Nutrisystem Week 2: Challenges & Successes

“It’s not that some people have willpower and some don’t. It’s that some people are ready to change and others are not.” – James Gordon

I told you guys about my big news the other day – I am officially a member of the Nutrisystem Nation! I could not be more excited about this – I know that this is the solution that I’ve been needing for quite awhile now. I shared the basics of the program with you last time, and now I’ll catch you up on my progress so far, since I’ve gotten just a bit behind on posting the past 2 weeks.

“If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude. Don’t complain.” – Maya Angelou

I have never had much trouble with my weight. Yes, it’s crept over the years after turning 21, but was still in a healthy range. Then it happened – I found out I was having a baby! I had dealt with 3 previous miscarriages over the previous 3 years, so I was – as you can imagine – very nervous. I wanted to make sure I was making choices to be as healthy as I possibly could! I started a prenatal yoga program, and was eating the healthiest foods I’d ever eaten. I even – GASP!! – stopped drinking coffee, cold turkey, the day I found out. But even with all of my new changes to my life – at about 6 months I had a checkup, and learned that I had already gained over FIFTY pounds. Ohmyheck. They had me tested for gestational diabetes and a few other lovely things, but all was negative. I was just going to be a big ol’ momma!! My own mom gained over 60 pounds during all 4 pregnancies, and she’s a tiny little thing. So I guess it’s just in our genes. But now – that baby weight is still filling out my JEANS!! Abby is 19 months old, and I still have 40 pounds of baby weight to lose. Yikes.

“Little by little does the trick.” – Aesop

During my first week of Nutrisystem, I’ll admit – I was pretty hungry. Mostly it was because it was a big change for me to eat smaller meals much more often – and it took awhile for me to really find a pattern of when to eat those meals, so that I’d feel full. You get a great little book to help you track everything that you eat – so I also marked down each day which times I was feeling super hungry. By week 2, I was into a good rhythm, and finding it much easier to stick to the plan. These are the pieces of the program that are easiest for me:

Drinking enough water. I don’t drink soda, and am used to chugging down tons of water. Nutrisystem provides you with a big 32 oz. water bottle, and you’re encouraged to drink at least two of those a day. I drink 4 :)
Eating the mini-meals. I have IBS, so I often suffer from tummy troubles. Switching to the smaller meals, spaced throughout the day, has done wonders to help me manage this. I feel SO much better.
Dessert is included. Without this, I’d probably end up cheating! But, with a perfectly portioned dessert choice each night, I don’t feel deprived. Love it!

There are also a few areas of the plan that challenge me a bit. I can tell that it’s going to get easier to follow the longer I stick with it, and build better habits. But these are my current trouble spots:

Portion Control. I had NO idea that I was eating such oversize portions! No wonder I have taken off more weight. It’s been kind of tough to get used to the smaller portion sizes, but I love that it’s teaching me what a realistic meal should look like.
Dinner time. I do fine on the plan all day – But dinner does get a little tough. I live in a big household filled with people – And when my brother is cooking a big taco night dinner, or my Mister is grilling up his amazing steaks, it is SO tough to not have a bite!

I admit it, I did fall off track, just a little bit, a couple nights. But – I was honest with myself, wrote it down in my tracking notebook, and tried to make up with it the next day by having one less snack. I know next week will be even better!

“Every day, in every way, I am getting better and better.” – Emilie Coue

Here’s that moment of truth I talked about…. Yep, I got brave enough to post my starting weight on the internet. Wow. {No mean comments!!} But, I feel like sharing this super embarrassing weight will help keep me motivated to stay on track! Our scale isn’t exactly the most accurate, so I’m going to buy a new one this weekend – {suggestions welcome in the comments!.} But I did take full measurements, and am tracking those in the totally amazing online support system from Nutrisystem, so I’ll be able to see if there are big changes. Wait – Not “If”, “WHEN” I see big changes!! I can do this.