Good Morning, Friends! This week has been very productive. My mom and I have really been sticking to our morning walks. We even got up at 6:00 this morning (yes, on a Saturday) to get a walk in before I came in to work. My legs are SO SORE from all the walking uphill we've been doing, but it has been well worth it! I've lost 3 pounds in the last week. I've been focusing a lot more on my food now that we're getting settled into the new place. I cooked some amazing herb and parmesan crusted tilapia the other night. I went over to my parents house and cooked enough for all of us. The next night I made penne with asparagus, tomatoes and peas. I need to get back into the habit of photographing my food. Not having a working laptop has made it a little difficult, but hopefully that will be remedied soon. Next week, my mom and I are going to work on incorporating more weight training into our routine. We gave ourselves a week to get used to walking and waking up early. Now that our bodies have adjusted, we're going to start going to the gym after work 3 or 4 times a week. We both have a deadline given to us by our doctor, so we have a time limit and a goal to reach! I think with this much activity, we will get there quickly!

I'm looking forward to getting off work at noon today and going home to spend the rest of my weekend relaxing. It's been an exhausting couple of weeks and I am looking forward to some time alone to unwind a little.

Hello Everyone! My laptop is still messed up, so I'm blogging really quickly from work. It's been a whirlwind couple of weeks! Joel and I just moved last week and that was EXHAUSTING but we love our new place! We're living out on my parent's property in the country. Our kitchen isn't quite set up, and all we have is a microwave at the moment, so we have been living off sandwiches and relying on my parent's home cooking (which I am NOT complaining about). My mom and I have been getting up super early in the morning to walk together. Walking for an hour uphill and downhill is a lot harder than I expected it to be. My legs are sore from climbing those hills, but its so good to have a partner. I know I HAVE to get up and go walk because she'll be waiting for me at 5:30. It also makes the walk much more enjoyable and go by faster because I have someone to talk to.

I can't wait to have our kitchen set up so I can start cooking for myself again! I've missed cooking and its much harder to keep track of eating healthy when you are relying on someone else for meals. We'll be fully settled in soon and things will go back to normal. Hopefully I'll get my laptop fixed soon too so I can start blogging every night again!

Hi Guys...Sorry for the lack of blogs lately. My laptop has a virus that I cannot figure out how to get rid of. I've done every scan and tried every trick I know. I've gotten my computer back to being able to function, but I cannot sign on to Blogger to post blogs. It's been very frustrating! That poor laptop has been hanging on for a long time. It's about time to get a new one. Unfortunately, until I do, I can only blog from work, and I don't have much time to do that here. I'll try to keep things updated as best I can...it's hard staying on track when I know I won't be posting my food on the blog!

I will say that I again lost weight last week (Yay!) It wasn't a lot, but its still a loss. I have lost weight every week since I started Weight Watchers, and while I'm going a little slower than I'd like, I can still see the progress and thats incredibly encouraging! A lot of my pants are really baggy and I'm fitting in to clothes that had gotten a little too tight to wear! I also love the Weight Tracker on Weight Watchers...It's a graph that keeps track of my weight so I can see the line going down every week. Being such a visual person, that keeps me really motivated.

I had some bloodwork done at the doctor a couple weeks ago, and he has given me some goals to work toward. I have a Vitamin D deficiency and my C Reactive Protein is really high. Basically, that means I have a high risk of stroke or heart attack (scary). So, he has me taking tons of Vitamin D (2 pills, 3 times a day) and he wants me to lose 30 pounds by my next appointment, which will be at the end of July. It's hard to remember to take all the pills, but I'm getting into the habit of it. I respect my doctor a lot, and don't want to let him down, so knowing that he has set goals for me is just one more thing motivating me.

So, I'll try to keep updating as much as I can! It'll be a little more difficult now that I have to do it at work, but this blog really keeps me on track. I hope everyone has a great week!

Stress

Stress is my biggest down fall when it comes to achieving my goals. I don't handle stress well, and my first instinct when I get upset about something is to eat. I am a text book "Emotional Eater."

I did really well last week. The meal planning really helped me stay on track, and even on days when we veered from the planned menu, I still kept things very healthy. I also worked out a few times last week, and I kept track of everything in my new planner. When the weekend hit, it was kind of a different story. I'm incredibly stressed out over things at work and a few other things. My problem is that I don't just stress...I obsess. I can't stop thinking about whatever is bothering me until it is resolved...even if that takes weeks. The weekend didn't go so well. I didn't cook much and I just munched on anything I could get my hands on. I had the intention of going to the park for a long walk/jog on Saturday, but I was overwhelmed by my stress so all I did was lay in bed all weekend.

Yesterday, I did better during the day. I ate pretty healthy meals, but as the day went on, and things got more and more stressful at work, all I wanted was a bag of Lay's Sour Cream and Onion chips. Not the baked ones. The real ones. I get these random cravings and I can't stop thinking about them until I indulge. I ignored my craving all day, and made dinner for Joel and I when I got home. I made whole wheat pasta with ground turkey and tomato sauce because it was something easy and I didn't have it in me to make anything complicated. I also made a loaf of fresh bread in my bread maker with the intention of having one piece with dinner and then bringing some to work today to have with my lunch. Well, that didn't happen. Joel and I ate the ENTIRE loaf of bread. We just kept going back and getting another piece and another piece. I had no control. I kept thinking I should really stop eating, but I just wanted one more piece of bread, and before I knew it, the whole loaf was gone.

I don't know what it is about stress, but it's like I can't control myself when I'm stressed out. I become overwhelmed by every little thing. Even cooking dinner, something I normally love to do, becomes a huge chore. I have to figure out a way to deal with my stress that doesn't include eating. Emotional eating is a huge reason why I've become so overweight, but it's an incredibly difficult cycle to break. When I'm happy, I am completely focused and determined, but once anything remotely stressful happens, I lose it. I need to figure out how to break this cycle.

Weigh In Day!

Man, yesterday was great! It was weigh-in day for me, and I lost again! At this point, I've lost a total of 13 pounds! I am so excited! The weight is pretty much just falling off me, and until now, the only thing I've really changed is my eating. I've worked out here and there, but I haven't been very consistent, so to lose that much weight just by changing my eating is incredible! I can't wait to see what happens now that I'm going to be working out more. :)

For breakfast, I fixed myself a scrambled egg with some turkey bacon, half a bagel with light cream cheese (I'm out of bagel thins, so I ate half of a regular bagel), and some strawberries.

For lunch, I had some pasta with vegetables in a cheese sauce. It was something I got out of the frozen section out of desperation...it was okay, and pretty filling, but not something I'd have as a meal again. There weren't nearly as many vegetables as I expected.

My boss brought these GIGANTIC strawberries to work. It only took one to get my fruit fix. These things must be on steroids...I've never seen strawberries this big.I had some trail mix too.

After work, I went for my first appointment with my new trainer! I met him the day before at the gym, and I liked him immediately. He's actually worked with clients that were on The Biggest Loser, so he's really tough. I honestly thought I was going to collapse and throw up during that work out. I don't think I've ever worked out that hard in my life. The first thing he had me do was get on the treadmill with the incline as high as it would go. He said "we're walking up Mount Everest." And any time I would try to use the handle bars he'd say "No handles...there are no handles on Mount Everest." It was rough. Then we did sprints, and a bunch of really hard leg exercises. After one round I thought I was going to pass out...but we did it two more times, then did more sprints. It was rough, but SO great! I love hard workouts like that. I'm really sore today, and I love that feeling! I'm going to train with him in the gym once a week, and he's getting me set up on his online program which will have workout plans and meal plans for me to use on my own. I can't wait to get started on his program!

After I got home (and rested for a while) I made Veggie Stir Fry for dinner. It was great! I used a recipe from my Ellie Krieger cookbood as a guideline, but pretty much did my own thing. I used two bags of stir fry veggies and added some fresh bell pepper, asparagus, and garlic to the mix. This stuff was awesome, and there was enough left over to bring for lunch today!

After dinner, I went to bed and slept like a baby. I woke up this morning full of energy! While I was getting ready for work, I decided to try on a shirt that had gotten a little too tight to wear, and it fits again! It's actually a little baggy now! My pants are really baggy on me too, which is awesome!

It's the most rewarding thing to put on clothes that used to be too tight and now they're almost too big. I can't wait to try on some other stuff in my closet that I grew out of but have been holding on to!

I'm so tired, so I'm going to keep it short tonight. Food wise, it was a great day! Joel didn't have to get up early, so I only had to fix breakfast for myself.

I bought these waffles to try. This brand had a lot of different flavors, but I decided to try the regular ones first. They are so good!

I topped them with a sliced banana and some Pure Maple Syrup (why didn't anyone tell me how good that stuff was?) It's naturally really sweet and tastes a lot different than the syrup I'm so used to. And a little goes a long way so I didn't have to drown the waffles in syrup to get the flavor!


For lunch at work I made another salad. I couldn't decide what I wanted this morning, so I took a few different things with me. I was still kind of craving a salad, so I made one with romaine, turkey lunch meat cut into slices, a hard boiled egg, shredded broccoli and some ranch dressing. I was really surprised at how full I was when I finished.

For dinner, I tried something I would normally NEVER make: Fish! I made herb and parmesan crusted tilapia. I am not a huge fish person. In fact, I HATE most fish. I can't stand the smell or the flavor, but I've had tilapia a couple times and it was okay. I know I need to get more seafood into my diet, so I decided to try this recipe out and it was actually really good! I was pleasantly surprised.

It's pretty much just Panko bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, basil, oregano, salt and pepper. Dip the filets in an egg wash, then dip them in the bread crumbs and spray them with some cooking spray. Then heat a skillet on medium heat, spray some cooking spray in it, and cook the fish until browned and cooked through. It took hardly any time, and even for someone like me who has NEVER cooked fish before, it was pretty fool proof. The broccoli went really well with the fish (that was Joel's idea).

So that's all for today really. Maybe I'll have some more energy to post in the morning. But now I've got to clean up the kitchen and veg out!

These long, exhausting days at work just won't quit. When I got home last night I was so tired. I didn't want to do a thing. But I still made dinner! I stuck to my meal plan all day yesterday!

For breakfast, we had Vanilla Spice Oatmeal from my Ellie Krieger cookbook. Every recipe I have tried from that cookbook has been AMAZING! I have so many more to try. That was definitely a good purchase. The Oatmeal was really good. Joel and Christian liked it too. I'm always excited to find good Oatmeal recipes because I normally hate it, but it's such a healthy breakfast option.

For lunch I tried something I learned from N Her Shoes and prepacked a salad. I forgot to snap a picture because I was so hungry but it had romaine lettuce, shredded broccoli and carrots (broccoli slaw mixture...you can find this in the salad section at the grocery store), a hard boiled egg, a little shredded cheese, and some cut up chicken that I had left over from dinner the night before. I have Light Ranch at the office, so all I had to do was pour some on and enjoy! It's an easy option for lunch, and I need to incorporate more salads into my life, so I'll be taking that for lunch more often.

When I got home, Joel and I sat and talked about our days for a while. I'm loving this new routine we have. When I come home we sit in the living room for at least 30 minutes to an hour to discuss how our day went before I get up and start working on dinner or turn the tv on. We always have something going on, so it's nice to have that little bit of quiet time every day.

For dinner, I tried out a new recipe. Lemon Chicken with Asparagus. It was awesome! Asparagus is one of my favorite vegetables, so I love using it any way I can.

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts (boneless and skinless)
olive oil
salt & pepper
herbes de provence (the recipe called for poultry seasoning, but I didn't have any, so I used this instead)
4 or 5 garlic cloves, chopped
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 pound asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup chicken stock

To make:

Sprinkle the chicken on both sides with salt, pepper, and herbes de provence.
Heat the olive oil in a skillet, then add the chicken breast. Cook until browned on both sides.
Add the garlic and red bell pepper and stir. Cover and cook for about 2 minutes. Add the asparagus and cover. Cook for another 2 minutes to let the asparagus steam. Then add the lemon zest and chicken stock. Cover and cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and asparagus is tender.

I served it over couscous (Joel and I don't know how we lived without couscous for so long.) It was delicious! The chicken was moist and the red bell pepper and asparagus tasted wonderful together, and it was super easy to make.

My mom got us signed up at the gym yesterday. She brought me my keycard and a business card for the trainer so I can set up my initial appointment. I'm going to call him today and see if I can get in sometime this week after work. I can still go before I meet with him and use the equipment though, so I'm taking my workout stuff with me today and I still stop at the gym on my way home! I'm looking forward to seeing the place.

Well, I've gotta finish getting ready for work and eat breakfast before I go! Have a great day, everyone!

Prep Day

Well, I'm happy to say that today was as productive as I hoped it would be. I woke up at 7:00, and couldn't go back to sleep. Joel was already awake too, so we sat on the patio and talked for a long time before Christian woke up. It was a great way to start the day. We rarely get time to just sit and talk without having something else going on.

A couple hours later I started my meal planning for the week. Yesterday, my mom and I went shopping and I picked up some good organization tools. I got a monthly/weekly planner to keep track of my meals, workouts, and weigh-ins. For this week, I've written in what I'm having for breakfast, lunch, and dinner all week. It took about an hour and a half to plan it all out, but it's going to make the week so much easier.



I also got this dry erase board for our fridge where I keep track of lunches and dinners for the week. There's also a pad on the right for grocery lists. This will help me remember to take my lunch with me in the morning and to take meat out of the freezer for dinner. Part of the reason last week was so bad was because I forgot to defrost something to cook when I got home, so instead of cooking, I'd just munch on unhealthy food. I just love this dry erase board. It will be really helpful and it's so cute!

After meal planning, I got up and started cleaning. It took a few hours, but the entire apartment is squeaky clean and there is just one last load of laundry in the washer. It feels so good to have it all done. Having a clean apartment always makes the week so much better.

This week, one of my goals is to eat breakfast at home every day. I normally take a few things with me to have at work, but I want Joel and I to sit down for breakfast together this week. He's okay with that, of course, because it means he'll actually get to eat in the morning, and he never turns down food. :)

It's been a long, but very good day. I'm really looking forward to this week. I think it will be MUCH better than last week!

Man, I can't believe it has been a week since my last post. This week has been one of the craziest, longest, most exhausting weeks at work I have ever had. I have barely been able to put one foot in front of the other by the time I get home at night, let alone sit in front of the computer and put my thoughts into words. I'm so glad the week is over, and today, I am going to relax and get a pedicure with my mom. She has been out of town a lot over the last month, and I haven't seen her much, so its going to be nice to spend some time with her.

Food wise, it was hard this week. Being so exhausted makes it difficult to even think about what I'm putting in my mouth. I did really well a few days. Other days, I'd start off well and then be eating something I shouldn't by the end of the day. Over all, I still lost weight this week, but I definitely didn't do as well as I could have. I didn't work out a single day. I'm just glad to have made it through the week alive.

On Monday, my mom and I are going to join gym and hopefully have our initial appointment with the trainer. Between recovering from her time out of town and taking care of things when she got home, my mom has also had a busy and exhausting week, and we kept pushing off our first appointment, but we HAVE to get this done. It is so much easier to work out with a partner, and it will also be easier now that the gym isn't at my apartment. I'm anxious to have my initial evaluation, even though I'm dreading having to be measured.

This weekend, I will make it a point to make sure that everything is done by Sunday night. Every piece of laundry will be folded and put away. Every dish will be clean. Every meal will be planned. I went into last week with a flexible, half-complete plan and a ton of chores left to do, and of course, I fell off track. Weeks as busy as last week require a lot of planning to be able to make it through in a healthy way, and you never know when you're going to have one of those weeks. It's too overwhelming to come home to undone laundry and no plan for dinner. Those are the moments when it becomes way to easy to mess up. So my goal for next week is to be well prepared for every day and every situation that can pop up.

Today, I will relax and enjoy my time with my mom, but tomorrow I will spend the whole day prepping for the week to come.

What a great day! I got to sleep in like I hoped. Joel woke up before me but was sweet enough to head to the living room so I could have some quiet and sleep in some more (I'm a very light sleeper.) When I got up (around 10 am. Yay!) I made breakfast for the fam.

Christian loves my egg sandwiches as much as I do. He has asked that I make them for his birthday (which is still three months away.)
After breakfast, we headed to the park for some hoops!

I actually won a game! Of course, that's with countless amounts of cheating, fouling, and Joel going easy on me. He's a good sport. There's no way I could really beat him one on one. I wanted to take pictures at the park, but my camera battery died right as we got there. :(

Protein Bars for after our game. One of Joel's favorite desserts is Carrot Cake, so I knew he'd love this flavor. And, as we all know, I love anything chocolate. These were both very tasty.

For dinner I made some baked chicken. I tried out something new this time. I cut the chicken breasts in half so they were more the size of tenders. I sprayed them with some Pam then sprinkled them with salt and pepper on both sides. I put chopped garlic, shallots, and slices of lemon on top before I baked them. The flavors infused into the chicken breasts and they were delicious and juicy!

Here's the chicken before going into the oven.

I also baked some potatoes. I sliced one large russet potato very thin, drizzled with olive oil, salt and pepper, and baked it for about 30 minutes. These were awesome. They had the same flavor as pan-fried potatoes but required a lot less oil. And one potato was enough for the three of us. A super cheap and yummy side dish!

I heated up some frozen mixed veggies to go with dinner. This meal was a big hit. I love it when Joel says "you need to make this more often" after I cook. Sometimes it's the simplest meals that he loves the most. Works for me!

As a treat after dinner I made milk shakes! I put vanilla low-fat frozen yogurt, 1 banana, frozen strawberries, raspberries, and fat-free milk in the blender. At the end I added two packets of Splenda to sweeten it just a little bit.

These were amazing! And a nice treat. Who doesn't love milkshakes?! I'm going to experiment with this a little and see what other flavors I can come up with. I'm thinking chocolate!

Mmmmmmm!

After dinner, we watched The Blind Side. We've had it for about a week but haven't had time to sit down and watch it. I had high expectations for that movie, and it was even better than I thought it would be! It pulled at all my heart strings. Joel loved it too...even though he didn't want to see it at first. I love when I prove him wrong with movies. :)

Today was such a good day. I'm looking forward to a great Sunday tomorrow!

Today, I had to go to the doctor again to have blood taken. My doctor is extremely thorough, especially since my surgery, so a visit to him always means having blood taken to run a million tests. I hate having blood taken. I have a huge fear of needles, and the experience is always terrible. My veins roll, the nurse can't find a vein at all, or when they finally get the needle in, the blood won't flow...it's always an issue and it's always painful. It wasn't a very great way to start off my day, especially because it meant I had to skip breakfast! After having my blood drawn I stopped and got a Sprite and a protein bar in hopes that I wouldn't get too dizzy and lightheaded.

For lunch, I made myself a turkey club sandwich at work. I heated up some all natural organic turkey lunch meat and some turkey bacon in the microwave and put it on a toasted Sandwich Thin with mustard and provolone cheese. It was excellent! I also ate some baby pickles and an apple with it. A couple hours later I had some yogurt covered raisins as a snack. I have recently rediscovered these delicious little treats. They're great for when I'm craving something sweet, and it only takes a small amount to get my fill.
For dinner I tried out a new recipe from Weight Watchers: Spanish Chicken and Rice. I found some of the cooking methods a little strange, so I just used the recipe as a guide and cooked it the way I thought it should be done. It turned out really well.

I started with a hot skillet and a little oil. I browned a couple cloves of garlic then added one diced onion and two diced uncooked chicken breasts.

In another pot, I cooked some long grain brown and wild rice for about 30 minutes.


After the chicken browned and the onion cooked through, I added diced tomatoes, chicken stock, ground turmeric, chili powder and the rice into the skillet and let it simmer and cook down. After about 10 minutes I added red and green bell pepper. I let that cook for 10 more minutes then added frozen peas and carrots. It took about 5 more minutes for those to heat through and that was it!


Finished product!

It turned out really well, and I loved the flavor. It was really colorful and all the veggies worked together really well. I actually ate them all instead of picking through and just eating the chicken and rice. Next time I make it, I'll make a few changes. I think it would be really great cooked int he crock pot so the flavors have time to meld together. I'll also add a jalapeno for some extra heat next time.

While I was cooking, the boys were playing video games, and honestly, I didn't want to listen to the Mario Bros theme song over and over again, so I put on my iPod Shuffle and jammed out. It made cooking dinner a lot more fun! I plan on listening to music every time I cook from now on. There's nothing like dancing around the kitchen to lift a person's spirits!

I am really looking forward to this weekend. I have Saturday off for the first time in a few weeks, and I can't wait to sleep in! We don't have anything planned. Joel's son is with us this weekend, so we are just going to take it easy and hang out. Hopefully we'll spend some time outside. The weather has been beautiful and I'm sure Christian will want to ride his scooter around. Other than that, I plan on doing a lot of resting and cooking. I hope you all have weekends as relaxing as mine is going to be!

Small Victories

YESTERDAY

The last couple days have been busy and wonderful! To be honest, I don't even remember what I had for breakfast and lunch yesterday. It seems like such a long time ago. Early in the morning I got a text from my brother who lives in Austin saying that he and his wife were in town. I don't think they've ever come to the Houston area for anything other than holidays at my parents' house, so it was a really wonderful surprise. They invited us to dinner at Maggiano's Little Italy in the Galleria area. I immediately looked up the restaurant to see what I could find on the menu that might be the slightest bit healthy. Of course it was extremely difficult...it's an Italian place, so everything is covered in sauce and cheese and wonderful, yummy, bad-for-you things. I decided not to worry about it too much. It's not often that I get to see my brother, so I just told myself that I would eat as healthy as I could without obsessing about it and ruining the time with my family.

My other brother and his girlfriend came to dinner as well. It was really wonderful to have both of my brothers and our significant others all together...Its never happened before. Its rare that I see both of my brothers at the same time, so I really enjoyed the time I got with them.

The food was wonderful! Unfortunately, I was so excited to see everyone that I forgot to take any pictures. There was bread on the table when we got there, and I had some, but I didn't eat a whole loaf like I may have in the past. Joel ordered bruschetta as an appetizer, and I limited myself to just one piece, even though it was excellent. For dinner, I ordered Chicken Saltimbocca, which is chicken topped with proscuitto and provolone cheese in what I think was a white wine, onion, and sage sauce. It was wonderful! The serving was huge though. THREE chicken breasts! I just ate one, and I ate it slowly so I would get full and not be tempted to continue eating. I brought the rest home and Joel had my leftovers for lunch today. We didn't order dessert....although I did take a few bites of everyone else's. I only drank one cocktail and had one glass of wine instead of downing drinks all night and wasting calories. It really was a lot of food, but I feel like I made much better choices and didn't stuff myself like I would have in the past. I left the restaurant feeling full, but not like I was about to pop. The dinner was wonderful and it was so great to see my family.

My sister-in-law mentioned that she has been reading my blog, and was very positive and motivational. She and my brother are very health conscious and have found a good balance between indulging in what they love and keeping things healthy. A while back, they were on a vegan diet for many months(I think it was almost a year) so she had a lot of tips and ideas about healthy eating and vegetarian meals. I am going to try a vegetarian diet again and see how long I can do it. Maybe just a couple days at a time every now and then, but I still want to attempt to make vegetarian meals a part of my life. Just in two days, I felt the positive effects of that diet, and I want to incorporate it into my life. It was great to have some positive feedback, and I can tell that she's routing for me, which is a wonderful feeling.


TODAY

This morning, I had a doctor appointment, so I got to sleep in until 8:00 (which was much needed after being out late last night). I made a big breakfast for me and Joel because I knew I wouldn't be able to eat again until lunch, and I anticipated that it would be a late one. Joel actually had the day off, which was wonderful timing! He went to my appointment with me. It was nice to have the time together...even if it was spent at a doctor's office.

For breakfast I made my very favorite egg sandwich. I made it on a Bagel Thin this time instead of bread. The Bagel Thin toasted nicely and gave a little bit of a different flavor and a crunch to the sandwich. We also had yogurt with banana slices on the side.

My favorite bowl!

After my appointment (which lasted until after lunch time, like I knew it would) I had to go back to work. The girls at the office wanted me to bring Panera Bread back with me. I LOVE Panera, but I normally get the Broccoli Cheddar soup and a Chicken Salad sandwich...both very fattening choices, so I was a little worried about finding something healthy. I ended up getting a half of a Cuban Chicken Panini, which had grilled chicken, lean ham, swiss cheese, and sundried tomato aole, and a cup of the Vegetarian Black Bean soup. Black Bean soup is something I would never get normally, but I decided to try it, and I'm glad I did! It was delicious, and much better for me than my normal Broccoli Cheddar. The whole meal was really great, and a much healthier option than I ever would have tried before. I also had an apple and some unsweetened tea instead of my normal side of baguette and sweet tea. It's these little changes that I am incredibly proud of. It's easy to eat healthy at home and only keep fresh food in my pantry instead of junk, but it's when I am put into situations like this that I can really blow it. I am set in my fast food ways, and to get a healthier option at a place like that feels like a huge victory for me. I feel like these little victories will be what leads to my being able to completely make over my lifestyle. I am finding that the healthier options are often just as satisfying (if not more) than the more fattening, high-calorie choices I would have had before. It kind of amazes me that I never realized this before, but I'm glad that I'm getting it now.

It's easy to get down on myself about not losing weight fast enough or making a slip here or there with my diet, but when I am put in such tempting situations (like an Italian restaurant or a cafe with high-fat options everywhere) and I still manage to make healthier choices than I would have before, it makes me feel like I can really do this. It may take a long time (and it will), but it's something that doesn't seem impossible anymore. A hundred small victories will certainly lead to one huge victory. Before I know it, this will all be behind me. I just have to keep trying and never give up.

Spring Eating!

Today was a much better day than yesterday, food wise. :) However, I really need to buy a real alarm clock. I use my cell phone, and too many times it has failed on me. I set my alarm an hour early this morning so I could go work out, but it didn't go off. I'm lucky I woke up on my own around 6:00 and checked the time or I would have been late for work.


For breakfast I had my yogurt with fruit and green tea. Today I changed it up a bit and had Banana Cream Pie yogurt instead of Vanilla. I love Yoplait Light. They have so many awesome flavors!

Mid-morning snack: Apple and cheese stick. I like to cut my apple into slices instead of eat it whole. It looks like more food that way and it takes longer to eat, so I feel like I've had more.

For lunch I had Smart Ones Mini Pizzas and a pear. The pizzas were delicious, but I didn't stay full for very long. The pear was also great!

Some reading material. I like to read while I'm eating lunch. It makes me focus on something other than the food in front of me, which makes me eat slower. I also like eating my food on a real plate instead of a paper plate or in the microwavable container. Somehow, it makes my meal feel more substantial. (Yes, it's all in my head...but it works.)

I had a positive performance review at work today, and as a surprise my hubby bought me flowers on his way home to congratulate me! They're beautiful and very springy! He's so sweet.

For dinner, I tried another new recipe out of my new cookbook. Tonight we had "Sirloin Steak with Grainy Mustard Sauce and Parmesan Steak 'Fries'" and some fresh green beans. It was amazing! This recipe was definitely a winner, and it didn't feel like "diet food" at all. I love my steak and potatoes, so I was very excited to try this recipe. The potatoes are baked and seasoned with a little salt and pepper and parmesan cheese, so they're much better for you than real fries or mashed potatoes made with tons of cream and butter, but I still got that potato flavor I love. We'll be using this recipe often! The green beans were amazing as well. The produce at the grocery store this week was exceptionally fresh. It's definitely spring time!

Mmmmmmm...

I definitely need to eat more protein. I was hungry almost all day, and I'm sure it was because I didn't have much protein until dinner. I'll work on that tomorrow.

Now its time to watch the Rockets with my hubby!

Climbing Back Onto The Wagon

I'm feeling pretty frustrated with myself today. I fell off the wagon with diet and exercise over the last few days. I was so good about working out at the beginning of last week. I went to the gym Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Even if I didn't get in a full workout, I still managed to at least get in some time on the treadmill. Thursday, I was so sore from my intense workout on Tuesday night that I could barely stand up straight let alone go to the gym. Once I lost my momentum, there was a reason to not work out for the rest of the week and through the weekend. I could have made time, but I didn't. Instead, I let myself make excuses and be lazy.

As far as food goes, some meals were very healthy, but I over did it on others. I got carried away with our leisurely weekend and snacked on too much junk food. I ate way too much fatty food. Now, it's still a far cry from the weekends when we'd devour a whole Digiorno Stuffed Crust Pizza and a gallon of ice cream. I've made some healthy changes, so over indulging is a little different to me now than it used to be. Even so, I'm upset that I allowed myself to give into temptation. My body wasn't too pleased either. This morning when I woke up, I was sluggish and groggy, and my stomach was upset for most of the day. My body was definitely telling me that it wasn't happy with what I put in it over the weekend. I guess that's a good sign. I've gotten used to healthy food, so when I eat junk my body rejects it. Next time I want to stop and get fast food on after a long day at work, I'll probably think twice because I know my body won't be happy about it. Hopefully I didn't do too much damage over the weekend. I'm a little worried about weigh-in this week.

Today, I was better with my food. For breakfast, I had strawberry yogurt with some banana and strawberries sliced in and a cup of coffee.

My boss took me and a coworker of mine out to lunch. They wanted Mexican food, so I did my best to find something healthy on the menu. I shot a quick email to my email support group for ideas, and a friend told me to get the chicken fajitas with no tortillas, so that's what I ended up getting. It was pretty good, but still a little too heavy.

For dinner, I was craving nothing but vegetables, so I steamed some broccoli and carrots.

For dessert, I'll have some berries. I have such a sweet tooth, I have to have some kind of dessert at the end of the day. I've found some really great diet desserts. Smart Ones and Skinny Cow both have a good selection of delicious, chocolatey goodies. Tonight, though, I think I'll stick with the fruit.

Quality Time With My Hubby

Today was a wonderful day spent with my husband. I had to work this morning, so I ate breakfast at the office. I had a double fiber english muffin, and attempted to eat some Greek Yogurt (because I've heard so much about it lately.) I was NOT impressed. It tasted like sour milk. Maybe it was just the brand, but it was terrible. I was only able to eat the English muffin. I have a couple other brands on Greek Yogurt at home to try...I'm hoping they're better than this one. I'd like to be able to eat it, and I have seen a lot of recipes using it as an ingredient and I'd like to be able to try them out.


I got home from work around 1:00 and fixed myself a quick lunch. I had a turkey hot dog, cheese stick, and chocolate soy milk. I'm loving turkey hot dogs right now. They're much healthier than regular hot dogs, but when you dress them up with relish and mustard, you can hardly taste the difference. I feel like I'm spluring on something bad for me without actually eating junk food! I ate it with a Nature's Own whole wheat hot dog bun. :)

After lunch, Joel and I decided to go to Half Price Books to browse and see what we can find. We could spend hours in that store looking at all the CD's, movies and books they have. We got a few things there, and had some time to spare so we went to Barnes and Noble to see what else we could find.

I got an Ellie Krieger cookbook! It has a ton of delicious looking recipes. I really like her show on the food network, and this book also has a lot of health tips and even a section on what to keep stocked in your pantry so you'll always have ingredients to prepare healthy, delicious meals.

I tried one of the recipes out when we got home! Pork medalions in lemon-taragon pan sauce on top of couscous with asparagus and broccoli! It was delicious. I can't wait to try more recipes from my new book!
It's been great to have a day alone with my husband. Tomorrow, I am really looking forward to sleeping in and relaxing all day!

Happy Easter Weekend, Everyone! I only had to work half a day yesterday, which was wonderful. It was such a beautiful day to be off work.

For breakfast I fixed scrambled eggs with turkey bacon, whole wheat toast, and a half a banana for myself and Joel. I had a cup of chocolate soy milk as well. I think he's really loving the fact that I'm waking up to make breakfast and cooking dinner almost every night now.

I got off work at noon and went home to get some chores done. I fixed myself lunch before I got started. I had a sandwich made with chicken breast and a Laughing Cow French Onion cheese spread. I love to use Laughing Cow on sandwiches instead of regular cheese. It gives the sandwich a great flavor and is a healthier substitute. I also had some baby pickles, a Babybel cheese, and some fresh cut pineapple (we ate the whole pineapple before the end of the night...it was SO good!)
After lunch, I turned on the radio, opened up the patio door to let some fresh air in, and cleaned the apartment while I waited for Joel to get home. Last week, we decided that we needed a full weekend together without kids or friends, so last night we stayed in, watched movies, and took it easy. I used my Weight Watchers splurge points and snacked on some junk food...my body was starting to really crave it. I always start to crave tons of junk food around the two week mark. Normally, I ignore it, don't give in, and then a few days later, when I can't take it anymore, I've fallen completely off the wagon and can't make myself get back on. So last night I gave in and splurged a little knowing that today I'd get back to eating healthy.

I'm at work until noon (I have to work the occasional Saturday), and I brought myself some Greek Yogurt for breakfast. I've heard about it a lot lately, so I'm giving it a try. After work, Joel and I are going to go enjoy this beautiful day and do some shopping and play some basketball. :)

Crazy Busy

Yesterday was a crazy day. I was incredibly busy at work all day, ended up staying almost an hour late, and then on my way home, I got stuck in traffic because of a wreck. I barely had time to eat, let alone take pictures of my food (sorry, guys.) By the time I walked in the door last night, all I could do was curl up in my favorite chair.

Throughout all the craziness, I did still managed to have a pretty healthy day. I had my oatmeal with blueberries and bananas for breakfast again. For lunch I had a veggie patty topped with a little cheese, carrots with hummus, and an apple. I didn't have time to even think about snacks during the day. When I got home, there was no way I was setting foot in the kitchen, and I was really craving a big cheeseburger from Whataburger with large fries, and a chocolate shake. But I didn't get it! Joel drove me to Chick Fil A (because I was too tired to drive myself) and I got a chicken sandwich and a fruit cup.

Not the healthiest day, but I still managed to make good choices instead of giving into my unhealthy cravings. I crawled into bed way earlier than usual and slept like a baby! Hopefully all the sleep I got last night will give me the energy I need for another busy day at work. At least it's only a half day. Happy Good Friday, Everyone!

Clean Eating: Day One!

Last week, while telling everyone I could possibly think of that I was going to start a healthy eating/work out regimen, my friend Erika and I had the idea of an "Email Support Group." Basically, every day we email back and forth about our goals, struggles, ideas, recipes, what we're eating, questions we have for each other, etc. There are four of us in the group at this point. It's a great way to keep ourselves accountable and motivated. We designated Wednesday as our "weigh in" day. We don't share our actual weight, but we share how much we gained or lost. This morning, with butterflies in my stomach, I stepped on the scale hoping for a loss to share with the group. I've lost 2.6 pounds!! I'm so happy for any loss, and it's encouraging to see the number on the scale drop after a week of hard work. I know that if I had worked out more last week, my loss probably would have been a little larger, so this week I'm really trying to step up the working out! I slept through my alarm this morning and didn't have time to go to the gym. I was really disappointed in myself and upset that I didn't get that work out in, but I tried to stay positive and focused on my other goal for the week: Clean Eating! Today was day one, and I think I did really well!

For breakfast, I had oatmeal with blueberries and a banana and my regular cup of green tea. I HATE oatmeal, so an old trainer of mine gave me this little trick to make it a little tastier. Just prepare regular oatmeal, then microwave 1/2 cup of frozen blueberries for one minute and mix them in! I add some Splenda to sweeten it, and this morning I decided to top it with the banana slices to make it extra filling. It's delicious!
Lunch was the hardest part of the day. I eat meat with almost every meal, so it was hard finding a substitute. I also hate most vegetables, so eating an entire meal made up of nothing but vegetables is unheard of. I bought a frozen veggie burger to try, and I was pleasantly surprised with how it tasted. I also made myself a salad with romaine lettuce, broccoli, baby carrots, snow peas, and golden raisins. Whenever the vegetable taste became too overwhelming, I would eat a golden raisin to cleanse my pallet. That helped me a lot.

I topped my salad with this wonderful dressing. I normally soak vegetables in ranch, but this was a tasty and more nutritious alternative. :)

In the middle of the day I got a text from one of my old trainers asking how my workout went this morning. I told her I had missed it and that I was disappointed. She gave me some great words of encouragement and gave me the motivation to work out when I got home instead of plopping down on the couch. I convinced Joel to come with me even though he was tired from work. It's always easier when you have someone there to talk to. I'm happy with my workout and proud of myself for actually doing it!

For dinner, I made black bean burgers from scratch! I got the recipe from N Her Shoes. Joel had baby carrots and broccoli with his. I opted for apple slices. We were both surprised at how well they turned out. There's no substitute for a real BEEF burger, but they were really good! (And much better for us.)

I'm planning on getting up tomorrow morning to do some cardio before work. And it will be day two of Clean Eating!

Long and Short-Term Goals

Well, I did it! I got up this morning and worked out before going to work. I set my alarm for 5:00 with the intention of getting in a good hour long workout. Of course, I hit the snooze button and didn't manage to get out of bed until 5:20. So, I had to cut my work out short, but I still did it! I started with 10 minutes on the treadmill to warm up, then did some circuits using the weight machines and free weights in the gym. I even did some jump rope, which is a whole lot harder than I remember it being in middle school! I didn't have as long or as hard a workout as I had hoped for, and I left the gym a little disappointed, but I'm very proud of myself for getting out of bed that early and working out at all! I can try again tomorrow to get up at 5:00 and fit in an hour at the gym.

After my workout, I made a protein-rich breakfast! This is my take on a healthier breakfast sandwich made out of whole wheat toast, egg, turkey bacon, and cheese. I also had a half of a banana, some grapes, and a glass of chocolate soy milk (yes, it's actually REALLY good!!)


When I got home from work, THIS had arrived in the mail!!
My mom told me about this book a long time ago. She heard about it from a trainer we used to go to. She had a client about my size who had dieted and worked out for a long time, but reached a plateau and couldn't seem to get past it (something I am all too familiar with.) She bought this book, and as soon as she started the program, the weight started melting off. She gradually went from being sedimentary, to slowly walking, to jogging, and finally to running in a marathon! So, that is a new long-term goal of mine. I want to get into good enough shape to run a marathon...obviously this will take some time, but I think it's a very realistic long-term goal! I can't wait to start reading!

Another goal I'm working on this week is "clean eating." I read an article about it today, and decided I'd like to give it a try. Basically, I will spend a few days on a "clean" diet to rid my bodies of toxins.

"Spend a day or two eating as cleanly as possible: fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins. For the time being, cut out dairy, animal products, sugar, white flour, and if you're strong-willed, caffeine. A seasonal bout of clean eating can feel like pressing reset on your system." (Check out the full article here: http://shine.yahoo.com/event/makeover/spring-clean-what-youre-eating-1237149/)

For the first few days of this diet, I am really going to try to cut out all meat. It will not only make my body feel clean and refreshed, but it is also a way to force myself into eating more vegetables (something I am constantly struggling with.) So, if anyone has any good vegetarian recipes, please send them my way! I am going to try some black beans burgers one night and a vegetable stir fry the next, but I need more ideas! Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks...whatever you've got, let me know! I'm starting tomorrow morning...after my work out!