Diet Challenge | Week Five Update

Happy Monday... no really, it's a HAPPY Monday!!  But before we get started... need to do a big Happy Birthday shout out to my amazing hubby, Murray!

Okay, enough talking about other people, let's bring the focus back to me ;)  I am SUPER pumped to report that this morning's weigh-in was successful and I lost another 4-lbs for a new weight loss total of 17.5-lbs.  I can't even express how happy it makes me to be down FOUR pounds in one week.  As I have said before, I am not expecting major drops and am happy with not gaining but seeing all the hard work that I am putting in, paying off, brings a GIANT smile to my face and makes me want to keep going!

My newest Fitbit badge!

WINS for the week:

1. First 'Eat Out' Meal - Yep, it was bound to happen, the dreaded restaurant meal.  However, if you read my blog post from last week, you will know that I did it with flying colours!  I planned it all before leaving the house and stayed totally on plan for the meal and didn't feel the least bit guilty with my choices!
2. Steppin' Up - Killed it with the steps this past week.  I did close to, or over, 12,000 a day and made sure to get two walks in each day.  Not sure if I will ever increase my step goal beyond the 10,000 but am more than happy to knock it out of the park every chance I get.  

CHALLENGES for the week:

1. Making Cupcakes - I happen to be the cupcake queen of my family so for most occasions, I am asked to make some version of cupcakes.  Saturday was my niece's 5th birthday and, of course, I made cupcakes.  Usually my routine is to fill the cupcake wrappers and leave enough batter in the bowl for me to enjoy a super yummy, and horribly fattening, batter snack.  Add on top of that, the licks and tastes of icing and sprinkles and whatever else goes into making them look pretty and it's basically an all-out schmorgishboard (no idea how to spell that).  Not only did I not eat any batter, but I didn't even have a lick of the icing!  WOOHOO!
2. Birthday Party - Same day, different challenge!  My niece's birthday party was on Saturday and it ran right into when I would be having lunch (late, as usual) so instead of being tempted by snacks, I just brought along my salad and ate it instead.  WIN!!

This upcoming week is loaded with challenges so I am going to have to do some MAJOR planning to stay on plan, as much as humanly possible.  We have a baseball tournament this coming weekend, out of town, so that means staying in a hotel ALL WEEKEND long.  I plan to bring snacks (fruit and whatnot) to fill in the gaps and eat at Subway as much as possible.  There is also a gym at the hotel (I know, I actually checked... who am I?!) and I will be bringing gym clothes to work out each day in hopes that any extra calories I do eat are burned off!  Fingers crossed that next week's weigh-in, is at worst, a stand still!  My goal is for NO GAINS!

Restaurant Eating | How to Successfully Plan

It can be very stressful when you are in the middle of a diet-plan and a friend asks you to go out for dinner or a family event pops up.   My son's 9th birthday was on Monday and his favourite restaurant of life is Buffalo Wild Wings.

Restaurant food is high in calorie, high in fat and oh-so-tempting... but you don't want to trigger those guilty feelings that throw you off your plan or start a downhill slide back to the beginning.  So, how do you add in a visit to a restaurant without throwing in the towel on your diet?  Here's how I handled it...

1. Figure out which restaurant you will be dining at.  If you have the choice, pick somewhere that you know serves healthy foods but if you don't, don't worry... you can still make it work for you. (Our restaurant was Buffalo Wild Wings... home of the deep fried everything!)
2. Go to the restaurants website and search for the nutritional information section.  If you can't find it, you can always google for it or call the restaurant and ask them to fax/email you a copy.  Almost every restaurant has their ingredients and nutritional information available for their customers. (I had to google for the nutritional info but was able to find it fairly easily... although it was the American version, a lot of the dishes carried over to the Canadian menu)
3. Determine how many calories/grams of fat/sugar (whatever you are counting) you are okay with eating for that meal and then search for items that fit within that limit.  I tend to stick to the appetizer section because the 'meals' are smaller.  If it's ever possible, try to go for lunches so you can get even smaller portions... makes eating seem less daunting when you can order a 'full' sized plate and it still isn't HUGE! (I opted to stay below 500 calories which is still more than I normally have for lunch but figured I could just swap my dinner and lunch around and not worry too much)
4. When you are at the restaurant, drink WATER... don't waste your calories on alcohol or soda because it's not worth it.  Even diet soda is full of sugar (the fake kind which is actually worse for you) and it will make you bloated and crave more of it in the future.  Keep your glass full and keep sipping!  
5. Don't look at the menu because you will be tempted by other choices... order what you planned and don't veer off course. 
6. Once everyone is done their meal, pay up and head out... maybe to a coffee shop to continue your visit (less tempting than the dessert menu) or perhaps for a walk! (If you do indulge, just remember you need to work off those extra calories!)

Shown: Southwest Street Tacos - 480 calories

Like I said, restaurant meals are going to happen... friends are going to ask... family events will come and go but you do not have to give up on your diet to participate.  Just make smart choices.

Planning is the key to success!

Spotlight | Kristin Gehm

Have you ever had one of those people come into your life that makes you feel like a better person for just having known them?   One of my best friends, who I met through YouTube, is Kristin Gehm and she has inspired me to be the best person I can be and for that, I am truly grateful to her, each and every day.

Picture Source

Kristin has two channels, one devoted to makeup and all things beauty and the other is a vlog channel, where she takes viewers around with her as she lives her life.  While I absolutely love her makeup channel and watch each video she posts, her vlog channel is where I feel most connected.

As I look at my current journey, weight loss and becoming more healthy, I have found that going back and re-watching Kristin's videos has inspired me to plan ahead.  For my entire life I have been a procrastinator... I hate not having plans in place but I also do everything at the last possible minute.  With dieting, I think one of the most important aspects is planning.  Want to be successful?  Be ready!

Kristin has a fantastic routine of planning her meals for the week as well as prepping her snacks for work lunches.  Taking these two simple tasks and incorporating them into my routine has been a major turning point for me in this whole lifestyle change.  Do I like taking time out of my day on Sunday to do this?  No.  However, I know that I don't do mornings and refuse to get up earlier than I have to so the Sunday prep is 100% necessary if I want to succeed.

While I don't think Kristin intended to inspire anyone with these simple steps, I hope that she knows that by watching her videos, people do indeed become a better version of themselves.

THANK YOU so much, Kristin... I appreciate your friendship and your willingness to open your home up to the masses and show us how you do you!  Both you and Bob are blessings to all of us who watch you!