Day 151 -- Spoke too soon...

Whoo, finally getting around to updating this again! Finals are finally OVER and I am on Winter Break for the next few weeks. The lack of stress feels amazing and I'm just happy to have survived the term.

I have a confession to make though. As the title of this post suggests, I definitely spoke too soon in saying that I'd never fallen off the wagon with this plan. I'm not sure if it was the exaltation of being done with school, leftover sadness from my breakup/reaction to how stressful this term was, but suddenly now that I have free time food has become an issue again! On three separate occasions within the last week I have totally gone off the rails and deliberately bought something from the bakery section in a store and eaten ALL of it...as if not having leftovers to look at will make me feel less guilty.

The sad thing? Most of the time the foods didn't taste as amazing as I expected them to and yet I kept eating it because it was satisfying my desire to eat something. This is definitely a sign to me how much of a mental thing eating can be for me. The taste itself became second to the fact that I knew I was eating something that should comfort me.

I'm completely terrified to weigh and so have been trying to get back to normal and wait awhile to weigh in hopes the number will be a little kinder, but I really need a kick in the pants to quit this cycle of bad eating because it is exactly this kind of behavior that made me so overweight in the first place which is somewhere I never want to go again!

I seem to be an all or nothing girl and moderation is not my strong suit...What are some things all of you have done to get back on track and prepare yourself for the next time temptation strikes?

Hope you all are doing amazingly!

<3

Day 130--THANKSGIVING!

Today's Weight: 122.8lbs, new low!
Total Loss: 35.8lbs

Hello, hello! As promised, I'm trying to pop into here and update more frequently since I've realized how much I've missed that accountability and self-evaluation that this encourages me to do. It actually really helps to write about how I feel about food during the day because it makes me learn what things are triggers for me and how to better cope with them. Although who am I kidding, if I have an emotion I want to eat: happy, sad, lonely, depressed, nervous, you name it. I want to eat it. Haha.

I had a surprising drop this morning for a new low of 122.8! I'm now about 12-13lbs away from my goal weight and I'm seriously so excited. I never really thought I'd make it here. I mean I'd hoped, but I had always resigned myself to being the bigger, awkward, uncomfortable-with-myself girl. Not anymore! I'm still not where I want to be yet, but the results have been so dramatic and I'm thrilled with how I look and feel even now. It has definitely given me a whole new confidence in myself. What's even cooler is when other people notice this new confidence as well. Even cooler still? My thighs don't touch anymore when I walk... amazing!

Today was particularly challenging because it was Thanksgiving... oh my gosh, all of the family favorite treats were all over the place and it was about all I could do to stay out of the amazing food. Particular favorites of mine are stuffing and the table full of desserts...but I survived! I had tons of turkey, salad, and brussels sprouts to  curb my hunger. Overall I have to say it wasn't toooo bad though, since I'm used to my college friends eating all sorts of junk around me and resisting.

I have to say, I'm kind of shocked that I haven't strayed once from this way of eating. It feels great, I'm just concerned about how successful I will be at keeping off the weight and moderating myself when I actually do start adding foods back in... Hm. Something to worry about later down the road though, I have a feeling that I've got at least a few more months on this to lose the last few. My loss has been exceptionally slow over the last month, though that may have something to do with being very sick for the last couple of weeks and all of the medication I've been on for that.

Another plus: after the first of the year, one of my best friends at college wants to try this plan with me! She's watched me shrink over the last few months and admitted to being "totally jealous" of my results and wants to see how it will work for her! I'm so excited for her to get started. I'm supposed to go grocery shopping with her and show her how to shop for the right foods... I'm kinda not looking forward to the first couple of weeks when she's having a difficult time sticking to it. She's gonna kill me! haha.

Hope you all had lovely Thanksgiving's and managed to enjoy your food while staying as on track as you were planning to!

<3

Day 125 (PV)-- Long-awaited update! 4 months on this plan!

Most recently low: 123.8lbs!
Total Loss: 34.8lbs
Current Weight: 125.2lbs

Hey guys, so sorry for the huge gap between updates!! I've had my head buried in school work, trying to balance a social life, as well as stay on plan that I've totally neglected this blog to keep me accountable. I hope all of you are still out there being successful!

In short, I have had a hellish past couple of months with my class load. On top of that, the guy I was dating decided that he didn't want the commitment of a girlfriend after all, so it has also been a struggle of how to deal with that and still seeing him all of the time in my classes and studying together... it has been an awkward dance of seeing who can act the least awkward about it. I also just got through a hellish midterm week where I also contracted Strep Throat!

But, despite all of these obstacles, I have managed to stay completely on plan (somehow) and have been loving the results. And no, I didn't give into the pint of ice cream/batch of brownies that were calling my name post-breakup either! I was quite proud of myself for that. I haven't really been dropping as many pounds as I would like, being sick the last week has definitely put that to a halt with all of the cold medicine/sugar-free cough drops/antibiotics that I've been having to take, but I had to buy new jeans a couple weeks ago because all of my old "skinny" jeans were now falling off of me!

I haven't had a ton of progress in the last month I suppose, maybe only about three pounds, but I'm trying to convince myself that I will have a big drop soon and that it's just my body freaking out from all of the stress and being sick...

Hope to check in more often! ( I know, I know, I said that last time...)

<3

Day 91 (PV) --Finally an update!

Today's Weight: 128.6lbs, loss of 6.8lbs in the last about eleven days!!!
Total Loss: Officially hit the 30lbs loss milestone!

Wow, it has been way too long since I have posted on here! I haven't fallen off the wagon or anything like that, (obviously, since my body has been SHOCKING me with it's dramatic drops over the last week or so), but I'm buried in schoolwork already! I had my first midterm last week that I was completely stressed out over.

I mentioned before about how I was struggling to find alternatives to snacking as a stress-reliever, but over the last week or two my body has just shut off its hungry switch for the most part which is really helping with any cravings. I'm not sure if it's as a direct result of stress or not, or if it's because I've been so busy lately that eating has been a second or third thought on my mind rather than what I think about all the time, but I'll take it!

I'm so excited that after my frustrating September when the scales didn't seem to budge at all that I'm finally having these dramatic results. It feels great! I'm looking and feeling so much better and all of my friends here can notice it as well. Also as a bonus, I've begun dating a really nice guy from some of my classes so that is fun to look forward to! Thankfully he's really understanding about me having to eat quite a bit differently than he does, as his diet consists of primarily rice and pasta... guys and their ridiculous metabolisms.

So that's my quick and dirty update! I hope everyone who reads this is doing well and staying on track! Hopefully I'll be able to check in more often than every couple of weeks.

<3

Day 80 (PP) Into Week 12!

Monday's Weight: 136.0 lbs, 1.0lb gain from previous day
Tuesday's Weight: 135.8lbs, 0.2lb loss from previous day
Today's Weight: 135.4lbs, 0.4lb loss from yesterday
Total Loss: 23.2lbs

Yaay! I'm not too upset with the pound gain on Monday since I'd had such a dramatic loss the day before, and the last few days have just been working themselves down to that new low once again. I've almost hit it again!

This week has been difficult to stay on plan, especially because of the people who eat around me. It's really hard to be in a study group, stressed out, and not be able to eat all of the snacks that are around because they aren't on plan... but they look sooooo good! What got me into this mess in the first place, at least partially, was indulging in food last year during the terms when I would get super stressed as a sort of release and calming method. I can't do that this year, so I'm having difficulty finding other things to help myself unwind and relax instead of my usual chocolate anything and potato chips... Terrible to watch people eat what you're craving!

Other than that, my eating has been pretty spot on. I've been having a little bit of fun with cooking recently, so I've been experimenting with stir fry's, omelets, lettuce-as-bun sandwiches, etc. Of course being careful to stick to the 1:1 ratio of veggies days to protein days...

I ate a pretty big lunch and dinner tonight, for some reason I've had a really big appetite recently! I wonder if it's because I'm a lot more active now that I have to bike at least two miles a day to get to and from campus than I was during the summer... Oh well! As long as I keep seeing losses, I suppose it doesn't really matter! :)

Hope you all are doing fantastically and your scales are behaving nicely for you!

<3

Day 77 (PV)

Friday's Weight: 139.6lbs, 2.4 gain from Thursday
Saturday's Weight: 137.2lbs, back to previous low and loss of 2.4lbs again
Today's Weight: 135.0lbs!! Loss of 2.2lbs for a new low!
Total Loss: 23.6lbs!

I seriously have not been able to believe my eyes with the numbers my scale has been throwing at me. First there was that HUGE gain a couple days ago, and now that huge loss to hit a fantastic new low!! I was wanting to hit 135lbs before last week when classes started up again so that I'd be officially lower than when I came to school yesterday, but I'll take it a week late! Also, I have now reached one of my mini-goals of finally being under 136lbs, so I am no longer considered overweight for my height! Yaaay!

I was so relieved to finally see a big drop. September was such a frustrating month loss-wise and I probably only really lost about 4 or 5lbs after it was all said and done. This month is definitely off with a great start!

Gotta go get cracking on some work for classes, but just had to share my exciting news. Since today was a veggie day, I made myself a pretty big omelet with sauteed veggies and chicken sausage! Yumm... Whenever I experiment with food I have interesting weigh-in days the next day, though... Hopefully that doesn't happen tomorrow!

<3

Day 74 (PP)

Yesterday's Weight: 137.4lbs, loss of 0.2lbs from previous day and back down to previous low
Today's Weight: 137.4lbs, loss of 0.2lbs again from yesterday.
Total Loss: 21.2lbs

Woo-hoo! The last few days have had very marginal weight loss, but it's still loss all the same and I'll take it. I've been eating quite a lot yesterday and today, mainly because I haven't been able to fit in breakfast before I rush out the door to go to classes... I know that's terrible, but sleep has become a rare commodity again and my body is already punishing me for it. So with my crazy class schedule, it's generally around 4pm-5pm when I finally get home and could pretty much eat whatever is in the fridge... case in point: tonight.

I got home from classes this afternoon and had some steak strips with Walden Farms BBQ sauce (AMAZING, by the way), which was fine but I wasn't completely satisfied... about three hours later I made myself breakfast for dinner with chicken sausage and scrambled eggs! Granted it was three sausages and four eggs all mixed together.... Hmm. But supposedly, the more you eat, the more you lose! So I'm hoping my rather flagrant pig-outs, especially since they were all completely on-plan, won't affect my loss badly in the morning.

I suppose I go through phases: sometimes I eat quite a lot, other times I eat very little... I wonder if that's common.

Fingers crossed for a big drop soon! I'd love to get my rate of loss back up again.

<3

Day 72 (PP) --Into Week 11!

 Sunday's Weight: 138.6, loss of 0.6lbs
Yesterday's Weight: 137.4lbs, loss of 1.2lbs!!
Today's Weight: 137.6lbs, gain of 0.2lbs
Total Loss: 21 lbs!

 Hey guys, I haven't disappeared, given up, or stopped blogging! I've been crazy busy with trying to get all of my classes figured out and trying to get a handle on my homework load. I'm not entirely convinced that I have it all figured out yet, but a post was long-overdue!

I was SO encouraged by my weight yesterday! I finally had that major drop of a little over a pound that I had been waiting forever for, so that was super nice. I had a little gain today, but I kinda expected that since I'd had a veggie day yesterday.My eating has been completely on-plan so far and I've been getting a ton of exercise biking all over the place and hauling my heavy backpack along with me. Stress is definitely getting to me already, but at least I'm being active!

Short post tonight, but I've got an 8am class in the morning that I really need some sleep to be mentally awake for, so I'm off to bed! But I just want to thank all of you who read this and are rooting for me! Let me know how you guys are doing too! I'd love to hear stories of what everyone deals with :)


<3

Day 69 (PV)

Today's Weight: 139.4lbs, 1lb gain from yesterday (but does this count as it was with a different scale than I typically use?)

Total Loss: Back to 19.2lbs

I'm seriously getting discouraged with this. This entire month I've really been playing with the same range of weight with no "real" progress made. I've even tried some Attack days but my scale hasn't budged even the tiniest bit within the last few! In fact, I've been steadily gaining for the last few. 

This is so frustrating because it kills my motivation and makes it that much more difficult for me to stay on plan when people around me are eating different things. I'm living with one girl who is also on Dukan now, and one who is not, so it makes for an interesting variety of foods that are around the house. I'm really just missing the elation at getting some losses and watching the trend go steadily downward.

My typical daily meals consist of low-sodium turkey, chicken/turkey/salmon burgers from Costco, chicken meatballs, steak, salmon, and mainly bell peppers as a vegetable. I try to keep my sodium to a minimum, but I probably haven't been as stellar about my water intake (still!) as I should be. I've also recently begun taking fiber in the mornings in pill-form to help out with my constipation issues, but I'm still kinda waiting for that to work =/.

Today I finally just decided to have a veggie day as a bunch of my friends and I were going out to eat after the football game and I wanted a little more variety. I had grilled zucchini, steamed broccoli, and a steak without the sauce, so I feel pretty good about my choices. There's just no way for me to know the sodium content or anything like that, so I'm half scared that the scale will be cruel once again in the morning...

Help! Have any of you had incredibly long plateau's? And what have you guys done that has been successful for breaking out of them?

<3

Day 68 (PP)

Today's Weight: 138.4lbs, no change
Total Loss: 20.2lbs

Well that was kind of disappointing that my weight didn't change at all from the day before, but I'm trying not to over think it too much. It's especially disappointing since I've been mainly doing only protein days since Monday, with the exception of Wednesday, and I really haven't seen any dramatic loss. Ugh.

Today was my official move-in day at my University and I have to say that I think it went pretty well. I still have a bit of unpacking to do, but overall most of the stuff that I need is here. Minus a few odds and ends that I've forgotten, luckily nothing that I can't live without for the time being.

Short post tonight because it's been an incredibly long day and tomorrow will be crazy because I'm going to the football game! Hopefully I actually see a loss in the morning, it's a bit iffy since this scale isn't the typical one I've been using... fingers crossed!

<3

Day 67 (PP)

Today's Weight: 138.4lbs, GAIN of 0.4lbs from yesterday
Total Loss: 20.2lbs

Grr, I was hoping I was just being pessimistic yesterday about thinking I'd have a gain after eating veggies. Sigh. I've been trying to drink more water and take fiber in an attempt to flush things out, but so far no great success on that front either.

On the bright side, I had a fairly good time with my friend today and we did a little shopping to help me stock up on some last minute makeup necessities before going back. Conversation was a little stilted, not quite sure why, but we did end up talking about our very different styles of eating and how we've been feeling with it. She finally straight up asked what my weight currently is, and I think she was a little surprised to hear that I'm pretty close to where she's at.

I'm a little discouraged with my rate of loss this month. A month ago, on my birthday, I was 144.8lbs. So that means that in the last month, I've really only lost about 6.4lbs instead of the 10lbs per month rate that I was hoping for. I'm happy for any loss really, even 6 pounds has made a dramatic difference, but I can't help but wish for it to pick back up again!

Still continuing on my Attack blitz for now. I can't decide, since I technically interrupted it for a veggie day yesterday, if I should extend it a little longer and make Monday my first veggie day... hmm... decisions. I guess that will be determined by the scale this weekend!

I'm  also officially moving the rest of my stuff down to the house at my University and staying there as of tomorrow afternoon... I'm nervous for classes to start and doing all of this on my own without the support of my family always there... I'm really going to miss them.

<3

Day 66 (Day 56 of Cruise Phase, PP, Halfway point of Dukan estimation of 113 days on Cruise))

Yesterday's Weight: 138.4lbs, 0.4lb loss from day before, officially pass 20lb loss mini-goal!!
Today's Weight: 138.0lbs, 0.4lb loss from yesterday
Total Loss: 20.6lbs!

Woo-hoo! Finally, finally got past that hurdle of losing 20 pounds. I'm so psyched that I'm finally having some losses, despite the fact that they aren't that impressive in and of themselves. But hey, I'll take consistent loss over the frustrating stalls and gains of daily fluctuations! Apologies for not posting yesterday, for some reason my internet connection decided to play a frustrating game of cat-and-mouse right when I was attempting to post.

I had decided to do a 5-day Attack as a last minute blitz before I start back at my University, but that was derailed tonight as my family ended up taking me out to dinner as a nice send-off and I really couldn't say no to the grilled asparagus. Not really concerned about it though, I can just continue to do some more pure protein days, I just hope I don't see a gain in the morning because of the veggies I ate tonight. I've also reduced my oat bran to one and a half tablespoons again, just to see if that helps shift my body out of its complacency with bigger losses. I had to watch the rest of my family eat decadent-looking Lava Cakes, so it'd better have been worth it to abstain ;)

I have to say I'm impressed with this diet so far though, setbacks and all. At the halfway point of my prediction, I'm pretty much halfway through how much I need to lose according to the Dukan predictions of my "true weight". Granted I want to lose a few pounds more than what the site recommended for me, but I have made so much progress in the two months since I started that I can't wait to see where I will be in the next two months!

Lately I have been able to dip into the small sections when I'm shopping... I'm still not completely able to buy that size, but I'm getting there for sure. That makes me so excited, I can definitely tell that eating this way has preserved my muscle mass and is just getting rid of the fat, because I am looking a lot more lean at this weight than I have at any lower weight that I've achieved before. Crazy!

Good thoughts for tomorrow! Hanging out with my competitive friend tomorrow for the last time before making the move back to my university town. Hopefully that goes smoothly.

<3

Day 64 (PP) Start of Week 10!

Today's Weight: 138.8lbs, 0.4lb loss from yesterday
Total Loss: 19.8lbs!

Once again, I'm back at the same weight that I was a week ago. Pretty frustrating to see that I really haven't lost anything, but it's nice to finally have hit that number again on the scale. Also, I weighed in on the scale that I have at my place at my University and not the one I have been using in my hometown, so that may have had something to do with it!

Yesterday and today were very busy days as far as getting ready and moved in for classes. I unpacked a lot of stuff today, got the textbooks that I need and holy chicago they are heavy, as well as got tickets with a bunch of my friends to go see the football game on Saturday! This will be my first student game since I didn't go to any last year, and I'm actually really psyched for it. I did TONS of walking/carrying today, so I definitely got my cardio in. I'm hoping that shows good results for tomorrow!

I also managed to resist all of the goodies available on campus. All the freshman are pouring into the dorms this week, so in the quad they were giving out free pizza, chips, pop, you name it! Thankfully I had eaten enough for breakfast that I wasn't even really hungry for it or tempted at all. I completely resisted and I actually felt really proud of myself!

Another cool development is that the friend that I converted to this Dukan-lifestyle is going to be my new roommate! She got to spend some time with my other roomie/best friend down there last night and today and thankfully they're both thinking that they will get along and will have a good dynamic, so it looks like it's all going to work out! Later this week we're all going to go do some shopping and look for some stuff to pretty up our rooms and such.

I'm pretty much exhausted at this point, so I'll end it here. I can feel classes getting close to starting and it's freaking me out! At least I won't have so much time to focus on how fast, or slow, this weight loss is going!

<3

Day 63 (PV)

Today's Weight: 139.2lbs, 0.2lb loss from yesterday
Total Loss: 19.4lbs

Kind of a pathetic loss, but still a loss nonetheless! It's discouraging though, since I hit this weight a week ago for the first time, and as such, I basically haven't lost anything this week. So frustrating! I've begun taking some fiber in hopes that it will help my digestive system move things along, since it hasn't been so stellar at regulating that on its own. Hopefully that will help out! I also seriously need to step up my water-intake, I've been quite lazy about that recently.

I'm posting a little earlier than usual today since I'm headed back to my university for a day to do a preliminary move-in with all of the stuff that I won't really need for this week. Classes start a week from tomorrow, and I really don't want to be moving in and trying to unpack the night before classes start like I did last year! I'm also planning on getting my school books ahead of time at the bookstore, and meeting up with a bunch of my friends to try and get some student tickets to the Football game on Saturday. Should be a lot of fun!

I'm not sure how my weight will go tomorrow, since I'll be weighing with a different scale and I'm not sure how that one is calibrated compared to the one I have here... I guess we'll see!

<3

Day 62 (PP) --Official Two Months On Diet!

Today's Weight: 139.4, 0.4lb loss from yesterday
Total Loss: 19.2lbs

Finally seeing more of a downward trend, even if it is only in tiny increments. I was concerned that since yesterday was a veggie day I would gain today, but thankfully that didn't happen! I think I would have chucked my scale out the window, or something equally threatening. I really just want to see some major loss here soon.
My TOM still hasn't shown up, despite the fact that I'm having all of the symptoms. It's really very annoying, I'd like to just get it over with so that we can get the show on the road!

In highly amusing news, my competitive and vegan friend informed me today that she has been dieting and exercising over the last week or so and has finally broken past her plateau to 133something pounds. Ha! I'm close to what she weighs and I'm so amused that she's nervous about me weighing less than her now. It's somewhat annoying at the same time that she can't stand the thought of me being skinnier for once, but whatever. She's not exactly going about it in a healthy way either, she's limiting herself to only fruits and vegetable smoothies with light snacks in between. This doesn't sound healthy at all to me, which makes it highly ironic considering how wary she was of me being on the Dukan diet! Hmm, that probably sounds catty of me.

My new goal? Beat her at her own game, (a little friendly competition never hurt anybody, right?), and continue the journey to my goal and hopefully get there before she does. Even though she's got a head start of me by about 6 pounds, I don't see her method lasting long term or being that effective once she starts incorporating real food back into her diet.

Had a good protein only day today, so fingers crossed for a nice loss tomorrow!

<3

Day 61 (PV)

Today's Weight: 139.8lbs, 0.4lb loss from yesterday but still 1lb up from last low
Total Loss: 18.8lbs

Grr, my weight has been so messed up ever since I went camping. I just can't seem to get past this dumb plateau and back to the great losing streak that I was having. My stomach is also killing me with cramps, even though TOM has yet to show up. Plus I'm bloated. All in all, I'm not having a great Dukan week. This doesn't mean that I'm quitting by any means, it's just discouraging and frustrating at this point. I'm happy that I had a loss today, but because I weighed lower last week I'm not thrilled. I want to start charting new weight territory again!

I had another veggie day today, so I'm pretty concerned that tomorrow will be another day of gain on the scale. I did well though and had chicken meatballs for lunch, and then chicken burgers, mini bell peppers, and cucumbers for dinner. I made my little greek yogurt/oat bran/walden farms flavorings as a make-shift dessert thing as well. I probably should have been better about drinking more liquids today, though.

I ended up walking around a lot today doing some prep work for going back to my University. I still have so much to get done, but I'm just finding myself reluctant to even think about going back, much less actually do things to prepare for it.

Gah. Motivation, where are you? I was really hoping to hit the 20lbs lost mark by Sunday, as that is the official date that I've been on this way of eating for two months! I suppose I still have a chance to make it... one more pound!

<3

Day 60 (PP)

Yesterday's Weight: 139.8lbs, 0.2 loss from the day before
Today's Weight: 140.2lbs, 0.4lb gain from yesterday, 1.4lbs up from last "low"

Well I'm frustrated... Yesterday seemed like I was finally sorta on my way back down again, had a pretty good eating day with veggies, but then had yet another gain this morning. I've been feeling really bloated and icky so I can tell that TOM is right around the corner and should happen any day now, but I'm discouraged. I guess I really need to just ignore what the scale is telling me for the next week or so, but still keep track of it for future months to see what kind of stuff my body does when its hormones are all messed up.

Had a pretty simple meal of mostly chicken today, I was starving when I ate so I had a bit more than usual but I'm hoping against hope that it will be a good day tomorrow and have a loss!

<3

Day 58 (PP)

Today's Weight: 140.0lbs, GAIN of 1.2lbs from yesterday
Total Loss: back to 18.6lbs

Gah! I should know better than to gloat too much, I swear my body and scale can hear it and conspire against me. I think I've mentioned this before, so I'm pretty sure it's becoming a concrete theory. Yeah, that's it. The only explanation I could come up with is that I've been eating lots of eggs lately because it's practically the only thing that my Dad wants to eat lately, (he's on this too and is quite picky about his food choices), and we added some sausage yesterday that we thought was okay but has lots of sodium in it.

Seriously hate fluctuations. I was hoping never to see the 140's again! Oh well, picking up and moving on. Just need to keep eating really well so that I can re-lose those pounds and even more to take me firmly into the 130's. Grrr.

On a bright note, my bestie from my University is coming over tomorrow to go to a concert with me and crash at my place for the night. I'm so excited because the plans were made completely last minute and I haven't seen her all summer! I think she's going to be really shocked at my transformation so far and my hair change. Because of this I probably won't be able to post, but I'll be back the next day.

Seriously body, give up and let me lose the weight I need to already...

<3

Day 57 (PV) Start of Week 9!!

Today's Weight: 138.8lbs, 0.4lb loss from yesterday
Total Loss: 19.8lbs!!

Yay, another pretty decent loss today to really knock me into the 30's. 0.2lbs more and I will officially have hit my mini-goal of losing 20 pounds! I still haven't figured out a different reward for it this time. For ten pounds I treated myself to a pedicure, but I'm not sure what I want to do for 20!

Also, another really cool thing, I tried on my really cute pair of jeans that I have been trying on periodically to see if I would fit into them....and they fit again! I'm so excited, especially since I found out yesterday that the pair of jeans I'd been wearing all the time had developed a hole! Not so upset about that anymore since I can now wear my cute ones. They're still a little tight and it's not like I would be comfortable running around and doing aerobics in them without concern of them giving me a muffin top, but they fit better now than when I finally gave up and quit wearing them!

I'm so encouraged. Note to future stagnated self: this really does work, just be patient. Easy to say now, TOM should be showing up within the next few days and I'm not really looking forward to the stall that will put on my loss.

Side note: It's football season!!! I've watched 4 games since Thursday, I think that's probably sad in some way. But I'm so excited to have it back.

<3

Day 56 (PP)

Today's Weight: 139.2lbs!!! 0.8lb loss from yesterday
Total Loss: 19.4lbs!

And then it's mornings like today that make me feel silly for complaining so much. I finally broke into the 130's, and a solid break at that! I'm close to my losing 20 lbs mini-goal! I was really nervous to see what the number was this morning and basically peeked at it, as if squinting at it makes the number any less painful, and then was elated at the new low! Okay body, let's keep up the good work ;)

Today went well, minus having to watch people eat tons of potato chips, chocolate cake, cookies, and fresh saltwater taffy right in front of me at lunch. My brother was even enough of a punk to wave the bowl of potato chips underneath my nose in an attempt to tease me. If only it didn't all smell so good.... But I was a perfect little "dukaner" and stuck to my slices of roast, and I didn't even have veggies to help ease the pain because it was a protein day! Ugh! Anyway, later on for dinner I heated up a couple chicken burgers and made my gallette. I like spacing my meals out in the day, since it gives me something to look forward to.

That's pretty much it! I'm headed home from the beach tomorrow which will be nice. I love it here, but I'm ready to be back home.

<3

Day 55 (PV)

Today's Weight: 140.0lbs, 0.2 loss from yesterday
Result: 18.6lbs lost so far

No, I am seriously not kidding that I weighed right at 140 today. I so knew that was going to happen to me! I mean a loss is a loss, but for the last couple weeks I've been itching to break out of this set of digits. Argh.

I'm also nervous to see if I'll actually manage it tomorrow or not, or if I will have a gain. Today was my mom's birthday, so we went out to her favorite restaurant. I got a new york steak, but they weren't very accommodating as far as substitutions and modifications to the items on the menu and I have concerns about how it was prepared when it was all said and done. Oh, and by the way, since when does "gourmet scallops" mean DEEP FRIED in beer batter? What the heck??

I had to watch my family eat this decadent-looking chocolate fudgey goodness cake for dessert, and even though I was practically dying inside at this point, I managed to resist. I did however have a sugar-free hot cocoa tonight, which I'm hoping is okay. It's the first time I've experimented with something like that, so I'm hoping it doesn't affect the scales adversely. Also, I've been having a lot of eggs recently which I seem to remember reading may slow down weight loss by quite a bit if eaten too much. I should cut back on that and see if that helps! They're just so easy and convenient to prepare...

I ended up with quite a bit of exercise today, though. My family and I went down to the beach to sit and watch the waves and my brother challenged me to a race. Never one to back down from an opportunity to beat him, I accepted but then realized he was talking about the end point being over a mile away at the beginning of a huge cliff-like thing toward the end of the beach. Ugh. I ran/walked/panted my way there only to have him beat me (dang boy has too long of legs for this shortie) and then we did some exploring and "ran" back. I've got to get into better shape so that I can beat him next time!

 Suffice to say, today was difficult motivation-wise. I have GOT to have a good loss tomorrow or I think I will chuck my scale into the ocean.

<3

Day 54 (PP)

Today's Weight: 140.2lbs, a loss of 0.2lb from yesterday
Result: 18.4lbs lost

I can practically hear my sadistic body laughing at me. I was sooo hoping to be out of the 140's today, but nooo. It had to give me a tantalizing 0.2lb loss so that I'm still waiting to break out of them. I may just scream tomorrow if something similar happens to  put me square at 140, but I suppose I should just be thankful for anything that isn't a gain. Boo. Difficult to be optimistic when you're so frustrated. It's taken me a week to recover from the gain after camping! I was really hoping to be at least around 135 before having to go back to my university...

In cool news however, I have converted one of my friends and her mom to start on the Dukan Diet! I hung out with her for a while earlier in the week and she watched what I ate and peppered me with questions, apparently went out to buy the book, and has been reading up on it and stocking the fridge in order to start! She texted me today with the news and I'm just so excited that seeing my results was enough to make her want to try this! She's going to try a ten day Attack Phase just like I did, so I'm psyched to see how much she loses with that initial burst. How fun! She also might need a place to stay at school and move in with me and my current roommate. That would be so awesome to have another person doing this way of eating and living with me! Talk about built-in support network!

I tried a new type of chicken sausage today and realized afterwards that it had a somewhat high sodium content... Why do I always notice these things AFTER I eat them?? I don't think that it actually had enough to have an adverse affect on my weight in the morning... at least I sure hope it doesn't. That would crush me if tomorrow is a gain instead of that final push to knock me into the 130's, but I guess I will see what happens! It'll probably be one of those mornings where I peek at the scale to see the number quickly, as if that makes it any less painful.

Think thin, think thin!

<3

Day 53 (PV)

Today's Weight: 140.4lbs, 1lb loss from yesterday!
Total Loss: 18.2lbs

Yaay, finally saw some progress on the scale today with a pound difference, finally dropping me officially below my previous low before heading on the camping trip. I'm sooo close to breaking out of the 140's! I'm actually daring to hope that it might happen tomorrow, even though I had a veggie day today. Despite having to re-lose some pounds, I've still be dropping consistently over the last few days which is pretty encouraging.

I had a big breakfast/lunch today of eggs (I seem to be eating a lot of those recently. Maybe because they're easy?), two chicken burgers, my gallette, a spinach salad, and a couple mini bell peppers. This made me feel completely stuffed for the rest of the day, so I didn't really feel inclined to have a snack this evening. I also walked around a bunch today trying to help my mom pick out some clothes for my Dad to get her for her birthday. Hopefully that can count as my daily exercise!

I ended up finding two really great coats that will help me stay dry when I'm out and about in the rain when I have to go back to my University in a few weeks. I'm really trying to bury my head in the sand about the fact that I have to start all of the hard work that goes along with it so soon. I've definitely been getting used to the laziness and simplicity of summer. I was so burnt out after the last few years of school that I really needed all of this time to recharge, it's just now that summer is coming to a close I'm not sure if I got enough down time even still! Gah. I also had all of the aspirations of pre-studying for the classes I'm most worried about this year so that I won't completely drown in confusion in the first couple weeks... did that actually end up happening? Not a bit! Dang. And I'm usually so on top of this stuff.

Oh well, I've been focusing on doing what's good for my body instead of stressing myself out like crazy for once and it has felt good. I'll deal with school starting up again when it's like the day before classes start. I'm a pro at the whole ostrich-mentality: if I can't see it, it can't see me.

Hoping for a new set of digits in the morning! Fingers crossed.

<3

Day 52 (PP)

Tuesday (yesterday's) Weight: 142.0 lbs (0.4lbs down from Monday)

Today's Weight: 141.4lbs

Result: finally 0.2lbs down from my lowest weight last week before camping

Man, I really hate plateau's. I can't believe that the sodium in those imitation crab sticks that I ate for a snack while camping had such an effect on my weight for the last week. I've basically spent this whole time just trying to recover from that. I'm not positive that was what happened, but I'm pretty sure since I'd never had them before and everything else I ate wasn't out of the normal. Sigh...

I've had a very busy last couple of days, full of friends dropping in since they're in the area and staying for a long time, swimming, tanning, and now I just settled into a beach house where I will be for the next 5 days or so while my family celebrates my mom's birthday. Funnily, or pathetically, I made sure to bring my bathroom scale with me so that I can keep track of my weight since I'm now paranoid of what will happen if I don't track it every day. I'm hoping to see some real progress over the next few days and finally say "sayonara" to the 140's and start cracking on the 130's. That would be so awesome, I only have a little more than a pound until that's a reality! 

I think I'm planning to talk a walk on the beach tomorrow morning when I wake up to get in some daily exercise... shaping up to be a good day! Eating has been on plan and no slip-ups. Today I ate a large brunch of eggs, steak, and my gallette which kept me pretty full until early in the evening, at which point I had some low-sodium turkey deli meat since it was convenient and I didn't feeling like fussing with food. 

Hoping for a good number in the morning!

<3

Day 50 (PP) Start of Week 8!

Weight morning after returning from camping: 143.0, gain of 1.4lbs (what the what?)

Today's Weight: 142.4

Conclusion: Vacations suck for this diet.

So I have to make this blog post pretty short as it's going to be an early morning, plus a busy week, but I'm so frustrated that I gained while away camping. I was perfect and I'm not even exaggerating. I didn't eat any of the junk lying around, didn't drink when everyone kept asking me to, and definitely did NOT eat the s'more that I was asked to pass to someone else. Grrr. The only thing I can think of is that I ate some imitation crab sticks (read that they were okay) but they are extremely high in sodium.... apparently my body is very sensitive to that.

Anyway, I'm back on the downward trend but I'm so frustrated that I had a setback. I was really hoping to break into the 130s by the time I got home =/.

Oh well, gotta keep trucking along! Hopefully tomorrow will be a good scale morning. I need one!

<3

Day 45 (PP)

Today's Weight: 141.6lbs, loss of 0.2lbs from yesterday
Total Loss: 17lbs!

Well it was a small loss from yesterday, which was actually somewhat surprising to me since my head feels SO much lighter with my shorter hair. I wonder if today would have been a gain day if I hadn't cut my hair... hmm.. Maybe just eating the fish off of sushi still isn't a good restaurant idea!

Today I went down to the house I live in at my university to move all of my stuff over to a new room and do some cleaning in preparation for the next term to start. Man that place was a mess from my roommates last year. I spent a good portion of the day working on it and it's still nowhere close to being done. Ugh!

Also, something that is causing me a great deal of stress, tomorrow I am leaving for a couple days to go on a camping trip with some friends as a belated birthday thing. Typically this would be fine, but a lot of my friends are couples, (boring for the single person over here who hates being the third wheel), as well as enjoy drinking. Not to mention the amount of prep work I'm going to have to do tomorrow by pre-making a bunch of meals and loading up on snacks so that I'm not tempted by everyone elses' junk food! The main thing that people do while they're there is eat, so it should be interesting trying to avoid all or that. Sigh... but the point of this way of eating is to learn how to control myself and succeed in social situations, not just when I'm isolated!

So I guess I'll be missing for a few days. Tomorrow morning will be my last weigh-in for about two days and I think it will drive me crazy! I really have begun to like seeing that number in the morning to give me instant feedback on how this whole thing is going... I'm nervous!

Here goes nothing...my first TRUE test of if I can do this without any of my typical support!

<3

Day 44 (PV)

Today's Weight: 141.8lbs, no change from yesterday
Total Loss: 16.8lbs

No change today, but I was okay with that because of how much I have lost in the last week or so. I've been getting amazing results, which is so incredibly encouraging.

Today went well food-wise even though I was pretty busy. My bestie gave me my belated birthday present today: a haircut and color! I've needed a cut for so long and the color part was just an extra bonus. I lopped off at least six inches of hair, (it was really long and needed to be done), so now it sets pretty much right at my collarbone. Thankfully it doesn't make me look younger like I was sorta afraid it would. The color didn't turn out quite as I expected, though. I asked for a chestnut with red undertones, and ended up with a dark brown with very red/almost burgundy sheen to it. Thankfully that will lessen as time goes on, since it's a little funkier than that I was originally intending. Haha.

My friend is vegan, so we had an interesting time finding a place where we could both find something we deemed acceptable, but we finally ended up going out to sushi and I just ate the nigiri without any of the rice. Ended up being really yummy, if not very filling. I ended up going home after and eating a salad with chicken on it so that I wouldn't be so hungry!

All in all, a very good day. My head feels so light now without all of the extra weight from my hair. Crazy! I wonder if that will give a false-low on the scale tomorrow... Whatever, I'll take it! haha

<3

Day 43 (PP)

Yesterday's Weight: 141.8lb, 1lb loss from yesterday!
Total Loss: 16.8lbs

Holy cow! I actually lost an entire pound in a day, I haven't seen results like this since my "Attack" phase! I would have posted this last night, but for some reason my internet wasn't working...

Off to see my weight is today! And I'm getting a much-needed hair cut, so I'm super excited about that. It's going to be a good day!

<3

Day 42 (PV) Start of Week 7!

Today's Weight: 142.8lbs, 0.2lb loss from yesterday
Total Loss: 15.8lbs

Not a huge loss from yesterday, but it's still a loss. I love it when I get down to the lower digits of a set of ten pounds... it's so encouraging to watch it be so close to that next milestone. Watch, in like two weeks when it hasn't budged I'll say it's infuriating for it to be so close and yet so far, haha. That's how fickle this whole process is!

My day was pretty uneventful, minus me going swimming in the river behind my house for some exercise. That was a ton of fun since it was a beautiful day out. I'm finding that my bathing suits that I got a the beginning of the summer are starting to feel a bit too big! They were practically too small when I got them! Yes! I love shrinking out of clothes, though every once in a while it makes it difficult to put together an outfit. Small price to pay... I have my eye on some cute clothes when I get down to size anyway, that will make that part easier. Oh the things to look forward to...

<3

Day 41 (PP)

Today's Weight: 143.0lbs, 0.8lbs down from yesterday
Total Loss: 15.6lbs

Big loss even after a veggie day! Yes! My body is finally giving up and relinquishing some of the weight. I'm so excited and encouraged by this progress, it's incredible. Three more pounds and I'll be out of the 140's! I'm just concerned that my scale is going to hear me gloating and pull a stall to the whole process again, haha.

Today went well food-wise, even though I was kept fairly busy from the afternoon to evening. I ate an egg salad for breakfast, and tri-tip roast for lunch/dinner. I ended up kind of skipping dinner since I didn't get home until late, but that was okay because I wasn't really hungry after all.

 My mom and I embarked on a mission to find an acceptable comforter with some green in it, since the room I will be moving into at my university in a month is painted kind of a mint green. I had originally planned to repaint it, but I really haven't had that much time/will-power to make myself do it, so I decided to just try to roll with it and incorporate it into my color scheme. Who knew a "pretty" comforter with green in it was so difficult to find? We eventually, after four hours of running around and getting frustrated with the selections, decided on a very pretty lavender comforter with some decorative pillows that have lavender flowers and green stems to tie in all of the colors. The contrast should end up being very pretty! Whew! At least that is all figured out, haha.

Here's hoping for another great scale day. I did a lot of walking today, so that should be good for something!

<3

Day 40 (PV)

Today's Weight: 143.8lbs
Total Loss: 14.8lbs

Yes! New low and I've almost lost an official 15lbs. This feels really good. I hope this trend continues!!

Short post tonight, It's late and I'm super tired. Overall had a great "Dukan" day, though!

<3

Day 39 (PP)

Today's Weight: 144.8lbs
Result: 0.8lb gain and back up to previous low

I expected to gain since I ate so many veggies yesterday! Still was slightly disappointing though, but that's just because I wish every day could be an exciting loss day. Once I start losing I always get greedy for more and the lower numbers! That's not really the entire point of this though. I have to remember that it's more about learning how to have a healthy relationship with food as well as getting down to a weight I'm happy about and maintain that. Maintenance scares me, I've never been able to make that work for very long after the completion of the loss phase...

Because today was a pure protein day, I had steak strips for lunch and then these chicken sausages/shrimp mix for dinner with my gallette and the last piece of birthday Dukan-cheesecake. That cake was kinda funky tasting, but with the right Walden Farms stuff as topping it was passable, but not something I think I would want all the time. It did make me feel like I was getting a treat all of this week though!

Tomorrow I'm treating myself to getting my eyebrows reshaped and a wax that is sorely needed in order to get ready for a birthday camping trip with some friends next week! Ouch in the moment, but totally worth it. There's something to be said for a little pampering =]

<3

Day 39 (PP)

Today's Weight: 144.8lbs
Result: 0.8lb gain and back up to previous low

I expected to gain since I ate so many veggies yesterday! Still was slightly disappointing though, but that's just because I wish every day could be an exciting loss day. Once I start losing I always get greedy for more and the lower numbers! That's not really the entire point of this though. I have to remember that it's more about learning how to have a healthy relationship with food as well as getting down to a weight I'm happy about and maintain that. Maintenance scares me, I've never been able to make that work for very long after the completion of the loss phase...

Because today was a pure protein day, I had steak strips for lunch and then these chicken sausages/shrimp mix for dinner with my gallette and the last piece of birthday Dukan-cheesecake. That cake was kinda funky tasting, but with the right Walden Farms stuff as topping it was passable, but not something I think I would want all the time. It did make me feel like I was getting a treat all of this week though!

Tomorrow I'm treating myself to getting my eyebrows reshaped and a wax that is sorely needed in order to get ready for a birthday camping trip with some friends next week! Ouch in the moment, but totally worth it. There's something to be said for a little pampering =]

<3

Day 38 (PV)

Today's Weight: 144.0lbs
Total Loss: 14.6lbs

New low!! I've officially lost my first "stone" and am well on my way to having lost 20 pounds! I was so excited when I saw that today that I almost shrieked in excitement. I think my body is finally getting used to the alternating protein/protein+veggies cycle and is back to losing on a consistent basis. Score.

I ended up eating a bit more today than I did yesterday, which should be fine but since it was a veggie day I got excited about the variety. Haha. For lunch I had a chicken burger with mini bell peppers, and then for dinner I had a taco spinach salad with celery and broccoli in it as well, my gallette, and another piece of that Dukan cheesecake. Let me tell you, I was absolutely STUFFED by the end of that and was wishing I hadn't eaten as much as I had. I think my stomach is definitely shrinking, because a meal like that used to be no biggie at all.

 I'm wondering if I get a slight gain tomorrow just because of the bulk/it having been a veggie day. Oh well, I guess I'll find out! I have the 130's in my sights =]

<3

Day 37 (PP)

Today's Weight: 148.8lbs
Result: No change since yesterday

I'm not really bummed out that my weight hasn't changed since yesterday, I was actually a little relieved since I usually jump up a little bit after a vegetable day. Yay!

Today was relatively uneventful compared to yesterday, but it was nice to have a relaxing and quiet day compared to the business of yesterday. I found that I wasn't hugely hungry today, so I didn't find myself eating the same quantities at lunch and dinner as I usually do. I think I'm finally getting used to my food options being more limited so I don't feel like I have to completely stuff myself of the acceptable foods that I'm allowed so that I'm not tempted. I may just be learning how to stop eating when I'm full! Sad that I have to relearn that.

For lunch I had two salmon burgers, and then for dinner I had baked turkey breast, a gallette, and a slice of dukan-friendly cheesecake that my mom made for my birthday cake. I'm so glad that she is as supportive as she is =].

My next mini-goal is to break into the upper 130's within the next few weeks. I think I can do it in three weeks, so we'll see what happens!

<3

Day 36 -- MY BIRTHDAY! (PV) Also Start of Week Six

Today's Weight: 144.8lbs
Total Loss to date: 13.8lbs

Woo-hoo!! Amazing birthday present first thing the morning with hitting a new low weight! I was so encouraged by this number today, especially since my daily fluctuations have been so wonky lately. I was half expecting a gain just because life likes to throw stuff like that my way, haha.

For all of my worrying the last few weeks or so, I had an amazing birthday. It was very simple, I didn't really do a whole lot... but turns out that's what I enjoyed the most about it. I got to spend the morning with my family drinking coffee and just reminiscing... I shopped till I dropped with my bestie all afternoon and there was never really a dull moment or a lag in the conversation, which is great because it had seemed like we had been having issues as far as being on the same page the last few months. It was great to put that behind us and get back to the way things have always been. We then met up with my family for a nice meal, and honestly even though I had planned to allow myself a treat, I was so full by the time I finished my meal that I didn't want dessert.

Trust me, I'm probably just as shocked about this as any of you are. Me? Resist chocolate when I have a perfectly good reason to indulge? Unheard of...

All in all, a very successful birthday. I'm lucky to have the people that I do in my life =]

<3

Day 35 (PP)

Today's Weight: 145.6lbs
Total Loss: Still 13lbs

I'm back down to my latest low today, which is nice. I was hoping for a little lower so that I could have a new low, but hey. Positive thinking! I did another pure protein day today in preparation for my off-plan dessert that I've decided I will allow myself tomorrow. Life happens even in the midst of this plan, and as much as I want to reach my goal weight as quickly as possible, it's also important to appreciate the moment and allow myself to relax for a day. We're going to a restaurant where I know I can have a great on-plan meal, and then dessert! Chocolaaaate haha.

Oh yes, and why am I randomly allowing myself this treat... it's my 21st birthday. I'm not sure why, but I've never really lost the child-like excitement that I had when I was younger for my birthday. It has become less of an event as I've gotten older, but I still have that "Oh my gosh it's my birthday, I get a day where it's about me!" kind of feeling every time. Only it used to be so much easier to rock my socks off entertainment/activity related on the actual day. The last few years I've found myself scrambling to figure out something to do that will make me feel like it was a great day, only to find myself disappointed at the end of it because all these elaborate plans fell through.

I am very aware that  all of this sounds extremely spoiled and immature, but I'm not sure how to get rid of that kind of anticipation and just accept that it's "just another day" like most people do. I suppose that I have kind of a Hollywood vision of how "milestones" should be.... although if I were going by that standard I would probably be expected to get completely smashed on my 21st and do something completely embarrassing, neither scenario am I feeling inclined to do... ah well. Such is life ;)

It will be a great day because I decide that it will be, not because of circumstance or how many people remember and wish me a happy birthday. I have my family to celebrate and that is all that matters!

Happy birthday to me =]

<3

Day 34 (PP)

Today's Weight: 146.2lbs
Result: 0.6lb gain from yesterday

Boo, another day of gain but I'm not too surprised since this seems to happen quite a bit for me. I went through my weight logs that I keep on my phone, (they have apps for everything nowadays, don't they?), and went through looking at the trend and I'm definitely going downward at actually a pretty decent pace. I'm about 2 pounds or a little less per week, which actually isn't half bad. I really need to put this into perspective and take a step back from getting bummed out from daily fluctuations! Luckily I think ol' TOM is on his way out, so he can quit bugging me and I can get back to losing.

Today went well food-wise...ended up having a lot of fish! For lunch I had two salmon burgers, and then ended up having freshly grilled salmon and steak for dinner! I felt like I ate a ton today, I was so stuffed. That is definitely nice about this way of eating, you get to eat until you're full!

Nothing else extremely exciting is really going on. Still debating whether or not I want to set myself back with a cheat on my birthday... is it really worth it? My taste buds say yes, my jeans say no! Haha... which one will win, I wonder. Chocolate is calling my name!

<3

Day 33 (PV)

Today's Weight: 145.6lbs
Total Weight Loss: 13lbs!!!

Woo-hoo! Hit a new low today, which was very exciting. This time I didn't step on the scale multiple times to see if it was correct, I liked this number so I just took its word for it the first time. ;)

I've kinda noticed that I rarely log the actual food that I eat on here, I just talk about the results...so I should probably start doing something like that. Here's an example of what I had today, (DISCLAIMER: I use a lot of Walden Farms products. I didn't prove that they had any real affect on my weight-loss in the beginning, so I continue to use them):

Breakfast: Coffee (I know, but I'm not really a morning person)
Lunch: Roughly 15 chicken meatballs with Walden Farms alfredo sauce (No cal, no carb, etc...), and three mini-bell peppers.
Dinner: A medium-sized spinach salad with tomatoes, celery, broccoli, Walden Farms bacon ranch dressing; two chicken burgers with Walden Farms spicy BBQ sauce, two mini-bell peppers, 2 tablespoons oat bran mixed with fat-free greek yogurt, pinch of splenda, and Walden Farms chocolate/caramel sauce. (yum)

So yeah, that's what my eating day looks like. I'm almost contemplating taking out all of the Walden Farms products and seeing if that speeds up my loss at all. It's difficult because I haven't really noticed any difference with or without them yet, but ya never know. They really make this way of eating bearable for me though... decisions, decisions.

Also, I still haven't decided if I'm going to allow myself a treat on my birthday or not yet. I'm so torn since I'm actually seeing good results at the moment. I'd really hate to derail that at all, even as I'm half afraid of the scale telling me I'm heavier tomorrow after just having a veggie day. I'd really like the trend to keep going down, if you don't mind! I'd love to get below the weight I was last year when I went to college by the time I have to go back this year. That would take another 15 pounds or so, though. Bummer. Not sure I can make that realistically.

Another thought: I might do about four days of "Attack" after my birthday, my scheduled cheat or not, in order to speed up the process just a bit. It'd be hard since I've gotten so used to getting vegetables every other day, but at least it wouldn't be for ten days like the first time I did it!

'Til tomorrow

<3

Day 32 (PP)

Today's Weight: 146.4lbs
Total Weight Loss: 12.2lbs

Well TOM is in full swing but I managed to lose 0.8lbs from yesterday, so that's a positive. I'm getting really frustrated with how it has taken me the last three weeks or so to work my way down from 150. I keep waiting for my body to get into the spirit of things again but I really haven't had a dramatic "whoosh" that has lasted lately.

Also, I have a dilemma. My birthday is on Monday and I'm trying to make the decision if I'm going to allow myself a deliberate cheat or not. I had decided in the beginning that I was, but now I'm already discouraged with the numbers that I'm seeing so I wonder if it would even be worth it. I would hate to be set back by a week or two just because of a piece of cake or something... I dunno. I guess we'll see what I decide! That planned "reward" time has kind of been what has kept me going to some extent, though. I was really hoping to be at least in the lower 140's and well on my way to the 130's by then...

In great news, my dad was released from the hospital today! I'm a little worried about him trying to do too much too soon without all of the nurses and doctors to scold him, but I'm so happy that he's out of there. Yay! I was afraid I'd be spending my birthday in the hospital, haha.

<3

Day 31--One Month Completed!!

Yesterday's Weight: 146.6lbs
Today's Weight: 147.2lbs

Yikes, I missed a day! I tried to post last night but my internet was having issues right when I tried to submit my post and erased it all. I was too tired to deal with it at that point, so decided I'd just wait until tonight to try again.

As you can see by my weights, I've been steadily gaining back approx. a pound above my new lowest weight, which is to be expected I suppose because TOM just happened to appear this morning. Lovely. Dr. Dukan talks about women's cycles and to keep track, but mostly ignore what happens on the scale during that time because of water retention. The good news is that the loss is still happening, I just can't see it in the numbers.

I was so mad today though, when I first stepped on the scale it said 145.0lbs and I was shocked! I got all excited and decided to try again just to "make sure" that was real. Second weight was 147.2lbs...what? So I tried again... and again... and again... never could re-create the 145lb so I had to admit defeat and decide that 147 was the accurate one. Dang.

However,  because it was the one month mark , I wanted to measure my hips (my largest problem area) and see how I've progressed. At the beginning of this I measured 46 inches around my hips and tonight I measured 42 inches!! That means I have lost FOUR inches off of my hips in a month! That's incredible! Definite sign that this is working. I keep swearing that I look a lot thinner than the number on the scale is telling me. I typically don't get this kind of results until I'm in my 130's... also, I bought a pair of swear capri's at the store the other day in a SMALL because I wanted to be able to fit into them when I lose a little more... but they fit!! This makes me excited for when I finally hit those lower numbers! Maybe I'll finally start to see some of that muscle definition that I had when I was younger =]

My dad is doing okay, but still in the hospital so my days are spent shuttling to and from there and doing all of the errands that my mom is too scatterbrained to do at the moment. I hope he gets to come home soon.

<3

Day Twenty-nine--Start of Week Five!

Today's Weight: 146.2lbs
Total Weight loss to date: 12.6lbs

Awesome, another drop today. I wasn't expecting one, really. It doesn't seem like with all of this food that I'm eating that I SHOULD be losing any weight. Yes I'm not eating any of the amazing naughty stuff that I typically do, but I'm still eating a lot in bulk. (And not really seeming to expel any of it. A definite downside to this diet is the constipation...)

I feel like I ate a lot today especially. I don't know if it was to make up for the deprived feeling that I had so strongly last night or what, but it was a veggie day today and boy did I go to town! It was all "legal" and perfectly legit for me to eat, it was just a lot for a typical day. I suppose I'm dreading the scale tomorrow because I feel like there's no way I'd lose anything.

Anyway, on a more important subject, my dad was admitted into the hospital tonight with blood clots in his lungs. He randomly mentioned this evening that his chest was bothering him, and then abruptly decided to go to the emergency room in the middle of a show we were watching. Lucky for us that he did, turns out he has extreme clotting in his left lung, some in his right, which would have likely been fatal if it had been left alone. This makes me worried and unsettled. My dad has always been the big, strong, invincible one of the family. It makes me sad to see him hurting and having a condition like a "Pulmonary Embolism". I hope the clots go away quickly with the help of the blood thinners...

Looks like tomorrow will be full of hospitals and family. I'm worried. I hate that he has to be alone in the hospital tonight.

<3

Day Twenty-eight

Today's Weight: 147.2lbs
Result: Still 0.4lbs up from my lowest of 146.8lbs

Well it was good news in my mind to step on the scale for a loss of a pound since yesterday. I'm a little concerned about my liquid intake not being so stellar the last few days, so I wonder if that has something to do with the scale fluctuations. I wish I wasn't so attached to those numbers... I think I say that a lot.

This evening has been kind of difficult for me, I've been dealing with lots of cravings and just wanting to raid the "bad" cupboards that contain all of the potato chips, chocolate covered peanuts, chocolate chip cookies, M&M's, and other yum that I shouldn't get into. (Can you tell that pretty much everyone in my family has a sweet tooth?? Yikes! No wonder I found myself needing to lose weight...)

Anyway, I thought that I should mix things up a little but adding a progress picture! I regrettably do not have a picture of me at my highest weight, that was lost with my old phone, but I just took a picture last night to show my 11ish lbs down! and here it is:

I think my hips somehow managed to look slimmer in this picture than they do in real life, but totally not complaining! I think I might try and do this every couple of weeks just to serve as a reminder on how I'm progressing...

Oh yeah, and I couldn't fit into those jeans at the start of this!

<3

Day Twenty-seven

Today's Weight: 148.lbs
Result: 1.2lb gain from yesterday

What the what?! I swear it's like my scale heard my optimistic ramblings yesterday about how I wasn't discouraged by a little gain, yada yada, and decided to spring this on me this morning. Rude! I was just as shocked to see that number as I was when I was decreasing so rapidly a few days ago. Boo. I enjoyed that shock so much better than this one.

I can't really say for sure if there were any major causes for this gain. For one, it is all definitely from water weight because there is no way I ate that many calories yesterday, (though that sounds like fun to try!), and I've been eating things that are the norm and haven't been an issue in the past one way or another with the scale. I think it's just my body's way of trying to thwart my loss--it's fiesty like that!

Today was somewhat difficult eating-wise because I ended up meeting up with a group of friends for dinner. They picked Wu's Open Kitchen, which is a Chinese restaurant for any of you who aren't familiar with it. I scoured the menu looking for something acceptable that I could eat and there was seriously not a thing there that was Dukan friendly. I didn't feel like confusing the waitress with my long and complicated "Yeah, can I get this dish, but without *insert pretty much everything made with the dish minus the meat*? Thanks!"... especially with the language barrier, it just didn't seem worth it. I stuck with a diet coke, explained to my friends why I wasn't eating which they seemed cool(ish) with, and ate later on that night at home instead. I'm going to have to try and come up with more acceptable restaurants as options!

Tomorrow has got to be some kind of a loss day or else Mr. Scale may be taking a one-way flight out the bathroom window! Haha.

<3

Day Twenty-six

Today's Weight: 147.0lbs
Result: 0.2lb gain

I can't say I'm surprised that I gained a little this morning. I always seem to after very active days, plus yesterday was a veggie day so that usually makes me gain a little the next morning. I have to say I'm a little bummed that my loss slowed down, even though I knew it would, but I'm still so encouraged by the last few days that it's not discouraging in the least!

I spent today helping move a bunch of crap out of storage closets, hidden cupboards, rooms we ignored while living there, etc from our old house. Again. And probably will for the rest of my weekend! It really is crazy how much junk a family can store up in the period of 15 years with little impact until you actually have to move all of it. We're in the process of filling up a huuuge dumpster, not to mention multiple Goodwill trips, in an attempt to consolidate and be done with all of it! Easier said than done when it's just me and my Dad trying to get a massive boudoir down a narrow flight of stairs... I've discovered that a career in a movers business is probably not a good fit for me ;)...

Today went well food-wise. It was a pure protein day, so I had steak strips and chicken meatballs with Walden Farms alfredo sauce (yum) for lunch, and eggs/chicken sausage/my gallette for dinner tonight. I had large portions of each so I felt quite satisfied by my intake for the day. I also made sure to drink more water than usual since I've been running up and down stairs, carrying things arguably half my weight or more, and tossing things into a dumpster outside in the heat.

I'm really happy in the difference I'm seeing in my clothes though. I'm fitting into a pair of older jeans, I'm watching my 140's slowly decrease, and overall just excited for what results I will see even a week from now. Since Fall Term is still about six weeks away, I can't imagine the more drastic changes that will happen from now to then. My friends from my university will be shocked! In a good way, of course.

Off to fall into a coma now...

<3

Day Twenty-five

Today's Weight: 146.8lbs
Total Weight loss: 11.8lbs

Holy cow, another 0.4lb loss for today! It seems to be slowing down somewhat again, but it's still dropping off. I'm so encouraged over these numbers, I can't even tell you. I also tried on a pair of jeans today that previously hadn't fit me even two weeks ago and now they fit! I have several pairs of jeans that kind of show my weight gain, so thankfully they will be nice as I lose weight as well.

Had a pretty good eating day, but I was really active helping pack/load a trailer and truck with Goodwill stuff, and general work today in an effort to get our old house to sell... looks like the same will be on the docket for tomorrow, so I'm going to keep this post short and head to bed.

ALMOST 12 POUNDS!!! If you couldn't tell... I'm excited =]

<3

Day Twenty-four

Today's Weight: 147.2lbs
Weight Loss this week: 1.8lbs

Wow is really all that I can say about this drastic turn of events with Mr. Scale. I guess it just goes to show that when you're stagnant and it seems like you're not losing anything, you definitely are. It just takes your body that extra time to catch up and release all of that water that is filling the previously-filled fat stores. I can't believe I went from moaning about not hitting the 10 pound mark a couple days ago to now having lost 11.4lbs. Incredible!

Today was a pretty non-eventful eating day for me. It was a pure protein day, so I had chicken burgers for lunch with Walden Farms BBQ sauce (yum! Surprisingly tasty for supposedly having no nutritional value), and then salmon/steak for dinner and a gallette for my daily oat bran. I've stayed away from experimenting with Dukan Muffins as I was worried they were causing my plateau. I had been using fat free cream cheese with some sweetener and lemon extract in it as a kind of icing and I'm wondering if the dairy had everything to do with that stall... It seems to confirm my suspicions that was the problem, since I've been losing since I quit using it again. Bummer, it tasted really good! Maybe my body is just more sensitive to dairy?

Anyway, I have a long day ahead of me as I'm headed back to the old house to continue packing and getting rid of stuff. At least it's a vegetable day! I'm hoping the scales continue to show loss, although it seems too good to be true. I'm just so impatient all the time, haha. I have to say though, this recent jolt of loss has definitely made me much more motivated and less tempted!

<3

Day Twenty-three

Today's Weight: 147.8lbs
Total Weight Loss to Date: 10.8lbs

I seriously couldn't believe my eyes this morning when I hopped onto the scale. I dropped 1.2 pounds from the day before! After all of my frustration yesterday, cravings, and all around discouragement, this was awesome and just the push that I needed to keep going. I finally hit my mini-goal of officially losing 10 pounds, and not only that, I almost made it to 11 pounds!

To celebrate I went out for a much needed pedicure. I might have to come up with different rewards as I go along and my weight loss slows down even more. Either the mini-goals will take too long, or they'll come up too quickly to justify getting the same thing done. I'll have to think about it! Nice thing to ponder though... I'm so excited this is working!

I had hoped to get down to around 135lbs again before heading back to college as that was around the weight that I was last year before starting, but I'm wondering if I will be able to make it in time. I have about 7 weeks until classes start again so it might be a possibility yet! I mean, I managed to lose almost 11 pounds in three weeks, granted a little over a week of that was Attack... we shall see. My body always gets extremely reluctant to drop weight the lower I weigh.

Today turned out to be a pretty good day, especially since I was feeling a lot more confident that this was still working. It was a veggie day, so I had chicken meatballs with Walden Farms alfredo sauce and bell peppers, then for dinner we went out to dinner and I had a small salad with a balsamic vinaigrette dressing, a steak( without all of the sauces and requested it not to be cooked in butter), and asparagus. Hopefully I made all of the corrections necessary to make everything Dukan-friendly! I also had my gallette as "dessert" afterward. The meal was very good though and I was full and satisfied by the end of it. I always feel better after veggie days, it's the pure protein ones that get me. I guess those are the ones where I feel the most deprived. I like to have a variety of flavors and textures to munch on!

Anyway, another pure protein day to tackle tomorrow!

<3

Day Twenty-two (Week Four!)

Today's Weight: 149.0

Ahh, I'm still playing with the same range of pounds that I have been for the last week and a half or so. It's really frustrating, especially because I have been very good and haven't cheated once! I was really hoping that my body wouldn't catch onto what was going on until after I'd lost a bunch... so much for that, haha. It's so typical of my body to do this, I guess I'm just disappointed.

I've also been craving CHOCOLATE/crunchy salty (read: potato chips)/anything bad for me. I'm pretty sure this is an indicator that TOM is around the corner, but it has really made today miserable and I have been agitated because of it. My family is known for always being stocked up with exactly those kinds of treats too, so I have to spend my day staring at cupboards where I know the goodies are and yet resist them. Cravings are so frustrating! I suppose it didn't help that today was a pure protein day, so I felt even more restricted than usual.

I also had a pretty big appetite for some reason today, so I ate more than I typically do and had a snack mid-afternoon. I suppose it was my way of eating something and satisfying that need instead of stuffing myself on the chocolate chip cookies on the counter... don't think I didn't seriously contemplate it ;)

I really need my body to cut it out already. It's been three weeks! I really want that ten pound mini-goal in my rear-view mirror and start working on the next one already.

<3

Day Twenty-one

Today's Weight: 149.2lbs
Result: Gain 0.2lbs

Well, I guess the scale was telling me something yesterday since I weighed the same this morning. That was a bummer, but at least it wasn't a huge jump up. I was somewhat surprised though because this was after a pure protein day, usually I lose weight after that and gain after veggie days. I had a veggie day today though, so I may gain even more tomorrow. I wonder if my body is going through a stall phase. I guess I still can't complain though, that's a 2.4lb loss in a week! It just seems like I've been up and down all over the place with that scale. I wish I was seeing as drastic of results as I was during the Attack phase!

I did well with my food today. I had a lean steak, eggs, and the gallatte as a kinda brunch. I also had cooked asparagus which didn't really match the meal, but I really wanted my vegetables today, haha. I also had a good spinach salad for dinner with leftover taco-seasoned chicken with celery, broccoli, and yellow bell pepper. Yum, yum!

Back to pure protein tomorrow. I hope I see movement on the scale in the correct direction!

<3

Day Twenty

Today's Weight: 149.0lbs
Total Weight Loss: Still 9.6lbs

Well this morning was depressing... stepped on my scale for a weight of 149.2 at first, but didn't want to believe that I had gained, so I tried it several more times and they all said 149.0lbs. I suppose I'm happier with staying the same than I would have been if I had gained that little bit, haha. Stupid how a number becomes so important. I just need 0.4lbs more! I really want to be able to hit that mini-goal of ten pounds. Then on to the next ten!

My day was pretty quiet, I got to go out with friends last night and tonight which was a really nice change of pace. I've been kind of a homebody lately, so it's good to get some variety and activity that is fun.

I can't believe it's so far into August already. My birthday is coming up and I have absolutely no plans for it! Ack... I guess I'll have to figure something out soon if I want it to be fun. I may have to plan for a few pure protein days before and after it so that I can indulge a bit on the day. You only turn 21 once, you know ;)

<3

Day Nineteen

Today's Weight: 149.0

Total Loss: 9.6 pounds!

This is awesome, I'm feeling so good about being solidly within the 140's. I tried on my older pair of "fat" jeans that I haven't been able to wear for about six months, so that felt really good to be able to fit into them.They aren't loose by any means and it takes a little bit of wiggling, but they fit dangit! Haha. Now to get those to feel loose again and work my way down the pant sizes =]

Food went pretty well for the most part today. It was a veggie day which was exciting, but I didn't really take full advantage of it as I ended up being busy most of it and forgot to cook the asparagus tonight that I wasn't supposed to have with dinner...bummer! I had chicken meatballs for lunch with cucumbers, and then chicken with spices and herbs for dinner with bell peppers. Yum!

I got to see Cowboys and Aliens tonight with my Dad which was really fun, and then catch up with my friend from my University who was in town and I hadn't seen for a few months. It was great to hang out and get to talk to her again, I've really been feeling cooped up lately! I need to be more productive with my summer...I wasn't as great about getting my water in today though as a result of me being pretty buys. Hopefully that doesn't affect anything on the scales tomorrow.

So yeah, that was pretty much my day. Hoping for another good scale day tomorrow, although that seems a little too much to hope for. Especially after a veggie day! 

<3

Day Eighteen

Beginning Weight: 158.6lbs

Today's Weight: 149.6lbs

Weight Loss so far this week: 2lbs

Overall Weight Loss: 9lbs

Yay, I finally made it through the 150's!!! It feels like I've been waiting for this for a long time, even though I've been on this diet for only a little over half a month! Craziness! I just hope that I stay below now and don't fluctuate within the lower 150's and upper 140's for a while. I'd like to be officially moving on with this process, thankyouverymuch. 

Today I made these fabulous Lemon Dukan Muffins, the recipe for which can be found here: http://mydukandiet.com/recipes/lemon-muffins.html

This was my second time making them, and I had issues at first. In a regular muffin pan the tops cooked beautifully, but the bottoms were a strange consistency and weren't cooked all the way. I couldn't complain with the taste though, so I decided to try again. I tried them this time in a mini-muffin pan and baked them at 375 degree Fahrenheit for 7 minutes and then took them out to cool. They turned out adorable and fully cooked! Success! 

I also gleaned a little Dukan-friendly frosting that I'm planning to try on them tomorrow.. so here's what I did.

Lemon Frosting(ish):

3 Tablespoons of non-fat cream cheese

10 drops liquid sweetener (I used Stevia)

1 teaspoon of lemon extract

stir together until smooth and chill until ready to eat! 

Hope tomorrow is another great scale day =]

<3

Day Seventeen

Today's Weight: 150.4lbs
Total Loss: 8.2lbs

I think my scale is just trying to make me freak out before letting me into the 140's. It has it out for me, I swear. I weighed in this morning 0.2lbs lower than my lowest a few days ago, so at least I'm back in new "losing" territory. Would it kill my body to finally get over that hump? Haha.

As for an update on that whole friend situation... I talked to her today and made it pretty clear about how I felt and what I expected from her as far as support goes, which was definitely not what she showed yesterday. She apologized and explained that she was just concerned since she only saw me eating very little and didn't know that the Dukan Diet was the method for my madness. I suppose that was my fault in the misunderstanding because I really avoided talking to her about it at all before now.  I just didn't want to deal with her opinions before I knew if this diet really worked or not. Anyway, she apologized for being such a jerk about it and looked up what I'm doing and is skeptical, but supportive.  

Crisis averted.


Had a busy afternoon of doing various errands before going to the dentist. I was told twice that I have beautiful teeth by both the technician and the dentist, so I suppose I'm in good shape in that department! Other than that, nothing much to report...


My jeans are feeling loose =]


<3 

Day Sixteen

Lowest weight to date: 150.6
Today's weight: 150.8
Conclusion: The scale hates me a little less, but still wants to make me sweat...

Lunch went badly, I'll just say that. It was fine at first, if a little awkward because we ordered separately instead of doing the whole "What are you going to get?" dance that always ends up with us either ordering the same thing, or two separate things that we want to split with each other. I ordered a plain turkey sandwich with plans of just eating the meat and leaving the bread, which I did. She ordered a salad with a bunch of fruit and nuts in it that came with an apple. She watched me eat in silence, but kind of snapped I guess after she offered her apple to me and I declined because I couldn't eat it. She said "You're stupid. Just so that you know, you're stupid." with a scathing look on her face. Ouch.

I snapped back telling her never to call me stupid, but that pretty much ruined our hangout for me right there. I think she's due for a sit down and explanation of why this is important to me and if she can't handle it then I guess she's not a friend that I'm going to be spending time with. At the moment I was kind of shocked and unprepared to deal with that conversation so I just kinda shut down. Bummer. Odd how my personal weight goals can affect a friendship so much. In my opinion it shouldn't impact her that much, other than having to watch me be pickier about what I eat. Vegan works for her, which is great. But it doesn't for me.

So yeah, I've been pretty fired up/bummed about that happening all day. I'm concerned about the sodium content from the turkey being too high or something which will make the scales not be my friend again tomorrow, but at this point I did all that I could and I stayed on plan even though it was difficult. Yay for small victories!

I also found out that I have to go to the dentist tomorrow. Dang.

<3

Day Fifteen--Start of Week Three!

Weight this morning: 151.6lbs.

Previous low: 150.6lbs

Conclusion: My scale still hates me.

I don't even really need to get into how incredibly frustrating it is to have to re-lose the weight that I just lost last week. I was really hoping to be working my way down through the upper 140's by now, not still having my body freak out at the 150 hump. Grrr. Looks like I'm not going to make that lower 140's by my birthday after all at this rate...

Kinda fixed the dilemma with my friend! I decided to just fess up and let her know that I'm on a no carb/high protein diet as a way of shedding a few school-induced pounds (plus, like, 25) and would have to be pretty picky about what I ate. She seemed pretty cool about it so we'll see how that works! We're meeting up tomorrow afternoon, so that should be nice to get out of the house if nothing else.

Oh, and by the way, who said it could be August already?! This summer is flying by and, living in the Portland Oregon area, we really haven't had that much of one! The weather is as A.D.D as I am when I have a really important assignment that is due. (This reminds me that I have yet to finish that volunteer application for next year... dang. See? My point exactly...) It's pretty much ridiculous. If you don't like the weather in Oregon, just wait five minutes. It will probably rain. Not that I should complain overmuch, compared to the rest of the country I am very glad for our mild weather. Not only do I absolutely despise oppressive heat, but I become very unmanageable and all together lazy when it's super hot out. This probably has to do with the fact that I haven't worn a pair of shorts in years and consider jeans to be my year-long staple article of clothing. Arms showing? I'll risk it, but no one deserves to be subjected to my legs yet. Me included! 

Back to it being August already... it's my birthday this month. A pretty big one at that I suppose, it being my 21st, but is it weird if I don't really want it to happen? I don't have anything against getting older (yet), but this just opens a ton of doors with my friends that I could previously shut down. "Hey, wanna go to happy hour?" "Can't dude, I'm underage." "Ohhh yeah!" *end of discussion*. Yes, I would pull that card. I'm not much of a drinker at all, so previously it has been easiest to just beg off as being underage, but now I'm just going to have to flat out say no with nothing to back myself up besides the fact that I don't want to. This in itself will be fine, it's not like I'm pressured to drink, it will just be a much more painful and drawn out conversation of WHY I don't want to, instead of the old "pfft, I didn't make the law, take that up with the government!" and going along my merry way. 

I think I need to go back to school or something. My mind worries about the strangest things when I'm not completely occupied with the doom and gloom of assignments and impending midterms/finals. 

<3

Day Fourteen

Scale told me I was 152.2 pounds today which means I gained 1.6 pounds since yesterday.... so me and the scale are no longer on speaking terms! Ahh I was so frustrated I could have cried. I ate everything like I should have yesterday, but after thinking about it I realized that all of my protein had come out of cans... which probably means really high sodium...which means my body is doing a huge "HAHA fooled you now, didn't I?!" victory dance all over my motivation levels. Dieting really sucks sometimes.

To make things positive though, I know that this is primarily (if not entirely) water weight and it will go away as my body flushes it out. There is absolutely no way that I consumed over 5,000 calories yesterday to equal a legitimate 1.6lb gain. I know this because I DID resist the amazing-looking cookies, potato chips, and cinnamon rolls available after lunch yesterday... did I mention dieting sucks? Ah well, this plan is working, I just have to be able to see past the daily fluctuations and just watch for the downward trend rather than get so hung up on each daily weight.

In other news, my BFF wants to get together for lunch and a movie or something on Tuesday. Yikes. I've kind of be staying low-key for exactly this reason. I really don't want to have to deal with restaurants overly much or have to explain over and over to her why I won't eat what she's eating. I guess I'll just have to explain how I'm eating now and hope that she'll be accommodating as far as our restaurant choices and quit tempting me with food I can't have. I guess I really just don't want to have to explain it to her. As a vegan, she really detests meat and will give me that "and what planet did you come from" look when I tell her that this is practically all protein-based.  Plus I don't want to engage her competitive nature and make her feel like she needs to get back to losing weight in order to "beat" me. (I paint her out to be a horrible person it seems like, but she's really not. These are just a few of her quirks that bug me quite a bit).

Guess I'll figure out what to do about that tomorrow! I suppose come clean and let her know that I'm actually trying to lose some weight is a start.

<3

Day Thirteen

Yay for veggie days!! After a pure protein day yesterday I stepped onto the scale today for a 0.4 pound loss to place me right at 150.6 pounds. That makes an 8 pound loss exactly since the start of this thing! My loss is definitely slowing down with the addition of vegetables. This is somewhat frustrating but expected, I just know my weight is on the downward trend and as long as I keep doing the right things I will see it all come off eventually!

As a bonus I'm starting to see my clothes fitting looser and looser. I can't wait to get out of the current pair of larger jeans that I have and start fitting back into my cuter jeans that I was wearing the last time I had semi-success with a diet. If only I can break into the 140's!

<3