Day Sixteen- Getting Back on Track!!!

So getting back on track has been a bit slow this morning. Today was swimming day, and I had my swimsuit underneath my clothes, had breakfast, made sure I had brushed teeth, the kids had brushed teeth, breakfast & dressed for school. It wasn't until I was about half a block from the YMCA did I realize that I left all of my swimming supplies (fins, goggles) at the house. So I had to turn back around and go get my things. I didn't get back to the YMCA until 8:45 am- 45 minutes behind schedule. But I still made it!!!

I spent 30 minutes in the pool, swimming laps, alternating between leg kicks for two laps, & arm strokes for two laps, then I alternated between front strokes, back strokes & breast strokes for the additional laps. Once I finished, I got out, showered and changed, and headed to work.

After today, I felt pretty well with what I did for today as well as what I ate. I also tried to really focus on what I was eating today as well & I think I did pretty well.

So here is my food journal entry for today:

Breakfast
Bowl of Cheerios
Coffee

Morning Snack
Crackers
Water

Lunch
Leftover soup (Pho)
Salad w/ diced ham, shredded cheese, ranch dressing (forgot to buy a vinegrette dressing) & croutons
Water

Dinner
Chicken Sandwich
Fries
Water/Soda

Evening Snack
Hot Cocoa

I really feel that I did great today. Tomorrow, I am back at the YMCA with a trainer to finish my orientation on the new workout equipment that they have. The one thing I like about this trainer is even though he does the orientation, he also puts me through a thorough workout.

So I will talk to everyone tomorrow!!

Day Fifteen- Free Day

SThanksgiving break is coming to an end & I am so glad that it is done!!! THE KIDS ARE BACK AT SCHOOL TOMORROW!!!!

Today was a pretty busy day, church, taking my mother-in-law down to Charlotte so she can catch her flight tomorrow & buying the kids shoes. So I was glad that I made today my "Free Day." With that said, here is my food journal entry for today:

Breakfast
Scrambled eggs w/ diced ham
Hashbrowns
Coffee

Lunch
Country Fried Steak & Eggs
Pancakes
Coffee/Water

Dinner
Pho Thi (Vietnamese Soup- Delicious!!!)
Egg Roll w/ Lettuce Wrap
Water/Cafe Su Da

Dessert
Nutty Buddy Ice Cream

One of the things that I wanted to let everyone know, was that some of the comments that I have received these past couple of days kind of got under my skin. But not in a way to chastise them, it was to chastise me. I am not doing what I should be doing to really get this ball rolling. Again, I need to really get off my duff and get going.

So with that said, I have already packed my gym bag with everything that I need. Tomorrow, I am getting the kids up and dressed, off to school and then drive straight to the YMCA to spend 30-45 minutes in the pool doing lap swimming. Talk to everyone tomorrow!!!

Day Fourteen- Man, I guess I am not doing so well!

Hello to everyone in Internetland!!! So after the Thanksgiving holiday, I have been getting some comments for a bunch of people out there about what I have blogged so far. Looking back on what I wrote (mainly what I have been eating), there has been many days that I haven't been making the right choices. The only thing that I would say is that BFL doesn't discourage against pasta on non-free days (on the website & Eating for Life they list under carbohydrates- pasta.)

I know that I am trying to make the right changes so that I can really make the total body change, but please understand that this is a big journey for me to take. I am trying my best to follow everything that BFL recommends. But at the same time, I have to make sure that I am meeting what I have to for my family. My family comes first. And I know that I need to take care of me to take care of my family. But sometimes to take care of me, I have to take care of my family. If I don't, then I can't take care of me. So if that means, that I have to change going to the gym to cleaning the house, painting rooms, do laundry so that I can stay home and care for my son who has a 103 degree fever, then that is my way of taking care of my family, which in turns, that is taking care of me.

Understand that I am trying to do what I need to do to follow Body for Life, but I know that if I have to change what I have to do for that day, I know I will not be struck down by the BFL gods!!! This is me Changing "My" Body for Life- a journey to weight loss, happiness and confidence that I can make it.

I commend everyone that has been able to follow whole heartedly the BFL way, but I also know that it wasn't a complete transition into it on Day 1. It was a process to get people eating that way completely. Why do you think there is a "Free Day" in Body for Life? I want to get to that complete transition as a lot of people that have found great success with the BFL program. I am not saying that how I have been eating is correct- looking back, I have a lot of work to do. But blogging everyday, putting my weight out there for everyone to know and acknowledging that I need to make the right changes is a huge step!

Please know that I want everyone to feel free to give any type of advice, no matter how much it stings, I want to hear them. It let's me know that there are people out there that really wants to see me succeed. And I want to know what changes that I am missing that need to be made. With that said, here is my food journal entry:

Breakfast
Cinnamon Roll
Coffee

Lunch
2 slices of homemade pizza
Water

Dinner
Honey BBQ Chicken Nuggets
Salad
Water/Beer

Tomorrow, I have to take my mother-in-law back to the airport, so I am going to count tomorrow as my free day. Have a great Sunday, and I will talk to everyone then.

Day Thirteen- Black Friday

Happy Black Friday everybody!

If you were brave enough to tough it out to the mall, Wal Mart, Target for those deals- Good for you!! If you were like me, who you couldn't pay enough to do- Smart you!!!

So today was a busy day for me. We decided to start painting our living room, bathroom & daughter's bedroom. After a trying time getting through Lowe's to get everything that we needed (new lights, paint, lightbulbs, etc.) we got home and got things going.

I got the outside decorated for Christmas and as soon as I got done decorating outside we were back inside starting our new projects. We started installing new lights in our kitchen, and started painting all the rooms. By the time we got done with most of the rooms, it was around 10:30 pm. Man, my body hurts!!!!

So here is my food journal entry for today:

Breakfast
Leftover Breakfast Casserole
Mixed fruit
Coffee

Lunch
Bacon Cheeseburger
Mixed fruit
Split 4 ways Bacon Cheddar Fries
Sweet Tea

Dinner
Ham Sandwich
Small chips
4 glasses of water

So tomorrow we are hopefully going to finish painting tomorrow. Wish us luck!!!

Day Twelve- Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! I hope that it was very enjoyable for everyone!!!

Today was a pretty good challenge for me. My mother-in-law came into town yesterday for Thanksgiving & this was the first year that I had to cook a Thanksgiving meal. I have a tendency to go way overboard on cooking meals- ham (I'm allergic to turkey), stuffings, green bean casserole, candied yams, pumpkin cheesecake, homemade cranberry sauce.

A lot of times on holidays, we would skip meals thinking that we were saving room for the large feast at dinnertime. But now we know, that's a big no-no!!! So I made sure that we ate throughout the day so that we wouldn't gorge on the dinner.

Breakfast
Breakfast Casserole (eggs, sausage, hashbrowns, cheese)
Mixed Fruit (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, canteloupe, apples)
Coffee

Lunch
2 slices of pizza
Water

Dinner
Ham
Stuffing
Green Bean Casserole
Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
Cranberry Sauce
Candied Yam
Glass of Shiraz/Water

Dessert
Pumpkin Cheesecake
Hot Tea

I made sure for dinner that I had a single serving. Everything was so delicious that it was so hard not to have more than one serving. I also planned ahead to make sure not to just make plates of the leftovers for the next couple of days. I planned ahead to make additional leftover dishes so that I had plenty of leftovers for the next couple of days so that I don't go to fast food joints, or skip meals.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!!!

Day Eleven- Wake Up Call

On my last blog, you can tell that I was really hesitating if what I was doing was going to fail. I guess it came down to me making myself fail. It wasn't really until I read the comment on my last blog from "Encourager from Internetland" that told me- "Hey dumby!!! You can do this!!!"

So with that said, I really need to stop making excuses!! So what if I can't make it to the gym- that doesn't mean I can't "not" workout- walking the dogs a little bit longer, jump on the treadmill, shoot- even carry the kids up and down the stairs over and over again. NO MORE EXCUSES!!!!

So here is my food journal entry for today:

Breakfast
Scambled eggs w/ hashbrowns
Coffee

Lunch
Chick-fil-a Chick'n strips Salad w/ Berry Balsamic Dressing
Water

Dinner
Chicken Noodle Soup w/ 8 Ritz Crackers
Water

Evening Snack
Hot Cocoa
Popcorn

To the Encourager in Internetland- thank you for that kick in the butt!!! I needed it!!! If you catch me feeling sorry for myself or trying to make excuses for myself- let me know!! Let me have it!!! Thanks Encourager!!!

Day Ten- No Progress

I told everyone that Day Nine was stressful, but man is it even more stressful on Day Ten!!!

I had tons of errands to run, kids to chase, and I found out that my housecleaner, who was suppose to be here today to clean our house, forgot to tell me that she was going to be in New York this week. So I was freaking out!!!!! If I would of known that she wasn't coming, I would of scheduled my errands a lot better and been home to really clean the house!!!

So I didn't work out, but I tried to eat better. But again, I ended up reverting back to my old ways.

Breakfast
Coffee

Lunch
Fresca Salad w/ Salmon
Penne Vodka
Sweet Tea

Dinner
Salmon w/ mixed veggies & rice
Water

Evening Snack
small popcorn

It was such a crazy day and today is even crazier while I am waiting to drive and pick her up from the airport. This is one of the things that I am afraid of- when things get tough, I am easily reverting back to what I use to do. I'm afraid I don't know what to do. Why am I falling back into my old ways? Am I ever going to be able to make the right changes? Every morning I tell myself that I am going to go work out today, but when things go crazy, I end up not exercising. Is it okay to just watch what I eat? Is that going to be enough? Am I ever going to get this weight off or am I always going to be like this? Fearing that I am not going to be here for my family?

Day Nine- Stressing!!!!

Yesterday, was a crazy and stressful day!!!

So Thursday is Thanksgiving and Wednesday is when my mother-in-law is coming, so I have been stressing to try and get everything finalized and put back together. So when I got up this morning, I had been running and running. And wow, how easy it was to convert back into my old ways, missing meals, stressing out, just complete chaos and mayhem!!!

I tried my best to at least try and eat something sensible- but not the best that I could. I skipped breakfast except for coffee, lunch I had half of a 1/2 rack of ribs w/ bacon/cheese fries & water. And for dinner I had Bojangles Cajun Filet Biscuits w/ Bo Rounds & sweet tea. I think I did pretty good not eating any sweets but I felt real sluggish not eating better and definitely not exercising.

So let's see what tomorrow will bring!!!

Day Seven & Eight- FREE DAY!!!!

Sorry that I didn't blog yesterday, but this weekend has been very BUSY!!!!!!

Yesterday was a staff meeting at the restaurant that I started working for. My husband was out of town for a seminar so I had all three kids. It was a lot of juggling- so I was glad it was a free day, but I didn't really get to enjoy my free day. I missed breakfast because I was so busy trying to get stuff together for the staff meeting that I had that morning, getting the babysitter to the house so I could go, run by my husband's office while a new tenant was moving in. So by the time I finally stopped before the meeting, it was already 11 am.

So I ran across the street from the restaurant I went over to a coffee shop to get a crossiant- just to get something in my stomach. But by the time I came back to the restaurant, everyone had arrived and the meeting was starting. So, I had to put the crossiant down and get the meeting started. Then by the time I finally did eat that crossiant, it was 2 pm, but all the way up to then I only had coffee. By that time, I was really shaky, tired & really sick feeling. Then found out that I had to work that evening, and had to be back at the restaurant at 4 pm, so I had to try and get the sitter home, something substantial and try and lay down before I had to be back at 4 pm.

I decided then- I am going to Wendy's. I got a Spicy Chicken Sandwich meal w/ medium fries & coke. And instead of enjoying it, I pretty much opened my mouth and swallowed it almost whole I was so hungry. After than, I felt soooo sick. I don't know if it was the sandwich, but I knew it was definitely being famished.

I got home and laid down with the kids, while they watched a movie, and I started to feel I was getting some energy back, and by the time I felt somewhat put back together, it was time to get up and get ready for work. The sitter came back, husband was still out of town for a seminar, and I had to get to work.

The rest of the night, all I drank was water with lemon- I learned my lesson from Friday to stay hydrated. When we finally closed and get everything cleaned up, it was about 9:30 pm and all my new co-workers invited me to go out with them to go see the UFC 106 fight and get wings and beer. I needed to eat, get something in my stomach, so I decided to join them. That night I had about 6 wings and some home chips and about 2 1/2 beers. By the time I got home, it was 12:30 am. I got home, changed into pjs, and crawled into bed with my husband and passed out from exhaustion!!!

This morning, I woke up, my husband had already been up and gone to his seminar out of town. I got up with the kids, and made French Toast w/ smoked sausage and a cup of coffee. Lunch was really light, just snacked on what the kids had left on their plate from lunch- pb & j, some chips, water. I did laundry, figuring out what our Thanksgiving menu was going to be and getting a shopping list together. Around 2 pm, my husband came back from out of town from this seminar and he was so sweet and took the initiative and watched the kids, so I could take a break.

For dinner, I make baked chicken breasts, and a pasta side dish w/ water. It was very moist, and tasted it awesome. But I had a real sweet tooth- a nutty bar, and two snack size Snickers.

So tomorrow is back at the gym. The kids are out of school this up coming week and I want to try and get this workout going, especially before my mother-in-law comes on Wednesday. Tomorrow, I think is either going to be upper body or cardio. So we will see then! Have a great night and talk to everyone tomorrow!!!

Day Six- I Think I Didn't Hydrate Enough!!

Here is my food journal entry for today:

Breakfast
Breakfast Burritos (They are awesome!!)
Water

Lunch
Fresca Salad w/ Grilled Salmon
Sweet Tea

Dinner
1/2 Salad
Stuffed Chicken Breast Wrapped in a puffed pastry
Potato Au Gratin
Shredded veggies (zucchini/squash/carrots)
Water

Dessert
Tiramisu
Coffee

Today was Day 4 at the gym. I spent 20 mins on the treadmill & 20 mins walking the track. I also decided to do abs on an exercise ball & about 40 crunches into it, I had this huge muscle cramp completely across my stomach. I couldn't even stand up. Man did that hurt. I am still sore from that today.

I think that I am pretty proud of myself so far. Granted it is the first week, but if I can stick it out throughout this process, then I should go far. So wish me luck. If you notice that I am falling behind and/or off the wagon, please kick my butt to get back to it.

Tomorrow is my free day- so I will talk to you all tomorrow!!!

Day Five- Bring on the Weights

So this is going to be a quick blog because I am exhausted & I need to get to bed!!!!

Food Journal Entry:

Breakfast
Brakfast Burrito (can never get sick of them!)
Coffee

Lunch
Fresca Salad
Penne alla Vodka w/ smoked salmon
Water w/ lemon

Dinner
Ramen noodles w/ mixed veggies
Water

Today was orientation on the gym equipment at the YMCA, but had to cut it short because I picked up a side job working in a restaurant as a supervisor & help the owners get their business back on track. So let's just say, it has been a long day & I am exhausted. So have a great night & day tomorrow! Talk to you soon!

Day Four- Wow I am Rusty!!!!

So I finally got to go the the YMCA and start my exercise journey to weight loss and I will tell you what, I am so out of shape!!!

I decided to start my new exercise regimen by starting with cardio. It was swimming day!!! I was so ready. You know that feeling you get when you start to work out. It is like the first day of school. When the week or two before you get your school supplies. Normally you think it is nothing exciting, but something about the new notebooks & folders, pens & pencils, it gives you that little internal excitement. That was how I felt with all of my swimming stuff.

So I took the kids to school and headed straight for the gym. Had my gym bag with all of my work clothes, toiletries, hair dryer & shoes all folder nice and neat, everything in it's place, with my padlock in hand. Unloaded my things into my locker and off to the pool. And when I first stepped onto that pool deck I felt so much at home.

It was 10 years ago when I first started working at the YMCA as a camp counselor/lifeguard and for almost 4 1/2 years I lifeguarded and taught water aerobics and swim lessons. One of the benefits of working at the YMCA was the free membership. And after every shift, I would spend another hour at work exercising, mainly in the pool. I was on the swim team in high school, so I felt so comfortable in the water. And the last time I did swimming, you know the lap kind, not the float on the noodle & splash the kids was when I last worked at the YMCA.

Man, was I rusty. I started to swim & I felt like my heart was going to pound out of my chest. So I took it slow and easy, not pushing myself to hard. I always had a tendency when I would work out, too push to hard that I would burn myself out and give up. This time I made sure not to, and it turned out pretty good. And even though it had been a long time since I swam, this nice older man complimented me on how I was swimming and said that he wished he could swim like that. It felt really nice to get a compliment.

The rest of the day, I got a little bit sore, but I felt great. My attitude was better, I joked around and laughed. I think I even did better with my meals. Thanks endorphins!!

So here is my food journal entry for today:
Breakfast
Breakfast Burrito (they are so good!!)
Coffee
Lunch
Grilled Chicken Breast Panini w/ grilled onions
1 serving of Cheetos
Coke
Dinner
2 small slices of pepperoni pizza
Water
Evening Snack
Celery sticks w/ peanut butter
4 boneless buffalo wings (My hubby was eating a huge plate of them in front of me & I snuck 4 when he wasn't looking!)

Tomorrow is weight and I have to go through orientation because the weights at the YMCA are called FitLink and they have to get you set up on them before you can use them. I am excited, but hope I don't get too sore tomorrow. Talk to everyone then!!

"Day Two" Getting Up and Running

Here is my food journal entry for today:
Breakfast
Breakfast Burrito (eggs, sausage, hashbrowns, cheese, salsa)
coffee

Lunch
Fresca salad
Alfredo con Pollo
Sweet tea

Dinner
6-8 boneless chicken wings
Home fries
Water
Killian's

When I woke up this morning, I felt it was going to be a good day. My youngest one was over his 1 1/2 day cold congestion, everyone was up and smiling, getting ready for the day. My husband had gotten a free podometer from a health fair, so I decided to wear that on me to track & see how much walking I do in a day. I went to the YMCA and signed us up for a family membership- but couldn't use my membership until they put us in their system.

The only bummer was getting on the scale to see my true weight. I cannot believe that I am going to put this out there in Internet-Land, but like I said earlier, I am getting out of my comfort zone. If I am going to do this, I need to say it, acknowledge & change from it to make me better. So long story short, drum roll please............328 lbs. WOW!!!!!!

I cannot believe that I let myself go that much. I am carrying around another person every day. Now I know why I feel tired a lot, that my body aches when I do things. I sound like I am an old woman, but I am only 30 yrs old. But I can't let myself get down.......I have to know where I am starting from so that I know where I need to go. My goal is to get down to 175 lbs. I guess I need to lose my other person- let's call her Lola!

Later today, I went to Winston (about 45 mins from where we live) to try and find new bedding for our daughter's bedroom. With no luck finding what I was looking for, I decided to go to the sporting goods store & got all the stuff that I needed for tomorrow.....It is swimming day!!!!! Swimsuit, goggles, fins, earplugs. I am so excited about tomorrow. So I will talk to you all tomorrow for Day Three. Wish me luck!

"Day One" Not Starting Off On The Right Foot

Today was the big day of starting on my path to my "Body for Life." But we had a snaff-foo; my youngest one became real sick, so I had to stay home. So I tried to stay busy while at the same time not diving into the kids' Halloween candy that they left on the kitchen counter. And I think I did pretty good- not the best, but not the worst. But unfortunately, I don't own a scale & looking at the Body for Life website, it said not to use a scale. So I couldn't weigh myself today.

Food Journal
Breakfast- Hashbrowns w/ 2 cups of coffee (I know, I know- not the best choice!)

Lunch- Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup (That is my son's favorite whenever he get's sick!) w/ water

Dinner- 1/2 bowl of Chicken Noodle Soup w/ 2 Breakfast Burritos (I was making a huge batch to freeze for an easy grab for breakfast) w/ apple juice

Looking back on the day, I know I felt real sluggish. I was still able to get things done, like clean/pick up the whole house, re-organize the entire kitchen, got most of laundry done- every time that I went down the stairs to the laundry room, I went back up & down extra since I couldn't go to the gym.

It was real tough having a sick & needy 4 yr old that wants "Mom!!" So I tried to figure out ways here and there. But tomorrow, my youngest will be going back to school so when I go in, I will jump on our office scale & get my true weight so I know at least where I am starting.

I surfed the web online and was figuring out what water aerobics/fitness things that I need when I go out tomorrow & get things for the house, so when I start at the Y & am able to start swimming I am ready & prepared to start. And when my hubby comes home tonight, I am going to do my "Before" picture so I can add it to this blog. I need to have this reminder, so that I know where I don't want to be at and as I take this journey, I don't go back to.

Talk to you all soon!!!

I'm Changing My Body for Life

I was sitting at my desk at work one day and I was checking my emails and I got this email from Jillian Michaels saying that they were casting for the next Biggest Loser. So I tried to go about my day and work, but what kept running through my head was should I try an audition for the show.

My mind kept flip flopping back and forth. If I try and audition and get chosen, it would give me the chance to fully work on myself for 3+ months, focus on changing my mind and body. If I don't, then I have to try and figure out how to make myself be motivated, all day everyday, to stick to losing weight. I also, think that I need to be able to change my mind and focus on sticking to weight loss while trying to function in my daily living for it to really sink in.

So I thought, what if I start a blog, where I have to write a blog every day, making me feel like someone in Internet-land is relying on me to check in with them daily, giving them a status report of where I am at.

Now anyone who really knows me, they know that I am a private person. I don't divulge information about myself- if my husband and I are arguing, personal/financial problems, I don't tell anyone. So doing this, it is really going to take me out of my comfort zone.

So here are the following requirements that I am going to have to follow:

1. I must keep a food journal of everything that I eat and drink. And I think that the only way that I am going to stick with it, anything I eat all the way down to a stick of gum, I am going to have to record it.


2. Every Monday is "Weigh In Day." No matter what is going on, that is the first thing that I need to do. So I am either going to have to breakdown and buy a scale for the bathroom (even though I am afraid that my youngest will figure out a way to break it) or when I go into the office on Monday, I am going to have to get on the scale. So, look forward to Mondays when you will see me breakdown when I see what my true weight is.


3. I must exercise at least four times a week. Tomorrow, I am going to join the local YMCA and try a figure out some workout regimen. The one that I am going to try and follow is "Body for Life" by Bill Phillips. I have had that book for about 4+ years and I have worked out from it and had great results, but had terrible follow through. So I am going to make that book my workout bible. I am also going to use the website to my advantage. They have all the workouts, recipes & I just registered for their weight loss challenge that they have every year.

Now, I am really trying to be committed to following through this. I am 30 years old and this is not what I saw for myself. Now I could sit here and whine and complain, but I have to something about it and I am going to. So people in Internet-land, wish me luck and I will talk to you tommorow for "Day 1."