Sometimes the Small Things Pay Off! (Surprise Weight Loss in Napa Valley)

Today was Weigh Day. I was literally up all night, having taken the red-eye back from the West Coast to the East. I had gone over my points for the week due to travel situations and a surprise trip to Napa Valley. I had no Flex Points left to try the wine and cheese, but I wasn't going to pass up the rare opportunity.

The first thing I did when I got home from the airport was get on the scale. I was exhausted and hungry and convinced I wouldn't like the number, but I wanted to get it over with and know the situation. It turns out I had a loss again...a 1.2 lb loss! It felt like a gift from heaven.

Tonight I'm thinking about how I was able to show a loss when I went over my points for the week. I think what helped was that this week the small things, my good choices, really added up. In the past I would have gotten frustrated once I felt I had "failed" for the week, and given up. I would have gone overboard for the rest of the week and given in to the cravings to stress eat. Not this time!

 I was tired and stressed with work and craving soda and snacks from the hotel vending. Instead, I walked to a nearby grocery store and bought some 2 PP yogurt for a snack, a Lean Cuisine meal and pop-chips for lunch. I also bought lots of fruit and pre-washed sugar-snap peas & cherry tomatoes to take on the plane. Then I let myself snack while I worked - on vegetables!

Other small things I did on this trip:

• I looked for excuses to walk, and left my computer in the middle of the work day  for short walks. 
• When I splurged, it tended to be on healthier foods, like sushi. 
• I found an airport shop that offered pre-boiled eggs and washed grapes, which I bought to snack on the 6 hour flight. 
• I rarely snacked between meals on this trip.
• I left food on my plate! One night my only food option was a late night burger pub.  I ordered a small burger, but didn't like it, so I only had a few bites. Instead I let myself really enjoy a couple onion rings and a few fries, and in the end I think this strategy made me more satisfied and prevented a binge. In the past I would have just gorged myself on the burger anyway because I was hungry, or tired or stressed. 

So..yes...I went over my weekly Points Plus allowance...yes...I could have done better and been more focused. I stress ate and ate because I was tired. BUT, I really enjoyed the meals and experiences I did have, and made healthy choices at least 75% of this week. So, I feel encouraged to know that it mattered. These small things mattered. They added up...to another loss!!

Enjoy my pictures from Napa Valley below. I am eager to go back!

Destination #1: “Me Minus 10%” - Distance, 16 lbs / 9.8 Remaining! 

Destination #2: “Normal” - Distance, 28 lbs / 21.8 Remaining!
Final Destination: “Happy Weight” -  Distance 39 lbs / 32.8 Remaining

Food Find: Fat-Free Cranberry Orange Muffins (3 PP)

Last week I was having some serious sweet cravings. During a trip to the grocery store, I stumbled across Krusteaz Fat-Free Cranberry Orange Muffin Mix in the baking aisle. 

After pulling out my trusty cell-phone app, I calculated that each muffin would be 3 Weight Watchers PointsPlus, and dropped it in my cart.

These were the easiest muffins I ever made! Simply add water to the powdered mix, then stir in the canned cranberries they provide in the box, and bake. This makes 11 muffins. I used cute heart-patterned muffin cups, which made them seem like more of a treat. I was very satisfied for the price and the effort, and recommend them as part of a breakfast with fruit and yogurt, or a sweet snack.

I am the Points Plus MacGyver! (3 days of travel, only 9 PP left!)

One very long plane ride brought me from the east coast to the west. One very short argument with my boyfriend sent me to a sushi bar. Alone, tired and hungry, I reveled in the sushi varieties and drank my flex points away in two large glasses of white wine.

This morning I calculated the damage. Just 9 "FlexPoints" remain in the coffers to get me through three more days of traveling until I get home and the weekly tracker resets itself. Somehow, I awoke renewed and determined to meet this challenge. Intending to walk to a nearby grocery store to score some healthy breakfast, I was instead pleasantly surprised to see my hotel offered a free buffet. 

Determined to be a Points Plus MacGyver, I scanned the bounty with a creative eye. On my plate went some delightful fruit salad and half a grapefruit. (In my purse, went a banana and an orange for later.) I got creative with two hard-boiled eggs, slicing them and fanning them on my plate, I blanketed them with salsa and sprinkled on some salt and pepper. I can do this!!

I think of you imaginary blog readers*, and imagine your support. Just like movie viewers can save the dying Tinker Bell in "Peter Pan" by shouting "I do believe in fairies!" I am hoping you will say a silent "I do believe in you, Points Plus MacGyver!" today and keep me on track this week ;-)

No, this blog is not the after effects of the wine talking. Today's blog is a bit of a motivational self-talk, and I am more than willing to endulge in a few fantasies if it will get me through the challenges ahead!

Must...do...what...it....takes.....

Until next time, stay strong and eat well!

*If you are real...welcome, and thank you! I say imaginary, because I've only recently started this blog and there is not a lot of action yet!

Weight Loss Reward Idea - How I Reward Each 5lb Loss

I've been planning for some time to reward each 5lb loss with and Alex & Ani charm bangle, and that time has finally arrived! I just got back from the Alex & Ani store with my first bangle! By the time I am "normal" I should have a stack of six on my wrist. By the time I reach "Happy Weight," eight of these beauties should be jangling on my wrist.

It was so much fun to pick out my first one. I chose the Butterfly Bangle because it represents "Renewal/Strength/Rebirth." I think that is very fitting for the journey I have started. Now that it is on my wrist, it keeps reminding me of what I accomplished. It's like a little wearable, jingly piece of happiness!

According to the Alex & Ani website:

"Giving us faith in change, the butterfly is associated with unwavering grace, soulful insight, and eloquence on our journey."

I love that! Tell me how you reward yourself and mark your major weight loss milestones!

Giving us faith in change, the butterfly is associated with unwavering grace,
soulful insight, and eloquence on our journey.

The Great Crunch 'n Munch Debacle of 2013

July 9, 2013

Destination #1: “Me Minus 10%” - Distance, 16 lbs / 11 Remaining! 

Destination #2: “Normal” - Distance, 28 lbs / 23 Remaining!
Final Destination: “Happy Weight” -  Distance 39 lbs / 33.8 Remaining

Independence Day week was a weight-loss-war-zone. Imagine...4 1/2 days with no work, 3 Visits to Beach Bars, 3 BBQs, 1 Traditional Flag Cake, 5 Meals Out and Fruity Cocktails Everywhere!!

This was my true test! I fought so hard, and I so badly wanted to subtract more pounds from my body this week. I drank diet soda while my friends guzzled fruity drinks. I watched my boyfriend devour pasta and garlic bread at a restaurant while I ate a salad with balsamic vinaigrette. I prudently controlled my splurges...a mojito here, a tiny ice cream there.

Everything was going so smoothly, until the day before my weigh in, when I was attacked by a box of dated Crunch 'n Munch hidden in the back of the cabinet.  It jumped from the cabinet, and forced me to eat it! I swear.

At least, that is how I remember it. A third-party observer might say that I got quite stressed going back to work on Monday. (My "weigh days" are Tuesdays.) By the end of the day on Monday I was overtired, dehydrated and stressed. Although I should have been in bed, I was watching TV. 

That's when it happened - a voracious sweet snack-attack came upon me. It was as if I was possessed! I ran from the couch, seeking anything sweet in the kitchen, hunting for food like a wild animal. I was coming up empty handed, finding only fresh fruit. After one last look in the pantry I found a very historic box of Crunch 'N Munch tucked behind crackers and popcorn. I'm not sure how long it was there, but the humidity had hardened all of the Crunch 'n Munch into a giant solid snack blob. Unfortunately, that did not deter me. I ripped it into sections, and gnawed on it like a chipmunk. I probably looked like a vampire from the movies, hunched over after reluctantly tearing into a fresh victim.

The next morning I awoke, ashamed. I don't even like Crunch 'n Munch! Why, oh, why did I eat it?  I crawled to the scale, stood on it, closed my eyes, got off, stood on it again, mustered courage, and looked down. All hope was not lost! In the end, I squeaked out a narrow weight loss margin! A .2 loss over the holiday week! Time to celebrate!!!

Dear self, please learn from the Great Crunch 'n Munch Debacle:

1) Get rid of anything that might tempt you in moments of weakness

2) Stay hydrated, dammit. Water is free.

3) Hey genius, go to bed when you are tired!

PS - I counted the Crunch 'n Munch in my tracker, painful as it was. I did go over my points for the week, but still showed that tiny loss! And that tiny loss brought me to my "first five" pound loss!

Say Cheese! (Cottage Cheese, that is)

July  2, 2013

Destination #1: “Me Minus 10%” - Distance, 16 lbs / 11.2 Remaining! 
Destination #2: “Normal” - Distance, 28 lbs / 23.2 Remaining! 
Final Destination: “Happy Weight” -  Distance 39 lbs / 34 Remaining

I might not be ready to jump in front of a camera lens yet (in fact, I think I would rather jump in front of a moving vehicle than voluntarily have my picture taken), but I did lose weight again this week! I credit a strategy I learned from "The Eat Clean Diet Stripped " by Tosca Reno for keeping me sane and satiated. (Yes, I am addicted to reading about health and fitness.) 

Strategy – never go more than 3 hours without eating, and eat protein with every snack.

I used to live in fear that reducing my meal size to allow for more snacks would make me feel deprived at meal time. Au contraire! My tummy has never been so happy, constantly looking forward to a regular stream of food.

As for the snacks, I have learned that Fat Free Cottage Cheese is just ONE single, solitary ww point per  ½ cup serving. Jackpot! And I learned two new ways to enjoy it:

• SWEET: Mix ½ cup cottage cheese with a chopped plum. Yum! Or fresh chopped peach, or pineapple or whatever you have on hand.
• SAVORY: Cut up a ripe tomato, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add chopped basil. Splash with high quality, Aged Balsamic Vinegar. Top with ½ cup cottage cheese. Now you have guilt-free caprese salad. This is my new love! Bon appétit!

Journey to the Fringe of Normal

I preferred “Am I Normal?” when it was just a rhetorical question…

At some point, each of looks in the mirror and asks "Am I normal?" No one really expects an answer…and no one really wants a bad answer. I knew I had weight to lose, and I’m definitely not happy about my body at the moment...but my wonderful family and friends just kept telling me I was "normal." Despite their opinion, I set about my journey to lose weight without a crystal clear vision of my destination. Until I found out I was not normal.

David Kirchhoff, I blame you! David Kirchhoff, I thank you!

Until I started reading the book "Weight Loss Boss " by weightwatchers CEO David Kirchhoff, I really hadn’t thought much about my BMI. In the book David casually mentions the BMI of the average woman who joins weight watchers. It made me wonder what my BMI was. So I googled "BMI Calculator” and promptly punched in my height  (5'2") and starting weight. When the results appeared I genuinely assumed I had made a typo. I cleared the calculator and re-entered my information. The results stayed the same. I checked and rechecked the results key. No matter what I did, the results told me YOU ARE OBESE. (Okay, they didn't exactly say it that directly, or in all caps. But my BMI number mapped to "obese" on the key.)

Obese? OBESE! Me? Thankfully, I was one week into my journey and had already lost 3lbs from my starting weight. I punched in my new weight, and fearfully clicked "calculate." Through my office window, I saw the clouds part as the heavens opened to allow a golden beam of light to shine upon my PC, highlighting the new results which read simply, "overweight."  I had never been so relieved to be overweight before! It sounded so much better than obese! 

So now what?

I continued to toy with the calculator to find the highest weight that would allow me to call myself a "normal weight" person again, and discovered the destination is 28lbs away. So, for the first time in a long time, I mapped a set of destinations for my better-health, lower weight journey. My travel plan is below, and I would love to have travel companions! I invite you to follow this blog and come along for the ride – it’s bound to be interesting!

Here is the starting travel itinerary as of June 18, 2013: 

Destination #1: “Me Minus 10%” - Distance, 16lbs
Destination #2: “Normal” - Distance, 28lbs
Final Destination: “Happy Weight” -  Distance 39 lbs

Here is progress as of June 25, 2013: 

Destination #1:  “Me Minus 10%” - 13lbs ahead!
Destination #2:   “Normal” -  25lbs ahead!
 

Image by adamr

http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/Younger_Women_g57-Young_Lady_With_Reflection_p109373.html