Looking back at May...

I've been a bad, bad blogger. My sis (thanks J!) asked me why I stopped blogging... and I kinda knew it's been awhile, but seeing that it's May 30, and I last stopped blogging on MAY 1. I honestly can't believe it's been THAT long. Ugh. So shameful.

May has been a crazy month. Chris and I were talking about how we've just had our ups and downs this month. Looking back, we've only been to the Centre twice this month, too!

Since I've been a bad blogger, I haven't been keep track of Chris' progress either (or as well as I had been in the past months) BUT... I am happy to report he's lost a total of *drumroll please* 23 POUNDS! His clothes are fitting better and his tummy is shrinking. So YAY Chris!

As for me... here's a recap of the month:

Week of 5/5: 217. That's right. After my birthday week free-for-all, I put on 2.5 lbs. Damn those delicious cupcakes and the Hawaiian food goodness!

Week of 5/12: No weigh-in to report. Had come down with the flu, AGAIN. That's the third time this season. I am SO over the flu.

Week of 5/19: 214. YAY!!! So, the flu isn't such a bad thing after all!

Week of 5/26: So, JC calls to ask if we can reschedule our appointment to a different day (she confesses that we're her last appointment on Memorial Day, and would we mind?) Not a problem. We reschedule for Thursday (5/29). Here's the snag... we showed up for our appointment last night, and the center is closed! Apparently after the storms last week, the roof of the Center had caved in and they had moved to Lakewood. Unfortunately, no one told us. So, we're going to to see if they can see us come Monday.

Stay tuned!

Ok. So... yeah.

I'm not going to lie. I'm getting... bored with the diet. frustrated that I only lost 1/2 lb last week. But, yes - I totally get that I exchanged with real food AND celebrated my birthday this past Saturday with ice cream cupcakes and sooo not JC-approved foods. To top it off, this week's PMS (and now period) cravings for sweets, chocolates, etc is SO not helping. I'll admit I cheated, but dang, how do you control the crazy cravings without becoming a raging biyatch?

Anyhoo, I know losing 1/2 lb and not gaining any is good... but it doesn't feel good. :(

Me:
Weigh-in weight: 214.5
Previous week's weight: 215
Pounds lost for the week: 0.5
Pounds lost, so far: 14.5
Weight loss goal: 145
Pounds to go: 69.5

Chris:
Weigh-in weight: 268
Previous week's weight: 270
Pounds lost for the week: 2
Pounds lost, so far: 18.5
Weight loss goal: 220
Pounds to go: 48

quick ... super late... update before tomorrow's weigh-in!

Last week was super crazy.. but here's the quickie:

Me:
Weigh-in weight: 215
Previous week's weight: 218
Pounds lost for the week: 3
Pounds lost, so far: 14
Weight loss goal: 145
Pounds to go: 70

Chris:
Weigh-in weight: 270
Previous week's weight: 276.5
Pounds lost for the week: 6.5
Pounds lost, so far: 17.5
Weight loss goal: 220
Pounds to go: 50

Cheers and Jeers for the week so far...

Hi all!

As much as I would like to make this a daily blog, it's turning more and more into a weekly blog...

This past weigh-in (4/14) was a bit nerve-racking. Both Chris and I had eaten out twice this past week (Me - a client appreciation dinner at the House of Blues, Chris - Sunday brunch w/ his mom and aunts, and both of us - Saturday dinner at Hooters. What? I like their hot, naked wings!) AND we didn't hit the gym at all during the week. I managed to get walking in every day at work, by not taking the trams. Needless to say, we were anxious at the moment of truth.

Here's the loooooooooow-down...

Me:
Weigh-in weight: 218
Previous week's weight: 221
Pounds lost for the week: 3
Pounds lost, so far: 11
Weight loss goal: 145
Pounds to go: 73

Chris didn't do as well as he had hoped; but the way I see it, at least he didn't gain any right? He's really upset that he didn't get any real exercise in, and that he needs to work on his portion control.

Chris:
Weigh-in weight: 276.5
Previous week's weight: 277
Pounds lost for the week: 0.5
Pounds lost, so far: 11
Weight loss goal: 220
Pounds to go: 56.5

So, that's the run-down on this week so far. Next week will definitely be a challenge. We are now in the second phase of the program where we will be planning our own menus. Should be interesting, but am I just that lazy that I like having a pre-set menu?

Hopefully I'll get to blog again this week...



p.s. - SUPER congratulations to M and J out there for joining the program, too! Operation Hotness is totally on for the summer, ladies... and we'll be looking fabulous before we know it!

Oh my GOD. Has it really been that long?

So, it's been over a week since I last blogged... but nothing too exciting, because the food is beginning to repeat itself. Also, towards the tail end of last week, we cheated.

Yes. That's right. We totally cheated.

We broke down and order a thigh and biscuit each from KFC. And talk about getting scared straight, we instantly knew it was supremely bad for us. I mean, seriously, after being on the program for two weeks, WE didn't like the greasiness of the chicken! We were pulling back the skin, and I found myself getting totally repulsed by the gobs of fat, that I was pulling that off as well.

We instantly regretted KFC, and realized that it didn't live up to our expectations. The next morning, our stomaches weren't feeling well, and our guilt had settled in. We were both dreading Monday - weigh-in day - and stepped up our physical activity for the rest of the week.

We did breakdown again, but this time, it was purely because we were starving and at a picnic for our rescued dogs. We had brought the veggie platter and were inhaling it as fast as we could put it in our mouths, but we did cheat and have some chips and guacamole. Later, Megan (JC girl) told us that KFC was indeed BAD, but the chips and guac weren't - and that next time, instead of considering it "cheating", we should just exchange it out for something else on our menus.

Here are my results from Monday's weigh-in:
Weigh-in weight: 221
Previous week's weight: 224
Pounds lost for the week: 3
Pounds lost, so far: 8
Weight loss goal: 145
Pounds to go: 76

I gotta give it up for my baby, Chris! He's doing so awesome!

Chris' stats:
Start weight: 287.5
Current weight: 277
Week 1 pounds lost: 7.5
Week 2 pounds lost: 3
Pounds lost, so far: 10.5
Weight loss goal: 220
Pounds to go: 57

So, I haven't dropped off the face of the planet, I've just been slammed with work... but will definitely keep this posted!
Pounds

What's that? That's right. You heard me! 5 POUNDS LOST, baby!

Hooray, hooray, hooray! I lost 5 lbs since last week! And that's even counting the fact that I actually started my period yesterday afternoon!!

So excited, and SO relieved that this really is working! I feel great, happy and excited about this. I was seriously dreading last night's weigh-in because I had started my period, hadn't gotten in as much exercise as I had anticpated, and was feeling kinda blah. Chris had dropped 7.5 lbs and my workfriend Rose (who's doing the program as well) dropped 6 lbs, too! We were all very, very happy campers as of last night...

Stats:
Monday, 3/31's weigh-in: 224
Previous week's weigh-ins: 229
Weight loss goal: 145
Total pounds lost: 5
Pounds to go: 79

Now, the only good/bad thing is that because I dropped as much as I did, I also had to drop down to a lower calorie bracket. I am no longer on the 1700 calorie plan, but now the 1500 calorie plan. Also, next week, we will be photographed and measured (which apparently we were supposed be at the first start, but they were out of film, and pressed for time). Wonder if they'll take into account that we've been on the program for 2 weeks at that point? Hmmm..... on to the food reviews!

Last night's (delicious!) dinner & dessert:

• Chicken Fettucine Alfredo: SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO GOOD. Especially if you mix it with broccoli and cauliflower to get your required veggies out of the way. I forgot how good pasta could be!
• Chocolate Carmel Peanut Bar: So yummy. So could've done a couple more bars.

Today, so far:

• Maple Nut Cereal: Ehh. It was ok. Not my favorite, made me want to drop a pat of butter onto it was a dash of sugar.
• Cookies & Cream Anytime Bar: (new formula) Not bad, it was as good as a multivitamin power bar can actually get.
• Turkey Burger Sandwich: SUPER YUM! MMmmm... with BBQ sauce on a potato roll. Slid some of my required salad, and cheese to make it a thicker sandwich. So, could've had another one (well, not really, maybe a half of antoher one)
• Asian Sesame dressing: YAY!!! A dressing I actually like! So yum. The ranch was horrid.

Have the Cheese Curls for snack later this afternoon... and then Chicken Pasta Parmesan... so I'll be seeing you tomorrow!

Der. Forgot to mention

• We are now looking at attending 6 weddings this year AND going to Hawaii and Vegas all within the next 6-7 months. So Operation Hotness is in FULL effect!
• Cranberry Almond Cereal: is actually quite good. Throw in some sliced banana, and it's yum.
• Jenny's Personal Pizza... YUMMMMMMMMY! So the cheesy-carb goodness that I was craving. It even made eating the salad with the gross dressing tolerable.

And off I go back to work...

Weekend Recap... and the day of reckoning.

Hello... hope you had a fabulous weekend! Friday night, we stayed in. Saturday, took the boys out for a nice 2.5 mile walk, and Sunday, let the boys run amok at the Dog Park. We mostly talked about how much we miss the regular foods, how much we actually ate. Super jealous, too, because Chris - with his 2200 calorie count vs. 1700 for mine - has already lost 4 lbs according to a scale at his work! Stupid boys and their metabolism!

On to the food reviews...

• Cheesy Enchilada: pretty good. Dash of tapatio, and it was yum!
• Toffee bites: super yum. I so could've done a couple more bags!
• Mesquite Chicken: Not bad. Didn't quite know what to expect, so it was actually pretty good.
• Oatmeal Breakfast Square: Uh. Not bad, but, small. Immediately ate my given fruits just because I was hungry!
• Chicken Sandwich: Was ok. The dijon mustard helped out, but kinda bland.
• Fish & Chips: Impressive! Real Pollock (like the Brits actually eat, instead of Cod) and the chips, were a worthwhile substitute for french fries. What I wouldn't have given for some garlic mayo or real tartar sauce to go with it...
• Double Chocolate Cake: DELICIOUS! They were not kidding!! It was SO good (either that, or the food all week was just so bland, and that seemed like the real thing!)
• Silver Dollar Pancakes & Veggie Sausage: Were surprisingly ok, especially the sausage. Was bummed that we got just one sausage patty. I sliced up my "fruit" portion of bananas and threw onto the mix.
• Chicken Stuffed Sandwich: Yum. Seriously, JC, you need to call the Hot Pockets people and tell them how to make a proper Lean Pocket that tastes like actual food.
• Bruschetta Veggie Chips: Ick. Salty. Ick.
• Turkey w/ Gravy: Surprisingly good. Ate almost all of it. The stuffing was yummy, probably because it was soaked in the gravy, but seriously.. it was yum!

So, what I've learned this week... I am less gassy, sleeping better, and feeling all-around good about myself. What I also learned about myself, is that I do NOT like the Ranch dressing (mental note: need to switch that for a different flavor) and that I normally don't eat American food. Chris and I have figured it out that we mostly live on a diet of Japanese, Hawaiian and Mexican AND that we seriously ate out... ALOT. It's neat having money in my wallet... :)

Ahhhhhhhhh. Send good thoughts my way for tonight's weigh-in...

Hooray, it's Friday!

So. We were bad and didn't make it to the gym this morning. We do plan on going on a bike ride or a walk later, and definitely hitting the gym tomorrow morning.

I have to say, with this diet, I'm feeling not-so-sluggish anymore... and not as gassy. LOL Was that a TMI or what? :) I'll be happy if I just dropped A pound, because last night, I think I saw a billion KFC commercials (which made me long for the drumstick and thigh bucket) and someone just put

Moving onto Today's Food Review:

• Macaroni & Cheese: yum! even better, it came with green beans! Yum... needed some pepper and a little salt, but yum!
• Popcorn: it's non-buttered, no salt popcorn - what more can you expect. With a dash of tapatio, it worked.
• Since they were out of stock on the Blueberry Muffin, we opted for the Breakfast Stuffed Sandwich instead. It was like a fat Hot Pocket that was actually better than a Hot Pocket! There was eggs, onion, ham and gravy. Yum.

The rest of today's menu includes: Cheesy Enchilada, Toffee Bites and Mesquite Chicken... stay tuned!

Today's thoughts and Food Review

So happy. Got into the gym this morning and did a 1.5 miles on the treadmill. Getting up at 4 am is the hard part, but leaving the gym afterwards is always sweet.

Anyways, moving on...

• Southwestern Style Chicken Burrito: surprisingly good, especially with Tapatio sauce. The picture on the box, and overall look of it was deceiving.
• Jenny's Cheese Curls: Um. They're aiight. Not the greatest, but A for effort, Jen! They're like the dull, plain cousin of Cheetos.
• Meatloaf w/ BBQ sauce: Yum. Would be even more delicious if you slapped that sucker between two slices of bread, cheese and bacon. :) The veggies that came with it - roasted potatoes, carrots... were just ... ok.
• Sunshine Sandwich: Not bad. Like a plain imitation of the McMuffin, but hey, what could you do? Not too crazy about the ranchero sauce, so I shook some trusty hot sauce to really give it flavor.
• Cookies & Cream Anytime Bar: Ok. Nice coating, really did taste a little like an Oreo-flavored Power bar, but that's about it.
• Microwaveable Bowl Soup - Mexican Tortilla Soup: for something with so much potential it was surprisingly bland and boring. I added some pepper, but yeah. Not so much.

Stay tuned... Tonight's dinner is Macaroni & Cheese...

Jenny Craig Food Review: Week 1 (1700 cal plan) Days 1-2

The commercials aren't kidding. The Jenny Craig food is actually pretty good.

• French toast was.. ok. But then again, I don't like regular french toast. I'm more of a waffle or banana pancakes kinda of girl.
• Choco Peanut Butter Anytime Bar: It's a multi-vitamin bar... similar to the Atkins Choco Peanut Butter, but taste better. (Atkins is yeech). It is what it is.
• Beef Chow Mein was actually pretty good! I totally could've eaten a whole 'nother box. Oh, wait - that's how I got here. :)
• Chicken Carbonara - ok. Never really had Chicken Carbonara before, so nothing to compare it to, but it was pretty ok.
• S'mores Bar: YUMMMMY! I SO could eat that again!!
• Frosted Oats: Yum!

Stay tuned for my review on the Southwestern Style Chicken Burrito... :)

Back. For Good.... Jenny Craig. Recaps. Goals.

I know it's been a long time, but I'm back for good.

Chris and I met with Jenny Craig last Wednesday. We wanted to find out more about it, to see if it was something we can really do. For example, we wanted to make sure our favorite food, sushi, was acceptable (It is.) We liked that the weight-loss goal is 1-2 lbs a week. We liked how even they teach you how to eventually eat without them. So, we decided to sign up and join the program on Monday. We even joked with the JC director, Meagan, that the past Easter weekend was going to be our last "hurrah." We also realized that we had so food that was going to be forbidden... and that we were going to have to start eating!

Wed's weigh-in: 228.5
Established Goal Weight: 145
Pounds to lose: 83.5
Mid-way point: 186.75 (41.75 lbs, mid-August 2008)
Projected goal weight point: early January 2009

So, by the time the weekend rolled around, we were sick of eating in, and ready to eat out... talk about gluttony!

Saturday: We hit Kuya German for breakfast - longanisa, fried eggs, and garlic rice (hey! I had to give a shout-out to my peeps, before I gave up the food!) Lunch: Milly & Tanner's 10th birthday party - Pizza, cake and sundaes, bring it on! Dinner: Lucille's BBQ 's sirloin steak salad, sweet potatoes and split both a bread pudding AND a banana pudding.

So, the gluttony reared it's ugly head, and Sunday was a bit harder to pack it in...

Sunday: Homemade bullseyes w/ sourdough toast & spam (Don't judge. Giving a final shout-out to our peeps). Late lunch/early dinner: Red Lobster w/ Chris' family - I put away the cheese biscuits galore, dinner salad, Seaside Shrimp trio AND split the warm choco chip lava cookie cake a la mode with Chris. Since we at at such an odd time (3pm), 8pm rolled around and we made crescent rolls, buttered them, and slide extra sharp cheddar in them...

Monday arrived and we were SO done with actually eating. I was actually looking forward to starting the program. I did get hit with the reality of the weigh-in and body fat measurement which I was SO not looking forward to.

Mon's weigh-in: 229
Body fat calcuation: 122 lbs of muscle, 107 lbs of fat
Established Goal Weight: 145
Pounds to lose: 84
Mid-way point: 187 (42 lbs, mid-August 2008)
Projected goal weight point: early January 2009

So, in all reality, I only gained 1/2 lbs. Which isn't bad compared to the amount of crap of took in over the weekend. But, on a more positive note, I can take that the stupid height/weight "healthy weight" chart and shred it! 122 lbs of me is muscle! It's been proven that there's no way, even if I'm only 5' tall, I could weigh between 91-100 lbs!! JC says a healthy weight is muscle plus 21-33% body fat. So, really I should aim for between 148-162.5 lbs. YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY!