Lost a Pound!

My cravings have calmed a little bit.  Emphasis on little.  But, I'm slightly more motivated now that I've officially lost a pound!  Could it be water weight?  Ummm...yes!  But, it's still gone, and my jeans are feeling a little more loose today.

I was having serious craving issues, so I decided to really just keep eating Power Foods until I wasn't crazy any more.  It pretty much worked.  I've been eating a lot of carrots, fruit, hard-boiled eggs, and trying to drink tons of water.  In order to stay more hydrated, I decided that I had to drink a glass of water for every cup of coffee I had.  Needless to say, I drank a lot of water in order to get my caffeine fix, which is really out of control.

So, onward with the diet!  Now that I have a menu plan in place, I'm hoping it will be more automatic, and I won't be constantly obsessing about what to eat next.  I'm also whipping up some big batches of brown rice, sweet potatoes, and sugar-free Jello so I'm ready to meet a craving if fruit or a piece of celery just won't cut it.

Image from http://www.laimisenergy.com/.

Meal Plan for Weight Watchers Simply Filling

Man, I've been having a tough time.  All I think about is food.  More specifically, sour cream and onion Pringles and peppery white cheddar.  I'm obsessed.

However, I'm here to share my first Weight Watchers meal plan with you!  While I do it, I'm drinking water, eating baby carrots, and doing a lot of sighing.

Because I have little ones, cooking is sometimes next to impossible.  Hence, all of the slow cooker meals.  I'll throw them together in the morning or during naptime.  Tonight I'm going to make some food on the grill, but after that, my crock pot is going to be getting a workout.  Oh yeah, and I should probably be getting a workout too.

Monday - Pork chops and onions on the grill.  Balsamic brussel sprouts...probably also on the grill, but I'll cook them in foil.

Tuesday - Slow Cooker Ropa Vieja

Wednesday - BBQ-Glazed Turkey Meatloaf

Thursday - Out to eat!  I haven't decided yet, but I think I might go crazy and get something really unhealthy.

Friday - Greek-Style Slow Cooker Meatballs and Artichokes

Saturday - Slow Cooker Chicken Paprikash

Sunday - Slow Cooker Thai Chicken

Image from shamangirl.com.

For more meal plan ideas, check out orgjunkie.com.

Day 1 on Weight Watchers

Yesterday I officially signed up for Weight Watchers online.  I still have a lot to learn about using the site, and I think that tracking all of my foods is going to be a big pain.  I went into the site and changed my plan to "Simply Filling."

I tracked my meals from yesterday, and saw that some of the things that I thought were Power Foods really weren't.  Oops!  I guess it's good to track.  I just really don't want to.  I like the idea of having a list of foods that I can eat from, and sticking to that.  But, there's always a little something that you want to add to the Power Foods meals, and those little somethings can add up.

Yesterday I did a long walk with the boys (only tolerated because we went to the library!).  Today it's looking rainy, so I might have to improvise with an indoors workout.

Truly, yesterday was tough.  I felt hungry, and I wasn't eating enough.  I went to Target to buy milk, and I almost broke down and bought peppery cheese.  But, I didn't.  I ate a banana in the car on the way home instead.  Small victories!

Seriously, though.  I'm pining for cheese and chips.

Three Ways to Fit in a Walk When It Seems Impossible

If you have young children, or if you live in a climate that doesn't allow for walking outdoors everyday, figuring out a way to get in a daily walk can be tough.  Here are some ideas for getting in a daily walk:

1. Walk at the mall.  You'll be surprised at how many other people do this too.
2. Walk with the Wii Fit.  If you have a Wii, or any other type of video game that has a running or walking game, this is a great solution.  My toddlers love doing "Mommy's Running," and I'm able to get in a good walk.  To track this on GymPact, you can select the "Workout Anywhere" option to get credit for the activity.
3. Walk in place in front of the TV.  Yes, this gets old really fast, but if you're desperate, it works.  I even dragged out my old step aerobics step and walked on it while I watched some of my favorite reality shows.  That made the time go by faster, made the workout more intense, and helped keep me from getting too sore.

Image from diehardgamefan.com.

Starting to Walk...Seriously

Okay, so I'm feeling a little embarrassed about how tough walking has been for me this week.  I used to run marathons, and now I'm sore from walking.

Guess what, if you don't run for eight years, you lose your fitness!

So, I'm certainly back to square one as far as building fitness goes.  As with the Simply Filling eating plan, this has been a trial week for me with walking as well.  Really, I thought this was going to be a walk in the park, and I've been hit with a huge reality check about how unfit I have become.

With two little ones, walking can be a challenge.  They are just at the age where they won't tolerate the stroller for too long, so I'm going to have to be creative about getting in time to walk.

My goal this week was to walk for thirty minutes, three times this week.  Truly, I thought this was a wimpy goal.  It was not.  Also, I learned that I need to wear good shoes for walking.  Toms won't cut it.

To motivate myself, I signed up for GymPact.  It's a pretty cool app that you can get for free.  The whole idea behind it is that people would rather work out than lose money.   This definitely applies to me...my pen name is saverchic.  So, I signed up and made a pact that I would do three "workouts" in one week.  Since my workout of choice is walking, I also downloaded the RunKeeper app to help track my walks.

For every walk I miss, GymPact will deduct $5 from my PayPal account (!).  If you reach your goal, you'll get a small payout with the proceeds of the money that those who didn't work out paid into the system.  I completed my three workouts, but my first week isn't technically over yet because I got a late start.  So, I'll let you know how much the payout is later on.

Three Things I Learned During My Trial Week with Simply Filling

This week I've been "test driving" the Simply Filling plan.  I wanted to make sure that it's something doable before I committed to it.  After following the plan for a few days, I've felt pretty comfortable with it.  Because I have two little ones at home, we mostly eat at home.  I think this has made the plan easier to stick with for me.  Here are three things I learned about the plan:

1. You can eat potatoes and brown rice.  Not in mass quantities, but you can eat them.  This has really helped me to stay full and satisfied.
2. You can eat fat-free dairy.  Fat free sour cream isn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be.
3. You can eat fresh fruit.  Okay, I know that most diets allow this, but it's been such a nice thing for me.  I tend to eat off of my kids' snacks, so I've changed their snacks to fruit.  They like it, and I feel better about what I'm feeding them too.

For a list of all of the things you can eat on the Simply Filling plan, click here.

Simply Filling and Walking

Welcome to the new Simply Filling and Walking blog!  I'm creating this blog because I'm going to lose weight by walking for exercise and by eating according to the Simply Filling Weight Watchers plan.  I'm hoping to find others that are doing the same so we can all cheer each other on.

I decided to take this approach to weight loss because I really want to get healthier and be better to myself.  As a mom, I no longer have the time (or the desire!) to spend long hours training for marathons.  I've had a few injuries and surgeries in the past few years, and I want to make sure I'm getting exercise, but not doing anything to harm my body.  I'm looking to gradually grow stronger, and eat in a more healthy way.

Thank you for visiting, and I hope you'll come back again soon!