My shirts are in!!!

The shirts are in!!! I am thrilled. Now, I have no excuse left regarding the workouts - except that pesky issue I have finding the time.

Speaking of time, I have been so busy with my drama that I forgot about the scheduled picnic dinner for my contracts class tonight - featuring fried chicken provided by the professor. Well, I didn't exactly plan lunch and breakfast around the idea of eating fried chicken. And, I didn't feel comfortable not eating the chicken because the prof sat right next to me! So, I just grabbed the smallest wing I could and went with it. Overall, it was ok - I kept the day below 1500 calories. However, I wasn't full after the dinner and had to have yogurt as a snack later in the evening.

Speaking of yogurt, I tried having yogurt with a splash of granola for breakfast yesterday and it just didn't cut it. I ate at 7 and was hungry by 10. Not to mention, it was almost 200 calories! No, no, no. Monday's breakfast was Laughing Cow cheese spread on toast. Much fewer calories and it kept me fairly full. Next time I might add a piece of meat or egg, but the granola yogurt is definitely not making the cut!


Speaking of breakfast, I tried Renee's Egg McMuffin idea today - sort of. I ordered it without the cheese and with a slice of tomatoes. It was super tasty!!! The tomato kept it from being dry. I was in a hurry so it was the perfect solution.


Totals: 1,486 calories 189 carbs 45 fat 77 protein

Abby's Start Date!

First off, let me say that I have done the big weight loss goal before.

My senior year of college I showed up (after a long fattening summer back east) tipping the scales at 198.5 lbs.  It was the biggest I had ever been. My face was round, my middle pudgy, and I couldn't fit in to a bridesmaids dress that I had been fitted for nearly 3 months prior. Something had to be done, and something had to be done quickly.

So I did the Weight Watchers point system with my roommate. And over the course of the next semester, I lost 35 lbs.  

Now, nearly 5 years later I've decided to keep going on my quest to lose some poundage. I was never completely happy being in the 160s range. I mean, I'm not huge like I used to be, but I could sure as hell be a lot fitter and leaner. With my boyfriend running marathons and having only 8% body fat, there comes a time when a girl has to say enough is enough... I need to be hotter.

Thus I begin my second quest to lose weight. And I start it the day before I turn 27. But instead of Nallie's broad stroke, I'm going to go 20lbs in 20 weeks. I even have the logo to prove it. :) My last weigh in: February 17, 2010.

So my official weight today is:

169.5lbs

That means since graduation from college I've only gained 6lbs... not too shabby. But it is time to be that lean runner that I want to be. I'll be keeping track of my pounds, inches, and miles as we go along... 

See you all at the finish line.

Weigh Day!

Hello my friends ... guess what today is ... Weigh Day!

I lost two pounds!!!

That's right. I'm on track my ladies and STOKED!

If the walk of a thousand miles starts with a single step, then the loss of 50 pounds starts with that first one lost. Yippee!

I have to be honest, however. I was pretty surprised to see the weight loss because yesterday was a BAD DAY.

My car keys were stolen and it was a huge hassle to get that sorted and I was just so upset that I totally screwed the diet by ordering fried pickles and french fries with my dinner. Yes, I used food to make me feel better. And, as we all know, it isn't a good idea.

Being honest, I didn't feel bad (and still don't). Eating fatty foods didn't make me feel good, but allowing myself a meal to relax and not worry about potential calorie-count did help me feel better.

(As a side note, fried pickles aren't as bad for you as you might think - the pickle, unlike a potato, doesn't absorb the oil.)

Anyway, you can imagine my trepidation this morning as I stepped on the scale. And, my surprise as it stopped at ...... 193!!!

I have had some pretty low-cal days this past week so it looks like they balanced with last night's cheat. I still don't feel bad about my dinner. I felt bloated after, and the grease didn't settle well with my stomach. But I truly enjoyed the escape from the responsibility I feel in choosing "good" food.

Lesson learned? A night's escape from the diet isn't a terrible thing. However, it can't be too frequent and has to balance with several low-cal days (probably better if they are before the splurge night).


Tuesday Totals: 1,992 calories 255 carbs 72 fat 85 protein (note that it was hard to accurately calculate the calories for some of the bad foods ... I'm guess it was worse than this)

Football Fave

So, yesterday the Kansas City Chiefs played the Philadelphia Eagles. This rarely happens apparently, so I decided to do something special.

Taking a page from Hungry Girl (literally), I made a variation of her Philly cheesesteaks that I now call Philly Chiefs Steaks!

The Chiefs may have lost (and did we really expect them to win?), but the sandwiches definitely rocked it!

Instead of using green peppers, we went a bit themey and added red and yellow to the mix. Also, I am not a fan of "American cheese" so I used a fat-free Swiss. It was a plethora of taste AND colors! All for only 300 calories. Not bad really - and most of those came from the bread.

I just had the leftovers - sans bread - and it was still super tasty!

The Cowboys play tonight (WOOOOO) ... any suggestions for dinner?

Yesterday's Totals: 1,060 calories 138 carbs 29 fat grams 62 protein

Chew the right thing

It's been a pretty crazy weekend, let me tell you.

Mid-morning Friday I won a free, last-minute trip to Dallas - THAT NIGHT.

So, class ended and I had to rush home, scarf down lunch and head to the airport.

Lunch consisted of a hotdog with leftover turkey chili (from the Hungry Girl nacho recipe I made the night before - I do not recommend it as a meal. A party snack, maybe, but it is HARD to only eat their serving size). Dinner consisted of a sandwich bought at the airport while waiting for my delayed flight. The sandwich didn't contain nutrition info, so I had to guess.

Luckily, I did pretty well. The only options were Wolfgang Puck sandwiches and I went with the ham and Swiss. I only ate the bread for half of the sandwich, so I saved a lot of calories there I think (not to mention fat from the dressing smeared on the bread).

Then, once I landed in Dallas it was a mad dash to the Taylor Swift concert and lots of dancing ensued. Followed by drinks with one of the radio show djs.

Overall, I did pretty well, I think.

Yesterday, I met with an old friend for breakfast (egg white and veggie omelet with fruit!) and then had lunch with my mom (salad, no dressing).

I just entered in the foods and calculated my calories and am excited to know that I didn't go over at all! This is awesome because it means I am pretty good at making the "right" choices. Yay!


Friday:
Totals: 1,655 calories 167 carbs 49 fat grams 92 protein

Saturday:
Totals: 1,553 calories 224 carbs 40 fat grams 89 protein

Updates...

I ran three times this week, three miles each time...that's a total of 9 miles! That's a long way to run. Grace came with me and loved every minute of it. I didn't reward myself with a huge bowl of ice cream like I really wanted to...I had a small bowl (teeny tiny) of ice cream and rewarded Grace with a huge portion of canned dog food which is a big treat for her (and I love it because I get to spoil my baby). I think I'm going to try to work some hiking in this weekend. Has anybody tried The Biggest Loser workouts? They are pretty awesome...a major workout and everybody has a little junk in the trunk so you don't feel so bad about your own junk. Have a great weekend!

Pot luck indeed!

OMG I just made the GREATEST low-fat/low-cal dinner!!!

I found it in my Hungry Girl cook book and had most of the ingredients (popped to the store for the rest) ...

It's been chilly and I wanted something warm and homey - namely, chicken pot pie. But those things have like a million calories and half a million fat grams (more like 50 fat grams, but yikes!).

Enter Hungry Girl's Pot Luck recipe:



SO FREAKIN' GOOD! I recommend this to anyone. My roommate ate some about an hour after I went to my room for hte night and loved it so much she texted me to tell me how great it was.

A definite keeper, my ladies! Oh and only 210 calories a serving! How awesome is that???



Totals: 1,334 calories 172 carbs 46 fat grams 74 protein

I'm lovin it!

Wanna know what I learned today?

Well, besides the proper use of circumstantial character evidence in a criminal case, I learned that the Egg McMuffin and Sausage Burrito from McDonald's are only 300 calories!!!

So, let's add that to my list of pre-approved fast food (VERY important for my busy-as-heck lifestyle)!

Woot!

P.S. I don't like the cheese slices McDonald's uses, so that makes it even fewer calories!

Drum roll .... 195

Ok, today is weigh day!

And I didn't lose a pound.

BUT THAT'S OK!!! Honestly, I didn't expect to and I'll tell you why.

As I have said, I haven't felt the need to make many different choices regarding my food.

Sure, it's a bit disappointing, but I completely understand it.

I am still working to develop my habits regarding food choices. That is step one. Once I can add the exercise in (oh my goodness, how will I find the time???) things should really turn around!

Also, it is important to note that a single pound won't be lost every week. In fact, weight can fluctuate by a couple of pounds in just a few hours! I'll weigh in again later today to see if there is a difference.

Good food day

Today, I opened one of my new cook books - Hungry Girl and decided to make a recipe from within. I already had some ground turkey thawed so I decided to make sloppy joes, steamed broccoli and baked onion rings.

Hungry Girl's recipe used Fiber One cereal as the breading for the onion rings. This really freaked me out. So, I went online and found a recipe that used bread crumbs. Overall, the rings were only 169 calories a serving! Admittedly, the batter was pretty bland, but I have some ideas for next time.

Also, today is National Ice Cream Cone Day! So, Kevin and I went to McDonald's for a cone (only 150 calories and 3.5 grams of fat). Woot!

What a good food day!

Totals: 1,689 calories 264 carbs 38 fat 88 protein

My Common Issues

What are some of the issues you have with sticking on a diet?

For me it is the following:

Peter, Peter Pumpkin Drinker: Not only do I love coffee, but I LOVE coffee shops. My particular weakness right now is Pumpkin Spice Lattes. How can I get this quickly and sans major calories?

I looked online and found a few recips that suggest adding a dash of pumpkin space to your coffee. Can it really be this simple???


Dinner on the Orient Express: At least once every other week, I love to order Chinese food. I'm either too lazy to cook or just have a craving. I hear Kung Pao chicken is good because it's steamed, however there is often a heavy sauce that concerns me. So, what should I order?

Date night: My boyfriend and I eat out at least once a week. This is not something I want to give up, so I need to pre-plan and figure out the smart choices to make. We don't go to chain restaurants much so nutritional information is usually not available. What are some safe choices (and please don't say dinner salad)?


Beer and loathing: Another thing my boyfriend and I enjoy is tasting beers. I don't drink to get drunk, I drink to savor flavor. Basically, I stick to one beer whenever we go out to dinner. But what beers are safe? I don't drink Bud, Coors or Miller if I can help it. Looks like I need to make a list of beers and their calories and take it with me when we go out. Hmmm. One note: I drink beer during football games - how can you not? But, most of the time we make buffalo wings for dinner and I was shocked to find out how low calorie and low fat buffalo wings are! Yay!

Today's menu

I can't stop eating tonight!

Oh my goodness, what is wrong with me?

There has been a chocolate cake sitting on the counter for three days - and today I finally caved.

I had 4 bites - two of which had frosting. And it was good.

TO be honest, I don't feel too bad about the foods I'm eating. While I have "the munchies" at least I'm ok with my choices (except the cake, but in my defense, I only ate a few bites!).

I'm stuck in the house, bored, and hungry.

This is why I didn't want to get obsessed with calories! I don't want to feel guilty about eating some cake every now and then. That, to me, is unhealthy!

I'm not usually that sensitive to sweets. Except ice cream. But the ice cream thing I have licked (ha!). McDonald's ice cream cones aren't that bad! If I have a decent day, I can totally fit one into the food list.

Also, I feel ok with eating a bit extra tonight because the past two days have 1. been full of physical activity and 2. involved me eating less than 1,300 calories.

This is the trick, right? Learning your own desires and figuring out how to make them fit into your diet without making you feel 1. guilty and 2. deprived.

Totals: 1,739 calories 237 carbs 55 fat 53 protein

My current issues

And we are clearly GO on Step one.

I am lessening my caloric intake. Yep. At least I think so. I don't know how many calories I was consuming before I started counting them, and I'm not really making many different decisions now. But I'm sure it is the little things that will add up.

Also, as part of this, I am trying to increase my water consumption. This is tough!!! I HATE WATER. I don't really know why, of course, how can you hate something with no taste?

But perhaps that is why - it is just so boring and whenever I drink it, I feel water-logged.

Besides my water drinking, the other challenge to watching what I eat is my life itself.

I'm a law student - that means BUSY, BROKE and BURDENED. It's hard enough to get the work I need to do done, much less add in making lunches and dinners, going grocery shopping, affording healthy food, and working out (part two of the plan).

What I need to do is exactly what I did when I was working towards my undergrad degree: I need to make weekly meal plans, corresponding grocery lists and cross reference it with my budget.

And where will I find the time to do that???

Perhaps after I finish today's homework ... sigh.

The PLAN

The Goal: Lose 50 pounds in 50 weeks.

But how?

Enter The 50 Pounds in 50 Weeks Plan
1. Lessen caloric intake,
2. Increase muscular definition,
3. Increase cardiac activity,
4. Maintain motivation.

Let's attack each section of this (in English).

1. Lessen caloric intake:
For the past few days I have been tracking my food - there were only two times when I altered what I would have done last week with what I should do based on this project: Once at Taco Bell and once at Applebees. Basically, I don't suck at the food choices.

However, I need to learn constant vigilance - hence the calorie counting. I hope, however, that this will only last a month or so. The plan is to learn to make the right choices - habitually. In order to do so, I must practice. And in order to measure my performance, I am stuck counting calories.

2. Increase muscular definition:
The idea here is to build muscle mass in preparation for step three while also creating a healthy (sexy!) body shape by the end of the project. Also, once created, maintaining the hot bod should be easier.

How do I plan on doing this? Push ups, sit ups, weight training, the usual things (throw in yoga too because I love it!). The most important thing for me right now is to integrate this into my normal routine.

3. Increase cardiac activity:
This is key for the "get healthy" aspect of the plan. I want to learn to love running. I've tried in the past. Two years ago I went into training for a 5k, but when a German shepherd attacked me, my training was derailed. I loved the feeling of accomplishment I felt after running each time I went farther than I thought possible. However, the actual act of running was never enjoyable. I want to change this.

Initially, I will get back into training for a 5k. From there, I haven't quite decided, but I'm sure I will come up with something. After all, my world is surrounded by runners - they are full of ideas. And if they aren't, there is always Runner's World magazine!

4. Maintain motivation:
Ah yes, motivation: the Achilles heel of any weight-loss plan. This is the most important part of the plan. Motivation will be maintained by setting small, achievable goals throughout the 50 weeks. First goal: Drink more water!

Running that 5k will be a goal, as will being able to stop counting calories every day, being able to do 20 normal push-ups, and being able to fit in calf-high boots that don't come from a plus-size store.

Wait a little more ...

I have a lot of work to do tonight, and it has nothing to do with this project. However, I feel like I need to apologize. So far, I have written a lot about what I'm doing, but not how I'm doing it.

I promise, promise, promise to do that this week!'

Several people have asked me about my plan, and I have one, I really do.

I promise to tell you all!!! It's good, it really is.

Definitely worth the wait! You'll love it!

Totals: 1,277 Calories 176 carbs 36 fat 43 protein

Exercise, smexercise

As part of this endeavor, it is clear to me that more exercise must be added to my life.

A year ago, I lost 20 pounds in 2 months. How? I started running 20 miles every other day!

But I hate it when exercise becomes a chore.

So, in an effort to burn more calories without feeling like I have to exercise, I am adding new activities throughout the week.

Yesterday was self-defense class. My friend Abby (she is a member of the 50n50 FB group) and I went out to Kaufmann Stadium (where the Royals play) and learned to protect our assets. In all honesty, I don't think it burned too many calories, but it was nice to get out on Saturday morning and do something I wouldn't normally do.



After the class, we went back to Abby's and really got an upper body workout! We demolished her old 1970's tiny-tile backsplash!

We got about 2/3 of the way through it all when it was time for me to get home and check on the dogs. Today, we will finish the rest and put up a new backsplash. Abby isn't quite sure what she wants to do yet, but I am excited, nonetheless!!!

Not missing a thing!

So, today I accidently missed breakfast - it was an over site that I will correct tomorrow.

However, I am still pretty proud of my totals! Technically, I was even warned by Sparkpeople.com that I didn't eat enough calories today.

Wanna know the best part? I ate lunch from McDonalds and dinner at Applebees!

Wanna know my trick? I'll post it soon enough!


Totals: 1,258 calories 179 carbs 33 fat 66 protein

Want a shirt?

FOr motivation and style, I have designed a cool shirt - this one is only $20!!! Let me know if you are interested. It comes in long sleeve, short sleeve or a sweatshirt (prices vary).

How fun is this???

Planning to plan

I am officially armed and ready to go!

Tonight I went to the bookstore and bought several magazines and books to better prepare me for my challenge.


This weekend will be spent organizing things - meal plans, grocery lists, workout plans, etc.

Let me tell you, it is on!



Today's totals: 1,701 calories 281 carbohydrates 22 fat grams 74 protein grams

Starting out strong?

So far today, I have only consumed 617 calories. That gives me 753 - 1,103 to play with for dinner tonight!

Seeing as it's date night, this excites me.

I just have to make smart decisions. Hmmm ...

Water sucks

Water, water every where - and every drop to drink!

I'm just going to say it: I hate water.

I don't really know why, but it is just so boring!!

However, I am resolving to suck it up - literally.

I figured out long ago that I drink more when I use a straw - I took this knowledge and applied it to the rare occasions I drink sodas. Take out the straw, and I don't down three sodas (full of syrupy calories!) in one meal.

Now, add the straw and I drink 24 ounces of water on my way to school in the morning! How awesome is that?

Uh oh, better visit the ladies room once more before two hours of class ....

Invitation? Challenge?

If you want, JOIN ME in my challenge!!!!

PLEASE! I would love to have people working on this with me.

Only have ten pounds to lose? (Lucky!) That's great. Join me for ten weeks and then brag when you've hit your goal. I promise I will cheer with you - and you will give me even more incentive to keep going!

Have more than 50 pounds to lose? I'll be there with you the entire way! This is not just a diet and exercise program, this is a major life change. I will be working at this FOR LIFE!

So please, feel free to join and comment as you go along. Let's share our tales of woe. Our ups and downs - hopefully each week will be full of downs!

Invite your friends, all are welcome!

LET'S DO THIS!!!

Yay, go team!

Starting Point

Every endeavor starts somewhere - sadly, mine doesn't start with me and a 26-inch waist.

Here are the depressing stats as taken today:

Measurements:
Weight: 195 lbs (sigh)
Waist: 40 inches (not sucking in)
Hips: 47.25 inches (junk in the trunk, much?)
Thigh: 28.5 inches
Upper Arm: 15.5 inches
Calf: 17.25 inches (a real target area for me ... I HATE my killer calves!)

Fitness Tests:
Pushups: 4 (How sad is that?!?)
Crunches: 15 (I remember being able to do 50!)

Food:
Fat: My Goal:30-67 Today: 53
Carbohydrates: My Goal: 154-280 Today: 279
Calories: My Goal: 1370-1720 Today: 1915 (spiced pumpkin latte was the culprit!)
Protein: My Goal: 60-150 Today: 58 (adding peanut butter to the mix tomorrow)

Setting goals

While sitting in class yesterday, one of the guys in the row in front of me was visiting SparkPeople.com. It looked like an interesting site - recipes, fitness and smiling young, hip people. I entered it into my memory bank and went on with my day.

While avoiding my studies this afternoon, I pulled from the banks and hit up the site. Turns out it is a weight loss site. Thinking it would be cool ... I joined and started building my profile.

As part of the profile, they asked weight, height and configured my BMI: 33.5. Apparently, I'm obese.

THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE!

Now, I am a girl with a plan. I will lose 50 pounds in 50 weeks. That will get me into the ideal range for my 5'4" frame.