Advocare Day 21 - afternoon

As of yesterday I was 171.6. I was 173 this morning but let me tell ya - I ate like a PIG yesterday. We went out for Sean's birthday. I had a stuffed mushroom appetizer at the Pub. Then we had sushi rolls (the fattening kind) at Sake. Then we went bowling and I had 2 appetizers there. It was like I couldn't stop eating. So I think the 173 this morning is AMAZING and also think it was mostly water considering how much salt I consumed last night.

I've more than made up for last night today and am poised to finish out strong. My only concern is dinner Wednesday night since we'll be traveling to visit my family. I'm not sure what I'm going to eat. I'm definitely ready for Thanksgiving dinner!

I keep going back and forth about what I'm going to do after I'm done. I still want to lose another 40 lbs. Sean was like, "Do you really need to lose another 40? Are you supposed to weigh 130?" I told him that that's the "recommended" weight for my height and frame. But in all honesty, I'd be thrilled with 140. I mean, how am I going to get to 130 without exercise?

Advocare Day 16 - bedtime

Over the weekend I was 174, yesterday was 175 and today was 176. Here is my list of cheats:

• Sample of apple pie @ Kroger on Saturday
• Two samples of a cracker with cheese spread
• A sample of a chicken nugget/wing thing
• Grated parmesan on my dinner Sunday night and yesterday for lunch

I will say that I've been feeling really good despite having one or the other baby wake up in the middle of the night for the past week. Normally after this long of that going on, I'd be a zombie.

I'm definitely ready for this to be over. I want BREAD. I want fast food! I bought some Kroger cupcakes for Sean for his birthday today and I want one! I want dairy. And all these wants have me thinking about how to deal with them and continuing to lose weight. How do I make it work?

I've been a little bummed that I've been holding right around 176 for almost the past week. But I had someone remind me that I'm still doing really well. I remember back when I was dieting and exercising regularly and it would take a whole week to go down a pound. Ultimately, I'd still like to lose another 4 lbs. I would LOVE to see 169.

In the meantime, I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for Thanksgiving and lots of traveling and not pigging out the entire time.

Advocare Day 12 - morning

My meal update will have to come this weekend but I wanted to post an update on my weight loss. Yesterday I was at 175.2 and today is 174.2. I hope to continue making progress over the weekend!

Advocare Day 10 - bedtime

Today was the last day of the 10-day cleanse and I was at 176 again. I really bumped up the water yesterday and today and cut back on the minimal complex carbs I was eating. If this continues tomorrow, I may actually add on some calories to see what happens since I'm not sure if I'm getting enough with the breastfeeding.

As for my energy. I drink one Spark in the morning in lieu of coffee. I feel like I could forego one if the afternoon but it's nice to have something besides water. I'm definitely not as groggy come 3pm as I was before the cleanse. And most evenings, I feel more energetic than I was before. I this my energy will be even better in a few days once I get caught up on my missed sleep.

I was able to resist a cookie sandwich thing they had at work today for someone's birthday. I don't even really like those kinds of things but let me tell you - I WANTED IT. So I'm thrilled I was able to resist.

Tomorrow I start the 14-day Max Phase. I'll be having meal replacement shake for breakfast. I also plan to kick it up on the veggies. This weekend, I'd love to get a few walks in!

Day 9
Breakfast - apple
Snack - egg, carrot sticks
Lunch - Leftover ginger chicken, steamed sugar snap peas, red quinoa
Snack - carrots, almonds
Dinner - Chicken breast, small salad, red quinoa
Snack - no snack

Day 10
Breakfast - apple
Snack - carrots
Lunch - Salad with canned salmon
Snack - no snack
Dinner - Turkey meatloaf, steamed cauliflower & broccoli, red quinoa
Snack - no snack

Advocare Day 9 - morning

Well, the day I've been waiting for finally came. I was back up to 176.4. Four pounds? I keep telling myself I'm not going to obsess about it but I can't help but keep wondering what I did differently. The only thing I can figure is that the salmon dish had soy sauce in it so maybe it's water? I still feel very motivated so it's not a super big deal.

I was talking to our sitter about it this morning and she said she doesn't weigh herself that often. And that reminded me of another conversation I had with a coworker the last time I was working on losing weight. She said I shouldn't weigh myself daily or else it might become an obsession. My response? Um, look at me. Do I look like I obsess about my weight? NOT paying attention to my weight on a daily basis is what got me into the spot in the first place! Ever since I lost about 20 lbs a couple years ago, I've weighed myself at LEAST every other day - even during my pregnancy.

Granted, I think that weighing oneself is a personal issue, like so many things. I realize that a daily weigh in might cause problems for some people. I'm not just not one of those people. At least not right now. And once I get this weight off, I plan to continue with at least an-every-other-day weigh in. I don't plan on letting my weight get out of control again. I once dated a guy whose mom would work on losing weight if she gained 5 lbs. Five pounds is much easier to lose than 50.

Advocare Day 8 - evening

Today was rough because the babies woke up at 4:45. That, on top of them being up multiple times Saturday night made for a super tired mom.

I've had a few people ask me if I'm spending more money on groceries. That is definitely a big no. BUT, I have to add that we already buy a lot of produce. For most people, it would probably be an increase. Over the past year, I've been moving toward more of a plant based diet and cutting back on meat. I've haven't eaten this much meat in a long time. But it's working so I'm going with it.

Right now, I'm toying with continuing the diet part after I'm done with the challenge (except on holidays). And then doing the cleanse again in three months if necessary. That should definitely get me close to my 50 lb. weight loss goal. We'll see!

Day 7
Breakfast - Spark, pear
Snack - no snack
Lunch - salad w/canned tuna
Snack - hard boiled egg, almonds, carrot sticks
Dinner - Salmon and Avocado with Sesame Tamari dressing, steamed asparagus and collard greens (recipe to be shared at a later date)
Snack -


Day 8
Breakfast - Fiber drink, apple
Snack - hard boiled egg, almonds
Lunch - salad leftover salmon, red quinoa, greens
Snack - Spark around 2:30, I wasn't going to have a snack but the babies wouldn't eat the plain scrambled egg we made for them so I ate that
Dinner - Spicy Ginger Chicken with sugar snap peas and brown jasmine rice
Snack - Don't think I'll be having one @ this rate.

Advocare Day 7 - lunchtime

Busy morning but I just wanted to say - 172.2! Insanity I tell ya! I have some recipes to share later.

Advocare Day 7 - morning

174.4! Every morning I prepare myself to maintain or gain and can't believe it when I'm down another pound! Craziness!

Yesterday I had a late lunch because we were doing M&E's 1 year pictures. I packed lunch for me & the babies and we ate in the mall food court while we waited for the pictures to be printed...while Sean ate Gold Star Chili. A girl nearby was eating Taco Bell. And I could smell all the rest of the yummy food. Including my new favorite vegan restaurant there - Loving Hut. Granted, I could've eaten there, but we had all those fresh greens that needed eaten.

Day 6
Breakfast - pear
Snack - hard boiled egg
Lunch - Salad with tuna and balsamic vinegar & EVOO
Snack - carrots & almonds
Dinner - baked chicken breast, sauteed swiss chard and brown jasmine rice and hot sauce

Today, I want to make some quinoa to mix it up a bit. I'm just trying to decide what to add to it to flavor it up. We have some fun things planned for dinner this week.

I can't help but wonder how this would be going if I could manage to squeeze in some exercise too.

Advocare Day 6 - morning

175.6! Every morning when I weigh myself I'm blown away. I knew I'd lose some weight doing this but I never dreamed it would be this fast and this consistent. It's just craziness. Last night I was telling Sean about how I try to remain positive but still mentally prepare myself to hit a plateau or maybe even gain a pound. I'm more than halfway through the 10 day cleanse and things are going great! I'm very pleased with my results so far!

Advocare Day 5 - bedtime

I'm going to take a break from trying to figure out Sean's stupid phone for a bit and talk about my 24-day challenge! Today I felt like I had more energy today. I probably could've done without my 3pm Spark but I wanted it, so I drank it.

I ordered the Omegaplex and a tub of fruit punch Spark. That came today. It'll be interesting to see if I notice anything from the Omegaplex. I've already made some collard greens and kale for the weekend. Plus, we got a LOT of fresh, fabulous salad greens in our happy box tonight. AND we got a recipe for roasted turnips. I'm excited about that because we've gotten several in recent weeks and I have no clue what to do with them or how to prepare them.

I'm ready for the weekend!


Day 5
Breakfast - Apple
Snack - hard boiled egg and approx 20 raw almonds (left my carrots at home today - boo!)
Lunch - turkey burger, roasted delicate squash, brown jasmine rice w/hot sauce. I brought steamed broccoli but it tasted funky. We weren't watching it and the water evaporated and when I went to clean the pot, it had this brown stuff in it? I have no clue where that came from b/c the pot is stainless steel.
Snack - hard boiled egg, spark
Dinner - turkey burger, roasted delicata squash, brown jasmine rice and hot sauce, and sauteed swiss chard
Snack - no snack!

Advocare Day 5 - morning

I was down another pound today. Technically, the scale said 176.4 BUT I decided to weigh myself without clothes. Since I haven't been doing that all along, I'm only counting 1 lb. I really can't believe that today I'm halfway through the 10 day cleanse! This time next week I'll be into the second 14 days of the challenge and doing things a bit differently.

A few people have asked me if this is a "running to the bathroom" cleanse. No, it is not. And I was a little concerned about that since I don't have constipation issues AT ALL. I'm just going to leave it at that but if you have more questions just ask. I'm not afraid to talk about it! I will say that I'm definitely going to the bathroom more frequently from the additional water I'm drinking. And that's saying a LOT because I'm normally a heavy water drinker.

Also, I was talking to my mom about this cleanse. I was already working on cutting out dairy, so I was pretty much there when I started this. I already limit the carbs we eat and we only white bread when out at restaurants. We only buy whole wheat bread at home, except for special occasions. As for sweets, I did occasionally have those and would definitely go in spurts with them, but they aren't something we regularly keep in our house. Plus, I already eat tons of veggies and complex carbs. So for me, this 24-day challenge is really about cutting out any crap I was already eating, and adding the supplements.

I feel good about making it the rest of the way!

Advocare Day 4 - morning

I have a lot to say but its not easy to blog on my phone so I'll just say this - 178.1! Down 5 pounds! I'm trying not to get too excited but am just focusing on one day at a time. With normal dieting, I often lose 10 pounds and then get cocky and that causes me to slack off and gain it back. No more!

Advocare Day 3 - morning

I was down another pound today - 179.2. Our scale is digital and it tells you your weight to the tenth of a pound. I've never paid attention to that since I can't remember that tenth of a pound in my head. But since I'm tracking this, I'm going to start paying attention to it. I also always weigh myself twice to make sure I get an accurate reading. I'm guessing other people have similar weigh-in rituals?

Today's fiber drink wasn't bad. I won't be drinking it again till Monday (it's part of the plan) and I won't miss it. Although this isn't hard for me, I think about when I'm done with the 10-day cleanse part and can have oatmeal again!

I was reading some comments on one of my current favorite blogs - Fed Up with Lunch: The School Lunch Project. The anonymous blogger, Mrs. Q, is a teacher who's eating school lunch every day for a year. She has learned a lot through this process and now wonders if she has a gluten allergy. One of her commenters said they had some skin issues that actually turned out to be some food sensitivities - even for things like soy, spelt, rye and wheat. This person was already vegan so I can't imagine all the diet restrictions they have! I have never had any testing to determine what my problem is but I'm definitely curious.

We'll see how today goes since Madeline woke up at 12:30. I was a wimp and nursed her back to sleep. I definitely feel more tired than I did yesterday at this time. I only brought 2 Sparks with me to work. I like to save them for 10 and 3 but I may have to have my morning on early today.

Advocare Day 2 - bedtime

Today was great! My energy didn't start to wane until 8 which is an improvement. Dinner was chicken, brown jasmine rice and steamed cauliflower and zucchini. I had hot sauce on the rice. That's a combo I just thought of today and I LOVE IT!!!

Tonight, Sean was snacking on swiss cheese. Then he had a grilled ham & cheese with tomato sauce. It all looks and smells so good! It's funny how much you want something when you can't have it!

Advocare Day 2 - lunch

I guess I should talk a little bit about my goals with this 24-day cleanse. First and foremost, I want to lose weight. I don’t even really know what is typical or average for someone who follows the 24-day challenge as prescribed. I’d like to lose 15. We’ll see. Secondly, I want more energy. Other than one person I know, I’ve heard several stories about how great people feel after doing this – they even wake up without an alarm clock. How great would that be? And last but not least, I’m hoping a cleanse will flush my system of whatever is causing my eczema.

I keep going back and forth about actually admitting my weight. After all, it’s just a number, right? I don’t make a secret of the fact that I’m 50 lbs overweight. So anyone who has a general idea of what a woman who is 5’3’’ should weigh should be able to do to the math. But I’ll save you the trouble and come right out with it – 183. Well, that’s what I weighed yesterday morning. And yes, this is my pre-pregnancy weight. I had lost all my baby weight by the time M&E were 3 months old. So there you have it – 130 is what all those stupid weight charts say I should weigh. But I’d be thrilled w/150. I’m confident this 24-day challenge will be a good kick start for me.

Today's lunch was another chicken breast, brown jasmine rice with hot sauce (unbelievably good), and a small salad (exactly the same as yesterday's minus the tuna). I've only had 1 spark and feel pretty good. My energy is surprisingly good despite only having had 1 spark and NO COFFEE. Also, no headache yet today. That makes me wonder if it wasn't sinus pressure yesterday. I made sure to use the neti pot this morning.

Advocare Day 2 - morning

I decided to just drink my fiber drink normally today and it went much better. But as I was drinking it, I couldn't help but wonder if it's really necessary. I mean, I'm already regular. Do I need more fiber? But the whole point of this is to "cleanse" so I'll carry on.

I was down 3 lbs this morning when I weighed myself. I had pretty much expected to see a loss this morning since I knew I was retaining water from all the junk I had on Sunday. You can't eat a McGriddle, KFC, tons of cashews and corned beef without retaining about 10 lbs of water! At least I can't!

Sean is going to the grocery today to get me some salmon and more fruit for me and the babies (they love grapes). I don't want to bore myself by eating the same thing everyday.

Advocare Day 1 - bedtime

Dinner was another fabulous salad and a chicken breast. Today wasn't bad at all. I definitely feel like this is doable :) I'm so proud of myself for staying away from the donuts. There were a few times this evening that I saw something and wanted to eat but realized I couldn't before it was too late.

I'll probably take a Tylenol early tomorrow and see if I can ward off the caffeine-withdrawal headache. I can't afford another semi-productive day right now.

Advocare Day 1 - afternoon

I have a headache. But I can't tell if it's from lack of caffeine or sinus pressure. I was planning on saving my second Spark for around 3 but I have to leave to go pick up my car (finally) so I decided to drink it early since I needed it. I couldn't focus because of the headache. Despite the annoying headache, I still very motivated!

Advocare Day 1 - early morning

Today I started the Advocare 24-day challenge. And today, there are Krispy Kreme donuts over near the breakroom. Fortunately, it’s early and I’m feeling very dedicated to this cleanse and motivated to give this my full attention. The fiber drink didn’t taste bad but I did almost gag. I think it’s b/c you’re drinking something that has texture. I think I might do better if I just drink it instead of chugging it. I’ve NEVER been a good chugger.

I need to find out if I can have a Spark since I can’t have my coffee. My mentor chic also said no tea (even my decaf green tea) because it has too many carbs. I didn’t think it did but I wasn’t going to argue. Well, I checked and it has zero carbs. So I’m going to revisit that with her.

I'm prepared for dinner and ready to do this!