Weigh-In Wednesday-#5 & #6- A Starting All Over Again Twofer...

So, if there are any of you out there who keep up with me and my weigh-ins (and I'm sure you are few and far between), then you probably noticed that I haven't actually posted the last few Wednesdays. This was not a slip up or oversight on my part- I actually did remember to weigh. I just didn't post because I was totally embarrassed about the actual amount of weight I managed to gain. I don't know why it was such a problem for me to post- the whole point of this blog is to be an accounting of EVERYTHING... good, bad, AND ugly. And lemme tell you... the past few weeks' weight gain has been UUUUUUG-LY!  

BUT, I am totally OVER my pity party. I was actually over it last Wednesday when I weighed in at 373.4 and realized I wasn't just back up to my original starting weight but had actually managed to surpass it! I was so utterly frustrated that I wanted to scream. I jumped back in the saddle that very day- I just haven't had the time to post about it yet because of being so busy- hence the Weigh-In Wednesday Twofer!

It's still been a busy time in our lives- my Mom's been in the midst of buying a new house (yay!), we're still working on the craziness that is our backyard (a piece of the Amazon Rainforest transplanted in NC), we adopted a new puppy, and we just celebrated a certain 5-year-olds birthday (Hey Ro!). Plus I've been feeling uber-crafty (I'm sure you'll see the posts soon), so I've got 400 projects in various stages of completion lying around the house. (Remember that whole 85% girl thing? Yeah, it's rearing it's head...)

Regardless  of all that craziness, I've been intensely committed this time, probably even moreso than last time, and I feel like I've noticed a difference (and not just in my clothes, but in my attitude). I've been making all of our snacks so that we're eating less processed foods and healthier fare, I've been getting up at 6 a.m. to make sure we all have a home cooked breakfast instead of cold cereal (and if you know me you KNOW this is a HUGE deal!), and I've been making sure we ALL (including Tim) get a wholesome, well-rounded lunch each day. I can't say it's been easy- planning 3 squares a day plus snacks- but it's certainly been rewarding. Now, let's see if Mr. Scale agrees....

Here's the stats: 

Week	Weight	Change
Starting	372 lbs	---
Week 1	365.4 lbs	-6.6 lbs
Week 2	364 lbs	-1.4 lbs
Week 3	364 lbs	Maintained
Week 4	361.6 lbs	-2.4 lbs
Skip a few	Not worth mentioning	Let’s just forget this!
Week 5	373.4	STARTING OVER!
Week 6	364.3	-9.1 lbs

 YUP! I'll say it's definitely been working! My body always does this after I've been off my eating plan for an 'extended vacation'. My first week is almost a 'jump start' of sorts and I do really, really well and then it begins to level out into the 1-2 lb/week range. I'm not entirely sure if my scale was smokin' dope and these numbers are entirely legit... but I'll take it where I can get it!

As for staying on track, I'm still feeling completely dedicated. I've already got my menu planned (surprise! it's below!) and I'm excited to see what the next few weeks bring! I've even got a neat project planned for getting me back on the exercise bandwagon (I sense a blog post in the future!)

http://this-istheyear.blogspot.com/2012/03/tackle-it-tuesday-baby-steps-toward.html

So, here's hoping this coming week is just as successful as the past one. Fingers crossed, y'all!

Til next time... may the fork be with you!

P.S. You can find most of my recipes for next week on my 'Eats' page. (And if they're not there yet, they will be... just keep checking back) Enjoy!

Weigh-In Wednesday-#4

Allllllllllllllllllllllright, y'all! I am so totally starting to love Wednesdays! I gotta say, when I stepped on the scale this morning, I really wasn't prepared for a whole lot. Scratch that- I was actually prepared for the needle digital numbers to creep ever skyward- as this week was, once again, just as bad as the previous two. In fact, if asked to describe it in a modicum of words, 'less than stellar' is what I would probably use.

It's not that we deliberately set out to sabotage ourselves- we seriously don't! And it's not even like we did a lot of eating out (we didn't), had a lot of sweets (nope on that one too), or anything in that arena. Huh-uh, we're still trying to hurdle the mother of all stumbling blocks right now- the fact that we are stretching ourselves in a zillion directions!

Take my average day for example- between schooling the kids, working on my blog, trying to plan meals/exercise/etc, run a household, plan a neighborhood yard sale and/or block party (not at the same time, mind you), figure out 'what's for dinner?', deal with someone always hollering 'I'm hungry!' (even the dang cat!)... whew! I'm exhausted just typing it and it's obvious there's just not enough hours in the day. On top of that, my poor mama's trying to sell her home, buy a new one, and we keep getting bamboozled every time we turn around! By the time I get my morning dose of 'As NC Real Estate Turns'- it's already time for lunch and I haven't even had breakfast yet! :) Thank goodness she and I both have a great sense of humor and get along so well. That way we can laugh our way through most of it!

So, because of living such a busy life I usually just end up grabbing whatever is convenient- and that isn't always the healthiest or most diet friendly choice. I try to keep easy and healthy stuff on hand, but with 4 men in the house... Mother Hubbard's Cupboard is quite often bare! So, one of my new goals is to try and stay ahead of my shopping (and their eating) so that I'm not stuck raiding the pantry and fridge or just eating 'whatever' because I have to have something.

Enough bellyaching. Here are the stats for this week:

Week	Weight	Change
Starting	372 lbs	---
Week 1	365.4 lbs	-6.6 lbs
Week 2	364 lbs	-1.4 lbs
Week 3	364 lbs	Maintained
Week 4	361.6 lbs	-2.4 lbs

Regardless of my 'less than stellar' week, I am so stoked about my 2.4 lb loss. I am finally back to the lowest I've been since I started the journey. I know 11.8 lbs doesn't seem like that much to some people- but for those of you faithful readers who remember my fist shaking rant at those same 11 lbs- you'll understand why this weigh-in is a momentous one. And why next week's will be even moreso; next week will be the deciding weigh-in to see if I can finally beat the 11 lb curse my weight seems to hold over me. Send good vibes my way that I can actually do it, okay?

In my corner are some great people out there in blogland that I want to send a quick shoutout to. One of them is a dear friend I've made over at Back to Her Roots- Cassie Johnston. I stumbled upon Cassie's blog quite by accident and she has become one of my biggest inspirations. Right now, I am proudly participating in her #supersummer challenge. It encompasses your mind as well as your body, so that everything you do is good for all parts of you! I love that concept.

One of the even neater parts of the challenge is Cassie allowed us to sign-up to have accountability partners (I almost view them as AA sponsors-lol!) and I was lucky enough to land an awesome lady who happens to live within an hours drive from me! She specifically sought me out because we were so close geographically but also because we share similar weight loss challenges and even the same first name and last initial! It must be fate!

So, that's all for me this time. I'm gonna keep my nose to the grindstone and keep pushing forward. Here's hoping that next week brings me that all important barrier breakthrough. Pray for me peeps!

Until next time... may the fork be with you!

Weigh-In Wednesday-#3

Drat! It's that time again... Weigh-In Wednesday (well, it's actually Friday now- but it was Wednesday when I started writing this post!). And once again I failed to remember to step on the scale first thing this morning. Luckily, I hadn't eaten yet, but I had already taken a shower (and it's common knowledge that short wet hair weighs at least 3 pounds, donchaknow?) so I totally have to account for that. {wink, wink}

But seriously, this week wasn't such a good week for me either (do I hear the echoes of last week ringing in my ears?) I seriously can't help it though! See, my {our} biggest problem is we are right in the midst of several HUGE DIY projects on our home. Tim works ridiculously crazy hours during the week, and busts hump the whole time, so I don't dare ask him to do any 'house work' in the evenings. I just save all of that for weekends!

By the time we have breakfast and get out and get rolling on Saturday and Sunday mornings, nobody takes time to think about lunch or dinner until we are all ravenous- and then we just grab whatever we can stuff in our face holes. Needless to say, it's not necessarily the most nutritious (or even delicious) food available and it's HELL on our healthy eating!

Alright, I'll step down off my soapbox and end my rant there. Time to pony up this week's stats:

Week	Weight	Change
Starting	372 lbs	---
Week 1	365.4 lbs	-6.6 lbs
Week 2	364 lbs	-1.4 lbs
Week 3	364 lbs	Maintained

 

Well, at least I didn't gain! That's really all I can say. And I do have to say that instead of making me want to give up, it has just inspired me to want to work harder. Everyday when I look at my kids, or get hampered by my limitations, I realize why I am doing this.

Do I want to be thinner to look beautiful, shop in a 'normal' store, and/or wear a 'normal' size? Sure I do! But I have far more loftier reasons for doing what I am doing and they don't involve wearing a size 10 (although that will be really awesome!).

All I know is that whatever I do, I have to continue to channel my Little En'Jenn' that Could- 'I know I can, I know I can, I know I can!' Because as my blogger friend Mel so appropriately put it on her blog in a recent post:

'IF YOU DO NOT QUIT, THEN YOU CANNOT FAIL'

Don't give up on me yet, guys. I may be down... but I'm not out.

Til next time... may the fork be with you!