March Madness!!

-0.8 Pounds

Current Weight: 159.4 lb

Two week update! Let me tell you, I'm happy to see the 150's, soooooooo happy. 

Last week, I was actually 159.2, but with the week I've had this week, I'll take the only .2 pound gain. Because, as much as I want to lose this weight to be healthy and feel good, it's good to remember your body is here for a purpose and some days that purpose isn't getting in a workout, and some days you just have to make it through and a few cookies are the thing that help you do it. 

And that  you can't obsess over every piece of food you eat, because at the end of this life, no one is going to remember if I took an extra two months to lose the last five pounds of baby weight, but I'll remember the experiences I shared with my little family during this time.

That said, with swimming lessons starting for Austin in May, both Ben and I are hoping to be down at least another five pounds by then to feel more comfortable getting into bathing suits (Side note: I need to buy a new one piece suit. I've seen some Speedos at Costco for a good deal, but maybe just a cheap one from Old Navy??). Ben is doing weight watchers with me, and down about eleven pounds himself, go Ben!

Honestly once the first day of lessons arrives though, I think our self consciousness will go out the window. as we'll be dealing with the madness of getting a little guy, plus ourselves, ready for lessons in a locker room,  and we'll only be focused on the task at hand. I am so, SO excited to get Austin the pool, as he's already a water loving maniac in the bathtub at home.

Another big victory for me today was putting on a pair of per-pregnancy jeans. Yes, they're loaded with stretch, and I may feel like a stuffed sausage by 3:00 p.m., but I did it!

Rocking the jeans and both Austin and I rocking our Gopher gear to cheer on the U of M against UCLA in the big dance tonight. Tomorrow, we'll switch it up into Gonzaga gear for Dad's team.

Speaking of Minnesota, we have visitors here this weekend, and we're taking a shopping trip in Georgetown at some point. I'm already pumped to get a cupcake from Georgetown Cupcake (who has a lot of new gluten free varieties!) or Sprinkles. Whoever has the shortest line (I'm guessing Sprinkles).

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Weight Loss and Gain with Celiac Disease

More than anything else I've wrote about, I get a lot of e-mails from people who stumble upon my post about being diagnosed with celiac, and have either been diagnosed with themselves, or think they have celiac and have the atypical symptom of not being able to lose weight like I did.

Then I get the usual question, "were you able to drop the extra weight once you were diagnosed with celiac and stopped eating gluten?"

The answer is yes, and no.

As I spoke about when I first went on Weight Watchers early in 2012 before I got pregnant, I wasn't being great with healthy habits after I was diagnosed.

Initially after going gluten free, I lost the bloat in my abdomen, and from my what my GI doctor told me, it was because my intestines were no longer constantly irritated, although it would take quite awhile for them to be at a normal state like a non-celiac sufferer. I also lost a few pounds, and was feeling good.

However, I fell into a trap of eating quite a few gluten free substitute foods. Things I thought I HAD to try, because I couldn't have the normal version, so I needed to take advantage of having a gluten free option. There were a few things, I never would have eaten the normal version of anyway, but then felt the need to have the gluten free version because the forbidden fruit aspect of things suddenly made those foods more appealing. For instance, Glutino's version of Oreos and Fudge Sticks.

Gluten Free Snacks, Source

And, although many people mistake gluten free to = healthy, that isn't always the case, especially when it comes to sweets. These snacks are loaded with sugar and butter to make up for the lack of gluten taste, and often made with Rice flour, that has little nutritional value, but is a true belly filler.

The point of this post is to hopefully answer the question for people who do come to this space looking for answer on whether you do lose weight after a celiac diagnosis, and the answer is yes, you can. However, you still have to watch what you eat (unless you're one of the very rare, lucky ones, who never have to do that) and make good choices, and keep your activity level up. But, hopefully with a healthy lifestyle, and the right diagnosis, you can be feeling better than you have in a long time. 
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On the Verge of the 150's

-3.6 Pounds

Current Weight: 160.2 lb

This is a two weeks update, as I missed last week, not because I had a gain and didn't want to post (the opposite actually happened), but because I've just been so darn busy. Over the past two weeks I've lost 3.6 pounds, and couldn't be happier. Last week, I was surprised to see a .4 pound weight loss, since the week before I had lost 3.2 pounds, but something was working in my favor. 

I'm hoping to see the 150's when I weigh in this Friday, but we shall see. Baby Cush and I are both suffering from minor head colds that irritate us more when we're trying to sleep. I got in a run Saturday, while Ben walked with the little guy on the trails, of 3.2 miles, then walked another mile with them. 

Disappointing, as the last two weeks I've had invigorating runs on Saturdays, and this weekend my goal was to do five miles that day as I train for my Ten Mile and Half Marathon, but it wasn't going to happen with how I felt, even with gorgeous, 50 degree and sunny weather. Next week, I've committed to run six miles with Lynn to make sure I get it in, even if she has to drag me down the trail.

What's really saving my ass I believe, is meal planning. I pack my lunch nearly every day for work, and create lists for the grocery store based on meals I want to make. Plus, I have the best grocery shopping assistant!

He's become obsessed with holding things, so while navigating Trader Joes just him and I this weekend, and little room in the cart because of his car seat, I thought, "Why not let him check out the goat cheese and polenta?" He was eager to explore, and he'll be a little foodie before we know it, as he tried his first "solid" food with Oatmeal this weekend as well.

The above ingredients, helped add to this dish:

Polenta, Goat Cheese, Sun Dried Tomato Chicken Sausage and Red Sauce, 7 Points Plus

In my usual fashion, I made a double batch of what I made for dinner last night, with a portion for lunch the next day to help make eating healthy and affordable at lunch easier. I have the attitude now that if I'm putting in the effort to cook, it has to be a portion for more than one meal. 

This was SO good, and pretty easy. I think I'll make it again later this week. I use the term "easy" pretty loosely, because meals that some people call easy, now that I'm working and parenting full time, are NOT easy at all on weeknights.

I'd love to hear others easy recipes, however, as I'm always looking to spice up my selection. I think I've started to reach my limit on eating soups and chili's that I make large batches of and freeze. 

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