Hello Out There!

Hello to anyone that may still be checking in.  I know, I know, I've been a slacker.  It's hard to post about weight loss--when you aren't really trying to lose weight.  However, I've been trying pretty hard to maintain and not gain--so I'm going to blog a little about that!

So, I'm not really battling the nausea too much anymore.  I still have bad days once in a while but for the most part, I'm eating somewhat normally again.  Of course, there are cravings that consume much of what I want, but thankfully those have been pretty healthy lately.  For example, today for breakfast I had 1 packet of instant oatmeal, 1 piece of toast (with spray butter), and 1 piece of jerky (that's a pregnancy craving that I cannot get rid of).  Total calories for breakfast was only 285. 

I got in a good workout this morning as well and when I was done, I had another piece of jerky and some craisins.  My lunch was brown rice, veggies, and some Teriyaki chicken I make for dinner last night.  I don't know the calories on that, but it shouldn't be too bad.

I had some more craisins in the afternoon and a 100-calorie pack.  Then I just ate the dinner I made for the family.  Taco ring with grapes and black beans.  No, I really haven't been policing my calories too much.  But most days, I feel that I've been eating pretty well. 

I will probably eat some strawberries and light cool whip tonight because that's another thing I've been wanting a LOT lately. 

I was thinking about how much I've changed with this preganancy as compared to some of my others.  That breakfast I mentioned is the same thing I eat every morning but when I was pregnant with my 3rd (Kenadie) I used to eat an entire Totinos Pizza for breakfast EVERY SINGLE DAY!!  It's not really surprising that I got up to 278 lbs eating like that.  This really is a life style change!

So, I'm feeling pretty good about my efforst so far.  I'm about halfway through this pregnancy and I'm certainly not perfect but hopefully I won't gain too much more weight. 

My ultrasound is next week, so I'll post more then.  Please let me know if I can help you in some way.  I still feel very strongly about this and guarantee you that I will lose even more weight once I have this baby.  Hope you're all doing well!

Mandy's Progress

So- my update is:  I did lose the 12 pounds (my 6 week challenge) and jogged 20 minutes instead of 2

Now I’m on my second 6 week challenge (this time the goal is 6 pounds and jog 30 minutes straight)..

So far- have lost a pound (so total loss now is 13 pounds) and I already hit 30 minutes a few days ago (1.9 miles)…  (I’m signing up for a 5K at the end of September).. my really cool news is that I just measured.

In the last 8 weeks I’ve lost 11.75 inches.  (2 inches in my waist/ 3.5 inches from EACH thigh, .25” in my neck/ 2.5 inches in my hips)  So- that was good times!

Yeah for you Mandy!!!!  You are doing it!  Slowly, but surely is the most permanent way to go!  I'm so happy that you're finding the strength within that you've always had!  Keep us posted--like I said, I need to live vicariously through you!  Thanks so much for sharing!!!!!!!

Is there anybody out there???

Hello to all!  So sorry that you haven't heard from me lately.  Hopefully you understand, I haven't been functioning at 100%--not really even 50%.  So, I'm 12 weeks along now and keep counting the days until the nausea goes away!  Still having a hard time with food.  It's hard to eat healthy when only very specific things sound good--specifically meat--I've been craving lots of meat.   Right now, I could really go for some roast--weird, I know!

The good thing is that my workouts have still been going strong.  My belly's starting to make it a little harder to do as much jumping but I haven't had to modify too much yet.  So, that should be a constant if I can do it while I'm feeling this crappy--I should be able to do it through the entire pregnancy.

So, since I'm no help in the weight loss area, I was really hoping some of you might have some stories or experiences to share.  Just because my weight loss has temporarily been halted, you should still be going--right?????  Please let me know what's going on with you--I need to hear some good stuff or anything at all, since I'm very jealous that I can't really work on that right now.  Let me live vicariously through you all...

Shift in Focus

So, first of all--to anyone that reads this regularly--I'm so sorry I've been a slacker lately.  Please let me explain why...

So, I'm pregnant with my 5th baby!  Yeah!  We're very happy and YES, we were trying (even if you think we're crazy for doing so!).  This has been the reason my posts have fallen off the face of the earth!  Food has been so hard for me to stomach and my energy has been non-existent.

So, I'm going to have to shift my focus now!  Every pregnancy, I've always gained a lot of weight and I've certainly NEVER worked out during a pregnancy--so these are my new focuses.  Anyone still trying to lose weight--I still want to hear from you but my goal now is going to be to try and maintain a healthy lifestyle throughout this pregnancy.  It will definitely be a challenge but I'm ready to give it a go.

So far, so good.  I'm 8 weeks along now and workouts have been continuing on and I've still been able to do Insanity pretty well.  My running with Jodi has stopped for now but maybe after the nausea goes away, I can start that up again.  So, I'm still working out 5 days a week--even though I don't feel up to it in the mornings, I sure feel a WHOLE lot better after I'm done.  The great thing is that I'm the only one with a key to the building and I kind of run the whole thing--so other people are relying on me to get my keister there, which helps me stay on task!

As far as food goes, I was doing great until the puking and nausea kicked in.  Right now, I'm just trying to eat whatever sounds good--mostly toast and life cereal (and pickles!)--nothing too crazy!  I'm hoping to just adjust my calorie count to a maintenance number and stick to it once I feel a little better.  This is my life now--so keep me motivated people!

I appreciate your patience and support--keep me motivated, please!  I need your help!

Thanks Mandy!!!

So, my cousin posted this comment:

so..,. I am frustrated... I was down last week and in the last few days have gained about 2.5 pounds... I have been staying in my calories (to LOSE 3 pounds per week) and have really stepped up my exercise so what is UP??????? grrrrr...


Dear Miranda,


My first question is how frequently are you weighing yourself?  If you say you've gained 2.5 lbs in the last few days--that tells me that you are stepping on the scale too often!!!!  Do you not listen to a word I say??? :)  You know I'm playing with you--but you should only weigh yourself once a week.  Your body will fluctuate DAILY--water weight, muscle mass, etc.  And yes, there will be SOME weeks where you will not see any weight loss and that has to do with your body adjusting to your new lifestyle.  It will happen for you, I promise!!!!


This process is not an overnight miracle--because it's a lifestyle change--you will see results but often not every single day.  This has to be a mental change---it doesn't matter what the scale says, this is your life now and the scale will reflect that---just be patient!!!  


I understand how hard it is to want to see changes immediately but you did not put on the weight overnight and the longer it takes you to lose the weight, the more likely you are to keep it off!  You'll get there and I'm here for you whenever you need it.  Thanks for sharing your frustration and giving me something to write about!  Love you!

A Little Better

So, I actually felt better today and was able to have a somewhat normal eating day.  So, since no one else gave me anything to post--I'll post what I ate.

Breakfast--protein shake (180 cal)
Snack--peach (61 cal)
lunch--whole wheat tortilla with chicken/taco seasoning and 1/2 c. refried beans (410 cal)
snack--peach and cantaloupe (111 cal)
Dinner--Lettuce wraps (I'll add that recipe later--516 cal--Livestrong.com can calculate your calories based on your recipes, have you discovered that yet???  It's pretty awesome!)

Total:  1278

Of course, I still worked out this  morning and ran tonight--but I don't usually factor that into my caloric intake.  I'm just happy that I felt good enough to eat some normal food for the first time in a week or so.  Hopefully tomorrow will be a good day too!  I'd still love to hear from someone--anyone!!!

HeLp!!!

Still sick!  My allergies have caused me to get a sinus infection--which is totally killing me!  So, I really don't want to blog about my eating right now because it's not helpful for real life.  I'm still working out regularly but I'm just eating cereal for almost every meal--and that's not helpful to anyone because that's not what people eat when they feel normal.  So--help me out here people!!

Send me some stories--successes, frustrations, recipes, ANYTHING that people might want to hear!!!  I need you to be my words until I'm feeling more normal--pretty, pretty, please?????????