So, I've been super busy this week and haven't posted in awhile. My husband and I looked at a new place and are moving over the month of February into a house that is way nicer than the one we are currently in. I think that this house that I am in is part of my weight problem....I know some people may think of it as an excuse but its not, its MY reality that the location of my house is contributing to my problem. Everytime I want to go for a walk, I have to pack my son up and drive in the car to somewhere that is suitable for walking. I really just want to be able to walk from my house. We live on a busy road that is not ideal for walking with a stroller. The new house is in a neighbourhood and the neighbourhood is connected to many others which is great so that I can change routes and not get bored. Also, the new house is near a few of the stores that I regularly shop at which is great, since I can walk to those too.
We have been busy getting our house packed and housesitting for the in-laws as well as trying to have some time for ourselves. My husband has been really great in helping me keep on track with my eating while we are busy because he is trying to eat a little bit healthier as well. After being at the in-laws for 2 1/2 days, and not eating very well (they did not have a lot of fresh fruits and veggies and I had only brought some of my own), I was worried that I would have gained some weight back. I weighed myself this morning and I was actually down 1/2 a pound! It's not a lot but its a loss which is the way to look at it.
I think that the reason I am having success even when I am not eating my healthy food at home, is because I have changed my portions to almost half the size of what they used to be. As well, I am eating with mindfulness which basically means that I am paying attention to my body as I eat. If I start to feel full, I stop eating for a minute or so, have some water and decide if I am still hungry. If I am hungry, then I will continue to eat but eat smaller amounts, more slowly, and if I am not hungry, I stop eating. I can always have a piece of fruit later on if I find myself feeling hungry again.
I also drink lots of water during the day. I have always been a water drinker and usually have my 8 glasses a day. Recently, I read that you should drink half your weight in water each day if you are trying to lose weight because often when you are thirsty, many people automatically think they are hungry and eat. I try to start each meal or snack with a glass of water and that helps me eat less as well. Many people will say how can they drink half their body weight in water, but it's not hard. I am not a big pop or juice drinker because I used to drink diet pop and when I got pregnant, I cut that right out. Now I don't even like the taste and I definitely do not like the sugary taste of regular pop so if you are working towards drinking more water, try to cut out the pop as much as possible. Also, some juice, such as the real fruit juice, is good for you in vitamin ways but it is still very high in calories; you can get more vitamins and nutrition for less calories if you eat real fruit. Start with replacing one pop for water so if you go to reach for a pop, have a glass of water first and gradually increase the amount of times you choose water over pop. Save the pop for special occasions and treat yourself with it once in awhile. For juice, you can do the same as with the pop, or instead reaching for a glass of juice, reach for a piece of fruit and a glass of water. Not only will you be helping your body stay hydrated, your skin will look and feel way softer because you are hydrated.
It takes 21 days to form a new habit so try it for at least 21 days and see how well you do, and remember....EVERY DAY IS A NEW DAY!!!
Monday, January 31, 2011
Saturday, January 22, 2011
Breakfast Smoothie
Here is my recipe for my morning breakfast smoothie:
1 small/medium banana OR 1/2 large banana
1/2 cup of your favourite yogurt (sometimes I use plain or I match the yogurt flavour to the berries I am using that day)
1/2 cup of frozen berries (I usually use raspberries or 4 berry mix)
1/2 cup water (to help blend the frozen berries)
Optional: add 1 kiwi fruit or 1/2 cup other fresh berries as well
Optional: add 1-2 tablespoons of bran buds or other high fibre cereal
Blend it all together until it is well blended. If it is still too thick, add a little more water until the smoothie is the consistency you want.
I mix it up everyday so that I never have the same smoothie twice in a row and I won't get bored with them. I find that I am full off this smoothie for a couple of hours and then have a mid-morning snack of a piece of whole wheat toast with peanut butter and a piece of fruit.
I eat most of my daily fruits in the mornings and early afternoon to keep up my energy so I can play with my baby all day long :)
1 small/medium banana OR 1/2 large banana
1/2 cup of your favourite yogurt (sometimes I use plain or I match the yogurt flavour to the berries I am using that day)
1/2 cup of frozen berries (I usually use raspberries or 4 berry mix)
1/2 cup water (to help blend the frozen berries)
Optional: add 1 kiwi fruit or 1/2 cup other fresh berries as well
Optional: add 1-2 tablespoons of bran buds or other high fibre cereal
Blend it all together until it is well blended. If it is still too thick, add a little more water until the smoothie is the consistency you want.
I mix it up everyday so that I never have the same smoothie twice in a row and I won't get bored with them. I find that I am full off this smoothie for a couple of hours and then have a mid-morning snack of a piece of whole wheat toast with peanut butter and a piece of fruit.
I eat most of my daily fruits in the mornings and early afternoon to keep up my energy so I can play with my baby all day long :)
Friday, January 21, 2011
206 Days
So, why have I called my blog 206 Days? My son will be 1 year old 206 days from the time that I started this blog so I want to have met my goals by then. I want to be able to feel great at his birthday party so that I can focus on him for the whole day and not worry about how I look.
Although I have started this blog about my weightloss journey, it is apparent that I have yet to post my weight in my posts. I have been putting it out into the world that I am on a journey but have yet to tell anyone except my husband what my actual starting weight is. I plan on posting it but I have not yet come to the point where I want have my weight staring me back in the face on the scale and on my blog. Some may say that this means that I am not ready to face my weight but the fact that I shared it with my husband is a huge stepping stone for me.
I have been really focusing on making wise choices this week and reach for more fruits and veggies rather than processed or quick foods. I love the extra energy that I have already this week and find myself thinking about what I am going to eat ahead of time rather than grabbing something at the last minute. I have also been trying to get up in the morning before my son wakes up so that I can have a BIG glass of water and a breakfast smoothie to get my day started. I still have to have my morning cup of coffee but it is only one as I find the water helps me wakeup and get going as well.
Until next time....remember, Everyday is a New Day!!!
Although I have started this blog about my weightloss journey, it is apparent that I have yet to post my weight in my posts. I have been putting it out into the world that I am on a journey but have yet to tell anyone except my husband what my actual starting weight is. I plan on posting it but I have not yet come to the point where I want have my weight staring me back in the face on the scale and on my blog. Some may say that this means that I am not ready to face my weight but the fact that I shared it with my husband is a huge stepping stone for me.
I have been really focusing on making wise choices this week and reach for more fruits and veggies rather than processed or quick foods. I love the extra energy that I have already this week and find myself thinking about what I am going to eat ahead of time rather than grabbing something at the last minute. I have also been trying to get up in the morning before my son wakes up so that I can have a BIG glass of water and a breakfast smoothie to get my day started. I still have to have my morning cup of coffee but it is only one as I find the water helps me wakeup and get going as well.
Until next time....remember, Everyday is a New Day!!!
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
The Beginning
Today is my beginning...well at least with the blogging part of my journey.
I am a new mother and have been working to lose the dreaded baby weight. The problem is, is that I need to lose more weight on top of that. I originally really started trying to lose the weight over the holidays. This was actually way easier than it sounds. By starting at this time of year, I was able to really concentrate on watching my portion control and cut back on sweets by making healthier choices such as fruit, yogurt and homemade smoothies to fulfill my sweet cravings.
So, I will start at the beginning...
I have always been a larger girl...not fat, but chubby as I was growing up. I am definitely a big-boned person and I have always had to deal with trying to make that work for me. After graduating high school, I was able to lose some of the weight that I wanted to but that was it.
I have yo-yoed many times over the years and was really getting a handle on my weight loss when I found out that I was pregnant. This was a very hard thing for me to deal with. While I was very excited about becoming a mother, I found it difficult to feel that gaining some weight was alright. I have never had to gain weight before and found that I was very uncomfortable in my pregnant body until I was officially "showing" my pregnancy. After that, it became freeing. While I was still an overweight person, I knew that it was okay to have a protruding belly because it was no longer me but my ever growing baby. After giving birth, I was determined to lose the weight as quick as possible but knew that I would have to wait until I was given the okay by my midwives. Once I was given the okay, I started light exercise but found that my weight did not budge. I was stuck and was told that it could be because of the hormones still present in my system from my pregnant days. I finally had a breakthrough with starting to lose weight when my son turned 4 months old. The weight is starting to come off more regularly now and I feel like I am having success.
I am tracking my foods and cooking my meals so that I can know what is going into my body at all times. I weigh myself every week to make sure that I am keeping on track with where I want to be. I exercise as often as I can and have started following a challenge blog to help with my weight loss and accountability. Now that my son is getting bigger, I also use him with some of my exercise as a weight. This is great because I can squat with him or raise him in the air and I will be working my body and he thinks of it as a game, laughing the whole time.
I still slip up and try not to belittle myself or feel guilty because of it. I keep telling myself that EVERY DAY IS A NEW DAY and that I will just get right back on track. This is the first time that I see myself succeeding all the way instead of part way so that will help me pursue my weightloss.
I am a new mother and have been working to lose the dreaded baby weight. The problem is, is that I need to lose more weight on top of that. I originally really started trying to lose the weight over the holidays. This was actually way easier than it sounds. By starting at this time of year, I was able to really concentrate on watching my portion control and cut back on sweets by making healthier choices such as fruit, yogurt and homemade smoothies to fulfill my sweet cravings.
So, I will start at the beginning...
I have always been a larger girl...not fat, but chubby as I was growing up. I am definitely a big-boned person and I have always had to deal with trying to make that work for me. After graduating high school, I was able to lose some of the weight that I wanted to but that was it.
I have yo-yoed many times over the years and was really getting a handle on my weight loss when I found out that I was pregnant. This was a very hard thing for me to deal with. While I was very excited about becoming a mother, I found it difficult to feel that gaining some weight was alright. I have never had to gain weight before and found that I was very uncomfortable in my pregnant body until I was officially "showing" my pregnancy. After that, it became freeing. While I was still an overweight person, I knew that it was okay to have a protruding belly because it was no longer me but my ever growing baby. After giving birth, I was determined to lose the weight as quick as possible but knew that I would have to wait until I was given the okay by my midwives. Once I was given the okay, I started light exercise but found that my weight did not budge. I was stuck and was told that it could be because of the hormones still present in my system from my pregnant days. I finally had a breakthrough with starting to lose weight when my son turned 4 months old. The weight is starting to come off more regularly now and I feel like I am having success.
I am tracking my foods and cooking my meals so that I can know what is going into my body at all times. I weigh myself every week to make sure that I am keeping on track with where I want to be. I exercise as often as I can and have started following a challenge blog to help with my weight loss and accountability. Now that my son is getting bigger, I also use him with some of my exercise as a weight. This is great because I can squat with him or raise him in the air and I will be working my body and he thinks of it as a game, laughing the whole time.
I still slip up and try not to belittle myself or feel guilty because of it. I keep telling myself that EVERY DAY IS A NEW DAY and that I will just get right back on track. This is the first time that I see myself succeeding all the way instead of part way so that will help me pursue my weightloss.
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