Category: TransformationTuesday

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#TransformationTuesday – Sticking to the Plan

Another day and another weigh in, but a great one! I’m down 19.6 pounds and well on my way to meeting my goal of having lost 20 pounds by the end of June. WOO HOO! I’ve been doing it by:

  • Walking a lot. I averaged 21,000 steps per day which is about 8.5 miles per day!
  • Journaling my calorie intake every day.
  • Staying active overall with 133 active minutes per day.
  • Made sure to drink enough H20 to flush toxins from my body.
  • Did strength training at least twice a week. Muscle has a higher metabolic rate which helps burn calories even while you’re idle.
  • Did cardio at least twice a week (not counting the walking)!
  • Ate more fruits and veggies every day. At least 2 servings of fruit and 3 to 4 servings of veggies.
  • Ate less simple carbs like bread and pasta (very tough for me).

Besides the weight loss, my resting heart rate has gone down to 63 and my blood pressure has improved from being on the average side to the low average side. All good things for staying healthy!

FYI, if you’re wondering how I know some of the above stats it’s my awesome new Fitbit Inspire HR that hubby got me for Mother’s Day! I absolutely love it. If any of you ladies wants to be my Fitbit friend, join me at https://www.fitbit.com/user/3GZT48.

I’m sharing a picture I snapped last week so you can see the transformation. Not that drastic yet, but less love handles and pants are way looser. I’m moving down at least a size.
transformation tuesday weight loss

Just to be transparent, I do own a tiny amount of Fitbit stock because I really believe in this amazing product.

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Asian Chicken Salad – #TuesdayTip

I debated whether to do a Transformation Tuesday today or this Tuesday Tip and you know how that turned out! But in a way, today’s post is tied to my transformation because it’s about meal prep and mixing things up so that you don’t get bored while you’re trying to adopt a new lifestyle. While my hubby could eat your basic lettuce and tomato salad everyday, it drives me crazy! So for lunch today I’m changing things up with my version of an Asian Chicken Salad. I prepped all the chopped ingredients and dressing last night and I always cook a little extra protein during our dinner prep to have for lunch. Makes it easier overall and to date my meal prep and exercise has helped me lose 18.2 pounds! So excited. Goal for this month is to have lost 20 and so I think I’m well on the way. For now, here’s the recipe for my take on an Asian Chicken Salad.

Salad Ingredients

3 cups shredded Savoy Cabbage
1 cup shredded red cabbage
1 cup shredded carrots
3 scallions chopped (include some of the green parts also!)
1/4 cup thinly sliced red pepper

Dressing

1 heaping tablespoon peanut butter (I used chunky for the texture of the bits, but you can smooth if you’d like)
1/2 teaspoon Gochujang (red chili paste)(Find it at Korean markets like H-Mart. Great addition to BBQ sauce also for some kick)
2 tablespoons sesame oil
4 tablespoons rice vinager
1/2 teaspoon grated ginger
2 tablespoons soy sauce
Mix all ingredients together in a small jar and store in fridge.

The above will make enough for 2 to 3 servings. I’m adding about 2 ounces of chopped chicken once the salad is dressed. You can substitute other proteins like shrimp or salmon if you’d like. For some extra crunch, top with shopped peanuts, French’s fried onions, or crispy noodles.

As for the dressing, I noticed other recipes that included a few tablespoons of sugar as well as vegetable oil, but I decided to slim it down by substituting the peanut butter. It’s still a fat, but it has a lot more taste than plain vegetable oil and it also acts as an emulsifier for the dressing which gives it more body and mouth feel.

asian_chicken_Salad

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#MotivationMonday – The “I Can Do This Now” Excitement

It’s been nearly two months since I started my lifestyle change. Better eating. Continuing to challenge myself with my workouts. The end result is 15.8 pounds down, more energy, and the ability to do something like this past Friday’s outing: A climb to the top of the Vessel in Hudson Yards and a walk along the High Line. It came out to a total of 4.25 miles for those two adventures. So exciting on so many levels. Although my fear of heights kicked in the step training I’ve been doing kept me moving up and down the maze that is the Vessel without noticing a thing. Not out-of-breath for the wrong reasons. Maybe breathless because of the views and the height. A wonderful night with my best bud and I am so grateful for the positive changes happening with my body. Today I’m sharing some photos from that adventure.

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#TransformationTuesday – Success is Sweet

It’s a joyful day for so many reasons. For starters Memorial Day is just a few days away and that means more time on the beach as well as better weather for long strolls on the boardwalk. Happy times for sure. But it’s also a joyful day because I broke past that weight plateau I mentioned two weeks ago and also managed to stay on track despite being at a conference last week. Conferences are always hard on account of erratic schedules and conference foods. I made a point of exercising every morning, taking the stairs when I could, sneaking in a walk as well as watching what I ate. A big help was paying extra for the club access since it meant I could get a healthy breakfast, hydration during the day and also plan for grazing that kept me from eating bad stuff while waiting for late dinners.

With all that, I’m happy to say that I’ve lost 13.4 pounds so far and I think I am well on my way to my goal of losing 15 by May 31. Wish me luck!

Original Beach Image by Pexels from Pixabay

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#TransformationTuesday – Hitting an early weight loss plateau

After an amazing three weeks in which I lost almost ten pounds, I’ve been stuck at the same weight now for a week. Sigh. It’s time to consider what’s changed in the last week that might have impacted on my earlier success. For starters, I did have some more carbs in the mix and it just confirms that I have to stay away from things like bread and exchange healthier carbs for those like the carbs in fruits and vegetables. The other thing is my exercise routine. I’ve gone back to adding an extra twenty minutes of cardio after my twice weekly strength training. Last but not least, I have to look and see if I’m actually eating enough calories versus the calories burned due to activity. It’s never good to go into a mode that my body will consider a starvation mode. If you’ve hit similar plateaus with your weight loss, here are links to some articles that might be helpful:

Mayo Clinic: Getting Past a Weight Loss Plateau – https://mayocl.in/2DSwXsQ
My Fitness Pal: 10 Tips to Overcome a Weight-Loss Plateau – https://undrarmr.co/2DX4nqy
WebMD: 10 Ways to Move Beyond a Weight Loss Plateau – https://wb.md/2DTxTgW
Jillian Michaels: Break Through Any Weight-Loss Plateau – http://bit.ly/2DSeWeo

The content on the above websites is owned by the respective authors. Before starting any physical regimen you should consult with a physician. My linking to the above sites does not constitute an endorsement of any of the suggestions therein. (Sorry but you know those darn lawyers!)

Original Scale Image by TeroVesalainen from Pixabay

Original Hammer Image by bluebudgie from Pixabay

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#TransformationTuesday – Goals Met and Some Kettlebell Workouts for You!

The transformation is happily moving along well. My goal was to lose 5 pounds in April and as of this morning I’ve lost 8.4 pounds. Very excited about that. Clothes are feeling looser. I can see a difference in my belly area since I’ve cut back on carbs. My goal last week was to take stairs more often and I’ve been doing that. There is a noticeable difference already in how I feel after climbing which is a good thing since the “forever” townhouse we just bought is three stories. LOL! One of the exercises I do for strength training is to work out with a kettlebell like the one in the picture below (but not a pink one). Kettlebells let you do a diverse number of exercises and you work your entire body since you have to engage your core while using them. Here’s a link to what looks like a reasonable beginner workout using a kettlebell: http://bit.ly/2WcVrnS
transformation tuesday

Original Image by Joanna Dubaj from Pixabay

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#MotivationMonday – Keeping to Old Goals and Setting New Ones

Another tough week with holiday meals and celebrations, but despite that I’ve lost another two pounds! Yeah. So the total weight loss so far is six pounds. Very pleased with that since the goal was 5 for the month and we still have another week to go give or take. I’ve met my step count goals for every day, did another personal best on the assisted pull-up, and snuck in some chores, like building our new BBQ grill. Easter chocolate is tempting, but I’ve been good about limiting that and also, keeping to less soda and carbs. All in all I’m pleased with what’s happening and adding a new goal: to do more stairs. I’m not a fan for a variety and reasons and both my husband and I find that even though we do cardio and handle pushing our heart rates to healthy levels, stairs always leave us a little winded. So the goal is to improve on that by taking more stairs on a daily basis. I have at least two sets that I can tackle at Penn Station and then at Grand Central. Will let you know how that goes next week!
Setting Goals
Original Goal Image by Tumisu from Pixabay

Original Stairs Image by Free-Photos from Pixabay

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