Mamavation Monday: Week Two

Leah announced the Mamavation Mom finalists this morning and sadly I'm not one of them. But I am super excited for the women who are - they totally deserve it and I know they're going to do a great job. They're all incredibly driven and I can't wait to see what happens in the campaign. Anyone can vote for them by going here - no signing up, just check out the voting widget in the sidebar.

Mamavation Week One went very well for me. My weight this week is 228.8. Last week I weighed 232.4 so I lost 3.6 pounds which I am incredibly excited about - especially after the holiday weekend! My goal for this month (July) is to lose at least 1 pound a week, if not more.

I did okay with food this week. I tried to eat smaller portions and not eat for no reason - which I have been known to do a time or two, or seven or ten. When I go to grab something to eat, I'm trying to think am I really hungry or am I just wanting to eat because (fill in with whatever reason)? I had a party Friday night and did very well - I only ate a few cookies and some cheeseball. This week I'm going to focus on counting calories in the things I eat and aiming for 1200 - 1300 a day. This week also continues my no pop/soda kick! Week One went okay - I had a mild headache here and there but nothing a lot of water didn't fix.
My Aunt gave me a cookbook this weekend which I actually had been wanting since I read a blurb about it in a magazine - Deceptively Delicious by Jessica Seinfeld. It's chock full of ideas and recipes to make healthy food appealing to kids. I especially like it because you pretty much just sneak the veggies in wherever you can - which will be good not only for the kids but ME! I'm a not a great veggie eater but if they're snuck in there and good for me I think that will work out great. :)

Exercise for this week varied. I swam with the kids a day or two and even ran in the pool which lemme tell ya, that is a workout and a half! The kids and I also went for several long walks in the evening - we walked around our block and up this long stretch of road by our house. I had a party on Friday evening so I did a ton of cleaning. It's surprising how much exercise you can get from cleaning - especially if you do bending and stretching while you're vacuuming, picking things up, etc.

In a recent Mamavation post, Leah talked about us needing a Fit Friend.

This is the job of your Fit Friend:
1. To check in with you every other day to see how you are doing.
2. To hold your feet to the fire and ask you about your nutrition and exercise.
3. To encourage you and help you find solutions to the challenges you face.
4. To establish a mentor or friend relationship with you.
5. To continue this relationship for about 8 months. (7 week boot camp plus 6 months afterward.)

Leah also mentioned that even if you're not chosen for Mamavation, this is still a good thing to have and that they should NOT be from your family. I totally understand that because family is always going to love you and I think can sometimes be easier on you than what you really need. I thought of a few people when I read this but before I go ask anyone, I thought I would go ahead and put it out there to see if anyone thought they fit that description and would like to help me out! If so feel free to leave a comment or shoot me an email!