PB2

It was brought to my attention that I have not posted in a couple of weeks. Sorry! I have had a couple of things on my mind, and wanted to share them... it's all about food!

1. My good friend Sherrie and I were talking about Peanut Butter in the locker room the other day, and how much I LOVE IT. She mentioned adding powdered peanut butter to my Shakeology drinks. I had never heard of it! A couple of days later, she brought me a jar to try. A.M.A.Z.I.N.G!!! It is sososososooooo good, and the nutrition labels sell me for sure.

Here is a comparison of the 2 Peanut Butters (2 tbsp serving size)

PB2 (Powdered Peanut Butter) ............Natural JIF
Calories 45 ................................................190
Fat 1.5g....................................................16g
Sat Fat 0g...................................................3g
Sodium 94mg.............................................65mg
Carbs 5g......................................................8g
Fiber 2g.......................................................2g
Sugar 1g.......................................................3g
Protein 5g....................................................7g

A couple of things to mention:
1. PB2 tastes wonderful. (I should be getting paid for this ad!) I eat it just like regular peanut butter. You rehydrate it with water, and spread it like any other.
2. Because it is so low cal, low fat, etc, I actually use a double batch of the PB2, so although the protein content is a little lower, it's actually higher for me because I eat 4 tbsp. This still works out to be lower cal, fat, etc in the end. Imaging getting twice as much P on your PBJ : )

If you want to read more about it check it out here.

Finally, the only way you can get PB2 (in my area anyways) is to order it online. It comes in cases of 4 or 12. I will be honest in saying, I think I could eat 4 jars in less than 3 months, but if someone wants to go in and try a jar, or to split some, let me know by tonight!

Just Chill

So I am starting to chill a bit on my weight. Here's what is going on. I run this vicious cycle on myself: eat perfect, exercise a ton, lose weight, eat something bad, sulk, sit at home, gain weight, sulk, sit at home, eat more crap...

It's actually a trap that many dieters fall into: see here. I am definitely one of them.

So I finally realized, I need to do the right thing as much as I can, and relax about the rest. That is what I have been doing. We have been eating at home more, and I am working out when I can which allows me to more easily to stay withing my daily calories.

It's going great! The weight is coming off again, and I've had dessert every night this week. So much happier this way.

Lean Into It

So my eating habits have most definitely evolved over the past 2 years, as has my lifestyle. One thing stays too much the same though... our grocery cart.

I seem to be stuck in a rut of processed foods. I will say that I take a lot of care picking our processed foods...that's an oxymoron if I've ever heard one. However, I really do stand there and try to compare the calories, fat, fiber, protein, sugar, and sodium in each item to choose the least evil, and I lived with it...

... Until yesterday. I had some time in this fab weather we're experiencing to catch up on Oprah, and she presented a show about being vegan. VERY INTERESTING.

Oprah allowed her staff the opportunity to go vegan for one week to see how it impacted them. Nothing astonishing, some weight loss, some weight gain. She showed a beef slaughtering plant, and how beef is made... gross, seen it before.

Here's what I did take from this:
1. Why don't I buy more whole foods? I enjoy them, why don't I try shopping at a whole foods store for them?

2. Why does America (myself included) feel the need to eat meat SOOOO much, sometimes at EVERY meal. This brings us to meatless Mondays. Oprah decided that she and Harpo studios will be going meatless on Mondays, I am going to try it. (Brian is not pumped!) Our consumption of beef is minimal at best. I can't tell you the last time I purchased ground beef... probably 2 years ago. We do ground turkey for items such as chili, spaghetti, etc, but I am willing to take it another step further and work to eliminate turkey when we can also... maybe some tofurkey or something.

Am I going Vegan? No. Vegetarian? Nope, but I will "lean into it," as Oprah likes to say. Let's just see what happens.

BTW, as I was researching this a bit more, THIS website was posted today as an option for finding responsibly raised meat and animal products in your area. Take a look. Lean into it.

And Then She Snapped

I've been really struggling with my weight over the past couple of months as most of you know... if you can't tell by my posts, then surely my waist has made it clear. A case of the blahs, the holidays, and just being sick and tired of needing to lose a little more weight can do that to you.

I knew I had made a transformation in my life because each time I would notice myself regressing, I would claw at it just enough to not become the old me. I had been fighting this battle since my dad became ill...

... Then two weeks ago, I snapped. It happened right before our mini-vacay to KC. I can't say I did fabulous on the trip, but 2 hours at the hotel gym, and pushing plates away prematurely surely helped.

When we got home last Monday night a spark was ignited like old times. I woke up Tuesday ready to go, AND SICK AS A DOG.

I ate really well Tuesday, and lost 3 pounds (mostly water weight). I couldn't workout, yep, that sick, so I ate well again Wednesday. Three more pounds gone. This continued throughout the weekend (I was actually able to workout again after my knight and shining armor called my doctor behind my back and got me antibiotics) and I continued to lose weight.

The weekend included Pina Coladas, birthday cake, chips and salsa, movie popcorn, etc. It also included salads, egg whites, veggies... The difference, a new frame of mind. I don't need it ALL. I will have the opportunity to eat this again.

So, I lost 8 pounds this week, and I am REALLY happy with that.

Here's the lesson I hope to share through all of this: When you are working on ANYTHING that is difficult, and you have a success... celebrate it (in a healthy way), and then work to have another small success. Last week each time the scale dropped a bit,(or didn't go up), I congratulated myself, did a happy dance, and worked to do it again the next day.

Baby steps.

Dump Cake

I recently learned a new dessert recipe and have been wanting to share it with you. I wanted to have pictures, but the first time I made it, it was gone in about 10 seconds, and I have not had a good excuse to make dessert for 10 since (and we would probably eat it ourselves if I did make it!)

Here's what you need:
2 large cans of sugar free cherry pie filling
1 large can of crushed pineapple in it's own juice
1 box of sugar free yellow cake mix
12 tbsp of some type of low cal butter (i use Smart Balance with Omega-3)... it doesn't matter, most butter is evil :)

So simple:
Spread your cherries on the bottom of the pan. Layer the pineapple over the cherries. Dump the cake mix over the fruit. Place the dollops of butter evenly around the pan on top of the cake mix. DON'T MIX ANYTHING TOGETHER. Place in the oven at 350 degrees, and bake until your butter melts over your cake and it starts to look crispy.

So calorie count has been changing their website, so i wasn't able to do my normal nutrition form, but I did figure the calories. I will try to remember and update this when their site is up again.

Makes 12 servings
Calories per serving: 209
Trust me it's worth saving 200 calories for! Yum!

A Good Friend...

... stays on the elliptical for another 50 minutes just to keep you company, even though her workout is technically done
... makes sure you really want the calories of another piece of candy or jalapeno popper
... asks you to make her your "fitness project"
... watches you
... texts you to see why you haven't been to the gym (even if the excuse is legit!)
... comments on your blog posts
... encourages you

This list could go on forever. The point is I have a lot of really good friends and fitness buddies out there. I've had a really good week getting my eating back on track, but illness is keeping me at home a lot. Still losing this week though! Thanks to any of you who have offered any type of love or support during this journey...

So tomorrow night at GNO, I need a good friend to keep me from eating all the chips and salsa. Thanks in advance, friend!

Back to the Basics

Losing weight is not easy...if you complicate it. I have complicated it for myself. I am still under my current dreaded weight, but I just seem to keep sabotaging myself. I am sorry to those readers who used to find this to be a cheery blog about a girl who was losing a ton of weight, but here's the truth.

1. I haven't lost any new weight since my dad got sick.
2. My desire to spend my events at the YMCA has been low. I've been getting in about 4 days per week...I need more like 6!
3. I need a fitness buddy bad. I have always had someone around me to push me, someone who I felt like cared whether or not I had over-eaten or under-exercised for the day..
4. I saw a picture of myself today and did not like what I saw.

Here is how I see the glass half-full:
1. Although I have not lost any new weight, I am still 70 pounds less than ever, and I weigh 10 pounds less than last year at this time.
2. I still know how to do this.
3. I have lots of amazing weight loss tools to use.
4. I have an amazing and forgiving body that remembers how things should be.
5. I still have a strong desire to change, and to never be who I was again.

So, back to the basics of weight loss:


1. I will log my food daily at www.calorie count.about.com They have an amazing and free website!
2. We will eat at home at least 5 nights per week. I will go back to the old-standby of bagged meals and veggies.
3. I will get to the gym 5 times a week whether I like it or not... I will also try and find one new class I like...maybe Zumba again!
4. I will find a new fitness buddy... Buddies for hire!
5. I will work to minimize my weekend splurges... More fancy salads, less comfort food and dessert.

How are your new years goals going?