I Like My...

Wow! I LOVE THAT KID! What a cutie! But apart from that... what a lesson we ALL need to learn!  How many of us can say that when we stand in front of a mirror we actually say Affirmations!  I'm sure there are some who do, but I imagine that the majority of us actually say Accusations instead!

Those of us who have reason to speak an accusation or two should take some time to find something... ANYTHING... to Like.  Then Speak....No...SHOUT it out!!!  Even if it's only 1 thing... start there!  Scare the cat and tell him you LIKE him!  This little one didn't seem one bit ashamed to speak about those things she LIKED...Including Herself!  Anybody can pick things apart and find things we Dislike!  That's the easy part!  But to discover and claim those things that you LIKE...publically or otherwise is a whole different ball of wax!  Start small and end...BIG!!!  (sorta opposite of the weight loss journey!)  Come on people LIKE yourself!

Earlier today I was once again reading through Amber's posts on her blog Me and Jorge.  Specifically it was her week 4 weigh in and she was so excited that she had lost another 3.5lbs for a total of 14lbs so far.  She writes about taking back control of her body...the one she knew was inside...even before she had lost the weight she was needing to lose.  Reminds me of a verse in the Bible, "...calling things that be not as though they were." Rom 4:17

Here's what Amber says:

"I know there will be weeks when I lose less, or nothing, or even experience  a slight gain. 

I will not let these set backs stand in my way! In fact, I honestly believe I have actually already lost these 40lbs and just need to go through the process for my body to realize it. I am no longer that person who eats obsessive-compulsively.

My new mantra is:
This extra weight no longer belongs to ME, I have released it. It just will take some time to shed it from my physical body!"

WoW!  Those are some powerful words and they pierced right through me today!  I am choosing to do the same and release "possession" of this weight... 
the weight NO LONGER belongs to me!
And guess what...not only has she surpassed her original weight goal of 40lbs by 10lbs, but just today her success story was published in Woman's World magazine...less than a year since she started The Belly Fat Cure program!  Wow!  Way to go Amber!  I for one am so proud of YOU!  And you should be too!

I know I've included a lot about another person's success here today... but it is people like Amber and lil' Jessica and their determination to NOT QUIT, that inspires me to refrain from my own temptations...and doubts...and fears... and speaking those dislikes over myself so that I too can be successful!  

I'M INSPIRED!  

Hope you are too!

Here is  THE REST OF THE STORY of lil' Jessica...just too cute not to include it!

KFC and I Didn't FAIL!

WHAT???  KFC? and I DIDN'T FAIL???  Well not exactly!  Hubby and I were out tonight and chose to stop off at KFC for dinner....after all...it's in the book!  I was pretty excited to see that not only was the grilled chicken 0/0 points on The Belly Fat Cure plan but FRIED was only 0/1 !!!  Well of course I had to get FRIED!!!  Now don't go gettin' your tail feathers all ruffled at me or get too excited about this amazing BFC factoid!

It's true...I did choose the fried over the grilled...but just this once!  Because my son reminded me as I'm chowing down on this amazing "Cure" for belly fat that it was bumping 1400gms of Sodium!  YIKES!  And I won't mention the calorie count as we are not supposed to be worried about that on BFC.  HOWEVER, I will say that luckily I had a very low calorie day so I didn't go over the calorie count for the day that I have in my head.  Even so... the Sodium is NOT SO GOOD... especially for those of us who retain water and/or have heart related issues or have them in the family!  So needless to say... I had a valuable and hopefully not too costly "learning experience" tonight! 


Well I told you yesterday that I was going to have the BUG JUICE today... but truthfully I just ran out of time and now I'm too full of said KFC!!!  So I promise I will try it tomorrow and will report in for those who have not included this "magic potion" in their lives yet.  In the meantime I did do a mini report on Chia Seeds on the The Reviews!  page I started today.  I will be posting products as I try them along my journey....so be sure to check out that page from time to time.

One product I have been chasing all around town to find is Jay Robb's Whey Protein in Chocolate or Vanilla!  Everywhere I went were empty shelves where once these cans stood!  I tried a packet of the Chocolate flavor today and it is delicious so no wonder they can't keep the stuff in stock!  I'm determined to find this hidden treasure...I know somebody has to have some here in Austin!  Until then I may just order it from Amazon...here's the link so you can also!

Goldilocks Enjoyed Her Breakfast Today!

Gosh there's so much I wanna write about, just don't know where to start!



I suppose I'll start with Breakfast!
I was running late to an appointment and needed to have a quick breakfast with no cooking required.  So I opted for the 1 cup of Cheerios and Unsweetened Vanilla Almond Milk.  I was a little leery at first at the "unsweetened" part of the Almond Milk and having had soy milk before, I was also worried about the consistency.  I sprinkled a little stevia on top of the cereal prior to pouring the milk on and then stirred everything up real well before tasting.  I was shocked to find myself pleasantly surprised!  And just like Goldielocks... I ate it alllll up!


 Yesterday I mentioned about getting the fixin's for Bug Juice which I found the recipe for on Me and Jorge's blog.  Today I was amazed at how easily I found the Chia Seed!  Yes...I said Chia Seed... I'm guessing it's the same seed you smear on the little lambs body as in a Chia Pet!  (I personally like the Chia Kitten the best...)  If you can't find Chia Seeds at your local grocery store like I did you can order it online here:

   

Tomorrow I will report on my experiences with Bug Juice and Chia Seed on my new Products Page.

I didn't want to get away without telling you about the new friend I met at the grocery!  When I was passing by a demo table demoing a taste test between Coke Zero and the store brand (which I passed on, being I gave up soft drinks a couple months ago), the demonstrator stopped me and asked about the whole wheat tortillas I had in my basket.  It sparked a whole convo about The Belly Fat Cure program!  I actually had the book and the new "counter" book with me and was able to show them to her.  She, like me, has tried them ALL...with some success but none were workable for a lifetime like I am seeing the BFC being for me.  

I gave a mini seminar (those that know me understand this) on what I know about the program and showed her on the package of tortillas how to count your daily points.  She seemed amazed that we can actually have CARBS on this plan.  The last plan she was on for over a year, allowed her very few carbs.  I showed her how this plan teaches you about Carb Exchange...where you are actually exchanging the Belly Bad carbs for the Belly Good carbs.  Her eyes lit up, she reminded me of me the day I first heard of the program...(thank you Cathy!)  I gave her my blog address and I'm hoping she's reading this right now!  Hi  M, it was a pleasure to meet you...call me!  =]

Lastly I wanted to share with you that while visiting Me & Jorge (blog mentioned above) I read about the importance of rewarding yourself for reaching weight goals.  What a SPLENDID idea!!!  So I decided that for every 10 lbs I lose I will reward myself with a $20.00 gift card to Jo-Ann's Fabrics and Crafts...being that I always need art supplies!  I can either spend the gift card right away...or save them up for something special!  After all, by the time I reach my final goal of 70lbs I could feasibly have $140.00 to spend on a Big Prize!

Thank you Everybody...for All your Support, I've made some great new friends and talked with a few from the past...just for deciding to do something good for myself!
I Am So Blessed!

Heaven... I'm in Heaven!!!

OH MY WORD MISS AGNES!  

(to cop a line from Momma Belle, my grandmother)

Never in my life did I think I could eat my favorite foods and lose weight!  NEVER!  Well maybe there was that one time when I went on that ice cream and watermelon diet...but I digress!

Today's lunch convinced me I can eat and lose!  How fun it was to prepare these mini pizza's for my family and myself!  So easy and cheesy!!!  My fav pizza right now is the Margherita Pizza and when I saw the recipe for it on page 113 in The Belly Fat Cure book I just had to try it! 

Perfecto!  Eccellente!  Divino!

Margherita Pizza 

w/  Pesto instead of Pizza Sauce

Along with a green salad w/ Low Sugar dressing this meal was Fabuloso! 

2/2

I will be soon replacing the Low Sugar dressing for a No Sugar dressing as an even better choice...

But as Bob says...Baby Steps...taking Baby Steps!

Yesterday and today have been great starter days for me on my new way of eating!  I have not felt deprived and yet I know I'm eating balanced and healthy meals.  

My next focus will be on supplementing my diet with higher fiber foods and/or supplements.  AND after reading on Amber's blog,  Me and Jorge, about Bug Juice...I've GOT to try that next! 

Sending out a TEXAS SIZED THANK YOU to ALL my friends and family who have written me, called me and even joined me in this new phase of my life!  God bless you ALL!!!

First Day First Week!

I had 3 fantastic meals today full of yummy foods I love! My favorite was the Parmesan Grilled Cheese and Avocado Sandwich we made at lunch! WoW!!!  I think I can live with this Belly Fat Cure meal plan!  The bread was whole wheat, sugar-free and low in carbs (yummy in flavor) so my Sandwich only "cost" me 2 carb points of my 6 points allotted me in one day!  

Here's the recipe for this incredible sandwich!

Parmesan Grilled Cheese and Avocado Sandwich

Serves 2

4  slices Sugar-Free Whole Grain Bread

4  1oz. slices of Cheddar Cheese

1/2 of Avocado - Sliced

Butter or Smart Balance Margarine

Shredded or Grated Parmesan Cheese

Butter one side of four pieces of bread.  Sprinkle each buttered side with Parmesan Cheese; lightly pressing cheese into butter.  Heat up non-stick skillet Medium High or sandwich maker.  Place 2 of the buttered slices of bread into the skillet, butter side down.  Add 1/2 the cheddar cheese and avocado on top of each piece of bread in skillet.  Place the two remaining pieces of buttered bread on top of the cheese and avocado, butter side up.  

Continue to cook sandwich flipping several times, until golden brown on both sides and cheese is melted.  

Enjoy!

0 sugar : 24 grams carbs =  0/2 per sandwich!

~ ~ ~ 

Going to finish out my day with 2 squares of Dark Chocolate! Mmmmmmm!

Yep!  I think I can live with this way of life! 

Embracing the New Me

As I stood in front of the mirror today...I saw before me the reality of the truth in the reflection.  You know how you can look in a mirror and say, "Not too bad." or "Ok, now that looks pretty good."  and then later see a photo of yourself from that very same day and wish you had never stepped out of the bathroom? ! ! !

Well, today I allowed my mind to show me the truth...to not allow the reflection to trick me into believing I wasn't really seeing what I was seeing!  It was not a pretty picture...but that's ok.  I'm not going to judge the person I am inside, because of what I'm seeing on the outside.  This is HUGE! (no pun intended!)  I know that the person, the being, the spirit within me is beautifully and wonderfully made.  With this said, I am choosing to Embrace the New Me from the inside out.

As I embark on this journey of renewal I am choosing to love every part of myself and that means what I see in the reflection AND the photos. Don't get all twisted thinking I'm thinking I'm all that...so now I'm in love with myself!  What I mean by loving All of Me is that I will now Respect Myself.  Lack of respecting my outer shell and the temple in which God gave me to house my spirit has me now dealing with 70lbs of excess baggage and the possibility of major health issues in my near future! Now that is reality!

It all boils down to CHOICES!

 

My weight is a result of poor choices; bad eating habits, sugar addiction, and denial!  "This one little bite won't hurt me!"  We are fools to believe ourselves sometimes! 

WARNING: Lying to yourself can be harmful to your health!  

Stress and emotional eating is a real thing and unless I get to the core issues that causes my emotional eating habits, it will remain an issue in my life.  So this journey is not going to be just about me doing a diet to lose weight.  It's about finding that fork in the road where I should have gone right but I chose to go left!  It's about discovering the why's and not just the how's.  This roller coaster is about to come to a halt...for good! 

Another part of getting past the thoughts that keep me in bondage, is getting past be concerned about what other people think of me.  Being afraid of being judged.  A perfect example is how I have avoided public exercise such as walking or swimming or even joining a gym, due to the fact I didn't want others to see me in such a state of disrepair.  The nice part is I live in such a beautiful city full of public parks, trails, streams, rivers and lakes!  

But sadly even though I'm 5 minutes away from amazing views all around me...I sit....paralyzed by my own stinkin' thinkin'!  THIS is going to change! 

8-15-10

8-15-10

Yes, things are about to change for me...in a Major way. The shell is cracking...the cage door is opening...the person I am is emerging....and I'm excited to share it with all who are willing to walk this path with me!

The old me would apologize for these pics...

The new me says:    Look with me at where I've been and where I'm heading!