90 day Challenge Complete!

90 days!

Challenge is over!  So here are my numbers ...

*drum roll*

Weight:  -13.2 lbs!

Inches:  -13!

Nice!

As I said at the 30 day mark, it was less than I had originally hoped compared to what so many others were able to accomplish.  But, lets face it, you don't know what their situation is compared to your own, and every body is different.  I think it is pretty well documented that my body does not react like any other body.  So expecting 20 pounds or more, was probably a bit too much.  

The great thing, though, is that I did lose.  And 13.2 pounds in 90 days is very respectable.  Further more, it helped me get down further in the 10% that I was supposed to get for surgery.  And THAT is what really matters. 

30 day check in!

30 days!

I am on day 30 of the 90 day challenge and my results so far are …

I can’t actually say, as unfortunately I am at the coast. 

Ok really being at the coast is a good thing, not an unfortunate thing at all.  But what that does mean is that I am unable to take official 30 day measurements.   Awww sad face!

But I can give you an update as of the 28^th day!

Weight:  -5 lbs!

Inches:  -12!

Wow!

While I will have to admit that I really wanted to see a bigger weight loss after my first 30 days, I am really quite pleased with my results.  I know that everyone is different and that those that are on the challenge who have had a much higher pound loss in the first 30 days, either ate like crap before they started the challenge, drank a ton of soda, and/or have completely different metabolism than my own.   

It is well known from my history of years and years of weight loss battles, that my body doesn’t behave “normally”.  It has its own schedule and processes stuff very differently than everyone else, and has a metabolism of a slug.  So for me, a 5 pound loss and 12 inches gone is really quite excellent!

It does mean that I have to dial back my expectations for the 90 day challenge.  I am not going to be one of those that lose 50 pounds in 90 days.  It’s just not going to happen and I have to face that reality.  And lets face it, that kind of a result is fairly a-typical anyhow.  But while I didn't necessarily expect a 50 pound loss, I did want and kind of expect to lose 20 pounds during the challenge.  And that maybe a bit of a stretch at this point.  While 15, 10 even 5 pounds lost is really quite good at this point, it is obvious that I need to tone down the expectations now, so I don’t get disappointed and then torpedo myself towards the end.  After all, I am my own worst enemy.

Week 1!

I so love love love the Body by Vi Challenge.  It is AWESOME!

So here is the deal.  The Body by Vi is a shake mix that you can add to just about anything, and I do mean anything.  You can add fruit; such as pretty much any kind of berries, bananas, mangoes, and/or apples.  You can make it Vanilla, Cookies in Cream, Lemon cheese cake (though why you would want to do that, I have no earthly idea) or ... wait for it ... CHOCOLATE!

As originally reported, I have been making chocolate shakes, with one little foray into the Berry world (but I liked the chocolate so much that  I quickly went back!).  I have switched from 2% to Non-Fat to Almond milk and have found that I LOVE Almond milk and especially LOVE that its only 35 calories for 8 ounces, as opposed to 90 for Non Fat!

I have also switched from using unsweetened cocoa to pudding, as the pudding helps thicken it and make it more "shakey" without adding a lot of calories.  Every once in awhile I add in peanut butter too!  It obviously ups the calories and the fat grams a bit, but makes for an awesome awesome taste and since it is more of a meal replacement a few more calories is ok, as long as I account for them somewhere else.

So here is my Day on Vi.

Morning Shake
Snack - Since I have a coffee addiction, my snack is usually my mocha.
Lunch Shake
Snack - Small salad or String cheese or Hard boiled eggs depending on what I feel like
Dinner
Small Late night type of munchy depending on the calories I have had that day.

You don't necessarily have to count calories on the 90 day challenge and in fact most don't.  But since my body is quite temperamental and I want to do this right (and I am anal-retentive) I am counting and journaling everything.

So where am I after just 1 week?

Weight:  -1.2 lbs!

Inches:  -5!

Not bad, not bad at all!  The pounds could come off a bit faster, but look at those inches!  5 inches in just a week!  HOLY COW!  That is just awesome!  And while I want the pounds to come off for the surgery, its the inches that honestly matter the most!

I can handle this!

Day 1!

So today is day 1 of the 90 day Challenge!

I am excited, I am nervous, I am anxious, and did I mention that I am excited?!?  

My mentor on the challenge is so excited about the stuff and has been talking it up for several days that I can barely stand waiting a second more.  But before I do, I have to get down to the real nuts and bolts and get my weight and measurements down ... for posterity?  Definitely not for posterity, cause the Valar know that know one really wants to know how much I weigh or how big I am.  And I certainly don't want a record if it.

But without a record, without a starting point of the journey, one cannot look back upon the road to see how far they have come, right?

Right!  So here it goes!
 
Last official weigh-in in June of 2011 (How sad is that!)

Weight: 306.6 
BMI: 51.0 

Today's weigh-in *Drum Roll*
Weight: 305
BMI: 50.7

*sigh*  It's less, I will give myself that much.  At least in the 9 months since my last weigh in, I haven't ballooned up past where I was when I started the Phoenix journey last year.  And I have even lost another 1.6 pounds!  So Achievement unlocked!  But really, I should be so much further along than I am, and its just really sad that I let myself get so derailed.

But as Gandalf says to Frodo in the Mines of Moria, "All we have to do is decide what to do with the time that is given to us."  I can waste time flogging myself for my inaction over the past year, or I can move on.  And today, I am moving on!

So now to the shake.  

Today I am going to try a chocolate shake, because lets face it ... I LOVE chocolate.

Basic Chocolate Shake Recipe 
2 scoops of Vi Shake Mix
2 Tbsp Unsweetened Chocolate Baking Powder 
8 ounces of Milk*
Ice
and Blend

* 2% Milk is what I have on hand right now.  From what I have read and researched you can use any milk, but Almond or Soy milk are better choices due to the lower calorie and lower sugar content.  2% is never a good choice for dieting/healthy eating , but that is what my Dear Ranger drinks, so that is what I have.

Review
Dear Valar it is awesome!!  It is chocolate, it is sweet and it tastes great!  The only problem is that it was over too quickly and I want more.  I LOVE IT!  

That is a really good sign.  The one thing with the Reset program I tried last year was I couldn't stand the taste of the shakes, the bars, well ... any of it, so being on it, while I had decent results, was awful.  I couldn't wait for it to be over, I choked down the shakes, and I was grumpy and in a poor mood the entire time.  

THIS, this I believe will be very different.  We will have to see if I still enjoy it 30, 60, 90 days from now.  But right now, it is AWESOME! 

90 Day Body by Vi Challenge

Tomorrow I am starting the 90 day Vi Challenge.   I have to admit, my decision to try it and start it was pure gut, spur of the moment type stuff.  But in the past seven years, I have come to rely on that gut feeling and trust it more and more.  So I am going with it and seeing where it takes me.

A good friend and co-teacher of my father’s has been doing the 90 Day Body by Vi Challenge for about 29 days and has lost 10 lbs and 10 inches, while at the same time reducing her blood pressure and gaining energy.  Now I am not stupid.  I know there are no quick fix, no magic pill, and nothing that will magically take everything off in just a matter of weeks or months.  It is a complete life change and while I like to think that I have always been making good decisions, the reality is that I like chocolate a little too much, my portion sizes have grown a bit in the past three years, I like chocolate oh and I like chocolate.    While my body is not normal, doesn’t process things normally and has the metabolism of a turtle; lasting weight loss be it from eating and exercise or from surgery is only going to happen with life style changes.

That being said, I like what I see in this challenge.  I like the makeup of the shake mix.  I like the nutrients that it has and the versatility in the 100 different recipes that are out there.  And I like the comments and feedback that I have seen.   From everything I have heard I am going to have to be on a protein shake/supplement after I have surgery, so I might as well start now as I work to get that 10% off right?

So to begin with, I ordered the basic shape kit, as I don’t want to get too financially invested if I am not happy with the shake taste or the results.  It arrived today and I am quite stoked to begin.  Unfortunately, though it’s been on the UPS truck since 5 am, it wasn’t delivered till 4:48 pm, so I should really just wait till tomorrow to start.

Really, I should.

But I really want to try it now!  No, I will be good and wait till tomorrow and start the challenge off right!