A wedding to look forward to!

So, me and my hubby are originally from CT, now live in FL. We are going up during February for my cousin's wedding. And, we just invited to another one thats going to be on August 19th for a really good friend of ours. My goal is to be within 10 pounds of goal by then! I won't have seen people for 6 months and I want to look great... and buy a super cute dress that I will be able to keep!

This morning we went for a nice LONG walk with our dog Penny and one that we are watching named Rex. Penny is a 9 month old bassethound mix and Rex is a 3 month old shepherd mix. Since we got home almost three hours ago, they have been passed out. Here is a cute pic of them laying together:

Finished the 30 day shred!

Woohoo! It's over! So here are the final results:

Lost approximately 5.5 lbs (jumped on the scale this morning to get an estimate).

Inches:

Body Part      Start      Finish      Total Lost
L arm               14          13.5              0.5
R arm             14.75        14               0.75
Bust                  39         37.25           1.75
Waist                32           31                 1
Hips               40.25         39              1.25
R thigh              27         25.75            1.25
L thigh              27         25.75            1.25
R calf             15.75      15.25              0.5
L calf              15.5       15.25             0.25

Total 8.5 inches lost!!!

Sooo worth it!! But, glad I don't have to keep doing the same workouts every day!

Still working on deciding what I want to do for February's workouts. I think I'll start the C25k, but we have a wedding to go to in the middle of the month, so I going to wait until after that.

Big Splurge!

Ughh.... so tonight me, my father-in-law and his friend went out to Stonewood Grill. The food there is so good... but here is what happened. Avoided ALL alcohol, ate 3 pieces of a flatbread app, 2 rolls, about 1/3 of my entree (blackened chicken pasta), and some chocolate bread pudding (which was sooooo good!). All of which was NOT point friendly. So, by guesstimating because NI is not online, I am two in the red right now, but weigh in isn't until Tuesday. I will get LOTS of activity points tomorrow and get back in the positives and hopefully still have a loss this week.

On another note... only ONE more day of the 30 day shred!! Then final measurements will be in! I am still not sure what kind of workout schedule I want to start next. Maybe some lifting and cardio dvds? Any suggestions are welcome :)

Victory today!

So I was getting ready tonight to go out to dinner and it took me forever to get dressed because I couldn't find a pair of jeans that wasn't TOO BIG!!! yay!! The pair I wore today I haven't worn in over a year. I definately have to take some time tomorrow and go through my closet and get rid of EVERYTHING that is too big no matter how much I love it. I think that is where I have made mistakes in the past. I would keep my "fat" clothes for when I gained a few pounds. If I get rid of them I'll have no choice but to keep myself on track! I can't believe I am already moving into smaller pants after just 10 pounds. It must be all the working out too!

So far with my father in law in town and his friend, I have been doing great. We went to Outback for dinner tonight and I got chicken on the barbie (light style) with a ceasar salad (that was my splurge) and avoided ALL alcohol.  That says a lot for me.... I love wine. Hopefully tomorrow will be just as good!

Staying on Track!

This morning I went grocery shopping (with a list) and only bought what I planned to buy! Then I came home and split up all my snacks into individual little bags because I realized I was spending so much on 100 calorie packs before. I already put dinner into the crock pot since I will be babysitting late tonight. Here's a great low point recipe:

Hamburg Soup
1 lb lean ground beef (cooked, rinsed, and drained)
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 celery stalk (chopped)
1 onion (diced)
1 lb carrots (chopped)
6 cups beef broth or vegetable broth
3 bay leaves
salt
pepper
pasta (I use ditalini, because its small)

Combine all ingredients (except pasta) and cook either on the stove or in a crock pot. (In a crock pot, I do 3 hours on high and then 5 hours on low so the vegetables get nice and tender.) On the stove it would probably only take 2 hours. Cook the pasta separately and combine when served.

This recipe is super easy and stores very well, even tastes better the next day!

Oh, and another tasty treat I found in a book that I'm reading is low point and taste just like a Reese's peanut butter cup :) It's a small jello chocolate pudding cup (I got sugar free but there is fat free too) and add a little bit of peanut butter (I did 1/2 ounce). Stir together and eat!

Today is my 27th day of the shred! Almost done!!! I have been surprisingly sore the past two days even though we have been doing the same workout for 7 days now. My pants have been getting really baggy on top which is a great sign... even my sweatpants! yay!

Amazing Weigh In Day!!!

Lost an amazing 2.7 pounds today (during TOM)!!! Thank you water! This brings me to a grand total of 10.2 pounds lost...woohoo! 20% of the way there. I again ate all of my DP, WP, and APs... I guess this is my magic formula.

Today I had an appointment with my neurologist (I have epilepsy) and I told him I had been losing weight and was wondering if there was a weight that I would need to adjust my medication, but he said I shouldn't have to worry about that since my medication is at a very low level already. But, he did suggest that I begin to take vitamin B12 because my last bloodwork showed that my levels were really low. I wasn't sure what this vitamin did, but found out it improves energy levels and promotes weight loss! yay! Thanks doc.

On Thursday, my father-in-law and one of his friends come to town for a golf weekend. Whenever we have family in town we tend to eat out ALOT, so hopefully we can avoid that this time. I'll have to cook lots! I have been looking for lots of new recipes lately and have found some that I will be trying during the week from skinnytaste and emilybites (both links are on the side of the page). After I make them, I will be sure to post some reviews on here.

Our fridge is EMPTY right now... we have one more dinner planned for tomorrow night and then going to the grocery store on Thursday (pay day). Getting lots and lots of fruit and veggies. Squash and zucchini fries have become one of my new favorite foods! I am loving this new points plus plan.

Have a good night everyone!

Can't wait until tomorrow!

Tomorrow is weigh in day.... can't wait!!! I'm hoping for a big one (especially after my peak a couple of days ago). Today was day 24 of the shred... almost done!!! It has been a great workout, but doing only 3 different workout for 30 days gets a little boring. I haven't decided what my plan is for February yet... maybe p90x? or just a bunch of different workouts? who knows?

So, I went to the library again and got some more "weight loss" related books. The other two I have read seemed to keep me motivated this past week (hence the hopefully big loss), so I figured I will keep reading them until I hit goal! As I find good ones, I'll be sure to post them so you can check them out too.

Scale Peek!

Peeked at the scale today and am already down another 1.1!! Yay!! It's not offical until Tuesday, but I am so excited! I just made a really good lunch, a much healthier version of fried rice: bulgur wheat (cooked), olive oil, carrots, broccoli, peppers, egg whites and soy sauce. Sauteed the veggies with the oil and then added the egg whites, bulgur wheat, and soy sauce. So good and very filling!

Lots of homework to do today, and so far avoiding it very well... blogging and WW Message Boards. I have a paper to write and some more reading to get done. Hopefully I can get it done early so I can actually enjoy my Saturday night! Still have to do the 30 day shred tonight too.

Getting results with the 30 day shred!

My husband did my measurements for me again yesterday and so far I have lost a total of 2.5 inches since starting the shred! YAY! (0.75 inches was off my bust!) Today we did the first day of Level 3... and it is WAY harder than the other levels... only 9 days to go!

I cannot wait till dinner tonight... Jenni O Hot Turkey Sausages with Peppers and Onions and Zucchini Fries :) yumm! A much healthier take on one of my favorites.

Great weigh in yesterday!

Lost 1.3 yesterday at weigh in for a grand total of 7.5 pounds so far! Soooo close to TEN pounds! I was so happy to finally break the streak of small losses under 0.5. And my plan for leaving half of my Weekly Points didn't work out so well.... instead I ate all of my daily points every day, ate all of my 28 activity points that I earned, and 48/49 of my weekly points! But, since that worked so well, I plan to do the same thing this week!

I am currently reading Secrets of a Former Fat Girl by Lisa Delaney and I am loving it. Her humor about weight loss is great to read, and she is SO honest about her feelings and what she went through for so long to lose the weight. I would recommend this book to ANYONE who is considering/ losing/ or has lost the weight! I will probably read it again and again!

Today was day 18 of the 30 day shred for me! It is definately getting a little bit easier, but all the jumping, lunges and squats are not good on my knees so I have to do the modified versions of most things. I am looking forward to measuring myself again on the 20th and will be sure to let you know how it goes!

Yay!

The past few days have been GREAT!!! I have been on plan and working out! I can't wait to weigh in on Tuesday and hopefully break my streak of .2 and .1's that I have been having. Today is day 15 of the shred for me (missed one day a little while ago) and I must say that level 2 is a killer. I don't even want to know what level 3 will be like.

Back on track!

I had a super busy weekend... training ALL day Saturday at a Mary Kay event, then on Sunday we had a brunch for my sisters birthday, and went out to Outback with friends on Sunday night (soooo NOT WW friendly!) So, on Monday I got myself back on track and lost 0.2 at my weigh in on Tuesday. I thought that wasn't too bad after not having control of my food for 2 days during the past week.

Looking forward to a bigger loss this week! I am going to play around with my points for the next couple of weeks to see what gives me the best results. This week I am planning to use all of the DP and AP's each day and have about 1/2 of my WP leftover. I have done this before and lost about 3 pounds in 1 week, but that was before the change to P+.

Today is day 12 of the 30 day shred. Level 2 is a KILLER! I don't even want to try and imagine what Level 3 will be like. I did my measurements again on the 9th and I had lost .75 inches, pretty exciting for only 9 days! I can't wait to see the difference by the 20th.

One of those days... and a Revelation!

Well, woke up to my 7-month old puppy, Penny, running around the house destroying a BLUE pen on my light tan carpets and found out from my husband that someone backed into my car. UH! Can't get the pen out of the carpet, but at least there are only a few scratches on my car from where someone may have hit it. All while trying to get done the 12 hours of statistics homework I have to do today because I procrastinated!

Anyways, picked up our other dog, Copper, today from the vet. He is being treated for heart worm and today was his last shot. Now, he just has another 4 weeks in his crate before he can go back to playing like normal. He is a 3 year old golden retriever mix that we adopted from our local humane society about 2 months ago. We think someone may have ditched him when they found out he had heart worm. He is the sweetest, most calm dog ever! Our other one, the little monster who ate the pen, is a 7-month old basset hound/ standard doxen/ lab mix. Also, from the humane society.

So, I named this blog "Sweet Success One Day at a Time" for a few reasons. One, success is SWEET, but I am also a pastry chef by education, but not currently. Also, because weight loss is just one day at a time, one meal at a time, one week at a time. It is not a change that happens overnight. I have struggled with weight loss for the past 3 years. I left college at 150 lbs after doing Weight Watchers the first time and moving in with my husband slowly put the weight back on... now at 179 lbs. Well, the ironic thing is that I can track my points and activity and LOSE weight, but have been struggling reaching my career goals. I am a Mary Kay Consultant who has been striving for directorship for over a year. For those of you familiar, I have been up and down the career path almost hitting DIQ (Director in Qualifications) at least once. I know EXACTLY what I have to do to make this happen, but yet still haven't been able to find the motivation to do it! Last night I was talking to my director and she said "You have to take it one day at a time, and get excited about what you can do today to reach those goals, and eventually they will come." When she was saying this I was smiling inside, but also wanted to kick myself because I have been doing this with weight loss and just not applying it to the rest of my life. But, today is a different day and that will happen!

Yay for a busy day!

Today is a super busy day... volunteered this morning at the humane society, 30 day shred, homework, and Mary Kay tonight. I love busy days because they keep me off the couch and out of the fridge. With my work, Mary Kay consultant, I am home ALOT since I work from home and that gets me in trouble! Well, off I go to get this stuff done!

Oh snacks!

Today was day 4 of the 30 day shred... but its making me soooo HUNGRY!!!! This always happens when I am working out consistently. I am trying to stick to the healthy stuff as best I can... it will be dinner time soon. Pork chops, stuffing and salad, yumm.

I lost .3 today at weigh in which was pretty good considering I was only counting points for 3 days and went out to eat twice. So that brings me to a total of 6 lbs lost... 49 to go! Tomorrow we go back to volunteering at the humane society where we play with the puppies all morning = usually about 1200 calories burned in 4 hours :) and lots of fun.

Looking forward to the season premiere of the Biggest Loser tonight! I am so excited to find out who the new trainers are going to be. Hopefully, some of these people are somewhat relateable. I feel like they are getting so far fetched and dramatic that its hard to relate, but I enjoy watching others success with weight loss.

Great start to the New Year!

Today has been a great day! Just finished Day 2 of the 30 Day Shred... my legs are screaming! I took all my measurements (arms, bust, waist, hips, thighs, and calves) before starting and will be sure to post results. I plan to measure myself every 10 days. Now, time to go shower and make a delicious dinner for me and my husband... grilled chicken, salad, and roasted potatoes :) yumm! Looking forward to another great day tomorrow!

First Post!

Yay! My first post! This blog is here to help me stay accountable to my weight loss and fitness goals. I am currently down about 5 pounds from my heaviest weight with another 50 pounds to lose to reach my goal weight. I am not doing any crazy dieting, put am following the WW Points+ Program. Also, I am currently doing the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred. Yesterday was my first day at level 1 and my legs are screaming today.

I will be posting about weigh ins, struggles, recipes, workouts and more!

Cheers to a NEW YEAR!!!