"Nacho" Mama's Fajitas

Y'all know it's me and my Jenny Craig food for the foreseeable future. It's totally fine and I really like eating their food because 1. I can't really cook and 2. When left to my own devices I'll at the same thing for 4 days in a row. Jenny actually provides plenty of variety in my diet and if I really want something they don't offer, I'll figure out a way to fit it in. I even had 1/2 a bagel and some egg whites after my run Saturday with my consultant's blessing. But I'm not here to talk about that. Today it's all about the nacho.

Recently Jenny introduced the "Chicken Street Taco" and I cried tears of happiness, because tacos are life. The tacos are like traditional street tacos and each taco has 2 corn tortillas. I guess this is a thing, I always got flour tacos. But 4 corn tortillas and chicken taco filling opens up a whole new world of experimentation. One of my favorite JC foods was a Chicken Fajita that was discontinued and I decided to pay homage to it's greatness, but in nacho form.

JC also happens to be having a recipe contest and "Nacho" Mama's Fajitas was born. I didn't see a disclaimer that I shouldn't post it, so here you go!

1. Take the Chicken Street Tacos and heat them in the microwave for 1 minute. Scoop the filling out of the tortillas and put it in a separate container.

2. Cut each of the tortillas into 4 quadrants. Spray with a little cooking spray and sprinkle with some salt. Place in a single layer on a pan and put in the toaster oven on "toast" until lightly browned.

lightly browned

3. While the tortillas are crisping, chop the peppers and onions into small pieces and saute in a pan until cooked. I was lazy and steamed them in the microwave for 2 minutes, then put them in the pan. Otherwise, it's like 10 minutes to cook some peppers and onions on the stove. 

4. When that's all ready and the tortillas are crunchy, it's time to assemble that -ish! 

5. Move the tortillas to a heat resistant plate. Spread the warmed chicken over the nachos.

6. Top it with the peppers and onions

7. Add your cheese! OK, cheese is kinda not on the JC plan as an extra, BUT, there is a line in the JC book that says that if you're lactose intolerant, you can sub one of your milk servings for an ounce of cheese or some lean meat. I've never liked milk and I hate yogurt so I've been eating a light cheese stick every day for my milk. It's apparently just fine because I've lost 26 pounds. Because I knew I wanted cheese, I saved my milk serving and used 1/4 cup of FF Cheddar Cheese for dinner.

8. Sprinkle on top and put back in the toaster oven on "broil" until it's all melty and yum. My plates are oven safe, so I threw the whole thing in there.

9. Chop up some lettuce or buy a bag of the shredded stuff and put it on top of your nachos!

10. Serve with all the salsa you want, because it's a free food!

Nachos!

11. Enjoy!

Linking Up!

Weekly Weigh-ins #18 and #19

Hi all! I hope you had a lovely Labor Day weekend! I don't know about you, but Labor Day is the official start of Fall for me. I know that it's going to be 90 degrees next week but I'M STILL TRANSITIONING TO FALL. DAMN YOU WEATHER.

On to the weight loss thing. For week #18 I weighed in a day early because I was flying to DC to meet Kev for our anniversary weekend. I was expecting a big loss and it delivered!

YASSSS -4.4! I knew I had a big one in there!

I really didn't do anything differently. I knew that I'd been putting in the work and not seeing results, but that it would show up eventually and it did! I also knew that I didn't really deserve the +.8 gain I'd had the week before. I'd been weighing myself at home so I knew it was coming, but I loved seeing it on the JC scale and the shock on my consultant's face!

After eating my way though DC and only eating JC the last 3 days? I'll take a +.2.

Workouts

Week #18

Saturday - Body Pump

Sunday - Body Flow no run

Monday - Combat

Tuesday - CAB meeting at NCSU

Wednesday - Combat

Thursday -  Hair and Nails

Friday - DC!

Week #19

Saturday - Walked 15,358 steps

Sunday - Walked 16,898 steps

Monday - Walked 19,951 steps

Tuesday - Drive home

Wednesday - Combat

Thursday - Body Pump

Friday - Nope

Leading up to my week 18 weigh-in, I was pretty much on point. Kev was out of town, so I ate my JC food and went to the gym. In DC I knew that I wasn't going to go to the hotel gym or anything like that, and I was hopeful the steps I walked throughout the day would make up for all the delicious food I was eating. 

Notice that there was 0 running the last 2 weeks. Le Sigh. I kinda forgot to run. Even though running every week is one of my August goals and I have a 5k coming up on the 10th. That's the 5k that's usually full of sadness after not running all summer. Thankfully I'm in a much better place running wise this year than last. I also discovered that while yes, I definitely lost some running fitness, a lot of it was from getting fat again. You'd be surprised how much quicker you get when you aren't hauling an extra 25 pounds around. 

What I'm eating this week

I've got 2 posts coming about all the food I ate in DC. Such food... Instead last week was a happy day because Jenny Craig released some new food! Sadly my beloved egg burrito seems to have left for a while. If I'd have known that, I would have stocked up. Now I'm burrito-less. 

But they did come though with a new Chicken Street Taco! OH HAPPY DAY! I LOVE TACOS.

The tacos are double wrapped, so you get 4 total corn tortillas, there's plenty of chicken mix in there and you can easily add more veggies, some salsa and make it into 4 tacos. So much food and they're really flipping good. And I love tacos. 

I get at least 2 packs each week. Hmmm.., I could probably make some kick-ass nachos too.

 Picture

Week 18

Week 19

This was my "tribute to Hamilton because I can't get tickets in NYC" shirt/trip. My shirt says "I am Inimitable I am an Original." if you get that reference, we can be besties.

Week 19 gets a hotel room selfie because I thought I looked smaller in my jorts and t-shirt. I realized on this trip that I have next to no decent summer clothes, just a bunch of t-shirts and maybe 2 pairs of shorts. 1. I didn't want to buy larger sizes that I wouldn't need next summer and 2. I don't really need to have more than 2 weekend outfits. Yea, I have dress up dinner clothes, but on the weekend, I'm generally in exercise clothes and after work, I'm in exercise clothes. Maybe I'll think about it for next year. In the mean time, I'm ready to transition to all things fall!!

Goals

Ummm... I met 0 of these goals. I lost 5.4 pounds, thanks to my massive -4.4 which saved me at the last minute. Then I forgot to run the last 2 weeks of the month. In my defense, the last goal was based off the Apple Watch and at that time my Active Calorie Goal was set at 590 calories per day, which I can't achieve if I don't go to the gym. After all day at work, even if  I walk the dog and run errands, I can't get there. As everything evened out over the last month, I adjusted the goal to 530 calories per day and sometimes I can get there if I don't make it to the gym. Generally I'll hit it 5 days a week, which isn't terrible. I can't physically go to the gym every day, and hitting that goal 90% of the time just isn't happening. 

What about September??

I'm going to keep my goals pretty much the same. I'd be thrilled if I lost 6 or more pounds this month. Losing 9 pounds puts me back into 90% of my clothes. Then the fun starts. :) Hopefully I can maintain this momentum and get to 1st goal by the end of the year. 

That's all for me! Here's to another great week!

Weekly Weigh-in #15 and #16

Oh hey, I was supposed to post my weekly weigh-in last week, then I didn't. -ish got really crazy at work and has stayed crazy. Ah, the joys of an acquisition. I've done a decent job of getting my workouts in and my food has been fine. Almost 2 pounds in two weeks. As long as the scale keeps going down, I'm happy. I'm starting to feel like I have a bigger loss coming up, like a 2 pounder or something, Maybe this will be the week?

Workouts - (Last Week)
Saturday - Body Pump
Sunday - Run and Body Flow
Monday- Last minute work dinner
Tuesday - CAB meeting at NC State
Wednesday - OMG I was tired and got my nails done instead
Thursday - Body Pump
Friday - Body Combat

I'll be honest, I don't remember exactly what I did the week before. I did workout 3 times, I did some Body Pump, I ran, did some Combat classes, the regular stuff. I did notice this week that I had made some gains in the lower ab department. Not like I could see them, because that's probably never gonna happen, but I was able to do a lot of lower ab exercises that I couldn't before. It's actually a really good thing, that's the area that needs the most work because my lower ab and core is what needs to be stronger to help with my back. Basically if I can strengthen my lower abs and core, it keeps my pelvis, sciatic joint and hips from getting out of alignment which is the cause of my back injuries. Yay for progress!

My weekly recap from Apple Watch. I burned 4735 "extra" calories which should have been more than a .8 pound loss. It'll happen though.

What I'm eating this week

Twice a week at work we have catered lunch and I never eat it. Sometimes if I know there's going to be salad, I plan my Jenny meal accordingly because I really like having extra veggies on my turkey burger or cheese burger. This day we had a giant salad from Zoe's Kitchen and I snagged some lettuce, cucumbers, green peppers and a few olives. It was Insta-worthy.

Picture

Week 14 Picture

Week 7 vs Week 15 pictures

 I was pretty pleased with this comparison. That's exactly 2 months between the pictures. June to August. There's only a 10-ish difference between the 2 pictures. It's crazy how just 10 pounds can make such a big difference. I know I have muscle under all of the fat, now to get them to come out!

Obligatory gym selfie.

I think this picture is pretty crazy, it's me and Kev 8 years ago on a cruise. This is me never working out and being pretty sedentary. It shows how a good workout regimen can really help your body composition. Can someone make sure I never cut my hair in that style again? Mkay, thanks. 

That's all for me! I'll keep chugging along and hopefully have another loss this Saturday.

Enjoy your week!

Weekly Wednesday Weigh In #12

Big loss one week, little loss the next week. I'm completely fine with the progress. 

Honestly, one of the main reasons I can keep going week after week is that I don't feel deprived at all though this process. If there's something "naughty" I want, I'll have it on Saturday night and leave the entire week to work it off. I still have my cosmos every Saturday, I have meat, sushi, dessert, all within reason, but I still eat it. Jenny feed me pasta (which I rarely eat) and desserts that hurt my stomach when I eat them from anywhere else. A JC brownie is the only one that doesn't hurt me. 

Also, when I make my own food, I eat the same thing every day. For 6 months I had 2 rice cakes and 2Tbs of peanut butter for breakfast. Every day.  At least on Jenny I have something different most days. I need my food to be convenient and healthy. Honestly, after I lose the weight this time, I need to get into meal planning or something else. Who am I kidding though, I'll probably keep buying Jenny breakfasts and some lunches. 

In other exciting flashback news, these 2 posts popped up on timehop.

I'll spare you the math, but 1 pound to the old "halfway to goal" was exactly what I weighed in at on Saturday. Yes, 6 years later, same Jenny Craig, same weight, same "almost to halfway". Le sigh, "Those who fail to learn from history are condemned to repeat it." I'm going to learn this time. 

Workouts
Saturday - Body Pump
Sunday - Body Flow
Monday-  Chiro
Tuesday - Run 4.2 miles
Wednesday - Rest
Thursday - Body Pump
Friday - Movie Night

Workouts this week were pretty good, my run was good and I got in 2 rounds of Body Pump which was nice. I upped my weights again and I'm almost back to my pre-injury weights. I'm 5 pounds off on my squats, 5 on the back and I'm still not using weights on the lunge track which is OK with me. I'd rather work on my form.

What I'm eating this week

I don't really have any fun extra food pictures this week, but I did have this nice pic of JC Fish and Chips. Complete with a side of malt vinegar, sauteed spinach and a bit of Kev's steak that he put on my plate. It was good.

Picture

I was pretty happy with the picture this week, I was able to do an exact side by side comparison in the same outfit, just a month and a half apart. I can definitely see it in my waist and in my arms. I still have a ways to go, but progress is progress!

Cheats

My cheats this week weren't that different than in the past, I had Subway for lunch on Saturday, we ended up at Vin Rouge again that night where I had 2 cosmos, a few fries and steak tartare, again. Then on Sunday night Kev made a pasta / sausage / vegetable / cheese dish and that was my dinner. The other 5 days were pretty much on point.

All in all, it was a pretty decent week! Here's to another week of progress!

Weekly Weigh-in #10

Another week, another weigh-in! Down another -.6, which isn't terrible considering last week's big loss. I'm averaging 1.5 pounds a week, which is OK with me. It was a bit of an odd week. Kev was out of town, but I was really tired all week. Cleo slept in the room with me and she's not always the quietest of animals. I'm guessing that's why I didn't get the greatest of sleeps.

So, when I started back on Jenny 10 weeks ago, I posted that I wanted to get back to my original JC goal of 160. Well, the more I thought about it, the more I felt like I wanted more. The last time i was just tired of everything, mainly because it took me something like 2 months to lose the last 5 pounds. Since it was such a big accomplishment, I stopped. For a while the next year I went back to try and lose 10 more, but I wasn't committed. But I still wanted to get to 150. For a while I've had a number in my head of what I want the final goal to be. I told my JC consultant on Saturday what I wanted but I wasn't sure. She said we were going for it. That's the new number and we're going to hit it. 

147. 

Let's go.

Workouts

Saturday - I had a hair appointment in the morning and I just didn't go afterwards.

Sunday - Ran 30 min on the treadmill then Body Pump

Monday - Chiropractor

Tuesday - Ran 50ish minutes

Wednesday - nada

Thursday - Body Pump

Friday - Went to the gym and I just wasn't feeling it. So I left. You just have those days every now and then.

What I'm Eating This Week

There's a Kroger right next door to the Jenny Center and most mornings I head over there afterwards. it's really convenient and they have pretty good prices on produce. A pound of cherries was $2.99 the last 2 weeks and grapes $1.49lb. :) Well, I've passed this popcorn a few times and I finally bought some. Kev and I both LOVE it. LOVE. 3 cups is 130 calories which is in line for my Jenny snack.

Picture

I don't see a huge difference between this week and last and I'm still not quite happy with most of my old pants. Last Spring, I know I was able to wear certain pants and right now they button uncomfortably which makes me super salty. That tells me I gained more than 15 pounds in the last year, which is insane. There's no reason for me to gain 15 pounds in a year. I attribute some of that to stress, some to being injured for several months and having to go to PT. The rest is just from eating too much. I've never gained that much weight that quickly. 

Cheats

I ate out 3 times last week, which is more than usual, but I don't think it was too too bad.

Saturday - Veggie sub from subway with no dressing

Sunday - Brunch, I had a Salmon Salad with no dressing. I counted it as lunch then ate my breakfast muffin in the afternoon

Monday - Kev and I went out before he left and we went to the 42nd Street Oyster bar. We had bacon wrapped scallops for an appetizer, (OMG) then I had crab legs with a little bit of butter, steamed veggies as a side and 2 hush puppies. It was super tasty. Thankfully I had the rest of the week to work it off.

That was my week! Here's to another good one!

Linking up with BLoved Boston!, Still Being Molly   AND

Weekly Weigh-in #7

If you saw my Instagram (which you should because I'm so much funnier in pictures), I lost 1.4 last in 6 days! Hey, I'll take it after being all sorts of sad with that .2 gain last week. I really focused on the basics. Drinking my water, not taking extra little tastes and bites of things. I didn't make it to the gym as often as I'd have liked, but more on that in a few. Also, no gum. When I think about it, I've lost 11 1/2 pounds in 7 weeks. If I keep this pace up, that would put me at -46 pounds in 28 weeks and at goal. It would also be half as long as it took me to lose the weight the last time. I probably can't keep this up, but how awesome would it be if I did?? It's just a good reminder of how persistence pays off.

Workouts

Remember last week when I posted that one of m June goals was to not get injured? Yea, it's because my back and hip hasn't been feeling right. I was paranoid that one of my 2 old injuries was coming back. I had some strange shooting pain in my groin area and I was really nervous. Sunday night wasn't awesome, I had ice and laying flat. I went to my chiropractor Monday. I've been seeing him for 8 years. Mostly for maintence but he fixes me when I get hurt too. After a pretty good session Monday and Weds, I was feeling much better.

Saturday - Body Pump

Sunday - Rest

Monday - Chiropractor - He said I could get on the rowing machine or do arms. Meh

Tuesday - Body Flow (yoga)

Wednesday - Chropractor in the afternoon, then I went to Spin (not my best idea)

Thursday - I should rest

Friday - I really should rest so I don't die at my race Saturday morning.

What I'm eating this week 

Everything was pretty much on plan, I did have the fish and chips which made me pretty happy. Especially since I got some Malt Vinegar.

Picture

Week 7 picture.

I've worn this skirt before and I thought I had a little less low belly. I was a little frustrated because I tried on some pants that I wore last summer and they didn't fit well. They buttoned, but uncomfortably, which pissed me off because it means I gained at least 15 pounds over the last year, which is complete BS. I've never gained that much in a year. I know it was partly because I was grounded from working out for months while I was having PT on my hip, but still. 

Cheats

Kev and I went out to the Angus Barn on Saturday night and I had 4-5oz of prime rib, a salad and some steamed veggies. I also had 3 crackers with some spready cheese, a few olives and some pickles.

Sunday we had a potluck at the house and I made a blueberry crumb cake, blueberry muffins and chocolate chip cookies. I didn't eat any, but I did have a little bit of dough from the bowl. I guess it wasn't too bad, I still had a loss. :)

So, on to another week and hopefully another loss!

Weekly Weigh-in #6

Yep, not a great weigh-in. I honestly don't have any idea why I gained. None. I ate on plan, we did have dinner out on Saturday, where I had 2 adult beverages, but I also had 6 days to work it off. I worked out 3 different days, it's not TOM, nothing. 

I think the worst part is that I didn't do anything to earn a gain. Like if I ate all the delicious food and had cookies and booze and had a gain, THAT would be fine, but when you don't do anything, it sucks.

So, what changed? Over the last 2 weeks I re-introduced gum into my routine. I used to chew a lot of gum back in the day, then I developed an allergy to aspartame and literally ALL gum has aspartame in it. Except for cinnamon Trident. But cinnamon Trident is full of chemicals. Over the last 2 weeks, I had quite a bit of gum. Like really too much. Caloricaly it wasn't enough to gain, but the chemicals and artificial sweeteners could result in a stall/gain. Yea, no more gum. I'll try that and see if the scale moves in the right direction this week. It was odd, I was really feeling a 3 pound loss and the gain was a shock to me.

I'm also a little freaked out to have a gain this early on in the process. I don't remember it happening the last time, but it probably did. 

Workouts

Saturday - Body Pump

Sunday - I felt like I had a bit of a cold and Kev grounded me from working out

Monday - Still grounded

Tuesday - Still grounded

Wednesday - Running late to Spin class, got in 30ish min of the class then yoga

Thursday - 45 min Spin 

Friday - Nada, we went to First Friday Downtown

What I'm eating this week

Obviously a lot of gum. Really though, I've been wanting sushi. Sushi and a Veggie Sub from Subway. Don't ask why, I have no idea. I think because I ate a lot of them the last time I was on JC. I had plans for both this upcoming week, but no loss= no other foods.

Picture

I have on full body shapewear here. I know the jacket covers it up, but this was the only outfit shot I go this week. The last time I wore this dress, I was a solid 10+ pounds more. It definitely fits better than it did before.

Oh, don't forget! The GYPO Summer Style is OPEN now! Go here to sign up. You'll get the list of pieces, the 2016 wardrobe, the 2015 wardrobe and an awesome community of fellow fashionistas. I'm a big fan because it made me use pieces in my closet I hadn't in a very long time and things that I'd never thought to put together. Great experience and you all should do it. ;)

Cheats
Really, I ate on plan every day except Saturday. We went to Vin Rouge and I had tartar and frites. I also had 2 cosmos. That night I didn't skip my dessert either, I ate my  Lemon Cookies when we got home since we ate kind of on the early side. I said it before, I wish I had a giant cheat and earned that gain this week.

Monthly Goals
Last month I posted my goals.

I did a pretty good job on all of these, but missed the weight loss by .4 pounds. I'll take 7.6 though. I stuck to the JC plan and each week I worked out at least 3 times. Overall, not too shabby. I'll take it.

What's the plan for June?

I haven't been running. I've run like once since February. Did I mention I have a 5K next Saturday? I'm so screwed. I need to run more, even if it's on the treadmill. Since I didn't lose 8 last month, I'll try again in June. Finally, I need to not get injured. Really, I've been feeling a little twinges in my lower back and I need to be careful. I have a chiropractor appt this week and I need to foam roll. My muscles tend to lock up and push things out of place. I haven't worked out this hard since my last round of PT and I'm concerned that I might throw everything out of wack. Chiropractor, ice, foam roll, let's stay healthy.

Alright, here's to a better week!

Linking up with BLoved Boston!

Weekly Weigh-In #5

Happy Memorial Day! I hope everyone is having a safe and relaxing Monday!

Another week, another weigh-in. I knew the less than 1lb losses were coming eventually, I'm always glad to not have a gain. I did have a bit of a heads up on Friday afternoon, I had a doctors appointment and weighed in a few ounces over what my last Jenny weigh-in was, and I always assume the doctor's scale is a slid 1-2 pounds higher than any other scale in the world. I don't know how they do it, they just do....

I've been firmly on the plan for 5 weeks now and I'm down -10.4 pounds. That's a little more than 2 pounds per week! If there's any way to keep up that momentum, I'll take it. 

Workouts

Saturday - Body Pump

Sunday - Body Flow (yoga)

Monday - Nada

Tuesday - 45 min Spin Class

Wednesday - Nada

Thursday - 45 min Spin Class

Friday - 60 min Spin Class

I'll be honest, it is a little annoying to workout 5 times in a week and only lose .6 pounds. But it's a process, if the scale doesn't reflect it this week, it will next or the week after that. There's some stuff going on personally that's made life a little stressful these last few weeks and I'm sure it's affecting my weight loss. It's OK, it'll pass and I'll keep pushing. 

What I'm Eating this Week

The JC tuna salad  kit gets a lot of flack. It's a shelf stable food, it's strange, blah, blah, blah... I happen to really like it. The chicken salad kit, no  so much but the tuna? I have a special place in my heart for it.

I added some sugar free sweet pickle relish and mustard to it. Salt, pepper, and yum.

Picture

I had 2 this week. The dress on the top I bought last year and it fits about the same as it did when I bought it. I do remember it being extremely tight under the armpits. When I wore it this week, it we definitely less tight. it could fit a little better in the chest, but not terrible.

I just really liked the colors of this one

Oh, remember last year I did several of the GYPO style challenges? Several, heck, I did all of them. I didn't really document the winter because it was really fricking warm when the challenge started and big sweaters weren't happening. Any who, the Summer Style is OPEN now! Go here to sign up. You'll get the list of pieces, the 2016 wardrobe, the 2015 wardrobe and an awesome community of fellow fashionistas.  I'm a big fan because it made me use pieces in my closet I hadn't in a very long time and things that I'd never thought to put together. Great experience and you all should do it. ;)

Cheats
Cheats... Saturday night Kev and I went to the Angus Bran for dinner and I had some prim rib and veggies, and a cosmo. It was yum. Then we went to the movies and I had some JC popcorn that I smuggled in. Since I knew I wanted booze, I skipped my afternoon milk, fruit and fat. I was still probably a few calories over, but not terrible. I think I was pretty hungry that night and had an extra light string cheese as well.

Sunday I went to brunch with a friend and I had a salad with grilled chicken (no cheese) and a mimosa. I swapped out fruit and a fat for the mimosa.

Friday Kev and I went to lunch and again a grilled chicken salad, no cheese, but I did have 1/3 cup of light granola when I got home to make up for the lack of starch in my meal. Again, not terrible, but I prefer to eat my off-plan food earlier in the week and do nothing but plan food for at least the 3 days leading up to my weigh-in.

All in all, I'm happy with my exercise for the week, I probably could have been a little better with the food. But that was last week and a new one has begun, here's to another good week!

Oh, BTW, when I re-branded, I made a Facebook page just for this blog. I'll be posting over there as well and not just re-posting links to this blog, so head on over here and like the page! See you there!

Linking up with BLoved Boston!

Weekly Weigh-In #4

That's right, four pounds! I'm not exaggerating when I tell you I teared up a little bit when I saw 4 pounds down on the scale. I had really expected to see a loss somewhere in the fours the first week and when I didn't, and didn't again and again, I started to think that this time it was just going to take longer and I started to settle in. 

There's something about the 10lb mark that makes me think that this is going to work out. In the past I've lost 5 pounds, then the next week gained back 2, then 1 down the next week and the next thing you know it's been a month and you've been gaining and losing the same 2 pounds for a month. I'm not complacent, but I know that I've made a dent in my goal and that's a good thing,

I know the closer I get to my goal the harder it'll be to lose, so I'll take these 4 pound weeks now. The -.8 and -.5 weeks are coming, like it our not,

Workouts

Saturday - Nada, I spent 5 hours prepping for the brunch. There was a lot of standing and baking and chopping and cooking.

Sunday - Still nada, the brunch started at 1pm, lasted until 245ish and afterwards we need to clean up and still had to go out and get groceries for the week.

Monday - Nope. I ended up spending the day training at work and did three 90 minutes classes over the course of the day. After that and the weekend, I was done.

Tuesday - 45 min Spin Class 

Wednesday - Nothing, went to the mall?

Thursday - 45 min Spin Class

Friday - 60 min Spin Class

I was talking to my counselor about what was different. I can't replicate the brunch and training each week, but it might not be the worst idea for me to go out for a walk each afternoon. I generally drive to get my 2nd coffee of the day, and I could easily walk. There's a Starbucks and a Bruegger's near my office. I can get some steps in and actually take a break.

 What I'm eating this Week
It's so good.

I had 2 servings which is a LOT of ice cream, and only 130ish calories for dessert on Thursday. It was glorious. 

Picture
Here's the weekly picture for documentation purposes.

I don't have a lot of full body pictures from when I was at my lowest, but Facebook keeps finding some memories from 4 and 5 years ago. Thanks Facebook.

iPhone pictures have gotten better in the last 4 years

The picture on the right is from 4 years ago. I was probably within 5 pounds of my goal weight here, If I had to guess, there's a 30-33 pound difference between the right and left picture. I know the stripped shirt is a Medium and the pants are a Limited size 10. It's going to be really interesting to see what I look like 30 pounds from now. 

I did quite a bit of weight lifting over the last 4 years. 4 years ago it was mostly cardio. Kickboxing, running and spin class. I know I have some muscle under my fluff, time to find it.

Cheats

Saturday I hosted a brunch and made a TON of food. I didn't actually eat anything I made. Instead I had my breakfast scramble in the morning and a normal JC lunch after everyone left. Did I lick the bowl, take a little pinch and a bite here and there? Yep.

Saturday night Kev's acapella group had a concert in Chapel Hill and afterwards everyone went out. I had a cosmo and a few of Kev's loaded fries and a bite of his bread pudding. To counter balance it, I skipped my dessert and the afternoon fat serving.

Sunday was brunch. I didn't eat it, but plenty of licks, tastes and bites of things.

Towards the end of the week I got pretty hungry but managed to stay on track. The only non-JC food I ate was over the weekend or the Halo Top ice cream. All in all, not bad!

I'll take the loss and hope for another next week!

Linking up with BLoved Boston!

The Tale of Ninja Ham. Or When I Made Too Much Brunch

It's that time of year again, Choir Brunch! I can't believe this is the 3rd year I've recapped the brunch and something like the 10th year we've done it. 

Check out the 2015 recap

and the 2014 recap too

As usual, it went off without a hitch, everything was great but I made too damn much brunch and I had errant ham, but I'll talk about that in a minute.

I expected 25-30 people, that's how many RSVPd, and about 18-20 showed up. On top of that. I made too much of a few things. 

I have a lot of food left. Like, a LOT. Good news is, I have a team made up mostly of 20ish year old guys and they'll eat all the things. 

So, what did I make?

Aunt Neet's Cheesey Potatoes

I made this the last 2 years and it went insanely fast. Of all the things I have left over, there is NONE of this. It is pretty flipping amazing, even though I had 0 tastes. I had 0 tastes of all the things and ate my Jenny Craig like a good weight loss blogger. Yes, it's all about balance and all that shit, but you know what? I want to wear my pants again. I can make batches of any of this food after I'm closer to my goal. Bud I digress.

While I was prepping the potatoes the day before, I had a conundrum that I was unable to solve. 

THERE WAS HAM IN THERE.

Potatoes and ham and cheese all go together EXCEPT I don't know where the heck the ham came from. Seriously, I searched everything and there's  NO REASON for errant ham.

I used frozen TJs potatoes, sour cream, onions, cheese, cream of chicken soup (really) and butter. NONE of those things have ham hiding in them. I looked at all the bags/containers and NONE had ham. My pan was clean too, that's not leftover Easter ham bits. it's real fricking ninja ham. 

I left it in there, because the dish is already not vegetarian and yum, ham.

Parmesan Cheese dip with Crab. I had a pack of a Tastefully Simple dip in the pantry and a can of crab meat, and some chips and easy yummy dip.

I put it in the broiler until it was golden brown

Raspberry Jam Bars

Mini Pecan Pie Muffins - Does anyone remember Homemade Gourmet from back in the day? It was a direct sale company that sold delicious mixes. They got bought buy Tastefully Simple a few years ago and since then the former founder has put out a line of cookbooks with the old recipes. The Mini Pecan Pie Muffins were one of the best sellers and they're sooooo good. The recipe is totally on point and tastes just like they used to.

Blueberry Muffin Bread - Kev wants this every year and this is one of the things I made too much of. The folks at work killed an entire tray in less than 25 minutes.

Fruit -  Watermelon, blackberries, blueberries and strawberries

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls - For Christmas I tried my hand at real cinnamon rolls. Like I used yeast and didn't kill it, and it rose overnight and in the morning I had beautiful Cinnamon Rolls. Well, I made 2 batches, and instead of 12 teach batch made 16, and then I had 32 Cinnamon Rolls which was far too many. (They destroyed a pan of these at work Monday too.)

And I cut them in half... 64.

Apple Upside down French Toast - This is Kev's favorite and I make it every year.

Veggie Egg Bake - EVERY year this is the first to go. This time, I have 3/4 of the pan left. My brother has plenty of egg bake to eat. There were 21 eggs in here, spinach, mixed blend cheese, peppers, onions and broccoli.

Sausage Egg Bake - Again, 21 Eggs, cooked sausage, green peppers, onions and cheddar cheese. There was only 1 serving of this left and Kev ate it for breakfast the next day.

Bacon! Need I say more?

Kev went to the Whole Foods Breakfast bar that morning and filled up a box of cooked bacon from the bar. You have to be kinda stealthy about it, because they don't really want you to fill a box with bacon, but you totally can.

We kept it in the warming drawer. Kev wants to have the warming drawer full of bacon all the time. It's not a terrible idea... And yea, that was all eaten.

That's all for me! Have a great Tuesday!