Wow

So, ummmm, yeah. It's been a long time since I even thought about this page. Back in 2009 I did really good and lost 70 pounds. But then I gave up. So I gained all that back AND more. In 2012 I was part of a weight loss competition called the Cardio ID challenge. In 6 weeks I lost a little over 30 pounds with the help of a trainer. It was a really fun experience but once it was over, I went into a slump because I got really close to one of my trainers and I was sad that I could no longer work out with her. I was hoping to work with her in the future but she moved away. Needless to say, I gained the weight back again. So here I am in 2014 and topped the scale at my heaviest ever. As much as it was a good motivation, I think the competitions are not the way to go for me. I seem to quit once the competition is over. So I decided that I need to do something. But I am not doing anything hard core. I just need to change a few things. I am not on a diet, but trying to eat better. Not eating fast food as much, not drinking soda all the time, taking in more water etc. I am not cutting all bad stuff from my life because when I do that, I tend to miss it so much that I over indulge and eat way too much. We've also gotten rid of our gym membership and just go outside and walk around our subdivision every night. We've been doing this for about a month and I've lost almost 20 pounds. Once I shed some of this weight, we might look into getting a gym membership again. We'll see how the walking goes. Here's to hoping I can get down to a healthy weight. I am not making any promises though lol :)

Told you I can never keep up!!

Sorry I haven't blogged in a few weeks. I don't remember how much I weighed the last time I posted but as of today I am almost 30 pounds down. I have had a few rough days where I didn't want to work out but I forced myself to. And the last 2 days I didn't get to the gym and I have felt so...BLAH!! I realized that getting myself to the gym makes me just feel better throughout the day. I did make it there today and I am probably going back later when Bob gets home from work. He actually wants to go so I want to go with him. I probably won't do a whole lot since I have already got my workout for the day, but it wouldn't hurt to do something light.

The Biggest Loser competition at work is going good. I have lost weight every week but I still have a ways to go to get to the top. I didn't realize how hard everyone else was going to work and I guess I have to work that much harder. Last week I lost 3 pounds and I am hoping to lose more then that this week. I am shooting for 5 pounds but that might be shooting a little high. I think my fatal flaw in this competition was starting my weight loss before the competition started. I lost 8 pounds before we even started. If I would have waited, those pounds would have been counted. Oh well as much as I would love to win, I am not doing this for the competition. When the competition is over, I am still going to lose weight. It won't end until I reach my goal. I want to be healthy!!!!

Weight Loss Ticker

I have no clue how to add this to my blog so I am hoping it works in a post!!!

MyFitnessPal - Free Food Diary

Today is a new day...

Yesterday was one of my bad days. My body was just so exhausted that I couldn't do much of anything. So the gym was out of the question. But you do need to let your body rest so I didn't feel too bad. I was also a little depressed at my plateau. I've been here for about a week and I don't like it. I hope it doesn't last long and I start losing weight again. On the plus side, I tried on a pair of jeans that is 2 sizes smaller and I can almost wear them. I was able to get them on and zipped up, but they were a little snug. So I think if I can shed another 10 pounds, I will definitely be able to wear them!!!

I am always trying to find alternatives for foods that I love so that I don't have to do without them. Last night at work I was talking with a friend and found out that I can still have one of my favorite quick meals, chili cheese dogs!!! I found some turkey franks by ballpark that are only 45 calories and no fat. I also got some hot dog chili sauce that is only 10 calories per tbsp. and also no fat. Then I found some fat free shredded cheddar cheese that is 45 calories per 1/4 cup. I would probably only use half of that. But even if I used the whole serving, that is 100 calories and no fat for such a yummy treat. I have been staying away from buns but if I use one, I would only use half of the bun so that is 60 calories. Oh I am so excited that I am going to have one for lunch accompanied by a salad.

Here is my question for the day. When I do the elliptical at the gym, I can only do it for 30 mins. Sometimes I see the people next to me chugging along for about an hour and think "how the heck can they do that." Then I look at their settings and see that their resistance is much lower then what I have mine on. When you are trying to lose weight and not tone your muscles, what would be better? Should I lower the resistance and go longer/faster on the elliptical, or should I keep my higher resistance and go for a shorter period of time? I am so clueless about this workout stuff!!! I just don't want my huge thunder thighs to turn into muscle LOL!!!

Just one of those days....

I knew today was going to be hard even before I got home from work. For those of you who don't know, I work the overnight shift (10pm-7am) at Walmart. I am a stocker which helps with my weight loss a little since I am moving all night long. But I was dragging so much last night. I knew once I got home I was going to be POOPED and not wanting to get out to the gym. I got home and made it to the couch and almost didn't get off. But I made myself get up and get to the gym. I went an hour later then usual but I did it. I even did my normal work out. It was tough though. I wanted to give up/ slow down a few times on the treadmill but I made myself stick it out. And I am glad I did. I burned my normal 1,000 calories. YAY ME ( actually it was closer to 1,100.) I hope these hard days come few and far between. I like going to the gym but I don't want it to feel like a chore!!!

So this is my problem.....

I want to start this post off by saying that we had our weekly weigh in for our Biggest Loser competition. I lost 4 pounds since our last weigh in. We always weigh in on Monday nights but I was off work last week because of my knee so I didn't get to weigh in until Wednesday. So I lost 4 pounds since Wed. Not too bad I guess.

Because of this competition, on breaks and lunches we talk a lot about our weight loss and what we are doing to try and lose the weight. I figured out one of my problems. I have brought my calorie intake down too low. First I was at one extreme by eating way too much, and now I am not eating enough. I track how many calories I eat and also how many I burn at the gym. Yesterday I burned almost 1,100 at the gym but only ate a little under 1,000. Negative calories are not good. So now I have to figure out a way to balance this out. I am not starving myself. I just try to make my meals as low cal as I can. I guess I went way too far. I also think I need to have a few more snacks during the day. That might help bring my intake up a little bit.

If anyone has any knowledge on this, please let me know. Someone at work told me they read online that you should burn about 1,000 calories a day and then eat about 1,600-1,800 calories a day so that you net a little under 1,000 unburned calories for the day. I've already got the burning 1,000 calories. But with what I have been eating, 1,600-1,800 calories just seems like SO much!!! But I don't want to eat the wrong foods either. This is all so confusing!!!!

The first 20 pounds

So this is what has being going on since my lost of this first 20 pounds. It all started when I attempted the couch-to-5-k program. If you've never heard of it, it basically teaches you to go from being a couch potato to running 5k in 9 weeks time. As hard as it was I did make it to week 3 and right at the end of that week is when my knee started hurting. Bob and I also joined a gym at that time and I think between the 2, my legs weren't used to all that working out and just gave out on me for a little while. I was out of commission from the gym and jogging for about 2 weeks. I even took 5 days off from work to give my leg some time to heal. It still hurts a little but I am back in the gym and will try C25K again once I lose some more weight.

I have also changed my eating habits a little. I am very picky and don't like a lot of healthy foods and that is how I got to where I am. But I have cut out the sodas, chips and other junk foods. I am counting calories and that is a big eye opener. When you know you can only have so many calories, and you see that the burger from a fast food joint is almost all the calories you can eat in a day, you realize that you don't want that burger anymore. Right now I am eating a lot of tuna, chicken and ground turkey. I don't eat much bread anymore (which is hard for me because I LOVE my breads) If I do have bread it is whole wheat. I try to make myself eat more veggies and fruits. (I still need to work on that) One main thing that I do is a drink a TON of water. That is usually the only thing I drink all day. When I am at work I flavor my water with crystal light. But at home it is plain water. Yesterday morning with breakfast I had a little bit of OJ and that was a treat for me. I do let myself cheat every once in a while because you need to, but even when I cheat I don't go overboard. I still stay within my calories for the day when I do.

At my job, they started a Biggest Loser competition and that is another thing that helped me get started and stay on track with my weight loss. I would love to win but I don't think that will happen. It is hard to compete against guys who seem to lose it much easier the us women do. But it still is fun to see how much weight I can lose. Unfortunately I started my weight loss before the competition started so 8 pounds that I have lost doesn't count towards the competition. Oh well I am doing this for my health and not for the competition. I'd like to win but that is not what is important in the long run.

This first 20 pounds was pretty easy to lose and I think I did it pretty fast, but I have seemed to hit a plateau with my weight loss. This is where it is going to be hard and where I can't give up. Just because it's not coming off as fast, doesn't mean I need to stop and be discouraged. As long as I AM losing and not gaining, that is all that matters!!!