Wow!

It's Sunday already? That means it is...

WEIGH IN DAY!!!

Yeah, yeah. I'm not as pumped as that sounds up there, BUT I am happy, AND feeling good.

So this week, I've been working on caloric intake, protein intake, and portion size. Overall, I feel good about where I've gotten. I also started my bands strength training this past Wednesday, and I really, really like it. It is just long enough that right when I am sick of exercising in the house, it's over! Yay! For those who have sciatica issues like myself, I highly recommend Turbo Fire band workouts. Good stuff, not hard to keep up, and it is very concentrated exercise so you are not wasting too long trying to reach your break down point with muscles.

I made sure that I exercised everyday this week except Friday. Friday will ALWAYS be my off day. I am still doing my 15-20 minutes intensive biking in the morning. Followed with a 30 minute power doggy walk. And to finish, I do one of the core strengthening band workouts that last about 20 minutes. Plus, I make damn sure I keep busy the rest of the day. Literally, I have been purposefully finding projects to work on that keep me active.

So, with all this above mentioned activity, it's been very non-invasive in my day to day life. I only really feel like I am purposely working out when I am doing the turbo fire vids. I hope to get to the point I can add them to my routine without playing the videos themselves. THEN I will be working out without really feeling like I am.

The cravings though.

OMGZ.

This must be what it is like to quit smoking after a decade. Seriously! I mean, I go through all the symptoms of nicotine withdrawal. Crankiness, hunger, sleeplessness, sleepiness, mood swings, the whole nine yards. And I know, the instant I give in to a fast food craving, or an extra can of soda, I will feel better, BUT, I am not giving in. I literally had to verbally talk myself through some of the urges this weekend, but I did it! Don't get me wrong, though. I ended up going out of town on Friday, and was in a situation where I had to eat out. I ended up going to Frisch's and it was breakfast time thankfully, so my menu options were simple to choose from and I didn't go overboard. Still, I realized what really sparks the cravings for me over the weekend and I plan to be better prepared.

When I started this whole thing, I had all my greens cooked up ahead of time. My cantaloupe was diced and ready. My water was stocked and ready. I even had my tofu ready too. Prepared was my name. Mid week I ended up getting lazy about going to the store. There is nothing worse than being in the middle of a major crave attack and you find your "safe foods" are depleted!!! Not only is one probably not motivated to cook when already hungry, but if you are a food addict like myself, you literally want to cry. Still, I got through it. YAY!

And now that I am full on exercising, I really cannot put myself in those kinds of situations. So, I got off my arse to the store and got everything caught up. And what is really nice is that with all the exercise, I literally am not nearly as hungry as I usually am. PLUS, since I am actually making sure I am eating enough protein (wasn't doing that before all this), I find I'm not hungry as often either. I easily stayed wayyyyyy under my 1800 calorie limit. I hovered right around 1200 all week.

This might seem rather minor to some, but when it comes to taking care of myself, it is never a priority, so I am very proud of the fact that I have remembered to take my multi-vitamin EVERYDAY this past week. I can tell it has made a huge impact on my life. It is unreal how much difference a vitamin can make in the morning, and yes, I get why doctors recommend taking them now. YOU NEED TO AS WELL IF YOU AREN'T!!!!

On a side note, my oldest boy joined in the process and even tried out the band exercises. He REALLY appreciates what I am going through when even he found out how much of a challenge it can be to do these band workouts. I'm really happy for him though because he plans to do these a bit too now.

So, overall, this week has been a success.

And now, for my weigh in below:

As you can see, I have gone down 6 pounds this week. I attribute that to my increased protein intake, decrease in sugars and overall daily caloric intake. My portions are smarter as well. Top it off with 2" gone from my waist.

Soooooooo....see you next week!!!!