Ravenclaw Common Room

lottee1000

Hi Ravenclaws!

My weigh -in for this week is 188lb, so down another pound. I did the water challenge for five days, and the abs exercises three days and posted twice so I'm going for 10 house points, please!

My August challenge will be 8lb, putting me on 180, or 20lb lost since my highest!

azsuzi

Good morning Ravenclaw! I'm weighing in today at 166 - down .5 from last week. For house points, I met the water challenge 6 days, did abs 4 days and posted 7 days - total of 17 points for me!

My August weight loss goal is 160 - that will be 6 pounds down. My personal challenge for July was to lose 10 but I only lost 5 - so I'm scaling it back this month.

I am so happy to have you guys to share my triumphs with. Yesterday when I went shopping, I was expecting to buy size 14 pants - but they were too big! I ended up with size 12's!! I think my husband is even starting to be happy for me!

liz11599

Good morning Ravenclaws! I hope everyone is doing well this past week and having a fabulous weekend! I'm weighing in a day early and have some exciting news....my plateau has finally ended!!! I had been hanging on to 179 for weeks and this morning I weighed it at 177!! Wahoo!! So that's a total of 2 pounds down and I believe 2 house points for the week too (I posted twice, but wasn't so successful with the challenges).

Ok...now for the August goal...we are heading on vacation the second week in August and although I plan to workout everyday, let be real, I doubt I'll be counting the calories most days, so with that said, I'm going to be conservative and say 4 pounds, but I'll be happy with a 3 pound loss.

:happy:

I forgot that I did ab work twice this week too, so please add another 2 points for a total of 4 points

azsuzi

I forgot that I did ab work twice this week too, so please add another 2 points for a total of 4 points

And I forgot that I shared my secret for making sure I drink enough water every day. So that's an extra point for me - total 18!

psb13

i weighed in at 186.4-no change for me, but with the week i had i'm happy for no gain. i had 2 really bad eating days. as for house points i got 12. 7 for posting daily and 5 for water. i was a major FAIL with the abs workouts-the most i got in per day was 5 minutes :frown: . i had to put a lot of thought into my august goal. i want to challenge myself but i also want to be realistic and not set myself up for failure. that being said and based on my average loss to this point i am going to shoot for 5 lbs which would put me at 181.4 by august 1st.

kudos to azsuzi for a great shopping nsv!! :drinker:

azsuzi

i weighed in at 186.4-no change for me, but with the week i had i'm happy for no gain. i had 2 really bad eating days. as for house points i got 12. 7 for posting daily and 5 for water. i was a major FAIL with the abs workouts-the most i got in per day was 5 minutes :frown: . i had to put a lot of thought into my august goal. i want to challenge myself but i also want to be realistic and not set myself up for failure. that being said and based on my average loss to this point i am going to shoot for 5 lbs which would put me at 181.4 by august 1st.

kudos to azsuzi for a great shopping nsv!! :drinker:

Thanks for the kudos :bigsmile:

I added another house point to yours because you also shared your water tips at the beginning of the week - for a total of 13 points . Good job!

_gwen

I weighed in at 186.5, down one pound from last week. I did abs on 3 days, water on 4 days and logged in 7 days. 14 points.

Weight goal for August is 4 pounds, to 182.5. That will put me solidly in the "Overweight" classification. My weight loss is slacking off, and I want to focus more on habits than numbers by a certain date.

My non-weight goals are to do Couch to 5k training three days a week, two additional walks per week, and if my !@#$ weight bench gets here, to figure out a upper body / lower body weight training schedule.

Aug 6 is photos and measurement day for me. Stay tuned.

Samiwhereareyou

i will be weighing in after church

azsuzi

This week's challenges:

Food: Share a favorite healthy recipe or meal/snack idea (that will be 1 point). Then, throughout the week, try out some of the ideas (1 point for each recipe or meal/snack idea tried).

Exercise: Commercial workouts - do jumping jacks, crunches, high knees, wall push-ups, lunges or your choice of exercise during TV commercials. If you're like me and don't watch much TV (we usually watch DVDs), do some of these exercises when you take your bathroom breaks during the day. Try to get in 5 of these mini-sessions a day.

Good luck everyone!

bethanyweathers

Afternoon Ravenclaws! I won't be able to weigh in until tomorrow, but as for the challenges, three days I did abs exercises and I had two dayswhere I had 10+ glasses of water, so I think that's 5 points for me?

As for weight, I'm really afraid to weigh. I had a massive bine on Monday and I spent all weekend in Wisconsin with some friends from highschool for a girls weekend. There was a ton of junk food and a ton of drinks, which all have a lot of calories.

I'm just so frustrated, because unless I go to the grocery store nearly every day and make my own food, I cannot control myself. I can't go out to eat, I can't eat at a friend's house, I can't go on vacation because I overeat. How am I supposed to make a lifestyle change if I can't figure out how to control myself? How do you guys make it? I need tips!

psb13

This is what we're having for supper tonight. I threw it together a couple of weeks ago with whatever I had in the fridge. Turned out we all really like it.

cut slits into sides of spaghetti squash and place on a microwave dish. microwave about 20 minutes. be careful when handling it-it will be VERY HOT
brown turkey with onion and garlic. add cut up veggies (you can add whatever veggies you want). cook till veggies are done to your liking.
scrape out seeds and fibrous strands from cooked squash and discard. scrape the meat of the squash out with a fork-it will come out in spaghetti like strings. add it to turkey mixture with spices and heat through-covered about 15 min. stir together. place in casserole dish and bake about 30min at 350degrees. after 30minutes add cheese to the top and continue to bake until cheese is melted.


Ground Turkey - Jennie O 93/7 Lean, 1 container (20 oz ea.)
Spaghetti Squash, 1
Portabello Mushroom Cap, 2 med
Orange Bell Pepper, about 1/2 a pepper
Yellow Onion, 1 medium
Garlic - Raw, 2 tsp
Weight Watchers - Mexican Style Shredded Four Cheese Blend, 1 cup
spices of your choice-i used mrs dash southwestern chipolte about 1 tsp and cilantro-about 2-3 Tbsp


Per 1 cup Serving: cal -281 carbs -15 protein-28 fat -11 sodium -220
makes about 5 cups

azsuzi

As for weight, I'm really afraid to weigh. I had a massive bine on Monday and I spent all weekend in Wisconsin with some friends from highschool for a girls weekend. There was a ton of junk food and a ton of drinks, which all have a lot of calories.

I'm just so frustrated, because unless I go to the grocery store nearly every day and make my own food, I cannot control myself. I can't go out to eat, I can't eat at a friend's house, I can't go on vacation because I overeat. How am I supposed to make a lifestyle change if I can't figure out how to control myself? How do you guys make it? I need tips!

Hi Bethany. For me, I have made up my mind that this is what I'm going to do because I want to be in better health. But I also allow for the occasional binge without the guilt trip. We're all human and we all stumble. I think the most important breakthrough for me has been to let go of the denial I was in. My ticker shows my actual weight instead of how much weight I want to lose. I diary ALL of the food I put in my mouth each day because I tend to be a closet eater and I realized I'm only hurting me when I try to hide a binge. The simple step of admitting to myself and to the world exactly what I weigh and what I eat has been somehow liberating.

I make all of my own food too - I make breakfast and lunch to take to work and I cook dinner at home. We hardly ever eat out any more. Something just dawned on me: do you overeat on vacation and with friends because that's what you think they expect of you? I got tired of people asking me why I wasn't eating ("didn't you like it?", "are you feeling ok?", etc etc) and in the past would just keep eating so I wouldn't have to make up excuses. But I've finally realized that it's their problem if they feel uncomfortable when I don't eat as much as they think I should. And its ok for me to stop eating when I want to and just enjoy the company.

It all boils down to accepting yourself exactly where you are in your life journey. You are faced with choices every day and its the choices you make that determine your path through this life. As Albus Dumbledore said, "It is our choices Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." (thanks psb13 for the quote!)

Hang in there - you are worth the effort! :flowerforyou:

psb13

bethanyweathers-ditto to everything azsuzi said!! i think that for me the hardest thing at the beginning (and sometimes still) is to put myself first and to accept myself. i also have been a closet eater. i think that a lot of us who struggle with our weight for years have not come to the point of being able to love ourselves enough to fight for what we need and for what is best for us. as my profile says it's about ME this time. we can still enjoy our lives, but in a healthier way with good choices and moderation. i have always loved the choices quote by Dumbledore, but it has meant so much more to me since i started my journey. fight for yourself. YOU ARE WORTH IT!!!

the_accountinator

Hello again Ravenclaws!

I haven't had the chance to be as active here as I'd like but that's life, huh?

I did want to check in today at 281.8 which is down a couple from last time; yay for me I also did great on my water this week, earning 6 house points this week. My exercise hasn't been as great though, but hopefully it'll pick up in the next couple of weeks.

As for August, my goal is 275.0. Not too much but enough to keep me focused

Good luck to everyone on their own journey and I'm sure the spirit of Ravenclaw is thriving!

'Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure...'

azsuzi

The recipe that I get the most questions about is the Vegetable Quiche Cups I eat most mornings. This is a quick and easy recipe.

10 oz package frozen chopped spinach
3/4 cup egg white
3/4 cup shredded low fat cheese
1/4 cup diced onion
1/4 cup diced green pepper

Let the spinach thaw and drain (I actually pick up the spinach and squeeze it out). Mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Spray a muffin pan with non-stick cooking spray and divide the mix evenly among the cups. Cook at 350 F for 20 - 30 minutes. Makes 12. Serving size: 2 quiches

Calories 69 (depending on the veggie/cheese combinations you use - see below)
Fat 3 g
Cholesterol 8 mg
Sodium 195 mg
Carbs 5 g
Dietary fiber 1 g
Sugars 1 g
Protein 8 g

You can switch up the veggies and cheeses in this recipe. I've made it with broccoli instead of spinach. Today, I had the spinach but was out of green peppers and yellow onions, so I used celery and red onion instead (same measures). I think I like this mix better! I like to use shredded pepper jack cheese even though I can't find it low fat. Try a few drops of hot-pepper sauce to add a kick. These freeze well - I make a batch and then freeze them for my breakfasts throughout the week. Heat for about a minute in the microwave, add an orange on the side and I'm good 'til lunch!

bethanyweathers

Thanks guys, you are all awesome! I'm so glad I've been put in Ravenclaw. Who knows what those other houses would have said. I bet those nasty Slytherins would have told me nothing helpful :laugh: .

As for my August goal, I'd like to break 225. I'm 234 right now, and *if I keep my mind to it* I could lose ten pounds, right? Am I reaching too far?

TwiFan5

Weighed in today at 98 Ibs , My goal for August will be 96 Ibs.

Matchamatcha

Hi, weighing in at 66.1kg / 145.7lb. I think that's almost at my original goal for the HP Challenge? Yay! I haven't been eating very much or very well lately, I've got a horrible cough/flu. Had to miss my first day of uni semester today because of it. Anyway, I've been pretty lax about doing the challenges, so if I feel better in a couple of days I'll try out some of your healthy snack ideas/offer my own .

_gwen

Last night, after I finished dinner well before my boyfriend, (I was hungry and he eats more than me.) I was thinking "I don't feel hungry, but the act of eating sure is a pleasurable activity." Later, I was reading various posts on MFP about how different people took 'free' days.

I don't think I'm ready for a free day. At least not yet. Maybe when my birthday rolls around in March. But it seems at odds with my current goal of getting to a maintenance weight. I think though, that once I get to a maintenance weight, I could have a completely unrestricted calorie day once a month. I'd still track my food, primarily to observe how my body responds.

azsuzi

Last night, after I finished dinner well before my boyfriend, (I was hungry and he eats more than me.) I was thinking "I don't feel hungry, but the act of eating sure is a pleasurable activity." Later, I was reading various posts on MFP about how different people took 'free' days.

I don't think I'm ready for a free day. At least not yet. Maybe when my birthday rolls around in March. But it seems at odds with my current goal of getting to a maintenance weight. I think though, that once I get to a maintenance weight, I could have a completely unrestricted calorie day once a month. I'd still track my food, primarily to observe how my body responds.

Funny thing is, now that I think about it, I haven't wanted a free day for several months now! I started tracking my calories in February 2011 and would have a 1600 or more calorie day every now and then with no exercise to burn off the extra (I'm at the 1200 calorie level). But I always seemed to average it out over the week by eating less than 1200 on other days. The days I binge now, its not nearly that high (and its usually when my son gets pizza - I just can't resist a slice of pizza). But I've learned that I feel bad now after I eat the foods I used to crave and binge on. Its SO not worth feeling rotten the whole day for a donut (or two!). Eating is pleasurable, but for me its more of a pacifying activity to counteract boredom or stress. I think that I'm slowly breaking that habit - until the next pizza shows up!