Weigh in #3 Results - yay!

Mrs.

Starting weight: 171 pounds

Goal weight: 130 pounds

Current weight: 165.5

Pounds lost (gained) this week: 5.2!!

Total pounds lost (gained): 5.2!

Pounds left to lose: 35.5

Workouts: Classes: (3) Zumba classes, (1) Kickboxing. Runs: (2) 2.5-mile runs

Mr.

Starting weight: 240 pounds

Goal weight: 180 pounds

Current weight: 233

Pounds lost (gained) this week: 7!

Total pounds lost (gained): 7

Pounds left to lose: 53

Workouts: 2, at the gym (primarily 45 min on elliptical)

OK, so the Sugar Solution diet is working for us. And it's yummy - I've liked everything on it so far. It is enough food and is satisfying. And it is nice to bring everything to work, so I'm not milling around our cafeteria at lunchtime making bad choices.

The down side: it's expensive - all these fruits and vegetables don't come cheap this time of year, and for example, a block of light Jarlsburg cheese is not exactly buy 1 get 1 free at our supermarket. The prep is also a lot of work. I find myself coming home from work, cooking dinner, cleaning up dinner, and then cooking whatever I need for lunch (and sometimes dinner the next day) and then cleaning that up. Phew - that's a lot to do after a long day of work.

Also, the kids are fairly averse to much of this food - so I have to make other things for them. I'd love to have them adopt this way of eating too, but I'm starting to slowly incorporate them into it based on things I already know they like.

So, with results like these, we will soldier on, learning as we go. I am also going to order The Sugar Solution Cookbook, which has even more recipes.

Hopefully more results next week!

Weigh In #3: Snowmageddeon Over, Back to the Real World!

Mrs.

Starting weight: 168 pounds
Goal weight: 130 pounds
Current weight: 171 pounds
Pounds lost (gained) this week: (2)
Total pounds lost (gained): (3)
Pounds left to lose: 41
Workouts: Classes: Step-N-Pump. 2.5 mile runs: (2)

Mr.
Starting weight: 240 pounds
Goal weight: 180 pounds
Current weight: 240
Pounds lost (gained) this week: (first weigh in)
Total pounds lost (gained): (first weigh in)
Pounds left to lose: 60
Workouts: working the snowblower/shoveling snow for hours every day

Yup, we got 3+ feet of snow last week here, which pretty much shut the place down. No gym. No fitness classes. I did manage to eke out enough time to run on the treadmill at home, twice. But it wasn't enough. Snowed in, we ate all day long. Lots of cookies and comfort food.

But that's all over now.

Yesterday, Mr. and I started a low glycemic index diet. It is from the book The Sugar Solution by Sari Harrar. It has a 30 day makeover plan, which we are attempting to follow to a tee.

So far, so good. The food is yummy, and it's certainly enough food - three meals and three snacks. The tough part is planning and prepping/cooking ahead of time . . but hopefully this will get easier with practice. I made a HUGE grocery store run, which should take care of essentials for the month, and produce/dairy for the first ten days or so.

Here's what we had yesterday:

Breakfast: Multi grain oatmeal (recipe in book) with 1 tbsp chopped walnuts
Morning Snack: 1 pear, 8 baby carrots
Lunch: Lentil Soup (recipe in book), salad with crumbled feta cheese and 2 tbsp light dressing of your choice
Snack: 1 apple
Dinner: 1 1/2 cups whole wheat pasta with marinara sauce, and 1 tbsp Parmesan or Romano cheese, 1 cup broccoli sauteed in 1 tsp olive oil with onions and garlic (this was easy & delicious!)
Snack: Fat-free pudding cup

It was all yummy, and I wound up not even getting to the apple in the afternoon - the lentil soup really filled me up. Here's what we are having today:

Breakfast: Smoothie with 1 banana, 1/2 c frozen strawberries, 1 cup 1% milk, and 1 tbsp ground flax seed
Morning Snack: Raw vegetables and 1 ounce string cheese
Lunch: Chicken Salad Roll-Up (recipe in book) and 1c cantaloupe
Snack: 3 tbsp hummus (it doesn't sound like a lot, but it actually is) and raw vegetables
Dinner: 1 veggie burger on a whole grain roll with 1 tsp relish and 1 tbsp ketchup with lettuce, tomato, and onion if desired, 2 cups tossed salad with 1/4 avocado and 2 tbsp low-fat dressing, and 1 cup 1% milk
Snack: 1/2 cup low fat frozen dessert (i.e. sorbet, ice cream, etc)

After 1 day, I weighted myself and I had lost two pounds. So I'm cautiously optimistic that if we can keep this up, we can actually lose weight.

I attended a Zumba class on Monday, ran on the treadmill yesterday, and did Kickboxing today. Up for the rest of the week: Zumba again Thursday, and Body Blast on Friday. And whatever I can fit in over the weekend - either gym, or videos/treadmill at home. I'm committed to doing something every day.

Also, they are starting up a team "Biggest Loser" type contest at the gym at work - I'm trying to round up folks to form a team.

What's my big incentive, you may ask? I'm going to Florida on May 6 with girlfriends who are tall and skinny. That's it right there. All this effort won't make me taller, but at least I can try to look like less of a pumpkin standing next to them!

Have a great week!

Weigh In #2 Rollercoaster week, literally

Mrs.
Starting weight: 168 pounds
Goal weight: 130 pounds
Current weight: 169 pounds
Pounds lost (gained) this week: (1)
Total pounds lost (gained): (1)
Pounds left to lose: 39
Workouts: Classes: Zumba (2), Body Blast

Well, I got the dreaded stomach virus last week. I was the third in my house to get it after my son and youngest daughter. Through my 2 days of intestinal hell, I had lost about five pounds, but after a weekend of normal eating -- it's back. Plus one. I did no exercise over the weekend, and ate a bunch.

What's good: Other than the two days I was sick, I did exercise during the other days of the work week (Monday, Thursday, Friday), even trying a new class - Body Blast. It's intervals of weights and cardio, and I liked it. (Even though I had to leave 15 minutes early due to a meeting - bummer)

Also, when out to dinner last night, I ate half my dinner and boxed up the rest, which I just ate now for a yummy lunch at work. That's something I always think about, but never do. Last night I did it.

What needs work: Eating better, of course. And drinking less soda. I'm definitely drinking less, but I'm still drinking it. I can't seem to stop altogether. I don't have it in my house, which helps. While I'm faithful to the fitness classes, I've slacked off on my daily running. I started back up today though, running 2 miles after my lunchtime Zumba class. It felt really good. Now if I can just get my butt out of bed at 5am tomorrow to do a run before work! I might have to put off watching Jack Bauer tonight to be able to do that!

Miscellaneous: At the gym, I read an interview in Women's Health magazine with Alicia Silverstone about her new book, The Kind Diet. She of course is a vegan. She said when she switched to this style of eating, she stopped dieting and the weight fell off and she didn't feel deprived, because the food she was eating was so good.

The magazine also included a recipe for vegan peanut butter chocolate cups that looked yummy. Now, I'm not interested in going vegan (meat I could live without, but other stuff - esp. seafood - no way) but her book looks interesting and probably has some great recipes in it. She even says the book is targeted toward people that don't necessarily want to be vegans, but want to move toward a more plant-based diet. I'm going to consider buying it if I see it on sale or a used copy or something.

Have a great week. I still have high hopes that at some point I will start losing weight.