Discover the Wild (and Healthy) Side!! – WISH May Lifestyle/Weight Challenge

[4Mickeys]

Will you be doing some planning for next weeks to make it easier for you to move towards your healthy and fitness goals? Shopping list for your food? Meal plan or ideas? Exercise - when, what and how long?

I planned for the tonight and tomorrow nights dinner .... believe me that is an improvement on some weeks lately. Tonight we had tandoori chicken, sweet potato oven baked fries (home made - I am still working on perfecting this), corn on the cob and broccoli. Tomorrow night is spaghetti bolognaise - I am planning on doing your half a plate of veggie with the spaghetti tomorrow night @HappyGrape . As for other planning - I have started investigating the local gyms - I am contemplating if I should try this to get me moving - my concern is fitting it in around work and the kids (sport, DS16 work and their homework) - but I am just getting nowhere at the moment. Things are super tight $$$ wise at the moment but I seem to find $$ for takeout when I shouldn't so am thinking I should just transfer that to the gym.

The park is celebrating its 25th anniversary and it's really sparkling with silver and blue!

Hope you and BF are having a fabulous time.

Positive expectancy is important when we peruse health and fitness goals. Yes, we need good strategy, but most people know how they should eat or exercise. Often in life when we fail few attempts we lose faith that we can, or this time will be different. And we do that, we don't use all are ability to create change! "I will" brings up different level of commitment to "I will try and see how it goes". Past is not equal the future. You know better now, you are different now - give yourself the trust that not only you can, but you will achieve your goals! Your strategy may need to change, your timelines may need to change, but having a certainty that this is what you want, and you will do what you need to do will create an energy to take you through it!


Give yourself the confidence in your ability to make it!

I love this sign and your post. It is really speaking to me tonight as I have been giving myself a bit of a talking to over the weekend about my lack of commitment to make serious, sustainable change and my desire to be healthier and lose weight. I keep letting myself not be accountable and you're right I know I should eat differently and exercise more. I have been doing a little too much dreaming it and not being it. We have been having some glorious days at the moment and I will drive along and think oohh we should walk on the beach/go to the park and then nothing! I am really noticing how quickly time is passing - and I have started thinking forward to DS16 graduating HS at the end of 2018 and thinking about the photos and how I want to be in them and not be self-conscious. Also, to the idea that if/when we do get to travel to the US again that I want to be in a fitter place this time around to avoid/minimise the "Disney Rash/Swelling" that I got last time.

The reason i haven't done monthly host is I am not clued in terms of Disney portion as much as the rest of you, so apologies that I am not 100% following the monthly theme! Our host will be back on Tuesday and normal proper Themed Post will resume!

You are doing great - and I have been waiting and waiting for you to volunteer as a month host as I have always thought you would be a wonderful host. As for Disney knowledge - google is my friend sometimes when pulling the months together. Thanks for dipping your toe in as fill in host

 

[HappyGrape]

I did some planning for the week
I have 3 sets of workout leggings & top to bring in work. I go to the gym after work and this way I don't have to bring a set all week, I can take it back once there
I chopped veggies in glass containers, they store well - peppers, carrots, courgettes, cucumbers. Red onion in zip lock bag
I made big pot of the veggie mix with some fajita spice and turkey mince for high protein breakfast. May have it in wrap, or just like that
I made salad for tomorrow with strawberries, feta and turkey burgers plus the regulars tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce
I bought some better snacks as small size of hummus or greek yoghurt to mix with veggie sticks or fruit for 4 pm snack
I made turkey burgers for my salads for few days
All of the above took me about one hour

I have to roast some chicken breast with oven chips but will do that tomorrow night. I just pre boil potatoes for 6 minutes and put them in the pre heated oven with little bit of oil spray and fajita mix, or just salt and pepper. I use white potato, I don't like sweet potatoes at all! During the week depending on the mood I will do quick things as trow the veggies, one lean burger (beef or chicken) made on small meatballs, tin of tomatoes or just pizza sauce and cook some pasta. If I don't have the clean up and chopping of veggies it takes 10 minutes to put it all together! I can do omelettes with veggies and add some parmesan to make them frittata style. I could make Indian meal adding veggies and chicken with jar of sauce and some rice in the steamer. I could make stir fries again veggies, some protein, noodles and i am currently loving lime with little sirarcha. I could also make curry with coconut milk and thai curry paste and veggies. I could make noodle soups with left over chicken, rice noodles and veggies. The only thing I need to remember is to take meat out of the freezer! I have pre chopped lettuce for my salad and baby tomatoes and can other bits. I will probably have to spend some more time one of the days as the current veggies will only last us part of the week

I will hit my fitness goals this week and most of my calorie goals. My average steps run nearly 18000! No way I would attempt to walk as much in the rainy winter. I did my 5 mini workouts. They are now about 25 minutes long now and I will keep them at that as I feel noticeable difference in my definition. I won't hit my calorie deficit goal this week, but I will hit most of it.

next week could be harder as it's the time of the month when I am grumpy.

 

[HappyGrape]

You are doing great - and I have been waiting and waiting for you to volunteer as a month host as I have always thought you would be a wonderful host. As for Disney knowledge - google is my friend sometimes when pulling the months together. Thanks for dipping your toe in as fill in host

Aw, this is lovely to say!
I am away for the last week of June, first week of July and first week of August but I could co host with someone.

 

[HappyGrape]

3 weeks gone
Exercise 100 % reached
Calories deficit I am at 10435 vs 10500 plan.
I am giving myself 75% the maximum for 3 weeks as I feel I am achieving my goals fully

I just realised I will be going pin beach holiday a month after California! That will make saying no too much ice cream easy

 

[HappyGrape]

Monday 22nd of May

Staying in Africa

Have you heard the line "You are what you eat"? Flamingos are pink due to the shrimp they eat! That's true for us too.

You are what you ate yesterday. Your body is constantly updating. New skin every 28 days. New bones every 7 years. Every single bit of a muscle in your body is replaced every 100 days. By September there won’t be one bit of muscle that is here today. It will be made by what you do and eat next 100 days. Whatever you have for breakfast today, will be your face in 28 days!

Look after yourself. If you decide to dramatically cut food groups, consult a dietitian to make sure you are not creating deficiencies. Give yourself enough fuel and be kind to your body. Think about sustainability. There really isn’t once and done. Even if you are perfect weight and glowing skin right now – what you eat in next 28 days will be your skin on 20th of June! Even if you have athlete physic right now – on 30th of August your muscles will be entirely made of what you did and ate from today until then. And that includes Summer Vacation! I find this little scary as I often ask myself will I be able to do it 100 days after the 100 days after the 100 days. It's also wonderful encouragement to make healthy sustainable choices today.


Question of the day: How did you get on last week? Would you like to report progress towards your goal? Last week is now gone, if you have made progress towards your goal - well done, lets repeat it all again! If you have not, is there something you can do differently? Would you like to set up new weekly goal for this week?

 

[HappyGrape]

Today is my last day as host! @Flossbolna will be back tomorrow with fresh Disney stories and daily questions

Have great week All!

 

[piglet1979]

I did not weigh myself this morning. I will hopefully remember to do that in the morning. My eating has been pretty good. It could be better though. I has also gotten in a few good walks. I have been walking with my husband and he walks fast which means for me to keep up I am walking even faster. He keeps telling me that he can slow down but I tell him no. I am getting a better workout. So I think I should be down a little bit.

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Since I started halfway through the week my goal was half as difficult, but I did manage to complete my first five days with WW without going over my daily points! I still have two whole days to dive into my weeklies if I want to. The best thing is I feel great! Yesterday I played volleyball for the first time in a year and I was practically bouncing off the walls with energy!

 

[Oneanne]

Weekly check-in... still not quite doing what I need to do, so still at 10%.

Plan for this week... to get back on plan. I did go to the grocery store yesterday and I did purchase lunch foods for the week and I almost brought said lunch foods with me to work this morning, but once again ran out of time and didn't quite get it together. Tonight I will put everything together so all I have to do in the morning is grab it and go.

Safari is one of my favorite attractions - I do it multiple times each trip. A couple years ago I did the Wild Trek tour and loved it. It was strange though to experience the the ride from the other side, the animal side... trucks full of noisy people going by all day long. In November I'm going to do the behind the scenes tour where you feed the giraffes.

We had a fantastic weekend of sunny warm weather. I got most of the front garden beds edged... truthfully I spent very little time out working in the garden and am surprised at how little effort is needed to get things looking spiffy again - in the front at least. The back is probably going to take all summer. Crafting vacation is now just two weeks away. I've been thinking more about the November trip to WDW so have had to shift gears and start to get myself together for this trip. I did finally sew another top yesterday, it is such an easy pattern and I was cruising along thinking I'd even get another done when I ran out of white thread. Really? I had 6 spools of natural/off white and finally decided to finish with one of them, even though it meant the top stitching around the neck and one sleeve was going to be white and the other sleeve and hem was going to be cream but really you can't even tell the difference. It did stop the momentum though, so just one top it is, for now at least. I plan on wearing mostly handmade to the retreat, so I'll have to get a few other things together.

Happy Monday everyone... here we go into a hopefully happy and healthful week.

 

[iivye]

Weekly check-in - 16 running miles, 0 biking miles brings me up to 62%

This week is going to be all yard cleanup. We have had some big storms and we need to get rid of a tree and clean the fence line. I really hate doing yard work but seeing it all cleaned up does give me a sense of accomplishment. Like ripping off a band-aid, I just need to get out there and get it done.

 

[katmu]

Question of the day: How did you get on last week? Would you like to report progress towards your goal? Last week is now gone, if you have made progress towards your goal - well done, lets repeat it all again! If you have not, is there something you can do differently? Would you like to set up new weekly goal for this week?

I had an "ok" week last week. I did increase my miles, but so far my weight hasn't budged which isn't really a surprise. I know for me I really need to work out around 5-6X per week for 45 minutes to lose weight so I'm trying to slowly build up the length and duration of my workouts.

My diet has stayed fairly clean. And this week isn't supposed to be so rainy so I'm looking forward to that, plus next week is Disney!!

 

[Lady Marie]

You are what you eat yesterday. Your body is constantly updating. New skin every 28 days. New bones every 7 years. Every single bit of a muscle in your body is replaced every 100 days. By September there won’t be one bit of muscle that is here today. It will be made by what you do and eat next 100 days. Whatever you have for breakfast today, will be your face in 28 days!

Look after yourself. If you decide to dramatically cut food groups, consult a dietitian to make sure you are not creating deficiencies. Give yourself enough fuel and be kind to your body. Think about sustainability. There really isn’t once and done. Even if you are perfect weight and glowing skin right now – what you eat in next 28 days will be your skin on 20th of June! Even if you have athlete physic right now – on 30th of August your muscles will be entirely made of what you did and ate from today until then. And that includes Summer Vacation! I find this little scary as I often ask myself will I be able to do it 100 days after the 100 days after the 100 days. It's also wonderful encouragement to make healthy sustainable choices today.

This is so fascinating and frightening! Yes, definitely puts in perspective how all your choices add up over time.

Question of the day: How did you get on last week? Would you like to report progress towards your goal? Last week is now gone, if you have made progress towards your goal - well done, lets repeat it all again! If you have not, is there something you can do differently? Would you like to set up new weekly goal for this week?

Towards my goal: Last week was great. Food choices: Ok, up until the weekend when things fell apart a little. Yesterday, I did partake in a birthday cupcake. But also some other not so good party foods. I wasn't completely off the rails, but I could've sacrificed the snacks for more of a loss. I did do well at the first birthday party on Saturday-- I don't particularly care for the bakery the cake came from at that party, so easily said no to the cake. In the past, I would've had it just to have it. But this time, I was more than happy to skip and save that for the better cake I knew was coming the next day Haha!

Going forward into this week, I know I can make some food adjustments from last week. Also I need to firm up a plan for Disney this weekend so as not to cause too much set back. I plan on bringing some healthy breakfast and lunch options. It's dinners I need to figure out.

 

[Jitzy]

I'm just a reader on this board but this is something that I read a few weeks ago...

"go for the “better, not perfect” choice when it comes to the calories we consume, such as choosing a glass of wine during dinner instead of shuffling through the pantry late at night looking for a snack. Always consider your own health, instead of simply going with whatever you hear is good for you and find ways for your favorite items — perhaps cheese or wine — to fit into your diet"

 

[Flossbolna]

I am back, qotd will come a little later. Just wanted to say a huge thank you to @HappyGrape for filling in for me!

 

[Flossbolna]

May 23

Pandora - the World of Avatar

​

Today we move on to a new land - one that is going to open this week. It was announced in 2011 and after nearly 6 years of planning and building Disney's Animal Kingdom is going to get a new addition. 6 years can seem like a long time, but for big picture developements, it really is not that long as we can see with building Pandora. So, while AK grew a new land in that time frame, how has your life changed in the last 6 years? Tell us one thing for you personally that has improved since 2011. And which aspect of your life do you most want to work for changing between now and 6 years in the future?

 

[piglet1979]

May 23

Pandora - the World of Avatar

​

Today we move on to a new land - one that is going to open this week. It was announced in 2011 and after nearly 6 years of planning and building Disney's Animal Kingdom is going to get a new addition. 6 years can seem like a long time, but for big picture developements, it really is not that long as we can see with building Pandora. So, while AK grew a new land in that time frame, how has your life changed in the last 6 years? Tell us one thing for you personally that has improved since 2011. And which aspect of your life do you most want to work for changing between now and 6 years in the future?

Awesome Questions. Well 6 years ago I had a 4 and 5 year old. My son was just finishing up kindergarten and my daughter her last year of preschool. We had just went on our first Disney trip thanks to my dad. My husband had always made excuses why we couldn't go. He did not have a choice this time. My dad was paying. I made several mistakes with this trip. I look back and think that there was so much more we could have done. Like visit the main pool at SSR. But I didn't know that there was such a thing. The first time my husband stepped foot on main street he told me we would be back. We have had 3 trips since then. I have turned him into a Disney lover. I have done so much research and love planning and helping others plan there trips. I just need to figure out how to get paid to do this.

My kids are now almost 10 and 11. I will have two in what around here is middle school. Seriously where did the time go. I am a bit emotional as this is the last week at the school I love and that has done so much for my kids.

6 years ago I weighed maybe 130 but most likely less. In that time frame I gained weight. I went up to 150 pounds. Now I am down to 138. I am getting there slowly but surely. I have been giving myself more time for me. Where as before I spent all my time on my kids and husband. A hour a day on me I realized is a good thing. I don't get as frustrated as much.

The next 6 years there will be a lot of changes. Kids driving and soon to be going off to college. With that will come a whole new set of worries. I will have much more time to myself without trying to find it. I am trying to not think about that. I hope to get to my goal weight and stay there. I also hope to be able to go on many more trips to WDW and beyond. I have never been west but would love to some time.

 

[HappyGrape]

It's a very big question, isn't it?

I had two major traumatic events, my dad's accident and state after the accident and my husband C. I also got new job in large multinational and few promotions. My son was 3 and is now 10! A lot went on

In terms of exercise, I first gained weight 2003 giving up smoking. Lost it next year, and kept it off until 2007 counting calories. Had baby, healthy weight gain and lost the weight until 2011. So really, calorie counting worked great for me!

From January 2012 to nearly the end of 2015 my weight went up and down. I worked longer hours. I went on more vacations, better income, easier to travel with older kid. My weight kept going down before holiday up on holiday (vacation, we call it holiday in europe) and up, until the panic for another holiday creeps back in and I go on diet. I did no added sugar challenge for 100 days in 2014 and lost a lot of weight. I didn't go out at all, I didn't meet people for lunch, I read every ingredient. I was skinny but anti social, obsessed and miserable. I wasn't hungry, but I wasn't enjoying myself either. Until we went to Orlando in October. I had food I have no control over, felt the diet is off and could not go back to no sugar. Not during vacation. Not after either. Gained weight. Felt horrible. I was approaching the overweight weight range for first time in my life. I felt like a failure!

NEVER AGAIN! I am not doing any crazy diets I can't sustain, I am not doing any no sugar or other list of foods. I lost weight end of 2015 and the first year of 2016 very slowly and I made sure I eat out AT LEAST once weekly and I focused on feeling happy with the way I eat.

In terms of diet and exercise I learned
You don't have to do the same exercises all the time, you can change as long as you keeping doing things
All or nothing doesn't work long term
Eating healthy and even losing weight doesn't have to be hard at all, as long as you don't let yourself making it hard
I don't have to stop calorie counting! lol, it takes me about 5 minutes a day, why did I listen to ill advise that it's not good to do?? So many long term maintainers track their intake either by points or calories
That maintenance isn't a set number, and I will need to remain on top of things and make adjustments as needed
That working out shouldn't leave me feeling like I have been beaten up, but energized for my day. Most of the time

What I want in the next 6 years - well just the same really, I hope to be successful long term maintainer.

 

[dolewhipdreams]

In 2011 I graduated high school so the last 6 years have been a HUGE transition period between moving to college, getting married, graduating college, and beginning my career. Getting married was definitely the best personal improvement on my life in the last 6 years

In the past few years I've put on some weight that I'm tired of carrying around. In the next 6 years I want to lose that weight (hopefully that will take far fewer than 6 years) and create lasting habits that promote a healthy lifestyle for my family.

 

[HappyGrape]

I will share some quotes of book I read few times, and it has been in line with my personal experience

"The Art of Weight Maintenance: A guide to help you lose the weight and keep it off... forever!" by Heather Robertson

"What I’ve found is that it’s less about being motivated than it is about being conditioned with your habits — having the keystone habits in place that will keep you doing those things even when motivation is waning, which it will. One of the biggest misconceptions is that you have to feel motivated in order to do the behaviors necessary to keep you at your goal weight. I have found just the opposite to be true; if you do the behaviors, you then receive motivation. You feel better. Those behaviors bring on a determination to do more healthy, positive things"

I think in the past, I will be motivated for vacation, loose motivation after and stop and be angry at myself that I don't have motivation. I don't force myself if I am tried, but now there are things I do, regardless if I feel like it or not!

 

[HappyGrape]

She divides weight maintenance in few phases. First honeymoon, everything feels perfect. Second is Todler phase, as described below

"Logically, I understood that I needed to continue the behaviors that got the weight off, but I was angry about it. I didn’t want to. I wanted to be able to eat what I wanted, when I wanted, and to have my weight stay at goal. ... I understood this would be my new life — eating healthy, exercising and tracking — but deep down, all of us want to feel there’s a break in sight. Like kids, we want to test our boundaries, to see what we can get away with and not get in trouble for. We want the treats, and when that shows on the scale, we get resentful. We want to be at our goal weight, but we don’t want the responsibility that goes into maintaining this new body

I stayed in my toddler phase for a while. I was angry that I had to do the tracking and exercise and be mindful of my eating…. Sometimes we just want to be left alone to do what tickles our fancy, without rules and regulations or consequences. Then the adult side of us eventually kicks in and we realize yes, we can do whatever we want to, but it comes with a price. We can resist the responsibility, but without that we have chaos, and systems break down. I had to accept that I would have to do the behaviors, and do them without resentment, if I was going to keep the weight off."