Weigh In Results!

This morning's weigh in went much better than I was expecting it to..... I was down 1.6 lbs for a total of 17.4 lbs lost! That means not only did I hit my 10% goal, but I'm also only 2.6 lbs away from my mini goal of losing 20 lbs by the New Year! I'm hoping that I can lose that 2.6 lbs by my next weigh in, but I still have two weeks to lose it (or 1.3 lbs per week) which is much more realistic. Just wanted to check in and let everyone know how it went, and has anyone hear from Nathan? Check in with me Nathan, I want to know how you're doing!

Spice it up!

I have a new food obsession..... salsa! I've always loved spicy food, but lately I've been wanting spicy food all the time. Since Mexican food isn't very figure friendly, I bought a large container of salsa from my favorite Mexican restaurant. I've been putting it on everything.... scrambled eggs, baked potatoes, using it as salad dressing and eating it with high fiber tortilla chips. The best part is that it's 0 points, and it really hits the spot when I want to eat something full of flavor. To me, eating bland food is like eating nothing at all... you're still hungry after you eat because your food didn't satisfy you in terms of taste. For me, salsa is a great way to satisfy that need for flavorful food. Plus, I'm buying it fresh since my favorite Mexican place makes it daily. That means no added preservatives, sodium or other nasty stuff. 

I've got weigh in tomorrow, and quite frankly I'm not looking forward to it. Even though the scale was looking great a few days ago, I think that I took that as a sign to start eating. I went out to dinner Sunday night and Monday night and didn't make stellar food choices. I also had a work related Christmas luncheon at P.F. Chang's today..... it's like giving Superman some Kryptonite. My boss always orders appetizers for us, so I went with one lettuce wrap which is very low in points. But then the spring rolls were staring at me, so I had half of one. For my entree I had the lunch portion of the shrimp with lobster sauce and brown rice, accompanied by egg drop soup. All very "points friendly." So I'm not doing too bad, right? WRONG. My boss also makes us order dessert, so rather than getting a full sized piece of chocolate cake, I got the mini-shooter style chocolate cake dessert. More than I wanted to eat, but I committed the cardinal sin of not eating breakfast this morning and felt more hungry than usual. 

So dinner ended up being a baked potato with spray butter, light sour cream, reduced fat cheese and of course, salsa. Hopefully I'll get some sleep tonight, but between nerves about starting my new job tomorrow and drinking about 3 gallons of water today, who knows! 

A Love Rekindled

My Mom and I have a lot of things is common, but one of the things that we bond over the most is shopping. We've always had a great time trekking through the mall and browsing our favorite clothing stores. My Mom has always been my faithful shopping sidekick, grabbing things that might look good, picking coordinating pieces, running to get another size/color, and most importantly, telling me whether or not things looked good on me. When I was thin, there was rarely an issue when it came to trying on clothes. I knew which styles and sizes were best for me and Mom rarely had a critical remark. I loved shopping for clothes because I could always find something I liked. 

However, as slowly gained weight, I found myself liking clothes shopping less and less. I was hearing my mother say thing like "You're going to need the next size up" or "That's not very flattering" more and more frequently and I would be lying if I said that it didn't break my spirit. I wasn't upset that my Mom was criticizing me, she was just being honest. I was upset that the additional weight I had gained had begun to hinder me and took joy out of simple things that I loved to do. I would snap at my mother for her comments and leave stores angry because I had to buy yet another size larger. My usual size 6 had become a size 10, and then suddenly a 12. That was when I knew I needed to make a change. 

3 months and nearly 20 lbs later, I've got my love of shopping back. Today my Mom and I were able to spend the day together shopping, laughing and most importantly enjoying each others' company. She didn't have to make critical remarks, and I didn't have to snap at her because of my insecurity. I had been waiting until this point (my halfway point) to buy clothes because most of my old stuff is too big. I can't wait to reach goal so I can go shopping again and share that special moment with my Mom. 

Changes......

This upcoming week is going to be very busy, but should be promising. I start my new position at work on Wednesday, which will be bittersweet for me. I'm excited for new challenges and opportunities, but I'll miss the people I worked with. The good news is that I'm only 2 floors and a short elevator ride away :) 

The change I'm really happy about is the number on the scale! I weigh myself every morning and every night because I don't like surprises. At lot of people say it's bad to weigh yourself everyday, but it helps keep me motivated so I'm not stopping anytime soon. Part of the reason why I gained this weight that I'm losing is because I didn't weigh myself for months and never got "scale shock." What I'm really excited about is that I've finally hit my 10% goal and I'm only 1.8 lbs away from my mini goal of losing 20 lbs by the New Year. Do I dare resurrect my previous goal of losing 25 lbs by 2009?? I think I'll have to wait for the official weigh in results on Wednesday to make that decision. 

I hope everyone had a great weekend! I'm off to get ready and go wine tasting with my wineaux partner in crime, Mary!  

You be the Judge

As I've mentioned several times before, I did not grow up fat. I don't have any horror stories about being teased as a child, being picked last for dodgeball or having to sit alone at lunch. I've always had a smaller build and was gifted athletically, thus never living a very sedentary life. I hear a lot of my WW blogger and online friends talking about people who judge them for being overweight. I have to admit, I have always been one of the those people. I still am to some extent.

I was the kid in school who didn't want to be friends with the fat girl or boy. I would stuff my Hostess cupcakes in my cheeks and make faces at them. I'd be the first one to complain when the fat kid had to be on my team in gym class and I'd laugh at them when I lapped them during a mile run. I wasn't necessarily a cruel child, I was just going along with the perceptions of society. My parents didn't raise me to make fun of overweight people, but they did raise me to believe that a proper diet and exercise made you a healthier person. Still, I came to see fat people as lazy, unmotivated and unhappy.

When I put on weight, I did it so slowly that I barely noticed it was happening. The gradual gains barely registered with me because I thought gaining a little bit of weight was normal for a girl in her 20's. I wasn't an athlete anymore, my metabolism was slowing down, and gaining a little weight was just a fact of life. WRONG. By the time I noticed that I was not as thin as I used to be, I knew that my choices had made me gain weight, not facts of life. A lack of exercise and consumption of high calorie food was to blame, and I realized that if I didn't get myself back on track, I would soon become the type of person that I had always judged. I used to roll my eyes at women in the dressing room who would stuff themselves into clothes that were to small and now I was afraid that I was that woman.

After being on the plan for 12 weeks and losing 16 lbs and countless inches, I'm glad I didn't become the stereotypical fat girl that I had always judged. Do I still judge people? To be honest, yes. But now I judge them on whether or not they are taking the steps to change their lives. I respect and applaud those who have taken control of their weight in a healthy and responsible way. But I still feel sorry for the people I see that have weight and health problems spiraling out of control. So many people have been an inspiration to me, and I urge people with weight and health problems to just take the first step towards a new life. That first step could lead you to becoming the person you always knew you could be, but never had the courage to become.....

Attention Pizza Lovers....

While browsing the supermarket with my handy Points Calculators the other day, I was aimlessly wandering near the frozen pizza, mourning the loss of yet another food I used to enjoy.... 

But then I saw Kashi's frozen pizza, specifically the Mushroom Trio & Spinach. The picture on the box looked delicious and with "14g of Protein and 4g of Fiber" on the packaging, I knew I had to check out the nutritional information and find the points value. For 1/3 of the pizza (one serving), it's only 5 points! That's right folks, only 5 points for a generous portion! I bought it, thinking to myself, It must be too good to be true... I bet it tastes like cardboard. 

After a long day at work, tutoring two students and a great weigh in, I felt like I was ready for a reward and decided that tonight would be a great time to try the Kashi pizza. I placed it in the oven, watching the crust rise and the cheese melt, just like it looked on the box. When it was ready I immediately cut it into thirds and put away the 2/3rds that I wouldn't be eating. I finally bit into my pizza and couldn't have been more surprised! Not only did the pizza  look good, but it tasted good and was actually fit into my food plan! It totally satisfied my pizza craving and made a very filling meal with a side of mixed veggies. If you love pizza, this is one brand that you've got to check out!

Great Weigh In!

I was down 2.4 lbs at weigh in today! I'm so happy to lose what I've gained over the past 2 weeks plus an additional 0.6 lbs! My mini-goal is to hit my 10% next week (I have to lose another 1.2 lbs) and my next goal was to lose a total of 25 by the New Year (which means 9.2 lbs to lose in 3 weeks, or 3 lbs per week). My first New Year's goal is probably a bit of a stretch, so I'm modifying my goal to 20 lbs total lost by New Year's (4.2 lbs in 3 weeks, or 1.4 lbs a week) which is a much more manageable goal. I was a little disappointed because I really wanted to break into the 150's this week and hit my 10% goal, but 2.4 lbs is a significant loss for a person of my weight and height (5'5 and 160.2), so I'll take it!

I want to thank everyone who reads and follows this blog for all of your help and support, especially my Mom who is a Lifetime member of WW and offers me so much advice and encouragement! My friends have also be incredibly supportive, whether it's staying in the office to eat lunch with me so I'm not tempted or meeting me at the gym to work out. Each week brings new and exciting challenges, and I'm determined to keep losing, toning up and reaching my goal!