Stagnating! July 25, 2008

I am trying not to get discouraged right now, but I am finding it a little difficult.  I haven’t lost any weight at all this week….zero, zilch, zip, NADA!  And yes, I haven’t been so intense with my workouts lately and have done a lot less cardio and concentrated more on weight training and ab and leg exercises.  But I walk to and from work every single day, which is no small task.  It totals up to 7 kilometers every day and I walk at a very quick pace, so it’s not like I’m just dragging along at a leisurley pace.  And I’ve been really good food wise, as always, that is something that I never give up.  I never cheat, and even on the days where I will allow myself to be a bit less regimented, I am still very reasonable and always stay within my allotted 1500 calories per day…sometimes even less.

I guess I really have to get back into the more intense workouts, and doing a lot of cardio, because as it is now, those pesky last 14 pounds I have left to lose are just sticking to me like flies to sh*t.  And with my upcoming trip to New York, I won’t be able to do any of my workouts…although I will be doing a lot of walking, so at least that will somewhat save me.  I was really hoping to get to New York weighing 155 lbs, but the way my weight is going now, it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen…Time will tell.

But on a happier note, my Best Health article is finally online! You can check it out here: http://www.besthealthmag.ca/get-healthy/article/i-lost-76-pounds

Spaghetti Squash instead of Pasta July 19, 2008

In a previous blog I mentioned that I had found a great alternative to pasta…Spaghetti Squash!  Today I thought I’d share my favorite recipe using spaghetti squash with all of you out there getting bored with what you are eating and running out of ideas on what to make for dinner.

The preparation is slightly long, because you have to cook the squash first, let it cool, and then prepare it the way you like, but once this is done, the possibilities are endless.

To prepare:

- Pre-heat oven at 350 degrees.

- Cut the spaghetti squash in half, lengthwise, and scoop out all the seeds and gunk in the center.

- In a lasagna pan (or any other pan that will fit the squash and go in the oven), fill the bottom with about an inch of water.

- Place the spaghetti squash, flat, cut part facing down in the pan

- Bake for 1 hour

- After that, take it out and let it cool.

Once cooled, just take a spoon or a fork and just start scraping out the squash, and it will come out in strings, looking like spaghetti. 

Put all of it in a dish that goes in the oven.  Now here is where you can experiment with a lot of different alternatives as to what to put in there.  My favorite one is as follows:

- About 1 cup of shrimp (fresh or frozen, but thawed)

- About 1 cup of scallops (fresh or frozen, but thawed)

- About 2 cups of Tomato sauce (of your choice) (the measurement is approximate, i just eye it and make sure that there is enough sauce to cover all the squash in the dish).

- For garlic lovers like me, add 1 or 2 teaspoons of chopped garlic

- About 1 cup of shredded Low Fat Mozzarella

Salt & Pepper to taste

 

Take the sauce and dump in the dish and mix it in with the squash really well.  Make sure it is all coated and covered.

Throw in the Shrimp, the scallops, the garlic salt & pepper.

Cover with the Mozzarella cheese.

Put in the oven at 350 degrees for 30 to 45 minutes, or until you see it bubbling at the sides and the cheese turns a golden color on top.

 And Voila!  That’s it, this is a simple recipe, and it is so tasty and really low in fat and calories.  I love pasta, but there are so many calories for so little pasta, that this was a great alternative for me.  You can eat much more of it and still have the sensation that you are eating pasta, without all the calories.  Plus you can mix it up in so many different ways, and experiment with different ingredients which is a big advantage for me as I am always seeking a bit of variety in my meals.

So if you want a meal that is nutritious AND delicious, then go out and buy yourself a spaghetti squash and experiment with it, you will see how versatile and tasty it is and you will barely even miss eating pasta…Bon Appétit!!

Finally some movement on the scale! July 12, 2008

Hooray, today is a good day!  After having reached this plateau for about 2 weeks now, and not losing anything, I weighed myself this morning and I have finally lost some weight!  As of this morning I weight exactly 160 pounds…Yipee!

It’s funny because originally when I started this whole weight loss journey, my goal was to get down to 160 pounds.  I’ve since revised that goal, because after reading several articles on ideal, healthy weight, i realised that 160 was still a bit too much, and that because of my height of 5′ 7”, I should ideally weigh about 145 pounds.  So my new goal was to get to that 145.  But just the fact that I have finally made it to my first original goal of 160, I am absolutely thrilled!  So this means that in the Span of about 9 months, I have lost 76 pounds!   I can’t believe that!  I am so very proud of myself I really can’t even put that into words.  And to think that I am only 15 pounds away from my goal and being at a healthy weight just fuels me to keep going and work hard to reach my goal.

So many things have inspired me and encouraged me along the way like my friends and family, but also the fact that I have gone down 8 dress sizes is phenomenal to me.  I am finally able to look at myself in the mirror and see that i look good and I’m even starting to be proud of my body.  And for the first time in years, I actually feel sexy!  That is something that I honestly never thought I could feel, but now with all this excess flab gone, a much more toned body, I am not afraid to show myself anymore.  Gone are the days of wearing baggy, over-sized clothes that make me look even bigger than I am, and here to stay are the days of dressing appropriately for my body type and age (Thank you What Not to Wear!) and feeling really good about myself and the way I look.

Those darn Plateau’s July 9, 2008

I can’t believe that after all this time, I am still somewhat surprised when i reach certain plateau’s in my weight loss journey.  I haven’t lost any weight in about a week and a half now.  This has happened before, and I used to get so discouraged, but this time I know that it’s just temporary.  And I have to admit, I haven’t been as rigorous with my workouts lately, so that probably has a huge part to play.  I’ve been very busy lately and it’s been extremely hot here lately too.  The heat really affects me, it gives me headaches and my energy levels are way down, so i find it hard to get up and do a vigorous workout when i have zero energy.  But I pushed myself to do it anyway yesterday, regardless of the 38 degrees Celsius temperature!

At least I am still keeping up with my good eating habits, so not all is lost!  In fact i’m eating less nowadays, because it’s jsut so hot that i don’t feel as hungry.  I’ve been eating mostly salads, but i always make sure that I have my protein in there.  I either put tuna, hard boiled eggs or chicken in there as well as my classics tomatoes, cucumber, a few black olives, marinated eggplant (when i have) and a bit of corn niblets.  The dressing is usually the same, just a bit of olive oil and some balsamic vinegar.  It’s actually very filling for a salad, and packed with all the stuff i love.  I just discovered a new dressing, i can’t remember what company makes it, but it’s a simple vinaigrette type dressing with roasted garlic and it’s only 6 calories per tablespoon…Hooray!  A salad dressing that is delicious and low fat and calorie, I’m sold!

Hopefully in my next entry I’ll have lost a few pounds and this pesky plateau will have subsided…Stay tuned.

Proud Moment! July 1, 2008

Wow, It’s truly amazing how my life has changed in just 8 1/2 months, I can hardly believe it.  Not only have I succeeded in losing all this weight, but now my success will be immortalised of sorts because Best Health Magazine has contacted me and is officially going to do a story on me and my weight loss success story!

If someone would have told me a year ago that I would lose 73 pounds and that a Health Magazine would be doing a story on me, I would have thought they were crazy!  But here I am, sharing my success story with thousands of people, and maybe even inspire people to do the same.  This is a very proud moment in my life.  I was already beaming with pride at my accomplishments so far, but now, to have my success in print, well that is just the icing on the cake…Low calorie cake of course! Ha Ha Ha!

I went shopping yesterday, and once again I was in shock!  I tried on a bunch of different clothes, and I still have a hard time believing that I am such a smaller size, that I always take a size bigger in the dressing room with me.  Well not only am I officially a size 10 now, but I tried on a skirt at Tommy Hilfiger and the size 10 was actually TOO BIG!  I was completely floored by this!  Not only am i now 8 dress sizes smaller than I was 8 1/2 months ago, but now I would have required a size 8!  I haven’t been a size 8 since High School.

Yesterday was also a big moment for me, I actually put on a bathing suit in public and went swimming!!  I haven’t put on a bathing suit in front of people (other than my best friend a month ago) in about 15 years let alone go swimming!  I have been embarassed about my size for so long, that i didn’t even own a bathing suit for 15 years because i refused to show myself in public looking the way I did.  It was still difficult for me to be so exposed yesterday, but I just let it go and just enjoyed myself and just enjoyed the moment.

So this week is an extremely proud week for me and I look forward to many more to come!