Chris's New Year's Resolutions

2019 is my year. I can feel it. I’m getting married in September, and that’s already a huge change, so I might as well tackle everything else as well. I’m done with saying that every year, then panicking in July because I’ve actually gained 15 pounds instead of losing 20. No more excuses and procrastination, I’m taking 2019 by the horns.

First off is getting my finances in order. I was in college through my early to mid 20s, and I lived like a college student, spending my money on drinks and fun, without ever thinking of the consequences. Now that I work full time, I’m ready to get things sorted out. My goal is to set an appointment with a financial advisor by the end of January, and start getting things in order. I want to start putting a bit of money aside for a house, and start paying off my credit card and student loan debt.

Second is finally getting my life and home organized. My plan is to write down everything I need to do each day the night before, so I can keep it all in order and get it all done. I have huge memory issues, so I’m hoping this will help me out. I also want to get my house organized. We moved into our house in April, and I unpacked the important boxes, and then every single other thing got stuffed into our spare bedroom, still in boxes. Every couple of months, I go in there and unpack approximately two things, and then I get fed up with the space and leave. No more. I’m over this waste of space. A smaller goal of mine is to finally buy a desktop computer, and I want to clear out the room and turn it into an office with a computer and makeup desk as the centerpiece.

Not my photo. From Paper Magazine.

One goal that may seem crazy, but is totally doable, is walking 3 million steps this year. That may seem like a lot, but it’s actually only 8000 or so steps a day. I can do this. I’m going to keep track of how many steps I walk a day in a spreadsheet, and then add it up at the end of the year. I’ll let you know how this goes at the end of 2019.

My last goal ties into the one before. This is to finally shed 40 pounds. I rejoined Weight Watchers, and I’ve lost 10 pounds this past month. I want to lose another 40 by December 31^st of next year. Along with Weight Watchers, I also belong to a gym, and I’m going to make a concerted effort to actually use the membership. I was up until December, but then work got crazy, and I dropped off the planet. Planey Fitness, that is! Hahahaha I’m hilarious. I also want to get to a place where I can say I’m mentally healthy. I struggle with depression and anxiety, but this year I want to try to calm the firestorm in my head. I’m not really sure what the plan is for that yet, but I’ll get there.

So this is the plan for 2019. I can do this. I will do this! Let me know what your New Year’s resolutions for 2019 are in the comments below!

Weight Watchers and Me

For me, Weight Watchers was always something that my aunt, mom, and grandma used intermittently, with no real plan, beyond general weight loss, and I don’t remember them actually going to meetings or being really actively involved. I do remember being fascinated by this booklet my mom had that listed the points value for a bunch of different fast foods. My weird goal was always to try to find the food with the highest points value. I didn’t realize that the goal was for it to be low.

Fast forward to me at 27 years old. I was at 224, just ten pounds below the highest weight I’ve ever been at. I work in an office, and all I did was bus to work, sit at my desk, eat a bunch of snacks, get up, bus home, eat an incredibly unhealthy dinner, and lay in bed until it was time to go to sleep. My clothes were too tight, my breathing was more labored by the week, and I was constantly breaking out. In general, I felt like garbage. About a month before, my aunt had rejoined Weight Watchers, and had been having some success. I figured I didn’t have anything to lose, so I decided to join as well, on February 1^st of this year.

Let me tell you that this is not your mommas Weight Watchers. Whereas before, I thought it was all about restriction, I now realize that it’s about making weight loss work for you. I routinely eat chicken nuggets and fish fingers, spaghetti, fried rice, and garlic butter smothered veggies while on WW. I’ve simply found ways to make what I like work for the plan. Instead of eating store bought chicken nuggets and fish fingers, I crust them in a little bit of bread crumbs and drizzle them with a tablespoon of margarine, and for spaghetti, I just spaghetti squash instead of pasta.

I’ve also learnt to eat the things I want, but in moderation. I love to eat green beans in garlic butter, but now I’m actually paying attention to portion size and using probably a third of the garlic butter. I’m also exploring low calorie desserts, such as this great fudge brownie frozen yogurt that’s sold at FreshCo (for Canadians). I get the same great flavor as a big bowl of ice cream, for way less points and calories, as long as I stick to the serving size. Another great tip is to stir chia seeds into low fat yogurt. Let it sit for a few hours, and the yogurt thickens, leaving you with a super low point, but still thick and delicious, yogurt.

Being a WW member has also made me more aware of fitness. There’s no point in eating really healthy, then staring at Netflix for hours. I might as well get out and make diet and exercise work together for optimal results. I’ve been walking more, and trying to do a bit of yoga. I plan on adding in bike rides once the snow is gone, along with tennis, which my fiancé loves, but I haven’t gotten that into yet. I also got a new Fitbit, and it really helps keep me accountable with my steps.

All told, I’ve lost 14 pounds, and I’m feeling great. My pants fit a little looser, I’m feeling more awake and alert, and I’m having a great time coming up with new recipes, and finding ones online. As I write this, I’m waiting for a friend to come over for a dinner of chicken and shrimp skewers with a side of roasted brussell sprouts and pan fried green beans, followed by Jell-O sundaes and a walk. My favourite sites for healthy and WW recipes are skinnytaste.com  and www.drizzlemeskinny.com  . Both have been great sources of inspiration on my healthy eating journey.

I’m going to leave you with one of my all time favourite Weight Watchers recipes, which my grandma has been making for as long as I can remember. Let me know your favourite healthy recipe, or healthy lifestyle tip, in the comments below!

WEIGHT WATCHER'S KEY LIME PIE

INGREDIENTS

·         1 reduced fat graham cracker crust

·         1 (1/16 ounce) package sugar-free lime gelatin

·         ¼ cup boiling water

·         1 (8 ounce) container fat-free whipped topping

·         2 (6 ounce) key lime pie yogurt

INSTRUCTIONS

1.    In a large bowl, dissolve gelatin in boiling water.

2.    Stir in yogurt with wire whisk.

3.    Fold in whipped topping with wooden spoon.

4.    Spread in crust.

5.    Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.