So Stew recommended you to the site, or you signed up first? Either way welcome and good luck...

Only one set of twins, guess I wasn't cleasr. I have a 10 yo boy, boy girl twins(almost 9), and a 5 yo girl. One set was plenty lol.

Yeah I thought it would be great to get all my clients to start journals on hear so that we will have more people to help everyone along. A big happy healthy training family

Ok here is my measurements:


Weight - starting at 161
Left arm -12.75 inches
Right arm-13 inches
Chest-41 inches
Right under chest - 37.5 inches
Neck-15 inches
Waist-43.5 inches
Hips-41.5 inches
Right Thigh-22.5 inches
Left Thigh-23.5 inches
Right Calf-12.5 inches
Left Calf-13.5 inches

So there it is......How depressing to see those actually written out. I can tell you i am determined to never be here again and have this much fat on my body. I am done having kids. I am ready to focus on me and get back to being inshape and feeling great!!

Today I am just excited to be able to start. I have cleaned out the fridge and kitchen and I have my grocery list and getting ready to head out to the store to buy all the items I am eating this week.


And yes Stew did recommend that I come here and start a journal - and I think it was a great idea. I have really enjoyed reading on this site and everyone seems to be super nice.


Stew - I do have one question though - on the days that I have weights - can I do extra cardio in the morning when I frist get up or not? Just wanted to ask.

Ok off to the store I gooooooooooooo....


Traci

Also, I will be updating my stats with some pictures in 2 weeks. I will not be posting any pictures until I have something to start comparing it to.

Cool, nice idea man.

Try to stick with what i laid out for you for the first week and if you are able to stick with 100% week 2 you can add the extra cardio. I dont want to to add too much too soon that is one of the main downfallls of all people that want to lose weight. Beginners eagerness will wear off. Remember weight loss it is not a sprint more of a marathon.

Ok I sure will. The groceries are bought and I am going to cook my stuff up for tomorrow and get it ready to grab when I head out the door.

Question for those veterans here- How can you cook ahead and store the food for the 5 days during the week??? Just curious... Remember I do have 4 kids and work lol...........


I welcome all suggestions. I am not big on freezing so if I could cook a couple days worth at one time and store it in my fridge somehow that would be idea!

Thanks

I have a vaccum sealer, startup is high, about 100.00, but well worth it. The canisters when sealed are good for two weeks, microwavable as well. Good luck.

Healthy chilis and stews come to mind as good fridge/freezer friendly products.

A large Foreman grill might be a good purchase since it will enable you to quickly cook your meats, which would just leave your carb source - baked potatoes are very easy, and pasta is very quick as well. In fact if you made pasta you could extract the noodles and use the same water to blanch your vegetables in if you were REALLY pressed for time.

If you own a crockpot then you probably could set everything up in the morning and turn it on on low. Dinner would be ready by the time you got home. I'd only suggest this strategy though after making the recipe several times.

I have a food saver and I didnt think about that... I will defintely start putting it to use.

Stingo I dont need the food to fix...I just wanted to know how to store them ahead of time. LOL. Right now I am on a very strict diet because I am just starting out so my meals are veggies, chicken, tuna, salmon, cottage cheese, etc... stuff I really cant put into a crock pot. Not just yet anyways.

I have a great new gas grill that is also portable. It is the Weber Q220 and I love it....So cooking part is no problem...but would be easier to cook it a couple of days ahead of time.

Tomorrows meals are cooked and ready to go. I think tomorrow night I may cook Tuesday and Wednesdays meals so that I hvae those ready and have NO excuses if I get busy. Especially since Tuesday night I will not be getting home until 10pm from three hours of tennis practice.



I am always looking for everyone;s secrets so feel feree to share :-)

Tupperware will be your best friend I am lucky. My family has a second fridge downstair so I can make a bunch of the stuff and store it in the second fridge.
Dont get overwhelmed you will find a routine and then it will be second nature

Welcome Sporty!
Its really great to see you here and I know you will find the support and motivation you're looking for to achieve your goals! Looking forward to following your progress!

welcome to the forum!

Hey Sportygal, welcome!

I am also a mom and wife. I have three kids, ages 9, 6, 4....well almost. I already think of her as 4. She will be in November. LOL

I commend you for starting on the road to the new you!! It can only get better from here. It is hard work. Just because you want it, doesnt' mean you won't have some pitfalls and setbacks. KEEP THE FAITH during these times and you will succeed. POSITIVITY!!!