Pick a side...

Weight loss is made of a combination of what we eat and exercise. And I know the best programs combine both. But I also know a lot of people who prefer one over the other.

People like me who say "I can totally eat these Oreo's if I just run 5 more miles today". In my 20's I could eat anything I wanted as long as I exercised. Sadly this isn't the case now that I'm older but still I would rather exercise more so that I can eat what I want. I honestly love exercising and I love eating too!

Then are people who would rather not eat so they don't have to exercise. I know plenty of people in this camp.

So what camp are you in?

P.S. if you don't know how to leave a comment all you need to do is click the word "comment" right below this post....it's so easy

Weight Loss Contest

In case you were wondering.....the results are in and posted here.

Vegetable Soup Recipe

Note: I added the missing zucchini to the ingredients (2 cups)

Here is the yummy very healthy soup I made this week.

10 cups fat-free chicken broth, low sodium
4 red potatoes, cut into 1 inch cubes
4 cups onions, quartered
1 cup carrots, sliced 1 inch thick
3 cups celery, sliced 1 inch thick
2 cups zucchini, sliced 1 inch thick
8 ounces tomato sauce, canned
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 bunch fresh parsley, chopped
1/4 bunch cilantro, chopped
dash of black pepper

1. In a Large stockpot, combine the chicken broth, potatoes, onions, carrots, and celery. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-high and simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 30 minutes

2. Add the zucchini, tomato sauce, garlic, parsley, and cilantro. Reduce heat to medium-Low and cook for 10 to 15 minutes more, or until the zucchini is just tender. Season to taste with black pepper and serve.

Makes 18 Servings

Nutrition per serving:
49 Calories
0 g Fat
7 g Protein
10 g Carbohydrate
0 mg Cholesterol
377 mg Sodium

Me in the kitchen?

I have had no time to blog because I've been too busy shopping (I had no idea what Arugula was until last Saturday), cooking and working out for this contest.

I actually made 3 complete meals yesterday (I feel like Julia Childs).
breakfast: mushroom omelets with fresh strawberries and cottage cheese
lunch: chef salad
dinner: salmon, wild rice (not even rice-a-roni), asparagus and vegetable soup.

And since I have to make all of Todd's meals from scratch (that's right I made vegetable soup from scratch...could ya die?) I've decided that we will all be eating P90X food for dinner. I don't have the time or energy to make 2 full meals.

Yesterday when Tayson got home from school we had this conversation:

Tayson: "mom, what is that yummy smell can I have some?"

Me: "sure it's soup I'm making for dad's diet so he'll get skinnier and stronger"

Tayson: "OK, but I don't want the skinny part just the strong part so take out the diet for mine"

BTW...the soup was delicious and way low in calories (only 49 calories in a serving) if you want the recipe let me know!

P.S. Did ya hear about Lance?

The Contest

In my desperation to lose the baby weight I asked Todd and Timmy if they wanted to have a weight loss contest. I know my competitive side will kick in to keep me motivated. We are all putting in $100 and the winner takes it all. Wanna join us to up the ante?

We are officially starting next Monday. I started a week ago (and I've lost 2 lbs woo hoo). The boys are actually eating really bad to gain a few extra pounds to shed so they can win. I'm not willing to add any extra pounds that I will just have to lose. I'd rather lose the contest :)

The winner will be determined by highest percent of body weight lost. We are doing before pictures, measurements, body fat and overall weight at the start and finish. (I will not be posting my before picture until I have an after picture. It is just too depressing)

We are all doing different programs. Todd is doing P90X. Timmy is doing high protein and low overall calories. I'm counting calories on sparkpeople and we've added weights to our normal workouts (we already do 5 days of cardio a week).

I plan on posting more stuff and our progress on my fitness blog. So feel free to check it out and cheer us on.

What to wear....

Honestly - I have nothing to wear. None of my clothes fit me right now and I refuse to wear my maternity clothes any longer! It is just so depressing to have 15 pounds to lose AGAIN.

The thing is this is my 4th baby. You would think I would have some of my "in between" clothes left over from the last 3 kids but I can't seem to find any of them. Why is it that I would throw away all my bigger size pants and keep skinny jeans from who knows how far back? I will never wear those old jeans again...yet I keep them cause they are a smaller size...but the pants I need I got rid of the second I lost weight. UGH!!!

I guess I'll just wear my pajama bottoms and Todd's t-shirts for a few more weeks.