Measurement Monday!

I am going to attempt to keep accountable by weighing in and recapping my week every Monday. With that being said, here we go!

Weekly Recap:

Weight: -3 lbs.!!! (Not bad for one week!)

Average steps per day: 10,716

Number of days hit 10,000 steps: 5

Number of days exercised: 6

Number of days under calorie limit: 5

Number of days eating 5 servings of fruit/vegetables: 5 

The worst "step" day was the day after I only got 3 hours of sleep at night. I ended up taking a 2.5 hour nap in the middle of the morning and then with the boys' baseball game and grocery shopping didn't have time to make it up with a long walk. I still walked over 7,000 steps that day, but did not hit my goal. The other day that I didn't hit that goal, I was very close (within 500 steps) and the day before was my highest day of almost 15,000 steps. I am going to continue to strive to hit that 10,000 step goal every day.

I am also very proud of myself and the choices I made during a social event on Saturday. I normally make horrible decisions when I am at a social gathering and over-indulge with the excuse that it is only one day a month that I am at an event like this. This time, I didn't eat a single chip, ate mostly fruits and vegetables as the sides, and brought bbq chicken for me instead of the normal hotdog. I even ended up sharing my bbq chicken with one of my boys and didn't even touch the second piece that I brought along. I was craving one of the casseroles that were there, so I took 2 bites and then left the rest alone. I did have a single serving of dessert and 2 sodas, which is where I really need to work harder next time. I knew that was going to be the most difficult for me to resist since I love sugar and rarely have soda and there is an abundance of that at these events. 

Goals for the week:

1. Back off on nighttime snacking. I love eating popcorn or lowfat ice cream at night while relaxing and watching TV. Right now it is part of my wind-down routine. I usually save my calories so that I can have that snack, but I am hoping to cut those calories in half this week. I am going to try to make healthier choices like eating carrots with a tablespoon of light ranch dip or a piece of fruit. When I am craving something sweet, I will try a nonfat yogurt instead of ice cream.
2. 10,000 steps EVERY day and 15,000 steps at least twice this week. I have seen that 10,000 steps really isn't that difficult for me to achieve. I regularly hit 8,000 without even trying. So, I am stepping up the goal slightly to see if I can hit it. I need to try and make small changes in my lifestyle in order for me to lose weight, and this one seems reachable and doable for me.
3. Workout 7 days. I need to make time, even if it is for only 10-15 minutes. If I am super busy like I was on Sunday, or really tired, I can still do Wii Fit for 10 minutes or go for a quick walk up my street. The problem is remembering that when I am exhausted and just want to sit down and do nothing.
4. Remember that soda is NOT an option... PERIOD! I need to be proactive with bringing unsweetened iced tea or water with me wherever I go so that I am not tempted to go through a drive thru when I am thirsty.
5. Be in bed (and on my way to sleeping) at 11 pm every night. Not 11:15, not 11:30, not midnight. I am exhausted a lot and part of that is that I am only getting between 6 and 7 hours a night, if I have no interruptions from little ones having nightmares, needing cuddles, or needing a drink of water. My body does best at about 9 hours a night. I have more energy with eating more healthily, but still not enough to make it happily through my day.

The good news: I am at the lowest weight that I have been in a year! I still have a lot to go, but May of last year was when the eating really seemed to get out of control for me and the regular exercise went out the window. Now, I am back on track and off to a good start.