Monkeybean: Weight Loss

Showing posts with label Weight Loss. Show all posts

November 15, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Round 2, Week 1

Playing catch up, here…but I started my next phase of HCG this week with Trim Nutrition, and I’m super excited! If you’re new to the blog, I’ve lost around 20 pounds with Trim Nutrition, specifically through their HCG program.

Halloween, being trapped indoors during hurricane Sandy, a week of sickness – all things I blame for the fact that I did gain back a few pounds of the weight during my 1-month maintenance period. And, if I’m being honest, when you’ve been on a crazy-strict diet for a month, it can be fun to spend a few weeks being “bad” and relaxing just a little.

But here I am, on day three of the VLCD (very low calorie diet) that’s part of the HCG plan…and I’m settling in again quite nicely. Not to mention, I’m now only 3 pounds from getting back to where I was a month ago. Can’t wait to be back to 173 and to start adding to my official “pounds and inches” lost number again!

I’m really feeling great and loving the way I look. This dress I wore out on a date night a few weekends ago – it was way smaller and more fitting when I wore it in August for my birthday dinner. Score!

SO, stay tuned and follow along with me! My goal is at least ten more pounds this next round – but I’d be just fine with more!

We’ll see!

Interested in checking out Trim Nutrition for yourself? Trim Nutrition offers vitamin injections and weight-management products that fit every lifestyle. Visit their website and check them out! Enter code “TERRIHCG” in the additional comments section when you check-out to let them know you heard about their products from this blog!

Disclosure: I received products for review from Trim Nutrition. I am not being compensated for my review of this product, nor for my opinions of the product. I always give my honest opinions, feelings and beliefs about the products reviewed on this blog.

October 16, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Week 7, Update 1

Starting Weight: 194.0

Current Weight: 174.3

Pounds Lost: 19.7!!

Nothing new! I’ve been cruising along, maintaining my 174 weight for the past weeks. I don’t mind staying here for a while. I lost 20 pounds in a month, and my time on the Trim Nutrition 20/30 Rapid Leaning program was intended to be just that – a maintenance phase! About two weeks to go until I start another HCG cycle, and I can’t wait.

I think everyone is different and, for whatever reason, my body always needs a little kick-in-the-pants to lose weight. I really have a lousy metabolism, and HCG is the first thing in a long time that I have found that really makes me drop the pounds!

So here I sit - (Literally. I just took this photo sitting at my laptop.) just maintaining and feeling awesome.

I have also had the chance to try out a few of Trim’s supplements over this period, and I’m really finding products of theirs that will always be a part of my routine. I love their protein shakes, and I’m really feeling like my tummy issues are better with their GI Pro. The Power Cell is supposed to make your hair and nails grow and mine definitely are!

I heart Trim Nutrition. Can’t say it enough. AND, I have some friends who are thinking of starting their HCG program, too! Can’t wait to see their success!

Interested in checking out Trim Nutrition for yourself? Trim Nutrition offers vitamin injections and weight-management products that fit every lifestyle. Visit their website and check them out! Enter code “TERRIHCG” in the additional comments section when you check-out to let them know you heard about their products from this blog!

Disclosure: I received the 20/30 Rapid Leaning Program for review from Trim Nutrition. I am not being compensated for my review of this product, nor for my opinions of the product. I always give my honest opinions, feelings and beliefs about the products reviewed on this blog.

October 9, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Week 6, Update 1

Starting Weight: 194.0

Current Weight: 174.3

Pounds Lost: 19.7!!

Wow! Week six! It seems like just yesterday my body was detoxing and I was feeling lousy and wondering if I’d be able to keep up with the VLCD part of the HCG cycle. Here I am, six weeks later – 20 pounds down and feeling awesome!

I’m chugging along on the Trim Nutrition 20/30 Rapid Leaning Program. It feels strange to eat more, as I’m pretty conditioned to eating 500 calories a day.

This part of the diet is low-carb and high-protein, and I’ve been able to exercise – which I’m loving! I had a personal trainer approach me at the gym last week, wanting me to sign up for training. I think I’d wait until after the next HCG phase before agreeing to something like that since I can’t exercise heavily when eating 500 calories.

I visited my in-laws this past weekend, and I only cheated in a few small ways, and still lost weight when I got on the scale on Monday, so I’m moving on and not looking back!

I took my Friday-morning-measurements before we went out of town this weekend, and I’ve now lost…

29.5 inches!!!!

That’s a lot of Terri. Just sayin’.

The UPS man dropped these goodies off for me yesterday – some dietary supplements offered by Trim. I’m most excited for the Power Cell -- which promotes hair and nail growth -- and for the GI Pro, because with all of my food sensitivities, I could use something that promotes healthy digestion and immunity!

By the way -- I selfishly have to ask all of you, while you’re here checking up on my weight loss, to take a moment to vote for the story I entered in the Maryland Live Casino Stories contest! All you have to do is click the link below, and we could win! You can vote once a day, and voting ends TOMORROW! Thanks!

http://ow.ly/ejrxF

October 1, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Week 5, Update 1

Starting Weight: 194.0

Current Weight: 176.6

Pounds Lost: 17.4!!

I finished my first cycle of HCG from Trim Nutrition! Yesterday was my last day on the VLCD, and today I am officially in “Phase 3” of the diet. This 30-days will be spent maintaining my HCG weight loss, losing additional weight, and exercising a lot more than I was able to while on HCG.

On my 28-day cycle of HCG I lost…

17.4 pounds!!!

and

26 inches!!!

I can’t wait to see what this month brings, doing the 20/30 Rapid Leaning Program from Trim!

I’ll spend 3 days doing a detox – drinking protein shakes and eating salads with lean protein. From there, the plan is basically high-protein, low-carb and includes vitamin injections and supplements that will help with additional weight loss.

It’s a higher calorie diet than the VLCD, so I’ll finally be able to hit the gym again – yay! I’ve so missed my spin classes and sweating it out on the elliptical. I went to the gym this morning and it felt amazing!

The 20/30 Leaning Program is designed to help you lose 20 pounds in 30 days, so hopefully after this month and a second HCG cycle, I’ll be at my goal weight! So exciting!

I’ll still be updating twice a week through this program, so check in to see how I’m doing! The accountability of all of you reading and following along with me has been awesome!

September 26, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Week 4, Update 1

Starting Weight: 194.0

Current Weight: 179.7

Pounds Lost: 14.3!!

Hellooooo, 170’s! Today is day 26 of my Trim Nutrition HCG Plan. Only five more days and it’s on to Trim Nutrition’s 20/30 Rapid Leaning Program. Moving right along!

I had planned to blog today about some of the products I have survived on for the past month, but instead, I have a confession.

Yesterday, I fell off the wagon. I ate french fries. From the café at Target.

The good side of this slip-up is that the fries didn’t even taste that good to me. French fries are my biggest comfort food, and eating some didn’t feel the same as it used to. I didn’t feel guilty, I got right back on to the eating plan – I consider it a success.

It’s easy to justify a mess-up, but I really do think I have a good excuse. Yesterday, I volunteered at Kennedy’s preschool, then went to the Subaru dealership to have my car worked on. That was only supposed to take an hour, but it ended up taking two. While I was there, I got a call from preschool that Kennedy was complaining of an earache. I had to go straight from the car dealership to preschool to the pediatrician and then to Target to get an antibiotic prescription filled. I had no lunch packed, as I had not planned being out so long. I was so hungry by the time Target told me they needed an hour to fill my prescription that I made a bad choice in the moment.

No worries. Moving on. My first-ever cheat on this diet at 25 days in is pretty amazing. I’m still a rock star.

I did read that, with the HCG diet, a cheat can mean a pretty considerable weight gain. I was nervous, but this morning I lost 0.3 pounds, so I’m just going to take it and move on!

Kennedy and I just got back from a wonderful fall-day walk through our neighborhood. I wore my Trim Nutrition tank top, and was excited to see that it’s gotten a little too big! French fry slip-up or not, I’m on a roll!

I still need to get that post up about my favorite products for the HCG diet. But, for today, I’m headed back outside in the fall sunshine with my baby girl!

Disclosure: I received a 28-Day HCG Kit for review from Trim Nutrition. I am not being compensated for my review of this product, nor for my opinions of the product. I always give my honest opinions, feelings and beliefs about the products reviewed on this blog.

September 22, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Week 3, Update 2

Starting Weight: 194.0

Current Weight: 180.5

Pounds Lost: 13.5!

Moving. Right. Along. Almost 14 pounds down on the Trim Nutrition HCG program, and still going! I can’t say enough times how great I feel on this diet. Light, energized, healthy – it’s totally been worth it!

I made this loveliness for dinner the other night – chicken curry and Indian-spiced spinach. Have I mentioned how much I love Zevia soda yet?

I need to work on a “things that I love for the HCG diet” post, as I have found so many awesome products that have made things easy peasy along the way.

I lost 3.5 more inches this week, for a total of…

21.5 inches!!!

I know any morning now, I’m going to wake up and be in the 170’s, and I can’t wait!

My next step with Trim Nutrition will be a month of their 20/30 Rapid Leaning Program – a high protein, low carb diet and supplement plan that will see me through until the next round of HCG. It should be here some time this week, and I can’t wait to check it out.

Today is day 22 of my HCG cycle – only 9 days left until my maintenance month!

I’m really looking forward to upping my calorie intake and getting back into the gym. Sticking only to moderate walking for a month has been hard for this elliptical and spin class addict!

September 19, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Week 3, Update 1

Starting Weight: 194.0

Current Weight: 181.6

Pounds Lost: 12.4!

Day 19! Stalling again! I’m not sure why my body handles HCG this way, but it seems to stall for a few days, then drop major weight, then stall for a few days again. Hopefully the “drop major weight” part is coming in the next day or so!

I have contracted a nasty cold from Kennedy, and I imagine that has something to do with the stall as well. I’ve heard that antihistamines and cold medications can cause you to retain water on the HCG diet, and I suspect I have a bit of that going on.

I was looking at some photos of me from the weekend before I started the diet and I definitely can see a difference. My clothes are also starting to feel bigger – almost uncomfortably so. For example, I went to the gym this morning and my pants kept falling down – Yikes.

The thing I feel most accomplished about so far on the Trim Nutrition HCG plan is that I truly feel empowered and in control of my food choices for the first time in a long time. The strict HCG protocol has taken control of my diet away from me and given it to the HCG plan.

There’s not an option to cheat, because I know I’ve worked too hard. I really feel as if I’ve taken a step backward and removed myself from emotional eating and food addiction and put someone else in the driver’s seat. It’s been an amazing 19 days, and I’m looking forward to finishing strong!

This diet has helped me see why this -

Is a cheesy, carb-loaded mess that my body cannot tolerate.

It has helped me see why this -

Is a much better choice.

And really, in addition to tasting amazing, those chicken fajitas (minus tortillas) really left me feeling healthier and lighter than housing a plate of enchiladas would have.

12 days from today, I finish this cycle of HCG. This morning, I was excited to find out that Trim will then be setting me up with a maintenance program for a month. From there, I’m planning another round of HCG with Trim as well.

Changing my life – with Trim Nutrition by my side – it feels amazing!

September 15, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Week 2, Update 2

Starting Weight: 194.0

Current Weight: 181.9

Pounds Lost: 12.1!!

So, obviously, the stall I mentioned in my last post has finally broken! I lost over a pound yesterday and Thursday, and lost 0.2 this morning! I’m even thrilled with an 0.2 pound loss after sitting at the exact same weight for several days!

I’ve also lost…

18 inches!

I lost 6 more inches this week, about half of what I lost the week before. Loving this!

I was telling Andrew in the car today that, a few days ago, I’d have said I wasn’t sure I’d do another HCG round after I finish this. I was hungry. I was craving everything I couldn’t eat. I wasn’t seeing the scale move.

If you’re doing HCG, let me tell you – STICK WITH IT! Today is day 15, and with 12.1 pounds and 18 inches gone, I’m more than averaging the 1/2 pound a day loss that most information you read about the diet states.

More importantly, I’m feeling amazing! I’m not bloated after eating anymore, and my tummy never hurts – I’d assume that’s giving up dairy and gluten. I have energy, my cravings are gone, and I actually enjoy the healthy meats, veggies and fruit I’m allowed to eat.

This has been an amazing week, and I am so thankful to the folks at Trim Nutrition for helping me kick-start a change in my diet and in my life! Although the restrictive diet is tough to adjust to in the beginning, it’s SO WORTH IT!

The days are beginning to run together, so a breakdown of each day probably isn’t necessary. The Trim Nutrition HCG Program is working wonders for me, and I am excited to still have two weeks left to lose more weight!

That’s our dinner from last night! We had friends over for dinner, and while I had to pass on tortillas, rice and other fixin’s, I had zero complaints! The grilled chicken breast and veggies were the best part anyway!

Hoping less of me will be updating you in a few days!

September 12, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Week 2, Update 1

Starting Weight: 194.0

Current Weight: 185.1

Pounds Lost: 8.9

Things are slow in week two of my Trim Nutrition HCG diet. I seem to be in what people call a “stall” – where I’ve gone several days at the exact same weight. I’ve done lots of reading on the subject, and it’s supposedly normal, but when you’re working as hard as I am and not seeing the scale go down, it gets a little stressful.

I’m so thankful for the folks at Trim Nutrition, and for the support they are providing with this diet. Yesterday, I had a phone consult with Kathy, the health care provider at Trim who handles the HCG patients. She was so helpful, running through a list of questions with me about the medications I’m taking and the foods I’m eating. Our conversation ended with the same thoughts I’d already had – I’m doing everything right, but my body is just temporarily stalled.

Kathy said I can always try an “apple day,” a part of the HCG protocol that has you eat six apples throughout the day with no other food, in an attempt to get your body kick-started again. I am in no hurry to take such drastic action just yet – especially since Kathy said that, especially in week 2, I could stall for 5 days at the same weight and it would be normal.

I’m also about to start my cycle, so that most likely is the root of the problem – darn water retention.

I’m feeling fantastic on the diet, and have really embraced the new style of eating. I just started reading The End of Overeating by David Kessler, and it’s fascinating so far. It’s filled with information about how our bodies have become programmed to want fat, sugar and salt, and how restaurants and food manufacturers do everything they can to hit us with these ingredients so we keep overeating. I’d certainly believe it!

I’m seeing this diet as a two-fold process – one is obviously to follow the HCG plan and lose weight, but I am also using this time as a time to detox my body of these harmful ingredients, and to work on some food addiction issues that I have. Why not use the plan as a time to reset and get things on track?

Here’s a little day-to-day breakdown since my last blog -

Day 9:

Packed a little salad for lunch and took the kids to the park after church. Otherwise just a typical, lazy Sunday. It’s nice to see the HCG diet fit into every day life. People think such a restricted diet is hard to follow, but really the boundaries are not that challenging to stick to.

Day 10:

Another successful day. I mostly spent time researching the stall I seem to be in. Nothing too exciting! We did make amazing lettuce wraps for dinner. YUM.

Day 11:

Had my phone consult with Kathy on this day. We also made another yummy dinner – a seafood hash made with radishes instead of potatoes.

Day 12:

That’s today! Can’t believe I’ve conquered 10 days of the VLCD. I’m really not even missing the sugar and fat and carbohydrates that I’ve eliminated. Protein and veggies are my friends.

I’ll be taking my measurements again on Friday. Can’t wait to see if, like lots of the HCG message boards out there say, I’m losing inches even when I’m not losing pounds.

Stay tuned!

September 8, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Week 1, Update 2

Starting Weight: 194.0

Today’s Weight: 185.4

Pounds Lost: 8.6

Nearly nine pounds down, and nearing the end of day eight on the Trim Nutrition HCG plan.

The questions I get asked the most right now when I tell people I am doing the HCG diet?

1) Are you hungry?

Yes. I’m still hungry every few hours. But, I just make sure I eat every 2 hours or so – a carb option here, a fruit option there – and that seems to get me through the day just fine.

2) Don’t you miss food?/Do you like eating so much salad?

Of course I miss food! This is temporary though. As of today, I have 23 days left on this part of the plan. (Yes, I am counting down.) As for the salad-eating, I actually am enjoying it. I’ve mentioned before that I’m pretty sure I have a gluten sensitivity and I am feeling great without gluten and dairy in my system. I’m just thinking of this process as a time to heal my body and eat only foods that are good for me.

A few notes on the last few days, and then I’ll tell you how many inches I lost this first week!

Day 5:

This was the first day I ate a protein option for breakfast instead of at lunch. Seemed to work well for me, and I did it all of the other days after this one. I bought Vitamin C and Charcoal at Whole Foods because I read that they would help with my detox symptoms – headache, shakiness, general feeling of blah. I also picked up some low-calorie, gluten-free carb options on my shopping trip to replace the melba toast/breadstick allowed on the plan.

Day 6:

One of my first big successes on the diet! I was out working at a Starbucks while the kids were in preschool, and a friend invited us over for lunch. Instead of hitting a drive-through and taking food to her house, I stopped at a grocery store and bought salad ingredients. Vinegar, green apple and lettuce was a favorite salad of mine this week, and it’s what I picked on this slightly tempting day as well --

Day 7:

This was the first day that my headache was gone! So happy. So relieved. I was getting rather sick of having a constant headache day in and day out! Andrew and I had an amazing dinner that I scarfed down too quickly to take a photo of – grass-fed beef and a cucumber salad. It was amazing. In the evening, we watched a movie (insert plug for Butter here) and I knew I would want something snacky, so I baked up some apple slices with stevia and cinnamon and made apple chips. Surprisingly satisfying!

Day 8:

Huge, huge, huge victory today. We went on a family adventure (that deserves it’s own blog, so I’ll try to post about it tomorrow) with our local Whole Foods store, and the outing included lunch. I would be lying if, when everyone at the table started ordering burgers, nachos, fries, etc., I wasn’t silently screaming inside. But, I persevered, ordered a Caesar salad with literally only the chicken and the romaine, and dumped some vinegar from home on top. I would also be lying if I didn’t say that I walked out of the restaurant feeling like a ROCK STAR!

Tomorrow is day 9 – day 7 of the VLCD. They’re right – the first 5 days of the VLCD are the hardest. It becomes a mental battle after that. 9 pounds in a week is nothing to sniff at – and neither is…

12 inches!!!!!

That’s right! I lost a foot of “Terri” this week. Some of the major areas that I lost --

2 inches from my waist

2 1/2 inches from my chest

2 1/2 inches from my mid-section

I’m shrinking you guys. It’s totally worth it. I can do anything for 23 more days.

Here’s another of the yummy lunch salads I had this week – strawberries and spinach with a little balsamic.

I’ll post another update early next week!

September 5, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: Week 1, Update 1

Starting Weight: 194.0

Today’s Weight: 186.8

Pounds Lost: 7.2

A few things I’ve realized about the HCG Diet so far this week are -

1) There aren’t a lot of personal blogs out there about other people’s experiences with HCG. Most of what I find when I search for information about the diet are companies trying to sell various forms of the hormone, or message boards that seem to be completely unhelpful. I sincerely hope that this blog will be a help to those of you considering HCG and Trim Nutrition.

2) People have a LOT to say about HCG, not a lot of which is positive. Here’s the thing – HCG may be controversial – but so is being fat/unhealthy. Crying about your weight to your husband and being exhausted all the time because you’re overweight are controversial. Trying to make a life change in any form is something to be praised, and I certainly can’t make everyone else happy – only me. Haters ‘gon hate, right? : )

3) This is not a “quick fix” or a “simple solution.” I’ve read a lot of that. I’m HUNGRY, people. This has been a mental battle every step of the way. I’m proud to have made it to “Day 5” – and I’m proud of every pound I’ve dropped so far!

With that being said, I’ll walk through the past 4 days!

Day 1:

I did my first injection, and was surprised that it didn’t hurt at all! Days one and two are “gorge” days, where you have to eat as much as possible of fattening foods. I truly felt gross by the end of the day. We had Chick-Fil-A for lunch, and I made spaghetti and meatballs for dinner. Andrew complained that if this went on, he was going to gain 10 pounds! I did sneak out in the evening for drinks with my friend, Amy, since it was going to be one of my last opportunities to do so for a while. : )

Day 2:

Surprisingly tough to eat so much – you’d think it would be fun! I had heartburn intermittently throughout the day and night, and I was definitely noticing a lot of the food sensitivity issues I suspect – gluten, dairy, etc. I downloaded Dr. Simeon’s book (the doctor who invented the diet) and read it – only 60 pages and absolutely worth it. Reading it made me feel even more well-informed and ready to go into day three.

Day 3:

I was wide awake at 4 AM (and have been every subsequent morning) – not sure if this is the energy boost I’ve been hearing about or if I’m just excited about the diet. We’ll see. I spent some time in the morning doing prep for the coming week – cooking chicken, buying frozen pre-cooked shrimp, washing veggies, etc. I was super hungry all day, and had to keep telling myself to drink more water, or focus on something else. It was definitely not unbearable, but I did feel slightly shaky and had a headache. A friend who has done the diet said this may just be my body detoxing. Ate things like chicken, spinach and shrimp on this day. This was my dinner – pretty yummy!

Day 4:

Woke up to a 4.7 pound loss on my scale, which made me reenergized and refocused for the day ahead. I had skipped the melba toast/bread stick option on day three because of my gluten-intolerance suspicions, but on day four, I did have a brown rice cake to get some carbs in my system. The rice cake seemed to boost my energy and help with the shakiness, and I finally took ibuprofen for the headache, which helped. For the first time in WEEKS, I did not take an afternoon nap, so the boost of energy is definitely here!

Today is day five, and I woke up to another loss – nearly two pounds! Since Trim Nutrition’s guidelines say that it’s okay to switch around what food you eat to different times of the day (as long as you get all of the required foods and do not add anything unlisted into your diet,) I tried having chicken at breakfast this morning. It seems to be helping with the shakiness to have gotten some protein in so early in the day.

I definitely feel like I’m hitting my stride this morning – and am not nearly as hungry and grumpy as I was for the two previous days, and the “brain fog” is clearing. This is a process – detoxing, teaching my body that it’s not going to get the fats and sugars I was putting into it before, retraining my brain. I’m excited to get through five days on the VLCD, as everything I read says the first five days are the hard ones.

7 pounds down and going strong! I’ll plan to update again this weekend, when I re-take my measurements.

August 31, 2012

HCG Weight Loss: The Kit is Here!

I’ve posted a little bit this week on Twitter and Facebook about an exciting opportunity that has come my way, and I’m psyched to say that things are officially a go!

I’m about to start a 28-day round of HCG from Trim Nutrition, an awesome online supplier of vitamin injections, weight management tools and other supplements. I’ve used B-12 injections from Trim in the past, and when I saw that they were offering HCG, I was eager to get in on it!

A brief summary of my understanding of the HCG diet is this -

The hypothalamus, a gland in our brains, controls bodily functions like breathing, digestion and the endocrine system. The endocrine system is responsible for producing hormones that regulate our metabolism and weight. Using a very low calorie diet (VLCD) along with HCG causes the body to attack its stored fat. The diet produces a “starvation state” in your body and causes the HCG to kick some major fat-cell booty.

I have a few friends who have lost tons-o-weight doing HCG. I’m pretty excited to have the opportunity to lose weight and to share the journey with you!

I just mixed my injection vile, and I’ve got it in the fridge, ready to start tomorrow morning!

The first two days of the plan, you’re supposed to eat a lot. Stuff your body with fatty foods and high calories – then kick off a 500-calorie per day diet from there.

It should be a fun weekend of pigging out – but then it’s serious business for the next month. I can’t wait!

Stay tuned, as I’ll be posting at least 2 times a week about the plan, my weight loss, and how I’m feeling!

Thanks, Trim Nutrition, for having faith in me! Here we go!

July 20, 2012

Banned Till the Beach

Man, I need to get back on track with eating healthy and working out. Why is it that, once you slip, it’s nearly impossible to get back on track again?

We went on a weekend getaway a month ago, and I can honestly say I have never recovered from the over-eating or wine-drinking. Isn’t there some saying about how it takes a whole bunch of days to make a habit, and then only one day to break it?

We have a few weeks until we leave for our beach house, and last night I started making a list of things that were banned from my body until we leave. I’m sure sticking to the list will help me shake the few pounds that have crept back up since our weekend away.

For the next two weeks, I’m avoiding the following:

1. Pasta, bread, rice, potatoes. I’m a carb-addict. Need to step away from the bowl of pasta.

2. Fried food. Why is it so yummy? For the next few weeks, I’m boycotting Chick-Fil-A, not because of the gay marriage issue, but because I need a fried food detox.

3. Alcohol. Oh, wine, I’ll miss you. It’s time to take a little break from the bottle.

4. Soda. The diet soda habit has also crept back up on me. It’s all tea and water for a while.

I’m hoping that getting myself back under control will help me start my beach trip feeling fabulous. Even if not, it’s time for another cleanse.

Completely off-topic, I chopped my hair today. Actually, my friend Heather chopped my hair today. I love it!

What bad foods/habits would go on your banned list?

May 8, 2012

Mommy Boot Camp

My friend Heather called me a few weeks ago and asked me if I’d be up for joining a “mommy boot camp” at her house a few times a week.

A friend of hers is a Fitness Coach and was looking for a few moms to start training.

I agreed to meet with her the following morning, really having no idea what I was getting into.

Four pounds and almost two weeks later, I can honestly say that Michele is my new favorite person – and that she is totally kicking my butt.

See, here’s the problem --

Yikes, right?

Remember that 60-something pounds I had lost after Kennedy was born? I’ve gained about half of it back. Shame on me.

It’s so easy to get lazy, drink too much wine, eat yummy food, and not even realize that weight is creeping back up on you. It’s been a battle my entire life. It will always be a battle.

That’s where my new bestie, Michele, comes in.

These two other mommas and I are working it TWICE a week with her. In addition, Michele has us on a 16-day cleanse diet that’s going to make us drop weight and get kick-started in the right direction. Love it! (Although my triceps don’t.)

Here’s what I’ve learned in a mere two weeks about myself, my diet, and weight loss in general --

1. I am not working out hard enough at the gym.

I go to the gym to hit the elliptical for 45 minutes, or take a spin class, but I never sweat as much or feel as sore as when I complete a Michele-workout. I also never feel as accomplished as when I survive a 32-minute circuit training session with her!

I definitely did not understand the difference between working out at a gym and having someone coach you. Which brings me to #2…

2. A fitness coach kicks the butt of any gym membership.

Michele holds my hand every day and supports me. What salad dressing should I buy at the store? Is it okay to have rice at dinner? How many calories should I eat today? All I have to do is text her and she is quick to point me in the right direction. I need babying. I admit it.

Her workouts are completely amazing – and I am learning to stretch and push myself more and more each time we work out together – something I really thought was impossible as much as I have dieted and exercised on and off throughout my adult years.

I won’t push myself alone at the gym. And since I won’t – Michele turned me on to using a heart rate monitor – which makes sure that my heart rate gets to where it needs to be on the days I work out alone.

Personalized food plans. Incredibly hard/rewarding workouts. An informative person to bounce all diet, food, supplement, fitness questions off of. I think I’m in love.

3. A support network is key.

Never a fan of Weight Watchers meetings, usually preferring to go it alone, I never expected to benefit as much as I have from having friends to work out with and to diet with.

The three of us have different goals for our body, but the general idea is the same – we want to be healthy for our kids and to get back to the way our bodies felt before our kids even came along!

Also, if we could look as hot as Michele, that would be a bonus.

I am so excited about this journey – and I’ll be sure to at least attempt to post more often as I make progress!

If you’re local and interested in boot-camping with us – shoot me an e-mail!

April 20, 2011

Catching up!

I honestly don’t know where my head has been lately! Take two crazy kids, mix them with Momma’s spring fever, add in trying to maintain a paying freelance gig – and you’ve got my wild life!

A little bit about the recent happenings around our house…

Monkey is just a few weeks away from turning three! He gets smarter, more talkative and increasingly independent every day. The above photo is of the first time he got dressed all by himself. His clothes absolutely don’t match, his shorts are on backward, and his shoes are on the wrong feet – but he was so proud!

This kid wears me out – chattering away all day, wanting to know where we’re going every morning, always on the go. I can barely keep up with him these days!

We’re hard at work planning his 3rd birthday party – a fire truck theme.

Kennedy is still the sweetest baby I’ve ever met. She’s getting a little more demanding as she gets older, which has been a challenge for me. It’s been interesting to learn to juggle the needs of the two of them all day long!

She just got her first haircut, and she is trying desperately to start crawling. She says “Da-da” and “Na-na” (momma) perfectly. I am loving springtime and being able to dress her in cute sundresses!

Oh the joy of having a girl!

The weight loss is still slowly truckin’ along. I started a weight loss challenge with some of the moms in my Moms Club two weeks ago, and I’ve lost 2 pounds in that time.

9 pounds to go until wedding weight, which is the smallest I’ve ever been. I’m not sure I’ll get there – I feel pretty happy at the weight I’m at, and I’m sort of coasting at this point!

I’ve been going to the gym a lot, and have really started to enjoy yoga. Honestly, just feeling healthy and fit is great, and those extra 9 pounds aren’t a huge focus for me right now.

I’ve been keeping myself busy with sewing projects. I made Easter dresses for Kennedy and I. (Hers is above. Mine is coming in a later post.) I still have to make ties for the boys – I should probably get on that, huh?

I also have an incomplete Lisette dress on my sewing table, as well as a stuffed bunny for Kennedy and some pants that need to be hemmed. The to-do list never ends, and the patterns and fabric in my stash continue to stack up!

I’ve been covering some local news stories for the Pasadena Patch, in addition to writing my weekly Patch columns. I’ve been getting to go to all kinds of events, and meet some great members of the community.

I’m having a love affair with freelance writing, and have been applying for other interesting positions when they come up.

The picture above is of a ham and oyster dinner I went to a little while back – yum!

Things are hectic right now, but I’m trying to stop here and there and just enjoy the kids and the house and the wonderful husband I’ve been blessed with. (I also just bought tickets to see New Kids on the Block and Backstreet Boys with some girlfriends – and I am thrilled for some down time/a girl’s night out!)

We have a tree in our front yard that I am in love with. I keep meaning to post about it, but I haven’t gotten around to it. Right now, it’s blooming with amazing, pink cherry blossoms – it’s gorgeous!

I stand on the front porch and stare at it several times a day, thinking how much that little tree reflects our life – blooming, beautiful, bountiful – it’s nice to have such a lovely reminder of how blessed we are!

February 16, 2011

weight loss update #2.

As of my last post about weight loss, nothing much has happened. I’m thrilled that I have maintained my weight, and for the last few weeks I’ve admittedly been lazy. I stopped taking Phentermine a while ago because it was making me feel hyper and keeping me awake at night. Since I had never had such side effects before, I decided that my body was probably telling me it was time to stop. My doctor agreed and, for right now, I’m just making healthy eating choices and working out and trying to maintain the progress I’ve made.

When we went out for our Valentine’s Day dinner date – I actually felt thin & pretty. I hadn’t felt that way in a long time, and it was all the confirmation that I needed that, even if I don’t loose more weight, I’m happy if I just maintain here, in the high 150’s.

A few weekends ago, I bought these amazing Guess jeans at a thrift store…

They’re a smaller size than I would have guessed would fit me, and they’re much lower than jeans I normally wear. The white embroidery on the legs looks summery to me – and as soon as I tried them on, I knew they would be my new motivation. After dropping 66 pounds, a lot of the remaining weight is going to be toning and working on target areas. And so, my new goal is to wear these super-low, sexy jeans out on a date night with Andrew this summer…and feel great in them!

I’ve been using SparkPeople lately for food journaling and calorie counting, and I recently found where I had entered my measurements into my profile way back when I first started taking Phentermine in October! It was inspiring to see that, since then, I’ve lost…

- 8 inches from my waist

- 4 inches from my hips

- 5 inches from each thigh

- 2 inches from each upper arm

That means, since October alone, I’ve lost 26 inches! That’s a lot of person to loose!

I’ve been toying with the idea of doing things like joining Weight Watchers, or taking Alli – because I would love to lose that last 15 pounds I’m carrying around. Whatever I end up doing, I know that, even if I stay where I am, I’m feeling confident, beautiful and happy!

Now, off to go clean the house and get some exercise – because those Guess jeans are calling my name and telling me to move!

January 29, 2011

a weight loss update.

About a month ago, I finally blogged about my recent weight loss. I was down 63 pounds at that point, and I am proud to say that, as of my weigh-in yesterday – I have lost 66 pounds and am feeling great! It seems strange to me to have only lost 3 pounds in the last few weeks, but I’ve also reached some big milestones in my weight loss journey.

I’ve hit the 150’s. Although I do have a way to go, getting into this range on the scale has been a mini-goal of mine. I’ve always felt thin in the 150’s – so the week I finally weighed in there was a happy one for sure!

I’ve started working out. Kennedy finally turned 6 months old – which means she’s old enough to go to the kids room at my gym. It has been amazing to get to the gym a few times a week and get in a good workout.

I stopped taking Phentermine for 2 weeks, and maintained my weight. I noticed the effects of Phentermine were wearing off, and did some reading up on how your body can build up a tolerance to the medication over time. Everything I read suggested giving your body a break and then re-starting Phentermine. I maintained my weight loss by eating healthy during that break and when I re-started Phentermine last weekend – it started working just like it did in the beginning!

Re-starting Phentermine was a difficult decision, as most days I feel really content at my current weight and am starting to have doubts about the need to reach “wedding weight.” I saw my doctor a few weeks ago to check in with her, and I had hoped she’d agree. Instead, she told me that even “wedding weight” was not a good weight for me, and that I needed to weigh 145 or less to have a healthy BMI. That’s been quite a struggle for me – deciding whether or not to press on to the weight my doctor is recommending. It’s definitely hard to focus on those last few pounds when you’re feeling good and dreaming of the days when dieting is behind you!

In the end, I decided that I do owe it to myself to try to hit 145. I may not get there, because the truth is – I am getting laaaaaaazy. I’m really ready to get back to living a normal life – at a happy weight, feeling healthy, working out – and I’m just not sure how important 14 more pounds is in the grand scheme of things.

So – for now I’ll say I have 14 pounds to go until my “goal weight” – and insert the disclaimer that this all may end with me deciding that 159 is a happy weight for this Momma!

December 17, 2010

how i'm losing weight.

I'm losing a lot of weight right now. 36 pounds since the first week of October, to be exact. Add in the weight I lost after Kennedy was born in July and I've lost 63 pounds since my delivery. Not too shabby. In fact, when I weighed in last week, I hit my pre-pregnancy weight - as in, the weight I was when I got pregnant with Bennet back in 2007. I'm pretty excited about it.

The tiniest I've ever been -

148 pounds and on my honeymoon in Costa Rica.

I lost nearly 100 pounds in my early twenties taking Phentermine, prescribed by our family doctor. Everyone has an opinion, and a lot of the opinions out there are that losing weight with a diet drug is merely a quick fix, that it's unhealthy, and that you'll just gain all of the weight back because you lost it so fast. None of this was true in my case. Taking Phentermine changed my life. I got the weight off in a fast, effective manner and I never looked back. I kept the weight off for more than five years. I changed the kind of food choices I was making, I started making healthy choices, I worked out at the gym - I was the confident, healthy person I had always dreamed of being as an overweight teenager. I met Andrew, got married, and put on the usual newlywed 10 or 15 pounds. I was still happy, still thin - life was good.

163 pounds & pregnant with Bennet here -

but wouldn't find out until later that week!

Then, I gained 60 pounds during my Bennet-pregnancy. I've battled my weight throughout my life - and my tendency to pack on pounds easily really kicked in with pregnancy. When Bennet was 7 months old, my dad passed away and, being the emotional eater that I am, I dealt with his sudden passing by eating when I felt sad. My weight was up and down through those next months, and in 2009, I found myself weighing almost 200 pounds and newly pregnant, this time with Kennedy. I only gained 25 pounds in that pregnancy, but having started out at 200, I found myself weighing 225 pounds on the day I was induced, the same weight I was on the day I was induced with Bennet.

Somewhere in the 200's - a few weeks after Bennet's birth.

I turned 30 a month after Kennedy was born and, if my metabolism was slow before, it crept along at a snail's pace once I hit the big 3-0. I had dropped 25 pounds (presumably of fluid and baby) right after delivering Kennedy, and had been stuck at 200 pounds for months - despite my best efforts to eat healthy and hit the gym. It was then that I remembered Phentermine and the success I had had taking it years ago. I asked our doctor about it and she agreed that I sounded like the perfect candidate for Phentermine and prescribed it for me on the spot.

220-something - just days after Kennedy was born.

So, there's my big secret - for those of you who've been wondering - Phentermine. It may not work for everyone, but it's working for me. It suppresses my appetite, it stops me from craving carbs and french fries when I'm stressed out or sad, it gives me energy and it is presumably boosting my metabolism because some weeks I feel like I haven't been giving dieting my best effort and I still lose weight.I probably only have another month or two left on the medicine. Now that I've reached my first-pregnant-with-Bennet weight - I'd like to reach the weight I was at when I got married. With only 14 pounds to go - I think that's a do-able goal!

Back to 163 - feeling great and excited to lose that last 14!

The best part of losing weight is definitely clothes. As of last week, I've unpacked every bag of "skinny clothes" I'd stored in the basement. It feels great to be back to a size I am comfortable at, and I'm starting to look toward trying out some of the new fashions that I've been too pregnant or too fat to try out for the last few years. I'm soon launching a new review segment on the blog, where I'll try out some of the newer fashion trends out there, and see if this 30-year-old momma of two can pull them off with her new, post-baby body!

If you're thinking of trying Phentermine yourself, I'd tell you to do it! It may be frowned upon to take diet drugs, but I feel like it's more unhealthy for me to be 75 pounds overweight than it is for me to complete a 3 or 4 month stint on Phentermine. I was just telling my doctor that I have been hesitant to share with people how I am losing the weight, because people see diet drugs as being so scandalous. She told me that as long as a doctor is prescribing it and I am seeing a doctor monthly for follow-ups, there is nothing to feel scandalous about. She's really right - it's not like I'm buying diet pills on the black market!

At the end of the day, I know that I am a happier person, a better wife, a more loving mommy - because I am not sad about my weight. When I don't have to think about how miserable I feel at 200 pounds, I have a lot more time to enjoy my life and appreciate my sweet family and that means everything to this Momma!