Treats

**Warning, UNHEALTHY deliciousness below**

Usually throughout the week I am on point 100%. I eat my fruits and vegetables. I drink my water. I don't go over points and I don't go under (maybe just by one or two). I get my GHG's in. And most importantly, I try to eat clean, unprocessed foods. I steam my own vegetables, don't buy microwave meals, etc.
However this doesn't leave much room for my one true love. Chocolate. (Or my secret mistress, peanut butter).

What keeps me going throughout the week, especially when I'm having an emotional day and really want to sink my teeth into triple-decker chocolate cake is that I have a "cheat day" on Saturday after my weigh in. So that way I can tell my self that in just a few days you can have the extra sour cream on you baked potato. And maybe a piece of pie afterwards.

Now this doesn't mean I go buck wild and order a lumberjack slam for breakfast, mac and cheese for lunch, and a steak dinner.

It means I generally pick a meal and really enjoy the heck out of it. One day I was so craving seafood. While seafood is healthy (especially the scallops I so desperately wanted), I wanted to go to Red Lobster. I cannot go to Red Lobster without having those cheesy biscuits. So I went, had two, ordered a super healthy dinner, then had myself a dessert.

This in reality probably equates enough to those 48ish extra points WW-goers are allowed a week. But I don't calculate it.

Rough and Tumble

Rough and Tumble

Why? Because this is my treat. I enjoy taking a meal, not worrying about if it has too many carbs and not enough fiber. I want to take a meal and enjoy it. It is my treat.

This passed weekend The Beard and I took the kids to Rough and Tumble, a giant indoor jungle gym on crack. Great exercise, they both sweat their behinds off, and I got a little activity in too (though they try and discourage parents from using the equipment). Then we went to the Chinese buffet. My choices were decent there. A lot more vegetables than anyone else had on their plate! Plus no dessert. But that was only because I was saving myself for this
  (** here it comes**)







This would be a cookie, baked in a muffin tin, stuffed with a Reese's Cup, frosted, and topped with Reese's Pieces. I made a dozen of these because I love the Beard, and even after a year and a half, I still have a fear of baking him something that isn't amazing (as in "diet desserts"). So I mean, how can this be anything but amazing. Fortunately, I was able to get my fix in then leave them to stare him in the face.

Anyway, to the point. How do you guys reward yourselves  Do you give yourself a treat? Any particular cravings that you let yourself indulge in? How do you keep from going overboard?

Have a great week! See you Saturday for weigh-in!

Week 12

I GOT MY 10%!

10% key chain from
Weight Watchers

I'm so excited. 20.4 lbs off of my body, never to be put there again. I haven't weighed this since high school! I don't really know how it happened other than the fact that I didn't have much of an appetite at the beginning of the week because I spent most of the time snoozing (I don't handle pain meds well). I've been pretty committed to walking and taking the stairs at school probably helped too. 

What ever it was, I'm pretty stoked. How is your week(end) going? Hope you are all getting the successes you deserve. 

Starting Weight: 200.8

Current Weight: 180.4

Total Lost: 20.4

Check out my progress so far including pictures, charts, and BMI. 

Pit and Peak

Since I (as I'm sure most do) tend to only focus on the cruddy-ness of the previous week, I thought I'd participate in Allie's PIT and PEAK. Its kind of like a way to measure the highs and lows though out the week. And because it's nice to remember that not everything way thaaaattt baaadd.. 
Here goes!

The Pits

sick baby sitting in the
steamy bathroom

1- I hurt my back which has not only made working out a lot harder, but also picking up Bee and sitting in class. Also I was taken out of work for it which means no dinero.

2- Bee has a nasty cold. I hate when she gets sick. Not that any parent likes it I'm sure, but she's too young to know how to blow her nose properly, breathe through her mouth, ask for anything without being whiney. (At least she wants to be a cuddlebug)

3- I discovered that I need new tires on my Jeep... in the middle of the night, while driving though the worst snow storm forty minutes away from my house. Yep, my tires are HORRENDOUS. (Oh, and it's freezing out).

The Peaks

1- I was totally on point with eating all week. I even showed up my mom (who goes to meetings with me) when she dished out homemade chicken pot pie and I grilled up a veggie burger and zucchini instead. I know it's not a competition, but it's so much more fun when I can pretend it is, I get that from nursing school.

2- School started! I know I'm weird. But I'm taking anatomy and physiology  and while I may not be a shining star in that class it is always interesting. Tons of 'ah-ha' moments. Plus we use real cadavers so I get to gross the boyfriend out again. He just thinks my presence after work or lab (at least before I shower) is gross in general. Hmm. 

3- The time off has given me extra time to spend time with the people I love. I've been picking Bee up early from daycare to spend extra time with her, boyfriend and I got to have a fantastic coffee date after our night class. We don't see all that much of each other, we're both in school and he works overnights, while I work evenings. AND I got to see my friends new baby, even if he slept the whole time I still snuck in and picked him up. BEAUTIFUL.

Want to share your own pits and peaks?
 Head on over to Tales of a Twenty Something to join the link-up!

Weigh in update tomorrow! Wish me luck!

Non-Scale Victories

It has been an odd week. School has started up again and I hurt my back pretty bad on Monday... bending over to put my kids shoes on (swifttt). I got taken out of work on Tuesday and was told to pretty much just lie still, take muscle relaxers, and use heat. So I was pretty down and out and was going to chalk this week up to a loss as far as losing wise (I basically planned on throwing a food centered pity party).

BUT! Then I remembered The Biggest Loser contestants and how several of them have things that make them unable to do much as far as physical activity and they still manage to pull though. (Um hello, 5k? I can only imagine).

So instead of being gloomy in self pity I put my VERY big girl panties on and took a note from KTJ and decided to concentrate on other things NON SCALE RELATED.

So my Non-Scale Victories for the week include:

Dividing meals

The boyfriend and I went out to the Bee's for lunch yesterday and I got chicken, rice and veggies. Though it was over my points value for the day (I think it clocked in at 30ish) I immediately split the chicken and the veggies and asked for a to go box. I put it out of sight. I ate the rest of my meal slowly, putting my fork down between bites to sip my water. Then for dinner I had the rest of the chicken and veggies on a bed of spinach with salsa on top! Bueno!

Walking on

I definitely can't go running any time soon, and sit ups or anything that involves me lifting my arms above my head is totally out of the question. But I don't really see the harm in walking with my back pain as long as I maintain good posture and take it slow. So starting yesterday and through Monday I vow to walk at 2.5-2.8 mph  on the highest incline for at least 30 minutes a day. Even if I have to break it up, at least I'm moving. I usually get in about 8,000-10,000 steps at work alone at the hospital, so being out for a whole week is really messing me up. 

Hold and breathe

My goal on weekends is always to do yoga as a way to relax my muscles and take a break. I used to be very flexible when I was little even though out high school. I've lost a lot of that and would love to get it back. But my weekends tend to come and go with no stretching or yoga done. What a better time to start some back focused yoga? I just Googled yoga for back pain and try to take it slow. Some moves don't feel good so I don't do them, but the point is I'm moving. 

So we'll see how all this pans out. Hopefully these non-scale victories can turn into the real thing. If not I know I tried. It is much more accomplished than I felt like at the beginning of the week.

 Breakfast this morning. 3pcs turkey bacon, 1/2 serving of "pancakes" (1 banana, 1/4 c. egg substitute, cooked with 1 tsp. coconut oil), and 2 tbs. sugar free syrup heated with smashed strawberries. 

 I'll probably be eating the rest of the pancakes for lunch with some peanut butter. And maybe some grilled zucchini. My meals rarely make sense. I just know I always need something salty and something sweet.

Well until Saturday weigh in!

<3 Kay

Week 11

That's what I wanted to see! Good loss this week. 2.2lbs off my body. I'm getting closer to never seeing the 180s again.




This week I wanted something sweet for breakfast so I made some nice caramelized apples. Just 1 tbsp of the Splenda brown sugar, and some of the chia tea I was making to sip on. I let them soften all up, toasted my bread and added a little cinnamon. Threw the apples on top and it was delicious.

Speaking of chai tea, I've been trying to drink more tea and less coffee (I usually have about five cups through out the day, courtesy of working second shift) which equates to five points of coffee creamer. But i don't put anything in my tea so that's a big help. Any tea drinkers out there? What brands/ flavors do you enjoy? Happy week everyone!

Starting Weight: 200.8

Current Weight: 183.6

Total Lost: 17.2

Ps, this was written on my cellphone. Boyfriend and I are at the laundromat so apologies for any misspellings, runons, or weird capitalizations.

I work out

I got back on the treadmill today! We aren't quite 100% but we're mending our relationship. I made my self a workout schedule for the next three weeks because if I don't have something to check off, I probably won't do it. Telling myself "oh, I'm going to workout today" generally just turns into me drinking coffee all morning watching YouTube videos about other people working out. I need a schedule. But also a lot of time when I make myself a set schedule I over estimate my athletic ability (45 minutes on the treadmill, planks, push ups, sit ups? No problem.. NOT). I went easy this time, and it was still challenging to me (which is kind of depressing because looking at it I'm like "pfft, I'll get that done in no time") but I actually completed it. And it gets a little harder each week. Working up to longer treadmill times.

Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
50 jumping jacks	50 high knees	50 jumping jacks
20 kettle bell swing/ squats	10 knee push ups	20 kettle bell swing/squat
50 kettle bell twists	15 mountain climbers	50 kettle bell twists
15 mins on treadmill	15 mins on treadmill	15 mins on treadmill

     (If you can't tell by now, I really like charts and graphs. )





15 minutes on the treadmill isn't much, but it's more than what I've been doing. 

Curious as to what my next two weeks look like?

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
Kettle bell workout	50 skaters	Kettle bell workout	50 skaters	Kettle bell workout
15 mins on treadmill	15 squat and jumps	15 mins on treadmill	15 squat and jumps	15 mins on treadmill
	17 min on treadmill		17 min on treadmill

Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday
75 jumping jacks	50 high knees	75 jumping jacks	50 high knees	75 jumping jacks
25 kettle bell swing/squat	12 knee pushups	25 kettle bell swing/squat	12 knee pushups	25 kettle bell swing/squat
60 kettle bell twists	20 mountain climbers	60 kettle bell twists	20 mountain climbers	60 kettle bell twists
19 mins on treadmill	Kettle bell workout	19 mins on treadmill	Kettle bell workout	19 mins on treadmill

The kettlebell workout can be found here!

visual inspiration

I'm feeling a little better. Which is especially good since I had a terrible time sleeping last night (compliments of my toddler) which leads to a cranky morning. But I looked at this little chart I had made and realized that little blip isn't anything from where I started. I've lost 15lbs and that's great. And I will continue to lose weight until I reach my goal. There will be weeks that aren't reflective of my work (this week) and there will be weeks that I will lose that will take me by surprise (um, New Years?). And that will be that. That chart will be going in the down direction next week because I am working towards a goal that I will not let myself fail. HAPPY SUNDAY EVERYONE!

Week 10

Annoyed today. I followed plan all week. I ate all of my points everyday and if I didn't I was under, but just by 1 or 2. Never went over. I got all of my steps in every day (10,000 NOT including exercise) and I worked out several times this week. Then I got on my scale at the meeting and she goes "well it's only 0.6". Thinking she was saying I'd only lost 0.6 I was kind of disappointed but not too terribly upset. Then I looked down and realized it was a 0.6 GAIN! I've gained before, I've maintained before. Both of those times I deserved it. But this week I did not and that put me in a sour mood for the rest of the meeting. I should just get over it. I just want so badly to be out of the 180's to feel like I'm really losing weight. It's been a long time since I've been in the 170's. I thought It'd only take me two to three weeks. to lose the 5.2lbs I needed to get out but now it's just kind of pushed me farther away. Discouraging. Ah well. I'll just keep plugging away, hopefully I snap out of it. I think its just an emotional week for me anyway!

So to cheer myself up I made this delicious breakfast after I got back. The pancake is made from just 1 whole egg and 1 whole banana, nothing else,  1/4 cup sugar free syrup, strawberries, and some melon. It was delicious. I mean fan-freaking-tastic. And it made me happy. The entire thing is literally 3 points (though I point my bananas so I counted mine as 4). SO GOOD!!   Our routines at our meetings thins month is to get more produce in. She says to try and have a fruit or veggie at every meal or snack. That is one thing I'm going to especially focus on late at night. Since I don't get out of work until 11pm I eat a little later than most people. But I think I'm going to make 9pm my cut off, and even after 7 only fresh produce allowed. We'll give it a go. HAVE A GREAT WEEK! 

Starting Weight: 200.8

Current Weight: 185.8

Total Lost: 15.0

Brunch 1/11

Woke up late today so by the time I got home from dropping my three old off and running to the store for my sister it was after 11. So I decided to make a large breakfast.


3pcs turkey bacon- 2PP
2 slices 45 calorie bread with 1 tbs light butter and cinnamon sugar- 5PP
3 egg whites with yellow peppers and broken up light string cheese.- 3PP

Total- 10PP
(My eggs kind of look like there are mini marshmallows on top but its just how I cut the cheese stick)

It was all pretty good but I'm definitely going to need a snack before work at three.

Week 4-9

So I didn't stick to this (blogging) as much as I'd wanted to. At first it was pretty much from the semester ending taking over my life, then it was reflected on to my actual endurance with Weight Watchers. I got lazy (there was like a three week span that I didn't track, at all). But overall I did well. And as always, its a new year which means it feels like a fresh start! Below are my following weigh ins,

Week	+/- weight loss	Total loss	Current weight
4	-1.4	-7.8	193
5	-0.6	-8.4	192.4
6	-3.8	-12.2	188.6
7	No change	-12.2	188.6
8	+0.8	-11.4	189.4
9	-4.2	-15.6	185.2

I got a 4.2 loss over Christmas and New Years!! I really didn't think that was going to happen. My friend, whom I hadn't seen in years came home and we spent way too much time having drinks and coming home to a lovely array of chocolate peanut butter no make cookies. Also my boyfriends family decided to have a carb overload for Christmas. It was literally like bread, pasta, and cookies. No meat. But as soon as my friend left and his leftovers were eaten I kicked it into shape. Plus while everyone was out getting sloshed to bring in the New Year, I spent mine with my three year old playing Just Dance (though I did have some wine).
Speaking of Just Dance I've found a few new things I like. Workouts that aren't really workouts. Just Dance. I've also tried POP Pilates. I bought a jump rope and and resistance band. The treadmill and I are fighting. I get really discouraged from my timed mile so we're taking a hiatus until I can get into better shape and make that thing my b****. But I've definitely found other ways to keep myself motivated! Any quiet readers out there? What are your favorite at-home workouts? Until (hopefully) next week!

Starting Weight: 200.8

Current Weight: 185.2

Total Lost: 15.2