Why can't I do this all the time?

Day 1 of being back on track.

Easy peasy.

Why can I do so well on certain days, but can't manage to stick with it? It's not that hard, really.

 But it is.

 I had such great success for an entire month and then really let to for a week and a half. Now I start up again and I'm doing so well. What does it take to just create new habits and not worry about reverting back???

Maybe it just takes continuous goals, and no treat meals or days that turn into weeks.

I pretty much rocked the new Day 1 today!

I dropped 2YO off with Grandma to watch the trucks working on their new garage. I brought the little lady back for her morning nap and I had just enough time to squeeze in a quick workout. I checked out OnDemand for a quick workout and found a 20 minute Carnival dance video. Not the greatest but it was a quick, and sort of fun, way to get my heart rate up.

Lunch was a nice big sandwich. Yum!

And here's my secret ingredient - toasted flax seeds. They add a really good crunch and flavor to a plain old sandwich.

I traded kids over at the grandparents and took 2YO to his 2 year well-check. That is one good little kiddo! Such a great little trooper through it all, and impressing the pants off of everyone with all his talking. As I filled out the paperwork, I laughed at the questions about putting two words together. When it asked for a sample of his language I wrote what he said yesterday morning, "Momma lookit, I got an owie on my finger." Pretty chatty little kiddo.

Hubby actually got home at a decent time tonight, so I got some help with the kids while I worked on dinner. We had some ribs in the fridge that I had been hoping to serve before starting the DietBets, but I could have a bit more than I thought and I did some microwave corn-on-the-cob. Have you tried the no-peel trick? The best!

I had a little more ribs than I would have liked and, since I had help tonight, I was able to dust off the elliptical in the basement. I'll admit I didn't give it my best effort, but I was moving and that's something.



How do you get your workouts and heathy meals in with kiddos underfoot?

Weekly Goals: back to business!

Alright guys...  I was so excited about my loss last month and my Fourth of July break.

Well, that was, what, TEN days ago!  And I'm still on the break!?!

Not cool.

It's time to get back to business.  I proved to myself I could stick to it for a month and I am determined to do it again.  I am further determined to not take a week and a half to gain back almost four pounds!

I failed at my goals last week.

This week will be different.

Goals:

1. Plan, plan, plan!  I started a meal plan with the items already in the fridge and need to get to shopping so I can have meals planned.
2. Track.  When I eat right it is easy to track, so I will get back to that easily.
3. Exercise!  I downloaded  MapMyRun, so I should make use of that and I finally figured out my FitBit, so I'm going to make a real effort to remember to wear it and get all my steps in.

That's it!  And isn't that what this whole process comes down to?  I guess my one goal for the week is get it right!

Non-Scale Victories: cheating, but victorious

As you all know, I am in limbo between DietBets. I've been cheating big time until my next round of bets starts. Not the greatest decision, but I haven't been totally slacking off.

Last Wednesday, the day I looked forward to all month, when I could finally cheat and eat a big fatty breakfast, I actually pushed myself to go for a run right after weigh-in and grabbed so small egg breakfast.

I tracked a little sporadically, but better than I would have done before this journey.

I took a break from running, but have been getting the kiddos out in the stroller for hour long walks.

Speaking of the walks, I read something (found on Pinterest, but can't quite remember where it came from) that said, "if you want to run faster, run faster." I've adapted it a little, but it really spoke to me. I've been doing C25K, but am way slower than I should be. I'm at the point where I should be jogging at at least 3mph, but only hit about 4mph. I keep just accepting that when I should be going faster. . Same with walking. I shouldn't be getting comfortable and expecting results. To get a good workout I need to challenge myself and push myself to feel a little uncomfortable.

Today, on my walk with the kids, I kept that in mind and walked faster. That is my goal for the week.  We got home from the cabin yesterday, so I took the time today to take stock of what's in the fridge and have started meal planning for the week. I spent the kiddos' nap time (did I really get a full hour of two kids napping in unison?) pinning workouts, recipes, and motivation. I should be all set to get right back on track.

What were your NSVs this week? Anyone else cheat over the holiday and find it hard to stop?

How I kicked butt on my weight loss plan last month

**For those of you who are sick of hearing me rave about DietBets, tune out now. I should be getting over my DietBet high before long. For now, I have to share because we all need a little excitement in this difficult process.**

I have been pretty serious about my weight loss journey for about the past four month.  After having two babies I. Under two years, I had a lot of weight to lose and didn't get serious about it until my littlest was almost 6 months old.

Needless to say, I still have a lot to lose.

Last month I made some huge gains.  With meal planning, Couch to 5K, and some strong self-control I managed to knock 15 pounds off my overall weight loss goal.

Oh yeah, and my secret weapon.

I started joining DietBets.  I entered two, figuring that I was going to lose the weight, so I might as well win more.

I spent $20 on one and $35 on another.  For this frugal lady, that was a lot of motivation,  I was not going to lose that much money just because I couldn't control myself.

DietBet works like this.  You accept the challenge and upload two private photos to weigh-in.  You then have 4 weeks to lose 4% of your body weight.  When the month is over, if you are a winner, you verify with two more private photos and split the pot.

It took me a long time to decide to try this out.  I was looking into every way possible that this could be a scam.  It seems legit.  It is possible to win the game and not get your money back because DietBet keeps 15%, but I don't think this happens often.

The way I see it, I need to lose weight.  If I get the motivation I need from trying not to lose money, that is a bonus.  If I make money in the process, that is a major bonus.

This is a win-win for me.

Last month, I lost 15 pounds and I netted around $28.  This time, I am rolling my $83 credit into as many bets as possible and am determined to lose again (and win).

I have started my own game with a smaller $15 bet for anyone who wants to give this a try.  "The Final Days of Summer" game is to help us all lose weight and look great during the final days of summer.  http://diet.bt/16Yi4wP. Give it a try!  Hopefully it will be the perfect motivation for you like it was for me!

** I was in no way compensated for this post - I'm just so happy to find something that kept me motivated. I did all the work myself, so DietBet won't magically make you lose weight, but it may help your motivation last at least a month and help you succeed like I did.**

Weekly Goals after a freebie holiday weekend

Whew! I have really let myself go a little too far off track this week!  I'm blaming the holiday weekend, but since it started on Wednesday, it has been more like an off week.

Why am I not more ashamed of this???

I was celebrating a 15 POUND MONTHLY LOSS!!!

I'm so excited that I stuck with it for a full month and ended up with such a great loss.  I finally found a great way to motivate my super cheap-o self!

I entered 2 DietBets and ended up netting nearly $30 for losing those 15 pounds!  Bonus!

One of my goals for this week is to roll my winnings into another couple of DietBets.  I even created my own game if anyone wants to join me!  Here's the game http://diet.bt/16Yi4wP and the bet is only $15!  You won't be sorry and I can be your personal cheerleader.  :)

My other goals are to meal plan and stay on track, get in some more walks/runs, and get back to tracking everything on MyFitnessPal (during my month of DietBets I tracked every day!).


What are your goals for the week?

If you join me in my DietBet, let me know!  I will absolutely cheer you on!

And, just in case I haven't raved enough about my time away at the cabin here's 2YO enjoying "playing in the dirt."

Non-Scale Victories that helped make this a good-scale month

Happy Fourth Everyone!

It is also Thursday - time to celebrate all those small changes that help steer us to our goals. Maybe the scale is not so kind, but each time we pass up something deliciously sinful, push our booty a little harder during a workout, or track every little bit even though our self-control took a hike we are making gains that should be recognized.

If you've been keeping up, I've had some major Scale Victories this month.

More importantly, I recognized that I can do it.

I can keep up a record of what I eat each day. I can get used to trying new, healthy recipes. I can get my tush out there and run further, even when I am searching for the tiniest excuse to stop. I can pass up chips, candy, and ice cream, even when someone is eating it right next to me. I can reunite with my food scale and make accurately portioned meals, instead of "guessing" and overestimating my portion sizes. I can hang on for 4 weeks, even when it get's hard.

I will also admit that yesterday was my first post-dietbet day. I went way over my calories. I had pizza, chocolate, and ice cream. And, although that seems to go against all that I wrote above, I also tracked it all, pushed myself to go for a run immediately after my final weigh-in, and was more conscious of how I was eating. Even my splurge day was better than my average day before getting serious about my health.

I'm actually looking forward to using my DietBet winnings to roll into new bets. What a great motivator for me! Does anyone have any experience with how long it takes to find out how much you won?

Before I go, I have to share some pictures. We have a ton a eagles up here and see them all the time, but this was, by far, the closest I have ever gotten to one! This guy was perched in the tree on our bank, eating a fish and we were able to get within a few yards of him. It's hard to see in the first picture, because I only had my phone and couldn't zoom, but it gives you a good idea of how close we were. He's right in the lowest branch on that tree. He kept looking at us and didn't fly off until he had finish his meal. Amazing!

One down, one to go

I'm the verified winner of my first DietBet and my second one is over tomorrow! I'm not going to lie, I'm a little more than excited to take a day or two off. We are still planning all of our meals (with the exception of one awesome fish fry) around my new eating habits and I plan to sneak in some runs when I can.

So, how much have I lost in a month?

FIFTEEN POUNDS BABY!!!!

If I stick with this pace, I will reach my goal in 4 months. That would be fantastic! I feel pretty confident if I keep going with the DietBets I will continue to lose, because I will not lose money! And... I'm so excited about how that motivation has worked for me!

I've taken two days off from running to enjoy the beautiful weather from the boat. I plan to run early in the morning tomorrow. I think I will try one full mile and work my way up to the full 2 that C25K expects from me.

We have been having some amazing meals!

I've been making a lot of the easy breakfasts I made last time we were up here. They are so yummy, keep me full, and even my parents love them. It is unbelievable that they fit into my low-cal diet, especially the Hashbrown Stackers.

This was last night's dinner.  If you like a little bit of a kick, these Salsa Burgers were amazing!  The recipe called for beef, but I can't wait to try them with ground turkey, because the green chilies would help keep them moist and they would be even healthier.

Tonight's dinner is a recipe I used to use a lot when I was in grad school and on Weight Watchers.  I thought they were called "Chicken Baseballs" but when I went to look it up I came up with recipes with cream cheese and crescent rolls.  So, what I've been calling them all along may be wrong.  

I'm now calling them Laughing Cow Stuffed Chicken.  They are soooo good!  We stuffed them with Garlic and Herb Laughing Cow and Spinach - yum!!

If there's an I interest, I'll definitely share these tasty recipes.  You won't be disappointed!  

I hope everyone else is doing well with their goals and has the strength to stay on track through the holiday.  Not sure if I'll be able to report that, but I will be getting right back into another DietBet after the holiday!