Day 137 - An Interview With Matt

Meet Matt. He is a Bachelor's student at The Culinary Institute of America, having completed his A.O.S. in Baking and Pastry Arts. Like me : )

Matt and I, unbeknownst to the other, began our weight loss journeys one day apart this past April--each of us on a quest to feel better about ourselves. This week I sat down and talked with Matt about the 20 weeks since taking charge of his future; here's his point of view.

Kara: What was it that helped you make that decision to do it (losing weight) now, in such an inhospitable environment (culinary school)?

Matt: Well, to be perfectly honest with you, I was lonely. I wanted a girlfriend. It had nothing to do with health or anything, I just wanted to have a girlfriend.

Kara: What was the first thing you decided to change or address?

Matt: Definitely my eating habits. Being at school you can get carried away. There are platters of food out and it's like 'I'm going to get a little bit of this, and a little bit of this and little of that.' And before you know it, it just ridiculous amounts of food.

Kara: Being here, for me, I was knew what days were which menu in certain kitchen and looked forward to them- they were great... What are some of your pitfalls?

Matt: Fried chicken, when K-16* did it. That and burgers--I'd get burgers constantly, and now that I think about it, it was terrible. A lot of red meat.

Kara: Obviously, as chefs, we need to taste our own food before we send it out to people. But it's easy to get carried away. What foods were triggers for you?

Matt: Boredom. Just boredom.Well, Napoleons too, definitely and eclairs. I love eclairs. Eclairs are good. And baking and finishing! Oh geez... anything that just came out over-done or under-done would be under my station to eat later. I had a 'garbage' bains marie, and an 'I'm going to eat it later' bains marie. It was bad.

Kara: There is a lot of healthy food here, but not necessarily fit for someone who is trying to lose weight. So how do you find a fit meal here? 

Matt: Well, you get a meal and you fit it to what you're doing. Yesterday I got a turkey sandwich for lunch and just ate the turkey and cheese. And I try to eat salads. I got a sirloin salad but without the dressing. So that's better.

Kara: Do you find certain foods help stave off hunger better, especially with eating more vegetables and fewer carbs?

Matt: Well I try to eat more small meals, and then snack during the day on things like broccoli. I really like broccoil. But veggies are what I try to eat to keep away from hunger...and away from the dessert table.

Kara: Are there foods that you're trying to keep to a minimum?

Matt: I've tried to totally eliminate carbs, and fats and sugars. But, you know, once a week I'll have a petite gateau. I try not to have one, but usually I end up having one.

Kara: Do you find that allowing yourself to have some of those types of foods helps your efforts to be more sustainable?

Matt: Oh yeah, without a doubt. Back in high school I tried not to eat any of it, and when I did I'd think "I ruined it" and that's a bad way to think. I learned that in psychology- what's it called? Catastrophizing?

Kara: Yup. All or nothing.

Matt: And that's not good, then you end up hating yourself for eating that one thing and really, that one thing doesn't make that much of a difference in the long run....

 *K-16 is a quantity production kitchen at The Culinary Institute of America, serving students during dining hours.

Read the rest of my interview with Matt on Monday.
Tomorrow: Weigh In day... Did I get back on track after last weeks gain? 

Day 136 - Healthy Pizza? Yes - It's Possible!

My love for steel-cut oats pulled through yesterday. I changed my breakfast up a little since I wasn't feeling satisfied throughout the day, and the oats helped today. No ravenous hunger and I cut down on the quantity of food I took with me to school. Good day!

Now for the pizza! I changed my dinner up last night, too, and I would like to share it with you (not the actual pizza, it might go bad in the mail). I was in the mood for avocado all day, but I had already prepared chicken and sauteed zucchini for the whole weeks worth of dinners. I'm eatin' the zucchini--I love it--but it shall remain separate from it's amigo, the chicken.

Avocado Chicken Pizza - made with salsa

        Avocado Chicken Pizza

• 5oz. (1/5 of a prepared package) fresh pizza dough
• 1/4 cup salsa (I like Escabeche style)
• 3oz. grilled chicken breast, chopped
• 1/4 cup mexican style shredded cheese
• 1tsp. olive oil
• Green bell pepper to taste
• 1/2 of a small avocado, sliced

1. Stretch dough to a rectangle 12" x 5" on a greased sheet tray (or silcone baking mat).
2. Spread the salsa evenly over dough.
3. Sprinkle chicken over the salsa, then the cheese over the chicken.
4. Add bell peppers.
5. Bake according to the directions on the dough package.
6. Top with sliced avocado and drizzle with olive oil.
7. Enjoy!

(This makes a large single serving and totals 13 PP if you're my visiting Weight Watchers family! It also provides: 1 serving heart healthy oils, 1-2 servings veggies, and lean protein.)

This is easily one of the best things to have entered my mouth recently. It wasn't planned out, it wasn't a recipe I saw elsewhere. It was just a creative combination of what I was craving, what I had on hand, and what GHGs I still had to get in for the day. And let me tell you... WOW!

Tomorrow: My interview with Matt- a fellow culinary student successfully dropping extra pounds. A guy's perspective.

Day 135 - Me and My Steel Cut Oats

Have I told you how much I love steel cut oats? If I haven't, let me declare to the world my undying affections for those little bundles of chewy, tender, wholesome goodness! Prepared with organic skim milk (yes- I'm an organic milk kind of gal) and served over a tablespoon or two of creamy peanut butter is one of my favorite morning meals.

Why am I pining over my beloved steel cut oats? Because my meal plan for the week is in need of a makeover. I'm not satisfied throughout the day and need to reconfigure my meal plan that I had laid out for the week. Don't get me wrong, I've stuck to it faithfully but to ward off an overreaction to feeling deprived I need to address the fact that my body is not being given what it needs.

So let's start at the very beginning. It's a very good place to start. I promise I won't break into song, but I will change my breakfast. This morning. Out with the old (cereal) and in with the new (oats). I'll let you know how it goes. In the mean time, watch Chef Keith Snow prepare these yummy oats!

(While his serving suggestion at the end looks tempting I will resist! Too many points that aren't worth it to me. Peanut butter. Just peanut butter.)

Day 134 - Hand Over Your Lunch!

My lunches this week are following the same convention as the breakfasts I talked about yesterday- I'm being repetitive but I don't mind if it will get my butt back on track. Everyday, while I'm letting my egg whites sizzle away in a hint of safflower oil, I begin composing the midday eats that accompany me to school. Yes, I take lunch to school-culinary school. I do in fact see the immense irony in this, no need to point it out. Let's move on.

Middle of the day tends to be about quick and satisfying as far as food goes. I pack a simple sandwich of whole wheat bread, extra lean deli ham, American cheese and yellow mustard rather precariously in my nice bright pink ('overly expensive' according to my husband) handbag. The sandwich always brings it's friend String Cheese along.
I then ask my banana/peanut butter sandwich if it would like to join the traveling party (it always responds in the affirmative). Here I use the term 'sandwich' lightly: it does not include bread-- my relationship with carbs needs a time out, if you'll recall from this past Sunday. I slice the banana lengthwise like you would for a banana split, then I lovingly spread 2 Tbsp. of peanut butter over one half and top it with the remaining slice of banana. Soooooooooo good! It's a wonder this snack makes it to campus ever, not an easy feat.
Lastly, depending on which schedule day it is, I may bring an afternoon snack with me. I love hummus, the tomato and basil variety to be specific. And I discovered that the best veggie to dip into hummus happens to be the greatly under-appreciated green bell pepper. Though not as vibrant or fun as it's red, orange and yellow cousins, it seems to be the least sweet which compliments the rich and almost sweet flavor of the hummus excellently.

He was watching me lick my lips taking this picture. Poor guy. He knew what was coming.

Later this week: A Guys Perspective- Talking with my friend Matt, another culinary student on a successful quest to drop more than a few pounds.

Day 133 - What's For Dinner

As I mentioned yesterday, I have planned out my meals for the entire week. The only short coming: eating the same things, each meal, everyday. I'm not terribly opposed, but many people would be (I know, it's boring, lacking variety, etc...). So I'm going to let you in on a little secret that makes these plans not only manageable but exciting!

Starting with 4oz. sauteed chicken breast, 1/2 cup of sauteed zucchini, mozzarella and Parmesan (all of which are completely yum-o to begin with) we can gussy it up in a different way each night of the week. Try this:

• Served with cheeses melted, and half of a garden fresh tomato, garnished with a 'just cut' sprig of basil.
•  Tuck a bed of bibb lettuce and tomato slices into two pita halves, add warmed chicken, squash and cheeses, drizzle with light balsamic dressing.
• Prepare 1oz. fresh whole wheat pasta, drizzled with extra virgin olive oil and a crushed clove of garlic. Toss with chicken, squash and cheeses.
• Spread basil pesto over a pre-packaged flat bread or pizza crust, top with chicken, squash then the cheeses and make it toasty in the oven for a great take on pizza.
• Top 1/2 cup brown rice with the chicken and squash; for a little extra crunch add half a cup of pico de gallo into the rice.

Each of these variations provides at least 2 servings of veggies, 1 serving of heart healthy oil and 4oz. of a lean protein.Oh! And yumminess,  that's the most important part : )

There are so many other ways to elaborate on this simple combination of delicious and versatile flavors. To make being creative even easier, I prepare all of the chicken and squash on Sunday, portion it (refrigerate some and freeze the rest) that way I only have to figure out the fun part each night for dinner. Doing this saves a bunch of time during the week nights when I would rather be hanging out with my hubby or playing with my boys.

Tomorrow: Hand Over Your Lunch!

Day 132 - A New Beginning

After a not-so-surprising gain of 1.4 lbs. last week I'm getting myself refocused by planning out my meals for the entire week. Here's what I'll be eating each day, from first bite to last crumb:

Breakfast:

• Corn Chex with 1 cup skim milk (or one container of yogurt)
• 3 egg whites cooked in EVOO or safflower oil, topped with fresh sliced tomato
• 1 large nectarine, 1 cup of grapes or 1 medium apple
• Coffee. Coffee. Coffee. With 1/2 cup of fat free milk. 

AM Snack:

• 1 large banana slice lengthwise (like for a banana split)
• 32 grams of peanut butter sandwiched between

Lunch:

• Extra-lean ham sandwich; made with 2 slices whole wheat bread, 3 oz. lean ham, 1 slice American cheese, yellow mustard
• String cheese
• 1/2 cup sliced cucumber or green bell pepper
• 2 Tbsp. tomato and basil hummus

Dinner (all tossed together):

• 4 oz. chicken breast sauteed in 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1/2 cup grilled zucchini 
• 10 grams shredded parmesan cheese
• 1 oz shredded mozzarella (full fat)

PM Snack: 1/2 cup Sugar free/fat free Jell-O pudding or Sugar free Jell-O

My Declaration of Eating. I will:

• Not eat after 7:30 pm
• abstain from Snickers and all related products (at least for now)
• drink all of my water
• get in all of my GHGs
• give my relationship with carbs a timeout

Coming this week: Some of my favorite foods. And perhaps a few recipes. Photos, of what I'm not sure. : )  And we're working on the mans perspective.

Day 131 - Weigh-In Day!

I knew this was coming- sooner or later. It's a normal matter of course during a weight loss program. But It hurts nonetheless. My first gain.

Up 1.4 lbs. this week, taking me back over the 210 lb. mark that felt so good.
The positive things about this is that I knew it was coming. I knew how poorly I had eaten all week, failing most days to fulfill my GHG's and eating a lot of carbs. I've made a meal plan for the week ensuring that I don't leave much to chance. I doing my best to keep carbs at a minimum and not eating past 7pm. (Except maybe sugar free Jell-O, which is more like water suspended in gelatin). I need to revisit my posts on my goals, remotivate by reviewing what I want from my efforts.

Time to get refocused, let last week go as a lesson in what doesn't work for my body, and do better this week. Now that I've had my morning coffee and weighed in I can begin my day...

For tomorrow: How I'm letting go of the upset over a gain. And perhaps my weekly menu.

Day 130 - My Weight Loss Week In Review

When life gives you lemons, squeeze them, make a curd and plop it into a pie shell with meringue-then eat the whole darn thing. Well, that's not how that adages is supposed to go but that's what I did with lemons this week (metaphorically). Here's what I did well:

• tracked every last bite that I ate- good, bad and ugly.
• enjoyed my 7th wedding anniversary with my hubby
• tamed a binge, instead keeping it to only two bad choices
• exercised intentionally

And here's what we have to avoid in the future:

• eating garbage- even though I tracked everything and stayed within my Points Plus (Weight Watchers)
• not getting enough fruits/veggies, heart healthy oils, or water in
• not sleeping nearly enough
• eating emotionally- I didn't go into full-on binge mode (which I have been known to do) but I was fully aware of what I was doing and I rationalized why it was o.k. This is not o.k.

As many of you know, I climb aboard the scale every morning to keep me focused. I didn't do that as much  this week; and even though I can't count my chicks till they hatch Sunday morning (weigh-in day) I'm not seeing much movement on the scale. The scale is mad at me, and I'm disappointed with myself.

I need to do better next week.
I WILL do better next week.

(Ooh! And I ate a foot long, cheese smothered Philly Steak sandwich at 11:30 Friday night after seeing Wicked on Broadway with my hubby for our anniversary. It was delicious. I ate the whole thing. And I regret every last bite of it.)

Tomorrow- What did our friend The Scale tell me for week 19...

Day 129 - Supportive People

Kara and Shinera.

Meet Shinera (kissing my cheek). Shinera is someone who cheers me on when I undertake a new obstacle course. She believes in me before I even believe in myself. She might even think I'm Wonder Woman. Whatever her reasons for being behind me 100%, her support is so vital in my journey. Support from family and friends in any undertaking is key to achieving things bigger than you even set out to achieve.

I'm not trying to sound cheesy motivational speaker-ish, but a community of people dedicated to you and what you want to accomplish is important in any undertaking in life. I have found this to be mostly true when you are trying to change your lifestyle for the better. People get used to you as they know you, habits and all. It becomes part of them in a way, and it's hard to change how you interact with another person especially if certain social aspects need to change to make you a better person. I come from an Italian background where the center of every gathering is food. Even when we get together with friends it starts with food. My husband and I had rituals with some of our friends in Buffalo- every Tuesday night, we ordered in, played cards and spent the evening catching up. Those habits of socialization and gathering are hard to rearrange. That's why people like Shinera are so key to successful weight loss journeys. Changing certain things about my lifestyle is as much a reason to support me as is going back to school at 29 years old.

Wherever you find your support group--family, friends, co-workers, partners in crime at Weight Watchers : ), peers at school, significant others, even your children--soak up their support! It was awkward for me at first; I've always been rather reserved and independent. But allowing that positive energy to flow into my life, accepting for the first time ever that others accept me, and just enjoying the love, warmth and support around me has been life changing (having nothing to do with my waistline). This journey has been about so much more than weight loss. And to anyone and everyone out there who has offered so much as a "Hey, you look great" or changed their whole lifestyle around (like the man at the center of my world) I thank you. I could not have succeeded thus far without you.

Find a support system. And if you have a good one, give them a shout out below.

Tomorrow: My Rough Week in Review

Day 128 - This is What Makes Weight Loss Difficult

I've been doing really well with my eating, have been responsible about tracking, and just now getting back on the exercise bandwagon. 'In control' would aptly describe my existence. Then yesterday happened. Without boring everyone with he-said/she-said details, it became an overly emotional day. Yesterday's proverbial cup runneth over into today and is drowning me emotionally again. So I'm having a hard time not drowning my sorrows in baked goods and anything salty I can find. I know that I am an emotional eater. I also know that I need to learn to step back from whatever is bothering me and realize that food doesn't solve it. (If it did, my life would have been dancing with perfect at 250 lbs.)

I broke.
I knew it was coming, and I let it get the better of me.

I only ate an abnormally large corn muffin, and I'm still within my eating plan; but it feels like a motivational defeat. Almost like "It was an honor just to be nominated" speeches after not winning an award, or "Hey Champ, you gave it your best shot."

Learning to forgive yourself, forget and move on is harder than my financial accounting class...

Day 128 - "Sweat is Just Your Fat Crying"

The title up there is a wise quote from one of the 'boardies' over at Weight Watchers. This statement has been plaguing my thoughts for a couple weeks now. Why, you may ask? I haven't been as physically active as I was in the beginning of my journey. I haven't gotten a P90x workout in since May. I'm ashamed *hangs head while typing* to admit this. But I'm putting that factoid out there as a matter of accountability and being honest with myself. I'm worried about plateauing on the scale and losing motivation. So yesterday I got back on the horse!

*I am not affiliated with BeachBody or P90X in anyway. I am a customer that loves this program. I feel the need to say: "Talk to you doctor before beginning any exercise program." I'm not endorsing P90X, just sharing what I do.

The last time I completed a workout with P90X I was 231.2 lbs. and I was doing ok. It was hard work physically, but at that weight, just about any intense physical activity was going to be rough. So when I completed the Kenpo-X routine yesterday, at 209 lbs. I felt fan-FRICKIN-tabulous! I was able to do certain moves I wasn't able to before like Prayer Twist. Since there is a bunch of stretching included to take care of your muscles, I was in positions I'm not normally in and got to see my slimmer body in ways I haven't in a couple months! My feet fit more comfortably in my shoes (yes- even feet get chubby) and my ankles and calves are much more attractive! What a difference 20 lbs. makes at any size. My balance is different now, compared to what I knew of body back in May, so I'm going to have to re-orient myself with gravity. I feel awesome though.

I know I will have down days where I just don't want to do it, and I'll have to push myself hard to get it done. I'm up for the challenge. After all, I'm one dress size away from shopping at any old clothing store now. I want it bad!

Tomorrow- Supportive People, featuring Shinera.

Day 127 - One Hot Momma

Everyone should have goals in life. But since life is constantly changing it's hard to plan for very many things outside of a few years in advance. There are some very important things that we can plan for and change with a good degree of certainty though: your health and how you feel about yourself. My weight loss goals are simple, realistic, measurable, and within reach. Let me tell you about them.

• Lose 100-115 pounds- I want to live a long and strong life to keep up with my children, grandchildren and maybe even great-grandchildren. I need a healthy heart and innards (I love that word!) to accomplish this, and removing some of my unhealthy habits that work against this is the first step.
• More self confidence- I never really actively thought too much about my confidence levels. I was confident in my knowledge, studies, abilities, talents... However, only once I began to lose this excessive weight did I realize what a blow to my self-confidence all those pounds delivered. I feel better about myself and am able to enjoy interacting with everyone else more.
• I want to shop like other smaller gals- I want to not have to go the plus-sized store (even though they have some very cute clothes) or even into the plus-sized section of a regular store. I want to be able to grab any article or clothing I see off a rack because chances are that they'll have my smaller size. I don't want to feel like I'm shopping for tents anymore!
• To cross my legs easily while sitting.
• Trophy Wife! I want my hubby to have a hot wife. Enough said : )
• And last but not least ***GENTLEMEN CLOSE YOUR EYES!*** If my hips and butt were smaller, my boobs would look bigger... I was not well endowed in the chest area. I'm only asking for proportionality.

These things may be odd to someone else, but they are my goals and wants. One of my recently achieved goals was to bend over forward to pick something up off the ground without loosing my breath or struggling. This was HUGE for me- I had been terrified of dropping things in public because I would have to spread my knees and bend forward to get over my stomach. Many smaller people don't think about these things, but simple tasks have different meanings when you're over weight. So when it comes to having selfish or superficial goals mixed in with the others, it's more like icing on the cake.

Leave me a message below and announce to the world what your goals are!

Coming soon: We're going to get a guys perspective on losing weight in the culinary field.

Day 126 - Up and At 'Em!

For most of my life I never really made time for breakfast. I'm not a high maintenance kind of gal, so rolling out of bed, brushing my hair and teeth, and a wrinkle free outfit was all that I required in a matter of about 15 minutes in the mornings. I also thought I was doing my figure a favor by skipping a meal. Turns out these behaviors and beliefs are completely counter-intuitive. Breakfast gets your metabolism churning first thing in the morning and sets your body up for a more energized day, meaning: clearer thoughts, more energy to move, better motivation to get things accomplished. All this with the added bonus of feeling less ravenous for that next snack/meal throughout the day.

3 egg whites cooked in safflower oil, wilted spinach, tomato

 My typical breakfast includes:

• 3 egg whites pan 'fried' with 2 tsps. safflower oil (flavorless so it doesn't alter the final taste)
• 1/2 cup garden fresh tomatoes and 1 cup of wilted spinach added to the eggs
• Bob's Steel Cut Oats oatmeal (made with fat free milk) with 1 Tbsp. peanut butter
• coffee with fat free milk
• 1/2 cup fresh fruit (berries, banana, plum, grapes, apple...)

 The nutrients this provides me with: 3 servings of fruit/veggies; 2 servings heart healthy oils; lean and yummy protein; 1 serving fat free/lowfat dairy; heart healthy whole grains; lots of dietary fiber.

This breakfast leaves me satisfied and much less hungry throughout the day. If you want a lighter version (this version is 11 PP for those readers from Weight Watchers) I would go with the egg and veggies and substitute a plain or vanilla yogurt cup for fill in for some dairy and extra protein (which would be 5/6 PP). What is your power breakfast?

Tomorrows topic: My (selfish) Weight Loss Goals

Day 125 - Drunken Jam and Indulgence

So, even though jams/preserves/jellies are not the most friendly foods for weight loss, learning to eat anything in a healthy way is what I'm working on. And I love to make jams. One teaspoon at a time (or 20 grams if your a weigh-it-out kind of person like me) is only one point for my plan, which makes me happy! So I present you with my recipe for Plum Riesling Jam. This recipe makes 8 cups.

     *all photography by Kara, please no reproductions

The only problem with making such yummy things is the temptation to eat while making... Though this did in fact prove to be problematic, I still tracked every last drop that I "taste tested" and added it to my daily food intake. Some of this yumminess will be headed over to a couple friends so that I don't have so much available. Friends are wonderful things when you're watching your food intake and have to make 'batches' of recipes and can't keep all of it around. Thank you Becca and Shinera!

Tomorrows topic: My typical breakfasts and why I combine the foods that I do.

Day 124 - Sunday, Weigh In Day

WaHoo!
Down another 2 lbs.!!!
This means I have broken the 210 mark, it was kind of a milestone for me. It also means I have less than 60 lbs. to go to reach my year long goal. Need to set some new weekly/daily goals to keep motivated and on track with steady weight loss.

I have lots of things on my mind lately and starting tomorrow we will explore my mind and my thoughts more. Each day we will have a topic. Coming up this week:

• Review of goals
• Why I want to be smaller (besides the obvious)
• Loose skin (sound gross, but it's a real issue)
• More pictures of foods and tools included in daily posts
• Friendly (and not so friendly) recipes that I like

Also- I'm thinking that we should have some Q & A's as topics. If you have an idea or topic you'd like to hear from my view point, leave me a comment below any post. I check them and publish them daily. 

And big warm welcome to visitors stopping by from the BlogHer network! Please feel free to Tweet me, Like me and Stumble me.

Day 123 - Lazy Excitement

Today I'm totally in control. And lazy. But being in control of my laziness is still an accomplishment.

O.K. so I wasn't completely lazy- I did get a bunch done in my garden and believe it or not weeding is a great activity for weight loss! I intended to swim a bit, but my garden time got kinda long. And now I'm in the middle of my snack and Yankees vs. Red Sox date with my youngest son. He made the snack, and we're watching our Bronx Bombers.

I need to go shopping, my cupboards and fridge are relatively bare (surprising coming from a snack-aholic) and I need some good healthy snack options. If you have any ideas or favorite snack suggestions leave your thoughts in the comment section below! (p.s. weigh in in T minus14 hours and counting and I'm very excited!)

Day 122 - Time for a change...

I am still going to be here, doing what I do, letting everyone peep into my odd little world. So while the blog may look slightly different, worry not readers! It's still me.

Today = good eating, good tracking, good time at school meeting someone new and learning from the best. I'm inspired, energized and my ambition is strong as ever! And I'm feeling good about my date with the scale on Sunday morning.

Days 120 & 121 - The Forgetful and Naughty

So I completely forgot to post yesterday. What did I do yesterday you ask? I ate HORRIBLY! And am hanging my head in shame today because of it. I ate breakfast, forgot to take lunch with me to school, so I pigged out for the remainder of the evening once I returned home. Including pizza and fudge. I tracked and stayed within my points, so I did a little bit right... Today I planned and brought food with me to school and I am on plan including my GHGs. Feeling better.

Of course I sneaked onto the scale the past few mornings, as I always do (so I guess I shouldn't call it 'sneaking') and the scale has been against me : (  It shows a gain! But I can't count my eggs till Sunday when my time to hatch arrives. We'll see...

OoH!!!!! New picture ----->

Day 119

Kind of a failure of a day today... I forgot to bring lunch with me to school so I ate a plate of pasta. I drank zero water until 5pm. I ate pizza for dinner. I did have some fruit and got in my dairy, but as for the remainder of my GHGs, they had the day off I guess. We'll do better tomorrow.

Day 118

So for today I'm going to work on my goals and motivations for the coming weeks. I have 3 milestones that I want to hit soon, and they are within reach and I can't wait to get to them.

In order, they are:

• Getting under 210 lbs. (this could very well happen at my next weigh-in
• Getting under 200 lbs. (could be accomplished within 4 weeks; haven't been this low since before I was pregnant with my 1st son over 7 years ago)
• Dropping my BMI to 29, which will be below the 'obese' range and into the 'overweight' range

I had set out at the beginning of my summer break to be confident enough to wear a cute dress (or skirt) back to school tomorrow... I did go clothes shopping two days ago and tried on some dresses. They were cute and I liked them, and was mostly comfortable in them, but I've never been really into dresses, and couldn't justify spending that much money on something I may not wear more than one or two times. (The old adage- if you don't love it in the store, you won't love it or wear it at home.) So I don't count this as a failure- I just changed my mind, because I could very well wear one, but it's not my style really. But I did find other cute things that are more form fitting and I'm absolutely excited to wear them!