Non-scale Victory - New Pants!

The scale has always had a huge impact on me as I battle my weight. I avoid it when my weight is out of control, I over-use it when I am trying to stay on track. When it tells me want I want it to I am elated and when it doesn't I am deeply disappointed. Sometimes it spurs me to do better and sometimes it simply encourages me to give up. The fact that one little household item can have so much power over me is frustrating. I have actually considered getting rid of it all together. Or at least having my husband keep it under lock and key only to be brought out at agreed upon intervals. "Hi, my name is Chrystal and I am addicted to the scale!" Ugh.

 Do you remember when I brought up the mental battle involved in this journey? This falls in that category for me. It is one of those areas that has affected my success in the past and that I am looking to change. I know that I am completely capable of letting go of this and not allowing the scale to have so much weight (see what I did there) on my life. That I can find comfort and reassurance and worth in something other than a number. If this is truly going to be a life change I have to be able to look past the scale and see the value in the healthy changes I am making whether or not the scale is reflecting those changes.

For this reason I am going to also be celebrating all of the non-scale victories that I can. This is why I am taking monthly pictures so that I can see the changes in my body that can't be explained in a number. I will also be doing measurements because losing inches is just as exciting as losing pounds. I will get excited about bad habits that I eliminate, good habits that I adopt, and healthy mindsets that replace some of the negative tracts that play in my mind.

What are we celebrating today? New pants! About 6 or so weeks ago I went on a hunt for new pants as I had worn my old jeans out. This was the experience that pushed me to really take on this journey. Clothes shopping is never fun when you are extremely overweight but it's even worse when you are at your top weight. When the pair of pants you have to buy is a size you have never bought before and not in the good way. In the weeks leading up to that shopping trip numerous things were starting to push me towards my breaking point when it came to my weight gain. But this was the straw that broke the camel's back. Purchasing (gulp) size 26W pants. That was a horrible feeling.

Fast forward 5 weeks to where I am now and I have lost 20 pounds. Needless to say those pants are getting extremely baggy to the point where I am having to pull my pants up throughout the day. A good problem to have, right? Budget wise I am not thrilled to be having to once again buy new pants but when it's because your last pair got too big there isn't really much room for complaining. I didn't get jeans this time but instead some casual capris to celebrate the warmer weather. Because they had a non-zip/button waste I was able to get a 22W that will allow me to wear them now AND lose more weight without having to replace them in the next 5 weeks (although I wouldn't complain if that happened!).  And you know what? I am celebrating! This is a victory worth getting excited about and I look forward to celebrating new pants each and every time those sizes drop.

Are you a slave to the scale? What ways do you celebrate your healthy lifestyle changes that don't involve weighing yourself?

What's For Dinner?

I promised to show you all something other than what I've been eating for breakfast so here is not one but 4 of the dinners I have had in the last week. Doesn't it all look delicious? Not only does it taste good but is doing the job. I am staying satisfied and getting to have a wide variety of foods and I have been able to lose 20 pounds in 5 weeks. This is a lifelong change I can get behind!

Let's take a look at what is going on with each of those plates.

The first is a Taco Sweet Potato and Spinach Egg Bake I found at ifoodreal. I substituted the spinach for Kale because that's what I had in my fridge and I used homemade taco seasoning (if you check out my other blog, Chrystal's Corner, you can find a link to the recipe I use and how I make them into gift jars). When I had leftovers the following morning I added some salsa on top which was super good. With it we had some honeydew and a hash made from celeriac (I hadn't heard of it but it came in my Bountiful Basket this week and made a great replacement for potato), sausage, zucchini, and some leftover roasted cauliflower and mushrooms from a different meal. I know what you are thinking - this is breakfast. Yes, I usually make breakfast for dinner once a week because I love heartier breakfast food and I don't typically have time to make this kind of food in the morning. What can I say, we're crazy like that!

Another thing I love to make at home are take-out recreations. I love Asian food but it's more cost effective to replicate our favorite foods at home, not to mention I can control what goes into it. I used the Shrimp with Rice Noodles recipe I found over at Scarborough Food Fair. I decided to use bok choy in the noodle dish instead of broccoli because I had some to use up and I roasted broccoli and radishes for side dishes. I don't normally buy shrimp, but when it's in the clearance bin in the seafood section at Safeway I snatch it right up! I have to leave it out for my under 2 year olds, but that just means more shrimp for those of us who do love it. This one was flavor packed and a little on the spicy side (which might of had to do with me accidentally doubling the sriracha...oops) which makes it extremely satisfying to me. Packing in that flavor helps me not feel like I need more.

This was a dish I threw together last week trying to use what I had on hand at the end of the week. It is cheese filled tortellini with barbecued chicken (I used homemade barbecue sauce) and sauteed peppers and onions. We had mixed greens with craisins, sunflower seeds, and an olive oil/balsamic vinegar dressing with roasted asparagus and radishes on the side. I swear we don't eat radishes every day, we just happened to buy some and then get some in our Bountiful Basket and roasting them is our favorite way to eat them so they have made a couple of repeat appearances in our meals this last week in an effort to not let them go to waste.

This last one was a huge hit and will be seen again on our dinner table throughout the summer. It may look a little indistinguishable and possibly unappetizing but trust me, it is fantastic and all 7 of us ate every last bite. The main dish is Honey Barbecue Bacon, Chicken, Sweet Potato Packets that I found at Busy Mommy. What's easier than throwing everything in a foil packet and letting the grill do all the work for you? Since we were already using the grill, I also thinly sliced some zucchini and tossed it with olive oil, sea salt and black pepper and my husband grilled those right along side the packets. We also had a romaine lettuce salad with olive oil/balsamic vinegar dressing. We used homemade barbecue sauce in the packets (I would share a recipe but I literally make something different every time) and the chicken and bacon absorbed it nicely making everything moist and delicious. I recommend opening your packets and throwing them under your broiler to crisp the bacon up a bit if you like it that way.

There you go, an example of what we've been having for dinner lately. Lots of flavor, lots of delicious, nutritious food and something my whole family can enjoy.  Let me know if you enjoy these dinner posts and I will keep them coming.