Wednesday 12.06.2006 - Traci

B - LS Oatmeal - 110
B - Coffee w/ creamer and S&L - 40
S - All Bran Bar - 120
L - Fuddruckers Veggie Burger - 412 (used Burger Kings's version to get calories)
L - Coleslaw - 190
S - 6 Ritz - 96
S - 8 Cheese Cubes - 80
D - Wendy's small chili - 220
D - Wendy's 5 pc nugget - 230
S - SF Jello - 10

C - 1508
W - 36
E - 30m on the treadmill

Wednesday Weigh-In

I thought you and the Good Dr. were done, over, kaput?? Remember that tar filled jar??? Yuck! I guess that's easy for me to say because I've never been a big fan of real soda, just diet. Do you like Diet DP?? That's my fave!! Well, just get back on the horse and ride on. Hope you are doing better today. I understand the eating out at lunch. In fact I went with some ladies from work today, but while they ate their burgers and fries, I had a veggie burger on whole wheat with a side of cole slaw. Haven't figured the C's yet, but I'm guessing it's substantially lower than that what they had. It's all about choices. We just have to be strong enough to make the right ones.

I won!! I won!!

I won the battle against the Krispy Kremes today!! Yea!!!

B - Hot Chocolate - 272
S - 8 Cheese Cubes - 110
S - 3 Ritz - 48
L - Salad with Grilled Chicken & Viniagrette - 240
L - 5 Low Fat Club Crackers - 70
S - 2 Graham Crackers - 135
D - Sonic Jr Burger - 320
D - Diet Sonic Sunrise - 90
S - 1 PB& J Sandwich, all ingredients measured - 260

C - 1545 (just a tad over, I think I'm overestimating on the Sonic Sunrise and the salad so I'm probably really ok.)
W - 64oz
E - 20m weights, 20m on treadmill

Simple changes I could have made to save calories: Could have used LF graham crackers (didn't have any though) and could have used 1 less T of PB and used Sugar Free Jelly (didn't have any). Those changes would have saved me 125 calories. Of course skipping the hot chocolate would have made a huge difference too.

BTW - I'm on board for the challenge and weighing in on Wednesday. I guess tomorrow will be our first "offical weigh in".

Quote of the day:

Habit is habit and not to be flung out of the window by any man,

but coaxed downstairs a step at a time. - Mark Twain

Visualization Technique

Thanks for the star. Recognition feels good. You didn't do too bad either considering you didn't realize what I had written. You will do even better today though!!

This morning when I got to work I was faced with 2 boxes of Krispy Kremes (we've seen this battle before) and a container of homemade chocolate cupcakes. I turned my nose up in disgust and walked away. When I looked at them I visualized them covered in sticky, nasty, oozing yellow fat, nice thought I know - but it worked. Now the thought of them makes me want to gag. So now I just have to picture that every single time I walk into the kitchen today.

By the way, I stopped on the way to work and got a skinny hot chocolate with no whip cream. I figured that wasn't too bad, but according to Calorie King it still has 272 calories, only 88 calories less than the whole milk one. I was shocked. I guess it's the chocolate. So that will be my last one of those for a while. I guess I'll stick to my coffee with splenda.

Motivational thought for the day:

You are only as weak as you allow yourself to be. Don't allow it.

Monday 12/05/06

B - Lower Sugar Oatmeal - 100
L - Salad with Chicken breast and viniagrette - 240
S - Yogurt - 100
S - Cheese cubes - 80
D - White beans with ham - 275 (guessing based on calorie king)
D - Cornbread Twist - 140
S - SF Jello - 10

Calories - 945
Water - 75oz
Exercise - 30 minutes on the treadmill

One down, a lifetime to go...

Amen

Your post was great. Exactly what I'm thinking and feeling. We can't go on like this. I've done really well today. I've actually probably not eaten enough, but what I've eaten has been healthy. I've already had 48 ounces of water and I brought my gym bag to work so that I can go on the way home.

How have you done today??

I'm not sure what we are doing for dinner. I need to start planning more. I end up going home and having to figure something out at the last minute. It's usually something quick and not to healthy. My goal is to plan each weeks dinner on that Sunday. That Dr. Oz book I was telling you about has some good soup recipes in it. I think I will start making a a batch on one each Sunday, so that I have something to eat on those nights that take out is the only option. I want to change Bobby and Brayden's eating habits too, but I need to get mine in line first. Once I get it down, I'll work harder at changing the way they eat too, at least at dinner time. I can post the recipes if you want me to.

Hope you are having a great day!

1 Year Ago...

I realized this weekend, that we started this blog exactly one year ago. It was a very depressing realization. According to my first post, I should be enjoying my new skinny body by now. I should be way below the 180 mark and sitting here in my size 10's or less and writing about how great I feel. But I'm not...instead I'm sitting her in my snug size 18's feeling depressed. I'm sitting here thinking about how sad it is that as of today I'm actually 3 lbs more than my "official weigh in" (221) at this time last year. I feel like such a failure. Why can't I get a grip?? Why can't I just stop putting all the crap in my mouth. If I had cancer and they had pills that made it worse, would I be poppin them like candy? No, but that's exactly what I'm doing. My risk of heart disease, diabetes, breast cancer and most other medical conditions gets higher with every single unhealthy bite I take. I can't continue to do this....I can't. I DON'T want to be writing a year from now about how I didn't do it.... again. By then I want to have written the post that says "yea, we finally did it", we are healthy and we look fabulous". Tiff, I know you want this more than anything and so do I... girl it's time we really do it. It's time to take control of our lives not for our husbands or our kids... but for us. I'm crying as I write this because I hate it...I hate it for both of us. I'm sad for both of us. I, more than anyone truly know what you are going through and I know you feel the same emotions I feel when it comes to weight. I hate that we have to go through this, but at least we have each other. No matter what, I know that you are absolutely the one person that will understand and encourage me without judging me. I love you for that. Let's do this, let's really do it. I'm going to try my hardest to encourage you everyday, to motivate you and remind you about why we have to do this and I want you to do the same. I love you and I want us to do this...I want you to do this. We need to do this. We HAVE to do this.

Weekly Recap

Well I haven't been keeping track of my intake for the last couple of days but I can say they haven't been stellar - not horrible, but I could have done better. Tueday I did pretty good except for some M&M's. Then came Wedneday, I did good during the day, but I had a Taco Bell Taco Salad for dinner, with extra sour cream. Then Bobby left to get a milkshake and I had him stop at Sonic and get me an order of their new Cheesecake Bites. There were only 3, but I'm sure 3 pieces of fried cheescake took me off the charts for the evening. Oh and I had 2 handfuls of Crunch N Munch at work. Thursday wasn't good either ... I started off with 2 breakfast lean pockets (they are much smaller than regular, but still), 2 PB cookies , about 20 M&M's, I then had to go pick Brayden up from school because it was sleeting and snowing. I had a Swiss Cake Roll & an apple for lunch and then I made cookies. I ate 4 of those. We had breakfast for dinner which for me consisted of 1 biscuit loaded with homemade sausage gravy and about 3 eggs. I topped all that off with a big glass of chocolate mik. Oh and I had one last cookie before bedtime. So, that brings us to today....I'm at home again because of the weather. I've had a big bowl of Honey Smacks. The plan is to have soup for lunch and an apple for a snack and nothing else until dinner. Dinner will be Mushroom Alfredo Tortellini, but if I only eat one portion that's only 200 calories. So I'm putting the past few days behind me and starting again.


BTW, I didn't have electrolysis, I had laser removal done. I went for 3 sessions and should have gone for about 4 more. It lessened it, but it's not completely gone.

Morning Update

Those recipes looks yummy, especially the dip one. What could we eat with it? I wonder if celery would be good with it. It's pretty much tasteless anyway. Chips would be ok I guess, but only a handful.

I've already stumbled this morning, I ate 10 M&M's - that's 40 calories. I needed a chocolate fix.

I did bring my gym bag today though, and I'm headed there today as soon as I leave work. I haven't figured out what's for dinner yet. I really need to grocery shopping. I have about 10 recipes that are really good, low calorie recipes that both Bobby and Brayden like. I'll try to post them soon. I used them last time I was counting calories.

Good luck today! We can do this!

Monday 11/27/2006

Ok, so my first day back at it - WAS NOT very good. I'm blaming it on the fact that I had not gone grocery shopping yet. I picked up a few things on the way to work this morning, so I should be able to do a little better today though...

B - Weight Control Oatmeal, nothing added - 160
S - Graham Cracker with RF Peanut Butter - 148
S - South Beach Snack Bar - 100
L - Hawaiian Chicken Salad - 350 (guessing based on estimates from Calorie King)
S - Peanut Butter M&Ms - 240
D - 1.5 pieces of Pizza Hut Stuffed Crust Pizza - 570 / life happened at our house too :)
D - 1 piece of Pizza Hut Thin Hamburger Pizza - 210
S - Weight Watchers Carrot Cake - 80

Total Calories - 1858
Total Water - 24 oz
Total Exercise - NONE

THE "F" WORD

I’m feeling extra F** too! I got on the scale this morning and thought I was going to pass out. On my September 22nd post, I weighed 215. Today I’m at 225!! That’s 10 lbs in 2 months!! This madness has got to end. I’m going to start posting my stats again each day too. My goal right now is just to lose that darned 10 lbs. I told myself that I would never hit 220 again after I got under it…well you see how that went. I’m not throwing in the towel just because of the Holidays. I’m buckling down and doing this.

Meds Update Part II

I won’t get into all the ends and outs of my Dr. appointment, way too much to write, but I’ll give you the part that pertains to weight. First of all, she said that she did not believe that the Phentermine caused the murmur, but that it’s possible that it made the murmur, that was likely already there, more noticeable and pronounced. So if the Phentermine isn’t causing you any symptoms then I would continue taking it. I would if I could. Instead she put me on Wellbutrin. It’s actually a depression and anxiety medication, but one of the side effects is weight loss. Usually I dread the side effects of medication, but this one I like! She said that people taking it, that are not trying to lose weight, lose about 15 lbs a year and those that eat right and exercise while on it, can lose about 2 lbs per week. She also said that anyone that’s married and/or has kid’s experiences depression and anxiety at some point, so it will help with my stress level as well. She said it was great for emotional eaters…ME. I’ve been taking it for 3 days and I can really tell a difference. I don’t get hungry as often and I’ve noticed I haven’t been snacking between meals. I don’t even think about it. It’s strange. The best part of it is that I’m not all jittery and buzzed like I am when I’m taking the Phen. I’ll keep you posted.

The week in review

Well I haven't been posting my calorie intaking, but have been counting them. I splurged a few times this week and had 2 1600 calorie days but that's still lower than what it would probably have been. I weighed in this morning at 214.9, so we are headed in the right direction. Now if I can just keep it up!

Meds Update

If I’ve already told you all this, I apologize… I don’t think I have though. As you know I was taking Phentermine several months ago and I also took it for 2 months in late ’05. Well I went to the doctor a few weeks ago because I was feeling exhausted, achy, unmotivated and I was having some chest pain too. She discovered that I had a heart murmur. They did a bunch of lab tests as well and everything came back normal. I had to go for and echocardiogram to determine the extent of the murmur. I go back this Friday to discuss. She told me to stop taking the Phen until we figured out what was going on. She didn’t say that the Phen caused the murmur, but I have my suspicions. I didn’t have a heart murmur before I took it (I had a complete check-up before I ever started it) but I do now that I’ve taken it for a little less than 3 months in total. 12 weeks is what the FDA approves. I liked taking it; I was never hungry and I had tons of energy. It was so easy to eat well. I’ve been thinking about other alternatives and then I stumbled upon an article in this week’s “Woman’s World”. It’s about diet pills and it compares the different ones. It also speaks to OTC options. It had some really good info, so I thought I’d share just a little of it here.

Phentermine – hits the brain’s appetite center and greatly reduces hunger, not the same as the killer Fen-Phen (although it did contain Phentermine, the Fen part was the deadly one), approved since 1959, approved for 12 weeks of use and should not be used by patients with heart or anxiety problems!!

Meridia – boost brains chemicals that extend satiety, approved since 1997, great if you struggle with portion control, doesn’t eliminate the urge to eat completely but that’s a good thing because it lets you develop skills to stay slim after you stop taking the meds, should not be used by patients with sleep or blood pressure problems.

Xenical – disables key enzymes and keeps 33% of fat calories from being absorbed, studies show people that took it lost 93% more weight than those that didn’t, approved since 1999, besides blocking fat calories; it gives you a stomach ache if you eat too much fatty food therefore encouraging you to avoid it which cuts calories even more, great if fatty foods are you’re weakness or if you have a health condition that keeps you from being able to take other diet pills.

Chromium Picollinate (OTC vitamin) – helps control a hormone that causes cravings and belly fat, the supplement most linked to lower levels of body fat, 400 mcg daily can eliminate intense sugar and carb cravings, especially beneficial for patients with big middles, up to 800 mcg daily is considered safe but check with your Dr. first

Calcium – (OTC vitamin) – stimulates the release of fat from cells, latest data shows that exercise burns 30% more fat in patients who get extra calcium, for maximum fat loss get 1200 mcg of calcium (from supplements or low fat dairy) and keep your total calories around 1200 a day.

So I guess I’ll add CP and Calcium to my shopping list.

Hey cuz...

I watched a show on Discovery Health last night called "YOU: The Owner's Manual". There is a book as well. It's by the 2 Dr's that are always on Oprah. Anyway, it was very interesting and very motivating. I'm going to go by the book today. It's not a diet book, it's just about living healthier and living longer. It's hard to explain everything that was in the show. I wish you could see it. Do you have the DH channel? They have a DVD set too (not the same show on DH, but probably better, it's twice as long as the show)

DVD http://shopping.discovery.com/product-59710.html

It explains how you can completely change your health in as little as 2 weeks. They follow the story of a lady that begin by drinking 4 6-packs of soda each day and ate high fat, high sugar foods. She didn't exercise either. After 10 weeks following the suggestions in the book, she had lost 20 lbs and looked 10 years younger.

The basics are that you only eat things that come from nature and only allow "treats" every now and then and in very small portions. You're not supposed to eat any foods where these words appear in the first 5 ingredients (sugar, high fructose, enriched, and 3 others that I can't think of. As for exercise, it's pretty mild. 30 minutes of walking each day, 60 minutes each week of cardio that makes you break a sweat and 30 minutes each week of weight lifting.

Once I've read the book, I'll comment on it more.

VERY GOOD POINT!!!

...about how we would be even bigger if we hadn't been at least half a**ing it for the past 9 months!! I like the way you think!

I used to use the expensive and time consuming excuse too, (ok I still do) but I just have to remind myself that heart disease and diabetes is very expensive and time consuming as well... not to mention deadly!!!

Monday - Traci Stats

B - Yogurt - 90, cup of coffee - 35
S - Banana - 80
S - Protein Drink - 60, Cheese toast - 120
L - Lean Cuisine - 250, Tomatoes and Cucumbers with Spritz Dressing - 40
S - 100 Calorie Pack Cookies - 100
S - Fat Free Pudding - 100
D - Homemade Sweet and Sour Chicken and Fried Rice - 650

Total Calories - 1525
Total Water - 12 oz (gotta work on this)
Total Exercise - Walked for 30 minutes (while pushing a stroller with a 45 lb kid)

One day at a time.

Ok, so remember last week's post about how I was going to get back on the wagon and start posting, blah, blah, blah?? Well, that lasted all of one day, the posting anyway. The counting calories...well that lasted 2 days! What is up with me? I get so fired up and then 3 days into it, I fizzle out. The obvious answer is that I must not really want it. BUT, I do want it. I guess I just don't want to work for it. I've posted about this before and I still don't understand it. Rather than analyze it though, I've just got to but last week behind me and start fresh today. I'm just going to take it one day at a time. I'm not commiting to being on point for the rest of the week... I'm focusing on today and today only. I'll think about tomorrow when tomorrow gets here. So here's to today!

PS - When going back through the old posts and searching for the post that I liked to above, I realized how many times we have both said that we are starting again. Just think if we had really done it all those times before, we would be done with this site and wearing our skinny jeans right now!

The Enemy

The evil Krispy Kreme monster reared it's ugly head again today. This morning as I walked down the hall towards the kitchen at work, I smelled the sweet, sweet smell of the enemy that was about to be in my face. I turned the corner and saw the spread... two dozen glistening hot donuts.

So what did I do?

I did what any woman does when faced with an enemy... I walked by them, stuck my snobby nose in the air and completely igmored them as I headed for the fridge to grab my yogurt. I grabbed the yogurt, turned around and walked out the door; not before I turned around and stuck my tonque out at them though.

So take that Mr. Krispy Kreme. You've won this battle one too many times and now it's war!

Bring it on!!

Play Ball

Ok, so I know I've said it a dozen times over the last few months... but this really is a new start. I really am back in game and ready to win!! I weighed in this morning at 216. Considering that I've pretty much blown it for the last few months, I'm actually pleased with that. I had gotten down to 209 for two days, but I would say my official lowest weight from the last time I "played the game" was 213, so I guess 3 lbs in the last 4 months isn't that bad. However it is a move in the wrong direction and it's time to put a stop to it.

So beginning today I will start tracking my food intake. I'm going to continue counting calories, but I'm not going to allow so much sugar and white flour foods. I've followed the Body For Life program in the past with great success so I'm going to stick with their food and exercise program, but still count calories. The one thing that BFL incorporates into their program is a "free day". Saturday will be my free day, but I'm still going to count calories and set my limit at 1600. I have to go grocery shopping before I can truly start BFL, but I am going to start counting calories today.

So here's to the first day of the last time that I say I'm back in the game..

B- Mini Whole Wheat Bagel w/T Polamer Jam - 160 / Coffee w/ cream and S & L - 40
S - Slice of 2% Cheese - 68
L - Ramen Noodles - 300
S - South Beach Bar - 100
D - Shrimp Alfredo - 265 / 2 rolls - 180
S - Fat free pudding - 100

Total Calories - 1213
Total Water - zero
Total Exercise - 30 minutes of walking