Sugar-Coated Reality Check

Tonight was grocery shopping night. I am getting better with it - it has been four weeks now, so things are easier to walk right by and not actually buy.

Shane was having a bit of a sugar craving so he wanted to scope out the bakery. Oh, I knew this could be trouble! But I tagged along, not able to resist not at least taking a few sniffs of the sugary treats.

I went straight to the cakes and cupcakes - my usual weakness. And oh no, there were single slices of cake. Yummy, sweet, tempting cake. Yellow cake with white icing. Layered cake. And then, after a closer look, it was actually lime-coconut layer cake. OMG - some of my favorite flavors. My mouth started drooling.

It was a pretty small piece of cake, by my standards - about 2 inches square, only about 1 inch tall. I was tempted. I turned over the cake to see the price tag - yes, I was going to probably buy it. But instead of a price sticker, there was a nutritional label. Damn. Reality time.

Calories: 440

Ok, not too bad. TOO bad.

Then I saw that was PER serving. And it said 2 servings!!!!!!!!!! Are you kidding me?? 2 servings in this tiny container!!! This was like a bite of cake, barely a whole piece and eating the whole thing was nearly 900 calories!! 900 calories.

That is a sugar-coated reality check.

Breaking up with food

The ending of a relationship is usually negative. Many tears. Heartache. Doubts and fears. Maybe even regret. My most recent break-up has been bittersweet; slightly sad at times, but for the most part a relief. I guess its been more like ending an abusive relationship and those are the ones you most need to get away from and never look back.

I am talking about my relationship with food. Abandoning my addiction to food, my constant pre-occupation with meals, the tendency to think about dinner before lunch has even ended. Trying to re-train my brain to think about food when hungry, not bored or emotional. To tell my stomach that a bite of cake can be enough and I can survive without a constant supply of sweet tea. I have broken up my marriage to fast food, quick eating and sugary, processed junk and found comfort with my new affair with veggies, fruit and Vi-Shape shakes.

Knowing what I am going to eat ahead of time replaces the constant need to think about food 24-7. I don't have to wake up wondering what I can 'find' to put in my mouth out of the fridge. Or when I am bored, I reach for a bowl of fruit, not a bag of processed sugar from the pantry, mainly because its not there anymore. Not only have I eliminated this issue by replacing the need, but I have gained hours of time back! I feel like I must have spent 4-6 hours a day thinking about what I was going to eat next, or looking for that next bite.

Just like most break-ups, I have moments, flashes of memory, when I miss that old, greasy, bad-for-me boyfriend, aka food. But I know it was and still is no good for me and was only bringing me down. I'm the kind of girl that knows when its time to move on....and even though it has taken me a bit too long to catch on to this bad relationship, I am finally there. And am moving on.

End of week 2 results - Goodbye 7 total pounds!!

After years of on and off dieting, I am the first to admit that it is much easier to stick with something when you are seeing results! And I am happy to report that after week #2 on the Body by Vi program, I am still VERY happy with my results! And still enjoying my ViSalus products.

I have more energy over-all, am having less hunger in general, require less food at meals to feel full and know that I am way more in tune with my body - yes, in just 2 weeks.

Week 2 results:

211 lbs - 3 lb weight loss since last weigh-in (7 lbs lost to date)

Waist: down -2.5 inches total (to date)
Stomach: down -2 inches total (to date)
Breasts: down -2.5 inches total (to date)....can tell the most here already!!
Hips: down -1 inch total (to date)
Thigh: down -1 inch total (to date)

Total inches lost to date: 9 inches!!!!!!!!! in 2 weeks. Amazing :)


End of week 2: down 7 pounds and 9 inches. Yeah, I'm liking my new body by Vi. Want one too? Message me!

Family time trumps my shake any day

When my (almost) step-kids started staying with us, we made it a point to explain to them the importance of family time and how one of our most important family moments would be dinner time. In my family growing up, meals were always eaten at the dinner table. Not in the living room. Not in the kitchen standing up. Definitely not in front of the TV or alone in our bedrooms!! And we never ate at different times. It was important for all of us to sit together, eat together and talk.

I have always known that these types of meals would be the norm at my house as well, no matter if the meal was leftover pizza or a four-course meal on the 'good' plates. The kids have really enjoyed our family dinners, and not just for my cooking! We get to talk and laugh and really interact with each other. No phones, texting, Wii or TV. It is SO nice for that 45-60 mins at least once a day. (I HIGHLY recommend it if this is not a standard in your house!)

So when Shane and I started doing the Vi-Trim shakes, one of the first questions we were asked by the kids was if we were going to still have family dinners together. With no hesitation, I said yes. I knew this may mean I may not have two shakes a day on the days they are with us, or that sometimes I may not eat exactly what I would have planned, but that was OK with me. I am not going to sacrifice our family time for "a diet". After all, we are telling ourselves this is our new lifestyle, and a lifestyle for me includes my entire family.

This weekend, I made spaghetti with homemade meat sauce over whole wheat pasta. And then Sunday night we had grilled steaks with fresh-from-the-garden sweet corn and snap beans with new potatoes. Maybe my weight loss this week will be a pound or two less, we'll see in the morning, but that's OK with me. Our side dishes of conversation and laughter are worth it.

Week 1 results

As my first 7 days on the Body by Vi Challenge came to an end, I was skeptical. I wasn't sure if I had lost any weight. And Shane wouldn't let me weigh myself early to check - he didn't want me to get frustrated or disappointed. I knew I had done well. No soda, no sweet tea. No desserts, nothing fried. No fast food, nothing greasy. Nothing sugary, buttery or covered in gravy.

My goal is to loose 10 pounds a month, over the course of 3 months (90 days), for a total of 30 pounds. So this is about 2.5 lbs a week. Which I admit is a little aggressive and I should probably aim for 1-2 pounds a week, but I am going to aim high....and try not to get disappointed.

I will admit, I have watched one too many episodes of 'Biggest Loser' and a very small part of me really wanted (and kinda, maybe thought) the scale would show a huge 10 pound weight loss ;) But I have a full-time day job, a 3-hour total daily commute and about 5 other PT jobs....so I can't exactly work out all day. In fact, the only exercise I got this past week was from (minimal) housecleaning, lots of typing, walking the dog 2 days and sex a few times. (Hey, I'm counting it!!!!)

But my diet was good:

Breakfast: a chocolate, banana Vi-Trim Shake

Lunch: Turkey sandwich OR grilled chicken with veggies OR salad with grilled chicken

Dinner: Vi-Trim Shake, usually fruit based, with a bowl of fruit

6-10 glasses of water daily
Vitamins daily
Snacks of fruit or 100 calorie snack packs (no more than 2 a day, max)

So, drumroll please............

Weight loss: -4 lbs

Inches lost:
Waist: -1 inch
Breasts: -1.5 inches
Stomach: -1 inch
Hips: -1 inch
Thigh: -.5 inches

Total of 5 inches lost overall!

Loosing 4 pounds and 5 inches and feeling better and having more energy overall is a great way to end Week #1. Bring on Week #2, baby!!

A week of change and transition

This past Monday, I started my new journey to becoming thinner, healthier and to gain a new lifestyle. But man, it sure hasn't been easy!

My main goal this week has been to learn to NOT make food the focus of my day and really my life. To not think about food all the time. To not constantly think about what I am eating tonight, tomorrow or Friday night. To not let a commercial on TV trigger a craving and an instant reaction of walking to the fridge or the pantry. To feel a slight twinge in my tummy and reach for a bottle of water and not a handful of candy or a cookie. I am getting there, but it is amazing how much I eat out of habit, boredom, by trigger or just because I see it.

I am starting to get used to not chewing as much, since I have replaced two meals a day with my Vi-Shape shakes. But I admit, I miss chewing. I enjoy the shakes for breakfast, esp since I was never a breakfast eater to begin with. Coffee was my breakfast! (I've given up coffee by the way, and yes, I do miss it on some days.) But the dinner time shake is challenging some nights. I have a bowl of fruit with my shake so I still get to chew but even then, sometimes I really just miss sitting at the dinner table with our typical three course meals with a big sweet tea. (Yes, I gave up sweet tea too!) And for that matter, I miss cooking. I am a good cook and like to cook, but now, I don't really get to do much of that. I tried to have shakes for breakfast and lunch, but I am not a fan of having shakes back-to-back. So lunch has become my "chewing" meal!

I am enjoying that when I eat my lunch, I already want smaller portions. Which is great. It takes less to fill me up and I am enjoying having a salad with grilled chicken as a meal.

So, my journey continues. The first three days were tough, but the days are getting easier now. Thanks for hanging out with me during the ride.

What are drinking today?

What is your favorite drink? Soda? Diet soda? Water? Coffee? You would be amazed at how many calories can come from beverages. Read on for an excerpt from the "Eat This, Not That" book on drinks and beverages.

This article SHOULD change what you drink and hopefully WILL change what you allow your children to drink. The article reports the average American drinks a GALLON of SODA every WEEK!! Not cool! Click HERE to read more.

We are proud to be a non-soda household! Soda is a treat at our house, not a staple. And after reading the article, you are as amazed at the calorie count of fast food milkshakes as I was, let me know and I can share with you how I make milkshakes for 200 calories and NO saturated fat! Chocolate. Coffee. Strawberry-Banana. Cherry-limeade. Yummy!!

Grocery Store Misery

Today, we went to the grocery store. And I was in misery.

I love to shop. Any shopping. I am admittedly a shop-a-holic. I even enjoy grocery shopping. Browsing down every aisle, looking at the BOGO free items, checking for new items, coming up with new dinner ideas on the spot. Ahhh, those were the days.

Today it was straight to the milk case for soy milk. Then to get laundry detergent. Then to frozen foods for fruit. Then to produce for more fruit. And finally to the deli for turkey. Not exactly a fun stroll around the grocery.

I kept finding myself asking Shane what we were going to cook for dinner, or what should we get for dinner this weekend....silly question, huh? He pointed in the buggy and said "we have it - fruit and milk". Oh yeah.

And oh the temptation....I almost begged Shane to let me buy a Reese's cup. And when he said no, I told him I was going to steal it! (I wouldn't...but it may have crossed my mind!)

So Day #2 has had it's challenges. This grocery store thing is no fun. And tonight I am hungry. It was probably seeing all that food at the damn grocery.

Day 1: Dana's Stats

I have butterflies in my stomach and shaking hands as I type this post. Am I really posting for the whole world wide web to see my weight??

I do believe the answer is yes.

One, for accountability for myself. I have to report back to each and everyone of you who reads my blog posts. So please, feel free to show some love and support....I'm going to need it.

Two, when I started with ViSalus, I wanted to talk to someone like me (not skinny) who had lost weight (a lot of weight) on the program, and not someone on paper or far away, but a REAL person I knew. I got a few guys to respond, but no women, so I decided if I was going to do this, I needed to see if it really, really worked. And now you can too. And if you like my results, and want to try it for yourself, let me know at any time and I can set you up to try the ViSalus shakes.

So here goes everything:

May 3, 2010
Day 1 of 90-day ViSalus Challenge

weight: 218 pounds

Measurements (in inches):

Waist: 46.5
Stomach: 49
Hips: 48
Thigh: 34
Chest: 41
Breasts: 51.5

(and no comments from the peanut gallery on the last one!! LOL. Hey, I had to break the tension somehow!)

My goal is to loose 30 pounds on the 90-day challenge. And then I have a long-term goal weight of 150 pounds.

Thanks for your support. Now, I may need to go pass out, cry, slap myself, vomit and/or scream for having actually done this.

No more hiding, denying, lying. I'm ready to be an 'after'.

Tonight is the night. The night I come face-to-face with my reality. I am standing in front of the mirror and really looking at what I see. At the body I have not been taking care of these past six years. At the body that is carrying too much weight to add a healthy pregnancy to. At the body that I don't even recognize anymore in photos....who is that? Where did she come from?

I don't really need to take a 'before' photo...I have years of them. I've gained 60 pounds in the last six years. I moved away, worked 10-12 hour days, ate out 3 meals a day, indulged in rich Louisiana food, never took time to work out and drank coffee by the pot. I have plenty of 'before' photos.

But tonight, I am taking the last 'before' photo. From now on, I will only be an 'after'!!

Because if the mirror and the camera didn't hurt my feelings enough, the scale and the tape measure did the rest. When your fiance can joke that you both weigh almost the same, it's not funny. Not at all. Especially when you look at the scale and know this is the highest you have EVER seen it, despite a lifetime of weight struggles. Despite everyone always saying things like "You don't look that big" or "You carry weight so well" or "It's all in your boobs - you're lucky." Seriously. Those things are not compliments and do nothing for ones self-esteem. And I can hear them all echo in my head as I look down at the digital numbers in red between my toes.

So tonight I am putting my cards on the table. No more hiding, no more denying, no more lying. You may think I am crazy, but I want to be accountable and honest and real. So this is my method, my madness. Tonight, I post my starting weight and measurements. And each week, I post an update. And keep my fingers crossed those digits go down and I don't have any reason to look for a hiding place any more.

water and lettuce rations - day 1 lunch

Well, I survived lunch on day 1. I guess.

water and lettuce...aren't prison rations better than that? Ok, yes, I am being dramatic. But when I walked into Applebee's I knew I was taking my (weight-loss) life into my own hands. They do have a great menu of entrees for under 550 calories....but they also have the most amazing other food that is swimming in fat and calories and cheese and butter.

I knew I was eating a salad, not an issue, but dammit, I managed to flip right open to the appetizer page - thinking that is where I would find salads - (NOT buried behind ALL the other food, THANKS a lot Applebee's for hatin' on dieters. Quite a tease to make us read the whole dang menu to get to the Weight Watcher friendly food!!!!!) and what do I see, my kryptonite. White queso. My favorite food.

I resisted. Ordered a salad that had better have been as low-cal as they claimed and sucked down my two glasses of water.

One day, maybe, I will actually like salad more than I like cheese and burgers and fried chicken tenders. Maybe. One day.

BIG, HUGE....You want me to swallow THAT???

As part of my 90-day challenge, I have decided to use the ViSalus Transformation Kit with the Vi-pak supplements (vitamins, minerals, lots of good things for your body). Using the transformation kit actually makes you eligible to enter a contest in case you end up being the "biggest loser" and have a dramatic transformation. (Which I would LOVE to see happen!)

So, this morning, I open up all my bottles and boxes and packets and get ready to jump in full force with my transformation.

Step 1: make my Vi-Shape shake. My go-to breakfast shake is chocolate banana. It's 10 ou. chocolate soy milk, 1/2 a banana, 5 ice cubes and 2 scoops of Vi-Shape. And this morning i also added something new - a packet of the Vi-Trim (flavorless powder to help control appetite)

Step 2: Grab a bottle of water and a packet of NEURO energy powder for mid-morning or afternoon slump (to have INSTEAD of coffee!!)

Step 3: Take 2 Vi-Slim tablets for a metabolism boost

Step 4: And here comes my WTH moment of the day - Open the Vi-pak box for the first time and stare in amazement at the size of these damn pills. There are these two packets staring at me....1 for am and 1 for pm. AM has 5 pills and PM has 2. And actually calling them pills is a misnomer, I think I want to call them 'circular objects the size of my thumb'!!!!!!!!!! Now, I am a daily medicine taker and a daily one-a-day vitamin taker, and I also take natural vitamins and supplements as needed. And I am used to these giant 'horse-pills'. But the thought of taking 7 every day set me back a few steps.

I grabbed a glass of OJ - the only way I can down HUGE, non-coated pills and threw back one. Then 2, with only slight gagging. Then 3. Ok...this one is in my throat now. I just stared at 4 and 5.

I am not sure which 3 I took and which 2 are still on the counter, but I will attempt to get those last 2 AM pills down after work, and then then 2 PM pills after my dinner shake. Man, these dang things better make me do back-flips for the intimidation they cause my poor gag reflex!!

Look, I told you I was going to be honest....


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