Struggles...but back in the swing of thing

I know, I know, I'm horrible with keeping these promises to update, but thanks goes to my college buddy Jeff Wiza for bringing it to my attention that I fell off the posting wagon. Things have been really crazy the past month. I had dozens of story ideas sent to my inbox at the paper, and was booked solid. The past two weeks have been really bad. The last two Tuesdays I’ve started work at 8:30 in the morning and did not finish work until 6 am Wednesday. Last week I also had a group of people coming in for an interview at 11 on Wednesday, so I only slept four hours before getting up, showering and heading back into work another four hours.

I also had a couple snags a couple weeks ago when I realized that I was running low - and running out - on my Favao supplements. When I tried to place an order on my smart phone, I kept getting bounced back and forth between pages and found myself unable to complete the order. I then had to find time in my insane schedule to make it to the library to place an order because I do not have internet at my place.
I was finally able to place an order about a week and a half ago and picked my order up last Wednesday. I had some issues when I ran out of the body cleanse, but that got cleaned up within four days of going back on.

I did love Week 3 of the Favao meal plan, so much that I decided to repeat it instead of following Week 4’s meals. I really loved the dinner - half a pita pocket, pizza sauce, a slice of turkey, pineapple chunks, light onions, 3 oz. of grilled chicken, all topped with mozzarella cheese. Yummy! The only challenge was eating that thing, it was like 4 inches tall!

I am now onto Week 5, and have substituted the metabolic booster shake from Week 1. It tastes better and is a lot easier to make. I’ve also switched up the breakfast meal of oats with mixed berries and scrambled eggs. Instead of the hot oats, I make my scrambled eggs, add some salsa (think Week 1) and then put my mixed berries (strawberries, raspberries and blackberries) on the side. It is a challenge protecting my meal from the nosy cat and dog, but I’ve managed so far. (;

While there have been some bumps in the road (not taking the body cleanse on a daily basis resulted in me putting on 5 lbs., all of which have been flushed back out), the beauty of Favao isn’t that it gives me a grocery list, saves me money and has helped me lost 10 lbs. (and counting), it is that it has taught me what foods will help me stay healthy and energized throughout the day. If I don’t like one of the meals, I can substitute one I do like.

I honestly never thought I would be able to do everything I do - working 40-50 and sometimes 55 hour work weeks, taking the dog to the dog park or on walks for 1-2 hours every day, making it to martial arts and doing all my other personal projects - without the aid of Mt. Dew or chocolate. Putting in 8-16 hour days can be really draining, but thanks to Favao I am able to keep up with my same hectic schedule, minus the 48-60 oz. of Mt. Dew I was consuming on a daily basis. For those of you that don’t know, that is 2-2.5 of the bottled Mt. Dew, and each one contains about 70 grams, or 17.5 teaspoons of sugar. By those calculations, I was consuming about 35-45 teaspoons of sugar with my daily caffeine dose!
Now that elections are over and my schedule is more manageable, I should be able to get back to my weekly postings. Here is to a (hopefully) smoother weeks 5-8!

I'm back!

I know I promised to update on Friday, but last week was such a whirlwind down in Kansas and Missouri, I did not get back until 9 p.m. on Sept. 28, and by then I was just exhausted.

We did not have a huge option while we were down there, we wound up eating in the mess halls a few times, and in the food courts most of the rest of the time. A few times we were given our meals. Unlike when I was home, I also did not have the option to eat every 2-3 hours, as our days were packed, from about 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. Our meals were served roughly at 6 a.m., noon and 6 p.m. With that being said, I did notice a difference going off my scheduled meal plans, both with how hungry I was feeling and with not being "regular." 

That being said, I did put on about two pounds while I was down there, although I am honestly surprised it was not more. However, I am on my way to taking that off again, as when I weighed myself this morning I was back down to 184.5 lbs. For those of you that remember, I was at about 183.5 before my trip. I am confident that with being back on track, I will shed that extra pound in no time, and be well on my way to losing even more weight. 

Until next time....

Favao - Week 2

Hit a couple snags this week. What with my leaving for a week this upcoming week (Sept. 23-28) I have had to work major hours this week. Tuesday I worked from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and then came back around 11:30 p.m. and worked until about 6:45 a.m. Wednesday morning.
 

Needless to say, I had to indulge and grabbed a bottle of Mountain Dew and a Poptart to eat during my third shift time.
 

That being said, I feel I have been doing well with making better food choices, and an orange and piece of string cheese has become my mid-afternoon staple snack.
 

I’m back up to a full scoop of the body cleanse, and it is nowhere near as bad as it was when I first started. My thought on that is when I first started, my body probably had a lot more toxins in it that needed to get flooded out. Now, with taking the cleanse regularly and putting good food in my body, it is probably less intense because there isn’t as much bad foods in my body. Within an hour of getting up I am flushing the baddies out of my body and am feeling well and ready to go, sometimes an hour and a half, but it is pretty quick.
 

The first week’s food is absolutely delicious, I love grilled chicken so the Mexican salad and the dinner with BBQ sauce and sweet potatoes are right up my alley.
 

Yesterday I ran out of the pre-made meals, so I went off of the scheduled lunch and dinner today and will be eating other healthier meals tomorrow as well. The reason I am not preparing another week’s worth of meals is because I will be going off the Favao plan for a week.
 

On Sunday, Sept. 23 I leave for Fort Leavenworth in Kansas for a media and the military workshop. While there I will be eating with the Army boys. While I cannot control what will be served, I can control portion size and hopefully be able to make good choices. With that being said, I will return next Friday (the 28th) and will be back on the Favao way, supplements and all.
 

Even with my couple snags this week, I have seen a decrease. When I stepped on the scale this morning, it read 183.5 – a decrease of 2.5 lbs. from last week’s weigh-in.
 

So far I am two weeks into the program and 6.5 lbs lighter. I’m definitely a believer...

Favao - Week 1

For those of you that don’t know me, my name is Rachel Wittrock. Growing up, I was a full-time athlete, competing year-round in swimming and track, and later cross country, and even three years in marching band. When I graduated high school in 2005, I was 5’7’’ and 140 pounds. About my fourth year in college I started gaining weight, and when I graduated in 2010, I was 170 lbs.
 

Then I joined the workforce, working as a reporter for a weekly newspaper. I went from working out 25 hours a week to sitting at a desk for more than eight hours a day, five days a week. Within six months I had put on 20 more pounds, and for the last two years I have struggled to lose weight. The barbs were even more painful when people would ask me when my baby was due, not to be mean but because they honestly thought I was pregnant. Even though it was a mistake, it hurt.
 

A couple months ago, I attended a weight management program, where a registered dietician demonstrated how sugar is a huge culprit in preventing weight loss and how many people can consume more than 50 tablespoons in a day.
 

A couple ladies in my town then spoke to me about this weight management program, called Favao. It is not touted as a weight loss gimmick, but rather as a lifestyle reset. At the end of August, I called one of the women and said I wanted to sign up.
 

On Thursday, Sept. 6, I received my startup package, which came at a $260 price tag. Included were a month’s supplies of a body cleanse, metabolism booster, fiber and protein, as well as a 239 page booklet listing workouts to do and 12 weeks worth of grocery lists and meals to cook, as well as at what time to take them.
 

Every day I begin my day with a shake, which includes the protein and fiber powder, half a banana, oats, ice cubes and water. I also take two metabolism booster pills. I follow the morning regimen, while in a slightly different order.
 

Instead of having my shake at 7 and burrito at 9, I eat the burrito in the morning while I am home and then take the shake to work and sip on it until about 11. Closer to 12:30 I have a snack of string cheese and an apple. I usually eat my lunch around 3 at work, then finish the day with supper at 7. I end my day with an 8-oz. glass of water with my body cleanse mixed in.
 

My first week I didn’t follow the regimen exactly, I missed three days with the body cleanse and did not eat the specified meals for lunch and dinner because I was unsure of how to prepare the meals (I am cooking deficient).
 

However, on Thursday, Sept. 13 the lady I have begun to think of as my sponsor helped me with the food preparation for the next week, so I should have a much easier time of sticking to the meal plans for the next week.
 

I was also very sick the first day I took the body cleanse, when I used the full scoop. I have since learned that about 3/4 of a scoop is the right mixture for me, but I will skip it if I know that I will be rushing in the morning and don’t have time to ride out the minor stomach ache that I do encounter. (While a stomachache may seem like a bad thing, trust me, it means the product is doing its job. After just a week I find that the stomachaches are less severe and do not last as long.)
 

In spite of my ups and downs, the product and following the meals are working.
When I weighed in on Friday, Sept. 7, I weighed 190 lbs.
 

One week later, I have lost four pounds and weigh 186 lbs. (all measurements with clothes on) Not bad for one week.
 

As I continue on my 12-week journey with Favao, I will continue to blog about my experiences and results.
 

There will be one glitch in the system: From Sept. 23-28 I will be at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas for a media and the military workshop. While there I will not be able to control what I eat very much, but I can make smarter decisions about what I eat from the foods available and how much, and I am confident it will not throw off my journey too much.
 

To see what happens next week, check back on Sept. 21.