I can't believe my son is almost 7 months old! It is crazy to watch him zoom around the house on his hands and knees, zeroing in on everything dangerous and dirty that I have overlooked. It seems like just yesterday that I was a week overdue and thinking "I'm going to be pregnant forever." I am proud to say that I am finally down to my pre-pregnancy weight and let me tell you, 45 pounds lighter feels great. It took 7 long months to lose it, but it took 9 months to gain it. How did I do it? No diet pills, no magic protein shake, just eating healthy and exercising. I joined Weight Watchers and it really works for me. Why?
1. Accountability. Every week you get on a scale.
2. Tracking. You actually have to track everything you eat. For some reason I thought I ate fairly healthy before. When the doctor asked how many servings of fruit and veggies I ate a day, I would say "probably 4-5." I wasn't trying to lie, but I wasn't even close. Most days I would eat probably 1-2 servings... yikes. Tracking was a real eye-opener for me. Another helpful thing about tracking is it makes you think twice before eating something bad.... I could eat that slice of cheesecake, but then I would have to write it down.... I don't want it that much.
3. The final reason it works for me... you can eat anything you want, you just have to budget it. I can have a cheeseburger if I want, I just can't have one every day. That makes it practical and it keeps me from quitting. Diets are temporary and once you finish them there is nothing stopping you from packing on weight again. But I am really looking at this as a lifestyle. It is permanent (I hope).
My goal is to lose another 20 pounds and keep it off. So with that, I will leave you with a little healthy dessert idea:
Yummy Chocolate Pudding
1pkg sugar-free, fat-free instant chocolate pudding mix
2 cups cold skim milk
1/4 cup skim or part-skim ricotta cheese
1/2 tsp cinnamon
I am not a fan of artificial sweeteners but I really can't taste it in this... I have tried other flavors and this is the only one I like. The ricotta makes it very decadant and gives it a nice texture and the cinnamon really makes it special...It's that fun secret ingredient that people notice but can't identify. This is about 95 calories and 2 grams of fat in a 1/2 cup serving... much better than 260 calories and 13 grams of fat for 1/2 cup of Ben & Jerry's ice cream.
Congrats on your weight loss and journey towards health, Haley! Your pudding sounds good, and I want to share a mousse recipe with you! Let me know if you try it! :) I LOVE this stuff.
ReplyDeleteChocolate Mousse
1 1/2 cups walnuts, soaked overnight
1 1/2 cups raisins, soaked overnight (keep the soak water!)
1 avocado
4 Tbsp cocoa powder
1-2 tsp cinnamon
2 cups water
Soak walnuts and raisins overnight. Use enough water so that the nuts and raisins are covered.
By morning the nuts and raisins will have absorbed much of the water. Drain water and save in a measuring cup. If you do not have 2 cups of water, add more water so that you have 2 cups of liquid.
Place all ingredients a high-speed blender. Blend on high until smooth. Add additional liquid as necessary to make a pudding consistency. Refrigerate. Serve with fresh (or frozen) berries for garnish.
I used to like sweet stuff, but after 2 1/2 years of adjustments I am down to dark chocolate -85%+. My treat is usually airpopped popcorn and we cut the butter to a tiny bit mixed with organic canola oil and some natural sea salt. Even Athena loves it.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing that stands between anyone and their health is themselves. Once you see that fact the rest is just being nice to yourself and feeding youself nutritiously.
You've always been a winner so just keep it up.
Yummy Kristen. I will have to try that.
ReplyDeleteThanks Paul... Dark chocolate is very healthy....I'm not quite there yet, but I'm sure I will get adjusted to less sugar with time... I'm already finding I don't like butter/ fatty meat much at all now.