Weight Update

Woke up this morning stepped on the scale.  Down 3 pounds.  Loving life.  Off to meet the fiance's grandma for lunch and then back to post my SS, recipe reviews and show you what I did with all of those bananas. :)

The scale doesn't lie... and neither do my jeans

Weigh in results show that I am 32.2 pounds down.  I have been on this journey for about a month, so that number is pretty good.  I am a little disappointed that this week was only about 5 pounds, but a lose is a lose.  My dietician thinks that my body is adjusting to my new work-out routines and I am also gaining muscle, so no complaints here.

I have also started to go through my closet and get rid of old items that don't fit or are stained, etc.  I have a section in my closet though of clothes that either don't fit or summer/spring clothes that definitely won't fit next summer.  I am wondering what people on their weight loss journey have done with their clothes that no longer fit?  I give tons of clothes to the goodwill and I am fine with doing that again, but if someone else is on their journey and they would benefit from having the clothes until they get down to the next size then I would be happy to give them away to them.  I think I may hold onto them until I get some more stuff stocked up and then I will maybe give some stuff away on the blog or just donate it.  Let me know if anyone knows anything else you can do with clothes.

It is costly to eat healthy, but even more costly not to

It is Sunday evening and I just got back from the Science Museum of Minnesota to see the Dead Sea Scrolls while they are in town.  It was pretty cool to see them, but the exhibit was super busy because it is in the last week of showing.  We made a picnic lunch to enjoy on the banks of the Mississippi River before we went into the museum, which was fun, healthy and cheap!

After the museum we stopped at Cub Foods, our favorite local grocery store to get some produce and other items to eat during the week.  I took a picture of the loot, which is below, but I have to say that I am amazed at how expensive eating healthy is.  I am not saying it isn't worth it, because it totally is, but it is not surprising why so many people choose to eat poorly because it is a lot less expensive.  I used to grocery shop every two weeks or so and spend like $150-$200 each time.  Now I grocery shop about twice a week and I spend about $40-$60 each time.  I like going more often so that I can get fresh produce. 

  Driscoll's Raspberries, Eat Smart sugar snap peas, Bananas, Minute brown rice, Fresh Express 50/50 mix, Red onion, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, All natural Popchips, Flatout light original flatbread, asparagus, peppers, Athenos reduced fat Feta cheese. (This is not a paid endorsement for any of these products, I just really enjoy all of these delicious items and will be showcasing recipes that I make using these products on my blog.  Check out the websites above to get other great recipe ideas, product information and nutrition facts). 

WEIGH IN UPDATE

I am now officially down 19 pounds and could not be more happy!  My plan is to make this week another good one!  I hope everyone continues on their journey and makes healthy decisions this week!

Happy Hour is about the people you're with NOT the food and drinks

So, another challenge under my belt.  Today I had a happy hour with co-workers and usually we get a bunch of appetizers and drinks and share them.  Since I am three weeks into this lifestyle change I was a little nervous to see how it would all go.  I ordered a water (i'm not drinking soda anymore) and I ordered a side salad with no croutons and balsamic dressing on the side.   It was super good and I didn't even miss the fried food and cocktails that I used to drink.

On another note I said I would start posting photos of myself, food that I am eating and daily life experiences, so as promised I have some photos to share with you.

This is an example of my homemade 100 calorie packs.  Reduced fat cheese-its, reduced fat wheat thins, animal crackers, goldfish and pretzel gold fish.

Another example of my organizational skills.  1/3 cup dry oatmeal for breakfast or 1 cup of whole grain cheerios.

I like to cut up my fruit and portion it out right away so that I can grab it on the go and can never use the excuse that I don't have anything good to eat.  On Sunday's I usually wash and chop my fruit and veggies in put them in containers.  It is so helpful!

This is an example of a salad that I would eat before eating my grains and meat for dinner.  The salad has romaine lettuce, red onion, red peppers and yellow peppers.  I usually drizzle about 1 Tbs or less of light balsamic dressing to this.

This is an example of the toppings that I would put on my flatbread pizza for dinner.  This is about 3/4 cup rotisserie chicken with the skin removed.  1/4 cup of red onion, 1/2 cup of peppers and a small amount of olive oil and 2 heaping tsp of garlic and 2 tsp of the salt free taco seasoning below.

I am really trying to watch my sodium intake, so I decided to make my own salt-free taco seasoning.  It was from Food.com and it was super good!  I also learned that not all chili powder is created equal.  Some chili powder contains salt, so it is important to look at the ingredients!  Use 1 to 2 tsp on meat for seasoning.

Sorry that this is sideways!  I absolutely LOVE Flatout Flatbread.  Love, love, love!  I make all kinds of sandwiches, wraps and pizza with these.  You need to go to the grocery store and get these now (this is not a paid endorsement I just really love them and think you will too).

All of the toppings on top of the faltbread with 1/4 cup of low-moisture part skim mozzarella cheese. I bake mine in the oven at 400 degrees for 10 minutes on a pizza tray.

 This is the end result!  So delicious and honestly you wont even miss "real" fattening pizza.  It is very satisfying and filling.

So, this is my boyfriend and me about a year ago.  When I started this lifestyle change I was about 25 pounds heavier than this photo.  I am almost back to this size and is something I look at when I need a little motivation.

Have a great weekend everyone!  It is another busy one for me and Sunday is my second weigh-in.  Hoping for some more great results!