When you need something sweet...

 

 

2 tablespoons peanut butter

1 egg white

 

mix well

 

microwave on high for 1 to 1.5 minutes

(until spongy texture)

 

then sprinkle with a pinch of powdered sugar (optional)

 

 

 

Sunday Stats

These pics are horrible, but I'm tired. My poor nugget is teething (and wearing me out), so this is all I could manage tonight. Seriously, these pics are super bad quality (and what the hell am I wearing?!?!) Sorry.

I will post this measurements from today and the difference from last week in parentheses

March 24, 2013

• weight = 199.8 lbs  (+0.2 lbs)
• waist = 37.0 in   (-1.50 in)
• chest = 43.25 in (-1.75 in)
• hips = 42.0 in  (-0.50 in)
• thigh = 26.5 in  (-0.50 in)
• bicep = 12.0 in  (-0.50 in)
• calf = 15.0 in  (-.025 in)

So as you can see I gained a tiny bit, but I lost inches everywhere. I am okay with this. My clothes are definetly fitting better. Pants are getting looser. YAY!

     I went grocery shopping today and with Easter approaching it was pretty difficult. I really wanted some chocolate and a diet soda. Real bad. REAL, REAL, BAD. Chocolate was EVERYWHERE. Voices in my head were telling me crazy things such as:

"You can have one diet soda and one chocolate candy bar. The hubs won't know, nobody will find out. Just this once indulge."

"Girrrrllll, you have been doing SO good. Just have a diet soda and a candy bar, quickly dispose of the wrappings/soda bottle, and it's like it never even happened"

"Just this once, and then I can workout extra hard tomorrow. Yea, that sounds good"

     I mean it was insane. These thougts kept coming and going. I had to get out of the grocery store. I ignored the voices and made a beeline for the checkout. I felt good. I felt like I won against those voices. Those voices that are always there and always try to drag you down. But I still wanted the chocolate, so i bought some sugar free/fat free chocolate pudding. It was good. I call that a reasonable compromise.

     Tonight I allowed myself a little flexibility with food. I had mayo on my sandwich at lunch time, and for dinner I made pizza. Pita pizza. 1 multigrain pita, pizza sauce, and low fat mozzarella. It was delicious!

I am still soda free!

Losing weight is hard. SO. VERY. HARD. I just really want this. I will stay strong.

Thanks for checking in!

Riss

Numbers are not as important as how you feel! Keep Going!

     Tomorrow is weigh in and measurements. I have to be honest- I do get on the scale every day. Last week when I weighed in I was 199.6 and so happy to finally be under 200 lbs. Last weigh in was the last time I have seen the scale under 200 lbs. I have stayed between 200-204 lbs everyday since then. I don't feel too bad about it. I have not cheated on my diet plan, I have continued to avoid diet soda, I take the stairs at work, and I exercise 5 days/week.  I have noticed that my clothes are fitting better and I generally feel better. I still continue to sleep better and I have more energy than I did before I started eating right and exercising regularly. It's just a mental thing, I really want to see the scale go down. WAY DOWN.
     My husband told me that I am building muscles and muscles store more water. He stated that I looked like I was losing weight to him. So that makes me happy.
  
     I did not post last night. Last night we went to a cuban cafe for dinner. I had a large house salad with their house vinegarette and a grilled chicken breast topped with onions and water to drink. My husband also shared one of his maduros with me ;-). I took yesterday off from exercising. I was exhausted from working the night before.

Today I ate:

Breakfast- oatmeal with raisins and almond butter and a cup of skim milk
Snack- An avocado with lime juice and adobo seasoning
Lunch- Subway- 6 inch cold cut combo on wheat, NO cheese, spinach, cucumbers, green peppers, tomatoes, black olives, banana peppers, oil and vinegar, Baked BBQ Lays chips, 1/2 light lemonade and 1/2 water to drink (We walked there- I jogged a majority of the way there)
Dinner- We are planning on tuna salad pitas with side salads

Here is a picture of me jogging today (Proof!) My husband snapped it on our trip to subway today.

 

Today is so nice out. We are headed out to do a little shopping now. Hope you all are enjoying your weekend! Check back tomorrow for my stats.

 

Thanks for checking in!!

 

Riss

lunch box

almond butter on mini whole wheat pita
2 hard boiled eggs
carrots
celery
yogurt
apple
Clementine
cheese

good morning!

Good morning to you! My day started way too early with a poopy diaper and a hungry little nugget, as usual. After he was cleaned and fed all I really wanted to do was crawl back into bed but I decided to pop a kettleworx DVD in instead. I did the resistance workout week 2. It was hard. To be honest I only made it through the warmup and set 1 (there are 2 sets). It ended being 15 minutes of pretty much squatting. I am happy with what I did accomplish. My muscles are shaking and 15 minutes is better than 0 minutes. I can complete both sets just not in the morning. I do so much better in the evening and with my husband working out next to me.
     I have been, and always will be, a breakfast eater. I want breakfast as soon as my feet hit the floor in the morning. Here is a pic of what I had this morning.

1 fried egg
1/2 slice American cheese
multigrain light English muffin
Greek yogurt
and water to drink (in a plastic tumbler of course)

If I start my day making good choices will I continue to make good choices for the rest of the day? I am hoping I will.

Thanks for checking in!

Dining Out

Here are some pics! As you can see I decided to have a Grey Goose.

I ordered a salad with grilled chicken and it was delicious.

I allowed myself to have one mini corn muffin.

We had a great time. It was so nice to catch up midweek.

My husband took a picture of me before we went out. My jeans were not as tight. That felt good.

Now we are going to get cozy and watch an episode of Dexter :-) It is a rainy day here.

You can make healthy choices when dining out. With just a little research it is possible. Review menus beforehand and make up your mind ahead of time.

What I also ate today:

breakfast- oatmeal with raisins and almond butter with a cup of skim milk.

snack - a green apple
snack- a baby bell light cheese round after my workout

I will enjoy a chai tea while watching Dexter.

tooting my own horn/mid week treat!

So today I pretty much laid around like a blob. My son actually let me get more sleep than he usually does which was awesome. The day after working a night shift is super rough.

Anyway, I just got back in from a walk/jog. I went further and longer today and I feel amazing! I am really proud of myself (totally tooting my own horn) because just like always- I didn't want to go, but I did it anyway. I think that's just how it's going to be for me for a while until I get into a habit. I am probably not going to feel like working out but I have to keep in mind how good I feel afterwards. I WILL refer back to this post several times, I am sure, to remind myself of this feeling. I have read somewhere that it takes 21 days to form a habit. I am on day 10, half way there.

Tonight my husband and I are going out to dinner! It is something we like to do in the middle of the week. Only we used to go to a salty, cheesy, greasy, and extremely tasty Mexican restaurant where margaritas overfloweth. Tonight we will be going to a local restaurant with healthier fare. Tune in later to see what I order ;-) I am considering an adult beverage. If I do decide to have one it would probably be one Grey Goose on ice. Absolutely nothing mixed and no wine for me- not yet.

Also before I go, I must toot my own horn about a couple of things:

1. I dodged some major landmines at work last night (cupcakes)
     - there are always landmines at work. ALWAYS
2. I took the stairs last night at work and I purposely parked on the 6th floor of the parking garage. 

 

Woot! Woot!

 

 

Gotta run, the hubs is on his way home and I am in serious need of a shower.

 

I will post a picture of my dinner later.

 

 

Thanks SO MUCH for checking in!

 

 

Riss

packed dinner and snacks for work

Nurses need easy snacks. Here are mine! (minus 1 Clementine I grabbed on my way out the door)
black bean Burger and bun
natural applesauce
yogurt
cheese
almonds
apple
fat free fig Newton's
green tea

Snack before work

low fat cottage cheese
2 hard boiled eggs
fat free feta
salad toppins for crunch

I was able to get a walk/jog in before work.

Once again, I wasn't feeling like it. But I did it anyway and I worked up an awesome sweat and now I feel great and energized!

lunch

Multigrain light English muffin
almond butter
grape jelly

celery with lite creamy Caesar for dipping

Water to drink (which has to be in some plastic tumbler...i love plastic tumblers. My husband likes glass, so there is never any confusion around here as to who's drink is who's)

Seriously, nothing fancy. As a Mom of an 8 month old I need quick and easy. I don't claim that this is a super healthy meal, but i have grains, protein, good fat, and veggies! And this is certainly better than a #11 at McDonald's (which is a McFish by the way)

I did have breakfast today- a green apple. I spared you all a boring picture of just an apple :-)

dinner

Black Bean Burger
1slice Muenster cheese
1tsp chipotle Mayo

cup of Campbell's light vegetable orzo soup

I am past due to go grocery shopping so I am just working with what I have.

Afternoon Snack

I had some zucchini in my fridge that needed to be cooked. So I cooked them in some olive oil and then sprinkled them with a little garlic powder and a pinch of kosher salt.

Earlier I had a protein smoothie for lunch.

Frozen mixed berries
light and fit vanilla yogurt
whey protein
and a splash of milk

So Yummy!

Breakfast

2 scrambled eggs
1/2 slice American cheese
light multigrain English muffin
water to drink

dinner

Spinach, low fat cottage cheese, light creamy Caesar

Pictures

                       March 17, 2013

 

Did I really just post these? Yes I did.

I think facing reality is important. THIS IS ME. THIS IS REAL.

THIS IS HOW I LOOK. 

and yes my butt is eating my pants

 

Sunday Stats

So today was weigh in and measurements (Every Sunday). This is the first weigh in. I will post both the starting numbers and today's results:

March 10, 2013- The Beginning

Waist = 40.5 in

Chest = 46.5 in

Hips = 44.5 in

Thigh = 26.75 in

Bicep 13.0 in

Calf = 15.0 in

Weight = 205.2 lbs

March 17, 2013 - Week 1

• Waist = 38.5 in
• Chest = 45.0 in
• Hips = 44.0 in
• Thigh = 27 in
• Bicep = 12.5 in
• Calf = 15.25 in
• Weight =199.6 lbs!!!!

Although I am not at all happy where I am at, I am so elated to finally be under 200 lbs (even if it is just a little bit). Crossing over into the 100's was just added motivation for the week to come!

Three things I did right last week:

1. I avoided Soda (I was very addicted to Diet Soda)*
2. I avoided fast food (other than subway)
3. I held myself accountable (starting a blog, food and exercise log, announcing my goals to others).

Three things I can improve this week:

1. Learn how to meal plan
2. Replace sweet n low with something natural (agave nectar or honey)
3. Take the stairs at work (which I always promise myself I will do, and then I don't)

*Since I have quit diet soda, my cravings for junk food/sweets has vanished. I used to have a major sweet tooth and I have not had any cravings. I even tried to give myself a craving (can you do that?) to test my will power (and my theory about diet soda being the cause of my strong sugar cravings) by staring down a Reese's peanut butter egg, but it didn't work. I didn't want it at all! A week ago I wouldn't have thought twice about eating that giant peanut butter egg and then washing it down with a giant diet soda.

I am really liking decaf herbal tea and green tea. Since I have quit diet soda, I have discovered new drinks that I really enjoy. I love relaxing with a nice, warm cup of tea.

My favorite right now is Bengal Spice tea with a splash of skim milk and honey.

I am also sleeping better at night since I have stopped drinking diet soda.

Quiting diet soda has been worth it and not as hard as I thought.

Thanks for checking in!

Riss

KettleWorx

 

 

     I got a workout in before work. I will be honest, I really didn't feel like doing it. I have to thank my husband for encouraging me (and for taking these awesome photos). I feel so much more energized now.
     Tomorrow is weigh in and measurements! Check back in to see my stats. I am going to be brave and hide nothing.
     Did the thought of working out pop into your head today? If so, did you workout? If you didn't, why not? What are you afraid of?
     I don't want to let fear get in my way anymore.

Thanks for stopping by and checking in!

Riss

lunch

6 inch cold cut combo on wheat
spinach,cucumbers, green peppers, banana peppers, tomato,oil and vinegar
baked BBQ lays
1/2 light lemonade and 1/2 water
I walked here again today- same as yesterday

New before picture

I am still trying to figure out this blog world. My original before pic was accidentally deleted. Here is a new one. Just as bad.

Put it in writing!

Nothing fancy but it works. I wish I had started doing this a long time ago. My husband and I started writing down everything we eat and any exercise that we complete everyday in this log. I do not want to ruin this nice log by writing something nasty in it (i.e. cupcake, brownie, McDonald's, cookie, soda, etc).

My hubs and I decided that every Sunday we would weigh in and measure ourselves to assess for progress. If the numbers go down- GREAT! If the numbers go up- We can refer to our log book to see where we went wrong and figure out a way to improve.

In the past I assumed keeping a log would be too much trouble and time consuming. But it really is not. Just keep it simple. It only takes a couple of minutes a day to fill it out.

Have you ever thought about keeping a food journal/log? What is holding you back from starting one?

Thanks for stopping by!

Riss

Breakfast

• 1/4 cup steel cut oats
• a few raisins
• 1 tablespoon almond butter
• skim milk
• 1 green apple

     I am the type of person who has to have breakfast. This is one of my favorites!

Before Picture

This is my before picture. This was taken February 22, 2013. This picture upsets me. I am smiling but I am not happy to be having my picture taken.

 I am looking forward to posting better pictures in the future.

For now, I am going to take my son for a walk to subway. 1.5 miles there so 3 miles round trip.

Sharing helps

     Trying to lose weight is nothing new for me. I have tried and failed, tried and failed, repeat, repeat, repeat.......you get it. I have read many times that keeping a food journal and telling others about your plans to get in shape are helpful tools when trying to lose weight. Even though I understood those tidbits of advice I never applied them to myself....until now. Which brings me here. In front of you. I want to share where I am, where I hope to be, and how I get there, with you!

What I plan to do:

• keep a daily food log
• weigh in and measure weekly
• post picures of myself on this journey here @ Reducing Riss
• Exercise at least 3 days per week

Before pictures coming soon!

I hope that you will follow me on this journey.

Welcome to Reducing Riss. Thanks for stopping by!