Sharon's Journal -150 here I come!

[sharoncity]

I'll start with a little about myself for anyone who chooses to read along.

I have always had issues with my weight. Well, since puberty anyhow. I lost about 35 lbs my senior year of HS. Kept it off through most of college. Lost a bunch of weight right before my wedding due to building our own home and being very active. Then, a few years later, the pregnancies came. I was pregnant 3 times before delivering my healthy DD. Then I had another miscarriage before my DS was born. I think the hormones from being pregnant 5 times in 8 years really contributed to messing up my metabolism. Anyhow, I did Jenny Craig to loose the weight gained with DD. Used Metabolife (yeah, I know!) to loose the weight I gained with DS. I did learn my lesson from Metabolife. It worked good for me for a while, but of course, the weight has crept back. I am now 39 yrs old and about 30 lbs over the weight I would like to be. I joined WW online on 12/16/03. My goal was to NOT gain any weight over the holidays, which I didn't. I buckled down and got serious on Jan 4, 2004. My weigh in day is Wednesdays. As of yesterday, I officially lost 4.5 lbs. Yeah! (and when I weighed in this am, I was down 5.5 lbs!!! I'm not gonna change my clippee for another day or two so that I'm sure that I officially earned it! )

So on my plan, I'm allowed 24 flex points per day. Yesterday I ate 22.5 points. I am trying this Wendie plan were you vary your intake by day, trying to fool my metabolism into burning high all the time. I faithfully record everything I eat and drink so that I can refer back if I choose to. It also really helps me stay OP because I feel like I'm accountable this way.

So yesterday was:

100 oz. water through out the day

Breakfast:
3 cups Black coffee
1 cup honey nut cheerios

Lunch:
3 strips chicken from Wendy's
1 side salad

Dinner:
1 cup cooked pasta
1/4 cup spag sauce
1/2 link Italian pork sausage
1 cup carrots

Snack:
1 stick string cheese
2 viactiv choc calcium supplements

Please feel free to make comments if you'd like!

 

[marsh0013]

hi sharon welcome to the wonderful world of journaling! it really does help to keep you accountable! and everybody here is a great source of support and encouragement. i'm doing ww online as well! good job on maintaining through the holidays and congrats on that 5.5# loss! you're doing great! do you do any exercise? just wondering

oh, and i have a comment about those viactive chews. i don't know if you know this, but i read that you're not supposed to take 2 at the same time. like, take 1 with a meal, twice a day. something about your body only being able to absorb so much calcium at a time. hope this helps, and if you already knew that, and i just read it wrong, please feel free to ignore me (i realize that just because you listed them together doesn't mean you necessarily took them together!)

ok, i will check back in on you later, hope you have a great day!

 

[honeymo78]

Hi Sharon! Welcome to Wish and the journal boards. I'm on WW too and have been since Sept. I think it works really well and it teaches you how to control your portions so you can continue eating healthy for the rest of your life. I look forward to seeing you succeed in your journey. Feel free to check out my journal if you'd like. I love to see what other people who are on WW eat - sometimes I can get in a rut and get bored with my food.

Have a great day!

 

[sharoncity]

Thanks marsh and honeymo! I didn't know that about the Viactiv chews. I don't get much calcium from my diet, so I try to supplement. The viactiv taste like candy, plus its good for me!

Okay, so I didn't get to post yesterday so my Thurs looked like this:
B - cantaloupe and honeynut cheerios, black coffee
L - string cheese, 3 chicken strips from Wendy's, 1 cup of carrots
D - WW Fiesta Chicken

Snack - okay, this is where I fell apart today. Had a WW Mississippi mud pie, not bad. Then I was craving potato chips. Didn't have any in the house, wandered the kitchen looking for "something". Found DD reeses pieces and had at them. Counted for about 5 points!

Friday was pretty hectic, couldn't plan as well as I do when I'm at work.

B - blueberry muffin, black coffee (visiting a friend in am)
L - string cheese, cocktail weiners (kids had friends over after school; I always make them little hot dogs for that)
D - Salad with FF dressing, 1 piece oven fried chicken, small serving of pasta (family night at school - pot luck dinner)

Snack - 1 cannoli (see family night above! )

So yesterday didn't go so well. I really need to be careful today. Tomorrow is tuff also with dinner at Moms house to celebrate Grandmas 88th Bday! I am going to make some FF banana bread today, which I find very satisfying. I'll also do a big salad for lunch today. Tonight we are going to a local hockey game. I should try to eat dinner before I go so that I won't be tempted! I find I really need to plan my day out, I do much better that way.
I also need to get in gear with my exercise. Last few days have been too hectic and I didn't get to it. Now, I strained my back last night. I'm unsure whether I'll try any exercise today because of it. I'd say ab work is definitely out. I might be able to do so light aerobics and arm weights. Maybe I'll try that. I just took a couple of Advil, we'll see how I feel in about an hour.

 

[honeymo78]

Sharon - I usually make my oatmeal with water. I think if you use half water half skim or 1% milk it only adds an extra point.
The noodle soup is actually a frozen mix from the grocery store that you are supposed to add chicken to but I like just the noodles and veggies in my soup. It's called Hanover Hearty Soup Basics. The 8 pts was for the whole bag which makes 4 servings. I ate half before I went to work and then the other half when I got home at 10.

Good luck with dinner tommorrow. If you feel bad about not eating everything just eat everything only in smaller portions.

 

[sharoncity]

Okay - it is Monday morning and I am checking in. This weekend did NOT go very well. I ate a lot of things I should not! I wasn't feeling too good. My back was bothering me, then Sun I started running a low grade fever and it hurt to breathe. I was worried I was coming down with Bronchitis. But I feel better today - don't have any idea what it was bothering me for the last 2 days.

Since I wasn't feeling too well, I did not exercise at all this weekend. BIG mistake! I have to do this! I just have to! I know for me personally there is NO way I will loose this weight without exercising! I AM going to do a Firm tape tonight. It may be 9 or 10 pm before I get to it, but I WILL get to it!

Found out yesterday my cousins wedding is May 1! I need to drop 20 lbs by then (including the 4.5 I've already dropped.) I REALLY want to look nice for that. I would love a pretty dress that I know I look good in! It would just be such a great pick me up! So I have all the more reason to recommitt to this loss and exercise!

Here's what my Sat and Sun looked llike:

Sat:
100 oz water

B - banana and snack well cookies (oops!), black coffee
L - large salad with FF ranch, part skim mozzarella cheese, 3 pieces fat free banana bread
D - Large Roast beef sandwich and about 4 onion rings
Snack - potatoe chips (really bad, but I had SUCH a craving!)

Sun:
100 oz water

B- 2 pieces fat free banana bread, black coffee
L - Turkey wrap, 10 fries (we went out to a diner with kids - arghh!)
D - Fresh ham, mashed potatoes, green beans, raw carrots (dinner at mom's to celebrate Grandma's 88th Bday. I had a little of everything, except the bread. Small portions, so not too bad)

Snacks - 1 slice hot milk cake, Nestle crunch bar, donut holes (told you, I really fell apart this weekend! )

I think because I wasn't feeling right, I was hungry and looking for my old comfort foods. I need to break out of this habit. I need to train myself to find other comfort foods. Or better yet, not to use food for comfort!

Well today is Monday morning. I am starting again, fresh! I have a new goal date - May 1. And I have a real desire to meet that goal. So I am putting this weekend behind me and moving forward!

Today, I will
- Eat sensibly
- Exercise
- Not beat myself up!

Have a great day everyone!

 

[DoeWDW]

Hi Sharon!

I just finished catching up on your journal. You lead such a busy life and I think you're doing great considering your schedule!

I like your goal of May 1st and a beautiful new dress to wear to that wedding! I just know you're going to look and feel gorgeous!

There are lots of us that had less than stellar weekends around here, so we're all getting back in the groove today. You've got lots of company!

Here we go, Sharon, onward and downward!

 

[sharoncity]

Just a quick check-in. So far, so good today. Boy, it sure is easier for me to stay OP when I'm at work!

Doreen - thanks for the positive input. Thats what I really love about WISH! Everyone is right there, cheering you on. I want to exercise and eat right so that I can tell everyone here that I'm staying OP! It is a wonderful motivator! And yes, my life is definitely hectic, but I love just the same!

Today was:

100 oz. water (or will be by end of day! )

B- 2 pieces FF banana bread with marg 3 pts
1 cup honey nut cheerios 2 pts

L- McDonalds grilled chicken bacon ranch salad 6 pts
(with my FF ranch dressing)
Mcds yogurt parfait with granola 3 pts (YUMMY! )

D - will be beef stew for 11 pts

That will be a total of 25 pts for today. I am REALLY aiming for NO snacking tonight. I want to try to not eat after 7 or 8 in the evenings. I think that could be a big boost for me. Plus, it is definitely one of my biggest pit falls and bad habits that I need to correct if this is going to be a way of life for me. We shall see how I do tonight. I hope I'm not setting myself up for failure by planning this way. (I mean not leaving myself any pts for snacking.)

Talk to you tomorrow!

 

[sharoncity]

I am feeling very positive this morning!

I managed to NOT snack last night! I wanted to so badly, but I realized that I wasn't hungry. I wanted to snack just "because". But I "hung tight" and resisted temptation. Yeah for me!

I also managed to do a LITTLE bit of exercise. I couldn't motivate myself to do a Firm tape because I was watching Las Vegas on NBC. I really felt like watching that last night. So I compromised and got on my Step machine. Lasted for about 8 min. Was really aiming for 10 min, but my legs were killing me! So at least I did Something!

The story of my Stepper is my DH bought it for me 11 years ago. I hate it! Have always hated it! It basically sits there and collects dust. But I figured at least I could do it and still watch TV, so for last night it worked. May have to use it again tonight because I really want to watch American Idol. I think if I could get past my dislike of the thing, it could be very beneficial for me. The area that I really need to loose inches is my hips and derriere! But, man, I hate that thing!

So today is off to a good start,

B - 2 pieces FF banana bread with margarine 3 pts.
16 oz of water already and 3 cups black coffee

Talk to you later!

 

[marsh0013]

hey sharon, i'm so proud of you for resisting the urge to snack just because! i get that urge allllll the time. it is so hard to ignore it, but you did . and even though you didn't get to do your firm tape, you made a very good compromise. some exercise is better than no exercise .

i want to watch american idol tonight too! i may have to tape it though. that ff banana bread sounds really good...is it a ww recipe? i'll have to look that one up!

hope your day went well!

 

[sharoncity]

Thanks Marcia! I was very proud of myself! (hehehehe)

The FF banana bread is Wonderful! It really helps make this way of life easier for me. I posted the recipe over on the recipe board. If you can't find it, let me know. I'll get it for you - its VERY simple!

Today is still going good! (Yeah!) Not cheating yesterday and doing that little bit of exercise motivates me to do better today! Once I fall off the wagon, I tend to stay off for a little while. Not good, but that does seem to be my pattern. It is good that I have noticed this early on. So I am still right on target today. I want to make sure I have enough pts though, because I don't want my metabolism to slow down. I'm going to try to hit 24 pts , which is my target number per day. Then tomorrow, I'll step it up a little to fool the old metabolism to burn higher (hopefully). I am still also trying to stick with the no eating past 7 pm rule.

Lunch today was a Roast beef roll up
1 6"tortilla, 2 oz RB, 1 tsp light mayo, spinach leaves, rolled up 5 pts.
I also had 1 cup Honey nut Cheerios as my midmorning snack 2 pts.

So far, I've had 10 pts today. I think I'll do some sort of chicken breast for dinner. Maybe a baked potaoe with FF sour Cream to go with it. That's a real stick to my ribs type meal, so I won't need to snack later in the evening.

 

[marsh0013]

sharon, i didn't even think to look on the recipe board, duh! but sweet, i found it. maybe i'll give it a whirl sometime in the next few days if i have the time. do you know if it freezes well? because i'd like to be able to leave a few slices out on the counter, but freeze the rest so i don't feel like i need to eat it before it goes bad!

 

[sharoncity]

Well, I am doing the happy dance this morning!!!
If you haven't noticed, I'm sporting a clippee with a NUMBER on it! Yup! Today was weigh in day. I lost 1.5 lbs this week, total loss for 3 weeks is 6 lbs. It is going a little slower than I originally hoped, but it is going, so I am happy about that.

I am also quite pleased because I made it through another night without snacking! I ate dinner and then nothing else passed my lips after 7 pm. That means I met 2 of my goals - no eating after 7 and no snacking. Again, I was SSOOOOOO tempted to snack just "because" But I held my ground and the urge finally did pass. If I can just keep it up, maybe I can break this bad habit of mine. That would be a big plus for keeping this weight off too.

I watched American Idol, so I didn't do a Firm tape. But I did the DREADED stepper for 8 min (again, couldn't make it to 10 cuz my shins BURNED! ) But then I used my free weights and did some arm work and did some other leg work on the floor. Not a complete loss for exercise, so I am pleased. I also ordered a few of the WATP dvds. I figure I could interchange them with my Firm tapes and maybe use the 1 or 2 mile one if I don't have the full hour to do a Firm tape. I am planning to watch AI again tonight, so it sounds like I'll have to use the evil stepper for a 3rd night in a row. If I don't watch out, I may get used to that thing!

my dinner yesterday was chicken breast done with a sweet and sour package mix (only mix with water) and 3/4 cup of pasta. (Total 8 pts)
I also ate a plain bagel right when I got home from work while dinner was cooking because I was so hungry - 3 pts

Total pts for yesterday were 23! Good job for me!

I wanted to reach for chips or crackers while I was cooking, but realized that would really sabatoge my day. Need to plan better for that time of day, so that I don't fall into the snack trap before dinner either.

This journal is helping me to identify where my trouble spots are. With a little more time, I hope to be able to plan better to avoid them. Again, this will help set me up for maintaining my weight loss, which is crucial!

Hope everyone else is having a good day! I'll stop by to read you journals later!

 

[DoeWDW]

Sharon you are doing a great job already!!

6 POUNDS GONE!!

Your clippie is looking BEAUTIFUL, although I have a feeling you'll be trading it in soon.

I try to eat a snack at work around 3 - 3:30 so I'm not starving when I walk in the door at 5:30. Otherwise I tend to look around the kitchen for a nibble and if I don't have something on plan to eat, it gets ugly!!

Good for you for not snacking after 7 PM AND for getting on the evil stepper!!

Keep it up, Sharon!!

 

[marsh0013]

hey sharon, congrats on the loss! and congrats even more on saying no to the snacking! i'm so proud of you for setting out goals and sticking to them. great job! i hope you have another great day today

 

[sharoncity]

Doreen - Thanks for stopping by and for the words of encouragement! I really appreciate it!

Marcia - I've never frozen the Banana Bread - I eat it all up! I put it in a ziplock bag, keep it on the counter, and it is fine for a few days.

So, my Wed was WONDERFUL! I am so pleased with how my week is going. I did NOT snack again last night, so that's 3 days in a row. Yeah for me! I ate dinner a little past 7, so I didn't quite meet that goal, but it couldn't be helped. I didn't get home from work until almost 6:30, so by the time I unpacked groceries, read mail and cooked dinner, it was later than I would have liked. And, I am proud to report I got on the evil stepper AGAIN last night. And, I actually lasted 10 full minutes! I'm thinking if I keep this up, I might just get used to that thing. Certainly wouldn't be bad for me! I also did some free weights for my arms, a few crunches and leg stretches. Very pleased with myself about that too!

My day was:

100 oz of water

B - 3 slices FF banana bread with Marg, black coffee - 3 pts

L - 1 cup Honey Nut Cheerios, light yogurt, 3 chicken strips - 11 pts.

D - steak, large salad with spinach, mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, carrots with FF dressing - 8 pts

Snack - 2 small cookies - 3 pts.

Total points for day - 25

That is good, becasue I am trying to follow the Wendie plan were I vary the points per day so that my Metabolism won't slow down. I am going to try to stay close to my target pts today, because I am sure I'll have high pt days this weekend.

Today is off to a good start and I feel very positive. Having so many cheat free days is very motivating for me.

I hope everyone else's day is great! I'll stop by your journals later!

 

[DoeWDW]

Sharon, you're on a ROLL!! That evil stepper may just turn out to be your friend in the end! 10 minutes - I'm very impressed!! I can walk forever on the treadmill, but I cannot handle 5 minutes on the stepper! You're going to be lookin' "fine from behind!", girlfriend!!

Keep it up, Sharon!

 

[sharoncity]

You're going to be lookin' "fine from behind!", girlfriend!!

OMG Doreen! LOL! You are too funny!

I know what you mean about the treadmill vs the stepper. I can walk forever on a treadmill, but here I am killing myself to do 10 min on a stepper. Go figure! I can only hope this helps my hips and derriere. They are in DESPARATE need of help!

Well yesterday was not quite as good as Tues & Wed, but I am happy about it overall. I did not get to exercise at all. By the time I got home from work, made dinner, ran DD to dance, went back to pick her up, I was just not motivated. Going out in that COLD at 9 pm makes me just want to cuddle under my blankie when I get back! But I have today off from work (I work full time, but in 4 days a week), so I am heading up to tackle the evil stepper after I finish DISing. I am aiming for 10 min; if the legs aren't burning by then, I may stick it out a couple more mins. Then later today I'll squeeze in a Firm tape. (Even though I'm not at work on Fridays, I do alot of volunteering at school on Fridays. Today I have to be there 10:45 - 11:45, 1:00 - 1:30, and then pick the kids up at 1:50. I won't even tell you DD schedule for tonight! )

I finished dinner at about 7:15 (see taking DD to dance above), so I am counting that as making my goal of not eating after 7. I squeezed in my snack and was finished with everything by 7:35. So with my crazy schedule, I was satisfied with that.

Here's what Thur looked like:

100 oz water thru out the day

B - 2 slices FF banana bread, black coffee 2 pts

L - Roast Beef sand on light whole wheat bread with spinach leaves and 1 tsp light mayo, raw carrots 6.5 pts

D - big salad with lettuce, spinach, mozzarella cheese, tomatoe, light vinigarette dressing, 2 pcs chicken tenderloin 12 pts

Snack - WW brownie a la mode 4 pts.

Total for day 24.5 pts. No APS, so .5 came from flex

I am planning to go easy on myself for the weekend, up the pts a little to change up the metabolism. No definite plans yet, but I'll let you know as it goes along.

TTFN
Sharon

 

[sharoncity]

Happy dance at my house! Not only did I do 15 min on my evil stepper, I did...drum roll please.....20 minutes !!!

I am thinking my new goal may be to master that awful, evil thing! I figured out that if I slow it down, it is not as bad. (My life is so hectic, I rush EVERYTHING. When I eat, it is more like inhaling, when I walk, I drag the kids by the hand to keep up - and they are 6 & 11!) So I was doing like 50 steps a minute. My pace should be more like 25 steps per minute. Seems to be making all the difference. At least now at 20 min, I'm getting some beneficial aerobic work. And I working my much too large backend! So heres to me! I am quite pleased!

 

[marsh0013]

sharon, i think it's a great idea to tackle that evil stepper! you can do it, and it will be great for you! woo hoo!

you said something in another thread that just hit me:

Originally posted by sharoncity
And I have found that the more I stay OP, the more I want to.

simple. but so true! it stood out at me, and i realized that i am exactly the same way! i knwo that i feel so much better about myself while i'm on plan, and it's just so easy once you're on a nice roll!

keep it up! and have a great day