WonderFALL Weigh-In: Week 68.5 Post-Op VSG

Autumn has (almost officially) arrived! Which means that life is back to normal – school’s in, my schedule is busy, and obligations abound. But I won’t use those as excuses to slack on my goals. The great thing about fall is that the weather is cooler, which means that those wonderful fall fashions will keep me motivated. Plus, crisp temperatures mean that it’s never “too hot” to workout. I’m going to relish my nightly cup of steaming hot tea as another way to keep my water intake up. I look forward to all those hearty, satisfying and wls-friendly soups, stews, and crockpot meals that I’ll create for myself. This year, the changing season will mark new milestones that I haven’t seen in 5, 7, 10+ years! Bring on fall 2014 – it’s time to reach new heights! Wednesday weigh-ins will keep me accountable through the work week, and will give me a positive outlook for the weekend. Throughout the fall, I’ll be giving Wednesday weight loss updates called WonderFALL Weigh-Ins.

Week 68 was busy, hectic and long.  So much so that I didn’t even have time to write a weight loss update.  I actually didn’t even have a chance to weigh in at all until this morning.  So, here’s a midweek weigh-in update. Even though the week was super busy, I did a good fairly job with my meal planning, eating, and exercising.

So, how’s the scale looking?

When I weighed in this morning, I was 171.0, which is a loss of 1.2 pounds this week, and a loss of 106 lbs since surgery! I’ve lost a total of 144 pounds from my highest weight!! I have 21 pounds to go to my ultimate goal weight of 150 pounds. I’m really happy to see this loss, especially because I haven’t really been putting as much concentration on weight loss this week.  Don’t get me wrong, I’ve made great meals, gotten in some solid workouts, and continued to eat within my meal plan.  The nice thing about this point in my journey is that I don’t have to think about all of these things as much as I used to.  They’ve become such a habit, such a way of life, that I can go on “auto-pilot” during a crazy week and still see a good result.  That makes me feel awesome.

This week shouldn’t be quite as busy so I’ll have more time to concentrate on working out and meal planning.  I’m not going to go into too many details here, because I’ll write a weekly workout plan post in a few minutes.

I’m so close to reaching the next weight category – the 160s!!  I can’t wait to hit that section, because I haven’t been at that weight since I was 18 years old.  It’s so cool that now at 43, I’ll be even fitter than I was when I was 18. Back then, I wasn’t wearing size small and medium tops or size 10/12 pants, and I think the difference is that I’ve really changed my entire body with the cardio and toning workouts I’ve been doing.  It’s amazing to see such a transformation in my body, and each time I hit a new NSV with clothes, it’s so surreal to me.

 

 

Until Wednesday, my friends. I hope the scale treats you well, and that you have a wonderful week!

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WonderFALL Weigh-In: Week 67 Post-Op VSG

Autumn has (almost officially) arrived! Which means that life is back to normal – school’s in, my schedule is busy, and obligations abound. But I won’t use those as excuses to slack on my goals. The great thing about fall is that the weather is cooler, which means that those wonderful fall fashions will keep me motivated. Plus, crisp temperatures mean that it’s never “too hot” to workout. I’m going to relish my nightly cup of steaming hot tea as another way to keep my water intake up. I look forward to all those hearty, satisfying and wls-friendly soups, stews, and crockpot meals that I’ll create for myself. This year, the changing season will mark new milestones that I haven’t seen in 5, 7, 10+ years! Bring on fall 2014 – it’s time to reach new heights! Wednesday weigh-ins will keep me accountable through the work week, and will give me a positive outlook for the weekend. Throughout the fall, I’ll be giving Wednesday weight loss updates called WonderFALL Weigh-Ins.

Week 67 was a pretty good one. I made some great meals, got in a few strong workouts, and even took a long walk when I wasn’t feeling that great over the weekend.

So, how’s the scale looking?

When I weighed in this morning, I was 172.2, which is a maintain this week, and a loss of 104.8 lbs since surgery! I’ve lost a total of 142.8 pounds from my highest weight!! I have 22.2 pounds to go to my ultimate goal weight of 150 pounds. I can’t lie, I’m disappointed that I didn’t see a loss on the scale this week, because I’ve been putting in work and eating right.  But when I look at the week, I did skip two weekday workouts and I wasn’t feeling great this weekend, so I didn’t do as much as I normally would have.  I ate a lot more carbs and less protein than I should’ve late last week (in the form of a chicken pesto pizza that lasted for 3 meals). I’m not too upset about this maintain, because I know it’s only temporary.  It also shows me that at this point in my journey, I need to push harder in order to see a loss on the scale.

So far this week (the past two days), I’ve been getting in strong workouts, following the Tone It Up Frisky Fall Challenge.  This morning my legs are really feeling the squats, lunges, and other moves that I’ve been doing.  I love pushing myself with the toning workouts.  I’ve also resumed C25K, and I was pleasantly surprised that I felt strong in my runs even though I’d taken so much time off from running training.  My main workout goal this week is to make sure I get in all my weekday workouts, not allowing myself to skip any because I’m tried, which usually happens around Thursday or Friday.

In terms of food, things are going well. As I mentioned above, toward the end of last week and into the weekend I wasn’t making the best food choices.  I kept my calories under my daily goal, but I wasn’t eating enough protein and veggies.  I know this is a main reason the scale didn’t move this week.  I know better.  I know that in order to lose weight, I need to eat well, not just keep the calories within my limits.  It’s much more important to keep WHAT I’m eating in check.  Eating out several meals in one week doesn’t lead to weight loss.  It would’ve been better for me to eat that chicken pesto pizza for just the one meal and leave the rest.  I need to release myself from the idea of “wasting food,” and continuing to eat a heavy carb and fat with little protein meal several times just so that I don’t feel wasteful.  Indulging for one meal is one fine, but eating that same meal three times because I have leftovers isn’t good for my weight loss goals. From now on if I go out and indulge in a meal that doesn’t really fit in with my plan, I’m going to enjoy that one meal and leave the leftovers at the restaurant because it’s just not worth the damage it does. So far this week, I’ve done a good job with balancing my protein, veggies, and carbs.

If anything, this maintain is going to spur me to push myself harder this week.  I don’t want to see another maintain on the scale next week, and I’m determined to make sure that I see a new loss.  I’m so close to a new weight “decade,” and I’ve love to move into the 160s next week which is completely doable – I’d only need a loss of 2.4 lbs.  I’m going to keep that number in mind and use it to motivate myself in my workout and in my food choices.  Here’s to moving forward!

 

Until next Wednesday, my friends. I hope the scale treats you well, and that you have a wonderful week!

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WonderFALL Weigh-In: Week 66 Post-Op VSG

Autumn has (almost officially) arrived! Which means that life is back to normal – school’s in, my schedule is busy, and obligations abound. But I won’t use those as excuses to slack on my goals. The great thing about fall is that the weather is cooler, which means that those wonderful fall fashions will keep me motivated. Plus, crisp temperatures mean that it’s never “too hot” to workout. I’m going to relish my nightly cup of steaming hot tea as another way to keep my water intake up. I look forward to all those hearty, satisfying and wls-friendly soups, stews, and crockpot meals that I’ll create for myself. This year, the changing season will mark new milestones that I haven’t seen in 5, 7, 10+ years! Bring on fall 2014 – it’s time to reach new heights! Wednesday weigh-ins will keep me accountable through the work week, and will give me a positive outlook for the weekend. Throughout the fall, I’ll be giving Wednesday weight loss updates called WonderFALL Weigh-Ins.

Week 66 was really good.  I’m getting into the swing of this new schedule, and making it all work with my food prep and workouts.  When I can, I’m working out in the morning; when that’s out, I workout after work.  Add to that lots of fun with family and friends over the Labor Day weekend, and it was a nice week for sure.

So, how’s the scale looking?

When I weighed in this morning, I was 172.2, which is a loss of 1.4 pounds this week, and a loss of 104.8 lbs since surgery! I’ve lost a total of 142.8 pounds from my highest weight!! I have 22.2 pounds to go to my ultimate goal weight of 150 pounds. I’m really happy with this loss because I had a similar loss last week.  It’s nice that I’m back on a losing streak, even with so many changes in my work life.

This week I have been pulling out some old recipes to enjoy, including the Lowfat Curry Chicken and a new stir fry, which had tofu, mushrooms, onions, zucchini, sugar snap peas, and edamame.  It’s nice to make big pot meals that I can eat several times throughout the week.  I can’t wait for the weather to get cooler so I can start making my favorite crockpot meals.  So hearty and easy!

Workouts have been really good this week: spinning, elliptical, biking, walking Sofi, and of course, my Tone It Up routines.  The other day I had a hair appointment, and my stylist asked me what races I have coming up.  I told her that I’d taken the summer off from my C25K training, and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to run anymore, that it was so hard for me.  And then I stopped myself and said, “you know, that’s not like me at all.  I never give up on something just because it’s hard. I really need to get back with my C25K training and make my goal to fully run a 5K happen.”  And so that’s exactly what I’m going to do.  The Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving is about 11 1/2 weeks away, which is more than enough time to complete the C25K training and continue afterward so that I can improve my runs before the 5K.  So, starting next week, I’m going to get back to running intervals, working my way up to full 5K runs, and I’m excited!

I watch TrulyJess‘ vlogs on YouTube almost every night (if you’ve never seen her videos, watch them, she’s such an inspiration!), and one of her sayings is that weight loss, training, etc is You vs. You.  In other words, I’m not in competition with anyone else, except myself.  And the 5K training is a perfect example of this philosophy.

Until next Wednesday, my friends. I hope the scale treats you well, and that you have a wonderful week!

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WonderFALL Weigh-In: Week 65 Post-Op VSG

Autumn has (almost officially) arrived! Which means that life is back to normal – school’s in, my schedule is busy, and obligations abound. But I won’t use those as excuses to slack on my goals. The great thing about fall is that the weather is cooler, which means that those wonderful fall fashions will keep me motivated. Plus, crisp temperatures mean that it’s never “too hot” to workout. I’m going to relish my nightly cup of steaming hot tea as another way to keep my water intake up. I look forward to all those hearty, satisfying and wls-friendly soups, stews, and crockpot meals that I’ll create for myself. This year, the changing season will mark new milestones that I haven’t seen in 5, 7, 10+ years! Bring on fall 2014 – it’s time to reach new heights! Wednesday weigh-ins will keep me accountable through the work week, and will give me a positive outlook for the weekend. Throughout the fall, I’ll be giving Wednesday weight loss updates called WonderFALL Weigh-Ins.

Week 65 has been wonderful! I had a great weekend, filled with bike rides, walks with Sofi, spending time with friends, watching my 49ers win, and relaxing after a very busy first week on the new job.  So far this work week has been really productive.  I’m finding my rhythm as I meet with new teachers, gather resources for them, and keep track of all the notes and paperwork. I can already tell I’m going to love this new position, and I’m so glad that I took the chance and went for one of my goals.  Monday I rewarded myself with a shopping spree at Dress Barn, buying tons of new clothes for my fall wardrobe.  The neat thing about this shopping trip was that I think these clothes might last for more than one season.  I’m wearing tops/sweaters in size medium and small (SMALL!!!!!), skirts in medium, and 2 pairs of pants in a size 10! I got a great camel-color water-resistant hooded trench in a medium that I can’t wait to wear because it’s so flattering. 

So, how’s the scale looking?

When I weighed in this morning, I was 173.6, which is a loss of 1.6 pounds this week***, and a loss of 103.4 lbs since surgery! I’ve lost a total of 141.4 pounds from my highest weight!! I have 23.6 pounds to go to my ultimate goal weight of 150 pounds. ***The cool thing about this loss is that it only reflects the last two days, because my last weigh-in was on Sunday.  1.6 pounds in two days is phenomenal!  I’m on a losing streak, and I’m loving it! Especially considering how busy my days have suddenly become.

What am I doing differently?  Lately I’ve been concentrating on making sure to get several servings of veggies in with most meals, and I think that’s making a big difference.  I’m still allowing myself the popcorn I love, but only a few times a week.  And of  course, protein is at the heart of every meal I eat. And I’m still getting plenty of exercise and drinking lots of water. Still, I’ve also been having a few glasses of wine on the weekend, but that doesn’t seem to be affecting my weight loss in the least, which is nice.  I love this lifestyle that I’ve created!

In terms of exercise, I’ve been really proud of the workouts I’ve been fitting in.  I did wake up early on Monday to get in a before-work sweat session, which left me feeling super energized and positive all day long.  Most days I’ve worked out in the afternoon, and I enjoy those after work sessions as a way to transition from work mode to relax mode.  As long as I’m getting a workout in, I’m ok with whatever time of day it is.  I actually enjoy working out now, so I look forward to moving my body, rather than dreading it as I used to.  I really think one of the reasons is the communities of support that I’m part of on MyFitnessPal and Instagram.  I love snapping post-workout pics and tagging them with with my ToneItUp hashtags, and seeing all my #TIUsisters’ posts, too.  On MFP, every time I workout it posts a status, and the outpouring of love I get from my pals spurs me on and makes me smile.

As much as I’ve absolutely enjoyed this summer, I have to admit I’m really looking forward to the true start of autumn.  The crisp, cool mornings and evenings.  The sunny days that aren’t ever too warm.  The changing colors of the leaves, the decorations, and the outfits.  Not to mention all the fun that comes with football season, pumpkin patches, Halloween, and simply sipping cups of coffee, tea, and maybe even a pumpkin spice latte or two.  This year I think I’d like to go apple picking, because it just sounds like so much fun and I’ve never done it before.  What are some quintessential fall things you love to do at this time of year? Help me create a fall bucket list.

Until next Wednesday, my friends. I hope the scale treats you well, and that you have a wonderful week!

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Onederful ONEDERLAND!!!

Talk about a NYE miracle! This morning when I weighed myself, as I do every morning, I saw the number that I’ve been yearning to see for years.  Gosh, I can’t really remember when I was last under 200 pounds – at least 20 years ago.

You guys know I was close on Sunday, but even though I really wanted to see 199 or less by the end of 2013, I wasn’t sure if I was going to.  Then yesterday I just so happened to drink a ton of water (11 glasses!) and this morning Mother Nature paid me a visit, which always helps me drop a decent amount of weight.  When I got on the scale this morning, I had hope in my heart that I would see good news.

So without further ado…

I really couldn’t believe it when I saw it.  I actually had to get on and off the scale a few times just to be sure.  And of course I had to document it for this blog (and Instagram).

The first thing I did was write a post on MyFitnessPal, and then I texted a bunch of my friends and family.  Then I stood there without any clothes on, crying.  Crying happy tears, but crying.  I was completely overwhelmed and overjoyed. I’d dreamt of this moment for so long, and it was here.  On December 31, 2013.  On New Year’s Eve.  What a way to end this year!

This marks so much more than just a number on a scale for me.  This is a HUGE accomplishment.  To think that I started 2013 at 302.0, and I’m ending it at 199.8 is amazing and incredible.  That’s 102.2 pounds that I’ve lost over the course of one year (115 pounds, total)!  In January, I was wearing tight size 28 pants and now I’m wearing 16s.  I was shopping exclusively in plus size stores, and now I can buy tops in any “normal” store out there.  I was dealing with such terrible plantar fasciitis pain that I couldn’t even take Sofi for a walk around the block, and now I’m running for 5 minutes at a time. What a transformation I’ve had in 2013!

I’m so proud of myself!

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#Reverb13, Day 30: Relationships

Throughout the month of December, I’ll be participating in #reverb13: Reverb is a way to reflect on the past year and project into the next year with a prompt a day for 31 days.  December is the perfect time to reflect on 2013 and start to create intentions for 2014.

Day 30: Relationships

Relationships | Did you find a new best friend?  Delve deeper into a relationship?  Break up?  Get back together?  Tell us about who you added – or subtracted – from your life.  Why?

My friendships are so important to me, and I try to nurture them as much as possible.  Now that we’re in our 40s and busy with jobs, families, and other obligations, getting together is a lot more challenging.  Still, I try to make sure I get together with each of my friends (and sometimes a few of them at once) for coffee or something at least once a month.  Most of my friends are girls I’ve known since high school, and it’s really fantastic to know people that long.  These are tried-and-true friends.  Ride or die chicks.  Girls who have seen me through everything, and me them. We’ll always be in each other’s lives.  One major goal I have in 2014, which I started at the end of 2013 is to get together with them much more often.  To do things together, not just coffee and convo, but getting out and about and doing fun things, too.

One friendship that has blossomed in 2013 is with Tinkerbell.  She and I really started to hang out at the very beginning of January 2013, and our friendship has grown so much over the course of this year.  We have so much in common, including both getting the VSG. It’s fantastic having someone in real life to discuss all the issues that come up with having had weight loss surgery.  But beyond that, we have similar values, live in the same neighborhood (within 5 minutes driving), and like to do the same things. Tinkerbell is incredible supportive, so generous, and absolutely inspiring.  Whenever I see her post about her long runs on MyFitnessPal, I get motivated to do my walk/run intervals.  We have a great time shopping, getting our hair blown out, and delving into more serious topics, too.  I’m so grateful that we’ve become so close, and consider her one of my best friends.

A few of my most cherished friends are women who have moved far from me, but the distance doesn’t inhibit our friendship because of this great age of technology.  It’s not quite the same as being in the same room, but being able to check in on Facebook share our daily smiles through photos and statuses helps us stay connected.  Plus, with things like Facetime and texting, we can keep up with each other as if we did live in the same city.

And then there are the blogging buddies, pals on MFP, and WLS peeps on YouTube and FB  who have offered me so much support, encouragement, and happiness that they are definitely people I count among my friends, even though we’ve never met.  I am so thankful to have them in my lives.

In terms of romantic relationships, I recently signed up for Match.com, and while I find the entire process terribly slow, it has given me a bit of a boost to know that some of these men find me attractive enough to email, wink at, or contact.  I haven’t dated in years, and now that I’ve put myself back out there, I’m really hoping that 2014 brings me some fun dates (or maybe something even more serious) in the love department.

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#Reverb13, Day 29: List It – Review of 2013 Goals

Throughout the month of December, I’ll be participating in #reverb13: Reverb is a way to reflect on the past year and project into the next year with a prompt a day for 31 days.  December is the perfect time to reflect on 2013 and start to create intentions for 2014.

Day 29: List It

List it | List posts are everywhere.  Top 10 Ways to be Happier Today.  Three Tips for More Energy.  Seven Ideas to Stay Focused.  Give us a list.  Of anything.  Your to-do list for the day.  Your grocery list.  A Buzzfeed inspired list.  Anything.

This post is actually perfect, because it’s time to review the goals I set for myself for 2013. Let’s see how I did:

1. Qualify for WLS. I met this goal in mid-March, just as I’d hoped.  I had my WLS on May 20th, and life has gotten better with each passing day.
2. Read 35 books. I did terrible on this goal.  I’ve only read 11 books in 2013, which is pathetic, especially for someone who loves to read as much as I do.  I blame this on social media, because I’ve gotten in the bad habit of watching YouTube videos before bed, instead of reading.  Definitely something to improve for 2014.

#3 and #4 were a way for me to fit working out into my school days:
3. A Days: gym (elliptical, bike, swimming).
4. B Days: grade until 4pm, one Group exercise class per weekday.
I did great on hitting the gym on my early A days.  I wasn’t so good about going to the one group X class, though.  Still I’m happy with the way I met this goal.

5. Saturday: Zumba, then 2 hours grading. I went to Zumba up until my surgery, and then haven’t been going since.  I just got out of the habit and replaced it with other exercises.  I also wasn’t good about going to grade regularly on Saturdays.  This is a good goal to revisit in 2014
6. Sundays: Lululemon yoga. I didn’t do this one very often.  I went to the free Lululemon classes a few times, but then fell out of the habit.
7. Try 6 Pinterest crafts; learn to art journal. I didn’t do this goal at all.  Although I did start scrapbooking, so I think that’s a decent start. Another one to revisit in 2014, because I really want to.
8. Keep up with Google Reader/blogs. I wasn’t great about this at all, which is upsetting.  I get so many supportive comments from my blogging buddies, and I need to be better about reciprocating.
9. Do something fun with other people every other weekend. I did great on this goal, especially beginning in the summer and continuing all the way through the rest of the year.  I think part of this is feeling more comfortable in my own skin, and how I look in clothes, so I’ve been more apt to want to go out and be seen.
10. Go to bed by 10pm. Didn’t do this at all. Maybe for one week in early January.  I’m such a nightowl, and going to bed late is a hard habit to break.  I don’t know if I even want to try to do this one in 2014, because I don’t think I can change.
11. Begin researching becoming a health educator. I didn’t do any research on this at all.  I’m still very interested in it, though, and will spend time this summer looking into it.
12. Take monthly progress photos, begin measurements. Another thing I didn’t really follow up on.  It’s difficult to find time to take the pictures because my sis is so busy. I have no excuse for not taking measurements, because I can do that on my own.  I need to do this in 2014.

And now, for #13, the big, scary, outside-the-comfort-zone goal…
13. Sign up Match.com in the fall; go on dates by December.  I signed up for Match.com in December with a Groupon that I’d purchased.  I got plenty of emails, winks, etc., but no one asked me out, so no dates as of yet.  There haven’t been many guys I’m interested in, maybe 2-3.  Everything seems to move really slowly on Match.  It’s been alright, but I’d much rather meet someone in real life and let it happen naturally.  I am ready to date, so hopefully 2014 brings some love my way.

Not too shabby.  I have a long way to go on some of them, but I did well with others.  When I make my goals for 2014, I’m going to keep things a bit simpler, because I think I set too many goals for myself that weren’t enough of a priority.  Something to work on.

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New Year, New ME Weigh-In: Week 31 Post-Op VSG

2014 – a new year, a fresh start full of new beginnings. 2014 is going to be MY year to shine.  I’m vowing here and now that I will reach my goal weight in 2014.  What an amazing accomplishment it will be! To achieve my goals, I’m going to focus on the basics – eating well, drinking lots of water, taking my vitamins and getting in 5 workouts a week. Sunday weigh-ins will keep me accountable through the weekend. My resolution throughout the year is to keep focused while enjoying all the “newness” in my life. My Sunday progress updates will be called New Year, New ME Weigh-Ins.

Week 31 was wonderful – I had the week off, celebrated Christmas with family, and spent the rest of the week doing anything I wanted: read a delightful book, completed C25K Week 4, shopped till I dropped. The week couldn’t have been more perfect.

So, what did the scale show?!

When I weighed in this morning, I was 201, which is a loss of 1.2 pounds this week, and a loss of 76 lbs since surgery! I’ve lost a total of 114 pounds from my highest weight!!  I have 2 pounds to go to hit my goal of 199 by December 31st – so close to my Onderland goal, but that’s only 3 days away.  It’s possible, and I’m going to do everything I can to hit it.  Which means: lots of protein, keeping carbs low, plenty of water, and exercise. (And in all seriousness, if I hit Onederland anytime in the next week, I’ll be extremely thrilled.  But still, I have a goal in mind and I want to try to get there if at all possible).

I’ve been terrible about finding time to read this year, so one of the things I wanted to make sure to do was to read Allison Winn Scotch’s newest book, The Theory of Opposites. This is perfect book for the dawn of a new year. I’ve always enjoyed Allison Winn Scotch’s writing, but this is my favorite of her books, by far. Excellent message about fate & free will. Loved it!

This week I completed Week 4 of C25K, which had me running for 5 minutes at a time, and a totaling 16 minutes of running out of 31 minutes.  Tomorrow I’m starting Week 5, which has intervals of 3 minutes of walking and 5 minutes of running, repeated for 31 minutes. I’m excited about this coming week because those are the types of intervals that I can see myself keeping up with in an actual 5K, and maybe even longer.  I know the point of the C25K is to get to the point of running for an entire 5K, but I’ve been reading and hearing so much about intervals and how you can actually go faster with less risk of injury, that I think I may just keep it at this level.  We’ll see.

Yesterday my mom and I went shopping at Macy’s and had the best time! My parents were really generous and had given me a $350 gift card.  I spent $50 on some Mac makeup, bought lots of clothes, and still have some money to spend.  Here’s what I got:

First and foremost, I needed new sports bras because all the ones I have are way too big.  Since I’m still losing weight, I didn’t want to invest in a really expensive sports bra, because within a few months (or sooner) it won’t fit anyway.  So when I found these Bali Active by Champion bras for $38 each, which were on sale buy 2, get 2 free (and then I had a $15 off  coupon!), I had to get them.  I love the sizing: 34-36 D-DD, because I am in-between right now. They fit me really well, and are very comfortable, and I like that they’re underwire, because I need it. When I jogged in place in the fitting room, the bra was really supportive, too. So I got 4 great sports bras for $60, which is the price you could pay for one expensive sports bra.

These next tops are ones that I needed for “after school” and on weekends.  Casual tops that have a little more style than tshirts, but are just as comfortable.

I love the little details on this Style & Co. top, like the metal on the shoulders. It’s a size large! Oh, and the best part? I got it for $5.70 (originally $39).

You can’t tell from the photos, but this is a purple and white mini-striped hoodie. I like that it’s comfy, but also shows my shape. This is Style & Co. Sport, size XL. I got it for $5.61 (originally $44).

I absolutely love this hoodie – the color, the pattern. I was worried that because it’s a bit long, it wouldn’t look good with my hips, but I think it looks great. It’s from Style & Co. and is an XL. This one wasn’t on sale, and wasn’t eligible for any coupons, but it was a great price – $21.98.

This next one is dressier – it would be great for school, on a date (hopefully soon!), or for a party.

This was a showstopper. I saw it and knew I wanted it, and even though it’s a bit snug around my hips, it will look great when I lose a few pounds, so I bought it. It’s from INC, size XL. It was originally $79.50, and I got it for $50.57, which is still really high, but I loved it, so I splurged a bit.

The purchase I’m proudest of is just a pair of jeans. But not just any pair – a pair of size 16s! At my heaviest, I was too big to fit into size 24s of this brand, and now I’m in 16s! These weren’t on sale, and weren’t eligible for the coupon, but they’re a great buy at $29.98. (I’m wearing the jeans in all of the photos above).

I’d say that was a successful shopping trip, wouldn’t you?  And I still have $100 to spend in the future. Woot!

Shopping for new clothes is fun, but this was the first time I’d ever been able to buy tops in the “normal” section of Macy’s, so it was a day I’ll never forget.  I’m not going to buy any more clothes until I go down in sizes; I have some great pieces, which I’m going to enjoy wearing.

Until next Sunday, my friends. I hope the scale treats you well, and that you have a wonderful week!

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#Reverb13, Day 27: Laugh

Throughout the month of December, I’ll be participating in #reverb13: Reverb is a way to reflect on the past year and project into the next year with a prompt a day for 31 days.  December is the perfect time to reflect on 2013 and start to create intentions for 2014.

Day 27: Laugh
Pee your pants funny | What was the funniest thing that happened this year?  Was it funny when it happened?  Or was it one of those things you laughed about later?

When I think of this prompt, no specific event comes to mind, but when I look back at 2013, there were lots of small moments filled with smile and laughter.

• Sofi does things on a daily basis that make me chuckle to myself
• My nieces are full of life and they constantly make me giggle
• My family and I get along so well with each other, and we’ve been through so much.  We can die laughing recalling an old story.
• My students are hilarious and I love how often they make me laugh out loud.
• My friends and I are constantly cracking each other up.

I’m so lucky to have laughter in my life all the time.

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#Reverb13, Day 26: 5 Moments

Throughout the month of December, I’ll be participating in #reverb13: Reverb is a way to reflect on the past year and project into the next year with a prompt a day for 31 days.  December is the perfect time to reflect on 2013 and start to create intentions for 2014.

Day 26: 5 Moments

Five Moments | Tell us about five moments you don’t want to forget from 2013.

1. Reaching my pre-op weight loss goal.
2. Having VSG surgery on May 20th.
3. Losing 100 pounds.
4. My first walk/run 5K and a hitting a new PR.
5. Making it to Onederland.

The  common thread between all of these moments is about weight loss, and by extension fitness, which is fitting, since it is my main accomplishment of 2013.  I’m proud of each of these moments, and I will always look back on them with a smile.

 

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