Just a blog.

Just blogging here...
Here's another picture of me overweight. Terrible pic and I don't know what I'm doing with my mouth... silly me. This is me in january.

Meh.

My family says that they see a difference in me, but I don't see any. I feel like I need to exercise more and more until I burn like 5000 calories in a day, not a healthy desire, but its there. I didn't eat much today. I didn't feel like it. I think I had a total of 300 calories? I did some aerobic exercises today and I was all sweaty. I think that's a good thing.

To those who are reading this, what is your caloric intake, daily? Do you keep track or no?

Diet tip of the Day

Having nice teeth is better than being skinny. Don't expect to be hot and sexy with bad teeth if you're skinny.

Take Care

Lots of Love

Saara

Finally... Results!!!

I lost a pound!!! Horrayyy!!! Today's diet was pretty much good, but I realized that I'm not cut out to be a vegan. It's too restrictive, and I enjoy food too much. If you can survive a vegan diet, I commend you.

I worked out a lot today. Jillian michael's level 2 is a KILLER. I couldn't do the last abdominal exercise. It was painful. I also did some jane fonda, but her work out was so much easier, and I could do 12 push ups with ease now (the girly way of course). I might do yoga later.

I had edamame in the morning, two cups of acai berry juice, and then a granola bar with milk.

Diet Tip of the Day

If you really need some crazy ass motivation, put up a picture of yourself and place it on the fridge, or somewhere where you always look at it. Make sure it's a picture that you least like of yourself. If you're a cocky son of a gun, and every picture of you is good, take a picture of the parts that you feel the most insecure. I know this sounds like torture, but it really motivates you. I'll be nice and put up an unflattering picture of myself...

I'm the fatty with the ribbon. Haha, motivational, right? I hate this picture of me, but I'm so determined to become skinnier, healthier, and happier.

By the way, that's cheesecake.

Take Care

Lots of Love

Saara

Who knew veggie slices were so good?

So I haven't been too faithful with my vegan diet. I've been sneaking peanut butter and milk yesterday, but my weight still hasn't changed (Yay!!! Oh wait, is that a good thing?). I didn't exercise either. I don't think I'll wait on my older sister for workouts, and I'll just do em myself. I'll get better results this way. Anyhow, I got these things called veggie slices for my vegan diet. They're very few in calories, and I do need some sort of fat in my diet (I need balance, peoples) and they taste pretty much like regular cheese. I might actually like these better :-P

Tofu steaks and edamame are basically what I'm going to eat for today. Also... I really need to work out. I'm feeling quite ravenous. I think I'll have some juice and then start my workout routine.

Diet Tip of the Day

For all you food addicts, try focusing one something other than food. Pick up a hobby that you like, and start with it. It doesn't matter how much you suck at it, the more you put work into that hobby of yours, the better you'll get at it. I love makeup like crazy, and when I'm feeling hungry, I either play around with my makeup, plan new makeup looks, or watch tutorials on youtube. My older sister looks at wedding things, and my little sister reads. Can't think of a hobby at the top of your head? Do something you've always wanted to try out, like knitting, painting, decorating, carbashing, gardening, whatever you feel like. If its something exercise related, thats even greater!!! Or maybe if you've got some chores to work on, get them done and over with so you'll have a productive day.
Just because I'm saying that you should get your mind off of food, doesn't mean I'm telling you to go skip meals and starve yourself. Eating is really important for the body, it's our source of energy and fuel. A car can't run on no gas, and a person can't function well without food. Everyone tells you this, and it's so true.

Take Care

Lots of Love

Saara

lets get back to work.

I've had to take a few days off to cool my head. Having said that, I also binged quite a bit. All is good, though. Surpisingly, I stayed at 135 lbs. Guess this diet is really helping my metabolism.

Today is the REAL start of my vegan diet. I'm hoping to go to walmart today to get some tofu and other vegan stuff. I've had acai berry juice and edamame (only 100 calories per half cut of the edible parts). I need to do my 3 main work outs to burn more calories. My goal for next week? To be around 3lbs lighter. I need to be 132 by next week. If I get pass that before my goal ends, I'm going to keep going.

Diet Tip of the Day


Are you an emotional eater? So am I, and what I do when I'm feeling super tense and stressed is i take deep breaths to cool my head. Its normal for people to want to run to food out of emotional needs because it increases the serotonin levels in our brain, however, try not to make this a habit. Take five deep breaths, and stretch and then later have a glass of water or two. If you really are hungry, eat something light to satisfy yourself. Listen to your body when it's trying to tell you that you're hungry.

Take Care

Lots of Love 

Saara

Things are going to get rough from here.

So I'm not seeing much progress with my weight anymore, but that's probably because these last few days have not been good in terms of dieting. Yesterday (tuesday), I was so hungry, I found myself eating all day. Today, I only had 3 food items, (Granola/Milk, Summer Roll, 4 tablespoons of PB and milk) but the last item of food that I had was loaded with calories. I need more Acai berry juice, I'm starting level 2 of JM's 30 day shred, I really need to get down to 120 lbs. I think I can do this.

Diet Tip of the Day


Today I was doing JM's workout, she made a really good point to work big muscles with smaller muscles. She works out legs and arms at the same time, and it burns more calories in less time, and it's more effective.
If a workout is too hard for you, don't punish yourself. Your body has limits. Get to know them. If a workout is too intense, build up to it. It took me a week to get use to JM's level 1 workout, and now I don't feel any muscle soreness.

That's all. I know my posts are getting shorter and shorter, but I need topics to talk about. I'm sure tomorrow's post will be longer. I'm hitting the mall hopefully to motivate myself to get into a good pair of hollister jeans :-)

Take Care 

Lots of Love 

Saara

Somewhere between 135 and 136.

Yeah it's really working. I'm really happy I'm losing weight. I'm not seeing a change in my body though except for the fact that I can work out longer and eat a little less. I had my usual, and then I really lasted throughout that work. I need 100% Acai berry juice. I'm probably going to hit Walmart for that, and some facial stuff. I love this role I'm on.

This post was suppose to go on last night, I just forgot. I've been playing video games and have been busy with the wedding to get my mind off of food. I think Jillian Michael's is getting me results. Today I had fish and two granola bars. I was really hungry. I'm just going to blame my period.

Diet tip of the Day

I can't think of one today. Go find one yourselves.

Take Care

Lots of Love 

Saara

Just Not that Hungry

As the days go on, I keep seeing a decrease in my appetite. I'm happy for the fact that my mind isn't on food all the time, but I'm becoming obsessive with thin. My sister's in-laws are coming in less than two weeks and my mom is going to serve them all these amazing foods like Behari kabob and Chicken Tikka. It's going to be hell. Yesterday was okay. I had my period, so I was cramping like crazy since my uterus was contracting to drain out the blood. I was so dizzy because I'm losing so much blood and I'm not eating properly. I try to be healthy at the moment, but it's not possible when I'm trying to lose weight this fast. I do need iron. My body is also lacking electrolytes so I might have to invest in some low calorie sports drink before I work out.

My diet has been kind of backwards today. This morning I drank Acai berry juice (4 oz.) and I had another glass today. My mom made baked tandoori chicken breast, and while that's low in calories and fat, I'm reluctant to eat it. I'm afraid to lose control because I have a severe food addiction (how do you think I gained 30 lbs?). The only solid food I had was a granola bar, which I just had recently. I need to eat more, as weird as that sounds, but today is definitely not the day. I feel so shitty and crappy. I'm guessing it's my hormones since it's the 2nd day of my period.

As for workouts, I did Jillian Michael's yesterday, and I plan on doing it tonight as well. It's getting easier to keep up with. Maybe I'll do some glute exercises as well? I'll let you all know how that goes.

Diet Tip of the Day

I'm low on brain energy right now so I'm not going to write so much. Taking calcium is really good for your muscles. Your bones have plenty of calcium, and when the muscles aren't getting enough calcium that they need, they feed off the bones (hey that sounds like a familiar disease!). If you're going to try and build a little muscle, (which I suggest you do because every pound of muscle burns 50 calories a day just from you breathing and doing nothing else), make sure to take a calcium supplement and take it with a glass of milk. Calcium also helps with PMS and sore muscles after a workout.

Take care 

Lots of Love 

Saara

Don't punish me!!!!

I was so exhausted yesterday from staying up all night with my sisters that I forgot to put up a new post!!!!! We were decorating the wedding cards with gems and stuff, and trust me, its not as tacky as you think it is. Yesterday, the times I did wake up, I ate almost nothing. I really wasn't hungry, but I made sure I ate properly, getting a good amount of carbs, protein, fats, etc. My total caloric intake was around.... 480??? plus i did another round of jillian michaels, AND arms yoga. My body is so sore, its hard for me to walk down the stairs, but I push myself anyways to walk down and up, because I know I'm moving around. Anyhow. I don't plan on eating much later, because I have good news!!!!! I'm 136.2 lbs!!! I KNOW I will get to my goal weight now. Anyhow, I just woke up, I'm so hungry, so I'm going to go eat something (yes my usual, granola and milk) and try and fit some exercise today, IF I CAN!!!

Diet tip of the Day

I'm assuming everyone at one point has cheated on their diet. It sucks. Food is evil at times, especially when we don't want it to be. We've all eaten out of hunger or celebration, or even out of boredom, and usually its something so yummy and delicious and probably loads and loads of calories. What I want you guys to realize is that it's okay if that happens. We're all human and we are prone to making mistakes, especially when it comes to food. It's normal for people to like fatty, sugary foods. If you look at the evolution of most animals, fat is used as a means of stored energy to prepare for a starvation period. Our bodies can hold almost an infinite amount of fat. 1 gram of fat contains around 9 calories!!! It sucks that we like unhealthy foods more than healthy foods, but who doesn't? There's not a single person in this world honestly gets up every day and is like, "Fatty and sugary foods taste awful!! I can't wait to have vegetables and food that taste like paper!!!" unless that person is either being sarcastic, OR they are truly like that. In that case, congratulations to you, you don't have to worry much about your health.
So if you accidentally cheat on your diet, don't go crazy. Don't give up all of a sudden, or don't go into complete starvation mode, hoping that it will work, which it won't most of the time. Instead, forgive yourself. It's important to forgive yourself of all the mistakes you've made and move on. Punish your body with exercise, not starvation. It's better in the long run.

alright lovies. I'm super hungry and i need some nom noms.

Take care! 

Lots of Love 

Saara

137.2

My weight hasn't changed much, but I think it's because of last week's depression wave. I should be hitting up another one next week since it always comes before my period. I'm just going to plant myself in a positive surrounding. Anyhow, my goal for next week is 134. For the end of May, I was suppose to go down to 135, but I was 2 lbs off from my goal (no biggie, I lost 10 lbs in the process!!!). Yesterday, I stayed within my calorie limits, drank lots of water and took a second multivitamin. For those of you who are wondering what vitamins I take, its Women's Ultra Mega Active Vitamins. I take two a day (the daily recommendation), one after breakfast, and one after lunch. I've taken 1 a day for women, and I didn't like it that much. As a matter of fact, it made me feel sick, and I'm not the only one who feels that (thankfully). With UMA, if I take it without food, I don't feel sick, however it WILL NOT be as affective, so take it after eating a meal.

I started out my day with 1 spring roll and a glass of water. Just now, I did level 1 of Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred and holy crap, that was intense, but luckily I took two thermo's 15 min. before the workout, so finishing it wasn't as much of a challenge as I thought it would be. Later, I'll do some Jane Fonda, and then Power Yoga with Rodney Yee. As for food, I'm going to keep it under 1000 calories. I'm probably going to have a rice cake (lightly salted) and 4 oz. of Acai Berry juice, and once my mom brings home the skimmed milk, for dinner, I'll have a granola and milk to make up for breakfast.

Diet Tip of the Day

Exercise! I know I haven't been keeping up with it, but I'm trying to commit to it now, and I have my family to support me. Try and get some exercise during the day, every day, whether it's the gym, or working out at home. Don't waste money on gym equipment unless you are SURE that you are going to use it. I know the idea of working out is hard and it's dreary just thinking about it, but getting even 5 minutes is better than nothing. It's a great way to clear your mind and get rid of stress too. If you have a gym membership, try and go as often as you can, and get your friends and family to go with you. If you can't afford going to the gym, or are too embarrassed, no biggie, just go to your local supermarket (Walmart in my case, or target, whatever floats your boat), grab a DVD (they range from $10-$20) and commit to it. I suggest getting DVDs from either Bob Harper or Jillian Michaels, since they are two of the top trainers in the country, hence biggest losers. You can work at your own pace, you don't have a personal trainer yelling at you, making you cry (if you do cry from a DVD, they can't see it, so you're saved from humiliation), and if you can't finish through it, thats OKAY!!! Build up to it. Its your body, YOU know your limits. If losing weight was so easy, obesity wouldn't be a such a big problem.

Remember guys, we want to be problem solvers. We've got weight issues, we can tackle it! Also, be sure to see a doctor if you are having any sort of health problems. I do not hold responsibility for anyone's health issues. If my diet is two few of calories for you, add more calories. If it's too much (though I don't recommend this!!!) then reduce your caloric intake. Stay strong with me, peoples. I know you can do it.

Take Care

Lots of Love

Saara

Healthy Body, Healthy Mind

So yesterday, my sisters and I went to Walmart and bought a bunch of food for our diet. For those you who don't know, my older sister and I are on this diet together (little sister... not so much, but she's trying!) because we want to lose weight for the wedding (3rd week of July). Anyhow, we got 3 different kinds of rice cakes: lightly salted, corn caramel, and chocolate. The lightly salted one is 35 calories, and the corn caramel and the chocolate are 60 calories. We also got extra firm tofu, a head of lettuce and 100% Acai berry juice. I find that shopping for healthy foods gets me excited to eat healthier.

Today I started out with my usual granola bar and milk, and then i took my multivitamin, thermo, and fish oil pills. My mind feels so much clearer, and I can think more rationally. I also made a bunch of spring rolls for me to snack on later. Did you know they're only 50 calories each? They're so filling and healthy for you too. I had a lightly salted rice cake and 4 oz. of acai berry juice, which is about 50 calories, so that makes 200 calories for breakfast and 85 calories for lunch which totals to 285 calories, and I feel so full right now. I don't plan on eating more than 600 calories today, but if I do, I'll try to stay below 1000. Should I put recipes up here too? Please let me know. 

Diet Tip of the Day

If you're planning on going on a no carb diet, consider yourself screwed, because they don't work. Your muscles actually shrink and you end up being more fat tissue than muscle tissue. Don't want to have muscles? Consider this. Your muscles contain lots and lots of mitochondria. For those of you who haven't taken high school biology, it's where cellular respiration occurs, which is what your metabolism is centered around. Those who lose muscle tissue are also slowing the rate of their metabolism which means you burn fewer and fewer calories. Also, no carbs contribute to depression and tiredness plus mood swings. There's a super high chance of binge eating as a result. I've tried to eat no carbs several times, and in the end, it made me gain more and more weight. So in other words, no carb diets lead to loss of muscle tissue, lower metabolism, depression, fatigue, and emotional eating.

By the way, I use a lot of sources for my diet tip of the day, but my main source is Daphne Oz's book The Dorm Room Diet. This book has inspired me to eat healthy and lose weight, and I HIGHLY recommend this book to anyone who wants to lose weight, but feel like they can't. 

Take Care

Lots of love 

Saara