Day 14 (24DC 12) Lots of Cheating :(

I haven't been the best dieter, today. I started the day off really well, with a Meal Replacement Shake for breakfast, and an apple for a snack.

When I got to our family's Easter party, things got challenging. Roast beef sandwiched were on the menu. I did really well, at first, having only 1 sandwich with no cheese.

The need to eat socially was getting more and more out of control as the afternoon continued, and I ate a second sandwich, hoping I would get full, and kill the munches.

It didn't quite work. I ate a piece of cake after that, and then a bunch of Easter candy. I figured while I was already cheating, I may as well have some chips and queso.

I guess I just declared this a cheat day.

I don't seem to be so strong around a social eating crowd. I'll get back on track for dinner, and stay on track until the end of the challenge. I was planning a cheat meal once a week as soon as the 24 Day Challenge ends, so I'm hoping with the weekly treat, cheating wont be on my mind so much! Tomorrow's a new day.

Ok, well it's Easter. God forgave me for this big old cheat day, already. Lol. I quit posting pics. Just assume the worst, and I'll hit it hard tomorrow!

I'm not gonna lie. I am feeling really guilty about all the crap I have eaten today!! I'm seriously hoping that all these supplements I'm on will make me poop out most of the day's calories!! I thought it would be ok to enjoy the holiday, and have an off schedule cheat day, but I just feel so set back. It's like I threw the d tire week away! Ugh! This is when I remember that I'm a fat person on a diet, and have to work my butt off to convince myself I'm a healthy, athletic person at the gym every day! It's just 1 day, and I have 13 really good days to prove that I can do this. Pray for my weigh in tomorrow!! I feel like I've screwed myself out of 3 or 4 pounds because of bloating.

I did do one thing right, though! I did not drink a soda!!!

Day 13 (24DC 11) First Day of MNS

Instated my MNS Max 3 today. That's the 2nd part of the 24 Day Challenge. I HATE taking pills, and I get a knot in my stomach if I take too many, so the next 2 weeks will take a lot of will power for me. I'm excited about the results in my near future, thought.

On the MNS, you take a handful of pills 30 minutes before you eat, and then more when you eat. You use it before and with breakfast and lunch.

For breakfast I had 2 eggs and grapes.

I had a cutie after the gym. I only got in 52 minute because my baby got fussy and had to be picked up.

I'm having half of a grilled chicken sandwich from Sonic for lunch.

I'm having a bit of a problem with the MNS MAX 3. It works so well at suppressing my appetite, it's like a chore to choke down my food. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it makes it very hard to even drink water. I don't want anything in my stomach at all, and there's kind of a knot in my tummy. It's just my first day with it, so hopefully these little things balance out.

I had an apple for a snack.

I had the other half of my grilled chicken sandwich for dinner.

I'm having a late snack a little earlier than usual, and its kind of on the borderline of creating. It's frosted mini wheats in 1% milk. It's certainly not a cheeseburger or a bowl of ice cream, but I'm feeling pretty guilty about it. Cheating has been on my mind so much, I figured breaking the rules just a smidgen would keep me on track longer.

Ok. I'm having a bad day for snacking and wanting to binge eat. I'm having another snack. I'm doing my best to eat healthy things, and not drive to McDonald's. I'm having an emotional day, and since I quit smoking, food is my go-to comfort habit. Please do not think I'm saying its ok to have 2 snacks after dinner, as long as its healthy food!! I'm not saying that! All saying, is I'm human. I have a tendency to binge eat when I'm emotional. I feel like 2 healthy snacks is a better alternative than going out for fast food. I'm having a pice of whole wheat bread, with natural peanut butter, and bananas. I really need to get my emotions together before I screw up another day! Having eaten too much, today, makes me even more emotional!! Ahhh!!!

Day 12 (24DC 10) Last Day of Cleanse

Really embarrassing gym casualty: I noticed that I had a pretty bad wedgie on the elliptical, but I was way too embarrassed to fix it in front of a dozen order gym goers, so I just ignored it. I figured the discomfort of the wedgie was nothing compared to the shame of publicly digging my underwear from my butt. Well, the motion of the elliptical plus the underwear in my butt equaled some massive rubbing on skin, and now I have a carpet burn (panty burn) on my butt cheek!! I'm not even kidding, it burns when I urinate! Lesson learned: just pick the dang wedgie!!


My kids let me sleep in until 7:50 this morning, so I'm just now having my morning Spark and probiotic. I'm one fiber drink short from my Herbal Cleanse because I accidentally drank it on Day 4, so I'm thinking ill just take the Cleanse pills before bed time to make up for it.

I'm loving this Good Friday off with my kids!! I'm looking forward to putting a bandaid on my bootie, and hitting the gym!! The kids can go swimming, and I can work my way to my April 5th goal!

My snack is not exactly cleanse friendly. I'm having a piece of whole wheat bread with natural peanut butter and bananas. I've been told that the 10 day Herbal Cleanse should be carb free, but in the entire 10 days, this will be my third pie e of whole wheat bread. I'm thinking ill probably survive. I'm more concerned with preventing the after workout vomiting, today! I'm hoping adding these few carbs will help. It's very possible that I haven't been getting enough nutrition before I exercise.

I completely forgot to put my breakfast on here before I posted my snack! Well, out of order, but here it goes: 2 eggs and a cutie.

It was really hard not to cheat, tonight! My whole schedule for my whole day has been very off, and I don't do well with plans changing. My workout was cut short and I only got in 45 minutes, because I didn't realize the child care center in the gym closed at 7. At the end of the day, I was driving my cousin home, and was invited to stay and play cards, and have fast food. I was starving, my kids were starving, and it would have been so much cheaper and easier to just accept their offer, and enjoy a game of cards. They live so far out of town, it wouldn't have been practical to drive home and eat dinner and then drive back, and I really wanted to just stay. My day had sucked, and I was feeling really sorry for myself in that moment. Financial struggles and a dirty house were really playing with my demons, and I honestly can't believe I made the right decision. I did come home and eat dinner. My children are still mad at me for not letting them stay, but sometimes good parenting makes for angry children. They don't understand why we couldn't just buy more gas, or buy more food, but someday they will. We has turkey soft tacos with guacamole on wheat tortillas. I only had the turkey and the guacamole, so no cheese or sour cream. I also only had one. Again, the tortilla is not technically cleanse friendly. Incorporating the carbs is something I started today to keep me from throwing up after exercise. It worked, too! I haven't been sick all day! Today is the last day of the cleanse, so whole wheat, moderated carbs will be ok for the rest of the challenge!

I had carrots for a snack.

Out if order again... I told you my day has been off!! I did eat lunch, I just forgot to post it. I had turkey and grapes.

Day 11 (24DC 9) That Condescending Witch!

I took my kids to an appointment this morning, and I had to meet with a nutritionist about their diet and overall wellness. She was asking a series of typical dietary questions, and there was a pause and a funny look every few questions, and an implied sense of disbelief that my children ate so well. I try not to be the fat girl with the chip on her shoulder, but it was very obvious that the woman didn't expect my children to eat healthy foods and exercise, because in her mind, I clearly did neither. I pretended not to notice her indiscreet judgment, and I finally said, "They're AdvoCare kids. They're healthy!". To this she immediately replied, "oh, you're a distributor". To those who know AdvoCare, the distributor is the entry level. It was another fat stereotype. I must have just started, or have been unsuccessful because I was still fat. I blew that off, because I was starting to get uncomfortable with the whole encounter. She asked a few more questions, and then got right back to my weight. She started asking if I was keeping the weight off, since I had been involved for a while. I told her I kept my pregnancy gain down to 7 pounds, and then lost 30 after I gave birth, and that I was currently down another 10 pounds in my first week of a 24 Day Challenge. She looked away, and didn't even respond! It was like she didn't believe me!

My kids are all very healthy weights, and there was no reason to assume they were not being fed as well as I suggested. She was very aware that I have had 5 pregnancies in 6 years, and that alone should be enough explanation for how I can eat healthy and still be fat! And what she doesn't know, and wouldn't care about if she did know, is that I have a 37 degree curvature in my lumbar spine, 3 ruptured discs, a couple building discs, and asthma! I bet if she tried to stay active and healthy with that same list of problems, her outlook would be a lot different.

My point is, those of us who are very overweight face people like this everyday. They don't even see a problem with looking down on us, because it is immediately assumed that its our fault we are fat, and if we didn't want to be, we would change something.

Everyone has their own reasons for being over weight, and trust me, none of us want to be, or are choosing it! We do change things. We think about our weight a lot more often than thin people, too! Even with the new science that proves obesity is a genetic predisposition, we are shoved up a lower social standing. We have to live in hardcore diet mode just to keep our weight down! We don't have the luxury of letting go for a few months, and then shaping up for swimsuit season! If we let go for a few months, we gain 60 pounds! I am speaking from experience! I stopped paying attention to what I ate for 3 months when I quit smoking, because I felt like kicking the addiction was more important than the weight gain. I gained 60 pounds within that time. I wasn't laying on the couch, main lining lard into my veins. I was just eating out and having seconds and snacks to control my cigarette cravings. I have seen thinner people do this my whole life, and they will gain less than 15 pounds. We are not made of the same material! It does not make us less important people, or mean that we are lazy and lack self control.

Here's the worst part: I won't report that lady, and no one else will either. Why? Because fat people get treated like they're crazy if we make prejudice complaints. We get treated like we have a chip on our shoulders, or like fat prejudice isn't real. That adult bully will never be held accountable for the way she treated me, and will continue to bully and look down on overweight mothers.

Remember one thing. I know this is hard, because I can't believe it myself most of the time, but remember one thing! Your weight does not define who you are! Just like the color of your skin, religious preference, sexual preference, and gender does not change your right to be treated equally, the size of your body doesn't, either!

Furthermore, I had an odd breakfast. I made myself a plate with 2 thin slices of ham, guacamole, and half a baked sweet potato. I didn't end up eating the sweet potato because it seemed like too much food once I got started. Guacamole on ham is delicious!!! I suggest that everyone tries it! Ham is not one of the leanest meats, so I certainly don't recommend eating it as often as you would fish or poultry, or that you eat very large portions. I had less ham, today, than the amount of chicken or turkey I would eat.

Snacking on an apple.

I had too much for lunch. I had the same thing as I had for breakfast, but I used 2 slices of ham (same as breakfast) and twice as much guacamole.

I did about 85 solid minutes at the gym, and ate a cutie in the car to keep from getting sick again. It didn't work. I drank some water when I got home, and tried to wait out the weak stomach , and that didn't help, either. I've been puking all night! I want a soda or an Icee so bad to get my nausea under control, but I don't want to mess up my 24 Day Challenge. I have the worst stomach in the world!! I don't know what I'm doing wrong, but I am seriously feeling terrible!! It's been 3 hours since I left the gym, and I'm still vomiting!!!

My final attempt at feeling normal again was a handful of grapes and a glass of ice water. I haven't thrown up, yet, and I'm going to bed right now to avoid it.

I'm going to try to eat exactly 45 minutes before my workout tomorrow, I'm going to keep up with how much water I'm drinking (some sources say don't drink too much, some say don't drink too little), and I'm going to have a protein right after my without. I'm also going to try to drink slower after I work out. All of these things have been suggested to me to help with the nausea. If I still get sick, I'm going to try cutting out my pre workout supplement to rule it out as the cause.

Thanks for all the prayers and support! I knew this night not always be easy. God will get me past this!!

Day 10 (24DC 8) Philippians 4:13

My cousin put this scripture in my inbox the day I started my 100 pound journey. It's so simple, but can be so hard to really believe sometimes.

"I can do all things through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:13

So, my 18 pounds in 11 days short goal seems a lot more in reach when I remember this. My God does a lot of things to show me faith, and hold me up. I'm feeling pretty good about this! Plus, I did my math wrong, and my goal is only 17 pounds away. If I did 10 pounds in a week, I can push for this!!

I'm starting my day with some Fiber Drink, and a Spark. Ill be taxi cabbin' a boy to school, and then cleaning some house! Ill put that Spark to the test, today!

I'm getting a way late start to breakfast. I just don't get hungry very early in the day. I need to get out of this late eating rut, though. It's not healthy. I'm having 2 fried eggs, and 4 medium strawberries. I'm also having a second Spark.

Side note: I have been using regular size dinner plates more often than I normally do. This is not because I gave up on the idea that small plates mean eating less. The smaller the plate, the bigger your portion looks, and you feel full faster. I still believe that. I just don't believe in doing dishes...

Lunch is shredded turkey with grapes, and ice water with lemon.

I got so busy today, I didn't eat as often as I should have. I ended up getting way shaky, and felt like I was going to throw up. My mom invited us over for dinner, and nothing on the menu was cleanse friendly, but she did prepare a side salad. I ate a small salad with a little bit of ranch dressing (I know, not cleanse friendly), and I couldn't hold it down. I threw it up almost immediately. I had shaved turkey and a cutie when I got home, and I am feeling much better!!

Exercise was awesome, today! I did 60 minutes on the elliptical, and I did it at a constant jogging speed! I then did 20 minute on the incline treadmill, at a pretty decent incline! I'm so losing the 17 pounds by April 5!!!

Day 9 (24DC 7) Early Morning!!

Work up at 5:30 this morning for my daughter's surgery! Spark, much? Um, yeah!

I haven't had a chance to eat breakfast, but I brought my breakfast bar with me, just in case I have time. Ashlynn and I are in the lobby, waiting to be called back to start the tubes.

The surgery went great!

I finally got home, and decided to eat real breakfast instead of the Breakfast Bar. I had 2 eggs, with onions and mushrooms. I also had another Spark. I remembered my pro-biotic this morning!! Yay me!

I'm having shaved turkey breast, and 3 strawberries for much.

I got in an hour on the elliptical. My stamina was ready to go longer, but my right leg/hip was hurting so badly, it was starting to spasm and give out. I'm really hoping that as the weight falls off, some of this pain will go with it. I don't complain often, and because of that, I don't think the people around me understand just how much activities of daily living really hurt me. I think the constant pain is part of the reason I gained all this weight in the first place. I have always been heavy, but only since I got married and had kids have I been obese like this.

Everyone tells you "push through the pain", or "it won't hurt as much if you would just exercise", and they are so full of it. By the time I get home from the gym, I'm using the walls as a crutch to get around. The nerves in my lower back send distress signals all over my lower body, or at least that's how I'm describing it. If I could get out of pain, the exercise portion of this journey would be so much easier!

Weight loss gets emotional, people. I'm not breaking down or anything, I just decided I wasn't being completely fair leaving out the human aspects of this journey.

Furthermore, I ate beef for the first time since I started my journey tonight. It's not a meat you should eat a lot of, but it was 97% fat free, and once every 9 days is pretty fair moderation. I didn't eat very much, and I added avocado to the ground beef. I had carrots and ice water with lemon, also. Oh, and I took my OmegaPlex.

Another side note: I drink water constantly throughout the day. I don't post it often because I feel like its redundant, but I drink gallons! I stopped making posts every time I take my supplements, drink a Spark, or drink water. Those things are all assumed unless I make a note saying otherwise. When I change programs, like this week I will finish my Herbal Cleanse and begin my MNS Max C, I will post the details for the first couple of days. I feel like I'm cluttering the blog with trivial information, and not the things people need for support on their own weight loss journeys if I post those things all day.

I will post absolutely everything I eat, and everything I drink if it is not water or Spark. I am also trying to give more emotional parts of my day. Losing weight is hard, and there are moments of emotional and psychological distress, feelings of defeat, anger, depression, and every little problem seems so much bigger when you're going through such big changes

We can all do this, and we can do it without surgery!!

Baby tomatoes and almonds for a snack.

Wow! I do NOT like tomatoes enough to have made this a snack.

Day 8 (24DC 6) Weight and Picture Day!!

Sorry about the late check in, today! I have appointments for my kids all week, so my post times will be a little off.

My picture and weigh in will be posted toward the end of the day, when I've had a chance to get to a scale.

I had a Spark when I woke up, and I'm just now getting ready for breakfast. I just took my probiotic, and am waiting the 30 minutes to eat breakfast.

For breakfast, I had a whole egg, inside.a piece of whole wheat, grain bread. I think some people call these "Egg in a Basket", but we are very literal, and call them "Egg in a Hole". I also had 3 strawberries. They are cut in halves, so the picture looks like I had more. I didn't, I promise :) I also took my OmegaPlex.

I added pictures of both the Herbal Cleanse box, and the probiotic.

Also, I have been forgetting to include my second Spark of the day when I post all of my food. I ALWAYS drink two Sparks, so any day that only one is posted, you can pretty well assume another was consumed in the afternoon. Today, ill end up having three, because I had one when I woke up, and then another with breakfast. There's no way ill get through my afternoon without it. Because Spark is the only beverage I drink (apart from water), I don't worry about how much I use in a day. The instructions say 1-3, and I almost never exceed three, so I tend not to pay attention to it. Thus, I forget to post.

Just did photos and weigh in for the week! I'm down 10 pounds for the week! I didn't even get to exercise last week because I was so sick, so I'm really looking forward to this week's results when I hit the gym! I had a personal goal to lose 30 pounds before my friend's wedding on April 5. I lost 2 before I started my public journey, so I have 18 to go!! I think I can do it!!

Apple for snack.

I kicked butt at the gym, especially for my first day back and still being sick. I took Catalyst before I went, and I'm pretty sure that's the only way I got through it. I was going fast and strong on the elliptical for an hour. I like to do a full 90 minutes, but my recovering lungs were not holding up, and my left foot was numb. I normally push through those things, but losing weight in the public eye seems to be making me more responsible. I would feel terrible if I did something unhealthy just to get a few extra pounds off, and my decision resulted in a FB friend hurting themselves. I'm going to give my Can You 24 DVD a shot tonight, too!

Late lunch is shaved chicken breast, grapes, and ice water with lemon.

A cutie and almonds, and ice water with lemons for a snack.

Took my cleanse pills, and I'm off to bed. At least I actually remembered to post about my cleanse pills, tonight! I think it'd a first.

I didn't get a chance to do any more exercise today. My daughter is getting tubes in her ears at 6:30 in the morning, and I've been crazy busy driving my other kids to the family members they are staying with. Say a prayer for my daughter, Ashlynn, if you don't mind. She's 2 years old, and the reality of them sedating my baby is really setting in. I have to give her back to God, and stop being a silky human with all this fear. God is bigger than the Boogie Man... And the anesthetic... Good night!

Day 7 (24DC-5) Feeling Better!

I woke up at 8, but I took a pretty long time remembering to eat. I don't get hungry in the mornings, so on a weekends when my schedule is relaxed, I have to really remember to eat for my challenge. I had 2 eggs and a cutie, with a Spark. I took my OmegaPlex, but forgot to take my probiotic, again! It's ok, though. Ill take it before I eat anything else. I guess we'll find out, soon, how effective the AdvoCare Herbal Cleanse is for the unmediated ADHD dieter.

I took the probiotic shortly after the morning update. I know I'm very forgetful, but I'm not giving up on this! I actually asked my doctor for ADHD medicine to help me through this detailed change in my life, and she referred me to a psychiatrist to get it. I turned her down because we don't have health insurance right now, but I'm glad I did. It would be easier for me to wake up on time, stay on schedule, remember things, and generally stay motivated. But, ADHD medications have a reputation for rapid weight loss, and I didn't want to mislead anyone following my journey. I plan to see big results, and very fast. I don't want that success credited to a medication. I want anyone who is trying to lose weight to know that I am doing this naturally, so that they will know that they can do it, too! All of this is to say, please don't assume that I am being irresponsible, or not taking this seriously because I forget things. Every decision or plan I make, now, revolves around this 100 pound journey. Ill get the grove of things soon, and ill be more consistent about my supplements!!

Now, for a snack, I had 2 cuties, and some almonds.

Meal replacement shake for lunch.

I finally made it to the grocery store! Thanks to my mom for watching the kids, I left the house for the first time in days! For dinner, I had deli sliced turkey, 4 strawberries, and ice water with lemon.

Just took the OmegaPlex. Forgot to take it during dinner.

I feel like my snack tonight was way too much! It may just be because I'm so accustomed to eating small portions, lately, but I may have over eaten. I had a piece of whole grain bread, with all natural peanut butter, and half a banana, sliced on top. All of those things are 24 Day Challenge appropriate, and the bread was thin sliced, and I used a very thin layer of peanut butter. It sounds fine, but it feels like too much in my tum tum. I should have used my Carb-Ease!

Day 6 (24DC- 4) Getting Better

I had a long night last night! This infection must have disturbed my air way, because I was waking up all night gasping for air. Thank you to all of my Facebook crew for praying, and lending me midnight wisdom!! My fever has gotten much better! Tonight was the first night I was able to go all night without having to take medicine to break a fever. I do, however, have a blistery, burning rash coating my tongue.

Never-the-less, I started the morning with my fiber drink, took my handful of sick pills, and am praying for a day of healing!

Breakfast is an apple cinnamon breakfast bar, mango strawberry Spark, and OmegaPlex.

I know that I should be more concerned with a full recovery, so this illness doesn't resurface again... Especially since this is the second occurrence... But, I can't help but stress out over all the exercise I have lost! Monday is picture and weigh in day, and I'm really dreading it. I just hate that I've done so well with my intake, and will probably not have the results I projected because I didn't get in any gym time! Argh! Very frustrated!

Grapes, almonds, and ice water with lemon for snack.

Lunch is turkey with asparagus. I boiled the asparagus in onion and garlic powder (not salts!!), and the turkey is just plain, Thanksgiving style, without the dressing or cranberries. As I usually do, I am drinking ice water with lemon. I will say this, though... My eyes were bigger than my stomach, and forgetful of my strep throat. I think I'll be lucky to finish half of this plate! It is, however, very tasty :)

...I was right about lunch. I ate most of the asparagus, but only about 1/3 of the turkey.

Almonds for a snack.

I know the menu and pictures are getting boring and redundant. Sorry for that. I'm only buying and prepaying this food for myself, so the portions I buy last a long time. There are plenty of varieties, and as the weeks and months pass, I will change things up.

Well, this beautiful West Texas dirt storm has seriously stifled my recovery! I cannot breathe!!!

Dinner was not my proudest cooking invention adventure... I dry grilled onions with grapes, then threw in cooked carrots, then added tuna and seasoning, and grilled it all together. It wasn't terrible, but it wasn't very delicious... I also had water with lemon and OmegaPlex.

You know what's weird? Of all the foods I have given up to pursue this goal, the one thing I can't stop thinking about is a frappacino! I barely ever drank coffee! Anyway, those are the little things that make big goals real for everyone involved, and that includes all of you! It took only 6 days to say this, but I can't wait for a cheat day!! LOL!!!

I realized tonight, that I wasn't supposed to drink my fiber drink this morning. Ahh! I keep messing up my cleanse! At least in eating right, right? Oops.

I made another stinking mistake! I didn't take my probiotic before I ate, today! I have got to get it together. So far, I'm 4 days into the 24 Day Challenge, and I have forgotten one thong, on three different days! That means yesterday was the only day I managed to of everything just right. I'm sure that it's not a huge set back. I've been eating very well, and the whole strep thing has kept me from exercising, but this is real life. Diets can't just start over every time we mess up, or be out on hold until its convenient. Changing our lifestyle and modifying everything we are programmed to be will never be convenient. Like The Robinsons, we'll "keep moving forward!"