Current Favorite Food

Hello! I'm still here. I've lost just under 5 lbs since going back to meetings. I am so happy to be attending again since they really help me stay on track.

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I figured that I would share with you a current favorite food I got from my Mom. She mixes a serving of low fat cottage cheese (2 pts) and veggies together with a dash of Lawry's seasoning salt. She likes to use celery and peppers but I truthfully can't stand either uncooked so I add in cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and the Lawry's.

It took some courage on my part to try this new creation but I have had it everyday since. For only two points it is pretty filling. You can really load up the cottage cheese with a ton of veggies for no added points to bulk up this up for a meal or snack. I almost triple the amount of food I'm eating rather than just having 1/2 a cup of CC. Cottage Cheese also has a great amount of protein and fat that will keep you full longer.

I have been working really hard lately to grow my real estate business. I am doing so by building a network of people who will hopefully refer deals to me someday. You may be asking yourself what does this have to do with Weight Watchers? Well the best most professional way I can see building a business relationship is by sitting down to a cup of coffee. I have made it my weekly duty to have at least four cups of coffee a week while still count my points and lose weight. To some of you this may be no problem but to me who loves a frozen coffee from our local coffee shop that is 6 of my 22 daily points. I have also had to start straying from my local coffee shop because everyone knows exactly where a *tarbucks is since there is one on every corner. I have finally figured out how to have a "cup of coffee" at every appointment without sacrificing my daily points and without having caffeine since I weaned off about a year ago.

Unsweetened Tazo iced passion tea!

Yummy, doesn't taste like tea and it can be sweetened with splenda without adding calories. It is also about 1/2 the cost of my typical coffee drink. I've enjoyed it so much I buy the tea to brew at home when I need something sweet but don't want to waste calories.

Weight check in

I've been attending meetings again for three weeks now and as a way to check in I've listed my weight loss stats.

1st week only .2 lbs lost because of muscle growth

2nd week lost 2 lbs!

3rd week lost .6 lbs

I had a crazy week and only got in 1 full day of point counting so the loss was a shock to me

The grand total lost is 2.8 lbs in three weeks

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To wrap my head around this number I asked my husband to pull out some of his weights. The 2.5 pound plates weighted much more than I would have ever imagined. Mentally thinking about the fact that it would be my ideal to lose 10 times the weight of the two plates seems so mind boggling to me. I guess even .2 lbs can add up each week!

How to burn 4800 calories in a day

Today I burned 4800 calories or 71 activity points.

You may wonder how I did it, first know it took 9 hours and I'm absolutely exhausted.

I climbed from where the photo was taken to the peak on the left, back down to where they meet and over to the peak on the far right...

Then from there we headed to the peak in the middle of the photo below.

Then on to the peak in the middle of the photo below and all the way down.

If your counting that is a total of four 14ers today. (14er is a mountain over 14,000 feet)

I did it all with my little brother, so great to get to spend all day with him.

Climbing even one of these is so physically demanding that you must almost constantly be eating and drinking to keep your energy up. Between Gatorade and Peanut butter today alone I burned 26 point. While I didn't "count points" before I ate them I've added up what I've eaten and I still have about 50 activity points left. I'm not sure how this is going to affect my weight in tomorrow but we will see. Can't get much worse than my .2 loss last week.

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I have to say one of the best side effects mentally of climbing 14ers is seeing how much your body needs calories and carbs for energy.

Sun Dried Tomatoes

Today at Costco I finally found an item I have been searching for...

Sun dried tomatoes not stored in oil!

If you measure out 1 serving they are 0 points because they don't have the added points from oil. I love throwing these in scrambled egg whites with spinach and a laughing cow cheese. They are also great in a salad.

These are also available in my local grocery and I actually gave in a purchased 2 bags of them this week because I had give up on Costco having them again. I wish I would have waited though because 2 small bags were the same price as about 5 times as much from Costco.

If you have any other ideas of what I could add these too I would love the suggestion.

Adding protein

At last weeks meeting I learned the importance of eating protein and that it keeps up full longer. As I am reincorporating it back into my major meals I am realizing how true that fact is. It can be hard to do at first though because these items can be higher in points because of fat.

One of my favorite ways to add meat lately is to add cut up 1 point of deli turkey to a salad with 2 points of light ranch or light blue cheese dressing. For three points I love it and it keeps me full!

eTools

Now that I have the Weight Watchers monthly pass I have eTools as well. If you have it and are interested in being friends on it find me under mrsjcrew. Hopefully I'll see some of you there!

Remembering how far I've come

I went to my 2nd meeting this week and was disappointed that I only lost .2 lbs. I am trying to remember that I made a ton of changes to my body this week and it may take it a little bit to know that it is going to continually be feed still. I also only counted points 4 days before weigh in. I thought that three intense workouts would counteract this though.

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When I have bad days like that I need to remember exactly how far I have come on Weight Watchers and how far I can go still. I recently came across a photo I had untagged on Facebook about 3 years...

aside from finding bronzer I can tell a huge difference

Still a ways to go though, I cut out my less than trim arms.

What's different this time

Yesterday I was reading through my old posts and realized how many times I've mentioned that I'm back. This time I truly believe is different simply because I'm approaching it differently.

Last time I focused only on counting points but now my priorities are counting points, eating better foods, running and lifting weights. I know that sounds like a lot of changes at once but I have realized I am an all or nothing girl.

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Attending meetings and paying for them myself (last time a friend did) also makes a huge difference. I am racing to get to the finish faster so I can spend the money in other ways once I hit lifetime membership.

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Last time I attended meetings I very rarely worked out and I didn't always make wise decisions about what I ate as long as it fit into my points. One of my almost daily favorite things was 6 point coffees that are now a rare treat on a super busy day. Before I also figured I would add fitness in once I got to "that" point but my focus wasn't strong enough to make it to that imaginary point. I am hoping to see results faster this time and have that be an inspiration to keep up with ALL of the hard work.

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An example of eating better than before. I'll post more about this gross looking thing soon, just know now though it is Yummy!

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Are you an all or nothing person like me or are you a one step and a time or I'll burn out person?

Back to meetings

So I have a little bit of news for all of you followers.

I have started attending the Weight Watchers meetings again and I am really excited about them! I think they are the motivation I need to get to my goal weight. I will share more soon with you. If you are stuck though like I was it is worth the $4o for the monthly pass!

3 weeks

So we are back from vacation and I am finishing up day 4 in a row of counting points. It's been a rough month for counting points but I am so happy to be back.

I read an interesting article today in the doctors office about losing weight, it said that fad diets work only because you lose water weight at first. I think we all know that but it went on to say that you don't actually start losing fat until around week three. It motivated me to think of weight watchers differently than counting points when it is convenient. To continue losing I need to step it up and stick with it. So much easier to type than actually do.

We have a big Music Festival coming up in three weeks where I will run into so many people so that is great motivation to stick with it for at least the next three weeks.

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Do you need a goal or upcoming event to motivate you or is the lose enough?

Cucumber sandwiches

I have a new favorite that is only 2 points...

I put ww cream cheese (1 pt) on a 1 pt bagel thin and top it with slices of cucumber and salt and pepper. So yummy, light and fresh!

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I had something almost identical at a lunch I attended and loved it so much I figured I would make it but for as little points as possible. What favorite have you made work into your daily points?

Fitting in more veggies and fruits

Lately while counting my points I have been working really hard on eating as many fruits and veggies as possible. I normally throw away the tub of spinach from Costco when I clean my fridge every two weeks but last time I almost finished it. I bought another one a few days ago and it will be gone soon! It is a little bit of an adjustment to add so much fiber to your diet but it is well worth it. I also get to eat so much more food because they are so low in points and so filling. I am actually having trouble getting in all my points by the end of the day.

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To give you an idea of what I'm talking about here's what I ate yesterday...

2 coffee

3 big spinach with fat free Italian, turkey bacon and hard boiled egg

2 bagel thin with cream cheese

1 string cheese

0 green beans

2 granola bar

1 prunes

2 scrambled egg whites with spinach and sun dried tomatoes

1 cut up apple with cinnamon and sugar

0 grilled peppers

0 V8

1 popcorn

1 superfood juice (1/2 serving watered down)

2 coffee

1 grapefruit

Fast, easy and only 2 points!

Sometimes you have to celebrate the small things and today I am celebrating the fact that I was able to count my points yesterday! The first day is the hardest and now I am past that. I woke up feeling proud and ready to start counting again today.

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I started the day with my typical cup of coffee and decided I was in the mood to make something special so I made an egg white omelet. Basically I scrambled 3 egg whites with a little water added instead of milk. At the very end I threw in a handful of spinach and some sun-dried tomatoes and let it cook just till the spinach wilted. I threw in a light laughing cow cheese wedge and stirred till it was melted. The tomatoes were my favorite part. The fiber from the spinach and tomatoes makes it pretty filling. Easy and gourmet for only 2 points!!

Typical Day

I was asked what I typically eat in a day so I figured that I would share what I am planning for today. I really believe planning every point you are going to eat that day keeps you on track better than winging it. I have found that keeping track in the notepad part of my iPhone works the best for me, most phones have these now I believe. Why not have it with you at all times.

The top part is what I have already eaten and the bottom is what I have planned for the day. I move them around as the day goes on. They don't need to be eaten in that order but having a list makes it so much easier.

Wedding Weight

It's been a month since I've posted and that generally means one thing, life got in the way and Weight Watchers took a back seat. The best part though is that today is a new day and you don't have to start a process again just start counting points.

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Last week I had a doctors appointment with a doctor I hadn't seen since right before we got married, as soon as the nurse had written down my weight I asked if she had my last weight from my last visit. I was down 4 lbs from my wedding weight! This may not sound like a lot but I was also pretty happy with the way I looked at my wedding. I really didn't start gaining weight until after we said I do. I also had been terrible about counting points so I knew I was a few pounds heavier than I could be.

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Weight Watchers really does work if you stick to the program and count every bite that goes into your mouth.

Winner of the giveaway

Finally getting around to posting the winner of the giveaway!

The lucky winner is

Kathy!!

Please leave me a message with your address so Progresso can send you the prize.

Progresso Soup Giveaway

If you were to ask me if I could only eat one type of food for the rest of my life the answer would be simple for me, SOUP! I love it and could really eat it everyday. When I started Weight Watchers I had a hard time finding soups that were low in points. I was so excited when Progresso came out with their line of Weight Watcher’s soups. I could have a cup of soup that ranged anywhere from 0 - 1 point. The way that I have found most successful for me to stick to my points and not be hungry is to eat small meals and tons of 1 point snacks in between. The 0 point options were perfect on days when I was out of points and still needed something. Both are a great option that really felt more like a meal than a snack. Yesterday I heated up a cup of the 50 calorie onion soup and shredded a light string cheese in it for a lighter twist on french onion soup!

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Here’s your opportunity to try the soup for FREE!

Just leave a comment before March 6th for one entry and become a follower for another. If you are the winner Progresso will send you two cans of soup, a mug and a jump rope. For an even bigger prize visit www.Progresso.com/SouperYou and enter to win their Souper You contest for a chance to win an all-expense paid makeover trip to New York City.

I’m sure that some of you have already figured out how great the Progresso soups and for those of you who haven’t make sure to add them to your grocery list.

(Thanks to Progresso for providing this giveaway!)

Goals

I just realized it has been 2 weeks since I have updated. Two posts ago I talked about trying to get back to 150, since then I have hit my goal. It feels great to be back there and know that any more lost will be real progress rather than losing weight for the second time. I have been really constant about getting in miles every week but I realized unless I am counting points I don't lose weight. It is just too easy to overeat after working out. I was getting in 20 miles a week but staying the same weight.

Remember when I set the goal of getting new shoes before the end of the year? I got them Middle of December and have already put 100 miles on them!

Stay tuned because I have a giveaway coming very soon!

Starving today

4th day in a row counting points, it's also the first day of these that I have not run & I am STARVING. I was talking to my sister in law today I mentioned this to her, she told me that when she gets home from a run she is starving. Her husband on the other side is just like me and exercise makes him less hungry.

Are you like me or my sister in law, more hungry before or after a workout?

my journey

I have been talking a lot about weight loss and tip but I haven't shared my journey with you in a while. I have done a really good job about keeping the weight off over the past year but truthfully I haven't done a great job at losing any additional weight. We have been trying for a baby and it is a hard time to try and lose weight. There is the few day ttc window and then the two weeks of waiting. Every month it feels like your life is put on hold just in case this is the month. The last thing I wanted to add on top of that is counting points and worrying about what you are eating. Basically I have counted points about 1-3 days a week. Every month when I discover I am not pregnant I am somewhat relieved because I selfishly don't want this to be my pre pregnancy weight. I have determined this though... I eat 10 times better when I am counting points. If we are pregnant counting points is good because I am constantly keeping my blood sugar regular and eating real foods not fast food.

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There's the excuse here's the facts, I have gained about 6 lbs recently over what I consider my lowest recent weight, 150. Luckily in the week and a half since discovering this I have lost three of these lbs! I try and get in 3,000 to 3,500 cal of workout every week and follow my points 5- 6 days a week. Some weeks it is going to be less than that but that's ok. (3,500 cal is equal to 1 lb.) Maybe dropping some more weight will be just what we need to finally get pregnant and if not then it will have other benefits.

Donuts

I have joined a new site to track/motivate my running/walking it's called daily mile. The site has an interesting section in it (you may have to click to enlarge)...

Did you see the silly thing?

After 90 minutes of running/walk in the snow (much harder) I only burned 5.10 donuts, crazy. Another reason to count points rather than just work out to lose weight. Because seriously how long would it really take to eat 5 donuts rather than burn them off?

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If you want to friend me on there my name is simpleyeclassic (no T) same as my Twitter account. (It may be easier to use my e-mail, mrsjcrew@yahoo.com) I would love to see as many of you as possible on there!