Super Simple Mexican Chicken

I really couldn't think of a good name for this one...it probably has a name...if you know it, feel free to let me know! :)

This meal was SUPER simple and SUPER yummy!!

Super Simple Mexican Chicken

2-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can black beans
1/2 jar salsa

Place all ingredients in a slow cooker and cook until chicken shreds (about 6 hours on medium.) Chop a handful of fresh cilantro and mix it in after you shred the chicken.

Season with salt and pepper to taste. I put the shredded chicken mixture on top of a small bed of brown rice and topped with a very small amount of shredded cheese, fresh chopped green onion and tomato and a dollop of fat-free sour cream. For a little crunch, I simply put a few corn tortillas on the rack in my oven and cooked them until crispy, no salt or oil required!


As a side note, I put some of the left-over shredded chicken in some left-over butternut squash soup and the combo was DELICIOUS!!

Budgeting: It's Not Just For Your Bank Account!

I had a yummy lunch today with my husband and a few kids at an Italian restaurant. Some people who are "dieting" and trying to loose weight might have a small cow knowing what I ate, however...I believe that no food is totally off-limits. I have believed this and lived this through the whole 47 pounds I have lost so far and will live it for the rest of my life. I sort of feel like "what's the point in being thin if I can't ever eat yummy food?" So today at lunch, I enjoyed a few pieces of bread dipped in olive oil (GASP! CARBS! She ate CARBS!) and even had a slice of my daughter's pizza! I did, however, eat only a bowl of minestrone soup and took my 1/2 sandwich (sauce on the side) home in a to-go box for lunch tomorrow.

Over the past few months I have also eaten lots of pizza (homemade and take-out!), enjoyed a few ice cream cones (low-fat in a plain cone, of course,) some dark-chocolate chips here and there, a cookie every once in awhile and even some cake! It's all about budgeting! Today, since I know I ate more than the 300 calories I budget for myself for lunch every day, I am going to skip my afternoon snack (which is usually around 200 calories.) In planning to go out for lunch, I also ate about 150 less calories for breakfast. So even though I "indulged" a bit, I am still on budget for my daily calorie intake and still made pretty healthy choices in the process (drank only water and lots of it, chose a broth based soup full of veggies and beans and saved the rest of my meal for tomorrow.)

Budgeting calories won't only help with weight-loss, it is key in maintaining a healthy weight for life!

Now to think of a way to budget in some yummy Halloween candy this weekend!!

Weekly Weigh-In Wednesday!!

Last week I weighed 160....this morning I weighed 155.5! A loss of 4.5 pounds!! Wow, and I was feeling pretty darn nervous! I figured out one reason why I have lost more than average the last few weeks....I started working out in the mornings now. I used to go work out as soon as my husband got home from work. It was hectic, to say the least! He would walk in the door, I would finish nursing the baby and then pass him off to his Daddy along with instructions on how to finish up dinner then tell him and all the kids good-bye. I wouldn't get home until bedtime for the little kids! It was just very stressful. So I decided to dig into my budget a bit and sign up for child care. Now I go every morning and I LOVE it! I get it done first thing and then can shower and enjoy the rest of my day! I can actually cook yummy, healthy meals for my family and, BONUS! actually get to eat it with them!! The kids have fun going to the child care, too. So, back to why working out in the morning has facilitated greater weight loss...I used to eat a mid-morning snack of about 200 calories. Since I am working out now at my previous snack time, I am naturally eating about 200 calories less each day than I used to!

It feels so awesome to be in the 150's....and I poured myself into some size 10 jeans today!!!

It's still a struggle at times to stay on top of it all....especially with eating. But I am now in the habit of not giving myself permission to fail; it's not even an option and that feels good!! :)

Weekly Weigh-In Wednesday

So I wasn't expecting to loose any weight this week (see previous post) but, very happily, I lost 3 pounds!! I now weigh 160!! I am soooooooooooo excited to enter the 150's this week!!!! I only have 25 pounds until my goal weight of 135! :) I honestly never thought that goal could be so attainable and tangible. I guess I never expected to work for it. I must've had pretty darn low expectations for myself for YEARS! That's kind of sad. I'm glad I am not in that space anymore. Now, I feel like any goal I want, all I have to do is work for it and it's mine! :)

An End To The Four Day Break.

This last week, I over-worked my calves to the extent that I could barely walk for several days. Today was day4 and the first day that I was not in excruciating pain and could actually walk around. Because of this, I didn't work out on Thursday, Friday or Saturday. Because I was not in the "work-out mode," I did not eat as well as I should. I don't expect to loose any weight this week, but I think I needed this little break. I have lost almost 40 pounds relatively quickly and I think I was starting to freak out a bit. It's a bit scary for me to think about not being fat anymore. Weird? Probably. Normal? Probably. I think we all carry extra weight for a reason; very few of us are fat just because we love food....most of us have have either used food or even used our fat as a crutch as we hobble through our various emotional issues. Every day of this journey toward health and wellness has felt a bit precarious to me; like standing on the edge of a precipice. If I stepped too far in the wrong direction (i.e. too many calories and/or not enough exercise) then I would fall to my doom (i.e. fattville.) I was beginning to feel like a victim again. "Poor Heidi can't eat this or that or even that. Poor Heidi can't miss a day of working out or else she'll be fat forever," etc, etc, etc. Taking this bit of a break to just breathe, appreciate where I am compared to where I was and to remember what I ultimately want has helped me to refocus and recommit to my goals.
I now feel invigorated to dig in and work hard again. I have been sort of slacking here and there (which has caused several weeks of either no weight loss or very little) and I am ready to quit being a slacker! I am going to be in total control again and work hard. I don't really have any trouble working hard at the gym (I actually really enjoy working out,) but I really have to focus and be committed to working hard when it comes to food. This week, I am going to work at calories and eating more veggies. My goal is to have breakfast and lunch each 300 calories, then two snacks around 200 calories each then dinner around 500 calories. I am going to resort to measuring things so I know for sure how many calories I am consuming...and looking up some things on the Internet (like how many calories in a cup of grapes, for instance.) I'm hoping that being super disciplined with food this week will help to empower me to make better choices and get me through the next 3 or 4 months of loosing. Then, hopefully, I will be at my target weight and can work on maintenance!!! How exciting that will be!!! :)

Weekly Weigh-In Wednesday!

Last week I weighed 164.5...this week I weighed 163. So a loss of 1.5 pounds. Not a HUGE number, but still a good, solid loss. I was really hoping to get to my next goal weight of 162, but I am content to see that number next week. :)

I'm still just chugging along, working out 6 days a week and staying in my daily calorie range (1500-2000 a day since I am breastfeeding.) I still have really challenging times when I feel close to the edge and want to scream because I want some cookies so bad! :) But I try to distract myself (and brush and floss my teeth!) and it goes away for a time.

Weekly Weigh-In Wednesday!

Last week I was 169.5, this week I weighed 164.5! :) 5 pounds lost and I even missed a couple of workouts in a row for the first time in almost 3 months....but we did re-arrange a few rooms in our house, so that burned a whole lotta calories! :) I am 2 pounds away from 40 pounds total weight lost!! :)

My trainer that I work out with 2 times a week at the gym, Ami, has stepped up my workouts. She is such an awesome trainer! I totally needed the vamped up workouts and I didn't even have to say anything...she just knew. :)

I am also finally starting to feel much thinner! I can see definition in my legs and arms! I bought a size 12 pants!! I have actually never been a size 12; I went from being a size 6/8 to a size 16/18 during my first pregnancy. The other times I have lost weight, I never got below a size 14...so pulling on those size 12's feels sooooooooo good!!! :) I can only imagine how good the 10's will feel...hopefully I will know that feeling first hand next month!

How awesome it feels to have taken charge and gotten healthy!

I am a 32 year old mother of 7 homeschooled kids and a wife of 13 years. Even though I was a healthy size 6 when we married, I have spent about 12 of those 13 years being 60 pounds or more overweight. Three months ago I decided I did not want to waste one more year of my life being fat and unthealthy so I joined Gold's Gym, signed up with a personal trainer and committed to work hard to make sure that not even one more month would be wasted.

Even though it has been a real challenge at times, doing the work to become healthy and loose weight has been so worth it! I may still feel pretty darn tired (going to bed at a decent time would probably be the remedy for that one!) but I feel so much more energetic and motivated! I used to call to my kids while sitting on the couch, now I don't think anything of running up and down the stairs to actually speak to them in person! Since I've increased my muscle strength, I can move the piano across the room by myself and hold my own while helping my husband lift heavy things. I can actually see a few of my muscles now, too!

As I've taken charge of my health and made proactive decisions to loose weight, I've naturally taken charge of other aspects of my life as well! My house is cleaner, I tackle projects more readily and my relationships have improved. Learning to budget my calories every day has even proved helpful when budgeting my bank account! Forcing myself to be self-disciplined with my eating and with regular exercise has taught me how strong and capable I really am. I know that any goal I set out to achieve, I can and will achieve!

I believe my husband now when he tells me I look cute. My body feels so much stronger and healthier than it did 35 pounds ago! I still have about 30 more pounds to loose, but my success thus far has given me the courage and confidence to continue on this path and that makes me so hopeful and excited for my future!