30 day challenge weigh in, and the best salad EVER.

I started a new 30 day work out challenge a couple days ago, well 2 of them actually. I seem to have stalled out on the weight loss mission with just diet and portion control alone, and I am SO close to my goal, so I thought adding a short workout may help jump start things again. Today is day 4 "Hiiting" it with The Daily Hiit. The work outs are ass kicking...I can't even really hang, but I do the modified "beginner" moves and have been able to stick with it so far. Working out is SO hard for me, it is hard to find the time, it is hard to stick with it and not fall off the wagon...but I think the 30 day goal is much more do-able, for me anyway, than being like this is every day for the rest of your life LOL. My exercise needs to come 7-30 days at a time or it is too daunting for me to think about and I give up LOL.

The other 30 day challenge I am doing is this one...today is day 6. Between the 2 I am usually done in 15-20 minutes. Even I can find 20 minutes in my day. Give it a try. And yes, I totally do the push ups on my knees at this point...that is another goal, by the end I would like to be able to do full on real deal push ups...we shall see.

As I was getting ready for my "before" pictures this morning Xan jumped in to get one too. The kids have been trying to work out a little with me, it is so cute, and probably good for them to start thinking about exercise being an important part of life.

OK, these pictures are hard for me to share...I am a very self conscious person, I actually hated Jason taking these for me LOL. I prefer to photoshop my pictures into perfection Hahaha. 

So here I am in a swimsuit bottom and a sports bra, photoshop free, eekkkk. I started this mission around September 1, 2013, I was about 155-160 pounds (sorry no swimsuit pics from then,) I am 5'8" tall. Today I weighed in at 128lbs...after about 4 1/2 months of eating "Skinny" and cutting portions way back. We also cut out soda and fast food except for maybe 1 meal a week...but that is not even every week. Most of this journey I have been limiting calories and fat to 700-900 cals and fat under 30 grams a day. Sugar 30-40 grams a day and carbs under 100. I know this is restrictive, and I don't plan to stay at these levels forever...in fact now that I am adding in a little workout I usually eat closer to 900-1000 calories a day. I hope to lose 3 more lbs, but I also hope to tone up a lot more...so hitting 125 on the scale may not happen, with the increase in muscle. 

I took my measurements today, so if the scale doesn't move down after this 30 day workout, or...what I dread happens and... it moves up, I can see if my measurements at least got smaller.  
bust 36"
biceps 11 1/2" flexed
waist, measured 2" below navel, is 32 1/2"
hips, measurement taken 6" below navel, 34 1/2"
19" thighs
12 1/2" calves
I am really curious to see what the changes are in 30 days! 

These are not sucking in, but I do have my core engaged. I have some muscle separation that pooches out more if I don't flex my abs.

The tummy wrinkles, separation and stretch marks are probably not going anywhere without a tummy tuck...that I hope to get in a couple years, that is my left overs from carrying triplets plus a second pregnancy.

Not too shabby so far, I am pretty impressed that I have dropped about 30 lbs with diet and portion changes alone. I am also so happy that Jason has lost almost 40 lbs!

I of course have my genes to thank for a lot...I am tall, naturally lean and for the longest time could eat whatever I wanted. Now that I am 35 though, I need to be more careful...bummer, but all good things must come to an end I guess LOL.

Since I also have Miss Gina, over at Skinny Taste to thank for helping Jason and I get healthy and fit again...here is an AMAZING one we made today. 
Coconut chicken salad with warm honey mustard vinaigrette. OH MY foodgasm goodness!!!

Ingredients:
6 (about 12 oz) chicken tenderloins
6 tbsp shredded coconut
1/4 cup panko crumbs (we just used regular whole wheat crumbs)
2 tbsp crushed cornflake crumbs
1/3 cup egg substitute or egg whites
pinch salt
olive oil spray
6 cups mixed baby greens
3/4 cup shredded carrots
1 large tomato, sliced
1 small cucumber, sliced

 For the Vinaigrette:
1 tbsp oil
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp white vinegar (balsamic would work too...we used just a touch less)
2 tsp dijon mustard

 Directions:
Whisk all vinaigrette ingredients; set aside.
Preheat oven to 375°.
Combine coconut flakes, panko, cornflake crumbs and salt in a bowl.
Put egg whites or egg beaters in another bowl.
Lightly season chicken with salt.
Dip the chicken in the egg, then in the coconut crumb mixture.
Place chicken on a cookie sheet lined with parchment for easy cleanup.
Lightly spray with olive oil spray and bake for 30 minutes turning halfway, or until chicken is cooked through.
Place 2 cups baby greens on each plate. Divide carrots, cucumber, tomato evenly between each plate. When chicken is ready slice on the diagonal and place on top of greens.
Heat dressing in the microwave a few seconds and divide equally between each salad; a little over 1 tbsp each.

2 tenders, 2 cups of salad and veggies plus a tablespoon of the vinaigrette will cost you 398 calories and 11 grams of fat.

We made it for lunch, worrying that it wouldn't be filling enough for dinner...we were wrong, this makes an excellent lunch or dinner. 
SO GOOD!

Isn't it like fancy restaurant beautiful? It looks almost as good as it tasted, seriously.

I know I have mentioned before how Jason and I stopped eating on dinner plates and started using the small dessert plates instead to help with portion control. Here is a little visual...we actually had to use big plates today, 2 cups of salad and all that stuff would have been really crammed on the dessert sized plates. 

Watching portions, the "Skinny" eating and MyFitnessPal have got me this far...well a little willpower too, excited to see what 30 days of working out will do!

Dinner plate, dessert plate...our new dinner plates, and the kids plates.