Week #1---restart!

Well as you can see by the last time I posted that I've been lacking in my weight watchers skills. Now that I'm completely done nursing I've decided that it's time to get my butt back into gear and start back up with WW and also with blogging. I've been slacking quite a bit and need to get into gear! So I'm making it my goal to blog here once a week...on Mondays! My new weigh-in day!

My current weight: 159.2 pounds as of this morning
My new goal: 150# by February 10th, 2008. (10 weeks from now!)
My personal goal for the week: Stay on plan, track everything I eat, drink lots of water and BLOG!

Now that I got some new clothes for my birthday and I'm sure I'll get more for Christmas, I want to be able to fit into them and not need a larger size!

Week 19.......

Okay...so I've been slacking a little....okay A LOT! It's not week 19 and I didn't post at all for week 18. I think I've fallen off the wagon! Ever since the State Fair aka pig out fest, I just don't seem to have the motivation that I did in the beginning. Maybe it's because I've lost over 20 pounds and now I'm just losing steam and I'm able to fit into a smaller size, so I've just given up? I don't know! Help me to understand. Anyway, this starts a new week and I'm getting my butt in gear. I just need a little encouragement.

Interesting fact of the day....I've discovered my Wedding Ring and Promise rings to be too large. They are slipping all over my fingers, I haven't noticed this in the past. Who knows!

Anyway, here are my stats for week 18 and 19. Boring I know!

Week 18: 9.04.07
Weigh-in: 157.0
Down: .8 from week 17 weigh-in following the state fair

Week 19: 09.11.07
Weigh-in: 155.2
down: 1.8 from week 18

Now that I look back at my WW charts from WW online. I'm actually lowest I've been the whole time. My WI the week before the state fair was 155.6 and I'm 155.2 WOO HOO!

Send encouragement my way to get back on track!

week 17...

So week 17 didn't go so hot for me! I did well up until the weekend. But my 3 pound loss from last week has turned into a 2.2 gain this week! I didn't really watch what I ate all weekend as well as I typically do. Mary and Ron had us to their place for the weekend and we ate very well! Pizza Friday night...my favorite...Davanni's Pepperoni with Green Olives. Saturday night...Ron's speciality...Beef Stew, fresh rolls, orange jello salad. Sunday night...turkey tacos...for Kevin's birthday dinner! It was all great! We did lots of walking/exercise...shopping...I consider that exercising! We went to Burnsville Center Saturday while the guys golfed and Eden Prairie Center on Sunday while they golfed again! So I got plenty of walking in! But my biggest attribute to my 2.2 pound gain for the week was the Great Minnesota Get-Together...aka land of 10,000 foods on a stick! I ate lots of things at the fair. Cheese curds, deep fried candy bar on a stick, buttered noodles (part of Amelia's meal), a bite or two of Kev's spaghetti and meatballs on a stick, a bacon wrapped turkey tenderloin on a stick, a few Sweet Martha's cookies, a steak fajita and I think that's all. No wonder I gained weight this week! Oh well! I've still lost 20 pounds...so I'm feeling fine.


The best part of my weekend...I got some new clothes!!!! In a new size...10! I haven't worn this size in probably 5 years. So I'm really excited about that! I got three new pairs of capris and a new pair of jeans...all which fit well. So I'm feeling good!

Until next week...

Week 16....

22.2 pounds

Yep...you read that right! 22.2 pounds is my total loss this far since May 2nd, 2007. I'm so proud of myself and I'm really starting to notice a difference. The other day I had on a pair of my size 14 jeans (this was my biggest size since having Amelia---after which sometimes I could fit in a 14 and sometimes a 12...all depended upon the brand!) any way, when it was bedtime, I slipped off these jeans without unbuttoning them. I was so excited! They were a pair of jeans I had purchased this spring sometime. And they fit comfortable then. Now they are getting on the big side and I need to wear a belt with them or I'm constantly hiking them up. Also, I've noticed my size 12's are starting to get loose as well. Size 12 was my post-high school, well more like post-college/wedding size. Size 10 was my late high school years size and size 8 was my smallest size Jr. High through 10th grade, maybe 11th. I can't quite remember. I'm hoping to fit into a size 10...COMFORTABLY!

People around me are starting to notice a difference and that makes me feel great! Last night before I headed to bed, Kev was watching tv when I was heading upstairs and he said "Babe, you look great! I'm really proud of you" That made me feel really good.

Then this morning when I got to work. One of my bosses (he's 70) was starring...at the time I thought he was upset about something or pondering something. Well, I went downstairs, changed into my work shoes, came back up stairs and he said "How much weight have you lost?!" and I said "About 22-23 pounds" And he said "Well girl, you look great! How did you do it?" So I told him and then he shared a story with me about how about 5-6 months after his wife had one of their kids someone said to her "When's the baby due?" and she was so heartbroken and embarrassed. I don't ever want anyone to question "When is your baby due?" unless I'm actually pregnant. Right now I'm going for that "hot mom" look. At this rate...hopefully I can get a whole new wardrobe for fall and look "smokin'" this fall! I know for a fact that I'll have to get new clothes. I put on a long sleeve shirt I had bought this past spring when we went to Duluth and it hangs on me. I'm hoping the rest do as well!

Anyway...here are my stats for the week.

• Weight this AM at Weigh-in (WI): 155.6
• Weight lost since last week's WI: 3 pounds (I haven't lost anything for about 3 weeks or so)
• Goal by Paul's first birthday: 150#, but I'm considering changing it to 145#. But we'll see how these next 5#'s go! I'm taking 'baby steps'
• Goal for the week: EXERCISE, Eat more veggies, drink lots of water and track my food.

*We're going to the state fair next Monday, so that could make next week's weigh-in interesting. I plan on eating what I want at the fair and not tracking...because it's the ONE thing I look forward to all summer and it's the only time I get all the foods I crave weeks after the fair is over until we go again.

Look for next weeks blog for a food review! Ha!

Deep Fried Candy Bar on a stick here I come!!!

week 14 and 15

I just realized, I never blogged about my week 14. I don't remember much of it. Other than my weight held steady at 158.0 from the week before. Last week we had my cousins Courtney and Britta staying with us and it was a tough week eating wise. I ate more than usual, didn't drink as much water and ate things I haven't really been eating...namely ice cream. Then we spend the weekend out of town at my Grandparents house and of course, have fabulous meals there. Plus Saturday night for dinner my dad made his Famous fried chicken...which I haven't had in at least 10 years. It's to die for and I ate that, sweet corn, homemade fries and rolls...yummy! Plus we grabbed McD's on the way home Sunday evening.

But with all that eating I did, I only gained .6 pounds, so I'm back up to 158.6, which isn't bad considering the week I had eating wise. Today I start a new week and have time to get myself back in gear, right now I'm lacking motivation. Hopefully I can kick myself in the butt and get going. I need a little encouragemet.

Better head to bed...

Here's to a new week.

Week 13...week late

Pic above taken: 8/3/07 approximate weight: 158.0

Week 13...I'm a little late posting this for the week, but it's better to be a little late than never! Okay so I'm a week late. I started this last week when the kids and I were at my mom's for the Relay for Life. I had a good week. I suprisingly got in a lot of exercise last week. We walked to the Kolacky Days festivites from our house and it's about a half hour walk downtown and to the park. Plus it was hot out! Anyway this will be short and sweet.

Weigh-in last week (7/31) 158.0

Total weight lost: 19.8 pounds

Weight to go to hit 150#: 8 pounds.

Goal for the week: Track!

*I didn't get a chance to weigh-in this morning. I will be doing it tomorrow morning and posting it tomorrow night. I have a feeling it's going to be a rough week! Courtney and Britta are staying with us and I'm eating more things that I do in a typical week. ie: ice cream!

Check back tomorrow!

Week 12

Well, I survived week 12...just barely! I didn't track at all last week. But I made it my goal and so far this week, I'm doing pretty good tracking! This will be short and sweet this week, as I don't have anything significant to report. I hit my 10% this week...FINALLY! Now I have 9.8 pounds to lose by Pauly's birthday! I think I can make it and then I will have hit my original goal, which has become my mini-goal! By my birthday I want to weigh 145 or less! I think I can make it, I need to keep setting mini-goals.

Current Weight: 159.8

Total loss: 18 pounds! Woo hoo!

Goal for the week: Continue tracking. Drink lots of water and eat healthy!

week 11 recap

Well, I survived week eleven...barely! I did get my exercise in, one way or another, however I did very poor on my "tracking", which is a way I keep track of my food points each day. Weight Watchers online has a place online where I can record the food I ate and keep a daily tally so I know if I'm within my points range or not! This is going to be short and sweet. Unfortunately I didn't hit my 10% this week. I only lost .8#, which still leaves me .2# to lose to hit 10%, I'll definitely have it next week!

Current Weight: 160.4 #

Weight to lose to hit 10%: .2 #

Total weight lost: 17.4#

Goal for the week: TRACK, TRACK, TRACK!

I'm going to re-weigh myself in the morning to re-check my weight. When I weighed in this morning the weight was different every time---I weigh myself 3 times to see if it is all the same or what the average is and that's how I get my weight. Well today it was really fluctuating, 160.4 was the most consistant weight, so I want to re-weigh in the morning and see if I get a different number. Also, I was very thirsty today at work, I don't know if I had a lot of salt in my body or what, but I drank 120 oz of water...no joke! I felt like I was always at the water cooler today! And I've been super thirsty tonight too!

I bought myself a new swimsuit for Vegas...at TWO PIECE BIKINI! YIKES! It's not even a tankini, it's a true two piece. And I bought a super cute swim cover up as well. Hopefully it'll fit when we go, but the bummer thing I found out is, there is a possibility the pools will be closed in November already...crossing my fingers they will be open. Our hotel has a shark tank and water slide in the middle of the pool!

Look for a possible update tomorrow night to see if I had a great weight change from this morning!

week 11 here I come...

Picture above: taken today. Weight: 161.2

Well, I can hardly believe it, but I'm starting week number 11 already. Where has the time gone? I actually got more exercise last week than I thought I did. The kids keep me mighty busy and I don't even realize that I'm getting exercise while chasing after them! I've been really cautious about the food I eat and the portions size. Also, like I stated last week, I've really cut down snacking in between meals. If I do snack, I try to grab something healthy, a piece of fruit or veggies. Another good snack is sugar free jello cups. Love them and they are zero points! For my chocolate cravings, I love the Quaker Mini Bites chocolate drizzle ones...yummy and only 90 calories per pack! Also I've discovered, I think they are Nabisco 100 calorie packs of grasshopper cookies. Very good also!

I had another great week as far as my weigh-in went. Here are my numbers:

Current Weight: 161.2#

Mini-Goal (by Paul's birthday): 150#

Need to lose for mini-goal: 11.2 pounds

Total weight loss: 16.6 pounds.

I've almost hit my 10% weight loss, it's so close I can smell it! I only have 1.2# to go to hit it. My goal for the week is to hit my 10% next Tuesday. I know I can do it. I did fairly well today, ate all my servings of water in, had my fruits/veggies, stayed within my points range and went for a half hour bike ride with Kevin and the kids.

Another fabulous thing, we went shopping Friday night and I was able to buy a pair of capris in a size 11. It's been a long time since I bought a size 11...pre-kids! So it's almost been 3 years since I found out I was pregnant with Amelia. It felt so good buying a smaller size. And tonight I put on a pair of capris I purchased 3 days before Amelia was born and tonight was the first time they've felt this good when I put them on, I didn't feel like I had to suck in to get them on. I believe they are a size 12! WOO HOO! I'm pumped!

Onto week 11...

week 10.

I've now started week number 10 as of today. I can't believe I've been doing this for 10 weeks already, seems like I just started it. I had a good week last week, I limited my snacking between meals, which was almost obsolete last week, which I consider a great feat. As that doesn't happen very often. I've started to become more conscious of what I'm eating and really trying to limit snacking. I have the hardest time on weekends with watching what I'm eating and not snacking. Also, I never get as much water on the weekends. Per advice from my MIL Mary and my friend Jodi, I've started drinking more Crystal Light, which helps get in the water and has a little flavor. My favorites are the Fruit Punch and the Raspberry Ice. Also for the last two days I've but lemon juice and lime juice in my water, which gives it a little flavor as well.

My biggest struggle right now is the leftover DQ Ice cream cake sitting in my freezer from my Dad's birthday. Not that it's really a struggle. It's just temping me! Last night I had a tiny sliver and I think it's okay to reward myself if I had a good day of eating. I don't think a tiny piece is going to kill me! Plus, the cake isn't going to last forever!

For my numbers:

163.6# @ weigh-in this morning

1.2# lost since last Tuesday morning

14.2 pounds lost total in almost 10 weeks.

3.6# until I hit 10%

13.6 pounds until I hit my goal of 150#

My goal for the week is to exercise more. I need to do more physical activity than I have in the past couple weeks. Believe it or not, housework counts as an Activity Point. Which is great! Also my second goal is to eat more veggies. I do well some weeks, and not so well others. But I'm working on it and that's why it's a goal of mine. Wish me luck as I head into week number 10!

I've also become a frequent visitor on a message board on Weightwatchers.com it's called "Baby's First Birthday Challenge" and it's a bunch of other moms who are struggling to lose those post pregnancy pounds. It's great for me. Kelly introduced it to me and it's nice to have other women in the same boat as me. They have great tips and advice, some are nursing moms, others aren't. It's just nice to have another place to go for support! :)

Happy Fourth of July everyone! :)

week 9...

Well, I'm onto week #9 of weight watchers. I didn't think last week went very well, as I didn't seem to eat very well and I didn't really get a chance for exercise...it was just too dang hot for walking! But I did manage to get in a minimum of 96 ounces of water everday last week, minus the weekends, I never seem to drink as much water on the weekends as I do during the week. Must be the water cooler at work, it's so inviting! I don't think about it as much when I'm home, I don't drink much of anything at home. Mainly because the kids keep me busy when I'm home and I don't think of it much!

Over all, I feel somewhat sucessful, looking back however I really honestly couldn't tell you everything I ate all last week. I know I didn't do so hot over the weekend when we were out of town, it's always tough to eat right when we're away from home. Especially on Saturday when were at my Grandma's house and there was a lot of sweets sitting around all day, and her delectable pretty much sinful Chocolate chip bars, which I love, and I'm sure I ate a few too many throughout the day, but I also had a lot of fresh fruit over the weekend, so it's hard to say!

Now for the numbers...

Weight Loss for the week: 3 pounds!

Weight at weigh-in this morning: 164.8#

Total weightloss thus far: 13 pounds!

# of pounds to go until I've hit 10% loss: 4.8#

Goal by Paul's first birthday: 150#

Goal for the week: to exercise more, eat more fruits and veggies.

So far today I'm doing well. For breakfast I had a glass of milk, a small glass of oj, and 2 bran muffins. For lunch I had a chicken salad sandwhich on whole wheat bread with lettuce, a small amount of chips, a pickle spear and a diet coke. For dinner I had a Grilled Southwest Chicken Salad from McDonald's, which by the way is very tasty and only 6 points for the entire thing! I didn't even snack in between meals nor did I have a desire to snack between meals. And if I have enough will power I'll head to bed without having one of my Granny's chocolate chip cookies she sent home with me on Sunday. I feel really good about myself so far! Hopefully the rest of this week goes just as well!

Check back next week for another update!

week 8...

Picture above: approximately 168 pounds. 06.17.07

This will be quick, as I'm tired and ready for bed!

I lost .2 pounds this week. I weighed in at 167.8 pounds. But that brings me to a grand total of 10 pounds lost! Which makes me feel good. I wish I would have lost more, but I had a crappy week of eating last week. We went out to lunch everyday I worked last week. I tried to eat well, but sometimes it's tough. Especially the days we have Pizza Ranch Buffet. I love it and hate it all at the same time. I love it because its so good, but hate it because I way over eat there.

I feel like I'm in need of some encouragement this week to help me along in my journey. I haven't been getting as much encouragement at home as I had in the past few weeks, and I don't consider "Should you be eating that?" as encouragement. Also, I need someone pushing me! And checking in on my weigh in's. Kelly and I check in with each other on weekly basis, but I need more support! Please help me along in my journey!

This week, I'm hoping I'm starting off on a better foot. Yesterday I had 3 good/healthy meals. Today I had my Kashi cereal, milk and oj for breakfast. A chicken taco salad for lunch and a chicken breast and mac and cheese for dinner. And a dish of light ice cream-mint chocolate chip for dessert. I also drank about 5 of my tumblers (24 oz tumbler) during my work day and have filled it up to take with to bed tonight.

On to week 9...

Week 7...`

Well, I'm onto week SEVEN! I was down 1.2 pounds today, which equal 9.8 pounds total in 7 weeks. I'm so excited! By next week I should be down 10 pounds total and Only have 7 pounds to go until I'm at 10% weight loss and then I'll set a new goal. The goal WW set for me was to lose 10% of my body weight, even though I really want to lose more than that. Keeping my fingers crossed!

I've been watching what I eat and making sure I eat healthier and definitely making sure I'm getting my water in everyday. I have an insulated tumbler from Tupperware that holds 24 ounces, which would equal 3 glasses of water. I drink about 3-4 of those during the day at work, so I'm definitely getting my water intake. I make myself drink 3 of those tumblers full of water before I allow myself to have a pop, and I've switched to Diet Coke instead of regular and Diet Dr. Pepper instead of regular. While I enjoy the occasional Regular Coke or Regular Dr. Pepper, the diet pop doesn't count for any calories and I need my caffeine, so why not drink the diet? Besides, the taste has grown on me! I try my hardest to stay in my point range everyday. Which so far, hasn't been hard at all.

I've found a new cereal that I love. It's Kashi GoLean CRUNCH! It's great! If you like whole grain cereal, it has 9 whole grains and lots of protien and fiber in it. I had some for breakfast this morning and didn't get hungry until just before lunch time. And we don't have lunch until 12:30 or 1:00. It's the first cereal that has ever actually filled me up aside from hot cereal like oatmeal and malt o meal. I got a free sample first by going to www.kashi.com and requested a free sample (they had a link for it) and now I think I'm hooked. I got a big box at Sam's club with two bags of cereal in it. YUM!

Kelly and I went for an hour long walk tonight with the kiddos while our hubby's were watching deadliest catch...yes they are dorks! We had a great walk and it's definately a work out pushing the stroller and now in all this heat/humidty, it really adds to the work out!

That's all for my update this week. Check back next Tuesday to see if I hit my 10 pound goal. I'm setting mini-goals for myself and working my way up to the big ones!

Goodnight!

My weight loss journey...

Above Picture: April 28, 2007. Approximate weight: 177.8 pounds

I am into week #6 of my weight loss journey. I started doing Weight Watchers on May 1, 2007. My good friend Kelly had been doing weight watchers for a while and I saw it was working for her, and I thought to myself when we returned from vacation, "I've gotta try something different", so I thought I'd give Weight Watchers a whirl. I'm doing the online version and not going to meetings, but I can track all my meals, etc online and do all my weigh-in's that way.





I'm tired of being overweight and felt that I was going no where trying to lose weight on my own. When I got pregnant with Amelia, I weighed 172 pounds. About 4 days before I delivered her and my final weigh-in at my Doctor, I topped the scales at 208 pounds. Talk about holy huge! I didn't think much of it at the time, after all I was pregnant. Well I lost my pregnancy weight very quickly. By time I was 2 weeks post-partum, I only had 10 pounds go to get to my pre-pregnancy weight. Then I never really kept track of my weight after that. When I found out I was pregnant with Paul, which by time I found out, I was approximatly 7-8 weeks along. I weight 168#, so this time I weighed less when I started my pregnancy, and my last weigh-in before he was born I weight 201#. Again the weight came off fairly quick, by time I was 2 weeks post-partum I had about 12 pounds or so to lose to get back to my pre-pregnancy weight, figured that would be no problem since I was nursing and everything. Well, I don't think the holidays worked in my favor as fas as losing my weight. So before we went on vacation at the end of April, I was determined to lose 10 pounds, I had about 10 weeks to lose it and figured it would be no problem, so I started exercising more (walking and pushing about 60-75 pounds with both kids in the double stroller) and eating better and snacking less. Well I lost about 2-3 pounds in those 10 weeks.





When we returned from vacation at the end of April, I knew something had to change, so I decided I would start weight watchers. When I started WW, I weighed in at 177.8 pounds on May 1, 2007...6 months post-partum. My ultimate goal is to lose about 25-27 pounds and get down to 150. I weight around 150ish when we got Married and I know there is no way I could slip into my size 10 wedding dress these days.





Here is my weight loss by week:


Starting week 2 05.08.07 Weighed 176 pounds 2.8 pounds lost


start of week 3 05.15.07 Weighed 173.2 pounds 4.6 pounds lost


week 4 05.22.07 Weight: 172.4 pounds *5.4 pounds lost*


week 5 05.29.07 weight: 172.2 pounds 5.6 pounds lost


week 6 06.05.07 weight 169.2 pounds 8.6 pounds lost





So next week will be onto week number 7. I have 9.2 pounds to lose until I've lost 10% of my body weight. I will try and update this weekly and maybe I'll post some new recipes I've been trying and also maybe looking for a little encourangement.





I want to lose at least 25 pounds before we head to Vegas. I still have about 5 months to lose that, but could really use the encouragement along the way. Kevin is a huge help and a great supporter, as is Kelly, we check in with each other on our weigh-in day and see how the other is doing! I'm a believer that WW really does work and I think it's a great program. It's really helped me realize how much I was eating before and that I was eating WAY too much!





If you are trying to lose weight and not having any luck, I strongly suggest you check out www.weightwatchers.com It's a very easy program to follow. Like I said, I'm a BELIEVER! The even give you encouragement with your weekly weigh-in's. It's great!





Keep looking out for updates! :)