HELLLOO everybody! My name is Erin and I'm so excited to start this diary because it seems like such a great way to stay motivated which is a BIG problem of mine. as you all know it's october which is my bday month (turning 21 this year :] ) so I thought what better time than now to start? I currently weigh about 142 and I'm 5'2". I've been wanting to lose about 20 lbs. and tone up which I have "started" to do a few times but like I said I can't seem to stay motivated. I'm in less than good shape and just want to be fit and healthy!

SO..yesterday I stopped all bad eating habits and have been going for healthier choices which will definitely be lifestyle change that I believe is key on the road to health. NO more soda, pizza, candy..you know, all that good stuff.

I did have a gym membership which I used every once in a while but that will be ending since I was on my brothers plan which he paid for and he's deploying soon so he's cancelling it and I def. can't afford it right now so it's all up to ME! which isn't horrible I know i can do it! I'm planning on running, free weights, and a few good and fun exercise dvds. I heard that the dallas cowboy cheerleader workout dvds are great and I'd LOVE to try them.

Anyway, I look forward to talking with you all and I'd like to say thank you all for the inspiration that your diaries gave me!

Hey Erin! Welcome to the forum You made the right choice in staring a journal on here... I have found it very helpful to make one and have been keeping up on it everyday for the past month! The people and their stories shared on here are very motivational and have been a great inspiration for me. I know they will be for you as well We are somewhat close in age/height/weight (well, NOW in weight.. I started out at 156! eek! be happy that you aren't starting from the 150s!) I'm also a year younger and 2 inches taller, haha! BUT.... close enough!!!

You can definitely meet your goals - don't sell yourself short! It will take time but it WILL happen if you stick with it!

Good luck! I will keep up with your journey and feel free to read through mine! My journal is called, "Inspired, motivated, and READY!!!" Check it out

~ Sarah

Hey Sarah! Thanks for the welcome It's awesome to have someone similar in age/height/weight to share stories with! Congrats on the weight loss so far! I'll definitely be checking out your journal.

so here's a little recap of my food intake from yesterday and so far today:

yesterday breakfast- cinnamon and spice oatmeal with 1/4 cup milk
lunch-chicken lean pocket
snack #1-banana
snack #2-a few tortilla chips with lean turkey lunch meat and monterey jack cheese (no specific amounts just a small snack)
dinner- half a pork chop, about 3/4 cup of peas, and a small amount of potatoes

this morning for breakfast I had a whole wheat english muffin with about a teaspoon of peanut butter and not even half a cup of coffee with milk. I'm craving a california roll so I'm thinking that for lunch

I know my eating is nowhere near perfect (but it's better than it was) and if you have any input or advice I'd love to hear it! I'd like to start eating only whole foods nothing pre-packaged or processed just REAL food. I'm going to the mall today with my sister and her daughter so I'll be doing quite a bit of walking there and then I'll be going for a run later. I'm not sure of the distance yet maybe just as far as I can since I haven't run in a while. Then I'm thinking about playing some racquetball with my cousin later<--SO fun! I can't wait to build up my stamina and endurance as I'd love to do a 5k or something similar in the near future.

Well I'm off to check out some more of your journals!

SO yesterday I had a bit of a setback with my food. I went to olive garden with my sister and cousin (my WEAKNESS!) and it didn't help that i was STARVING . anyway i kind of indulged but i only ended up going a little bit over my daily calories which is 1200 but it was bad food and i feel totally guilty. ahh oh well time to get back on track it happens. RIGHHT??

anywho heres my food from yesterday:
breakfast: whole wheat english muffin with PB
lunch(6 hours later BAD IDEA): 2 breadsticks, a few bites of toscana soup, and about 3/4 a plate of spinach and artichoke dip
blaaahhh
dinner: 1 cup of white rice,carrots,broccoli,and teryaki chicken

total calories: about 1370

despite my horrible eating choices i did get a good and fun workout in.

30 mins. racquetball (that game is INTENSE)
ran 2 laps around my cousins apartment complex not quite sure of the distance but i was definitely sweating!
some arms and a little bit of legs on machines. i need to find out the actual names of them because if i try to explain it i'll just sound dumb lol. So my workout wasn't too crazy but i'm just starting and i'm not in the best shape so i'm starting small.

HOPE YOU ALL HAVE A GREAATTT DAY!

so i thought i'd stop in really quick to log my food for the day. it's been helping me make better choices knowing i'm coming here to type it all out later lol.

breakfast: whole wheat english muffin w/ PB
lunch: 1 1/2 cups of the rice/veggie/chicken leftovers
snack #1: light strawberry banana yogurt
snack #2: apple
dinner: turkey sandwich on whole wheat w/ only mustard and some dorito type chips =/

it's getting a little difficult with my dad buying halloween candy, mom buying pumpkin ice cream, and my sister sitting there eating panda express and offering me her leftovers but im resisting!!

alright now i'm off for a little run!

Your food log looks great! And good idea with JUST mustard on the sandwich... idk what brand you use but I put French's classic yellow mustard on my sandwiches and it has 0 calories! Thanks for stopping by my journal and for your encouragement.. I appreciate it! Keep up the good work! Have a great weekend!

Hi Baby e, I was just looking through your journal. It is so hard not to eat bad (but oh so tasty) foods. I have an obsession with McDonald's myself :P One thing that I have found very helpful is to make my own snacks. I bake every Sunday for the week, usually muffins or a loaf. I use only WW flour, very little sugar (brown sugar) and pureed fruit and veggies. My loaf this week was pumpkin, with pureed pumpkin, cauliflower, carrot and banana. I also put in ground flax for the omega-3's. My kids LOVE them. There are so many possibilities. I use the cookbook "Deceptively Delicious" by Jessica Seinfield. Another thing I've started doing is making "green" smoothies. I blend up all my friut and veggies the night before and then we have it for breakfast... even my 6 yr old likes them. I noticed your not eating a lot of fruit or veggies so that might be a way to help get them in. Sounds like you've got a great attitude though and that's really half the battle. Good luck and have fun!!!

thelast20- thank you so much for the tips! i love to make my own food but i just never know where to start. i don't know how many times i've bought ground flax and flax seeds and had no idea what to do with it! i guess i should get myself a cookbook

heyy all.

i'm getting so frustrated! i'm in the process of moving and it's been pretty difficult to keep up with eating and much more so with exercise. that's why i've been m.i.a for the last few days i've just been so busy! i'm saving my first weigh in for until i'm completely done with all of the chaos and have had time to get back on track.

maybe i'm just being sensitive but i feel like i'm not being taken seriously here. i see other journals getting so much love and support after one post! maybe it's just the way i'm coming off or something. oh well i'll just focus on what i'm here for and try to stay motivated. i would just love some advice as i really have no idea what i'm doing. ugh sorry for the rant. i'll come back later when i'm less stressed out.

I know exactly how you feel. No one was commenting or supporting on my diary at all for a while... so I started reading other peoples, and anyone who I could relate, had a similiar story/goals, or I thought I could help I started commenting on and then they will comment on mine. If your at all like me, (alittle self concious), it's hard not to take it personaly. It'll come... and I'm here

Very smart to wait untill after the move. We just moved in July and I know how stressful it is. Don't beat yourself up over it b/c it'll just add more stress!! Take care of yourself first!!

you're right i'm def. a little self concious and i'm just letting it get to me. i've been reading other journals but i need to get out there and start commenting and hopefully get some love back! until then i'll just de-stress and focus on the task at hand.

I felt the same way when I wasn't getting many responses in my journal. I felt like maybe no one cared to read it, or maybe my story wasn't as interesting as others, BUT.... WHO CARES?!?! It is YOUR journal and what matters is YOUR thoughts and feelings. Feedback is always great though (it's nice to have that encouragement from others!) It is a good idea to leave responses in other diaries... people will usually get back to you Plus the more you update it, the more your diary will show up at the top of the list so more people will see it and read it

Don't feel discouraged... I read your journal

~ Sarah

Hi Erin,

I just moved in June and found that it in itself was a work-out! All the lifting and cleaning - turn some music up and enjoy it! I went to the grocery store the morning of the move and bought stuff to make some healthy sandwiches, got some fruit and stocked up on the bottled water so we weren't tempted to order pizza and drink beer.
If you don't have a cookbook there are numerous recipes on the web you could research - I usually write out a couple and then go grocery shopping to get what I need. If I don't have time to go grocery shopping I throw together all the leftovers or odds and ends in the fridge together in a salad. There doesn't always have to be lettuce in salads. I find as long as I'm stocked up on good food I'm not as tempted to eat the bad stuff.
If you plan on going out to eat check the website of the restaurant first online to find out the nutritional content - sometimes what looks like the healthy choice isn't always the case.
Your doing fine - don't get discouraged. As long as you are updating - we are reading so keep it up!