So a new start

I completely feel off the wagon.


I had started to eat better and walking at least one mile a day with two kids in toe one having to walk also that was a  HUGE thing! 
Then we had some family things go on and I was stuck in the house for one week and then got sick so no more excuses.

I am going to start again. I need to work on portion size as today I was eating breakfast and realized I was eating more like two servings instead of the one I thought I was so double the calories not something I need.

What are you going to work on. I am also going to see if there are some free classes out there to try as a gym membership is out of the budget right now.



Thanks for listening Julia

Going Green

I've recently discovered green smoothies, and I am smitten! Rather than giving a lengthy explanation, here's a great video telling you all you need to know..

And here's the smoothie I made for myself this morning with spinach, frozen tropical fruit, a banana and unsweetened coconut milk:

Good eats!!

Where I Was and Where I Am

I thought it would be fair to show you a pic of me at my heaviest (eep!) I don't have a good full-on photo like my July one, but here are a few to give you an idea of what we're dealing with here:

February 2009 at a friends baby shower.

(too blurry to enlarge much)

These last two are from a family event in November 2009 (yes, that's my nephew I'm holding but let's leave his cuteness out of this).

So that's where I really started. By July when Julia started this blog (again, thank you!!) I had already lost about 20 pounds. Yay me!

A few things about Where I Was:

1. Rarely exercising
2. Not eating "right"
3. Eating too much
4. Not getting out of the house to get fresh air
5. Not drinking enough water
6. Snacking too much
7. Not staying away from sugar like I should

I should admit that in between then and now I had a bit of a yo-yo. I went from being employed full time to getting laid off. No worries on the job front because I have my business to fall back on- but unfortunately, I also fell back on some bad habits that resulted in a bit of a gain. The good news is I didn't let that discourage me and that brings us to now..

Where I Am:

1. Exercising more- still lots of room for improvement, but every bit helps
2. Eating much better. I've cut out most animal products and am staying on a mostly plant-based diet (not because of moral objections to meat-eating, but for health and environmental reasons). I also pretty much stay away from dairy (some cheese but no milk- I use coconut milk, yummy!)
3. I'm possibly eating as much as before, but it's mostly fruit and veggies, so no problem there
4. It's very hot right now in AZ, so this will be better in a month than it is now
5. I get plenty of water now, including quite a bit from the produce I'm eating
6. With all the fruit I'm getting at all my meals, I don't feel the need to snack
7. I get a little bit of sugar in my morning coffee, but not really anything else for the rest of the day

I started reading Eat to Live (Dr. Fuhrman) recently; it's about eating a vegetarian diet (though there are meat options discussed in the book as well). There's a 6-week plan that I decided to start yesterday. So far so good (not too different from what I was doing already- just adding much more beans and really paying attention to what you're eating) So far so good, but we'll see how it goes won't we? So far, no hunger pains and I have really good energy.

As for the goal that was posted (going to bed earlier): I wasn't doing very well on this until last night. Previously I just couldn't fall asleep- I'd just lay there.. thinking, and it just threw off my sleep schedule. But the night before last I only got about 3 hours of sleep so last night I went to sleep at 9pm (so early!) and slept mostly through the night (one bathroom dash, no biggie). Hopefully this signals a trend. I really have to get on a regular sleep schedule because school starts on the 23rd. Cross your fingers for me!!

Julia will post our weights tomorrow (no, not actual numbers!!.. ok, ok, guess I have to fess up to them, huh?) o_0

Emily

I'm craving chocolate today.

Its Monday

So ok gals and guys. This weeks goal. Go to bed earlier even if it is 20mins earlier then normal experts say sleep is very important when your trying to lose weight. So lets see how we do....

Also I'm thinking Fridays are going to be our weigh in days. What do you think? So this week will be the first you can email me and that way I'll just post all the weights in one post. So please get them to me Friday before noon P.T. Thanks Also if want a invite please email me Julia at turkeylips (at) gmail (dot) com.


Keep up the great work and as long as your doing your best everyday is a new one.

Somehow I lost 5 pounds. Woot woot yea for me!! :D

Laura Before pictures