Want Some Challenge Tips???

Howdy friends!!!

How are all of my challenge buddies doing?  I did a post this morning about forgetting that my cycle comes EVERY month, whether I'm doing a challenge or not, and I was pretty bummed about it.  Who doesn't want to see a great loss on the scale EVERY week??  I think you all know what I think of Mother Nature by now, lol. 

I decided this evening that I needed to follow up with a more positive, helpful post.  Now far be it from me to tell anyone how to lose their weight, but sometimes people, like myself, appreciate little tips and reminders along the way.  I thought I'd share some with you tonight.  Let me start by clarifying that my problem with losing my weight is not because I don't know all the right things to do....I actually have come to learn quite a bit.  My problem is consistency, and if you look at my weekly weigh-ins on my sidebar, that becomes apparent.  :)

Let me start by sharing with you what happened at lunch time today.  Our boss bought lunch....AGAIN.  Not that it isn't appreciated that I have a boss that cares and tries to "reward" our hard work...but this has really become a serious issue for me.  SERIOUS.  I've given in WAY too many times in the last couple of months since I started working there.  It's the smell of pizza and Chinese food wafting through the office that gets me.  Why does food have to smell so enticing?  If it all smelled like hot garbage I'd have way fewer problems, lol.

So anyway....I had planned on a sandwich from home for lunch.  One of the girls in the office told me Scott was buying lunch for everyone from Johnny's Pizza....they'd most likely all order separately this time and get calzones, etc. instead of a couple of large pizzas.  I kept myself from rolling my eyes in front of her while I was cussing inside my head, and said, "I think I'll pass today, but thanks."  That was met with a surprised look and something along the lines of what?  Are you crazy?  Scott's buying!  I said I was just going to eat what I brought, so it was suggested that since it was a "free lunch", why don't I just go ahead and order, put it in the frig, and eat it for lunch tomorrow.  Is there no end to the torture???  lol  I finally gave in, knowing they were all going to order calzones stuffed with sausage and pepperoni and dripping with extra cheese.  I white-knuckled that menu, looked at all the options, and finally ordered a Greek salad w/ grilled chicken and dressing on the side.  Whew!!  That was a close one...but I feel like I succeeded with my choice today.  :)

Ends up I ate my sandwich, put the salad in the frig, and brought it home this evening for dinner.  I'm all about volume when it comes to eating....it really takes a lot for me to feel comfortably satisfied (or at least it does in my mind), so I normally try to find the lowest calorie options when I'm on my game, so I can have the most volume possible.  I got the salad home, opened it up, and was less than impressed with the size.  It was puny, at best, with maybe 2 oz. of chicken...it would have been stretching it to call it 3 oz.  I decided right then it wasn't going to be enough, so I turned the oven on broil and set about cooking what I had originally planned for dinner.  I broiled a piece of cod...maybe 4-5 oz...and some onions, bell peppers & mushrooms that I had already pre-sliced and diced for my egg white scrambles in the morning. 

I sat down and ate my salad, then pulled my fish and veggies out of the oven about 20 mins later.  I stood there and looked at it and asked myself if I was really still hungry.  In my mind I was...but my body was pretty much ok.  I decided I'd just fix some decaf coffee w/ some yummy creamer in it, have 2 cups, and that would be sufficient in filling me up.  I packed up the fish and veggies for my lunch tomorrow. 

One of the tips I wanted to give you is how much I really like spreading my calories out pretty evenly throughout the day.  Each meal is usually around the same amount of calories....usually around 250-350.  Since I allot myself 1800 cals/day...that means I'm eating about (6) 300 calorie meals a day.  I find this keeps me satisified for the most part.  Somtimes I eat a little heavier earlier in the day and dinner ends up being my lightest meal....like this fish for instance....

That's about a 5 oz. piece of fish with some onions, bell peppers and mushrooms....I think the whole meal is less than 250 calories.  I can't remember exactly what cod is, but I think it's around 30 cals/oz like shrimp and chicken is.  If you haven't tried eating the lower calorie, smaller meals several times a day, then I suggest you give it a shot.  I really think you'll like it.  I think it's good for the metabolism, too...as Sean would say, you're constantly feeding and firing up the wood-burning stove.  It makes sense to me.  :)

Decaf coffee is something I have just about every evening as a "snack".  I eat dinner around 6pm...and I normally have 2 c. of decaf around 8pm.  This keeps me from going to bed hungry.  I'm an early riser, so I'm usually in bed by 9-10pm.  If you have a hard time with snacking in the evenings, give the decaf coffee a try.  I suggest a flavored creamer, because it's kind of like having a creamy, yummy dessert.  There's no calories in the decaf, and the creamer I'm currently using has 35 cals/tbsp and it is so decadent.  I picked up a bottle of Coffeemate Belgian Chocolate Toffee.  For 2 cups of coffee...1 tbsp per cup...I'm only spending 70 cals on my evening snack.  Not bad at all.  :)

(Ignore the fact that I am in SERIOUS need of a manicure!) 

For other snacks, I thought I'd show you a pic of what I've been eating this week....

If you haven't tried the Chobani yogurt yet, you are REALLY missing out...this stuff is so creamy and wonderful....it's just fantastic...and only 140 cals.  I also have baby carrots, watermelon, Fuji apples, grape tomatoes....and WW ice cream for when a craving hits.  The WW ice cream cups are perfectly portioned...it's just enough to satisfy an ice cream craving, and it's only 140 cals a serving just like the yogurt!!!  For all of you who have heard me talk about my boyfriend Dwayne in the past...you KNOW how he doesn't eat veggies or anything healthy.  Well ok....he's moved up to eating wheat bread now...GO DWAYNE!!! lol  But if he suspects that I've created dinner out of anything too healthy, he'll grab a frozen pizza or a bag of potato chips instead.  Seriously.  Well I actually got him to try the ice cream....he even saw that it said Weight Watchers on it....and he gives it 2 thumbs up!!!   He kept saying he just couldn't believe that it was lowfat and tasted so much like the real thing....trust me, if Dwayne likes it , YOU are going to LOVE it!!!  So just make sure you're getting enough healthy snacks in....eat your fruit and veggies!! 

Finally...the water.  Yes, I'm going to tell you how important it is, just like everyone else harps on it, lol.  Truly....truly....it's so important and such a KEY element to weight loss.  If you're not in the habit yet of drinking PLENTY of water a day....force yourself.  Just do it.  I mean it...you will be so glad you had.  Commit to drinking (4) 32 oz. glasses of water a day, no matter what, for 7 days...and I promise you that you'll see a difference on the scale.  I am so serious.  I've tested this theory myself.  On the weeks that I don't drink my water, or not near enough....I might see a 2 lb loss.  On the weeks that I MAKE myself drink (4) 32 oz. glasses a day, I can see a 5-6 lb. loss.  Now granted, I have major sodium issues that a lot of you may not have, but still.....you could have sodium issues and not even know it, because you're not drinking enough water daily to flush it all out!!!   Give it a shot.  Commit to it....see what a difference it makes in your losses.  Here's one of my 32 oz. glasses...

I will admit...sometimes I get so busy at work that I forget to drink my water.  I can get all the way to 1pm and realize I haven't drank a single sip of any kind of liquid all day.  That's when I get up from my desk, go to the water cooler, fill up the 32 oz. bottle that I keep at work, and STAND THERE until I've drank the entire thing....then re-fill it and go back to my desk.  If I haven't had any water til 1pm and I have to do this...then I wait til about 2:30p for that bottle to settle....and I drink another one.  I sit right there in my chair, turn the bottle up and drink it until it's ALL GONE.  It might take 5 mins to get it all down....but I do it.  Then I make sure I drink one more 32 oz. bottle before I leave at 5pm.  Then when I get home, I fill up my glass, and drink my last 32 oz glass while I'm eating dinner.  That's 4 glasses a day and it makes such a difference. 

JUST DO IT!!!

I hope these tips help!  If I can be of help in any other way during the rest of this challenge, just leave me a comment or shoot me an email.  I'm very thankful that you've all joined in with me...and thanks to the rest of my friends that are cheering us all on to our goals!