Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Springtime Slimdown

Can I just say I'm loving the weather today! It's about 70 and sunny today and it feels amazing. My friend from work and I just took a walk to Starbucks for iced teas and looked in a few shops and just enjoyed the weather. It's heavenly!

Okay. So, I've been trying to lose a little weight since December, and I'm just now starting to see some results and I'm really excited about it! I started trying to watch my calories and get more workouts in since the beginning of this year. My goal was to lose 10-15 lbs in 3 months. Well, even though I was working out 5 or 6 times a week and eating pretty healthy 90% of the time - my weight was just not budging. Keep in mind, I'm at a healthy weight now, I just wanted to slim down and tone up so I guess it makes sense I wasn't able to drop pounds super fast. Well, I was getting pretty discouraged, and had an inkling it was because I was eating far too many carbs - so I decided to try the South Beach diet.

Last Monday, I started Phase 1. No bread, no pasta, no FRUIT, no alcohol or added sugars for 2 weeks!! So far I've done really well! I've already lost around 5 lbs and I'm only doing very light exercise a couple days a week - stretching, light weights and walks. It's really making me realize how much I relied on carbs in my diet. Granted, they were mostly whole grains and fruits, but I would often opt for them over vegetables. I've really enjoyed eating more veggies and learning to cook them in different ways. This past week and 1/2 I've had more different types of veggies prepared in various ways than I've had in the last couple months combined! I was eating a lot of frozen veggies before because the fresh ones would go bad before I would eat them.

So, this is the last week of Phase 1. Starting the 5th I'll move to Phase 2, and I plan to add a serving of fruit and a serving of whole grains or healthy carbs each day. Honestly, I'm kind of scared to add starches back in because I've felt so good since I've been on this diet! No bloating or stomach issues at all - which makes me wonder if I might have a wheat sensitivity or something that makes me feel bad when I eat more carbs.

I'm hoping to lose about 8 more pounds to get to 140. That's not the lightest I've been before (I was about 10 lbs lighter than that four years ago at my wedding), but I think it's a good weight for me (I'm 5'8"). Right now I'm wearing mostly size 8s and 10s but at 140 I should be able to wear a lot of my size 6 bottoms and dresses that I've been hoping to wear again someday!

So, if you're thinking about doing the South Beach Diet, I would definitely recommend it! If you are uncomfortable with Phase 1 (no fruit has been the hardest thing for me), you can start with Phase 2, and its very healthy and balanced. I'm really pleased with my progress and it's been a great way to jump start weight loss after hitting a plateau!

But, I'm still counting down the days til I start Phase 2! Only 5 more days until I'm allowed to have fruit, dark chocolate and WINE! Yummy!

Friday, March 5, 2010

Spring wishlist

I haven't posted in awhile mainly because I've been a combination of busy, sick and uninspired because of all the snow and winter blahs. But today I've started to really feel like Spring and warmer temps are around the corner. I'm heading a bit south (to Tennessee) for a few days for Spring Break and it's supposed to be almost 60 degrees! The promise of warmer weather has got me thinking about spring clothing! Here are a few of the items on my wishlist:

Pastel cardigans - pale pink, coral or blue


Spring scarf


Floral necklace


Chambray top


Tiny floral print blouse


Slouchy pocket tees



Floral print cardigan


I'm planning on doing a little shopping tonight, let's hope I find a few of the things on my list!