at lunch and dinner.  One of my favorite mid-meal snacks is 2 oz. of cheddar cheese, an apple, and a stalk of celery.  (I can't believe I just said that...the pre-WW me would say something very different.)  When it really comes down to it, I think I've done pretty well this week.

I also found out a dessert that I love (and ate pre-WW) is only 3 points: all natural coconut fruit bars made with coconut milk.  They are delicious, sweet, and creamy, and totally satisfy the sweet tooth and ice cream craving.  Next week I also plan to get a cup of yogurt to try making my own yogurt in the crock pot.  This way I can make low-point smoothies for breakfast/snacks and get in my dairy, fruits, veggies, and tastiness (for cheap).

I did a few workouts over the week, but not as many as I would have liked.  I'm enjoying finding YouTube workouts and am surprised at the variety available.  In addition to the workout I posted last week, I found the Be Fit in 90 workouts, which is a workout program that covers a 90 day span with a series of videos for each day (with rest days too). Most of them are about 35 minutes long, and typically include strength, cardio, yoga, flexibility, and high intensity drills.

Over the week I  carefully budgeted covered my points saving my extra points judiciously, hoping to save a number of for the weekend.  I had about 47 points, which were all used over the weekend for meals at Mom and Dad's house for a treat of fast food, a high point dinner on Saturday, and a high point dinner on Sunday. I gained about a pound on the weekend, and lost a lot of the momentum I had build up over the weekend.

My activity goal for the week was: 18 activity points
My actual activity for the week was: 12
My activity goal for next week is: 18 points

My water goal for the week was: 8 cups of water a day
My actual water for the week was: 4 cups of water a day
My water goal for next week is: 8 cups of water a day

This week's weight: 224.8

I can't breathe!

So on YouTube, I was looking for some workout videos to try and found Core Rhythms Full Workout.  It's super fast, super fun, and will wear you out.  I was sweating like a race horse after about 10 minutes.  I think I could do this one regularly!