The Answer to my Prayers!

Before I start off with my post I wanted to share a photo that Adam emailed me this morning. I thought it was absolutely perfect & needed to be shared with all of you. Had I known about this sooner, I would have had a lot less stress, & lots of extra food! LOL



I am so excited that I decided to take a few minutes to post mid-week. Oh yeah, I never did Friday's post. Sorry. I have to admit that on Friday I was pretty disappointed. I weighed in & hadn't lost any additional weight. So, I didn't make my goal. Plus, I also said that I would work out three times & I only worked out twice. We did the Susan G. Komen walk on that Saturday & I burned 700 calories! Woo hoo! You have to love it. Support a wonderful charity, hang out with the parental units, & lose weight! I especially love when working out doesn't feel like working out. I was telling Adam today how I enjoy a few outdoor things like hiking & kayaking that would make feel like I wasn't working out & that I was simply having fun. Now, once Kayleigh comes home we will have to figure out a new plan because she isn't going hiking. LOL I am sure that we can round up a few babysitters if we ever need one. :) So if anyone has any great ideas for burning calories without sitting in a gym I would love to hear them.

With all of that being said I did get really excited this morning. I got on the scale with all of my night clothes on just to see how much I would weight & I lost weight. Naturally I put my birthday suit on & tried again to find out that I had lost 2 pounds! I really was in disbelief. I have been complaining for a few days that this wasn't working for me & I needed to find a better plan. I didn't realize until today that I have only been serious for a month now. I actually think it was just a month two days ago. I have lost 8.2 pounds total & have only exercised 1-2 times a week. Not too bad! Adam has lost 10 pounds so he is equally excited. Plus, our next month's shipment came yesterday so now we have ALL of our favorites. We are actually looking forward to each meal now if you can believe it. It has been much easier with us dieting together. Every now & then there are talks of grilled cheese sandwiches or late night ice cream but we haven't let each other get off track. Well, Adam does slip a few extra croutons when I am not looking but soon he will get tired of my complaining & he will stop. Right ladies? LOL It is crazy that we have to consider a few extra croutons a cheat.

We are very much looking forward to Friday this week when Adam's cousin Keren will be in town. We are planning to go out to dinner that night so the rest of the week we are eating right. My goal is to lose one more pound before I weigh in on Friday. I would also like to work out one more time. (I worked out today & burned 769 calories) If I can do a third workout or even some cardio I will. I just have tons to do to prepare for company. It is the only time that I make time to clean the house these days. I am so pumped up & ready to workout because I have seen a positive change this week. I guess weight loss is the best motivation to lose more. That is why so many people have trouble because the end result seems so far away. I can already tell that with every pound lost I feel more attractive & more confident.

Why don't we all start small? I would like to offer a challenge to anyone that wants/needs to make a change in their diet & exercise. Try to lose just one pound this week. Make a few choices that you wouldn't normally make, think twice before getting fast food, drink a little more before you eat so you feel more full, take a smaller portion, take the stairs, park further away instead of the closest spot or even just take the dog for a walk instead of letting him in the yard. You will see how easy it is to make a few minor alterations but be on your way to a major change! Let me know if you need more ideas.

Have a great week & thanks for checking in to follow my progress. It makes a difference to me knowing that I am accountable to all of you! Thank you!

Didn't Make Goal

So, I didn't make goal this week but I am still really excited about my loss. I needed to lose one more pound than I did. I didn't work out at all this week & Adam & I had 3 meals that were not on plan. I also didn't work out a single second all week. Since Kayleigh started taking bottles we have had to adjust our schedules once again so that we could be up in the NICU for her 2pm feeding. Then with everything else going on & work getting a little busier we had to opt for convenience twice. I have to say that I was very pleased this morning that I lost anything at all. This means that next week I have to lose 3 pounds to make up for what I didn't lose this week & then my regular weekly goal. If I work out I think that I can do it. If not, I will be happy to lose my regular 2 pounds.

We have some good friends that just had a baby this week & will not be able to use their Panther tickets for Sunday's game. They were VERY generous to offer them to us so we have prepared ourselves that we will be cheating for lunch that day. We are so excited about going to the game that it isn't even funny. I haven't been in two years now & I would go every game if I could. I love it! We are also planning on celebrating our 2 year wedding anniversary on Tuesday night so we will be cheating then also. We could have a third meal if we wanted (breakfast) but after this week I want to just leave it at the two meals.

Somebody asked me how I save money on groceries if I still have to buy food for the kids. We are shopping a little more healthy which isn't cheap anyway so the kid's grocery money has gone up a little while Adam & I's share has drastically reduced. We save a HUGE chunk of money because we don't go out to eat anymore (except on a cheat, maybe) & no fast food. That savings alone pays for the plan. The grocery bill savings is just icing on the cake. Hmm, cake. Yummy! LOL

To sum up my goals for this week are only 2 cheat meals & at least 3 workouts. If I can push myself to do 4 then that will be awesome. Tomorrow I am starting with a 3 mile walk for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. We have started doing the walk every year & I am really looking forward to it. Not the getting up at 6:30am part though.

With that being said I better to get bed. Good luck to everyone this week that is watching what they eat. Every bite counts!

Aimee

Weekly Posts Coming your Way!

I just realized that I haven't posted anything in two weeks. Yikes! Time is seriously flying by for me. Each day is filled with the responsibilities of work, being a mom, being a wife, eating, sleeping, bathing, etc. that I don't even have personal time. Do you know that I haven't had a haircut in over a year? LOL Stop laughing! Adam's parents actually paid for me to get a haircut for my birthday & I can't seem to get there. I scheduled it & then Kayleigh had to have surgery. I rescheduled it & Adam's best friend hired us to help him buy a house. So, now it is rescheduled again & I don't care what happens...I am going next Tuesday night. I scheduled it for when the NICU is closed & it will be too dark for appts. so nothing should get in the way. Farewell split ends!!

I will be posting each Friday evening since my "weigh in" day is Friday morning. I actually weigh myself on Tuesday also but I don't log it until Friday. I check it early in the week so I know if I need to throw in an extra workout or two. You are expected to lose about 1.5% each week so I broke that down into a chart so that I can follow my progress. Last week I lost a little extra so this week I still came in at my goal for the week even though I didn't lose the exact weekly amount. Ex. last week I lost three pounds but I only needed 2.3 pounds. I also needed 2.3 pounds this week but only lost 1.8. Since I was ahead I still squeaked by. Whew! However, this next week I will need to bust a move since my lead is blown now.

My short term goals right now are to be pre-pregnancy weight by Halloween. Then, by Thanksgiving I want to be at the lowest that I have been in years. Lastly, by Christmas/New Year (since I do want to enjoy the holidays) I should hit goal. However, like I said, this is broken down into each week so that I can control where I am & where I am going. Not enough loss = no cheats & extra working out!

People say that when you start a long term diet or eating clean that your tastes change & you find that you do not like "bad" foods. I never really believed this until now. Adam & I had to work out of town this week so we chose our cheat day to be on Sunday for dinner & Monday for lunch. We ate inside at Pizza Hut so that we could enjoy their yummy pan pizza with crunchy, buttery crust. I have to say that I was pretty disappointed afterward. First of all, I was full way too soon. LOL But, it just wasn't how I remembered it. I am starting to learn that eating bad doesn't pay off so I guess my tastebuds, belly, & mind are adjusting as well. It stinks when your cheat turns out not to be tasty but I guess that is a good thing. It will make you not want to cheat at all. Soon, nothing will be worthy.

With that being said, our cheat this week will be tomorrow night for dinner. We haven't discussed if there will be a lunch or breakfast as well but maybe we will eat something after church on Sunday. It depends. Tomorrow night Adam is taking me out on a date. He was even going to wash the car but it is raining here. He was so disappointed that he wasn't taking me on a proper date. How cute! He really is amazing! Anywho, we haven't had a "date" in I don't know when so this will be perfect. We are going to Carrabba's which is in my top 3 places. I could eat their bread all day long. I may even have a glass of wine. (Yes, I will spill out my breast milk) After dinner we are going to see Nights in Rodanthe. Adam & I read the book together when we first met. The book was very special to us so we are really looking forward to it. So much so that we read the book again this week. LOL You have to understand that I am not much for reading because I can't sit still long enough so reading a book twice is really special. I think that I have only read one other book in 4 years. If it wasn't for 30 minutes rides each way to the hospital daily I wouldn't have gotten it done. Poor Adam has to squeeze in about 100 pages in the next 24 hours. He can do it! I think I am even going to super indulge tomorrow & get POPCORN with tons of butter & salt. Looks like someone will be working out hard this week. Our next week date is already set as well. Our 2 year wedding anniversary is on the 6th so we are trying to figure out what to do. Since we only eat off plan once a week we try to make special occassions even more special. Last year we took a long weekend to the mountains. Let me know if anyone has any good ideas.

I had someone (a blog follower) to contact me a few weeks ago. She has started dieting this past week & emailed me yesterday to let me know that she lost her first pound! I am so excited for her. Keep up the good work. If anyone else wants to be held accountable we can even start our own little support group. I think that it makes a world of difference to have someone keeping up with you & you keeping up with them. It almost feels like they are sitting on your shoulder with angel wings on when you are thinking of doing something wrong. LOL

Until next Friday my friends.....

Aimee

Just One Pound!

I weighed myself this morning & found that I really only gained 1 pound from my 10 days or so of "bad" eating. Woo hoo! I am pretty happy with that. Today we were out & about most of the day so eating was a bit challenging but we are starting to figure out when to eat what so that we stay as full as possible all day long.

I tried the crustless pumpkin pie last night. Yuck! LOL I think some of it may have been baker error though. The ingredients weren't real specific as far as adding the spices go. It is 1 cup of can pumpkin, some egg substitute, & then pumpkin spice, cinnamon, & splenda. It doesn't say how much. Since I like pumpkin pie & I love cinnamon I am thinking that I may have added too much. I could have added too little but it wasn't tasting better as I added more. I think I will have to ask someone that has made it to provide exact measurements so that I can try again. It made a ton so I know it would have been very filling if I would have finished it. I ended up eating about half.

I introduced Adam to the Fudge Graham Bar for lunch today & he loved it. It is the only bar that I really get excited about & it is an easy lunch on the go & when we will be at the hospital all day. He also had a Chocolate Chip Bar for breakfast which tasted just like his old addiction that he could find in the breakfast aisle at the grocery store. He was in heaven. Adam is a little different than I am on the diet so far. He gets frustrated when he gets hungry. LOL He is starting to figure out that it is just his belly crying out & that he really isn't frustrated about anything. Five minutes after he eats he is like a new man.

I ordered 20 pizzas for this month out of my 28 choices. So, that is what I am eating for dinner again. It is my absolute favorite meal on & off NS. I am feeling great so far & am getting more & more energy each day. I am going to need it to keep up with little Miss Kayleigh & the rest of the family!

Have a great night & weekend!

Aimee

I lied.

Ok, so my last post said that I was getting back on the wagon & I thought I was so I didn't really lie on purpose. Life was really just too crazy with all of our NICU drama that it became easy to make excuses. Plus, I was sick for about 5 days. I just made about ten more in these first sentences & erased them. LOL There really is no excuse. Sure, I could say that I have enough stress to deal with but the truth is that my weight stresses me out just as much or more on some days. I don't want to look like I do & if I want to change it I need to get started. Period.

I have gotten everything prepared to get going again. Went to the grocery store, bought plenty of veggies & stuff for my salads. Everything else comes in my NS box. I have just completed my second day back on & I am feeling great about it. I am even trying my first "recipe" tonight so I will have to let you know how it goes. It is a crustless pumpkin pie & it is totally within my allowed daily food. It looks like a ton of food so I am hoping that I get stuffed. Even though I am not that hungry right now. LOL It takes 20 minutes to cook so that is plenty of time to catch up with all of you. Can you believe that I am having a hard time squeezing in 1200-1500 calories per day? I used to do that in one meal or maybe even a snack. I don't want to know.

The best news is that Adam is going to take this journey with me. He had several reasons really. 1. It will save us money on our grocery & dining out bill each month. 2. He can support me & diet with me. 3. He wouldn't mind losing some weight & becoming more lean & adding muscle. 4. To eat healthier. His menu was starting to get really unhealthy even though he wasn't eating much. His biggest daily challenge until now was deciding what to eat so he would take the easy road & resort to junk. Now he can pick a dinner & know that he is set. He was getting a little grumpy yesterday on day one but he is leveling out tonight. It will be smooth sailing from here. Next step, working out. I was still getting over my cold & we are trying to figure out a better daily schedule so that we can squeeze in everything that we need to accomplish.

So, I am going to weigh myself on Tuesdays & Fridays which means that tomorrow is the day. I am not expecting much except water weight loss since I just started back. I had gained 2-3 pounds back because I ate terrible for about 10 days. I probably only gained 1-2 pounds back & then the water weight. I did a very realistic plan based on healthy loss & I should hit goal right around Christmas. What a present! Adam asked if he could buy me an outfit when I hit goal. Um, yeah! I have even started looking at the Victoria Secret catalog again wondering when I will be comfortable buying something again.

Adam, start saving baby. I am gonna need a new wardrobe for Christmas!

Getting Back on the Wagon!

Ok, so for the last several days I have been off of my diet. With everything that went on this week I didn't need to worry about anything else. Once I ran out of "diet" food I was pretty much done. I had my NS supply but no fruit or salads so I would have been hungry, upset, tired, etc. Not a good combo. Now that Kayleigh's surgery is over & things are getting settled I have gone to the store & I am ready to go again. I did the diet all day today except for dinner. Patti (Adam's mom) made me a cake & we all had lasagna for my birthday. I couldn't pass that up! LOL I am going strict again tomorrow & hope to get some workouts in this week as well. My body has been so tired this week so it wears me out just thinking about exercise. The good news is that I didn't gain any weight this week. I have somehow managed to stay the same. However, I feel gross. I am looking forward to tomorrow & getting back on my journey to a hot body!!

My first cheat or treat day!

Ok, so today was my first cheat day. I was going to do this every Saturday but since I didn't start until Thursday last week I opted not to cheat last Saturday & have my first one today. I guess I should have been more excited & had my meals planned out but I wasn't that jazzed up after all. I ate my normal NS breakfast before I even realized that today was the day. We went to the NICU & then I would come home to eat lunch. I felt like I had to push myself to eat "bad". I ate some pretzels, woo, living on the edge, right? I ate a salad for lunch, even worse. LOL On my salad I just put a little cheese, a few more croutons, & some extra dressing. Everything else was the same as my daily salads. I then decided to make a family dinner. I made my famous chicken casserole. We used to eat this once a week so I thought this was my best bet. I even got Brandon to re-taste it. He tried it about a year ago & quickly decided that he absolutely hated it. Every single time I make it I have to make him something different. Well, a few months ago I was successful in changing his mind on another dish so I thought that he might trust me tonight. I was right. Tonight he decided that chicken casserole isn't so bad & from now on he will eat it with us! Yes! So, back to eating. I ate my dinner & it did taste good but I just wasn't happy. I don't think it is guilt because I am okay with my decision. I think that I am really enjoying this NS diet so I really didn't "need" to eat bad like I have always thought I needed with other diets. I used to countdown to when our cheat meal was. Now, a cheat meal serves other purposes as well so I can't cut them out all together but I may go every 10 days instead of 7. You need to shock your body when it starts to get comfortable. Just like exercise if you do the same thing over & over your results will slow down. I am going to wait & see what happens to my body this week as far as weight loss goes to decide for sure. If I have a hard time losing weight then I am certainly not doing every 7 days.

On another note I played a game with the kids today for over 3 1/2 hours. They begged me to play & I tried to warn them. I said, "Nobody ever wants to play Monopoly with Mommy because I always win!" They were okay with this & if they are really my children they probably thought that they would beat me. Yeah right! Brandon took out Allyson & then I took out Brandon. I didn't even have good properties. LOL I had the light blue & purple. (Oriental Ave - St. Charles) I did have hotels but I waited a LONG time. I knew that I could have ended the game a long time before I did but I was trying to give them a chance. :) I will NEVER throw a game because I am much too competitive. I don't care if they are kids. LOL Adam called & was on his way home from his appointment so I knew that I had to go in for the kill. I ended up getting Boardwalk & Park Place & put houses on them. The game was done. The kids had a blast despite the loss. Brandon cried for a little but he got over it in five minutes. We also started playing charades with them at night & tonight Ally was the winner. She had restaurant & we couldn't guess it for like 10 minutes. Not because she did a bad job either. She did great explaining & we even knew the first letter of the word!

That is my day in a nut shell. Back on the diet tomorrow which I hate to say I am happy about. I will however be having the only thing that I have been really looking forward too tonight. Monkey Bread! YUMMY! It better taste as good as it does in my head. Let me know if you want the recipe. It is quick, cheap, & easy.

Sleep tight friends!

Aimee