Added Inspiration!

HA!  You thought I was done already, didn't you?!?!  I fooled you, was just on vacation and amazingly lost 3 lbs while on it!  HURRAY!!  Of course, a lot of stair climbing was involved, so I'm sure that helped a bunch!  But regardless, that is 5 lbs down now!  I plan to definitely keep this ball rolling, just haven't decided what exercise I'm going to go with today... maybe all of them! lol  I've also been thinking about looking into a membership at the local rec center.  They offer child care while I workout and right now, that's sounding like a pretty good idea!

As for inspiration, I know I have many things around me to inspire me, my family, more energy, feeling better about the reflection in the mirror, but I got some added inspiration recently.  Everyone likes to have an extra boost now and again and I think this opportunity will do the trick for me.  An anonymous donor has offered money for each pound lost within a years time.  Of course to go towards a new wardrobe, because hopefully by that point I'll be needing one! lol  A little more inspiration for me is a picture taken of me almost 2 years ago.. down to the lowest I've been in hmmmm... well... A REALLY long time! lol  I was on my oldest daughter's field trip with her, and I just love this picture of us. Not only because its of us, but I also feel I look pretty good in this picture.  Granted, I am not stick thin or anything like that, but it's much better than where I am now.  Now to remind myself to check this post when I'm feeling a little glum!

Getting the Hang of It!

So, I woke up this morning, wanting to dance!  I know, how weird, but great for the motivating factor!  Got all the kids breakfast and decided I'd try to tackle refining my steps while I didn't have little feet under me! lol  I had to take a few seconds in each song to get reacquainted with the steps, but picked it all back up very fast.  I found a different video for Crank That where the guy explains out the steps a little better and in higher volume!  It's actually pretty easy steps, but it's a matter of putting them all together to the faster music.

Had a weigh in this morning.  Not very pleased with the results.  Up 5 lbs from the last time I stepped on the scale... however long ago that was.  I don't know that I want to put my weight here for everyone, but I will say that it's almost as high as my highest point.  And no, that's not bragging.. that's shame.  I've almost gained 40 lbs back from my lowest point (after kids).  I really did want/need a break from being so weight loss, weight loss, weight loss, but I went a tad over board.  Didn't reign in when I probably should have, and overall just enjoyed all the spices of life! lol  To get back on board, I'm taking this one step at a time.  For now, I'll continue my experiment and see if that garners enough weight loss to keep me satisfied.  At least so that I feel better and look better in my clothes!

Dance it OFF! Experiment

Day 2 (8/5/11)

The Experiment:

Learn the dance moves to 7 particular dance songs.  Dancing the songs in a certain, consistent order over time to produce weight loss results. Songs all involve moves to get the cardio working, as well as working various muscles in the body.  The song order is as follows:

1. Electric Boogie -- Marcia Griffiths
2. Cha Cha Slide -- DJ Casper
3. Cupid Shuffle -- Cupid
4. Cotton Eye Joe -- Rednecks
5. Crank That -- Soulja Boy
6. Macarena -- Los Del Rio
7. Thriller -- Michael Jackson

The links with the song show either the original video with the dance moves or a dance instruction video.  Trying to make it easy for you to find some sources if you want to play along with me!

The Results:

Got through the Electric Boogie no prob.  About half way through the song, I started mixing in rolls and tummy flexing moves to try and get a little more work out there.  

Got funky all the way through the Cha Cha slide.  Again I didn't have any children around me when I did this dance, so I was able to work myself more.  Worked up a good sweat, but then had to take a break after the song for children related duties! lol

Can I just say, I was proud to find when I started Cupid Shuffle, I actually ended up with the right moves at the chorus!  Go me!  I grooved to this one, really working up a sweat. I think that was because the children thought it was more entertaining to watch mom do this and not try it themselves!  Luckily it didn't catch their attention for long, so they were on to something else. Took a small break after this, since I know how Cotton Eye Joe can be.

I remembered the steps to this dance, except for the chicken part, so had to reference the video when something felt out of place.  Did all of Cotton Eye Joe, really feeling the burn and sweat after that!  Sometimes, it feels longer than a 4 minute song. lol  Definitely took a break after this song and looked up new tutorials for Crank That.

The new video for Crank That really helped to break down the steps for me.  It's actually pretty easy step wise, just gets more difficult when you put it to the faster beat of the song. Abby, Emma, and Jake wanted to try this one again, so we stepped it out a few times before adding music.  The first 2 times I nailed it!  I was like "Yeah!"   Kind of flubbed up the beginning and in my rush to catch up to the song, I Supermanned my foot right into Catey's belly.  Luckily I didn't get her hard at all, but she was like "HEY!" lol  So after we giggled that off for a minute, we started the music back up and tried again.  The kids kept with me, doing what they could to keep up, and we made it about 2:30 through the song, before mommy was really work out.  I think the Crank That part is what kills the most. lol  Had to sit for a break after this one.  I'm telling you, if you want a work out, try Crank That! lol

The girls were ready for another song to dance to and I needed some kind of cool down, so I taught them the Macarena.  They loved this one because it's so easy!!  The big 3 (kids) and I did the whole Macarena without a hitch!  Then it was time for mommy to relax.  We all were sweating doing the dances, plus the kids were pretty wore out too!  I would call that a good success.  It took half the morning for them to decide they wanted to get back up and play! lol  My face was still red an hour later.. meaning I worked out good too!  Guess we'll find out in a week if it's paying off!

I'm happy to report that I do have someone playing along with me!  She did some Electric Sliding to Shania Twain, while holding a preschooler!  Now I could see where that would be a workout!  I might have to do the Electric Slide while holding Catey tomorrow, just to give it a shot!  I think that would definitely add an arm boost to the dance!

Dance It OFF!

If you noticed, I haven't done a weight loss post in over a year.  I do have a very good reason for that, I wasn't losing weight.  No, not a single pound shed, but several gained as I enjoyed a little time "off of weight loss."  Here lately, it's become very apparent to me, that I need to get back on some kind of routine workout or something.  I think the sudden rash of pictures of me lately really made me see the ballooning effect (as if I didn't know it was already there).  I'll share this with you, just because I think this is the best way to help keep me motivated. Showing off how chunky I am will make me want to work back into some of my cuter outfits!

This is me, with my youngest at The Magic House.  I'm not even going to comment on my looks other than "Bleh."

After having hubby get my treadmill all moved around at our new house, I still haven't been able to bring myself on to it.  I don't know why, but I just keep avoiding it like the plague. lol  I needed some other kind of motivating work out routine.  Something different from the former things I had grown "used" to and "bored" with before.  The fresh idea came from listening to music with my 2 big girls.  They have recently grown fond of the "dance" songs, like Casper Slide and the Cupid Shuffle.  I did one of these dances with the girls this afternoon and afterwards realized I was sweating way too much for one song.  Then I realized, I was sweating way too much for one song!!!  That would be a great work out, it works legs for sure, some arms, some tummy, cardio, etc.  And, I think it's fun.

After doing a little research on the net, I found 7 fun songs to dance to!  So below is a my experiment pattern I plan to try and follow to display my results with the workouts!

Dance it OFF! Experiment

Day 1 (8/4/11)

The Experiment:

Learn the dance moves to 7 particular dance songs.  Dancing the songs in a certain, consistent order over time to produce weight loss results. Songs all involve moves to get the cardio working, as well as working various muscles in the body.  The song order is as follows:

1. Electric Boogie -- Marcia Griffiths
2. Cha Cha Slide -- DJ Casper
3. Cupid Shuffle -- Cupid
4. Cotton Eye Joe -- Rednecks
5. Crank That -- Soulja Boy
6. Macarena -- Los Del Rio
7. Thriller -- Michael Jackson

The links with the song show either the original video with the dance moves or a dance instruction video.  Trying to make it easy for you to find some sources if you want to play along with me!

The Results:

I'm happy to say you could probably call the first go around a success.  I wasn't expecting dance hall fame and didn't get it! lol  It was more a learning of the steps.  Jake, Emma, and Catey all enthusiastically joined me to start out.  

The Electric Slide was something I learned in 7th grade, so as I started watching the video, it all started coming back to me.  Shortly afterwards, I was walking the kids through the steps and the counting, 1.. 2.. 3.. 4.., etc.  They really seemed to like the Electric Slide because its pretty simple.  I like it because I feel it's a very good warm up song/exercise, for the rest to come.  After finishing this song, I was pumped for the next!

Cha Cha Slide is a fairly popular tune that everyone and their mother can dance to.  They give you the dance moves in the song, so basically it's a dance in place until he tells you to go Left, and Back and Hop, and Stomp.  Pretty simple, no explanation needed for this song, the kids got right into doing it.  I danced my booty off to this song, while trying to teach the kids that you move in a square. lol 

On to the Cupid Shuffle.  This is another song where he give the instructions in the song, but unfortunately these don't come until the chorus... the line dancing starts when the music starts.  For reference it's "To the right, to the right, to the right, to the right, to the left, to the left, to the left, to the left. Now kick, now kick, now kick, now kick, Now walk it by yourself"  Basically start those dance moves when the music starts and the walk is when you turn in place to the next direction.  By this point, Catey had long lost interest, Jacob was wore out, and Emma enjoyed the "Kick" part.  By the time I finished this song, I was feeling really winded.  We all "Took 5" and had a drink to regroup.

Cotton Eye Joe was a little more involved.  Emma declared it was too hard for her, but I was determined to get as far through my list as I possible could.  I watched the video and got going along with the frat boys before turning it on.  This was one dance I didn't even remotely kind of learn until a few years ago, so it's not mastered at all.  I played the song to fruition, with a lot of mistakes, but got an amazing work out by the end.  I had to take another break at this point (told you I'm out of shape).

Next was a new dance for me. Jake came back to join in trying Crank That by Soulja Boy.  I had heard the song out, saw people doing the dance, but never really realized it was a "line dance" until I looked up line dancing earlier.  Soulja was nice enough to provide a very low volume video showing his moves to the dance. This is another good cardio.  After Jake and I hopped around for a few minutes practicing, we got to the song.  We made it 1:33 into the song before I called it quits.  I was exhausted.  Again, bad shape on my half, but also, have you tried this dance?!?!  Yeah, I called it a night at this point.  I had to sit. lol  And when I stood up, my legs were Jell-O.  I'd say it worked!

Unfortunately I didn't get to a kind of cool down with Macarena and I definitely didn't get to Thriller.  Thriller is kind of like my reward song.  It's the fun one we all want to learn how to do, so I'll work my way to it.  The goal is to get through the whole play list to get a good work, even better would be to actually look good doing the dance moves! lol 

I plan to not only update this with the dance experiment, but also other weight loss things.  I need to stay motivated.  It's time to finally start losing some of this... finally at the end of Summer....lol  And please, let me know if you want to play along with us!  I'd love to hear the progress and results of others!!

How To Keep From Snacking

Alright, you caught me. I've been avoiding you. You could probably guess why... I've been naughty. My weigh in on Friday reflected my week, no weight lost, none gained. I guess that's ok, but that's not what I want to happen. I want and need those numbers to go DOWN!!! My problem, and yes, I can finally admit it, I snack way too much. I did great Monday. I was out of the shoot like a rocket. Tuesday, I did ok.. Ok. Wednesday, hahahahaha, I was too embarrassed to journal all the food I shoved in my mouth. Then I have the buyers remorse... afterwards. I think to myself, "Why did I just do that?!" "Was I really hungry?"

Most of the time, I would say, "Yes, I am hungry!"

And I was Wednesday. It was the whole, Day 3 back on plan, hungry. But if I answered those questions honestly, the answer for hungry is usually "probably not." The why, to that I would have to say, boredom. I had nothing in my hands or mouth, I found myself in the kitchen again, I grabbed a piece of candy while cleaning, things like that. Sadly, the things I'd pop in my mouth were not the healthy options either.

So all in all, I need more will power. I've been so lax on myself this time around, for some reason. I haven't found the why on that, but I'm guessing the busy schedule. I finished my Creative Writing class last night, which takes a load off. The one thing it did give me is my awesome story I can work on and get finished. Maybe I'll get published... better start looking good for my back cover shot. lol

I've got to work harder on the eating and exercise. I haven't worked out since last week (unless you count the walking around campus yesterday) so I made a promise to myself that I would today. As far as food goes, I need more discipline. I did good yesterday morning and afternoon, but splurged a bit that evening. I'll be home today, so I can watch that. And I did myself a favor. I bought 100 cal pack snacks, fruits, veggies, and other things that a more calorie friendly to me. Thought about cleaning the table off today, but if I dig out the candy bowl I'll be more likely to pick, so maybe I'll just leave that hidden a little longer.

Enough with my rambling, lesson learned, need to apply. On to the ways to stop from snacking. I really need to follow these.

How To Keep From Snacking

Drink Water - I think we've all heard this one. I know we all have heard over and over again like a broken record, "drink more water, drink more water, drink more water." So not only will you be hitting the snack cravings with water, you'll also be drinking more water! What a way to kill two birds with one stone. Even better, I found that adding a packet of Crystal Lite to the water will get any sweet craving you have. My fav is the Pomegranate Lemonade, it's nummy! And who can complain about 10 calories a pack!!!

Chew Gum - The other day, I was getting ready to go shopping. I could feel the afternoon hunger coming on, but I needed to get my shopping done right then. After I popped in a piece of gum, I forgot mostly about my hunger and it kept my mouth busy so I wasn't trying to find things to shove in it. If you don't have gum, then brush your teeth. What food tastes good after you brush your teeth!?

Stay Out of the Kitchen - This would be my #1 problem. A lot of the times, I can't stay out of the kitchen with cleaning, having to stay in there while children eat, walking through there to get laundry and other various things for the children. I am constantly finding myself in the kitchen. It's the times that I realize I'm in the kitchen that I start snacking. If I'm passing through with a full basket of clothes, give myself a list of things to do, or if I'm carrying things in my hands (such as phone), then I'm less likely to pick.

Stock Up on Good Foods - This step involves a little investment, but it will pay off. Go to the store and stock up on fruit, veggies, 100 calorie packs, healthy snacks, water, etc. When you do want to pick and snack, pick and snack on these things. But please make sure not to eat more than one 100 calorie pack in one sitting!

Stay Busy/Exercise - If your always moving, then you're less likely to eat. Like I mentioned above, when I walk through the kitchen with my hands full, I don't snack. Don't just sit idle (especially in the kitchen), move! Go exercise, that's even better! Then, not only are you curing the boredom/hunger, but you're burning calories! WIN/WIN!

Think About It - As your scavenging through the cabinets and candy dishes, stop for one minute and think. Ask yourself a few questions, "Am I really hungry?" "Do I really need to eat this?" "Are there better options for what I'm about to eat?" "How am I going to feel when I'm done eating this?" "Why am I eating this?" I can guarantee in most instances, if you stop and think about the snacking, then you'll walk away. Need more motivation? Try on your favorite pants. Are they snug? If so, then work to make those comfy. If not, then go buy a smaller pair of pants to work to!

Plan Your Meals - I've been guilty of just going off the fly here lately. Especially with all the homework I've had, I usually don't think about dinner until dinner time. It seemed like there was an Italian theme in my kitchen last week, because it was all pasta or pizza. Not that they all are horrible for me, but they aren't the best choices. If you can't plan your meals out for a week, at least try to plan the day.

I Need To Be Harder On Myself!

First off, let me start this out by thanking everyone that read this blog! And all the wonderful comments! You guys are awesome! I was teary-eyed as I read through them. I'm glad I'm the only one that sees me as disgusting. lol At least I don't secretly look like a gross blob and no one tell me! lol

And here's an update on me. I was going to sit down and type one out yesterday, but it ended up being a tad busier than expected, plus I spent most the night setting up my new computer.

Monday - Went great! I stayed exactly on points. Unfortunately I didn't get in any exercise (unless you count walking around SIUE campus?!), but all in all I felt great about this day. I wasn't that hungry that day. I got the afternoon munchies but was able to fight them off by being extremely busy. (It was one of those days where if it could go wrong, it did.) Also, I was very excited to find that my Eris has a Weight Watchers Diary app, so I'm trying that out instead of computer diarying. (is that a word?!) I was really really really slacking on the computer food journals, which was a big part of my prob. Lets see if I do better with my phone!

Tuesday - This is the day that my title is in reference to. The day started out well, balanced breakfast, 30 min workout on the Wii Fit, and even a decent lunch (I suppose there could have been a better choice than fries with my Jimmy John's leftovers, but they were made at home, not fast food fries!). Afternoon snacking rolled around and I was pretty hungry. I paced the kitchen for a good 30 mins (and cleaning it too... that's what you have to do when you have 4 kids.. lol) before I decided to be a good girl and eat an Oreo Cakester 100 cal pack. They were ok, but dry, leaving me not that satisfied. Later on in the afternoon, I went back into the kitchen to get chicken out for dinner, next thing I realize, I'm fist deep in a bag of chocolate animal crackers. They were good, don't get me wrong, but I let myself slide on that slip up... I didn't add it in my food diary (maybe putting it here will make me feel more guilty!). Dinner was good, but it put me above my daily points. I'm not eating my exercise points intensionally.... so all my overage goes off my weekly points. Then, I had a moment of weakness.... I caved... I ate a Milky Way. I couldn't help it. I needed chocolate and that seemed to be the perfect source for the taste I craved. Which it was... but that tacked on 6 extra points for the day. Then (gulp, I can't believe I'm going to admit this because I'm ashamed of it too) I went back in the kitchen and ate another piece of quesidilla from dinner. All told my little evening antics put me over 15 points. I have 20 left to last through Sunday, so I better watch myself closer. I need to crack down and not bend to the will of food... especially sweets.

Another thing I need to crack down on is exercise. I did good yesterday, but Monday I found it easier to say I'd do it later than actually just get down and do it. Today, in my wee hours of waking and not wanting to do anything today, I contemplated just behaving on food and skipping exercise. Even as I sit, I occasionally try to make up the excuse that my back is hurting, so I can't work out. When in reality, I know that some yoga would probably be awesome for my sore back right now. I'll probably get on the Wii Fit after this post, because I need to. Then as I get into it, I won't want to stop. Funny how that works. Maybe we should take a family walk tonight too. Then I can boost my exercise today!

All in all, I really shouldn't complain about myself too much. Weak moments happen to all of us. When you fall off the horse, you just gotta climb back on, right?! I just need to keep trying and trying hard... and work on my will power.

I Am Disgusting!

That's right, I really do think I am at the moment. Here I am, typing on a blog that was meant to offer weight loss advice and tips to anyone who wants them, and I can't even maintain my loss. I mean just look at that pic above! That muffin top is enough to shame anyone, let alone how miserable and bloated I look. I've let myself get to a disgusting point again and it's time to crack down.

I think it all started around September. My daughter's birthday was fast approaching, as was the entire holiday season ranging from Halloween through New Years, and 3 more birthdays for our family. I was also looking to getting back in school. I was wore out and just wanted a break, so I took one. I did excellent maintaining until Thanksgiving. From there, I gained 10 lbs (in a day?! lol) and was never able to shed it. By that time I was 190. I fluctuated from the high and lower 190's through Christmas and the New Year. The last time my Wii Fit had a weigh in on it was February 5th, at 190 lbs. From then on, things went way down hill.

I think I quit caring. I think I just thought I could eat what I want. I wanted to eat what I wanted. I was tired of being a good girl, making good choices. The scale quickly reflected this new change. I kept hoping more and more that maybe it was a fluke, it'd go down, I'd exercise and it'd go down. The problem was, I never exercised. It never went down. Now I'm to the point I said I'd never see again. I left Onderland and am back in the 200. I'm disgusting.

CURRENT STATS

Bust - 46"

Chest - 42"

Waist - 39"

Hips - 46"

Weight - 206

OUCH! That hurts to see, but it's the facts. And it's the reason that I am going to get this weight off. If nothing else, just to be happy with myself again. I constantly complain about how clothes look on me, to the point that my husband has gotten sick of hearing it. I'm up over 12 lbs from my last time I weighed on my scale. I feel fat and disgusting. I feel ashamed to go out looking like I do sometimes. I realize people don't judge you on your size all the time... especially the people you see regularly, but I still feel gross. I even feel so disgusting, I don't to take my clothes off for my husband. He doesn't care... but I do. Never mind how I always feel wore down and tired, which I didn't when I exercised regularly.

Instead of offering just advice, I'm going to start taking my own. I want to take this blog in a new direction and make it more personal of my struggles. I may throw in educational tidbits from now on, but really, I'm warning you, this is going to get personal. I'm going to go as far as offer up everything except me nude. (Trust me, you don't want to see that!) And that takes a lot of courage, so please try to keep the bad remarks to a minimum. I beat myself up enough as it is (according to my husband). But I will take any and all encouragement, good thoughts, and in general cheering on! I want to try to post as often as I can, so I can get all my thoughts and feelings out. Maybe, just maybe if I vent my mind, I'll vent my body! Either way, I'm going to kick my butt and I want to see results!!

I'm Back.... and I'll Try To Be More Regular

If you didn't notice, I fell off there a few months. The whole b-day parties, holiday rush, more b-day parties, more craziness, threw me off. I wasn't actively losing weight or trying from around the time this last post was put up here until now. Er, the beginning of the year. Now I'm back at it and I'm wanting to lose the last 30 to be completely happy and comfortable with myself.

I restarted January 4th and have lost 7 lbs so far. I've actually had a hard time staying in the swing of things. This week is so far a good week. I've worked out in the gym at school and so far staying on points with WW. I really need to press myself to lose the weight by June for a wedding Nate is in. I can do it (about 1.5 lbs a week). I just need to apply myself.

Because of this, my blog here may change a bit. Not only will I provide information on how you can lose weight without "dieting" but I'll also even share some of my triumphs and struggles. I guess make this more personal than text book. I hope that through it all, I can inspire others to do what I have done!

Just think, 2 years ago, I weighed in at 221 lbs. I've seen contestants on The Biggest Loser weigh this much at start. Since then I've lost 32 lbs. It's not taken the full 2 years to lose that amount, I've had different situations arise to thwart my efforts (the birth of our 4th child). When I really apply myself, I can do it. I really need to apply myself now so I can hit that 160 mark! I can do it!