Weightloss Progress Update. Slowly but Surely!

Since it's been a little while since my last progress update, I though I would check in. Normally if there is a lapse between posts it meant that I fell off my diet. That's not the case this time. I am just really busy with life! I am still very active on Instagram and I feel like it's helping me a ton this time. The best part is that it's free :-) . Here are the results from my last weigh in on Saturday the 27th :

As you can see, there's not much of a difference, but I am still happy. I had a few less than healthy items last week, but overall I stayed close to my calorie goals for the day. I majorly slacked on exercising though. I am happy with the decrease and tomorrow I am going to do my official end of the month weigh in. Maybe I'll be at 186?! By the way, the percentage you see on the scale is my body fat. Pretty scary, huh?

I appreciate my slow and steady weight loss. I know that it means I have a pretty good chance that I will stick with the changes I've made. Everything so far has been manageable and I don't feel like I've sacrificed very much. Below is one of my new mottos:

To see my progress on a daily basis and for motivation, follow me on Instagram. My username is @lazygirldiet .

On a side note, I found the next book I want to read! I haven't finished The China Study yet, so I am going to have to wait, but here is a link to the new one I found. #1 New York Times Best Seller, Salt Sugar Fat:

It also got voted by Amazon as one of the best books of 2013 so far! The reviews on it are great too. Check it out!

Update of my Failure

Of course, once again, I have failed. I'm back up to a whopping 188 pounds! I started using Calorie-Count.com and my app on my phone again today. I would like to say I am committed, but I am not sure that I am any more committed this time than I was the other times. I plan to do Zumba tonight. I get to use some of the new workout clothes I bought off Hautelook. Yay! I also just bought some Puma Shoes off there today. I am a little addicted to shopping. Anyways, I have been doing pretty good on my food today. Working out is going to feel great . I also purchased a Weight loss Stack off Amazon. No, it's not a miracle solution. I know that. I only purchased it in hopes that it would give me the "umph" I need to get off my booty and do Zumba. I am always so exhausted after work and this vicious cycle is killing my dieting and exercise plans. I am too lazy to cook and too lazy to workout. GRR! Too bad that stack won't be here for another week. Anyways, I will continue to update. Hopefully not with more failures :(

Week Three Review

So, did I do it? "Do what ?", you ask. Well, if you look back a few posts to the one titled "10 pounds in 3 weeks?" , you will see that I was hoping to lose 10 pounds before our little Valentine's Day / Wedding Spot Scouting getaway.

So, did I do it? Not quite, but I got super close! I have lost 8 pounds now and I am down to 180. I'm just thrilled that the 170's are within reach again and it will be only a matter of time until I am down to the 160's. Getting into different "groups" like that really motivates me to keep going! I'm quite confident that by the end of the month I will be 178.

How did I do at following my own rules?

1. Work out a minimum of 2 times a week for 45 minutes at a high intensity
2. Stay between 1200-1500 calories per day
3. Follow the Eat to Live lifestyle as closely as I can.
4. Use Calorie-Count.com for support.
5. Drink a lot of water
6. Eat every 3 hours

1. I didn't work out once. I was still having stomach pains which ruined it for me. Then we had family over too. Busy week, but no work-out. Hopefully I can get back on track this coming week.
2. I've been pretty good at staying below 1,500.  Some days it came close, but I didn't go over. This week went so fast.
3. I've been pretty good at eating veggies and fruit. However, I am still eating stuff that I shouldn't be.
4. This week I used Calorie-Count.com  a lot less. I was still on there and I even back-tracked so I could log my week and continue with the Calorie Camp. It is still a valuable tool for me.
5. Some days I know for sure I didn't get nearly as much water as I should have. I find that I really have to make a conscious effort at it in the winter time.
6. I've been skipping my mid morning snack a lot lately and having a larger afternoon snack. It just feels right to me. I think my body actually wants dinner around 4 or 5 pm, but we eat around 7. By that time I feel like I am starving and want to eat a ton. Having a larger afternoon snack is making me less interested in dinner and helping me not go over my calories by gorging at dinner time.

That's it for now! Let's hope I stay on this path :-). I'd love to share my wedding pictures on my blog with you guys and have a great before and after. That would be amazing!

Week Two Review

This week was a little tougher than last week. We had family over a lot so that threw a wrench in my workout schedule. Then I got major stomach pains,cramping, bloated, chills, etc. mid week and that really messed me up bad. I ended up eating way under my calories for two days and then went over yesterday (which yesterday is technically part of week 3). However, I lost another 2 pounds and I am down to 182. I can't help but wonder if that's temporary due to the lack of food I had, but we will see.

So, how well did I do at following my own rules?

1. Work out a minimum of 2 times a week for 45 minutes at a high intensity
2. Stay between 1200-1500 calories per day
3. Follow the Eat to Live lifestyle as closely as I can.
4. Use Calorie-Count.com for support.
5. Drink a lot of water
6. Eat every 3 hours

1. Very bad. I didn't work out once this week. I was actually sad about it though, so it's a good thing that I am actually missing working out!

2. I did pretty good except for one day I am pretty sure I went over at least a few hundred calories. Other days, I was under and closer to only 800-1,000 cals. Like I said, I was sick.

3. I've been trying to follow the Eat to Live lifestyle, but I definitely need to go grocery shopping.  Due to strict finances and trying to free myself of consumer debt, I have been trying to cut back in some areas. We have tons of food in the house, so I am trying to eat whatever we have here before spending more money. Unfortunately, that means most of the stuff is either frozen or canned rather than fresh. I may have to bite the bullet and buy fresh foods for the sake of my health rather than my finances.

4. I've still been using Calorie-Count and there are some amazingly supportive people on there. When you do the Calorie Camp and close out your day, you can write a comment. One of my comments last week received so much support and great advice. There are some awesome people on there! Check it out, www.calorie-count.com and they have an Android app, which I use every day!

5. I have still been making a conscious effort to drink tons of water. I don't feel like I did as good this past week as I had the week before though.

6. I have been pretty good at keeping a Breakfast, Snack, Lunch, Snack, Dinner type of eating schedule, but I do skip snacks sometimes. I find that to be a bad thing for me though because it seems like I end up "starving" and end up eating way more on my second snack. I will try to make sure I eat more often because I do find that it helps.

So, there is the week 2 review. Wish me luck in week 3! Thank you for stopping by.





What I still buy from Advocare after the 24 day Challenge is over

Hey everyone!

I've been eating pretty well this week and I've been a little more active than normal. I still feel like I need to get back into doing Zumba though and I want to try going hiking every weekend. It's perfect hiking weather in AZ right now! We are going to Sedona over Valentine's Day weekend to check out possible wedding spots. I hope to be 10 pounds less by then so I need to really get on it.

I wanted to share with you what Advocare products I still continue to buy even after I failed the 24 Day Challenge.



Advocare Meal Replacement Shake in Berry. $44.95 for 14 pouches. The way I look at it is about $4.00 a day for breakfast (that's including about $10 for shipping).  This is hands down THE BEST meal replacement shake I have ever had. I even bought more because I found myself missing them. It gets the job done. Here's a short list of why I love it.

1. Tastes Amazing!
2. Only 220 Calories
3. I actually feel full most of the time. Occasionally I will have a banana within an hour of drinking the shake.
4. 24 grams of protein (Very important when your diet mainly consists of veggies and fruit)
5. Packed with tons of vitamins
6. Fits in with my on-the-go lifestyle

There really is nothing that I do not like about this meal replacement shake. I tried the Vanilla one and all I can say is "Bleh!". Don't do it. I couldn't even finish half the box. I have heard if you mix PB2 (a powder form of peanut butter) in with it, it will taste better. I'm just not willing to dish out the money for it. You just need 9 oz of water and a shaker bottle in order to make the shake.



Advocare Spark Energy Drink . $22.95 for 14 pouches. This is a great replacement for coffee and it gives you tons of energy. It tastes better than a lot of the energy drinks available in cans. I am a coffee lover though so I do find myself missing coffee and have actually been drinking coffee since I ran out of Spark. They offer it in a variety of flavors. Seven total flavors actually. I have tried a few different ones, but I find that I like the Fruit Punch the best. That is quite surprising for me since I normally hate fruit punch flavored drinks. If you feel like you never have energy to do anything, much less exercise, you may want to grab a box of Spark.  I buy the box since I like the convenience of grab and go individual bags. Oh and something super important that I should mention is that Spark is sugar free and only 45 calories. Just think of how many calories you would save in one week by substituting your current caffeine fix with Advocare Spark!



Advocare Catalyst. $31.50 for 90 capsules.  While I do not feel that I have exercised enough to really merit loving Catalyst, I can say that I like the idea of what it does. Typically you would take 3 capsules about 10-15 minutes before working out and without food. It's an amino acid dietary supplement that supports muscle tone and enhances strength and energy. When you are a calorie restricted diet, you can actually start losing some of your muscle mass if you aren't eating often enough. Catalyst will help you preserve your muscle mass, repair your muscles, stay focused, and give you a boost while you're working out. The few times that I have remembered to take it before working out, I have felt like it's made me more focused and more willing to persevere and work out longer.

There's tons of Advocare products that I would like to try in the future . When I do, I will definitely let you know how they work out for me. I'm not affiliated with Advocare and I bought everything with my own money. However, if I really get into using their products in the future, it's not out of the question that I could become affiliated. The opinions about are honest and I believe them to be true.

If you were to try just one thing from Advocare, I would recommend trying the meal replacement shake.
Thank you for stopping by and I'll see you soon!

Eat To Live Lifestyle - Day 4

Today is the beginning of day 4 of following the Eat to Live lifestyle and I have to admit it has not been extremely easy so far. Luckily the reasons it has not been easy are not the same reasons that other "diets" have not been easy for me in the past.

The GOOD so far...

1. I have not caved in and eaten bad at all. Basically I have not over-indulged on anything that is restricted.
2. I have lost 5 pounds so far and it's only the beginning of day 4. (Started at 185, now 180)
3. I feel like I have a good amount of energy
4. I have not felt hunger pangs, but I have had cravings
5. It feels good knowing that I am giving my body the nutrition that it is really trying to ask me for.
6. It seems like my stomach has flattened ever so slightly.
7. It has not required extensive preparation
8. I have not had diarrhea

The BAD so far...

1. Withdrawals from highly processed foods, sugar, and fat is REAL and it sucks! I have had some of the worst headaches ever the past three days. They always hit me around the same time which is about right before dinner time. I'm hoping they will stop soon.
2. I have had major cravings. Luckily I am smart enough to know that having Sushi one night and allowing myself one Dove chocolate piece every night is not going to throw off my diet.
3. Just smelling all that "yummy" food sends info to my brain that I want that food. I've got to get that to stop!

I'm going to keep strong and keep it up. We are going to Peter Piper Pizza tomorrow for one of our friends kids 2nd Birthday party and I do plan on allowing myself one piece of pizza, but that is all because I know they have salad there. I'm looking forward to reporting my progress again on Monday!

24 Day Challenge: Day 16

Oops, sorry it has been over a week since I lasted posted. I am still doing the challenge. I am down to 175 LBS right now. I have strayed a little here and there, but mostly have stuck to the challenge. The things I have had over the past 8 days that are not 24 Day Challenge friendly are : A few fries, a couple crackers, a skinny cow ice cream bar, some bbq sauce,  granola bars, a sandwich that I realized a little too late was highly processed, and some bread.

I need to exercise more and the weekends continue to be the biggest challenge for me. I ran out of the meal replacement shakes and have had a sugar filled granola bar the past two mornings. It sucks. I forgot to order them and then when I remembered, I paid for 2 day air so they will be here tomorrow. I like the results I have gotten so far and I definitely plan on continuing even after the 24 days using some of the other supplements offered by Advocare and continuing to eat this way the best I can.

I really don't miss the greasy food all that much. I plan on having a turkey burger on lettuce for 4th of July. The one thing that I read that made so much sense to me was an explanation of why fast food just makes us fat. I will try to explain it the best I can remember. Fast food is highly processed and stripped of all of its nutrients. It also has added sodium to help preserve it. Therefore, when you ingest it, your body is not getting these nutrients which are needed for your body to tell you that you are full so you stop eating. It has so much added salt and fats to make it taste better too. I have always known that fast food is full of fat, but never thought of it this way. Fast Food is completely empty. If you want calories and fat, then go for it. If you actually want to give your body what it is asking for , then kick it to the curb. Your body is telling you it is hungry because it wants you to give it nutrients to give to your body, not fat to give to your thighs!

Anyways, I have to go for now, but I will be sure to keep you updated !

24 Day Challenge: Day 2

Today is going just as well as yesterday! I think I might have messed up on my lunch a little though. I used a "recipe" that I found for a lunch for the 24 day challenge and it wasn't until after I had determined that as my lunch that I realized it doesn't really qualify. Dangit! I am not going to beat myself up about it because I am still doing pretty dang good. I have already drank over a gallon of water too.

Here is how my day has been so far:

6:45 am : Spark , then Fiber Drink, then glass of Water
7:15 am: Drink Meal Replacement on the way to work (forgot to take my 2 Omegaplex)
10:00 am: 1/4 Cup of Almonds (no salt or sugar) with 1/2 Cup serving of Banana mixed with Oranges (remembered that I forgot Omegaplex and took it with my snack)
12:00 pm: Spark
12:30 pm: 3 pieces of Foster Farms Lean Turkey (measured almost 4 oz) with a couple slivers of avocado and Uncle Ben's Brown Rice cup.

So here is what is wrong with that lunch...
    You are supposed to have a Protein, Carb, and Veggie for lunch. I had a Protein, Carb, and Good Fat. I also had the entire cup of Brown Rice and you are only supposed to have half a cup. Also, the Brown Rice is not supposed to be instant. Instant Brown Rice has oil added to it and you are supposed to stay away from that. Basically, I ate too many carbs, had a good fat when I wasn't supposed to have a fat at all and I had no veggies.  I dished the rice and avocados into the turkey meat and rolled them up for some little turkey rolls. It didn't taste half bad!

My Plan for the rest of the day:

3:30 pm : 1/4 Cup of Almonds and 1/2 cup of mixed berries
Bwtn 5:30 and 6:30 pm: Lettuce wraps made out of Romaine Lettuce, Ground Turkey and filled with onion, red peppers, and celery
Before Bed: 3 Brown Pills from the Herbal Cleanse Packet.

I'll make sure to continue posting my thoughts and feelings while on the challenge. Thank you!

CRAP.

You would think that by plastering my weight online I would get the nudge to want to lose weight huh? Nope! I am back up to 175. I've been kinda-sorta fighting it to get back down to 170, but it has slowly creeped up to 176 now. Dangit!

Drastic times call for drastic measures. I still have all those GNC Lean Shakes that I bought a little while back, so I plan on trying the little diet they include with those shakes. I mean REALLY try it. It basically consists of Lean Shakes, Fruit, and Veggies. Or at least my Turbo Lean Shake Diet is going to include those three things. Looks like I'm back to writing down everything I shove into my mouth.

We were going on bike rides on a bi-weekly basis, but the tire on one of our bikes popped and we haven't replaced it yet. It has been weeks and now I actually miss those bike rides. Hopeully we can get it fixed tomorrow or something. As for tonight, I will be working late, hitting the voting polls, then getting a little more work done at home hopefully. I've also caught this crappy head cold thing that is going around, so that is quite enjoyable. To top it all off I have to have all the reports for our accountant done by tomorrow while still trying to make the sales goal for this month. Oh my. At least my dad was nice enough to bring me a salad for lunch :) . That definitely helped me. I'm pretty sure I would've ended up at the gas station for lunch otherwise. Yeah, see how bad I've been lately! ARG.

I'll be back in a week to update. Possibly sooner if I can find the time!

P.S. If you need some extra motivation to lose weight Google "american obesity picture". Need I say more?

No Scale and No Calorie Counting for almost 2 months

Wow, it has been a long time since I have posted. I really will try to get better at that. Since my last post I have lost another 8 pounds and I am down to 175 pounds. The batteries in our scale died and I was either too lazy or didn't care enough to go seek out those odd disc shaped batteries that it takes. Finally bought one of the old school ones that doesn't need batteries. I was expecting to be around the same weight or even have gained some since I haven't been following my plan at all. I was pleasantly surprised to find I actually lost 8 pounds! I definitely don't see it and don't feel like I have been doing anything to be deserving of these shedded pounds. Then again...I pondered about it for a little bit and I changed my mind. I have been slightly more mindful about what I eat than I used to be. I subconsciously count calories of food before I stick it in my mouth. I still have the mindset that I want to lose weight. I didn't say "to hell with it" and start eating like a pig. I have been eating way more fast food than I would like to, but I eat smaller portions and make substitutions where possible (i.e. grilled chicken instead of fried chicken). I also have been fairly more active than usual. 

One last exciting thing. My BMI is down to 25.84. I am still in the overweight range, but once I am under a BMI of 25 I am in a regular weight range. Wahoo!

That's all for now. I will try to update more often. Don't give up!

I'm Doing Something Right!

I did my weigh in this morning and I'm happy to say that I am at 183.0, yay! That means I have lost 4.2 lbs since Sept 5th. Once again, not quite as fast as I would like, but I'm not exercising, so I don't feel like I have a right to complain. I also still eat what I want (but with some substitutions and in moderation). That puts me at a BMI (Body Mass Index) of 27 which is still in the "Overweight" range and rightly so. To be in the normal weight range for my height, I need to be between 125 and 169. That is perfectly fine with me! I hope to be around 145 anyways. :)

 I have noticed some ups and downs of changing my diet, here they are:
(I've bolded the highlights in case you don't want to read everything)

UPS:

*Feel like I have more energy
*Feel more confident just knowing that I am losing weight
* Amazingly enough my attitude towards certain foods has changed. I have started to view some really greasy foods as gross. I now sometimes crave fruits and other healthy foods.
* My pants are getting more comfortable and on the way to being a tad loose.
*Compliments! I have gotten a few compliments saying they can tell I'm losing weight. (I know I am quite verbal about it on here, but the only other people that know I am actively trying to lose weight in my day to day life are my boyfriend and my dad. My step-mom and sister now know after they complimented me and I then told them that I'm trying).
* That "full feeling" actually is started to give me a different vibe now. It is so weird to me. I used to eat until I felt "full", right? OK, sounds normal, but here is the thing... that "Full Feeling" has actually changed for me! Now when I feel full the way that I used to, I actually feel like I over ate and I am now the size of a whale. I think I have actually trained myself to now eat until I am "satisfied". It is a much better feeling too! Now I feel like I can still get up and do whatever after a full meal, whereas before all I wanted to do was lay on the couch and watch TV after dinner. Fascinating!
* I have changed the way I think about food. I now try to find food that gives me the most amount of Fiber with using the least amount of my daily calories while still tasting good. I say most amount of Fiber, but really just whatever will fill me up the most without using a lot of calories, but still be yummy :) .

DOWNS:

*Seems like my body (internally) is changing to accommodate the new way I eat. Sometimes leads to undesirable effects, but seems like that has stopped and my stomach is being normal.
*Going out to eat. I have noticed that the days I do really well on my diet are the days that I can completely control where I am going to be and what I will be eating. Days that I get asked to go out to eat at the last minute really screw with me. If I have a little advance notice, I have enough time to find the nutritional facts and make an educated decision, which makes eating out not a problem.
*Counting Calories- this is kind of an up and a down at the same time. I don't like it because sometimes I forget to do it, don't know the calorie content of a food, or I'm just being a lazy girl. I do like it because it lets me know where I am at calorie wise after lunch, so I am able to eat a sensible meal for dinner and not go over my calories for the day.


So,What have I been doing to get these effects? I think I better save that for another blog, this one is getting long! lol. But I will tell you, it doesn't involve buying any magic pills, diet program, or anything special. It's about finding your will power and determination.

YOU are the only person who can make yourself Fat or Skinny!

Smart Ones

I can't believe that I have never mentioned before how much I love eating Weight Watchers Smart Ones for Lunch! Click HERE for information on Smart Ones and a coupon. The Sante Fe Beans and Rice one fills me up alot and tastes pretty good. The one I ate today was the Grilled Flatbread Chicken Marinara with Mozzarella Cheese. It is one of their Artisan Creations.

The reason I love Smart Ones so much is because they are the ONLY frozen dinners I have found that satisfy my hunger and taste absolutely great! I have tried Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, etc. Some of them did taste really good, but I would be hungry afterwards still. I also know that a lot of diets will recommend that you eat a small salad or fruit along with the frozen dinner.

Let's get real, I am lucky I have time to remember to even grab the frozen dinner out of the freezer when I leave in the morning. You're not getting this lazy girl to make a salad on top of it. Between working at least 40 hours a week and going to school for 3 hours at night on Wednesday and Thursday, I barely have a minute to myself. You should see my house! It's a sad mess. Weekends end up being used to get done dredgerouschores that I don't have time to do during the week.

Anyways, I just couldn't believe I never mentioned Smart Ones before! I have been eating them for a really long time as a low calorie lunch. If you have not tried them, do it! You won't regret it. There are a few that I really don't care for, but that is just my tastebuds, so I am not going to bad mouth them.

Calorie Cutting Tricks

I found this article today and  wanted to share.

I have already heard of every trick they say in the article, but sometimes it is good to refresh your memory. It is pretty easy to forget some of the most basic tricks.

Here is the article at Fitbie, 9 Quick Tricks that Cut Calories . Enjoy!

Here We Go Again !

This morning I weighed 187.2 pounds. When I started dieting a month and a half ago I was 191. So at least I have lost 3.8 pounds. That's a start, but it's less than a pound a week average. That's not very much and not fast enough.

As of yesterday I started talking GNC Lean Shakes for breakfast , along with a piece of fruit (gala apple, pear, etc.). They are kind of pricey ($40 per canister) and if you took it as directed (2x's a day) you would run out in 8 days. Eek! That's why I'm just having it for breakfast. I am also taking fiber at least once a week and vitamins daily. I'm also dabbling in green tea pills , but it seems that I get headaches when I take them. I didn't want to blame the headache on the green tea pills , but after a day of not taking them and having no headaches, I just took them and have a headache. Not fun! I love drinking tea though , so I may just end up going that route.

I have to clean the house now (which luckily counts as some exercise), so I'll update in a few days !

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Ready for a Change! (with little sacrifice, that is)

I'm seriously ready to start dieting, but I know that I am super lazy, so that is why I have failed so many times before. Yep, typical yo-yo dieter right here! I've tried so many different things.

Just after signing up for the newest and "best" diet drug out there, I thought to myself, "this is enough, there is going to be a different way, and you are going to find it now." I actually ran my credit card through for the transaction and called 2 hours later to cancel it. I am not fooling myself even one more time. No Magical Pill is sitting out there just waiting for me to discover it!

Therefore, I am starting this blog to help myself stay focused and maybe shed some light on some other lazy girls (and guys) out there. My goal is to find a diet that really will work with my sedentary lifestyle. I am not trying to sell anything and do not think I am an expert. I am just starting an adventure and figured it would be nice to do it with anyone else out there on the same adventure as me. I would love to hear any tips anyone has to share and hopefully be sharing knowledge that I find along my path. I'll be posting progress pictures along the way too. I don't doubt that I will fail a few times before really finding something that will stick. I am ready to make that journey.

Here are my stats:

5" 9' Tall
191 LBS
At my heaviest: 201 LBS
At my lightest: 112 LBS
Jean Size: has varied between Size 1 to Size 15.
Goal Weight: 140-145 LBS
Time-Frame Desired: 5-6 months
Diet Goal: To achieve my desired weight with as little effort, cost, pain (hunger pangs, that is), and inconvienence as possible.

Off I go!