Super Spring Weigh In: Week 44 Post-Op VSG

Spring has (almost) sprung! Which means that the weather is turning warmer, the days are getting longer, and fitting in outdoor activities is a whole lot easier. Spring is a time of renewal, and in the spring of 2014  I’m living my life in full bloom! Now that I’m in the home stretch of my weight loss journey, all the pounds I lose this spring are just like extra petals on a flower, making my life just a bit more beautiful. I want to enjoy each day of this season, soaking in the sunshine, blue skies, and happiness. Sunday weigh-ins will keep me accountable through the weekend, and will give me a positive goal to begin each new week. My Sunday progress updates will be called Super Spring Weigh-Ins.

Week 44 started off great because I spent hours on Sunday going through both closets in my house and going through every single item of clothing, deciding whether to donate or keep it.  My wardrobe is is organized and streamlined, which makes me feel so much better.  At work, I was able to complete all the grading that had piled up, which feels like a huge relief.  I ate well and logged everything. The one area that slipped a bit was in my workouts: I got some in, but didn’t do the Tone It Up strength sessions as often as I would’ve liked.  Now that everything is in order in the various areas of my life, the main thing I want to do is maintain it all.  Which means grading a bit at a time, keeping up with the housework/laundry, and setting aside the 1-1.5 hours a day to get my workouts in.  I know I can do it, I just need to set my mind to it.

So, what did the scale show?!

When I weighed in this morning, I was 183.0, which is a loss of 1.6 pounds this week,and a loss of 94 lbs since surgery! I’ve lost a total of 132 pounds from my highest weight!! I have 33 pounds to go to my ultimate goal weight of 150 pounds. I’m really happy with this week’s loss, especially because of the fact that I completed fewer workouts than I would’ve liked.  It really does go to show that weight loss is 70-80% food.  One thing that went really well for me this week was my water intake – I’ve found that making sure I have a water bottle or tumbler with me at all times makes all the difference.

One week from today I’ll have been in Hawaii for a day already!  I’m so excited about this trip, and I’m really looking at it as a reward for my hard work and determination.  It’s been over six years since I went on any sort of vacation.  Six years since I’ve been on a plane.  The last time I had to use a seatbelt extender, and that was when I was nowhere near my heaviest weight, in fact, I’d lost 50 pounds on that medically supervised fasting diet.  If I’m honest, I avoided any sort of vacation where I might need to fly because I didn’t want to have to deal with that scrunched-in feeling of spilling over into my neighbor’s seat. No to mention the look of dread on the seatmates’ faces when they saw me coming down the aisle.  I can’t wait to see how different it all is this time.

This week it’s all about making sure I have everything ready for Hawaii.  Yesterday I had a major shopping trip at Target, picking up travel sizes and a few more swim essentials.  Remember those Victoria Secrets bikini tops I’d bought?  They fit, and looked pretty good, but they were cut fairly small and showed more cleavage than I was comfortable with.  Especially for water sports like snorkeling or taking surf lessons.  I didn’t want to accidentally “pop out.”

See what I mean? I’ll definitely still wear it at the beach or walking around, but not when I’m doing something more physical.

So yesterday while I was at Target, I saw that they had swimwear on sale, and I found two other swim tops:

This black bikini top has a lot more coverage, even though you may not be able to tell it in the photo, and that makes me feel more comfortable.  The tankini also offers good coverage, although I’m not sure whether or not I’m going to tuck it in.  What do you guys think?

The plan for this week is to make sure I fit in 5 Tone It Up workouts, along with cardio:
Sunday: Arc Trainer + run/walk intervals
Monday: run/walk intervals
Tuesday: hybrid elliptical
Wednesday: Arc Trainer
Thursday: hybrid recumbent bike
Friday: run/walk intervals

{I’ll update the toning routines as soon as the new weekly workout is posted on Toneitup.com}

As I mentioned, next week I’ll be in Hawaii, so I won’t be posting a weigh-in update.  It’s going to be really weird not having a scale there and not weighing myself everyday.  But I know I’m going to make great choices (more on that in another post), and get in plenty of activity, so I’m not worried about my weight.  Plus, taking a break from the scale while I’m on vacay seems right.  I will write a Sunday Smiles post, though, because I’m sure I’ll already have lots to share.

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

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NSV: Buying Bikini Tops at Victoria’s Secret

Yes, you read that title correctly! I just bought bikini tops from VS for my upcoming vacay in Hawaii.  I received the email promotion today telling me that VS had select tops & bottoms on sale for $15.  $15!  That’s a better deal than anything you can find at Target, and because they’re from VS, you know they’ll fit well.  All their tops are sized like bras, making it easy to insure a good fit.  I’ve been searching for swim tops that offer adequate support (underwire!) and I’ve come up short, until today.

Because I’m planning on buying long board shorts, I wanted to pair them with bikini tops.  I’m going to get these black shorts, so I wanted the tops to coordinate, but add a bit of fun.

I wish this wasn’t such a sexy shot, because the top itself is actually really practical, while being pretty.  The halter top has underwire (practical) and ruffles (pretty).  That bow in the front is removable, but I think I’ll probably leave it on, because it adds a fun flirtyness. I really like the print; it just reminds me of somewhere tropical, like Hawaii, but the colors are bold and vibrant, which is my style.

This top is the exact same style as the one above.  I love this pattern – I’ve been really into black & white stripes lately, and turquoise/aqua is one of my favorite colors.  I think this will look really great on me, especially after I get a tan.

And because the reviews I’ve read about the board shorts say that customers wished they had a built-in bathing suit bottom to feel more comfortable, I also bought these VS bottoms to wear under the board shorts:

These will never see the light of day (unless I’m sunbathing at the house by myself with no neighbors able to see me), but I think they’ll be nice to have underneath.

The total for all of these items?  $58, including tax and shipping! I’m thrilled!  Not only is that a fantastic price, but I think the fit will be great and I’ll feel good wearing them.  I’ve never bought a bathing suit from VS, let alone bikini tops, so this NSV is really special for me.  All in all, a great day of online shopping for the Hawaiian vacay, which is now just 29 days away!!

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Saturday Night Swimsuit Shopping

Wow, what a difference a year makes.  Last summer I was getting up the nerve to go into a public pool in a swimsuit and tonight I just bought two. I already have 2 swimsuits that I love, but because my plan is to go to the pool as often as I can this summer, I figured it wouldn’t hurt to have another one.

To be honest, I didn’t intend to buy any suits tonight.  I was trying to find something to watch on t.v., and of course I landed on QVC.  (It’s so funny how often that happens, just ask my wallet).  They were doing an It Figures show, which has great swimsuits  that are made by real women.  Plus, they had models of all shapes and sizes modeling the suits, which really gave an accurate idea of how they would fit.  I’ve never bought this brand before, but the reviews were phenomenal, so I figured I’d give it a shot.  As I browsed through the inventory, I saw a great swimdress on clearance for $41 with only my size left (how lucky is that?):

I think it’s cute, and since I don’t have anything in these colors, I thought it would be a nice addition.

Then I was surfing around, which always gets me into trouble when it comes to online shopping, and I came across this swimsuit on another site, which had amazing prices on their suits.  Seriously, if you need a new suit, I’d check them out.  I have no idea what the quality is going to be like, but at those prices, if I get one season out of it, I’ll be happy.  I got this one for $38:

I love the hot pink and black together, and I think the style is going to be very flattering.

So you know what this means, don’t you?  I really need to start going to the aqua aerobics classes at the gym, otherwise I’m going to feel guilty that I own 4 swimsuits.  My new suits won’t arrive until next week or so, but I do still have the two other suits, and I really should start putting them to good use. One of the 24 Hour Fitness locations that I go to offers aqua classes all the time, and 3 evening classes that I have no excuse not to go to – 6:30 on Mon., Tues., and Wed.  This week I’m going to commit to going on Monday and Tuesday, and if I feel really into it, I’ll go on Wednesday too.

Tune in Tuesday to check up on me and see whether or not I made it to Monday night’s class.  Be sure to give me sh!t if I don’t go. 😛

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