Where My Heart Will Take Me

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I weighed in last night down another 1.4 lbs!  Benny measured me Monday night and I lost 4.5 inches overall in August.

At the end of the Weight Watchers meeting last week I was asked to give my story in 90 seconds on the 16th, bringing pictures or other items to represent our success.  I'm bringing my Panama City Beach t-shirt and possibly our family picture wearing it from the 3 hour cruise we took to Shell Island.  They always give us a little form with 4-5 questions to guide our story.  This time I've only come up with a response to the last two.

We came across the Star Trek: Enterprise series (2001-2005) on Netflix and have been watching it.  When I heard the theme song my head was screaming, "OMG that's my story!"  Here's a video of the song.




I've re-written the lyrics a little bit to fit this journey.  What do you think?

It's been a long journey,  losin' these pounds.
It's been a long time,  but my goal weight is finally near.
I'm about to see this dream come alive at last. I will touch the sky.
Nobody's gonna hold me down. Nobody's gonna change my mind.

Cause I've got faith of the heart. I'm going where my heart will take me.
I've got faith to believe I can do almost anything.
I've got strength of the soul and no one's gonna bend or break me.
I've got faith.
I've got faith,  faith of the heart.

Today was the last rest day for Les Mills Combat.  I now have 7 solid days of workouts until I'm done with the program.  Still don't know what I'm doing next....

On today's walk I picked up some Swiss chard (first time having) and mozzarella.  I found a $1 bill up against the curb and gave it to the guy in a wheelchair that I pass by every week.

The other day Benny asked me if I preferred the bone weights or what I have.  I asked him WTH were bone weights LOL!  I'm wondering if that means I'm really getting weights for my birthday....

Speaking of my birthday, I'm hosting a clean eating challenge next week.  Please leave a comment on this post and friend me on Facebook if you're interested in joining.  Besides purchasing whichever foodstuff you're going with (menu options will be posted in the group) for the week you'll need to purchase the Shakeology Taste Sampler (regular or vegan).  **Must live in the US or Canada and not already have a Beachbody coach.**

Linking up with

75 lbs Officially Gone

Scales are definitely weird creatures!  This time my home scale shows a .6 lb gain.  I weighed in last night at Weight Watchers down 2.4 lbs, making me weigh only about 2 lbs more than Benny.  They gave me my 75 lb charm as well as the Live Life Active running man charm (same one as last year).

My March Shakeology Challenge is complete.  I tried to make a different recipe every day but ran out of ideas.  Either I didn't have the other ingredients or I wouldn't eat them.  I absolutely loved all the recipes using peanut butter.  Austin enjoyed the Reese's knock off recipe with me.  Benny didn't want to partake in any of it.  When I did the sampler pack this fall I didn't like the flavor but felt full.  This time I liked the flavor but was still so hungry.  I think drinking the almond milk instead of skim milk has adjusted my taste buds because that's what the Chocolate Shakeology flavor reminded me of this time.  I'm still interested in trying the new Strawberry flavor so I've booked it to receive a bag late May to do another challenge in June.  Would anyone care to join me?

 

I continued working out with Jillian Michaels through Friday.  Since Saturday I've been doing a beginner's belly dancing DVD.  Is there any way to loosen up my hips so my moves will be more fluid?  On the DVD there was a move called the Egyptian Walk.  I guess that I expected it to be something like what you do to Walk Like an Egyptian but it wasn't anything like that!

 

Next week begins my 21 Day Fix.  I read through the eating plan yesterday and do have some concerns about my eating.  As you well know, I don't like many fruits and veggies.  It's a struggle for me to get in 1-2 per day total.  On the 21 Day Fix for my calorie range I need 4 veggies & 3 fruits (or maybe the other way around).  How in the world is a picky eater like me going to survive these 3 weeks?  There is a food list for each container but still my selection is very limited.  Yes, I know I'm only limiting myself but I don't want to waste the food either.

 

I am still looking for stories of people on Weight Watchers who've tried the 21 Day Fix.  Please direct anyone interested to complete the form so that I can share their experience.

 

Benny's surgery Friday was cancelled.  He ignored the rules and drank milk when he got up.  Not because he was hungry but because he was thirsty.  They finally called yesterday to reschedule it for the 17th...at 7:30 AM!  Oh, that is too early when we have to be there at 6 AM! LOL  I told Benny that when we got home we'd both take a nap and I'd do my workout when I woke up.

 

All year I've been spotting pretty much all month long.  I'm thinking it's either my fibroid or perimenopause.  The gynecologist is leaning towards the fibroid and wants me to have another ultrasound (I had one back when I first saw him).  So I'm going to try to schedule it during Benny's surgery so I'll have something to do.

Linking up with

March Challenge - Tasty Tuesday #10

Someone had mentioned they didn't like meal replacement shakes like Shakeology because you had to mix other things with it.  There are some people that do enjoy drinking them without the additional flavors.  I could maybe do that once a week but not every day.  I have to have the variety to avoid boredom.

 

This week I experimented on my own a little bit, mixing the Shakeology with Weight Watchers' smoothie mixes.  Everything had a good taste except the Chocolate Covered Strawberries.  There just wasn't enough flavor in it.  I strained to finish drinking the shake that day!

 





 

1 Scoop Shakeology

1 Packet Weight Watchers' Mint Cookies & Cream Smoothie

1 Cup Water

Ice

 

This one wasn't too bad.  I just prefer this minty goodness warm (using chocolate almond milk).

 

1 Scoop Shakeology

1 Cup Strawberries (I had 9)

1 Cup Water

Ice

 

1 Scoop Shakeology

1 Packet Weight Watchers Greek Yogurt & Honey Smoothie

1 Cup Water

Ice

I'd never tried this smoothie mix before so I wasn't sure how it'd taste.  With this one I liked how I felt and tasted the honey flavor the whole time.

 

1 Scoop Shakeology

1 Cup Milk

1 tsp Cinnamon

1 tsp Vanilla

Ice

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1 Scoop Shakeology

2 Pineapple Rings (I used 3)

1 Cup Water

Ice

 

I was surprised to find that this tasted pretty good.  I'd never thought of mixing pineapple with chocolate.

 

1 Scoop Shakeology

1/2 Cup Oatmeal

1-1/2 tsp Cinnamon

1 Cup Milk

Ice

 

This was super thick and hard to drink.  It was also too much cinnamon for my liking.  I think it would be better to serve this as a pudding.

 

1 Scoop Shakeology

2 Tbsp PB2

1 Cup Water

Ice

 

I think this would be my favorite of the week.  Definitely easier mixing with PB2 than with the natural peanut butter.  It was almost like drinking Reese's!

 



When I finished every shake (except the Oatmeal Cookies) I filled my cup with water.  That way I got the remnants of the shake as well as getting in some of my water for the day.  I usually have the shake in a 24 oz Tervis tumbler.

Which flavor sounds the most interesting to you?

March Challenge - Tasty Tuesday #9

This month I decided to try Shakeology again.  I've been told that it doesn't taste well with yogurt so that could've been my problem when I tried the sampler this fall.  Today's Day 4 and so far so good!  I haven't experienced the funky aftertaste at all; it actually sort of tastes more like chocolate almond milk.  I haven't yet experienced the fullness I had last time either.

There are so many recipes that you can make with Shakeology but I don't like or have the ingredients (or don't even know where to find them really).  So far I've tried a different recipe every day.  Using the frozen fruit I'd chop it in my mini chopper and add the dry ingredients.  The mini chopper doesn't do well with liquids so I only add enough to help break everything down.  I then empty the chopper into the cup and use my milkshake maker to blend everything together.  Yes, I know I'm weird using two appliances instead of a blender but it's much easier to clean these two things than it is to mess with the blender every day.

This is the only one I took a picture of the cup.  They all look the same so I didn't bother taking additional pictures.

Ingredients

1 Scoop Shakeology

1 Tbsp Natural Peanut Butter

1/2 Cup Strawberries (ended up using 6)

1 Cup Water

Ice

This one I just did in the milkshake maker not the blender.  The peanut butter didn't mix well and just settled at the bottom of my cup.  I was able to drink it up after the ice melted.

Ingredients

1 Scoop Shakeology

1 Tbsp Natural Peanut Butter (or your favorite nut butter)

1/2 Tsp Almond Extract

1 Cup Almond Milk

Ice

Ingredients

1 Scoop Shakeology

1 Tsp Cinnamon

1/2 Tsp Nutmeg

1 Cup Almond Milk (or your favorite milk)

Ice

Ingredients

1 Scoop Shakeology

1 Tsp Vanilla Extract

1 Cup Water

Ice

The last two I didn't want to mess with chopping anything because I don't have the time for it in the mornings before work.  Perhaps I'll try prepping my shakes in the evening and just adding the liquid in the mornings.  You can also use a shaker cup to mix some of these but I've never had any luck getting all the powder to mix when I don't use an appliance so I'm not trying Shakeology that way.

What are your favorite Chocolate (or Vegan Chocolate) Shakeology recipes?

 Do you want to join me on this challenge or have one of your own?  Click the banner to order your 30 day supply.

Body Gospel Week 1

I weighed in down 4.2 lbs this week.  Now if only I can get this loss more often I'd reach goal in no time!

I received my Slim in 6 shirt this week.  This time it specifically said it was a Women's XL.  However these are made it's definitely a tighter fit than a standard XL.  I think I'll have to wait a little bit before I can wear it in public.

I'd also ordered the new Shakeology sampler pack and received that this week.  It's two chocolate packets, one vanilla, and one greenberry.  I tried the greenberry but wasn't too thrilled with the flavor; it just left my mouth feeling a little dry.  Austin tried the chocolate and said it tasted different from other shakes but wasn't sure if it was a good or bad difference.  When I took a sip I thought it tasted like sugar free cocoa powder.  He didn't drink it all so I had him put it in the freezer.  I tried it the next morning and it was much better frozen.

61 Hoosiers became citizens on Thursday.  There was standing room only for the family and friends to watch it all unfold.  I was kind of squished in the front left corner for the whole ceremony.  The first hour or so was checking everyone in.  There was a 10 minute break before the ceremony, which lasted about 40 minutes.

Click here to see the pictures full size.

I'm liking Body Gospel so far.  It's not the same thing every day.  The schedule has you mixing up which workout you're doing each day.  I did Body Revival, Core Revelation, and Stretch in the Spirit this week.  Core (~20 minutes) and Stretch (~10 minutes) on their own aren't long enough for me so I put them together to keep myself going at least 30 minutes.  With the Shakeology sampler I ordered the bands too since I couldn't figure out how to effectively do a modified version with the weights.

I've received several inquiries from people responding to my request for guest posters.  Some are spot on the subject matter and others are nowhere in this realm.  Those of you that have had guest posters on your blogs, how do you sort through the madness?