Everyone Needs It...

I've been on this journey for 7 months now.  You'd think it would come easy to me by now.  Not so my friends.  I'm weak.  I'm easily tempted.  There are temptations everywhere.  Word to the wise...NEVER look at Pinterest when you are hungry...

Everyone needs motivation.  Everyone needs something to help keep them going.  I need motivation like nothing else.  Fortunately music is a very good and much used form of motivation for me.  I want to share 3 songs that I absolutely love.  It inspires me every time I listen to them.  These songs are by Christian rock groups.  So not only are they awesome to hear because I know the message is good but they are also clean songs that I don't have to worry about being offended while listening to.

I love these songs because they apply to my life and my faith.  What's even better is that I can apply them to my journey to becoming healthier.  I can apply them to the struggles I have faced and will probably face again.  They give me a lot of strength.  I just have to share what helps keep me going.  Toby Mac's song "Get Back Up" is my theme song.  I love it.  Enjoy!

 
Toby Mac - Get Back Up

 

Super Chick - One More



 Skillet - Awake and Alive

Now Comes The Real Test

 Today was weigh day!  I've lost another 5 pounds!  So flippin' awesome!  This means I've lost a total of 27 pounds thus far.  Things are going great.  I've had a couple of hiccups but nothing too major.  I've stayed focused and my goal is still in site.  I still have a big fear though.

In the past I've tried losing weight numerous times.  The one thing that I'm worried about after today's weigh-in is whether or not I'll stay on track.  I distinctly remember the last time I tried losing weight I hit this weight loss mini-goal before.  The last time I hit this mini-goal I remember telling my husband that I have finally lost so much weight and that I will never ever again be as heavy as I was.  That statement did not become truth.  Soon after making such a bold statement I went off track and stayed of track.  I not only gained back what I had lost, I gained even more.

Will history repeat itself?  I know it's up to me to make sure it doesn't.  I've lost 27 pounds for goodness sake.  There is no food in this world that tastes good enough to stop the momentum that I have.  At least that's what I'm trying to tell myself.  There are temptations everywhere! 

I am on a roll though.  I've been on this way of life since April.  That means I've lost an average of 3.8 pounds a month!  Those are pretty impressive numbers in my opinion.  I can't let history repeat itself.  I'm doing so well!  I have to work very hard to stay on track and to not lose site of my goal.

Scritchy Scratch!

Wowzer, I have lost some weight.  I am not near my goal but I still have lost a significant amount.  That is absolutely awesome!  There's a side effect though...I itch EVERYWHERE!  Holy cow does my skin itch.  There are a lot of different possibilities that can cause this itchiness.  I of course googled it.  Never google medical stuff.  All you get are terrifying possibilities.  I learned this a while back when I was having issues with my foot.

When my foot was hurting google told me the reasons could be from something simple like a strained muscle to some horrid problem that would result in surgery and weeks of therapy!  Well it turns out it was something mild.  My foot doesn't bother me nearly as much as it used to.  Every now and again there's a little twinge of pain but nothing like it was before.  It's very rare these days.

So of course when I google itchy skin and weight loss my results varied.  My itchy skin can be due to dry skin from to enough water to some terrible cancerous disease.  Here are my theories.  First, I'm not drinking enough water.  I know that much is true.  I must start drinking like a fish again.  I've been drinking these drinks called "Sparkling Ice".  They are quite tasty.  It's sparkling water sweetened with Sucralose and natural fruit juices.  There is also about 50mg of Green Tea extract in it.  I like them, but just like any carbonated beverage I'm drinking too much of them.  I need to drink water.  That's what's best!  Secondly,  I itch primarily where I am losing weight, namely my stomach and my back.  Finally, I could be deficient in some nutrient.  This I'm not sure of.  I will have to keep an eye on this in case I need to get a supplement.

I'm going to keep an eye on it.  I will up my intake of water of course.  Hopefully the itchiness subsides.  I'm not really worried about it though.  I itch in those exact same spots when I was pregnant and the doctors never found an issue disease wise. Weight loss is wonderful who knew a side effect would be itchy skin.

FOOD!!!!!!

I love food.  We all know I love food.  I love bad food.  We all know I love bad food.  That's how I got to this point.  In my quest to living a healthier lifestyle I have been in the search for new and exciting recipes to keep things interesting.  It's been a lot of fun trying to find foods that I like and recipes to try out.  There are of course some bad recipes that I have tried.  You never know until you try it right?

I have a board on Pinterest where I put all the recipes that I want to try.  If you CLICK HERE, it will take you to my Low-Carb recipe board.  I will update this regularly with what I have found and want to try, or with what turned out good or not so good!

I came across this recipe that was so amazing I have to share it!  I loved it, my husband loved it, and my kids loved it. So I must give this recipe to you so that you may enjoy it as well.  Believe me some of the ingredients in it would make you think I wouldn't eat it (because of my picky-ness) but I did eat it! It was sooooooo good!!!  I'm going to share the original recipe but the red text are my little adjustments.

Grilled Flank Steak With Tomatoes, Red Onion and Balsamic

2 lb flank steak, fat trimmed *I used only 1lb. flank steak

kosher salt and fresh pepper

garlic powder

1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsp balsamic

1/3 cup red onion, chopped  *I used half an onion

1/2 tomato, chopped *original recipe called for 3-4 tomatoes but that seemed like too much for us

1 tbsp fresh herbs such as oregano, basil or parsley  *I used dried oregano

Pierce steak all over with a fork. Season generously with salt, pepper and garlic powder and set aside about 10 minutes at room temperature.

In a large bowl, combine onions, olive oil, balsamic, salt and pepper. Let onions sit a few minutes with the salt and balsamic to mellow a bit. Combine with tomatoes and fresh herbs and adjust seasoning if needed.

Heat grill or broiler on high heat. Cook steak about 7 minutes on each side for medium rare or longer to taste. Remove from grill and let it rest on a plate for about 5 minutes before slicing.

Slice steak think on the diagonal; top with tomato mixture and serve.

Viola!  This is my husband's plate...I didn't eat any stuffing.

So there you have it.  One of the best dinners I've ever made.  The flavors were so awesome!  The saltiness and garlic taste of the steak topped with a tangy mixture of flavors.  To me the flavors of the Balsamic tomato topping was very spring-like.  It was so good.  Now go buy some flank steak and fresh veggies and try this bad boy out!  You're welcome world.

Blogging

I've noticed a pattern.  It has become clear to me that this blog has been working.  My original plan for why I started a blog was so that I would stay on track and hopefully build a fan base so that my fans would help keep me on track.  I have reached well over 2000 views, I know a lot of people read my blog.  I have a fan base in Russia and the United Kingdom.  My friends and family read my blog.  Friends of friends of friends read my blog.  I thank each and everyone of you!

That being said there are times when I don't write every day.  I have noticed that when I don't keep up with my blog on a daily basis, I don't keep up on my healthy and active lifestyle on a daily basis. In previous posts I wrote about some bad food choices.  Those times when I did not eat the right food were days that I did not write a new blog post.  However, the days that I do update my blog, my food choices are great.  As it appears this blog has become almost a requirement in my daily routine to make sure I stay on track.  I started this blog to help hold me accountable and it is definitely doing that.

I have to keep at it.  Whether or not I update my blog obviously effects my day to day healthy choices.  So here's another goal for myself.  I must make sure I blog as close to everyday as possible.  Grant it there are days when I just don't have the time, but I cannot let more than 2 days go without a blog update.  It's become essential in this journey.  Happy reading everyone!  Again, thank you so much for your support!

New Discoveries

I am still some ways away from my goal.  However, I am slowly starting to see differences in myself everywhere.  There are some very obvious changes that every one sees but there are some changes that honestly I haven't seen since high school.  It's all very exciting and ridiculously motivating!

My maternity clothes are officially too big!  I am so excited about this.  My youngest child is a year old but I would still wear my maternity clothes well after I was pregnant because those clothes were all I had in my wardrobe that fit.    I recently mentioned on Facebook that I needed a belt with my maternity pants but now even a belt won't keep those suckers up!  As I mentioned, I am not where I want to be but there is some major progress!  I can finally put my maternity clothes in storage.  No more wearing maternity clothes when I'm NOT pregnant! Woooo Hoooo!

I must go shopping though.  My pre-maternity clothes don't quite fit me to where I am comfortable wearing them in public.  So a quick trip to Goodwill for some "filler" clothes is in order.  I call them filler clothes because I don't plan on having these clothes be my permanent wardrobe.  I plan on losing more so my clothes will continue to be too big for me.  What a wonderful "problem" to have.

There are a lot of changes going on.  Here's a weird one for you.  My size has shrunken so much that when I sit on the floor crossed leg I can lower my head such that my forehead can touch my left big toe.  I know that that is totally weird and you're probably thinking "why would you do that?".  Well I have no reason to do it.  What's exciting is that I haven't been able to do that in years!  My stomach had gotten to big, and I had lost the flexibility to do such a thing.  Now that the circumference of my waistline has gotten smaller I am able to do weird things like touch my toe to my forehead that I don't think I've been able to do since sophomore year college!  Weird but totally exciting!

Slowly I am discovering changes in my physical appearance and things that I am able to do again.  What wonderful motivation.  I see these changes without having to look at my pictures but seriously look at these pictures!  It's seriously amazing.  It's only been five months!  I will stick with this and I'm so excited to see what the next 5 months will look like!

PLAN!

It's amazing how necessary a plan is.  It is so easy to fall off track when there is no plan in place.  Let me explain a little bit.  When it comes to eating properly especially if you have chosen to eat based on an Atkins lifestyle you have got to stick to it.  This is a lifestyle that needs every meal and every snack planned out.  You can't just look in the fridge and find something random to eat.  You can't spend all day snacking on little things.  You have got to have a plan.  Not just ideas but a written out "I'm gonna stick to this" plan!

I have been having this issue.  I didn't prepare proper foods.  My supply of legal foods became depleted.  I became hungry.  So my food choices haven't been great.  It's my own fault for not planning, for not being fully prepared.  I knew this.  You'd think that I would have been prepared...  Now my food choices haven't been a ton of junk food or sugary stuff.  My food choices were more like too much cheese, not enough veggies.  Instead of a balanced meal of protein, veggies, and healthy fats...I was eating more of snacks of deli meat, cheese, and some more cheese.  Not completely illegal foods but definitely not a proper way to eat.

So this last couple of days I spent time on Pinterest.  I found lots of fun and tasty recipes.  I figured out a meal plan and a snack plan.  I stocked up my house like nothing else.  I'm back on plan.  I wasn't far off but I wasn't quite where I needed to be.  Today was weigh day and I've lost 3 pounds!  This has been a very exciting week.  I'm back to losing weight, I have a great meal plan thanks to Pinterest, I'm feeling energized and excited.  I'm excited to keep going.  I'm feeling strong and determined.  It's all because I have a plan.