Confidence

Sometime in the past few days Isabelle gained some more confidence and is now doing the two-step all over the house.

Weight Loss Challenge: Week 8 Progress

Workout wise this week:
4/20: AMT Machine - 42 min. and 450 calories burned
4/21: AMT Machine - 48 min. and 500 calories burned
4/22: AMT Machine - 47 min. and 500 calories burned
4/23: Pilates - 45 min. and 217 calories burned

So glad to have been back at my gym. I love the routine of going to work and then right to the gym. It makes it easier to work out. Friday I was just beat of working 12 straight days and went home early. We took the kids into town and went to dinner and got Isabelle a new car seat. It was all I could do to do pilates after we got home. I'm taking the day off tomorrow so after Matthew gets done with school we are all heading to the gym. Please no calls from childcare and I'm taking extra pants with me.

Diet Wise:
So much easier to be home and know what I'm consuming. Still going strong with my protein intake and keeping within 1400-1600 calories a day.

Results: 1 pound. Overall 23 pounds.

Looking to get 2 this week at least so I can get to 25. That's a big milestone!

Weight Loss Challenge: Week 7 Progress

Workout wise this week:
4/10: Isabelle's birthday and I went too close to have eaten so only treadmill for 20 min. and 200 calories burned
4/11: Day of Rest
4/12: Elliptical for 40 min. and 400 calories burned
4/13: Elliptical for 30 min. and 300 calories burned
4/14: Elliptical for 47 min and 452 calories burned
4/15: Elliptical for 41 min and 402 calories burned
4/16: No workout :( - worked from 7:30 am - Midnight
4/17: Elliptical for 42 min and 400 calories burned
4/18: Treadmill for 38 min and 400 calories burned
4/19: Elliptical for 39 min and 400 calories burned

I only missed 1 day while at our event because I had to work until Midnight and because of some issues I had to handle Thursday night and was up until 1:30 am. I was beat and just couldn't do it on the 16th. I took that as my day of rest and ended up working out on Sunday which I don't usually do but I worked until 5 pm that day anways and figured I might as well work out and just kill my sabbath all the way around. :) I do what I can when I'm away.

Now that I'm back in my own gym I'm trying to up my burn to 450-500 every day. So far so good.

Diet Wise:
Between Isabelle's birthday, my parents being in town and then going away on business for 6 days man was it tough. I made good choices though and kept a log of everything I ate. I input everything when I got back from my trip and had some higher days and lower days. It is so tough to know what you are eating calorie wise when you don't cook it yourself and have no nutritional information. I think I did pretty well though and stayed away from all desserts and upped my vegetable intake when I could and stuck to chicken pretty much as my protein.

Results: 4 pounds. Overall 22 pounds.

I am so happy especially considering battling not knowing calorie wise what I was eating. I am so proud of myself for working out when I was tired and getting up early a few days before going down to work the event. I am especially proud of myself on Monday that I got up at 6 am to get to the gym before leaving for the airport at 8 am. I knew it would be a long day and difficult to get a workout in after landing and wanting to spend time with the kids.

I'll blog again on Saturday but I weighed myself on Tuesday morning so I'm just hoping for 1 pound within the 5 days. I'm so close to 25 and 30 pounds!!

Big Thanks: A big thanks to my parents for coming for Isabelle's birthday and then extending their trip 3 days so they could take care of the kids. Jordan has an unexpected work trip come up that overlapped mine. He was gone from Sunday-Friday and I was gone Wednesday-Monday. It was crazy with all the logistics, but I think my parents and the kids had fun. So glad to be back!

Weight Loss Challenge: Week 6 Progress

Workout wise this week:
4/3: Yogalates and AMT machine for 45 min.
4/4: Day of Rest
4/5: AMT machine for 40 min. and Pilates with Jordan
4/6: Elliptical for 20 min. and went to the zoo with Matthew for 4 hrs and I think we walked around for 2.5-3 hrs.
4/7: Pilates with Jordan (I was cleansing)
4/8: AMT for 47 min.
4/9: Elliptical for 21 min. and Treadmill for 26 min.

Diet Wise:
I met with a nutritionist at the gym my work acquantaince will be opening this fall. I went in to do a fat analysis and we talked about my calories. He really thought I wasn't eating enough and that I needed to up them to 1600. He also recommended eating protein (shake or bar) 1 hr. before working out and 1/2 shake or bar 15 min. after working out. I started more calories and the protein part on Thursday. I'm really more eating in the 1400-1600 range and the protein is helping me stay really full.

Last night we went to Jason's Deli for dinner before going to the Muse concert. I did research beforehand as they had their nutritional info online. I had a really yummy Turkey wrap and got fruit on the side. I felt full, satisfied, and dinner was only 593 calories. Eating out can be done if I make choices beforehand that work in my calorie range.

Results: 2 pounds.

I am so close to 20 pounds and hoping that I'll break it next week. I'm off traveling this week for work, but am determined to keep things going. I might weigh in and blog next Monday when I get back so I don't have to pack my scale with me. We'll see.

Also, Isabelle's 1st birthday was today. I indulged just a little in chips, 1 cupcake and some yummy cheesy potatoes. I figure it will help throw my body off anyways so my metabolism can't get adjusted and will shed weight faster - right? :)

First Real Steps

Tomorrow is Isabelle's 1st B-day, and yesterday she took her first real steps (more than just a few steps, which she's been doing for a few weeks). Matthew had a first too (he put on his shirt by himself earlier in the day), so he wanted to demonstrate and, of course, wanted to "learn to walk" too.

Diet Coke, Sugar and Protein

I've had a love for Diet Coke for probably almost 10 years now. It's been an ebb and flow of trying to be really good and limiting myself to 1 a day to 2-3 a day. Right before the challenge started I was probably having 2 a day and easily used it as a relaxer in the evening after a hard day at work and then coming home and dealing with the kids. Also, before this weight loss challenge I had a thing for sugar around 8:30 every night. I needed sugar and really wanted it. I couldn't get it out of my head and almost always gave in to my cravings.

I am proud to say that on the Isagenix program I've lost my cravings for both. I'll have a Diet Coke when we go out to dinner, but really besides that I don't really want it. I'm always drinking water now and my body really wants water - which is a good thing! Isagenix makes this energy powder that is great for when I'm feeling low, tired, or after a workout. I can't drink it all the time though because it's too much. I don't want sugar anymore and really we haven't had many sweets around the house. I'll indulge here and there but don't crave my favorites anymore. I'm sure I'll eat them now and again but for now I'm being good.

A work acquaintance of mine is opening a gym so I went to scope it out and talk to them. They are the ones that gave me a fat analysis last month and I also went to get new results. The first test probably wasn't really accurate so I'm going to wait another month to get another set of results and then I'll share here. Anyways, in talking to their nutrition expert there he really thought I was eating too little of calories, which I had decided might be the case after working out so hard last week and not losing any weight. My body was thinking I was starving it and probably started holding onto all my fat to protect itself. He recommended really stepping up my protein amounts (150 grams a day) and especially to eat a protein (Isagenix) bar or shake before I work out and then to consume either a half of a bar or half a shake within 15 min. of working out. I need to research some more so I can explain better on here what it does, but I felt really good today.

I felt like I ate a huge amount of food today and really it was only 1,500 calories. To up my protein I added our whey protein (no flavor) powder to my morning shake and 2 T. of cashew butter which I got at Sprouts the other day. Cashew butter has the same amount of protein as peanuts but half the calories and tastes really decadent. This shake kept me full until lunch and usually I'm needing a small snack in the morning because I've been feeling hungry. I had a plain shake for lunch and then ate one of our bars 1 hour before I went to the gym and another 1/2 bar after working out. I seriously felt so amazing when working out because I had enough protein in me to help fuel my body (protein gets converted to energy just like everything else).

I thought when he told me yesterday to aim for 150 grams of protein that he was crazy and there was no way I could do that. Today I ate 158 grams - just slight changes in what I am doing and I feel I'll hit it and hoping it will help me in my weight loss as my body uses my fat for energy instead of my muscles. I also took Almonds and my Soy trail mix for snacks (both are good sources of protein) but didn't even touch them as I felt so full all day.

So...up your protein especially before and after you work out and see if you don't feel a difference. Jordan has even been doing this lately and I don't know if he feels a difference or not. I'll have to ask.

Positive Affirmations

I have a list of positive affirmations at my desk that I look at lately every day to keep me on track. This was very helpful last week when I had a bad few days and didn't want to exercise. I'm feeling really good this week, but am still reading and contemplating these every day. I thought up some on my own and some I got from a thread on Calorie Count and #4 I got from the Biggest Loser. They are really helping me stay motivated, keeping my goal in mind and getting me through the harder days.

• You ARE Worth it!
• You CAN do this!
• You ARE stronger than you think you are, you can do more than you think you can.
• It is the HARD work that matters and not the numbers - they will come!
• Stay motivated and on track!
• You are going to LOVE the end results
• Have the COURAGE to refuse
• It's supposed to be hard, if it wasn't hard then everyone would do it...the hard is what makes it great!
• Nothing worth getting is ever easy!
• Are the calories really worth eating that for? (Often - no!)
• Thin in 2010

My favorite one:

• Don't give up what you want MOST for what you want in the moment.

A gym owner that I know told me about a month ago to write down 3 goals or affirmations and look at them every day. He said that when he's worked with clients that have goals written down that they focus on daily they have better success, so I've added this into my life too!

And a HUGE shout out to Jordan who is the best husband and has picked up lots of duties so I can intensely focus on this through the end of June. He is often relieving the babysitters, taking them home, starting dinner, getting kids fed and bathed while I'm at the gym after work. He offers so much positive support and is up for eating anything that is strange and low-cal. I can't even imagine doing this without him and wonder how people do it that have a spouse or those around them that aren't on board with a lifestyle change. I would wear myself out trying to keep up the house, working full-time, the kids and gym time on top of it all. Thanks Jordan!!!

Tofu Parmigiana

In the spirit of trying new recipes we tried another one today. As many of you are probably rolling your eyes and thinking ewww...(I know my sister is) it actually wasn't that bad and Isabelle and Matthew even ate it too. I wouldn't eat Tofu every night but once in awhile is a good change. Jordan learned to love Tofu while in Korea so he was up for it.

I think the key is good tofu. I got mine at a local store called Fresh & Easy. Extra Firm Tofu and to get all of the water out. I probably pressed 6 paper towels to get it pretty dry. Each serving of Tofu Parmigiana only had 274 calories. I made whole wheat noodles to go along but didn't really eat mine. We had a salad on the side and strawberries with sugar for dessert. My total caloric intake for lunch was only 388 and I felt super full. I found some really good Cilantro dressing at Fresh & Easy that is only 70 calories for 2 tablespoons and it makes all salads really yummy!

You can try the recipe here or at least browse their website for some really good low-calorie meals. I also picked up a soy energy trail mix of sorts at Costco the other day. 150 calories for 1/4 cup, and it has soy nuts, almonds, pumpkin kernels, and cranberries. Way better than I would have thought and I'd buy it again.

I did make Jordan some egg salad for dinner from our Easter Eggs that he thought was good. I wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole but I wanted to use up the eggs and make sure Jordan ate enough calories today since he's on the other spectrum of trying to eat enough calories so he doesn't lose anymore weight. He's taking the rest for lunch tomorrow. It's a tricky balance in this household right now.

Hope everyone had a great Easter and I'll try and post some pics soon.

Weight Loss Challenge: Week 5 Progress

Workout wise this week:
3/27: Took a walk with Isabelle, not ideal but we were on vacation and the gym was $10 and I couldn't bear to pay for another day.
3/28: Day of Rest
3/29: Elliptical and Treadmill
3/30: Pilates-not our usual teacher and boy was she tough. I was also cleansing and felt like I was going to pass out.
3/31: Elliptical
4/1: Elliptical
4/2: Treadmill and this new machine I don't even know what it is

Diet Wise:
Still on track with 1200 calories a day. Some days are easier than others. I found this website Eating Well and have been trying a few meals from there. We did this recipe this week. Not bad for a vegetarian. We used Chard and I have never had that before. It's fun trying new things.

Results: 0 pounds.

Totally sucky as I feel like I worked really hard this week and ate well. After talking with Jordan we can only figure that I'm building muscle and of course that weighs more than fat. I'm going to work even harder this week and hopefully it will show up next week.

I did a body fat analysis thing about a month ago and need to go do that again this week. If it shows some good progress then I'll feel better about this past week.

I'm off to Yogalates this morning and then to do my favorite new machine that rocks. I'm not going to give up or let this stop me. I'm just going to keep trying as hard as I can and I feel eventually the numbers will show up.

I AM doing this!!!

Busy, busy, busy

Looking forward to my update tomorrow, but in the meantime here's what's up our sleeves the next 2 weeks.

1-Meeting up with friends tonight and tomorrow night
2-Coloring eggs for Easter and the Easter bunny visits
3-April 6th Jordan leaves for Oregon for two days
4-April 6th I am taking off 1/2 day to go to the zoo with Matthew's preschool
5-April 6th I have Bunco Tuesday night (babysitter is already lined up)
6-April 9th my parents arrive in town and I am taking the day off
7-April 9th Jordan and I are going to the Muse concert (muchly anticipated)!
8-April 10th is Isabelle's 1st birthday celebration
9-April 11th Jordan leaves for Oregon for 1 week
10-April 12th My parents and I are playing as I took the day off again - going to the spice store Penzey's and to an organic restaurant for lunch
11-April 14th I leave for NY for an event
12-April 16th My parents leave early to head home due to commitments, so our kids are shuffling back and forth between my babysitters parents house and ours
13-April 16th Jordan gets back from Oregon late
14-April 19th I get back from NY
15-April 19th I am supposed to take Isabelle to her yearly check-up
16-April 20th Book club, but I don't know if I'll be able to make it

I am tired already and none of this has even happened yet! Do you think too much is going on at our house soon? I do, but we'll get through it. It's been so mellow around the house travel wise and then all of this is happening at the same time-craziness! Mostly fun things but trying to fit in exercise and good eating will be tricky but I can do it!!! The hotel in NY looks like the gym will be great so I'm looking forward to that (and getting a full nights sleep with no child interruptions).