Great Blog

I stumbled upon a blog a couple weeks ago called 100 days of Real Food... Its a great blog... ( not a WL blog)
Todays Post is super, its on portion sizes...Below is the link

http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/01/23/portion-size-matters/


As all of us WLS patients know portion control is the key to WL. Purchasing smaller ( actually TEENY, cute) Plates and Bowl help me with my portions as well as measuring of course. But I know my teeny bowl is only one cup, apposed to our regular bowls which are about 3.. WOW...But what I have noticed is while I am eating smaller portions now, so is my family.. they are not using full size dinner plates any more, they use the dessert plates. Kind of cool huh... BABY STEPS

Weigh In Wednesday Wk 12

Today's weigh in 213.6 down 2.5Lb since last week and 59.4 Lbs all together... so close to 60 I can almost touch it :)
I have running group again tonight super excited about that.
And this weekend we will be making the 5 hour drive to see my MIL.. she does not know about my WLS and has not seen me since well before hand, this should be interesting :) She knows I've lost a little weight, as she has seen some pics on FB and has noticed, but has no idea how much and the only full body pic Ive posted on FB recently was from the Color Vibe and that was not a great pic my T shirt was too big ( mental note to self you are not as big as your brain thinks you are order a size smaller than your initial choice next time lol )and frumpy looking and I was all sweaty. So I cant wait till she see's me in real clothes, not looking like a hot mess!
Enough for now have a Wonder Wednesday!

Running Group and C25K

So as you may remember I started the C25k program several months ago... Ended up with serious knee issues and had to back off of it and kind of ease back into it and let my body tell me when to run and when to stop. This got me trained enough to finish my first 5k which was my ONLY goal for that first JUST FINISH...lol and I did...
Well my band buddy Hollee runs with a group she really enjoys in Raleigh and I thought, well my knee is doing better and I need the support of others to get my speed where I want it for my next run in Aug. So when her group started the C25K program over, I decided to join with her. Last night was the first meet up W1 D1

I found it easier to keep running when I got tired running with other people than on a treadmill. B/c lets be honest if I get tired on the treadmill I just bump that speed on down... So goal for my next run (Aug 10th) is to RUN the whole thing no walking, and by doing so will beat my Color Vibe time :)

Time to Re-Focus a bit

I spent some time this weekend looking back at MFP and my protein over the last month or so, and it has been lacking, I mean I have been getting 60 grams in but not really any more ( and still only about 800 cals). So I have a game plan to have about 70 grams in BEFORE dinner each day this wk ( Matt makes dinner so that is hard for me to know in "advance" but he knows how to cook for me and I can guess ahead on about 20 at a meal  70+20=90). I would like to get my average back up to about 90 grams a day ( calories should come up to about 1,000 too). I feel better and my loss is better with higher protein. Also while I am at improving, prior to surgery I was drinking 120+ oz of water a day, now its 60-70 oz WHATS UP WITH THAT CHRISTY!!!! My nutritionist told us Protein burns off the fat ( so keep Protein up) but water flushes it out ( so drink drink drink ) My goal is to get my water back to at least 100 oz a day. I know this is doable I just have to focus on it.
I start with a running group tonight. Its an 8 wk program, 3 days a wk ( M,W, and F.) doing C25K. My goal is to get my running speed more consistent through out the whole 5k. My next one ( 5K) is in Aug I want to be able to RUN the whole 5k no walking.

                                                  HAPPY MONDAY!!!!

Color Vibe Run!!

We were up bright and early this morning. My husband and daughter went to cheer me on. I met up w Hollee and her friends. (Never found my cousin or other bandsters I knew would be there :-() we made it out in the first heat.  It was a cross country run. I was not really prepared for that , I am rather uncoordinated and running through a farm is not ideal. But I did it safely!  Yay me. And NO slower than on the treadmill so I was thrilled w that , I was worried I'd be a lot slower on off road terrain. It was a great morning for it very over cast, but no rain, so cool for a Carolina day in June. Here are some pics from before and after the run!

Waiting and Blogging

So I'm waiting for my husband to come out of surgery so I thought I'd blogg...
How about ....what a good bandster takes to eat, to the hospital for a day of sitting and waiting. Well hubby could not eat so I made sure to drink my breakfast protein shake on the way to the gym this am as to not eat in front of him.  I packed to take w me a small cooler bag in my purse a cheese stick, a protein shake, a water bottle w crystal lite and an ice pack.. and a 2nd water bottle in the side of my bag so I am hydrated and got my protein:-) love being prepared ..plus who wants to eat hospital cafeteria food anyways...lol

Happy Wednesday Weigh In!!!

Todays New Weight 216.1 That is 5 LBS this week and  56.9 LBS in all! WOW ... Back on track and loving it. I love my little routine and so does my body. I have figured out what works for me and if I am not in that routine boy can I tell a difference!
Also today I am in a pair of size 12 pants ...say WHAT????? I have been blessed with a LOT of hammi down clothes multiple sizes that the OCD in me have sorted my item and size in bags in my closet so last night just to see how far away from a 12 I was ,I pulled the bag of 12 pants out and started trying them on... I cant wear them all BUT I got in and fit comfortably in 4 pair... I almost sat down and cried.
So that brings me to this, if you are local to me in NC ( Triangle Area) and want to start a clothing swap or something similar let me know (christyflick@yahoo.com).. currently I can wear from about 3 sizes hoping to close that gap to 2 shortly ( 12 and 14 from 16, 12 and 14) crazy the difference in fit btwn one brand and another in ladys clothing... Hubby can go in any store and get anything of the rack with out trying on and knows it will fit... not the case with us girls :) oh well..

So this Saturday is the COLOR VIBE run in Raleigh. I am so excited not only bc its my first 5 K but bc I get to meet a  fellow bandster. Someone that has quickly become a friend with out us ever meeting and who has been an awesome support to me on my journey. If you dont know Hollee from Hollees Weight Loss Adventure check out here Blogg http://holleealexandria.blogspot.com/.. I encourage you, if don't have a support group to attend reach out and try to find a local band buddy, someone that knows what you are going through and the challenges. They are truly a wonderful support.

And in honor of Saturdays Run!!!

In my case a LOTTA Sweat...

Hey Dad if you read this Cousin Nicole is in the Color Vibe Run Sat too... Will be a lot of people there so not for sure I will find her but I will try !

3 weeks survived and goal weigh in

Well we survived. It was a ruff 3 wks btwn ER visits to Tropical Storms dumping 5+ inches of rain on us and killing 4 chickens, to a wicked wind storm that toppled trees and left us with out power or water for 48 hours but we made it and hubby is now home :)
My goal was to be at 217 (11 LBS ) when he made it home and I am at 217.6 THAT IS CLOSE ENOUGH FOR ME:) I am thrilled with that.

So I am a prepper. I dont like to be with out a game plan or be prepared for something.( I was prepared for power outages, but food wise I guess it was from prior banding...lol) SO lets talk about how to eat "banded" with out power or water... Something that NEVER crossed my mind till last week, but we were only with out power 2 days. Others storms recently have left parts of the country with out power much longer...So I eat my protein first right?? meat??? Nope no fridge.... basically leaves Tuna in a pouch which is fine for a meal or 2 I normally eat it daily at lunch at work anyways not sure I want it 3 times a day tho.... Cant do yogurt?? No cottage Cheese or string cheese?? No Protein Shake unless you mix with water instead of milk ( imo gross)... I guess I could make some powder milk and use that next time....Dinner out, DONT BRING LEFT OVERS HOME, no fridge... no power...
so over the next week or so I will be getting us prepared with some MOMMY food for power outages. I like to have a plan it makes my life so much easier :)
Fellow banders if you can think of good High Protien NON Refrigerated Foods ( that does not need to be heated) feel free to leave a comment, I would love to hear what you would use!

Weigh In Wednesday week 10

I cant believe its been 10 wks since I had surgery. I am still learning everyday.
Also cant believe how hard that last 3 wks have been and how much my WL has slowed down. This week I weigh in at 221.1 that is a 1.3 Lb loss since last Wed and  I know that is a loss BUT....( I know 1.3 is not bad just not what I am used to)
Anyways I have been eating like crap, not bad food, or too much food

 or anything, but just way not enough calories, everyday for now 2 1/2 wks and I guess its catching up with me add that to the fact my body is used to being in the gym 1 1/2 hrs every afternoon and its just not a good combo for me...But I will take my 1.3 Lb loss it brings my total to 51.9.... no way I will hit my goal of 217 by time he gets home but at least I tried and I did loose while he was gone no gains.

Next time he leaves for a long stretch we will have a better plan.. I will have him freeze some meals prior or have someone lined up to help with the cooking since its become quite obvious that is just NOT my thing 5 dinners so far and only 2 have been eatin by the PEOPLE in the house... but the dogs are loving it.... trying again today will see.... I mean to be fair to me I can reheat a frozen dinner or make a packaged dinner like a champ but that stuff is not good for you and even before WLS I could not handle the sodium that came with that kind of food. But anyways we all have our weakness's and um this is mine.

Flash back

Remember this pic from February. . Was my "before" pic...

today I have similar clothes on jeans and black top so my daughter re- took that pic

 

 

 June 10, 2013

 

Still a long way to go but  I am final seeing the progress, and I had not "seen" the progress until the last couple week. So exciting. I hate to have my pic taken especially full body shots like this but I am glad I have them so I can compare when my mind plays tricks on myself :)

2 wks down One to go

Finally we are in the home stretch.. hubby will be home in a wk, and we are SOOOO ready. We miss him tons plus its so much extra work for me and my daughter with farm chores on top of our normal daily chores/work/school. But K is officially out of school for the summer so that will save about 20 min in the morning of drive time for me driving her to school. So I will be able to use that time to do the Jillian Michael 30 Day Shred DVD ( only 22 min :) )
 I know I said I was giving up on cooking till he gets home ( since he is the cook and I just well... CANT) ..well my loving mom lent me one of  her crock pots and I have made 2 edible meals this week in it and another scheduled for tomorrow... Thank goodness.
I am not sure I will make my goal of 11 LBs by time he comes home but we will see, as of this morning I was still  about 6 away, I have had a hard time get enough calories in daily for the last 2 wks and have not been in the gym enough. I truly believe the band in just ONE tool in my WL journey, for me to have descent WL I must work out hard daily and when I dont my WL stalls ( as has been the case the last 2 wks)
5K update - My 5K is in 2 wks... I cant wait I am so excited. I wont be the fastest there by any means and will have to walk  ( fast walk but still walk) for a good bit BUT I will finish. And it will give me a base time to work for all future runs to aim to be faster in... I did run a whole mile today straight... I know that is not a big deal for some but for this pudgy girl from JOCO its a Big Deal!! Would have gone more but the treadmill I was on decided I was done and shut completely off and I could not for the life of me get it back on. So I jumped on the elliptical before my heart rate dropped back down.
Any ways thats all my updates for right now :)

Inspirational Thoughts!

The following are random reminder to myself.
Hope you enjoy and Happy Friday!

                                                 Love That And So True!

                            Nope Not At All.... 50+ Pounds Heavier. Was in the Gym 3-4 xs a wk ... miss it and no big deal. Eat what I want when I want how I want.. Today 50 Lbs lighter setting better examples for my family with my CHOICES. Make excerise a DAILY event 7 days a wk, If I miss I dont just feel bad my body feels bad... Below example... a pic from Christmas ( 6 months ago)

                                      And Finally I am stronger today than yesterday and tomorrow I will be stronger than today. I will keep moving foward on this journey.

Lets see talk exercise

Or the lack there of...for the last 2 wks I have been really missing my gym time. I have only made it to the gym once since hubbys been gone. We have made it to the park several times to run/walk the 3 miles in prep for my 5k in a couple weeks, but still not the same I miss my 90 min of cardio daily... any hoo I still have a wk to go before Matt comes home so I thought I need to find something I can do at home around all the farm chores, daughter, and work etc.. I know LBG loves her Jillian Michaels 30 day shred so I picked it up this evening. I could do 95% of it... knee hurt a little during the jumping jacks but that was about it... I sweated as much as I do in they gym... it was a great all over work out ...my goal is to do it daily, even once he comes home since I don't do any strength at the gym.

Weigh In Wednesday Wk 9

Happy Hump Day! Only 12 more days till Hubby is home again.. thank goodness!!!

Weighing in today at 222.4 that is 2 less than last week and I have finally officially crossed the 50 LB mark ( 50.6 to be exact)....YAY!!!!

OK so that leads me into what does 50 lbs look like in the real world...
well our chicken feed comes in 50 Lbs bags....
 200 dollars in quarters is about 50 Lbs
2 25LB bags of potatoes are 50 LBS
and I gotta share this pic

that's 50 LBS of Cat...poor kitty ( pic found online not my kitty...lol)
I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday!

A little shopping

Friday night I was husband-less and kid-less ( she was at a sleep over) so me and my mom got together for dinner and some shopping... I was in desperate need for some new bras. Ive lost WAY too many inches to have been trying to rig my old bras to work. Also found me a new outfit for work. Thankfully I work in a pretty laid back place and Ive been able to conceal the fact Ive been wearing yoga pants to work every day since surgery by wearing a nice shirt with them. Anything with a real waist that is not stretchy still bothers me for long period.. I mean I can run to the store in a pair of jean, maybe an hour, but anything longer than that and I am uncomfortable and the pants aren't tight the waist band is just not soft and stretchy.. Any hoo... I ended up with a new pair of capris (stretchy waist...lol) guess what size they are.. nothing ending in a W.... not even an XL... just a L... awesome huh and a cute tank to go with them also size L.. so proud of myself :)

So after a great shopping weekend, this week I am having to remind myself of the above pic...
It is so stressful while hubby is gone, I am pretty much living on shakes bc I am a crappy cook... I mean I can cook any boxed dinner in the grocery store or frozen dinner but those aren't good for you and not how I am used to eating Matt cooks everything from scratch but I don't know how to do that... the 2 times Ive attempted to cook since he has left has gone dreadfully wrong so I am not going to attempt again. ..Then I am washing dishes this morning and my daughter comes in flustered...One of the chickens died last night ( part of farm life true but Matt takes care of that not her) so here we go, her in her school clothes, me in my work clothes, to dig a whole hopefully deep enough no neighborhood dogs will dig it up...while we are doing that our little dog ,who wants to eat all chickens broke his lead and decided to "excersie" all the birds by chasing them all over the yard .... One of those days you just want to sit down and say REALY!!!! But going to think happy thoughts and get over it only 12 more days after today :)