Week 1 Progress

Last week I let y'all in on my want and need to change my lifestyle (see post here) using Spark People. I am happy to report that week 1 went well!

Here are my goals and my progress:

1. Track food in SP 7 days a week--Completed! I originally thought I'd only track 5 days a week (M-F) but I decided 7 days is better, that way I can see my weaknesses and make better decisions throughout the day. 

2. Lose 2 pounds a week--Completed! I lost 4 pounds!! This won't be an every week thing. I always start out losing big numbers since I'm making an immediate change in watching my calories and getting exercise.

3. Go on a 20 minute walk/jog Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday to jump start my metabolism and get a feel for getting back into my workout routine.--Monday-Wednesday was a success. My jogging stroller tire was a little low so I pumped it up on Wednesday after our walk and it popped, boo! I have to get a new one so Friday morning I couldn't go walk. BUT, Friday night I went for a 2 mile run and walked very little! I've been keeping my hand or foot in running (see what I did there? :) ) since training for a 5k last year. I took it slow and easy and wanted to get 2 miles in and I did!

4. Do Taebo, Core Secrets or Run/Walk 4 times a week--Fail! I have decided I'm going to do my morning walks, run on the weekends and focus on eating for a few weeks. I struggle with my eating habits and I feel like I need to get them under control and work my way into a good workout routine. 

5. Measure and weigh everything I eat--Completed! I LOVE our kitchen scale. We bought it at Bed, Bath and Beyond back when we started our weight-loss journey in 2009 and it is still the most valuable piece of equipment in our kitchen! It's really helpful to see how much I've been overeating. And our food is lasting longer because I'm weighing everything and eating the suggested serving. It's win-win!!


Other notes from the week:
You can see in goal number 1 that I originally decided to only track my food 5 days a week. I'm glad I changed my mind and am tracking everyday. On Saturday we went to Wendy's and I did not decide ahead of time what I would have (that won't happen again). I ordered from the value menu and got a double cheeseburger and a small fry. I input my food after the fact and was very surprised at how many calories I consumed! I thought the smaller portions would be less but it wasn't as less as I hoped it would be! I knew I couldn't have much the rest of the day if I wanted to stay within range of my calorie goal. I do cut myself some slack on the weekends and didn't plan on staying within my given calorie range but I also didn't want to absolutely blow my week of hard work. That night we went to McAlister's for dinner and they had a "lite" menu so I ordered from that. Instead of eating 700 calories, I ate 500 calories. Five hundred calories is still a lot for one meal but I was proud of myself for making the decision to eat a little less. This immediately made me glad that I track my food 7 days a week so I can adjust on the weekends, as needed. Since I went a little crazy on Saturday I took it easy on Sunday. It's all about giving yourself some grace, as it's a lifestyle change and not a "diet." I know I'll have mess up days and mess up meals but it's about making a better decision the next meal or the next day. I also will look up the online menu of any place we plan to eat and plan what I'll have. This will help me not be tempted to eat too much. I want to make smart decisions!

What good eating decisions have you made lately?

I've got the "Spark"...Again

The SparkPeople Cookbook. I just got it today and can't wait to check out all the recipes!

I struggle with eating healthy and getting in daily exercise. Anyone else with me on that?

Four years ago Daniel and I began on a weight loss journey. We used Spark People and it was fabulous! It's a FREE site and has every tool you'd ever need to lose some weight. Check it out and you won't be disappointed! (If you want more information I'd be happy to help you).We did great all summer and I lost close to 20 pounds then got pregnant with Nyla. After I had her I started walking everyday and lost another 10 pounds and got pregnant with Naomi. Since having her I have had absolutely no desire to really do anything about my weight. There, I admitted it. I really haven't, though. From time to time I've thought I really need to eat better and throw in some exercise but I've never really made a commitment to do it. I know it's all on me, too. It starts with me and I've done nothing about it.

The last couple of weeks I've actually given some deep thought to what I want with my health. I don't like what I'm seeing.

The sermon in church on Sunday was the last thing I needed to hear to get me on the right track. He talked about Joshua and brought up the verse I'm sure we're all familiar with, Joshua 24:15, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." I say I serve the Lord but how am I serving Him by eating crap and too much of it and not getting any exercise and taking care of myself? I'm not. And that's not a servant to God. The sermon really hit home with me about serving God. Not only by serving others but serving and taking care of myself. Yes, that sounds a little selfish but if I don't have my act together then I can't be a good servant for God.

Because of all this, I'm back using Spark People and it's like I never left. I jumped right into measuring and weighing all my food and tracking my fitness. I've written out my goals and posted them on the refrigerator so they're visible at all times. I didn't make too many goals as I don't want to get bogged down in them. They're realistic, they fit our family lifestyle and I can meet them in a reasonable amount of time. And because I know things will change in a few weeks I'll go back and revisit and revise my goals. I plan to do this every 30 days.

Here are my goals:
1. Track my food on SP 7 days a week (this will help me see my weaknesses and where I need to work on my eating habits).
2. Measure and weigh everything I eat.
3. Weigh in on Saturday mornings. Lose 1-2 pounds a week (preferably 2).
4. 20-30 minute walk/jog 4 days a week.
5. Revisit and revise goals on Sunday, July 14th

I will workout more as time goes on because that's how I lose weight quicker. For now, I'm focusing on my eating habits. I need to get my eating under control. When we started this journey back in 2009 we focused on our eating and mindset for about 4 weeks. This helped us see our weaknesses and figure out our portions and get used to weighing and measuring everything. It's all about portion control!

So, now you know what I've been thinking of the last couple of weeks. I'll keep you up-to-date on my progress.


This is some inspiration I found today. It's great inspiration but a little gross at the same time. So, enjoy, I guess. :)
This is a full body scan photo of a 250 pound woman and a 120 pound woman. I'm not saying we're all meant to be 120 pounds, I know I'm not, but we are all meant to take care of ourselves. This shows me how I've not taken care of myself. It makes me sad. I'm going to print it out and post it on my fridge. Any time I feel the need to snack I'll see that and step. away. from. the. fridge. I hope I find it helpful. I hope you do, too.
250 pound woman versus 120 pound woman