Weight Loss Journey: Nephew Adventures, Gym Etiquette and Meal Prep

A few weekends ago we had my nephew Logan over.  He is almost 5 and really energetic.  We decided to surprise him and take him to the beach on Saturday.  He had so much fun playing in the sand and at the playground we found.  He and I even walked through the Battery at Fort Columbia.  My only problem was he kept running off from me and it was freaking me out.  I am not up to 5 year old speed yet.

At the park, I decided to see if my skills were still up to par.  Nope!  I realized I could not hang for any more than a few seconds.  So I set a goal for myself to be able to do Monkey Bars again at some point.  I did climb the large toy in the center of the playground.  And while I was too afraid to do much else, it felt great to be up there.  I also clocked in 8 flights of stairs on my FitBit by going up and down.  If you think, because you are a Mom, you don't have time for a workout, you are wrong.  Just get out there and play with the kids.  Plus, swinging is so much fun!

I have been at Planet Fitness for 4 months now and have made a few observations I would like to share.  These are not be being judgmental, just things I see:
#1 - Get off your phone while you are working out.  Leave your phone in your locker and enjoy your workout.  I see people sitting on machines, texting or even talking.  It's rude to other people in the gym and there is no way you are focusing on your workout.
#2 - Light gray yoga pants are not a smart choice.  Just an observation but when you sweat, that color yoga pants changes color.  I felt bad for one woman.  It looked like she had wet herself.
#3 -  Make friends.  If, like me, you go to the gym at a certain time every day, it is likely that you see some of the same people.  Say hi, smile, be friendly.  You are both there for the same reason.

Through this journey I have spent many Sundays meal prepping.  Honestly, the biggest plus is that I can sleep in a bit.  My most recent set of prep included roasted vegetables (carrots, zucchini and broccoli), boiled chicken and quinoa.  I prefer to eat this kind of food for breakfast, having a morning snack at 11 and then lunch at 2:30 after my workout.  This particular week, my 11 am snack was the Kale Power Salad that I have talked about before and my 2:30 salad of greens, ground turkey and feta.  After the first day, I decided to modify the base meal and have a hot breakfast.

Here is exactly what was in each day's meal:
1.25 cups Roasted Vegetables, 1 cup boiled chicken thighs, 1 cup cooked quinoa (480 calories)
Day 1:  No Modification
Day 2:  Add 2 over easy eggs (add 147 calories)
Day 3:  Add 1 cup chicken stock (add 80 calories)
Day 4:  Add 1/2 cup egg substitute (add 62 calories)
Day 5:  Add 1/4 cup egg substitute and 1/4 cup mozzarella cheese (add 101 calories)
It was so good, healthy and filling.

From July 15th to August 15th, I only lost 6 lbs.  It was a rough month.  My weight loss has definitely slowed down.  In fact, I had not gained but I hadn't lost in over 2 weeks.  I did some research online, asked my fellow Blog to Lose ladies and contacted my nutritionist.  It turns out I haven't been eating enough.  I had been sticking to about 1800 calories and burning about 3800 in a day.  Well, that had slowed my metabolism and put my body into starvation mode.  So after talking to a few people, I upped my calories to 2300 to 2500 as my target.  After 2 days, I lost 3 lbs in 3 days.    I had just reset my body and my total loss is 87 lbs.  I am just 13 lbs from my 100 lb goal and 16 lbs from being under 400 lbs.