Weekly Weigh-in

Yep, it's FRIDAY!!!  For many people, that simply means the end of the work week and the beginning of their weekend.  For me, it's weigh-in day!  :)  Time to face the scale and see what it has to say about my progress for the week.  But, before I reveal the results, let me tell you a little about my week.

This was the last week I had completely free from responsibilities other than the normal everyday stuff of being the mom of two amazing boys.  Next week, I'll have the little boy I've babysat for the last year and a half (since he was 3 months old) while his mom goes back to work (she's a school teacher) and his new babysitter is on vacation (I will be the back-up babysitter this year so that I can focus more on homeschooling my oldest).  The week after that, we begin our first week of homeschooling for the new school year.  So, summer is officially over!  LOL!  But, we made the best of it!  :)

Monday I had lunch with a long-time friend at our favorite Mexican restaurant.  I ordered my regular meal (steak fajita quesadilla with the white cheese dip appetizer)...but ended up bringing most of the cheese dip home and half my quesadilla!  Monday night, I had a meeting at church for new middle school leaders and we were served sub sandwiches, chips, and a double-decker cookie cake for dinner (yep, had the cookie cake)!  Tuesday, the boys and I headed to the pool and had a relaxing day with friends.  I had some of the left over sub sandwich for lunch..and then we had Taco Tuesday at home for dinner!  Wednesday we had fun with friends at the park (i.e. the boys ran and played and I sat and chatted with my mommy friends) and then grabbed some lunch at Target while we got a birthday present for a party we will attend tomorrow (ya know Target has Pizza Hut pizza, right?).  Then we had Wednesday Night Dinner at our church...and since I'm not a fish eater (the main meal was crab stuffed sole), I opted for the alternative meal...cheeseburger and fries (and for some reason, they made mine a double!).  Thursday we had a MOPS playdate & ice cream social...but I had no desire to eat the ice cream...even when my 1-year-old was done after eating only half of his...so I gave the rest to my 9-year-old (who was happy to oblige!).  :)  We came home after that and had some leftover pizza that my hubby had brought home from a youth event after church the night before (I'd come home right after church to put the baby to bed).  Thursday night was my night out with a couple of friends before we attended a group meeting at church, and I had Chicken Teriyaki at the Sushi Thai restaurant where we went.  So...that will give you an idea of what my diet has been like this week before I weighed in this morning.  ;)  As far as exercise...I got in 30 minutes on the elliptical ONE morning this week (I think Wednesday) when I woke up early on my own.  THAT IS IT!!!!

Why did I tell you all that?  Well...you see, in spite of all of that, I still lost a pound this week!  I am now at 19 pounds total...and I have NOT done ANY dieting and VERY LITTLE exercise!  Yes, I know I could have lost so much more if I had actually made better choices in my eating and put in a few more days at the gym...but the great thing about Plexus is that I don't HAVE to do that or feel the least bit deprived while losing weight!  I'm certainly eating less than I was before taking Plexus (like bringing home part of my lunch) and some things have lost their appeal (like the ice cream at the social) - and that IS making a difference.  But, I'm not struggling to do it...it's happening naturally!  I'm not beating myself up over every bite I put in my mouth.  I'm not counting calories or killing myself at the gym.  And yet, I'm still losing weight at a healthy rate (roughly 1-2 pounds per week).  And even though it's been a few months, I'm STILL amazed at what Plexus is doing for me!  :)

If you would like to know more about Plexus, you can email me at karaj.plexus@gmail.com or check out my website: www.karaj.myplexusproducts.com.  If you'd like to know how you can earn money while you lose weight, I'd love to help you with that!  Just email me for more information!  :)  I also have a Facebook Page that you can check out if you are on Facebook - I post information, testimonials, and links to my weekly weigh-in blogs there...and sometimes I offer deals and/or contests!  :)  

Putting Things In Perspective

As I shared with you in my last post, we've had LOTS of junk food in our house the last couple of months...not to mention, Blue Bell ice cream was on sale TWICE (and was even BOGO last week!)...and if you have ever eaten Blue Bell ice cream, you totally understand what that means!  Oh yeah...I bought it and I enjoyed it!  :)  If you haven't tried Blue Bell, just think HOMEMADE ice cream...that's exactly what it tastes like!  It is by far the BEST store bought ice cream I have ever put in my mouth (second only to my grandfather's homemade peach ice cream, which I can't get anymore)!  But, we only buy it when it's on sale because it's six-something a half-gallon and that's not quite budget-friendly!  So, usually store-bought ice cream isn't a big temptation for me...but Blue Bell totally is!

Having said that...I HAVE been eating less junk this week and listening to my body's cues a little more...and it shows!  I lost 1.6 pounds this week...so I am now at 18.2 pounds of total weight loss!  Looking forward to that 20 lb. weight loss!  :)  I have not, however, gotten much exercise this week.  I did spend about 45 minutes playing Wii Sports on Monday...but then I was dealing with some monthly physical issues (trying not to be too TMI) this week and didn't feel up to doing much more than was necessary to get through the day. So, exercise did NOT happen after that.

I'll be honest with you...I was totally starting to get down on myself when the scale wasn't moving like it had been...or really, at all like I wanted it too!  But once I took a hard look at what I was doing and realized that part of that was related to how I was eating and what I was doing (or more accurately, NOT doing...namely, exercise!), then it started to make sense.  I have said before that you don't HAVE to follow a diet plan or exercise to lose weight with Plexus...and that is still true.  But, you DO have to be smart about what you eat and listen to your body, not just stuff whatever tastes good in your mouth and keep stuffing it past the point of full just because it does taste good.  Plexus is NOT a magic pill.  It will NOT cause you to lose weight regardless of what you do.  But, it WILL help you...if you are willing to do your part!  It takes away the cravings for unhealthy foods.  It helps you to feel full on less food.  But, you have to listen to what your body says in order to lose the weight.  Weight loss is both biological (as in eating correctly) and behavioral (as in making wise choices).  Plexus does help with both...but it doesn't do all the work for you.  You have to be willing to do your part...and that's the very important lesson I learned over the last few weeks.  Now...having said all that, I do want to add that if I had not been taking Plexus, rather than having maintained my weight, I totally would have gained some, if not all, of the weight I have lost so far.  So, I would say that is still very much a victory!  :)

By the way, I asked a friend who is also doing Plexus and who had previously done another product that is geared toward weight loss (Advocare) what the differences are between the two since I have friends and family who are doing the Advocare.  She told me that first of all, Plexus is a LOT less expensive and has been FAR more effective for her.  She told me that Advocare was geared more toward athletes, so unless you were willing to work out for hours each day, you wouldn't see much change.  She told me that other than when she did the cleanse with Advocare, she never lost anything on their products (and she used the products for quite some time).  She has lost 20 pounds so far on Plexus (since May) without dieting or exercise!  I think that says a lot for our products and am very glad to know her personal comparison!

For those of you who think Plexus is too expensive, it really boils down to just a little over $3/day.  That's about how much I used to spend on one soda at a restaurant or one coffee at a local coffee shop!  Since I now pretty much only want to drink water after my morning coffee (that I have at home), I have saved that much and more!  And, if you sign up to become an Ambassador, you will get your products at wholesale and can actually EARN money while losing weight!  You only need to find 5 friends to join you on the journey and order through you, and then your product is basically FREE every month because your commission will cover the cost of your product (and then some)!  :)  If you want to learn more and don't already have a Plexus Ambassador, contact me via email at karaj.plexus@gmail.com for more information and with any questions you may have.  :)  I would love to tell you more about how Plexus can work for you...and even how to earn an extra income while losing weight!  :)  If you just want to go ahead and order or check it out yourself, you can visit my website at www.karaj.myplexusproducts.com.  :)

Talk to you next week!  :)
Kara

Time for an Update! ;)

Sorry for the delay in posting updates...I have had a lot of "life" going on lately!  As I mentioned in my last post, my dad has been in the hospital.  He's home now, but he's still dealing with the health issues...most likely a life-long thing for him at this point.  My birthday also happened in this time span...which brings with it a whole host of issues (both good and bad)!  ;)  So, to just say "life happened" is probably a huge understatement, but is better than burdening you with all the crazy details!  LOL!

Anyway, my point being that no matter what you do to lose weight, life is going to happen.  You are going to have birthdays, parties, events, special occasions, sad times, stressful times, crazy-out-of-control times, etc.  You can't let that sidetrack you completely from the big picture!  If you do, then you fail.  BUT...if you pick yourself up (yes, I must say it...by your bootstraps!), and keep going, then you succeed!  You might not get there as fast as you would like, you may not do all you want to do...BUT, you will get there if you don't give up!

That's where I am today!  We have had a constant stream of cake and/or cookie-cake in our house since my son's 1st birthday in June...and I have enjoyed every single bite, I'm not gonna lie!  ;)  But, as a result, my weight loss the last couple of weeks has not been what I would like it to be.  On more than one occasion, I have eaten past the point of fullness...sometimes to the point of feeling stuffed (think: after Thanksgiving dinner stuffed)!  The good news is that I've felt this stuffed on far less food than I would have in the past!  I felt stuffed on less food than I would have normally eaten in a given sitting just 3 months ago!  And I'm thankful for that!  That, in itself, is progress!  And now that the eating out and sweets in the house period is over for the time being, I'm getting myself back on track!

So, while the scale hasn't really moved for me the last couple of weeks, I still feel like there has been success.  I'm more conscious of what I eat, I'm full (or even stuffed) on far less food, and unlike years prior to this, I have not gained significant weight eating as I have the last few weeks!  I usually gain 3-5 pounds during my birthday week...just from all the eating out (LOVE those free birthday meal coupons I get in my email inbox!) and cake!  But, in the last two weeks, I've only gained a pound (when I weighed in on Friday)...and by Monday, I had lost that pound.  I can only attribute this to the Plexus Slim that I've been taking!  There certainly hasn't been any exercise happening in my life lately...unless you count parking a little further away from the store from time to time, just because it was the first parking spot I found!  ;)  But, each day is a new day and I'm working myself up to actually getting some exercise into my daily (or at least weekly) routine!

I know two things happen when I actually do get regular exercise: (1) I feel better, and (2) I lose weight faster!  So, even though I'm still at an average of 1.5 pounds per week of weight loss, I really wanna ramp it up!  But, in order to do that, I've gotta drag my lazy butt out of bed at 6am...not something that comes easy to this non-morning-person gal!  I'd much rather exercise mid-morning...it's when I'm more awake and have the energy to go...but, that doesn't work well for my schedule during the week.  In order to get to a gym that has child care, I have to drive across town...and I have to get there and complete my workout before noon. Between my 9-year-old who shares my aversion to mornings and my 1-year-old who takes a mid-morning nap, this makes doing this nearly impossible.  So, if I'm going to fit this in on a regular basis, I either need to resolve myself to getting up earlier (and missing out on that precious last-minute morning sleep while hubby showers) or go in the evenings after hubby gets home...but that would make my exercise sporadic at best because of the things I'm involved in that meet in the evenings and my desire to spend time together as a family when we are all home.  So...mornings it is!  Please pray for me!  I'm gonna need it!  ;)

God bless you all...no matter where you are on your journey!  Regardless of whether you don't really need to lose weight, are in the process of losing weight, or need to lose weight but haven't found the motivation...I pray that you enjoy reading my blog and find some enjoyment/encouragement from it!  :)  Feel free to leave comments or contact me at karaj.plexus@gmail.com for more info.  :)

Weekly Weigh-in Report

My hubby was off today, so we slept in and I weighed in a few hours later than I usually do...but it was still before I had breakfast, so I'm going with it.  :)  I am down another 2.6 pounds this week, which makes my grand total 17.4 pounds since April 19th.  :)

In addition to the loss on the scale, I also had a non-scale victory.  Wednesday, I put on a size 22 jeans and not only did they fit, but they were actually a little loose.  :)  While some people would be sad about that size, it actually was a victory for me!  You see, before my Plexus journey began, I couldn't even fit into a size 24...and I refused to buy any size larger than that, so I just bought pants with elastic & vague sizing so that I didn't have to face how big I was getting.  But, Plexus is changing all that!  :)  I knew I needed a belt with those size 24 jeans I was finally fitting into, so I decided to give my 22's a shot...and was pleasantly surprised that they fit!  Later that evening at church, a friend noticed me hitching them up and said, "Pants getting loose?"  I was happy to report to her that not only were they loose, but they were at least 2 sizes smaller than what I'd worn before!  :)

It's been a crazy week...my dad went in the hospital Tuesday night with many health issues.  I'm 650 miles away, so I'm having to rely on family for updates.  Thankfully, they've been pretty good at keeping me posted.  But, I'm having a hard time focusing, as you can imagine.  Sorry for the short post, but I am literally worn out from worrying about him.  If you believe in God, please say a prayer for my dad.  <3  

God bless!

Two-week Weight-In Report

Sorry I didn't get a blog post done last week.  It's been busy, busy around my house lately.  Last weekend, we celebrated my youngest son's 1st birthday with a huge party!  I got all Pintresty with our Very Hungry Caterpillar Theme (seriously...all the cute ideas came directly from Pintrest!) - so I was busy re-creating what I found on Pintrest & ordering/shopping for the things I couldn't do myself (shirt, cake, plates, etc.).  Also, my parents came in town for the big event, so I wanted to spend as much time with them while they were here as I could!  :)  Shortly after they left, I had a 3-day all-day Practicum to attend for homeschooling.  So, while I have weighed in every Friday, I didn't have much time to blog about it until now...which may turn out for the best, because as tired as I was last week from all that was going on, if I'd tried to blog, it probably wouldn't have made much sense or been very good at all!  ;)

To be honest, my scale hasn't exactly been my best friend the last couple of weeks.  Last Friday, I had actually gained 4/10 of a pound and this past Friday, I lost 6/10 of a pound...so, the scale hasn't moved all that much lately.  And yet, my belt moved in another hole (now on the 3rd hole of the belt I couldn't even get all the way around me a few weeks ago!)...so, I know I'm losing inches, even though I'm not really losing much in the way of pounds lately.  And, to be quite honest, that's really all I care about.  I want to be healthier and to be a more "normal" size...and that's happening!  I know I'm healthier because I have far more energy than I used to.  Yes, I still get tired after a long, busy day...but I don't need sodas to get me through the day like I used to!  And I still don't even desire to drink them!  I also know I'm healthier because I'm sleeping better at night and my breathing isn't as labored as it used to be!  I also don't feel the need to snack all the time!  As I mentioned earlier, I had a 3-day Practicum for Classical Conversations (the homeschool model we use) last week and I took a ziploc baggie full of chocolate-covered raisins with me for a snack (the Practicum was 9am-4pm all three days, with an hour for lunch)...but I never actually ate them!  I was never hungry during the day except for lunchtime.  All I really wanted during the meetings was water...and I had plenty of it!  :)

So, while the scale hasn't moved much for me the last couple of weeks, there are still plenty of non-scale victories that make me happy!  And people are starting to notice!  Whenever I see someone I haven't seen in awhile, they always say, "Wow!  You look great!"  That has got to be the BEST feeling in the world!  :)

If you are interested in finding out what Plexus could do for YOU, just visit my website and check it out!  There is a 60-day money-back guarantee...so the only thing you have to lose is weight and inches!  Try it for a month...if you don't like what you see, return any unused portion for a full refund!  You won't be sorry!  Everyone I know who has tried it loves it every bit as much as I do!  If you want to get it at wholesale, email me (or contact me directly if you know me) at karaj.plexus@gmail.com and I'll answer your questions and/or tell you how to get started!  :)  If you've got a lot to lose, this is a great way to make extra money, because as others see the weight come off, they will ask you what you are doing and be interested as well!  :)

Saying Farewell To Diets FOREVER!

For as long as I can remember, I have either been on a vicious never-ending cycle of getting ready to diet, being on a diet, getting frustrated with a diet, giving up on a diet, getting frustrated with my weight, getting ready to diet...well, you get the point!  But all that is over!  I have come to the decision that I will NEVER diet again!  No more counting calories, fat grams, and/or points!  No more measuring out portions!  No more feeling deprived!  No more feeling discouraged!  I finally broke up with diets FOREVER!!!

What brought me to this decision?  Well, let's just look at my last week.  I have been working Vacation Bible School at my church this past week and part of my responsibilities was to stop by Dunkin' Donuts every morning on my way in and pick up donut holes for the workers.  A few of the mornings, I even got a donut for my son and his friend who was riding with us.  But not once did I order one for myself...it didn't even cross my mind to do so!  And what's more...I didn't have a single donut hole that sat in the resource room with me!  Not because I COULDN'T have it...but because I really didn't WANT to have it!  The first morning, I looked in the box to see if there were any left once VBS got under way and there were two little donut holes sitting in there.  For about half a second, I contemplated whether I wanted to eat them or not, but I really didn't have any desire to do so...and after that, I didn't even give them a second thought after putting them out!  To help you understand how big this is, the old me would have had at least a handful of those delicious bites of dough and sugar on the way in...and a few more once I got there and opened them up!  But I didn't even have the slightest desire to eat them.  That, my friends, is simply amazing to me!

So, after being in the resource room with all sorts of wonderful goodies (besides the donut holes, several people brought in an assortment of goodies from home to share), the old me would have been terrified to step on the scale Friday morning.  But, the new me was excited to do so...and rightfully so!  I lost 2.4 pounds last week, bringing my grand total to 14.6 pounds!  It's been eight weeks...and usually by this time on a diet, I've lost interest and just trying to hold on by my fingernails or will have totally given up!  And never have I lost that much weight this far into a diet...usually I'm doing good to lose a whole pound at this stage of the game!  I usually do really good in the beginning (when the excitement is still there), but as my interest in following the diet wanes, it also begins to show on the scale with a minimum weight loss (usually tenths of a pound) or with a weight gain.  But here I am with an average of 1.825 pounds per week and going strong!

Why is this different?  Well, to be quite honest, I'm not dieting.  I'm not writing down what I eat.  I'm not measuring anything.  I'm not even avoiding any food group!  I simply eat when I'm hungry and stop when I'm full.  I eat whatever I want, when I want to eat it.  Sounds a lot like my "off diet" phase of the above vicious cycle.  The main difference between this and when I'm "off" a diet is that I'm steadily losing weight!  This happens because I'm not hungry as often, and the food I desire is very different from what it used to be.  I attribute this to the changes Plexus is making in my body.  Since it works to regulate blood sugar, cholesterol, and lipids to normal levels, it curbs the cravings for unhealthy foods.  I actually crave healthy foods and water...something I prayed for many times, but never thought I'd ever really do short of a miracle! I guess Plexus is my miracle...because it is all that has changed!  :)

I know diets work for some people...I've seen it happen.  But, they just don't work for me.  And thanks to Plexus, I can work my way to a healthy weight in a healthy manner without feeling the least bit deprived!  So, thanks to Plexus, I can say GOODBYE TO DIETS FOREVER!!!!  :)

Exercise - Part 2

No, it's not Friday yet.  Not quite time for another weigh-in update...but I do have some news to report and I just couldn't wait!  ;)  After my post on Friday about exercise, I got a little convicted.  And so...when my hubby asked if I was going to work out on Saturday, I told him I would.  Then I got up on Saturday and well...everyone else was taking it easy (it was our first lazy Saturday in weeks!), so I thought I would too.  Then my hubby made the fateful mistake of saying, "I thought you were going to workout."  Yeah...you guessed it, I didn't take it so well.  He didn't mean to, but he hit a hot button for me.

BUT...I did get up, get dressed, and headed out to the gym.  I was armed with my pink drink (I had been finishing my coffee when hubby made his statement), my book, and my phone with my tunes (and earphones).  I got on the elliptical and I worked out for 30 minutes, but I wasn't ready to stop reading, so I decided to get on the treadmill and walk for awhile...never looking at the timer.  Before I knew it, I'd finished my book and when I looked at the timer, I realized I'd been walking for over an hour!  An hour and ten minutes to be exact!  And I wasn't exactly strolling along on the treadmill, either!  I mean, I wasn't running or anything, but I was at 2.5-2.8 for my speed level.  I couldn't believe I'd been on the treadmill for over an hour...especially after spending about half that amount of time on the elliptical!  I will tell you, I have noticed on the times I have gone to workout while drinking my pink drink, I get more of a workout.  Partly because I have unlimited time, but also partly because I didn't get tired as quickly!  And with my book to keep my mind occupied, I was good to go!

I also had a non-scale victory this morning!  I'm helping with Vacation Bible School this morning, so I was up and getting dressed this morning when I realized that my shorts were loose.  So, I grabbed a belt...one that wouldn't fit me just a few weeks ago.  But today, I was able to get it buckled...and comfortably so!  YAY!  Gotta say, I was pretty happy about that!  :)

Since I'm helping out with VBS this week, I probably won't get much "official" exercise in this week.  I may be a little more active than usual, but not sure how often or if I'll even make it to the gym this week, but I do want to go more often and make it a habit.  But, I'm thankful that I don't HAVE to work out to lose weight with my Plexus!  :)  Perhaps now that it's no longer a "have to" I can some day turn it into a "want to"...maybe!  ;)

By the way, in case you are wondering, yes, I did apologize to my hubby after my workout for my bad attitude earlier that day.  ;)

OH...and another non-scale victory I had today...my "job" at VBS is to pick up doughnut holes from Dunkin Donuts every morning on my way in and then to be in the resource room to help the other workers in case they need anything (which is also where said doughnut holes and other snacks are kept).  After the mad rush of the first morning was over and everyone was in their classes, I checked the box of doughnut holes to see if they were gone.  There were TWO left.  Now, the old me would have totally snatched those two up and scarfed them down in no time flat (and probably would have snatched a few before they even made them into the resource room in the first place).  But as I looked as those two lonely little Munchkins in the box, I had absolutely NO DESIRE to eat them...and simply walked away without the least little tinge of deprivation.  What a great feeling!!!  :)

Looking forward to the scale on Friday...SERIOUSLY!  I actually look forward to my weigh-in days now! Hope you are having a fabulous week!  :)