21 Day Fix

Yeah, it's been a while. I'm sorry but I got tired or writing about only failures. It gets old. I wanted so bad to stay positive, but I didn't. I couldn't. I still wouldn't say I'm positive about my weight loss...which is still non existent. But anyway, a friend of mine that I met at the Women's Half Marathon in Nashville posted on Facebook about the 21 Day Fix. Now I don't know what drew me to it. Maybe I was just ready to try something new. I liked that it was pretty affordable and came with a 30 day supply of Shakeology which I had been itching to try. I love a good meal replacement shake. I also liked that it didn't require any supplements. I'm not a big fan of supplements. For one thing, I can never remember to take the dang things. I also liked that the workouts were 30 minutes long...which is pretty easy to incorporate into my day...or at least I thought they would be. I had no intention of giving up my boot camp style classes at the gym (or crossfit lite as I call it) and I would still be training for my spring halves. I was planning on using the DVDs on days I couldn't get to the gym. My workouts there are much more intense than anything on those DVDs. Exercise has never been one of my issues though. I am quite active.

The food on the plan is pretty straight forward. Stick with clean, minimally processed foods and as long as they fit in the designated container, then chow down. And you have a set number of each container that you can eat each day based on your weight.

Ok, so I've completed one 21 day fix. I would say I gave it about 75% effort. I lost 2 lbs and 3 inches. I'm trying not to get too down about that. It is a loss. I drank a few margaritas....I ate a couple of desserts....my food was not completely on point.

I took a few days off of the fix while I went to Memphis to visit a friend and started back on Monday.

Monday I felt strong....I felt ready. I hit the gym and then hit the trails for a run, I ate great. I was stoked. Tuesday was a gorgeous day....I rode my horse and then went for a run. Then Wednesday happened....and all H-E-Double hockey sticks broke loose. James got sick....Michael got sick....Joseph got sick.....I almost went insane. It was a blur...I don't know what happened. James is the meanest child in the world when he is sick. Today has been some better. James is the only one still sick. I'm hoping to get to the gym this afternoon and maybe a run after.

I feel that this plan is a step in the right direction. It couldn't hurt, right? I mean, I've been trying for well over a year now and have lost 2 lbs.....seriously. My doctor told me that my body just likes this weight and I need to stop worrying about it, because worrying is going to make me old. I wish I could stop worrying.

Anyway, I hope to have some good news throughout the next few 21 day fixes...it's going to take a few to lose the 55+ lbs I need to lose.

If anyone wants to join in, message Jenny and she can hook you up!

I'm losing it, but I'm not losing it.

It's been a while since I blogged on here. I was waiting for some good news. You see, I get tired of writing the posts about being frustrated and the posts about being optimistic. I want to post about results. And I haven't been seeing any on the weight loss front. I have been going to the gym, running like a fiend, and logging my food. My trainer wants me to keep my calories between 1200 and 1600, my fat grams between 30 and 50 and my saturated fats negligible. Also I'm to limit my carbs later in the day. I've been following this 90% of the time. I have lost a pound in 4 weeks....and stayed the same in inches....I think I might have gained a few inches actually.

Frustrating doesn't begin to cover it.

I went to the doctor 3 weeks ago for my insurance physical and talked to her about my concerns. She checked my thyroid, my liver function, and vitamin levels. Everything came back normal except my vitamin d was a bit low. I started taking D supplements. Still no change.

After a particularly disappointing weigh in this morning, I was beside myself. I called the doctor again to talk to her about possibly a hormone imbalance. I do have terrible mood swings. I got an appointment and went on in. She treated me like I was crazy but ordered the labs anyway. She also tried to set me up with a dietician but when I called for an appointment, they only see people at 10:30 am and I can never come at 10:30. So I cancelled it.

I honestly wish I could be happy just being fat. This weight has really taken its toll on my mood, my stress level...basically everything is affected.

So, I'm not going to write on here. I'm not going to spread my negativity. If you're reading this, please say a little prayer for me. I will keep blogging and try to stay upbeat on my normal blog.

Angry

I know the 5 of you that read this are sick of reading the downtrodden posts. I'm sick of writing them. I'm sick of living them. I want to write about how well things are going and post pictures of the changes that I'm seeing. I want to talk about inches lost and shedding pounds. However, the reality is that I'm not seeing any changes. I.Am.Angry. I'm angry that a year after having James I am only a few pounds lighter than my weight after having him. That is with eating fairly healthy, running, and breastfeeding. I'm angry that I can run 15 to 20 miles a week, eat healthy, and see no physical changes. I was soooo excited about the Fast Metabolism Diet. It was like it was describing me to a tea. I had found my cure. It was finally going to happen. So I gave it a 75% effort. I lost a couple of pounds.....gained a few inches. Decided not to blame the diet and try it again. I've done it for almost 2 weeks now and gained 1.5 lbs. I still don't blame the diet. I blame my inability to stick to it when life happens. However, I would still say that I've been eating pretty healthy. I've still been running like a fiend.

Honestly, I wish I could just be happy with being fat. But I can't.

When Joseph was about 4 months old, I joined a weight loss challenge at a local gym. I had already lost 18 lbs on my own, but I wanted to kick it into high gear. I lost another 15 lbs or so during the 8 weeks. I stuck with going to classes at that gym a couple of months after that and lost another 8 lbs without really watching what I was eating. I could never seem to lose any more than that, but right now, I would even take that weight.

I know what you're thinking....why aren't you going back there? Well, honestly, I thought I could do it on my own....still don't understand what isn't working but whatevs. I also didn't think I could do half marathon training and have time for the boot camp classes. And honestly, I was embarrassed for my trainer to see me fatter than when I started the last time. But today I decided to make the leap. It is going to be a big commitment, but I have decided to join the 8 week weight loss challenge group starting Saturday at Julie's Fitness and Training Center. I still plan to follow the basic rules of the fast metabolism diet. I do believe in that plan, but I won't be able to work out hard and follow the plan exactly. Of course I will have to talk about that with my trainer as they give nutritional advice as part of the challenge.

So hopefully next time I post I will have some good news...some upbeat postings. I need it. My family needs it. A grouchy angry mama makes for a grumpy household. Wish me luck. Keep me in your prayers.

Quick Weekend Update

Ok, so I'm 3 days in on this round of the Fast Metabolism Diet. My first day was pretty much perfect. I was sooooooooo hungry though. I ran a 15 K on Saturday and cheated by having a banana pre and post race. Bananas aren't allowed on FMD because they are high in sugar. It's my tradition though. I always have a banana before and after. We went out to eat after the race and I had grilled chicken and rice....with a dap or 2 of cheese sauce. I might or might not have had a margarita....a little one.....

I've been pretty good today. Just had a few bites of some froyo when I took the boys out for a treat.

I haven't been able to weigh because the scale is in James' room and he hasn't been up before I've had breakfast the past couple of days.

Overall, I feel good. I don't have any special recipes to share from the past couple of days...I've been eating a lot of open faced sandwiches and raw veggies and fruit.

Here's hoping for some good weight loss....I saw pictures from my run this weekend and man, I look like a running cow. I love cows....I just don't want to look like one.

Frustrated

Yesterday was the end of my 28 day Fast Metabolism Diet. You must know that I maybe did 3 days of that perfectly. I cheated some. I started off feeling pretty good since I lost 4.7 lbs in the first couple weeks. Then I started gaining. I ended at 225. That is a 2.7 lb loss. It's still a loss, but all my measurements were bigger than when I started. WHAT?! I don't know what's up with that.

So anyway, I am giving the Fast Metabolism Diet another 28 days. I'm gonna trust it this time and not cheat. I am throwing a birthday party for a friend next weekend, and I'm gonna cheat that one day, but that's it.

Now, if after 28 days, I don't feel like this is working, I'm going back to Boot Camp. Gonna take the workout like a maniac approach. I'm not going to use that option until after the Iron Horse Half Marathon in October since I can't fit boot camp and half training in at the same time and have time for my family.

I'm not going to promise anything, but I'm going to TRY to post here every day. I feel like the accountability would help.

So today, here I sit at 225 lbs and I've got the following food to look forward to:
Breakfast:
Strawberry French Toast
2 slices Ezekiel bread
2 egg whites
1/2 tsp vanilla
a few shakes of cinnamon
1 cup quartered strawberries
squeeze lime juice
1 tsp stevia

Whisk together egg whites, vanilla, and cinnamon. Let bread soak up mixture on both sides. Cook on non stick skillet, turning once, until browned.

Meanwhile, heat strawberries, lime juice, and stevia over medium heat until warm.

Serve strawberries over toast.

Snack: Orange

Lunch: Open faced chicken sandwich on ezekiel bread, carrots, and grapefruit

Snack: Apple

Supper: Grilled chicken tenders, broccoli, and brown rice.

Snack: Strawberries

Really not a bad day...sounds pretty good. Of course I already want chocolate.

A Fresh Start: The Fast Metabolism Diet

It's shameful how long it's been since I posted on here. I hope to be better. Last time I posted here I talked about some problems I was having in my personal life that were really taking a toll on my weight loss journey. Well, I got those under control. But instead of going back to the plan I was doing at the time, I wanted to step back and rethink my approach.

I am so sick of dieting. I've been watching my weight since I was 12. I have worried about most of the things I have put in my mouth since then. I have counted sooooooooo many calories. I have eaten nothing but cereal (I took the special K diet to a whole new extreme in college), and starved myself. I have wrecked my metabolism with 19 years of crash dieting. I can not do it anymore.

BUT, I can not stand being fat any more either. I want to be healthy and fit and I don't want to have to carry all this extra weight around.

And let's be honest, I don't want to look at pictures of myself and be like, "Who is that person?"

A friend of mine mentioned The Fast Metabolism Diet on her blog a while back. It's basically a diet (not a good word...it's more of a lifestyle change) that repairs your metabolism and gets it back to burning energy like it should instead of storing fat. I ordered the book. Instantly I was drawn in because the author got her degree in animal science, and while I don't agree on all of her views (such as hormones in milk and organic meats), her science is sound. It just made sense.

It starts you off in a phase based food plan. Days 1-2 are good carbs, fruits, veggies, and lean protein. Days 3-4 are lean meat and veggies. I actually thought that would be the worst but I actually don't mind it that much. Days 5-7 are everything above plus good fats.

The main rules are no soy, no wheat, no corn, no dairy (WHAT!? the hardest part for me), no sugar, no caffeine, no artificial anything.

I will be perfectly honest....I have not had a complete day where I have not cheated.

That being said, I have lost 4.5 lbs in 2 weeks....with the cheats. It's good to have the scale moving, but more importantly, I feel better. I feel less flabby when I'm running as well. My running has taken a hit as I just don't have as much energy as I did before, but that is getting better. My body is getting used to using this new fuel instead of the junk I've been eating.

I've learned that I like sprouted grain bread. So does James. I love to make egg white french toast with it and top it with strawberries or blackberries. I love chicken sausages. Brown rice pasta (while expensive) tastes just as good as regular pasta.

This diet is expensive. The food costs lots more than what I usually ate and fed my family. There is also a lot of cooking involved. Yes, I love to cook...no I don't care to do it at every meal.

I'm still striving to have a perfect day. I will be finishing out the 4 week repair portion of this diet and then I am going on maintenance until after the Iron Horse 1/2 Marathon and then I'm going to do it again....hopefully better next time.

I will keep ya'll posted on my progress and issues! I hope for much positive change!

Taking some time

Hi yall! I'm sorry it's been so long. We went on vacation last week and I really didn't have much to say about my weight loss.

And yesterday something happened that rocked me to the core. I'm having trouble focusing on anything and I know that my body goes crazy when I am stressed. I still plan to lose it. I still plan to blog about my weight loss journey but I've got to get something straightened out. I'm not going to talk about it here....but please pray for Michael, the boys, and me.

I will be back soon ready to talk about weight loss.