Weigh-in for 9/10/2011

Last weigh-in (9/3/2011) : 156.8 lb

This weigh-in (9/10/2011) : 156.0 lb

Change : 0.8 lb lost

I am getting closer and closer to goal. It's getting me really excited because when I get there, I will be able to set a new personal goal for myself. Only 1lb left and two weigh-ins in September left. Granted, the first October weigh-in is on the 1st of the month, so if I hit it then, I will still be satisfied that I hit it by the end of September. I know that one of the next two weeks will be a gain or maintain because it happens once a month like clockwork, so I am not going to get discouraged. Almost 19 months ago when I was 215lb, I never dreamed of being 155lb. It's just one stop along the journey and I'm going to push past it.

Quick Chili Con Carne

Ingredients:

1lb extra lean ground turkey or beef
1 package chili seasoning mix
16oz can of tomato sauce
16oz can of light red kidney beans


Directions:

Brown meat. Stir in seasoning mix according to package directions. Add tomato sauce and kidney beans. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Enjoy!


This also is good as leftovers, served over a baked potato. Poke holes in potatoes, cover in olive oil and salt, then place in oven for 1 hour, 15 minutes at 400 degrees.


Recipe makes 6 servings; 4 Points Plus each (with ground turkey)

Autumn Temptations

Although we haven't officially closed out "summer" and won't feel a temperature change here until late October at the earliest, autumn temptations are starting to appear. Yesterday, I was at Sonic for my diet cherry limeade fix and they are now offering a pumpkin pie shake. I bravely put off the red velvet shake until it was gone, but pumpkin pie is another story. And of course, they already have Halloween candy in stores, like it's not 8 weeks away!

Autumn has to be one of the hardest times for me to lose weight. I am a sucker for warm apple cider, anything with pumpkin or pumpkin pie pieces, and I LOVE candy corn. This is the one time a year I let myself have candy corn. In addition to all those things, I make a killer Halloween treat that contains peanut butter, honey, marshmallows, candy corn, and a cereal base (recipe will be posted closer to the holiday). I only make it once a year because peanut butter is my Kryptonite. I don't even let it come into my house because of what happened when I was pregnant. Let's just say I ate an entire jar of peanut butter in the last month before Brady was born and it probably accounted for my last 10lbs.

I know I can't see these temptations everywhere and resist them all, so it's all about strategic placement. I will only let myself have one of these items right after a weigh-in so that I have the rest of the week to make up for it.

7 Layer Taco Dip

Ingredients:

16oz can fat-free refried beans
1 packet taco seasoning
8oz light sour cream
8oz light cream cheese
12oz jar of chunky salsa
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 cup fat-free Cheddar cheese
1 bag Baked Tostitos scoops (more if you have a larger event)


Step 1:

Mix refried beans and taco seasoning with an electric mixer and spread into the bottom of a pie dish or serving dish.

Step 2:

Mix sour cream and softened cream cheese with an electric mixer and spread over bean layer. Add salsa. It helps to drain it a little so there isn't too much liquid.

Step 3:

Sprinkle lettuce on top of salsa, then cover lettuce with Cheddar cheese. Refrigerate until ready to serve.



This is a great recipe for game day if you're stuck at home or want to have people over to watch the game.


Makes 6 servings; 5 Points Plus each. Baked Tostitos scoops are 3 Points Plus for 15 chips.

Weigh-in for 9/3/2011 - Lowest Ever!!!

Last weigh-in (8/27/2011) : 157.8 lb

This weigh-in (9/3/2011) : 156.8 lb

Change : 1 lb lost

This week marks the lowest weight I have ever been on weight watchers. This is helping me realize that I can break through old barriers and move forward. The last time I was at this weight, I can't even pin-point because I shot from 130lb-160lb in one summer when I was 14. That means it was sometime in the summer of 2000. I am now 1.8lb from lifetime and the closer it gets, the more I want it.

The Way You See Yourself

Sometimes it's hard looking at yourself in the mirror. You see yourself every day, so it's hard to notice weight loss. Sure your clothes fit better or are too big, but you don't notice it in the mirror. Other people tell you they notice, but you still see your flaws. When I look in the mirror, I can't tell that I look any different from when I was at 165lb (almost 7.5lb ago).

On the other hand, my clothes fit completely different. I have a ton of clothes from before I got married that still have the tags on them because I bought them a little too small and was going to work my way into them. I was between a size 12 and 13 when it came to dress pants before I got married, wore a jean size 11, and most of my dresses were sized 11 or 12. Yesterday, I wanted to prove to myself that my body is different than when I was 165lb, so I went through my closet. I was able to get into a pair of size 10 dress pants that still had the tags on and even a size 9 sun dress that I couldn't zip up when I bought it.

It feels good to see that kind of progress, but I feel like I was thinner the last time I was at this weight. When I was working my way back down post-pregnancy, I kept thinking that 155 was some magic number where I would technically be at a healthy weight and somehow I would be thin. Pictured below is a picture of me in 2007 at the beach house in VA Beach and I was 159lb. I really don't feel like my butt (my main problem area) is this small and I weigh less now. I guess you're always harsher on yourself.

September 2011 Goals

This is it. This is the month that my goal is to hit lifetime membership. I am 2.8lbs away and if I average 0.7lb per week for all of September, I will hit it! That's an easier goal per week than I set last month. I've been this close before and bounced back up, so this is the test to see if I can actually get there. I am looking forward to hitting my lowest ever on program!

Andy made a promise to me when we first started dating that when I hit goal, he would take me on a trip. When he made that promise, we thought I would hit it before we got married since I was so close at the time. The promise still stands, but the logistics will be much harder now that Andy has a job and we have Brady. We have planned out all our vacation days for this year and are headed to Germany in January. Traveling in Europe is something we're going to do anyway so it doesn't count for my reward trip. That means we will have to wait until we come back and depending on when we have a second baby, I may have to wait until Thanksgiving 2013 to get my trip minus the kids. It will be worth the wait! I'm thinking Vegas since I haven't been since I turned 21 and Andy has never been.

September usually poses a series of challenges with the football season. We are too far from home to keep our Pitt season tickets, so that takes away several weekends of eating stadium food. I'll miss seeing the games live, though. Since 2004, I've been at almost every home game and this year I will only make it to 1. Being far from home also means no family gatherings for Steelers games, which also means food. The only challenges this month will be Andy's company picnic and when we travel to Atlanta to see the Mets play the Braves.