Tamsin’s answers frequently asked questions about her NutriSystem experience

Weigh-in (Day 49):
• Tamsin – 1.1 lbs (-8.1 pounds to-date)
• Eden – 3 lbs (-17.5 pounds to-date)

Eden and I are past the halfway mark. It feels great! Lots of friends, family, and co-workers are rooting for us. This week, I’ll answer a few of the questions that I hear most often:

Does the food really taste as good as it looks on the commercials?
I started out a bit sceptical, but I was pleasantly surprised! It’s true that the eggs are awful but, all in all, the food is very tasty and the menu has a lot of variety. Plus, I get to choose your own vegetable, fruit, and protein servings to suit you.

Are your clothes fitting differently?
More than anything, I notice my pants are getting looser in the waist and thighs. Also, my face feels thinner.

Anyone notice a change in your appearance?
My co-workers and several of my pole-dancing students have noticed a difference.

Are you in a groove now or sick of the whole thing?
After the first week, I couldn’t imagine 84 days of NutriSystem – I thought I’d get sick of it. But the truth is, I like the routine and the variety of food. Tonight, I enjoyed Lasagna with Meat Sauce (still my favourite!) with a spinach salad and Blueberry-Lemon dessert bar (yummy, not too sweet!).

What do you find most challenging?
Maintaining variety! I am always looking for new protein, veggie, and fruit servings to add more variety and I’m not a big fan of salad (except spinach). I live near Chinatown East, so I am experimenting with interesting fruits (like litchi) and veggies (rapini and bok choy).

My favourite discovery is steamed edamame – I found them in individual-sized servings that steam right in the bag (they come with little packs of sea-salt). I love my plain-old vanilla protein shake in the morning; this week, I’m going to pick up a different flavour.

How do you stay motivated?
I’ve noticed that my energy is consistent and pretty high – an extra bonus for me because I often struggle with fatigue and low iron. The protein boost works! I have no problem tackling writing contracts until late into the night or teaching 3 pole-fitness classes after a day at the office. Plus, there’s always the dream of great new spring clothes in a smaller size to keep me on track!

NutriSystem Challenge: Let’s get moving

Weigh-in (Day 42, we’re halfway there!):
• Tamsin – 8 oz. (-7 pounds to-date)
• Eden – 9 oz. (-14.5 pounds to-date)

This week the focus turns to exercise. That’s right, you heard me. It’s time to get moving.

I’m pretty active but except for a love of walking and sporadic cycling during the warmer months, I hate exercise. Okay, I’ve said it, now let’s move on.

NOT! Two weeks ago I introduced That Kathryn Girl to Tamsin at the NutriSystem blogger event. They started talking and the next thing I knew, Kathryn had registered us for an intro class at Aradia Fitness Uptown – the studio where Tamsin teaches pole dancing.

I can’t believe I’m telling you this but last Sunday, Kathryn and I took an introductory pole dancing class. Tamsin was our teacher. I guess it’s only fair. She’s been hanging around my blog, the least I could do was check out her turf and besides, she gave us coupons for $10 off. ;) It was an offer I couldn’t refuse.

We had a blast and a good workout to boot. Tamsin is an incredible teacher. She’s got tons of energy, a lot of enthusiasm and patience for even the most spastic student.

Check out the photo of Tamsin teaching Kathryn how to slide down a pole.

*Housekeeping note:
I have a confession to make. I’ve actually lost about 14.5 pounds to-date so tonight I updated my results. In the search for an accurate scale, I ended up making a few switches during week one. I thought I had reported my weight loss correctly. I was wrong. The only constant that week was Mr. Bargainista’s weight. We both weighed ourselves and the difference between us has increased by 14.5 pounds since I started the program.