Weigh in Wednesday!

It's that time of the week again! Last week was TERRIBLE for my diet, and it was completely my fault. I had several "cheat" meals... but in my defense, most of them were after I ate healthy the rest of the day.  I'm calling it a "reset" week for my metabolisim. I had dropped my calories for about 3 weeks, and so last week it didn't "limit" myself as much.  This week, I'm back on track and ready to go.

Here's this weeks weigh in:

I'm up .2 from last week, and I'm okay with that.  Cause with all that food I ate last week... It could have been way worse.
I'm linking up once again with Ash & Heather, here:

And with Nina as well!

Enjoy your week an lets get back on top of things!

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Weigh in Wednesday!

I'm a little behind on blogging lately (shame) but I'm back with my Weigh in Wednesdays with the following fellow bloggers.

Hope Nina likes up today, or I'm sending you for nothing! LOL

Make sure you stop by their blogs and give them some love for offering one more accountability step!

So, here's the weight for the week

While I know any loss is a great loss, one pound is a little discouraging.  HOWEVER, I do understand that I had a cheat meal just yesterday for lunch. (Beef Taco salad, with chips and *gasp!* cheese dip) AND I'm still not active.  Please SOMEONE motivate me! I've had a lot on my plate the past couple of weeks.

Kids and all the world that surrounds them, work has been crazy, The whole Jury duty thing and not knowing whether or not I'll be at work the next day, appearing for Jury duty that they cancelled and just expected you to know about, and, I'm in the process of selling my beloved Jeep. *sadface*

I love her.  But she's just not practical I suppose. I bought her a year and a half ago to go hunting and to go to the lake in.  But now, the kids go with me, so there isn't any room for my hunting stuff.  And since Darrell has moved in , I don't even have the passenger seat to put stuff in either. So... I'm buying a DIFFERENT Jeep Wrangler! :-D It will be an Unlimited, which means it has four doors (NO MORE LIFTING THE HEAVY KIDS!!) and will have cargo area! It also still has the removable top and doors, and will still be four wheel drive, so it will still be good for the lake and hunting.  WIN/WIN in my book!

I also have a Non Scale Victory today: I don't have as big of a muffin top today in these jeans! WIN!!

Hopefully I'll be able to do another post this week.  Stuff is just crazy right now!

www.theninashow.com

Weigh In Wednesday!

Linking up once again with Ash & Heather.
And now with Nina!

 It's Weigh in Wednesday again and today, I've found myself wondering why I do this. I know I need the accountability, and that in itself should be enough- but still, why?

Why have I put myself out there for all the word to see (even though no one actually reads it unless I do a linkup with a group that has already been put together) and why have I put my "big number" out there for all of you to gasp at? It's a huge number.  To me.  It's several huge numbers.  That I promised myself that I would NEVER see, 7 years ago.  And yet, here it is. And it's been around for way too long. Here she be...

I've lost 3.6 lbs since last Wednesday, and a total of 6.4 lbs since starting on January 2nd.

That's a good loss for two and a half weeks.  And my LoseIt! App is set to suggest calorie intake for a 2# a week loss (suggested healthy loss)... so I guess I'm doing better than suggested.  I still have a long way to go and still need to get back in to a regular exercise routine.

What motivates you to weigh in every week and post a weight that you're ashamed of? What motivates you to exercise? What makes you accountable for the workout? SOMEONE needs to call me every morning and tell me to get my ASS OUT OF BED!

Happy Wednesday all! Hope you enjoy this midweek hump!

Resolution Revolution Goodies!

Good Tuesday Morning to you all! I'm back from my 3 day weekend! It wasn't exaclty the three day weekend i would have envisioned, but only because I sat at a courthouse most of the morning on Friday. (whomp, whomp, whomp) I was called for Jury Duty, and am basically at their beck and call for two weeks.  I have to call every day at 4:30 so see if I need to attend the following day.  Talk about NO NOTICE! Kinda crappy, but hey.  What can you do?

Anyway, as I said Friday morning in my Follow through Friday linkup, my package for the Resolution Revolution that Jess has started sponsoring showed up on Thursday evening.  I was so excited!

This special little package had so many fun little goodies!  Jess really outdone herself with our first package.

We have everything from the member shirts, to Spark, to Jelly Beans! Yes, I said Jelly Beans! I've decided that I want to review each item in the package that she sent, and let you know what I think, as someone that is actually trying all of these things for the very first time.

First up, the Kashi Trail Mix Granola Bar. 

This bad boy right here was really yummy.  I needed something sweet Friday night after dinner, and so I turned to this. It has fruit, nuts, and oats and stuff and I really enjoyed it. According to their website, heres their description:

"Chewy and naturally tasty, our granola bars satisfy your sweet and wholesome sides. With whole, roasted almonds, succulent, sun-dried fruit, toasted sunflower seeds and a touch of wildflower honey, our Trail Mix granola bars have 4g of fiber* and 6g of protein.

Naturally, you won't find any partially hydrogenated oils, high fructose corn syrup, or artificial anything but what you will find in our chewy granola bars is just what you'd expect from Kashi® — pure ingredients, and natural goodness you can see as well as taste"

While I agree that it was tasty, and it does taste natural, it wasn't exactly what I would call chewy.  Yes, I had to chew, no I didn't have to crunch down on it.  It was still very good.  Just enough "chew" to make me not regret opening it, and solid just enough that it felt "healthy" to bite into. 

As for the nutrition info, here is the breakdown:

As someone that is doing the counting calories thing, I would definatly sacrafice 140 calories for this again.  It was yummy, satisfying and well worth it. I even like how they print the "Exchange" rate on the package for Diabetics. Very handy. 

Next up is the Mango Strawberry Spark by Advocare.

(yes, i know this is not the right image.  I coudln't find one for the Mango Strawberry)

While I do not know a ton of stuff about Spark, I do know that it has been around for YEARS... I remember my mother trying to make me drink the stuff when I was around 10, and at that time, they only had an orangy-citrus flavor.  And it. was. terrible. HAHA! I do have to have to admit that this was much more appetizing than it used to be. The directions say to mix it with 8oz of water or juice, and mix well.  I like a little bit of a strong flavor, so I only added 6oz and while I enjoyed the flavor (and so did my 8 year old) it didn't quite have the kick that I was looking for on Friday.  In taste or energy. There was no "grit" when drinking it, nor was there an aftertaste at all. I REALLY liked that. However, at 5:15 in the evening, I found myself lacking energy, and realized that I dozed off. That's really the only, but main, downfall in my opinion. Here is the description from the Advocare website.

"AdvoCare Spark Energy Drink Mix is a unique multi-nutrient system that was developed as a nutritional source of energy and enhanced mental focus.* It's a sugar-free drink mix that has more than 20 vitamins, minerals and nutrients that work synergistically to provide a healthy, balanced and effective source of energy that won't overburden or overstimulate your body like other energy drinks on the market.* This amazing product serves as an all-in-one solution that gives you a quick boost of energy that lasts for hours.* With eight refreshing flavors (Watermelon, Mango Strawberry, Pink Lemonade, Grape, Mandarin Orange, Fruit Punch, Cherry and Citrus), you're sure to find one that's perfect for you. And the best part? Only 45 calories in each serving!"

I currently take a simmular vitamin supplement by Zeal for Life.

Zeal Wellness is a vitamin supplement taken once daily, usually in the morning, and it gives you your daily value of needed vitamins and minerals.  And for the extra "energy" kick that everyone needs, it's got Guarana in it.  A natural supplement like caffine, but much healthier. 

Here's the vitamin breakdown of the two side by side.

Ingredients/Facts	AdvoCare Spark®
Serving Size	One Pouch 8 fl. oz.
Servings per Container	1
Calories	45
Total Fat	0
Saturated Fat	0
Cholesterol	0
Sodium	0
Potassium	0
Total Carbohydrates	11g
Sugars	0
Protein	0
Vitamin A	20%
Vitamin C	300%
Vitamin E	100%
Thiamine	200%
Riboflavin	200%
Niacin	300%
Vitamin B-6	750%
Vitamin B-12	750%
Pantothenic Acid	500%
Zinc	20%
Total Caffeine	120mg

Amount per Serving % Daily Value

Calories 48

Calories from Fat 12

Total Fat: 2g 3% Saturated Fat: 0.33g

Trans Fat: 0.00g

Sodium 1mg 0%

Potassium 109mg 3% 

Total Carbohydrates 8g 3% 

Dietary Fiber 3.5g 14% 

Sugars 3.5g

Protein < 1g 1%

Vitamin A 5,000 iu 100% 

Vitamin C 60 mg 100%

 Iron 15 mcg 1% 

Vitamin D3 1,000 iu 250% 

Vitamin E 30 iu 100% 

Thiamin (B1) 1.5 mg 100%

Riboflavin (B2) 1.7 mg 100%

Niacin 10 mg 50%

Vitamin B6 8 mg 400%

Folic Acid 200 mcg 50%

Vitamin B12 96 mcg 1,600%

Biotin 300 mcg 100%

Pantothenic Acid 10 mg 100%

Phosphorus 54 mg 6%

Magnesium 12 mg 3%

Zinc 1.5 mcg 1%

Manganese 224 mcg 10%

Tocotrienols 700 mcg +

Omega 3 Fatty Acids 60 mg +

Omega 6 Fatty Acids 1,155 mg +

Inositol (IP6) 10.5 mg +

Gamma Oryzanol 17.5 mg +

Phyto Sterols 29.4 mg +

Beta Sitosterol 14.7 mg +

Okay... maybe not side by side, but close enough. I'm not as good at cutting and pasting just yet.  LOL.

Anyway, draw your own conclusions. I'm not pushing anything on ya. But... I'm probably going to stick with my Zeal.  Even though I love that Spark has so many more flavor options.  Zeal only offers Mixed Berry (what I drink) and Grape. (what my son prefers)

I also received my water jug that I won from Valerie last week! Whoot! Talk about some serious drinkage! Lol! Ive started using it this week, and my goal is to be up to one whole jug by this weekend. Wish me luck! 

More on the goodies I received and about the weekend later, but for now... What motivates you to get your water intake each day? What pointers can you give someone who NEEDS to drink it, just isn't motivated, or hates water? 

Follow Through Friday! *New Linkup*

I'm hoping to start Follow Through Friday with these lovely ladies starting today.  Link up with us and feel more accountable!

• Aubrey Leigh at ALG Uninterupted
• Candra at Camo and Lipstick
• Jodi at Love and Crayons
• Mel at 4 Kottez Runs It
• Val at Fabulous Chick Gets Fit
• Cait at Your Favorite Girlfriend
• Jacquelyn at JustJacq
• Jennifer at Fat Chick to fit Chick

"These ladies are co-hosting a link up to help keep themselves, and us on track with our 2014 goals!  They are calling it Follow Through Fridays, and they would love for you to link up with them and share your ups and downs of the week and how you are “following through” with your goals.  If you don’t have a blog and want to still check in, feel free to hashtag your Instagram update pics on Fridays with #FTF."

You can read more on Jennifer's blog post HERE. 

I've done pretty good this week.  I've been under my daily amount of calories for the whole week. That's pretty big for me.  I also did meal prepping and only went off plan twice.  But replaced the meal with Subway sandwiches, and still stayed within my calories.  I've done some sort of work out every day since the 2nd and I lost 2ish lbs.

However, while I did decide to do the Jillian in January challenge with some of the above ladies... I've quit. (whomp, whomp, whomp)  I admit it. She's a b-word and I just can't do it. I've got to work up my stamina and get myself more psyched up for her. I did do it.  I hated it.  And I hurt for three days after YOGA.  I'm going back to what worked for me in October for this month, then I'll go back and give Jillian a try again. 

Another positive? My package from Jess came in yesterday! Yay!! 

I cant wait to review the samples she sent and to show you our awesome Resolution Revolution t-shirts! 

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend! We're headed to yet another Christmas tomorrow with my Dad and immediate family.  Can't wait for BBQ! Don't forget to link up with these lovely ladies and STAY ACCOUNTABLE!!

Winner, Winner!! Weigh in Wednesday

It's Weigh in Wednesday again, and I'm a little stoked about seeing today's number.  I've been eating *mostly* clean and back on my Zeal Wellness every morning.  Plus doing my protein shakes in the mornings.I also found this Weigh in Wednesday linkup! Go Check it out!

I signed up for the Jillian in January challenge with the ladies over at the other linkup, but... it's not going so well... Jillian's Yoga Meltdown... burn... whatever its called, KICKED MY ASS! I had terrible pains in my left ass for three days (yes, I still hurt today) and I decided Jillian wasn't for me.  Not yet.  I've got to get back to the agility and stamina to keep up with her perfect ass.

So yeah, I'm a quitter.  I'll admit it. But I've picked my old yoga video back up and I'm gonna start there.

Awesome news for ya from yesterday... I WON SOMETHING! Whoot!

I won the awesome #topsecretjug from Valerie over at Fab Chick Gets Fit...

 

You must read her story! She's hilarious, shes a cutiepatootie and she gave me free stuff! She's definitely one of my inspirations for my health as she started her weight loss journey this time last year, and she is ROCKING it! Thanks again Valerie!

I'm a huge Instagram addict... seriously.  And since I've made my account public (so that the lady doing the yoga challenge in October could see my posts) I've gotten tons of followers... It's crazy! And I'm actually really stoked about it! LOL Now... if all those followers would actually follow my blog.. I'd be even better off! HA!

I'm also pretty excited about our Resolution Revolution packages coming in! Jess stuck them in the mail yesterday, so mine should be here Saturday-ish? Our mail people run EXTREMELY slow around here. If you're interested in the Resolution Revolution she's started, check out her blog, and leave her your email... I know she's taking a wait list for February now!


So here it is, ladies and gents (HA! Like there were any!) Here's today's lucky number.... drum roll please.................................

Okay, so its not as as good as it could have been if I would have stuck with Jillian. But its down. Hopefully being more active before the next weigh in will help!

Thinking about posting some recipes an Aunt sent me last week.  They're crock pot (so not tons of work) and she thinks they could be frozen before crock potted, so they should be pretty handy for this cold weather. It'd be neat to have a couple crock pot meals ready to pop in once or twice a week...

what are your thoughts on me posting recipes??

Monday, Monday

Happy Monday y'all. Hope your weekend was all our was cracked up to be! Our weekend was rather uneventful. I spent some major time with my oldest boy, Ayden. It's rare I get one on one time with either of them, so it was a nice change.

We watched Calamity Jane like me and my granny used to do...

Then I even let him bring his sleeping bag in and camp out next to my bed.

Jillian kicked my ass Saturday with Yoga Meltdown... literally. My ass and left hip are killing me

I did more food prep and stuff on Sunday.

Baked chicken fajitas were amazing. And not too terrible for you, even after you add a whole wheat tortilla, sour cream, cheese and salsa. Here's the recipe, but I forgot to take a pic.

 Oven Baked fajita Ingredients: 
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into strips 
2 Tbsp vegetable oil 
2 tsp chili powder 
1 1/2 tsp cumin 
1/2 tsp garlic powder 
1/2 tsp dried oregano 
1/4 tsp seasoned salt 
1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes with green chilies (Rotel) 
1 medium onion, sliced 
1/2 red bell pepper, cut into strips 
1/2 green bell pepper, cut into strips 
Directions: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place chicken strips in a greased 13×9 baking dish. In a small bowl combine the oil, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, dried oregano, and salt. Drizzle the spice mixture over the chicken and stir to coat. Next add the tomatoes, peppers, and onions to the dish and stir to combine. Bake uncovered for 20-25 minutes or until chicken is cooked through and the vegetables are done

Also made some baked chicken with the new Weber's Grill Spice I got free in the mail from Marlboro. Yes, I quit smoking, but I still log in for my free stuff, yo!

I skipped the Jillian challenge Sunday... she hurt me way too much Saturday, so I just stuck with my plain old yoga video. Anything is better than nothing, and her version is just not what I want. Lol

Today starts back the school weeks again. I'm really hoping getting back in a normal routine helps get my kids under control... Sheesh! Also hoping that you teachers that have been off this whole time are rested up, too. My kids will be back in rare form, I'm sure.

My honey is sick this weekend, so it's a good thing he had Sunday and today off work.  He's at home sleeping and recuperating, I'm assuming.  Poor thing. lol

How was your weekend and whats on the agenda this week?

Friday's Favorite Things!

Its another Friday, so it's another LinkUp... I thought I'd try a differnt one today, and we've got Emily over at Beauty and the Greek with this Favorite Things linkup...

A few of my favorite things this winter...
1- THESE MOCCASINS! I know I've brought them up before, but seriously... In. Love.

2. Meal planning.  This is my first attempt but my last attempt at getting healthy! I'm GOING to do it this time!

3. The best flavored chapstick EVER... SAnta was good to me and brought me 4 more tubes in my stocking!

4. These shirts with deer heads on them.  LOVE.  The one on the left is from Inscriptions in Fort Smith.  The one on the right is from Old Navy. 

5. These big boys... 32 ounces of Rice Krispie Treats! 

Have a great weekend everyone! 

Starting Before

So I told ya about the Jillian January contest I'm doing on IG... well, part of it is to take before pics, and measurements.  And while I took the before pics yesterday (and forgot to post them) I took measurements too, and forgot them at home.  I'll update this post this evening with my measurements... I'd like to compare to the ones I posted a month or so ago anyway... even though I hadn't done anything to change anything... I've probably gained inches now that I think about it... EEEK! HERE is a link to my before pics and measurements that I posted on 11/13
So, here I am. In all my glory. Once again.  Front, sides and back... Same exact type of clothing as the last photos, just different colors.

BTW... Why does my back look like a Shar Pei? WTF? What do I need to do to get rid of that stuff? That's just nasty.

Wish me luck with this whole Jillian thig... I'm not liking her after last night!

Weigh In Wednesday- 2014!!

It's that time of week again, and while I know it's actually Thursday, I'm weighing in.

*Dang Holidays*

Today starts a new year for me and I'm ready to make a change for the good.  Here's what I'm doing:

I've started back on my Zeal for Life regiment starting today. Wild Berry Zeal Wellness first thing of a morning for my vitamins and energy (better than coffee!) Then a protein shake made of the Zeal Vanilla Protein Powder, a 1/4 cup frozen blueberries, 1/4 frozen strawberries, 1/2 banana, 1/2 cup unsweetened Almond Milk and some ice. YUMMY! This concoction )along with the morning Wellness drink) give me about 330 calories to start the day.

They also have a supplement called "Burn". It says it a "blend of thermogenic fat burners, a natural carb blocker and appetite suppressant. Taken before each meal these powerful ingredients will accelerate your metabolism to burn more calories, reduce your hunger and block the absorption of the carbohydrates that you do eat... " Now, I'm not condoning the use of "supplements" but the rest of the program is very healthy... Wellness is JUST vitamins and minerals that you need, Protein Powder is all natural and stuff that everyone is doing to assist in their healthy lifestyles.  I personally love the program and am excited to get back on it.

I've also signed up for the Resolution Revolution with Jess over at The Girl Who Thought Too Much.

It's a great group of ladies that all want to be healthier for themselves and have an awesome list of goals.  We've got a Facebook group to ask questions, set goals and to make ourselves accountable. She's sending us member shirts, some samples and some great info throughout the month of January. We've already gotten our first motivation email with workouts and recipes, and she's a great inspiration through her own testimony.  You can check out her weight loss journey HERE.

I'm also doing the Jillian Michaels DVD Challenge with several wonderful blogging/IG ladies.  Its 30 days of Jillian (Eek!) on IG and a prize of $150.00 is up for grabs to the favorite loser! It starts today and runs through Feb 2nd and I'm determined to at least DO the challenge.  Winning would be a plus, but its about principal.  Check out the blogs or IG for Holly, Jennifer, Kim, or Melanie for more info if you're interested. Workouts start tonight, and I've purchased the 30 Day Shred and her Yoga Video to help me. I'll also probably do some of my other Yoga video as well, mostly because I love yoga and I figure I'll hate Jillian's yoga. lol My user name on IG is NickoleM123 if you wanna be friends and do the challenge together... Come keep up with me!

I did a shit ton of food prep for the week last night.  Baked Chicken, steamed green beans, steamed carrots, steamed broccoli, and brown rice.

10 meals, all around 175-250 calories. I'm putting my daily caloric intake around 1500, as recommended by my LoseIt App that I have on my phone. I love this app for keeping up with everything from food to exercise. NickoleM123 is my user name on there... Friend me! You input your weight, goal weight, height and age and it calculates your calories based on how you want to lose the weight.  2# per week being the maximum, because that is a healthy rate to lose it. I love looking into my fridge and seeing these meals all tucked away. I also boiled some eggs, and got fresh veggies cleaned and cut for snacks as well.

I'm telling y'all it's a new year and a new me. :) Here's to 2014 and everyone achieving their goals!