Way To Go Peeps!!

I'm not sure there is anything more exciting to me right now than watching Nathan and I drop pounds and inches and begin to look good in our clothes again...EXCEPT being able to see the same results in others as well, and being able to share in their joy of their new, slimmer bodies!  Every update I get, it's like it's happening to me too.  I am so proud of our "Fellow Travelers" and their success stories in the making! And I'm thrilled to know it has been an easy process for them, like it has been for us. 

WAY TO GO GIRLS & GUYS!!

Nathan & I  get to weigh and measure again on Saturday.  That will be our day 18.  BUT, we've actually been getting on the scales every morning- 'cause we're impatient like that. :) This morning, before starting our day 16, Nathan was down 11.8 lbs!!  I was down 10 lbs! Anxious to see the inch loss too on Saturday.  Yesterday I tucked in a shirt for the first time in like FOREVER! And I wasn't self conscious thinking my belly was sticking out. :-0 I'm also beginning to actually LIKE my upper arms! Really?!? Sleeveless shirts have been a no!-no! for me since, I don't know, 10th GRADE!! :)

Day 10-Down AGAIN!

So, you're beginning to see a repetitive theme going here on this page...isn't it GREAT?!?! If you're doing this with us, you know exactly what I'm talking about because you're feeling the excitement TOO!!  EEEEEEE!!!!!!  :) (That'd be a high pitched squeal...NOT resembling that of a pig, not anymore anyway!!)

Today starts our 11th day.  That means this morning was our weigh and measure day again.  After 10 days, (TEN DAYS, I TELL YA!!!) I'm down 7.4 lbs and, get this!, 11 1/4 inches! And I still have 20 days to go.  
The plan encourages you to exercise daily, and I did ATTEMPT to walk one day. Loaded the "littles" in the double stroller and the two big girls got on their bikes.  We made it about two houses down and a bike tire was too low to ride, (whine,whine, whine) so we came back home and put it up; she decided to walk so the other one got on a scooter.  Off again...this time we made it about 4 houses down and the scooter rider decided she didn't want to ride it anymore, the handle bars were "NOT WORKING RIGHT!" (tears and wailing!).  All the while the other one is crying because it's "just SOOOO hot" and she "just can't go ANY further!" So, back home once more!  You see why I've been a bit hesitant about getting out and walking again...

Updates on Nathan coming soon! He's still doing great too!

ONE WEEK DOWN!

Tonight we're wrapping up our 7th day on the program!  It's still going great! We feel awesome and are consistently losing pounds and inches daily.  Each day I look in the mirror and I'm amazed at the visual difference I can see.  Nathan & I just look at each other with big grins and go "Seriously?! Can you BELIEVE this?!!"  We've been surprised that we've not missed some of the bad eating habits we had become accustomed to either.  We are loving the changes we are seeing in ourselves!  Today I tore apart chick-fil-a chicken nuggets for Macy to eat, and though it was very tempting to take a bite, I did NOT! I ate my own NON-FRIED chick-fil-a lunch and I S U R V I V E D !!!  And I was still happy! It was an accomplishment. :)

I love how we're getting down to our goal weight quickly (nothing like instant gratification!!) and learning in the process a better way to eat.  Once we've reached our goal weight and move on to maintenance, we will know exactly how we need to eat to stay healthy and maintain our (skinny :))weight.

I've updated our totals on our individual pages to show today's weight & measurement checks.  I've also added a new page of "Fellow Travelers" ...those who have decided to do this with us and I'll be posting their progress for you to see as well. 

For more information on the program & products we're using, feel free to contact me any time or visit the website www.firstfitness.com/julieholland

SHOWDOWN! Julie VS Roadhouse Rolls!

We like to go out to eat on Sundays after church. We try to make the decision of where we're going to go on Saturday night, so that when we're leaving church Sunday morning with hungry tummys, we can just GO and not have to discuss it or decide who wants what, etc...(cuts down on arguments & irritations!) 

We started talking about our options and realized that really, we could go anywhere-our options weren't that restricted. We settled on Roadhouse because WE CAN HAVE STEAK ON THIS PROGRAM!! :)  Not long after making that decision, it hit me...those HUGE, warm, butter slathered rolls that they'll bring to the table upon our arrival.  "We'll just tell them not to bring them, thus eliminating the temptation and possible caving," I reasoned to myself. DONE! Problem Solved!  Sure, we'd have to talk the kids into being okay with no rolls; but they'd be okay with just eating the peanuts.

We get to the restaurant, "Holland, party of 6, one highchair, one booster seat, please & thank you."  There's no line (yay!) but we're told they only have one table they can put a highchair at and it's taken.  No problem, we understand we're a group, we'll wait.  30 minutes later, we're still sitting there wrestling with the agitated little ones and we're getting not so patient any more.  So they bring our whining babies a few packages of crackers.  Those keep them occupied for a few more minutes but not long.  FINALLY we're seated with big apologies from the manager.  Then our waitress comes over in a rushed fit and says "I'm sorry but they just sat me with several large tables, y'all are gonna have to wait a few minutes before I can get your drinks and orders!"  Before we could protest, she was GONE.  Nathan and I just look at each other in amazement.  Seriously?!?! Well, in an attempt to make up for it, the waitress sends the hostess to the kitchen & she comes back to our table with TWO overflowing baskets of...ROLLS!! I'm thinking "NOOOOO, DON'T DO IT TO ME!!"  I know our kids are really hungry at this point and we're about to have a few major melt downs so we say thank you (and to myself, LORD give me strength!)  **Let me interrupt right quick and say, we CAN have bread on this program, but not yet.**

I'll spare you the rest of the story of our not-so-great-experience at Roadhouse...yes, there were MORE blunders and mishaps that occurred, leaving us in shock that so much could go wrong with ONE table, while we just sat there, watching it all unfold in amazement.

ANYWAY, we left full and happy AND without putting one bite of those luscious rolls into our mouths! (those steaks & grilled veggies were the best things we've ever eaten! We were REALLY hungry! :) )

We were proud of ourselves for resisting the temptation.  I believe part of what helped me to resist it was the fact that I am already losing weight & inches, and seeing a difference in my clothes and in the mirror!! after only 4 days of this program.  It's just amazing and so motivating to keep going when we're practically watching the pounds and inches fall off every day! Also, knowing that we're not putting any "drugs" into our bodies to do it and we're eating things that are good and also good for us!  Where's the "PRAISE" button on this thing!?! 

Starting Day 6 today! BRING IT ON! Can't wait to take a look at the scale tomorrow morning! ...did I REALLY just say that??

Starting Day 4 with a WEIGHT CHECK!

Never thought I'd EVER say "Whoo-hoo, it's weigh in day!" -well, sarcastically maybe, but not SERIOUSLY.  This morning, I did!  I had a hard time going to sleep last night just thinking about it and getting so excited.  The reason I was excited was because I KNEW I had lost pounds and inches just from the difference I was seeing in my clothes.  (IN 3 DAYS!!)

Nathan likes to sleep in a little later on Saturday mornings usually.  Not this morning...he got up and went straight to the bathroom scale. Ha! He came back & said "Get up! Go weigh!" So I stopped hiding my excitement, jumped up and headed for the scale.  Afterward, we both stood there in the bathroom looking at each other with cheesy grins, like "Are you believing this?!!" Then I took off to get the measuring tape-the part I was MOST looking forward to!

Okay, here's the part you're probably waiting for.  I won't stall any longer and tell you all about how we argued... "NO, my WAIST is HERE-not there!! This is where you measured me the first time!" etc... SO, we've been doing this for three days; today started our fourth day and Nathan is down 4.6 lbs and 6 inches! I am down 3.4 lbs and 5 3/4 inches!  THAT'S JUST IN THREE DAYS!! We are really excited about our progress and how easy it has been.  (ahem, no exercising! ...well, actually I did walk a little one day but that was it.)

Aside from being thrilled about our own progress, I am SO looking forward to seeing the others who've decided to join us in the past couple of days reach their weight loss goals too.  It's going to be awesome celebrating our accomplishments together!!  This is SO MUCH FUN!!

We're About to Lose our Britches!

Not much was new on Day 2...except...MY SHORTS WERE LOOSE!! AHHH! Is it possible to see a difference in your clothes after only two days of the program?? YES! I was thrilled when I got dressed to go to a friend's house last night and my shorts, which are usually snug and hugging my behind and upper thighs, probably a bit too tightly, did not hug so tightly this time! I immediately noticed a difference as soon as I put them on.  So exciting!! <<Happy Happy Joy Joy>>

Gettin' through day three today.  Nathan and I were excited to start today because 1. we haven't cheated, and it hasn't been hard not to...we've SO got this! and 2. we get to eat MEAT today! whoop whoop!! (sigh...it's the little things...) :)

We're also starting a new product tonight called Gone4Good. (Love that name!) It's an all natural glycemic regulator, calorie reducer and fat metabolizer.  We take it before dinner and basically it will lower the glycemic index of the food we eat, reduce the absorption of carbs, enhance our metabolism, enhance lean body mass and reduce calories.  Just another step that'll get us closer to reaching our goal!

Goodbye Day 1!

We have made it through day one successfully! :) No cheating...and it was easy!  There was one moment when I really REALLY wanted to make just a tiny little exception...as I was putting Doritos on the kid's lunch plates, one little chip fell off the plate in front of me, as if to say "Here you go, EAT ME!" But, I didn't! Yay me! :) And then there was also the Fruit Loop incident that ALMOST happened.  All in all, it was a good day, I didn't feel slighted in the least as far as food was concerned and I had lots of energy.  So did Nathan...and poor thing was stuck at his desk most of the day.  Pretty sure he either had a pen tapping or a knee bouncing. :)

Day 1 Underway!

Nathan woke me up this morning, apparently excited to get going with our first day.  It was before 7am, raining outside, and I was not so eager to get up in those conditions! (brief interjection: I'm not opposed to being up before 7am, or when it's raining, but NOT when I've had to be up several times during the night with children.) So after about three times of him coming and trying to wake me up, I dragged it out of bed and staggered to the kitchen.  NOT to start making his breakfast...first things first COFFEE!!

We were both pleasantly surprised with the shakes we drank for breakfast...they were SO GOOD!! (And I don't like shakes-unless they're from Sonic and chocolate and contain enough calories to last you two weeks.) It was filling by itself, but we also got to have a piece of fruit with it, so by all means...  I'm anxious to see how this first day goes & how we're feeling by the end of it. 

I'm going to have to watch myself though...this morning I grabbed the box of Fruit Loops from the pantry for Macy, noticed another child had left the box open, so to make sure they weren't stale, I got one out and popped it in my mouth.  About mid-chew I realized what I had done.  I raced to the trash can and spit it out as fast as I could! CRAP, I almost  sabotaged it before I even got started good!  (OK, I don't think ONE fruit loop would've "sabotaged" the whole thing, but I'm OCD like that. Got to do it RIGHT!)

So, we're off! On our way to losing pounds & inches and to a healthier, feel-better us!

Here we GO!

Tomorrow we will begin our adventure to a healthier, THINNER, us! We can hardly wait to get started and are excited to see how much we can lose and how much better we're going to feel...even within the first few days! We are looking forward to seeing how FirstFitness Nutrition is going transform us! 

We will attempt to update this blog daily, or every few days, with how things are going, how we're feeling, etc... These updates will be posted here on the home page.  More  personal "stats" such as weight & inches lost will be posted on our personal pages, listed "Julie" and "Nathan", on the tabs above.  You can also find out more about the products we're using to help us reach our goals on our personal pages.

If you'd like to know more about FirstFitness Nutrition, visit our website at www.firstfitnessnutrition.com/julieholland