A 500 Calorie Day - It's tough! 1000 Calories....still tough!

What's your Calorie Intake number?

Can you eat just 500 calories a day? What about 1000? Some swear by 1300....others say "who cares"! I've been trying to figure out the best number for me for years. It's not an easy number to figure out and to be honest it's not an easy number to stick to. 

Off and on for 6 years, has it really been that long, I've been using My Fitness Pal (MFP) to help track my calorie intake. After about a month I get so frustrated that I stop for a while and the cycle repeats. I actually just had to check when I started using MFP. It was the day after my mom's birthday, February 26, 2012. I'm sure, I was on a serious eating bender the day, probably the week before, as I have done almost every year since she passed away in 2003. As the years go on the eating benders have pretty much stopped around her birthday which I call a success. I've been celebrating her life and accomplishments more than I have been mourning her loss. I truly believe that is all part of the grieving process. BTW, don't comment on my grieving process; because it's MINE! We all grieve in different ways; no one person's is better than the other! =)

If you've read my blog over the years you know that I occasionally do the hCG diet, low carb and keto way of eating. For those that don't know, the hCG diet has the person injecting the hCG hormone once daily and then eating just 500 calories a day for 26 or 46 days depending on the amount of weight you need to lose. After the 26 or 46 days you are allowed to increase your calorie intake, up to 1000 calories per day, for the next six weeks. In that time you determine if you are going to do another round of the hCG hormone injections or if you are going to move on to maintenance. The one thing you are NOT supposed to do is go back to your old eating habits. Not an easy task! Unless of course you go right back to your bad habits...then it's easy peasy lemon squeezy! OK, WHO CAME UP WITH THAT SAYING?

Let's not kid each other, THIS IS TOUGH! It is! There's no denying it! However, the results are amazing. But, in my case, I can fall off the proverbial wagon WAY TOO EASY! Can anyone say Emotional and Stress eater? Yep, you can point my way!

My OB/GYN had been offering me the hCG diet for several years. I finally decided to do it when I saw a picture of myself dancing with Zoey in the Magic Kingdom in February 2014.  I was so disappointed in myself. Here I was about to be 40 years old and I didn't like what I saw in that picture. So about a week after I got back from Disney, I talked to my OB/GYN about the hCG diet; and I started the following week. Over the next several months I lost 53 lbs! I felt amazing, I looked amazing, and I was well on my way to a better me. That year I did what I thought was impossible, something I didn't think I would ever be able to accomplish. I ran the Atlantic City Marathon!

Ladies and Gentlemen that is 26.2 miles of running!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This was my 40th birthday present to myself; Yep I'm crazy! But it was a feat I am so happy I did. I don't think I would have been able to do it without first losing that much weight and I thank Dr. C for suggesting it to me.

So fast forward four years to February 2018 and unfortunately I am right back where I was in February 2014! Over weight and on several maintenance medications; DAMMIT this is not where I want to be!  So I talked with a friend who has done hCG several times herself and she recommended an online pharmacy for the injections. It's a lot cheaper and I don't have to go to the Dr's office every week. Well that made me very happy and after the first half of the summer being a crazy merry-go-round this is exactly what I needed. I was hoping, seriously hoping, that I would have the exact same results this time around that I did back in 2014.

Well the first week was a huge success! I lost 10.6 lbs and 17.5 inches. HELLS TO THE YEAH! I was so dam happy and said "This is it; I'm going to make it!" And then the next week only 5.2 lbs and only 7 inches lost. Not too shabby! and then Nadia Food came into the house!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Let's talk my typical day of eating for a moment. 

A typical day for me is doing intermittent fasting where I don't eat anything until between 11 AM and Noon. In which I have about 200 calories, give or take for lunch.

Iceburg lettuce, sauteed chicken (in water) with spices, one mini cucumber, Walden Farms Salad Dressing and one melba toast. Believe it or not this fills me up. 

My lunch varies, but it's typically always a salad with a mini cucumber, some type of fruit (strawberries, mandarin oranges, apple, or grapefruit), walden farms dressing, and one melba toast. FYI, I do not put the grapefruit on the salad; let's face it that would be NASTY! But I do eat it on the side.

I eat a snack between 2 and 3 PM that consists of a granny smith apple or natural applesauce. If I have apples on my salad I do not have apples for snack. I will eat one of the other fruits instead.

Followed by dinner between 5 and 6 PM of again around 200 calories give or take.

I could not finish this meal! I was so full! I only ate about half of the asparagus and about half of the onions with all of the fish and salad. 

Here we have a salad with one mini cucumber and Walden Farms dressing; 3.5 ounces of Cod Fish with a light coating of cajun fish fry (definitely not part of the diet but oh so tasty and added 30 calories), sauteed asparagus (in water with spices), and some sauteed onions (in chicken broth). 

Dinners vary as well. I have fish once a week as I'm not a fish person and I have veal once a week. The rest of the week I have beef in some form or another.

Then the intermittent fasting starts again and follows through to lunch the next day.

Eating this way takes a lot of preparation and discipline. Being a stress and emotional eater doesn't always work with this way of eating. Let me say that again!

Being a stress and emotional eater doesn't always work with this way of eating.

Too many times during this round of the hCG diet I have found myself CHEATING!!!!!!!!! I was actually doing REALLY well, REALLY WELL, until my hubby needed a Nadia order! You all know, or at least have heard of our friend Nadia, Moroccan Chef.

And here we are back to Nadia and her wonderful food!

You all know, or may have guessed, that I ❤ Nadia's cooking! She's been talking about all this bread pudding that she's been making for the Hard Rock Casino and Chuck fell in love. So what does he order......well I have to order because he has a thing about talking to people, even those he knows! ;)

Bread pudding
Corn Bread
Hasha (OK so I put this on the list for the kids)
Pasta Sauce (And yes I put this on the list because Jesse and I LOVE IT)
Corn dogs (Mary wanted these)
Nadia includes homemade ice cream....I think it was banana and it was delicious!

The food smelled so good I seriously think I was put into a trance.  I am picturing one of the old Scooby Doo cartoons where Scooby and Shaggy are in a trance walking around while a Zombie (AKA some weirdo) is terrorizing innocent people). 

By the time Chuck and I got the food home I don't know how I was functioning. Guess what? I wasn't! I could not stop myself from eating, and eating, and eating, and eating. This food was in the house for several days and I just could not control myself.

WORD TO THE WISE FOLKS.....do not get Nadia food (or whatever food you love) when you are trying to diet and behave yourself. IT DOES NOT WORK! That is your PSA for the day!

It's been almost 2 weeks and I have seriously struggled to get back on track. No matter what I seem to do I can't get myself to get back tot he 500 calories a day. Well, I managed two days to do it but they weren't in a row. I am scheduled to finish my injections on August 30th and I am in fear that I will have no weight loss to show for this at all. And to be fair "Why should I"; I haven't follwed the program the way that I'm supposed to.

Here's one of the biggest downfalls for the hCG Diet and ME! I love to exercise! People look at me and they see a large woman. Their immediate thought, I know because some folks are so sweet to actually say that thought outloud, is that "wow, you don't exercise at all!" On the contrary you wonderful people! I love to exercise. I run, swim, bike, do workout videos, etc. However, when you are on the hCG Diet and only 500 calories a day you are NOT SUPPOSED TO EXERCISE but a casual walk no more than 20 minutes. Let me tell you that is very difficult for me.

My stress level and basic mental needs required me to exercise. SOOOO, since I can't seem to stick to the 500 calories a day anyway, I'm going to do an experiment with hCG.

Starting yesterday I upped my calories to 1000 per day, continued my injections, and started exercising again where I burn a minimum of 500 calories but would prefer more than that. I'm not eating those extra calories.

Now I do weigh myself every morning and I was happy to see that the scale did move in my favor this morning, albeit, not as much as I would have liked but I'll take it! Tonight I'm going back to Body Combat and can't wait to do that workout.

As for what a 1000 Calorie day looks like for me; here you go...

Intermittent Fasting until Lunch where I have a salad just like before but more of it. I could not finish this salad yesterday. I ate all the good stuff and left about 3/4 cup of the lettuce. I was just stuffed!

What's in there? 

Craisins, Shredded Carrots, Chicken, Pecans, Mandarin oranges, Walden Farms dressing

Snack was an applesauce and yogurt. I got the yogurt from the cafeteria and it was more calories than I had hoped for so I will be searching the grocery store for my own yogurt this weekend.

Dinner last night was homemade chili! Now that I am upping my calories I can go back to several of my keto friendly dishes that I love. I'm looking forward to that!

This chili is YUMMY and so EASY to make. I gave it to Mary and the kids too. 

Mary, Jesse, and I all enjoyed it. Zoey wasn't thrilled but she really doesn't like anything that isn't PBnJ or Pancakes! 

3.5 ounces of 96% lean ground beef, 1 cup crushed tomatoes, cayenne pepper, black pepper, chili powder, minced garlic, onion powder, cannelloni beans (I didn't have any kidney beans), fat free cheddar cheese and light sour cream. SO GOOD!

Don't get me wrong eating just 1000 calories a day is still seriously tough. It takes a lot of discipline to eat that little. Most folks don't realize that when you snack on cheese, nuts, and anything else you find while you are making dinner that you are putting several hundred extra calories into your system. This is an issue I have all the time!

All in all my experiment is under full swing. It's DAY TWO and we'll see how it goes from here!

Low Calorie & Low Carb: Are you insane woman?

Talking with my good buddy Jack today at the office, and I'm fairly certain he said "Are you insane woman", or maybe he was saying that with the look he gave me...it was hard to tell, when I said that I was eating extremely low calories in addition to low carbs this week to jump start my body after a week of poor eating due to a tooth ache/root canal. I put back on several pounds, which I'm not happy about!

Now some may think that if you have a toothache you really don't eat...and sometimes that happens. I know I barely ate anything one particular day BUT a girl has to eat, and so eat I did...it was just all mushy! Not a dam bit of it was good for me either.

By the time I had my root canal on Wednesday, I wanted to gnaw someone's arm off for real food that I could chew! I stopped at Popeye's on the way home and got chicken tenders, rice & beans, mashed potatoes with that awesome spicy gravy and a biscuit. Yes, I had to chew a little bit but not too much. Most of this was super easy to eat after that root canal. I was feeling no pain!

I started this morning back on track and am doing fairly well. It's after 3:30 PM and I've only had 200 calories and 4 net carbs so far today. I honestly feel pretty good and am not really that hungry. I've drank a lot, A LOT, of water today. Which I know I should be drinking any way.

There are all these little birdies chirping in my ear right now saying "you need to eat more than that", "what you are doing isn't healthy", etc etc etc, blah blah blah. 

I KNOW! BUUUUUUUUTTTTTTTT, I need to reset myself and this is the one way that I know to do it. SOOOO, I'm going to eat 20 carbs or less a day and 500 calories per day for a week, then increase my calorie intake to 600 calories per day for a week sticking with the 20 carbs or less per day, until I reach 1000 calories per day. I feel like that was WAAAAYYY to long of a sentence...anyone tired?

It will take about five weeks to complete this, but by that time I should be fully acclimated into the program and should be done all the crankiness. So I think everyone should think positively, stay out of my way, and look forward to June 22nd when I will be at 1000 calories each day. Just a forewarning that Kranky Karen may be upon us very very soon!

The thought process behind this crazy woman's madness....I don't really know that there is a true thought process. HA HA HA HA! See, I can laugh with everyone!

Seriously, I've done the 500 calories a day for several months before when I was on the hCG diet. Now, I was on hCG injections during that time, which were supposed to curb my appetite. I think they helped, but there were definitely days where I was S T A R V I N G!!!!!!!!!! So I figured if I can do that for months with injections, why can't I do it for a week without injections.

The key here is making sure that my blood sugars stay in check and that I don't fall off the wagon again. I need to get off this roller coaster. It's hard!

Of course, I went to my trusty, and oh so fun, Excel skills! I combined my "Weight and BMI Tracking" spreadsheet, with my "hCG Diet" spreadsheet to create something new and improved!

I have graphs, a menu that keeps track of calories and carbs, checks off when I ate what I had planned, tells me if I'm under, over or right on track with my calories/carbs.

It's super duber cool if I do say so myself! I'll definitely be tweaking it as the days go on to ensure I have everything correct and to my liking. I actually enjoy this far more than I do MFP or any other app. I'm thinking that has something to do with me being a spreadsheet junkie.

I also think that since it is going to be extremely crazy for the Bown Family over the next few weeks it was a good time to not think about eating too much. AGAIN, I can laugh with everyone!

It will be difficult to find foods that are low in calories and carbs. It's going to be very very interesting but I'm going to put forth the effort! Is it wrong that I just had the image of an uncrustable float into my head?

Snap, Crackle....OWWWW!

You've all heard it right? 

"When you turn 40 it's all down hill...your bones creak and when you fall it really hurts!"

Guess what? 

Them flockers were right!!!!!!!!!!! 

Holy SHNIKEYS Batman!

Every time I have moved today I sound like a bowl of Rice Crispies! I sit up straight, my back cracks. I get out of the chair and one of my hips pop. I don't think my bones can snap, but my ankles, hips, back, neck, everything is making noise today.

I guess it goes along with the lady sitting near me who is playing with bubble wrap....for the last 35 minutes mind you! I'm about to go Kranky Karen on her! 

I digressed!!!!!! Back to Rice Krispies! 😜

Come on, you remember these guys from your childhood...Snap, Crackle, and Pop!

I know I used to eat this cereal all the time with a HUGE helping of sugar! I would seriously have a pile of sugar right in the middle of the cereal, after adding  milk.  OMG, this was so good....but now I think I would be in a diabetic coma if I tried that! That doesn't sound at all appealing.

So a week ago today, I took a bad fall after roller skating for 2 hours. I managed to skate some on Sunday during a birthday party and although I was a bit shaky I didn't fall and did fine taking frequent rests.

Tonight is our traditional family night weekly outing to the skating rink so I will be back on skates. Again I will be taking it easy and taking frequent rests. If motivated I may inquire about Zoey's birthday party too. She wants to have a skating party this year. Chuck is thrilled not to have a party at the house. I've heard some folks say that they've rented the whole place out for a party so this may be the way to go. We'll have to see how much it costs.

As I write to you, my body has continued with its best Rice Krispies rendition. Dancing to "Shout at the Devil" in my desk chair has led to my neck and back continuing to sing along. I think I need to attempt my first run since my fall to shake this body out!

I hope everyone has a happy noise makin' day!

Whoomp there it is! 25 lbs GONNEEEE!!!!!!

WHOOMP There it is

or should I say 

WHOOMP THERE IT GOES!!!!!!!!!!

I have officially lost 25 lbs in just over 3 months!

I started my current journey on February 5th weighing in at 240.4 lbs. UGH! I really never wanted to get to that point again, but it happened. Life happens, it gets in the way, and it is our job to work back and improve things for ourselves. If we want it!

Well, improve I have! 

I'm down 25 lbs (I know, I already said that....probably gonna say it again) and am now in the "Obese" BMI range. Considering I was in the morbidly obese range, or in the "REALLY OBESE" range as I like to call it, this is a huge accomplishment. And one that I have no problems shouting from the roof tops!

I'm in the OBESE BMI range! WHOO HOO!

Yes, yes I am a bit odd! You can think I'm crazy being happy to be obese, but I'm moving in the right direction. So why not sing the praises as I reach them?

I'm completely on track to meet my weight goal this month of 210 lbs. As you can see in my "Weight Goals" picture above 210 is listed twice. I was in Disney World for two weeks last month so I was really just trying to not gain any weight. I did really well and was still able to treat myself from time to time. If you are looking for something to eat at Disney World while doing a low carb, Keto way of eating, check out my "Low Carb/Keto WOE at Disney World" post. Another post will be coming soon about all the things I actually ate while there. At least the items that were low carb! ;)

When I got home, I feel as when I went off the deep end. I wanted SUGAR! I kept going for the chocolate chip cookies, needless to say I've told myself that these are POISON, and should not be eaten. It might work?!?!?!?!?! Maybe!

Now, of course, there are some nay sayers out there that keep telling me "we don't care about your weight loss", "you're going about it all wrong", "you need to eat this or eat that", "stop telling everyone".

Guess what? 

I don't care what you have to say if you are going to be a Negative Nelly! Listen, noone liked Nelly on Little House on the Prairie, so be nice! Encourage, be happy for someone, don't be a downer! If you are saying these hurtful things, maybe take a look in the mirror, and realize that those words were probably for yourself. Not saying you need to lose weight, or even change anything about yourself, just saying maybe there is something about yourself that you don't like and you are reflecting it on me.

I'm not listening (fingers in my ears)!!!!! Want to know why? I lost 25 lbs channeling Frank Sinatra because "I did it my way!" Maybe I was channeling Michael Jackson, since I'm starting with the woman in the mirror, I'm asking her to change her ways. 

Seriously, I stopped worrying about mainstream diets, and what the doctors are telling me to eat. If it was up to my doctors I would be on the Chicken, Lettuce, and Dirt diet. What is that you ask? Well, it's those three things and nothing else. Nothing fun, nothing appetizing, just nothing! YUCK YUCK YUCK! I have tried this and I was absolutely miserable! No one, I repeat, no one likes a Kranky Karen! Just ask my hubby, he'll tell you that Kranky Karen is hell on wheels.

Forget the nutritionists, who've been giving me bad advice, in my opinion. Everyone doesn't respond the same way to everything. We are all living proof of that! I've never been to a nutritionist who didn't know I was a diabetic, that's why I was there, and who didn't give me a huge list of foods that were full of carbs that they wanted me to eat. I just could never understand that!

So I've been eating low carb/keto, for the most part, over the last 3 months and have been exercising most days. I've been trying tons of new recipes....gotta give a shout of to Mellissa over at I Breathe I'm Hungry. I absolutely LOVE her recipes and make them all the time. My family is enjoying most of them as well. I visit several facebook pages that have to die for recipes, such as Yum Yum Delish LCHF Recipes and Keto Low Carb Support & Recipes Group. Also to the Keto at Disney facebook group.  On all of these pages you'll find blog posts for recipes and plenty of support.

People ask, how many carbs a day do you eat, what are your macros? You know, my counts and numbers aren't going to be the same as yours. This is trial and error. Each person has to figure out what works best for them and then go for it. But since you asked.....I try to stick to 20 carbs a day. Now I can tell you that some days I'm at 10 and other days I'm probably at 50 maybe even 75. It depends on the day, how I'm feeling, what my blood sugar count is. All I know is that I'm eating what I want, when I want, in decent proportions, I'm exercising, and I'm Feeling Good, channeling some Nina Simone.

Live your life the best way you know how! Don't worry about what the next person is doing. Don't worry about the small set backs. Think positively and move forward! Take each failure with a grain of salt and learn from it.

Here's to the next 25 lbs to lose and a better, healthier, Karen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Losing weight is not easy! But I'll take the bumps in the road!

Losing weight is just not easy! I've been down this road so many times in my life and I would love for it to be easy just once! ONCE! That's all I'm asking. Why is that so hard?

BECAUSE IT IS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm sure we all remember my "Hematological Mess", aka Take #432, post a couple months a go. Well although I have lost 20 lbs.....said so nonchalantly. 

YEP!

I'm gonna say it again!

20 LBS PEOPLE!

If I could have made that blink and flashy and fireworks going off I would have. Because dam! 20 lbs is a lot! Just losing 20 lbs I feel better and have dropped a pant size. Which that alone should be having me dance!

It's been a roller coaster over the last 2 months but the weight is coming off!

Courtesy of MFP weigh ins. 

I unfortunately am still a Hematological MESS! Now the doctor is only watching my white blood cells and platelets at the moment; they've been elevated and the other numbers will take a couple months to come down.

My white blood cells and my platelets don't have anything to with my weight, at least not that I'm aware of, but they are a mess and I now have to go back to my Hematologist. I'm not at all happy about this. There is no explanation other than my Essential Thrombocythemia acting up again. You said what?  Yes, I have a blood disorder called Essential Thrombocythemia. It's a mouth full I know. In a nutshell I have an unknown reason for high platelets.

Last week I was having a horrible time showing any signs of weight loss so I started doing an Intermittent Fast, IF. This helped kick my body into gear and I was able to get several pounds off and keep it off. Although I was only eating between 10 AM and 5 PM I still managed to eat around 1300 calories each day.

We leave for Disney soon and I plan to follow the same way of eating, IF and Low Carb (LC), the whole time we are there. 

My goal was to lose 10 lbs each month and I unfortunately missed that goal by a week for March. But no worries, I'm sticking to my goal of reaching 210 lbs by the end of this month. That is a lot to take in and achieve while being on vacation but I am up for the challenge.

My trusty spreadsheet and MFP will help me stay on track.

My mini goal will be to reach the "Obese" BMI category. I know, I know, some of you are saying "Why in the world does she want to get to the OBESE BMI category?" It's super simple! I'm in the REALLY OBESE BMI category right now!

If was a rough start this month, you can see the roller coaster here. But if I can stay on track I will reach the Obese BMI category, orange BMI, by Monday, April 16th! I so want to reach this goal! This is just as important to me as it was to lose 20 lbs. Being able to step down in the weight and BMI ranges is huge! ABSOLUTELY HUGE!

Seeing the "Current Weight" and "Current BMI" numbers on this page go down will be fantastic! And I for one can't wait to see that happen. It will take another month to get that "Current Weight" into the dark orange range, but that "Current BMI" within the orange range is within reach. I can taste it!

Can you say "Sreadsheet junkie!"

Don't worry if you can't say "Sreadsheet Junkie" because apparently I can't spell it, or type it rather! I typed out the heading of this post at least five times and every time I spelled it wrong. SOOOO, what's a junkie to do...just leave it and move on!

This is one of those times that my Type A personality says "meh, Ima be a diff type for the moment".

So as you ALL know, I've been getting my health back on track. Feel free to roll your eyes.....feel better? Good! Getting back on track means I spent time on a new spreadsheet to help me to get to my goal.

Some ask "Why in the world of everything that is holy do you do that?" Well, I'm gonna tell ya!

I DON'T KNOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BECAUSE I FELT LIKE IT!!!!!!!!!!

BECAUSE I CAN!!!!!!!!

Geez, there are a number of reasons but to be honest do I really need to have a reason? Some folks draw, paint, whathaveyou as a hobby or a way for them to get motivated. I like to create....and one of those ways is through a spreadsheet! Now some may feel that a spreadsheet (whoo hoo, spelled it right twice in a row...look who's on a roll!) is not creative. My feeling is you don't know all the fun tricks you can do if you feel that way....IMHO!

So here's the first page of my new spreadsheet (look at me three times the charm).

Yes, these are my stats as of February 5th. I'm not ashamed to post these numbers. Just looking at me would tell you that I've not been living a healthy lifestyle.

However, what the next page shows is that I am working on it. And that right there is worth its weight is gold!

Someone has to be saying "What's with all the Christmas Colors?" Well, like any good spreadsheet junkie the proper colors to use are red, green, and yellow. Now, since I have some intermediary stages I've also used orange. And well noone likes death, so that is listed as blue (see first image). The blue on this picture is light blue, representing the info from the previous month or starting point.

The red in the "Weigh-in" column indicates that I have not met my overall weight loss goal. But that's OK. I'm working on it and I lost 7.8 lbs in February. This picture also shows that my BMI is still in the "Really Obese" range as I like to call it. I also didn't meat my Monthly Goal of reaching 230; however, I wasn't that far off and I feel really good about February.

March is half over and the month is coming along nicely. Some fun things are happening on this sheet! First, the current date is in PURPLE! I like this because I know exactly where I need to go to enter my weight for today. Yes, there were a few days of red in the "Amt Lost" column so far. You know, when its shark week, sometimes things just don't flow. EWWWW! LMAO!

What you also see is that I have projected my weight loss (the whole month isn't shown here). BUT, if I continue to lose about a half pound a day, which is completely doable on my Low Carb way of eating (WOE), for the rest of the month I will meet my "Monthly Goal". See how it is in GREEN!

Now once, the month is over the, all the projections will be gone and the actuals will be reflected. 

If I keep working hard I will jump out of the "Really Obese" BMI range and enter the "Obese" range by the beginning of April. WHOO HOOO! That is a huge accomplishment and one I am really looking forward to celebrating!

What will I do to celebrate? I know! Go to Disney World!  I know, I know, I'm already going to Disney in April, but that doesn't mean I can't celebrate my successes! I've already mapped out a plan on what to eat while at Disney so I can stay on track. If you didn't see that post, here it is!

NOW, provided I don't go ape shit crazy at Disney, and do stay on track, I will meet another milestone in May! I know, how can she be hitting another milestone already? Well, it's called planning and projection my friends. I've set myself a goal to lose 10 lbs per month. Now, I have a lot of weight to lose and I don't feel that losing 10 lbs per month is an unrealistic goal. But, if I find that this goal is just unattainable for whatever the reason, my handy dandy spreadsheet here will allow me to adjust my projections to see what I can do and when I'll be able to do it. 

June has me hitting two big milestones and I couldn't be happier! One, I'll have reached under 180 lbs and two, I'll have entered the "Overweight" BMI range. Now, for those of us that struggle with our weight, being in the "Overweight" BMI range instead of the "Obese" or higher range is HUGE, MONUMENTAL, just WOW! 

So I'm going to take that WOW moment and enjoy it. Again, if I don't make this in June, it's not the end of the world. It just allows me to continue to work hard and enjoy my spreadsheet! ;)

There's just so much green in August and I don't mean MONEY, MONEY, MONEY! 

I mean I will have hit my final two goals! Get to 150 pounds AND, AND, be in the "Mary Poppins" BMI range! yes, ladies and gentlemen I will be "Practically Perfect in Every Way!"

Now I don't know about you but I would LOVE to be Mary Poppins! BTW, one of my all time favorite movies! Can't wait for the new one to come out!

Now, what happens if I can't stop losing weight....HA HA HA HA HA HA HA....but seriously, that does happen to some folks. Their bodies just don't know when to stop. Take my hubby for example. He's still losing weight and hasn't tried for several months. He's eating more and more and still the weight is coming off, slowly, but it is. 

So I have BLUE as a bad area to be in, as in Code Blue! Yes, you see green because I'm losing but you see Blue in the "Weigh-In" and "BMI" columns because THIS IS NOT GOOD! Time eat a samwich or 2 or 3. 

My spreadsheet is set up by month and goes until January of next year. My ultimate is goal once I lose the weight is to keep it off. That will be the hardest struggle of all.

So this Mary Poppins in training is signing off to go run before the kids get home! Then the family is heading out skating! Times to break in my new purple skates!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Could this be what helped the scale?

I changed a few things this week:

• Had a cooking weekend so I was well prepared for the week. 
• Started walking on the treadmill for 20 to 30 minutes each morning before work. 
• Continued walking with the hubby each night. 
• Got MFP Premium so I can really focus on the macronutrients and make sure I'm not going over any of my limits. 

What has this done for me?

Well, I contribute the couple of pounds I've lost so far this week to these changes. My total weight loss is currently at 11.2 pounds in one month! It's not as much as I wanted but I will take it!

My daily exercise is consisting of:

• Walk before work
• Walk at lunch
• Run or Swim after work
• Walk with hubby before bed. 

I'm getting in an average of 6 miles a day of exercise. As soon as the weather breaks I'm going to start biking as well. 

Tomorrow night, the family is going roller skating. I can't imagine what my thighs are going to feel like after 2 hours of skating! I'm looking forward to it!

Here we go, on the road again

Another month has past and another month I have messed up! I do such a great job at the beginning of the month. I'm gung ho! Ready to put my best foot forward only to miss step along the way and tumble to the ground. Well, maybe it's a loud crash! But that's neither here or there! It's definitely "THERE"!

Yesterday was an extremely LONG day. Between waking up early, working, Dr.s appointments.....I left my house at 4:30 AM and did not arrive home until 7 PM. I felt like a Zombie walking into the house. After 30 minutes of watching the voice I felt better but really just wanted to go to bed. Chuck convinced me to go for a walk. Although I was tired when we got back, I mentally felt better. Kudos to the hubby for getting me out there! I finished my 2018 Gold Challenge with a 3.2 mile walk!
As of the end of February, my 1500 miles for 2018 standings are....drum roll please!

Not too shabby! I'm staying in the 100+ miles per month. 

During the marathon of events yesterday Mary and I talked about a lot of things. One thing that came to light is she is now pre-diabetic. DUN DUN DUNNNNN! This is not a horrible thing! We can fix this! Mary did not look impressed as we began to talk. 

SOOOO, as we sat at Outback last night, just the two of us, eating a Bloomin' Onion, Bread, Filet, and a Baked Potato we discussed her eating habits. OK FINE, MINE TOO! You don't have to point fingers. ;)

Now, talking about how we need to cut back on our carbs while stuffing our face with carbs is SOMEWHAT on the ridiculous realm, however everyone has to start somewhere!

I had one bad day that led into another that lead into way too many and well February is now GONE! For another year I won't have to deal with her. SOOOOOO..........

Here we go, on the road again

Like a band of Gypsies we go down the highway

We're the best of friends

Insisting that the world keep turnin' our way

And our way is on the road again

I just can't wait to get on the road again

Just so you know, I want Mary and I to now dress like Gypsies! 

We are crazy enough to pull it off. 

What's the plan Stan? I don't know who Stan is but I love the saying. Anywho, after Mary's Dr's appointment on Friday we are going to her house where I'm going to clear out her pantry, freezer, and fridge of all things that she should not be eating. I'm also going to find the secret chocolate stash and purge that too! 

Of course, I'm going to blame it on the Gremlins and Chuck. I did nothing and you can't prove it! Actually, Chuck offered to come over and help once he gets done work so I really can blame it on him! YEAH BABY YEAH!!!!!!!!!!

Now that Mary has to get things under control, I actually have someone very close to me that needs to eat the same way I'm supposed to (Did you catch that? "Supposed to", I meant "the way I do"). And since we do tons together, including go on vacation together, it should help us both out a lot!

We already have a plan to make food and share it with each other so we aren't both cooking all the time or eating the same foods. 

Our goals.....for the month of March, Mary is starting on Friday, we are going to stay under 30 carbs a day (not net carbs, total carbs) and I'm also going to try to keep my calorie count below 1200. 

For now, I want Mary just to focus on her carb count and not worry about the calories. I'm going to help her with her menu choices. Mary is also going to get back to walking 30 minutes a day. I suggested she go to the mall and walk. By helping Mary with her menu and carb count, it will in turn help me stay on track!

Here's to March!

To count it or not?????

So the scale was extremely nice to me on the first day of our four day weekend and showed that I was a 1/2 pound away from losing 10 pounds. The next day, it was mean...very very mean...and said I gained 2 lbs. Which is quite odd because I didn't do anything different. The third day it said, there's no 2 extra pounds, and I'll throw in some extra weight loss and you are now at 10 1/2 pounds lost! WHOO HOOO!

HOWEVER, this  morning the scale decided to say that I gained 2 pounds again! Once again, I didn't do anything that would have caused that. Plus I swam 2000 yards 2 days in a row, plus running. So I'm quite perplexed at this!

BUT, I'm not going to let this get me down as I know weight can fluctuate from day to day. My water in take was all over the map throughout the four days off as well. That's one good thing about being in the office is that I can watch everything I drink and eat much more closely.

Bottom line, I counted the weight loss and will continue to watch it. If the scale doesn't even out I will adjust accordingly.

Life happened

I fell off, let's face it...I plummeted off, my weight loss journey when life threw me way too many curve balls at one time over the past 6 months that I just couldn't handle. I felt like every time the sun was starting to shine, I got hit by another storm. This storm being worst than the last one. I truly felt like November 2002 through February 2004 was hitting me all over again. So what did I do, I shut down, I threw away everything that I knew would help me and I went for food. I know that stress/emotional eating is my thing and I have to figure out a way to get that under control. Normally I could just go for a run or do an intense workout and that need to stress or emotionally eat would be gone. But I haven't been exercising either. I've been a mess and trying to hide it when I should have been the woman I've always been and told it to "fuck off"! I've been struggling with myself to get back into gear and I knew that I needed to wait until I was mentally ready.

I read something while on vacation and it made so much sense to me. Someone posted an article about preparing for weight loss. It was so simple that I pretty much bopped myself on the head like the "shoulda had a V8" commercials from back in the day and then laughed at myself. It's amazing to me what makes a person wake up and figure out what they should have been doing. And in my case I should have said "fuck it" and done what I needed to do to get myself back to where I want to me. Instead I stood in the dark thinking that if I don't think about it, it isn't really happening. GUESS WHAT?!??!?!?!?! It happened!

I don't need to be a "thin mint" as I like to call all the skinny folks out there in the world. I don't need to be a certain size or a certain weight. I just need to feel comfortable in my own skin. I want to be able to look in the mirror and smile back at myself saying "you look good" and know that I feel the same as I look.

Well I'm now mentally ready to tackle all the different facets of my life and get back on the trail. Whether that be a running trail, a bike trail, a hiking trail, or wherever my mind and heart lead me. The start of my trail will be the first step I take forward.

I know how I should eat, I know what I should eat, I even know when I should eat. I just haven't been doing it. I had many times over the past few months where my blood sugars just went crazy. Well today, my last day of vacation, I shopped, chopped, cooked, and prepared the food I need to keep me on my "trail" for this week. I'm going to continue to do this every Sunday as my ritual.

Over the next few months I want to try some new things to keep my exercise routine fresh and to not do the same things all the time. I have plenty of videos, a workout bench (I need to figure out which exercises I should be doing), my bathing suit, 2 great pair of running shoes, and my bike. There's no way I can run another full marathon and as much as I would like to make that my goal I'm not. I truly feel that my feet took so long to heal after the full marathon last year that it started my downward spiral. This is NOT an excuse but a realization that in order to keep myself on track I need to not over do it. So instead of making a huge goal like I had last year my goal this year will be simple! I'm going to look in the mirror ever day and SMILE! I'm going to do my best to be the best me I can be. And if that "best me" comes with losing weight and feeling better in my own skin that that's what I need.

So tonight after I put the kids to bed I am not going to sit on the couch, I'm not going to sit in front of my laptop, I'm going to head out for a walk, a run, or maybe even a bike ride. Whatever strikes me at that time.

Fantastic Weekend!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What a fantastic weekend we had. It was super busy and I didn't get any WORK done but maybe that is why it was so fantastic!

Friday I saw Dr. C and he believes my body is in starvation mode which is why I haven't lost any weight in a quite some time (that and the dam prednisone that won't go away; I'm still holding onto a lot of water).  So he increased my caloric intake since I won't give up my exercise and said we'll see how it goes next week; I might have to give up some of my exercise...which I REALLY DON'T WANT TO DO. I see him again on Wednesday for my next weigh in. I'm hoping for some good results! Friday night was swim team practice and the kids did pretty well.

Saturday was a whirlwind.....I woke up and relaxed in bed for a while reading then started my new Les Mills Body Combat 60 day training course. Now I've come to realize during this long journey that this journey is about me and me only. And pretty much anyone who has anything negative to say about it or to me well can just keep it to themselves. I've lost over 50 lbs and I still have quite a bit more to go including a lot of toning. So this picture is me showing myself what needs to change so that I feel better about me. It is not meant for folks to be rude or negative toward me or poke fun at my journey. If you need to do that please take a look in the mirror and then you have someone to poke at.

First, here is my timeline picture from February of this year until June of this year. I'm fully clothed and well clothes can hide a lot. It's an amazing transformation and I am overly thrilled!

Since I needed to get real with myself I had Chuck take a couple pictures of me before my workout on Saturday. These are NOT flattering pictures nor are they meant to be.

I keep telling myself that these pictures are nothing more than me being in a REALLY BAD BIKINI! Makes it easier to laugh at myself.  Considering I swim several times a week and folks see me in a full bathing suit, this isn't much different. I'm not holding in my gut or wearing clothes that hide the fat. This is me as I stand now after having lost over 50 lbs. You can imagine what I looked like 50+ pounds heavier.

After each month I plan to take pictures of myself to see how my body is changing; and well hopefully it is changing for the better. The hardest part of losing weight is of course where the weights comes off at. Most women, and I'm no different, want the weight in their abdomen to go away first and well it just doesn't work like that. I've lost more inches around my entire than I can even remember (Dr.C does my measurements again in about a month). But I think the pictures are what really make the difference; makes me open my eyes.

After my workout I took the kids to the Galloway Patriot's Magnus Mud Run for kids ages 3 - 8. We had a lot of fun and it really showed Zoey most of all how strong she is and that she can do a lot of things. She went through the course 3 times.

We then went to the Galloway Swim Club for a little while; it was fun but COLD. I couldn't believe how cold it got this weekend.

After bath time for the kids Alison had them over for a sleepover. This is only the second time the kids have been away from us for a sleep over (both at Alison's house). Chuck and I were able to go out to a relaxing dinner and then did some shopping. We ended the evening watched "Unstoppable" here at home. It was so weird having the house so quiet. I kept waking up to listen for the kids, that weren't here.

Sunday morning came bright and early as I woke 30 minutes before my alarm, which was set to go over at 6 AM. After a quick shower I got ready for my 5k and then read for a while. By the time I picked up Alison I think she was ready for all the children to leave the house and never return. Apparently it was a stressful, restless night for her. SORRY!

Alison and I completed the Salvation Army 5K this morning IN THE RAIN! I managed to get my first official 5k medal of 3rd place for my age group; finishing at 30:04. I was so close to being under 30 minutes but I just couldn't push my legs any further. The rain really did me in. I definitely think Ii have a bruised toe on each foot.

By the time I got home with the kids I was FREEZING! I was shivering and shaking and spent over 30 minutes in the shower with burning hot water. It wasn't enough....I put on yoga pants, socks, and a sweatshirt and climbed into bed. Chuck laughed at me but still turned off the ceiling fan and put an extra blanket on me. Before I knew it I was asleep and woke up several hours later.

Chuck was a super help to me this afternoon in cutting up all the fruit and veggies for the week. It was so much easier having him help and we got done in less than half the time it normally takes me. THANK YOU HONEY!

Mary came over for dinner and afterwards sat on the couch talking with Chuck; Jesse curled up on her lap and was asleep before we even realized; wasn't even 6 PM yet.

Chuck bathed the kids, I put them to bed and as Chuck was gaming online with Chris I did my 2nd Body Combat workout for this series. I'm officially exhausted from the weekend and desperately need a 3rd shower for the day and some sleep!

Jesse starts his week of Cub Scouts camp tomorrow morning. So I will have one crazy week of running around and trying to work.

I know....that was long....and if anyone actually reads this they will really be hearing the Charlie Brown teacher as they look through the pictures I have posted.  My blog is for me; its a way of telling my story and allows me to go back anytime I want to see where I was during that post.

Good night all and I hope you all had a fantastic weekend like I did.

My own twist on Chicken Waldorf Salad

So I've been dreaming of my mom's chicken salad and potato salad lately.....probably because of the holiday weekend...and well mostly because I miss my mom!

Since I'm living a healthy lifestyle now I wanted to change the chicken salad to be healthier and more inviting to me. Not that mom's chicken salad didn't rock! Because it does (when I make her recipe), did, and always will but I wanted something different.

So today's lunch consisted of:

• Kids - Chicken salad (chicken breast - boneless, skinless, all fat cut off, little olive oil mayo), cashews, apple slices, yogurt, and milk. 
• Chuck - made his own spicy version of chicken salad 
• Me - Chicken Waldorf Salad Karen Style (chicken breast - boneless, skinless, all fat cut off, Walden Farm's Calorie Free Chipotle Mayo, chopped Granny Smith Apple, Chopped Onion, Chopped Cashews, Salt & Pepper to taste). I can't bring myself to put raisins or craisins with chicken salad....just too weird for my tastes.

Karen 's Chicken Waldorf Salad

I had a cup of Ginger Tea and a bottle of water with my meal as well. 

Karen's Heatlhy Chicken Waldorf Salad
Item	Measurement	WW's Points	Calories
Chicken Breast (boneless, skinless, all fat removed, boiled)	3.5 oz raw	3	114
Granny Smith Apple Slice	1 slice or 1 ounce	0	14
Chopped Cashews	1 tsp	1	13
Walden Farms Chipotle Mayo	1 1/2 Tbsp	0	0
Salt and Pepper	To taste	0	2
	Totals	4	143

Last day of June...wait...what? Where did this month go?

It's the last day of June! Can you believe that!?!?!?!? I feel like this month was gone in a blink. It was a hard month dieting wise but I managed to get through it and till lose weight just not as much as I wanted to. But on the bright side I didn't gain any weight back so that is a serious bonus in my book!

Jesse and Zoey are settling in to the summer routine nicely. Which is good because they both have to get up an hour earlier than during the school year. Jesse's in the Kindergarten summer program at English Creek Academy and Zoey stayed in her regular class.

Now back to this month being gone.....Seriously where has this year gone? I mean I feel like it was just February and we were getting back from Disney. Maybe it's wishful thinking that we were still at Disney.

Sunday, June 30, 2014
Meal	Item	WW's Points	Calories
Breakfast	Protein Shake	2	125
Snack	3 oz Apple Slices	0	44
Lunch	3 oz chicken, mixed greens, bell peppers, and WF Dressing	3	149
Snack	Zucchini slices and Black bean Hummus	1	58
Dinner	3 oz chicken, mixed greens, 1 oz apple chunks, WWs Chili Lime Multigrain Crips, Zucchini slices w/humus and WF Dressing	6	250
Snack	3 oz Granny Smith Apple	0	44
Today's	Totals	12	670

What a crazy couple of days!

We have had a really crazy couple of days around the Bown Household! Besides having a houseful of sickness (for the last 2 weeks) Zoey woke up screaming in the middle of the night and it continued every 20 minutes. By the time she got up in the morning she couldn't walk. SERIOUSLY! I was scared out of my mind. Jesse has had the flu, stomach virus, and then some type of cold. I've had the flu twice and am still under the weather. The good news is that today was my last day of the hCG Injections. I have three more days of 500 calories each day and then I am moving up to 1000 calories a day. Hopefully I can get my energy back soon from being sick and can really start to exercise. These small walks are not what I want.

Progress, Progress, Progress!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I have made some serious progress in my weight loss journey. I'm thrilled with my results and am well on my way to being under 200 lbs; which will be the first time in over a decade!

I'm finishing up my 45 day round of the hCG phase on Sunday April 6th...just one week from today. Although I will be bummed that I won't be running my first half marathon that day I will be thrilled to be done with this phase and entering Phase 1 of Maintenance.

Today I will be spending the remainder of the afternoon cooking for the week and also deciding on my menu for the first week of Maintenance Phase 1.

At Friday the 28ths dr's visit I was thrilled that the doctor was so thrilled with my progress. He's very impressed which has me beaming with delight! He is allowing me to start running again which of course I took advantage of that day. If the rain holds out I will go out later today for another run.

Surpised by dinner

Well I was a bit skeptical of the dinner I was preparing for myself tonight but I must say I am pleasantly surprised: BBQ Chicken (made w/ calorie free BBQ sauce; doesn't come close to being as good as my friend Amber's sauce but its still good), Coleslaw (made w/calorie free coleslaw dressing; its not my mom's dressing but it's still good), ice burg lettuce (used as a wrap), and homemade cream of asparagus soup.

I have never been a fan of asparagus...no matter how many ways it has been fixed I just haven't liked it. Well I'm being a big girl and trying asparagus again. Last night I was not impressed....today I made a cream of asparagus soup and it is quite tasty! It doesn't look good at all, but the taste is there and that's what matters!

I put down a layer of the coleslaw onto the lettuce leaf, topped that with sliced BBQ chicken breast, drizzled some BBQ sauce on it and then wrapped up the lettuce leaf. I had 3 of these for dinner, plus the soup. A very healthy meal under 300 calories. Can't be that!

Here's my meals for the last week:

	Tuesday, March 11, 2014		Wednesday, March 12, 2014
Breakfast	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2
	1/2 Grapefruit	33	1 Med Strawberries	4
			1/2 Grapefruit	33
	Subtotal	35	Subtotal	39
Lunch	Chicken in Tomato Sauce	159	Chicken in Tomato Sauce	159
	2 cups Romaine	18	2 cups Romaine	18
	1 tbsp  Free Dressing	0	1 tbsp  Free Dressing	0
	Mini Cucumber (peeled)	10	Mini Cucumber (peeled)	10
	1 Grissini Thin	13	1 Grissini Thin	13
	Subtotal	200	Subtotal	200
Snack	1 cup Strawberries	46	1 cup Strawberries	46
	2 Cups Green Tea	0	2 Cups Green Tea	0
	Subtotal	46	Subtotal	46
Dinner	Taco Ground Beef	160	Spicy Ginger Chicken	138
	2 cups Spinach Mix	14	1 cup Romaine	9
	1 tbsp  Free Dressing	0	1 tbsp  Free Dressing	0
			Mini Cucumber (peeled)	9
			1 Grissini Thin	13
	Subtotal	174	Subtotal	169
Snack	1/2 Lrg Orange	43	1/2 Lrg Orange	43
	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2
	Subtotal	45	Subtotal	45
		500		499

  

	Thursday, March 13, 2014		Friday, March 14, 2014		Saturday, March 15, 2014
Breakfast	2 Cups Green Tea	0	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2
	1/2 Grapefruit	33	1/2 Grapefruit	33	1/2 Grapefruit	33
	Subtotal	33	Subtotal	35	Subtotal	35
Lunch	Chicken Soup	146	Chicken in Tomato Sauce	159	Chicken in Tomato Sauce	159
	1 cup Spinach	7	2 cups Romaine	18	2 cups Romaine	18
	1 tbsp  Free Dressing	0	1 tbsp  Free Dressing	0	1 tbsp  Free Dressing	0
	Mini Cucumber (peeled)	10	Mini Cucumber (peeled)	10	Mini Cucumber (peeled)	10
			1 Grissini Thin	13	1 1/2 Grissini Thin	20
	Subtotal	163	Subtotal	200	Subtotal	207
Snack	1 Cup Apple Slices	57	1 Cup Apple Slices	57	1 Cup Apple Slices	57
	2 Cups Green Tea	0	2 Cups Green Tea	0	2 Cups Green Tea	0
	Subtotal	57	Subtotal	57	Subtotal	57
Dinner	Chicken Fajitas	193	Spicy Ginger Chicken	138	Marinated Shrimp Stirfry	118
	1 cup Romaine	9	1 cup Romaine	9	2 cups Romaine	16
	1 tbsp  Free Dressing	0	1 tbsp  Free Dressing	0	1 tbsp Free Dressing	0
			1 tsp cashews	13	1 tsp cashews	13
					1/2 Grissini Thin	7
	Subtotal	202	Subtotal	160	Subtotal	154
Snack	1/2 Lrg Orange	43	1/2 Lrg Orange	43	1/2 Lrg Orange	43
	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2
	Subtotal	45	Subtotal	45	Subtotal	45
		500		497		498

	Sunday, March 16, 2014		Monday, March 17, 2014
Breakfast	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2
	1/2 Grapefruit	33	1/2 Grapefruit	33
	Subtotal	35	Subtotal	35
Lunch	Chicken in Tomato Sauce	159	Grilled Chicken	114
	2 cups Romaine	16	2 cups Romaine	16
	1 tbsp  Free Dressing	0	1/4 cup chopped Apple	17
	Mini Cucumber (peeled)	10	1 Tbsp dressing	0
	2 Grissini Thins	26	Mini Cucumber (peeled)	10
	Subtotal	211	Subtotal	157
Snack	Apple Slices	30	Apple Slices	30
	2 cups green tea	0	2 cups green tea	0
	Subtotal	30	Subtotal	30
Dinner	Blackened Tilapia	102	BBQ Chicken w/ sauce	114
	Lemon Asparagus	20	1 cup Bib Lettuce	7
	2 cups Romaine	16	1 cup Coleslaw	22
	Mini Cucumber (peeled)	10	Cream of Asparagus Soup	88
	1 tsp cashews	13	1 Tbsp dressing	0
	1 Tbsp dressing	0
	1/4 cup chopped Apple	17
	Subtotal	178	Subtotal	231
Snack	1/2 Lrg Orange	43	1/2 Lrg Orange	43
	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2	1 cup Tea - Smooth Move	2
	Subtotal	45	Subtotal	45
	Total	499		498