I did it!!!

I had two goals going into this diet.
1. Lose 50 pounds
2. Wear a size ten by Convention.

I'm happy to report I've reached one of those goals!!

I bought my first pair of tens on Friday and 3 more pair today. Which means I'm officially in a ten.

For a 5' 3" person a ten is still not skinny but it sure feels like it!!!

I have ten more pounds to lose to reach my 50 pound goal ....and I'm thinking I may want to lose a little more.

But not right now ....I'm burned out on steak and chicken and vegetables.

My plan at Convention is to watch what I eat ...but not diet. Just maintain!!

That means no PF Changs ...but that's okay ....I always get a stomach ache after I eat there. I love their food ...but it doesn't like me :(

Sorry I haven't posted lately ...it's been crazy in our house. Chase has been sick for over a week (bronchitis and ear infection), father in law broke his leg in two spots and has had two surgeries in less than two weeks. Brother in law in hospital ....the list goes on and you don't want to know!!

See ya later!!

- Post by Angie Kennedy Juda using BlogPress from my iPhone

Starting again

I have 20 more pounds I want to lose ....so I'm starting the diet again today.

I was going to wait another couple weeks ...but here's why I'm starting now.

The mall is bringing out their fall and winter clothes as we speak. That is soooooo ridiculous ...but it's the way it is.

So, if I want to buy clothes for July and August ... I need to shop now....but I don't want to .....because I want to lose 20 more pounds.

I just pray when I lose the twenty I can find something that fits and its good for the hot summer!

Today and tomorrow are my fat building days and I'm supposed to eat a lot of foods high in fat.

It's the end of day one and I can safely say I checked that box!!

Good night!

Indoor Grill

Several people have ask me how I cook my steak and chicken....

The answer is I use an indoor grill...I love indoor grills!!

The first picture is of the grill I've had for over 20 years (it was a wedding present).

The next grill is the one I bought recently (on Amazon) and it holds more if I want to cook for a few more people. (When Dave's home we use the big grill outside.)

I hope that helps!!

Size 12

When I started my diet ....I didn't share my weight ....I was embarrassed!!

Even now ....32 pounds lighter ....I'm still considered obese (don't we all agree some man made that chart!!!!!)

I weighed in on April 5th at 201.4 ....today I weigh 168.2.

I've been walking around pulling my pants up nonstop and decided that it was time to hit the mall....I've been avoiding it because I was afraid I had not lost as much as I thought.

I'm happy to say I was wrong!

Yesterday I purchased two pair of jeans that were size 12. And they're not tight...I didn't try a 10 ...I'm saving that for after I lose at least another 5 pounds.

I've been off the diet for two weeks and I've still lost some weight ...but not inches. I think they said yesterday that I had lost 45 inches....that's just amazing!

I'm still avoiding carbs and sugar. But not completely. On Saturday I had waffles and popcorn with butter. So... on Sunday and Monday I had meat and veggies only.

I'm still drinking my two liters of water everyday!! And I have two cups of Beef Broth every morning. (it grosses my husband out ...but ...he's sure happy I've lost weight.)

I've heard from many of you that my journey has motivated you to start your own diet ... And I just want to say Good Luck! And I promise it will get easier!

Here's two things I've said before and I find myself repeating them often.

1. If you set your mind on something ...you can do it!

2. Nothing tastes as good as thin feels.

Have a wonderful day!!

28 pounds lighter

Today is the last day on my diet ..... I weigh 28 pounds lighter and I've lost 42 inches. I started the diet on April 5th.

I haven't been this thin in about four or five years.

My plan is to take two or three weeks off and then go one more round to lose another 20.

Someone ask "did I take before and after pictures?". I did not. I had gained so much weight I didn't need another picture showing me how much I had gained.

I'll try to get a few pictures of me soon...maybe Saturday at the Shoebox Card Swap.

Now for the foods allowed with the HCG pill

For breakfast you can have:
One of the protein shakes or a piece of fruit. Choices of fruit are: Apple, orange, grapefruit or 6 large strawberries.

Since I can't have dairy ....protein shakes are no go ...so I had six strawberries a day.

Lunch:
You can have 3-1/2 oz of:
Very lean steak (I had filet)
Chicken breast (no fat)
Shrimp
Crab
Lobster
White fish

No other meats are allowed!!! That includes no salmon and no hamburger! No pork and no lunch meat.

3-1/2 oz of vegetable:
Cucumbers
Lettuce
Green beans
Tomatoes
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Onions
Radishes
And a few that I don't know what they are !!

Mid afternoon snack: piece of fruit from the allowed list (apple, orange, grapefruit, strawberries).

Dinner: same as lunch

Evening: protein shake or fruit from allowed list.

If it ain't on the list ....it's not allowed.
Beef broth wasn't on the list but it saved me and I'm pretty sure
It didn't hurt.

I usually drink four 8 Oz of Beef Broth and a large Smart Water and that was my 2 liters of water a day.

Vitamins are very important ...I buy a bottle of potassium and multi vitamin from them every week.

You can have artificial sugar but I can't stand the taste and some of them give me an awful headache.

I feel great!!! I haven't felt this good in years. I think the diet makes you feel better. And the stomach aches I used to get every night have disappeared....no more heart burn or reflux!!

If you're considering going on the HCG diet please make sure you see a doctor first. I did and he told me to go off my fish oil pills while on the diet. I gave him my whole list of meds and he confirmed it was okay.

They check my blood pressure every week and they weigh and measure me. I love going. It makes me think before I put something in my mouth.

I weigh myself every morning as soon as I get downstairs.

Now that I'm going off the diet it will be interesting to see what happens. I pray I'll be okay!!! I'd hate to think all that starving was for nothing!

I should rephrase that.....I wasn't starving the past month ...in the beginning I was but
I got over it. But ...some days
I think my brain thought I was starving! No sugar, no caffeine and no carbs ...scary!!!

Gotta run ....good night!

-Post by Angie Kennedy Juda using BlogPress from my iPhone

Breakfast

This is my breakfast every single day!!

Six large strawberries!


As I'm approaching the end of this round of my diet I'm thinking ....what will I eat for breakfast next week?

I've gotten so used to eating strawberries ....maybe I'll continue ....but eggs sure do sound good!!!

Have a good day!!

Post by Angie Kennedy Juda using BlogPress from my iPhone

25 pound lighter

I checked in yesterday and I officially have lost 25 pounds.

I can't believe the difference ....on one hand 25 seems like a lot ....on another ....not so much.

The positive is I only have 25 more to reach my 1st goal.

To be honest I never thought I'd hit that goal ...had I known it was possible I may have said more.

Based on my height I think I'm supposed to weigh 130 ....but 150 sounds good to me considering my age and my thyroid!!

I have two more weeks of pills and then I need to take a break.

My body has adjusted to the diet and I feel good ....but my brain is starving for some carbs.

So, I'll take two or three weeks off and then start round three.

Yesterday we talked about maintenance and I feel better...I went in yesterday thinking "will I gain all the weight back once I'm off the diet"?

The plan is to weigh myself every day .... Eat smaller portions and if I gain two or more pounds in a day ..get on the HCG diet for a couple days (500 calories from a limited food list).

You guys have emailed me some questions and I'm going to answer them on this blog....soon!!

Every week it's been something....will share details later!

Have a great weekend!!

- Post by Angie Kennedy Juda using BlogPress from my iPhone

Diet is going strong

I just wanted to check in and share the good news .... after four days on my new diet ... I've lost a few pounds ...  (unless my scales are wrong).

I've been documenting all the details and at the end of my 30 days I'll publish the posts so you can see all of it. 

I've had a few ladies ask me to share my diet ... so I want to really explain why I'm waiting.

Most people have good intentions ..... but there are some that do not.   Dieting is one of those subjects that everyone has an opinion on .....even those that have never struggled with weight.

So ... I'm not sharing any of the details until I've gone through my first 30 days ... I want to make sure I surround myself with positive energy and if I share my diet now ... someone will rain on my parade.  

Once I've made it through the first month I'll be educated enough to provide feedback ... you know what I mean?

I will share this ... I've had a horrible headache for two days.  But I'm not sure if it's allergies or the lack of caffeine (or the hunger).

See ya later!!

Hello

I can't believe it's been over a month since I last posted!!!  Where does time go?

We've been making some home improvements and between that & everything else I've been to tired to type or even think about typing. 

I think the last time I posted I had said I was going to the doctor .... he did increase my meds.  And ...some days I have more energy and then I don't.  I can't figure it out to save my life!!!  I think the key is I can't over do it.  Which aggravates me to no end!!! I'm a worker  .. a doer ...and to have limits is so frustrating!!

My mind or my brain ... feels younger ...but this body is not co-operating.  My sister and I were talking about Dolly Parton bringing a theme park back to Nashville and I was sooooo excited.  It was like they were bringing Opryland back (I loved it so much I had season tickets every year ...and not just for the rides ..the entertainment was great!!).

And then .... Kim (my sister ) ruined it and said "Angie, you'll be 50 when they open it .... are you going to want to ride those rides at 50" ... like I said my mind feels much younger ... but my body does not.

Dave reminded me the other day that plenty of people have thyroid issues and live regular lives.  I look forward to that day.  I went to a furniture store to find a bean bag and I had to walk from one end to another multiple times ... and all of a sudden I got so tired I just started crying.  I was thinking how do I get out of this store .... walk across the parking lot and also drive home.  It's like someone sucked the life right out of me!!!  I'm happy to say I made it home safely :)

Oh well, I'm starting a new diet ..... tomorrow is the day.   I'm going to document (blog) the whole thing ...but...I'm not posting it until after the first 30 days. 

Have a Happy Easter!!!

p.s. Miss Bella will be 7 months old tomorrow ....she is such a stinker ....if you're a friend on facebook you probably saw that she got out yesterday and I could not catch her ... I was in my pjs with bed hair and it was AWFUL ..I thought I was going to die and she was going to get hit by a car.   (I know I'm tad dramatic!!)

Back on track

After two days of not counting my points ...I'm back on track.

 Here's what I ate yesterday....
 Coffee with cream and sugar
1 cup blueberries
 2 eggs with one sandwich thin

 2 stalks of celery
Salad with thousand island

 Coffee with cream and sugar
Clementine
Beet stew with one piece of bread.
 Clementine
15 baked Lays chips

 1 large bottle of Smart Water

 Someone ask me ....why Smart Water? Because it's easy and has electrolytes. If I drink one bottle a day ....it's 33 oz. And as for the cost .....it's less than a dollar a day (when you buy them at Costco).

 I came up with my own recipe for the Beef Stew yesterday ....I went to the freezer to get some chicken and I found some stew meat ....so here it goes:

 Crock Pot
 1 lb stew meat
1 can of petite diced tomatoes
1 can corn (drained)
1 can veg all (drained)
 Beef broth 3/4 of the 32 oz box
 1 can cream of celery soup
 2 celery stalks
2 cans of water
1 packet Lipton onion soup mix
 Spices include: pepper, basil and parsley

 It doesn't need salt because of the Lipton soup mix. I don't know the measurements for the spices ...I just threw them in.
 After it cooked for 4 hours on low ....I did a taste test and added about 1/2 cup of water and kicked it up to high for two hours.
 I called it Beef Stew because of the meat ...but it tasted more like vegetable soup ...with some yummy meat.

 See ya!

 - Post by Angie Kennedy Juda using BlogPress from my iPhone

My craft room is a wreck!

A word of advice ..... Never start a diet when your craft room is tore apart ....or when you're email goes down!!!

Several things have gone major wrong in the past two days and today I had to forget Weight watchers and have some comfort food.....aka McDonald's breakfast.

I've never done this before ....but here it goes ....here what my room looks like right this minute :O




Shocking isn't it?

And .....

Two of my email addresses are not working ...and they haven't for a while ....I just didn't realize it until this morning. I could receive emails ....but all my replies never made it. Where do
I begin to find out how far back it quit working.

The good news is my assistant is coming over after dinner and is going to help me get my room back in shape.

I won't share my food intake today ....too scary! But I'll restart my diet tomorrow.

Someone sent this to me today and I love it ....just wish I had read it before I ate McDonalds breakfast!

"If you kinda do it, it kinda works."
"When you really do it, it really works."

See ya!

- Post by Angie Kennedy Juda using BlogPress from my iPhone

To tired to type

I know why I'm over weight ...it's day's like today ...that force me to eat anything I can find.
I didn't do too bad ...until dinner time.  I've been working since 7am ... it's 9:30pm and I finally decided to stop (took a small break earlier today to take Miss Bella to the vet).

Dave picked up BBQ and I was sooo hungry .... I ate some meat and 16 Fries .... I only had 8 points left for the day ..so I'm pretty sure I went over.   At least I didn't eat the bun :)

And I have a real bad case of ADD or ADHD ....the new mini Catalog started today .... Product Shares ...Stamp Set of the month club started ....and ...... I tore my office apart ... I know where did that come from?  I wasn't happy with some areas in my office and decided to do something about it ... except waiting for the pieces to arrive ... is doing more damage than good ...everything is everywhere :O  I should take a picture but it may scare some people away!!

Here's my food intake

Coffee with Cream & Sugar
2 eggs with toast
One little white powder donut

1 cup of Spaghetti with meat sauce (leftovers)
2 stalks of celery
Coffee with cream and sugar

4 pcs of broccoli (raw and after eating them the heartburn was so bad I've decided I don't like that stuff )
BBQ (meat and sauce)
16 french fries
12 Skittles (what can I say ..I'm working tonight and needed fuel)

And last but not least ....I'm about to eat a Clementine or two ...

Tomorrow I must go to the store ... a piece of advice ...never start a diet without going to the store.  I started on Monday ... and have yet to grace the doors of the store.  I ask Dave to go to Costco and get me some yummy fruit .... he declined :) maybe tomorrow.

Good night
p.s. if you come back and this post is gone ...you'll know I'm all level headed again and decided to hit delete.  I'd hate for someone to think I'm always like this!

p.s.again ... I promise I will post a picture of Miss Bella soon!!  She is 17 weeks old today and weighs 9 lbs and 12 oz.

Diet

I mentioned this morning that I had two positive things to share. The first one is I started a diet ...I know here we go again! But after having my surgery I've gained weight and although I haven't gained a ton ...my shape has changed and NOTHING fits!!!

So, it's been a little over a week and I've lost 2 pounds ...with the diet I'm following I should lose 1 to 2 pounds a week and I weigh myself every Monday (terrible day I know but oh well ...that's the day I started).

I've kept a food journal since I started my Thyroid meds and once I started writing everything down .... it was clear I was not making good food choices. 

Once I shed a few more pounds and see if this diet is going to stick I'll share what I'm doing.

Wish me luck!!

Exercise

I'm happy to report I survived the walk with my neighbor today. It wasn't much .... 20 minutes ....really slow.... but at least I've started.

Now the ticket is ....go every day.

I had a few ladies ask me if I would share my food/exercise journal and for now I can't. My eating habits would scare you!

For example I had popcorn for lunch and now I'm drinking a large coffee with loads of cream and sugar (only way I'll be able to cook supper before Dave gets home).

But I'm changing my ways ......

I'm working on my grocery list and it includes a bunch of fruit for my blender .... Yes along with Juice Plus+ I'm also going to start having a least one green smoothie a day (no diary ...just ice).
I've had them before and I liked them....just got lazy ..you know having to clean the blender after each use!!

Gotta run and start supper ....see ya!

- Posted by Angie Kennedy Juda using BlogPress from my iPhone

Still going strong

Just checking in to say yes I'm still on my diet and I'm still working out :)
Now that I'm going to the gym I've lost at least 2 hours of my day and I'm trying to figure out how to make that up!

Gotta run

p.s. I'm also getting ready for Founders Circle....that adds about a million things I need to do before Wednesday.

3 pounds

I've not stepped on a scale since I started the gym...until today.  I was going to wait until I had to go down a pants size...but they weighed me at the gym and once I was ask if I wanted to know I said sure...although now I'm wishing I hadn't.


Three pounds is okay... or some would say it's good.  And if I was doing the meal plans and exercising I would see more results....but here's the thing. I tend to focus on one thing and focus on it til death....meaning I'm focusing on exercising ...not so much the eating.  I know I need to focus on that too...but I will once I get a little farther.  I just need to see results to get even more motivated!!

Yesterday as I was in the kitchen & I found myself doing squats.   Today I was in the kitchen doing squats with 3 pound weights.  Chase laughed at me and said "they were so light that he could throw them like a baseball"  ....I say "whatever"!! 


The thing is ..... I'm working on it.   Today I got myself one of those big exercise balls .....warning warning... I lack coordination...aka I'm clumsy.  Let's hope I can keep my balance!!  I got it because I need to practice...I'm sure I look like a total nut case at the gym!!  I say it's the left brain right brain thing ....need I say more?


So....two personal things this week.  One will make you laugh and one will make you cry (not really but you'll understand why I said it).

1. Someone posted on my YouTube channel that I should stop being racist ..... that there are guys that stamp too.  Well...... it's not called racist ...... it would be called prejudice ... and I'm not.  I say you guys all the time...on occasion I do say ladies...but I mainly say "you guys".  In the old days it was always ya'll ...which applied to male or female ...but I've adapted to not living in south and say "you guys"....to be honest I'd prefer to say ya'll but I've been corrected too many times & that was no fun!!
2. My SAM at Stampin' Up! is leaving & tomorrow is her last day.   I will miss her terribly!!  I'm not even sure how I'm going to handle not having her to talk to.  I don't talk to her as much as I used to but she's the one person there that knows me and trusts me and gets me.  So .....tomorrow will be tough because I need to say goodbye & good luck to her....but how can I when I can't even type it without crying? 

Gotta run...busy day tomorrow!!

Day Four

Wow...today has been crazy!! I decided to tear into my office and get going on one of my goals.

I like setting goals...it gives me direction...and if I set them I'm usually more successful. 

So, other than weight loss ...my other big goal is to get my office in a position that I don't have to hide or stash anything if someone says their coming over.  I'd like it to be like my living room......where it's always nice but that's unrealistic since I need to work....and you know when I work stuff is all over the place!!

Back to my day.....I decided to spend 90% of my day moving stuff around, I moved a ton of stuff out of my office.....threw away a little and actually went through stacks of papers and organized them.
When I have my stuff in order I feel GREAT!! That should be a huge motivator to stay on top of it.

Day four of my diet.....food wise I did terrible...I was working so hard I needed food as fuel.  I walked very aggressively for 25 minutes...drank four glasses of water ...won't go into what I ate....or wait .....maybe I will.

Two very large cups of coffee (really equals four cups if we measured it), 2 scrambled eggs (two egg whites only one yoke), one piece of dry toast, peanut butter and banana sandwich with 16 baked lays chips, baked potato, 1 1/2 hot dogs with half a bun & a fresh cucumber out of my garden. 
  After typing it ....maybe I didn't do so bad after all.  I should have only had one of those hot dogs but I was starved after moving all that furniture!!
I hit the gym tomorrow at 8:30...wish me luck!

Good night :)

Day Three

This is almost a repeat of what I said yesterday....I'm too tired to type.   I'm going to finish this post and I'm headed to bed.  I am such a whimp ....but oh well what can I say?


Day Three of my exercise/weight loss program.  I hit the gym at 8:30 this morning.  I was measured & weighed and now it officially begins.  I was on one of the machines for a total of three minutes I was ready to jump off...I gave it one more minute and I was outta there :O  
I'm excited to get started but I dread the keeping track of everything....but once I see some results that will motivate me to keep on trucking!


See ya later!

Day Two

It's late and I'm almost too tired to post but I thought I should do it so I can reference it later :)

I didn't drink all my water today but I walked for twenty minutes.  I had toast for breakfast (with coffee). Salad for lunch (dressing was probably major fattening) and a hamburger for supper with some baked lays chips (I picked off half the bun and threw it away).  Night time snack...small bowl of blueberries to feed my brain.


Not a terrible day ...but not good either.  Tomorrow I'll try to do better!!
On a much lighter note...today I figured out a way to re-organize a section of my room...if it all goes well ..... I'll be sooo excited!  My ultimate goal is to not have to hide or stash anything in my office if someone says their coming over.   I still say I'm more creative when it's in shambles but maybe I'm making excuses :O


Good night!

Day one

I did it....I started my exercise program today.
My plan was to start August 15th but what was I thinking....Chase & Brooke were still on summer break.


So, today three of us walked from our house to Prairie Life Fitness Center and once we got there we took a class....then we walked home.   But....let me just say....during the class...I mainly laid on the mat trying to recover from the 40 minute walk there.   It wouldn't be so bad if it wasn't so darn hot in Kansas (I know in a few months I'll be complaining about the cold).


So.... where do I go from here....I'm almost thinking I need a trainer...but ..... I hate to spend the money...but then again.....what if I only needed one for three months. I could cut back on some other things and make it work.   We'll see...I just know that I'm going to look for every reason in the world to not go back on Wednesday.


Wish me luck!!