Weekly Wrap-Up: 1/29-3/4

February 4, 2012 by 2 Comments

I’ve decided I really like the weekly wrap-up posts!  I’m going to try to make them a regular thing- I like being able to post random things without making a whole post about them specifically. 

This week was so weird for me.  I was tired, grouchy and just felt really off all week.  I kind of felt like I was just going through the motions this week.  But this week officially starts over today and I declare next week awesome!

Weekly weigh- in!

Last week’s weight: 174.6
This week’s weight: 175.2

Change this week: +.6
Total weight lost:  34.8 lbs!!

Meh.

Haircut!

I was about 3 months overdo for a cut and color(yikes!) and I was sporting some major white trash roots.  I also hadn’t realized how long my hair had gotten because I’ve been wearing it in a ponytail pretty much every day since November.  But we cut off 5 inches I think?  And it’s still a few inches below my collarbone.  It was just starting to become completely unmanageable with the length and it was always one big mass of knots.  Anyway here’s the new do.  I didn’t do anything new with my color this time, just took some length off!

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Let’s talk about shoes…

I love them.  I don’t love fashion and I would rather have a tooth pulled than talk about clothes.  I’m just not into it.  But shoes.  Shoes are the only reason I don’t wear wind pants or yoga pants and tees every day.  Can’t wear insanely cute shoes with either of those items unfortunately.  Well I guess you could but it would look pretty weird! Winking smile  Here are just a few of the shoes I wore this week!

Boots!  I love boots!  Cowboy boots?  Yep!  Riding style boots?  Of course!

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Chucks are always appropriate.  As are a new pair of peep toe wedges.

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Recipe Roundup!

Recipes I posted this week!

Spicy Black Bean Dip

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and

Southwestern Salads

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I didn’t really make any other recipes- we had a lot of leftovers this week.  Hopefully I’ll do better with this next week!

 

Workouts…

I was an epic failure on my number of workouts this week.  I have lots of great excuses but I’ll spare you.  But the workouts that I did do were good!

I can’t remember if I posted my long run with last weeks workouts or not, so I’m going to post it again.  (I’m still having some breathing issues.  Dislike.  I think it’s the weather).

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My legs are STILL sore from these sprints- they were killer!  But I think they’ll really help me in the long run!

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Yeah that’s all.  Totally lame.

 

Like I said I wasn’t really feeling like myself this week.  Hoping next week’s wrap-up is a little better!  See ya next time!

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Filed Under: healthy living, recipe round up, weekly wrap up, Weight Loss Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Weekly Wrap-Up: 1/23-1/29

January 30, 2012 by 5 Comments

Hey y’all!  I really meant to post this this weekend but I was super busy so it just didn’t end up happening. 

I decided I would try out a weekly wrap-up post instead of making separate posts for my weigh in, work outs, new stuff I’ve tried, and just general goings-on.  I thought it might be nice if I kind of condense it all.  It’s just an idea, so we’ll see where it goes!

First my weekly weigh- in!

Last week’s weight: 175
This week’s weight: 174.6

Change this week: – .4
Total weight lost:  35.4 lbs!!

I gained about 5 lbs during finals and Christmas break (stresssss) so I decided that I wanted to lose that 5 lbs by the end of January.  And if I made it I would reward myself with something.  I left the reward open ended so that I could choose whatever I wanted when I reached my goal. I doesn’t usually work for me to choose the prize ahead of time because I’ll just end up saying “screw it” and buy the item for myself regardless of the outcome. Anyway the first weigh in of January I lost 4.8 lbs!  And then the second weigh in I lost .2 and then this week, of course, I lost .4! 

About halfway through the month I started seeing people tweet about the Nike Fuel Band.  I was curious about it so I started looking at it.  The more I read about it the more I knew I had to have one!  So since I was so close to that 5 lbs and I was confident I would make it I went ahead and got one when they went on pre-order (they’re not actually available until the end of February).  I’ve now earned my reward and I can’t wait to get it- I think it will be delivered on Feb. 22nd!  I can’t wait to test it out and let everyone know all about it!

Since I did so well this month I’m going to keep my weight loss goal on the smaller side for next month and say that I would like to lose 2 lbs.  That’s 1/2 a lb per week. I think that is attainable but a little daunting since I normally lose .2-.4 lbs at a time.

 

Weekly recipe round up!

This is totally new!  I thought I would talk about recipes/meals I make each week for anyone that was looking for ideas for tasty healthy meatless meals!

So we’ll divide this up into my personal recipes I posted this week…

Barley, Tomato and Arugula salad!

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AND

Chocolate Cupcakes!

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And recipes I made and loved this week! (cell phone pics+ bad lighting. Sorry!)

Veggie Pot Pie stew and sweet potato biscuits from Appetite for Reduction.  The stew was fabulous, but the sweet potato biscuits were not unfortunately

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Tamale Casserole from The Happy Herbivore.  This was delish- the husband was a huge fan!  We served it with some steamed collard greens.

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And I played with a new product called soy curls.  More on this later- I’m planning a whole post about their fabulousness!  I followed these directions and we had BBQ sandwiches out of them served with oven fries!   Will definitely be using soy curls again- so delicious!!!

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And finally let’s wrap up this little wrap up since it’s starting to get kind of long.

 

This week’s work outs!

My runs have been epic failures most of this week but I have been doing some strength training so I’m pretty proud of that!

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This one was HORRIBLE!  I’ve been having such a hard time breathing lately.  I go through this every winter with breathing problems and bronchitis.  Blah. (p.s. thanks for the encouragement Diana and Laura!)

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I was feeling a little better on this one…

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And I finally got a long run under my belt on Saturday!

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This post has gotten longer than planned, so I’ll go ahead and say adios!  Have a great day!

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Filed Under: Menu posts, recipe round up, Recipes, weekly wrap up, Weight Loss Tagged With: , , ,

Fruit the size of my head

January 25, 2012 by 2 Comments

Hey y’all!  I’ve been a horrible horrible blogger lately- I’ve posted maybe once a week for the last couple of months?  I’m going to try to make more of an effort to post more often, and not just recipes (especially since my school schedule is wonky this semester and I won’t have as much time to put into developing recipes.  Sadface.)

School is back in full force.  This semester is so weird.  I feel like my schedule is all over the place and my commute is right during rush hour so it takes me anywhere from 2-3 hrs to get home some days.  And by the time I do get home sitting in bumper-to-bumper traffic for that long leaves me exhausted and all I want to do is go straight to bed.

This semester I’m taking Human Anatomy & Physiology, Bionutrition (which is actually a Biochemistry class), and Literature in Nutrition and Food Science. 

I took a Biology class at the local community class this summer to prep for A&P and I’m soooo glad I did!  I feel totally ahead of the game in my science classes and I’m fairly certain that I’m going to do really well in them! 

My literature class I’m also really enjoying.  We’re learning how to do and present research and today we worked with a research librarian in the library.  I got some really helpful information and I’m pumped to get started on my research projects!  We broke up into groups and started talking about our group research project- I ended up in a group with 2 really great girls and I’m really excited about working with them!!

What else??

I’m going to start blogging my weigh-ins again I think.  Maybe not every single week but sometimes.  It’s going pretty well- I’ve lost almost 5 lbs this month so that’s definitely something to celebrate!!

And just for your entertainment…

Fruit the size of my head!

 

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It’s a Pummelo.  It’s like a grapefruit but a little sweeter.

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Unfortunately it’s got a really thick rind (is that what it’s called?) and inside it’s really only the size of a grapefruit.  And like twice as expensive.  Oh well, it’s still fun to try new things!!

Hope everyone is having a great day!

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Weekly Weigh In: Week 11

September 3, 2011 by 11 Comments

Hey guys!!  I’m taking a break from the computer this weekend, but I did want to check in real quick and do my weekly weigh in.  Mostly because I had a really good weigh in and I’m super pumped about it!

Last week’s weight: 174.6
This week’s weight: 173.4

Change this week: –1.2
Total weight lost:  36.6 lbs

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Yipee!!!  I didn’t really have a stellar week or anything but I guess my body was just being nice to me.  Whatever- I’ll take it!!

This week’s weight watchers meeting was about being successful at the grocery store, which of course, I’m pretty great at!  I was able to throw lots of tips in for other members.  I couldn’t believe how many people went to the grocery store without a plan and then complained about how expensive groceries were! 

I thought I’d share a couple of the tips I shared in the meeting for a successful grocery shopping trip with you!

  • ALWAYS go in with a plan.  Do not go in without a list.  This is when you come out with a gazillion items and nothing to actually make for dinner. 
  • Stick to the basics.  Grocery shopping doesn’t have to be expensive!  We’re on a pretty tight budget- sometimes I’m able to leave the store for $40-$50 with a weeks worth of groceries.  Sometimes it’s a little more. (I don’t use coupons- they’re a pain in the butt to me, but if you can find some good ones utilize them.  Otherwise scour your circulars that you get in the mail and build your meals around what’s on sale that week!) The basics are fruits, veggies, beans, grains, nuts.  Most processed foods do NOT fall into the basics category and you don’t NEED them! 
  • Set a routine. This makes a grocery shopping trip easier.  Here’s my routine… on Saturday mornings I go to my weight watchers meeting, then I go to Barnes and Noble (I usually have an hour and a half to kill between my meeting and kickboxing and B&N is right by my gym) and sit in the café and have some coffee and do a meal plan and my grocery list for the week.  Then I go to kickboxing.  I hit up the grocery store on my way home.  This makes my life so much easier because it’s become part of my Saturday morning routine!

These are just a few tips. I’m sure you guys have plenty you can share with me too- let’s hear them!  I’m always looking for good tips for grocery shopping!!

Hope you guys have a great weekend- I’ll be back on Monday with another great Meatless Monday recipe!

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Weekly Weigh-In: Week 10

August 27, 2011 by 6 Comments

It’s technically week 11, but I didn’t post my last weigh in because I was out of town.  And I was waaaay up the last time I weighed in.

Last week’s weight: 176
This week’s weight: 174.6

Change this week: –1.4
Total weight lost:  35.4 lbs

(My scale at home said 173, but then I went to my weight watchers meeting and their scale said 174.6 so that’s what I’m going with since it’s more official.  I think I might just toss my scale at home since it’s old and apparently incorrect)

 

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I do not like the way my weight loss graph looks at all.  I was rocking it in June and July and this month has not been great.  It’s up and down and up and down.  I would really really like to break into the 160’s.  In fact I’m so ready to be there that I gave myself an incentive since I’m coming up on my 50 lbs lost mark.  I’ve been wanting a Nook pretty badly, but I decided I would wait until I hit that 50 lbs lost.  So that’s my reward!  My food and exercise are all planned out this week and I’m SUPER motivated!

In my weight watchers meeting this week we talked about plateaus.  It was great- it was just what I needed to hear this week!!!

Here are a few suggestions if you’ve hit a plateau…

  • Track everything.  Every little bite and taste- those bites can add up to more calories than you think!  Sometimes you don’t even realize how many small bites of things that you’ve taken until you see it in your tracker.
  • Measure your food.  Don’t eyeball it- it’s almost always more food than you think it is!
  • Don’t fill up on fruit.  Sure, it’s zero points plus, but it still has calories.  And those calories really add up if you’re eating A LOT of the higher cal fruits every day- especially when you’re munching on it when you’re not really hungry (BTW I’m totally guilty of this!).   (p.s. please don’t misunderstand- I’m not saying you shouldn’t eat fruit!)
  • Follow the good health guidelines.  Are you getting in all of your servings of fruits and veggies?  Are you drinking enough water?  Your diet should be centered around fruits and veg, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats.  Keep it simple- often the simplest foods are the healthiest!
  • Are you working out? If you’re not, you should start!  Start with a walk- it’s simple, and it’s free!  If you are working out, perhaps you should bump up the intensity level?  Just a few suggestions for you!

I will definitely be practicing what I preach this week!  Goodness knows I could stand to get out of this freaking plateau- I’m ready for my graph to not look like a roller coaster!

Anyone have any other suggestions for busting a plateau?  Feel free to share!!

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