Tips & Tricks (2014-2018)

   I am so very happy with how many beautifully thin pictures I have of myself from Summer 2014 and around Christmas 2015. According to my photos (not all which are shown), a month before Michael and I went on our vacation to Hilton Head with his parents and younger brother in May, I weighed 108 pounds. And that wasn't good enough! So that gave me 4 weeks before the trip to get back down to 105 or 104 again, averaging one pound lost per week that was do-able. I don't really remember what I did, except the photos mentioned me doing the 30 Day Shred videos again. I don't think I ever stuck to it for more than a week or two though. Last time I tried it (in September 2018) I stopped about 7 minutes in because it was not fun/ I didn't care enough. I wish I cared as much now as I used to.

   Hilton Head, SC ~ mid May 2014: When I overdosed on tanning lotion. Haha!

You can see more Hilton Head pictures in the original post.  <-- LINK :)  But I need to add more!

   And here are a few pictures from when my mom's side of the family/ cousins went to Top Sail Island, NC at the end of July 2014. I don't have a blog post for that either, except these last few pictures from the morning we left. I was probably between 105 and 107 pounds here too?

   We moved back to Orlando at the end of July 2014 and since I had a month before starting back at the Sheriff's Office answering 911 calls, I had lots of free time to hang out with my friends that I hadn't seen in a while and was walking/jogging a lot around lakes. I visited my grandma in Naples, FL and remember being on a no-added sugar regiment. I don't know how long I was on it, but I felt and looked AMAZING and was excited that oranges became "dessert" when we went to lunch at Sweet Tomatoes. I weighed about 107 then but looked super fit! Rather than losing weight to 105 by eating healthy/ smaller portions, but not exercising.

   I was 113 in November 2015 and really wanted to lose weight again (maybe because I felt too tired after we hiked 8 miles on the Appalachian Trail in North GA -another glorious vacation with Michael's parents and younger brother). I planned a fancy photo shoot with my friends and that kept me motivated to keep losing weight. I did super well during Thanksgiving, including the huge potluck at work, keeping to smaller portions and only having a few bites of everything, eating until I was content, then patiently waiting to get hungry again. I reached 109 by mid December when we went to Birmingham for early Christmas:

My favorite pose that Michael can't stand- the exaggerated shoulder push! ;)

Modeling in the Forever 21 dressing room ~ left photo reminds me of Naya Rivera

Plato's Closet ~ every celebrity has a signature pose, apparently this is mine!

The next set of pictures are from the "fancy friend photo shoot"on  December 26, 2015 ~

   A great memory I have is when my sister-in-law Jacquie and I were changing outfits together (she wanted to match me when we had similar dresses, which I thought was sweet ♥) and when I took my flowy top off, wearing a tight white tank top underneath, she let out an "Oh My God!" about how flat my stomach was. It's all about those small portions!! Michael was such a gem, going out and buying a new button down top while I went to lunch with my friends, so we could create these Slytherin wedding photos with me. First time wearing my wedding dress again ~ I don't deserve his great love.

* My future Hot Mom inspiration photo, with Peyton. *

   Oh, another big reason why I wanted to be 105 around this time was because I had a cruise booked with my parents for the very beginning of February and I wanted to be skinny then. This was very important to me since my previous cruise (April 2008) was my highest weight ever- reaching 132 pounds!! My dresses didn't fit so I had to wear a jacket to cover the zipper which had to stay un-zipped, and I spent a lot of time crying. Photos from January 2016 ~

    You can see more pictures from *our cruise here* (Part 1 of 3).
I remember that four boxes of Girl Scout cookies did me in mid-February and since I had "no reason" to stay skinny, I let myself go. I got up to at least 116 and then watched the documentary called "Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead". Michael went on a juicing binge for a week and actually did lose some weight. I started doing Pop Sugar Fitness exercise videos and eating lots of popcorn- my calorie math skills were so bad that week, but it worked out because of the fiber (?) and I ended up looking pretty great for being ten pounds higher than I usually prefer:

   I definitely think know my weight loss has slowed down since the end of 2016 when I got pregnant with Emma. But again, I'd rather weigh more as her Mom, than 105 without her. But one day (THIS YEAR) I hope to accomplish both ~ being 105 pounds with a 2 year old baby girl on my hip!! **I WILL MAKE IT HAPPEN!!!!!! ** Too often in my life I say I'm going to do something, but then don't, and it is driving me craaaazy!!

A totally acceptable 135 pounds on my 30th birthday, June 2017 ~ the night before we met Emma!!! ♡✞♡

113 pounds at Typhoon Lagoon ~ Oct 21st, 2017 (Emma 4 months old)

A few days before Halloween 2017 with Baby Dorothy

   The main thing I have to say about how I lost weight after getting up to 129 in May 2018 (a few weeks after Emma finally came home from the NICU after 323 days), is that I basically ate the same thing for four months. My staples were Fage yogurt with almond milk and Stevia added, mixed with loads of strawberries (which only taste good in the summer) and sometimes granola. Eventually I weaned off the granola. Plus scrambled eggs with chicken sausage and tomatoes, and snacking on low calorie pita bread with thyme and caraway seeds, dipped in hummus. Unfortunately, in September when I finally hit 112 pounds again, I eventually got tired of it and then only craved restaurant food. I stayed a good looking weight until the beginning of October when I hit 118.
   I would say that is my top weight. That is the most I can weigh and still good in front of the mirror, before stepping into the shower, which is my goal. I like that I looked pretty and had lots of nice pictures over Christmas when I did my hair and had pretty, flowy tops and that brown "British" jacket on. But I weighed 125-130 pounds then. When I take my tight pants off, (because I refuse to buy bigger sizes) and feel disappointed, that's when it's all over and I stop feeling good. I want to feel good all of the time, always ready for a beach trip or a fancy photo shoot with my friends!! That's the goal.
    *Raises a bottle of electrolyte water* So here is a toast to this summer. 2019, when I update my blog again with new pictures of the version of myself I have always wanted. The self I will work hard for!!

   My 2018 photos are in the BMI23 post from last week. But this post is going to have to be renamed "Pretty Pictures" without any actual tips and tricks, so here are the ones I thought of while on my hour long walk tonight (6-7pm, even though it got dark at 6:30) that have worked for me in the past.

   >>  Drink a lot of flavored water. Sometimes it seems like when my taste buds crave dessert, that can be curbed with flavored water. That helps fill me up longer than plain water does for some reason. And often the flavored water makes me thirstier for regular water, so I drink more of both! A cup of 90 calorie chocolate almond milk instead of ice cream. I could even mix 1/2 cup chocolate almond milk with 1/2 cup vanilla almond milk, which would be 60 calories instead! These are the kind of tricks I use as I get into the lower numbers. Same as like switching to mustard on my Triscuits instead of hummus, and substituting light butter popcorn when I feel like I want chips.
   >>  I finally became friends with our next door neighbor, Ashley, and she basically became my new best friend! We walked a LOT together over the summer (she's a teacher), but I don't get to spend much time with her right now. It was great having a walking buddy and I look forward to our walks in June!
   >> If I can lose weight over Thanksgiving and Christmas (like I did so fabulously in 2015), then I really have no excuse any other time of the year. Losing weight is about 80% of what you eat, or don't eat. I was losing weight on my 31st birthday last year. I got two very small cheesecakes in the frozen aisle from the grocery store, instead of going to Cheesecake Factory (over 1,000 calories per slice!!!) like we normally do.
   >> Currently reading a book where the girl said, "I want to be 112 pounds, so if I stay below 112 pounds, then I know if I gain weight, the most I will be is 112 pounds, and that's what I want anyway." I liked that because that's how I feel. It worked this way on the cruise. I gained maybe three or four pounds, which was fine because 109 still looks great on me, and then the next week I was back to 105 because I wasn't eating as much as I did on the cruise. It seems like when I'm a lower weight and I eat pizza it's no big deal because the next day I'll have a salad. But when I'm near 130 pounds it's because I've already eaten a ton of pizza and chips and ice cream, so that's all my body tells me that it wants.
   >> In my journal from May 2018, I documented that it took me 5 days of eating healthy to stop craving unhealthy foods, and 9 days to stop thinking about unhealthy foods. Your body craves what you give it. So push through the first week and feed it well. Also it took about 10 days to stop having the munchies. Not "drug munchies" obviously, but when I'm standing in front of the pantry looking for something to snack on. That's what gum is for! I have such a hoard of gum and mints.
   >> Find distractions, like scrapbooking, reading Emma some books, or writing a letter and put my retainers in. Do something that keeps me busy and not thinking about food while my stomach digests. It usually takes your body 15-20 minutes to process everything and realize how full you are. I read that the goal is not to be full- you should never be really hungry (then you over eat), and never be really full (then you feel sick).  & Brush your teeth one hour* after each meal because you don't want to eat when your teeth are clean, and brushing too soon can cause damage to the enamel of your teeth*.
   >> Having a reason to be skinny does motivate me. I made a big list a few years ago, talking about how I feel like I am more fun and adventurous, up to trying new things/ new foods, and being more social. And I never have to worry that my clothes won't fit or will be too tight to wear at a higher weight- like half of my stuff right now! But a big reason is helpful too, like going to a wedding or going on a cruise. Somewhere you know a lot of pictures will be taken. I have no idea when my best friend, Mia, will get married, but I joked with my friend Lindsey that we have to stay thin incase Mia has a short engagement, then we're ready and know we'll look hot in our bridesmaid dresses! I'll just have to plan more "photo events" until then. But I do want to look really good for my birthday/ Emma's birthday party in June this year. I need more Mommy/Daughter photo shoots.
   >> My friend Danielle mentioned Metabolic Confusion yesterday. Instead of trying to explain it myself, this is what it says on the Doctor Oz page: Alternate between high calories days (2000) with a dessert and low calorie days (1200) with four meals. When you consume more calories, you drive nutrients into cells, building muscle and revving up your metabolism. The next day, you cut calories, essentially turning your body into a prime-time fat-burning furnace! I agree with this because there are times I am eating healthy all week and when Michael's parents visit, we order pizza or go out to eat. And somehow (with science), the next day I have still lost weight, which is the best way to do it!
   >> I heard the phrase "Cheat Meal" in a health magazine recently and I thought that was a way better day than a Cheat DAY, because you can ruin a whole great healthy week in one day of eating nothing but junk- trust me!! Except I refer to it as "Treat Meal" because the word cheating is never used in a good way. It's basically a bad word, and treats are nice! :)

   That's all of the ones I can think of for now. I'll add more later as they come to me! I feel so wise and thoughtful when I'm on my walks. Another great reason to spend time outside! :)