We have just finished Week 8 of the George Foreman Knockout the Fat Weight Loss Challenge, and it has been a pretty busy one! Last week, I kicked off the Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred program with a few of my Twitter & real life friends. (They are one and the same here in Indiana! Indy geek girls stick together.)

I’m also restarting the Couch to 5K program—shredder by day, runner by night! I’m excited to be able to physically handle it all, without too much difficulty. I finally got into my doctor, since I’ve been having trouble with cardio. I get short of breath, really quickly. She ordered a prescription, a chest x-ray and some pulmonary function tests.

I don’t have the results of everything yet, but I did take a run that night after a few puffs on my new inhaler. Best. Run. Ever. True story. I think this is really going to make a difference, and finally get me past week 1 in the Couch to 5K. I want to be able to run the entire Wine at the Line 5K I just registered for. Between the 30 Day Shred and the running, I think I’ll be in pretty good shape by then.

George Foreman Turkey BLT

I need to build more healthy calories into my meals, maybe add a 3rd snack. Possibly both. When I find myself hungry, between meals or snacks on my plan, I just grab whatever is around. Or, find myself craving not so healthy foods. And, indulging in them. Of course, this is a holiday weekend, and I allow myself to indulge a bit.

I decided months ago that if I’m going to be able to stick with this program, there has to be room for treats & special occasions. I don’t want to be the person turning down birthday cake, for a diet. I don’t want to miss out on holiday favorites because I’m too focused on weight. On the other hand, I don’t want to totally let myself go over an extended holiday, like this one! We’ve been at the lake since Saturday, and I’ve done pretty well.

I focused on healthy meals and brought plenty of fruit to snack on in between. This keeps me out of the chips but doesn’t quite keep me away from the cookies. I’m trying to keep a good balance—somewhere in between no treats and half a batch of cookies! We’ll have my annual 4th of July dessert later today, and that one will be hard to stay away from, since I don’t make it very often. I am making the flag with strawberries & blueberries instead of sugar crystals. That’s progress, at least, but it’s still a tasty, chocolatey dessert.

And, it’s only for the weekend. If I’m eating healthy meals and focusing on good snacks on a daily basis, a few days out of a month are going to be okay. Maybe it will halt my weight loss this week (we’ll get to see the final results next Monday!), but it won’t make a big difference in the grand scheme of things. Because it’s about way more than losing weight for a little while.

It’s about making permanent changes.

Starting Weigh-In: 195 pounds
Today’s Weigh-In: 176.5 pounds
This Week’s Weight Loss: .5 pound gain
Total Mamavation Weight Loss: 18.5 pounds
Total Knockout The Fat Weight Loss: 11 pounds
BMI: 25.25

Sistahood Question: How did well did you manage to eat healthy over the holiday weekend? Any tips for the rest of the summer?

This post is sponsored by Eco-Foil Pans, and I’m writing this to be entered into a giveaway for Eco-Foil prize pack, hosted by Mamavation.

Disclosure: The George Foreman Knock out the Fat Weight Loss Challenge is a compensated program. As an ambassador for George Foreman, I received a George Foreman grill and will be paid for my time at the end of the 90 day challenge. All opinions are, as always, 100% mine!

The sixth week of the George Foreman Knock out the Fat Weight Loss Challenge was a busy one at our house! Between VBS, a county softball tournament and track practices, I’ve barely had time to breath—much less workout & plan proper meals. I am pretty proud of how well I managed dinner, under the circumstances.

We had to leave for Brenia’s softball games by 4:45 every night and didn’t return until 8pm. That usually means eating way off schedule, crappy concession stand food or grabbing fast food along the way. None of those were really an option for our lifestyle or budget. So, I planned a full week of sandwiches.

We had deli meats, grilled chicken, peanut butter and BLTs—that was my favorite since it was my first in many years. I used turkey bacon on gluten free bread, piled high with red lettuce & tomatoes. Each afternoon, I prepared sandwiches and packed fruit, veggies & water for everyone. Brenia ate in the care on the way to the out-of-town field. The rest of us ate on the bleachers while the team warmed up for the game.

It aligned perfectly with the exchanges Alysa gave me for my meal plan—I’m pretty proud of my creativity. What I noticed this week, though, is how much I eat without ever counting it. The bits of meat that drop while I’m preparing dinner. The icing I “taste” while baking cupcakes. The peanut butter I lick off the spreader while serving the girls breakfast.

It was just really noticeable this week. And, it’s a tough habit to break! One thing I need to get back to is hanging my meal plan on the fridge. For the first few weeks of the program, I printed the meal plan Alysa sent—and nothing went in my mouth without checking the list first. When I’m on schedule, I do just fine. When my routine gets thrown off, it’s easy to slide.

It’s easy to grab a handful of chips off the refreshment table at church. It’s easy to eat ice cream with the softball team, even when I already had a cupcake. It’s easy to eat more than I should, just because circumstances allow. I had a lot of extra calories last week, but I am proud that I handled dinner well. I’m also proud that I managed to turn down the ice cream at Friday’s end of season party!

In the end, I did better than I thought. I was a little nervous about this morning’s weigh-in, but I managed to lose another pound. If I had kept up my workout routines, I could have done even better. This week, I want to continue the Couch to 5K program that Stacia and I started last week and get in a bit more of Jillian’s torture & Stephanie’s circuits.

My goal for next week is to have activity levels to brag about!

Starting Weigh-In: 195 pounds
Today’s Weigh-In: 178 pounds
This Week’s Weight Loss: 1 pound
Total Mamavation Weight Loss: 17 pounds
Total Knockout The Fat Weight Loss: 10 pounds
BMI: 25.5

Sistahood Question: BRAG. What accomplishment have you done recently that brings a smile to your face?

This post is sponsored by Joggermom, and I’m writing this to be entered into a yoga mat giveaway hosted by Mamavation.

Disclosure: The George Foreman Knock out the Fat Weight Loss Challenge is a compensated program. As an ambassador for George Foreman, I received a George Foreman grill and will be paid for my time at the end of the 90 day challenge. All opinions are, as always, 100% mine!