4 to 40 ~ Week 4 ~ Final Update

I had hoped to have a fabulous week for the end of this short challenge, but we came back from a trip, hubs was off work, son on Spring Break, etc. so it was hard to stay on track.  I am officially 40 today - woo hoo (if you're interested in a birthday giveaway, stop by my other blog but don't look at the chocolate surrounding you there - LOL)!

I did get to WW to weigh in.  Since I didn't weigh in there last time (just weighed myself), it was a gain though it was actually a loss for the week.  If I were to dwell on the negative, I would be upset about such a small loss over 4 weeks and be discouraged about getting anywhere close to my goal even by the end of the year!  But the good thing is that I DON'T like to dwell on the negative!  The positive side is that I did lose some weight over the 4 weeks, no matter how small the amount - I'm still going in the right direction!  And last year at this time, I gained 5 lbs after Spring Break and a trip to see my Dad - so this year is MUCH better!  In fact, I weigh less at age 40 than at age 39 so that is something!  :)

Here's how I did for the final week:

1.  Lose 5 lbs. - Lost 1.4 lbs this week; making a total of 1.2 lbs lost for the 4 weeks.
2.  Exercise 4x/week for 30+ min.  - Only 1x (hangs head in shame): 50 min. walking
3.  Drink 4 (12 oz) glasses water/day. - Did once.
4.  Go to bed @ 11:30pm on weekdays. - Made it 3 times!!
5.  Make 2 breakfast & 2 lunch recipes/week. - 1 breakfast recipe - WW Chocolate Chip-Orange Scones.

I'm not going to follow any sort of challenge this week - I'll just try to survive my birthday week without a big weight gain!  But I do want a new challenge to follow until Summer (after this week, it will be 6 weeks until the unofficial start of Summer - Memorial Day weekend and 9 weeks until it's officially Summer).  I'm willing to join up with somebody else's challenge or start my own.  What do you think?  Ideas?  Suggestions?

How was your week?  Are you back on track?  Did you make the goals you set for yourself during this 4 weeks?  We can do this!!  Take some time this week to think about what really motivates you.

Thanks for sticking with me!  You are helping hold me accountable and it does make a difference for me!  Hugs to all!

Have a healthy day!
Lisa  :)

4 to 40 ~ Week 3

Only 1 week left until I'm 40!  Wow!  Though I met some of my goals last week, the scale did not reflect it.  :(  It really wasn't pretty.  I didn't have time to go to WW and weigh in there as we went out-of-town on Friday morning, but I put on my usual outfit and weighed myself (my scale is fairly close to what WW scale says) that morning (normally I weigh on Saturday) and I GAINED!  In fact, I gained a whole 2.8 lbs as near as I could tell - which completely wiped out 2 weeks of losing.  That is the sort of thing that really frustrates me, but all I can do is not let it discourage me and keep moving forward!

Here's how my week went:

1.  Lose 5 lbs. - Gained 2.8 lbs this week; making a total of .2 lb gain so far.  Grrrr.
2.  Exercise 4x/week for 30+ min.  - 4x!: 30 min. workout DVD (twice), 30 min. Wii Fit, 45 min. Wii Fit
3.  Drink 4 (12 oz) glasses water/day. - Did 4/day about twice.
4.  Go to bed @ 11:30pm on weekdays. - Made it twice!!
5.  Make 2 breakfast & 2 lunch recipes/week. - 1 breakfast recipe - the Blueberry-Corn Muffins and 2 lunch recipes: Bow Ties, Tuna & Veggies in Balsamic Vinaigrette and Asian Chicken Slaw.

I wasn't feeling well at the beginning of this week, but am OK now and trying to get back on track!  How was your week?  How was Easter?  Did you resist all the Easter candy?  I have to say - I've stayed away from the stores because I have a hard time resisting clearance-priced candy!

Let's have a great week!  We can do it!!

Have a healthy day!
Lisa  :)

4 to 40 ~ Week 2

So far, my 4 weeks to 40 is going fairly well, but Easter is fast approaching!  I did have a good week last week though.  I still didn't make all of my goals, but I did lose weight!  Yay!  Slow but steady...

Here's how my week was:

1.  Lose 5 lbs. - Lost 1.4 lbs this week; 2.6 lbs total so far!
2.  Exercise 4x/week for 30+ min.  - only 3x: 30 min. walking, 30 min. workout DVD, 30 min. Wii Fit
3.  Drink 4 (12 oz) glasses water/day. - Did 4/day about 3 times.
4.  Go to bed @ 11:30pm on weekdays. - Made it twice!!
5.  Make 2 breakfast & 2 lunch recipes/week. - Only managed the breakfast recipes - made Fabulous Fruit Salad and Jen's healthier baked oatmeal.

Not bad!  I feel like I'm on track for my 4 weeks!  How are you doing with your goals?  Are you on track?  Start over today if you need to - you can do it!

2 more weeks til I'm 40 and 2 more weeks for you to achieve a goal!  Then we'll start something new to keep us on track!

Have a healthy day!
Lisa  :)

4 to 40 ~ Week 1

Well I completed the first week of my own 4 weeks to 40 challenge!  I didn't quite have my mind ready for it and was still transitioning from the goals of my previous 10 week challenge, so I didn't do very well as far as my goals.  But I did lose weight!

I weighed in at WW and lost 1.2 lbs for the week!!  Yay!!  That's a good start for my 4 weeks - I just need to keep it up!

Here's how my week went:

1.  Lose 5 lbs. - Lost 1.2 lbs so far!
2.  Exercise 4x/week for 30+ min.  - only 3: 40 min. walking, 50 min. walking, 30 min. Wii Fit
3.  Drink 4 (12 oz) glasses water/day. - Most days 3/day, did 4/day once.
4.  Go to bed @ 11:30pm on weekdays. - Still didn't do - ugh!
5.  Make 2 breakfast & 2 lunch recipes/week. - Didn't do yet; have some planned for this week.

So you can see I need to do better this week!  So far, this week is going OK - I need to keep my focus!

Did you come up with a challenge for the 4 weeks?  How did you do last week?  Remember, you can start fresh this week!  Share your struggles and successes in the comments!

Thanks for following along with me as I attempt to be a little healthier and lose weight along the way!

Have a healthy day!
Lisa  :)

4 Weeks to 40

Shame on me for putting up a pic of delicious cake, but I couldn't help it!  It is exactly 4 weeks until my 40th birthday (gasp - now you know how *old* I am!)!  I am happy to have started off the year by focusing on healthy goals from the 10 in 2010 challenge and I want to continue.

It is generally thought that it takes 21-30 days to develop a new habit (though I just read that that is actually a myth and research suggests that it could take an average of 60+ days).  I figure that 4 weeks is enough time to work on habits already established and improve upon them.  I'm making some new goals for the next 4 weeks and will post weekly on my progress.  You are welcome to join in with your own goals and post about it to help keep yourself accountable.  I recommend making realistic, attainable goals - success at smaller goals is a great motivator to go on to bigger goals!

4 to 40 Goals:

1.  Lose 5 lbs.
2.  Exercise 4 times a week for 30-60 minutes.
3.  Drink 4 (12 oz) glasses of water a day.
4.  Go to bed no later than 11:30 pm on weekdays.
5.  Make at least 2 breakfast and 2 lunch recipes each week.

So you can see that I'm building on what I accomplished during the last 10 weeks.  I'm increasing my workouts and water drinking and hoping that it will help me lose 5 lbs in 4 weeks (sounds like a small amount but it seems to be tough for me).  I've changed my bedtime goal from 11pm to 11:30 in hopes that I can have more success!  And I'm good about making great healthy dinner recipes, but I tend to just scrounge around for breakfast and lunch.  If I plan out recipes for those too and make things ahead of time, I (and my family) will be much more satisfied with my food.

I'll post again next week with my progress!  How about you?  Do you want to join me for the next 4 weeks?  C'mon - it's only 4 weeks - I know you can do it!  I'm putting up a MckLinky below.  If you want to post about your goals for 4 weeks on your blog, then you can come back any time the rest of the week and link up your post.  Or you can leave comments with what you're trying to achieve and comment each week with your progress.  This is very informal - it's just nice to join in and get some accountability and encouragement!

I look forward to hearing about your goals and appreciate you checking in on me!  4 to 40 - let's do it (hey it's OK if you're not turning 40, just make it 4 to anything you like)!!

Have a healthy day!
Lisa  :)

10 in 2010 ~ Final Update

I finished the final week of Recipe Girl's 10 in 2010 Challenge!  Though I didn't have as much success as I originally hoped for, I did accomplish a few things and that will help me keep the ball rolling!

I went to my Saturday weigh-in and it was certainly not how I wanted to finish out the 10 weeks.  I had a gain!  Ugh!  I only gained .2 lbs, but it was still disappointing.  I wasn't as much on track this week, but still didn't expect a gain.

Here's how I did for the week:

Weigh in at WW:  Weighed in; couldn't stay for meeting.

Track all food:  Tracked every week day.
3 45-min exercise sessions:  1 60-min. Wii Fit Plus workout.
Bed by 11pm on weeknights:  Once. 
Drink 3 glasses water per day:  Did it about half the days.
Plan meals each week: Not well planned, and did end up eating In & Out burger and fries one night because of it.

Not a great week, but not a complete failure either.   So how did I do on my goals?

1.  To lose at least 15 pounds. ~ I only lost 5.2 lbs for the 10 weeks, but that is the first time that I have lost more than 5 lbs at one time in the last 4-5 years - seriously!  It's a great start for me!

2.  To be more fit/healthy with more energy. ~ When I keep up with my workout sessions and drinking my water, I definitely have more energy.  Since I can feel a difference, it makes me more motivated to keep it up!

3.  To be motivated to continue program beyond 10 weeks. ~  Definitely motivated, even though the weight loss is so slow.  I plan to keep on going!!

Over all, I'm pleased with my progress during the 10 weeks.  I'm much more consistent about working out and drinking water which will make it easier to increase amounts for both!  And though I didn't have a big loss, my jeans are more comfortable and being able to feel a difference makes me want to continue.

I do have a plan for the next 4 weeks to keep myself focused and you're welcome to join in!  I'll put up a separate post about that later.

Did you follow along for the 10 weeks (or part of it)?  How did you do?  Don't beat yourself up if you didn't hit all of your goals.  Focus on the positive changes that you made and keep on going!

Thanks again to Recipe Girl for doing this to help us focus on starting out 2010 in a healthy way!

Have a healthy day!
Lisa  :)

10 in 2010 ~ Week 1

I signed up at www.recipegirl.com for her program: 10 in 2010.  It's 10 weeks to achieve healthy goals and you can join up and post about it (or not) as you go.  This appealed to me for a few reasons: Lori is a food blogger and doens't believe in totally depriving yourself; I need to refocus my weight-loss efforts and 10 weeks would be a good start; You set your own goals for this program.  Feel free to join up over there and participate or just follow along with me here if you like.

Here are my goals:
1.  To lose at least 15 pounds.
2.  To be more fit/healthy with more energy.
3.  To be motivated to continue program beyond 10 weeks.

Here's my plan to achieve my goals:
 ~ Continue Weight Watchers and attend meeting/weigh-in once a week.
 ~ Track all food eaten with WW points tracker.
 ~ Do Wii Fit Plus (or other exercise) at least 3 times/week for 45 minutes or more.
 ~ Go to bed by 11pm on weeknights (that is early for me - I have a bad habit of staying up too late).
 ~ Drink at least 3 glasses of water every day (I don't like drinking water, so even that will be tough.)
 ~ Plan out meals ahead of time each week.

I think that's a good start!  This is not going to be easy for me.  I have been struggling and this will require some self-discipline which I haven't been good with lately! 

I'll post about my progress on Saturdays and will post a healthy recipe each week and any other random posts that come along.  If you need more healthy meal ideas to help you along, check out my labels on my sidebar (or click on these links): breakfasts, side dishes, dinners, snacks and desserts.

Are you with me?  I know I can achieve my goals with encouragment and support!  What are your goals?  Let's help each other!  We CAN do it friends!  :)

Have a great healthy weekend!

Lisa  :)

Struggling in Montana

Oh, it is so hard to be away from home for so long and try to stay healthy - especially when I wasn't doing so well with it before I left!

I'm trying to watch my portions while I'm here, but I'm still having a lot of foods that aren't the best for me. There are lots of meals out, meals with relatives, etc. I have cooked some healthy foods, but not enough. I haven't been very active (does going up and down stairs during the day count?). And I have hardly been drinking water.

Once again, I will not give up. I may not be able to accomplish much here (will keep trying though), but it is making me feel even more determined to get healthy when I get home. That is a better feeling than the "nothing's working anyway, so give up" feeling.

I will be home in less than a week. If I could just keep from gaining weight, I would be so happy. Let's see...6 days to make that happen. It CAN be done!

I'm sure some of you are struggling too. I'm with ya! Every day, every hour can be a fresh start if you want it to be. And I'm going to set a goal for tomorrow right now: Drink 4 glasses of water. Doesn't sound like much, but that would be an accomplishment for me!

Lisa :)

Vacation Is Almost Over

I've been on a trip for 2 weeks and will be home tonight! Can't wait.

I did not achieve all my goals while on vacation. My main goal was not to gain weight - I think I achieved that, but I won't know until I see the scale. I did try to watch my eating and it could have been worse, but it certainly could have been better. I did stay active! Lots of hiking and walking around. But, I did not get brave and weigh in at an out-of-state Weight Watchers. I will go back when I get back home and either continue from where I left off, with a gain; or start over from the weight I am at right now. I will keep you posted!

I will have more healthy recipes and updates for you after I get back.

What challenges have you been facing lately?

Lisa :)

I'm Still Here!

Sorry it's been a while. I'm on a trip and it has been hard enough just keeping up my other blog.

How am I doing on my goals? So-so. I have not braved an out-of-state WW yet to weigh in. My weight was up when we left on our trip and I used a scale today - seems about the same. That is OK, since I really just hoped to maintain during this time.

I have stayed active - did TONS of walking and climbing stairs in Yellowstone and had another day this week of walking for hours.

My eating hasn't been great. I'm not eating that much, just the foods aren't the most healthy. Will keep trying to make better choices.

That's my little update for now. I have my class reunion starting tomorrow which is causing stress, though I don't seem to be stress-eating.

Lord willing, I will post another healthy recipe for you tomorrow. See you then!

Lisa :)

On A Trip...

I am currently on a trip. I will be gone for 2 weeks, but will still post! This is quite a challenge for my healthy goals.

I failed miserably at my goals last week! And haven't we all done that at some point? Of course I am disappointed and frustrated (especially since I'll be attending a class reunion in a week and a half!). The key here is to not give up. Just because I've had some tough weeks doesn't mean I can't get it back together. My real goal for this vacation is to...NOT GAIN WEIGHT!! It can be done!

I need to try to go to a new WW center during my trip just to weigh in even if it's a big gain. And other than that, I will try to keep my eating in moderation and keep active.

Say a little prayer for me and feel free to share your tips. I feel better already and tomorrow is a new day!

Lisa :)

Confession Time

OK, I did the very thing that I always tell other Weight Watchers members to never do! I did not go to the meeting yesterday or weigh in. I could tell by my scale at home that my weight was up for the second week in a row. Grrr... I know that I was not perfect last week, but I snacked less, made healthy dinners, drank a little water, and exercised twice. Those things are good even if the scale didn't move.

I do think that I know what's happening. The weather has warmed up and I am definitely not drinking enough water. I am probably a little dehydrated and I can tell that I am swollen and retaining water.

So, I will stay on track, do better this week, and force myself to drink more water! Next week should be better. Don't worry - I'm not quitting WW; I bought 10 weeks of passes so I have no choice - ha, ha!

How did your week go?

Lisa :)

Still Going...

OK, definitely a slower week - lost .8 lbs. But that's still yay 'cause I lost weight! And I still had chocolate - ha,ha! I did have trouble this week with snacking and eating too many things I didn't need to have. I needed to be better prepared for the week.

I am feeling good though! I want to do better this week and follow through with all of my weekly goals (listed on the sidebar). This blog is helping because my goals are right there for me to see and remind myself.

One of my toughest is drinking water - I don't like to do it! I know, for you people that have no problem with water, it's like saying, "I don't like to breathe air." I have been making decaf iced tea and drinking it with a splash of lemonade which can count as some of my water. We are actually working on replacing diet soda in our house. We now have 3-4 a week, I think, but are trying to eliminate it completely.

Any tips on how to make drinking water easier? Should I try making myself drink a glass before every meal? Even consistently drinking one glass a day is an improvement for me, but I need to better than that.

Hope all of you are having a great healthy week!

Lisa :)