MyFitnessPal.com

I might be a little late with this one... but have you heard of MyFitnessPal.com? I just created my profile and started journaling my food in there today... IT ROCKS!... I'm still going to paper journal and count my points for a bit... but I know several people who have been doing the MFP.com program and have been losing like crazy! 12 pounds in a month, 30 pounds in 2 months, etc.

My name is DietSodaDiva on there... check out my profile. I'll be updating my profile - huh, one day... you know I've been bad with blogging for a while now. My goal is to lost 35lbs total.

I'm super excited about this site... :o)

Go check it out!

WW Bake Goods Recipes

Can you tell I've been cleaning out my Weight Watcher folders... I'll be posting tons of goods in the next couple of weeks... links, recipes, information, etc... hope you'll find most of it helpful.

Here's a good site: http://www.angelfire.com/journal/wwrecipes/sweets.htm#Brownies

I want to try the brownie recipes out soon...

Recipecal.com

I was going through some old folders on my computer and found a link to this website... I thought it could be helpful... the site allows you to create your own recipes in order to determine their nutritional values. I haven't used the site yet, but am definitely going to check it out once I get some time to sit down and play with it a bit.

But check out it out and let me know what you think about it... Recipecal.com

Challenges, MeMe, Yesterday Review, and Weigh-In News - All In One Combo Post

CHALLENGES
I've decided to give challenges a try again... even though I completely fell out of Biggest Loser Blog Edition... sooo here are the challenges I've decided to join:

First challenge and the shortest... Jack Sh*t's Kick-Ass Half-Ass Half-A-Pound Challenge!

The second and a little more serious challenge... Amy's 15 Week Challenge.


I think I already met my half-pound goal for the first challenge... ooohhh yeah! I'm going to kick ass! The 15 Week Challenge is going to be a challenge but it's all good. It runs right along with my 33 by 33 Challenge so I know I'm going to kick butt in that challenge too!

MeMe
I was tagged by Jack Sh*t to do this MeMe... so here you go:

RULES
1.Respond and rework; answer the questions on your blog, replace one question that you dislike with a question of your invention & add one more question of your own.

2. Tag eight other people

What is your current obsession? Diet, Exercise, and my Apartment... right now.

What are you wearing today? Yoga Pants, Red Shirt with Blue Sports Bra

What’s for dinner? I had a cut of beans. I might have a banana smoothie before bed.

What’s the last thing you bought? A box of Splenda

What are you listening to right now? Vi tell me about her day and about some songwriter jocking her for her voice.

If you could go anywhere in the world for the next hour, where would you go? To spend it with Ross.

Which language do you want to learn? Italian

What do you love most about where you currently live? Huh, I'm not sure.

What is your favorite colour? Red

What is your favorite piece of clothing in your own wardrobe? My black 4inch heels.

Describe your personal style? That's a hard one.

If you had $300 now, what would you spend it on? Go to IKEA and pick up a few things.

What are you going to do after this? Probably make my smoothie and finish this entry.

Your favorite smell? Chocolate.

Do you collect anything? I collect everything.

What makes you follow a blog? Humor attracts me a lot.

What's your favorite kind of onion? Huh, Yellow?

What’s one thing you dream of doing? Reaching my goal weight.

What is your biggest regret? Not losing it sooner.

What is your favorite thing to do on a rainy day? Lay around and snuggle.

Do you have a tattoo? Nope.

What are your favorite books? Apartment Therapy, The Godfather, and I can't think of the name of the other one.

Are you left handed, right handed, ambidextrous, or a little of both? I'm a righty but can also do most things with my left.

Are you a big fan of memes? Huh, sometimes. Depends.

TAG YOU'RE IT! WHEN YOU POST THIS MeMe UP LEAVE ME A COMMENT... JUST IN CASE I MISS IT!
1. Hollie from SkinnyHollie.com
2. Sheila from One Pretty Little Box
3. Patty from The Small Stuff
5. Sarah from Back in Step
4. Graciela from 55 Alive and Losing It
6. Karen from Babyfat Go Bye-Bye
7. Andrea from A Cake for a Wife
8. and last but never least... Di from The Incredible Shrinking Family!


WEDNESDAY'S REVIEW
I did pretty good yesterday... I hit all my intake goals... got all my water in, dairy, fruits and vegetables, my multi, etc. I earned 4 activity points... and left 7 so I left a total of 11 points behind. My only regret from yesterday was having my banana smoothie so late in the day and drinking water after 5pm. I think I would of done a lot better at weigh-in today. It was another KICK ASS DAY! Another star on the books for me!

THIS WEEKS WEIGH-IN
I weighed in this morning - only being back on program since Monday... and weighed in at 190.0! I missed last weeks meeting, I made excuses but really I knew I had gained... so I don't know what I lost since last week... but since two weeks ago I lost .4 which is great. If you're going by my weight on Monday than I lost 1 pound! I KICKED ASS! And you know what is even better. My next weigh-in will be a full week of me on program so I should have a really nice loss!

TODAY'S REVIEW
Another great day, and a star on tomorrow's entry. I've reach all my goals, all I have left is 4 cups of water, and my multivitamin. I made a few mistakes today. Due to me going to a super early meeting I didn't have time to workout, so I didn't get my workout in until the evening time. I worked all day, and did some running around... so by the time I was able to sneak a workout in I was tired and unmotivated too... but I put my workout clothes on and got my butt out there. I did 1.61 miles... it's the worse time all this week... BUT I also did extra-hills so I think the hills effected my time. Either way I put some hustle into my workout and even though it's my slowest time I still feel great about it.

Well this entry turned out to be pretty long, so I'll cut it off here... Hope you all have a great successful OP day!

See you tomorrow...

It's All Too Much...

I'm currently in love with Peter Walsh's books... if you don't know who Peter Walsh is - he's the guy who is on Clean Sweep (or was... not sure if that show is still on, I've never actually seen it before)... he also comes on Oprah for her organizating segments.

I read his book "It's All Too Much"... it's about home organization...

This book is so good... very easy reading, helpful tips... etc... the book was so good I decided to check out some of his other books...

I'm currently reading... "Does This Clutter Make My Butt Look Fat" - I'm still at the beginning of the book but what he's saying make sense to me so far... he says that home clutter and body clutter is a similar problem... (body clutter - being overweight)... you eat and you over buy mostly for emotional reasons. I can't give the whole book away, you'll have to read it for yourself... but I have a feeling I will be sharing quite a bit from this book.

The following is from the book:



ORGANIZATION FOR HEALTHY LIVING

The move from chaos to calm is not impossible. When it comes to decluttering homes, I find myself telling people the same things over and over again. Common sense and a trust in your "inner voice" should be your guide. The same is true for weight loss.

CLUTTER PRINCIPLES

1. Decluttering your home is the first step toward living your ideal life.
2. Imagine the life you want and hold that idea in your mind as you work through the process.
3. Figure out what your goal is for a room. If an item doesn't serve that goal, get rid of it.
4. If you don't love it, use it, wear it, or have room for it, get rid of it. It's clutter.
5. That clutter didn't appear overnight and won't disappear overnight.
6. Live firmly in the present, not the past or the future. If you're holding on to things you don't use, figure out why. Memory? Home? Gift? Fear?
7. Break decluttering into small, manageable taskes.
   
8. If you don't make decluttering a way of life, the stuff will creep back into your home.
9. Decluttering teaches you how to verbaliaze what's important to you and to make choices based on those priorities.
10. Recognize and celebrate every aspect that's decluttered. It will motivate you to keep going.

Now check this out... it's the same list except for we switched the words clutter and decluttering with weight and weight loss...


FOOD-CLUTTER PRINCIPLES

1. Imagine the life you want and hold that idea in your mind as you work through the process.
2. Organizing where, how , and what you eat is the first step toward achieving your ideal body.
3. Figure out what your goal is for your body. If a food doesn't serve that goal, don't eat it.
4. If it isn't healthy, colorful, and part of your meal plan, don't eat it. it's junk.
5. The fat didn't appear overnight and won't disappear overnight.
6. Live in the present, not the past of the future. If you're eating for emotional reasons, figure out why. Anger? Despeair? comfort? Fear?
7. Focus on enjoying the next meal. don't let one mistake make you give up.
8. If you don't make mindful eating a way of life, the fat will creep back onto your butt.
9. Taking time to think out your meals teaches you how to verbalize what's important to you and to make choices based on those priorites.
10. Recognize and celebrate every meal you enjoy. It will remind you of the great things a meal provides, beyond just the food.

It's interesting to see the similarities between a cluttered home and a over weight (cluttered) body. I think Peter Walsh is on to something here...

Want more info about Peter Walsh or his books... check out his website at PeterWalshDesigns.com (http://www.peterwalshdesign.com/)

Emergen-C

As an adult, I've always had problems taking multivitamins... actually all vitamins except for children's and Vitamin C gave me stomach problems. Then a couple of years ago I was catching a cold and a friend of mine introduced me to Emergen-C...

It didn't bother my stomach, and even though it calms to give a boost of energy - it doesn't make me feel jumping or shaky(I tend to be sensitive to BOOSTS). But when I'm starting to feel sick I take two in a day and I start to feel better quicker. I use this as a multivitamin now... and I love it.

I've recommended this stuff to a couple of friends who have sense starting using it. This is not a paid endorsement, just me telling a friend (you) about something I like and you might like to try also.

Check out their website: http://www.emergenc.com you can send away for free samples of Emergen-C before you buy.

See that badge above? Have you seen it around on other blogs? Do you know what it is? The Biggest Loser and General Mills is teaming up for a pound for pound challenge.

From the words of Dude at WW - here's how it works: You pledge to lose a certain amount of weight and General Mills will donate 10 cents for every pound you lose to a local food bank. Apparently 10 cent for a food bank will be about a pound of food with the buying power they have.

I have pleaded to lose 20 pounds starting at 185.2. I can totally lose 20 pounds by May... hopefully I'll be down even more by then.

This is a great cause, and it's a great way for you to help out - volunteer (sort of) without really giving any time, and a way for you to donate without spending your money. Interested? Click the badge above for more information and to sign up... also Dude at WW (http://dudeatww.blogspot.com/) is also running his own challenge offering the same... 10 cents for every pound you lose... you can join his too.

Come on people let's lose some weight and help feed the hungry at the same time.

For Dude at WW's Challenge entry click this link: (http://dudeatww.blogspot.com/2009/01/pound-for-pound-challenge-to-help-feed.html)

I HEART WEIGHT LOSS BLOGS

Recently you might of noticed I changed the look of DietSodaDiva.com, it needed a facelift for 2009. I figured out some of the features I didn't know how to use before, like adding a poll, the followers feature... and my favorite the list of blogs I read. Previously the weight loss blogs I check on a daily basis were just linked to my site... several times a day I would check them all to see if there were any updates, having to click on every single link. Now that I added them to the blogs I read section, wow what a different. My smart blog tells me when they last updated and the title of there entry... genius! Now I don't have to waste time checking every single one for an update.

Now that I'm saving time I have time to read more blogs... so I've been steady adding more and more... I've removed a few that I don't read or I felt don't really stick to weight loss as much. I've been finding some FABULOUS blogs, so FABULOUS I wanted to share with you... some are old and some are new to me... all the blogs on my list, if you update I read.

Here are five that I can think off of the top of my head... now if I don't mention you here, it's not that I don't love you the same as I love these... I do or else you would be a part of my list... but I'm a little pressed for time today. Eventually, all of you will be posted in a I HEART WEIGHT LOSS BLOGS entry.

So here we go... my five picks for today:

Skinny Hollie (http://skinnyhollie.com): I met Hollie on WWMSG and we soon became blog buddies. What I love about Hollie is she's crazy busy but still makes an effort to commit some time to herself. She's not perfect, she sometimes falls off the wagon, but eventually gets up, dusts herself off and climbs right back on.

The Incredible Shrinking Family (http://theincredibleshrinkingfamily.blogspot.com): This blog is written by the mother, it's about a family of three following Weight Watcher's together. Their ups and downs and there weight loss adventures. She's a writer that usually makes you smile, her posts are mostly upbeat and very well written. I found her blog WWMSG.

The Anti-Jared (http://theantijared.blogspot.com): This guy has lost over 205 pounds in I think 10 months. He's a true inspirations. I'm pretty sure if you check his blog out you'll keep going back. I found his blog through WWMSG.

A Fat Girls Blog (http://afatgirlsblog.com/): She's the cutest. I came across Amanda's blog through her youtube videos. She sort of reminded me of a cooler and way younger version of myself. When Ross seen one of her videos he said he knew why I liked her videos... he said she sort of looks like a younger version of you... lol. Check her her blog, her video links are on there too.

The Pitter Patter Of Losing Pounds (http://pitterpatteroflosingpounds.blogspot.com): She's the nicest. When I first started revived DietSodaDiva... (long story about the name I'll share with you in another post) she commented my blog on wordpress (I started this on wordpress then switched over the blogger), we became friends and she helped me set this blog up... I'll always be thankful for her. She was Weight Watchers for a while but switched back tow Low Carb, her blog is mostly filled with yummy recipes.

So, those are my five blog picks for the day. I hope you visit and enjoy them... I sure do. I think over the next few weeks I'll be doing a few more of these I HEART WEIGHT LOSS BLOGS posts just to help get the word out about these fabulous chickies and gentlemen.

Well, I'm off... headed to Ross'. I hope you all have a fabulous OP weekend. See ya tomorrow...

DWLZ.COM

I can't believe I haven't told you about 'Dotti's Weight Loss Zone' before. It's a kick ass website with all kinds of great information... it's privately owned by Dotti and ran by her and her husband. It's years and years of Weight Watcher's stuff lists, recipes, etc... all in one site. I use and find that site more useful than WeightWatchers.com. I think she also has a forum, but I've never joined... I might check it out one day. I guess I've never told you about it because I use assume everyone already knows about it... but recently I realized new to Weight Watcher's people might not have heard of it yet...

Dotti Rocks! And her site is def a Weight Watcher classic... if you're following the program she's a must see...

This sounds like a commercial for DWLZ but I swear I AM NOT A PAID ACTOR! Just an admirer.

Anyway... the link is http://dwlz.com

WW Incredible Rewards

GREAT NEWS! Weight Watchers is rewarding their product customers for their purchases... earn points for every Weight Watchers product your buy... for more information check out http://www.wwincrediblerewards.com.

I just registered... the only thing I see that I don't like is that I have to send the UPS code in, but it makes sense... hopefully in the future they'll find an easier way to report your purchases.

Thank you Kristen from shoutinfromtherooftop.com for sharing this on your blog...

Virtual Me

This is a virtual me at my current Weigh-in weight. Get a free virtual you at virtualmodel.com

Check it out. It's a great program where you can even virtually try on clothes, or see yourself post reaching goal!