Thread: My weight loss journey!

It's Saturday!

Today I work from 2pm to close. I'm going to take a walk tomorrow between studying for all of my tests next week. I'm going to see if I can get my room mate to help me get the tredmill out so we can all use it. It's a mess where the tredmill is located, but I'm sure we can all pitch in and clean it up.

I'm continuing to eat breakfast in the mornings. My body is getting used to being hungry in the mornings, and sometimes it even motivates me to get out of bed. lol! I'm not used to feeling hungry in the mornings because for years now I haven't eaten breakfast. I haven't found a food that I really truly like for breakfast, but I'm sure I will soon. Oatmeal seems to be what I have been eating lately. I'm eating honey nut cheerios some days. I want to get off the honey and and just go for the regular cheerios. (I sound like a honey nut cheerio addict! lol)

I don't know what we are going to have for dinner yet. I am probably going to finish off my tuna tonight when I get home from work. I need to get something that's really low cal and filling for night time. Something that will be easy on my stomach. There's a recipe for country style tomato soup that sounds really good, and one cup is about 100 calories. I could make up a bunch of it and eat it as supper for a few days a week. If anyone is interested, I will post the recipe.

I'm continuing exercising - and hopefully I will be slimmer by Summer or when we go back to school in August. I want to look different and feel better, that is my main goals. Anyways, I'm going to stop boring everyone now. ta ta

-Seth

yes please post the recipe! i have squillions of tomatoes growing in my garden that are begging to be turned into soup

it's great that you're doing this! i love hearing about other people's positive food/exercise journeys. In regards to breakfast, I used to find it hard to wean myself off the delicious processed cereals, which are pretty much all chock full of sugar. Now, I eat rolled oats (not cooked or hot) wtih a sliced banana or blueberries or whatever. I can't eat them by themselves, they taste like cardboard. If I'm really struggling, I'll sprinkle a teeny bit of sugar over them (like, half a teaspoon. that is still a hundred times less than what they put in corn flakes or whatever). Oats are fantastic for giving you great energy and making you feel full. If I don't have oats for breakfast, I'm pretty much stuffed for the rest of the day. I'll feel hungry and distracted by about 10AM, and even after lunch I'll start craving cake.

I find it really interesting to test which food works for me, and there is so much learning to be done about what is in food! Keep us updated

my breakfasts are being a real pain at the moment...this time last year i could happily eat oatsosimple or muesli every day, then i lost all appetite for cereals altogether and switched to toast (wholemeal) for 9 months or so...now all of a sudden i'm no longer a fan and switched to yoghurt/mullerrice last week, now it seems i may be able to go back to toast...
odd seeing as i generally only eat healthily with little regard for taste... >.<

Country Tomato Soup:

Makes 6 (1 cup) servings

Ingredients:

2tsp olive oil
1 cup diced onion (1/4")
1 1/2 minced garlic
1 quart canned diced tomatoes in juice
1 quart low sodium vegetable broth*
3/4 cup diced peeled sweet potato (1/4")
1/2 cup tomato paste
2 tbsp granulated sugar
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 bay leaf

Preparation:

Heat oil in saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic. Saute until tender, 4-6 minutes. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat. Simmer, stirring occasionally, 35-40 minutes. Discard bay leaf.

In blender, process soup in batches until pureed. Serve hot.

Calories: 100
Carbohydrates: 20g
Protein: 2g
Total fat: 1.5g
Saturated fat: 0.5g
Cholesterol: 0mg
Sodium: 385mg

sounds pretty easy to make. I got a blender, not a food processor, so I don't know how that's going to work. Maybe it will taste pretty good without being blended, unless the sweet potatoes will make one spoon taste a little different then the other...

I gotta try it. lol

by the way, eating ten Ritz crackers with your soup adds 160 calories and 1g saturated fat.

• Spinach salad with mushrooms and homemade dressing. A cup of spinach plus a half cup of white mushrooms (I really like mushrooms) weighs in at just 56 calories, leaving plenty for one of the delicious-sounding low-calorie homemade dressings I’ve found (all three recipes are based on cottage cheese, so I’m going to try them starting tomorrow after I go grocery shopping).
• Apple slices sprinkled with cinnamon. I like all things apple sprinkled with cinnamon. A medium apple (2.75″ diameter) is about 72 calories.
• Half a baked potato with sour cream. Potatoes have roughly 1 calore per gram, and I figure half of a medium sized potato would be about 75 calories. Throw in a dash of salt and 2 tablespoons of fat-free sour cream and you’re at an even 100. Or combine with the next item for a big splurge.
• Steamed broccoli. Broccoli and spinach are about the only green veggies I eat, but happily, they’re both super nutritious. I can fit two cups (cooked!) into 100 calories. Dash of salt and I’m a happy camper.
• Sliced mushrooms dipped in marinara sauce. Mushrooms are so low-calorie it’s ridiculous, and they’re also very high on the Fullness Factor scale. A half cup of sauce ranges between about 50 and 70 calories, depending on what kind you buy. With your remaining 30-50 calories, you’re looking at six to ten large mushrooms. That’s a lot of mushrooms! (Of course, I may be the only one who thinks that’s a good thing…)

http://opensourcediet.com/17/my-five...calorie-meals/

These are when you want something to eat, and don't want to feel guilty about how many calories they contain. You could eat all five of these in one day and be full, but be no where near your caloric input for the day.

There's also 100 calorie bags of popcorn. A lot of people have been pleased with Pop Secret brand. Just a little info

Ingredients

• 2 Medium Onions
  4 Garlic Gloves
  4 Cans of Chopped Tomatoes
  1 Pint of Stock (Your preference)
  1 Tbs Dried Basil
  Low Calorie Fat Spray/Olive Oil

Directions

1) Dice and fry onions and garlic until golden brown.
2) Pour in 4 cans of chopped tomatoes, bring to boil, then simmer for 5 minutes.
3) Pour in 1 pint of stock, bring to boil, then simmer for 5 minutes.
4) Add 1tbs dried basil and season with salt and pepper to taste.
5) Optional: Blend for a smooth texture.

This recipe makes 8 servings and can be frozen.

Number of Servings: 8

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user NARFMEISTER.Extra Quick Low Calorie Tomato Soup Recipe

I found a little easier recipe with about the same calories.

This gives you a lot of good weight-loss tips. Superb diet that I've been sticking to recently. Butterfield is DA MAN!

YouTube - The Peter Serafinowicz Show: The Butterfield Diet Plan

HAHA! I would expect something like that from you, Brew. lol! That was a good one. Thanks for giving the link.

As for updating my blog and everything, I have currently been submitting it into some RSS feeds. I know it's not going to do much in the way of getting followers, but at least my blog link is out there somewhere in the ethereal mist of the internet.

I'm going to put a ton of stuff away in storage today from my wife's car and then while I am in a good part of town, I'm going to take a 2 mile jog/walk this afternoon before I have to hunker down and get my other homework done. I have two tests this week! yay!

So, a couple weeks ago, I measured myself on a scale - instead of the Wii fit thing, like usual. It said that I weighed 266lbs. This morning, just for fun, I weighed myself again. It said 261lbs. So, this evening, I am going to try to weigh myself again on the Wii fit scale again, just to see if that might be correct. It's exciting! If I did lose weight, I would be about 5lbs of weight loss for my efforts!

I haven't actually put a lot of effort into losing the weight. Just small and simple changes in my lifestyle and diet. So, let me just reiterate some of the things that I have done so far:

1. Researched foods that are high in calories and bad fat. Then stayed away from them.

2. Quit drinking soda from day one - and have felt much better ever since. No caffeine in my system - even though I am considering drinking green tea.

3. No fried foods. If it has to be fried, I make sure that it is in EVOO. Although, Chick-fil-A has no entree/burger that is over 500 calories. So, if you want to make a meal and know that it's going to take 500 calories within your diet - you can eat it.

4. Eat healthy snacks. - get rid of all your junk food - if you have to have chips, eat Sun chips. Buy fruits and veggies. Throw away your ranch and get light ranch or a vinegarette.

6. More more. - start exercising - it will not only make you lose weight, but you will also feel better and be able to do more then usual. You will get a confidence boost and won't feel so out of shape. Your ego will increase - knowing that you can do something that you were previously unable to do.

7. Find support. - it can be from family and friends - or like me, on the internet. Just tell someone that you are trying to lose weight and ask them to help you by not letting you eat unhealthy foods. Or, tell someone that you have eaten something unhealthy so you will be able to feel guilty about it and then do something about it.

So, that's just some of the things that I have done so far. And so far, so good. I can't wait until the next 5 pounds comes off, so I can buy myself a blowgun!

Today was another day. I'm proud to say that I made an 80 on that huge Geology exam that I was dredding. Now, tomorrow I have an easy Psychology exam and then I'm basically done for the week. Tomorrow, I'm taking the afternoon off and doing the rest of my bankrupcy paperwork and then finalizing the deal on Friday! yay!!!! So less stressed after I get over this week. I can't wait!

Today I walked two miles and lifted some light weights. I talked to someone in the gym that I have seen a lot there and he gave me some very useful information. Come to find out, I was doing a lot of the things wrong - The muscle groups I thought I was using, I wasn't. He said it's all about angles. So, right now I'm benching 135, which is 35 more pounds then I was doing two weeks ago. I'm not saying that I have gained the muscle quite yet - but I just have increased the weight by 35 pounds in two weeks.

As far as feeling healthier is concerned - I do feel healthier so far. I've set a goal: That I am going to buy that blowgun that I have wanted for awhile if I lose 10 pounds from when I started. Maybe this will give me some initiative and motivation to do the next five pounds.

Any advice?

Good night tonight.

I just got home from work. I'm still on my diet and doing well. I haven't weighed myself in awhile, though I can tell that I look thinner in the face. I got through two job interviews at a better workplace, and I hope I can get through the third and final one so that I can go to work there. YAY! Please pray for me, or at the very least wish me luck.

I've also been keeping on my exercise routine. Last Thursday I jogged on the tredmill for about 45 minutes, burned 730 calories and jogged about 3.5 miles. So, I'm feeling a lot better - I can jog faster now and I can jog for longer then I used to. It makes me feel great.

#1 rule of Zombieland: Cardio.

HAHA!

Well, today is another day. I currently weigh in at 246 pounds. I lost another 3lbs this week, so I am happy with how quick I am losing weight. I have lost a total of 24 pounds since I started this lifestyle change.

I got another part time job and going to school 18 hours, so my life is hecktic right now. Everything will be fine. Maybe if I keep telling myself that, everything really will be fine.

Wish me luck everyone!