Maintaining the Loss

So after weigh in today I have maintained the weight loss from last week.  I am down another .6!  So, this week will be another week of trying to maintain the weight loss.  It proves to be challenging since I am CRAVING brownies big time!  I made a box of those Ghiradehli ones and made them into cupcakes instead.  Had one...boxed the rest up for my husband to take to work tomorrow.  BEST STRATEGY EVER!  This week I managed 2 yoga sessions, roller skating, and a hike up the hill behind our apartment complex.  Now I just need to keep it up!

Happy Losing!

Milestone Achieved

So, today I hit my 5% goal.  Basically I have lost 10 lbs.  It has taken me from August 2010 until now to lose 10 lbs.  In January 2011 I started back and told myself I would get to goal in 2011.  Now I need to keep it off.  183 lbs is my weight.  I have been at this weight a few times before.  I am officially 8 pounds away from my goal.  I want to see if it will stick...so my goal for next week is to make sure I can MAINTAIN this weight.  I have been meal planning, planning my exercise for the week and I have been thinking of the things out there that will undo my success.  So far, I have one event this week that may undo me.  I am going out to eat Friday evening.  I will plan accordingly...and use my weekly bonus points if I need to.  I think to maintain I need to try and keep to my daily points as well as I can.

HOORAY!  I am excited...and nervous about the week to come.

Fun and Quick Frittata

So, my husband and I LOVE eggs.  We get fresh farm eggs from a co-worker...so we get to eat them a lot. We love quiche but the crust we make is kind of high in calories.  We have used potatoes as a crust as well.  Tonight, I asked my husband to make it without crust...he said he would look and see if he could find a recipe that he could work with.  This is what we had.

Loosely based on a Cheese-Vegetable Frittata in a WW cookbook
Serves 4
6 eggs with only 2 yolks (splash of milk)
4 slices turkey bacon (cut into pieces)
2 oz Cougar Gold Sweet Basil cheese (small shredded)
1 cup frozen spinach thawed and drained (approx)
1 cup frozen peppers (approx)
1/2 onion

He sauted the onion, peppers and bacon in an oven safe skilled sprayed with olive oil, he added the rest of the ingredients let it cook in the pan about 3-4 minutes and put the pan under the broiler on high for  about 3-4 minutes...til the eggs set.  It really doesn't take long.

I had a slice of toast with cream cheese on it and a salad of orange and kiwi...it was YUMMY!

And...I am satisfied.  It was really quite yummy and OH SO QUICK!

Moving a little more

This week I tried to move a little more than I have been.  Part of it is my busy schedule.  Part of it is being LAZY!  I managed DDR, Hot Yoga, Yoga, and a 2 hour walk...not bad for a week.  I need to keep it up.  I have noticed when I am moving...it is easier to lose weight.  It is easier to keep on track.  I feel better.  I weighed in and lost a pound this week.  I am 9 lbs away from my goal.  I know that sounds awesome...but let me in on a little secret.  I have been here for two years.  My first year of weight loss, I lost 50 lbs.  My second year, I lost 14 lbs...and now, I sit on this 9 lbs.  I usually get as close as 8 lbs...and then I give up.  I don't gain it all back...but I gain 5-10 lbs...and maintain.  This is the year.  I keep telling myself 2011 is the year I WILL hit my goal!

I have also discovered something else.  Crazy Bread, okay, I have always known about it.  But, I never knew the serving size or how many points....there are 8 pieces of bread in that bag.  I have always eaten the WHOLE BAG.  Guess how many points per piece?  3 points per piece...which means it is 24 points for the WHOLE BAG.  EEK I only get 29 in a day.  It could be more...usually the more servings, the points value goes up.  SERVING SIZE...it has never been more important than now for me to pay attention to this!  Now...instead of throwing in the towel for the week.  I am going to count my losses, know this is a lesson that I had to learn (I crave crazy bread a lot).  And...I will not let a bag of crazy bread stand between me and my goal.  I will just do better the rest of the week.

Happy Losing!

Happy Valentine's Day

So, I weighed in this week...lost 2.4 lbs.  I tracked, I ate some treats, and I planned my meals.  All of it within the guidelines of WW.  Now if I can just keep this up!  I do think my tracker helps.  Also, have added Hot Yoga to my workout...it is pretty intense and burns a lot of calories.  For Valentine's Day dinner (my hubby and I celebrated last night) I chose a meal from WW, a filet mignon with red wine sauce, asparagus, I made smashed potatoes and a salad.  We had a WW chocolate souffle for dessert.  Really yummy but not too much and all the points were figured in!  Even had some red wine.  I need to remind myself that I can celebrate and keep on track!

How to find balance

So I faced the scale today after about 3 weeks.  I have gained 4 lbs...I am still under 190 but gained.  Why have I gained.  Because at the end of the day...I can keep track of what I eat and I can eat healthy...but then I get a thought in my head about something I haven't had in awhile...and I undo everything.  I wish I could find a good strategy to indulge in moderation.  If I tell myself no...eventually I go nuts and eat like a crazy person.  If I let myself eat...sometimes I don't have the shut off button.  And...there are times when I know it will be good...and I really don't care what it will undo until I weigh myself and feel bad.  I feel like the secret is balance.  I can't imagine that the rest of my life needs to be lived eating healthy, exercising and never having something that I love to have every once in awhile...but I feel like I will continue to struggle until I find that balance between being healthy and allowing myself some treats...does anyone have some great strategies for balance?

Hot Yoga

Okay...so on the eating right front I am failing miserably!  I have been fighting a sinus infection and just eating whatever I want.  I will have to face the scale at some point...and I know it won't be pretty.  Just to be more difficult my weigh in day is no longer working with my schedule.  I need to find a new day!  But...in the meantime I have discovered Hot Yoga.  I went to my first class last Friday and LOVED it.  Okay, maybe LOVE is a strong word.  But, I had been doing yoga on a regular basis about a year and a half ago and stopped because I had problems with my arms from shoulder to wrists...both of them.  Now, I am better...well I know I am dealing with arthritis...and I am back to doing an exercise I enjoy.  So, I tried Hot Yoga.  I left wet...my muscles felt like I worked them really good...and by Wednesday I was ready for more...so tomorrow AM...back to hot yoga.  Now...if I can just quit eating junk and take up meditation...life would be great!

If you live in Liberty Lake, WA try yoga at THE MAT

Soup Season

So one of my favorites during this time of the year is soup.  Here is a recipe I tried last night and LOVED.  Inspired by a WW recipe...I made some adjustments


Asian Style Pork Mushroom and Noodle Soup
4 oz thin rice noodles (original recipe calls for whole wheat capellini or spaghetti)
6 cups reduced sodium fat free chicken broth
3 cups thinly sliced napa cabbage (I used broccoli slaw)
8 small shitake mushrooms, stems removed
4 scallions sliced
1 large tomato seeded and diced (i did not seed them)
1 cup frozen peas
1 tbsp minced peeled fresh ginger
1 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce (I used Gluten free)
6 oz lean cooked pork, cut into thin strips
1 tbsp sweet chili sauce
1/2 tsp hot pepper sauce

1) prepare pasta and set aside keeping it warm
2) bring broth to boil and add cabbage, mushrooms, scallions, tomato, peas, ginger and soy sauce, reduce heat and simmer till cabbage is tender about 5 minutes
3) add pasta, pork and the sauces and simmer till port heated through, about 2 minutes
4) divide pasta evenly between four bowls, top evenly with soup

It was really good and hit the spot on a cold winter night!

Off went the Holiday Weight

So, for those of you doubting the WW process...this past week I tracked, I meal planned, I exercised and took off 5.6 lbs!  Yep, you read it correctly!  I was sooooo excited.  Now, I kept on the plan!  When I go off is when I have the problems.  Thursday and Friday went okay until Friday night.  I took wine and veggies to a get together with the ladies...and we had soup...also nutritious...what I didn't take into effect was the cheesy bread and the homemade chocolate cake (from scratch)...I was doing okay until I made the fateful decision to have MORE...which became the beginning of the end.  I managed to come home feeling REALLY ILL...happy to have ate what I did...but sad that I couldn't use MODERATION.  Still a struggle for me!  UGH!  Needless to say I think this week at the scale will show a weight gain.  I am tracking, exercising and really paying attention to how I feel.  Tonight I am eating away from home again.  I am making a WW recipe and there will be dessert....I need to just be MODERATE...there is nothing wrong with eating yummy things...just need to eat a little, enjoy it, and then move on!

Great Meals + Planning= Keeping on Track

So...this week has been fairly good so far.  I did have a craving for brownies.  So I purchased the really yummy fudgy ones and used unsweetened applesauce and water to make them instead of water, egg, and oil.  I believe they are yummy and satisfying...and so far I still have some left!  Also, my husband and I are trying out the new WW cookbook on points plus.  Yesterday I made the roasted garlic beef stew...it was yummy, made more than I thought it would and is really hearty!  Today we are trying the Indian style turkey burgers with a slaw made from greek yogurt, cabbage (though I am using broccoli slaw), green onion, and lime juice...oh yes, a little salt.  We also tried the cashew ginger carrot soup from Pacific Rim...it was REALLY quite good and low in points!  I weigh in Thursday...hopefully the scale will show that my hard work is paying off!  I will say Friday was a hard day...I was hungry most of the day.  And...Sunday is a day I tend to treat myself.  I have kept with my points and have been exercising as well.  So, we shall see!

Ah New Year New Goals

Well, I wasn't too great this weekend...and I paid the price.  I felt AWFUL!  So...today I am on track.  I still need to go through my pantry and figure the points values on the stuff in there...I have been so used to the previous program...this will be an adjustment.  I have also started tracking again today.  I anticipate some weight gain on Thursday's weigh in...but the following week I anticipate weight loss!  My husband and I planned the meals this week through Thursday...what will be most challenging, and I said this before, is going to be Wednesday and Thursday nights.  I have class late...and it is when I normally eat.  I am not sure how I feel about this.  I have been on a pretty good schedule until now.  I guess this is when you really have to plan!  Today I am going to take a snack with me...and a sandwich.  Hopefully when I come home I will just have a snack and head to bed.  Thankfully I have CLEMENTINES...which I adore!  So that will be something to look forward to!