Are you ready for the longest post ever?
If you are new to my blog, and want to get caught up on all my 40 day Challenge posts click here to read my story, and if you haven't seen my before pictures yet, maybe you can go give me some words of encouragement on this post. I appreciate all the help and support I can get, thanks soooo much!!
I am linking this post over to one of my fav food blogs ever. Jen is a rockstar, for bringing all kinds of amazing ladies together, sharing healthy food every week. I am so happy to finally have something to share. Every Wednesday these ladies get together and share an entire day's worth of meals. SO MUCH FUN!!
If you are new to my blog, and want to get caught up on all my 40 day Challenge posts click here to read my story, and if you haven't seen my before pictures yet, maybe you can go give me some words of encouragement on this post. I appreciate all the help and support I can get, thanks soooo much!!
I am linking this post over to one of my fav food blogs ever. Jen is a rockstar, for bringing all kinds of amazing ladies together, sharing healthy food every week. I am so happy to finally have something to share. Every Wednesday these ladies get together and share an entire day's worth of meals. SO MUCH FUN!!
I was thinking I would post daily what I ate, and how the day went. However by the end of the day I am so worn out, and tired, I can't wait to go to bed.
Plus I've really tried to wake up EARLY everyday, so I need to go to bed early.
I think doing a weekly update would be easier for me, and even for you. Rather than looking through 40 posts, you can look through 4 and see every meal I've eaten throughout this challenge.
I hope you enjoy, and get an idea of how my week has gone so far :)
- Day 1/40
- Up at 5:15 - lemon water
- Yesterday I forgot to get a couple things from the store, so I had to wake up early to go get it. BTW need to remember nothing is open that early, so after going to both stores next to my house, I ended up going to Wal-mart, and picked up a few things.
- Needed to eat something so grabbed some almonds.
- Took a quick morning picture. Lovely right? Puffy eyes, and messy hair! I really want to make it a point to TRY to look more presentable every day. If you look at my GOALS,,, you will see that doing my hair, and wearing lip gloss is on there. Reality is this is what I look like every morning, and I will continue to take a pic every morning to see if I can start working on that goal. In the mean time, I'm being honest here, and trying to show you the real me. This challenge is all about being honest and truthful to myself. I need to be accountable, and if this is how I look then I need to accept it or change it, right? I want to look better, and I know I can!
- Breakfast 7:28 am - 2 hours after waking up. My plan was to eat within 30 minutes.
- 1 chicken sausage
- 3 scrambled eggs
- onions/ spinach/ mushrooms
- black beans
- 1/2 avocado
- hot sauce
- green tea
- This breakfast was so heavy, I barely ate it all. My goal is to eat 30 grams of protein within 30 minutes of waking up. It was tough to finish, but I ate it.
- Snack 12:08 pm - not hungry, but time to eat again.
- Yogurt
- Almond milk
- Strawberries
- Spinach
- Banana
- Raw agave
- Very tasty shake, and full of protein. Much easier to "eat" than breakfast :)
- Lunch 3:08 - Trying to eat every 3-4 hours. This was a delicious salad!!
- Leftover chicken 65
- Romaine lettuce
- Avocado
- Tomato
- Cucumber
- Oil and vinegar, salt and pepper
- Dinner 8:37pm - Late but tasty. Just have to figure the timing out, hope it gets easier.
- Turkey Chilli
- Beans
- Ground Turkey
- Onions
- Chilli seasoning
- Onions and a sprinkle of cheese
- Day 2/40
- Up at 5:11 - Lemon Water
- Good Morning!
- Breakfast 6:25am - Still an hour late.
- 3 boiled eggs
- mushrooms, spinach, garlic, onions
- black beans
- avocado
- tomato
- cucumber
- Keep those almonds handy. These saved me for real. I can't believe just a few almonds can hold you over so well.
- Snack 9:11
- Snack 10:29 - Raining and cold, didn't feel like a shake, wanted something hot.
- leftover chilli
- cucumber, tomato
- green tea
- Lunch 1:18pm - Shake
- Yogurt
- Almond milk
- Strawberries
- Spinach
- Banana
- Raw agave
- Snack 3:27 - This is why you don't keep tempting foods around. Banana chips, yummy.
- 2 slices of canadian bacon
- Just "HAD" to have some banana chips, so it took a lot to limit myself. I ate them slowly, and had some protein with it. I ate a couple almonds as well, just to keep munching on something until my craving went away. Must admit I think I ate a couple more in addition to this, but did pretty well considering how tasty and addictive they are.
- Dinner 4:38 - Trying not to eat a late dinner anymore. This was early, but better than late.
- chicken breast
- bell peppers, onions
- pinto beans
- Totally yummy, I loved it!
- Snack 7:45 - light snack before bed.
- Day 3/40
- Up at 5:56am - lemon water
- Good morning!
- Breakfast 6:32am - Totally awesome, at it within 30 minutes of waking up :)
- 3 scrambled eggs
- black beans
- 4 pieces canadian bacon
- bell peppers, onion
- Made it to the gym, YAY!!
- Got my official starting weight, wish I had taken it on Monday, oh well.
- If you'd like to read more about my starting weight, and the rest of my numbers check out this post : MY Starting Weight - SCARY NUMBERS
- Snack 11:08 - almonds and dark chocolate after yoga class.
- Snack 12:38 - another snack after relaxing in the sauna, and hot tub. Ready for lunch.
- Snack 1:33pm - 4 slices of turkey breast.
- Went to my moms and this was the only thing I could quickly eat to get some protein in.
- Lunch 2:20pm - FINALLY, I was seriously hungry for some real food.
- Turkey soup
- Carrots
- Cabbage
- Dinner 7:30 - I was looking forward to this dinner. YUMMY!
- Rajma (indian spiced beans)
- Spinach
- Salmon
- Tomato/onion salad
- Buttermilk for the beans
- Day 4/40
- Up at 4:52am - lemon water
- Had to wake up early today to help my youngest with a project for school. I thought it was due on Friday, and was wrong.
- Good Morning!
- Breakfast 6:10 - leftovers
- Chicken and bell peppers
- beans
- 2 eggs
- avocado
- Starbucks 8:30 - Green tea. Getting ready to go to the kids school to help.
- Snack 10:45 - Heading to the gym after volunteering at school.
- Lunch 2:04pm - totally starving after hot yoga, and sauna.
- MY FAVORITE asian tuna salad.
- Picking up kiddos for swim class, and heading right back to the gym.
- Snack 3:35 - Had to eat again before heading home. Long night tonight.
- Egg Salad
- Dinner 10:00pm - Tired, hungry, and exhausted after 4 hours of TKD testing.
- Good news, we all passed and got a new belt.
Day four over. What a day, I was so tired, couldn't wait to go to sleep. Luckily everything was closed by the time our testing for TKD was done otherwise I would have probably eaten something I should not have. It's getting easier to eat often, and my almonds are awesome. I have been drinking lots of water, green tea, and peeing a lot, lol.
- Day 5/40
- Up at 6:33am - lemon water
- Naturally didn't want to wake up this morning. SO tired, and sore!!
- Good Morning!
- Breakfast 7:29am - No veggies, or beans, lots of protein. Kind of rushing this morning.
- 3 scrambled eggs
- 3 pieces canadian bacon
- After yoga class. Feeling good, getting ready for sauna, and hot tub!
- Snack 10:34am- after yoga, quick snack.
- Lunch 12:31pm- First time eating bread this week. Gluten Free UDI bread, very tasty!!
- Turkey Avocado sandwich
- Spinach carrot salad
- Oil Vinegar dressing
- Snack 4:30pm
- Organic edammame (shared the bowl with everyone)
- 1 slice oh canadian bacon, my kid took one
- Snack 5:00pm- My kid opened a yogurt, and didn't eat it. It looked so yummy so I ate it :)
- Dinner 7:00pm- I actually took a pic of my food with my waitresses phone, but for some reason it never went through. My phone was dead. :(
- We went out to eat, my first time at a restaurant this week. THAI / CHINESE
- I usually love some fried rice, and have some low mein, and some soup, and those crispy noodle things they bring you before your meal comes out.
- I did good!!
- I ate 1/2 of a chicken lettuce wraps appetizer.
- Took 3 or 4 or 5 bites of mongolian beef, ate all the scallions, and one bite of orange chicken. The kids enjoyed themselves, and I felt full, but not too much. I drank my green tea, and was so happy with myself.
So my friends, if you've made it this far, WOW!!! I know that was a lot to take in, but I am really trying to be accountable for everything I eat. I need to track it, so I know what I'm doing.
I hope it's given you some idea of what to eat should you choose to join the challenge with me.
I know if you look at my PLAN this week, I didn't quite stick to it. I didn't actually get a chance "cook" this week. It was busy, and hectic, and I'm surprised I managed to eat ok despite that.
With the exception of the GF UDI bread on Friday for lunch, I have not gone near any bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, milk. I have been eating yogurt, and buttermilk.
I have not felt the need to eat any "carbs" and so I won't next week either. I will take it one week at a time and if needed even one day at a time.
I have not felt hungry to the point where I wanted to eat things I'm not supposed to. If I got hungry I grabbed some almonds and drank my water or green tea and I felt just fine.
If any of you are thinking of giving this a try, I urge you to go for it. I was kind of scared on Monday, thinking it was going to be REALLY hard, but each day it did get easier.
I know you all are super curious about the numbers. Did I lose anything?
I am going to write another post on all that later tomorrow after I go to the gym again.
So far, in the past 3 days I have dropped something. So I hope to see that continue. :) Most importantly I feel GOOD, and I proved it to myself that I CAN DO IT.
If you have any questions, PLEASE ask, I'm here to help you :)
Hi Bella, stopping by to say hi. Congrats on even wanting to get healthy! I lost 35 lbs by substituting 1/2 of my regular portions with veggies, and had veggies for my snacks, along with a few almonds. I also increased my activity level a lot. I just made sure I was moving all the time, I would get up from TV watching every commercial and walk or do lounges down the hall. Good luck to you!
ReplyDeleteConnie what great tips. How long did it take you to reach your goal?
DeleteThis past week has def been interesting. I've eaten so much, but not felt full, and not really felt hungry either, despite the lack of carbs.
ALmonds have really saved me for sure, they are amazing!
I've also picked up my activity level this week, and naturally it feels GREAT!!!
Thank you so much for leaving me some feedback, and wishing me luck. I really do need all the support I can get :)
It was about a year and a half. Sounds long but now eating better is my life style so that's a great habit to have. I didn't actually exercise or work out but I do in home day care and that is a work out! I ate whenever I felt hungry because if I don't, I lose control and eat wrong. I just keep lots of frozen veggies in freezer and would zap a bowlful whenever I wanted to eat. The great thing about the veggies, I did feel full after eating them. And having frozen around made it super easy to prepare. After a while cravings for the wrong things disappeared and it all became easier. I don't eat desserts really as I am GF. But I do love ice cream and I had that while on this diet too. I am sooooo happy I stuck with it, I feel so much better and my blood pressure is down to normal.
DeleteConnie, good for you!! I can honestly say that I've always eaten rather healthy. Lots of organic, hardly any prepared, processed food, lots of fish, not much red meat, etc.
DeleteThe problem for me, was HARDLY no physical activity. Despite running after my kids all day, and cleaning house, it just wasn't enough. I started practicing yoga about 5 years ago, and I have loved it ever since. I've just taken too many breaks and I don't want that anymore. Enjoying it as much as I do, I should not let anything get in my way of practicing it, and as a mom, more often that not I let everyone else come before me.
I prefer having frozen veggies as well, so easy, and practical.
I'm sure you noticed I was practically GF this past week, and loved every minute of it. I don't think I need to be, never been tested, but don't think I have any issues. I just wanted to try it out, and honestly think I could easily continue this. Just need to figure out what to do when my mom makes fresh homemade bread, and what about our beloved cakes? I am a baker after all, cakes is what we do, lol.
Thanks again for stopping by and sharing some wonderful tips with me. I really appreciate it :)
It sounds like you're on the right track! I lost quite a bit of weight several years ago and keeping it off has been a challenge but it's possible. Your meals look like a great balance of protein and veggies.
ReplyDeleteThank you Mary :)
DeleteI've tried very hard to stay accountable, and think I've done a pretty good job considering my busy schedule, and hardly any prep.
Hopefully as the weeks go by, it will get easier and easier. Maybe one day it can come natural to just eat healthier all the time. Not that I ate bad before, but I've been very aware of portions this week, and actually EATING often, which is so important for our metabolism.
Good luck to you Bella! Always hard to make a big change. Make sure you find some non-food ways to reward yourself as we so often use our favorite naughty foods as rewards, and certainly you deserve rewards! Just nice healthy ones :-)
ReplyDeleteI have never really rewarded myself with food so to speak anyway, so this should not be that hard. I'm already thinking a nice massage, pedicure, and new pots and pans are in the works. Not that I want to wait the entire 4o days for either, lol.
DeleteI feel incredibly lucky to be able to relax in the spa after a good workout, and chill in the sauna. That is TOTALLY a treat for me and counts as a daily reward for doing good. I love it :)
Thanks for your sweet comment, and yes the hardest part of this challenge by far was simply STARTING it!!!
Great for you:) You are off to such a great start!! I believe the first few days are the hardest, trying to get into a routine and find out what works for you. It seems my stomach shrinks and I feel fuller with less after the first week:) I am working out (around a bum knee) and watching my diet. Switched to loads of veggies and low fat proteins:) I had to stop easting yogurt, I think the sugar was getting to me:( I have lost 7.5 lbs in 3 weeks. Of course I was a beer drinker and when I cut out alcohol, the pounds dropped faster. Of course I know it will be a little harder to lose in the next weeks but I feel so much better. It's shocking how 5-7 lbs make such a difference:) I will be hopping over and keeping up with your journey:)
ReplyDeletePS Love to invite you to join Lets Get Social Sunday and link up all your social sites to meet new friends and gain more followers:) (goes live at 4am est every Sunday!!)
Have a great day and you go girl!!!
Look at you, beer drinking mama.... I love beer too, lol. Although I should really start drinking wine, they say it's healthy for you right? Luckily I don't drink beer often, so that's not really a problem for me.
DeleteI can't imagine the size of my tummy because I've always had a HUGE appetite, and could eat lots of food, thats for sure. This past week I've been eating a lot, but never felt so full, like before. Neither have I felt hungry, and really haven't had any cravings, which is AWESOME... this would be so much harder if I was constantly craving certain foods.
I love my yogurt, and buttermilk, and eat it daily. Not so much fruit yogurt, just regular plain yogurt. We eat it with most of our meals, spicy Indian food :)
Almost 8 pounds Evelyn, that's SUPER.... I think I am down about 3 if my calculations are correct. I'll check tomorrow at the gym. I don't have a scale at home, lol.
You sound like a super fun lady, and I'm glad we met today. Thanks for your kind words, and I really hope we keep up with each others progress. Just reading everyones sweet comments has really made my night!!
Hi Bella, way to go on your first week!!
ReplyDeleteI have a gluten allergy so I eat Udi's bread all the time and love it, it's by far my favorite gluten free brand!
Keep up the good work! You could try making kale chips, I don't have a recipe but they are healthy and kale is great for you!
Thanks for stopping by my blog earlier today!
Beth @ The First Year Blog
Thank you Beth,
DeleteI've never tried GF bread, and like I said Udis was quite tasty. Tasted like real bread to me, even smelled great, all toasted up for my sandwich. I got that at the gym, and glad I tried it.
I do want to try making kale chips, totally healthy, and hopefully my kids will love them too :)
So happy you stopped by, thanks for the sweet comment!!
Hey Bella! Wow you looked happier and happier as the week progressed and your food looked wonderful. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks for stopping by my blog! Following you on FB and cheering you on!
~Kristi@Let This Mind Be in You
Thanks Kristi,
DeleteLast week was sure interesting, I'm glad its over, and I'm looking forward to this coming up week.
This weekend I took it easy, and didn't do as good as I had hoped, but I just needed to relax a bit, my body is so sore from all the workouts last week, lol.
Thank you for stopping by, and for the kind words :)
Thanks for your sweet comment on my blog, Bella! What a joyful spirit you have.
ReplyDeleteI'm so impressed with your ambition to go after this goal full throttle. I actually felt inspired to eat healthier and exercise more after reading this post. My husband and I have a chart where we keep track of our workouts...and we have rewards if we exercise at least three times / week. I'm actually really proud of us for keeping it up for several months now. (In fact, we might need to increase it to 4x/week.)
My main problem is eating sweets! I have such a sweet tooth and often crave sugar. I probably need to cut sugar out of my diet cold turkey...but I'm not sure I can do it. I haven't considered eating almonds as a snack...might have to try that out.
Anyway, I'm so impressed by your strong start with week 1. Keep going, girl! You can totally do this.
Hugs,
Lauren
Hi Laren,
DeleteYou are seriously cute, and sweet, and very organized, I love it. I just read your menu planner post, and hello,,,,, great job on that. Totally awesome. I need to do that too, only I need all my meals on there. My little one hates when I'm the only one picking out what to eat, it's so funny. So I know my kids would love to have those "choices", even if it's all moms recipes in the end, lol.
Working out has been truly my hardest challenge. I know we eat really darn good, but I just haven't ben active at all. Not good for a 30 something year old, with three kids. Not good!
My mom and I bake cakes, and so needless to say I've been around that my whole life. Thankfully I don't bake much at home, and if we eat the occasional cookie or brownie, thats pretty much the extent of it, but I sure do love my cakes, and pastries, and you better believe we have the most delicious stuff for EVERY occasion possible.
Here is one tip for you, besides the almonds. If you feel a sweet tooth coming on, eat an AVOCADO.... like the whole thing, or at least half of one, with a spoon. Sprinkle on some salt, pepper if you must, or lemon or whatever, but just scoop it out, and eat it with a spoon. It will curb your appetite, AND your sweet tooth. It's pretty much amazing!!
Thanks again for stopping by, and I hope you do again. See ya girl:)
Good Morning Bella,
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for stopping by to say hello. Your have a big challenge but looks like you are well on your way, great job! Hope you have a great week and thanks for sharing.
Miz Helen
Good morning to you Miz Helen,
DeleteCan I just say how cute you are, I wish we were neighbors, I'd love to sit down with you and have a cup of tea :) You have the most inviting warm smile, and it's so refreshing to see, can't help but smile right back at you!!
I love the background behind Full Plate Thursdays. I love hearing about the good old days, even despite the hard times, everyone just found the best in all situations, and it's so inspiring!!
Nothing is better than having a meal with great friends and loved ones. EVen the simplest of foods taste so much better with great company!
Thanks for stopping by today, and yes the challenge is big, especially my PLANS for it, but after only the first week, I know that like all things in life, I will have to adjust. I'm always a big go getter, and I tend to go overboard with my plans. Maybe one day I'll reach them all, but for now I'm just happy that I managed to START, and hopefully by my birthday I'll have something wonderful to report!!
Hope to see you again soon!!
Hi
ReplyDeletegreat blog! thanks for visiting me and for your sweet comment,following your back
thegoodsalad.blgspot.com
Thank you Deanna :)
DeleteGood luck girl and keep it up! I love the eating every 3-4 hours, could make you feel less hungry on a diet.
ReplyDeleteJessica, yes for sure, eating often has really helped so much!! The first couple days I was literally FORCING myself to eat, but now my body is so ready for food, haha.
DeleteThanks Bella for visiting me and for your sweet comment. Wow, that's a great challenge to get healthy! Best of luck! Have a great day!
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by, and the sweet words :)
DeleteThank you for inviting me. :-) Looks like your meals are pretty healthy. My only comment would be that chocolate is great but just read the label a lot of chocolate are high in sugar and fat. Good luck!!!
ReplyDeleteI hear ya on the chocolate, but dang it tasted so good, lol.
DeleteI will try and find some BETTER chocolate, I doubt that hersheys dark chocolate was the best choice, but at least it was dark, right?
Thanks for stopping by, and for the kind words:)
Hey Bella,
ReplyDeleteThanks for inviting me over. I'm now following your journey. I do something a little similiar. I don't eat grains, potatoes, or rice. I keep my diet as low carb as possible, also no sugar. I have found that grains and sugar cause lots of inflammation and feel much better if I don't eat them. Good luck
Have a great week.
Debi
Hi Debi,
DeleteThanks so much for stopping by and for following me :)
Bless your heart, you have much more willpower than I do. I am almost 100%sure that I could not stay away from carbs like that, especially long term. Even towards my second week I was craving them, lol.
Sugar also, hmmmm.... maybe I could incorporate agave, or honey, I love both, so this one might not be AS hard for me. However there is nothing better than having some yummy dessert, oh gosh. Luckily I've been ok with the sugar thing so far. With a few small exceptions, hehe.
Hopefully we can chat some more, I'd love to hear how you made the change, if it was easy, hard, and how long have you been eating this way. What are your go to recipes?
Thanks again Debi!!
Hey Bella. Thanks for visiting my blog. Let me know how you like the Detox water I posted. Good luck on your 40 day challenge. Come back and visit me sometime tomorrow afternoon sometime because I plan to post(if I can fit it in) another healthy goodie you might love. see ya soon.
ReplyDeleteHey Lisa,
DeleteI have yet to try the water, lol. I bought some cucumbers this weekend, of course I have lemons, and was going to buy some mint, but then I remembered my friend has tons of it growing in her garden, and thought I'd get it from her, and still haven't done it, haha.
Should have just bought some at the store, hehe. Anyway, she's hooking me up with roots so I can have my own little stash hopefully soon. She says it grows like crazy!!
I'm headed over now to check out your new healthy goodie tip :)
See ya girl!!
Way to go beautiful!!! You are honestly impressing me over here! So committed!!
ReplyDeleteOh and I have another blog (a year LATER!) so here it is!
lemonsandsnickers.blogspot.com
Why hello my beautiful sweet friend. Gosh I've missed ya :)
DeleteSo you've been secretly writing another blogs, and never told me, lol. You should advertise it on your other blog, and vise versa. Don't keep it a secret girl. You know we would love to support you in both places, and at the very least give us the option silly, lol.
But seriously, hope you are well. Sounds like you are !!
Thanks for the sweet words, they make so much of a difference. All the support I've been getting is incredible :)
Take care mama, talk to you soon!
Hi Bella,
ReplyDeleteAm so glad that I came across your blog. You are such a motivated person and it is so encouraging to read your posts. Any time I need to stick to my diet plans (which my mind by the way has a very convenient way of forgetting ;)), I just have to come here.
I love it that you have detailed what you have been up to like this. It would help you to keep track of course, but more than that, it would help other people as well.
Hope you will achieve your goals without much difficulty. I will be dropping in from time to time :)
Between, a bit over the ideal weight or not, you look beautiful!
Have a great week ahead!
Priya,
DeleteYou are so sweet :)
I can't seem to find a single picture of you anywhere on your blog, lol. Bless your heart, so I don't know what you look like. Put a picture up girl :)
It has been kind of a pain being so meticulous with the picture taking, but it has been FANTASTIC to look at already. I love that I am being accountable for everything I do, and actually documenting it, so you all can see as well. It has helped me from eating MORE, when something was really good, or snacking on things that maybe I should not have.
I also hope I achieve my goal without much difficulty, seriously hope for that :)
You take care girl, talk to you soon!!
Hi Bella,
ReplyDeleteLooks like you are off to a great start, keep up the good work, and I do know that sometimes it is work. Hope you are having a fabulous weekend and thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
Hi Miz Helen,
DeleteThank you for checking in on me. I really loved your party, it had so much wonderful food. Good for you for throwing such a fabulous party :)
Have a wonderful day my friend!