I don’t know how it happened but I’m down 1 pound from last week!  I was not expecting it because my activity levels have been way down the past couple of weeks. I still tried to track everything I ate, so I’m sure that made a difference! So my total pounds lost is back to 55.4. 

I’ve been super busy and life got pretty lifey the past few days so I forgot to post a weekend recap!  So sorry!

Friday I spent the afternoon at the Cubs game and met up with friends afterwards which was really fun.  

Saturday I finally was able to get back to Zumba and boy it was a killer! She was really working us….wowza! We grilled out for lunch and I had a yummy chile lime chicken burger with lots of veggies! I crashed later for a long nap and then Jeremiah and stayed in and enjoyed taco night for dinner.  Also delish and healthy!

Sunday we spent the morning and afternoon in the suburbs going to church with my family.  It was the 40 day memorial of my uncle who passed away and the whole family got together to remember a wonderful man.  The weather was perfect and the food was delicious.  It was so great to spend time with family. That evening we headed back to the city and met up with friends for the best Chicago style pizza (at least MY favorite!) and saw the new Star Trek movie in IMAX 3D.  What a fantastic movie!  

Also on Sunday the A/C in our car decided it was a great time to die. UGH!  So Monday after Jeremiah left for a work trip I took the car to my parent’s mechanic.  Luckily my parents have a spare minivan and I was able to use it for a couple days. Turns out the compressor and evaporator in the car are completely broken. Suuuuuuuuuuuucks.  So my dad brought our car back to me today and I had to give his van (with working A/C) back.  I’m really not looking forward to the cost of fixing the car but with summer coming me thinks I’m going to want A/C.  

Annnnnyway! Coming up this week? I have a couple dinners out with friends planned which should be fun.  I don’t really have any major Memorial Day plans which should be relaxing!  As of right now I plan to make it to both Zumba and the boxing circuits class and hopefully the HIIT class on Tuesday night!  

What are your Memorial Day plans? Nervous about mountains of food?  What is your game plan?  

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Well, considering it was Easter weekend and I ate quite a bit and didn’t work out barely at all…I would consider my 0.2 pound loss a success.  Not what I was hoping for, but I didn’t gain so that is something good.  My total is at 56.4 pounds lost.  

This week I’m hoping to get back to my workout routine.  I can’t make it to Zumba on Saturday but I will be going to the Boxing Circuit on Sunday! I wanted to go the HIIT class on Tuesday but we have Cubs tickets for the night game so that won’t be happening either.  

Tomorrow after work I’m going to my local running store, Road Runner, and getting fitted for running shoes!  I’ve been running in shoes that aren’t really made for running so I’m looking forward to getting some proper shoes.  And I know that I will be excited to try them out ASAP so I’m planning a run for either Friday or Saturday and Monday!

How did you do at your weigh ins this week?

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I really was not expecting to lose this week. I weighed myself before I went to work and figured I would come in very close to last week.  But for some reason I am down 1.4 pounds!  I don’t even know why and I don’t care! I’ll take it! That brings my total back to 56.2 pounds lost.

The meeting today waaaaaaaaasss…….not great.  We had a substitute leader since our regular leader is on vacation.  Usually I enjoy subs because it brings a fresh change to the meetings.  Today the meeting was just not great.  She didn’t talk about the actual topic which was anchors until literally the last two minutes.  And then she ended with a bad poem.  I usually come away feeling good about the week (especially after a good weigh in like today!) but today I just feel kinda meh.

Either way, I’m looking forward to the week! It is Easter on Sunday so that will be a mega food day which I will do my best to prepare for.  I’m going to try and save my weekly points and try to track during the day.  Because of all the festivities I also will be missing Zumba and boxing circuits again which I’m bummed about.  

Ok, I think that is it for now!  How were your weigh ins this week? 

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Gosh I love weigh ins like today! I knew last week’s small gain was not accurate due to water retention before shark week, but I still didn’t like seeing it on the scale.  But this week I am down 2.6 pounds!  That brings my total to 56.8 pounds lost!  Wohoo! 

So, it has been 5.5 weeks since my parents offered me the amazing incentive of helping me and Jeremiah get to Greece if I could lose 15 pounds by the beginning of September.  To stay on track I need to lose at least 2.5 pounds a month to get to 15 in time.  So far I have lost 5.8 pounds!  Boom! I would definitely say I’m on track.  (Hear that, Mom?!) Only 9.8 to go!

Anyway, this week in the WW meeting we talked about getting active.  Basically it was a plug for the ActiveLink which probably would have annoyed me if I didn’t love it so much!  I was surprised that I was the only one in the meeting who used it.

I really am pleased with the progress I am making so far.  I had to share my weekly report from this past week with you all. I had a record week and surprisingly it was the week that I couldn’t get to my two weekend gym classes!  Check it out!

I hope you all are having a good week!  Today definitely helped perk me up and motivate me to continue kicking butt! 

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So I was fully prepared for a gain. I was hoping for a maintain, but was sure I was going to gain.  I mean, I have been sick for almost two weeks, I have’t worked out, and with my birthday and other events my eating hasn’t been great.

So I was SUPER excited for a loss!  Yes!  I’m down .8 pounds this week!  My total is now 54.8 pounds lost! Boom.

We talked in today’s meeting a lot about changes in behavior.  Being sick and having a death in the family usually make me feel like I don’t need to track or pay attention to what I’m eating.  In the past I would just kind of give up. My new behavior is that I am continuing to track even though what I’m eating may not be great.  I definitely didn’t get my GHGs in this week, but I did track and pay attention to the food I was eating.  Just because life got really lifey doesn’t mean I need to ignore my health.  

The rest of this week is filled with the wake and funeral which will be really hard.  This weekend I don’t have anything going on so I am going to make sure I get to Zumba and boxing bootcamp. I also have plans to get some spring cleaning done since my weekend is so empty! Jeremiah leaves on Sunday night for a six day trip so next week I will need to focus on not eating out/cooking for myself more.

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Guys! Today’s weigh in was AWESOME! 

I’m down FOUR POUNDS!  Heck yes!  That brings my total to 55.2 pounds lost.  Boom.

Last week I only lost .2 pounds and I thought something was up with that number.  I was just about to start shark week so I was retaining water like crazy.  So I think that this week’s number is really from two weeks of staying on plan and actually working out.  Imagine that!  

I’m really glad I found two classes that I like at the gym during the weekends.  That way if I can’t make one, I definitely make the other.  This week I can go to Zumba but will be missing Boxing Bootcamp.  So I plan on doing that as well as working on getting at least one AP per day.  Unfortunately yesterday I didn’t meet my mini goal for the day.  But I did at least get to 100% for the day.  Oh well, I’m going to try extra hard and see if I can get 2 APs today!  

Hope your week is going well so far!  

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Who has two thumbs and lost two pounds this week?? 

THIS GIRL!

Yes!  This brings my total back to 51 pounds lost so far! And I DO NOT want to go back to less than 50 pounds. No sir.  Next stop is 55.  I’m continuing to focus on tracking and the GHGs as well as exercise.  FOCUS!

Coming up this week? I’m heading to my parent’s house on Saturday to go through all of my storage at their house.  Yeesh.  THAT should be an adventure.  And then on Sunday I will be doing Boxing Bootcamp again followed by a baby shower out in the suburbs.  I don’t know what the meal will be but I”m going to save a few of my WPs for that event.  

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So close!  I am down .2, which is barely nothing, but still SOMETHING!  But I reallllly wanted .4 so that I could hit 50 pounds lost again.  Boo.  I’m not at 49.8.  I’m not TOO upset about this teeny tiny loss because I’m smack dab in the middle of shark week and I usually gain during this time.  So a small loss is definitely something.  

Coming up this week? I have two workouts scheduled to help me hit my mini goal and I’m trying a new recipe today or tomorrow. I already have the ingredients at home, so I’m basically halfway there! I also have two parties coming up this weekend.  Friday my mom is hosting a fine jewelry party at her house.  Then on Sunday I have a baby shower at a yummy restaurant. I should be able to get through it making some good choices! 

Hope everyone’s Wednesday is going well!

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I’m down 1.8 pounds!  Yes! After the horrific gain last week, I was just hoping for any sort of loss.  So I will definitely take an almost two pound loss.  This brings my total back to 49.6 pounds.  At least I’m heading in the right direction.

This weeks WW meeting was focused around getting active.  This is something I REALLY struggle with.  I 100% know this is why I have not seen the weight loss on the scale for the past year.  I was doing really well with C25K before the nasty Chicago winter hit.  I will definitely be starting that again as soon as the weather perks up.  

But in the mean time I need to get active.  

My mini goal this week was to hit 100% every day on my ActiveLink.  So far I haven’t gotten there even once. (Monday I got 76% and Tuesday I got 78%)  BUT, setting this goal has made me much more aware.  I have been taking the stairs as often as possible at work.  I always go to the bathroom one floor down so that I have to climb back up the stairs afterwards.  

This isn’t enough though.  I need to get my butt to a gym and do something different.  I’m hoping to find a class at the closest gym that I like and can go to regularly.  

So, I’m amending my mini goal for this week.  I’m adding in a workout of some sort.  I NEED to be more active and I NEED to learn to enjoy working out.  I HAVE to lose this weight and it’s not going happen if I’m sitting on my ass.  That’s all there is to it.  

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A loss is a loss, right?  I was down .2 pounds at my weigh in the morning.  Would I have liked more?  Of course.  But it’s not a gain, so I’m happy (ish).

So I decided yesterday that my mini goal for the week was to cook two meals for myself.  I kiiiiiinda cooked yesterday’s dinner….and since I didn’t order in or go out to eat, I’m going to count it as a meal.  So I’m half way there!  Plus I need to work out twice this week.  Tomorrow morning I’m going to get up and do a Wii Fit set.  

Today when I got to work I found out my department was invited to the Fine Dining Room here at the culinary school I work at.  Yay!!  We try and go once a quarter but didn’t get a chance last quarter.  So I will be having a super delish meal this afternoon.  I’m going to do my best to count the points up…..and still indulge in dessert.  They have the BEST desserts!  Pictures to come later.  

On top of that my friends invited me out to dinner tonight.  They have a restaurant that they are totally digging right now and I’m really excited to check out.  Living in Chicago is awesome because you could try a new restaurant every day and not hit the same one twice!  

All this delicious food just means I’m going to have to watch my points really well! 

Hope you all are doing well! 

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Yay!  Finally a happy weigh in!  I knew that I had lost quite a few pounds (4-5) from the stomach flu. But as soon as I was able to eat normally, I got back to tracking in the hopes that I could not gain ALL the weight back.  And it showed on the scale!  I was down 2.4 pounds this week!  My total is back at 53.8.  I definitely like watching the scale move in this direction WAY more than the opposite.  

Last week I set a goal with my leader to cook four meals for myself during the week.  She gave me four bravo stickers preemptively to help motivate me to do it.  And do you know what? It worked!  I knew I would have to report back today at the meeting and I wanted to say I did it.  

So, even with the stomach flu, I was able to meet my goal.  I cooked the PB2 Banana Egg Pancakes for breakfast on Sunday, then for lunch I made a basil and cheddar tomato soup with grilled cheese. I didn’t blog about this meal because I didn’t like how it turned out.  I used low fat cheese and it didn’t melt properly so it had a funky texture.  But I cooked!  Then on Monday night I made that amazing Hummus-Crusted Chicken.  (SO good!)  

Last night was my last chance to get in the fourth meal.  As I was driving home from my chiropractor’s office I knew I had a choice.  I could either stop at Jimmy Johns and do the easy thing or I could stop at Dominick’s and get something to cook.  I really really REALLY didn’t want to have to admit that I failed, so I decided on cooking!  I ended up making bean and cheese quesadillas and bought some chicken tortilla soup. I still cooked, but it was an easy meal, so I thought that was a win!  The meal was great, I ate light, and I was able to proudly tell my meeting that I succeeded!  Definitely a great feeling.  

Coming up?  I have a belated Christmas party this weekend with my girlfriends.  It’s an overnight at my friends house in the country and I’m so looking forward to spending some much needed time with my girls!  Lucky for me, they all are very health conscious so the meals will be delicious.  I’m bringing my absolute favorite salad as a side for dinner on Saturday.  Arugula, grapes, slivered almonds, goat cheese and balsamic vinaigrette.  Seriously, YUM.  I could eat this all day every day.  

Ok friends, that is all for now!  Hope you all are doing well!  

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Ahhh!! I had another great weigh in!  Let’s keep this up!  I lost 1.8 pounds this week, bringing my total back to 55.6 total pounds lost.  

My WW leader convinced me to share the celebration in the meeting even though I had already celebrated it back in April. I’m really glad she did.  Because even though I had already lost it, I gained it back…and then lost it again.  And it was hard work!  Now, I just need to keep moving and get to celebrations that I haven’t done before! I really really REALLY want to hit 75 pounds soon.  I feel like I have been working towards that goal for FAR too long. 

Coming up this week? It should be an interesting one.  The main thing is a date night with my husband on Saturday.  Because he was gone so much this summer, his company gave him a bonus of sorts and is treating us to a date night out on the town.  So Jeremiah has been planning for a couple months now and I have no clue what we are doing!  I know he made dinner reservations and we have tickets to see some kind of show, but that’s all I know!  I’m SUPER excited!  

I was also supposed to have a jewelry party at my parents house on Friday and wedding dress shopping with my little sister on Sunday.  I am not sure if those things are still going to happen because my Grandpa (my mom’s father) has been really sick.  He has been in the hospital for over a week and last night we were told he took a turn for the worse.  I’m not sure what will happen, but I’m really worried. I’m going to the hospital later today to see him.  I’m really really scared. 

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Guys!! I didn’t gain!! I actually LOST WEIGHT!! 2.2 pounds to be exact!  

It has been a looooong time since I lost anywhere near that in one week.  Nine weeks to be exact. So this brings my total back to 53.8 pounds lost.

Want to know my secret for this week?  I actually tracked.  SHOCKER!! I even went over on my Weekly Points but I tracked everything and I was able to lose weight. This makes me very VERY happy. 

And do you know what I’m going to do this week?  I’m going to track. Everything!  Funny how it works out well when you stay on plan, huh?  

Coming up this weekend I have a funeral, a friend visiting and a Christmas party.  An odd mix, but I should be able to get through it all successfully.  

Did you see my amazing peanut butter hot chocolate that I made last night?? 3PP!  Ah-mazing!

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I’m fairly certain my sister is the only one who reads my blog and she has alerted me that “my blog is lonely.”  I’m sorry I have been a bad blogger!  So here is what has been going on in my life, via bullet points.

• I was away for the weekend for a Fall getaway with my girlfriends. It was relaxing and was a great recharge for my soul.
• I got to see some great friends from NYC for lunch on Sunday.
• I am supremely bored and lonely without my husband.
• I’m embarrassed to say the above statement because it makes me sound like a silly needy wife.
• But really I just don’t like living alone for three weeks and I really miss my best friend.
• I have not worked out….for I don’t know how long
• I have barely cooked for myself, instead I choose to eat at school for free.
• I am literally counting down the days until I land in Aruba.  Nine days for those of you wondering.
• My cats are driving me bonkers.  Does anyone want two one (Penelope is is fine….Sampson is the trouble maker) terrible kitten??
• Work has been hella crazy with a big re-accreditation visit.  Yuck.
• I am baptizing my goddaughter in 2.5 weeks so there has been lots of prep for that.  
• I had WIW yesterday and lost a pound!  I was 100% shocked and happy. 
• My favorite WW leader got promoted and will no longer be leading any meetings.  I’m really bummed about this because I really really liked him.  Sucks.
• My only plan for this weekend is to visit my parents and finish making stuff for previously mentioned baptism.  I’m looking forward to a couple naps and lots of tv watching.  

Ok, I think that brings me up to speed.  I’m so sorry for the lack of posts!  I have a couple of food posts I need to get up and will try to do that today or tomorrow.  

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Hooray!! I am down 2.6 pounds! That is FANTASTIC! My total is now back to 60.8 pounds lost. Yes yes YES!

I am really really happy about this. Not sure if you could tell by the caps and exclamation points?

I think I’m going to do the same thing this coming week that I did last week. I will eat my activity points and try not to use my weekly points. I may have to dip into them because I’m in a wedding this weekend and, well, you know how those go! But it seemed to help this week so I’ll do it again.

I’m also going to keep going with C25K, obviously! I have a plan scheduled for tomorrow morning and I’m hoping to go again on Friday since I’ll be busy on the weekend.

So there we go! Have a great week everyone!

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