One Down, 39 To Go!

Well, it actually might be less than 39, since the 40 weeks of weight loss was based on 2.5 lbs a week and I just had my Week 1 weigh in at SlimGenics and I lost 7.75 lbs!! Too bad every week can't be a Week One, huh? ;-)

As you can imagine, I'm pretty happy with that for Week One and I'm highly motivated to keep going. How could I NOT be?

Going forward, I'm praying for 3 lbs a week. SlimGenics says I can lose 3-5 lbs a week, so I figure if I can keep on track with the low end of that, I will be pleased, because that's a lot of weight each week. If I were to maintain that average from here on out, my weight loss phase would be cut down to only about 31 weeks instead of 40 weeks.

The best thing is that I really haven't been all that hungry (they say you won't be, but I had to experience it to believe it!), except for one day last week where I was out and about running errands in the morning and I forgot to bring a morning snack with me. I didn't eat anything between breakfast and lunch and as a result, I was STARVING by the time lunch rolled around and I really wasn't able to recover all day.But other than that, not hungry! 7.75 lbs of weight loss and not hungry! Who knew it was even possible?!

Of course, there will be no Great Minnesota Get Together (The Minnesota State Fair) for me this year, because that's just all about eating (at least to me!) and there is no way I'm going to ruin what I've started. Mini-donuts, cheese curds and milk shakes will have to wait a year. Everyone who is going, have some for me. ;-)

Prep Days are Over ~ First Day on Plan!

Yay!! Prep days are officially behind me and today I started the weight loss phase on my plan. The piece of toast with butter that I had with breakfast never tasted so good before!!

Anyway, without further adieu, yesterday I said that I would report one more time the weight loss according to my scale in the morning, which would accurately reflect just how much weight I lost during those three prep days. The final tally is in and.... drum roll please.... I lost a total of 6.8 lbs in those first 3 prep days!! Whoa. To say I'm happy with that as I begin is an understatement. That makes the prep days sooooo worth it.

Something interesting I did today was to compare our scale to the SlimGenics scale. I went right to SlimGenics after work and weighed in. Then when I got home, I immediately walked in the door and weighed myself on our scale under the same conditions as I had just 15 minutes earlier on their scale. I weighed EXACTLY the same on our digital scale as their digital scale. Nice to know we have an accurate scale. Makes me feel even better about the 6.8 lbs. ;-)

But here's the kicker: I was wearing jeans and a pretty heavy long-sleeved top today. They commented on how heavy my clothes were before I even stepped on the scale at SlimGenics. So after weighing myself here at home, I changed into shorts and a t-shirt, went to the bathroom and got back on the scale and I weighed 2.2 lbs less!

This was really good news, because when I stepped on their scale, I was only down 2.5 lbs from my start weight last Friday. Of course, I knew the loss would be less than my 6.8 lbs because of the "last-hurray" weekend gain, but I seriously doubt I gained 4.3 lbs over the weekend, you know? I'm actually down closer to 4.7 lbs from my start, meaning I gained about 2.1 lbs over the weekend.

There it is. The last time I will worry about my weight loss according to my scale starting from this past Monday. I know my scale is accurate, which is nice, and I really only wanted to get a good baseline of what I lost in those three days since I hadn't weighed in at SlimGenics since the previous Friday morning.

So here I am, Thursday of my first week and I'm already officially down almost 4.7 lbs.

I think I'm off to a great start. Thanks for the prayers everyone, because I'm sure they're helping. They always do. ;-)

Final "Prep" Day!

So today is my last "prep day" and I officially start the plan tomorrow. I CAN'T WAIT!!!

I never thought I would be so anxious to start a diet in my life, but there are so many things I haven't been able to eat these three days that I will be able to eat starting tomorrow (like starches and fruits, etc!). And all the snacks I bought from them last night... oohhhhh... they look so good. Can't wait to be able to enjoy two a day starting tomorrow!!

Now, I want to talk about what I've lost so far, but I will advance warn that this is the first time and also the 2nd to last time I will mention what I've lost according to my scale at home. The reason is this: I weighed in with SlimGenics mid-morning last Friday, obviously fully-clothed and with food in my belly. I then proceeded to have many "last meals" over the weekend, so I'm sure I put weight on (as I said earlier, I weighed the same thing Monday morning before eating anything and with no clothes on...).

So yesterday afternoon I weighed in at SlimGenics again, and I was down .25 lbs from last Friday. That, to me, is my official weight loss, because that's going to be what I track going forward, which is why I'm not going to talk about what I've lost according to my scale.

I do want to state that I've been getting on the scale every morning under the exact same conditions (Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday), just for a baseline of how these prep days are going. Tomorrow will be last such weigh-in that I'll report, but I will report it as it will be my total lost for those three prep days. Going forward I will only report the SlimGenics official weight loss, even though it will be less.

Ok, all that build up just to say: so far I am down 4.4 pounds for the first two days!!! Crazy!!! It will be interesting to see what my final three day total is for these prep days. Talk about kicking off a diet on a high note!!

Now, for areas of improvement and monitoring: if there is any one thing that I already realize I'm going to have to be aware of, it's getting in my daily salt intake. Since I will be getting virtually no salt from the foods I'm consuming, I have to add back in 1/4 - 1/2 tsp. of Morton's Lite Salt to my food each day. I've never been a salter, so remembering to do that has been tough!! Yesterday I didn't get in any at all, but today I've been good so far, having some with both breakfast and lunch.

Another issue in question was my water consumption. I am supposed to drink 80 oz of water daily, but have been drinking 96 oz, since I just fill my 32 oz water bottle three times. I asked them about this last night and they said to not go over 100 oz in a day, as it will indeed start to flush out vitamins. They're not cheap, so we don't want to do that! ;-)

Ok, so I'm off to a good start and really looking forward to more choices starting tomorrow. Going to do some grocery shopping tonight to make sure I have some good meals to plan for the rest of the week.

We've only just begun ~ thanks for sticking with me!

I'm off and running!

... to the bathroom, that is. ;-)

Today marks the official start of my journey on the SlimGenics diet. I have upped my water consumption (I must say I LOVE the thermo-boost packs that I mix with my water!!) and as a result, I have spent a large part of the day running to the bathroom. Ha!

I will admit that I'm hungry today, which I fully expected. There are many foods that I'll be able to eat on this diet, but not yet. Very minimal for these first 3 "prep days". To be fair, I can have unlimited green veggies and meats, but I haven't eaten all that much (no veggie snacks this afternoon) because I've been busy, so that obviously plays into being hungry. Tomorrow when I go back to work, I plan to bring more food and to set alarms on my computer to remind me to eat snacks. If I can eat more food and curb the hunger, why wouldn't I?

I had two hard-boiled eggs for breakfast; half an orange mid-morning; steak, green beans, snow pea pods and green peppers for lunch; the other half of the orange mid-afternoon; and I'll be having grilled chicken and salad for dinner (and I consumed about 96 ounces of water today!).

All in all, I think it's been a pretty good first day. I was a little worried about all the omega vitamins that I would be taking, because some of them make you burp up a fishy taste. YUCK!! These, luckily, do not. Phew.

Oh, and I got on the scale first thing this morning and I weighed EXACTLY (to the ounce) what I weighed at the SlimGenics office last Friday. I found that to be comforting, considering I ate a lot of fatty food over the weekend. Of course, I'm sure I gained, as I was wearing clothes when I weighed in at the SlimGenics office. ;-)

I've made it through Day 1! Only 279 more to go!

The Final Supper

So tonight is the final supper; the last food I shall eat before officially kicking off my SlimGenics journey tomorrow. My first three days I anticipate being hungry, though who knows. I have to eat the same thing for these first three days, called the prep days. However, I get unlimited portions of proteins, including, but not limited to:

• Steak
• Hamburger
• Chicken
• Shrimp
• Turkey

I can also eat unlimited amounts of green veggies, so I see lots of snacking on green peppers, broccoli, snow peas and cucumbers in these three days.

I did LOTS of shopping today to buy all these healthy foods and I actually felt really good for the first time in a long time going through the check out line. It wasn't just that I wasn't buying junk food, because I've done that a lot. But usually, I'm buying a ton of frozen meals, etc. This time, it was healthy, fresh food. Fresh produce galore. And the best part? It all looks GOOD to me. Of course, I'm sure I'll get sick of it after three straight days, but at least it's food that I enjoy, like eggs for breakfast and oranges for snacks.

So tonight for my final meal, a some good friends are bringing over roast and loaded baked potatoes. YUMMY!! It's gonna be a meat and potatoes kinda night (of course topped off by watching Brett Favre and my Vikings ~ can't believe that's the first shout out I've given them, even though they have nothing to do with my journey, other than to hopefully make me smile for much of it!)

It's time to go enjoy some good friends, good football (I hope!!) and some good Minnesota food for the last time in about 10 months. Tomorrow will be the start of the journey towards a healthier, smaller me!!

It's Official!

I am now officially signed up for SlimGenics and I start the plan on Monday.

I spent a couple hours there this morning going over everything and I'm VERY excited. I cannot believe I'm saying that about a diet!!!

They really focus on the "maintenance" and stick with you for a full 16 weeks after you reach your goal weight to help you reintroduce the foods you love and help you learn how to maintain the weight on your own. This is EXACTLY what I need! 

So in the interests of complete transparency, after doing my weigh-in, my weight loss goal is 99 lbs. That is A LOT of weight. But hey, I was happy to see it not tip 100 - a whole 1 pound less! Haha!

My weight loss phase is 40 weeks. I know that's a long time, but man, 99 pounds in 10 months will be a pretty remarkable feat, so I'm very pleased with that. There is NO WAY I could lose 99 lbs in 10 months on my own, if I could lose it at all!!

The even better part is that you are monitored and it's done in a healthy way, despite being so quick. Your body's metabolism is just kicked into high gear and you are not depriving it of anything, especially lean muscle mass! That is so key.

I'm already looking forward to having more energy and living a healthier lifestyle. Just a few more days and I'll be starting the journey!

Thanks for the support and prayers I'm already receiving. I'm very ready to make this change in my life and having my family and friends alongside me means so much.

Today's the Day!

Yay! I have my first Slimgenics consultation today in only an hour and a half; then I will be officially signed up and on my way.

My intent is to start the plan on Monday, which sounds like it will work for them, as that is when their "week" starts.

I feel like I'm going to explode today, as I ate WAY too much yesterday. I had baja sauce with chips in my weekly team meeting, Culver's for lunch, cake for a co-worker in the afternoon and then Buca for dinner. Ugh. I actually have a headache today. I have no plans for food at all today, which suits me just fine.

Everyone please say a prayer for me as I head off to my first appointment. I'll post more later once I've actually visited and signed up!

Beware the Pre-Diet Phase!!

So, you've seen my list.

Since then, I've eaten some very yummy foods (including pizza, gnocchi with alfredo sauce and a Wendy's Baja salad) even though I haven't stuffed myself with any of them. I basically just haven't watched what I was eating and I've had some candy, etc.

This morning, a pair of jeans that I've been wearing comfortably for many months were tight enough that I had to lay down on the bed to get them on!!

I am excited enough about this weight loss journey that this is upsetting. I don't want to gain 10 pounds the week before I start the Slimgenics diet. That's just 10 more pounds I'll have to take off and 10 more pounds I'll have to pay them for.

Of course, we're having pizza for dinner from Savoy's tonight (YUMMY!!!) and tomorrow night I'm going to Buca di Peppo with a couple girlfriends for dinner. My birthday is this Saturday, so I'm obviously not going to worry about it that day.

I must try and eat lighter lunches and such because I do not like that I've started a weight loss blog and since then, my jeans are tighter!!

What Would YOU Eat?

Ok, so the countdown is on. I have 1 week before I start the new Slimgenics program. We all know the most important question at this point: What to eat?

Now, I want to keep my previous post about Gluttony in mind, so I'm not looking to go overboard here. However, I do want to enjoy some good food in moderation, so I'm thinking about the things I'll miss the most during the weight loss phase, and trying to get them in this week.

Some of my favorites:

• Pizza 
• Pasta with alfredo sauce (or any cream-based sauce, really)
• Mexican food (this one is tough for Minnesota!)
• Chinese food (Orange Chicken, Lemon Chicken, Sweet & Sour Chicken...)
• Pizza!!
• Did I mention Pizza? ;-)

Ok, so these are some of the foods I'm going to be enjoying this week, in addition to just trying to eat a lot of the food in the house that I would prefer is gone while dieting.

What are some of the foods that you would enjoy if you only had 1 week left to eat them for awhile?

Gluttony IS a Sin!

Awhile back, while having a strategic discussion about how to approach weight loss, Mike and I had a conversation that really stuck with me regarding gluttony. The bible talks about it and labels it a sin, just like overeating or sexual immorality. In fact, it was even listed as one of the sins that led to Sodom's destruction (Ezekiel 16:49, NLT states: Sodom's sins were pride, gluttony, and laziness...).

What specifically stuck with me was how so many Christians look down on overindulging in alcohol, but don't think twice about overindulging in food (us included!).

Like most people, we really use food to celebrate (and I don't think there's anything wrong with that). So at what point does it become sinful?

What would we say or think if we saw a family member get falling-down drunk at Thanksgiving dinner? Would we rationalize that they had a good excuse, because it's a holiday or would we still look down on the behavior? So what if we overeat until we need to be rolled out the door? We think nothing of that; in fact, most of us can completely relate. So just like having a drink isn't a sin, enjoying good food, in my opinion, also is not. But overindulging is.

So, how do we flip the switch and change our way of thinking to be more godly when it comes to overeating? My best answer at this point is to ask you to let me know if you find a way, because I haven't yet found it! ;-)

For starters, I looked at the definition of gluttony. I guess I never really viewed overeating at the occasional meal as gluttony. I pictured some 400 lb dude surrounded by food; eating day and night. However, the dictionary definition of gluttony is simply as follows: "excessive eating and drinking". So how does the bible define it? I decided to look at the passage from Ezekiel in different translations to see if it shed any light:

NIV: Now this was the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were arrogant, overfed and unconcerned...

NASB: Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had arrogance, abundant food and careless ease...

ESV: Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease...

Clearly, there have been many times in my life that "overfed, abundant food and excess of food" have applied. Heck, there have been times in the past week!

Does that mean that I can't ever LIKE or ENJOY food? I don't think so. I just believe it's about moderation.

I must try to work on that, especially with my birthday coming up...

I'd like to ask that you find some other bible verses regarding overeating and gluttony and post them in the comments section. Here's one more from me: 

Proverbs 23:20-21 (NIV):

 ²⁰ Do not join those who drink too much wine
       or gorge themselves on meat,
 ²¹ for drunkards and gluttons become poor,
       and drowsiness clothes them in rags.

Journey #1: Weight Loss

So, this would be my first ever post on my first ever blog. I've been part of blogs before, but I've never had one of my own.

Basically, I honestly can't imagine that many people really caring, but I decided to do this more for my own accountability than anyone else.

Our journey on this earth isn't easy for anyone. We all need all the help we can get, right? So this is my call for help.

I want to be a better Christian, a better wife to my husband and a better mom to my little boy. So to that end, I've decided that my physical and spiritual health are at the center of all those things and that is what I need to concentrate on. I believe I need the physical health before I can truly attain the spiritual health to its fullest, so that is where I will begin.

Anyone who's known me all my life has got to know just how uncomfortable I am in my own skin being this overweight. This is just not me. God did not design me to be this way, so by being this way, I have let the evil one win. What's up with that!?

Well, it's time to do something about it. Is it going to be easy? Nope. Is it going to be cheap? Nope. Is it going to be enjoyable? I'm guessing not! But is it going to be worth it? YES!!! Am I going to be a better wife because of it? YEP! Am I going to be a better mother? MOST CERTAINLY. And most importantly, am I going to be able to more effective for the kingdom of Christ? YES!!!

So how can I NOT do it?

This coming Friday I have my first appointment at Slimgenics. It's a weight loss program to be sure, but the key for me is that I will have a one-on-one weight loss counselor that I will meet with 3 times a week to help me. I believe that will be the key. If I could have done this on my own, I would have already!!!

I work with a woman whose best friend did this and has had amazing (and more importantly LASTING) results. She finally caved and decided to do it herself 6 weeks ago. It's not the cheapest route, to be certain, but when is hiring a personal counselor for ANYTHING cheap? Heh.

Only 6 weeks in, the changes in my co-worker have been inspiring. I sat down and talked with her about the plan and came to the same conclusion she did: can I afford to do this? How about asking the better question: can I afford NOT to?

So I am going to use this space to post about my journey and how it's going. When I'm having good days, when I'm having bad days and everything in between.

What am I asking of you? Click on the right to follow my blog - I need support and prayers that I will stick with this and come out the other side healthier for my family and for God!