Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 1/2 cups bran cereal
                 1 banana
                 1 cup skim milk
      
Lunch- 1 grilled chicken wrap (Wendy's)
            water (16.9 oz)

Dinner- 1 slice pepperoni pizza (Dominoes)
             water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 peppermint patty

Not a good eating day at all.

No exercise today either and tomorrow is weigh in day and its not looking good right now.

Countdown

I just realized there are only 30 days left until New Years.  This last month has been really stressful and even though I've continued to lose weight I still don't feel like I'm doing my best.  I know I should be happy with what I've accomplished so far but its hard not to see where I've messed up and wished I could have done better.  I want to end this year on a positive note so I need to really dig deep and get back on track.  I was hoping to be under 200 lbs by New Years but I see now thats not going to happen but thats ok because in 30 days I can get alot closer to that goal then I am right now.  I have my sons birthday party coming up in the middle of the month and then Christmas dinner but I'm really not that concerned about these events.  I do need to get back to the basics and start watching my carbs, sugar and sodium intake and increase my fiber, fruits, vegetables and water intake.  Its going to get harder for me to exercise outside as it gets colder so I'm thinking of joining the YMCA so I always have a place to workout.  I don't want to give myself any reason to be lazy.  I was thinking earlier how long I've been on my weight loss journey and how I haven't had one week where I have gained.  I just checked and thats 15 weeks of straight losses but yet I beat myself up for not doing better.  This is the first time in my life that I'm eating right and exercising and losing weight in a healthy way so why am I always complaining?  Does anyone else feel like what they are doing isn't good enough?  Why do we do this to ourselves?  Its no wonder we keep losing and gaining the weight back our self esteem is shot.  I'm starting back to counseling soon and this is going to be one of the issues I work on is my self esteem and confidence.  Until I have these qualities I don't think I'm going to be successful at anything in life because if I don't believe in myself who else is going to.  So I'm challenging everyone else including myself to make these last 30 days of the year the best so far.  Lets start the New Years off with a bang.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 1/2 cups bran cereal
                 1 cup skim milk

Lunch- 1 banana
            handful of dorito chips
            water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 2 sugar cookies
Dinner- spaghetti noodles w/ meat sauce
            1 slice garlic bread
            water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 1/2 cups bran cereal
            1 cup skim milk
Eating still wasn't back on track today but better than I had been eating.

I walked 2.1 miles in 29 minutes around my neighborhood for exercise today.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 cinnamon toast milk and cereal bar
                 water (16.9 oz)

Lunch- small salad w/ ranch dressing
            1/4 cup glazed carrots
            1/2 cup roasted green beans
            1/2 pinto beans
            1 slice salisbury steak
            1/2 cup crab salad
            1 piece of chocolate cake w/ vanilla ice
            cream, chocolate syrup and nuts
            1/2 cup cheesecake
            water (16.9 oz)

Dinner- 1 slice garlic bread
             water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 M&M cookie

Today wasn't a good eating day and I was very tempted to purge after I ate lunch.  While I was eating those same old thoughts were in my head on how I could just binge and then go home and get rid of it but when I got done eating I knew I couldn't do that.  I'm about 9 months out from my last purging episode and there is noway I want to start over with day 1 again.  I figured I could just make up for what I ate by skipping dinner. 

No exercise today because it has been raining all day.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 cup bran cereal
                 1 banana
                 1 cup skim milk
                 water (16.9 oz)

Lunch- 2 blueberry pancakes w/ butter and syrup
            water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 banana

Dinner- 1 fish filet
             water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 peppermint patty

Eating wasn't good today but I'm trying to get back on track.

I took the day off from exercise.

Update Pics

Last time I posted my weight loss pics was when I had lost 20 lbs.  As of this morning I'm down 32.4 lbs so I thought it was time to post some new pics.  First pic is when I started my weight loss journey at 247 lbs and second pic was just taken just a few minutes ago and I weigh 214.6 lbs now.

I know there are some differences but I'm still disappointed in my progress, I'm just ready to not be fat anymore.



Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 cup bran cereal
                 1 banana
                 1 cup skim milk
                 water (16.9 oz)

Lunch- 1 slice turkey
            1 cup stuffing
            1 cup mashed potatoes
            1/2 cup gravy
            1 slice cranberry sauce
            water (16.9 oz)

Thats all I will be eating today I just don't think I will feel like eating dinner.

I walked 3 miles in 42 minutes around my neigborhood for my exercise.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 cajun chicken filet biscuit (Bojangles)
                 1 order fries (Bojangles)
                 12 oz diet pepsi

Lunch- salad w/ ranch dressing
            water (16 oz)

Todays eating wasn't so great but at least I ate more than yesterday.

My exercise for the day was hiking Chimney Rock which wasn't but about a 2 mile long trail but it was a workout.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 2 blueberry pancakes w/ butter
                 and syrup
                 8 oz chocolate milk

Short and sweet thats all I've had to eat.  Life has pretty much hit hard today and I'm just to depressed to eat.  There are things going on that are out of my control and I don't like not being in control.  I honestly just want to curl up in a ball and cry myself to sleep.  I did manage to walk/jog 1.4 miles today only because I thought it might help relieve some of what I'm going through.  Maybe tomorrow will be a better day.  I also weighed in this morning and I had lost 2.2 lbs for the week so at least thats a little good news.

Goals, Challenges and Weigh In Updates

I decided to keep all my challenges and goals together in one post to make it easier to track everything. I know it seems like I have taken on alot but its keeps me motivated and keeps me busy so I don't think about food so much. Updates are in red.


Weight loss goals (2 lbs a week):
November 30, 2010- 213 lbs (I weigh 216 lbs)
December 28, 2010- 205 lbs (42 lb loss for Christmas would make it a very merry Christmas)
January 25, 2011- 197 lbs
February 22, 2011- 189 lbs (under 200 for valentines how sweet that would be)
March 22, 2011- 181 lbs
April 19, 2011- 173 lbs
May 17, 2011- 165 lbs (it would be nice to celebrate our 5 year anniversary with me at this weight)
June 14, 2011- 157 lbs
July 12, 2011- 149 lbs ( 2 days before my birthday what a wonderful birthday present to myself)
August 9, 2011- 141 lbs (this would be the smallest I have ever been)

Recommended Daily Allowances:
(not really a challenge but something I need to keep an eye on)
Calories: 1760 to lose 2 lbs a week
Fat: 64 grams
Fiber: 25 grams
Carbohydrates: 300 grams
Sugar: 40 grams
Protein: 50 grams
Sodium: 2400 milligrams

Exercise:
I have challenged myself to walk a 160 miles by New Years. I am using the ticker on the right side of my blog to keep track of how far I have walked.
(I have walked 119 miles so far in this challenge.)

Hot 100 Challenge:
Steve from http://logmyloss.com/ is hosting the Hot 100 Challenge. The Hot 100 is a challenge focused on the last 100 days of 2010 beginning September 23, 2010. Here are my goals:
#1....This was my own personal challenge anyway so I'm adding it as my first goal here.....walk 160 miles by New Years.
(I have walked 119 miles so far.)
#2....Continue to eat healthy and exercise so I can lose 20 lbs by New Years. Beginning weight 235.4 lbs.
(I have lost 19.4 lbs so far.)
#3....Make it through the holiday season without falling back into old eating patterns.
(I made it through a Thanksgiving without overeating so I'm doing pretty good so far.)

Monthly Goals (11/1/10-11/31/10):
(my own personal goals)
1. Water- My goal has been to drink 128 oz of water a day but I still have not managed to accomplish this so that is my first goal I'm going to work on this month. (I have still yet to hit this goal)
2. Sugar- I have greatly reduced my sugar intake already but its still something I need to continue to work on. (The last week I ate way to much sugar, definitely got to work on this goal)
3. Fruits- I love fruits especially sweet fruits like bananas, apples and grapes but I have learned that fruits have alot of natural sugar in them so you do need to watch how much you eat so my goal this month is to continue to keep my fruit intake to a maximum of 1-2 servings per day. (I haven't been doing to good on this goal)
4. Vegetables- I have always been a vegetable eater but I have had to learn to replace some of my carbs like macaroni and cheese and mashed potatoes with vegetables instead. I am learning to try new vegetables that I've never had before to add some variety into my eating and vegetables really are good for you and help to fill you up. So I plan on continuing to try at least one new vegetable and make sure I get my daily servings of veggies in. (Lately I haven't been eating as many veggies so I need to work on this)
5. Carbohydrates- This is probably one of my favorite types of foods, I mean who doesn't love macaroni and cheese and pasta dishes and breads but if you aren't careful these types of food can put alot of weight on you. So I plan on continuing to really watch my intake of carbs. (This last week I ate way to many carbs, time to get back on track)
6. Exercise- I have been doing really good at exercise but I am adding that as one of my goals so that I make sure I continue to get all of my exercise in. I am challenging myself to walk/jog 5-6 days a week and at least 15 miles a week. (This last week I only got in 13 miles)
7. Soda- I have mainly been drinking water but I have been sneaking in a couple diet sodas a week and I want to completely give up sodas this month. (I drank a couple diet sodas this last week)
8. Fast Food- I try to pick the healthiest thing when I get fast food but like a friend pointed out to me no fast food is healthy. I'm only picking out the least unhealthy thing on the menu so this is definitely something I need to give up. So my last goal is to completely avoid fast food this next month. (I have eaten to much fast food this last week)

I Refuse to Blow it Over the Holidays Challenge:
This challenge is being hosted by Erika at http://wwwfatlikeme.blogspot.com/2010_09_01_archive.html . Its just a personal challenge not to overeat during the holidays. You just keep track of how much weight you have lost from the first day of fall until after New Years. My beginning weight was 235.4 lbs.

(I have lost 19.4 lbs so far in this challenge.)

I know this seems like alot of goals and challenges but they all kind of fit together I just want to be able to update all of them on the same day to make it easier for me to remember.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 cup bran cereal
                 1 banana
                 1 cup skim milk
                 water (16.9 oz)

Dinner- 1 cup mashed potatoes
             1 cup stuffing
             1/4 cup gravy
             1 cup green beans
             1 slice turkey
             1 small slice pecan pie
             water (16.9 oz)

My eating was really good today considering it was Thanksgiving.  I didn't cook a Thanksgiving dinner and neither did my mom because she had to work so after she got off work we all went out to eat.  We went to an all you can eat buffet which was serving Thanksgiving dinner and as you can see from what I listed above I did really, really good at not overeating.  I don't know lately I haven't been that hungry and I've been staying super busy cleaning my house from top to bottom and rearranging every room.  I just don't have any urge to eat which I guess is a good thing as long as I don't starve myself.

I also didn't exercise today because I did walk 5 miles yesterday and I've been cleaning and moving furniture all day so I figure that burnt off some calories.  My weigh in day is tomorrow and I'm hoping for a really big loss.

I'm Thankful.....

Usually on Thanksgiving I'm focused on pigging out to the point of being in a turkey induced coma but this Thanksgiving is about more to me.  I try to be a positive person year around but alot of times even I start whining about the negatives in my life.  No my life isn't where I want it to be right now but at least I have the opportunity to change that.  I'm so thankful for being able to go back to school and make a better life for myself and my kids.  I'm thankful that I have 3 wonderful, happy, healthy sons who drive me crazy sometimes but I wouldn't trade them for anything.  I'm thankful that I have a family who is always there when I need help even after all of the mistakes I have made in life.  I'm thankful that I have a roof over my head, food in my belly and the freedom to enjoy life.  I'm also thankful for the finding this weight loss blogging community and making so many wonderful and supportive friends.  I would not have made it as far as I have if it wasn't for everyone that has been here to motivate and encourage me.  Lastly I'm thankful that I have finally found the strength to take control of my life and become a better person spiritually, mentally and physically.  We don't realize how lucky we are to be born into a country where we have the freedom to pursue anything we want in life.  But today is a day to give thanks and I'm definitely thankful for the life I have.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 2 cups bran cereal
                 1 cup skim milk
                 water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 banana

            water (16.9 oz)

Dinner- taco salad w/ crushed taco shells, meat,
             refried beans, cheese and sour cream
             water (16.9 oz)
             water (16.9 oz)

I didn't eat that much today because I stayed so busy cleaning that I just forgot to eat.

For my exercise I walked 5 miles in 68 minutes around my neighborhood.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 2 cups bran cereal
                 1 cup skim milk
                 water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 8 oz chocolate milk

Lunch- Grilled chicken sandwich (Wendy's)
            water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 small bowl fat free chocolate ice cream

Dinner- 1 bowl beef stroganoff
            water (16.9 oz)

I think I'm finally getting back on track with my eating and exercise.  Life is getting back to normal and I'm forming a new routine.  I've had to let go of a few things I can't change in my life to focus on the things that I can and it feels good to be able to be in control again.

I was really motivated to exercise today so I walked 2.1 miles in 30 minutes around my neighborhood, rode my bike 2 miles and did 100 crunches. 

Friday is my official weigh in day but I weighed today and the scale showed 216.6 lbs which is the lowest I have been so far.  I'm hoping by Friday I have lost even more.  I refuse to let Thanksgiving stand in my way of having a big loss this week.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 cup bran cereal
                 1/4 cup chopped mixed nuts
                 1 cup skim milk
                 water (16.9 oz)

Lunch- 1 bowl spaghetti noodles w/ meat sauce
            water (16.9 oz)

Dinner- chicken salad on 2 slices whole wheat bread
             water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 small bowl fat free chocolate ice cream

Eating was good today but I took the day off from exercise.

A very productive day but what now?

I haven't been sleeping good this last week.  Last night I woke up at 2:30 and couldn't get back to sleep so I started working on some of my household chores I had to do.  I've already cleaned my house spotless from one end to the other which is a great thing but I don't have to be at school today so what do I do now?  Its weird when my husband was still living here I never stayed on top of things like this but now that he's gone I keep everything done.  I've never been so productive before so why don't I feel a sense of accomplishment?  Instead I sit around here moping because I don't have enough to do.  I never thought I would wish to have a job but it would be nice to have something to do everyday and bring in extra money on top of that.  I just can't wait until I finish up school so I can go to work.  I do have to exercise in alittle while and run a few errands so that should take up some of my time but its going to be a long day. 
Changing the subject yesterday I went bike riding with my kids.  Its been a very long time since I've been on a bike and its alot harder than I remember.  Well last night I kept having these pains in kind of a private area if you know what I mean, it felt like I was bruised or something.  I couldn't figure out what I had done to cause this but this morning it hit me it was from bike riding.  Will getting a different seat help this or does it just take sometime to get use to riding a bike?  I wanted to ride again today but I don't know how comfortable its going to be if I try.  I may just do it every other day.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 cup bran cereal
                 1/4 cup chopped mixed nuts
                 1 banana
                 1 cup skim milk
                 water (16.9 oz)

Lunch- veggie burger, no mayo or cheese (Burger King)
            12 oz chocolate milk
            water (16.9 oz)

Dinner- 1 bowl of spaghetti noodles w/ meat sauce
            1 slice garlic bread
            water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 small bowl fat free chocolate ice cream

I'm really proud of how good I ate this weekend.  I can always make improvements but considering how I've been eating lately I did really well.

Today was a great day for exercise.  I ended up walking/jogging 2.1 miles in 27 minutes around my neighborhood.  Then I rode 2 miles on my bike and did 100 crunches.  I also took the kids to the park and there is a track there which is a mile long and we walked that once.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 cup bran cereal
                 1 banana
                 1 cup skim milk
                 water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1/4 cup mixed nuts

Lunch- tuna fish on 2 slices whole wheat bread
           water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 cup applesauce

Dinner- chicken salad on 2 slices whole wheat bread
             1/2 cup roasted yellow squash
             water (16.9 oz)

Eating was really good today especially since I have been up since 3:30 AM so its been a very long, boring day.

I walked 2.1 miles in 30 minutes around my neighborhood this morning at 7:30 AM.  It felt so good to be out in a coat and gloves when it was cold outside and get my exercise over with.

Healthy Changes?

I would like to know what kind of healthy changes you have made since starting your weight loss journey.  Here is a list of what I have changed.

1.   I walk 5-6 days a week for a total of 10-12 miles.
2.   I'm doing 100 crunches every other day.
3.   I've replaced soda with water.
4.   I'm trying my best to avoid fast food.
5.   I'm eating more veggies and fruits.
6.   I replaced regular cooking oil with olive oil.
7.   I eat a handful of nuts each day.\
8.   I'm taking a mulitivitamin.
9.   I'm taking vitamin D to help with the days I'm depressed and don't feel like doing anything.
10  I've reduced my serving sizes.
11. I drink skim milk instead of whole milk.
12. I'm working on building up my stamina to jog.
13. I eat whole wheat bread instead of white bread.
14. I bake, broil, roast or boil everything, no frying.

I'm sure there are more things but thats all I can think of right now.  I was just wondering what changes everyone else has made.  Maybe we can all learn a few tips from each other.

Food and Exercise Journal

Breakfast- 1 cup bran cereal
                 1 cup skim milk
                 water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 banana

Lunch- 3 slices turkey, 1 slice cheese and honey
            mustard on 2 slices whole wheat bread
            water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 cup lowfat yogurt

Dinner- 1/2 cup roasted broccoli
            1 cup roasted yellow squash and onions
            1/2 cup baked beans
            1/2 cup corn
            1 cup green beans
            5 oz roasted chicken
            1 deviled egg
            water (16.9 oz)

Snack- 1 fiber one bar

Eating was really good today, I really tried to make sure I didn't overeat or anything I wasn't suppose to.

I walked/jogged 2.1 miles in 25 minutes around my neighborhood earlier today.  I was so proud of myself because I timed my run and I ran .6 miles in 7 minutes which included 3 hills, thats the best I've done so far.