I'm still puttin' along!

Well, here it is starting week 4 and I have lost almost 15 pounds. That is pretty darn good. I have been slacking the last week or so, but that's ok, I'm not being totally bad. I have still been doing some Denise Austin and trying to make good choices on food, but haven't always made the right ones.

I'm fluxuating on my weight right now, but at least I'm smart enough to know that if I went back to my old ways, it would come back and I don't want it to, so I won't let it.

Today is my not counting food day!

We have company, so when we have company in from out of town, we have to take them to Lamberts Cafe. There is no way to go there and stay on any sort of weight loss regime. So I knew from the time I got up that today was a free day.

I had 2 rolls, one with molasses on it, 2 slices of prime rib, cucumbers in vinegar, a couple of sliced peaches and then we stopped and got some sweet tea after going to Target.

Did I mention I went to Target? I needed to buy a black button up shirt for work. I don't know if they make them for women right now. Black is out, I think brown is the new black. Anyway, I got a man's button up shirt and a new pair of slacks. I tried on the pants before buying them. I took a size 16 and a size 14 into the dressing room with me. I decided to try the 14s on first and VOILA!!!!!! They fit!!!!!! I didn't even have to suck in my gut to button them!!!
I'm looking good!!!!

It's all about the choices you make!!

Today, I had to make a choice to work out, because I almost didn't want to, but I didn't yesterday, so I knew I needed to. So I did!

I picked Samantha up at school and took her to run an errand this afternoon. I hadn't eaten lunch yet, so we went to Sonic. I soooooo wanted a foot long chile cheese coney and a vanilla coke. I ordered a grilled chicken wrap and a fat free strawberry banana smoothie. I also got a vanilla coke, but I only took one drink of it and threw it away. I made the right choices today!!!

My Ass!!!

Yup, you read that right!! I am damn proud of that. Let me tell you why: Over the course of the last 3 weeks I've worked pretty hard and I've had some ups and downs. But tonight and the other night at work, I had two, count them two guys tell me that they can see a difference in my ass! WHOO HOO!!!! So I thought I would share it with ya:

That's it!!! Big and round and getting smaller apparently.

Let me tell you how I've been doing since I blogged last here. Let's see when I last left here, I had a semi bad day, but I didn't let it get to me. Saturday, I got up and had to go to a training day for work and I didn't get up early enough to exercise. I did eat good all day though. I worked that night and got home about 12:30 and had to be back to work at noon on Sunday, so again, no work out. Then Sunday I pretty much blew everything off. I ate everything in sight. I didn't work out, but who cares. I took the day off from the journey.

Monday, right back on. I got up and had an access bar drink and then I did half an hour of Denise Austin. Had a Proflex 30 shake and went to work. I ate well. Tuesday, I got up and had an Access Bar drink, and helped out in the garden. I unloaded a truck full of compost. It was heavy and it was hot outside. Mom and I both got a great workout from it. Then tonight after I got home, I did another Access Bar and a full hour of Denise Austin.

Tonight as I was driving home, I thought about stopping somewhere for food. That would have been the choice I would have made in the past, but tonight, I didn't even give in to that temptation. I feel like I am growing and learning. It's about the choices we make, right!! Tonight I made the right choice. I chose to come home and have an access bar and work out. It would have been very easy to go through any drive thru, trust me, I drove past quite a few of them that were still open. BUT I DIDN'T STOP!!!!!!!

I also came home and watched The Biggest Loser. I love that show. This is the second season and if you haven't seen it, and you are into health and losing weight and reality shows. Give it a shot. There are some amazing changes of people on that show. Of course if you have a personal trainer and gym to work in 24 hours a day, we can all have those dramatic results. But most of us don't have access to that. I do however have a personal trainer: Denise Austin and she tells me so everytime I do her workout.

Well, that's tonight's weight loss journey blog. Enjoy, I know I am!!!

Today was not the greatest,

but I ended it well. It started out as a lazy day. I woke up and took Samantha up to the bus stop and came back to bed until after noon. Then I gut up enough to go get a cheese stick and make a canadian bacon sandwich on an english muffin. Then I got back in bed and watched 2 episodes of Six Feet Under. Mom made popcorn and we each had a small bowl of it.

I got up and went to work without working out. I did have a hot fudge sundae after work, and then came home and did 1/2 hour of Denise Austin. So not completely lost. Hey for 2 1/2 weeks, I've been good. I don't feel guilty about what I did. I'm not going to throw it all away now. I will be good again, I just needed some chocolate. I actually turned into the Sonic to get a vanilla coke, but I didn't get one. So for me, that was a good thing.

If you don't squeeze it, nobody else will!!

That's what Denise Austin said when doing Bun work. Squeezing those buttocks. Whoo Hoo!!!

Yesterday began week 3! It also began Mom's journey. She started doing Denise Austin with me and also watching what she eats. She's never really had a problem with her eating, but she has been pretty sedintary this summer since it was too hot to go work in the yard.

As of this morning, I have lost 11.8 pounds. I'm not doing Atkins now. I've added some carbs back in. I'm only eating them for my first meal though. I'm combining Carbs/Proteins and then Proteins/Fats for the later foods.

I'm still using the Access Bars before working out, so I haven't really had sore muscles and I do feel myself going longer and harder on workouts. The weight is still coming off. Mom says she sees a difference in my clothes. I don't yet, but I am happy to see the numbers going down on the scale.

I am also doing Proflex 30 shakes for protein, Fiberwise for fiber and also the Attain shakes occasionally.

I haven't missed a day of exercise yet. I know that is making the biggest difference. I've always noticed when I've tried to lose weight before that when I did exercise, whether it was in the Army with no choice or if I did it on purpose, I saw better results. I'm not stopping this time.

Exercise is worth it because I am worth it!

I woke up yesterday with my head stuffed up from allergies and really just wanted to blow off exercising, but I knew if I blew off one day, it would make it easier to blow off two days. Sooooooo, I got up and I did a half an hour of Denise Austin and I felt so much better after.

This morning, I added the Access Bar to the mix. I had one before I worked out today and I ended up doing an hour instead of half an hour. I feel great after. So now, I am doing the whole Melaleuca weight loss program except for the Attain. I am doing the Proflex 30 shakes after working out. I'm also using the fiberwise drinks. So now with the Access bars, I will be looking forward to seeing greater results.

Going to research the GI diet

I picked up today's Woman's World and it had a small article about the GI diet, so I'm going to look it up on the internet, will post some stuff if it seems blogworthy.

updated 10:14 pm same day
I got this from www.gidiet.com

Developed by Dr. David Jenkins, a professor of nutrition at the University of Toronto, the G. I. measures the speed at which foods are broken down by the body to form glucose, the body’s source of energy. High G.I. foods break down quickly and leave you looking for the next food fix. Low G. I. foods break down more slowly and leave you feeling fuller, longer. It is these low G.I. foods that form the core of the diet.

Most high GI foods such as those made from white flour are heavily processed where the essential nutrients have been stripped away. Conversely, low GI foods such as fruits, vegetables, nuts, legumes, whole grains, lean meat/fish and low fat dairy are rich in nutrients essential for your good health.

The G.I. Diet makes all the calculations for you by listing all foods in three traffic light color categories: red light foods which you avoid if you want to lose weight; yellow light listings are foods that are to be used occasionally; and green light foods – eat as much as you like.

In short, the G.I.Diet will not let you go hungry or feel deprived. It is simplicity itself for as one journalist put it ‘if you can follow a traffic light, you can follow this diet’. Finally it will not harm your health like many of today’s diets, but rather will actually reduce your risk from heart disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes, colon and prostate cancer. With recipes, snacks ideas, pull out shopping list, pantry and dining out guides, the G.I. Diet will be the way you will eat for the rest of your life.

This actually sounds very interesting--on to do more reading.

Exercising!

Monday morning, I was enjoying a lazy morning and was having a hard time getting out of bed to do my Denise Austin workout before getting ready for work. My "stinkin thinkin" had me coming up with all kinds of excuses for not doing it. I didn't give in to them though. I haven't missed a day of exercise yet, and I have been thoroughly enjoying it. I do feel better after working out. Later in the day I received this email with this link:

"The next time you have to get up early to exercise and you just can't find a good enough reason...keep reminding yourself of the 1,000,000 plus people who had a heart attack last year. Then divide that million by 1/2 and that is how many people died as a result of cardiovascular disease. If you would like to reduce your risk by 50%...get on an exercise routine before you become a statistic! If you want to further increase your odds of not having a heart attack I recommend that you supplement your diet with the proper nutrients..It's your Heart...your Life... your Health...your responsibility and your Decision."
Michael McCullough, DC

Good Weekend

I did Denise Austin both days this weekend. Yesterday I had Proflex 30 and Fiberwise drinks.

Lunch I had Fajitas Tijuana at El Puente, no chips, no tortillas, just green peppers, chicken, beef and shrimp. They were cooked with the tomatoes, but I didn't eat the tomatoes. I put salsa and sour cream on them and ate them with a fork.

Dinner was Take 2 with salmon and sirloin and double order of broccoli.

Sunday, I didn't have my shake or my fiberwise.
Lunch, Red Lobster, I had some of the Ultimate Fondue, but I ate it with Celery not the bread. Dinner Salad, no croutons, tomotoes or carrots with Ranch dressing. Jumbo Shrimp Scampi, Crab Legs and broccoli.

Dinner tonight was a Santa Fe Chicken salad with no tort strips, or guac, extra sour cream.

Still, I have only had Water to drink for one week.
I really wanted a coke tonight, because I was so so busy at work, I did ToGos tonight. I had almost $500 in sales in about 3 hours and I didn't stop moving the whole time. I didn't though.

Damn you Pam!!!

Pam's birthday is Sunday and the gals at work bought her a big cake. So we called her out on the floor and I announced it for the guests and we sang and then they cut the cake. Pam told me, screw Atkins tonight. So I had an inch square piece of cake. Other than that, I did good all day.

Eating right isn't about willpower; it's about changing those bad habits!

Friday was kind of bad.
It started when I ordered meatloaf without thinking about it. I ate about 1/2 of it, even though I'm sure it was filled with crackers or bread crumbs for bindage. Then I ate about 1/3 of a dinner roll. I also took a couple of small bites of Samantha's hot fudge. It's ok, I'm not letting it get me down, I will still keep going. I will weigh again on Monday.

Fitness isn't stored; only fat is!

Ok, I have added exercise to this journey. I've started Tivoing Denise Austin's workouts in the morning. I don't get up at 6 am and do them, but I have them on Tivo so I can do them when it's convenient for me.

I'm also taking some fiber and protien drinks now, because I need the fiber when I do Atkins. Things tend to back up on me.

7 Pounds, GONE!!!

I couldn't believe it this morning when I got on the scale. I've decided to wait a couple of days to weigh again, thinking maybe it's a fluke. I know I'm losing some water weight now, and it will level off, but still 7 pounds is amazing in 3 days.

I was good today. I only drank water again. For lunch I had the Santa Fe Chicken Salad, minus the tortilla strips and the guac. For dinner, I had about 7 or 8 buffalo wings, left over from yesterday's lunch.

Last night I did get up and get a sugar free chocolate pudding cup. I've thrown the box away, so I'm not sure if there are any carbs in it.

I did come home to the smell of potatoes in the house. Mom made potato salad to take down for the weekend with her brother camping thing. She also cooked up hashbrowns and sausage to make breakfast burritos. I had to lock myself up in my room to stay away from the fridge.