My 12 Week Weightloss Journey is IN THE BOOKS! I did it…I lost 10 pounds!If you were with me  last week, you know that this week was a victory lap. I took one more week to shed that final pound!

My Weight-loss Journey Take-Aways

1. Exercise was the most critical component to my weight loss.

I tried not to let two days in a row lapse between workouts; that goal was realistic and it WORKED. I felt that if I let more than two days pass, it was just too easy to get out of the habit. With the exception of last week, I stayed on track for the most part. I even worked out on the 4th of July in anticipation of our Pulled Pork feast!

My preferred workouts are power walking and my old faithful…Jillian’s 20 minute workout DVD! (affiliate) On rainy days, if I didn’t have time to stop by the gym, I’d pop Jillian’s DVD in my laptop for a fast but effective workout. Best $7 I ever spent.

2. Finding a method to track my exercise and calories became almost more important that what I ate.

Remember My Early Mother’s Day Gift? Yeah, this one gift not only kept me on track but logged my sleep, workouts and calories. (affiliate)

I’m sleeping much better now that I have been working out consistently for 13 weeks. The hot pink marks below indicate times when I woke up briefly from sleeping. In other words, how many times Smokey the kitty jumped in bed with me!

The Garmin Vívosmart was selected over a fit bit. Here’s why: it does A LOT more than just track my steps!

3. FOOD FOOD FOOD

Now that I had a workable exercise strategy in place AND a method for tracking both exercise and calories, it was time to plan meals.

Now, I did not go into this with DIETING in mind. If going on a diet was my goal, I would have lost a lot more weight in a shorter amount of time. Diets are like that. You follow a super strict “plan” and you loose gobs of weight really fast. Typically, once you are off the diet the weight creeps back.

I was interested in loosing and keeping off 10 pounds the old fashioned way: intentional eating + exercising.

Intentional Eating

On a daily basis, I make thoughtful choices regarding meals and snacks. Eating fresh fruits and vegetables help me keep my daily calories in check. My daily caloric goal is 1250 to loose weight.

Copa & I had a mini-date night at a favorite local restaurant. My order was intentional: Key West Shrimp with avocado, tomatoes and lettuce. I did not eat the plantains as they were high in fat. I really really really watch my daily fat gram intake with a goal of 25 grams or less per day. I love shrimp in the summertime; I didn’t feel deprived!

I also allowed myself 1 cheat day per week. (Welcome to my table, Southern Fried Shrimp & Hushpuppies!) On cheat days, I did not log my food BUT I almost always tried to exercise to balance out the caloric and fat intake. However, if exercise was built into my day anyway, I did not do additional cardio, etc. Remember this from Week 11?!?

During Week 6 I was hired by Lou Ana to make glorious, decadent Fried Mac & Cheese Bites . Friends, it’s all about balance. These are one of my all time OH-MY-GOSH-I-HAVE-TO-HAVE-EM appetizers. Not only did I eat the bites in the photo below, we made another batch for our Netflix night! 

Then I ate MORE. Guess what? They’ve beauties have always been on our appetizer rotation and will STAY there. (You’ve gotta go grab the recipe, btw!) And no, I don’t have “just one” on game day! Seriously, could you pick just one?!?! No. No, you can’t. Neither could I . BUT, I do watch what I eat during the day so I can indulge on faves.

What I Ate When I Wasn’t Indulging

Ok, so here’s the deal. I wasn’t deprived. Yes, I had cheat days. But on a daily basis here was my meal plan:

Breakfast

Vanilla Greek Fat Free Yogurt – 1/4 cup
Fresh fruit (either a banana, an apple, but usually 1 cup of raspberries or strawberries)

Lunch

1 Sandwich: regular wheat bread with deli cracked pepper turkey, low fat mayo (1 tbs)

Carrots & vegetables- 1-2 cups

Strawberries (maybe 1/2-1 cup)

Supper

Whatever the family is having!

Here’s how I navigated weight loss while still eating with my family – I split my portion in half! Yep, that’s the magic trick! I wanted to eat with my family without having specially prepared meals. Why? Well, because eating separately just wouldn’t be feasible long term. And, I if I’m spending an hour (or two!) each weeknight preparing good, wholesome suppers for my family, then I want to eat them too! :)j If a half serving isn’t filling enough for me (hey, a girl’s gotta EAT!) then I subsidize with a large, fresh salad or a bowl of carrots. 

For the past few Sunday’s, we’ve been making a HUGE pot of homemade Bolognese sauce. You guys. This sauce is divine! And, it freezes well, too! So, when you come home after a weekend of tailgating, you can have a hot homemade meal in no time flat. Guess what? The recipe will be on the blog soon! Sooooo yes, I ate carbs!

4. Conclusion – Game Over!

I feel so much better than I did when I began this journey! My clothes fit really well now, and my tummy is much flatter! I’m down one size in clothing. It feels like I am at the tip of the iceberg, and so I am going to continue on my own for a few more weeks. I’d like to have a total of 20 pounds GONE by Halloween. 🙂

So, even though  I won’t be checking in with you each week, I am going to keep this going!

Pictures will be forthcoming, I promise! I’m excited to share before and afters with you soon! Make sure you check Facebook, Instagram & Twitter often, I will be sharing pics on social media first!

Thank you for being with me each week – your encouragement has been amazing and it kept me going!

Heather

P.S. My sweet friend Lisa over at Cluttercafe just started her own journey with Weight Watchers! Go see her and tell her I said hey!

SHOP THE TAILGATE:

Sideline Comment: I am not a doctor, and the Weigh-in Wednesday series and information there within should not be taken as or construed as medical advice. Before starting a calorie reduction plan, check with your doctor or medical professional.

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