Since I didn’t lose any weight last week AND I wasn’t able to exercise much this week due to an injured foot, I was more than a little nervous to step on the scale today to see the outcome. But, since I had to write something for today’s START To Downsize article, Downsizing Tips – Start Your New, Downsized Life Today – Week 3 Results!, I swallowed hard and weighed myself.
Weight Loss – 3 lbs!!!
Total weight loss – 5.5 lbs
As tempting as it was to feel defeated by the lack of weight loss last week, I KNEW if I’d just stay the course, the weight would have to come off and IT DID!
During the past week, I averaged 1030 calories per day, continued to drink lots of water, was able to walk once before I hurt my foot, and my efforts paid off.
This week I’m planning walking 4 times and I’ll start adding in strength training 2 times. Since it’s been quite a while since I’ve done any strength training, I’m going to start slowly, doing limited reps with light weights.
Once I get to my goal, how can I maintain a new, downsized me?
By continuing the behaviors I’ve been following for the last three weeks until they become my new, downsized lifestyle:
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Eating well
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Exercising
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Staying hydrated
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Getting enough sleep
These elements must be ingrained through repetition.
Over the weekend, I made another soup recipe from Chris & Trisha Tecmire’s book, “Eating Well For Only $2 A Day”:
Cajun Chicken Soup
8 c. water 1 T. dried basil 1 t. garlic salt 1 t. Louisiana Hot Sauce 14 oz. canned diced tomatoes 12 oz. chicken breast, cooked and cubed 1/2 lb. smoked sausage, sliced 1 T. Cajun seasoning, see recipe below 3 T. cornmeal, uncooked Homemade noodles 1. In a large stockpot, combine all ingredients, except cornmeal and homemade noodles. Simmer, uncovered, for an hour. 2. Add in cornmeal, cook until thickened. 3. Make the noodle dough, slice into 1/2″ squares, cook in soup for 5 minutes or until tender. Cajun Seasoning 1 T. paprika 2-1/2 t. salt 1 t. onion powder 3/4 t. cayenne pepper 1 t. black pepper 1/4 t. garlic powder 1/2 t. dried thyme 3/4 t. dried oregano 1. Mix all seasonings together. 2. Keep in a tightly sealed glass jar for later use. I made a couple of changes to the recipe:- I omitted the cornmeal and the homemade noodles
- I added 1/3 c. uncooked rice to the recipe
- I substituted a low-fat Turkey Kielbasa for the smoked sausage
- I doubled the recipe, so I could use the entire Turkey Kielbasa, which was 1 lb, and the entire 28-oz. can of diced tomatoes. I also doubled the uncooked rice to 2/3 c. I froze the remainder of the soup in individual portions, making future meal prep easy.
I started on this path to a new, downsized life and I soon realized that life’s circumstances tried to foil my efforts. But, by being consistent as much as possible, I discovered I COULD AND DID overcome those circumstances to keep moving forward.
Get hold of the info in this START To Downsize post, “Downsizing Tips – Start Your New, Downsized Life Today – Week 3 Results!”, and stay focused on YOUR ultimate goal.
Kate
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