Day 20 - I'm Only Human

Day 20 -

Well, this week has had it's ups and downs...with the diet, with my weight, and I'm proud to say that I'm still coming out on top!  I'm down to my lowest since the start but it hasn't been without faults.  Yes, I'm a cheater.  Yes, I did have some yummy chocolate on Valentine's Day.  No, I am not saying that you can eat what you want and still lose weight.  I'm a marketer by trade...not a telemarketer or infomercial announcer.

I once sent a letter to Richard Simmons when I heard his Sirius Radio show a few years back (BC - before children).  I was unmarried.  I was unhappy with my weight.  I thought no man would want someone who was overweight (but really no man wanted an unhappy hormonal woman).  Well, I got invited to talk to Richard on his show and he told me the greatest thing that I will always remember when it comes to losing weight...."Keep moving forward or you become an obstacle for someone else or for yourself!"

He was sooooooo right.  I've backtracked quite a bit. I've gained the 3 pounds back of the 6 pounds I lost, then lost them again.  It was really getting to me I was on a see-saw diet and my weight kept coming and going.  It's almost like the laundry at our house...it's always piling up and I'm always fighting to keep it folded and put away.  I may not win the fight all the time but it's the positive reinforcement I give myself to keep moving forward and do the things I need to do and stay on the right path.

I track my calories.  Some days I'm doing fabulous with 400 left over and then there are the days where I'm over 500.  You are only human.  You will mess up.  If you stop moving forward, then you exactly what Richard Simmons was talking about....a big FAT obstacle for yourself.

Keep up the great work!  It's hard but it's so well worth it!

~Mandi

Morning weigh-in:  246.0 lbs. (AWESOME!)

Day 13 - The Waffle Diet Works!

Day 13 -

Ok, so the title of my blog today is not exactly true but don't you wish it were???  The story is that yesterday I was scrounging through the pantry to find some food.  We are a tad on the poor side this week, so I decided that mmmmmmmmmaybe I'd just go ahead and have a waffle with the fabulous new waffle maker my mother had given me for Christmas.  LOVE IT! 

Ok, so it's not on the diet but it was just about the only thing warm to eat in our house on a cold night.  So, I get my little waffle cooked and prepare myself to gain some weight the next morning.  In order to fend it off a little, I decide the family should take a 10 to 15 minute walk around the neighborhood after supper.  We did and Scarlett had a blast!

So, I've been stuck at 248.0 lbs. for like 4 days.  I wake up this morning and dread going to the scale.  When I get on it...I see I've lost 1.4 lbs.  I'm down to 246.4!!!  What the heck!?!?!  I'm so eating waffles more often!  Well, not really.  Want to know my secret?  My dear hubby has decided that we need to walk during our lunch hour every day.  I've accomplished that feat each day this week and feel so much bettter!

I was kinda bummed when I saw I was stuck at 248 for several days but I really think that the walking after we ate had something to do with the drop in poundage.  Moral to my story...don't sit on your fat tail after you eat.  Try to keep moving at least for 30 minutes after you eat....including supper.  This is not rocket science I know but it is nice to see a little bit of improvement after being at a standstill for a few days.

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend.  Stay safe and warm!  Supposed to snow/sleet here in Little Rock on Monday!  Snow day!

~Mandi

Morning weigh in:  246.4 lbs. (YEAH! ME!)
Pounds lost:  5.6 (YEAH!!!)
Donuts I'd love to eat....4,000!!!! (But I'm not)  :)

Day 8 - Off the Wagon and Back on Again

Day 8 -

The Super Bowl is not such a good idea when you are trying to diet.  From the title of today's post, you can see I hopped off the wagon this weekend for a brief period.  I'm not really shocked that I hopped off of it but actually surprised I'm back on it again today. 

Now, I didn't go crazy and just completely ignore calorie counts and other nutrient information, but I did veer from the diet and enjoy some really nice fried chicken (IT WAS LIKE BUTTER MELTING IN MY MOUTH!!!--glad I got that out of the way).  LOL.

(*Pic - Hungry yet?)

I didn't get any sides nor did I down an entire box of Popeyes Chicken but checked the calories before I downed a few pieces to keep it (for the most part) in check.  BUTTER I TELL YA!  I did have some healthy snacks for the Super Bowl (i.e. veggie tray and cream cheese pinwheels).  Alright, so the pinwheels aren't necessarily a "healthy" snack but I put in low fat cream cheese and I feel that is about as healthy as I'm going to get for a mini-Super Bowl/Puppy Bowl experience.

Although I don't think cheating on your diet should be done on a daily basis but I do feel that cheating is going to happen from time to time on any diet.  I do feel that by logging in my weight and foods (and exercises - or lack thereof) is key to helping me realize what I need to do each day to maintain a healthy weight loss.

Of course, I was bummed when I realized what I'd consumed and immediately thought of becoming an instant bulemic but it was time to take responsibility for my actions and admit my problems...then get back on the wagon again.  It won't be the first time I've cheated on the diet and I assure you it won't be the last (I'm so having some cake on my girls birthday! HA!) but I know that this is a bumpy ride and to prepare myself for some drops and some gains.  Lesson learned.

I would also like to retract my previous post about smokers and having no sympathy towards them.  Any habit is hard to break and the strength it takes to do so is what is from within.  Those that have the ability to break a bad habit such as smoking, unhealthy eating, drinking too much, etc....you definitely have all of my sympathy.  Breaking this habit has been such a horrible feeling.  I feel like everyone around me is enjoying their donuts, fried chicken, etc. while I'm eating rabbit food and cardboard.  It's almost a secluded type feeling but I'm glad to know that others are out there fighting their demons just as hard as I am (if not harder).  Please disregard that previous post and keep up the great work! 

I definitely commend those that are quitting smoking and taking on a diet at the same time....I can't imagine how many struggles you are trying to tackle with trying to quit two bad habits...kudos to you!

~Mandi

Weight Loss to date:  3.4 lbs.
Weight Gained from weekend - .6 lbs. (not terrible but not good either)
Exercises performed today:  15 mins of walking and took the stairs up to the 4th floor of work
Today's morning weigh in:  248.6 (ick!)

(*In pic - Scarlett with chocolate on her face...gotta work on that one.  Doing it for my babies!)

Day 5 - Plateau - OH NO!

Day 5 -

...Officially stinks.  I was doing so well and am still doing well.  At this point, I've lost a total of 3.8 lbs.  Most people would flip out to have lost 2 lbs. in a week but I'm starting to wonder about my dieting abilities at 3.8 pounds gone in one week. 

Well, Medifast was not the diet for me, so I've altered it to the Low-Carb Slim Fast diet (a WHOLE lot  cheaper) and "Lean and Green" suppers.  I'm tracking everything and keeping it under 1400 calories a day with my LoseIt! app on my iPhone.  However, with my little one having strep throat the past two days, I can assure you...I had to do things that I would never do in order to keep my mind occupied and off food.  I moved my living room around (couch included) and also the spare bedroom.  I've laundered things that don't need laundering.  You'd think my house is spotless but remember...I do have children and a husband.  The weenie dogs got lucky.  I planned on bathing them today if I had to take another day off to stay with Ivy.  I think I was going insane.

I honestly have no sympathy towards smokers trying to quit anymore.  Yeah, you heard me.  Think about it this way...you don't have to smoke to live but you do have to eat to live.  I promise you this is probably the hardest habit to break because (to put it simply) YOU HAVE TO EAT.  You can't just throw down a plate and say "Ok, I'm done!  No more eating for me!"  You can't because you will die.  DIE!!!  YOU HEAR ME?!??!?!

Ok, I'll calm myself now.  Having small children wake you up at 4:45am does tend to take a toll on the mindset at 3:34pm in the afternoon.  I'm still not planning on giving up but I need to realize that there will be good days and bad ones (just like any other part of life). 

Now comes the hard part of dieting. Trying to figure out when and where to exercise when you have young children.  Especially an almost 4 year old that refuses to go to bed by herself and you have to sit until she falls asleep at night.  Their father has put forth an effort to get them into bed at night, so hopefully, I can take the time for myself to get on the Wii fit or go for a short walk.

Anyone else but me hate the thought of exercising?  I think I'd rather pluck out my nosehairs one by one than to break a sweat.  Well, no time to focus on the negative.  I'm on a mission.

Have a great weekend, all!

~Mandi

Morning Weight:  248.2 lbs.
Weight Lost:  3.8 lbs.

Day 2 - Keeping the Faith

Day 2 -

Ok, so the diet isn't going as planned.  Before you judge, I have yet to give up on my diet but just to "tweak it" a tad.  My blood sugar dropped out last night, so I guess it was telling me to consume more than 800 calories a day (or that the cardboard/dirt diet - aka Medifast - wasn't the only thing I needed each day).  Besides, how can one live on shakes and bars alone?  I had to do a little bit of soul searching and realized that it's not the diet I'm following but the calorie and carb intake that I'm needing to follow closely.  The doc said I needed to keep it around 1400 calories a day, so I'm going to do just that.  After all, not every diet has to be "by the book".

I downloaded an app for my iPhone that my husband was using called "Lose It!" and it is FABULOUS!  Not only does it let me enter in my daily food intake and tell me the nutrients I've consumed, but it also lets me scan the barcode of the food I'm eating and automatically tells the application what the calories, carbs, etc. are to the food.  WONDERFUL and TIME SAVING!!!

I did make a boo-boo today that I am not proud of.  I forgot my penguin lunch box (yeah, I hear you laughing) this morning and my boss and I were heading down to Hamburg today.  We stopped at the Western Sizzlin' and I decided to follow the diet as much as I could as well as get the calories I needed to keep my blood sugar afloat.  So, I decided upon a fried chicken thigh as there were no baked foods that were on the list.  I am proud that I did something today that I have never done before....I peeled off the skin of the chicken.  That is so not me.  Yes, I am disappointed in me my lack of will power to pass up the fried chicken but I am impressed that I'm making the right steps and working my way towards the right path in finding a healthier me. 

It is 8:27pm and I still have more than 125 calories to eat...and I'm not hungry.  What a fabulous feeling.  It's only Day 2 and I honestly feel a change in myself that I'm proud of.  You will hit bumps in the road but you have to remember how to get past it and get back on the right track.  Thank the good Lord up above for allowing us to forgive others and ourselves.  Have a blessed night, everyone!  Day 3 here I come with a vengance!

~Mandi

Morning of Day 2's weigh in - 250.2 (1.8 lbs. lighter - woo hoo!)  Doing it for my babies!

Day 1 - Battle Begins

Day 1 -

Ok, so I've been overweight most of my life (pretty much all of it).  Today is the day that I start taking back my life and begin a healthier one for my girls who are almost 2 and 4 years old.  I have no energy.  I'm always tired.  My cholesterol is high as well as my A1C (I'm diabetic for those that don't know what that is).  The saddest part of all...I'm only 34 years old and in the prime of my life.

When I went to see Dr. J. Chris Cobb last week, he suggested Medifast to me.  Well, today it begins.  I don't mind the shakes but let me tell ya....the oatmeal is HORRIBLE!!!  It was like I put dirt in water and heated it up in the microwave. 

Oh, well....it will be a lot of trial and error, but I'm ready.  I'm psyched actually! I feel good about the diet "this time".  I know everyone says that but for some reason, before now, I didn't really feel "ready" to begin this journey.  Now, that I'm a mom and have a loving husband for support and two kiddos counting on me...it's just plain time to get off my butt and do something about it before I become insulin dependent.

So, I'm adding a pic of me and my girls (Scarlett and Ivy) to this blog, so I can remember for myself the reason for this journey!  Please keep me in your prayers and wish me the best.

Start weight is 252.0 (morning weigh in).

~Mandi Chapin