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All posts in category Weight Watchers

WIAW: Whole Foods Plant Based Diet

I stated on Monday that I was going back to a plant-based diet and I am now on day 4 and going strong. I am already feeling lighter with more energy, and lets just say that last night was a whopper, yet I am not feeling tired at all (we’ll see how I feel come this afternoon!). On a side note, I can’t wait until we get our third room finished for our new daughter. She is the NOISIEST sleeper ever! She grunts and makes all sorts of weird noises and when I get up to check on her she is totally asleep! The first 3 months are the hardest, right?

Anyway, onto my Tuesday eats! Thank you to Jenn at Peas and Crayons for hosting this blogger get together every Wednesday!

Breakfast was eaten before I could snap a picture, but it was Oatmeal with ground flax-seed, vanilla soy milk, and frozen berries. Not anything too exciting.

Lunch was leftovers from the night before and they were delicious:

Homemade veggie burgers dipped in BBQ sauce and a salad with mixed greens, cucumbers, avocado, and spicy hummus. The recipe I used for the veggie burgers came from Oh She Glows and it is her Spicy BBQ Chickpea Burgers

I love the crunch that the sunflower seeds added, although, these would have been better on a bun (I forgot to get some from the store). But I mus say they held together really well and it was a lot better than buying sketchy frozen veggie patties from the store with an ingredient list a mile long!

In the afternoon I saw that I had a banana and a zucchini that was on their last legs so I decided to make Chocolate Zucchini Muffins from Happy Herbivore. I love this recipe because my daughter calls them “cupcakes” and she will polish off 2 before I can blink my eyes. She has no idea that is she is getting some fruits and veggies in each muffin. My second pregnancy caused my first daughter to become a picky eater. Too much eating out will do that to someone, so now I’m trying to get her back on the healthy eating band wagon a little at a time.

I added in some mixed fresh berries and it was a filling snack that held me over til dinner.

Dinner was something unexpected. This week I meal planned and told myself that no matter what, I was going to stick to it. Well, last night I realized that I didn’t have a couple of the ingredients I needed for at least two of the meals I was planning so I went in search of a recipe for something that I had the ingredients on hand for.

After a quick check of my Google Reader I found a recipe that looked easy and delicious: Coconut Ginger Curry Rice Bowl From PB Fingers. Who doesn’t love a one pot meal? The only problem is that I had run out of brown rice and had to sub with white. The great thing was that it was done and on the table in less than 30 minutes.

I wish that I had fresh broccoli instead of frozen, but it works in a pinch. I will be having leftovers of this for lunch.

After getting back on the plant-based bandwagon I am feeling great. My cravings are going away and the scale even gave me some motivation this morning by showing me a lighter number. My only concern is that I feel like my breast milk supply has gone down a bit. I can’t tell if I am just being paranoid or if my little babe is eating more than normal. I’m monitoring it for the next few days and it is probably in my head. Other than that I’m feeling great, and only T-4 days until I can start exercising again (hopefully I will get the clear at my 6 week postpartum appointment next Monday).

Have a happy Wednesday!

WIAW: What Nursing Mom’s Eat

One of the major things I notice when I start nursing is that it seems like I am STARVING all. the. time. It doesn’t help that my little one is kind of a little piggie and I feel like she is taking most of my calories.

So like I said last week, I joined Weight Watchers Online and my daily allotted points are 55. It seems crazy high to me, but I will try it out for a few weeks and see what kind of results I get. My real strategy is to eat as many 0 point foods as possible throughout the day and hopefully that will make all the difference!

Thanks to Jenn over at Peas and Crayons for helping me to stay accountable for my eats every Tuesday. Dustin says that I need to document my weekend eats and that I always eat perfect on Tuesdays because I will have to blog about it. Maybe next week.

I am happy to say that I stuck very closely to my plan yesterday and I didn’t end up being hungry at all throughout the day. Small victories people.

Breakfast:

2 eggs, plus 2 egg whites
1/4 an Avocado
Great Harvest Honey Whole Wheat Bread
1 Tbs. Justin’s Almond Butter
Blackberries and Strawberries

Here is what my WW tracker looked like:

Lunch:

Low Carb Whole Wheat Tortilla
Grain Mustard
6 oz. Peppered Deli Turkey
1/2 Avocado
Brocco Sprouts
Baby Carrots
Cantaloupe

I really didn’t think that my lunch was going to last me all day and so I added in a Chobani Pineapple Greek yogurt for a little sustaining power, and it seemed to do the trick. Here is how lunch tracked:

Dinner:

The blurry pic is because it was STEAMING hot. This Red Curry soup has been a stand by in my kitchen the last few weeks. It is incredibly easy to make and you can always use different ingredients of whatever you have on hand.

Red Curry Paste
Chicken Broth
Coconut Milk
Carrots
Onions
Red Pepper
Red Potato
6 oz. Chicken
1 Cup Brown Rice

This meal was a little high in points, but I think it’s because I over estimated to make sure I wasn’t cheating myself. Here is how it turned out:

Even after over estimating I still have 7 points left at the end of the day. I think they will be spent on a Chobani with berries. That leaves me with 3 points left. Not bad.

Eaten anything memorable lately?

6 Comments

by Shrinking Carrie on May 1, 2013 • Permalink

Posted in Breast Feeding, Challenges, Daily Stats, Diet, Good Food, Link Love, Meal Planning, Nutrition, Weight Watchers, WIAW

Posted by Shrinking Carrie on May 1, 2013

http://shrinkingcarrie.com/2013/05/01/wiaw-what-nursing-moms-eat/

Imagine My Surprise

One of the things I promised myself after I had Lucy was that I wouldn’t step foot on the scale until I was at least 3 weeks postpartum. When I had Hanna (my first child, for any new readers) I had lost all the baby weight and then some when I went in for my 6 week appointment. I tipped the scales at 296 at 40 weeks, and weighed 266 post-birth. I could not have been more ecstatic.

I don’t know about any of you other mom’s out there, but it was really hard for me to not get on a scale right after I had Lucy (my saving grace was that my scale broke the week before I had my c-section, which was quite disheartening at the time, if you can imagine). The last time I weighed myself I weighed 294 and still had two more weeks until my due date.

I really thought that I had gotten lucky my first pregnancy and was going to have to get use to some lingering poundage this time around.

Imagine my surprise when I got on the scale today and it read 263.6! My weight when I started this pregnancy was 264 and I’m pretty sure that at the end my weight would have come in somewhere around 296 just like last time.

The only issue I had with my first postpartum was that I gained about 18 pounds from breast-feeding. I was so stressed about whether Hanna was getting enough to eat I just started taking in calories to see if it would help me get my milk supply up. Little did I know that Hanna was just a small baby and didn’t like to eat that much (she is still that way). This go around I am not stressing out and I am mostly using my breast pump so I know how much Lucy is eating, and I don’t get so frustrated like last time (Lucy is a hungry little thing, and will out weigh Hanna in no time).

One thing I did do this time is lots of research on how to keep my supply up without taking in empty calories. I found out some great information and it turns out the more fruits, vegetables, and lean protein you eat the better your milk comes in. I can attest to that since my eating the last couple of days has been less than stellar. I have been tracking all of my food through my Weight Watchers account but plants have been seriously lacking. Pumping today was lower than it has been this past week when I had been getting in plenty of F&V’s.

My goal is to not gain any weight (obviously) and stick to my Weight Watchers goal of 54 points per day. BTW, nursing mom’s get a crap-ton of points which makes it easy to stay on track. I almost fear for when I’m not nursing and it drops significantly.

The hardest part is that I am not in the habit of tracking my food anymore and it is going to take me a while to make it a daily thing. Also, my weight may only be up 11 pounds from my lowest recorded weight, but I am jelly everywhere (that’s what no weight lifting for 10 months will do to you). None of my clothes fit, and my stomach is crazy stretched out.

But that’s what having a baby does to you. And I am only 3 weeks out from my c-section, could be worse.

3 Comments

by Shrinking Carrie on April 29, 2013 • Permalink

Posted in Body Image, Breast Feeding, Family, Goals, Nutrition, Parenting, Postpartum, Pregnancy, Weight Watchers

Posted by Shrinking Carrie on April 29, 2013

http://shrinkingcarrie.com/2013/04/29/imagine-my-surprise/

Here I Go Again…

Let me start off by saying that this c-section recovery has been about a million times better than the first one I had with Hanna. I know I haven’t really gone into detail about Lucy’s birth, and what can I say but having an infant is a total time suck (in the best way possible).

This birth story is pretty cut and dry. I tried to hold out and do a VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean), but after I got to a week and a day over my due date I was getting restless and uncomfortable (to say the least). I just wanted to be DONE with this pregnancy! I grappled back and forth with my decision and decided that if I was waiting to do the VBAC I was doing it for the wrong reasons (i.e., not wanting to disappoint people like my wonderful midwife). It turns out I was stressed out over nothing and my midwife told me that I had to do what I felt was right.

I scheduled the c-section for the next morning.

Everything went routine. The only thing I could have done without is when my anesthesiologist hit a nerve when doing the spinal tap and made me see shooting stars and bright rainbows with the shooting nerve pain down my leg. He got it corrected and everything was honky dory from then on.

I stayed in the hospital for 2 1/2 days and then I was ready to go home. I was able to get out of bed myself and walk around with ease, VERY different from c-section number one. I was expecting to have to sleep in our recliner for the first 3 nights like the last surgery, but I felt amazing! I slept in my bed the first night and Lucy slept for 6 hours straight! For the first few days I had to wake her to feed her (which is very unlike my first child). I have decided that Hanna has my personality (high-maintenance), and Lucy has her dad’s personality (low-maintenance). Hanna was an extremely needy baby, and I couldn’t put her down. I would cry daily for the first 3 weeks because I just couldn’t handle not having any time to myself. Lucy sleeps for a few hours at a time, will sit in her crib and hang out in the boppy if needed.

I don’t know if I’m having a different experience because I had an idea what I was in for or what, but life has been pretty great.

Last week I had a couple of days where I had the postpartum blues, but my friend brought me over this drink called GoChi and I have felt great ever since. it has been a lifesaver!

I’ll get to my point since this post is getting long enough. I broke down and joined Weight Watchers Online yesterday. I told myself I wouldn’t go back to WW, but it is one of the only plans that has a plan for nursing women. I figure it is a starting point for me. I haven’t been able to weigh myself because our scale broke. And I promised myself that I wouldn’t weigh myself until at least 3 weeks after Lucy’s birth (this Sunday). I will say that I finally have my slim ankles back, and it’s hard to not stare at my feet all day. They were getting so swollen by the end of my pregnancy I forgot what my real feet looked like.

For right now I feel fantastic, and I have to keep myself from exercising because of Dr.s orders. I’m hoping to blog at least a couple of times a week. I’m ready to get back into the swing of things and with summer just around the corner it would be nice to buy a few new pieces of clothing that aren’t maternity!

Last, but not least a picture of what life as we know it is like from now on:

Everybody wants a piece of dad.

8 Comments

by Shrinking Carrie on April 24, 2013 • Permalink

Posted in Postpartum, Weight Watchers

Posted by Shrinking Carrie on April 24, 2013

http://shrinkingcarrie.com/2013/04/24/here-i-go-again/

Proof is in the Pudding…..Vegan Pudding (Guest Post)

Today I have a very special guest post from Dacia who blogs over at Thirty Three & Counting! She has been on her weight loss journey for almost a year and has had AH-MAZING results. She has also recently adapted a Vegan lifestyle, and I asked her to share her story with us! Thanks Dacia!

Hi! I’m Dacia from thirtythreeandcounting. I am a Weight Watchers member, a weight loss blogger (I’ve lost 108 pounds so far) and I am a vegan. Carrie, who we have all watched make a successful transition to a vegan diet, asked me to write a guest post about veganism and how it has affected my life. Let me just say that making the switch over to a vegan diet has been the best decision I have ever made and I have no desire whatsoever to convert back to a non-vegan diet.

After I joined Weight Watchers, about a month or so into my weight loss journey, I found that not only was I giving more consideration to the amount of food I was eating I was also focusing on how that food was affecting my overall health. I started practicing mindful eating in order to find foods that tasted good and provided me with energy and boosted my health. Through this practice it started to become clear that there were foods I was eating that were working against me. See, I had battled IBS and digestive issues for most of my life and always assumed that most of the problems I had were stress induced and hereditary and there was nothing I could do to fix it. Little did I know that my diet was the only thing contributing to my issues.

As I focused more on how I felt after I ate and started to tweak my diet to include more foods that my body thrived off of I realized that I was limiting more and more animal products weekly so I decided I should just try to eliminate them completely and to see what might happen. After a week with no animal products I was already noticing big changes in how I felt. It was amazing to feel so differently after such a short period of time. Then, because I still wasn’t 100% sold that diet could really make such an impact, I went out and had some frozen yogurt and boy was that a bad decision. I felt awful. The dairy made me constipated and crampy; I pretty much felt like crap. That was all it took to make me realize that there was no animal product out there that was worth giving up the benefits of following a vegan diet. I was sold.

That was three months and forty pounds ago.

I chose to follow a vegan diet for health reasons and what I have gotten from it was much more than I ever expected.

Energy: my energy levels are through the roof. I have never considered myself a morning person but now I wake up every morning with a ton of energy. I am ready to go without a single drop of caffeine. This energy also helps a great deal with my workouts. I can push myself harder and endure so much more now because I have the energy to do so. It’s truly incredible.

Sleep: I used to toss and turn and would frequently have nights where I either couldn’t fall asleep or couldn’t stay asleep. Now I sleep like a log. I hit the pillow and am out cold until that alarm goes off. I don’t even think I move while I am asleep which is so weird for me since I used to be notorious for moving back and forth and changing positions throughout the night. It drove my husband crazy.

Digestion: wow! Three months without any constipation, diarrhea, indigestion, or any stomach pains. I am regular and it feels good. Not that you want to read about poop but for me having a fully functioning digestive tract made a huge deal. So much of my sluggishness and the lethargic feelings I would get after I ate stemmed from how animal products affected my digestion.

Health: 3 months in and I haven’t gotten sick once. My body is working super hard to avoid it since we have had colds, flus, and stomach viruses make their way through our office several times this winter and yet I am the only person who has remained healthy through this awful cold season. Last year, this same time, I would have caught every little bug that got brought in. I was that person who was constantly getting sick.

Weight: Since adopting a vegan diet three months ago I have lost 40 pounds. I have read that after twelve weeks of eating a plant-based diet your body reaches its full potential and I believe it. I lost 13.6 pounds just in December. I not only see the difference on the scale, I see the difference in the measurements I take monthly and how my clothes fit. Since adopting a vegan diet I have lost a larger percentage monthly than I have in any of the previous months. Pretty crazy, right?

Eating: I love the foods that I eat which is a big reason becoming a vegan was an easy transition. If I hated the food I was eating this would be much more difficult but since I have great food every day missing steak or cheese or chicken nuggets has not even been an issue. The foods I eat now are packed with nutrient dense vegetables and grains and so I feel fuller with less food, I feel great after I eat- tons of energy, and I never feel guilty about the choices I make. Homemade veggie burgers and sloppy Joes made with lentils don’t bring with them the same guilt and sluggishness that their original meat-filled counterparts did and that is awesome. Oh, and I don’t have cravings either. I remember how I would eat pizza for dinner and how half a pizza barely filled me (the documentary “Forks over Knives” explains why this happens really well) and then I needed something sweet after to balance it out. I needed ice cream or a candy bar or something. Now I eat, feel satisfied (full not stuffed) and have no cravings. What a change!

Animal Rights: As mentioned previously, I made the decision to adopt a vegan diet due to health reasons but what has stemmed from that is my newfound appreciation of animals and a desire to become an advocate for animal rights. After adopting this diet I started reading books and watching documentaries about veganism/plant-based diets and animal treatment and I was appalled. I won’t go into details here but I will say that if I wasn’t a vegan already watching “Food, Inc.” would have turned me into one. I love the health and wellness benefits that veganism has provided me but it has become so much more than a diet to me. It has really been an eye-opening, life changing experience and I am thankful I every day to have made this decision.

Veganism has made a huge impact on my life and I strongly believe that following a plant-based diet can have positive effects on every creature. I hope that if you are interested in veganism or at least limiting your meat/dairy intake you take advantage of the plethora of free resources available to you. I hit up my favorite vegan bloggers for recipes and product reviews as well as use the public library to check out books and DVDs on the subject.

Thanks for reading!

It ill becomes us to invoke in our daily prayers the blessings of God, the Compassionate, if we in turn will not practice elementary compassion towards our fellow creatures.
—Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948)

2 Comments

by Shrinking Carrie on January 17, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in 21-Day Vegan Kickstart, Blogs to Read, Guest Post, Vegan, Weight Watchers

Posted by Shrinking Carrie on January 17, 2012

http://shrinkingcarrie.com/2012/01/17/proof-is-in-the-pudding-vegan-pudding-guest-post/

Back Home, Back On Track

Just in case you’re wondering, Hanna’s 1st birthday party was a good time!

This was the one good shot of her and some cake!

Holy Cow! My baby is one and now it is time to really get crackin’ on my health and fitness goals! My vacation was fun and relaxing (for the most part) and now it is time to get back on the weight loss saddle! My goals didn’t get past the first day of being with family, but that’s ok! I knew going into a vacation that there were definite triggers for overeating and indulgence, and the important thing is that I get back on track on Monday.

So here’s the situation: Weight Watchers is out. We had some good times and those first 25 pounds were hard-earned. I love the Weight Watchers system and I believe it works, but the Points Plus system has too much freedom for a person like me. I loved being able to weigh in in front of somebody, but I am also held VERY accountable by all of my blogosphere friends (you!).

Body bugg is in! I should have my armband by next week, and I am so excited to be trying this system. I have heard so many good things about it that I can hardly wait until it gets here!

Some Exciting Things!!!!!

“The New Rules of Lifting for Women” Phase 4 Starts on Monday!!!!! I have felt such a huge difference in the first 3 phases, I can’t wait to see what Phase 4 brings!!!

Some changes in Weigh in Day: Since I won’t be going to Weight Watchers I am going to be figuring out a new day for weigh in day. Most likely it will be Wednesday, I figure it is a good balance. Check the weigh in tab for the next scheduled weigh in.

My First Guest Post!!!!! If you’re stopping by from Faith, Fitness, Fun, HELLO! THANKS FOR STOPPING BY! I hope you’ll check out a few of my favorite posts, it will help you to get to know me better! Or Leave a comment so I can get to know you better! And to all of my loyal readers: Check out Tina over at FFF! Her blog is addicting, honest, and fun! That, and she is just a super fun person!

Goals for this next week will be short and to the point:

Drink 100 oz’s of water a day
Go to the gym 6 times this week
Track calories on Livestrong’s The Daily Plate until Body Bugg arrives

I don’t want to overwhelm myself after getting back home, so these are things I was doing before vacation, and I should fall right back in the habit. Realistic goals are the only way to succeed!

What is a goal that you have this next week?
Are you a new reader stopping by from FFF? Leave me a shout out new friend!

11 Comments

by Shrinking Carrie on October 30, 2011 • Permalink

Posted in Blogs to Read, Body Bugg, Family, Motivation, The Daily Plate, The New Rules of Lifting for Women, Weight Watchers

Posted by Shrinking Carrie on October 30, 2011

http://shrinkingcarrie.com/2011/10/30/back-home-back-on-track/

The Reality

Sweat it Out:
Elliptical 1 hour

As of yesterday I weighed myself and the scale has not moved. Disappointing, I know. And now I am on my way to Utah, and let’s be honest, I am in vacation mode. I am also frustrated with myself, and how me and the Weight Watchers Points Plus system is going. We don’t seem to get along. As you can see, my exercise schedule is on point, but exercise is only about 30% while eating makes up the rest. I feel like I’m tracking all of my food and staying within my points, but I am not really losing like I should be. It’s too early for a plateau, and I don’t think that is the reason why anyway.

As I have mentioned in the past, my mom is getting me an early Christmas present while I’m in Utah and getting me a Bodybugg. I am hoping that it will help me to see exactly how many calories I am burning throughout the day which can help me pinpoint the reason I am not losing. Bodybugg has its own tracking system, so at this point in my weight loss I have to ask the question “is it really necessary to do Weight Watchers and the Bodybugg tracking system?”.

Besides, Weight Watchers monthly fee is $40 and I feel like I have been wasting money by not continuously losing every week. I think that it has helped me start my journey, but now I maybe need to move onto something that helps me to see results. I started it for the accountability of having to weigh in, in front of somebody, but now I have the blog, which helps me WAY more than a meeting once a week. Anyway I seem to have a lot to think about in the next couple of weeks.

Vacation Time!

Dustin and I have been watching our pennies for the last 6 months and we have finally gotten ourselves out of our financial woes. Now we are going to do a little shopping for ourselves and the little one, and try to enjoy the fruits of our (mostly Dustin’s) labor. I am going to make some realistic goals. I’m not going into this nieve and thinking that I can achieve great things while being on vacation. It just won’t happen.

Vacation Goals!

Go to the gym. I’m already in the habit and I use to go to the gym that I would be going to so it isn’t anything scary or new. Just do it.
No soda. I don’t drink a lot of soda, but there is something about vacation that makes me do things I don’t normally do.
Drink plenty of water. I will take my Nalgene every where with me.
Wear my pedometer. Try to get over 10,000 steps a day.
Don’t over fill. The reality of the situation is that we are going to go out to eat. What I can control is the amount of food that I eat. I want to make sure that I don’t go overboard and stuff myself at every meal. I will eat slow and stop when I feel myself getting full.

I want to come back and still fit into my pants that just started to fit, so my goal is to maintain my weight loss, thus far.

Do you set goals for yourself when you are on vacation?
Have you ever used the bodybugg system?

2 Comments

by Shrinking Carrie on October 26, 2011 • Permalink

Posted in Challenges, Diet, Family, Frustration, Goals, Indulgence, Weight Watchers

Posted by Shrinking Carrie on October 26, 2011

http://shrinkingcarrie.com/2011/10/26/the-reality/

Things I’ve Learned From Blogging, The Gym, & Eating Healthier (so far)…

Through this little journey of mine I’ve learned a LOT of things so far about different facets that I have added into my life and I thought I would share a few:

Eating Healthier:

Planning is key. Failure to plan is a plan for failure
Tracking is the absolute most important part of me losing weight.
Plan cheat days, or meals or whatever. When I have a cheat day it helps me to plan what I am going to eat ahead of time. It helps me to not go too crazy, but eat the things that I know I crave regularly.
Cravings start to go away after not eating processed, or sugary foods in about 2 days, for me. The more fruits and veggies I consume the quicker the cravings cease.
Always put the “good for you food” in your eye-line. Put the “bad for you” food in a deep dark hole where you forget it exists. I had a bag of Starbursts for over a month because of this strategy, and for anyone who knows me, they know that this a BIG DEAL.
Don’t be too extreme. If you want to cut out certain foods try one food at a time. Don’t become a vegan when your diet consisted of mostly dairy and meat. You are just setting yourself up for failure.
Treat yourself. Even Weight Watchers says that you should give yourself things like you like every now and then.
Stay away from “trigger” foods. I love oatmeal, but if I start my day out with it, I want to eat all day long. Same with bread. I just have to stay away.
Know which foods affect you which ways. Don’t eat vegetable soup full of cabbage when you know you have to be in public in a couple of hours. Also goat cheese is possibly the only food that affects my stomach in a MAJOR BAD WAY.

The Gym

Make a schedule and keep to it. The only time the gym works for me is before 9 AM. If I wait any longer, it won’t happen. Sometimes I have to ditch plans if I know it will interrupt my gym time. The gym is a priority to me and some things have to come second.
Keep the schedule up for at least 3 weeks. I am a big believer in 21 days makes a habit, and when I have gone to the gym consistently for 3 weeks it gets easier.
Follow an exercise routine. You can find all sorts of great workouts on the internet, or in exercise magazines. Keeping your workout interesting, keeps you wanting to do it. When you have a plan you are following you will be less likely into cutting your workout short.
No matter who I do cardio by, whether they are old, young, fat, or skinny, they all want to race. Seriously. I keep tempo with the music that I am listening to, and I can tell a difference when I am working out to the fast songs. The people next to me suddenly start looking over at my machine to see what level I am and start going faster. I liken it to having your car on cruise control. If your car isn’t on cruise control, but mine is, there is going to be some playing of leap-frog.
Most meatheads don’t care if you are in the free weights section. I was extremely self-conscious when I started doing NROLFW because it mostly uses free weights, or what I formerly referred to as the “Men’s Area”, but now I realize that my insecurities were all in my own head (as most usually are).
Be friendly. We’re all in this together people! If I see an over weight person that I’ve never seen, I try to give them a smile and a friendly look. You never know how hard it was for them to take the step to come to the gym. I am no better than anybody in that gym.

Blogging

No matter how many times I type it I will never be able to properly spell the words definitly, or myslef. I am leaving the misspellings so that you know how I spell them EVERY TIME I type them.
People love to hear about periods and poop. If they didn’t, those posts wouldn’t be some of my top read posts.
Keep your heart in your posts. If you are trying to type a canned blog post, your readers will know. Inspiration does not strike everyday, and if you need a day off then take it.
Connect with other bloggers. I had no idea the blogging world was even out there until a few months ago, and since then I have made some solid friendships with people who are supportive and relate to what you’re going through.
Comment on other bloggers post. One of the biggest compliments you can give a blogger is a comment. You don’t have to go crazy and comment on every post, just something that says I enjoyed your post today! I think we put a lot of thought into the content of our blogs and it is nice to have people recognize that.

Is there anything you have learned from Blogging, The Gym, or Eating Healthier?

12 Comments

by Shrinking Carrie on October 18, 2011 • Permalink

Posted in About Me, Blogging, Goals, Health, Indulgence, Inspiration, Motivation, Poop, The New Rules of Lifting for Women, Vegetables, Weight Watchers, Working Out

Posted by Shrinking Carrie on October 18, 2011

http://shrinkingcarrie.com/2011/10/18/things-ive-learned-from-blogging-the-gym-eating-healthier-so-far/

Putting Too Much Weight in the Numbers

I am going to make this post quick because I think I need a day off from constantly thinking about weight loss. I will be back to the grind tomorrow.

Bad news is the best to go first, right?:

No weight loss this week. With 4 days of a rough go last week, I am glad to say that I at least maintained. I think my main concern is that the rest of this year is not going to get any easier, and I should really be preparing myself right now for Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. The good thing is that I no longer go into an office everyday, where clients and sponsor’s bring you in treats on a daily basis. ANd if any of my neighbors/friends are reading this, please forgo this Christmas goodies, or sneak them to Dustin at church while I’m not looking.
No gym today. I usually go to the gym later on Thursday due to my weigh in coincides with the time I normally go to the gym. A friend got in a pickle and I am now going to have a play date with her little boy, while she goes to work. Hanna LOVES to play with other kids, so i couldn’t say no. I’m not going to lie, I’m kind of glad I don’t have to do the gym today. The only thing is that now I have to work extra hard tomorrow morning (that’s the part about taking a day off that I don’t like.
No progress photo’s. I took the photo’s, but after looking at them carefully, there is not much of a change from the last set. After talking to my hub’s I’ve decided that progress shots will be taken once every 2 months. I really don’t need to be frustrated at this point in the game and so I thought it be best to have a little more space.

Good News:

I took Measurements. I lost 4 1/2 inches for the month of September which is not too shabby considering I only lost 4 pounds the entire month of September. this proves that weight lifting helps every bit as much as cardio. I was, however, sad to see that I had gained 1 inch on my belly and hips, and a 1/2 inch on my bust!? I am going to chalk it up to Aunt Flo being on her way considering those are the areas she would affect.
I have successfully tracked for 2 weeks straight. I know where I have gone wrong, and I know how I can fix it. Now I just need to do it. I know that I need to incorporate more vegetables into my diet, I just need to figure out how. I feel like fruit is easy. Pull it out of the fridge and enjoy. But I like my veggies cooked, steamed, roasted, warm, with salt and pepper. By the time I get to making my lunch I’m starving and just want to eat fast. Planning is the key, and I need to plan in order to make this work.
My highest weight (when I was pregnant) was 296 pounds, and that was a year ago. Since then I have lost a total of 39 pounds. I don’t normally think that you should count from your pregnant weight, but I need a pick-me-up today, ans so I’m going to take it.
Next week I will hit my 16th Weight Watchers meeting, and for that I get a token of some sort (it’s metal, not sure if it’s a pin or what?). A women got her’s in our meeting today and she has lost 21 pounds. I have lost 25 pounds so far and will hit my 16th meeting next week. this tells me that most days, I am doing this right. Whether I am frustrated and have a few days off the wagon, I am still doing a good job and sticking to it, and that’s what matters.

Measurements for documentation sake:
Bust: 48 1/2 +1/2
Under Bust: 42 -1/2
Right Arm: 16 -1
Left Arm: 16 -1
Belly: 50 1/2 +1
Hips: 52 1/2 -1/2
Right Thigh: 30 -1/2
Left Thigh: 30 -1/2
Right Calf: 17 -1/2
Left Calf: 17 -1/2

7 Comments

by Shrinking Carrie on October 6, 2011 • Permalink

Posted in Weigh in, Weight Watchers

Posted by Shrinking Carrie on October 6, 2011

http://shrinkingcarrie.com/2011/10/06/putting-too-much-weight-in-the-numbers/

Kicking & Screaming

I have read weight loss blog success stories that said they “kicked and screamed” their way through losing weight. I never really understood this point of view…….until today. I always kind of thought either you were motivated and you just did it, or you weren’t motivated so your day got tanked. I had no idea there was actually a third option of kicking and screaming, paired with just getting it done. I have been mad all day long. I have made good eating choices all day, but that doesn’t mean that I’ve been happy about it. I tracked (begrudgingly) my food all day long. I went to the gym this morning and did not enjoy the endorphins, and I couldn’t wait to get home to get back into my pajama’s and snuggle with my baby on this gloomy day.

So why did I do it? Because I know there will be a day that I will be happy I did it. And for that, I hope in the future that I have more days like this, and less of the happy-eat-what-I-want-and-don’t-exercise-because-I-do-what-I-want kind of days. It’s not always about what I want, but what I need, and I know that eventually those days add up to a LOT of happiness.

Sometimes you can’t always do what you want to do , and you have to do the things you need to do. But don’t get me wrong, I’m still gonna whine a little on the way.