2.5 pounds down!

Although I swore off the scale, I hopped on on Sunday to see what my first week "back" looked like. It looked like 2.5 pounds lost! Yay!! I even got up at 6:45...on a Sunday...when I could have been sleeping for a 3.5 mile walk! Yay me! Then, later, we all hopped in the pool for even more activity. At the end of the day, I was wiped, but a good wiped, you know? One thing I'm really struggling with is my addiction to diet unsweet tea from publix. That stuff is so good. And, although it's calorie free, it has a lot of splenda, I'm sure. I really need to break the tea cycle and get in more water, or at least less chemicals. I did try Dr. Oz's miracle weight loss drink, which is green tea with mint and tangerine. I really like it! Maybe this can be my diet sweet tea substitute? You think? The other thing i'm having issues with is lunch. I tend to eat out every day (SO BAD). What do you take for healthy lunch on the go? Keep making good choices!

My Goodness

Oh my, SO much has happened since my last post. It's crazy how fast life speeds by. Our biggest event? We moved! My family and I bought a new house and moved about a month ago, and it's been hectic, stressful, fast-paced, and fabulous. The best part? We have a pool now! I'm loving that every day after work/school/camp, the family eats dinner and then heads outside. Our evenings are spent together and ACTIVE, which is a far cry from the way it was before. It makes my heart happy (in more ways than one, I'm sure!) Weight loss has not happened lately. The good news? I maintained. The bad news? I didn't make myself a priority and i'm no closer to goal than I was last year. Yesterday, though, I logged back on to My Fitness Pal (Clee0805 if any of you are on there and want to buddy up!) and started logging calories. Yesterday was great, my cals came in at 1390. Today is looking to come in around 1399, so yay! As some of you know, i've been struggling with chronic shoulder pain for two years now. I've been to, literally, 16 different doctors searching for an answer. I even had two surgies. No relief. Lately, I've been seeing a massage therapist for the pain and he and I have gotten close. At our last appointment, he told me that i'm so wound up and anxious, that he feels like much of my pain comes from emotional stress. We also talked about weight and how that was also part of my problem. He told me that dealing with the emotional reason behind the weight was the first and most important step. Right then and there I burst into tears. He's right. I KNOW he's right. I just don't know how to do it. I feel very trapped. Any sage advice out there? In other news, my baby goes to kindergarten next month. Kindergarten!!! How did that happen?! It seems like it was just yesterday that we brought him home from the hospital, just under 6lbs of sweet baby squishiness. Now he's such a big boy. I'm so proud of him and the little man he has become, but part of me is so sad that we are out of the baby phase. I rarely get cuddles anymore :( So, that's my update!!

I've said it before, I'll say it again...

This is TOUGH. Somewhere along the line I lost my mojo and I cannot have yet to get it back. The last year and a half has been tough. There's been chronic shouulder pain with an undiagnosable cause, the death of my grandmother who I loved SO much, and various other work and home stresses. Instead of using taking care of myself as a de-stressor, I've let healthy living and eating become a source of stress. WHY? Do I do this? I FEEl better when I exercise. I'm happier when I exercise. I can handle things better when I exercise. Eating right does the same thing, yet I have been consistently choosing crap. Using food as a band-aid to cover up the hurt, stress, and fatigue is no longer an option. The good news? Today and yesterday I've been eating on plan and come in under my calorie "budget." I've also been walking in the mornings before work with a friend. On one hand, it's moving, on another, I know we're not working hard enough to make any real fitness advancements. We've decided to start the couch to 5k program together. Maybe that will help. So, i've said it before, I'll say it again. It's time to fake it until I make it! Baby steps!

Filipo Berio Olive Oil-Bzz Campaign and a Yummy Recipe

Hi all!  I have lots to say in another post about the way things are going, so look for that soon, but for THIS post, I wanted to tell you about Filipo Berio Olive Oil.  I'm a Bzz Agent through www.bzzagent.com, where I'm provided free samples of different things in exchange for sharing my feedback on the items.  I'm participating in the olive oil campaign, and I love it.  The oil is rich and yummy and is proving to be a great substitute for butter.  In my efforts to eat healthier, I'm trying to sub it in for butter in most recipes.  I'm also trying to move toward a more heart healthy "Mediterranean diet" with fruits, leafy greens, legumes, fish, and olive oil!  If any of you are looking for a good olive oil, give Filipo Berio a try :)

Now, here is one of my FAVORITE olive oil recipes.  This stuff is super yummy, my husband requests it for dinner weekly and it's hearty enough to be a light entree.  Here's one of my favorite recipes lately, Ina Garten's Green Panzanella.  It's awesome stuff, I promise!  I do not use all of the dressing on mine, but you certainly could.  I also use a sourdough loaf of bread, or whole grain if i'm being super good, but I do find that the whole grain is a little too sweet for this recipe.  This is a super recipe to take to potlucks, I just take the bread and dressing separately and mix before serving.  If only I remembered to take a picture of the final product!

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons good olive oil
• 1 small French bread or boule, cut into 1-inch cubes (6 cups)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 large, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and sliced 1/2-inch thick
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
• 1/2 red onion, cut in 1/2 and thinly sliced
• 20 large basil leaves, coarsely chopped
• 3 tablespoons capers, drained

For the vinaigrette:

• 1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 3 tablespoons Champagne vinegar
• 1/2 cup good olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread and salt; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Add more oil as needed.

For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together.
In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, yellow pepper, red onion, basil, and capers. Add the bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Serve, or allow the salad to sit for about half an hour for the flavors to blend.

Baby steps....and faking it.

HA!  Bet I surprised you, right?  I bet you thought it would be months before my next post.  Not so! I like to keep you on your toes.  If there are any of you left....:)

Things are cruising right along.  I'm well into the habit of walking 2 miles in the mornings at least 3 days a week.  The eating is going ok so far.  I'm using myfitnesspal and logging what I eat.  THIS week the goal is just to log everything, next week we'll move to staying under the calorie goal (although, so far i've stayed under it).  Next week, when the hubster is back to being free in the mornings, i'm going to try to hit the gym on the days that I don't walk.  Like I said, baby steps.

I'm having a hard time finding my mojo, though.  I wish I could figure out how I do SO well for awhile and then it just stops.  It's like the motivation is gone.  I know one of my biggest problems is not putting myself high on the list of priorities...or, honestly, often not even ON the list at all.  It's so hard not to put my kids, husband, work, family, etc. higher. It's hard not to feel guilty when I take time for me.  Although, I KNOW that when I take time for myself I come back to the family/work/etc with more energy and more to give, my heart doesn't know that.  There is so much pressure to be perfect, it gets to me sometimes.  I hate the feeling of letting anyone down, so I don't....but, really the person I'm letting down is me.  It shouldn't be so hard to let yourself down...right?

So, right now the plan is to fake it.  Fake it until I make it.  Baby steps, one foot in front of the other, one meal or one bite at a time.  I can do it. I have to do it.

Giveaway!

Just letting you all know that there's a great giveaway going on over at Weight Watcher Wannabe's blog.  She's great and SUCH an inspiration to me!    She's giving away a copy of "Eat More of What You Love."  It sounds like a great book!

To enter, go to:  http://weightwatcherwannabe.blogspot.com/2012/04/book-giveaway-eat-more-of-what-you-love.html

Hiya! and a cool new weight loss app

Hi all!  Long time no see, right?  SO much has happened in my life and I really let weight loss/getting healthy fall off my radar.  I'm back though!  (How many times have you heard THAT?!  I'm for real this time, though!)  While eating hasn't been great, I've been walking 2.25 miles 3-4 times a week, and I even did a 5k. Yay!  As always, although I wasn't really posting, because I didn't feel like I had anything to say, I've been keeping up with my blogging buddies and I'm so proud of all of your accomplishments.  You are all so amazing and such an inspiration.

I did want to share with you all that there is a great new calorie counting website out there, but it's so much more than a calorie counter.  It actually makes weight loss a game.  You earn points for logging food, exercising, making good food choices, and competing in challenges!  It's really quite a cool concept.  There are even giveaways for certain challenges.  If anyone wants to check it out, the site is www.slimkicker.com.  There's an app for smartphones too.  It's really great!  If you join, please friend me!  I'm Clee0805 on the site.

Can't wait to get back to the world of healthy living!