A Hippo with a Headband: Challenges

Showing posts with label Challenges. Show all posts

Showing posts with label Challenges. Show all posts

Friday, October 14, 2011

The Best Gift Challenge - Week 4

The challenge has begun! I'll be posting my weekly updates every Friday to link up at Less of Me, More of Him on Saturday. Here are my weekly goals:

Continuing my daily prayer and Bible study time,
Continuing to lose weight by staying true to my Weight Watcher's plan,
Preparing and eating healthy foods everyday,
Exercising consistently,
Hydrating properly each day,
Taking time to rest throughout the day and get enough sleep at night,
and Setting aside time to play and laugh with my husband and son each day.

I stayed on plan this week and cooked one meal that consisted of more than eggs or tuna. I hydrated well but slacked on my exercise {again}. I am doing okay on sleep because I am feeling sick, but I do need to relax more. I also want to spend time playing cars with my son. My husband and I have been cuddling on the couch while I work on blog designs and he plays classic video games.

So, this week I need to work harder at:

Cooking more nightly meals
Unwinding at night so I can get better soon
Finding a specific exercise I can do every day
Playing cars and legos with my son during the day

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Christmas Dress Countdown Week 6

My Weight This Week: 210.8 lbs {down 1.6 lbs since my Sept 4th beginning weight of 212.4}
Dress Size Today: 18 Woman
Book I'm Using: Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst
My Caloric Limit Progress: I did well this week. I'd like to have had more weekly points at the end of the week, but I did not go over so that is good. By the way... I was looking at my WWers print outs and each of the two times I went off plan it took me an entire month to get back to where I was before the gain. NOT COOL JEANNETTE! As my hubby said when I told him this realization..."So stick to the plan..."
Exercise This Week: I've been working on getting more walking in. I've been feeling sick and dizzy for a couple weeks and now I have a scratch in my throat so I think a cold is coming. I just need to focus on taking care of myself and doing all I can do... and not letting myself slack because I feel a little under the weather. I know my limits and I need to push them, not just say "well I only walked 1,000 steps today because I was sick." Even sick I know I can do 3-4,000 steps. So, take care of myself but don't let it become an excuse.
Number of Days This Week I Drank at least 6 Glasses of Water Each Day: Every day. I have changed my number to 6 glasses a day because that seems to be all I need. {Sorry for TMI... but my urine is a healthy color and I don't feel thirsty during the day so I guess 6 is a good number for me right now. I'll make it higher as I begin to work out... and sweat... more.}

I'm linking up here for the Christmas Dress Countdown! Check out all the other contestants and see how they're doing this week.

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Saturday, October 8, 2011

Challenges - Weeks 3 & 5

I'm combining my challenges this week because it was an awful week. For one, I don't feel like making the same post twice and two, I'd rather not dwell on it. I went off the Weight Watchers plan this week. I was hungry all day, every day this week so I ate too much and made bad decisions on food choices. I gained this week and am not happy with myself. I really need to start exercising everyday and planning out my meals from now on so I don't have another week like this one. I was sick to my stomach all week yet still hungry so I reached for breads and sweets. I'm hoping it's just PMS and that this week I won't be so hungry all the time. Anyways, here are my stats for this week. Regular posts will resume next week.

UPDATE: My week ended just as fun as it began too... *dripping sarcasm* Last night I all of a sudden spiked a fever, got the sweats and chills, felt nauseous and faint, had a mini panic attack over it all, and my blood pressure shot up to 150/101 while my pulse dropped from my normal 100 beats a minute to 55. It was not a fun night... but I am feeling better this morning and am not ravenous so I think whatever it was has passed.

I'm linking up at Less of Me, More of Him this Saturday. Here are my weekly goals:

Continuing my daily prayer and Bible study time, (Not every day)
Continuing to lose weight by staying true to my Weight Watcher's plan, (Nope, went over)
Preparing and eating healthy foods everyday, (Nope, did not cooking besides making eggs)
Exercising consistently, (None this week except one day when I worked on the craft room)
Hydrating properly each day, (I did okay here, but still not stellar)
Taking time to rest throughout the day and get enough sleep at night, (Nope)
and Setting aside time to play and laugh with my husband and son each day. (Did okay here)

My Weight This Week: 211.4 lbs {down 1lb since my Sept 4th beginning weight of 212.4}

I'm linking up here for the Christmas Dress Countdown! Check out all the other contestants and see how they're doing this week.

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Saturday, October 1, 2011

Christmas Dress Countdown Week 4

My Weight This Week: 210.2 lbs {down 2.2 lbs since my Sept 4th beginning weight of 212.4}
Dress Size Today: 18 Woman
Book I'm Using: Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst
My Caloric Limit Progress: I think I did okay this week. My numbers add up so I don't know if I measured wrong or if I'm just bloated. It's a small gain so I'm not worried about it.
Exercise This Week: I'm still unpacking boxes and moving furniture trying to get the garage cleared out for the car. I have not found a new consistent workout to do when I'm done getting the house in order. I also need to set aside a specific time to work out, do my Bible Study, and relax so I get all three in every day.
Number of Days This Week I Drank 8 Glasses of Water Each Day: 3 Days. The other days I was 1 cup shy of 8, but I'm eating lots of fruit every day so I'm not surprised I wasn't thirsty.

I'm linking up here for the Christmas Dress Countdown! Check out all the other contestants and see how they're doing this week.

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The Best Gift Challenge - Week 2

The challenge has begun! I'll be posting my weekly updates every Friday to link up at Less of Me, More of Him on Saturday. Here are my weekly goals:

Continuing my daily prayer and Bible study time,
Continuing to lose weight by staying true to my Weight Watcher's plan,
Preparing and eating healthy foods everyday,
Exercising consistently,
Hydrating properly each day,
Taking time to rest throughout the day and get enough sleep at night,
and Setting aside time to play and laugh with my husband and son each day.

Today is not a great day... right now it's not even an okay day so this is going to be short and sweet. I did okay on all my points this week but each needs improvement this week. I gained although I don't think I went off plan this week. Either I miscalculated some portions or I'm just bloated. It's a small gain so I'm not really worried about it. I haven't prepared any meals this week that were more extensive than eggs or tuna. I have been moving and lifting heavy things, but still no actual work outs. I need to set aside a specific time for working out, Bible study, and relaxing... I'm just having trouble waking up early enough to do those things before Little Bit starts his day.

So, this week I need to work harder at:

Cooking nightly meals
Unwinding at night so I can fall asleep at a healthy hour
Making sure my portion sizes are correct
Finding a specific exercise I can do every day

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Saturday, September 24, 2011

Christmas Dress Countdown Week 3

My Weight This Week: 209.4 lbs {down 3 lbs since Sept 4th}
Dress Size Today: 18 Woman
Book I'm Using: Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst (First update on this book soon... I kinda misplaced it. I have the DVD ready to go though. lol)
My Caloric Limit Progress: I stayed within my weekly points this week with 20 of my 49 weekly points left. I went a little over my daily points each day. According to the WWers scale I lost 0.8lbs this week. I know I can do better if I add exercise to my weight loss plan.
Exercise This Week: I've been unpacking boxes and moving furniture trying to get the garage cleared out for the car before it snows (tomorrow btw...) and trying to get the craft room ready. It's been a good workout, but not consistent and when I'm done getting the house in order I need something to do. Today I bought a mini trampoline, pink 6lb ball, and pink 5lb kettle bell. Pink exercise equipment sees more use than non pink. lol My yoga mat and favorite sports bra are pink too! :0P
Number of Days This Week I Drank 8 Glasses of Water Each Day: 4 Days. I did quite a bit better this week on getting my water in. I've also been eating about 4-6 cups of fruit a day so there's lots of fluids in those as well.

I'm linking up here for the Christmas Dress Countdown! Check out all the other contestants and see how they're doing this week.

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The Best Gift Challenge - Week 1

The challenge has begun! I'll be posting my weekly updates every Friday to link up at Less of Me, More of Him on Saturday. Here are my weekly goals:

Continuing my daily prayer and Bible study time,
Continuing to lose weight by staying true to my Weight Watcher's plan,
Preparing and eating healthy foods everyday,
Exercising consistently,
Hydrating properly each day,
Taking time to rest throughout the day and get enough sleep at night,
and Setting aside time to play and laugh with my husband and son each day.

I've gotten back into my morning Bible study time routine and it's helping so much with my energy and motivation throughout the day. I am still doing well following my Weight Watcher's plan and I lost another pound this week. I got my 10lb sticker today and next week I should be getting my 5% goal! Even with my gain the week I went off plan I have lost nearly 11 pounds in 10 weeks! I am officially in the single digits and am getting so close to being under 200 I can smell it!!!

Still need to drink more water and fix some better meals each night. I've been getting about 6 of my 8 daily cups of water. I am still lacking in my daily exercise. I've been working on unpacking more boxes and getting the craft room set up so that's some good exercise, but when I'm done there I'll need something I can do everyday. Finally, I need to spend some more time relaxing and bonding with my husband this week. He's been so busy at work and I've been going nonstop trying to get the house completely unpacked and decorated that we haven't been spending any time connecting.

So, this week I need to work harder at:

Drinking 8 glasses of water a day
Cooking nightly meals
Unwinding at night so I can fall asleep at a healthy hour
Spending some quality time with my husband each night
Finding a specific exercise I can do every day

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Saturday, September 17, 2011

Christmas Dress Countdown Week 2

My Weight This Week: 209.4 lbs {down 3 lbs}
Dress Size Today: 18 Woman
Book I'm Using: Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst
My Caloric Limit Progress: Last week I didn't use even ONE weekly point! I stayed within my daily limit every day this week and it. was. hard. I was hungry everyday, but I lost about 1/2 a pound more than usual. Even more important, I proved to myself that I had the discipline to do it! This week I plan on keeping my weekly points usage to a minimum.
Exercise This Week: Lots of walking. I ended up with a cold last week which kept me in bed for 3 days but I was able to walk at least. I think I'll try swimming this week if I can figure it into Little Bit and my schedule. We don't have childcare for him so I'm having to find a time when DH is home and the pool is open.
Number of Days This Week I Drank 8 Glasses of Water Each Day: 1... I have actually never done that badly but because I normally flavor my water and it costs 1 point I haven't been drinking as much as I should have. I've been getting 5-7 glasses each day. This week should be better.

I'm linking up here for the Christmas Dress Countdown! Check out all the other contestants and see how they're doing this week.

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Friday, September 16, 2011

The Best Gift Challenge - Beginning Week

The challenge has begun! I'll be posting my weekly updates every Friday to link up at Less of Me, More of Him on Saturday. Here are my weekly goals:

Continuing my daily prayer and Bible study time,
Continuing to lose weight by staying true to my Weight Watcher's plan,
Preparing and eating healthy foods everyday,
Exercising consistently,
Hydrating properly each day,
Taking time to rest throughout the day and get enough sleep at night,
and Setting aside time to play and laugh with my husband and son each day.

I've been lacking in my morning Bible study time. These last couple of mornings I have gotten back into my routine and I plan to stay to it this week. Starting my day off talking with God and taking the time to read His word and listen to what He wants me to do with my life really gives me to strength and motivation to make it through my day. I have been doing really well following my Weight Watcher's plan and it's showing. I look better, feel better, and the number on the scale is dropping. I was even in the single digits a few days ago. I hope to see that loss stay on Saturday, but I know that day by day my weight will fluctuate so I won't be devastated if I'm still 210. My clothes are fitting better and that's something big!

I've been eating and drinking alright this week, but I really could drink a couple more cups a day and fix more elaborate meals than tuna or eggs. I really need to work on my daily exercise. I'm getting about 4-6,000 steps a day but I need 10,000 to be healthy and I really need to add some strength training. My Dr says it's good not only for weight loss and heart health, but for my sex drive too which has suffered for years. We're tracking my hormones right now to see if that's the culprit. {Whole other story though.. I'll elaborate on my journal blog, Half of Me, later in case you are interested in hearing what I'm going through.} Finally, I have been doing alright playing with my son and spending time with my husband and relaxing, but this too could use some work.

So, this week I need to work harder at:

Drinking 8 glasses of water a day
Cooking meals that consist of protein, dairy, grain, fruits, and veggies
Unwinding at night so I can fall asleep at a healthy hour
Spending some quality time with my husband each night
Exercising every day and trying to get 10,000 steps in

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Sunday, September 4, 2011

Christmas Dress Countdown Week 1

My Starting Weight for CDC 2011: 212.4lbs
Size of Dress I'm Aiming For: 18/16 Juniors {not Woman's}
Book I'll Be Using: Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst
My Caloric Limit: Sticking to my Weight Watchers' allotted points
Exercise I Plan to Do at Least 3x Per Week: Walking, Yoga, and maybe add in Swimming and/or Zumba
Number of Glasses of Water Each Day: 8
My Goal Dress: This isn't quite a Christmas time dress, but it is one that I own and would LOVE to fit into. It's a 1950's style dress which is an era I just adore! I can do up 5 out of the 10 buttons right now.

As you can see I can't button up all the way and it's VERY snug in the hips.

This dress is also very snug across the rear and back/bust areas. I would also like to work on my upper arms so they look slimmer and more toned when I am ready to wear this sleeveless dress.

I'm linking up here for the Christmas Dress Countdown! Check out all the other contestants and see how they're doing this week.

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Tuesday, August 30, 2011

Give Yourself the Best Gift

Because you can't have enough personal challenges and accountability with Halloween candy, Thanksgiving pumpkin pie, and Christmas feasts on the horizon... I am also joining up with Thrice Blessed of Less of Me, More of Him for her Give Yourself the Best Gift Challenge. You can read all about it here:

Here are my statement and action plans for this challenge:

This holiday season I want to give myself the gift of good health. I plan on accomplishing this gift by:

Continuing my daily prayer and Bible study time,
Continuing to lose weight by staying true to my Weight Watcher's plan,
Preparing and eating healthy foods everyday,
Exercising consistently,
Hydrating properly each day,
Taking time to rest throughout the day and get enough sleep at night,
and Setting aside time to play and laugh with my husband and son each day.

Click the button above to join me in the challenge!

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Christmas Dress Countdown 2011

Now that Slimmer this Summer, which was hosted by Debbi of Debbi Does Dieting and Mir of Two Years to Happy Weight After, Mir is hosting a new challenge to fit into that elusive Christmas dress. Her Christmas Dress Challenge 2011 is just in time for all those fattening holiday foods and thankfully I have been graciously accepted into the challenge! Our goal is to continue making responsible and healthy decisions about the foods we eat and the amount of time we are active during these upcoming holidays. Here's how we plan on doing it:

Between September 11th - and December 18th {14 weeks total} the participants will be linking up to the official Christmas Dress Countdown 2011 site once weekly on Sundays to track our progress in these areas:

Fitting into a smaller dress, skirt, or pant size. My goal is a dress. Picture coming soon!
Sticking to a daily caloric limit. I will be following my Weight Watcher's guide and staying within my points each week.
Exercising a minimum of 3 times per week. This will be the hardest part for me but I am determined!
Striving to stay consistent in our eating and work out plans. Consistency is the key to weight loss that makes it a life long change.
Hydrating sufficiently. I really need to keep up with this one. Water and sleep are needed to lose weight and keep it off. I am lacking in both.
Working through a weight loss book to learn and keep motivated. I will be going through the Bible Study Made to Crave by Lysa TerKeurst.
Posting twice a week: once for official updates and once for issues, progress, epiphanies found along the way. I have been in a posting slump. You may have noticed my last... oh 10 posts... have been Motivation Monday. Not too motivating is it? Well life has calmed back down again so I need to get in the habit of posting more. I plan on posting to this blog a few times a week with two challenges, Motivation Monday, and some interesting/educational posts for you as well. In addition I now have a journal blog where I will be jotting down ideas and thoughts on weight loss as they come to me. That blog will be more personal and less informational. I'll debut it very soon.
Finally be supportive! Weight loss isn't fun or lasting without the support of friends in your day to day life and online as well.

Some other suggestions Mir has for this challenge include:

Using our online gifts to help others whether it is posting yummy, healthy recipes, encouraging friends, or researching weight loss trends to post about.
Be quick to bounce back. We all have setbacks in life and especially in weight loss. Just shrug it off and keep on trucking. I went off the Weight Watchers' Plan for one week and it took me two weeks to lose that weight I gained, but I now weigh less than I did before and I learned a lesson from it.
Prep your house for healthy eating and exercising. Get rid of the fatty, sugar filled foods that temp you at every turn and set apart an area to do work outs at home when the winter months get too cold to be outside.
Build up your faith in yourself. Whether you think you will succeed of fail, you are correct.
And of course consult a professional before starting any workout or diet routine.

To see all the info Mir has for this challenge or to join up, go here!

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Sunday, August 28, 2011

Motivation Monday, August 29

Motivation Monday

Welcome to Motivation Monday! I will be chronicling my journey back to a healthy body, mind, and spirit. Each week I will discuss how the previous week was and set some goals for the next week. I will also be listing my progress. If you would like to see past progress you can click on the Motivation Monday photo above for other Motivation Monday posts. If you would like to get motivated with me please link up your post using the link form below. Your post can be in any format you want.Whether you are trying to get healthier physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually or if you just have a task you need some motivation to complete...please link up so we can help support each other. I would love to hear about your progress and help keep you motivated!

Healthy Steps:

It took me two weeks to lose the weight I gained back the week I went off the Weight Watchers plan. That'll teach me to go off plan! I am so glad I finally found something that works for me. I wish I were losing more and 1lb a week, but that's more than I've been losing for a year so I'll take it! I've been bouncing around 220 since February 2010. This last month and half that I have been on WWers I have lost every single week (that I was on plan lol). I've also started tracking my steps on WWers which is making me walk more each day. I am doing pretty well getting at least 3,000 steps a day. That is still fairly sedentary though. I'd like to be getting at least 5,000 steps a day.

I'm also linking up to Slimmer this Summer for the last time. It was so wonderfully hosted by Debbi and Mir. Mir is starting a new competition called Christmas Dress Countdown and Less of Me, More of Him is hosting Give Yourself the Best Gift. {Which we all know is good health!} Motivation Monday will continue as it always have and I'd LOVE for you to keep linking up each Monday.

Slimmer This Summer Goals:

Track my calories and use proper portion control {Check}
Exercise at least 10 minutes per day, preferably more {Doing better finally.}
Drink at least 6 cups of water per day working my way up to 9 (48 ounces minimum) {Check}

My Weekly Weight Watchers Progress Report:

{The orange thing is a multi-vitamin. I have trouble taking mine. They make me sick. I need to find another brand. The drop is healthy oils. I also have problems with this one since I don't cook with oils, but I need healthy fat to lose fat so I need to work on that too.}

My Numbers

Green is Improvement, Red is Bad, Mmkay?, Blue is Stayed the Same

Weight -213.4

Body Fat % -50.1

Water % -37.2

Muscle Mass % -33.9

How did you do this week?

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Saturday, August 20, 2011

Motivation Monday, August 21

Motivation Monday

Welcome to Motivation Monday! I will be chronicling my journey back to a healthy body, mind, and spirit. Each week I will discuss how the previous week was and set some goals for the next week. I will also be listing my progress. If you would like to see past progress you can click on the Motivation Monday photo above for other Motivation Monday posts. If you would like to get motivated with me please link up your post using the link form below. Your post can be in any format you want.Whether you are trying to get healthier physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually or if you just have a task you need some motivation to complete...please link up so we can help support each other. I would love to hear about your progress and help keep you motivated!

Healthy Steps:

I lost almost everything I gained last week. I started doing a morning yoga routine that lasts 20 minutes. It's pretty challenging, but not too hard as to leave me tired the rest of the day. I have found that I can lose about 1 lb per week with diet alone. Maybe with this daily yoga routine and the neoprene waist minimizer I'll see more weight loss next week. I have lost 3 inches off my waist in the last month and half since starting Weight Watchers. That's not too shabby!

I'm also linking up to Slimmer this Summer hosted by Debbi and Mir. Join us!

Slimmer This Summer Goals:

Track my calories and use proper portion control {Check}
Exercise at least 10 minutes per day, preferably more {Doing better finally.}
Drink at least 6 cups of water per day working my way up to 9 (48 ounces minimum) {Check}

My Weekly Weight Watchers Progress Report:

{The orange thing is a multi-vitamin. I have trouble taking mine. They make me sick. I need to find another brand. The drop is healthy oils. I also have problems with this one since I don't cook with oils, but I need healthy fat to lose fat so I need to work on that too.}

My Numbers

Green is Improvement, Red is Bad, Mmkay?, Blue is Stayed the Same

Weight -214.8

Body Fat % -50.4

Water % -37.1

Muscle Mass % -33.5

How did you do this week?

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Sunday, August 14, 2011

Motivation Monday, August 15

Motivation Monday

Welcome to Motivation Monday! I will be chronicling my journey back to a healthy body, mind, and spirit. Each week I will discuss how the previous week was and set some goals for the next week. I will also be listing my progress. If you would like to see past progress you can click on the Motivation Monday photo above for other Motivation Monday posts. If you would like to get motivated with me please link up your post using the link form below. Your post can be in any format you want.Whether you are trying to get healthier physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually or if you just have a task you need some motivation to complete...please link up so we can help support each other. I would love to hear about your progress and help keep you motivated!

Healthy Steps:

Well, I gained this week but you know what? I don't really care. I knew I would after spending 3 days snacking while I wasn't counting my food. On the fourth day I decided I needed to start tracking again. The good news here is that I know the Weight Watchers plan is working for me, I just need to stick to it. Every week I have followed the plan I have lost. That is the most consecutive losses each week in the last 3 years {counting the times when I had surgery and lost weight over a few weeks}! I am excited to see how I do next Saturday since I am back on the plan and doing well. I'm still struggling a bit with my daily exercise, but since finding my FitBit pedometer tracker in my purse I have been walking more each day. {I thought I lost it when I flew to take LB to his surgery.}

I'm also linking up to Slimmer this Summer hosted by Debbi and Mir. Join us!

Slimmer This Summer Goals:

Track my calories and use proper portion control {Check}
Exercise at least 10 minutes per day, preferably more {Still struggling with this, but I am walking more during my days since finding my FitBit pedometer again.}
Drink at least 6 cups of water per day working my way up to 9 (48 ounces minimum) {Check}

My Weekly Weight Watchers Progress Report:

{The orange thing is a multi-vitamin. I have trouble taking mine. They make me sick. I need to find another brand. The drop is healthy oils. I also have problems with this one since I don't cook with oils, but I need healthy fat to lose fat so I need to work on that too.}

My Numbers

Green is Improvement, Red is Bad, Mmkay?, Blue is Stayed the Same

Weight -214.2

Body Fat % -50.7

Water % -36.9

Muscle Mass % -33.5

How did you do this week?

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Sunday, August 7, 2011

Motivation Monday, August 8

Motivation Monday

Welcome to Motivation Monday! I will be chronicling my journey back to a healthy body, mind, and spirit. Each week I will discuss how the previous week was and set some goals for the next week. I will also be listing my progress. If you would like to see past progress you can click on the Motivation Monday photo above for other Motivation Monday posts. If you would like to get motivated with me please link up your post using the link form below. Your post can be in any format you want.Whether you are trying to get healthier physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually or if you just have a task you need some motivation to complete...please link up so we can help support each other. I would love to hear about your progress and help keep you motivated!

Healthy Steps:

First off, today is my husband and my 3rd wedding anniversary and we're having cake of some sort! And that is okay. This is our first anniversary spent together. I did really well last week and hit my 5lb milestone since starting Weight Watchers. Next is my 10lb which might also be my 5% goal milestone! I actually lost 6lbs at the last meeting since beginning a month ago and my 5% goal is 11 lbs.

This coming week is going to be a bit of a challenge on me. For one, I am NOT tracking my food this week. I've been tracking every morsel that has crossed my lips for about 5 months now and at times I feel as though all I think about all day is food. I have decided to take a chance and concentrate on good portion control and exercise. I've really been lacking in exercise and I think it's what I need to get through to the big number losses each week that I know I am capable of. My plan is to take some "me time" in the evenings and go to the gym while the hubby and baby stay home. Now that I'm losing weight I feel it is time to do some weight lifting. Plus, I always feel on top of the world after I've finished lifting weights! I could use some of that feeling to help me push through the cardio.

I'm also linking up to Slimmer this Summer hosted by Debbi and Mir. Join us!

Slimmer This Summer Goals:

Track my calories and use proper portion control {Check}
Exercise at least 10 minutes per day, preferably more {Need to do this daily, not huge chunks only on the weekend}
Drink at least 6 cups of water per day working my way up to 9 (48 ounces minimum) {Check}

My Weekly Weight Watchers Progress Report:

{The orange thing is a multi-vitamin. I have trouble taking mine. They make me sick. I need to find another brand. The drop is healthy oils. I also have problems with this one since I don't cook with oils, but I need healthy fat to lose fat so I need to work on that too.}

My Numbers

Green is Improvement, Red is Bad, Mmkay?, Blue is Stayed the Same

Weight -213.8

Body Fat % -50.5

Water % -37.1

Muscle Mass % -33.6

How did you do this week?

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Sunday, July 31, 2011

Motivation Monday, August 1

Motivation Monday

Welcome to Motivation Monday! I will be chronicling my journey back to a healthy body, mind, and spirit. Each week I will discuss how the previous week was and set some goals for the next week. I will also be listing my progress. If you would like to see past progress you can click on the Motivation Monday photo above for other Motivation Monday posts. If you would like to get motivated with me please link up your post using the link form below. Your post can be in any format you want.Whether you are trying to get healthier physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually or if you just have a task you need some motivation to complete...please link up so we can help support each other. I would love to hear about your progress and help keep you motivated!

Healthy Steps:

I competed in a 5K race on Saturday! It was challenging, but I came in at 00:59:38 which is just about right for a 20 minute mile. I jogged a couple of times and power walked most of it. I had to walk normally for a bit while my breathing regulated and calves burned something fierce, but I didn't stop and that was a great accomplishment for me. I really wanted to take a break a little after half way through but DH helped me push through it. I snapped at him a couple times, but he understood. We have differing styles of encouragement when it comes to working out. I need calm, supportive, and uplifting encouragement whereas he needs someone to motivate him to push through it and go harder and faster. Overall it was a fun event. AND I lost 2lbs afterward, probably from sweating! It's pretty hot even up here in Alaska, comparability speaking. I think it feels hot here at lower temperatures because our blood is thicker and we are physically closer to the sun, plus it never sets in the summer so the Earth here doesn't have time to cool down over night.

It's getting into fall now though, so I need to start working on getting exercise indoors again. That's a hard thing for me to do since I associate our living room with eating (our dining room and living room are one big room), working, and playing with our son. I get very distracted and can't make myself put in a workout video or do Wii Fit.

I'm also linking up to Slimmer this Summer hosted by Debbi and Mir. Join us!

Slimmer This Summer Goals:

Track my calories and use proper portion control {Check}
Exercise at least 10 minutes per day, preferably more {Need to do this daily, not huge chunks only on the weekend}
Drink at least 6 cups of water per day working my way up to 9 (48 ounces minimum) {Check}

My Weekly Weight Watchers Progress Report:

{The orange thing is a multi-vitamin. I have trouble taking mine. They make me sick. I need to find another brand. The drop is healthy oils. I also have problems with this one since I don't cook with oils, but I need healthy fat to lose fat so I need to work on that too.}

My Numbers

Green is Improvement, Red is Bad, Mmkay?, Blue is Stayed the Same

Weight -214

Body Fat % -50.5

Water % -37.1

Muscle Mass % -34

How did you do this week?

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Sunday, July 24, 2011

Motivation Monday, July 24

Motivation Monday

Welcome to Motivation Monday! I will be chronicling my journey back to a healthy body, mind, and spirit. Each week I will discuss how the previous week was and set some goals for the next week. I will also be listing my progress. If you would like to see past progress you can click on the Motivation Monday photo above for other Motivation Monday posts. If you would like to get motivated with me please link up your post using the link form below. Your post can be in any format you want.Whether you are trying to get healthier physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually or if you just have a task you need some motivation to complete...please link up so we can help support each other. I would love to hear about your progress and help keep you motivated!

Healthy Steps:

My loss this week wasn't stellar... but it was a loss. I believe this is the longest streak of losses yet. I need to add some more exercise into my week to boost my losses again. I ate all my weekly points this week which I didn't want to do. I need to monitor my foods better this week. I have found out that even if I eat all my daily and weekly points I'll still lose weight, just not much. Let's work on getting more exercise and make better choices with my points.

I'm also linking up to Slimmer this Summer hosted by Debbi and Mir. Join us!

Slimmer This Summer Goals:

Track my calories and use proper portion control {Check, but can do better}
Exercise at least 10 minutes per day, preferably more {Need to do this daily, not huge chunks only on the weekend}
Drink at least 6 cups of water per day working my way up to 9 (48 ounces minimum) {Check}

My Weekly Weight Watchers Progress Report:

{The orange thing is a multi-vitamin. I have trouble taking mine. They make me sick. I need to find another brand. The drop is healthy oils. I also have problems with this one since I don't cook with oils, but I need healthy fat to lose fat so I need to work on that too.}

My Numbers

Green is Improvement, Red is Bad, Mmkay?, Blue is Stayed the Same

Weight -216

Body Fat % -51.1

Water % -36.5

Muscle Mass % -33.2

How did you do this week?

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Sunday, July 17, 2011

Motivation Monday, July 18

Motivation Monday

Welcome to Motivation Monday! I will be chronicling my journey back to a healthy body, mind, and spirit. Each week I will discuss how the previous week was and set some goals for the next week. I will also be listing my progress. If you would like to see past progress you can click on the Motivation Monday photo above for other Motivation Monday posts. If you would like to get motivated with me please link up your post using the link form below. Your post can be in any format you want.Whether you are trying to get healthier physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually or if you just have a task you need some motivation to complete...please link up so we can help support each other. I would love to hear about your progress and help keep you motivated!

Healthy Steps:

I can't explain how other than that they reward you for eating good foods... but Weight Watchers is really working for me! Calorie counting was good, but with the points system I can eat more of the good for me foods without going over my calorie goal. I think before I was just eating to my calorie goal but not eating healthy, filling foods. I lost another .8lb this week for a total of 2.8lb loss in the last two weeks. I can't wait for my weigh ins each week and the ladies at my meetings have some really good ideas to share. Now to implement them into my cooking... I really want to try spaghetti squash and see if the hubby can tell the difference. I couldn't when my mom fixed it for the first time. I'll make sure to let you know how it turns out!

I'm also linking up to Slimmer this Summer hosted by Debbi and Mir. Join us!

Slimmer This Summer Goals:

Track my calories and use proper portion control {Check}
Exercise at least 10 minutes per day, preferably more {Almost - Not every day but I made up for it}
Drink at least 6 cups of water per day working my way up to 9 (48 ounces minimum) {Check}

My Weekly Weight Watchers Progress Report:

{The orange thing is a multi-vitamin. I have trouble taking mine. They make me sick. I need to find another brand. The drop is healthy oils. I also have problems with this one since I don't cook with oils, but I need healthy fat to lose fat so I need to work on that too.}

My Numbers

Green is Improvement, Red is Bad, Mmkay?, Blue is Stayed the Same

Weight -217.4

Body Fat % -51.3

Water % -36.5

Muscle Mass % -33.1

How did you do this week?

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Sunday, July 3, 2011

Motivation Monday, July 4

Motivation Monday

Welcome to Motivation Monday! I will be chronicling my journey back to a healthy body, mind, and spirit. Each week I will discuss how the previous week was and set some goals for the next week. I will also be listing my progress. If you would like to see past progress you can click on the Motivation Monday photo above for other Motivation Monday posts. If you would like to get motivated with me please link up your post using the link form below. Your post can be in any format you want.Whether you are trying to get healthier physically, mentally, emotionally, spiritually or if you just have a task you need some motivation to complete...please link up so we can help support each other. I would love to hear about your progress and help keep you motivated!

Healthy Steps:

I went to my first Weight Watchers meeting this week. It went pretty well. With jeans and a tank top on I was 2.8lbs heavier than naked so that's not bad. I'll still be using my NEKED weigh in on here and my clothed one on WW site. I held steady this week and gained last. I hope to see a nice loss this week. Even though I didn't lose, just knowing I am sticking to a plan that has worked for millions is keeping my hopes high. As long as I can stick to their science then I know it will work. Oh and y'all had some questions (which btw I had as well) and I got some answers at my meeting. The reason fruits are free is because they calculated their carbs and sugars into all the other foods you'd be eating in a day to leave you room to eat a full days' worth of fruits without using points. Make sense? The other foods' points are slightly higher than they should be to compensate for free fruits and veggies. You still have to eat mindfully to satisfaction and not fullness.

I was also very confused about the weekly points allowance. I thought Why don't they just give me more daily points and leave it at that?, but there are two reasons for it. One, if you eat only your daily points you will lose weight. If you eat your daily points and ALL your weekly points you will still lose weight, just not as quickly. And the reason for making them extras is so you can choose when to use them. Daily points don't roll over. I have one day to eat 35 points and I need to get as close to that mark as I can since much lower than that and I won't lose weight because my body would think I was starving. Remember my first week when I felt soooo hungry? That's why. lol I was eating junk for points. The weekly points can be used any time through the week. You can use them each day to have your sweets or chips, or you can use them all in one day for a b-day party for example. It really makes more sense to me now that the leader sat down and explained the science. Wish me luck for next week!

I'm also linking up to Slimmer this Summer hosted by Debbi and Mir. Join us!

Slimmer This Summer Goals:

Track my calories and use proper portion control {Check}
Exercise at least 10 minutes per day, preferably more {Almost - Not every day but I made up for it}
Drink at least 6 cups of water per day working my way up to 9 (48 ounces minimum) {Check}

My Week's Workouts:

June 27 - Crunches to the front and each side (5 mins each)
June 28 - Walking - 25 mins Vigirous housecleaning/moving furniture - 3 hours
July 3 - Light housecleaning/moving boxes - 2 hours

My Numbers

Green is Improvement, Red is Bad, Mmkay?, Blue is Stayed the Same

Weight -220

Body Fat % -52.5

Water % -35.7

Muscle Mass % -33.7

How did you do this week?

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Who I Am

Hi! I am the hippo with a headband. I'm on a mission to get back to a healthy weight. Will you join me on my journey? I am sure it will include some trials, tribulations, failures, tears, great successes, joy, smiles, laughter, fun, maybe even some wit. No matter what, it will be an adventure!

Why the hippo you ask? Well, obviously hippos are round, and I think we can all agree, they are a bit on the chubby side. However, hippos are also surprisingly fast, agile, and fierce animals. They don't give up; they don't give in. Have you ever seen a hippo fight a crocodile? Oh, and they sweat my favorite color, Pink! {It's a natural sunscreen. How cool is that?} Plus, they are my favorite animal EVAR!

I'm dressed out in my yoga pants and sports bra; my hair is pulled back in a pony tail; and my headband on! So let's get started!

What have I got to lose besides a couple dress sizes?