Wednesday Weigh in

Today I weight in like I do every Wednesday.  I thought that my numbers were going to be good.  I had been steadily losing weight since I started this blog, so I was surprise that this week I gained back two pounds.   I stepped off the scale and weighed myself again just to make sure. 

I don’t know what I did wrong this week.  I stuck to my diet.  I didn’t eat too much snacks or sweets this weekend.  I even started exercising more.  In fact, I exercised a lot this week.  My legs are so sore.  I know that I could have gained some muscle, but I know I didn’t gain two pounds worth of muscle. 

I am a little bloated.  It has been so hot outside and I have been retaining a lot of water, but there is nothing I can do about that.  Maybe I’m making up excuses for myself.  The numbers don’t lie; somehow I gained two pounds this week despite working hard. 

This is so frustrating.  I don’t know what to do.  Usually this is about the time that I give up.  I know that and am determined to keep going this time.  I am going to lose the weight this time.  I refuse to give up is my new motto. 

Yes, this is a setback.  But I keep reminding myself that this is a marathon, not a sprint.  I need to focus on the fact that I have lost some pounds from my starting weight.  That is what is important.  I need to work hard this coming week and focus on where I want to be, not the weight I gained back. 

weight lost: 3.5 pounds
weight to lose: 96.5 pounds

Diet Update- I can do this!

I have been doing this “No S Diet” for a while now and I really like it.  I think that is the main reason for my weight loss. My exercise routine hasn’t really changed that much, but my diet has.  With the “No S Diet” I am allowed sugar and snacks on the weekends, but this weekend I noticed that I didn’t want to eat sugar or snacks. 

Saturday night, I was drinking water with my dinner.  I didn’t even think about it until I noticed that I was doing it.  Normally, I would have been drinking lemonade like everyone else, but without thinking I had grabbed a bottle of water instead. 

When I noticed, I felt really proud of myself.  I made a healthy choice without even thinking about being healthy.  This is getting easier.  The diet is becoming part of my everyday life.  I think that eventually I won’t even need “S” days.  I want to get to the place where I don’t want sweets or snacks on my “S” days.  I think I can do that.

Now, I not saying that didn’t have a snack or two this weekend, but I wanted less.  I wasn’t tempted by ice cream and pop.  That is a big deal to me.  I think that I can live with this. 

Slow and Steady Wins the Race

I used to be a runner.  I decided to take up running again about three weeks ago.  Let me say that it is not going well.  I am getting very frustrated with it.  I never was fast.  I will probably never be fast.  I’m ok with that. 

Now, I am struggling with running at all.  I am out of breath, out of shape, and out of luck.  I struggle to get around the track (with is 2/3 mile) once without stopping.  I know that every time I go running is good for me, but I just feel like I’m not making any progress.

Yes, running makes me feel better.  I just wish that I was able to run.  Now, what I call running is actually a slow jog and it’s getting frustrating. 

I probably wouldn’t care about running slowly and having to walk every 1/3 mile if I wasn’t running outside.  I feel judged by everyone who is at the park or drives by.  People always turn their heads as they drive by to look at me.  I wish they wouldn’t do that.  It seems weird to me that they would feel the need to stare when I jog.  It makes me feel more self-conscious than I already am.

I guess that’s what it all comes down to- self-consciousness.  I hope that it gets better when I lose more weight. 

Wednesday Weigh In

Today is Wednesday and I was dreading weighing myself today.  I haven't seen as much change this week as I did the first two weeks, so I was afraid of what the scale might say.  In addition to that, I am not feeling good today.  My allergies have gotten the better of me, so I really didn't want a set back when feeling sick.  I'm not going to lie, I almost didn't weigh myself.  I was just going to "forget" to do it, but I'm glad I forced myself to step on that scale.

I was extremely surprised to see I had lost two more pounds!  I can't believe it.  I was feeling so fat this week, but I was really losing weight.  I'm so happy.  Now, if I could get rid of my allergies, I would feel great. 

I haven't weighed this weight in over a year.  I am so happy.  I still have a long way to go, but I feel like I can do it.  I can't wait until I can wear my old jeans from two years ago.  When I can do that, I may have to have a party.

weight lost: 5.5 lbs.
weight to lose: 94.5 lbs.

Crockpot Stuffed Peppers

While trying to lose weight, I try and eat vegetables a lot, so I am always looking for new recipes to try.  Otherwise, eating salads everyday gets boring and I'm more likely to cheat on my diet.  I saw this recipe on Pinterest and decided to try it.  

I wish mine were as picturesque as the picture from pinterest.

It took about a half hour of prep time and two hours cook time.  I didn’t use green chiles.  Just a personal preference.  I also used a Boca burger that I crumbled up instead of tempeh because I didn’t have any.  I also didn't add cheese to make it more healthy.

When I was amazed that this recipe made exactly the about of filling I needed.  There was no leftover filling!  That’s almost impossible to do. I must have pepper stuffing skills because I made it work.

Anyways, the peppers were delicious.  I am definitely going to be making these again. The best part is that they cook in a crockpot, so its easy to do.

Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

Serves 4

Ingredients:

 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

 4 cloves garlic, minced
 1/2 onion, finely chopped
 1 (8-ounce) package tempeh, crumbled
 Unrefined sea salt, to taste
 1 teaspoon paprika
 2 pinches cayenne pepper
 1 teaspoon cumin
 1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
 11/2 cups good-quality, all-natural prepared marinara sauce
 1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles
 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
 1 (14.5-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
 4 red bell peppers, tops removed and seeded
 1/2 cup shredded, low-fat organic cheddar cheese

 Instructions:

 1.  Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet to medium-high; add garlic and onion, and sautée until onion is just tender, about 3-4 minutes. Add the tempeh and sautée for 3-4 minutes. Season onion and tempeh with salt to taste. Mix in the paprika, cayenne pepper, cumin, and corn kernels.

 2. In a small bowl, whisk together the marinara sauce and green chiles. Pour the marinara–green chile mixture into the skillet with the tempeh; mix well to combine. Stir in the cilantro and black beans.

 3. Stuff the peppers with the tempeh mixture. Arrange the peppers in a 5- or 6-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook the peppers on high for 2 hours or on low for 4 hours.

4. Remove the lid and top the peppers with the shredded cheese, replace the cover, and cook on high for 15-20 additional minutes. Allow peppers to cool 10-15 minutes before serving. Serve warm.

Losing a pound

To lose a pound, a person must burn 3500 calories.  I thought it would be interesting to figure out how long I would have to do an exercise to lose a pound.  This website has a calculator to help determine just that.  All I had to do was put in my weight and age and it gave me an approximation of how long I would have to do a certain exercise to lose a pound.  Here are the highlights.

I would have to:

Run at 12mph for 84 minutes.

Do the elliptical trainer for 166 minutes.

Play basketball 1/2 court for 230 minutes.

Walk up stairs for 234 minutes.

Chop wood for 310 minutes.

Sleep for 2,040 minutes. 

I don’t know think I could chop wood for 310 minutes.  However, some of the other activities are much more doable especially if you divide the minutes so you can lose a pound in 7 days.  I think that it is very interesting to see how the activities compare by calories burned.  I will definitely be using this site to help plan my weekly activities.

Progress

I am so excited because I weighed myself today.  I’m going to try to weigh myself every Wednesday.  I am officially down 3.5 pounds since I started two weeks ago.  I know that it’s not much, but it’s a start.  It’s more than I have lost in a long time.  I am so proud of myself.  This new diet and exercise program that I have started myself on is working.

I have worked so hard these last two weeks and it’s such a good feeling to know that all my hard work is starting to pay off.  3.5 pounds is so close to my goal of two pounds a week.  I’m not quite there yet, but I am hopeful to lose so much more.  I look forward to the day that I see progress when I look in the mirror, not just on the scale.

I must confess that I did kind of cheat on my diet yesterday.  I felt so bad about it.  Last night, I realized that I had forgotten to take my pill which I am supposed to take with food.  I tried to take it without eating anything as soon as I realized that I forgot it.  However, within a few minutes, I began to feel sick, so I ate a piece of cheese that was not part of a meal.  I felt so much better except for the guilt of not following my diet.  I know that it’s not a big deal. I just worry that one exception will lead to more and that will be the end of my willpower.

I think that is way I am so happy with my weight today.  I need something to keep me excited and wanting to work towards my goal.  I need to stay on track. 

Weight lost: 3.5 lbs.

Weight to lose: 96.5 lbs.

Tiffany Rothe Workouts

So this last weekend I discovered Tiffany Rothe workouts on Youtube.  They are so much fun that they don’t even feel like workouts.  I seriously am in love with them.  They are easy to do but I am so sore.  I didn’t feel stiff until the next day.  She has a lot of videos on her website, tiffanyrotheworkouts.com.

They are just what I want in workout videos.  They are short, easy, and get the job done.  My abs have never been this sore and I didn’t even think I was working out that hard.  Amazing.  I would definitely try "The 10 Minute Booty Shaking Workout.”  It's so much fun and such a good work out.

Coffee and Weight Loss

So I no longer am drinking juice because of the sugar in it.  I have replaced juice with coffee in the morning.  While it doesn’t have sugar in it (I drink it black), I was still wondering if it was good for me and if it would hinder my weight loss.  So I did some research.

I found that there are differing thoughts about coffee and weight loss.  Some places say that the caffeine acts as a stimulant and helps boast your metabolism.  Others say that caffeine increases insulin resistance which makes it more difficult to lose weight.  While I couldn’t find reasoning behind the idea that caffeine causes insulin resistance, I can attest to the fact that coffee gives me energy.  I use that energy to work out longer and more often, so I would have to say that it does help based on my own experiences.

I don’t know if it really does me any good to drink coffee, but I like it.  I don’t add sugar or cream or flavors to it, so I figure that it can’t do me any harm.  I think that it is interesting that there are so many differing opinions on how coffee affects weight loss. 

Shopping

Yesterday, I did something that I love and hate- shopping. I love looking at clothes and making outfits, but I hate trying clothes on.  It is an extremely frustrating experience.  I know that they say to not pay attention to size because sizes vary from store to store and style to style. But to me, size does matter.  If a pair of pants is a little too tight, I would much rather not buy them then to buy the next size up. 

Pants are my biggest issue.  They never fit right.  I have short legs and hold all my weight in my hips.  If a pair of pants fit my hips, they are most likely going to be too big in my legs.  I just have to deal with that.  But that is why I only own three pairs of pants-jeans, black pants, and khakis. 

Yesterday, I decided to skip the pants.  I was determined to have a good shopping trip with my friends and not feel bad about myself.  So I only tried on shirts.  Bravely, I decided to try on a shirt that I tried on last month.  I didn’t buy it then because it was just a tad too tight and I was too stubborn to buy the next size up.  This time, it fit so much better, so I bought it.  I love that shirt and am so glad that it fits me now.  It makes me feel better.  I know that the scale hasn’t moved that much, but I feel a lot skinnier now.  I have noticed that my double chin has gotten smaller, too.  Yay!

Weight Lost:2 lbs.

Weight to lose:98 lbs.

No S Diet- day 3

So it is now the third official day of the “No S Diet.” It’s been super easy so far.  I don’t even have to think about it.  It doesn’t feel like I’m even on a diet.   The only thing that I miss is juice.  I enjoy lemonade or orange juice almost every day, so it’s been the only thing I miss. I know they are basically all sugar and calorie-filled so this is good that I have stopped drinking pointless calories.

 I do have to say that my skin looks so good.  If I had known that no eating or drinking sweets would solve my acne problems, I would have done this years ago.  I woke up on the second day and all my pimples were gone.  This morning, I noticed that my dark spots were lighter.  My skin is glowing. I love it.

I don’t think I have lost any real weight from this yet, but I would keep doing this just for the better skin.  I do hope that this diet will help me lose weight even though I think it may take a while since the changes aren’t that drastic. 

No S Diet

                I recently came across a diet that seems so simple that it is common sense.  It’s called “The No S Diet.”  Basically, you only eat ‘s’ foods- sweets, seconds, snacks- on days that start with S- Saturday, Sunday, Special days.  I can’t believe that this had to be a diet plan.  You just eat meals- no extras except on the weekends or special days like birthdays, holidays, and such.

                I like that there are no banned foods.  Sure, you shouldn’t eat a cookie on a Wednesday, but Sunday you can have all the cookies you want.  It hardly seems like a diet at all.  “The No S Diet” just takes will-power. The scariest part of it seems to be that you have to face that you don’t eat only 3 meals a day and the extras- the s’s- are what is making you fat.  I think it will be very ugly and sad for me to face the reality of the amount of snacking I do.

                Anyways, I started this diet on Saturday, but today was the first real day of dieting.  I kind of like a diet where you don’t start dieting until day 3.  I feel good about this.  It’s a no-brainer, but it is early in the day.  I don’t start to snack and be unhealthy until after dinner, so that will be when I feel it the most. 

                “The No S Diet” just seems so simple that it seems fail-proof.  You are allowed at least two cheat days a week.  That’s 2/7 a week.    My grandpa started it and it is helping him lose weight.  If my grandpa can do it, surely I can.  Wish me luck.  I’ll let you know how it’s going.

Weight lost: 1.5 lbs

Weight to lose:98.5 lbs

Day 3

                Today I ran. Not far, but I still ran. Ok.  So I ran/walked for 30 minutes, but I mostly ran and it felt great.   I’m already sore and feeling pretty stiff as I sit here typing this.  However, it’s a good kind of sore like I have accomplished something. 

 I used to run all the time. In fact, about two years ago, I was training slowly for a marathon.  Yesterday’s post made me think of schedules.   After posting I remembered that I did quite well following my marathon training schedule.  That is, until my car accident.  Maybe it was because I had a goal to work towards. 

So, I have decided to start running again.  I’m pretty out of shape, so I won’t be running a marathon anytime soon.  I have decided to start a 5k training schedule.  It is seven weeks long.  I don’t expect to run a 5k quickly.  I just want to finish it.  I think that will give me a short term goal to focus on and hopefully aid in my weight loss goals. 

No excuses

One of my biggest problems with losing weight is boredom.  I can do great with an exercise program for about a week or two.  Then, I get bored for doing the same movements over and over.  Even when I try to make a schedule that varies in the exercises, I still can’t find the interest after a while.

I get so excited for the first week.  I think that this will be it.  I have finally found a schedule that I can work with, but after a while the same thing happens.  Something comes up and I have to skip a day.  Then, it all goes downhill from there.

This time, I will not give up.  I made this blog to motivate and force myself to not give up.  There will be no excuses.  I am going to make this a priority and not just for a week or two.  I will see this through.  I have had enough of sabotaging myself with poorly made excuses.  I deserve this.

How am I going to do this?  I am going to set aside time every day to work out.  I will join a gym (when I spend money on a gym membership, I am sure to go.  I hate wasting money).  I will make a diet and stick to it.  I am a vegetarian and sometimes I get sucked into lazy vegetarian foods like mac ‘n cheese.  I need to focus and remain driven which will be the most difficult part for me. 

day 1

Today I have decided to create a blog about my weight loss.  I hope that this will motivate me to lose weight faster.  I have always been overweight, but in the last two years, it has gone from bad to worse.  I weighed the same amount from the age of 15 until I was 22.  I was not happy at that weight, but at least it was manageable.  I was overweight, but I was healthy.   It started when I was in a car accident that left me with a minor spinal injury.  I could not exercise for about six months and that was the start of the extreme weight gain.  By the time I could finally work out again, I had gained so much weight that I don’t know how I can ever lose it all.  I am so sick of being fat.  I feel sad and alone in this battle.

I have tried so many things that didn’t work out. No pun intended.  Before the accident, I was running 30 miles a week.  Now, it is so difficult to even run one mile.  The extra weight has slowed me down.  None of my clothes fit anymore.  The other day, my mom gave me a pair of pants.  I tried them on and they fit.  I was devastated when I saw the size of them.  I sat down and cried.  I never dreamed I would be this overweight. 

I don’t feel like going out anymore.  I don’t want anyone I know to see me.  It’s embarrassing.  I just want to have a better quality of life.  I need to and will lose 100 pounds.  I don’t want to waste any more time being fat.  I want to be able to be a carefree 20-something, but I feel so self-conscious all the time that I can’t be the person I want to be.

Weight to lose: 100

Weight lost: 0