Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Weekly Update

So it's been awhile. But guess what? Things are still going well! I haven't stopped working on Zookenberry, or on myself - just on the blog side of things. I'm doing some serious revamping, and it is taking a lot more research, and a lot less writing at the moment. You'll see some big changes soon.

But onto the update:

Weight: 152.5 149.5
Arm: 10.5"
Bust: 38.5" 38"
Chest: 32" 31.5"
Waist: 33" 32"
Hips: 40"
Thigh: 23" 22.5"
Calf: 14"

So I tried to work my little butt off, literally. My hips have not moved - however; I am officially under 150! And my thighs did budge a little, which was my main focus! Hurrah! Today I am wearing a pre-pregnancy pair of jeans and a shirt from 'the skinny days'. It feels really, really good.

In other news... I purchased a Bike Tow the other day... which is an attachment for your bike so a dog can run along side you safely. Safely as in for both you and the dog. I'm still waiting for it to arrive though - I think it will be great exercise for my 80lb mutt and I to do. But what did I wake up to this morning? 10cm of snow. Sigh, I thought we were done with this?

Anyways, that is going to be my exercise to try and tone up my legs/hips/bum region. I'll try and get a video of our first time out! Should be interesting considering 1) the mutt is afraid of bikes (as he is of everything) and 2) I am wholly uncoordinated (but do enjoy biking)... as is my dog. Helmets and knee pads please!

Talk to you soon!

Monday, March 7, 2011

Weekly Update

Hello everyone! So I missed last weeks update, as I was away brainstorming. I am so excited on where Zookenberry is about to go! I'll have to tell you guys more as soon as I get it finalized. Anyways, here is the low down;

Weight: 154 152.5
Bust: 39" 38.5"
Chest: 32"
Waist: 34.5" 33"
Hips: 40"
Thigh: 23"

Last week there was a 151.5 on the scale on update day, but silly me didn't document it so 152.5 it is. Which is still great! I'm slowly (but surely!) losing the weight, and am only 2.5 pounds away from my next goal of 150! I am going to try really hard this week to get down to it. It's a pound over my average weekly weightloss, but I'm so excited I think I can do it. I tend to do a lot better at weightloss when I am close to a goal, because I get so excited, haha.

My thighs are a pretty big problem area for me, and they haven't budged an inch (literally)... so I am going to focus my exercise on my legs this week, and hopefully I'll see some progress!

Anyways, as for wee one she is singing now! Or at least that's what I'm calling the new noises. It is so much better than the screaming, not crying - screaming. She wasn't upset, but she figured out how to make a screeching sound and would do it for every waking minute.... and now she sings! She makes adorable vowel sounds in a sing song voice all day now. So. Much. Better.

I hope you all are doing well! Talk to you soon!

Sunday, March 6, 2011

Being an Accountability Partner

One of the keys to weight loss (and you've probably already heard me mention it a dozen times) is having an accountability partner. It is so easy to fall off track when you have only yourself to be accountable to; we can be really creative with our excuses when there are cookies to be eaten. However, your accountability partner is the one who will see through those excuses, tell you that you're being slightly ridiculous and get you back on track.

If you are an accountability partner to someone you have quite the responsibility. You should be talking with your partner at least once a day; asking what they've done to get active, if they're doing what they need to meet their goals, where they are struggling and what is getting them through. Make sure you know your partner's goals, motivation and inspiration. You may see your partner slipping off track even before they notice - stay alert and ready to give encouragement. When they are struggling use what motivates and inspires them, help them find something new to work towards and get excited again.

Plan activities together, even if you don't live close to each other. Do both of you have a similar desire to start jogging? Plan a day to start and them compare stories. It's a lot harder to convince yourself not to go, when you know your partner is going. Do both of you have a weakness for cupcakes? See who can hold out the longest, or come up with the best substitute!

Compare healthy recipes, explore new activities and watch each other's progress! Go through the daily Zookenberry blurbs together, and discuss your goals. Break out the worksheets and compare notes. This is not a lonely process, it's not meant to be.

Changing your life is not easy - but it can be fun, rewarding and very possible when you have someone along side you. All the effort you put in to being a great accountability partner to someone will come back to you - as they need to be just as much of a support system to you as you are to them, to be successful.

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Reading Nutritional Guides

Reading about healthy foods, and learning which vegetables qualify as 'Super Foods' is much different than going to the supermarket and trying to decide which is the healthier brand of cereal. There are two ways to compare products, that are now required to appear on the label of any packaged food; the nutritional fact table and the ingredients list.

1. Nutritional Fact Table

The nutritional fact table summarizes the the percent daily values of the food contents. These contents include Calories, fat, carbohydrates, protein and 13 core nutrients (including fibre, vitamins and iron).

There are several important things to note when looking at a nutritional facts sheet. The first is the serving size, in this case '1 bowl' or 300 grams - in some cases, especially drinks, the serving size may not coincide with the amount you consume. For example, many 500 mL bottles of juice have a nutritional facts sheet for 250 mL (1 cup) of juice - so make sure to double all the values.

When comparing products, make sure you are comparing ones with similar serving sizes - or ones that you would typically consume. Granola bars, for example, may vary considerably in grams but you usually only consume one anyways so you can compare products.

The second thing to consider is the Calorie count - does the value seem appropriate for the purpose of the product? Light snack? Part of your dinner, breakfast?

Thirdly are the actual daily percent values. A good, quick, measure is that any value less than 5% is considered a 'little' and anything above 15% is considered a 'lot'. You should be choosing foods that have little fat (especially saturated and trans fats) and sodium (salt) and foods that have a lot of fibre, calcium, vitamins and iron. Another thing you do not want to see is cholesterol, which usually does not have a percent daily value because it is not part of a healthy diet. In cases where there are a lot of the good contents, as well as the bad (like in the case of this cereal) - the bad tends to outweigh the good. You should be looking for food that have BOTH a low content of the bad and a high content of the good.

2. Ingredients List

This is a list of the ingredients within the package ordered by their predominance by weight. In other words, the ingredient listed first is the ingredient which is present in the highest quantity. An ingredients list of "Sugar, Flour, Salt" means that if a pound of flour was used then more than a pound of sugar was used, and less than a pound of salt was used.

Confused by some of the ingredients listed? Just because you can't pronounce some of them doesn't mean that they are necessarily bad, but on the other hand some very commonly seen ones can be very dangerous! Click here for a list of ingredients and what they really are.

What is in Your Food

Below is a (growing) table of commonly seen ingredients in your food and what they really are. If you've come across one not listed, leave a comment and I'll add it shortly.

(Currently A Work in Progress)


Acetylated tartaric acid esters of mono and diglycerides
Active bacterial culture
Ascorbyl palmitate
Beta Carotene
Calcium carbonate
Calcium Chloride
Calcium Disodium Edta
Calcium pantothenate
Calcium propionate
Carob Bean Gum
Citric Acid
Defatted soy flour
Dextrose
Disodium guanylate
Disodium inosinate
Enriched wheat flour
Esters of fatty acids
Gelatin
Glucose fructose
Glucose solids
Guar Gum
Gum Arabic
Lactic Acid
Locust Bean Gum
Lysosyme from egg white
Malted barley flour
Maltodextrin
Mono & Diglycerides
Monocalcium phosphate
Monosodium Glutamate
Phosphoric Acid
Polysorbate 60
Polysorbate 80
Potassium chloride
Potassium sorbate
Protease
Pyridozine hydrochloride
Sodium Benzoate
Sodium Metabisulphite
Sodium metasulphate
Sodium Phosphate
Sodium stearoyl-2-lactylate
Sorbic acid
Sorbic Acid
Soy Lecithin
Sucralose
Sulphites
Vegetable monoglycerides
Vitamin A Palmitate
Wheat gluten
Xanthan Gum
Yeast

Daily Vegetables

Did you know, as part of your daily vegetable requirements you are supposed to have one 'orange vegetable' and one 'dark green vegetable' a day? Below is a list of vegetables that qualify;

Orange Vegetable:
  • Sweet Potato
  • Acorn Squash
  • Butternut Squash
  • Hubbard Squash
  • Carrots
  • Pumpkin
  • Apricots
  • Cantaloupe
  • Mango
  • Nectarines
  • Papaya
  • Peaches
 
    Dark Green Vegetable
    • Arugula
    • Broccoli
    • Chard
    • Dandelion Greens
    • Gai Lan
    • Kale/Collards
    • Mustard Greens
    • Romaine Lettuce
    • Spinach
    • Mesclun Mix
    So make sure to pick one from each list each day and remember that a serving of vegetables is 1/2 cup fresh, frozen or canned, or 1 cup leafy green vegetable. Or in the case of some fruits; 1 whole fruit (mangoes, nectarines, peaches etc).

    Thursday, March 3, 2011

    Not Gone, Just Brainstorming

    Hello everyone! Just a quick note to let you know that Zookenberry hasn't disappeared, I'm just reworking the process a little. I have some great ideas - it just requires a change of direction, I'm really excited though and hope you'll enjoy! Talk to you soon.