Ideal all the Way

Phase 3

2012-04-10T06:34:00.001-07:00

Well I went for my weigh in yesterday and I lost 4 more pounds. I am 2 pounds away from goal!!!! YAY!! So that means that I have to get out of my comfort zone for breakfast. As you know I am a HUGE fan of my coffee with Premade Vanilla drink. Well today I had to force myself to finish all the food! This is going to be a huge learning process. I did find that after I ate I was really full but I was not thinking about what I just ate I was thinking about what my day was going to do. I am not really a morning person so this is going to be a challenge for me to get up early and start with a big breakfast.

I want to hear some input from people that are on Phase3. How are things going for you? I have a recipe that I want to try for breakfast tomorrow. Over night Oats! I have seen it all over but I have not be able to try it! I will let you know how this goes! Have a great day!

Eating Healthy on a Budget Series Part 2

2012-04-05T17:38:00.000-07:00

Plan, Plan, Plan

The first part of this series is about planning. You should not go to the grocery store with out a list. When you go out with out a list you tend to put things into your basket because you might use it in something. Another thing you should do is never go to the grocery store hungry. This is definitely a part of planning before you go to the grocery store.

One of the first things you need to do is figure out your budget for food. One of the sites that I use for figuring these things out is http://www.extension.iastate.edu/foodsavings/. This site is really great. If you go to the planning section of it you can enter your information for your family and they will tell you how much you could spend a week and still have a healthy family. Here is what a screen shot of my budget said.

Plan your meals and snacks for the week according to the predetermined budget you set
Find recipes online
Make a list
Check you Sunday paper for coupons and sales
Find out if your store has a loyalty card
Find recipes that will stretch expensive foods into more then one meal

These are just some simple ways of planning. What ways do use to plan you menu for the week? Comment and let me know!

New Progress Pictures

2012-04-05T07:09:00.000-07:00

Here is my latest before and current picture. The picture on the left was taken on 4/1/12 (No it's not an April fools joke). I only have 6 pounds left to loose!

There is your short blub for the morning. I will be back later today with some information that I find useful, hopefully you do as well.

Eating Healthy on a Budget Series Part 1

2012-04-03T07:51:00.000-07:00

Part 1 of Eating Healthy on a Budget Series is 10 Tips for Eating Healthy on a Budget. One of my favorite websites to visit is www.choosemyplate.gov most of these tips are things that you will use in Phase4 but I thought that it is not just dieters on Phase1 that are hanging out here. So here is something for others that are on Phase4 and Maintenance.

10 Tips for Eating Healthy on a Budget

Plan Plan Plan
Get the Best Price
Compare and Contrast
Buy in Bulk
Buy in season
Convenience costs...go back to the basic
Easy on your wallet
Cook once eat all week
Get your creative juices flowing
Eating out

All of these tips are fairly simple to follow but you need to dedicate the time for these things. If you want to save $$ but stay healthy you need to take time and plan these things. I know you are thinking you are a planner but I am not. Even if you just sit down for 10 minutes a night and plan things out for a few days are are better off then if you do not plan at all and just wing it. You are more likely to keep the weight off if you are planning what you are going to eat and stick to your plan!

I have decided that I am going to take these 10 tips and make them my series. This is just a brief overview of what fun is to come with the second part of the series!

I hope these things help you to start Eating Healthy on a Budget. Stay tuned for Part 2 in our series.

Yummy Thrusday

2012-03-29T07:07:00.001-07:00

I was surfing the web and I found this recipe that looks oh so YUMMY!! I don't have any IP Potato packets at home so when I go in on Tuesday I will for sure be getting one to try this new recipe. If anyone has tried this one let me know how they turned out for you.

POTATO GNOCCHI
Ingredients

1/4 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 tsp. crushed garlic
1 egg
Salt & Pepper to taste
1 IP Potato Packet
1/8 tsp. water

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. This should make a paste consistency. Make you Gnocchi "balls" and pan fry in evoo.

So simple. I will put up some pictures of these once I make next week. Would be a great addition to a soup broth with some veggies for lunch! Let me know what you think about this recipe. It will also be posted in the recipes page. Enjoy!

What's your favorite?

2012-03-28T08:55:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to pop in here real fast and get your brains going for the day. I was wondering what your favorite IP food? Comment and let me know. I have plans for your comments in the near future!

Menu Monday

2012-03-27T13:02:00.001-07:00

Well I had an epic FAIL on Menu Monday. I can't get it to load into blogger. I am researching how to upload it on here! I promise I am trying to get it up. As soon as I get this problem solved I will get it posted. Sorry about the delay.

Weekend Overview

2012-03-26T11:21:00.001-07:00

Well I have not had a post since Friday, so sorry about that but I was busy taking the weekend off. I know what you are thinking you are just slacking off and didn't want to post. Actually I didn't want to do anything at all this weekend! I did nothing! LOL I watched SUPERNATURAL all weekend. I am a little addicted but that is ok. That is my pathetic way of saying sorry for not keeping you posted. I have some big plans for my post tonight. I will show you my menu for the week. I also have a surprise for Menu Mondays in the near future. Lets just say that I am almost on Phase3 and we know that I like to plan ahead. That is all I can say for now.

Just wanted to let you all know I did not forget about you but that I am still here and kicking just took a weekend to myself and now I am all rested and ready to go!

I will see you all later when I post Menu Monday! Enjoy!

Taco Seasoning

2012-03-23T08:06:00.000-07:00

So I the one thing that I have wanted a lot since starting IP is Taco Salad. I have not be able to find a Taco Seasoning in the store that did not have sugar in it. So what is the next best thing make your own Taco Seasoning, so that is just what I did. So here it is for you to enjoy and use!

IP Phase1 Taco Seasoning

4 Tbsp Chili Powder
3 Tbsp plus 1tsp paprika
3 Tbsp ground cumin
1 Tbsp plus 2 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

This is going to make more than what you will need for 1 pound of hamburger. When I do this I put about 3 to 4 Tablespoons of the seasoning and then add a little bit of water. You want to have some moisture in the pan so that it turns into a little bit of a sauce but not too much or it will be really runny taco meat. As soon as I make my next batch of taco season I will post you the pictures with a step by step (as if anyone needs it). Enjoy

Yummy Thursdays

2012-03-22T08:58:00.001-07:00

I want to start building up the recipes on here so I thought I will start a series that is going to force me to put up recipes. So I introduce to you Yummy Thursday. Every Thursday I will put up a new recipe. I am sure there will be some in there in between but this way you know there will be a recipe waiting for you on Thursdays.

For our first recipe it is something that I found on one of my FAVORITE websites. 3fatchicks.com It is a wonderful resource if you are starting out on IP.

This is such a good summer lunch that I could not help but post about it. You know I love simple recipes and this only has 4 ingredients and doesn't take long to make. This recipe is phase1 friendly, it does count as your restricted for the day so you have to keep that in mind. I say that it is a good lunch recipe because you are getting your 2 cups of veggies and and IP packet.

Rhubarb Crumble

3-4 cups uncooked Rhubarb
2 Tbls. WF Strawberry Syrup
1/2 Tbls. WF Pancake Syrup
1 Package of IP Maple Oatmeal

Cook your rhubarb until soft enough you can mush with a fork. Mash up rhubarb. Measure out your 2 cups of rhubarb and add both WF syrups mix well. Place into an oven safe baking dish. crumble the IP Maple Oatmeal over the top. Bake at 350 until brown on top. (Super yummy) I found this recipe on 3fatchicks.com

** Remember that this is going to be your restricted for the day. Great idea for lunch.

If you try the please comment and let me know what you think about it. I will write up a post about my cooking experience with this at a later time. I just wanted to get this idea out there since it is SO nice outside.

Don't forget this recipe and any others posted will be on the recipes page. Go check it out! If you have a good recipe that you want me to try and post about send it to me and I will try it and write about it!

Enjoy!

Tuesday Weigh In

2012-03-22T07:16:00.000-07:00

I know the title is kind of misleading today. It definitively is NOT Tuesday so why am I calling this post Tuesday Weigh In. Well .......I didn't weigh in on Tuesday like normal since I was out of town. I am weighing in tonight......AHHHH a night weigh in. I am ok with that though I had a nice relaxing weekend away.

So do you want to hear my results......Drum roll please....................
A loss of .25 pounds. I know I was a little disappointed but I am only human. I didn't cheat at all this week, I think that it had a lot to do with being off my schedule all weekend. So this week I decided that I am going to be 150% dedicated!

I Only have 9 pounds left!!

News Flash

2012-03-21T13:32:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to pop on here and let you guys know that I am ALMOST done with my progress pictures page. I am hoping to get it done tonight and up and ready for it's BIG reveal tomorrow! Stay tuned for updates.

On another note. I just wanted to say I am SOOO sorry about not updating things for the last couple of days. I was on vacation and things got away from me!

Have a wonderful afternoon.

Your in for a sweet treat.....

2012-03-21T10:24:00.002-07:00

Sweet treat is right. Everyday you are suppose to drink at least 64 oz. of water. Yes that seems like a lot but it really is not. I can drink that while I am at work during the day. So at night sometimes I want something else to drink. I know some coaches say that Crystal Light is fine and some say NO NO NO. Mine told me if I want it I can have 1 package a day. Well I did 1 package a day for a couple days and I feel like it affected my weight loss. So they told me another drink I could try LEMONADE! You are probably thinking no way can I have lemonade on Phase1. YES YES YES you can have lemonade on Phase!

You need 3 things

1.) Real Lemon lemon juice 4-5 Tablespoons

2.) Liquid Stevia 6-7 drops

3.) Water

All you have to do is mix the three ingredients together and you have 1 glass of lemonade that is Phase1 friendly.

Enjoy your new drink! Take it out and sit out on the deck on the next sunny day!

Surviving a trip

2012-03-16T17:00:00.000-07:00

OK. I know I did something wrong but I am not sure what I did. I had this post scheduled to show up while I was driving this weekend and it did not. Sorry there was such a lapse in my posting but here is my tips for taking a road trip.

Appropriate topic since I am leaving today to go home for the weekend. I want to help you be prepared for a trip. Weather it's a day trip or a week long trip. These 5 Tips should help you be successful on your trip.

**Surviving a Trip 101**

PLAN PLAN PLAN - If I did not stress this enough you need to have a plan for your trip. You can't expect things to just work out while you are away from home and away from your schedule. I took a trip when I first started IP. I did not plan and boy oh boy did I suffer. I didn't double check I had enough packets before I left, and I was short. I was so determined to not cheat that I starved the whole 8 hours home in the car. Like I said PLAN PLAN PLAN! I can not stress that enough!
DOUBLE CHECK - Make sure that you double check that you have enough packets for the trip. Don't make the same mistake I did. If you are going somewhere and it would be hard to make packets of stuff or you are unable to rinse out you shaker, buy pre-made drinks. I know that this doesn't sound fun for a trip but if you want to stay on track you do what you have to do!
DON'T FORGET ABOUT VEGGIES - This goes along with you planning. You need to make sure that you are going to be able to get all of your veggies while you are on your trip. If you know you are going to be sitting in a car for hours cut up some veggies get a little cooler and have them ready for when you ready to eat. When we are going home for a weekend I have my mom buy things before I get there so I know there are veggies there for me.
DON'T FALL BACK INTO BAD HABITS - I know you are thinking this really doesn't help you prepare for a trip but it does. The first time I went home for a trip we got in late and I was use to going there and we would snack as soon as we got there. Well this time I was on IP and I could not have those snacks and it was very hard to now eat them but I held my ground and didn't give into my appetite.
PACK EXTRA - You might be asking me why would I want to pack extra. I might be tempted to eat them if they are there. Would you eat the extra ones you have at home.....NO! These are there for if something happens. What if you get stuck somewhere for an extra day??? I would rather have extra packets then to have to improvise and not have a great loss for the week.

These seem basic but when you are excited about going somewhere and seeing new things or old friends you tend to forget that you are on a program that is very strict. I did one weekend and I will never do it again. The main thing I want to stress is BE PREPARED!!!

New Series

2012-03-15T12:13:00.001-07:00

I was sitting at work today and was thinking about how I need to start a series for the wonderful people that read my blog. I though the perfect series to start would be one about .... drum roll please....... Your menu. I am going to start "Menu Monday" every Monday I will post a Menu for the week that is Phase 1 friendly. Since I sit down and make my list for the week on Sunday why not share it with you on Monday. More to come about my menu planning. Stay tuned for Monday when the first edition will be out!

Have a wonderful day.

P.S. I am working on a button for it right now!

Walden Farms Review

2012-03-15T08:21:00.001-07:00

Since I use these products all of the time I thought I would review some of the products and my opinion on them. This post is in no way an opinion from anyone at Walden Farms, this is only my opinion and my taste-buds. Make sure you comment and let me know what your favorite WF products are and how you use them!

I just wanted to remind you that you can use WF on Phase 1 of IP but you need to make sure that you are staying within your serving sized and you should not be using it with every meal. Moderation that is one of the big things you are going to learn with IP. Enjoy my reviews and let me know what you like and dislike!

First product that I use all the time is the Original Barbecue Sauce

My person opinion about the WF Original Barbecue Sauce: Since I do a lot of chicken on the grill this is a staple in my kitchen. This is a product that I will use after I am off IP. It has a great flavor! The only down side I have on this product is that it is not super thick. Since I usually use it to dunk my chicken in after it is cooked it works really well for me because then I do not get too much sauce on my chicken.

I give WF Original Barbecue Sauce 4 Stars out of 5!

What is your favorite IP food?

2012-03-14T10:09:00.000-07:00

What is your favorite IP food? I know there are things on the program that I loved and then there were things on the program that I did not like one bit. I want to hear what you loved and what you disliked and why. I know that there are way more things that I like then I dislike but I know one of the things that I DO NOT like at all is the Pina Colada drink mix. I am not a huge fan of coconut and in a drink I thought I was going to gag. Now my FAVORITE things is the Apple Cinnamon Soy Puffs. When ever I eat these I want more, it is so dangerous.

Favorite

Least Favorite

Tell me what your favorite and least favorite products are!

Adventures in the Country

2012-03-13T08:58:00.003-07:00

So this might sound boring to some of you but to me this is the perfect way for me to wind down after a long day of work. I get home and hop on my bike and ride. I know you are thinking that sounds like too much exercise for Phase1 but I only go about 3 miles and I just take my time. I am usually gone for about 30 minutes and I can talk the whole time I am out there. Since we live out in the country there is usually not much traffic and so much to see. Last night while we were out ridding we saw 13 deer. I decided that I am going to start taking my camera with me so when I see a photo opportunity I can take it! Right now there is not much color, pretty brown right now. That is ok but I can't wait for summer when it starts to get green and crops start to grow.

Today's breakfast

2012-03-13T06:38:00.000-07:00

So I thought I would share with you what my breakfast looks like almost every day of the week. I like to have a quick breakfast that I can have either on the road or at work. I <3 Starbucks but I don't really like spending $4.00 a cup on iced coffee. So this is my solution....I get the Starbucks Via with tax for me it is $10.05 for 12 packages. If you do the math that is only $.84 a day for my coffee. Most days I only use one package but some days I want a little more flavor and I use two. I then add a little liquid Stevia and some of my IP pre-made vanilla drink. That is my simple on the go breakfast. What am I going to do when I have to make my breakfast and have all that food.

Sorry the pictures are not the best quality I took this with my phone and for some reason they don't come out that well.

Enjoy the day

My Motivation for Starting IP

2012-03-12T12:11:00.003-07:00

I guess though out my "adult" life I have never paid much attention to the things that I have been eating. I would eat whenever I wanted and whatever I wanted. I had to restrictions. I was on vacation in 2011 with my family and the girls took this picture together.

I looked at myself on the far right and didn't recognize the 24 year old that looked 6 months pregnant. I was mortified that is what I was walking around looking like. I was living in La Crosse WI at the time and one of my friends in Champaign IL was a provider for IP and he had to talked to me about it but I never did anything with it. The day I saw this picture I decided that as soon as I could I was going to start IP. Well some stuff happened and the next month we ended up moving down to Champaign IL and once we got settled I started IP. I started in August 2011 and in March 2012 I have lost a total of 91.75 pounds.

I take pictures at the beginning of each month. These help me to see my progress. The picture on the left is from August when I started the program. The picture on the right is from the beginning of February. I don't have an updated one with me today. I am going to post a whole section on my progress pictures.

When I look at these two pictures I do not see the same person. Everything on my body has changed. You can see my neck OMG it just amazes me. These are all the motivation that I need in order to keep going to get to my goal. My skin is better then it ever has been, I have so much more energy. I can not say enough good things about IP. I just thought you would like to see this and hopefully it can motivate you as much as they do me!

Have a great day!

Sorry about going MIA

2012-02-29T09:06:00.000-08:00

Sorry about being MIA for over a month. I started this blog and then starting getting a cold and then wedding planning got in the way. Yes I know that should not be an excuse but it is going to be mine today.

So WELCOME BACK!!

Yesterday was Tuesday and that means it is my weigh in day. I was sick and thought that maybe I would have an ok weight loss but was not expecting anything over maybe 2 pounds. Well I stepped on the scale and I lost..... drum roll please....... 3.75 pounds!! Yay I was excited. With yesterdays lost I hit my 90% and had the choice to start phase 2. I was so excited I was like "YES YES YES". Then I thought about it for a minute and took back my yes and said no.

I know you are probably thinking ARE YOU CRAZY LADY. You could start phase 2 and have meat two times a day. Well I have a good reason. I am still sick so I wanted to stay on phase 1 just one more week until I have overcome this darn cold. I talked to my doc. and he said that it was a good idea for me to stay on it one more week. It will just get me that much closer to my goal.

I only have 10 pounds left. 10 pounds. Every time I think about that I can't believe where I started and how far I have come. I am going to work tonight on getting my progress pictures loaded and my stats loaded. I have stuck to strict to this that I would rather not eat then eat off program.

Now that I am back and motivated to help you along in your journey through phase 1,2,3 and maintenance. As I go through these phases I will post as much information that I can to help you. I plan to put on some exercises on here as well and some recipes.

If you have ANY questions just ask. I will answer them if I know the answer if not then I will find out the answer. I am very good friends with my coach. I can call her any time day or night and she will answer me.

Enjoy your wonderful day. I hope that you have the same beautiful weather that I am having today 64 degrees and sunny! Makes me want to run out and buy that new swimsuit that I have been wanting!

Starting A little late

2012-01-19T06:20:00.000-08:00

I know that I am starting this blog a little late in my journey but I thought that other people could benefit from the things that I have learned in the past few months. I will post many recipes and hints. Feel free to email me with questions if you have them and I will get you an answer weather it is from me or my coach I will try and help as much as possible. I know that there are many people out there that struggle when they start and are looking for some guidance and I will try and help you as much as possible. I hope you enjoy what you find here and try many new recipes.