Tuesday, November 20, 2012

My plan for the kick off to the holiday season

So, it's almost that time! Time where you're loosening your pants mid dinner, time where you're regretting that second, or maybe third piece of pie the next day. Well, NOT THIS YEAR! I am continuing with my change. Why should I let one day ruin everything! It won't.

In fact, I'm lucky and unlucky in the fact that I have TWO Thanksgiving celebrations to attend. One on Thursday and one on Saturday. On a good note, my weigh in day is Saturday, so I get 2 separate weeks. Yay for 49 points!!

I think the most frustrating thing is that a majority of people say, "Well it's just one day?" Or "Thanksgiving shouldn't count" Well guess what? It does. One day matters. This didn't happen overnight. I didn't gain 100 lbs in 1 short year or overnight. It took about 10-12. 10-12 years in which I was able to partake in EVERY sinful, delicious item placed in front of me for Thanksgiving. NOT THIS YEAR!

There are a couple changes I'm planning to make and they are as follows:

1. Don't eat the items I can eat any other day. I.E. why eat corn when I can have that any day of the week?

2. For one of the celebrations, I am making the sweet potato casserole and the pumpkin pie. These can be some the MOST dangerous items on the table. I've found recipes which lessen the PPV to 5 points and 3 points EACH. I can indulge, but know exactly what I'm eating. Skinny Pumpkin Pie & Better for you Sweet Potatoes

3. Skip the skin and go for all white meat. Usually I have an issue with the part of the turkey that cover the stuffing when you roast it. You know the piece that you have to cut off to scoop out the stuffing and then some stuffing gets stuck to it? OMG, that's a piece of heaven. This year, I'll skip hovering at the carving area- thus skip the skin. I'll load up my plate with the breast and avoid the fatty dark meat. Fill up on my protein!

4. Have a smoothie for breakfast, a smoothie for lunch and take a walk before dinner. As my leader, Angela says, the socializing is part of the fun of the holiday. A walk is a perfect time to get some pre dinner exercise in and also my active link- LOVE my active link will tell me exactly how many points I have burned!

So, here's to my first Thanksgiving where I'm REALLY trying. It's not that I am not going to enjoy, because trust me I am, it's just that I'll feel SO much better when I step on that scale Saturday. Even if I don't lose, I know I didn't gain what I normally would have. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone!

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Time for a check in....DETERMINED

Time has been going so fast over the last couple months. Going back to work after having a baby can be a daunting task, but throw an almost 3 year old into the mix, a change of positions at work, and things get a whole lot harder.

Of course, I am still on track with my new lifestyle. Every day is a challenge, though. I couldn't believe it, our leader a couple weeks back shared that every day we make more than 200 food related decisions. It's CRAZY! All I can do is continue to make the little choices, which all add up to the big  goal, which is losing the weight and feeling good about myself again.

I've had a few pretty big challenges lately, though. There have been some people challenges, some event challenges, and some personal challenges. Want me to share? Sure you do, so here we go.

1. People challenges: There are some people who no matter how many times you tell them that you don't want a donut, they STILL give you a donut! UGH! Why?? A co-worker thought it was funny to put a donut directly in front of me even after I repeatedly and politely, might I add, refused. It was a birthday celebration and my favorite donuts were in the mix. The glazed croissants, oh so yummy. AND, oh so many points. 11 to be exact! Not worth it, so I just sat there for our 1.5 hour meeting staring at delectable, delicious treats. Even after he put the donut in front of me, I took the paper towel it was on and just said, "Ha ha, very funny, but NO THANK YOU." and I placed it back in the box. Whew, where did I get the will power?
My favorite donuts!!


2. Event challenges: My son was baptized on October 21st. I tried my very best to make the food healthful but still delicious. That didn't stop my family from requesting my almost famous deviled eggs and of course I had to have a cake, which my friend's mom made and it is just heavenly! So, we had hot ham and rolls. I only had 1. I made homemade macaroni salad (I used light mayo)- I only had a small scoop. I made the deviled eggs, I ate 3....oops. Then came the cake. I ate a piece on Sunday, then again a small sliver on Sunday night, then again on Monday night (I have an issue with the delicious cake) By Tuesday night, my husband finally saw the desperation in my eyes and threw the remaining cake down the disposal. Love him! I only lost 1 lb. that week, I guess a loss is a loss, but I can only imagine if I had just put down the cake after the first slice....

After our baptism was complete, just this last weekend, our Cousin's little one was baptized. So there I was again, asked to make deviled eggs. HOWEVER, this time. I had 1 little pulled pork sandwich, 1 small scoop of potato salad, JUST 1 deviled egg and NO CAKE! That's right, people NO CAKE. I took 2 tiny bites of my son's slice, but I did not have any of my own. I went home feeling a little more empowered. Let's hope the scale shows it.  Here's a pic of me and my family at her home.

3. Personal Issues: My husband travels for work. Every third week, he has to fly out on Monday morning at 5 am only to return on Friday night around 11 pm. These weeks are long. They are tough. My older son is almost 3 and the youngest is now 5 months. Being a single parent for 1 week is exhausting. I can only imagine people who do it all the time. They are amazing!

So even with these challenges and obstacles, I am trying to remind myself of the word that is keeping me going. DETERMINED. I am determined to become a healthier me. I am determined to feel good about myself. I am determined to be 150 lbs again. I am determined to wear a size 10 dress to my cousin's wedding in August 2013. All of these items cannot and WILL not slow me down. I am 17 weeks into Weight Watchers and I am 34.8 lbs down. So, whew. I feel better. I have missed writing.

I have a plan to write before the holiday as I just found out I have to have 2 THANKSGIVING dinners.....Till next time!