Operation Lose the Baby Weight: Week 10

I'm back from hiatus! Yay! February turned into a monumentally busy month for us.

Okay, so I skipped a few weeks in the Operation Lose the Baby Weight saga. I also skipped a few weeks of eating healthy, which is why I have gained two pounds since the last update. Big sad face to me.

The good news is that about a month ago, our whole family made the monumental decision to become vegetarian. Well, Scott and I have -- we serve vegetarian foods at home, but Angelica still eats whatever is on the daycare menu. We don't force the school to give her a vegetarian option because I believe the decision to be vegetarian is a personal one. I made this choice once before, in my late teens/early 20s, and at the time it was a complicated situation since I was still living at home and not yet supporting myself. Diet choices were limited to what was put on the table back then, and I didn't always have a say.

So you'd think, eating vegetarian means that you're getting lots of veggies in, and theoretically losing weight, right? Well, in the past month I have discovered that the following are also vegetarian options:

Cake Cookies Ice cream Tortilla chips Chocolate covered peanuts Cheese (and lots of it)

(...and so on.)

The good news is that being on a vegetarian diet has helped me accomplish my goal of reducing the sodium in my diet, thus reducing my blood pressure to a normal level...all without a change in activity or the need for blood pressure medication! I didn't have terrible blood pressure, but I was diagnosed with prehypertension back in December last year, so it's great to already be seeing the positive effects of this lifestyle change on my health.

So, having recapped the past month, my goal for this week is to start integrating exercise into my daily routine...at least three times this week for 30 minutes. I think that's an achievable goal.

For anyone looking for a really good, vegetarian option, look no further than this -- I made this by accident last week when Scott was away on business and I was trying to throw together something tasty that a toddler would eat, but would also be healthy at the same time.

Black Bean & Rice Taco Pizza

1 cup brown rice, cooked
1 cup black beans (I used dry beans to eliminate sodium but canned would work as well)
1/2 cup shredded cheese (I used sharp cheddar)
1 tablespoon taco seasoning (I used a low-sodium kind)
1 tablespoon fat free refried beans
1 tablespoon hummus (I used red pepper)
2 whole grain pitas

On the pitas, add in this order:
Hummus
Refried beans
Rice mixed with the taco seasoning
Black beans
Cheese

Cook in the oven at 350 for 5 minutes, cut into triangles and enjoy.
(There will be left over rice and beans.)

Operation Lose the Baby Weight Week 3 Wrap Up

Lost 1.2 pounds.

I shouldn't complain. I'm trying to be rational and tell myself that it's a completely normal weight loss, and not to be sad that it wasn't the two pounds I was striving for. After all, again, I sat on my butt and skipped out on exercise this week. I also made a pact to NOT drink soda (even diet) and I did well! I made it three days drinking just one cup of coffee and then water the rest of the day. Then I got sick and well...I'm sure you can figure out the rest of the story.

Here's how the month has gone so far:
January 7 weigh-in: -4.6 lbs
January 14 weigh-in: -1.2 lbs
January 21 weigh-in: -1.2 lbs
Total weight lost: 7 pounds.

Okay, so that looks much better! Seven pounds! Yippee!! I am also now exactly 11 pounds from the weight I was at the day that I got pregnant with Angelica, so that also makes me happy.

I also looked back at the weight chart I still had stored on my computer from my resolution last year, and I have lost a grand total of 16 pounds since then. So that's pretty cool.

Anyway, I don't want this blog to become all about weight loss, so very soon I will post something non-weight loss related!

Operation Lose the Baby Weight: Week 2 Wrap-Up

Each Friday is my weigh in day. Since I didn't post anything for Week 1, I'll summarize:
Keeping in mind that I have a goal of losing 2 pounds/week:
January 7 weigh-in: -4.6 lbs
January 14 weigh-in: -1.2 lbs
Total weight lost: 5.8 pounds.

I'm still 1.8 pounds ahead of my goal, so that's pretty good! Having said that, I am shocked that I lost anything at all this week since I could not motivate myself to get my ass up off the couch and do anything. I also "splurged" and ate a few things that I knew were bad for me. The good thing about that is that I was mindful of it, so for example, I only ate a few extra chips instead of, oh, I don't know, the ENTIRE BAG.

This week I really want to focus on drinking more water. I think it's a bad sign that I drink way too much soda (even if it's diet soda!) when my almost 20 month old daughter can not only say "soda" but requests it on a regular basis. (She doesn't actually GET any, but boy oh boy does she want it!)

Another big change this week is what I have for dessert each night. Angelica really, really loves "schtoberries!" (strawberries) so I keep them on hand. One night, I cut them up and sprinkled with sugar (could also use Splenda) and it was really great. It was the perfect little sweet treat to have after dinner.

If you're on a mission to lose last of your baby weight, don't forget you can join my SparkTeam on Sparkpeople.com! See the post before this one for a link!

Operation Lose the Baby Weight: 2010 Edition!

It's a new year, and every year so many of us make "resolutions". This year, I'm not. Instead, I'm setting goals, and my biggest one is to ditch this ridiculous baby weight! (Okay...and the 75 extra pounds I already had before getting pregnant!)

It's easy to let money get in the way of weight loss, so that's why this year I am spending no money on weight loss. None. I'm not joining Weight Watchers (even though I think they have a fantastic program). I don't go to a gym. I won't hire a personal trainer. I am simply going to work with what I already had on my house at the end of 2009.

This consists of:

• A computer, with which I will use Sparkpeople, a free healthy living website, to track my progress.
• Fitness DVDs (I have several TaeBo and Biggest Loser/Jillian Michaels DVDs in my arsenal)
• The Spark, a book by the founder of Sparkpeople that I purchased at the end of last year (Want to check it out? Download a free chapter of The Spark.)
• Handweights of several sizes (3, 5, 8, and 10 pounds)
• Resistance Bands
• Stability Ball

The only thing I will spend any money on is new workout clothes/shoes as they become necessary.

I officially started my efforts back on January 1st. I have a goal of losing 2 pounds a week every week for this year. Having lost over five pounds since the 1st, I'm already ahead of the curve.

Having been in a "battle of the bulge" for several years now, I know it takes support to be successful. That's why I've created an Operation Lose the Baby Weight SparkTeam! Feel free to join if you're interested!

Not a member of Sparkpeople? See the link below to join:



Good luck to each and every one of you on accomplishing your goals!

Here's my inspiration; Angelica at 19 months old:


Disclaimer: I am not a representative of Sparkpeople, nor am I compensated by them for posting this review. The links provided may earn "SparkPoints" for me, which have no cash value. I simply believe in the service, the book, and have found it effective in the past so I wanted to share!

The Weight Loss Wagon: I'm Back On It

Warning: Somewhat personal and emotionally-charged post ahead!

A few months ago, I started a weight loss journey, with the best of intentions in mind. So why is it that I'm sitting here, now, having gained back half of the weight that I lost?

I fell off the weight loss wagon. I stopped working out, I stopped being as cautious about what I ate and just got careless. I have nobody to blame but myself.

But all of that is going to change, TODAY. I'm back on the weight loss wagon.

I don't know why, but I feel like this time is different. Each time I've started on the weight loss journey, I've felt a certain way, but this time I really think it's going to happen.

Sometimes, I look at my little girl and I see her running around, playing, full of joy. Sometimes, she comes and grabs my hand and walks me to the front door and says, "more!" (In her vocabulary, "more" is used to mean that she wants something.) So we go outside. But I'm sore, and I'm tired, my body is out of shape and doesn't move very quickly, and she moves so fast now that it's hard to keep up with her.

Setting everything inside aside...all of the times I've had a lack of confidence about whether or not I can lose weight, all of the times I've set out with the best of intentions and failed, all of the times that I just gave up and set it aside...they don't mean anything when I start to look at things from her perspective. She deserves a mom that can keep up with her. She deserves a mom that can take her to the park and throw a ball or chase a frisbee. More than anything else, though, she deserves a mom who will be healthy, and be able to be there for her when she's a teenager, an adult, a mom, a grandma...

So I think that's why it's going to be different this time. I've got the big picture in mind. I don't just have a reason, I have a purpose.

Today commences "Operation Lose the Baby Weight: This Time It's For Real!" See you at the finish line!