All In A Days Work

Last year I talked about all the benefits of using coconut oil in your daily life. From washing your hair, to sunburns and cooking, coconut oil has been flying off the shelves for all their multiple uses.

Coconut has been known for its healing properties and to some islanders such as in the Philippines, deemed this fruit “the tree of life.”These islanders consumed meat, milk and coconut oil daily – and things like diabetes, cancer and heart diseases were virtually unheard of in their culture. Due to the coconut being a highly functional food rich in vitamins, minerals and fiber. It’s an essential nutritional building block to good health.

But recently I was  told about drinking coconut oil in your water will help you lose weight, so I decided to do a little research. I was actually amazed and surprised that it took this long for this to be widely known to the public. Here’s a few things I discovered:

Coconut oil helps burn fat quickly, and fuel your  body.
Coconut oil makes you feel fuller longer – and helps reduce food cravings.
The islanders who ate a diet of 50% fat, were still slim, trim and healthy because of their daily intake of coconut oil.
Consuming one ounce of coconut oil a day helps women decrease their BMI and waist size
Coconut oil also helps reduce your thyroid (thus leading to weight loss)

I found some great coconut water recipes on Yummly (well they use coconut water not the oil) and then the oil recipes you can find here that you can try to get your coconut oil intake in each day; or you can just add a teaspoon to your ice  water and go to town.

I wish I could just say “you don’t need anything besides motivation to lose weight!” Though it’s partially true (you can get by if you have to) it’s a lot easier if you have the right tools to keep you on track.

Food Scale. I can’t begin to tell you how important it is during the weight loss process to know how much you are eating; a few ounces off here and there can really add up and throw you over whatever goal you made for yourself. Whether you care counting calories or carbs, weigh your food! \

Meal Prep Containers. I know a lot of people who don’t like to waste and they have Tupperware they’ve used for like twenty years – but I am bad about forgetting mine in my car, (and my husband is even worse about leaving his at work). I don’t want to worry about my good food storage containers, and prepping for an entire weeks worth of meals takes a lot of containers! These simple containers can be re-washed and used again and again -or just pitch them if you need to (after a week in the backseat and you forgot about it – yuck!)

Crystal Light Drops. Whether you are counting carbs or calories, I swear these will be a life saver if you are a soda drinker. I personally love the pink lemonade, and my son loves the fruit punch. I always carry them with me in my purse so I have them wherever we go: I  get a large ice water when the kids want to stop for ice cream or slushies and it feels like quite a treat. You can also freeze them to make Popsicles!

MyFitnessPal. I honestly don’t know how in the world anyone has ever really tracked their food without this awesome app. If you don’t have it – download it now! Or if you don’t have a smartphone, you can still use it on your computer. The app is free unless you upgrade – which I did to count my macros for the Keto diet. (just $9.99 a month) otherwise, you can enter your info (height, weight,sex) and your goals – and it will tell you how many calories/fat etc to have each day – and what I love is when you complete your day it gives you an estimate of your weight 5 weeks from now!

Fitness Tracker. I made this kind of broad, since there are various ones out there – everyone seems to have their own preferences. Some are pretty simple – they just track steps, but others can get more in depth tracking your heart rate, your sleep patterns, etc.

Get a Great Water Bottle. Water is essential  to weight loss. Some say to drink at least half your body weight in ounces each day! I currently am aiming for 100 oz per day – and I tell you, it can be difficult if you aren’t paying attention. Search around and see what type you might like best; maybe a glass one, or one that you can put fruit in, one that travels well, etc.

If you plan on joining the gym I suggest that you have a back-up work out for at home for the days you just can’t make it – there’s a lot of things that keep you from the gym – even people with the best intentions – like sick kids, a broken down car, etc. I have a few DVD’s that I have on hand for those days that I just can’t make it. My favorite right now is Cardio Dance Hoop. 

I love work out activities that keep me busy doing something and not just thinking “oh how much longer do I have to do this?” – each time I do this work out I can hardly believe it was an entire half hour. It also really burns the calories – burning 240 calories or more per session. My kids love to do it too, which has been great since it’s too cold for them to go out and ride bikes or go on walks.

All these items are a good start for your weight loss journey – good luck!

First and foremost let me say I despise the word “fat” like it’s a 4 letter word being belted  out of a toddler in the middle of church. It makes me cringe, and really has never been a word that I like to use, especially to define myself. Why is saying “OK yeah I was a b*tch” OK, but not saying “Ok so I’ve gotten fat?”
I. Hate. It. Like I have always used ‘thick’ or ‘big boned’ (and don’t argue with me on that one. Even when I was border-line anorexic I was never a size 0 – shoot I was never a size 6!) either way I’ve hated the word; I’ve been called it several times, by people who were angry at me and doing their best to just dig their knife in a bit farther (and though it hurt I have to say – is that the ONLY bad thing you can really say about me?! pshh..please!) But I myself have never – until recently – ever  called myself FAT.

There are many other words that define me – good words, like kind, and giving, and loving and understanding, forgiving.. And maybe even some not so good words ..but none of them bother me like the word FAT. So instead of  continuing to let it be a word that bothers me – or even defines me – I’m just going to change ME.

Most likely there will always be someone who calls me fat, or who thinks it. But what matters is if I DO. So for 2017 – unlike every other year in the past – I’m going to make that change. And I’m going to share it here. Every step of the way.

Back in 2015 I had lost some weight –  I worked out, I counted calories and though I had cheat meals (or days) generally speaking I stayed on track. But personal things went on my life which caused some stress. When I have stress I have 2 types of reactions – I don’t eat at ALL (literally so sick to my stomach I can’t function correctly and I don’t eat for days or longer) or I just go to freaking town on everything in my sight. As you can imagine (and  if you look at my pictures) I went for the ‘lets-just-eat-everything-in-sight’ and it shows.

For the first time in my LIFE my gut sticks out past my chest (besides when I was pregnant of course), I’m uncomfortable sitting, I’m uncomfortable standing, I don’t sleep well, I’m grumpy, I’m ALWAYS tired – and I’ve had ENOUGH!

No more excuses – no more comforting myself with food. No more allowing my family to do the same. We are going to eat better, and we are going to get exercise!

So I am starting keto in 2 days – and yes, I’ve binged carbs and sugar like its going to be extinct (which to me, it will be). After 2 weeks of Keto, I am starting back at the gym, and my kids are going to follow suite. (at least 2 of them. My daughter is a self- described vegetarian and has been for the past year, so that should be interesting!)

So here’s my starting weight, measurements of my arms, waist, thighs and calves and clothe sizes. I am not completely obsessed with my weight numbers because to be honest, I don’t look what I weigh. I’m always bigger than anyone would ever guess, and even when I’m healthy (per my Doctor even) my weight is higher than an average woman in the same health..so there’s that.. So I am going by how I feel, and the sizes of my clothes, and my measurements.
This week I will be starting: DAILY: 100 oz water, 20 grams of carbs, 75 grams of protein, 104 grams of fat. Wish me luck!!