Wednesday Weigh-in ~ 5 weeks

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I'm so glad I started this post days and days ago. I'm finding out what it's like trying to lose weight while being super busy. I've been busy or worked every day this week. Homework and quick kitchen clean after school. Spring sport season just started and we have been running for days. Opening day of little league was Saturday and we ate out. I can't even remember dinner. A sport every night this week - including a Yankee game on Monday (and was I really supposed to say no to Yankee nachos? Especially when they offered guacamole with it?!)
Softball - Tuesday.
Baseball - Wednesday.
Football - Thursday.
Friday's practice was cancelled, thank goodness, but we have 4 games this weekend.
And we haven't even started swimming yet.
Find time to plan? When!?

So I went back to 3 meals a day and the last one is usually the oatmeal trail mix of sorts. It is good because I rarely eat what everyone else eats and can make them yummy food which makes the family happier. =) I just have to make sure I have snacks or meals on hand in the case of a quick eat out at a local fav pizza joint at which I should eat nothing (instead of my request: Subway)!

In any case, at least I broke my plateau this week and today I'm 15 lbs down (15 to go). I'm hoping for a few more this week. Today I have to tackle a full grocery trip. This weekend I return my heart monitor. Monday, the 31st I have my next doctor's appointment and blood test. C'mon Cheerios. C'mon Quaker. Do your job!

This is what I put together last week:

Some thoughts on substitutions.

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instead of this:                                         I go with this:

    

Moral of the story: find an app. Stick with it!

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instead of this:                                         I go with this: 

     

Moral of the story: Leave the bread. Whole grains do a body good.

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instead of this:                                         I go with this: 

                 

Moral of the story: If I just have to have a carb, I try to make it something at least a little worthwhile.

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instead of this:                                         I go with this: 

                

Moral of the story: Unnecessary calories - leave 'em! Water...and LOTS of it.

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instead of this:                                         I go with this: 

        

Moral of the story: Sweets for sweets. Just watch the sugar and calories is all.

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instead of this:                                         I go with this: 

Moral of the story: Yes, I know they're yummy. I miss them. But I can't think of a more empty calorie. Cheerios. Fighting cholesterol. Good for the heart.

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instead of this:                                         I go with this: 

Moral of the story: I contacted Quaker myself and they answered. Dry oats have the same cholesterol-lowering benefits as cooked. I eat it like granola and mix it with nuts.

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instead of this:                                         I go with this: 

   

Moral of the story: Nuts have cholesterol-lowering benefits, too. Don't go overboard, though.

According to the Food and Drug Administration, eating about a handful (1.5 ounces, or 42.5 grams) a day of most nuts, such as almonds, hazelnuts, peanuts, pecans, some pine nuts, pistachio nuts and walnuts, may reduce your risk of heart disease. Just make sure the nuts you eat aren't salted or coated with sugar.

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instead of this:                                         I go with this: 

Wednesday Weigh-in ~ 4 weeks

Ugh. Major cheat week. Stuffing Easter eggs. Easter dinner. Chocolate... well... everything. You'd think, during the very week that we watch Jesus Christ walk Himself up a hill to His own death, I could have a little willpower. Nope. Proves, once again, that I am human and unworthy. I accept that.

Stupid jelly beans.

Moving on.

I did hit a 16-lb weight loss, with the help of a weekend stomach flu; but I know I didn't stay there, thanks to Cheat Week. or Cheat 3-days. That's all it takes. So I'm not even getting on the scale today, not until I'm back on track.

People have been asking me what my secret is (that is, when I am on track and am losing weight.). It's no secret, but I'm willing to share. I'm no fitness or wellness guru, I'm just an average, normal, overeating, wrong-choice-making gal trying to get healthy.

Going through this process got me thinking about the DON'Ts I've encountered lately.
I think they're fact enough to share, so here we go.

• DON'T expect to lose as much weight every week as you did in the first week. It just ain't gonna happen.
• DON'T give up after 1 week or 2 weeks. That's my previous mistake. (Revelation 2:3)
• DON'T have weekly goal. Stick with the overall goal. Ending goal.
• DON'T have a time limit. Time frame, yes; time limit, no. Add two weeks to that time frame, too. =)
• DON'T cheat for a full day (okay, okay, or 3). It will set you back, or at least slow you down, especially if you're battling old bad habits. I take my cheats in bites or sips only. Maybe a meal. Make sure your willpower is set to high, though, because you will have to be able to walk away and say stop by yourself.
• DON'T think dieting is a quick-fix or a money-making scheme. If you're promised results in a small amount of time, run away. If you have to pay an arm and a leg for a meal or an exercise dvd, run away.You'll probably lose the same amount of calories running from it and it won't bust your wallet. =) ((p.s. I AM a fan of weight-loss programs that teach you how to eat real foods. Sometimes it's just a matter of redirecting your portion size or learning about nutrition.)) 
• DON'T think of losing weight as a diet. Do think of it as a healthier lifestyle. A lifestyle change. It is a fact that being in shape is better for the health of yourself and everyone around you. Even ten or twenty extra pounds could mean the difference between a clean bill of health and a problem.
• DON'T think that your old ways are going to get you there if you're stuck at a weight or a lifestyle.Be ready for a change. Be ready for new way of living. 
• DON'T think you can do it on your own. Do your research. Find an app. Use a friend. Join a group.
• And lastly, DON'T think those old yummy foods or sweets are going to get less yummy as you eat healthier. That ain't gonna happen, either. As a matter of fact, they will probably taste even better (at least at week 4 they will). But at an end time, at the end goal, the rewards will be sweeter when you've earned them.

Hmmm, that sounds familiar... 

²⁶ To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— ²⁷ that one ‘will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery’^[b]—just as I have received authority from my Father. ²⁸I will also give that one the morning star.
Revelation 2:26-28

²¹ To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne.
Revelation 3:21

Sigh. Stupid jelly beans.

Wednesday Weigh-in ~ 3 weeks

As much as I wish I could report 6-8 lbs lost every week, I am truly happy with 2. Oh, it's so close to 3! .2 (that's point two) until I'm at a total of 15 lbs weightloss. That's my halfway point. This is still being done through diet/nutrition alone, next to no exercise; I just haven't found the time (poor excuse!). I'm not sure if Spring Break next week will help or hurt that cause...

This week has been about battling fear and entitlement. Willpower is conquering fear. I don't fret Thanksgiving dinners. I don't fret any mealtime, actually. I do fear the candy holidays. Easter is RIGHT around the corner and jelly beans are my next-to-favorite candy. Ugh! That coupled with the fact that girl scout cookie delivery is right around the corner, this will be a tough month. That's where willpower comes in. Measuring everything that goes into my mouth and being accountable to myself helps a lot.

I've heard the word entitlement come up many times over the last few weeks. I know it's easy to feel like I'm entitled to eat this, feel entitled to not do that, feel entitled to buy that, feel entitled to say that and I've found that truthfully, I'm not entitled to any of that. Entitlement is (as I see it now) an excuse not to get healthy, to be lazy, to spend too much, or to speak words that don't need to be heard. I'm really only entitled to live simply, spend only my time, and pray.

p.s. I loathe the word feel. Whenever it is about to be spoken from my mouth, I think twice.

People are beginning to notice a change. They ask how I'm doing it. I used to give details (and still will, if asked) but mainly, my answer is willpower. I'm choosing to do it and choosing to do it right.

It's not by my own will, you do realize?

I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me. Phillipians 4:13


Couldn't be doing all this without HIM, for sure.

Other stuff:
* my next doctor's appointment & bloodwork should be in the next 1-2 weeks.
* heart monitor comes off in a little over 2 weeks. only 2 minor episodes so far.

Wednesday Weigh-in ~ 2 weeks

This turned out to be a light week but a good one. I've only lost 1 more pound, but it was that elusive 11th that I haven't seen gone in over 6 years. I remembered the other day that on The Biggest Loser, week 2 is always the hardest week, so that gave me a little patience with such a small loss.

Unfortunately, I was also light on the exercise, too, so I didn't have that on my side. Today is literally the first day I can walk without pain in my calves from jump roping last week. I really couldn't tell if my muscles are just that out of shape or if I had somehow injured myself, so I didn't push it. I left last week to diet alone.

My Fitness Pal

For those of you wondering how I'm doing it, it's the combination of the following things:

• 1,200 calorie diet (for now), adjusted if exercise was included that day
• low sugar, low fat, low cholesterol
• 4 meals a day
• 1c Cheerios, 1/2 c oatmeal, and 1 serving of almonds, pistachios or walnuts (for the cholesterol lowering) included in daily diet
• whole grains only, no white carbs at all
• at least 6 cups of water a day, usually 8+.
• no eating after dinner
• app called My Fitness Pal on my phone. It tracks all of my calories, activity and water each day. Weight if I choose. Has lots of nutritional information on it, plus you can add your own.
• sheer willpower!

I feel like this should be the time I make goals or predictions, but I won't. This isn't a competitive thing. I'm just doing absolutely as much as I can do in one month before my cholesterol is tested again, hoping to be in ranges where I can avoid medicine. 

1 Corinthians 3:16 ESV 

Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you?

Wednesday Weigh-in ~ 1 week

Yay! What a week! I'll do the numbers last, but as of right now, the echo has been done and the halter is hooked up for a month. This is an event monitor; that means we're pretty much just sitting around waiting for something to happen. So while I don't want something to happen, we do. I'm so super happy that it's not recording day and night for a month because that sounded kind of creepy, to be honest. However, I feel just a bit of disappointment because I thought I would have someone to answer to, to help keep me disciplined, to help keep me accountable. I guess my work with self-control is yet unfinished...

So diet-wise, lowering-cholesterol-wise, I've realized that Cheerios and Oats are my friends. I've gone to about four meals a day. One includes Cheerios. Another includes 1/2 cup of Quaker oats, a very small selection of nuts (almonds or walnuts) with some real fruit-dried fruit bites. A big shout-out to Quaker. I posted a question that I couldn't find the answer to on their Facebook page and I got an actual reply - and answer! (Yes, uncooked oats have the same cholesterol-lowering benefits that cooked oats do. Just drink lots of extra water.) I haven't had a single "bad" carb in a week but my sweet husband went out and bought me, among many other healthy items, brown rice and whole wheat pasta, both of which he hates! It helps to have the family on board. My sweets intake is down to next-to-nothing as well. Self-control. Self-control. Self-control. lol!

Ohh, which to choose, which to choose...

Proverbs 25:28

A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls.

Okay, so let's do the numbers.

2 is the amount of times I took my multi-vitamin. I always forget to take it since I accidentally bought one with caffeine in it and won't take it at night anymore.
3 is the amount of times I've exercised. That's my focus this week. Garage workout, here I come!
4 is the amount of times we ate out this week (bday parties galore - this isn't normal!) and also the amount of times I stayed within calorie & nutrition range for eat-out meals! Friday's and Chili's both have great healthy choices. Full nutrition information easily available!
5 is the amount of times I used my night cream. About 150% better than normal!
6 is the amount of times I took my calcium.
6 is also the amount of pounds I lost this week! Woohoo!
10 is the amount of total pounds I've lost so far. But I've been here before. It's getting to the next pound off that is so hard...
7 is the amount of days I stayed on my calorie task this week!
25 is about the amount of meals I've eaten this week.
50 is roughly the cups of water I drank this week.

So this week is about a better workout. Some strength to add to more cardio.
I'm still working on getting the house back. It's not that it's a major mess, but I feel like it's ahead of me and I want a happy home. uh, house. I just {gloriously} haven't had the time. Ooh! Except the closet! Husband rebuilt inside our closet and we both went thru all of our clothes, purged, reorganized and cleaned like crazy. I want to sleep in there now.

p.s. When I was typing in Thesaurus.com looking for a word I just couldn't think of, I accidentally typed in discipled. Cool. :)

John 15:4 - 5.  Remain in me, and I will remain in you.  No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine.  Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.   I am the vine; you are the branches.  If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit, apart from me you can do nothing.

Thanks all. Pray with me as I send a prayer with every oat that each one takes a bit of cholesterol awayyyy!