New bathing suit after 100+ lb weight loss!!!

Believe it or not, I had the same bathing suit since 2009; even after I had lost all the weight, I was still using my purple bathing suit. For some reason, the purple bathing suit made me feel confident; in a way, it represented my weight loss. When I first purchased the bathing suit, it barely fit & I had to keep pulling it up to prevent "the girls" from spilling over. To date, I had lost so much weight since the purchase of said bathing suit, that the fabric was lose on me, hanging over like potential lose skin (thankfully, even after the 115 lbs I have lost, I have yet to experience lose skin) & in a way showed my accomplishment. I was holding the lose bathing suit as a badge of honor.

One day, while in the hot tub with my husband, the bubbles started to inflate my bathing suit (like it normally does) making me look fat again (there was a bubble that would show above the water). I guess it must have been me feeling super confident about my weight loss, that that experience with the bathing suit bubble (which I've experienced the bubble before, just no feeling behind it until now) made me feel "fat" & a failure for not buying a new bathing suit to commemorate my new body. 

This transformation has been easy at times & difficult at times. There has definitely been a LOT of emotion behind this weight loss. You begin to analyze everything about your past life; why you did what you did, why you acted like you did, why did you let people take advantage of you, etc.   

Needless to say, that same day I bought a brand spanking new bathing suit; for the first time in 5 yrs! I def feel super confident in it & it fits JUST RIGHT! Now I feel like I am finally showing off my new body when on the beach or at the pool. I no longer have that "lose bathing suit skin"

And the torn up purple one is officially in the trash!!!! Out with the old & in with the new!

Thank you,
Nancy
xo

Day 3 Juicing Week!

Right now, I am experiencing the aftermath of attempting to catch the darn blood on the moon last night! Got out of bed 3 times in the middle of the night last night & now I am exhausted! The juice didn't help today! lol

Today's breakfast & lunch!!!

Berry Veggie

6 carrots

1 pear

1 tomato

2 broccoli stalks (small or 1 long one)

1 cup blueberries

Tonight's dinner!!!

Sunset

6 carrots

2 grapefruit

3 cups spinach

Let's do this!

Lbs lost so far: 5!!!

Enjoy!

xo,
Nancy

Juicing Fast - Day 2

Oddly enough, I wasn't that hungry yesterday. I did guzzle down a lot of water. I had been lacking my water intake for a couple of weeks (since I lost my old water bottle), but I am refocused & chugged water most of the day yesterday & today.

I find it easier to focus at work, since I am so distracted with work. It also helps that I don't carry cash & I take what I need to eat to work; allowing me not to be tempted. I did have some mocha coffee in the afternoon, but still liquids. I did also have some Greek yogurt to attempt to keep up with my protein intake. 

Below is what I had for breakfast, lunch & dinner!

The Creamsicle

2 apples

3 celery stalks

1 orange

2 pears

1 sweet potato

This was my breakfast & lunch! It was really smooth!

Strawberry Mint

1 pear

1/2 pineapple

1 cup strawberries

15 mint leaves

I didn't have mint leaves; however I had mint oil, so I added a few drops! It was pretty yummy!

Lbs lost so far: 2 

Enjoy!

xo,

Nancy

Juicing Fast - Day 1

After moving to Orlando 10 months ago, it has been difficult for me to fall back into a rhythm. I have gained & lost the same 15 lbs these past few month & I am soooo tired of it. I want to be re-focused & get rid of the 50 lbs I have left to lose!

Yesterday, I started a juicing fast. I have been juicing for well over a year, but it had only been for a meal or for a day. This time, I plan on doing it for 7 days. I started 4/13/14, which was yesterday. I am using Juice Recipes for some of the recipes! Let's do this!!!

Yes, I use glass jars! Don't judge! Lol. Below is the recipe!

The Eye Opener

2 apples

14 carrots

2 oranges

Enjoy!

xo,

Nancy

Winter Gardening

I know, long time no see! Lots of things just going on at once & lots of overtime at work! But yes, I am still alive! I am always active on my facebook page: Health - The Ultimate DIY...so feel free to check me out there!

I am still doing grocery hauls on a somewhat sorta budget of $200/month, although last month we did go over a tad & November as well (with the holidays & all, extra food was bought for the occasion!) But we are kinda on track. 

Anyway, with winter in "full swing" (I'm in Florida...there really is no "winter" lol) I have decided to do some "gardening" (considering we now live in an apt, we are sorta limited to what we can do), but I don't want to let that stop me! So I dabbled away a bit in my kitchen & below is what I came up with:

I have alfalfa sprouts in the glass container & winter kale planted on the side. I will open the blinds in the morning & take out the pot during the day, weather permitting. Our apt is in the back of our building, facing the woods, so we have a bit of privacy & can probably have a few more pots if needed. We'll see how this one goes. 

Will keep this updated. I want the kale to grow so badly! I failed last time! lol. Thanks for reading!

xo,
Nancy

Healthy Food Haul!!!

I absolutely LOVE going grocery shopping & putting all sorts of healthy goodies in my cart. 99% of the time, I admit, I go with no plan at all! But at the end, it always ends up working! We buy are carbs in bulk (quinoa, rice, dried beans, wheat germ, bulgar wheat, etc), so that's why you will hardly ever see them in my grocery pictures! And don't get me started on meat. We are meat eaters, but use the term very loosely. We do tend to favor more a plant base protein source than animal protein, but we do eat meat. We spent approx $128 on this haul. It is just Casey (hubby wubby) & I. We do have a budget around $200 a month, but it isn't set in stone. Previously to this load, we had already spent $120 this month already. The Vitatops were too good of a deal to pass up & my chicken apple/maple sausage were also on sale....which explains the "difference" View list & prices below!!! In no particular order. Three grocery stores were used in the making of this grocery haul!!!

Publix

Late July Blue Corn Chips 2 x $5

Tradewinds Green Tea $2.99

Vitacakes Mini Chocolate (50 cals ea, 8/box) $4.49 ea BOGO Free (bought 4)

Vitapizza Supreme $3.99 ea BOGO FREE (bought 4)

4 bags of frozen vegetables $1 ea

Al Fresco Chicken Apple/Maple Sausage 2 x $5

Baby Spinach $3.99 ea BOGO Free (bought 2)

Chobani Greek yogurt (bought 6) $1 ea

Pitted Dates $3.99

Green plantains .20 ea (bought 3)

Kiwi 2 x $1.49

Bananas 2.55lbs for $1.28

Avocados 2 x $1

16 oz strawberries $3.99

4 sticks unsalted butter $3

Guacamole $5.49 ea BOGO Free (bought 2)

Whipped cream cheese $2.59

Target

Lindt chocolate brownie (a little naughty! lol) .99

Dark chocolate covered almonds $1

Fiber One Bars $2.99 

Monkey Bars $1.99

1/2 cup walnuts $2.29

Sobe (6) .88 ea

Morning Star $3.50

Morning Star $2.75 (had a coupon!)

Aldi

Couscous (first time!) $1.49

Bananas 2.05 lbs .68 (we decided we wanted more bananas! lol)

Pears $1.89

Black Grapes $2.69

Pineapple $2.19

Honey Crisp Apples .99

Spaghetti Squash $1.69

Arizona Green Tea (4) .79 ea

Blackberries $1.99

Grape tomatoes $1.69

Grapefruit (2) .65 ea

Baby Bella Mushrooms $1.29

Cucumbers (2) .45 ea

Asparagus $2.79

Almond Milk $2.49

Papaya $2.29

Strawberry Preserves $1.99

Trail Mix $1.99

Broccoli crowns $1.69

Mini Sweet Peppers $2.49

I am crazy about my haul & cannot wait to start creating with it! Eating healthy does not mean you have to break the bank!!!!

Enjoy!

xo,

Nancy

Week Sept 29 Caloric Intake Log

There's this website that I just recently found (HERE!) that tells you how many calories you should eat, depending on your activity level. I followed in really for the first time this past week & lost 4 lbs. I have used Lose It for my calorie log, but because you have to keep track of what you eat (not just the calories) it kinda "weigh" me down a bit. At the end of the day, I just need a number, ya know? So I am starting to keep track of it. I will edit this blog on a daily basis til the end of the week (Oct 5) & then start a new one!!!

Caloric Intake for this week 1574 - 2059 - working out 1-3 times a week

September 29, 2013 - 1616 Calories 
*Hiked for 30 mins*

Lunch

Dinner

I did have oatmeal for breakfast & then I ended up making some sugar cookies to ship to my niece & nephew...and I HAD to make sure they were super yummy!!! lol 

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September 30, 2013 - 1708 calories

*Walked downtown for 15 minutes*

Dinner

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October 1, 2013 - 1722 calories

*Walked downtown for 15 mins & then around my neighborhood for another 15 mins*

No picture today :(

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October 2, 2013 - 1654 calories

*Walked downtown for 20 mins*

Complete blonde moment tonight!!! I thought I had grabbed my crushed red peppers for the mac & cheese & turned out to be cinnamon! I still ate it after blowing most of it off! But still! Lol

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October 3, 2013 - 1840 calories

*Walked downtown for 20 mins & then back at home for 15 mins*

Thanks for looking,

Nancy 

xo