Day 19,20,21, & 22: Did anyone miss me?

First Day of School and my son's First High School Football Game!

(My son is # 74 on the 50 yd. line)

I've been missing my Blog for a variety of reasons, but the main one is that I somehow acquired a corneal abbrasion and couldn't really read for a few days.  Much better now that I've seen the doctor! So, I somehow managed to lose a half of a pound yesterday despite the fact that it was my mom's Birthday and I went out to eat for Lunch & Dinner with her to celebrate.  I suppose getting my workout in counted for something.  Does anyone know the best time of day to exercise?
It seems to me that I try to get a workout in the morning and then if not I can always try to get some sort of walk or exercise in during the evening.

Day 17 & Day 18: Weigh-in

Officially, it has been 4 weeks since my weight loss plan started. I hit this high number on the scale right before I went on vacation to the beach, not good!  What was even worse was I discovered that I was practically the only person wearing a one piece suit!  I decided to be more careful with my meals on vacation and exercise at the resort's gym, I was pleased to see when I got back that I lost weight! Which has to be a first on vacation!

So my weigh in yesterday was 7 lbs. loss. (1.75 lbs. a week) To celebrate I made Lasagna (Eggplant Lasagna substituted with Portabella Mushroom, kudos to Previouslyplump.blogspot.com for posting her recipe of Eggplant Lasagna).

Today, still getting kids ready to go back to school.  They finially go back on Monday, Aug. 30th.  So today will be backpack shopping.  So maybe some Mall walking for me.

Day 16: mini-TRIATHLON

A 45 work-out at the gym and then my 13 y.o. daughter who is not back a school yet decided we should do a MINI-TRIATHLON. Which was about 1/4 mile run (i'm not a runner) a mile bike ride (ill-fitting bike with almost flat tires,don't think I'll be investing in any fancy pedals Tish) and 6 laps in the pool (She won finishing her laps as I approached the pool). Followed by chin up contest from the diving board. She won 28-22 chin ups. Overall a fun thing to do!
Hope everyone had a successful day.
Liz

Day 15: No exercise :(

A sedentary day of meetings and driving.  Will make a change for tomorrow! No excuses!
Liz

Day 14: Impatience vs. Staying the Course

Ok, scale is shifting one way or the other.  Light work out today and good food choices.  Preparing for  committees as school is almost back in session.  Not much else to report on...Good night.
Liz

Day 13: Take Two

So, 2 parties all summer, both in the same night.  Last night I ate lightly before I went to the parties then I only at healthy choices.  I came home last night and entered all the healthy choices and they added up to about 700 calories.  I didn't go over my total caloric intake for the day, but I was very surprised at what everything added up to when I thought I wasn't eating alot! 

Then back to the gym this morning, followed by working a 4 hour shift selling hotdogs, brats, & burgers at a booth for Boy Scouts.  I didn't eat or drink any booth food-yeah! 

Then came home to "take two" of my sister-in-law's photography shoot of all the recipes for her soon to be published book Living in the Burbs and Cooking My Way Back to Sanity.  Another challenging night of avoiding devilish appetizers & desserts.

I'm surrounded by food!  Yikes!
Liz

Day 10, 11, & 12

I haven't fallen off the wagon.  I had 2 days of Migraines and 1 day to recover.  I finished my 4 day Jump Start Plan from the Flat Belly Diet !  I don't reccommend it-way to harsh.  I think it didn't have enough calories and made me weak and suffer from Migraines.  However, I will say this, I don't crave everything I see now.  I'm back in the gym after at 3 day break!  Hope everyone has a great weekend.
Liz

Day 9: Catching up on 1st Season "Lost" episodes with my daughter.

So, I've been putting off my post today because I had a migraine and a stomach ache most of the afternoon.  The recovery period was laying on the couch watching Lost with my teenage daughter.  I did manage to wake up early and get to the gym before my migraine set in after noon.  I believe the trigger might have been this Jump Start diet plan that is pretty dismal.  I'll have to re-evaluate tomorrow.
Good night everyone,
Liz

Day 8: Week 1 - Weight In

Well, I've been pretty focused on eating the right things & right amounts along with daily exercise.  My scale showed 1 pound loss.  But if I keep in mind that I really started exercising and watching what I ate on the day I left for a Beach Vacation on July 30th then I've lost a total of 5 lbs. in 2 1/2 weeks.  So I refuse to quit!!  A friend loaned me her copy of the Flat Belly Diet and it gives you a 4 day Jump Start plan so I started today.  The food and this Sassy Water (ginger, cucumber, lemon, and spearmint soaked water) is pretty dismal but it claims that you can lose around 4 lbs.  The most successful diet I was on a few years back was LA Weightloss (then they went bankrupt), anyway they had this pretty similiar Take Off plan for 2 days.  I think it just somehow let's your body and brain know that you mean business.  So, I'm determined to give it a try.  I'll keep you posted.  Anyone out there have any luck with the Flat Belly Diet?
Liz

Day 7: Monday

I suppose I survived last night's feast (11 recipes soon to be published in my sister-in-law's book Living in the Burbs and Cooking My Way to Sanity) Ok, this is the thing, we are all very excited about the book and I didn't want to detract by discussing my weight loss plan.  So as much as possible, I exercised portion control and completely stayed away from the appetizers and the desserts.  The scale wasn't all that sympathetic this morning!  Which I didn't think was playing fair.  I've decided to only weigh in once a week and to quit expecting results overnight. 
Today was back to the gym, healthy meals, work, and back to blogging.  I think I'll plan an after dinner walk.
Everyone have a wonderful evening!
Liz

Day 6: Sunday's S.O.S. Shout out

Yesterday's reward was to take my work out after the gym to the Pool and then to soothe my muscles in a hot tub. What a treat! Then last night I dodged a high calorie dinner out by ordering a seared Tuna steak and only eating half. So now I'm on a statiomary bike and anticipating trouble as my wonderful sister-in-law who is about to Publish her hilarious book entitled: Living in the Burbs and Cooking My Way to Sanity is coming over tonight with 11 of her recipes to photograph and then devour. WHAT DO I DO?
Help!
Liz

Day 5: Saturday

Up early again for Bootcamp! Still thinking that I need to mix up my work outs. My arms are feeling it today, so I'll focus on legs. Scale showed some progress today, I think I'll need to reward myself (massage, pedicure, some non-food reward).
Everybody have a great day.
Liz

Day 4: BOOTCAMP

Yesterday was a great day! To follow up on yesterday's tip-I bought Stevia (the natural sweetener) at GNC only to find out an hour later that it's half the price at the grocery store (oh well).Anyway,I tried it in my coffee with a little coconut milk and it was good, also put it in my Oatmeal. Good investment.

Since I'm waking up early everyday to bring my son to football,I decided that this week is bootcamp! Which also means I need to shake up my exercise a bit and bring it to the next level. Wish me luck in Amy's "Core and more" class that starts in a couple of minutes.
Liz

Day 3: Liz Weight Loss Journal

Yesterday was a good day, but man I was worn out. I brought my kids out for frozen yogurt, I had a half cup which is 0 fat,100 cal + fresh berries. So for today up at 6:00 as yesterday (remember my son needs a ride to football practice). I made a bowl of oats & green tea again instead of latte (but I miss my coffee). I found this article from Mike Geary's newsletter author of the Truth About Six Pack Abs.
"But instead of loading up the coffee with lots of sugars and chemical-laden artificial creamers, what we've been doing at the cabin we're staying at is using a can of coconut milk as our coffee creamer and using stevia for the sweetener.
The coconut milk is a healthier alternative because of the healthy fats, specifically the medium chain triglycerides (MCTs) it contains, which support your immune system and are a type of fat calories that are readily used for energy."

So, I'll give it a try and let you know. Have a great day.
Liz :)

Day 2: Liz weight loss journal

Yeah! Early results (always good feedback). The scale this morning was 1 whole pound down! And yeah, I know you aren't suppose to weigh everyday-but I usually do anyway. So on this Blog, I am going to try to employ and share some new weight loss "trick" each day. Today's tip is foods that are natural metabolism boosters. Green tea is know for this,so instead of having my traditional latte this morning I substituted for a cup of green tea. Drove my son to his Z am football practice wearing my workout garb and now I'm on the elliptical and blogging (multi-tasking). Recently a supportive friend told me told me to eat within a half hour after waking up,so I poured boiling water into a half cup ofOats sprinkled with cinnamon and ate them when I got to the gym.OK-now I'm going to finish my 30 min workout, drink water and move along to the rest of my day. By the way, I feel great and it's only 7:30 am. More to come

Help-It's still day 1

I all but finished posting my first Blog entry and the doorbell rang-My family just ordered a large Imo's Pizza unbeknown to me!  OMG it looks good with sausage, mushrooms & bacon.  I'm trying to dodge the bullet. I quickly made a lettuce salad with a balsamic vinegar dressing, had a peach, and a few slices of fresh turkey from the Deli...Whew.

My personal weight loss journal (Personal enough for the whole world to see)

Ok, so once again I am 20 lbs. overweight.  What to do?  Do I sign up for Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, by some new weight loss book?  A half hour ago, I was one keystroke away from buying The Truth about Six Pack Abs for $40.  Then I decided on the key elements of a successive weight loss program and decided I already know most of them:
1. Be Accountable - record what I eat & what activities I do
2. Support - This is usually the "nice" consultant at WW or LA Weightloss (that is now out-of-business)
3. Spreading out small portion control meals/snacks throughout the day
4. Fat burning exercise (which can be anything from walking the dog to bootcamp)
5. Drinking lots of water (have to stay hydrated in the heat of summer anyway)
6. Overall eat less calories per day than you burn (but don't starve your body)
7. Learn what type of foods work for you to loss weight and to be healthy (avoid fried foods, hydrogenated oils, etc)
8. Eat a balance of Fruit, Vegetables, Protein, Dairy, & Fats
9.  Have a positive approach :)
10. See the results!

So today is day 1 of my Blog "Liz is losing weight!" - Like the positive approach? So I have a personal food/activity journal that I keep in my purse (I'm not going to bore you with each bite I take-but more on that later) and I have #2 solved my support is all of you readers.  So please be supportive and share your tips.  I will share what I read, past experiences that work and don't work for me, and how I try to implement all of the above key elements.  My goal is to lose weight and not spend an arm & a leg joining a weight loss program.  Please follow my progress-more to come.  Remember your my support!
Thanks,
Liz