Week 8 Update

Sigh. So part of me is very happy because we went to New York and I didn't cheat. We stayed out over night and I didn't cheat. I walked, went to the gym, rode the exercise bike, etc. Even tried some of the recipes (the crepes rock). But I only lost 0.4 pounds this week. So the final weight is 192.8 pounds. I think I'll chalk it up to being bloated again. Grr mother nature, grrrr.

Week 7 Update

Hooray! 5.8 pounds lost this week. I haven't lost this much weight since like the first week. This rocks. I have lost 26 pounds since beginning the program in July and have I went from a size 16 to a size 12. At this rate I may even get into a size 10 one day. This is so cool. Group kinda sucked tonight - no one was really feeling the topic matter, which was self defeating behavior. But I got a certificate of achievement, which landed me a free box of supplement. I also got props for coming up with a recipe, although I still haven't heard back from the nutritionist to make sure I didn't break any rules or anything with it. And to top it off I only work half a week this week. Life is good.

Survivor

Well I did it. I made it through a BBQ at my own home without cheating on my diet. I made food, actually cooked real food, without cheating. I am very proud of myself because those hot dogs smelled SO good. But I also realize there are more important things right now. The BBQ went well, everyone loved the food, and I didn't cheat. I ended up giving my friend all of my pants that are now too big for me. Which ended up being a lot of pants. I have about 3 pairs of pants and 3 pairs of jeans that fit me, and all of the pants are loose. Meanwhile my very happy friend just walked away with almost 30 pairs of pants, jeans, and sweats. And yes, I did own that many pairs of pants. I am going to enjoy replacing each and every one of them at my new size. :-)

New Direction Chef

So I have decided to try out some of these recipes that they gave us for the new direction meal replacements. I tried the chicken omelet, which was pretty good but a little too salty for my taste. I also tried the strawberry chiffon which I will not be repeating. Jello and new direction should be eaten separately, and that my final verdict. I had a cook epiphany a couple of days ago. A few of the recipes allow us to add splenda and gelatin and egg whites. And I swear the lemon beverage tastes like lemon pie filling. So - I decided to make my own fake pie. I used mini pie tins, no crust (of course- the crust is ALL carbs) and the lemon beverage. I made the lemon beverage with half the water and added some gelatin and baking power to thicken it up. I made meringue with egg white vanilla and splenda. I wasn't sure the meringue would hold up but it did pretty well. The first pie was good but the filling didn't thicken up like I wanted it to. Also the meringue soaked up half the pie filling so I had lemon flavored meringue. So for the second trial I used lemon beverage, 3 ounces of water, lemonade crystal light (can never have too much lemon), splenda, 1/4 tsp cream of tarter, 1 egg white and gelatin. I mixed the dry ingredian well first, then added the wet. I also baked the filling first for 5 min on 350 (which I did not do the first time). Then I whipped up my meringue like before (1 egg white, vanilla, splenda) and added it on top, baked until brown. I let it cool to room temp and voila - fake lemon meringue pie. And it defintly worked out better this time. So I think a little less time in the oven, or a lower temp will do the trick. Also, no crystal light cuz it was mad tart. So after doing all this it dawned on me that I could have just put the lemonade crystal light in the vanilla pudding and then baked the merengue on top to finish it off. I'll have to try that way next time.

Week 6 Update

Sigh. I only lost 0.6 pounds this week for an offical count of 199. But I got my bracelet. So I still got some work to do. But on the bright side a loss is a loss and I shall consider this my down week. We are having a BBQ for Kevin's Birthday this weekend so I hope I can cont to stay on the straight and narrow and not pig out or something at the sight of all that food. The behaviorist at group was saying I need to have a plan and stick to it, even if my plan is to break the diet for a day. I am not sure if I want to risk breaking ranks for a day or not. I think I shall sleep on it.

I Love Clothing Again

So I wasn't not feeling 100% last weekend and ended up opting out of a family gathering. That part sucked because I missed a tea party - a real grown people tea party. But the flip side is I made a wonderful discovery. I was going to wear a skirt or something just to look nice. So I went to bowels of my back closet were I hide all of my special occasion and impractical for work wear and pulled out a skirt I had not worn in a year or two. AND IT FIT! I actually had some room around my waist. How cool is that. So of course I pulled out another skirt I hadn't worn in eons - and it fit loosely. I could even slide out of one skirt without having to unbutton it, and no it does not have an elastic waistband. So yesterday, a little birdy told me to try on some of the button up shirts I had been avoiding all season. And they fit, and fit well. No need for double sided fabric tape to keep the buttons from popping (except at my bust line), no marks on my arms from were the sleeves were digging it. This rocks. I cant wait to get a new wardrobe. I think I will start buying new winter stuff in Sept and I will hold off on new summer stuff until next year when I am hopefully at my ultimate goal. Even my husband noticed my things were fitting better. He keeps hugging me and feeling my sides - looking for the rest of me that is no longer there. Add all this to a new short haircut (that was 5 pounds lost from hair alone, ha ha ) and I feel like a new person. And this is only 20 pounds later. Watch out world when I reach my goal.

Week 5 Update

Ahh the sweet taste of success. The official count is 199.6 pounds. Just shy of 20 pounds since beginning on July 1st. I have been loosing around 5 pounds per week except the one week my period was on. If I keep this up then I will def reach my goal by the end of the year. Our group tonight was with the nutritionist and we had a taste testing session. She brought in the drinks and lots of different things we can mix it with so we could try it before we did it at home. She also gave us a lot of new recipes to try and keep things interesting. One of the other ladies and I in group made out own variety pack by switching out what we each purchased. That way we didn't have to buy a whole box and get stuck with something we didn't want. And I cut all my hair off. So the new thinner Ant has an all new look. Feels like a W.