A few of my Favorite Things...

Cookies and candies and fro yo and truffles,
Pudding and stuffing both made with cornbread,
Broccoli casserole, smashed potatoes,
These are a few of my favorite things...

Rich egg casserole filled up with bacon,
pineapple pudding and cinnamon rolls,
appetizer parties and coffee with cream
These are a few of my favorite things...

When its Christmas, I start cooking,
I start eating too,
I simply remember my favorite things and
then I eeeeeaaaaatttttt them up.

Starting a 30 day Challenge... coming up soon!

Getting Through the Holidays

How do I intend to get through the holidays?  Substitute with shakes and bars when possible.  Move more.  Say NO when I can and don't say YES to avoid hurting feelings.  I'm not one of those folks that will substitute healthy recipes for old standbys.  I am choosing to continue to enjoy those while learning portion control.  Real mashed potatoes aren't the same made with chicken broth.  But I don't need to take a heaping portion.  Twice.  Enjoy your Thanksgiving!

Where am I at 6 months later

I have no idea.  Have worked out twice in the last 2 months.  I have the grab and go shakes and bars, but haven't used a blender.  I feel much better when I grab those to eat than I do when I make a drive thru run.  Yet, I still make those runs.  Need to conquer emotional eating, but those quickie items are going to get me through the holidays.  One day soon I'll be somewhere where I can get on a scale and see, but my clothes are about the same.

Baby Steps...

Chocolate binging over.  I tried to get more, but they discontinued the box that I was favoring and decided that choosing something new was not worth it.  I've been making mostly good choices.  Now, to figure that exercising piece out... I think I'm going to have to get up early and go.  Maybe this week. 

A Fresh Beginning

School is off to a merry start and it is Labor Day Weekend already signalling the end.  Of summer.  It is my favorite season.  And for me, it signifies much more that another year has passed than New Year's does perhaps because of school.  The start of a new school year is a big stressor for me.  I abhor it.  Summer, summer, summer, summer, summer!  Oh why can't it stay summer?

So three boxes of chocolates this month has undone the maintenance I had managed during the summer.  Not losing.  Not gaining.  That was a good spot for me.  Until the dreaded school start and chocolate binge.  I think I am done with the chocolate binge.  Maybe.  I am reserving a definitive answer on that until the end of the weekend.    But this week, post chocolate binge, I am back to enjoying my fizzes.  I am back on a bar or to-go shake in the mornings and a Lean Cuisine for lunch.  Still feel like I am sprinting too much to make a real shake, but that will be next week's goal.

Exercise has been sporadic; actually kinda like the beach.  It has come in waves.  Laps in the pool; yoga.  Walking.  Hopefully now that we are back on a routine with the rest of our life, busy such that it is, I can get back into my exercising.

Post Vacation

What I have discovered is... I absolutely do not eat as much as I used to at meals.  Also, I still stress eat and eat when I am bored.  Is that the quintessential one step forward, two steps back?  So upon returning from vacation, prepared to NOT eat my way through sending the kiddos back to school, I was happy to have my box arrive from Arbonne with my essential items that I use and use and use.   A.M.A.Z.I.N.G.  Now, back to some sort of regular exercise programming and we'll be back to shedding the pounds to a whole new me!

No progress forward, just a hot mess

So, not even making good morning choices right now.  I am stress eating again and not working out and I am a big hot mess.  Each morning, right after I open my eyes, I say to myself that this is the first day of the rest of my life and that today I am going to make great choices for my body.  Then, I realize I am late and I gotta hit the ground running.  I just have a lousy morning routine and my evening bedtime routine is good, but not been early enough to get proper sleep.  Not getting proper sleep leads to unhealthy eating habits.  I read that today in a magazine.  Actually, Good Housekeeping, April 2012 in an article about losing weight the Dr. Oz way.  He's not usually my favorite guy; I just find him condescending or just the fact that my SIL parrots him like he is the second coming or just have never taken the time to watch him and make a decision with concrete evidence.  Anyway, it was a good article with good recipes.

But I digress.  So, in order to fix the big, hot, mess that I call my life right now, I am going to work on fixing my morning routine so the rest of the day goes more smoothly.  Happy Monday!

Summertime

What I've discovered is I spend all my at the club time at the pool.  Not exercising.  Going to try to fit that back in, however, I've also been sick which is another reason I've not been working out.  It is hard to do that with pain shooting in your ear.

But, I am happy to tell you the bars, not melting in my car.  Load up and go!

Headed in the right direction...

I'm down 2 pounds.  That's right 2 whole pounds!  Celebration!  What am I doing right?  Back off soda... that is a good choice.  Eating LOTS of grilled healthy meats (think chicken and pork) and veggies!  I am getting to be a whiz at grilling veggies.  And then I search them out leftover for a snack.  Of course, I am still eating a shake or bar for breakfast and since we're on the run out the door each day, I'm using the shakes to go... so yummy.  And I am keeping the chews in the car for a hmmm, I'm hungry moment.  And I've replaced those soda cravings with the fizz packets AND I've started keeping those in the car.  The other day, when running and running and running led to being out for lunch, I chose a healthy Keva Shake instead of a drive-thru run.  I might need to keep bars in the car too, but I fear for melting.  Well, may give it a try anyway.  Hope my blogging is helping someone out there with a desire to lose weight in a healthy, delicious way!

Orders on Demand...

I set up my Arbonne account to send me the items I use the most every 45 days.  So this week as I was sprinting out the door, I realized that I was grabbing the last ready to go shake.  OY.  I knew I'd already recycled the box for the protien bars so I was a-worryin!  Then my son said, MOM YOU'VE GOT A BOX!  Yahoo!  It was a little Arbonne present... my to go shakes, my protien bars and my fizz-sticks in 2 flavors.  I'd been cutting back on those and supplementing with soda (BAD, BAD, BAD ME!) so today, realizing that I had 2 new boxes PLUS some leftover, I splurged and had 2!  It really hit the spot on a busy swim meet/super hot day!  So, if you are thinking that you might run out, thus setting yourself up for failure, I highly recommend talking to your Arbonne Fairy (or mine... contact me and I'll put you in touch!) about how to set it up so it arrives JUST WHEN YOU NEED IT!

BTW, I did step on the scale this week and I am up just a bit... surely it is due to the copious amounts of chocolate and junk food I've been stress eating.  So today, smart choices.  And researching how to make the most of summer produce.  Can you say... grilled cauliflower is AWESOME?  I can!

This I know...

This is what I know... when I eat junky, I feel junky.  Having eaten so healthy, my body now demands healthy.  Balance is key.  I have been off balance due to stress.  However, if I would stay balanced, I would feel better battling the stress.  So, good breakfast, crappy lunch.  Since yesterday it was lousy breakfast and lunch, this is a good step. 

Weddings can undo hard work so quickly!

So I am not down this week.  But as the title suggests I went to a wedding this weekend and they had a most amazing reception!  In addition to the fabulous cake , (and I had a piece from each tier - I shared a bite with everyone at the table and then finished it), they had 3, count em, three other desserts.  Which I had.one.of.each.  And I had the salad.  And the tomatoes covered in feta and a lovely vinaigrette.  And some bread.  And a beer.  Then another.  And chicken picatta.  And mashed potatoes.  And green beans in brown butter with some kinda nuts.  And finished is all off with a slice of beef from the carving station covered in horseradish sauce.  Yes, I had ONE OF EVERYTHING.  One glass of champagne to finish the evening.  Though I feel compelled to add that my hubby drank half my second beer. 

SO, I got back on the healthy horse this week and I will be riding it to next week's weigh-in.  Especially now that we've survived another (minor) crisis in the home and I'm not stress eating.

I DO WANT TO SAY ONE MORE THING ABOUT THE CHEWS - THEY DON'T MELT.   I left them in my car so when I am getting the cravings to eat out, I grab one of those instead.  It had been hot.  It didn't stick to the wrapper or my fingers.  It was lovely as I was fearing the worst.

Pumped up and Excited... This Too Can Work For YOU!

I am actually down 2 pounds for the month of May.  Additionally, I lost another half inch from my waist and my hips stayed the same.  Which could mean I am a bad measurer.  SERIOUSLY!  I AM DOWN!   Thus proving that....

This program works even if you don't follow it to the letter of the law.  I am THRILLED that I am down 2 pounds... I was hoping to maintain.  And I love that over 5 weeks I lost about a 1/2 pound a week.  That means I could be down 15 more pounds by the end of the year!  Which is just the beginning for me, but it means by the end of 2013 I could be at almost at my goal weight.  That does seem like a LONG time from now.  However, I put this weight on over 20 years.  To lose it over 2 would be AWESOME!

This program is easy to follow!  Most days, but not every day, I substitute 1 meal a day with either a shake or protein bar (when I got those) or a premixed shake.  I do think that the premixed shake doesn't sit as long with me as the other probably because it doesn't have the extra fiber from the Fiber Boost or the extra substance from the fruit.  But I think that the protein bars sticks good.  Then I have really altered the portion sizes (most days) and I am still exercising, but haven't been able to as much. 

Here we go!  Another 30 days starts NOW! 
Day 1 and done.

postponement....

Due to a medical crisis within our family, weigh-in, measurements and sleep have been postponed until ?

After all, tomorrow is another day...

Guilty.  I am a die hard Gone with the Wind fan.  When I was a teen, I picked up the book and read it in 6 days.  It was a version with over 1000 pages.  So tomorrow is the first of June.  I am going to weigh and measure myself and see what kind of damage I did in May.  Then I will undertake another 30 challenge.  Tune back in tomorrow....

The Best Laid Plans...

Headed out of town with the Swim Team for the weekend, I knew it was going to be tough to make good choices.  So I packed a cooler with bars and box shakes.  And left the cooler home.  I took my work-out clothes to the hotel, but because I had a small person with me instead of being solo, I never actually worked out in them.  I wore them... they are comfortable.  But I never actually worked out.  And then there was the breakfast bar - all you can eat- that came with my hotel stay.  Now THAT I did well.  Egg white omelet with mushrooms and fruit... good.   So was the bacon and croissant I had.  BUT THAT WAS ALL!  One trip through.  No yummy french toast.  The next day I had a bowl of oatmeal with fruit.  And bacon.  Not too bad, really.  Ordered a small dinner one night and a regular sized dinner the next night that I ate half of and then put the rest in a box.  Small steps will lead to great losses.  Home last night.  I got up this morning and headed to the gym; then I had a chocolate cherry shake for breakfast.  Hotdog and popcorn at the ballgame!  And a beer. Enjoy your Sunday!

What I love about the Shakes

As I was driving to preschool this morning, I was drinking a Chocolate Protein Shake.  The kind that comes in a box, not the kind I mix myself.  And I was thinking about the many things I liked about it.  First, it filled me.  Next, as I hit a bump in the road while taking a drink, I realized that it doesn't spill.  Something about the way it is designed... it comes out slow and steady, not poury all over your facey.  It doesn't leave a bad taste in my mouth.  I was good to go until lunchtime.  And when I was done, I screwed the top on and there was no spilling of the last drop someplace in my car.  I really like grabbing it as I am running late and running out the door and I don't go hungry making a bad choice later.  So many things I like about the Box Shakes.  Happy Wednesday!

My Stuff Arrived....

At the annual conference, the Arbonne company announced some new products and new product packaging.  They probably did more than that, but that was all that really pertained to me.  And my Arbonne Fairy explained the changes to me at her Open House; all great stuff.  I LOVE the new protein bars.  Grabbed one for lunch yesterday between the Mother's Day spoiling that occurred at breakfast and dinner (and mid afternoon!).  I am looking forward to a new chew flavor cause I love citrus/lemon.  The Fizzy Tabs are now Fizz Sticks.  I found them difficult to open and cannot imagine how I am going to successfully make the fruit punch.  I mean, I used to just split the tablets in half.  And I just don't see how the Fizz Sticks packaging is more green.  Now, I have to open a box and then a packet everyday.  Before I just opened the plastic tube and dumped out a tablet.  So that made me kinda cranky this morning.  (And I just figured out I will have to make the fruit punch in a pitcher and drink some one day and some the next.  I mean in theory I could drink it all in one day, but it's a bit much for me with all of the water.)

I also wasn't thrilled with the new packaging for the protein powder... a big pouch instead of a big plastic tub.  It made a mess when I tried to make it from the package... might just be me.  I dug the big plastic bins out of the recycle bin and poured it into them (also a bit messy, but in the long run, way neater).  So, my advice if you are just joining and are getting the pouches, invest in some canisters or Gladware or such and put it in them right next to your blender.

Another note, forgot to add fiber to the morning shake so added a full scoop to the next shake (this was Saturday breakfast, lunch).  Boy, a whole scoop made it grainy.  Again, MY OPINION.  Okay, today was off to a good start when I grabbed one of the protein shakes in a box (premixed).  I would be doing better if I hadn't eaten last night leftovers for lunch today.  Actually, that would have been fine, BUT I'm going out for dinner, so really I shouldn't have.  Happy Monday.

Why Getting on a Scale is GOOD...

It refocuses us.  It gives a dose of reality.  It is sometimes a slap in the face.  Hopefully, mostly, though, it is a reason to celebrate.  I got back on the scale for the first time in 2 weeks.  And I'm up a couple pounds.  DUH.  I mean, birthday, birthday, birthday celebrations.  And beer, wine, sangria, margaritas (oh those margaritas!).  Cake for this; cake for that.  Dinner out.  Party here.  Party there.  That's pretty much been the last two weeks.   And I am scraping the bottom of my shake bins thinking... well I don't want to use it up before the new stuff arrives so I'll just eat blah, blah, blah.  USE IT UP!  The new stuff will be here before that happens... I promise.

So getting on the scale IS GOOD.  I am refocused.  There is really plenty of protein powder left and I am using it.  I am back to vitamin in the morning.  Calcium chew after dinner (mmmm! it's dessert!).  Tea sometimes, coffee sometimes, the fizzy tabs are gone.  Drinking, drinking, drinking my water - which HAS been my ONE constant.  And next week... a reason to celebrate, I am sure (if I can maintain through another weekend of dinner out, dinner out, swim meet, celebrate mom, etc).

Yum, Yum, Yum, Yum

My Arbonne Fairy, Jen, had an open house last week and I was able to snag the new protein bars.  Yesterday, I gave them a try and here's my two-cents on them.  First up was the new Fruit Nutrition Bar.  I liked the nuttiness of it, but not the fruit part.  As a fruity healthy bar goes, it was pretty good, but just not my thing.  And I did appreciate that it didn't have any funny after taste.  Now the Chocolate Nutrition bar was a little bit of heaven!  Chocolate flavor with nuttiness that I found satisfying!  I will be ordering those.  And in the future, there is going to be a Fit Chew-Lemon.  Not confirming that it is a bit of sour heaven, but think it quite possibly could be. 

Balance

I am looking for balance this week.  Balance between the 30 days strict regimen and real life.  I am searching and evaluating and praying.  And I've discovered that being in the 30 days world was safe and happy and successful.  I've got a couple more days of this week of limbo and then I am returning to the safe world.  I am just hoping that in this week I have managed to truly balance the pizza for breakfast with the shakes for other meals and the early morning work-outs.  That in the end, I will be where I left off and will continue down the yellow brick road headed towards Oz - the land where our dreams can come true.  Happy Friday.

RESULTS...

Okay, I haven't weighed myself again since the middle of the week... but we are operating on that weigh-in information for the review of the 30 day Fitness Challenge.

Weight loss:  6lbs
Waist: 1.5 inches smaller
Hips:  1.5 inches smaller
Regularity:  better (didn't think that was possible)
Sleeping - better (knew that was possible
Attitude - Enthusiastic

If you had asked me 30 days ago if I would envision attacking another 30 days, I would have said.. no I should be good.  But I want MORE!  If you had asked me 30 days ago if I would take exercise clothes and work-out at a hotel, I would have laughed... HA-HA-HA!    If you had asked me 30 days ago if I thought this plan would work for me, I would have said YES!  And I was right.  Slow and steady wins the race!  So I am attacking another 30 days. 

I am placing an order today to include the protein bars, more chews and boxes of protien drink to supplement what I have left over.  And tea.  And fizzies.  But I have both vanilla and chocolate powder left and though it is hard to say how much, I am probably going to order more of that as well.  I am not getting more fiber powder... have plenty.  And although this isn't about ordering, I am offering up my coconut oil (crisco by any other name) for anyone that would like to try it.  For me, I liked the olive oil and the way it blended.  I haven't noticed any other changes for the positive with the coconut oil and it doesn't blend well.  Maybe if I used hotter water to start and added ice with my frozen fruit, but seriously, I cannot be changing that at this point. 

I will not be updating daily, like I did for the last 30 days.  Between this blog and working full-time, regular blog has been suffering.  But it will be weekly at the minimum.  30 more days start tomorrow.

30! 30! 30!

Well, it wasn't like I woke up yesterday and announced DAY 30!  But I did have coffee!  (didn't pack fizz tabs or tea bags or vitamin.  but I didn't pack deodorant either so...)  And then I had Starbucks coffee...skinny mocha!  I wonder if I was supposed to wait another day.  Ooops.  After 4 hours of sleep, this girl deserved some coffee.  Tru dat.  And the coffee, along with the biscuits and sausage gravy, followed an early morning work out.  Seriously, I was only at that hotel about 10 hours and I worked out twice!  One side note, those of you who know me and know where I live, I have a great recommendation for a hotel about 90 minutes from where we live in case you travel for sports; they were AMAZING!

Lunch was a Chick-fil-a drive by... grilled chicken sandwich, no fries, no shake.  Unsweetened tea with diet lemonade for an Arnold Palmer that I thoroughly enjoyed!  At the birthday party (following the baseball game, which followed the  90 minute drive home which followed the 4+hour swim meet), I disappeared with a friend's husband for a bucket of beer... in typical male I-only-see-what-I-want-to-see fashion, the bucket special is only M-Th so we each just had one before returning to munch on pizza (less than I normally would have) and cake (none for me, thanks!).  At home, I had some spring rolls with the hubby as "dinner" and another beer with him.  Finished the vanilla wafers at bedtime and slept, and slept and slept. 

Evening came, morning came:  the thirtieth day.

Day 29

I tried to post these days while out of town... 28 & 29, but the hotel computer and I struggled.  So I wrote them and saved them in my email account which was all I knew how to do... so I am not really writing all of these days at once (except this explanation).

Friday... started with the TVF. Then out the door I went. Eventually, I made it home to have a vanilla/strawberry shake. Later is was a chocolate/cherry shake... super yum! The Arbonne Fairy texted me from the Arbonne convention to tell me about new products... new flavor chew coming this summer (lemon... sounds wonderful! I am hoping she brings me home a sample) and protein bars (will be ordering those this weekend... could use those on days like today when I am sprinting from the moment I'm out of bed.)  I am currently chaperoning the boys swim and dive team out of town. Another good use for a bar or a box... trips away from home. Cause I am SURE NOT PACKING MY BLENDER. When we went out for dinner I ordered from the appetizer menu and I made sure I was drinking lots of water. Later I hit the workout room in the hotel. I mean, this is completely out of character for me. Seriously, I have spent a lot of time in hotels while on the swim circuit the last 10 years, but this is the first time I visited the work-out room to actually WORK OUT!  I feel healthier because of how I am eating and working out so while on the road, I can make smart choices and work-out a bit.  This is a direct result of my 30 Fitness Challenge.

Evening came, morning came:  The Twenty-ninth day.

Day 28...

TVF. Yesterday I just couldn't get out of bed to work out and I couldn't again today. But I made plans to go in the evening and that worked out well! Chocolate/banana shake, followed by leftover soup from the night before and dinner was a Thai chicken recipe with spinach and served over rice; I added extra spice to it which is supposed to help burn more calories. Then a late workout of biking getting back to 5.5 mph from the 6 mph that I was doing at the beginning of the week. I think I need to mix up my land with aqua exercising to be easier on my body.  I had my sons home today so we were busy, busy, busy with other things to keep my mind off eating.  Always a beautiful thing.  Really should have replenished my body after my work-out because I was left with a craving for something at bedtime.  Why does it go against my mental psyche to make another shake?  Why do I instead, find Vanilla Wafers in the pantry and chow down?  I mean, everything says to make another shake!  UGH!  Hopefully this is a lesson that will stick with me.

Evening came, morning came:  the twenty-eighth day.

Day 27

I've imploded.  That up on the scale has me in a funk. And I was tired from those early morning work-outs.  By last night, after a long day and even longer swim meet, I supported a local team fundraiser at Panda Express and tried the Angus Steak that I've seen a gazillion commercials for AND that I read about in my Hungry Girl email.  Not so great.  Supporting the team... very great. My kids thrilled that I took them out.  Actually, didn't get to eat it because it was off to a meet & greet.  I caved.  Long day.  Bad weigh-in (I know I should be focused on the overall improvement, but last night it was a bad scale day).  Tired.  What?  Do I want a cup of Sangria... WHY YES I DO!  And some healthy guacamole.  And healthy coconut covered marshmallow s'mores.  Then home when I tried the less than impressive dish (I secretly think it was better but my husband picked out the best parts) and dumped it without finishing it.

Today was a new day!  An oversleep day as I wasn't up for hitting the gym so early.  A hit the ground running a bit behind day.  Tea, check.  Vitamin, check.  Fizzy drink in cold water (no time to do the warm and mix... if you wait long enough it dissolves), check.  I did think about adding it to the tea.  Not that inspired to do that this morning.  But, I ran out of time to make a shake.  Fortunately, last week the Arbonne Fairy, Jen, gave me a sample:  Vanilla Ready-to-Drink Protien Shake.  I grabbed and headed out to the door.  At some stop light somewhere, I shook it up, stuck the straw in and tasted... hesitantly.  Hmmm, try again.  Once more to confirm.  Yes, it tastes REALLY GOOD!  I mean, WOW!  You had me at hello, WOW!  Totally getting some of that when I reorder.  She gave me vanilla to try and I'm not really a vanilla girl, but I really did like it.  So much better than ANYTHING else I've tasted... better than S*&% Fast or Carnation or many of the yogurt shakes I've tried (find them too sweet for my taste).  Okay, not getting paid so let me tell you the only downside... light on fiber and only 11 oz.  Now I know my shake seems like way more than 11 oz.  EASY SOLUTION:  Grab a piece of fruit to eat along with it as you sprint out the door.  A banana, an apple (even better), some grapes or an orange.  That would add fiber and staying power. 

Rest of the day, less impressive.  Hit the drive through, BUT didn't super-size my Sonic lunch.  Really enjoyed my diet Dr. Pepper, but the caffiene continues to keep my tired self up.  Hence the 11 pm posting.  Minestrone soup was good.  Unfortunately, so was the garlic bread.  And the beer made a great bedtime snack only it has failed to counter the caffiene high. 

Nothing tastes as good as being thin (and healthy) feels.  My mantra.  If you want to say it to yourself through the day and send the positive thoughts this way, feel free!

Evening came, morning came:  the twenty-seventh day.

Day 26...

Okay.  Weigh-in puts me the wrong direction.  Up 1.1 pounds.  And I know why.  I wasn't deliberately being deceptive... honestly.  But last week, Wed, Thur, Fri, Sat nights I had a bedtime snack... a piece of chocolate chip peanut butter pie.  It would start out as a small piece.  Then, I'd have a second small piece.  And a third.  Or then sometimes that would be enough (I think Wed night only cause I'd already junked out).  But then sometimes I'd just cut a normal piece.  AHHHHH!  Nothing like shooting yourself in the foot.  I didn't have it Sunday night because I finished it off as a mid-morning snack after the Poptart breakfast.  And really, I thought about trying to weigh in tomorrow and hope for better luck, but I cannot deceive myself!  I also thought... I shouldn't have been bragging on my success last night at dinner.  But there were the comments about no drink and no big bowl of pasta that I needed to address.  Or wanted to address and share my success.

So, time to refocus... right?  Or time to make cheesy eggs and a BLT for breakfast.  Upside... only 1 egg and 1 BLT on whole grain bread (with no L, no T, just mayo, but only a little).  Drank my fizzy.  Forgot to make tea (drinking it now).  Forgot to take vitamin (took it with the tea I am drinking now).  Upside... 5 miles at the gym at crack of dawn... two mornings in a row of getting up at 5:15 to go work-out.  I am telling you, people do not know who I am cause getting out of bed to WORK OUT is not me.  Then, I pulled the wagon on a mile long walk so bonus work out time.  Made a mango berry blend shake for lunch.  Packed chewy for a snack at the swim meet.  May or may not have a shake for dinner... might just eat the sausage minestrone soup filled with yummy veggies (and tortellini) for dinner.   I do know this... I am doing another 30 days when this is done.  I just feel so much better.  And though this week was a step backward, I know what I did wrong.  I was good out for dinner, just screwed up at home with that d@#* chocolate-chip peanut butter pie.  And I was good even last night... crab cake appetizer for my dinner, a slice of bread, a side salad, couple of forkfuls of dessert and no sangria.  Focus on the good... leave the bad behind...

Evening came, morning came:  the twenty-sixth day.

Day 25

Yes, the mango makes it REALLY thick.  TVF - today's fizzy was in 24 oz of water because I got a new cup from my sweet LM and it holds 24 oz.  Also, it was fruit punch.  YUM!  Not too watered down for my tastes.  And I just finished the tea because I lost my phone this morning and in looking for it (it was at the gym from my early morning 5 mile bike ride) I put my tea down and just now found it.

So, I when I bought that Cherry Berry Blend bag of frozen fruit, I bought a Mango Berry Blend bag as well (they may have been buy 1 get 1 or just dirt cheap, cannot remember 2 weeks ago).  Unlike the Cherry Berry Blend that didn't have many cherries, I have now picked out enough mango for 2 mango shakes and enough strawberries for the first of 2 strawberry shakes.  I'm not really a strawberry shake kinda girl, but who doesn't love chocolate covered strawberries?  So a chocolate-strawberry mid-day shake was a pleasure!  I will still have enough mango & strawberries to combine with the blueberries gathered at the bottom of the bag and the 2 or three black/raspberries thrown in to make a Mango Berry shake later today, probably.  On the 3 shake plan today due to the early morning work-out and dinner out with friends (that I don't want to overdo).  Having said all of this... not getting either blend again.  First, not enough cherries.  Second, not all that hot on the mango shake.  I LOVE a frozen Mango bar or the Mello Mango smoothie I get at KEVA, but I don't really love the homemade mango shake.  So many other better flavors.  Like cherry.  Once I finish this bag (tomorrow), I can open another bag of CHERRIES!  Pacing myself.  Weigh in tomorrow.  Keeping fingers crossed.

Evening came, morning came:  the twenty-fifth day.

Day 24

I cannot begin to realize how far I've come through these 30 days!  I mean, I have one more week left!

So I have been pushing the sleep envelope... early morning gym appointments, working with small people for 9-10 hours a day, volunteering for upteen things, running here, there and everywhere and it totally caught up with me today.  I slept.  Then I slept some more.  Then I napped (cause it was on the couch) and then I napped somemore.  I had the citrus tab in my tea (1/2 tab) and I REALLY liked that. And I followed it with spearamint tea with caffiene which kept me going through the day.  I had poptarts for breakfast cause they were there.  Shake midday... chocolate banana... nothing special.  Hamburger with avocado on 1/2 bun instead of mayo on a full bun with a bowl of salad.  Not enough water to drink so I am feeling it now and will be up many times tonight relieving myself.  Took the day off from the gym.  Had the last peanutbutterchocolatechipcookiebrownie thing. 

Once I caught up on my sleep, I was pretty productive around the house.  But I am a bit sore... I think that I overdid it with my crazy biking Friday and my interval running/jogging yesterday.  Tomorrow, I'll be back at it.  I feel good mentally, not depressed about needing some down time or about the poptarts for breakfast.  Everything in moderation.

Evening came, morning came: the twenty-fourth day.

Day 23

Today I tried another recommendation from the Arbonne Fairy... I put my fizz tablet in my tea.  I actually only put half in.  It did make it taste like Pomegranate tea.  But I am used to the tea unsweetened so it was a bit of a shocker to my mouth.  Huge Upside is that I was drinking 9.25 oz tea, 20 oz of fizzy and making my morning shake.  Some days I just didn't have the hands to carry the cups as I sprint out the door.  So this would save a step.  But I think I really need a full fizzy to keep going.

After 30 minutes of interval training on the treadmill, I headed home to eat leftovers from lunch the day before... nothing like beef tips and  mashed potatoes for breakfast.  Later a shake.. mango chunks with vanilla.  I either mis-measured the water or mango chunks really thickened it up!  It was THICK.  Later it was off to a potluck.  I (mostly) followed my take only what you want (there was one dish I would have skipped but she was one of several I was going through line with so felt the pressure because she was concerned about it being good.  But I only took a little).  Followed the 2 bite dessert rule.  Only had 3 chips and 2 crackers loaded with their good stuff.   And no margaritas, beer or wine.  And I got a few looks and someone asked why I was on antibiotics now.  I just skipped the explanations and moved along with a swing in my step and a smile on my face!

Evening came, morning came:  the twenty-third day.

Day 22

Slept in since we didn't have school.  Can I mention, that I am actually sleeping better since I've been on the fitness challenge.  It's not just the exercising cause I've been doing that for 4 months.  It's the giving my body what it wants to eat... not junk!  It is making my digestive process easier for my body and therefore, my body is able to shut down in the evening better and deeper.  Yahoo for better sleep!

TVF.  Shake.  Vanilla-blackberry.  However, I got distracted and didn't blend it long enough.  And it was the end of the bag so I had a LOT of seeds.  And I couple chunks of my coconut oil.  Chunks of oil not a good thing.  See sidebar below for more about my coconut oil change.  Then it was off to see Jen the Arbonne Fairy.  She gave me a sample of the shakes that are premixed in a box (like a juice box) and ready to go.  Since some mornings I run out of time, I am looking forward to trying it!  We also chatted about how much better I am feeling overall.  I really do have more energy.  Probably the biggest surprise is that I am not always looking for my next meal.  I drink my morning shake and go all morning long without thinking "snack, snack, snack".  Or my afternoon shake and then I am good until dinner.  And the fact that I can control my portions at dinner also tells me it is helping curb my appetite.  My fairy visit was followed by lunch out with my son.  I took most of my meal home to eat, having eaten the salad that came with it and rolls... delicious, wonderful rolls with melt on the roll cinnamon butter.  We then met a friend at the park to walk while the kiddos played.  However, our plans were halted when there was an older kid just hanging out and watching our kids.  Long story short, no walk.  Off to gym later where I nearly accomplished a 4 minute mile on the bike.  Dinner was a small portion of an enchilada casserole with some healthy avocado along instead of sour cream.  Then it was off to volunteer at Prom where I had 3 decadent dessert bites.  YUM!

Evening came, morning came:  the twenty-second day.

Sidebar:  Yes, coconut oil.  I had a visit with a friend that has lost like 67 pounds.  She chose a plan that is working for her and kudos for that.  But in the meantime, as we were discussing our protein shakes, she mentioned that she added coconut oil to her shakes.  I am a big fan of coconut oil as I have read alot about it's good properties so the next time I was in the store I picked up some to add to my shakes instead of the olive oil.  "Coconut oil contains a type of MCT (medium chain triglyceride) oil called lauric acid that is only found here and in mother's breast milk. Lauric acid is a powerful immune stimulant and may help in preventing sickness."  Dr. Susan  Dopart, Huffpost Healthy Living and http://www.mnn.com/food/healthy-eating/stories/coconut-oil-benefits.  Can I tell you that it is not liquid but solid like crisco?  It was quite the shocker to me.  I haven't noticed any changes one way or the other, but I shall continue forward!

Day 21 Part 2...

TVF followed the early morning blog.  So did a shake and out the door for a meeting.  Lunch out... salad with grilled chicken.  Dinner in, pasta... scooped out a bowl full.  Put half back.  Came back for just a few more bites.  Too tired to work out.  Which is bassackwards since when I work out, I have more energy. 

Evening came, morning came:  the twenty-first day.

Day 21

Challenge Day of the week because we had Ladies Night Out and I made a decadent dessert!  However, in the process of making said dessert I overcooked the crust (chocolate cookie dough crust so basically slightly overcooked chocolate chip cookies).  Then, in the process of remaking said dessert, I ate several of the cookies. However, the daytime was good... TVF, water, vanilla blackberry morning shake made in spite of the fact that I had 4 kiddos to get out the door.  I rode about 6 miles during the early morning work out.  Chocolate Cherry shake for lunch and snap peas to snack on.  Should have made another shake instead of munching on cookies; live and learn.  Then, off to the party where I pulled my chair up to the spinach-artichoke dip and enjoyed.  Then had a couple of desserts.  Snacked on veggies and a couple crackers of hummus.  In the olden days, I would have pulled up to the hummus after the spinach dip so YEAH for growth!  Gotta figure out a work-out for today to undo last night's damage!

Day 20

Sorry, my days are busier now that I'm working full-time and coaching this Spring.  TVF.  This is bad.  I cannot remember Tuesday.  Okay, let's work backwards...  I had to fix the dryer and clean up 150 oz of laundry detergent that spilled (all because the washer leaked once and hasn't since...).  I can remember complaining I had no dinner... AH YES!  It has all come back to me now...

TVF (I know I said that but I need to start at the beginning for MY SANITY).  Then off to run errands (getting parts to fix dryer and bubbles to make the small people in my life happy and frozen cherries because they make ME so happy).  Cherry Vanilla shake and snacking on snap peas.  Bowl of Kale/Potato soup and roll for late lunch/early dinner (4 hours after I returned with cherries and made vanilla cherry shake).  And after dryer repair/laundry room clean-up, Chocolate Cherry shake for dinner.  I find if I get the munchies or if I am feeding small people, grabbing a chew really helps.  I have one almost every day, sometimes 2 sometimes none.  Just realized I hadn't been putting that in here.  No official work-out but I did pull a wagon to school and back which is a solid mile of up and down (round trip).

Day 19

Lousy day for me, but good for me in terms of not eating my way into a better mood.  Apparently, I've learned that that doesn't work - what a life lesson!  So, TVF, water, vanilla-blackberry shake, more tea, chocolate-banana shake, more water, off to the gym.    Probably not going to make it tomorrow so I decided to weigh myself early before coming home to eat copious amounts of pasta for dinner (maybe I haven't learned it yet... it's a process!)

3.3 pounds!  I'm down 3.3 pounds from last week!  7.1 pounds in 19 days.  Not eating tons of pasta for dinner, now! 

Evening came, morning came:  nineteenth day!

Day 18

Yummy breakfast casserole for breakfast.  Then something really upset my tummy!  I don't know if it was the rich dinner the night before or breakfast this morning, but I was glad to be close to home.  Which made me stop and think... (I'm about to get a bit personal so if you don't want that info, please move along to the next paragraph -just sayin).  I have not had any bouts of diarrhea since I've gotten on this program.  I have always been regular in terms of first thing in the morning, but the afternoon was hit or miss if ya know what I mean.  Honestly, I'd have the runs a few times a week and even thought I might have like a problem.  But now with the fiber program, regular, regular, regular.  For those of you that thought that was TMI, you should have followed the instructions and moved along to the next paragraph.

I was busy, busy, but had my vanilla blueberry shake about 5 hours later.  And I must say, it was good.  BUT my teeth needed a brush before I could move along with the rest of my day.  Chocolate-cherry shake to finish the day (end of cherries... :-( ).  Another discovery:  take the time to put the lids on right.  Sometimes, they go on kinda crooked like and then they DO NOT STAY.  They slip off as you reach for it under the cabinet and fall on the floor and spill.  However, they do not spill badly; by that I mean, it's not like dropping the sugar canister.  Somewhere in there I went to Zumba for an hour which was quite the work out!  I need to mention that I am drinking tons and tons of water every day.  And by tons and tons I mean 100-120 oz a day not counting my 20 oz fizzy.

Evening came, morning came:  the eighteenth day.

Day 17

TFV and off to the gym to drink water and work out.  I tried a new machine for about 8 minutes today.  It spanked me, but I was able to get on my bike and go under a 5 minute mile for the next 7 miles or 8, honestly cannot remember now.  Home to a vanilla shake with mixed berries.  I picked out the rest of the raspberries, blackberries, strawberries and cherries leaving only blueberries in the bag.  I'll suffer through those tomorrow.  Later is was a chocolate-cherry smoothie... I measured out the cherries and I can get 2 more with a heaping 1/2 cup out of the bag.  Still seems unlikely that I used so many in that first one, but I guess the proof is in the bag.  And the shake was still super yummy!  Though admittedly not quite as cherry-y.  Dinner out for a birthday celebration.  Didn't touch the bread until time to wipe up my plate.  Boy did it smell good!  Veal Marsala with pasta (really wanted those mashed potatoes, but knew that would be a mistake.  Fortunately my friend shared a taste!).  My son shared the pasta and I had a few bites of his calamari.  We shared 1 dessert at the table among 6 of us passing it around and around so we all got a few bites.  Not bad.  No sangria at a place that I love the sangria!  Good for me! 

Evening came, morning came:  the seventeenth day.

Day 16

How is it I can get up at 5:20, do nearly 7 miles in 32 minutes at the gym, fix my TVF combination, but not my shake?  I guess getting my 2 plus 2 others breakfast, packing 2 lunches, getting 3 off to school and remembering the 4 packages to mail, a diaper bag, the grocery list and the cards to write & mail was more than I could do in one morning. I gotta stock the car with chews.  When I thought I was going to keel over, I had 24 oz of water and boy did that revive me.  As soon as I got home I made my breakfast smoothie, chocolate with frozen cherries (grocery store this morning) and I have died and gone to heaven!  It was SOOOOOOO good.  However, as I was putting the bag of cherries back into the freezer, I noticed it is supposed to have 2.5 servings of 1 cup each.  I think I've been adding more than a 1/2 cup fruit.  I swear I was measuring it on my blender... nearly 1 and 1/2 c blended water with the fiber powder, protein powder and oil blended quickly; then add fruit to the 2 cup mark.  I just know that I only have 1 1/3 c cherries left, not 2 cups.  Ugh.  I will have to measure it another way. 

For lunch, I had a lean cuisine... and I had it within an hour of having the shake!  Brunch!  Now more water this afternoon and I think a vanilla/berry blend shake for dinner as I want use that up and not have it taking up so much room in my fridge... I think I'm up to 4 open bags of frozen fruit and 3 more unopened and that doesn't count my bag of bananas.  Getting a little crazy!  But boy was that chocolate-cherry good!

Okay, for dinner I actually had pasta with meat sauce and 2 bowls of salad.  I mention this because I piled the pasta in my bowl.  Dumped more than half back and then ate it.  Success story!
Evening came, morning came:  the sixteenth day.

Day 15 part 2

So what I discovered is that there were a bunch of cherries on the top of the berry blend mix along with some raspberries and blackberries and a couple strawberries.  However, after dropping the bag following making the second shake, what is left is a lot of blueberries.  And what I mean is all blueberries.  So don't buy the blends.

Another discovery, if you do not chop for a good minute and then puree for another solid minute, you get chunks of bananas in your chocolate-banana shake...yuck so don't rush. 

Dinner out was an appetizer ordered for dinner... crab cake with 2 bites of cole slaw and 4 bites of guacamole with it.  Of course I also had 2 onion rings.  No dessert.   That's really good for me!

Evening came, morning came:  the fifteenth day.

Day 15 - part 1

I got bad news last night.  My BFF's husband was diagnosed with cancer and I have no details.  I found out prior to my evening out last night.  Consequently, I ate.  A whole (small) bowl of peanut M&M's.  Can I mention that I don't like peanuts.  Pizza - of the veggie variety except for one small piece with chicken and one with meat and veggies... but does that give you any idea how many slices I had of the veggie?  No?  Let's leave it that way.  2 bowls of salad.  No lite dressing for me.  Paul Newman Caesar Salad dressing... at least it wasn't creamy.  And pie.  Berry pie, not chocolate pie so that was good.  But I had a little pie with my cool whip.

Okay, so let's focus on the positive... I felt SO LOUSY that I didn't sleep well.  Oops, not positive.  Trying again... only one slice with the pepperoni and sausage on it instead of several of that kind and no veggie... positive, check.  Ate lots of veggies... positive, check.  Didn't eat the whole bowl of Hershey's kisses... positive, check.  Didn't have wine, beer or wine coolers... VERY POSITIVE, check, check, check.  Set the alarm to get up early to go work out at the gym and kill off some of those calories before they become permanent members of me... positive, check.  HOWEVER, I set it for 5:30 pm, not am.  Oops.  Well, I tried.

This morning I've had my TVF and I am making a vanilla with frozen cherry-berries blend.  It's a good start to a better day!  Happy Thursday...I cannot believe I am already half-way there! 

Day 14

I forgot a few things yesterday... WEIGH-IN:  down 2.2 for a total of 3.8!  I am excited about that!
Also, I biked for 25 minutes in the morning and another 42 minutes in the afternoon for a total of 14 miles!  Those times include warm-up and cool-down times and I am almost at 4.5 mph.  And we figured out while biking that we started 3 weeks ago and recalled that I was doing close to 8 mph when we started so YAHOO for my biking supremacy!  So that was yesterday...

Today:  TVF (tea, vitamin, fizzy) - check.  Morning brunch.  Someone brought M&M's.  I LOVE M&M's!  YUM!  Someone brought a fantastic sausage/hash brown casserole!  SO GREAT that I got her to send me the recipe already and I will be making it for the guys this weekend!  I didn't abide by the seconds rule.  Ooops.  I guess I am feeling that I can backslide a bit after such a successful yesterday.  So, I felt draggy within a couple hours after eating M&M's and casserole and marshmallows (shaped like bunnies in pastel colors, who can resist?) and had another fizzy and a chew.  Today's fizzy's are a new flavor... what flavor you ask?  I'm so glad you asked... Fruit Punch!  Jen, the Arbonne Fairy, said to take half of Citrus and half of Pomegranate and mix.  Delightful!  Mid-afternoon shake (4 hours after brunch finished following the rules to not eat meals closer than 4 hours and actually it was 5 hours... even better) was vanilla with a frozen cherry berry mix and boy was that yummy!  I am eating out at Bunco tonight, but will pile the salad on first and have just a small amount of whatever else they serve!

Evening came, morning came:  the fourteenth day.

Day Treize

Just a note to start, I'm a bit superstitious and somehow saying today's number in French (three years of high school French and a tribute to my French ancestors) seems OK!

On the heels of my Epiphany yesterday, I went looking for the book so perhaps I could make some more changes and be even healthier.  But in my typical style, I cannot find it.  I will find it, tomorrow.  That's just how I roll.  So... I Googled, my answer to so many things.   And behold, there is a 30 Day Feeling Fit Guide available to download.  It's not the same as my guide and I have to say, I liked it better.  It seemed more upbeat and positive; no list of "stay away froms".  In fact, after reading it, I'm not going to change what I've been doing.  I am going to stay the course.

My wonderful Arbonne fairy, Jen, called me this afternoon.  She always makes me smile!  Back in the beginning, when I showed an interest in the program, there was no hard sell, just information.  And some samples.  I told her today that when I read about it and when she answered my questions, I thought this would be a good fit for me and it really has been!  I just feel like it was made for me!  We chatted about how things were going and she shared a cherry shake recipe I am just going to have to try.  As soon as I get some cherries and almond milk. 

But I realized that I may not be sharing everything CLEARLY.  For example, every time I make the chocolate-banana shake, I use a frozen banana.  Actually, I use 2 halves, as I always break the bananas in half before I freeze them.  Actually, whenever I put fruit into my shakes, it is frozen fruit.  Except today as a matter of fact.  I got sidetracked when making my breakfast shake and left the bananas on the counter, thawing so they were not frozen when I put them in.  Consequently, the shake wasn't what I would call cold cause I don't use ice.  But it was still good.  Lunch was a Lean Cuisine Pasta meal... I just love my pasta, what can I say!  I did a peach-vanilla shake for dinner.  I had my fizzy, tea, vitamin and a chew following lunch cause I was still hungry.  Something to do with getting up 2 hours earlier, I am pretty sure.  In fact, I had a second fizzy drink to get me through the day!  And it worked!

Evening came, morning came:  le treizième jour.

Day 12

I am a bit all over the place today so good luck with keeping up.  I am revising the post already and it's not even finished, but I am hoping to follow one train of thought at a time. 

It's time to recommit.  I am amazing about the morning tea, vitamin and morning fizzy.  I've got the shake making down to a science and picked up some new flavors to keep the interest alive.  I am now going to go back to the instructions and try to stay away from some of the items on the list (other than coffee and alcohol).  I am committed to adding one more thing to avoid.  I'll let you know tomorrow what it is.  I realize that if I want to really be successful, I need to be more committed.  It's growth.  Sometimes I am slow, but slow and steady win!

This morning I participated in my Bible Study brunch to celebrate the end of our session, but no seconds for me.  Also, I didn't try to please everyone by taking some of everything.  That's an awful habit that I have as a people pleaser.  And I am not sure that I would have realized that I do that at potlucks and such if I wasn't on this 30 day challenge.  I think back to the last brunch we had and I remember how I made more than one trip to the table and how I tried to take some of everyone's so that no one's feelings would be hurt.  But that is not GOOD FOR ME!  This 30 day challenge is teaching me some really great things about myself.  1) My body feels good when I am feeding it healthy stuff!  2)  I am an eater of convenience; if I am busy, I don't miss food.  3) I try to please people at potlucks when I should only be concerned with pleasing myself.   4) I don't have to drop my son at school (or pick him up) and have a Bagel sandwich; I am dumping that habit!  I do find it fascinating that I have had such an epiphany on this, my 12th day. 

Evening came, morning came: the twelfth day. 

Days 10 & 11

Well, it is a holiday weekend.  I can say this... I have not had coffee or alcohol in the last 11 days.  I have not stayed away from the things that are listed as items to stay away from.  And I didn't have dessert tonight.  I did last night, but not tonight.

Day 10:  Tea, vitamin, fizzy drink and morning Blackberry/Vanilla smoothie.  Made a chocolate-banana smoothie to take to the swim meet.  LONG DAY!  Did not have any of the brownies my son bought at the snack bar.  And we gone from home nearly 8 hours.  I did have a 6" subway sub but one of the low-cal ones with tons of veggies on it as well as my smoothie.  Then we had salad and frozen pizza for dinner.  I ate the thin crust pizza instead of the rising dough one.  Then I went to a birthday party, late, and I was kinda hoping I'd miss dessert, but I hadn't.  It was delish!

Day 11:   Tea, vitamin, fizzy drink and off to Easter Sunday mass.  Came home and made omelets for all the guys, but made myself a chocolate-banana smoothie.  Small sliver of sticky buns at the neighborhood egg hunt.  In my basket there was no chocolate or candy of any kind.  And I LOVE the Cadbury eggs.  None this year.  Middle of the afternoon dinner which I did take small helping of the sides and the ham.  Unfortunately, I took small seconds, too.  No Banana Pudding (made from scratch).  Herbal tea for me during the rest of the day.  I am officially past the 1/3 mark and headed for halfway through.

Evening came, morning came:  the tenth and eleventh days. 

Day 9

I actually ran out of time before going to the swim meet on Thursday and didn't make my shake, but I did take a chew.  And lots of water.  I ate a few goldfish, before the chew, but that was it.  And I got my chicken salad at Chick-fil-A and can I say that it was the first time I'd ever had the grilled chicken and I like it BETTER than the chicken strips.  Honestly, didn't think those words would ever leave my mouth.  My body is craving HEALTHY FOOD.  I cannot remember that ever happening before when I've dieted or watched what I was eating.  I tend to be food obsessed with what I cannot have and then overdo it.  But these shakes are feeding my body healthy stuff and my body LIKES IT!

Yesterday (day 9), was a fasting day for me for religious reasons and I did really well.  I had my morning tea and vitamin followed by the fizzy.  I waited until "lunchtime" and had a chocolate-banana shake and drank lots of water.  I broke a bad habit yesterday which should be celebrated... whenever I go to pick-up/drop off my son at college, I get a veggie bagel sandwich from Brueggers.  I love it.  But let's be real, just cause it is a veggie sandwich doesn't mean it is healthy.  I had a small dinner of pasta (really, I went back for seconds and gave most of it away before I sat back down) and a big bowl of salad.  I also managed to run to the gym for a work-out - I miss that when I don't get there... that's a new thing for me just since January.

Evening came, morning came:  the ninth day.

Days 7 & 8

I feel full of energy and happy when I am having my shakes, drinking my stuff and following my plan.  I could tell the difference from when I ate junky on Tuesday.  I could really tell.  I get more stuff done and feel better. 

So yesterday, I made the return to the peach/vanilla combo and I have one detail to add... DO NOT GO OVER 12 OZ OF WATER when making your shake.  Aim for 10/11 ounces because if you aim for 12 and go over, its a watery drink... still ok, but I really noticed a difference.  And maybe its the peaches too, more water in frozen peaches.  I cut down today and it was super yummy.  Yesterday I had the choco/banana combo, but I was in such a hurry yesterday morning (first day on full-time job) that I didn't have it until mid-day after running errands like crazy and coming in the house starving and eating 2 oatmeal cookies.  I think 2, but it could have been three.  So that was a meal, shakes for the other 2 meals and some chewys thrown in too.  Today, I limited my computer time in the morning taking the time to make all 3 morning drinks (fizzy, tea and shake) even though I had to take some on the road with me to get them consumed and I felt much better and didn't snack on the rest of the oatmeal cookies at midday.  Midday shake was vanilla and blackberries.  Slight teeth issues, but at home a quick brush takes care of it and anyway it wasn't nearly as bad as the blueberries.  But it was a SUPER YUM!

Swim meets always present a challenge.  It just lends itself to snacking.  Or eating out.  Or both.  And that's what I have this afternoon moving into the evening.  So I am hoping another shake will stave off the snacking and a salad for dinner when I get home from the meet.  Hmmm, how to make that salad more appetizing... maybe I'll get it from Chick-fil-A since that's what the folks at home are eating.  Then I don't have to fix it, I can use my light dressing and grilled chicken.  Not a bad idea if I do say so myself.  And yeah, I know that prepping fresh veggies and taking them with me would also work, but I have none in the house.  And I am trying to be realistic in my lifestyle change.  That's just not who I am OR who I am yet. 

I am still shaking my head at how much better I feel when I feed my body good stuff. 

Evening came, morning came:  the seventh day.
Evening came, morning came: the eighth day.

Blip

Today was a blip.  It was a SNOW DAY in APRIL which I had been predicting, but was surprised when it became a reality.  So, breakfast was mini-saltines in bed while watching Bedtime Stories with Adam Sandler with my son.  Tea, check.  Vitamin, check.  Fizzy tab, check.  No lunch cause breakfast was at 10.  Early dinner:  Black Bean soup with ground beef, SOUR CREAM, cheddar cheese.  Two smallish bowls.  Had a couple chews to keep be going until dinner... not sure what I was thinking except I was cold, too cold for a smoothy.  Lots of decaf tea.  Biked 10 miles in just over 49 minutes. 

The exciting news is that I was down 1.6 pounds.  And I switched when I weigh myself to the evening because of my new work schedule.  So I bet that number could have been even higher if I had weighed myself in the morning.  And not eaten lousy today.  So we'll call tomorrow day 7.  One more day until my coffee and beer, but it seems right and fair.

Day 6

Today, I had 2 choco-banana shakes (with 1/2 scoop fiber and 3/4 tsp olive oil in each), and a lean cuisine for dinner.  I biked 6.6 miles at 11.5 MPH in 35 minutes.  Drank my tea, had another cup of spearmint tea, drank my fizz and had a chew to tide me over between breakfast and lunch.  Feeling good and tomorrow is a weigh-in day.  I'll let you know!  Also, I shopped so I have peaches for the morning!  And I wasn't ever hungry as I was busy, busy busy.  I really am an eater of convenience and need to work on that.

Evening came, morning came:  the sixth day.

Day 5 part 2

So I had some cold pasta salad for lunch... lots of fruit and veggies with a lite sauce, chicken, pasta and almond slices.  And for dinner I had 1/2 a hamburger on a bun and LOTS of stir-fry (squash and tomatoes, tiny bit of olive oil, onions and Italian seasoning).  Sunday was my work-out day off, however, I did sweep and mop all of my hardwood floors, vacuum the family room and spring clean 2 bedrooms.  Tomorrow I go back to 2 shakes and a small dinner.

Evening came, morning came: the fifth day.

Day 5 part 1

I have some stuff that is on my mind, but it is early in the day so I know I will have more to say later which is why it is labeled part 1.  First, doing a blueberry and peach vanilla shake is not a great idea.  Not much of either taste.  But it took the rest of the frozen peaches and the rest of the frozen blueberries and used them up.  So I must shop.  Drinking the Fizz before 10 in the morning seems to be helping my falling asleep issues... I am down to 1 tab in 12 oz water, warm.  Once dissolved, I add ice and drink up.  Still liking the morning tea.  BUT it sure ain't my coffee.  And not to sound like an alcoholic, but each day I resist having a beer or glass of wine is a personal "YAHOO" because it seems like the one part of the Fitness Challenge that I am committed to sticking since I've been adding things at dinner that they request you stay away from during the challenge. 

More Day 4

Tea, check.   Vitamin, check.  1 Fizz Tab finished before 10, check, morning shake making my teeth all blueberry-y, check.  Lunch, 1/3 of a Chick-fil-A chicken salad sandwich (I didn't want it to go to waste).  That was a poor choice for several reasons... first, it was less than 4 hours from my last meal, second, although I felt "full" when I finished, I was hungry so very hungry when it came to dinner that I overate the pasta with mushrooms and avocado and Alfredo sauce.  So wrong in so many ways.  OK.  I went and worked out after eating the sandwich.  At that point, I should have come home and had my choco-banana shake (even if I'd eaten the sandwich but better if I hadn't eaten the sandwich).  BUT, I went and got a pedicure right after the work out; didn't have time (take time whatever) to go home and eat the right thing.  So I see here that I have a transportation problem with my shakes that I need to work out.  On the upside, the idea of eating pasta is gross to me right now having eaten 2 helpings last night.  Pasta eating is NEVER gross to me, so this could be a good thing.

Evening came, morning came: the fourth day.

Day 4

I admit it... I am beginning to miss chewing.  It's really my own fault.  I have not bought or fixed or prepared veggies to snack on.  I looked at them at the market yesterday, but couldn't muster the desire to buy them and prep them to have on hand.  So dumb.  So my Day 4 tip is be armed and ready with your favorite or a new veggie, prepped and ready for snacking.  I think that it is an important tool for success.

Evening came, morning came:  the fourth day.

Day 3

Mixed it up a little today... drank the tea with the vitamin.  Made the citrus fizz tabs.  Today I put them in warm water (1 1/2 tabs) and then when they dissolved, I added ice.  Putting the ice in too soon, not good.  Drinking it warm, not good.  And they do dissolve best in warm water.  So after adding the ice, I headed to the gym for a 30 minute bike ride and drank my fizzy drink while pedalling to no where.  Then I remembered to weigh myself before heading home.   I had my chocolate shake with a frozen banana.  I am now up to 12 oz water, under 1 tsp of olive oil and half a scoop of fiber with the 2 scoops of chocolate and one frozen banana.  I do a quick mix before adding the banana and then put it on puree for about 75-90 seconds.  I have finally found, for me, the best combination and cannot imagine why in the beginning I found it a bit grainy. 

Off to the movies... I had ZERO popcorn today.  Not one kernel.  I mean because it's that first one that does you in, am I right?  I did have a chew and drank so much water that I had to go to the bathroom in the middle of the movie.  Drinking water, good; missing movie, bad.  Home and it was 4 hours from my last shake so I had my vanilla/blueberry combo, again using the 12 oz water.  Now I didn't wait for the berries to thaw and blended them that 75-90 seconds.  Gum, I just gotta chew gum afterwards or brush cause my teeth were covered again in blueberry skins.  But it is so yummy. 

Dinner was 2 oz pork tenderloin, 1/2 c mashed potatoes (probably a big no-no somewhere but really it pork and mashed potatoes are a perfect match and usually I eat WAY more than a measly 1/2 c) and a big old salad with greens, pumpkin seeds and a scant amount of light dressing.  Then I had a second bowl of salad.  Then my calcium chew.  Then a Arbonne chew cause I just needed the sweet to finish my meal.  This evening I've been great and I am making some peppermint tea to bed down with now.  I really think this is working for me.  I don't feel hungry, I have energy during the day and I am not having any more constipation problems since adding the oil.  I am having a serious hankering for a beer, though. 

Evening came, morning came: the third day.

Day 2

I am out of frozen peaches, but I have frozen blueberries so I tried that.  However, I let them thaw too much and so it was very blueberryskin-y when drinking it.  I mean, I had the skins stuck in my teeth like no body's business requiring an extra brush of the teeth (and at that it was extra long brushing, too) before leaving the house.  However, it was really, really yummy!  Tea, check.  Vitamin, check.  That was morning/breakfast.

Now everyone has their favorite type of water bottle.  Mine happens to be an insulated cup with a top and straw.  It holds just over 16 oz; I know this because I measured it today to see what it held.  Now, since I know it holds one of those water bottles I keep in the car, I should have known that it holds 16 oz, but I measured it just the same.  Today I used the Citrus Fizz Tabs and I discovered that they have a line down the middle so you can split them.  So I had 1 and 1/2 citrus tabs in my water this morning.  After a 60 minute Zumba class, I had a chocolate shake with a banana.  Both shakes today had some olive oil and fiber, too.  I may have had the shake too late, or something else is going on because I have a migraine.  And yes, I have had six 16 oz cups of liquid today.  I had one chew at the movies.  Although it didn't keep me from eating some popcorn (which is probably not something I was supposed to do, but didn't look it up before and now my eyes hurt too much to read), it did keep me from buying a box of Milk Duds which previously I've considered as essential to going to the movies as the movie ticket itself.  For dinner I had a chicken stew with mushrooms, carrots, tomatoes, potatoes (I skipped over those), and chicken (though I have no idea if it was free range which I think is what is suggested.  I have to buy the 10 lb bag of breasts in the store to feed my family and that nearly breaks the bank so I'm not likely to start changing that).  I also couldn't resist a slice of sourdough bread with butter which I am SURE IS ON THE DO NOT EAT LIST.  However, I am a girl that likes her wine, beer, coffee, cereal with milk and Fiber One Bars and I have left all of those things behind.  Baby steps.

I forgot to weigh myself at the gym and will try to remember to do that tomorrow. However, I did take my waist and hip measurements.  And I will share them, but not with the public at large.  I just didn't like the numbers.  I may not even share the weight number.  Rest assured, I will tell you what I drop in pounds and inches! 

Finally, a couple notes to yesterday for those of you following closely... I had 2 oz grilled chicken on my salad at dinner last night and ate about 3-4 cups of mixed greens.  I sadly couldn't sleep so by 10:30 I was starving.  I ate a chew and drank more water and that seemed to help.  Also, yesterday's exercise was about 45 minutes of laps/water exercising and 2 minutes of the hoola-hoop.  I am recovering still from a severe ankle sprain and the hoop still kinda hurts to do, but I may stick with it a couple minutes a day.  None today after Zumba.

Evening came, morning came:  the second day.

The NEW OFFICIAL DAY 1

So things are going very well today!  Had my vitamin with Detox Tea.  Fixed my pomegranate fizz drink.  Made my morning smoothie.  Today I measured everything but the peaches in first and gave it a pulse or 5 to get it mixed around.  Then I put in the peaches actually measuring them this time around.  I discovered I totally shorted myself yesterday!  I put in like half of what I was entitled to!  Then I let the shake sit while I packed a picnic lunch for my son, and packed 2 chews for me and another bottle of water for when the Fizz is gone.  Got dressed and got him ready to go to the park.  Then, I zapped the shake blending it to a much smoother consistency than yesterday due to the resting in the shake which I made with tepid water so the peaches definitely were partially thawed.  Again YUM!  And not so grainy today at all, so some combo there fixed it.  And FYI, I am using 2 scoops vanilla, 9-10 oz water, 1/2 scoop of fiber and 3/4 tsp of olive oil.  And you cannot taste the oil.  Not at all.  And I thought that it was weird that all of the recipes said to add some kind of oil.  But the Lord put on my Yahoo page an article reaffirming that good oils help with fighting belly fat!  (I can't find it now, but I swear I read that!)

I drank the Pom Fizz at the park along with another bottle of water.  Today I added the Pom tablet to twice as much water and it tasted great!  So that solves that problem about needing to order more of those.  I got home and made a quick shake of just water and chocolate powder with fiber and oil.  YUMMY!  And I did a quick pulse, let it rest then blended thoroughly a few minutes later.  During the afternoon I drank more water.  When I got home from my swim workout, I made another chocolate one, this time with banana and no fiber or oil.  I freeze overripe bananas so I used 2 frozen halves (they blend better than a whole) and I thawed them a bit.  Again YUM!  The materials say to drink a shake after working out which is why I had it.  I am supposed to be done eating by 7, however, I am just now sitting down to my large salad that has some healthy nuts on it.  I don't think I am supposed to use salad dressing, but I use light and I measure it out and I cannot eat my salad without it.  After dinner I will have my calcium, drink more water and have some tea before bed.

Now today, I did not weigh myself because I have no scale.  Nor did I take my measurements.  But I will do that tomorrow since I doubt one day will make that much of a difference.  But I will say, I don't think I was cranky from hunger.  I really wanted something munchy at the park so I think next time I will take some par-cooked green beans.  I love them so! 

Evening came and morning came: the first day.

PRACTICE DAY... I Really Start Tomorrow!

Okay.  I should have known that going to Denver was going to really mess me up.  And it did.  So tomorrow I start.  However, today I learned a few things:

1) Peaches + Vanilla Shake = GOOD
2) Slightly thaw the peaches
3) Don't forget the healthy oil you are supposed to add to the shake or you might be a bit constipated later on.
4) It was a bit gritty.  I think thawing the peaches some will help as it was kinda chunky and had those chunks been blended in, it would have been perfect.  Trying again tomorrow. 
4) Chewy tabs are good for pushing back hunger.
5) Really liked the Pomegranate Fizz Tab, but needed to water it down more than I did.  I was afraid I'd need 2 a day to keep me going, but thinking one is going to work.
6) I can substitute my chamomile tea in the evening instead of Detox stretching the Detox tea supply so it lasts longer.
7) Although I am supposed to avoid artificial things, I will be continuing to take my allergy pill, my anti-depressant and wear my hormone patch as these things are medically essential.

Better start tomorrow armed with today's knowledge.

The First Day...

Woke with a killer headache.  Took a hot shower and drank my Detox Tea.  Didn't make 4 cups, just one really strong one. There is a whole list of things to avoid on this fitness Challenge and somewhere it mentions medications so I am trying to get through without. 

I really like the Detox Tea! As a rule, I don't care for green tea, but this has other things in it that make it yummy.  I have also started my Pomegranate Energy Fizz tab in water for the caffeine boost and YUM.  I took my multi-vitamin with the tea, so check that box off.  I am prepping to make my shake(s) as I am headed to Denver for some fun with friends.  I'll let you know how it goes later.  Happy Monday!

Prep Work

I've read through the entire packet of information and some of the pages I've reviewed twice or three times.  I unpacked my box and set up my smoothie making station in the kitchen.  I've moved my coffee to the pantry (boo-hoo! bye-bye coffee!) and put my Detox Tea and Energy Fizz Tabs front and center as they will replace my morning coffee routine.  I also have my multi-vitamin there to take each morning.  I have a huge stock of some multi-vitamin for women that I got at SAMS and I haven't bothered to look to see if it is name brand or generic.  I just started taking it regularly last week and I want to be upfront about it not being the Daily Power Packs which Arbonne sells and suggests you take along with their 30 Feeling Fit Kit.

So far I have figured out that I need to place another order for a couple of things probably to finish out my 30 days, which I find a bit off-putting.  They propose that you drink the Detox Tea up to 4 times in their suggested daily plan.  In the kit, there are 40 tea bags.  I guess if I start the day with using 2 teabags to make a pitcher with 4 cups in it, I will have enough for 20 days, not 30.  I may need more Fiber Boost as well; it says to use 1/2-1 scoop in each smoothie and I anticipate having 2-3 smoothies each day because I plan to use the protein shakes to replace 2 meals a day, plus they recommend having one after exercising.  Since 30 servings are in the container that I have, I am guessing I will run out of that as well.  I was surprised that throughout their Fit Plan they do not suggest when to use the Fit Chews although there are 60 included which would be 2 per day.  The plan includes several times each day to use the Fizz Tabs, but again only included 40 which means either I order more or I only use one a day.  If I order more of these three items, it's another $77 dollars, so this is the first thing to keep in mind.  However, if I find it to be successful, it will absolutely be worth it!

I have frozen berries in the freezer for my shakes and some spinach I am going to try to include at some point.  The shake recipes call for some oil and I will hopefully pick up some flaxseed oil, though I wish I already had, I am not going out tonight to get it.  I feel ready.  Negatives aside, I am excited to start tomorrow!  I have enjoyed a chocolate Easter egg and pizza this weekend.  So long to those things until May!  Happy Sunday!

3 Days Until We Begin...

So the right combinations of circumstances came together two weeks ago culminating in me making a decision for ME (the cost be d***ed!).  Was it an impulse decision?  Yes!  Did I have second thoughts?  Surprisingly, no.  Am I excited?  Surprisingly, yes.  (I can hear that phrasing in my head... it's from a movie... I can see it, that cute Lizzy McGuire is in it and it's a Cinderella remake.  Oh the title escapes me, whatever). 

So I begin Monday and today I am going to check with my FABULOUS consultant, Jen.  She's going to be with me every step of the way and in return, she will give me her baby.  Just kidding about the baby.  She is going to be with me coaching me, encouraging me to a healthier place.  I am using the Arbonne Feeling Fit Kit and I am receiving no perks, payments or such from the company.  I have been waiting to jump start my weight-loss and this came along calling my name.

When I decided to skip out on an Arbonne party she was doing to go to a hockey game, I stopped by her house to look through the catalog.  After trying a couple of the products and hearing what she had to say, I was convinced that this was what I had been waiting for this year.  I have already been exercising and making smarter choices so I am no longer gaining weight.  In fact, I'm headed in the right direction.  But I want more for myself. 

I will be blogging all about this adventure in my Feeling Fit journey to a healthier me.  Join me most days to hear how I am feeling, what I think about the products and if I am a healthier me in 30 (+3) days.  Happy Friday!