Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Why I am doing this

For those of you that are in Weight Watchers, every week at the meetings, there is a topic. It is meant to be informational and motivational. This week, the topic was Why. Why are you doing Weight Watchers? What made you take the plunge and walk in that door. What was the last straw? I thought I would share my why.

In November last year, we got married. And when I looked at my wedding pictures, I almost cried. I saw a me that was happy on the inside, but the me on the outside was not how I feel. I decided that it was time to get healthy and look the way I feel on the inside. That was my superficial reasoning.

I want to get pregnant eventually. And I know at my weight, it would not be a healthy pregnancy. I want to be happy and healthy and look pregnant. I don't want people to ask themselves "is she fat or pregnant".

So I joined Weight Watchers last December. I started at 285 and we worked very hard. I was unemployed so I worked out about 6 hours a week. Then my world was turned upside down. My grandpa got very sick and I flew out to see him. He passed away the day we returned home. That is when we fell of the wagon. I lost my grandpa and then I got a job, and I didn't have time to go to the gym anymore. 6 months flew by and on my birthday, I realized that my life has not gone anywhere in the last year. I was tipping the scale at 280, and I was sad. I really wanted to get my life back on track. A new Weight watchers center opened closer to home, and they were having a special that if you sign up for the monthly pass, you get a month free. So I did.

There is not time better than now, no day but today to make the change in my life.

So that is why I am doing weight watchers, how about you??

** By the way, at my WI, I lost 3.8lbs! Better than I thought for an evening weigh in!

Monday, September 26, 2011

The Story of Us

Because this blog is all about our lives, I figured I might as well tell you how it all started!

It was October 2006, Homecoming at UNC. I was the RA, and he lived in one of the buildings I looked over. We met while decorating the Residence Hall Lobby for the Homecoming Competition. He was very cute, and we clicked instantly. That was October 12th. The next day, Friday the 13th, he asked if I wanted to go on a short road trip to his uncle's house to pick up some CD's. I agreed and off we went. Our first stop was actually at his house, where I met his sister, and step dad. Then we went over to my parent's house, where he met my family. Some might say it was a little fast, but it worked for us. He took me out to lunch at Applebees and asked me to be his girlfriend (aww!) and I, of course, said yes!



The WHOLE way back to Greeley, we kissed at every stoplight! lol

And things were great from there. We spent a lot of time together, and it was awesome. As the semester came to a close, things got kinda sad. He got kicked out of school (oops) and I quit being an RA, so I was moving into an apartment with a roommate, and he was moving back home to live with his mom. But on December 4th, he took me out to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, and gave me a promise ring. He told me he wanted to marry me, but that since we had only known each other less than 2 months, that we should try living apart and see how it went from there.



That semester was hard. He drove up quite a bit to see me, sometimes only to spend the night then he would go back to work. We knew after spending a semester apart that we would be together forever so we moved in together in May. I finished school, and he went back, and in September of 2009, he proposed. We started planning the wedding of our dreams, when May 13, 2011 felt so far away.



In early November 2010, things changed. We began to realize the financial burden of our dream wedding, and the reality of my Grandpa's health. My grandparents were going to be in town for their 50th wedding anniversary over Thanksgiving, so we decided to cancel our wedding. It was a decision so obvious, that we made it in about 3 seconds. Thats when we started to plan. We knew we wanted to get married over thanksgiving, only 2 weeks later. We called his parents, and mine, and told them our decision. We set the date for November 27th, and got the plans into action.



In two weeks, we planned a wedding. A dream wedding. A wedding where my grandpa was there to see me walk down the aisle. A wedding that didn't cost us a dime.



So here we are, 10 months later, living the dream with a dog and condo. Andy will be done with school in December, and I have a great job. Who could ask for anything more?

Kids? Not yet. Not for another few years. We want to get better jobs and buy a house closer to our families. Then we will think about having kids. :)


So that is the story of us! Check out some of other stories here and here!

Week 2 - whaaaaa??

So I hopped on the scale this morning right after my morning pee (don't judge) and I got so excited, I had to step off, and try again!


Whaaaa?? I yelled "Andy! Get the camera!!" and he came running in when I hopped on again, we were at the same number! (part of me thought it was a glich) HOLY CRAP! I feel great about that number! 

September 26, 2011
Height: 5'2"
Starting Weight: 281.4
Current Weight: 275.8
Total Loss: 5.6 lbs!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So after this AWESOME day, I decided also to take a before picture, so I can look back at how far I have come!



So there you have it! Here is the last time you will see me looking like this!
(you have no idea how hard it was to not suck it in when the picture was about to flash! lol)

:)

Sunday, September 25, 2011

An Entertainment Center, part 1

So Mr. O and I built this a while back, but we have not had the chance to write up a blog about it yet. That is why this is coming to you in 2 parts. This part is about building :)

So we chose an Ana-white.com plan (who's surprised) and went from there.

We got a great deal on cabinet grade plywood, so we bought 3 4x8 boards. Then we started cutting. And cutting and cutting! And because they were long cuts, they all had to be done with the circular saw, which meant Mr. O was in charge.


So after cutting the huge boards down into smaller pieces, we started putting it together. We bought a Kreg Jig for the occasion. Kreg is a pocket hole jig that allows you to attach boards without exposed screws. 

So the boards look like this.


A few hours (and fights...) later, we had this. 



It's upside down in this picture, bit this is the basic structure of the center. From here, we painted it all white, and painted a back board (of 1/4" plywood) a special accent color :)

For the top, we cut 3 1x6 to fit across the top, and stained them to match our table. We thought about screwing them in, but we didn't want screws sticking out of the top, so we glued them down, and set weights on top.

Here is where I leave you with a sneak peek until next time!

:)

Friday, September 23, 2011

Featured Blog of the Week: No Regrets, Just Success

So in an attempt to start posting more, I will be trying to remember to feature... featuring a blog that I love!

This blog was started by my friend and weight loss buddy Manda! She is so inspiring! She is a beautiful, awesome woman who is kicking fat in the ass! :)

Get inspired! And tell her Mrs.O'Connell sent you!

http://noregretsjustsuccess.blogspot.com/

WW Food

So obviously being on Weight Watchers means eating differently than I used to. I am eating at home more, and trying to avoid Fast Food like the Bubonic Plague. Or like that weird pig/bat flu like in Contagion... Anyone else feel the need to wash their hands a million times after seeing that movie...? just me?

Anyhoo, eating differently has opened me up to new foods and recipes, and I thought I would share what I enjoy, and don't. 

Weight Watchers brand foods:

Smart ones Breakfast Quesedila- Delicious! Almost kinda tastes like a McDonalds breakfast buritto. It is very flavorful and I like it!


Weight Watchers Muffins:
           Blueberry: YUM! These muffins are larger than I expected, and at only 5 points, I am satisfied with this sweet indulging feeling breakfast. They are moist and yummy. 


           Chocolate: Also yum! The one I  had was kinda dry, compared to the blueberry, but still good. Helped curb the chocolate craving! also only 5 pts!
Weight Watchers Ice cream bars!-They have these ice cream candy bars (like ice cream snickers) that are delicious! They are the perfect amount of ice cream and chocolate. They are pretty big too! They are great for a sweet tooth, and I love having ice cream at night, so this is a low point way to still indulge! Only 4 pts!



Smart Ones Ziti with Meatballs and cheese-This is one of their new meals that come in a bag. They are a little bigger portion for a dinner sized meal, opposed to a lunch. At 10 pts, it was filling and pretty tasty. One of the better tasting frozen pasta meals I have had. 



Weight Watchers String Cheese-I know it would seem that this would be similar to regular light string cheese, but it actually has less fat. They are pretty good, but not as moist as light string cheese. If you can spare the points, go for the light. 

Weight Watchers Recipes-

We have 3 different Weight Watchers cook books. We love to cook, and we love new recipes so this has been fun. All of the recipes we have tried have been quite good. If I find any that are noteworthy, I will share. 

Non WW Foods:

Vic's Half salt lite popcorn- I LOVE popcorn, especially plain popcorn with a little salt. I usually pop it myself, but I thought I would try buying it. This is really yummy, and is just salty enough, but not too salty. It is such a great snack because it is only 1pt per cup. And a cup of popcorn is a big snack! 

Grapes- I have really started loving grapes. They are sweet and yummy, and pop in your mouth. mmmmm grapes :)

Hard Boiled Eggs- I really like easter, and these remind me of easter! lol. I like them for breakfast, or a snack, or on a salad, or with salt or plain. I just like hard boiled eggs, and at only 2 pts an egg, what's not to love!


So that is the break down of my favorite foods I have been eating. As I find more foods I love, I will let you know!



Thursday, September 22, 2011

My Inspiration

My journey will be a long one, but I am SO lucky to have a sister who has already walked these roads. She and I have always struggled with our weight. We grew up with very fucked up ways of thinking about food. In our house food was lots of things. It was motivation, reward, a privilege, and a punishment.  It was something we earned and something we cherished. It was NOT something to fuel our bodies. Certain foods were only meant for certain people. We would hide  hoard food, like we wouldn't get enough to eat. 

So growing up, it has been hard to break those habits and thoughts about food. That is why I think Weight Watchers has been so effective for her. It has helped her (and I) understand how food works with your body, not against it. 

So she joined WW about a year ago and has done great! 

Here she is at her heaviest (on the left)


And here she is now (tho this pic is a little old, so she might be smaller now!)


I didn't even know our bodies could look like that! I am so incredibly proud of her. She is my inspiration and I know that I can succeed at this because she has. 


:)


Monday, September 19, 2011

Lets get healthy!

I am sorry I have been MIA lately. We have been very busy doing things with our condo. But more of that to come later.

I have re-joined weight watchers, and thats the point of this post. So check out my new sister blog, And I live healthier ever after.

This is where I will be writing about food and weight loss. Check out my first few posts over there :)

Stay tuned!

Week 1 - Starting Weight

I joined Weight Watchers about a week ago. I have not gone to my first meeting yet, but I plan to go on Wednesday. I did weigh in this morning at home. It was a little bit of a shocker...



September 19, 2011
Height: 5'2"
Starting Weight: 281.4
Current Weight: 281.4
Total Loss: 0

It is a little bit more than I have been weighing on average, which has been around 278. I know it is the last time I will every see that number again, and I am ready to say good riddance!



Sunday, September 18, 2011

So, here's the deal...

Let's start off by introducing myself. My name is Jess, and I am a "big girl". I have been called chubby, fluffy, fat, huge, ugly, large, plus size, and I am sure more than that. The truth is, I am overweight. I have been overweight most of my life. I can actually remember the day things took a turn for the worse...

It was a normal day in 8th grade geography. I started my period about a month before, and my body was changing. I wore a pair of shorts and a tee shirt,but they were tigher than I remembered them being. Kids made comments about how tight my clothes were and I joked that they were shrunken in the dryer. This is when things changed.

I went from a size 5 to a size 13 that year. I got boobs and hips and these thighs I had never seen. The comments started,the boys were looking, and my friends started to change. I know middle school is a weird time for everyone, but that's where things really went south.

Because I believe in too much backstory at once, I will leave you there.

The point is I still feel like that size 5 12 year old,trapped in the body of much bigger person.

About a year ago, my husband and I got married. Shortly after the wedding, we joined weight watchers and a gym. We stuck with it until February 6th,when we were at the gym and I had 10 missed calls. My grandpa was in the hospital, and it wasn't good. We left the gym and bought plane tickets to Florida to be with him. He passed away that weekend. You would think this would motivate me to make a big change to get healthy, but inside, I was still that 12 year old girl, who just lost her grandpa. I shut down. I sat on the couch 10 hours a day and ate. We completely fell off the wagon, and never went back to the gym or to weight watchers.

Then our lives changed. I got a job in early March, working 40 hrs a week. I didn't have time to go to the gym, or to weight watchers. At least thats what I told myself.

Six months later, our lives are on track. We have developed a routine and I keep thinking that there are no more excuses. So I rejoined weight watchers. My first weigh in is tomorrow and truth be told, I am kinda nervous. but I know the first step is always the scariest.