Christy: Week 8

I have finally hit a plateau...at least for this week. I don't have anything to explain why but I did not lose any weight this week. I held to my weekly workout goals of getting to the gym 5 days this week and one of those days I met my running goal of going 2.5 miles without stopping. On another occasion I upped my running pace to see how challenging it would be. I brougth back lunges and maintained the weightlifting Wednesdays. There was no slacking in the exercise department! 

As for my diet, other than scaling back portion sizes and eliminating major calorie consuming foods such as fast foods, certain desserts, and caloric beverages...I have not drastically made any changes. I am wondering if it is time to rethink the diet strategy? I am going to give my usual routine/plan one more week and allow myself some time to figure out my next steps if my weight remains stagnant. Things I am thinking about include reducing my carbs & increasing my veggies. I do good in the fruit & protein department but may need to tweak the latter.

This coming week I plan to incorporate more sleep...used to go to be at 9pm but it's been creeping back up to 11pm with a couple late nights out with the girls! I gotta get serious...it's crunch time! I am also continuing to take my multi vitamin which I must say, has had a positive impact on my finger nails. They have not been as strong & grow so quickly in years as they have these past 3-4 weeks!

Since I can no longer work out in the mornings, I may just have to take my son into the gym 3 days this coming week. He does enjoy being there but it feels selfish to me to put him there so often. Just this week wont hurt & maybe I'll treat the kids to swimming after school as an added way to burn off a few calories!

While I am bummed that I did not see the scale move this week, I am trying to keep this journey in perspective. Technically, I've lost a total of 20 lbs! This amazes me on many levels. While I know my body has changed (by evidence of how my clothes feel and what my body is able to now do-like run 2.5 miles at one time) there are times when I look at myself and see no difference at all! Now that can be discouraging!  Maybe this is why I am focused on the "numbers" at least at this point my journey. The numbers do not lie even when my mind plays tricks on me!  The work is paying off and some weeks will be better than others. I am going to view this week as one where my body was just pausing to get used to being where it's at.  Sometimes it's good to just pause and be thankful for where we are at in the moment.

I have no regrets this week. Of course I could have changed doing this or that however, I lived this past week somewhat responsible in terms of not going crazy with food and sticking to my exercise goals. I had my share of fun without going over board.  I do wonder how much stress may have played a role this week as I've definitely had more of that this week than usual!  Interested to see what changes or ah-ha moments next week will bring!

Jamie week 7 Crossfit

A few years ago when I started at the gym I would go in and always try new things. I had started experiencing with running. I would run a minute or two then walk, change my incline, run a minute or two then walk. One thing I did and I still do to this day is I take the first 5 minutes as my warm up.
so one day I went to the gym and it was pretty empty, I got on a treadmill and did my 5 minute warm up. I started to run and it felt good I was approaching maybe 3 minutes of running when I realize that my shoe came untied. Crap I think, I have these little superstitions Ill talk about another week. I stop the treadmill and start to tie my shoe until I hear in this incredibly deep voice, "You're going to keep running after that right". Me, "huh, um yeah".
I look up and its this really buff really tall African American (trying to be politically correct here) in his forties. He laughs and starts running, I start running and I refused to stop until he did. we went about 3 miles and it felt great!! I had never ran that far before!! I could not wait to come back tomorrow and do it again because now I know I can. HAHA until I woke up the next day and could barely walk! Lets just say my 5 foot frame holding nearly 200 pounds up on a treadmill running for 3 miles was not my bodies idea of fun.
I did the same thing this week only with Crossfit. First of I loved it,  it was workouts my body is not used to and I didn't want to look weak so I used more weights than I should have. And I did more pull ups than I ever thought possible. Here's the breakdown of the 2 days I did in case anyone is curious.
Warm up
Various predetermined things like squats, lunges, sit ups etc lasted about 15 minutes.
Skill
Everyday a skill is chosen and a certain amount of time is spent on it. This day was pull ups for 15 minutes.
Workout
Run 400 m
10 shoulder thrusts with 115pound barbell
10 pull ups
repeat as many times as you can in 18 minutes. I did 3 1/3 times through.

Warm up
Same thing but more hip movements because this day was lots of legs
Skill
Jump rope
Workout
21 dead lifts 55 pounds
21 kettle bell swings 30 pounds
15 dead lifts
15 swings
9 dead lifts
9 swings
This was for time. I did it in a little under 6 minutes. People with heavier weights took longer due to breaks

What I like: couldn't move because muscles I haven't worked and/or new I existed were exercised.
What I didn't like: there wasn't alot of stretching. I should have stretched on my own then i wouldn't be so sore I think. Also this particular facility makes you take a 2 week "onramp" class. Its 3 days a week for 2 weeks. 1. I cant commit myself like that. 2. So they want me to pay $115 a month and waste 2 weeks of it learning how to do things I already know?
So I did find another facility nearby that does just a one hour introductory class, and they have a better schedule so I wont have to go at 5am everyday. WHEW! I was exhausted too!

Baked chicken wings
I made it up!! I grabbed fresh cut not frozen chicken wings from the farmers market. I mxsed fat free ranch with red hot and a little barbecue sauce and I baked them in the oven at 425 for 40 minutes flipping them once. It was long enough to give them a little crispiness.
I paired them with weight watcher fries and what I mean by that is:
Cut 2 potatoes into this slices, lightly spread a little olive oil or butter or butter sub on baking sheet. Season with salt and pepper and bake them with your wings. A small potato is only 2 points, if cut right it would be about 6-8 slices.

Grabbed a DVD for home: Jillian Micheal's Yoga Meltdown. $9 at Walmart!

Cayla - Week 7

Cayla Week 7
Weight Loss This Week:1 pound

Eating Plan: I am currently following the Paleo plan and discovering new healthy food every day!

Exercise Plan: A minimum of 5 times a week at 5am Monday - Friday. One of these days is with a personal trainer. 

Overall Goals: My immediate goal is 50 pounds....I have 34.4 more to go. Total Goal 125 pounds...109.4 to go.

Recipe's to Share: I made this recipe this week and it didn't turn out quite right for me. I think it might be because I did not use a salad spinner. If you try this recipe please let me know how it turns out. Mine had great flavor but was not crisp at all.

Original recipe makes 6 servings 

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 teaspoon seasoned salt

Directions

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a non insulated cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. With a knife or kitchen shears carefully remove the leaves from the thick stems and tear into bite size pieces. Wash and thoroughly dry kale with a salad spinner. Drizzle kale with olive oil and sprinkle with seasoning salt.
3. Bake until the edges brown but are not burnt, 10 to 15 minutes.

Thoughts for This Week:

The past two weeks have been rough. I have been traveling for work and on top of that was very sick. I'm still not 100% due to a cough that won't go away and having trouble breathing. I started back to the Gym on Monday which was the first time in two weeks. The good thing is I didn't gain any wait. However, I feel that I lost momentum. I get up at 4:30am every weekday morning to go to the gym. Before I got sick I got up without fail and did not feel tired and was geared up to get my day started. Now, I can barley drag my butt out of bed and constantly feel tired. I'm forcing myself to go anyway and hoping that things start to improve again. I will meet with my trainer again starting next Wednesday. I've really got to get my eating under control. I'm attempting to follow the Paleo plan but keep having little cheats that lead to bigger cheats. Since I have felt so tired I have not had a desire to cook or mess with the food prep. That being said, I've been eating anything that is easily accessible, which tends to not be healthy. I''m putting so much effort, time and money into going to the gym that I really need to get my eating back on track. I am going to start writing everything morsel that goes into my mouth into a journal. I'm hoping that this will help to keep me more accountable.

Allyson | Week 7

I have been inundated with school work the past couple weeks (more so than normal). My brain is fried. I don’t have much to share, and I’m out of witty banter. This week I just want to share three things:

Three generations of healthy eating.  I took a break from school work on Saturday and spent the day with my mom and grandma. I snapped a picture of us munching on some healthy and delicious ants on a log (minus the ants).







Two more "Food Rules":

Rule #9: Avoid food products with the wordoid “lite” or the terms “low-fat” or “nonfat” in their names. What has happened over the past four decades since the low-fat craze began? People got fat. People are an average 18 pounds heavier today than they were in the 1970s (and I think that’s a very conservative average). It’s not always fat that makes us fat and removing the fat doesn’t mean it’s nonfattening. Taking the fat out of an item results in taking the flavor out of the item. Companies know they can’t sell a tasteless product (except maybe Quaker and those rice cakes…), so they replace the fat flavor with carbohydrates and refined sugars.  It’s better to eat the real deal, in moderation, that to eat ‘nonfat’ items that are packed with sugars and salts.

Rule #14: Eat foods made from ingredients that you can picture in their raw state or growing in nature. Next time you check out an ingredient list on a food item, try to picture those ingredients growing in nature. Chances are you won’t be able to picture that (let alone pronounce the names) for most ingredients. This rule helps keep odd chemicals and substances out your the body.

Eat less, move more. 

Randee: Week: 7

Eating Plan: Weight Watchers Points Plus

Goal: Lose 50 Pounds

Weekly Weight Loss: 0

Total Weight Loss: -6.4 pounds

Exercise Goals: 4 times a week for at least 30 minutes each time

Weekly Exercise: 4 workouts. 4 x 30 minutes

So you might think I am disappointed this week. But I’m not. My parents were here. I survived that and a trip to Corky and Lenny’s. I worked out 4 times. Girl Scout cookies arrived and some were consumed. I really didn’t count points while my parents were here. All this- and I didn’t gain an ounce. So I’m taking the cup half full outlook and saying I did pretty well this week.

And now to get back on track…I have gotten back to making sure I work out at least 4 times. Even when I really don’t want to...which is almost always. I know some people love to work out. I have met some of these people. I am not one of these people. I can’t imagine becoming one of these people. But, I am doing it. This past week, I was reminded of the amazing abilities of the human body. An amazing person I know overcame more health obstacles than I can imagine and just did the Disney Princess Half Marathon. When I was reading about her adventure, I thought to myself- If she is doing this- what excuse could I possibly have to not do 30 minutes of exercise? I couldn’t come up with anything. So I kept trudging along. Her story also inspires me to want to try a 5k at some point. (When I am more in shape!)

Highlights from this week: I did not gain any weight even with my parents in town, girl scout cookies and a trip to Corky and Lenny’s. Not too shabby.

Challenges for this week: Getting back to tracking my weight watchers points. Staying on my workout plan. I really need to get some variety to my family meals. Any ideas out there?

Christy: Week 7

My weeks always seem to start off with a bang but by the time the weekend hits, I find myself slacking just enough to gently curb any significant weight loss I've acrued. I'm not saying by any means I'm disappointed in my progress. However, when you've seen the scale at 151.5 on Tuesday but it's at 153 on Saturday it becomes obvious that I am taking the "losses" for granted.  This week was more of a regular week for me. The kind of week I see myself having on a more daily basis once my goal weight is reached. I worked out 4 days (Usually I've been doing 5) for an hour each. The grunting & sweating continue to be alive and well as I push myself at every work out.  My husband actually called me "addicted" this week! Ha ha ha ha! I think he has this current view of me because he is my main source of unloading in terms of talking about my weight loss journey in great detail! I've confessed to him how exhilarating it is to work out really hard, giving my all. I actually like how the sweat feels when it is dripping from my arms, down the front & back of my shirt. I love how my work out clothes are getting larger on me! I used to wear them (when I wasn't exercising) because they were comfortable and they made me look slimmer (at least so I thought). It is really amazing how far I've come. Hardly being able to run a half mile without stopping in those first weeks back in September. Then hitting the mile mark. I thought that would always be my bar. Until that too became easy to do after a few weeks and with pushing myself- and thus breaking through mental barriers- I am now regularly running 2 miles without stopping every day I work out (avg. 8-12 miles/week). I'm looking forward to buying new running shoes soon!

Back to my husband saying I'm addicted. I use my fitness pal to log my calorie intake and output.  I know for a fact that I'm not addicted... because I don't use mfp every day (hence why I end up slacking on the weekends). BUT I'm also not addicted because...I'm enthusiastic! I am excited to learn about what I'm putting into my body in a way in which I've never previously thought about. For instance, I like white rice but I "hear" that brown rice is better for you. So, we eat brown rice which is not my favorite but it's not horrible either. However, when I saw that a cup of brown rice was 200+ calories I was shocked AND compelled to blurt out my surprise at the high calorie count! Lately this is a normal scenario in our house...me sharing what I'm learning with my family. Which is why they are starting to think I'm a little nut-so with this my fitness pal! 

The good news is that I have seen the positive impact I'm having on my kids. My kids tend to be very active and healthy eaters to begin with. However, there have been times when they want to "play-exercise" like Mommy exercises. They click on the workout app on my phone and mimic the exercises like jumping jacks, sit ups, etc. The kids also ask me "Is this healthy to eat?" and we have conversations about the importance of balance in their choices and portion sizes. They know why Mommy is trying to "get skinny" so to speak which is so that I can be active along side them and live healthy to live longer!

I am going to strive to take advantage of this week, working out 5 days for an hour each. I am going to try to run at least one day for 2 and a half miles straight. Its time I try to push the envelope. I'm also going to increase my squats and bring back lunges (I took a 2wk break from lunges because they are hard on my right knee). I need to stop drinking alcohol! This past week I had 3 beers & 3 glasses of wine. I've been very good about not drinking my calories but the social events creeped in and took over the best of me! Back to water & tea only!  I need to grocery shop with a plan. I usually do however, I've been putting off shopping until the first of the month which led to eating out (which is very unusual for us).

My one regret this week is that I should have gone grocery shopping earlier.  Having food in the house would have permitted me to be prepared for a couple outings the kids & I shared without stopping to eat.  It would have also made me more prepared for Friday without meat during lent. Friday sure snuck up on me!

I lost 1 lb this week.  I was really hoping to lose 2 as I had seen the numbers on the scale earlier in the week but today's weight reflected more the reality of the whole week. I am still in complete shock that I am 153! I was thrilled 2 wks ago when I hit 155...just in awe. I am on cloud 9 about being at this point. I'm not ready to settle yet,  though,  I do feel so good.  Not ready to say this journey is over since I'm interested to see if I can reach my dream goal!

Let's see some good numbers this week! Lucky #7 right?

Jenn Week 7

Although February is a sweet month I am excited to see it come to a close and user in March.  I have never had a case of cabin fever quite like this.  Bring on the warmer days with more daylight!

In one word how do I feel about this week’s progress:  Accomplished

High of the week: Celebrating my 32^nd birthday.

Low of the week:  Not making it to the Y as many times as I had planned. 

Weight loss this week:  .6 lb

Total weight loss since: 1/20/13 6 lbs

Inches lost this month: N/A

Total inches lost since: 1/20/13 N/A

New exercises tried:  I tried a class called Body Sculpt this week.  Using medicine balls, rubber bands and your own body weight you go through a series of exercises that aim to tone and strengthen the body.  I enjoyed the class and it was a good way to add in another session of strength training for the week. 

Things that fueled me:   No new recipes this week. 

A few added thoughts: With my birthday this week I am overall very happy with the loss of .6 lbs.  There were a few meals out at restaurants and the delicious yellow cake with chocolate frosting that my husband makes me each year.  (My favorite birthday tradition by the way.)  In the past these festivities could have lead to over indulging and gaining weight.  However, with my focus over the last few years being about a life style change and not a diet or a short ended goal I found enjoying myself did not have to come with self sabotage.  It was all about moderation and finding a balance.  And to be honest until I sat down to type out this post and took time to reflect over this past week  I hadn't given my choices much thought.   Living a balanced life is now part of who I am.  I still indulge a little; everyone needs to now and again. Sometimes you just need to have a cheese burger and ice cold beer and no substitution will do! Lol  But my daily choice is to fuel my body with a healthy balanced diet and challenge it with daily exercise, even if it’s only 30 mins. 

The scale my not reflect that I have hit my goal weight,   the tag inside my jeans may contain a number higher than I’d like to see.  But what I have learned and the progress I have made cannot be measured by such simple means.   I like the woman I have become by my 32^nd birthday and am proud of the progress I have made on my journey so far.