Cayenne+Running= No Bueno

First of all, this week has gone by way too fast again. I can't believe Week 4 weigh in is just a couple days away.

Have you heard that cayenne can help boost your metabolism and aid in weight loss?

I have a bottle of cayenne fruit pills that I've used in the past when trying to lose weight and I can't honestly tell you if they helped or not considering I'm still trying to lose weight, but I thought it wouldn't hurt to start taking them again today. I can always use a metabolism boost.

I took one at breakfast and was reminded of the heart burn they give me.

I only get heartburn when A. I'm Pregnant or B. I take cayenne pills. Bleh.

Then I hit the treadmill..and was reminded how much they make me sweat.

Oh. My. Word.

I was sweating bullets buckets..and my chest burned.

It was not good.

I cut it off at a mile out of fear my profuse sweating might create an electrical shortage in the treadmill or something. Plus running with heartburn is not fun. I like a good sweat when I'm working out, but this was just gross..kind of like me telling you this is gross, but it's true. So...be warned...take cayenne pills and expect heartburn and sweat. Ick.

Happy Friday.

60 Minutes Baby!

I can't even tell you how many times I've started this DVD:

But, I can tell you how many times I've finished it...none! Never...until today!

I bought this dvd at Walmart months ago. I think it was $10. I normally try to do it during my daughter's nap, but she either wakes up half way through, or worse, I wimp out. I kept figuring if I do half of it, then that should be around 250 calories, right? And that's still good. I think the most I've done of this video was 45 minutes. It's been a goal since I got it to make it all the way through.

Today the Little Miss slept for just over an hour and I was able to do the entire video.

I hurt so good right now.

I am so happy she took a good nap today and I'm proud that I didn't declare that half way was good enough.

This is a good work out video, but if anyone decides to buy it, have some patience the first few times you do it. Especially if you are completely new to aerobics. Once I learned the moves and routine it got easier and now I love it.

Why I Can't Give Up Carbs...

{Image Source}

There are nights like last night  that I just don't feel like cooking and we end up eating cereal.

(I ate cereal, everyone else had pancakes)

It doesn't happen very often, but it's on nights like those that I'm especially grateful that I'm not doing a no carb diet. I love a bowl of cereal every now and then.

Special K Oats and Honey is one of my favs, it's up there with Kashi's honey and flax seed.

Topped with almond milk and bananas, mmmm....

Week 3 Weight Loss

So I told you I had boo hoo'd myself Sunday morning when I didn't lose how much I wanted, but how much did I lose?

2.6 lbs

Not quite the 3 lbs I had hoped for, but I'm happy with it. Saturday I did one of the most strenuous hikes in a long time, not the longest, but definitely a tough one. We hiked Stansbury Island in Utah.

Hi, that's me, cheesy smile and disney princess water bottle in hand.

I think I developed shin splints this weekend between walking/running two miles that morning and doing that hike. My legs were already hurting last week, but I think the hike did me in. See those rocks behind me? A good portion of the hike was climbing up over those.

Sunday night we walked as a family and tonight I went with a couple friends and did a little over 4 miles.

My shins are feeling better each day and I'm feeling better overall each day. I'm loving this challenge and loving the feel of being 12.2 lbs lighter in the last 3 weeks. I'm down 16.6 lbs since January. I've got about 35-40 lbs or so to go and I can't wait to get there.

Great job to all the other ladies this week!

Week 3

Woo hoo! Week 3 has come to an end. I have a confession... I was being a total butt to myself this morning. I had my own little pity party. Over four stinkin' ounces. I was so mad at my body, mad that I had worked out so hard and ate so well and didn't lose what I thought I deserved to lose this week.

Then I got dressed and was reminded that I bought a couple new shirts last night, both a size smaller than I have been in a long time...I can't remember the last time I've worn this size..it's two sizes smaller than what I got up to at the end of last year. I also tried on a dress last night 2 sizes smaller than my norm size...maybe the sizing on the dress was off, but hey, seeing that number on a dress that I could fit into without sucking it in felt great.

So I didn't lose what I wanted this week, but I'm losing and that's what matters. I exercised every day, ate within my calories and fat range and I'm getting smaller. Woo hoo :)

Slowly, but surely.

From now on, I'm not going to completely set my heart on seeing a certain number on the scale at the end of each week, I'll *wish* for it, but even with diet and exercise, you can't always control exactly how much you'll lose each week and drowning in my self pity over a few ounces was a silly thing to do. My goals will be things I can definitely control, like working out every day and eating well, or increasing reps or distance in my workouts.

To those celebrating Easter, Happy Easter! To everyone else, have a wonderful Sunday!

PS, I was happy to find out that one peep chick only has 28 calories. :)

Friday!

It's Friday! So far I've felt this week has gone well. I've worked out every day and I feel it...I'm talking just putting on mascara hurts.

This weekend makes me nervous though. I started it off today by taking my girls to their little friend's birthday party which meant cake, ice cream and pizza. I *think* I did OK there. I ate a little orange sherbet and one little taste of cake. I was happy to find out when I got home that 1/2 cup of orange sherbet only has around 100 calories and I didn't have my morning snack which is normally around 100-150 calories, so we're good there. I did eat a piece of cheeseless pizza and  part of a breadstick too, thanks to my daughter for picking off all the cheese and pepperoni, she took all the good stuff so I don't think that did much damage. I came home, put down my littlest for a nap, worked out and now I'm sneaking in a quick post. Oh, and we walked to the party around the block and back (I pulled them in the wagon) so that counts for a little extra exercise too :)

I've done good the last few days without soda. I have treated myself to a Sobe Lifewater here and there and it's helped with the soda cravings. Its zero calories, caffeine free, no artificial sweeteners and it's got lots of good vitamins like B12..yes for extra energy!

We are going to Easter events tomorrow and Sunday and its the unknown temptations waiting for me that scare me. Wish me luck and good luck to all the other contestants!

No More Soda...

Yesterday I drank my last diet soda...at least for the remainder of this challenge.

It's a little daunting to say I will never drink another diet soda...I am a sucker for diet sodas...diet mt. dew, diet dr. pepper, diet coke with lime/lemon, and diet a&w root beer...love them all.

I also recognize it's not good to be drinking them all. the. time.

I stopped drinking soda for several months once, and my energy levels were much more consistent, no ups and downs. I don't know why I started drinking it again..it's not the caffeine I crave, it's the flavor...especially when I'm eating pizza or burgers...ohh, yet another weakness of mine.

So here's to Day 1 of no more soda.

On a side note, amazingly, me and my 3 year old have gone through a whole bag of Dole lettuce in the last 24 hours between the two of us. I love salads now and I'm surprised that she has recently started loving them too. I remember the days when I would buy a bag and we'd be lucky to go through it before it spoiled.

One of my favorite salads is topped with chicken, slivered almonds, chopped apple, and pomegranate infused craisins with raspberry dressing. Yum!

Smile!

Tonight I smiled while jogging for the first time.

Tonight I paced myself better than usual and decided to jog/run on and off every other minute, walking on the in between minutes. At minute 7, it was running time... after a bit, I glanced at the time, expecting to only be 20 seconds into the 7th minute {20 seconds into running is normally when I growl and say "ugggghhh, I've really only been running 20 seconds? I'm going to die"..yes, I am THAT out of shape}, but when I looked, I realized I had actually been running for almost a minute...and I didn't feel like I was going to die...and then I smiled. I might have done a happy dance right then, but quickly decided that wasn't a wise idea on a running treadmill belt.

I shaved a little off my time tonight and when I was done, I felt great!

On a side note, I did not feel so great when I caught my hubby watching me run on the treadmill.

Sometimes I feel like/worry that I look like this:

Oy

I'm going to say it now, I am totally disappointed with this week's number on the scale. I didn't gain, so I can be happy for that, but I was hoping for a bigger weight loss. {I might or might not have tried to go pee about 3 more times after weighing myself hoping I'd magically drop an extra pound...or two from my bladder. In case you didn't guess, it didn't work...not even an extra ounce. Dang!}

There are three things I could have done better this week.

1. Not eaten at Red Robin on Monday. I had a turkey burger with no mayo, which I thought I'd be ok with, but those fries...oh the bottomless fries... you are my enemy. I went online and later realized that my entire meal was probably just under 1000 calories with those fries. Dang! If I had stuck with just the burger, it would have been right around 500, but a side of fries packs a ton of calories, and sodium. Sodium = water weight.

2. Worked out more. I exercised 4 days this week, but not nearly as long as I should have each day. This was my biggest problem this week, nap times were short and I felt sick a couple days. One day I got 15 minutes into my work out DVD and my daughter woke up cranky as could be. I planned to restart it later that night, but of course, that didn't happen.

3. Not eaten out again last night. We worked all afternoon in the garden/backyard and my hubby was craving mexican food. I ordered two chicken soft tacos without all the melted cheese and sauce it normally comes with and thought that with the work I had done yesterday, I'd be ok, but maybe not!

My goal for next week is at least 3 lbs...but I'd love to lose 4.

Yeah..that gives you a hint that I didn't even lose 3 lbs this week, not even close.

I'll be back to fill you in on the official weight loss number for Week 2 once all the numbers are posted over at the head Win, Lose or Blog.

15 minutes, 37 seconds

I don't hate running, but I do hate disappointment, even more so when it's me I'm disappointed in. When I'm running/jogging, my brain tells me to go faster, "you can do better than this," but my body says "woah, hang on, I'm new to this and doing my best". I have to remind myself I am new to running. For some, it might be an easy hobby to start up, but for others, like myself, it takes hard work and some serious patience. While my body keeps saying "look, I am doing better each day", but mind keeps wanting to compare my abilities to others and say 'it's not good enough'. I need to stop that! I have to find a balance between pushing myself and being patient with my improvement. Last week it took me 20.5 minutes to run my first mile, yesterday I did it in 15 minutes and 37 seconds, almost 5 minutes faster than last week. I know there are some that would say 'big deal, I can do it in less than half that time', but I just have to keep reminding myself that I just started running walking jogging last week, and I am getting faster, slowly but surely.

A very wise man once said:

"Cynics do not contribute, skeptics do not create, doubters do not achieve"

Thanks for letting me pour my heart out. 

I'm a little nervous for Sunday's weigh in.

Hopefully I don't face too many temptations this weekend!

Happy Friday!

Lunch- Flat Out Pizza

There is something about pizza on rainy days, Friday nights or when that "friend" you dread comes to town for a week {you know the one that leaves you crabby, bloated with nothing to wear that fits? Ugh, hate her}.

I love and crave pizza on days like those...ok, and maybe every day in between too.
Have I mentioned I love food?

I was craving pizza today and this is what I whipped up for lunch:

Took me about 10 minutes total to make and only cost me about 235 calories for the whole thing...and it has 8g of fiber and 9g of protein.

Flat Out Pizza

1 flat out wrap- I used the Multi-Grain with Flax

2 T spaghetti sauce

1/3 c pizza blend cheese

8 turkey pepperoni slices

cilantro

pepperoncini

Assemble and bake for 7 minutes at 375 degrees. I normally add veggies, but I have a one year old attached to my hip today so I assembled this one handed...seriously, so no time to cut veggies.

These are also good made as bbq chicken pizzas!

Here's some more nutritional info on those flat out wraps:

{Images Source}

I always find the flat out wraps in the deli/bakery section of the grocery store. These do cost a bit more than tortillas, and I never find coupons for them, but I love them for quick pizzas.

Week 1 Weight Loss!

The first week's numbers are posted over at Win, Lose, or Blog!

So how did the first week reward me on the scale?

7.8 lbs down, that's a 4.4% weight loss.

I was thrilled to see this number on the scale. I have to say I am already a tad nervous about this week though. Not feeling the greatest this morning, hopefully my energy improves this afternoon so I can get a work out in. I know the weeks I start out working out go much smoother over all.

All the other Win, Lose, or Blog contestants rocked it as well this week so make sure you head over the head Win, Lose, or Blog blog and check out how awesome this season's contestants are doing!

Fast Food...Oh, How I Love You!

We are almost done with week one of Win, Lose, or Blog...actually, it has been a full week since we started on April 1st, but our weigh-ins will be on Sundays. Anyway, I am feeling great! I put on my jeans straight out of the dryer and they fit great. Are you thinking, shouldn't they be getting lose? To be honest, after our week long vacation of eating cupcakes, pizza, hamburgers...all that delicious but bad stuff I mentioned in my first post, they were a little snug when I put them on straight out of the dryer...it wasn't until after a couple hours of wear that they'd loosen up and fit more comfortably. {You know, after you pull them on and pretend to just be doing your morning stretches and lounges so you can button them} Not now, now after a couple of hours they are starting to hang off me. Love it. I can't wait for a couple weeks from now when they hang off me right when I put them on, straight out of the dryer. :)

About the title of this post...I'm a sucker for fast food. Especially on the weekends. When are out and about running around, it's so easy to stop grab a quick bit to eat somewhere and one of my favorites is Carl's Jr.

Love. Love. Love their Guacamole Bacon Burgers...what I don't love is that it packs 1040 calories and 72g of fat. Ouch.

They just came out with a Turkey Guacamole burger and I'm in love.

490 calories and 21g of fat.

Much better alternative to the regular burger. I ate one last night for dinner and it was SO good. It came on a honey wheat bun and oh my...mmm mmm mm. This still isn't something I'd eat every day, but I love having a choice on the menu that I love and can get every once in awhile on the weekends and not feel too guilty about it.

Hope I don't sound like a spokesperson here. :) Anyone who knows me, knows I love burgers. If we go out to dinner, chances are I will order one and I have friends who give me a hard time for getting the same old thing everytime. Loved this burger and had to share for those who are looking for a better fast food burger alternative.

Can't wait to weigh in tomorrow!

{This is an embarrassing one...}

So, in keeping things honest here, I have to admit a mistake, a major one. I feel like the biggest dork. Ever. Today when I got on the treadmill, the first thing I noticed was "2.0" under the distance screen...I thought that was odd and then it dawned on me, for some reason, the treadmill doesn't reset the mile distance just when you hit stop a couple times. You have to reset it by unplugging the safety cord and re-plugging it in. *smacks forehead*. Know what that means? I did not run as fast as I thought yesterday, because it was still tracking the mile I had done the day before...which totally makes sense. Dork. dork. dork. I'm not a running rock star..yet...not that I felt like I was one yesterday. Yesterday my sister-in-law had said that my time was great and that I ran faster than her. I thought that couldn't make sense. One thing I don't like about the treadmill, which I can't really complain about because it was free, is that I can't see the display while I'm running, I have to lean way over to see it which makes keeping track of time/speed hard...normally I just push the speed button up until I'm at a speed I can handle and then go as long as I can and then check the distance every now and then... I should have done the math in my head and known I couldn't have been running that fast. I feel like this whole post should be in red to convey the embarrassment I feel right now!

Anyway...now that I've admitted what a dork I am {you can stop laughing now}...I still made improvement from the day before, and today I improved some more. I hope to improve a little bit each day {that's what's important right?} and I plan to track my time on the sidebar so I can see the improvement over time.

Since the couch to 5k program is supposed to work you up to being able to do a 5k in 30 minutes, my goal is to average around 9.5 minutes a mile. I've got a ways to go!

Wish me luck...and seriously, stop laughing now. :)

Couch to 5k progress and What I ate today! *edit*

You might be thinking progress already? You only started yesterday!

Yesterday it took me 20.5 minutes to do a mile. So slow. Today I did 1 miles in 17.5 minutes. I'm happy with the improvement but there's still plenty room to improve...and guess what, I've decided to do my first 5k with my sister-in-law next month. The hubster just might be on board to doing it too. The couch to 5k program works you up over 10 weeks, but I've got about 4.5 weeks to prepare. I think hope I can do it. At the end of the couch to 5k program, you're supposed to be able to do a 5k (3.1 miles) in 30 minutes. I'm excited to see how much I can prepare and what my time will be.

Here's what today's meals looked like:

Breakfast:

3/4 c Special K Oat and Honey Cereal

3/4 c almond milk*

banana slices

250 calories

***

Morning Snack:

Fiber One Chewy Bar

140 calories***

Lunch:

1 cup Campbell's Select Harvest Garden Tomato Soup

1 grilled cheese pita pocket**

(one kangaroo pita pocket, 1 slice of Kraft 2% American Cheese singles,

I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray butter)

230 calories

***

Afternoon Snack:

Frigo Light String Cheese

10 raw almonds

110 calories

***

Pre-Workout Snack:

Protein Packed Peanut Butter Ball

{recipe here...scroll all the way down}

117 calories

***

Dinner:

{I loved this}

Pita Pocket**- Opened 

2 tablespoons avocado- spread on pita pocket

1/4 cup cooked quinoa

1/4 black beans

a mountain of romaine lettuce

2 tablespoons Creamy Cilantro-Avocado dressing 

2 tablespoons black bean and corn salsa

311 calories

Today's total so far: 1158 calories

*1 cup of Almond Breeze Unsweetened almond milk has only 40 calories... I love it in cereal, smoothies and oatmeal and it has 50 less calories a cup than skim milk.

**I buy the kangaroo brand pita pockets, I've seen them in white, wheat and honey wheat at my store {Winco}. Under $2 a pack, with 8 halves in a pack. 1 half = 90 calories.

My pita pockets are approaching their expiration date, so I'm trying to use them up...hence the two in one day :) Got to love them.

***

You might notice that I average around 1200 calories a day, but I'm in no way encouraging anyone to stick to a 1200 calorie diet. For some, this might be way too few calories, but for me, I find that I can eat a well rounded diet and stay full on 1200 calories...so that's what I aim for. I'm never starving, and you shouldn't starve yourself either... As they say, consult your doctor before starting any new "diet". :)

{Exercise}

Last night I got one of these...

{image source}

For free!

Such a blessing! My good friend's parents were getting rid of theirs and she asked me if I wanted it.

Um, heck yes!

Thank you, thank you Laura for thinking of me!

We put it in our downstairs play room and I was able to put it to good use this morning while watching my 3 year old play during my youngest daughter's nap.

Actually, I was like a kid on Christmas morning last night and couldn't wait to use when my hubby got home with it at 8:30, so I did a short walk on it last night too.

I'm starting the couch to 5k program, and whew! I am out of shape! I'm going to be totally honest here...those two shorts minutes of jogging were tough...walking forever is no problem, but I'm not a runner. Two minutes feels like an eternity when you are out of shape. So sad, but so true. I used to say I'm not runner and never will be, but over the last few months I've had the itch to start running. Never thought I'd say this, but I want to be a runner...or at least a good jogger :) I can't wait to finish the couch to 5k program and do one or two 5ks this year.

I only got to do about a mile on the treadmill this morning and then I knew my time was running out if I wanted to shower before my daughter woke up from her nap. I'm going to have to hit the treadmill as soon as she goes down tomorrow so I can have more time. It was nice enough this afternoon that I took my daughters out for half hour walk in their wagon...pulling them around in that gives a little extra umph to the walk!

I'll be rotating between using the treadmill and doing two workout DVDs, I'll share those later.

{Dinner and Dessert}

You will quickly learn that I am not a food photographer!

I tried a new recipe tonight...

Indian-Spiced Chicken & Asparagus

I found it in the Eating Well March/April issue.

Recipe from Eating well as follows...

Indian Spice Chicken and Asparagus

Ready in: 40 minutes

Servings: 4 -1 cup each

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fennel seeds
• 1 pound chicken tenders, cut into bite-size chunks
• 3/4 teaspoon salt, divided
• 2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 small fresh chile, seeded and minced
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 1 1/2 bunches asparagus (about 1 1/2 pounds), woody ends trimmed, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 cup “lite” coconut milk (see Tip)
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Preparation

1. Toast cumin and fennel seeds in a small dry skillet over medium heat until fragrant and beginning to brown, about 2 minutes. Finely grind in a spice grinder (such as a clean coffee grinder) or with a mortar and pestle. *I just used pre-ground cumin and fennel
2. Toss chicken with 1 1/2 teaspoons of the spice mixture and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring frequently, until browned, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove to a plate.
3. Reduce heat to medium and add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil, onion, garlic, chile and ginger; cook, stirring, until softened, 2 to 3 minutes. Add asparagus, sprinkle with the remaining spice mixture and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Stir in coconut milk and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and simmer for 2 minutes more. Return the chicken and any accumulated juice to the pan and cook until the chicken is just cooked through and the asparagus is tender-crisp, about 2 minutes more. Serve sprinkled with cilantro.

Tips & Notes

• Refrigerate leftover coconut milk for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 2 months. It will appear separated when thawed; simply mix until smooth.

*****

I served it over quinoa, something I had never tried before, but will definitely be eating again.

Quinoa is a great grain choice. You can read more about the health benefits here.

My goal for this challenge is not to just lose weight, but eat better and add new "super foods" to my diet.

I loved the quinoa and chicken-asparagus together, even my one year old kept begging for more chicken.

1 cup Indian-Spiced Chicken and Asparagus: 249 calories

1/2 cup cooked quinoa: 127

Total: 376

This meal stuffed me!

and because I keep craving sweets...

Chocolate Crunch Quaker rice cake topped with 2T light cool whip and strawberries:

100 calories

Breakfast was peanut butter and banana oatmeal again and a half salad from Wendy's for lunch (with pomegranate dressing)...and my go to special k bar and grapes for a snack this afternoon. I was out running errand all morning/early afternoon which meant less time to think about food and snack. Score.

I hope I don't bore you all with what I'm eating. So often people think dieting means starving or eating food that tastes like cardboard...that dieting has to be miserable, but that doesn't have to be the case. I've had friends ask what kind of diet I'm doing, and since I'm not doing a "fad diet", I thought I'd share what I am eating...especially when it's something new and yummy! Promise I won't tell you every single thing I eat.

Don't want to go all How to Lose a Reader in 10 days on ya... If you don't get that, then nevermind :)

{What I Ate Today and Protein Packed Peanut Butter Balls Recipe}

I lost nearly 12 lbs in January. In just 31 days. I exercised hard and tracked my calories at livestrong.com. To my disappointment, I've put about half of that back on thanks to valentines day, birthdays and vacations...oh and a major lack of will power.

What can I say, I love food.

Luckily, I've found that when you put on weight fast, it comes off fast...but the rest of that weight that I slowly packed on over the years, will likely take longer to come off.

Am I rambling or what? Let's get to the point, I did ok this weekend, I definitely could have done better, but we went up to celebrate some March birthdays with my hubby's family and pizza and cake were involved. I don't ever want to be that person that says they can't enjoy a little pizza and cake every now and then, so that's what I did. I ate one slice of pizza with a salad and one serving of cake (with ice cream and strawberries...oh boy...and there might have been whipped cream involved too...yikes). It's so hard to track what you are eating when it's not coming from your fridge and there's no nutritional information to track.

Here I am rambling again...

I still managed to lose a few pounds over the weekend. I know that won't be the case every weekend, but even with the pizza and cake, I ate way better than I had been the week before. Sad, but true.

When I diet, I don't do fad diets, to lose weight and keep it off, I believe you need a lasting life style change...which simply means making healthy food choices and regular exercise.

So what can day's menu look like for me?

Here's what I ate today:

Breakfast:

1/4 cup dry oatmeal with 1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon peanut butter

half a large sliced banana

splash of whole milk

Glass of water

{I mixed the peanut butter with the oatmeal..yum! Normally I used almond milk and no whole milk, but I was out of almond milk, so I subbed water and added a little whole milk to make it creamier.}

250 calories

***

Morning Snack:

Special K 90 Cal Bar

Handful of Sugar Snap Peas

A few grapes

109 calories

***

Lunch:

1 cup Campbell's Select Harvest Garden Tomato Soup

1 grilled cheese pita pocket 

(one kangaroo pita pocket, 1.5 slices of Kraft 2% American Cheese singles,

I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray butter)

Normally I would just use 1 slice, but my little miss wanted half a grilled cheese and I wound up putting the other half of the slice in mine..that added 25 calories.

255 calories

***

Afternoon Snack:

Frigo Light String Cheese

10 raw almonds

110 calories

***

Dinner:

Salad with grilled chicken, cheese, bacon and light balsamic vinaigrette

350 calories

***

Evening Snack:

1 Protein Packed Peanut Butter Ball

{see recipe below}

117 calories

Total Caloric Intake: 1191

I did great on calories and I was not hungry once today, but here's where I went wrong:

Way too much sodium and a little high on the protein thanks to that protein peanut butter ball. The bacon and dressing on that salad set me way over on sodium. Sodium is definitely something I want to watch, both for health reasons and water weight.

I've found that I don't have to eat a lot of calories to stay full...I can still cram in a lot of food, I just have to make wise choices...and that doesn't mean I have to choke down bland food. I can honestly say I loved everything I ate today and nothing lacked in flavor.

On to the peanut butter balls...my 3 year old came to me with her apron on and asked to make a treat.

I couldn't turn her down so I came up with this treat:

Protein Packed Peanut Butter Balls

1 cup reduced fat peanut butter

1 scoop chocolate whey protein powder

1 ripe banana- mashed

1 tablespoon ground flax seed (see health benefits below)

1/4 cup quick oats

Mix all ingredients, form into tablespoon size balls, freeze for 20 minutes.

Makes about 16 balls.

Refrigerate leftovers.

Here's the full nutritional information:

Yes, it's high in fat, but remember, peanut butter is good fat. 80% or so of that fat in peanut butter is unsaturated fat.

If you haven't used or know much about flax seed, here's what livestrong.com has to say about the benefits of ground flax seed:

Cardiovascular Health, Weight Loss and Diabetes

"Flaxseeds are an excellent source of all omega-3 essential fatty acids (including alpha-linoleic acids) that are critical for reducing the risk of heart disease and diabetes as well as cancer. Omega-3s help balance blood sugar, boost metabolism and control appetite. Flax is known to help keep fats moving, as it emulsifies them in the body instead of storing them and keeps arteries from hardening."

Flax seed is a super food. You can easily slip it into smoothies, oatmeal, salads, and treats. With so many health benefits, I intend to incorporate it into my diet.

You can read more about the benefits here.

How about you? Do you use flax seed? Are you willing to try it?

If you've read this far, thanks for sticking with me! I promise all my posts won't be this long :)

Happy Sunday!

Hello!

Season Four starts today and I'm thrilled to be a contestant!

I just got done with a week long trip with family, food and fun...and did I mention food?

Cupcakes, apple pie, cookies, banana chocolate chip muffins with streusel topping, ice cream, pizza, Cafe Rio, hamburgers..oh. my. word. The list goes on.

Plus, I've been drinking tons of regular soda this last week.
1 cup of soda =95-115 calories
I drank several cups a day.

I'm going to be totally honest..I kept telling myself "this is my last chance to splurge before I start my diet".

Today is April 1st, the start of Season Four. The start of my diet and healthier life.

We are going out of town again for the weekend.

There's going to be more food, family and fun...and probably more food.

This weekend is going to be a major test for me.

With summer coming up, we are bound to travel a lot, and I can't use the "I'm on a trip..." excuse every time because my weight will be a constant yo-yo.

I can't use that excuse this weekend.

I can still eat and have fun, it just takes portion control.

Ugh, I hate that term "portion control"...but it's a fact of life, at least in a healthy, skinnier life.

Check back with me Monday to see if I could keep things under control this weekend.

Wish me luck!