12-week transformation...day five

Here are some facts about today...

1. Today is Friday.
2. Today was a weigh-in day
3. I weighed in at 142.2 pounds...meaning I lost 3.4 pounds.
4. I was discouraged I wasn't back at 138.0...why?
5. I was discouraged because I denied my flesh this whole week and really struggled while doing it and didn't see the results I wanted.
6. #5 was my flesh raging out.
7. I was on plan the first half of the day.
8. Around late afternoon, I sort of caved in...ate a non approved lean and green meal. There was some lean and green, but also some other off-limits food as well.
9. My health coach out of nowhere called me and left a message right after I finished eating dinner encouraging me to keep moving forward. (She did not know I ate out).
10. I forgave myself for going off-plan and moved on.
11. Decided to go to church and had the most amazing night ever. I started out not really into worship and by the end of the night I was raising my hands so in awe of my Lord and Savior.

Those are the facts and I am ready for tomorrow...despite my ups and downs this week.

I need Thee every hour, most gracious Lord;

No tender voice like Thine can peace afford

I need Thee, oh, I need Thee;

Every hour I need Thee;

Oh, bless me now, my Savior,

I come to Thee.

I need Thee every hour, stay Thou nearby;

Temptations lose their pow’r when Thou art nigh.

I need Thee every hour, in joy or pain;

Come quickly and abide, or life is vain.

I need Thee every hour; teach me Thy will;

And Thy rich promises in me fulfill.

I need Thee every hour, most Holy One;

Oh, make me Thine indeed, Thou blessed Son.

day sixty-four...making progress

It has been a good morning...the weigh in...excited news! But...I will get back to that later. First, let's talk about my day and what I ate.

Breakfast
Woke up this morning with a smile on my face ready to face whatever the day had for me. I made myself an eggnog shake and headed into work. Today was our inventory day. Basically we count all the inventory in our warehouse. It was quick though, only took us about 30 minutes...I would say that's a record.

Morning Snack
I was hungry by the time my morning snack came around so I opted to make a chai latte and sipped on that for a good 45 minutes. It's amazing to me how much those drinks fill me up and keep me full!

Lunch
I was out and about doing errands at lunch so I decided to treat myself today and went to chipotle. I got a salad with steak, fajita veggies, and pico de gallo salsa. This has to be my favorite going out meal. So good!

Afternoon Snack
Lunch held me over for sure. But I did end up having some coffee with my afternoon snack. I sipped on some coffee first and then opened up and ate a bag of the mixed berry cereal crunch. Perfect afternoon snack.

Dinner
I had dessert for dinner today. Why not, right? I made a peanut butter milkshake using the peanut butter soft serve. I haven't made myself one of these milkshakes in a while, so it was a nice treat.

Now, I have to tell you...I spoke in front of my college group tonight! I was asked to give a word of encouragement before the study, and so I did! I was really nervous, but the Lord totally worked through me. It was a great feeling to be used by the Lord...despite my heart beating a million times an minute and my palms getting all sweaty. Oh well, God knows what He is doing, and He has a special plan for each and every one of us. Tonight is a night I will never forget.

Dessert
When it was time to eat my dessert, I was in the middle of church. But, I thought ahead and cut up a cinnamon roll crunch bar and brought it with me. I discreetly snacked on it while listening to the message. :)

And now...the moment you have all been waiting for! Okay...so last week I was 141.6 and I kept thinking all week that I just want to be in the 130's for Christmas. And as of this morning I am 138.0! I couldn't believe it! I don't even remember the last time I was in the 130's. God is so good and gracious. I could not have done it without Him.

Remember that this weekend...when you put God first, things just fall into place. I would not be where I am today if it were not for the Lord. Trust me, I tried doing every diet in the book on my own, but it was only when I surrendered my will to the Lord that I have succeeded. No turning back!

xoxo,
Toni

day fifty...in order to grow you must let go

          my friend Kiera and me                                                        my adorable mom and her friend

  
I heard a great quote at the Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa Women's Christmas Coffee this morning. The speaker told us that "In order to grow, you must let go". That spoke wonders to me.

Without me even knowing it, I have been growing lately. I been letting go of my fleshly nature to eat and overeat and have been growing spiritually by that. For you, it may be letting go of a grudge or an addiction. Let. it. go. It is only then that you can grow. If something is holding you down, how can you continue to grow higher. Once those hindrances are cut and torn down, it is then that you can grow and reach that goal.

And as of this afternoon I have also let go of something else...10 inches of my hair! They do say that when you cut your hair, it grows faster and healthy. So letting go and cutting my hair will only make it grow! I will show you some before and after pictures at the end of the post as well as update you all on my weight...today was a weigh in day!

Breakfast
I ate a little earlier this morning so I could eat my morning snack before the Christmas coffee. It worked out very well. I am getting the timing down...sort of. ;) So this morning, I made an egg nog vanilla shake...which is basically a french vanilla shake with capella egg nog drops in it. This is by far my most favorite shake.

Morning Snack
So on our way out the door to the event I made myself a brownie soft bake (in a cup) to eat on the way. Now...I don't usually have desserts in the morning, but I just decided it would be okay this one time.

Lunch
I was having dinner with a dear friend, so I saved my lean and green meal until then. Therefore, for lunch I made myself a calorie burn cappuccino. I was going to have it at 3pm, but that is when I got my haircut...no bueno having to go to the bathroom in the middle of a haircut.

Afternoon Snack
Right before I headed out to the salon, I ate one of my favorites...the brown sugar cinnamon cereal crunch. Some people don't like it, but I love it! Smells like french toast as well, which doesn't hurt.

Dinner
For dinner, I went to greenleaf chopshop and had flat iron steak with sides of green beans and a tuscan kale salad.

Dessert
I ate my last meal of the day right before church...I actually ate it really fast. I felt kinda sick eating it so fast, but oh well...won't do that again. I had a smores crunch bar.

Okay...you ready for my revealing? Here is a before and after...

What do you think? Yay or nay? I think I like it...it will definitely take time getting used to, but such is life. :)

As far as my weight goes, I weighed in this morning at 142.6! I can't believe I just typed that, but I did!!! As of today, I have lost a total of 23.6 pounds. Woohoo!!!

It's late and I am off to bed. Night!

xoxo,
Toni