VICTORY is MINE! I survived Thanksgiving & lived to blog about it!

So, today I weighed in and guess what, I lost 1.6 lbs! For the first time in a long time I managed to lose weight over a week long Thanksgiving break. 


Please allow me to be ungrateful for the next few minutes. Truth be told, that 1.6 loss left me disappointed. And please spare me the "A Loss Is a Loss Lecture."

 For the last couple of weeks (yes, a couple) I can honestly say I  put forth a gallant effort toward my weight loss undertakings. For two weeks I shunned bread, rice, and pasta. I woke up 3 times at 4:25 AM for the 5AM session at the CrossFit gym. Although I am thankful for that 1.6 loss, I feel I deserved MORE! That just means next week I work harder!! GAME ON! 

Okay, back to being grateful...I owe my loss thanks in part to my strategies I employed & to my TAKE NO PRISONERS attitude!

My previous post provided a variety of strategies to survive Thanksgiving unscathed. Let me share the strategies that I actually used:

TURKEY DAY PLAN OF ATTACK! 6 TIPS TO STAY ON TRACK!

Tomorrow, for Turkey Day, an epic battle will be waged (for me, no different than any other day!) 

Tomorrow, the ENEMY (food) and I will gather at the battle ground, the table!! 

Face to food face, a line will be drawn  in the terrain!  And I will rise to the challenge  and fight to fulfill the promise I made to myself when I started the CrossFit Challenge. I vowed to honestly put forth 167% by committing to 4 workouts a week, tracking my food intake and making WISE, but HEALTHIER food choices. So far, so fabulous (few bobbles here and there)!

I refuse to let one day break that vow! THANKSGIVING, you will NOT get the best of me.

So, tomorrow I plan to go into battle  ARMED and READY FOR ATTACK!!! Armed with the tools necessary to stay on track. My goal this Thanksgiving, not gain one single pound. Of course a loss would be ideal, but maintaining or not gaining shall suffice. 

So what's my plan of attack to stay on track this turkey day?

Glows and Grows

One afternoon while picking up my son, I sat in my vehicle mean muggin (mean muggin a.k.a. the evil eye) another parent for halting the flow of traffic in order retrieve her small child, who somehow unbuckled his seat belt and jumped over the seat into the back of the minivan. As I watched the parent wrangle her child, my mind began to wander and SHAZAAM...an idea hit me like a thunderbolt.

Since our WW leader, Karen, constantly reminds WW members to learn from our experiences, I decided to do just that! Each Saturday after my weigh-in, I plan to evaluate my lifestyle change hits and misses. My weekly evaluation aptly titled GLOWS and GROWS, will examine strategies attempted to help me successfully reach my goal weight (this year).

GLOWS: I confess. I still inconsistently track my daily food points. In the past I tracked my points in my head and never wrote anything on paper. I refer to this lackadaisical method as Wing-It-Tracking a.k.a. Keep-It-Up-And-You-Ain't-Gonna-Lose-Weight Method. My usual pattern consisted of routine tracking starting on Saturdays, and by Wednesday or Thursday any traces of tracking became non-evident. At our last WW meeting, Karen stated several times, "Those that fail to track eat 30% more food." To help me get on the right track (get it...never mind), I received this little toy(which I picked out) for Christmas: BAM!!

So, did I track everyday using my iTouch? YES I DID...EVERYDAY! My iTouch made tracking convenient and accessible. And of course the information I entered automatically synced to the eTools online program.

I used the calculator to determine points values and create new foods to be stored as my favorites.

I even tracked my activity. And what I appreciate the most about the WW App...the price $0!

GLOW: The Couch to 5K(C25K) App.
Last summer I started the C25K training program, but I must admit I never finished the program and I never ran my first 5K. On my first go-round with C25K training, I downloaded Suz's podcast to my other older generation iPod.This time, I downloaded this bad boy (bad boy: a term used to mean anything...in this case, my new app.)

What I like about this app...I can listen to my own music rather than the music provided by the podcast creator.

Needless to say...I LOVE MY iTOUCH!

GLOW: Back Up Meals
I decided to plan one freezer meal (e.g. soup or chili) each week. The freezer meals serve as back-up for times of laziness , on-the-go moments, crazy scheduling, etc. Last week I cooked Turkey Taco Soup...

and this week I made chili. A few times I arrived home exhausted after work and popped a bowl of chili in the microwave instead of cooking or running through the drive-thru.

...added some homemade chips, chives and cheese!

GLOW: I purchased this water jug from the dollar store. I previously owned a 17 oz. cup which I refilled about 4 or 5 times a day. Well, at some point refilling the bottle became a chore, resulting in me not meeting my daily water requirements. My solution to my new lazy habit of not filling my water bottle....BUY A BIGGER WATER BOTTLE!

GROWS...Okay, so I need to work on these things.

My Mom gave me the P90X Extreme Home Fitness Program. Ummm...the word extreme fails to do the P90X justice. On day 1, Arms and Shoulders (which consisted of completing 2,431,675 push-ups), I spent a majority of my workout time face down sniffing carpet fresh. At one point I just stopped and cried! After day 2, I decided to dropkick the P90X box under the bed and move on with my life. But then my Mom gave me a pep-talk and I agreed to continue torturing myself.

On the Plyometrics DVD, one of the P90X "graduates" completed the entire workout with a prosthetic leg. I said to myself, "Self. If this dude with the prosthetic leg can rock this plyometric workout, then I need to shut it and MOVE!" Curious about torturing your self? Check out the P90X video or mosey on over to YouTube

Believe me when I say, you have NOT heard the last about this P90X!

GROW: "Fried" Chicken
This fried chicken dinner, so not a winner. For the first time I made the famous cornflake fried chicken. I think my first mistake was purchasing generic cereal rather than Kellogg's. For the most part my "fried" chicken tasted like chicken covered in cereal...gross. But we ate it...all of it!

Order Up. . . Today's Special!

Tonight's post may lean a little towards the bootleg side.

Definition:
Bootleg: Although the real word means pirated music/software and illegal alcohol, anything that is "bootleg" is fake, unfashionable, or lacking in any way.

Used in a sentence:
" Lisa told me to see that movie, but the bootleg special effects left little to be desired."

Yesterday my internet gave me the blues, and tonight I mismanaged my time. So, this post may lack my usual je ne sais quoi (French for...I don't know what) that keeps some of you coming back for more.

Just a little preview of the goodies nestled in my jazzy lunch tote:

Breakfast: Eggsters

85 g of Potatoes O'Brien
3 egg whites

Directions: Mix together egg whites and potatoes O'Brien. Season to taste and then pour into your Redi-Set-Go! Wait 7 minutes and BAM...EGGSTERS!

Lunch: Chicken Charm-esan

And of course a salad...

Snacks and Back-Up Snacks
Since I eat lunch at 10:15, yes 10:15, snacks are essential to my survival for the rest of the day.

Fresh Berries courtesy of price matching at Wal-Mart. I paid $2 bucks for these blueberries originally priced at $3.48!

An orange and 2 Clementines

I love the new Weight Watchers Roasted Almond Sensation bars...on sale this week for $3.50! When times get hard and my tummy starts talking, I bust out the PB and 1/2 a sandwich thin. I keep a measuring spoon in my bag as well. Also pictured my 0 point salad dressing which also comes in Raspberry Vinaigrette.

Tonight I intended on writing a post reflecting last weeks hits and misses. Tune in for tomorrows post...Glows and Grows.

Me. . . Brown-Bag-It? Ummm. . . no ma'am.

In keeping with my planning goal, I already packed my breakfast, lunch and snacks for tomorrow. So what does a jazzy chick like me pack her lunch in you ask? Well it just so happens, that today I graduated from carrying my Bento "laptop lunch box"(pictured below) to...

my new chic, JAZZY lunch TOTE. Check it out BAM!!!

My mom gave it to me for Christmas after I complained about my small Bento lunchbox. So bloggers, what's inside Me So Hongry's jazzy lunch tote?

MONDAY
Breakfast:
Black Bean Omelet

Lunch:Cheesy Chicken & Pasta w/ Broccoli- 3 oz of grilled chicken breast, a bunch of broccoli, 1/2 cup of whole wheat pasta, 28 oz cheese, and a little turkey broth (made from the carcass of my recycled Christmas turkey) to keep the dish juicy for reheating.

And of course a salad. I eat some form of a salad daily.

THE BEST ORANGE...EVER! This orange came straight from the tree, no trucks, no grocery store...from the tree to ME!

TUESDAY
Breakfast: Huevos Rancheros- 1 corn tortilla (on the bottom), 2 egg whites, scallions, 14 oz cheese, and an undisclosed amount of Arriba salsa. I put salsa on EVERYTHING!!

Lunch: Taco Turkey Soup-black beans, corn, recycled Christmas Turkey, spicy diced tomatoes, no salt added tomato sauce, taco seasoning (season to taste), scallions and 14 0z cheese. I made the stock from boiling the carcass of my Christmas turkey.

I made my own chips. Cut two corn tortillas into triangles, spray the tortillas on each side, sprinkle with a little sea salt and bake. These chips are not an exact science, so you may need to stand by the oven and peer inside frequently. If you walk away, you may BURN your chips.

Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette Dressing


Off Topic...HELP!!
Please tell me your 3 favorite post.

Lessons Learned?

This healthy eating/weight loss thing reminds of relationships.

In relationships, when people get bored...they stray.

I think my recent attempts to stray from my newly acquired healthy lifestyle changes result from the lack of excitement with my recent boring meals. Lately, I seem to eat the same fruits, vegetable, and meals over and over and over again. The reason for the redundant, unimaginative food choices, a lack of planning.

Our WW meeting leader always says members must learn from their experiences. So, from my experiences I learned, if you FAIL to PLAN, you PLAN to FAIL! When I choose to wing it, I usually find myself standing in front of the fridge, freezer door wide opened with a container of Cool Whip stuck to my face as I lick the remaining contents from the deep recesses of the Cool Whip container.

My lack of planning not only results in food boredom, but also in 2 of my enemies rearing their ugly head:

1. Enemy #1: OVER EATING-Unplanned eating means walking into the kitchen and just standing there wondering what I want to eat. The longer I stand there, the hungrier I get, and the hungrier I get the more likely I will eat the first thing I see, GOOD or BAD. 9 times out of 1o I choose the BAD.
   
   
2. Enemy #2: UNPLANNED EATING- When I PLAN, I usually prepare my meals and snacks ahead of time and I then divvy my "culinary masterpieces" into containers so I can grab and go. So, that means I already know what's on the menu AND I can track and log my meals in advance in order to keep track of my daily points allowance.
   
   When I choose not to plan, I tend to follow the "Seefood Diet", any food I SEE I eat. If I see a bag of chips or cookies, it's on!

As I enter into 2010, PLANNING must remain as one of the weapons I use in this weight loss tug-o-war. In addition, to keep things exciting I PLAN to try at least 3 new recipes weekly. The other day, I tried this Mexican Stacked Pizza:

As usual I used my Xpress Redi Set Go. I love this thing!

I placed one corn tortilla in the RSG. I then mashed 1/2 cup of black beans and spread the beans on the tortilla.

Next I placed another corn tortilla on top of the black beans. I topped the tortilla with 2.5 oz of ground turkey and 14 oz of 2% Mexican cheese. Cook for 5 minutes...

Top with lettuce and tomatoes and...

BAM!...Mexican Stuffed Pizza!! Olé!!!

Well my friends, I must go and shed my pajama cocoon and venture out (and back before the loonies hit the streets) into the world with my boys to celebrate this new year knocking at our door. Happy New Years Eve!!! And here's to bringing SEXY BACK in 2010!!!

And MY Belly Shook Like a Bowl of Jelly. . .

First things first...to my surprise, my weigh in results yielded a 1 pound loss. I walked through the doors of WW this afternoon with the mindset that I failed last week and I expected to see a gain. You see, sometime last week during winter break, I decided to somewhat step back and take a small break from this whole weight loss battle.

For those of you struggling, do you ever feel exhausted from constantly thinking about weight loss 24/7? I know I do. The stress of not meeting a personal goal, losing 50 pounds by the end of 2009, began taking a toll on my motivation and started to make me feel like a failure. So, last week around my 4th buffalo chicken bite and 2nd pot sticker at T.G.I. Friday's I decided to just chill and relax. At Friday's I wanted to enjoy myself and not think about weighing in, working out, food point values, tracking, etc.

Constantly thinking about those things when hanging out, partying, or just chilling with friends SUCKS the fun right out of any festivity. I took the "chill approach" on quite a few outings last week, which explains my surprise of this week's weigh in results. But now as I write this post and think about last week, I still made the occasional good choice, such as spliting a burrito at Chipotle with my Mom.

Even though I occasionally chilled I still worked out by running 3 miles 4 days last week. And working out also proved challenging as well. One day I sat in my car at the park just looking out the window. I somehow hoped the results of jogging 3 miles would somehow cosmically transfer to my body while silently sitting in my vehicle. As I feared the approaching sunset, I finally decided to leave the comfy confines of my car to complete my workout.

AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!! Sometimes I just feel like screaming.

SO WHAT NOW?
After attending today's meeting, I understand that I must commit to working harder when dealing with emotional eating. Part of my plan to combat mindless eating includes asking myself the following questions:

1. Why am I standing in the pantry with my hand submerged in a bag of marshmallows? Am I really hungry?
2. What am I feeling? Boredom? Anger? Frustration?
3. What is my mind saying? "It's only one." "You can walk an extra mile. " "You weigh in on Saturday...there's still time."

Equally important, I realized (yet again) that my mind generates and maintains the psychological uproar in my head surrounding my perpetual battle with losing weight. The battle exist right here in my head, BUT I also realized that each one of my little victories (listed below) helps to win part of the battle:

• wearing clothes in a smaller size
• receiving compliments about my appearance
  
• discovering new foods, like jicama
• introducing others to WW
• attending more than 16 meetings
• moving more
• finding a substitution for stress eating...blogging (sometimes I still choose the food)
• trying new recipes
• using my food scale
• making better choices
• knowing the points values of fast food
  

So in short, I recognize the fact that I MUST CELEBRATE EVERY SUCCESS! And yes, even the little victories make a BIG difference!

"Recognize and celebrate what you want to see more of!"

I originally planned to write some holiday related posts, but I wanted to work through my mini crisis by managing my feelings through writing. Well, I am off like a dirty shirt...my stomach is growling! Stay tuned for some light and more humorous holiday posts.

It Coulda Been Worser (No, worser is not a real word)!

So today's WI yielded the results I expected, +.4 lbs. Boooooooooooooooooo! It coulda been WORSER (intentional bad grammar alert)!

Definition of worser :it is worser than worse but not badder than worstest
Used in a conversation:
Friend #1: That shirt is worser.
Friend #2: Worser is not a word.
Friend #1: Yea it is. Worser is better to use than badder right?

That concludes today's bad grammar lesson. Back to the subject at hand, today's WI. I believe contributors to the gain include two birthday celebrations, a lack of activity, spending countless hours on my laptop blogging, and sharing a free order of birthday fried ice cream at Ichibons. So, what now? Today's WW meeting topic, "Planning For Success" prepared me for the what now.

To kick the meeting off the leader asked the group, what do you plan for? I thought about it, and some of the things I plan for include the following:

• College (for myself and kids)
• Retirement (???)
• Vacation

During summer, most of plan to take a vacation. In our vacation planning we take the time to extensively research the best lodging, malls, tourist attractions, and restaurants. We even go so far as to map out and print an itinerary. So, riddle me this Batman...why don't we take that approach with our weight loss efforts? I find that my week flows smoother when I take the time to plan ahead.

As our conversation progressed, the leader then posed the following questions:

Do we plan in Weight Watches? Answer: As Whitney Houston says "Hell to tha Yea!"

Okay, we established that we plan, so what do we plan?

• Grocery shopping: Never show up at the grocery store without a list. Only buy the items on your list. Never arrive hungry. When I arrive hungry, I reach for the nearest crappy snack (e.g. hot Cheetos, chips, something salty, etc.) and eat while I shop. As a general rule of thumb, always shop the outer perimeter of the grocery store first. The outer perimeter provides healthier choices: diary, fruits, vegetables, whole grains and healthy proteins. The aisles contain mostly processed foods.
  
  
• Menu: At the beginning of the week plan a menu and STICK TO IT! A menu will help you stay on track as far as budgeting and help you stay within your daily points target. For me planning a menu cuts down on those" Oh Yeah I Forget I Need This" trips to the grocery store during the middle of the week. At one point, I stopped by Wal-Mart or HEB 3 to 4 times a week on my way home from work, and the constant daily grocery stops ate into my after work activities (i.e. cleaning, cooking, exercise, etc).


• Activity: Booooooooo! I'm still waiting for the "I LOVE TO WORKOUT" feeling to kick in. As far as activity, plan a specific time to workout and STICK TO IT! I need to follow my own advice. If you prefer to workout outside, prepare a back-up plan for inclement weather.


• Event Survival (e.g. parties, pot-luck at work, celebrations): Plan ahead for celebrations by conserving points or dipping into your flex points. If I plan to attend a party or happy hour on a Friday, I usually workout at least 4 or 5 times during the week and I meticulously count my points.
  
  
• Surprises: Let's say for example you plan to attend a, let's say scrap booking class at 6 PM, but your son calls to inform you that he stayed after school and he needs a ride. BUT, you can't pick him up until, let's say 5 PM. BUT, you still need to go to the craft store and, let's say purchase a "home" for you Cricut machine, AND you still have to go home and cook. Solutions: BACK UP DINNERS! My kids and I purchase 2 frozen meals for back-up in case of surprises. I am not a proponent for frozen meals, but it beats the driving thru.

True Story...At work, each month a specific grade level hosts the monthly employee birthday celebration. The librarian sends the celebration announcement ahead of time with the menu listed on the bottom of the invite. In May, the 4th grade teachers hosted the birthday celebration, and the menu included tacos. Instead of eating the beef provided, I brought my own chicken breast. Lesson learned, if you know the menu ahead of time make adjustment to accommodate your weight loss efforts.

3 Steps of Success when planning for success:

GET ORGANIZED

• Place labels on food indicating point values. For example, a serving size of brown rice equals 3 points. Using a sharpie, write a number 3 on the box in order to remember the point value.


• Measure foods and bag them in Ziploc bags. Instead of sitting on the couch and eating out of the BIG bag of baked hot Cheetos, I measure and bag the suggested serving size.

PLAN AHEAD

• If you plan to eat out, look up point values ahead of time on the internet. An excellent resource to use, Dotti's Weight Loss Zone.


• Pack your breakfast and lunch at night to save time in the morning.


• Plan a menu in order to track points ahead of time. Sometimes at night I track the food I plan to eat for the following day.

PLAN FOR THE UNEXPECTED

• Life happens! While running errands carry snacks or 2 point bars in your purse or car to prevent unplanned trips through the drive thru.
  
  
• Use the WW mobile application to look up nutrition info when unexpected foods cross your path.
  
  
• If your the designated donut picker-upper, place the donuts in your trunk until you reach your destination. With the donuts in the trunk, you wont be tempted to nosh while driving.

Listen people, we all have the same amount of time. It's what you choose to do with it. I CHOOSE TO PLAN FOR SUCCESS! What do you choose?