Surviving Summer (and shorts!)

Note: Don’t forget to click in tomorrow for our interview with Lisa Whelchel and the friendship basket giveaway. Scroll to the next post to read all about it.

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Weight Loss Wednesday

I know June 21st is the actual “real” first day of summer. (It is also the longest day of the year. And it is my anniversary. Todd surely thought it was the longest day of the year in 1986 when he wanted to ditch the stinkin’ reception and get to the honeymoon night already!)

Ahem….sorry to ramble.

My point is this. Although Memorial Day weekend isn’t the official beginning of summer, its arrival certainly spells summer to me. It means all things “summery” are just around the corner like…..

Sunburns.

Summer camp.

Grilling.

Vacations.

Family reuinons.

Picnics.

Ice cream.

Swimming.

Shorts.

YIKES!!!!!

So let’s talk summer today. This won’t be a long and philosophical post. (I’m still packing and tying up loose ends. We leave for the Homeschool Baseball National Competition today. Go Summit of Michigan! This was an unplanned editorial :-))

So ladies……

How do you handle the temptations of picnic and potlucks?

How do you deal with the frustration of still having weight to lose, but not wanting to hide all summer in long pants and long-sleeved shirts to cover up chubby thighs or ‘teacher flab’– the giggle that wiggles under your arms when you write on a chalk board?

What do you do when ice cream stops and shops are in the works weekly due to kids sports or other activities?

If it is too hot to exercise outdoors, what else can you do?

How will you handle this weekend’s annual cookout, laden with fattening food including grandma’s delicious potato salad?

Please give any ideas/thoughts/solutions/recipes when you comment this week to let us know how you are doing in your journey to health. If you don’t have any, still leave a comment to let us know how your week went so we can pray for you!

Here  are a couple grill-out ideas I try.

I know it always helps when I offer to take a couple items I can eat. So, I usually take cut up watermelon and a sensible side dish. Then I opt for the grilled chicken, the side I took, some watermelon for dessert and then just ONE small serving of whatever fattening dish is calling my name.

Usually it is grandma’s potato salad!

Here is a side dish idea to get you going:

Broccoli-Bacon Salad

1 lb fresh broccoli, broken into small flowerettes

1/2 C. chopped red onion

1 1/2 C. chopped celery

1 lb. turkey bacon, cooked and crumbled (can also use real bacon)

1/2 C. raisins (or dried cherries or cranberries)

1/2 C. sunflower seeds

Dressing:

3/4 C. light mayo

3 T. sugar

2T. vinegar

Mix dressing ingredients in a small bowl and let it sit while you combine the remaining ingredients, except the sunflower seeds, in a large bowl. Pour dressing over top and mix well. Cover and store in fridge for at least 2 hours. Just before serving, toss in sunflower seeds. Serves 8.

Calories: 169 Fat grams: 5

Happy Summer and see you tomorrow for Lisa Whelchel’s interview!

27 Comments

  1. Ah…summer!! Seems a long time ago now. Here in the Southern Hemisphere we are heading into winter and it has been raining all week. It has now progressed to rainy and windy with a current temp of 5.9 deg C with a wind chill factor of -6 deg C! and I went for a RUN – all 14 mins of it, but small victories!!!
    Anyway, gained 500grams this week, making a total gain of 1.7kgs in 3 weeks! I need to do something, I was so close to my goal a few weeks ago and not anymore. I just want to hibernate and eat yummy comforting food. But God is in control of the weather, I need to remember to be in control of what I eat rather than just eating on auto-pilot, to be deliberate. Will see how that goes next week.
    Take care!

  2. Out of the mouths of babes…I had gotten ready for my sculpting class and walked out of my bedroom and met my 5-year-old grandson in the hallway. He stops in his tracks with his eyes wide open and says, “Grandma, you’ve lost weight!” Now if he can notice it I must be doing something right. The scale isn’t moving, but my clothes are definitly fitting better.

    On Thursdays it’s cinnamon roll day at work and I thought I’d have one, but went to the bathroom first. On the way I thought, “Yes, you can have one, but do you need one?” Needless to say I went straight to my desk instead of the cafeteria. Small victories!

    Another thought after reading the posts today, “If God can forgive me, why can’t I forgive myself?”

    Have a great week!

  3. Just came across this website. I need to lose about 30 lbs. I can’t believe I ever allowed myself to get to this place—ugh! My husband lost his job about 3 yrs ago and we had to move with his new one–children are out of the house now and I didn’t know a soul—spent alot of time with my new bestfriend-FOOD :( so much more difficult to make friends when you no longer have your children to help open those doors through their relationships– I am going to try to find the time to catch up on some of the posts–love the website!!

  4. I received a compliment this week……A lady I see on a regular basis said, “You are getting your figure back”….Yes!

    Still taking baby steps to eat better and exercise.

  5. I went to an family wedding out of town and gained half a pound. I did go to zumba tonight! fun fun. I need to write in a food journal. next week I will tell you how I did. take care Ladies.

  6. I’m with you! My husband and I had a “date night” last Friday – the first in a very long time. It felt like it took forever to order my food – trying to be healthy, but not finding much to work with! I finally just decided to ask for half of it to go before I even got started – and got the soup to go, too. Then we got one dessert to share, and went with the cheesecake. Not sure how that stacks up calorie-wise compared to the delectable chocolate things that were calling to me, but whatever. And THEN, I worked on Sat. and my husband made bbq ribs for me. I ate one. And it was delish….So there I was feeling pretty good about my choices, but had lunch out with a friend yesterday for our shared birthday celebration (which was in December, and that shows you how we are all too busy), and it all went out the window. I know I overdid it – so I am saying “restart” on the eating thing. On the other hand, I’ve been keeping up with exercising. We have been experiencing temps much higher than is usual for this time of year in Michigan, so I decided on Monday that I would go out and do my walk/jog at 6 am. As long as I’m back by 7 when hubby leaves for work, this is do-able. He’s agreed to get the child ready for school, and the youngest is now done with preschool for the year, so she is sleeping in a bit. I think I’ve only missed one day of exercise in the last week, so am happy about that. My weight is up a bit from last week, though, but trying not to obsess about that. My birthday buddy asked me at lunch yesterday if I’ve lost weight as she thinks I look thinner. (We don’t see each other nearly as much as we wish to.) That one comment seemed like a victory to me! Someone noticed that I’ve lost weight. It’s only been about seven pounds, but I’ll take noticeable.
    +1

  7. Thanking God for all His tender mercies and grace.
    This weekend I traveled to be with my mom. Her sodium and potassium went down and caused her to faint. She is out of ICU and waiting for MRI results for her shoulder & neck to come out.
    I appreciate your prayers.
    Even though I traveled and ate out, I obeyed!!! But l came home tired and ate an extra cup of chocolate Cereal and this morning I ate an extra serving of breakfast.
    I did exercise this morning and then I got carefree with food.
    Lunch went really well, though.
    Repent and forgive myself, too,
    obey little by little the more I do the stronger I’ll get to not run to food for comfort.
    Praying and looking forward to the benefits of the right choices:)

  8. A two pound weight loss for me this week. After the scale holding steady for several weeks, this is a nice drop.

    As for summer eating, what works for me is to take small portions and eat them slowly. And remember anything with protein will generally be more nutritious and also have “staying” power. I remember watching Martha Stewart’s show one time when someone asked her how she kept from gaining weight when she cooks and tastes all that delicious food. She replied that she only eats small amounts of it. Anyway, we all know that it is the first bite that tastes the best, especially those rich, delectable desserts, so after that we are just giving in to the stomach god.

    Another thing that works for me is to drink flavored water. My husband refuses it, but I think flavoring a glass of ice cold water with a few tablespoons of grape juice or pineapple juice is so refreshing.

    One last thing that helps is to try on a favorite outfit that is snug and see how much better it fits after a week or two. It gives me incentive to carry on.

  9. RESTART! sigh I decided not to weigh this week. I didn’t have a good weekend and it took me until today to regain control. I don’t really have advice, but I’m really with Amy V. I don’t do well if I have to deprive myself, so I’m hoping to pick a couple of things that i really want and eat small portions of them, while trying to fill up on healthier foods. I really do feel like I’m bringing more common sense to the table with me these days. I eat less, and can actually stop before I’m finished. Big accomplishments for me.

    I don’t like summer, I can’t stop sweating and I have seasonal allergies as well as allergies to bug bites. I mostly try to stay in doors, but we have a hospital with underground tunnel that is open to walkers, so we try to do our walking there most of the summer and harsh winter months. We should be able to walk outside until July and August. I just can’t bring myself to walk outside when it’s 100. Well ladies, keep up the good work and happy picnicing!!

  10. Hi~
    Yes, this time of year can be tempting….what with the picnics and ice cream. That being said, I guess my best advice is to NOT deprive yourself! I mean, it’s all about balance. I allow myself a hotfudge sundae from McDonalds once in a while. I crave chocolate-which makes things hard at family get togethers. What I do is try to make the best choices I can by taking a good look at what’s on the table. I make conscious choices; I don’t just spoon things on my plate without thinking about it. If you have to, pile on the veggies so there’s less room for that Snicker Salad!
    I’m an at-home exerciser (indoors with dvds) so weather’s never an issue. However, I do enjoy the outdoors so on decent days I will go for a walk/jog. I think interval training is really important, and there’s lots of ways to do it, so I try to focus on that.

  11. I’m down 4 pounds this week, and I’m excited! But I’ve been up and down a lot…SO hopefully I can keep up the good work, as I realized how much my body craves sweets when I have a terrible headache (I suffer from chronic migraines). I crave sweets anyway, especially chocolate, but it’s much WORSE when I’m in pain. I told myself the other day that, “The food won’t take away the pain. It will make you fat.” That really helped me!
    As far as picnics, I like to take small servings of different things, and then I get so caught up in talking that I don’t pig out. And I drink a lot (water or lemonade usually) when it’s so hot, so that keeps me full. And several trips to the bathroom can keep you burning calories with all that walking, ha!! :-)

  12. I weighed in this morning & the scale said 2 different numbers (about a 3lb difference)…so I said to heck w/it and went with the bottom number..LOL I’ve had an alright week. Went to the drive-in & splirged a little, got back on track only to fall off again on Sunday! But God is good and I’m back at it again. Please keep me in my prayers as I’m not able to exercise right now. I did something to my sciatic nerve (left leg) and it’s been giving me pain. The chiropractor told me to take it really easy & don’t do anything that would aggrivate it. So that basically means putting my feet up & doing NOTHING!!! Which is really hard when you have small kids. Today I’m feeling a lot better than yesterday & I haven’t taken any meds for the pain…so I believe I’m beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel! :-)

    I’ve hung up scriptures (The Lord is MY portion, therefore I will WAIT on Him. Lam 3:22-24) & a big question mark (which reminds me to ask myself if I’m really hungry) on my pantry, freezor & fridge. This helps me when I’m tempted to eat when I’m not hungry or helping me with my over eating. My goal this week is not to break over at all. We are going on vacation for July 4th and I’d like to lose as much as I can before we go.

    I haven’t really thought of cookouts, etc ’til now. However the other day I ran acrossed a grilled chicken salad & made it for my sis-in-laws birthday and it was a BIG hit! I think this will be my side dish when going to any gathering.

    Grilled Margarita Chicken Salad
    1/2 cup frozen (thawed) nonalcoholic margarita mix
    1/4 cup olive or vegetable oil
    2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
    4 boneless skinless chicken breasts (1 1/4 lb)
    6 cups bite-size pieces assorted salad greens
    1 cup sliced strawberries
    1 medium mango, peeled, pitted and sliced
    1 medium avocado, peeled, pitted and sliced
    1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

    1.Heat coals or gas grill for direct heat. To make dressing, in small bowl, stir margarita mix, oil and vinegar with wire whisk until well blended. Measure 1/4 cup dressing for basting chicken; reserve remaining dressing for serving.
    2.Cover and grill chicken over medium heat 15 to 20 minutes, turning and brushing occasionally with 1/4 cup dressing, until juice of chicken is no longer pink when centers of thickest pieces are cut.
    3.Cut chicken into slices. In large bowl, toss salad greens, chicken and strawberries; divide among 4 plates. Arrange mango and avocado around each salad. Sprinkle with cilantro. Drizzle with reserved dressing.

    Per Serving: Calories 460 (Calories from Fat 225 ); Total Fat 25 g (Saturated Fat 4 g); Total Carbohydrate 35 g (Dietary Fiber 6 g); Protein 29 g Exchanges: 2 Fruit; 1 Vegetable; 4 Medium-Fat Meat; 1 1/2 Fat

    Burger King’s Hershey Sundae Pie (light version)
    Chocolate crust (store bought or hershey crumb recipe)
    layer 1:
    8 Ounce Fat Free cream cheese
    3/4 c. powder suger
    8 Ounces Light or fat Free cool?whip
    1 Teaspoon vanilla
    Whip cheese till softened, add powdered sugar blend well, add remaining
    ingredients, blending well, place in crust
    layer 2:
    1 lg. box sugar free chocolate pudding
    Skim or Lowfat Milk
    Light or Fat Free cool?whip
    chocolate curls
    Make pudding as directed minus 1/2 c. milk.
    Add to pie. Top with more coolwhip and chocolate curls.

    Hopefully this helps someone! Love to all
    Treva

  13. I kept getting sidelines with my weight loss earlier in the year due to pesky illnesses (bronchitis, pneumonia). I’m finally getting back into the swing of things. My weigh-in day is actually tomorrow, but last week I love nearly 3lbs. I’m slowly increasing my exercise level and I’ve started a learn-to-run program.

    As for summer, I’ll probably still be in my long pants and sleeved shirts, but hopefully by the end of summer, I can break out in a cute dress or shorts.

  14. I have really struggled these past few days. But the Lord has truly been showing me some issues that remain. I need His grace moment by moment to be free from my struggle with food. Thanks for the place of encouragement.

  15. Praise God!! I lost one pound this past week. God is good and I’m focusing more on him than on food.

  16. Blessings ladies. I just wanted to check in and say that I feel this train is back on the track and slowing moving. I haven’t weighed in but I have picked up my water bottle again. I have also gone back to not eating after 8pm and portioning out everything.

    Have a great holiday weekend.

  17. We’ve started a Biggest Loser contest for this summer at work, so I had to pay to join, in addition to paying $1 for every pound you gain. Weigh in’s are on Mondays (what a way to start the week). I want to win that $300…This is definitely going to be motivation to me to pay attention to what I eat.
    I started working out again on my Wii Fit Plus (which is a good alternative to the yucky heat). I did 30 minutes on that and then went for a 1 mile walk. I will be happy if I can do that 3 more times this week. The Wii scale says I’ve gained 3 lbs, but not sure where because everything is still loose. I’ve decided not to worry about it. :)

  18. Summer and family get togethers are really difficult! A fun recipe that is only 1 weight watcher point per serving is to mix one can of light cherry pie filling with your favorite fresh fruit, such as sliced bananas, sliced apples, etc. It’s not only a pretty dish, it’s also very good!

    I love, love, love to snack. It helps me to have snacks prepared before the urge hits. I’ve fixed snack bags with measured amounts of almonds, pickles, etc.

    I am determined to get this weight off, yet I really dislike exercise. That is my goal this week…just to simply start excercising.

  19. I’m with you! My husband and I had a “date night” last Friday – the first in a very long time. It felt like it took forever to order my food – trying to be healthy, but not finding much to work with! I finally just decided to ask for half of it to go before I even got started – and got the soup to go, too. Then we got one dessert to share, and went with the cheesecake. Not sure how that stacks up calorie-wise compared to the delectable chocolate things that were calling to me, but whatever. And THEN, I worked on Sat. and my husband made bbq ribs for me. I ate one. And it was delish….So there I was feeling pretty good about my choices, but had lunch out with a friend yesterday for our shared birthday celebration (which was in December, and that shows you how we are all too busy), and it all went out the window. I know I overdid it – so I am saying “restart” on the eating thing. On the other hand, I’ve been keeping up with exercising. We have been experiencing temps much higher than is usual for this time of year in Michigan, so I decided on Monday that I would go out and do my walk/jog at 6 am. As long as I’m back by 7 when hubby leaves for work, this is do-able. He’s agreed to get the child ready for school, and the youngest is now done with preschool for the year, so she is sleeping in a bit. I think I’ve only missed one day of exercise in the last week, so am happy about that. My weight is up a bit from last week, though, but trying not to obsess about that. My birthday buddy asked me at lunch yesterday if I’ve lost weight as she thinks I look thinner. (We don’t see each other nearly as much as we wish to.) That one comment seemed like a victory to me! Someone noticed that I’ve lost weight. :) It’s only been about seven pounds, but I’ll take noticeable.

  20. A great question on how to handle picnics and potlucks. We just got an invitation to the family pig roast in July. I’ll be showing up with a plan (as well as a dessert or side dish). My plan will be to make good choices and maybe some not so good choices too. I’ll be very disciplined the day before and the day after. I’ve learned to forgive myself when I indulge in a yummy big meal and make better, more healthy choices the next day.

    One thing I’ve noticed about summer is that it kind of kills my appetite. I don’t like hot weather so when I’m outside eating, I tend to eat less anyway. Case in point, today is supposed to be 91 degrees here. I am thankful for air conditioning!

    I had a good week and lost 1 lb. Still drinking lots of water and walking on my treadmill (with the fan full blast) 5 to 6 days per week. I’m not an outdoor exercise type of girl.

    I’m hopeful that others write out good side dish recipes so I can try something new on the family. :)

  21. Still hanging in there. I have found that sugar is not so much my problem. My problem is fatening food and how much of it I eat. This is the beast I must tackle now. For so many years I have ignored the signal that my brain is sending to stop eating. I usually don’t stop until I am miserable. I’m going to have to pray for the Holy Spirit to scream, stop now!! And then listen. Do you have any advice on how to start to listen to that signal and heed it?

  22. I also have trouble tracking. It goes good for a couple days, then I don’t do it. I found an app for my iTouch which I can use wherever there is WiFi so maybe that will help. I’m where I was last week on the scale after bouncing around. I haven’t been able to keep food away from my mouth for a couple days. I think it’s stress since I am learning new responsibilities at work and it’s not going too well. A Bible Study friend did notice my weight loss last week which made me REALLY EXCITED! I would so apprecaite a prayer for continued discipline and strength.

  23. I’ve found in my own struggles that keeping a food diary is one of the most powerful tools you can have. BUT, I always felt like a dork toting a book or pamphlet around and writing in it in public. It seemed to inspire curiosity and questions everywhere I opened it and not that I had anything to hide, but I found the questions to be intrusive. My solution? I found a fabulous app for my phone that tracks what I eat (calories used and remaining) from a huge database, tracks my progress and exercise. It really helps!!

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