Yesterday was my weigh in after Stage 1 on South Beach. I didn’t weigh myself when we started, so I am going off of what I weighed after I came home from the hospital with JW.

I lost 7 pounds!

photo credit: jaysalikin

Today started stage 2. And today I was starving! Tonight we are having a cookout on the beach, bonfire and all. Maybe being outside with everyone will help curb whatever pretend starving I have going on. I’m not hungry, I eat enough to be full, so I think it’s the whole now I can have some carbs subconsciously getting to me! That has to be it.

photo credit: theloushe

It is the seemingly little things that I’ve noticed since I’ve lost weight. It’s easier to cross my legs now – what an odd thing to realize! My Mom said I look taller – hey I’ll take that, I’m pretty short! I am getting my hourglass curve back – okay that’s definitely not a little thing, that was the first thing I noticed.

My face is skinnier, my cheekbones are definied again! You can see my dimples when I smile. I don’t have a double chin anymore!

According to the Wii Fit – from January 09 until now I’ve lost 23 pounds. I know I was heavier, probably 7-8 pounds heavier, so wow, 30 pounds gone! AND a baby.

That’s the best part to point out – I’ve lost weight *and* I have a baby. How cool.

Tonight ends mine and Mom’s stage one of South Beach – we can add carbs! Whole wheat carbs, but I’m okay with that. I am kind of amazed that I’m not craving anything. A milky way sounds really good right now, but I don’t feel like I have to have it. A bun with a cheese burger would be good too, but again, I don’t need to have it.

From having the baby to last week I lost four pounds – I know I’ve lost two more, but I’m not weighing myself until tomorrow morning.

I’m back!

and I have him ~

so I’m back to needing to lose that baby weight!

Being pregnant with him was very different because I didn’t gain much weight and now, five weeks later, I’m about 20 pounds lighter then before I was pregnant. Kind of amazing I think!

I am doing a couple of things to jumpstart the weight loss – I started South Beach a week ago and also started back on the Wii Fit at the same time. Since then I’ve lost two pounds – of course weight fluctuates daily – and I feel good. I don’t miss bread the way I thought I would, though I’ve had bread here at there – a half a piece with hamd and bean soup, a bite of a biscuit with a stea we had – because I am nursing so need to maintain enough calories for that. I feel full each day though so I am sure I’ve just replaced the junk calories with good calories.

I’m also joining in on the Plus Size Bloggers! They are running a contest from March to May, so head on over and check it out!

We bought a bunch of ribs for Superbowl Sunday and ended up not cooking about half of them. I thought Chris put them in the freezer so when I realized they were in the fridge, I knew I had to cook them soon – and I’m not the one who uses the grill in this house!

A quick search and I found a super easy baked ribs recipe:

• beef ribs – I used one slab that Chris bought, I’m not sure how many pounds they were
• seasoning rub
• bbq sauce
• water

I cut the slab in half so it would fit in the pan I used – you can use a cookie sheet if you are careful to not spill the water but I used a cake pan because that made me feel better. I shook seasoning rub over both sides of the ribs but I’m not sure what good that did because I think I tasted more bbq sauce then the seasoning. Maybe I just can’t taste the differences! Pour about a half a cup of water in the cake pan.

Cook at 200 degrees for an hour, turn ribs over, cook another hour. After the two hours drain water and put the bbq sauce on them. I poured a little and spread it with a fork because I couldn’t find our bbq brush. Bake another thirty minutes at 400 degrees.

Wow.

No pictures because after soccer practice we were all very hungry and ate them all up! I was shocked the kids ate that much but then again ribs don’t have that much meat on them.

Very good recipe and I love that it was just a few ingredients. We have another slab to cook and I am going to use this same recipe on them. Try the recipe and let me know what you think!

So it’s been a month.

As you can see I didn’t stick to my wanting to workout every day on the Wii Fit. I did great for 10 days! Then I started skipping here and there. I also started out following the Body for Life program and then stopped. Then I went with South Beach for about ten days then stopped that too.

But I’m back to working out every day! It’s about not giving up and at least doing something. My workout schdule is

• 10 minutes free walking
• 3-4 balance games
• 3-4 yoga
• 2-3 strength

This is just the minimum of what I do. If I feel like I want to keep going, I do – but I don’t stop until I’m done with at least these. It has made it easier to keep going – I’ll jump on intending to get the exercises out of the way then finish with the walk but end up adding extra workouts or doing 20 minutes of walking instead of 10.

And I am back to loving the Wii Fit! Yesterday (when I took the screen shot) it told me I was 20 years old. How awesome is that! The youngest I’d been til that point was 27 so I was shocked. (Yes, I have been telling everyone I know or see about this wonderful number.)

Both of my kids put their mii’s into the Wii Fit recently. They did the initial test and laughed at being told they were in their 20s, then have had fun playing the balance games. They love that all the mii’s on our Wii are included in the games. When I start the soccer ball game they always name off who is in the line up – and are very excited if they are the coach that time.

This week my husband finally joined in on the fun. He’s only done his initial test so far but that’s something. I can’t remember how old it told him he is but I question the Wii Fit standards because it told him he was overweight – and sure he’s softer then when he graduated Officer Candidate School last spring, but overweight? Then he showed me how to really do a push up.

Even if I’m only down a pound and a half since I got on the Wii, I know that number is going to change. The number has gone down and up and down and down and up again. I am loving the Wii Fit Mommies forum and blog. Everyone is excited to lose weight this way and if I am having a blah day I can read and get some encouragement.

It’s been almost a week since Kelly at Mom’s Talk Network started her “48 Days to a Better Me” campaign. It is a great idea and though I am a few days late joining, I’m in!

My goals are to

• exercise daily for at least 20 minutes
• drink all the water I am supposed to
• No pop – easy since I rarely have any anyway
• less junk food tapering down to no junk food – we have lots of gettogethers where there are chips and dip, bean dip, etc., no junk food at home is one thing, no junk anywhere else gets slightly tougher

I’ve been doing great on my own with the goals. I started out the new year with the intent to exercise every day and I haven’t been able to stick to that, so I’ve been making sure to get up and just do it! I’ve been working out every morning while the kids are sleeping for the past six days. I look forward to continuing this and losing some weight.

After working out on the WiiFit for seven days in a row, according to the daily body test, I’ve lost three pounds!

photo credit: Chris_J

I started out on the first day figuring my way around the game and trying a few of the workouts. Within three or four days I went from working out for 20 minutes to working out for 40 minutes. I was sticking with the beginner workouts and getting the high score every time I played, just getting a little bit better each day. By this morning’s (day seven) workout I did just under a half hour and I did all the advanced of the ones I picked. I stopped at a half hour because it took that little time to get me tired! I know I won’t be sore because I didn’t push myself but I definitely felt the workout.

I’ve unlocked several games – more games as well as more reps and the advanced portions. I’ve made it a goal to try one new thing each time I work out and from now on I will be doing the advanced workouts. I also want to go walking around the neighborhood, easy to do since my kids both have bikes they can ride!

How are your workout sessions going?

I don’t remember having a headache the last time I did South Beach but this time it’s hit me hard. Yesterday the headache was dull and just there, it didn’t interrupt my day or really bother me too much. I chalked it up to completely changing how I was eating cold turkey.

photo credit: quinn.anya

Didn’t take meds but I wanted to tonight!

But today the headache just isn’t good. I almost feel achy and sick to my stomach. I’ve done great at eating right, allowed foods if you will, though maybe I haven’t had enough water. I’m going to make sure I have plenty tomorrow in case that is the reason. I was very tempted to eat a cookie in case it was my body reacting to no sugar – but I didn’t.

I’m thinking there won’t be a headache tomorrow but if there is I will definitely take meds by the time dinner rolls around. It seemed to get worse as the evening has gone on.

Today the Wii Fit told me I was 28! This was fantastic news considering the past few days it said I was 37. I chalk it up to being up for a handful of hours before attempting to work out, and losing a tiny bit of weight. I think I am down a pound and a half since starting on the Wii Fit. My goal on there is to lose I think 15 pounds in two months, completely do-able.

Today on South Beach was good! I had eggs, cheese, veggies, peanut butter and chicken throughout the day. I need to go grocery shopping and have a slight headache at the end of the day, but I know that will go away and I’ll feel great in a few days.

Today I did 42 minutes of working out on the Wii Fit. I have been doing just any of the games, not really thinking of a plan for working out. But today I did four of each of the games and went from easy to harder – I completely two of the suggested workouts (combining strength training and yoga) and even ran. I really do not like running at all, but it wasn’t that bad so I will probably keep it up. I liked the workout, I had a good warm up and then a good workout.

Today is the end of the first week of the year – what have you accomplished?

After doing the weekly menu the other day I realize I am just not happy with how I feel. I feel fat. I feel like my clothes are tight and uncomfortable. I know I can do things different but I feel like I did so great when I was on South Beach last spring – so I am going back to South Beach. The combination of that and working out will make me feel better so I will commit to South Beach.

photo credit: Allie_Caulfield

I’m excited! I am looking forward to starting this back up. I did lose weight doing the Body for Life program, but fell off that so quickly and easily. I’m sure it would be easy to get back to. But I had such success with South Beach that I know I can again. I am making a new menu for myself tomorrow – I’m not throwing away any food, that is such a waste! I’ll make the same menu for Chris and the kids and the new south beach stuff for me. Once we go through the food we have and I do grocery shopping again, we’ll all go on the same menu.

Here is to two weeks of no bread, no cakes, no desserts, no packaged food, no cereal, no pasta, no rice. And honestly, I’m completely okay with that. If you knew me for years and years you would realize I don’t do diets, I don’t do food plans – mostly because being chubby was okay with me in the sense that I still had friends, still dated, still did whatever, being chubby didn’t stop me from anything like I know others have experienced. Plus last spring when I did this plan, I had a ton of energy. I felt like I was sleeping a little less (not a lot, like 7 hours down from 8 or so) and just over all felt great.

Are you following a food plan or watching what you are eating? It’s the new year so I know a lot of people have started that whole lose weight/get healthy thing that will quit around March or so, but if you have started something I encourage you to keep it up! Do whatever you can cause once you see progress it will keep you motivated.