Don't eat too much chocolate, hehe.

We've been having a lot of stresses (job, finances, ailing parent) and I have to stop myself from rushing to food (sweet treats) to comfort myself, it's been hard but we've been resisting. We didn't order the cannoli for desert from the Italian Deli last night even though we drooled over it through the case, we've been controlling our portions. I realize how much I was using food as a crutch for stress, disappointment and to "get away" from what was going on. Hubby and I are holding strong!

It's amazing how well we've been doing with changing our diet and how much better we feel overall. We are steadily losing, keep it coming off!

Seeing everyone's Biggest Loser Page is really inspiring, I love seeing peoples blogs and creativity. I'm still trying to figure out how to make my page cooler, I'm much more of a Myspace Addict. Keep up the good work Friends!

Slow going but good for the 1st week where we just modified our diet. This week we are integrating exercise in too! We'll finally get on our treadmill, go for walks around the neighborhood use our exercise ball !!

We made the NEW ORLEANS RUBBED CHICKEN WITH APRICOT MUSTARD SAUCE recipe from the Biggest Loser and it was sooooooooooooooooo FREAKING GOOD! I've never had such awesome chicken. WOW we're impressed!!

We're doing good, having the recipes to fall back on for dinner have been great! We made a Tofu stir-fry last night that was AMAZING (I actually loved the tofu, which totally surprised me)! We made a chicken salad the night before, and we've been having lean deli meat roll-ups for lunch and egg white (egg beater) omelets for breakfast. Who knew eating healthy was SO YUMMY!

Our twenty-month old daughter is finally registering on the scale and she is a whole whopping 27 pounds!! (Tall and Skinny - Like her Mommy and Daddy use to be).

Randi : 218
Caleb:  328

331

221 - ugh I hate to even see it.

So I found about twenty recipes online and have used them for the basis of our diet. I spent about $300 getting fresh veggies, and basic seasonings for 2 weeks worth of recipes and we've been eating healthy all week it's been great! Egg White Omelets for breakfast, Meat & Lettuce roll-ups for lunch it's been great and our stomachs are feeling wonderful.

We got out in our big back yard with our daughter today (she loves to go outside)! We picked all the weeds, raked the lawn, shoveled up all the old mulch - Man were we both sweating! Now that we've had some rain fall FINALLY the ground was softer so we dug up some new holes to do some planting in.

Here are some pictures of Caleb and our daughter working in the yard, and our daughter getting dirty!

Well I can't afford to join the Biggest Loser Club but I have found plenty of helpful basic information online and through Prevention Magazine.
Here is a Biggest Loser Sample Mean Plan... I know this will help us focus on what our menus should be like so I thought I would share the information.

The Biggest Loser Diet meal plan calls for three-meals and two-snacks per day. It breaks down to 45% complex carbohydrates, 30% lean protein, and 25% fats. Here's what one sample day might look like on the Biggest Loser Diet meal plan:

 

BREAKFAST
1 cup berries on top of ½ packet cooked plain oatmeal (about 1/3 cup depending on how much water you put in), sprinkled with 1 Tbsp slivered almonds or walnuts
AND
1 cup liquid egg whites (Egg Beaters) whipped and scrambled with 2 cups chopped veggies (peppers, mushrooms, onions, tomato, spinach)

 

LUNCH
2 cups garden salad consisting of the following: 1 1/2 cups field greens topped with 1/4 cup red bell pepper, 1/4 cup red onion, 1/2 cup pear wedges, 3 oz. (size of a deck of cards) grilled chicken breast, and 1 Tbsp sunflower or pumpkin seeds (dressed with balsamic vinegar)
AND
1 small whole grain dinner roll

 

DINNER

2 oz. grilled salmon
2 cups grilled vegetables, lightly misted with olive oil (eggplant, zucchini, bell peppers, asparagus, artichokes) and sprinkled with herbs such as oregano, parsley

1/3 cup wild rice
1 cup grapes for dessert

 

SNACK 1
1 cup grape tomatoes
2 slices rolled up deli turkey
5 large olives

 

SNACK 2

Combine the following:
½ cup pineapple chunks
1/4 cup nonfat ricotta
1 tsp walnuts

I found some sample recipes from Biggest Loser Club online and I'm going to try them out to see how they are.

Recipe 1.
NEW ORLEANS RUBBED CHICKEN WITH APRICOT MUSTARD SAUCE     
Ingredients:

1     tablespoon dried thyme
1/2     tablespoon ground black pepper
1     teaspoon garlic powder
1/2     teaspoon cayenne, to taste
1/8     teaspoon salt
4     small (4 ounces each) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed of visible fat
1    

teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
1/3     cup apricot 100% fruit preserves
2     tablespoons spicy brown mustard

Instructions

Preheat the grill to high heat.

In a small bowl, combine the thyme, black pepper, garlic powder, 1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne to taste, and salt. Mix to blend.


Place the chicken on a large plate or platter. Drizzle with the oil. Rub to coat the chicken evenly with the oil. Sprinkle the reserved seasoning mixture over the chicken. Rub to coat evenly. Cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 10 minutes for the seasonings to flavor the chicken.

Meanwhile, spoon the preserves into a small microwaveable bowl. Cook on low power in 15-second intervals, or until melted. Stir in the mustard until well blended. Set aside.

Place the chicken on the grill and reduce the heat to medium move away from direct heat. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes per side, or until no longer pink and the juices run clear. Serve each breast with 2 1/2 tablespoons of the reserved sauce spooned over the top.
Makes 4 servings

Per serving (1 chicken breast + 2 tablespoons of sauce): 197 calories, 26 g protein, 15 g carbohydrates, 3 g fat, <1 g saturated fat, trace polyunsaturated fat, 1 g mono unsaturated fat, 66 mg cholesterol, 1 g fiber, 245 mg sodium

We've been much more active this past week I am really proud of us! Caleb has been on the treadmill running/walking every day. I have been walking my daughter to the park (about a mile each way), doing gardening, raking, weeding - man you can really work up a sweat doing that stuff and cleaning my house from top to bottom. My daughter also loves to watch the Backyardigans, they sing and dance and every time they do a dance routine we dance along with them a simple way to get myself moving and have fun with my daughter.

Well we really hated taking our full length pictures (I avoid them at all costs!!) but we did it! They are up for viewing, guess this will motivate us to get in shape!

Myself - Randi, Spouse - Caleb
We live in Queen Creek - Florence, AZ
We are Husband and Wife

Randi's weight loss goals: Mini Goal, 20lbs, Medium Goal 50lbs, Shooting for the stars Goal 70lbs
Caleb's weight loss goals: Mini Goal: 20 lbs, Medium Goals 50lbs, Shooting for the stars Goals 100-130lbs

The reason we are entering the BL contest is to motivate ourselves to live a healthier, more active lifestyle. We plan on succeeding by using the Biggest Loser to challenge ourselves, to lean on each other for support. We are doing this so our daughter (20 months old) can see us being active and so we can keep up with her! Losing weight will be enough of a prize for us!

The Biggest Loser Tour is coming to AZ! I guess Mesa, AZ is one of the "fattest" cities in America. (We live about 30 minutes from Mesa in Queen Creek). They are going to be at one of my favorite Malls - ARIZONA MILLS January 26-27 from 11am-5pm! WE are so going!!

Hubby and I have decided to get ourselves motivated by joining the Biggest Loser Million Pound Match-Up Challenge. We've been fans of the shows for year and need to get our health back on Track. I am a 27 year old Stay-at-home-Mom, working towards her Counseling degree and he he is a 26 year old hard work Graphic Designer.