Ok, So the Cookies are Catching Up to Me...

Scale was up a bit this week, but I think I am also retaining water.  My scale also shows water levels (even though I don't post those on my weight tracker) and yesterday it was 54% (I am usually 52% water).  It is creepy to think that we are made up of so much water - LOL!  Anyhow, I'm not going to panic about being up a bit - the holidays are almost over.  We're hosting New Year's at our house, so I can control the food offerings.  After attending several holiday events where I had to scrounge from the provided food, I realize that being in control of your meals is half the battle of the holidays.  I'm in the process of trying to memoralize my New Year's Resolutions.  I've got an idea of what I am going to 'resolve' but haven't put pen to paper yet.  I will post my official resolutions on January 1, 2010. 

Wishing Everyone a Happy and Healthy New Year!!

Holding Steady and New Books!

Boy, cookies might be my biggest food challenge ever.  My food journal this past week is comical - mostly healthy but with a few entries of "6 Cookies" here an there - LOL!  Moderation is going well, with the exception of Christmas Day itself - I think I ate mostly cookies on that day - but my body didn't let it slide by - I went to bed with both a stomach ache and a headache.  Yesterday was a 'detox' day for me, full of tons of fruits and veggies and water.

I did get a few inspirational healthy items for Christmas.  If you have followed this blog at all, you know that I love to read health and nutrition books, and that I am a fan of Dr. Joel Furhman.  So I was very happy to unwrap the following books:

This 2 book set is somewhat of a continuation of his best-selling book, Eat To Live (a MUST read for anyone interested in good health).  To Dr. Fuhrman, getting skinny is really a side-effect of getting healthy.  I probably should have named my blog The Gettin' Healthy Scrapper!  I also received this companion guide, which is a handy reference to the level of nutrient desity of various foods:

The last Dr. Furhman book I received may seem radical, and NO I don't intend to try any kind of fast, but I do find the medical theories fascinating:

I've never been one to believe in the idea that we all need to eat breakfast right when we wake up, and then eat every few hours all day long.  Anytime I have followed that philosophy, I haven't been able to lose weight.  I have learned that it is OK for my stomach to be empty, and I actually have been able to manage my weight better by not eating breakfast, and by not eating constantly all day, so this book title intrigued me. 

Ok, the last book I received is not a Dr. Furhman book, but it is a famous book on nutrition analyzing the findings of the most comprehensive study of nutrition ever conducted:

So, it looks like I will be super busy reading the first few months of the year!  If you are interested in getting healthy and losing weight, I encourage you to read as much as you can about health, nutrition and fitness - and to do so with a critical eye.  There is a lot of mis-information out there, and a lot of conflicting information, so you need to read several books and follow what makes the most sense to you.  I hope everyone had a a happy and blessed Christmas!!

Final Weigh-In Before the Holidays!

Ok, so I've been eating way too many Christmas cookies, but have otherwise been keeping my eating in check.  So what is your plan for actual holiday festivities??  We are headed to my in-laws for Christmas Eve, so I am going to be sure to bring a big veggie tray so I know there will be someting I can snack on without worry. 

For Christmas morning, I plan to make my special French Toast which my boys love.  I will have some too, but also am going to have a large fruit tray out to munch on so I don't go overboard with the French Toast.

Moderation is the key.  Don't deprive yourself - just exercise portion control and don't just allow yourself to 'graze'.  I'm also going to squeeze in a brisk walk or jog on both Christmas Eve and Christmas Day just to keep my metabolism going. 

Merry Chrismas to all!

Weighing In Tomorrow...

...and it's not looking good.  This past weekend started the holiday baking and a cookie here, then a cookie there, then....well...you get the drift.  No exercise either b/c I have lingering congestion from this sinus infection.  I should be able to get some movement in tomorrow night, but for now I'm nervous as to what the scale may read in the AM. 

Checking-In and Recipe Sharing!

Just watched The Biggest Loser Finale - so glad Danny won - I really liked him.  That show always motivates me - I was hungry tonight but opted for a banana and a glass of water instead of a granola bar and a diet soda - same calories, but guess which one is better for you?!  Anyhow, I'm hanging in there with my weight.  I'm sporadically exercising, still not back into my groove yet, but hopefully I will be there soon.  I am not going to beat myself up over it - just going to try a few different approaches and see what sticks through the winter.  I'm temporarily sidetracked with a sinus  infection - I am so not a fan of being ill.  Ugh.  Hope everyone else is doing great.  I thought I would start to add a quick recipe idea to this blog every now and then.  Here is a super fast one from my sister, Kristen.  I named it : )

"Slow Cooker Chicken Salsa-lighto"
1 jar of your favorite salsa (I love peach mango)
3-4 chicken breasts, rinsed (ok if frozen)
1 can of black beans (rinsed and drained)
Wheat tortillas

Add a few spoons of salsa to bottom of slow cooker and arrange chicken breasts on top as evenly as possible.  Cover chicken with remainder of salsa.  Spread black beans on top (do not mix in).  Slow cook all day (6-8 hrs on low).  Once cooked, take two forks and shred chicken breasts.  Gently mix everything together.  Serve on warmed tortillas. 

This is fantastic tasting, healthy, and sooooo easy to make!!  Enjoy!

New Scale, New Motivation!

Ok, so I survived Thanksgiving without too much damage.  I didn't deprive myself, just exercised portion control and ate as many veggies as possible.  I also did a brisk walk/jog with my sister on Thanksgiving day to get my metabolism going before dinner.  I hope everyone else did well and had a blessed Thanksgiving.

I decided it was finally time to replace my 15+ year old bathroom scale.  I had heard great things about the Tanita scales because they also measure your body fat by sending a mild, harmles charge through your body (way more accurate than skin calipers, but of course not as good as a DEXA or hydrostatic scan).

So I bought a Tanita scale at Bed Bath and Beyond.  This is the one I ended up with Model BF-679W.  It measures weight, body fat and water.

I originally bought a more expensive model with more features (it also measured bone density and calculated your metabolic age), but it was complicated to use and slid around on my tile floor.  So I exchanged it for this one that was on clearance for $34! 

I was a bit nervous that I would weigh like 5 pounds more on the new scale, but was happy to see that my old scale was no more than a pound off.   I did all the readings for both myself and DH or the original more complicated scale, and we both got a big chuckle that my metabolic age was 14 and his was 31. So now I keep telling him this marriage is not legal!  I wouldn't put too much emphasis on that age thing though as far as accuracy goes - I totally don't feel 14!  LOL!

So this AM on my new scale, I weighed 119.4 and had 22.5% body fat and 53.5% water.  All within a healthy range for me.  I'm hopeful the fat percentage calculation keeps me on track to exercise.  My Nike+ Mini is getting mad that I'm not running more often (check her out by scrolling down and looking for her on the right hand column of this blog).