Working out

So we joined the Y. And I found a friend to work out with. I also have my husband supporting me. My SIL and I have a buddy system where we congratulate each other via text for working out. I call my mom every time I work out. I have another friend I email once a week updating on our weight loss efforts. And I have you, my lovely little, sometimes forgotten blog. So looks like I'm in a good position to lose some weight. Right? Monday night I went to a Pilates class. It was canceled. So I spent 30 minutes on the elliptical, and did some ab work. Tuesday I went to a kick boxing class. Today I went to an xbike class. My rear is still yelling at me to never do that again. I'm hoping with time it will get easier. It was intense. Probably the hardest I have worked out in 30 minutes. I loved it though. It was fun. High energy. And fast. I can do hard things for 30 minutes. Except now I don't feel like moving. At all. Good thing sitting still isn't really an option with two little kids. I want to do a yoga class tomorrow. We'll see how that goes.

Oh and I'm STILL 218. I can NOT wait to not see that number anymore. I did eat some sweets yesterday at a baby shower. Nothing crazy. One piece of candy. One little blackberry tart type thing. And lots of snap peas. Not bad. Now what to make for dinner tonight...?

plateau?

I don't know if I can really consider it a plateau since I've cheated a teenie bit every day. I haven't had a perfect day in weeks. And I'm still 218. I've already cheated today and it's 8:50am. But by all I had was a glass of OJ. And a pear. So I'm not beating myself up, but really I want to get back to being hardcore about it because losing 10lbs was fun and I'd really like to do it again, and again, and again. Just not the same 10lbs. Anyway, we filled out an application for the YMCA here and I can't wait to hear back from them. I seriously can't wait. I am going to quit Jazzercise. It was really nice, but the class times aren't that convenient for me and truthfully I don't remember the last time I went to a class. Now, I realize there are always a million excuses, and joining the Y isn't going to magically make me start working out. But I think it's going to help. They have like a thousand classes. Child care. An awesome gym area. A pool.

I am literally fascinating about dropping my kids off at the child care working out for an hour, and then taking a shower!! Without being interrupted. Heaven. That sounds like heaven. We'll see often it happens. Plus Aaron can come with me. That will be fun. I hope this all plays out the way I'm imagining.

So yeah, current weight still 218.

Fat Head

So I watched the Fat Head documentary on Netflix. I recommend everyone watch it. It was pretty entertaining, and just eye opening. It brought up an issue I have been conflicted with since I started this weight loss journey. That weight loss is more than just calories in vs calories burned. I have always thought as much, but it was nice to see some science behind it. It also talked about the government and its play in what we consider "healthy". It was really very interesting. He also showed how eating low carb helps you lose weight.

Which, by the way, I have am really loving. Eating low carb, that is. I am never hungry, I feel like this is something I can stick with long term. During Olivia's birthday I did gain a pound. But I've lost it again, plus another. It's easy to get back on track. I am not following Atkins to a science. I don't really count my carbs, or my ounces of cheese. I mostly just avoid starches. I have been happy with the results

Current weight - 218

Back on track

So for my daughter's birthday I kind of didn't really care what I ate. I had a piece of her birthday cake. And two slices of pizza. I really didn't go overboard. I gained a pound. But today I was back on track. For breakfast I went out with my family and had eggs and bacon. I didn't even eat a single potato. Nor did I want one.

I just really want to be skinny this summer.

I am defining skinny by being able to sit on the edge of my bed and look in the mirror and not feel sick at the sight of myself. That's all I'm asking for here, people.

My husband has lost 16 lbs so far. I am proud of him. Seriously doing this together has made such a difference. It's fun to encourage each other. And I feel appreciated when I have to get all creative with dinner ideas.

Areas I need to improve - exercise and supplements. And I could probably drink more water. Also, I am staying in this "Induction" phase until I am below 200 lbs. I just decided that. Then I'll gradually start adding more carbs. But starting tomorrow -- no starting right now -- I am going to do better at the supplements. My body needs it. I have been feeling crappy. Not related to the low carb eating. I have been feeling crappy for a while. Just tired. Remember I think I posted about a while ago? I did make myself a doctor's appointment but the earliest they could see me is April 7th. So maybe April 7th I'll find out I have something wrong with me. In the mean time I know exercise and supplements will help me feel better.

milestone

We started Atkin's two weeks ago. I am officially down 10lbs! Woo that feels good. Plus I just started... ya know started, and I don't think you are supposed to weigh yourself during this time. Retaining water and all that. So maybe I actually weigh even less, but right now... Current weight 219! I have also lost 3 inches from my waist. Since the end of January. That was the last time I measured.

Feeling pretty good today. Today should be the end of "induction". And now I'm not sure where to go or what to do. Instead of eggs this morning I had cereal. Which is not part of the diet at all. My serving had like 30 carbs. But I'm going to see what happens with my weight loss if I continue to do everything else, just have cereal once in a while. Eggs every day gets old fast.

Last night we had my famous Alfredo sauce with spaghetti squash. Definitely not my favorite, but it was okay.

My favorite foods

Right now I'm living on scrambled eggs for breakfast, turkey and lettuce for lunch, and some random concoction for dinner. Tonight it will be a roasted chicken and cauliflower rice and salad. Cauliflower has become a favorite food of mine. It's so diverse! This past week we've had mashed cauliflower and cauliflower rice. I also like to add sausage, mushroom and peppers to my eggs. The only thing I'm really struggling with is wanting to snack. On pretzels in particular. I brought a big bag for my kids. And they call to me daily. I won't like, I've eaten like 4 of them in the past two days. But they are mini kind. Super tiny. And I literally ate at most 5. So I won't beat myself up over that. I also really need to get my butt in gear and start working out more. I've been pretty lazy when it comes to that area. But since last Tuesday I've lost 9 pounds. I am 220. Almost back to my lowest since starting this blog. So I'm happy with how this is working. Also, my hubby has lost about 12 lbs in the same time frame! It has been great doing this together. It's also been fun coming up with new dinner ideas. 

Sugar Free BBQ Sauce.

This recipe is YUM-O.

Ingredients:

• 2 strips of thick bacon, chopped fine (or see note)
• 1 small onion, minced
• 1 clove garlic, minced or 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 small can (6 oz) tomato paste
• 1 can (12 oz) diet (sugar-free) cola - Splenda-sweetened preferred
• 1/4 cup low carb (sugar-free) catsup, (or see note)
• 3 T mustard
• 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 pinch ground cloves
• Hot sauce to taste

Preparation:

Note 1: If you prefer to leave the bacon out, add 1-3 teaspoons of liquid smoke, to taste, near the end of the cooking. Alternatively, add some smoky flavor using 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika, or chipotle powder to taste.

Note 2: If you can't find low carb catsup, leave it out, but add about a tablespoon of vinegar and some sweetener, to taste.

1) Fry the bacon in a saucepan - a 2 qt pan works well.

2) Add the onion and cook over medium until soft - 3-5 minutes. Add garlic at this point if you're using fresh and stir it for half a minute or so.

3) Add the rest of the ingredients, plus about half a cup of water. Stir well. 4) Simmer for 20-30 minutes. It will cook down a bit and flavors will combine. 5) Adjust the seasonings so you have the balance you want - you can add vinegar, artificial sweetener (liquid preferred), or hot sauce. (If it's too hot, adding more sweetener will tone it down.)

The recipe makes approximately 10 servings of 1/4 cup each. Each serving has about 3.5 grams of carbohydrate plus 1 gram of fiber.

I made a few adjustments. I didn't use ketchup at all. I used vinegar and a little splenda.

I also don't like mustard very much so I only added about 1 T.

 It doesn't taste exactly like a jar of BBQ sauce, but I might even say I like it better.

Why I don't miss bread

Week 1 of Atkins complete.

I was ashamed to tell you all that I was back at 229. No matter what happened as long as I wasn't at that number again I felt okay. Like, alright at least I'm still not back right where I was. At least I'm still a couple pounds below that. And then I was there. That was last Monday night.

Today - 222.3 (I know I'm weighing myself too often, meh, I like weighing myself every day and then looking at the week).

That's about 7 pounds in a week. Woohoooo! And I really don't miss any of the bread. The hardest part of this "Induction" stage is not eating stuff that I feel like is good for me. Like beans, nuts, and fruit. I will add that stuff next week. I would LOVE to lose another 7 el-bee's this week. We'll see.I know this fast weight loss doesn't last long.