Today, I'm Listening.

I want to share my experience with you all that happened the other day. I know it's not exactly weight loss but you never know what it can help ;-)
Today has been a really nice positive day. As I was cleaning my kitchen I started to worry, about anything and everything. If you know me than you know that I am a high stesser with anxiety. Then I was hit with another tender mercy and something that a wonderful man once said echoed through my mind. "The thoughts that you have, when you're not thinking of anything, tells you what kind of person you are." I was doubting, getting angry and sad, feeling overwhelmed and that is NOT the kind of person I want to be, it's not who I REALLY am. So I was brought back down out of the clouds of crap and just stopped. I instantly heard my girls giggling out in the back yard, Christian's little feet running across the floor, and smelt the sweet smell of Ember. The adversary will always play on your weaknesses but that will never compare to that still small voice, as long as you stop to listen to it. Today, I am listening.

Week 17...MUCH BETTER!

I had a good week last week and felt a bit more together. I think it was a tender mercy because T.O.M is coming and I will have at least 2 very bad weeks when that happens! lol I get so tired, cranky, and sad during that time so I'm glad I had a week that could project me into the next couple a happier woman ;-)

I'm glad to say that this week was not a bust and I lost 3 pounds. At 157 I feel great! 32 more lbs until my goal and I can transition off. I'm looking forward to the transition phase just because it's turning another corner of positives and opportunities. I am looking forward to experiencing new things and adding a bit more spice to my life!

I went to a big family dinner last night and my grandma came into town from Montana. I haven't seen her since the 4th of July and have last almost another 30 lbs since then. She gave me a big hug and said "Who is this skinny minnie?!" It made me feel so good. My grandma is this petite tiny little thing and doesn't compliment that  much, she likes to keep you humble ;-) So to get that reaction from here tells me I'm doing something right. Thanks for the ego boost g-ma! hahahaha!

I have had several people ask me what I have been doing to lose the weight this last week. I told them all about Medifast. I had to explain over and over that the cost isn't what it seems. If you added up how much you  spend on food for yourself now you would find that Medifast is dang near close to that amount! I don't feel bad for one second spending the $ on this diet! Number 1, my health is worth it! Number 2, I am sooooo much happier and in return so is my family! Number 3, it's NOT expensive! Heck, for some it will help their pocket book. Not to mention you will be saving tons of your future $$$  bc you won't be obese buying tons and tons of medications. Now THAT is more than worth it! Bottom line.....order, try it, and succeed in every way!

Now on to this week with a positive attitude and a grateful heart...we are blessed!!! ;-)

Donna's Medifst success story - Get the "skinny" on Donna!

"I had been carrying too many extra pounds for too long and was looking for a safe way to lose it for many years.

“By the time I reached 460 lbs, I was miserable. Every step and every moment on my feet was painful. I am hypoglycemic and my family tree is full of diabetics on both sides. My chances of avoiding that outcome were getting smaller by the week, and I knew it.

“I needed something that was simple and nutritionally sound that would allow me to lose weight safely. Medifast has been such a blessing! The Medifast Meals make it simple: no calories to count or points to figure. They’re easy to take to work and fit easily into my lifestyle. I love that Medifast is safe from a nutrition standpoint.

“I started noticing subtle changes within the first few days, and lost weight quickly and consistently throughout the program. If you follow the program, you lose weight. It’s easy to avoid the inevitable temptations in life when you are properly nourished, not hungry, and seeing results every week!

“Since I started to lose weight, life is so much easier. I sleep better and have far more energy. I have a sense of confidence in myself that has been missing for a long time.

“My feet and ankles don’t hurt constantly. In fact, now I can walk a couple of miles a day, shop without pain, take my grandson to the playground, and sit in any chair I want without worrying if I’ll fit in it, or worse, break it. I can shop in regular stores for clothes.

“The scale is my friend for the first time in many years. Thanks to my weight loss, my asthma inhaler is a thing of the past.”

I loved her story, results, and attitude! What a shining example, I want to be just like her when I grow up! lol

$150 Medifast Giveaway!

Hey all you fellow Medifasters, I am doing a giveaway you DON'T want to miss! I am rewarding one of YOU with $150 worth of Medifast food! I am doing this because I know how hard it is to make ends meet and still have your diet food that we all love and need. I have an amazing Medifast family on facebook and here is away for me to help and show my appreciation. I love you all and good luck!

How to enter and official rules:
1) Friend me on face book, www.facebook.com/brandee.burt
2) Become a follower of my blog, this blog ;-)
3) Post this blog post on your facebook, healthyandwealthyme.blogspot.com -leave it up for at least 2 hours.
4) Leave a comment below this post on what Medifast has done for you and why you would like this giveaway!

I will be using random.org to pick the winner so it is completely fair. The giveaway ends at midnight (Mountain standard time) on the last day of this month and the winner will be announced on October 1, 2011. After the winner is announced I will ask for their email to get their address and what foods they would like. ONLY enter if you feel the terms and conditions are fair. Good luck everyone!

150's Baby!!!

I now KNOW my day is going to be good, why you ask? I stepped on the scale this morning and what did my eyes behold??? 159.5! LOL I know that doesn't seem so great but oh it really is, it REALLY IS! The last time I was in the 150's was the last time I did Medifast and was so close to my goal, and I am almost there! I believe I got down to 150 and was in a size 10 and NOW I can get those same 10's on and it's only a matter of time before I can wear them comfortably and soon after that they will be TOO big! Bahahahahahahahahahahahaha! This feeeeels great! I hope all you Medifasters have just as good of a morning and stay on plan ;-) Love you all!

45 Down and 35 To Go!

 I am over the half way mark on my fat/weight loss journey! I have lost 45 and have 35 left to go ;-) Once that is obtained I will be a Healthy and Wealthy me. Healthy, obviously because my health will have been saved and Wealthy because the more time I get on this earth with my children the more rich in blessings I am! 

I may have showed a 0 for lbs lost for this last week but I am going to celebrate my achievements thus far. I can see now that losing 45 lbs is really amazing and doing it in 4 months is wickedly cool! ;-) So here are my over "half way mark" pictures. Besides the fact that I need some make up on, I am very proud what my body is looking like :) Have a great OP day Medifast buddies!!!


16 week mark.

The Day Before My Weigh In

I have been feeling so good with an added measure of energy this week. My ketosis was SO strong all week and the taste in my mouth from it  was very intense. I went to the zoo with my family on Thursday and walked for 4 hours! And the rest of the week I have been more active than I normally am. SOOOOO I couldn't wait for tomorrow to see my results. I stepped on the scale this morning and what did I see??? A +1lb gain :-( Now I know a lot about nutrition, working out and all that goes with it so I know that I certainly did not "gain" a pound that the scale is showing. I know I absolutely gained muscle and we all know muscle weighs more than fat. BUT it still doesn't do a heart (a very hard working on plan heart) good to see that number on the scale. My knowledge and the fact that my pants are indeed bigger on me today than they were a week ago are keeping me in the calm and positive. ;-) I am hoping to have a better # on my official weigh in tomorrow.
I wanted to talk a little about how I have been feeling lately on my Medifast journey. For some reason the reality of my weight loss thus far hasn't really been sinking in. I try on new clothes and get so excited, when I have to buy a new SMALLER size I rejoice, and when I see the # on the scale lower and lower every week I smile. However, I realized the other day that I haven't allowed myself a full realization of what I have done and how far I have come. I know why  now. I have this strong determination to get to my ultimate goal, which is a lean size 4, having about 22-24% body fat. I want to get to 125 and then transition off allowing myself to get to a rounded diet consisting of 1200 calories. At that time I will go back to my trainer I had a few years back to lose the rest of the fat that I don't need and to build my muscle where it should be. I love my trainer, he is out of this world and I love having some one I have to be accountable to on a weekly basis. I understand fully that I have another 35 lbs. to get to 125 and that is almost as much as I have lost already. I have lost 45 lbs. and seeing that I have another 35 to go tells me that I still have a good way to go before I am where I have always wanted to be at. So I celebrate my weight loss every week telling myself all the while that "I still have 35 more to go." That thinking and mentality hasn't fully allowed  me to really realize what I have ALREADY done and to take a step back and really SEE it and appreciate it. This is something I need to change. I wish I knew how, I keep setting my sights to that ultimate goal and am seeing the negative fat I have to lose and not the positive I already have lost.
So now I think I have a new ultimate goal, stay with the positive! That's something I really need, I have always been a person who is more affected by negative than the positive and a person can only live so long letting the negative be the major. Being positive and letting the light in does a soul good and in return does the body good. Mind, body, and spirit are all connected. When one is affected then they all are. So why not let the domino affect be positive??? When that light spreads then your actions will be that of light as well. To do and to be are inseparable! ;-) The better you feel the better you do and vise versa.
For the rest of this journey, positive is my middle name! And we all know this journey will last a life time and a life time of positives is a life well spent!

Week 15 Over

This last week was a good one. I bought a size Large dress because it looked small for its size and when I got home and tried it on, it was too big. I'll have it taken in but I couldn't believe that I am at that stage in my weight loss journey where I can start looking at Mediums and actually fitting into them and buying them. I lost 2 more lbs this last week  for a total of 45.5 and have 35 more to go. Heck yeah!!!
Now in all reality I have only 25 left to lose to be at my goal weight BUT bc I don't have much muscle I have a higher body fat percentage. So my plan is to get to 125 and then gain about 5-10 pounds of muscle. That should get me right where I want to be and where I should be. Once I get there I will see how I feel and determine if I should lose more fat and put on more muscle. I will cross that bridge when I get to it ;-)
My goal is to be a size 4, a LEAN size 4 with about 20% body fat. Once I start lifting weights and doing cardio I will have my body fat % taken, from then on out I will be having a Check in day instead of a Weigh in day. Keeping track of my body fat % will be more accurate of my success than weight loss. I could lose 10 lbs on the scale but very little body fat, if that were to happen then I know I lost muscle as well and that's not good. If I lose 3 lbs on the scale but a good amount of body fat then I know that I am losing more fat and gaining more muscle, and THAT is what I need. Since more muscle burns more fat then I want to build that muscle and in the end I will be at my target and goal weight being leaner with less fat, more muscle, and hitting my goal! :-)
My short term goal for the next 4 weeks is to lose 10 more lbs. I have a vacation coming up with all my sister in-laws, and I have a pair of pants that I want to wear there and I need to have the length altered. So I want to fit in them just right. Wish me luck and my hope are the same for all of you out there! Thank you Medifast for making this possible!!!

Week 14 Done!

I weighed in yesterday and I was pleasantly surprised. My weigh in day came right in the middle of T.O.M so when I stepped on the scale and saw a 3 lb drop I thought "Hey now that's more like it!" Having a week finally with more than a 2lb weight loss was a nice treat :)
Tonight I had to eat more than I normally do for my lean and green. I had a bigger helping of Salmon and slightly more veggies. I could tell that my body was needing more for the last couple days and if I've learned something about myself during my cycle it's definitely listen to my body!  Especially since I spent 9 hours painting my sons room, non stop, I could tell  I was short on nutrients. But now I feel great, well at least hunger wise, I'm still VERY tired though. I only got 2 hrs of sleep last night, no joke :(
Today was my husband's grandma's funeral and it was such a sweet service. There was a wonderful lunch after wards and I felt so good not letting my emotions get to me and cave in and eat those emotions. Instead, I fed my two little girls and sat back and had my honey mustard pretzels ;-) I love having control of my food that I never had before, Medifast has allowed me to change so many things, I will be forever in debt to my new life style change, thanks MF!!!