Weight Loss Help...with The Chunky Monkeys!
Lounge By TexasSugar Updated 28 Oct 2011 , 1:50pm by TexasSugar
Hello Everyone!
I'm back! I never seem to have time to write stuff - I check in, but I'm always waiting to write when I have more time. So far that extra time isn't showing up!
I've got some fresh determination and I'm ready to kick butt! I'm 21 pounds away from my goal weight of 169. I want to make a plan of how I can get there. I know I need to step up my exercise. As soon as I reach my 1000 mile goal I'm changing my routine. I'm not sure how many miles I have left, I know it's less than 100. So I should be able to get there within the next two weeks. I need to get back to working with weights, I can do that now. But I know I really need to step it up with some other stuff. Any suggestions? It's already pretty hot here, I won't be doing much outside! I go for my bike rides at around 6:00am. We have an above ground pool, so I can swim. If I can keep the kids out of the pool! I need to measure the length so I have an idea of how far I'm swimming. Maybe I'll start that today, I can count that as part of my miles. I'm also thinking about getting either the Biggest Loser or wii Fit Plus. But I need to know if it's worth the money. So, I'm ready for a fresh start. I'm not going to beat myself up over the wasted time. I can see my goal and I KNOW that I can reach it!
Oh yeah, I also need some menu ideas. Or a good cookbook. I face alot of food challenges at my house! Thank goodness, my hubby isn't picky about me cooking. But he doesn't like veggies, he'll eat a salad but that's about it! Our oldest son and his wife are still living with us, their house should be finished within a month. The three of us are vegetarians. But not all veggie dishes are low cal! Then there's the kiddos - William 12, Callie 10, Jack 8, Olivia 6 and Sam and Joe are almost 5. I want to feed all of us healthy, low cal food. But it can be so expensive! And challenging to come up with stuff everyone will eat. Unless I just do a buffet! I don't mind making a couple of things so everyone can enjoy their dinner. But I seem to keep feeding them the same stuff. And it's not all healthy stuff.
So how is everyone else doing? I've got to go work on some laundry, I'll try to get back later this morning. I hope that everyone has a great day!
Melissa
Melissa, what are some of the dishes you make now that they all seem to like? Maybe we can figure out ways to help cut calories from them rather than you having to find completely new things to eat.
One of the questions I ask guys when I am getting to now them is if they are a picky eater and if so what they don't like. I wouldn't not date a guy because he wouldn't eat something BUT I do love to cook, and I use alot of mushrooms which tends to be one of the first things a picky eater won't eat. 
I few won't eat items can be worked around, but if you have a long list, it would probably end up being a bit of an issue. I also grew up in a house where you ate at least one spoonful of everything that was on the table, which to me teaches kids to try new things. No we didn't always love it, but we learned it didn't hurt to eat it. And in the long run as an adult I eat things now I didn't care for as a child.
Good Wednesday morning everyone.
Tracy - Congrats on the pound loss!!! Way to go.....
Melissa - WOW sounds like you are all hyped up now to get some weight off. Just keep that zest and you'll do just great.
I've had a pretty good week. Back on track with everything and did lose 1.2 lbs. Sure wish I hadn't taken that food vacation for that week. But oh well, it is what it is and now I just go forward. Still haven't tried any new recipes. Always buy the ingredients but then don't have time to get in the kitchen and prepare it. One of these days, when things slow down around here. Ok guys, hope the rest of your week is wonderful. Take care and continue to think positive.......
Hey Tracy,
Thanks for getting back to me so soon. Food is a huge issue at our house! There are so many different likes and dislikes. The kids are pretty good about trying new things. I try to offer some veggies and/or fruit all the time. We like all the basic stuff.Pizza, sometimes we make our own. Chicken - breasts or nuggets. I have a big grill, like a George Foreman, I like to use that with the breasts. I want to start using our outside grill more often. I'm trying to get away from using the oven, heats up the house and uses alot of energy. Salads, grilled cheese, pasta, eggs. But even a pot of spaghetti turns into several pots! Some don't like meat in their sauce, no one, except the vegetarians, like veggies in theirs! Plus my hubby's schedule can mess things up - on Monday he has small group Bible study and then he goes to the gym, so he's only home for about 30 45 minutes and doesn't like to eat heavy. Tuesday is gym night, so a light meal for him. Wednesday is church so another short dinner time. Thursday is gym night again. Friday is another small group Bible study, they have snacks there so he eats very light. Or if the group is canceled and I know about it in time we do pizza and wings. Then Saturday is softball night, another light meal. Sunday we usually grill out, burgers. Things like tacos work pretty well - we can have taco salads or fix the tacos however we want them. I think I just need to make a weekly menu. Writing all this out has helped. I don't mind kind of catering to everyone's tastes, I think I just need a plan. I want to get more organized with my weight loss goals, so maybe I can work on a menu for the family.
Thanks for listening! And any imput anyone has.
Off to work on the laundry and quiz the kids about their food preferences!
Melissa
Wow! Okay, first of all, with that schedule I think I'd be telling everyone they were on their own!! Hehe.
I've got a few websites I saved when I was trying to figure out a budget and meal planning. Give me a little bit, actually have to do some work right now, and I will link them for you.
I think that one thing that could help you since you do have different eaters is the freeze ahead thing. That way when everything is really busy you can just pull and go. Plus it means you can spend one hot day in the kitchen making those different spagettie sauces then just heating them up as needed.
I have to go do payroll, but let me think on some ideas for you. Maybe it will help me get to be a better meal planner too.
http://simplemom.net/back-to-the-basics-menu-planning/
http://simplemom.net/how-to-menu-plan/
http://faithfulprovisions.com/2009/02/06/meal-planning-series-part-i/
http://faithfulprovisions.com/2009/02/13/meal-planning-series-part-2/
A pizza night would be good with picky eaters. You can either do individial small pizzas or a half & half pizza.
The sauce (recycled spaghettie sauce) and meat can be done ahead of time. I also think you can make the dough ahead of time and freeze it. That just leaves chopping some veggies up the day before or the day of. Grate cheese or do preshredded. Meat eaters can have that, veggie eaters can skip it, and little pizza the get to make would probably excite the kiddos. You can really great creative with the sauces (pesto or a little ranch, instead of tomatoe sauce), a big variety veggies and even meat toppings.
Grilling the chicken is a good healthy option. You can always grill extra, slice and freeze and pull that out for wraps (Chicken Ceasar, Chicken/Bacon and Ranch), to top salads with, put on pizzas or to toss into pasta. Veggie eaters can skip the chicken that night and use cheese or a bean for their protiens. You can also use grilled chicken to chicken salad, using greek yogurt as the dressing, chopped green onion and some grapes.
You can also grill some veggies like corn, yellow squash, and zuchinni. You can also turn the left overs into a grilled salad by tossing them with a little bit of a vinagrete dressing.
One thing me and my mom have learned is that healthy cooking can actually be quicker. Picking the right veggies can be filling with out having to eat a ton of food either. I actually eat less eating more veggies than I do when i have bad for me foods.
http://simplemom.net/back-to-the-basics-batch-cooking/
Adding this link since it is about cooking ahead.
Maybe we could start our own Chunky Monkey Meal Planning Day so we can help encourage each other to do it and eat healthier?
Thanks!!
I think that the key for me is going to be planning. I was thinking the same thing about pizza. I guess any meals that I can present 'bar style' would work for everyone. Potato, pizza, pasta, taco, burgs. That kind of stuff will work great. I want to sit down tonight, check out those links and see if I can come up with a couple of weeks worth of ideas. I always have salad stuff in the house. And I would think that a light pasta dish would be good even on a gym night. I found a new recipe that I'm going to try for tomorrow night - it's from Kraft, creamy shrimp alfredo linguine. I'll use chicken instead of shrimp, use low fat cream cheese, have cooked mushrooms and either broccoli or spinach to add in. I think everyone will enjoy that. I'll let you know how it goes. I definetly want to try grilling some veggies outside. We have a charcoal grill so I'm not sure how much charcoal to use or when to put veggies on. But I'll give it a try. I love oven roasted veggies, so I'm anxious to try them on the grill. Fish is something that we all love, it just gets a little expensive. But every once in a while it would be great, especially on the grill. Oh, I guess it's going to get really expensive now because of the oil spill! I better get some fish tomorrow!
I would love to try menu planning with everyone. I think we could post our planned menus and get some ideas from each other. That sounds like alot of fun! Let me know what you come up with.
Now it's time to fix some dinner and finish cleaning up the house! Plus I have to make sure the kids are ready for church! Then when the house is nice and quiet, I'm going to start my menu planning, I'm SO excited!!
Let me know what
Do we want to keep it in this thread or start a new thread for meal planning. What day do we want to post our weekly menu?
I totally agree that just having a plan, and sticking to it would be a big help. I'll go to the store with grand plans for food then realise several days later I haven't even touched them.
I bought a new car this last weekend, and the car payment is a little more than I planned. It isn't more than I can afford, but I just know I need to really cut back on my spending. Which means I need to quite buying and throwing out food that goes bad before I do anything with it. So a meal plan would be a big help to me, plus it would get me back on the right track.
Whatever you think would be best is fine with me. I'm game to try anything!
I'm glad that I'm not the only one that does that with food! I do the exact same thing - find a recipe, buy the stuff to make it, lose the recipe and then I can't figure out why I have artichoke hearts in the pantry! Not to mention the produce that I've thrown away.
So I'm going to start very simple. I think the key for me is going to be writing down the menu, and the recipes! and posting it on the fridge. The kids can have a pb and j or hotdog if they don't like what I'm fixing. Or a bowl of cereal. I thought of a couple of other ideas - quesidillas or kabobs. Both are quick, easy, adaptable and fun. I get an email from Kraft and that's where I saw the kabobs, there were alot of recipes. I'm really excited about that. I think everyone will like those.
What kind of car did you get? We don't have any car payments right now. And I'm praying that our van holds on for a LOOONNGGGG time!!
Let me know what you think would be best with the menu planning. I'm going to go work on mine for a while. And I need to check the pantry and see what we have.
Melissa
Okay, lets keep it in this post for now. If we can get others to join in, or after we get a hang of it, we can move it to its own thread. As far as when to post it lets say Sunday/Monday. I'm not really around online Sundays, but I can always work mine up over the weekend and do my shopping and be ready to post it Monday Mornings. Plus that will give us some time this weekend to figure out what we are doing.
I need to go through the freezer and see what all I have in there. I could probably eat atleast a week if not more (meat wise) off what is in there. Plus I need to go through my veggies that I last bought to see what is still usable.
I ended up getting a 2010 Acadia. It is bigger than I need, since it will actually hold 7 passengers, but I'm looking to have it for a while and hopefully will have a family to put in it one day. Of course I was shopping for cars that had a flat cargo space as well. And since my brother suggested an V6 over a V4, it was the one that fit the bill.
My car before, a 1995 Blazer was pretty much on it's last legs and I either needed to put quite a bit of money in it to fix it or give in and get something new. I decided it was time for something new.
http://www.facebook.com/Nabisco100Cal?ref=ts&v=app_121542301195089
If you like the Nabisco 100 calorie snack packs and are on facebook you can get a coupon.
Hey!
The menu idea sounds great, Tracy. Posting Sunday or Monday is fine. I've got to go through my freezer and pantry. Like we were talking about before - I buy stuff for a recipe and then never make it. So sometimes I have lots of canned goods that I don't know what to do with! Our dinner tonight was quite a success. It probably wasn't a very low cal dish, but it was very satisfying. I used low fat cream cheese, veggie broth, parmesean and some seasoning in the sauce. Then fixed pasta ( not whole wheat, which is my favorite) mushrooms, broccoli, spinach and chicken. I kept everything separate so everyone could fix it the way they wanted it. So it could be as healthy and low cal as you wanted. And it was SO yummy! Definetly a keeper.
Tomorrow is my official weigh in. I'm a little nervous. But I know that next week will be better. I'm only about 22 pounds away from my goal. If I can lose 2 pounds a week I can reach my goal in eleven weeks!! That's exciting! I've made a chart so I can have a visual goal and see how close I come every week. I know that asking for two pounds a week might be asking a little much, but I think it's going to really help me stay on track.
Exercise is going to be tough. I've got to get back to really pushing myself. It's so hard in the summer.
Ok, I am exhausted! I think I'm going to go crash on the couch! Good night everyone!
Melissa
I forgot! Tracy, your car looks adorable!! I bet you love it. It's very cute and sporty. And it looks like there's alot of room! Congrats!! 
Mellisa, dinner sounded good last night! I ended up with chicken cooked in a very little amount of oil with garlic powder and deal on it, sauted cabbage and corn.
That part I did well on, it was after when I got snacky that I didn't do so well, but getting back to the food journal helps since I hate to right it all down. I know after a few days of that it will curb me of the mindless snacking.
I spent a couple hours outside after work last night. It felt good to finally get a chance to do that. I spent an hour repoting some things, and then another hour watering everything. When I water I wonder why in the world I want so many plants, because it does take me about 45-60 min watering.
By the time I got done outside I couldn't talk myself to spend much time in the kitchen other than cooking a quick dinner. So tonight my plan is to clean up the kitchen, clean out the fridge, and make a list of what is in the freezer. Thinking a trip to the grocery store tomorrow afternoon maybe, just to get a few basics like fresh milk, yogurt and bread. Then that leaves me tomorrow evening and Sunday to prep for the week.
We can do this!! I'm actually looking forward to saving money but bringing my lunch to work again, instead of all the eating out I have done. That really starts to add up really quick!
This is just a thread for those that are trying to lose weight to have a place to come for support. We are here to praise and congratulate and we are here to give a helping hand and offer suggestions and we are here to lift each other up after a bad day.
Anyone can join us, so if you want to lose weight, jump right in to the mix.
Hi there. Hoping it is not to late to join the party. I have had struggles with my weight pretty much all of my adult life. Had a period of time where I could really, REALLY, focus on my eating, activity level, etc. Then I met my DH, started grad school, internships and planned a wedding all on top of a FT job and suddenly there was no more "me time." At least that is what I said during my 4 years in school, but I graduated last summer and haven't been able to get back to my older healthier habits. Picking up a new cake decorating hobby probably didn't help either. So I have accumulated about 65 extra pounds and have a lower endurance for my favorite endurance. We were recently offered biometric health screenings at work (BMI, blood pressure, blood sugar, body fat percentage, cholesterol, and cardiac risk score). My results left a lot to be desired and were perhaps the kick in the pants I was needing.
Hope that hanging out here can help me get back on track.
Thanks,
Julie
Julie, it is never too late to join in. Welcome!
Now I suggest you find some me time. We all need it, not only for our pyshical health but also for our mental health!
Melissa and I are both working up a meal plan for next week to help us get on track with our eating again. Plus to save money from throwing out food we forget to use. Feel free to join in with us.
Let us know how you are doing, not just when you are having good days but also when those bad days sneak up on ya. And don't forget this is a journey, there will be days where everything goes smoothly and there will be days that throw us for a loop. Just remember that even when you get off track that you shouldn't give up or quit. You just have to find our way back. All of us here have done that a time or two.
I forgot! Tracy, your car looks adorable!! I bet you love it. It's very cute and sporty. And it looks like there's alot of room! Congrats!!
Thank you! I'm enjoying it so far, but still getting use to having a new car. My Blazer was red, so atleast in the parking lot I look for the same color, just for bigger and prettier.
Hey ya Tracy. Everything's going really well. I actually lost a little more weight since my post on Wednesday. Yeah, even though I said I wasn't going to weigh everyday, I still do it. 
I'm definitely back on track and trying the best I can to catch up to ya. lol Tried a new chicken recipe yesterday but didn't post it because it wasn't all that good so I'm gonna keep on trying more new recipes and I'm feeling good that I'm gonna come up with some good ones. Will share as I do. Congrats on your new ride. AWESOME!!!!! I can just smell that new car smell. AHH, what a great smell. lol I'm really happy for ya!! OK, off to the treadmill. Hope everyone has a great evening and a wonderful week-end...
Glad to hear things are going well! I'm getting back on track. Mom called today and she is down to 147. something. If I don't start losing she is going to catch up with me!
She's still doing the same diet. I think she is aiming for 135. She was like me stuck there for a while.
This morning I was 141.2 which is down from what I was at the beginning of the week, but still up from where I was.
Tracy, you'll be back to where you were in no time. I am really anxious to get into the 140's. That just sounds so much better than the 150's 
I'm gonna be facing a rough time in a couple of weeks. Going to visit my daughter for a week and I know it's gonna be difficult to stay on a plan. I've really got to gather all my will power because I know we will be eating out alot. I can always go for salads I guess, but they honestly don't really fill me up unless I load it down with things that I shouldn't. I need to go online and try to figure out the lower calorie meals in all the area restaurants. I can do it, I know I can. Just gonna take some will power and I'll get through it. I've got "Chunky Monkey" power.....
Thanks for the invite Texas...here I am. I don't own any scales so I'm going to my sister's later to weigh in. I want to get a number so that I can set a goal. So far my goal is to get back into all of my clothes which are a size 2. I'm probably about a 10 right now. 
Believe me for ME this is fat. I really don't know what size I am I just know it's big...LOL...
Anyway, I'm excited to start this journey with you guys.
Welcome to Julie and Mamawrobin! I'll echo what the others have said - it's never too late to start living a healthy life style! And we all have good days and bad days. Even good weeks and bad weeks! You'll find tons of information and encouragement here.
Tracy, I am so excited about working on the meal plan! It's going to be so much better than sitting around at 4:30 and trying to figure out what to have! Or going on Recipezaar, finding a new recipe, going to the store, buying everything and then never fixing it! I know that it will definetly save us some money.
Today has been a pretty good day. Until dinner time. I'm sure I had too many calories - I had a veggie sandwich on very small pieces of bread, that part was really good. But then I had two pieces of the bread, heated up in the micro with butter on them!! But I'm done for the night. I think I'll go do some situps or something! Or maybe not one of the twins is having a meltdown! I wonder how many calories you burn dealing with tired, cranky 4 year olds!?!
Have a great night!
Melissa
Quote by @%username% on %date%
%body%