Ugh. After a particularly awesome, on the wagon, woo hoo carrots week I woke up this morning feeling like Bloaty Mc Bloaterson and just disgusted with what I did to myself this weekend. The best laid plans of mice and men I guess...
Friday was good, we headed to the mountains after everyone got finished working, but they had closed the tunnel due to some bad accidents so it took forever. By the time we finally made it up, the four of us were climbing the walls and wanting to have some fun, so we headed to the Brewery for some beers and some dinner. I only had two beers and got the soup and salad, so I was feeling pretty good about Friday night. But then we got home, opened some wine and stayed up until about 2 talking about religion and politics and you know how those conversations go. Of course the boy and I got in a fight, even though we were agreeing with one another, I guess it's just how we agree. It was stupid but it's all good now. What is it about wars and God that just gets everyone all in a tizzy?
Anyway, after about five hours of sleep, we got up to head to the mountain, but not without first stopping by the bagel shop. I was good - only ate half a bagel with tomato and cream cheese and some coffee. The snowboarding was amazing, the snow was great and it was a beautiful day. I'm so sad most of the resorts closed after this weekend because we had so much fun this winter, but I guess we'll just do it again next year!
The rest of Saturday included too many beers, little eating all day until we were finally served dinner at the wedding, which consisted of chicken fingers, mac & cheese, and of course cake. Thank god there was some salad. It was all great food and we had a great time of course, but my planning was less than stellar and even though I barely ate all day, I know I made up for it at the end of the night.
Yesterday was even worse, being hungover, having to drive the 2 hours home, and then of course having an empty kitchen meant I was just trying to fill my body with the easiest, fattiest greasiest food possible. This is cringe-worthy, but I had both french fries and ice cream yesterday. Gross. I'm paying for it on the scale this morning.
Why is it that when I leave my home-turf, the place where I can best control my eating, I suddenly lose sight of everything I'm working toward? It's like everything I know I should be doing just flies right out the window and it's a free for all. I know I tend to do this whenever I'm away - I fully know this about myself. Yet it's like I just go on auto-pilot and think, once I get home, I'll do better. But over the years, the damage has been done. I feel good, like I'm on the right track to actually losing some of this weight I've gained in the past year, but this spring is going to be incredibly difficult if I keep doing this to myself whenever I go out of town or have some kind of party/wedding/shower to attend. I need to learn how to celebrate with my friends and have a good time, yet still focus on the goals at hand.
The good news is, I'm looking forward to getting back to my normal eating habits this week and hitting boot camp hard again. Hopefully I'll make up for some of those calories I consumed this weekend with tonight's workout. It's super nice here today so I'm guessing we'll be outside, which makes me nervous but I also like. Outside means more time out in the beautiful weather, but it also means the likelihood of running increases, which is not always my favorite.
Regardless of what we do, I'm hoping I can get back on track and take this week to figure out just exactly what I need to do to stay on track next weekend. I do not want all of this hard work I've been doing to be ruined by a couple of crappy days.
Monday, April 14, 2008
Friday, April 11, 2008
Recovery
Happy Friday! I am so exhausted from this week. I'm feeling better this morning after sleeping for more than nine hours, which is ridiculous I know, but sometimes the body just needs it. And my body definitely did.
Boot camp has been wonderful this week - I've alternated between pure elation at what my body is able to do and being on the verge of breaking down into tears, and multiple times. Each night this week I didn't think it could get worse, yet somehow it did. Tuesday we ran. And ran. And ran. We did a run test - two times around a nearby park, I think it was probably about a mile. I did it in 9:25, which is very fast for me. Then after the test we continued to run around the park, up and down hills and stairs and it never ever seemed to end. But it did, and I was fine, even though I was in the back of the pack most of the time, and I burned over 900 calories on Tuesday night. Wow.
Wednesday we stayed inside, alternating between a minute of cardio (up downs, jumping jacks, high knees, etc.) and minute of weights (chest presses, shoulder presses, squats, etc.). For 75 minutes. We did. Not. Stop. But I made it through.
And last night, inside again, but this time with sprints around the room, more weights, more cardio, and this thing called widespread panic. Widespread panic truly lives up to its name. You stay in a pushup position, slowly lowering down, holding in that down position for as long as the devil instructor says to, and then coming back up. And then down, and up and so on. It's ok at first, but then you get so tired of holding yourself up, and you can't go down to your knees, or you just have to go that much longer. Yikes. It's hardcore.
I'm sore all over - my bum, my shoulders, chest, quads, triceps, neck, everywhere. So needless to say, I am looking forward to a rest day today. No exercise whatsoever, save a couple of walks with the dogger. I've been able to maintain great eating throughout this week of boot camp, which makes me happy as I was nervous I might be ravenous. In actuality, I've sort of lost my big appetite for nighttime, so now when I get home I've been having something small, a sandwich or english muffin with peanut butter, that kind of thing.
I haven't mentioned this, but I've started doing a bit of freelancing while I'm out of a normal full-time job, so I'll be doing that today, cleaning up around the house, and getting ready to go to the mountains. We're going to a wedding in Beaver Creek on Saturday, so we're going to get one last weekend of spring snowboarding in (even though I think they've gotten like 15 inches in the mountains in the past couple of days, so there may be one more weekend yet).
Mountain weekends are fun, but they are always hard in terms of eating. It's the famous "apres ski" that always gets me in trouble, everyone loves to sit and have a beer, or three after hitting the slopes. Couple that with free booze at the wedding tomorrow night, and it could be a recipe for disaster. So my plan is to bring a Luna bar for breakfast tomorrow morning, have a nice salad or soup for lunch and avoid the afternoon drinks, and then try to stick to two or three glasses of wine at the wedding. I know I'll feel better if I do it that way, and my body will thank me for it.
Oh and P.S. I was down 2.8 lbs this week! Woo hoo!
Boot camp has been wonderful this week - I've alternated between pure elation at what my body is able to do and being on the verge of breaking down into tears, and multiple times. Each night this week I didn't think it could get worse, yet somehow it did. Tuesday we ran. And ran. And ran. We did a run test - two times around a nearby park, I think it was probably about a mile. I did it in 9:25, which is very fast for me. Then after the test we continued to run around the park, up and down hills and stairs and it never ever seemed to end. But it did, and I was fine, even though I was in the back of the pack most of the time, and I burned over 900 calories on Tuesday night. Wow.
Wednesday we stayed inside, alternating between a minute of cardio (up downs, jumping jacks, high knees, etc.) and minute of weights (chest presses, shoulder presses, squats, etc.). For 75 minutes. We did. Not. Stop. But I made it through.
And last night, inside again, but this time with sprints around the room, more weights, more cardio, and this thing called widespread panic. Widespread panic truly lives up to its name. You stay in a pushup position, slowly lowering down, holding in that down position for as long as the devil instructor says to, and then coming back up. And then down, and up and so on. It's ok at first, but then you get so tired of holding yourself up, and you can't go down to your knees, or you just have to go that much longer. Yikes. It's hardcore.
I'm sore all over - my bum, my shoulders, chest, quads, triceps, neck, everywhere. So needless to say, I am looking forward to a rest day today. No exercise whatsoever, save a couple of walks with the dogger. I've been able to maintain great eating throughout this week of boot camp, which makes me happy as I was nervous I might be ravenous. In actuality, I've sort of lost my big appetite for nighttime, so now when I get home I've been having something small, a sandwich or english muffin with peanut butter, that kind of thing.
I haven't mentioned this, but I've started doing a bit of freelancing while I'm out of a normal full-time job, so I'll be doing that today, cleaning up around the house, and getting ready to go to the mountains. We're going to a wedding in Beaver Creek on Saturday, so we're going to get one last weekend of spring snowboarding in (even though I think they've gotten like 15 inches in the mountains in the past couple of days, so there may be one more weekend yet).
Mountain weekends are fun, but they are always hard in terms of eating. It's the famous "apres ski" that always gets me in trouble, everyone loves to sit and have a beer, or three after hitting the slopes. Couple that with free booze at the wedding tomorrow night, and it could be a recipe for disaster. So my plan is to bring a Luna bar for breakfast tomorrow morning, have a nice salad or soup for lunch and avoid the afternoon drinks, and then try to stick to two or three glasses of wine at the wedding. I know I'll feel better if I do it that way, and my body will thank me for it.
Oh and P.S. I was down 2.8 lbs this week! Woo hoo!
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Testing Results
Boot camp was brutal, as I should have expected it to be. I picked up my friend S., who lives down the block, and we were both so nervous. I had that nervous stomach feeling so I was afraid I might puke or something but it ended up going away once we got started.
We got to the new facility, which is really nice, and sat down and watched all the other girls filter in. There is one guy in this class - I feel sorry for him. At least he's there with his girlfriend though. LOL. Pretty much all of the girls look to be in pretty good shape, so I'm worried about being the last person when we go on runs, etc. but I think I'll just deal with it.
Anyway, last night's workout was the testing I remembered, and my results were:
Sit Ups (full body, not crunching): 67 in two minutes (three more than last year)
Hop ups (two legs at a time, not step ups: 62 in two minutes (five more than last year)
Pushups (regular pushups, once you fall to your knees you're done): 10 in two minutes (3 more than last year)
So I'm doing a little better fitness-wise this year than last year, but not by much. I'm hoping to improve those numbers over the course of this five weeks but we shall see. We didn't do a run last night, instead after the testing we did intervals consisting of more pushups, crunching, bicycles or other ab work, squats, hop ups, up downs and various other tortures. I'm already sore this morning so I'm dreading what I'm going to feel like by Thursday. Hopefully I'll loosen up some once I get going on tonight's workout. I'm assuming we're going to run, which will suck, but must be done to get in shape!
I have a goal to get down 10 lbs over the next five weeks, 2 lbs a week, so I'm hoping I can make that. I may start posting my weight here again, but I'm kind of hesitant too because it's just so painful right now.
Le Sigh.
Food today
B: oatmeal and one hard boiled egg
L: turkey and hummus on whole wheat wrap, apple
S: Luna bar (before workout)
D: veggie chili and salad
We got to the new facility, which is really nice, and sat down and watched all the other girls filter in. There is one guy in this class - I feel sorry for him. At least he's there with his girlfriend though. LOL. Pretty much all of the girls look to be in pretty good shape, so I'm worried about being the last person when we go on runs, etc. but I think I'll just deal with it.
Anyway, last night's workout was the testing I remembered, and my results were:
Sit Ups (full body, not crunching): 67 in two minutes (three more than last year)
Hop ups (two legs at a time, not step ups: 62 in two minutes (five more than last year)
Pushups (regular pushups, once you fall to your knees you're done): 10 in two minutes (3 more than last year)
So I'm doing a little better fitness-wise this year than last year, but not by much. I'm hoping to improve those numbers over the course of this five weeks but we shall see. We didn't do a run last night, instead after the testing we did intervals consisting of more pushups, crunching, bicycles or other ab work, squats, hop ups, up downs and various other tortures. I'm already sore this morning so I'm dreading what I'm going to feel like by Thursday. Hopefully I'll loosen up some once I get going on tonight's workout. I'm assuming we're going to run, which will suck, but must be done to get in shape!
I have a goal to get down 10 lbs over the next five weeks, 2 lbs a week, so I'm hoping I can make that. I may start posting my weight here again, but I'm kind of hesitant too because it's just so painful right now.
Le Sigh.
Food today
B: oatmeal and one hard boiled egg
L: turkey and hummus on whole wheat wrap, apple
S: Luna bar (before workout)
D: veggie chili and salad
Monday, April 07, 2008
And it begins...
This weekend was good - lots of fun with friends and lots of downtime, which was nice because the next three weekends in a row I have either weddings, wedding showers or baby showers to attend. Saturday morning was wonderful - I slept late with the dogger while the boy got up early to go snowboarding. I would have gone to enjoy some fun spring riding but I had a hair appointment that I couldn't move, so I decided just to enjoy the time to myself. My haircut is interesting; I've been going with the Reese W1therspoon type bangs for some time now and I really like that, but my stylist thought I should try the Heid1 Klum bangs, like the ones she's been wearing on Proj3ct Runway, so I decided to go for it.
Well my hair isn't quite as thick as hers, but I think it looks okay. I'm actually looking a little more rocker, which I kind of like. I'll try to post a picture at some point but that would mean washing my hair and styling, which hasn't been done quite yet today. :)
After my haircut I went to get a mani with my sister, so it was a nice little day of pampering. I went with Russ1an Navy on my nails to compliment the new rocker cut. Love it.
Saturday night we ended up going to an impromptu birthday party for a friend of a friend, and I was pretty proud of my choice to stick to mostly salad and only have one tiny sliver of pizza rather than just shoving it in my face like I might normally do. It's the little things at this point.
Sunday the boy and I went to brunch and ran a few errands, hung out around the house and played Rock Band with some friends. Overall, a pretty dynamite weekend. Food was good and I peeked at the scale and it's finally moving in the right direction, so I'm feeling good. I took both days off from exercising because I was pretty sore from the squats I did on Friday and I wanted to rest up because I start boot camp today.
Last time I did this boot camp the first day consisted of a few fitness tests. I went back through my archives and found my results for my first day of boot camp last year, which interestingly enough was almost exactly a year ago. They were as follows:
Sit Ups (full body, not crunching): 64 in two minutes
Hop ups (two legs at a time, not step ups): 57 in two minutes
Pushups (regular pushups, once you fall to your knees you're done): 7 in two minutes
I also did the 1.6 mile loop around Cheeseman in 17:38.
I'm not sure if we'll do the same exact tests tonight, but I'll be interested to see how I compare fitness-wise. I know we won't be doing the loop around Cheeseman because I'm going to a new location, but I bet we'll do at least a mile run so I'll probably be able to figure out the comparison fairly easily. Judging by my current workouts, I'd say I'm probably in a fairly comparable place, and sadly I think I may weigh a little more than I did last year at this time. But hopefully I'm on the way down.
I'll check in tomorrow and let you all know how it goes, but wish me luck!
Well my hair isn't quite as thick as hers, but I think it looks okay. I'm actually looking a little more rocker, which I kind of like. I'll try to post a picture at some point but that would mean washing my hair and styling, which hasn't been done quite yet today. :)
After my haircut I went to get a mani with my sister, so it was a nice little day of pampering. I went with Russ1an Navy on my nails to compliment the new rocker cut. Love it.
Saturday night we ended up going to an impromptu birthday party for a friend of a friend, and I was pretty proud of my choice to stick to mostly salad and only have one tiny sliver of pizza rather than just shoving it in my face like I might normally do. It's the little things at this point.
Sunday the boy and I went to brunch and ran a few errands, hung out around the house and played Rock Band with some friends. Overall, a pretty dynamite weekend. Food was good and I peeked at the scale and it's finally moving in the right direction, so I'm feeling good. I took both days off from exercising because I was pretty sore from the squats I did on Friday and I wanted to rest up because I start boot camp today.
Last time I did this boot camp the first day consisted of a few fitness tests. I went back through my archives and found my results for my first day of boot camp last year, which interestingly enough was almost exactly a year ago. They were as follows:
Sit Ups (full body, not crunching): 64 in two minutes
Hop ups (two legs at a time, not step ups): 57 in two minutes
Pushups (regular pushups, once you fall to your knees you're done): 7 in two minutes
I also did the 1.6 mile loop around Cheeseman in 17:38.
I'm not sure if we'll do the same exact tests tonight, but I'll be interested to see how I compare fitness-wise. I know we won't be doing the loop around Cheeseman because I'm going to a new location, but I bet we'll do at least a mile run so I'll probably be able to figure out the comparison fairly easily. Judging by my current workouts, I'd say I'm probably in a fairly comparable place, and sadly I think I may weigh a little more than I did last year at this time. But hopefully I'm on the way down.
I'll check in tomorrow and let you all know how it goes, but wish me luck!
Friday, April 04, 2008
Friday
The weekend is here and I'm feeling good and ready for it. The sun is shining - finally - and it seems like everyone is in a good mood on a Friday afternoon.
Eating has been really great the past couple of days. I've been incorporating lots of veggies and monitoring my calories on Spark People, which I'm really enjoying. I still sort of count points in my head without even thinking about it, but I like seeing exactly how much protein, fiber, etc. I'm getting. Yesterday I racked up like 38 grams of fiber. Wow.
I took yesterday off of exercising but I hit weights and the stepmill today (the stepmill is killer by the way, I can do like 20 min max) so I feel great overall. Next week I'm starting a five week boot camp with some of my girlfriends, so I'm getting pumped for that. It's four days a week, 75 min a day. I also plan on including at least one, if not two additional workouts a week while I'm doing the bootcamp. I'm really looking forward to it because while I do okay on my own, I always push myself harder when I have some kind of guided support, whether it's a class instructor, a trainer or now a bootcamp instructor.
The one thing I'm nervous about is doing bootcamp with the friends I'm doing it with. All three of them are great friends, but they are all on a completely different level fitness-wise than I am. They don't really lift weights and keep saying I'm going to kill them on strength stuff, but they are super fast runners and have amazing cardio fitness. One is running a half marathon on Sunday, the other two ran the Steamboat marathon last year and they're training for Chicago later this year.
Now I know I ran a half marathon too, but they are all just so much faster than me. When we do runs, I know I'm just going to have to go at my own pace and not worry about what everyone else is doing, but it always feel shitty to be in the back. I think I'm just going to have to find a buddy that is closer to my pace so at least I'll have someone to hang with.
Tonight is happy hour for opening day for the Rockies, then probably just dinner with some friends. Tomorrow I'm going to run in the morning, then I'm getting a cut and highlight (sorely needed.) The rest of the weekend is open, which is nice given all the stuff we've had going on over the past couple of months.
Hope everyone has a great weekend.
Eating has been really great the past couple of days. I've been incorporating lots of veggies and monitoring my calories on Spark People, which I'm really enjoying. I still sort of count points in my head without even thinking about it, but I like seeing exactly how much protein, fiber, etc. I'm getting. Yesterday I racked up like 38 grams of fiber. Wow.
I took yesterday off of exercising but I hit weights and the stepmill today (the stepmill is killer by the way, I can do like 20 min max) so I feel great overall. Next week I'm starting a five week boot camp with some of my girlfriends, so I'm getting pumped for that. It's four days a week, 75 min a day. I also plan on including at least one, if not two additional workouts a week while I'm doing the bootcamp. I'm really looking forward to it because while I do okay on my own, I always push myself harder when I have some kind of guided support, whether it's a class instructor, a trainer or now a bootcamp instructor.
The one thing I'm nervous about is doing bootcamp with the friends I'm doing it with. All three of them are great friends, but they are all on a completely different level fitness-wise than I am. They don't really lift weights and keep saying I'm going to kill them on strength stuff, but they are super fast runners and have amazing cardio fitness. One is running a half marathon on Sunday, the other two ran the Steamboat marathon last year and they're training for Chicago later this year.
Now I know I ran a half marathon too, but they are all just so much faster than me. When we do runs, I know I'm just going to have to go at my own pace and not worry about what everyone else is doing, but it always feel shitty to be in the back. I think I'm just going to have to find a buddy that is closer to my pace so at least I'll have someone to hang with.
Tonight is happy hour for opening day for the Rockies, then probably just dinner with some friends. Tomorrow I'm going to run in the morning, then I'm getting a cut and highlight (sorely needed.) The rest of the weekend is open, which is nice given all the stuff we've had going on over the past couple of months.
Hope everyone has a great weekend.
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Things are good. Better I guess. I don't know how many times I'm going to have to write posts like yesterday until something finally clicks, but hopefully this was one of the last. I cooked dinner last night, something I realized I've actually been enjoying since I started experimenting with new recipes and what not. And it was good. And there were carbs. But I'm okay with that.
Today is kind of a mish mash day - I'm working on some freelance stuff, finishing up our taxes and taking them to the post office, errands, brow wax (sorely needed) and girls night tonight to catch up on The Bachelor. We've been recording it on Monday's and then watching on Wednesday's when we all get together. I know it's kind of ridiculous that we're still watching this show, but I love it. And this bachelor is dreamy. Seriously. He's hot. And he makes me laugh, which only adds to the hotness.
Oh yeah, I also hit a spinning class this afternoon, the first one I've been to in a long time and it was fantastic. The only thing I don't like about spinning class is the lady, and it seems like there's always one of these ladies, that feels the need to contribute the "woo!" and "come on" and "there's a lion chasing you" comments. I mean, that's what the instructor is for. If he wants to tell me there's a lion chasing me that's one thing. But if you really feel the need to yell that out during class, maybe you should get your teaching certification and get your own class. Otherwise let's just keep these comments to ourselves shall we? Okay? Okay.
Hope everyone is having a good day.
Today is kind of a mish mash day - I'm working on some freelance stuff, finishing up our taxes and taking them to the post office, errands, brow wax (sorely needed) and girls night tonight to catch up on The Bachelor. We've been recording it on Monday's and then watching on Wednesday's when we all get together. I know it's kind of ridiculous that we're still watching this show, but I love it. And this bachelor is dreamy. Seriously. He's hot. And he makes me laugh, which only adds to the hotness.
Oh yeah, I also hit a spinning class this afternoon, the first one I've been to in a long time and it was fantastic. The only thing I don't like about spinning class is the lady, and it seems like there's always one of these ladies, that feels the need to contribute the "woo!" and "come on" and "there's a lion chasing you" comments. I mean, that's what the instructor is for. If he wants to tell me there's a lion chasing me that's one thing. But if you really feel the need to yell that out during class, maybe you should get your teaching certification and get your own class. Otherwise let's just keep these comments to ourselves shall we? Okay? Okay.
Hope everyone is having a good day.
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Here it goes again
What the hell is wrong with me? Last night I was awakened by a sneak allergy attack. Coughing, sneezing, snotting, all that lovely stuff. I don't mind that stuff so much because I know I can just run to Target (say it the french way) and pick up my drug of choice. What I do mind is that once I woke up, my mind was racing, mostly with thoughts on food and working out and fatness and swimsuits and all that crap until at least 5, if not later.
I don't know what the deal is right now. If I'm looking at myself, I know I'm at least 15 lbs over my "happy weight" right now, and to be honest with you, that wasn't really a happy weight either. I thought I'd give this slow carb thing a try, but I've decided to abandon it because frankly, I sucked at it. I had a couple of days where I did it perfectly, but the monotony and stringent rules of a plan like that don't work for me. You'd think I would know this by now, but I guess I don't. I don't even like egg whites, and I've been eating them every morning. Choking them down. And that is no way to live, even if it is only for four weeks.
Last night at dinner, I had more than one bite of the oatmeal whoopie pie dessert that my husband picked out (as usual, the eating habits of a five year old). And then I berated myself for the rest of the night for not "sticking to the plan."
Excuse my french, but fuck that. I cannot do this to myself for the rest of my life. I know what works for me and for some reason I'm doing everything but that. I'm having super clean eating days, and then I'm blowing them with crazy weekends that start on Thursday and go until Sunday. There is no moderation in my life right now. It just seems to be one extreme or the other.
So today I am starting something different. It's April 1, spring is here (even though it's still freaking cold here) and I want to drop at least these 15 lbs. That should put me back squarely in a size 12 dress, which is the size I'd like to be when I'm a bridesmaid in a friend's wedding at the end of June. The good news is, we're wearing black and get to pick out our own dresses, so I have some time before I have to order what I want.
I think I'm going to try tracking my calories on Spark People again for a bit just to see where I am, but for the most part I'm just going to go back to what was working for me in the fall of '06 before my wedding. Lots of veggies, limiting sugar and alcohol but mostly just taking care with what I eat. Giving my body healthy, nourishing foods. I can do this. I want to do this and I will do this.
I don't know what the deal is right now. If I'm looking at myself, I know I'm at least 15 lbs over my "happy weight" right now, and to be honest with you, that wasn't really a happy weight either. I thought I'd give this slow carb thing a try, but I've decided to abandon it because frankly, I sucked at it. I had a couple of days where I did it perfectly, but the monotony and stringent rules of a plan like that don't work for me. You'd think I would know this by now, but I guess I don't. I don't even like egg whites, and I've been eating them every morning. Choking them down. And that is no way to live, even if it is only for four weeks.
Last night at dinner, I had more than one bite of the oatmeal whoopie pie dessert that my husband picked out (as usual, the eating habits of a five year old). And then I berated myself for the rest of the night for not "sticking to the plan."
Excuse my french, but fuck that. I cannot do this to myself for the rest of my life. I know what works for me and for some reason I'm doing everything but that. I'm having super clean eating days, and then I'm blowing them with crazy weekends that start on Thursday and go until Sunday. There is no moderation in my life right now. It just seems to be one extreme or the other.
So today I am starting something different. It's April 1, spring is here (even though it's still freaking cold here) and I want to drop at least these 15 lbs. That should put me back squarely in a size 12 dress, which is the size I'd like to be when I'm a bridesmaid in a friend's wedding at the end of June. The good news is, we're wearing black and get to pick out our own dresses, so I have some time before I have to order what I want.
I think I'm going to try tracking my calories on Spark People again for a bit just to see where I am, but for the most part I'm just going to go back to what was working for me in the fall of '06 before my wedding. Lots of veggies, limiting sugar and alcohol but mostly just taking care with what I eat. Giving my body healthy, nourishing foods. I can do this. I want to do this and I will do this.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Family Issues...
Ack! I swear I have been on the phone with one family member or another all freaking day today. Not because of any crisis, but because we're trying to plan Memorial Day weekend. And it is a royal pain in the boot-ay. So here's the situation - my dad and my stepmom and three stepsisters live in Texas, and we don't see them all that often. I've talked about my dad before but in case you don't remember I'll just say that he was kind of bitter after my parent's divorce and my mom's subsequent move to Colorado, so most of our interactions are laced with guilt and loathing. But on a very happy surface. Good times. Good times. I do love him, there are just a few issues.
Anyway, so last year my dad bought this place on a lake near Austin, and he was all "yeah, you guys can go anytime, it'll be great." So last year the boy, my sister and I all went down and spent a weekend on the lake with my dad and stepmom and a good time was had by all. And then this year rolls around and my sister, her BF (my B-in law, as you'll recall) and my husband all decided we wanted to go down there and bring along my husband's BFF and his wife (one of my BFF's) and it would be like a fun party on the lake type thing with the six of us.
Well I broached the subject with my dad in January, and he seemed a little hesitant at first, mostly because if we were coming to Texas, he wanted to see us. Well I suggested we all go to Midland first, spend a couple of days with him and the rest of the fam, and then we could the "kids" could all head to the lake and it would be all good. Well that seemed to be okay with him, but now that we're getting down to buying plane tickets he's kind of hemming and hawing and acting all weird about it, talking about going to Austin to show us how the boat works and maybe staying for the weekend and on and on.
I know he just wants to see us all, but frankly, hanging out with my dad for the weekend is not what our friends (who we've already invited) signed up for. But it is my dad's house, and with the guilt issues and what not, I can't exactly tell him "no, you can't come." So I did the next best passive aggressive thing and called my stepmom and told her how we were feeling and asked her to talk to him. The bottom line is, I love my dad and do want to see him, but he was just not part of my "party on the lake" vision.
So. Now that I've gotten that all out - here's the problem. My sister is now saying "I don't care if he comes" and I feel like I'm being the bitch. And it sucks. For some reason I am always the bitch. So what do you guys think? Should I just get over it and let dad horn in on the weekend?
I'm hopeful that my stepmom will know how to take the right path with him and it will be all good, but I'm just so damn concerned about hurting his feelings right now. It sucks. I'm 28 years old and all the sudden I feel like a blabbering baby idiot.
On the fitness front, I've had a great day and am planning to take it into the evening as well. I hit the gym for a cardio zone class - that's where you get on your cardio machine of choice (mine was the treadmill) and move the intensity up and down depending on what the instructor is telling you at any given time. I love it so much. I really push myself and burn a ton of calories, which is always a positive thing. I swear my face is still red and it's 5 hours later.
Tonight we're having a belated 30th birthday celebration with the boy's parents, but I know the menu where we're going and I've already made a choice - the orange-cranberry glazed chicken. Can't wait! Let's just hope I can control myself around any dessert that comes my way.
Anyway, so last year my dad bought this place on a lake near Austin, and he was all "yeah, you guys can go anytime, it'll be great." So last year the boy, my sister and I all went down and spent a weekend on the lake with my dad and stepmom and a good time was had by all. And then this year rolls around and my sister, her BF (my B-in law, as you'll recall) and my husband all decided we wanted to go down there and bring along my husband's BFF and his wife (one of my BFF's) and it would be like a fun party on the lake type thing with the six of us.
Well I broached the subject with my dad in January, and he seemed a little hesitant at first, mostly because if we were coming to Texas, he wanted to see us. Well I suggested we all go to Midland first, spend a couple of days with him and the rest of the fam, and then we could the "kids" could all head to the lake and it would be all good. Well that seemed to be okay with him, but now that we're getting down to buying plane tickets he's kind of hemming and hawing and acting all weird about it, talking about going to Austin to show us how the boat works and maybe staying for the weekend and on and on.
I know he just wants to see us all, but frankly, hanging out with my dad for the weekend is not what our friends (who we've already invited) signed up for. But it is my dad's house, and with the guilt issues and what not, I can't exactly tell him "no, you can't come." So I did the next best passive aggressive thing and called my stepmom and told her how we were feeling and asked her to talk to him. The bottom line is, I love my dad and do want to see him, but he was just not part of my "party on the lake" vision.
So. Now that I've gotten that all out - here's the problem. My sister is now saying "I don't care if he comes" and I feel like I'm being the bitch. And it sucks. For some reason I am always the bitch. So what do you guys think? Should I just get over it and let dad horn in on the weekend?
I'm hopeful that my stepmom will know how to take the right path with him and it will be all good, but I'm just so damn concerned about hurting his feelings right now. It sucks. I'm 28 years old and all the sudden I feel like a blabbering baby idiot.
On the fitness front, I've had a great day and am planning to take it into the evening as well. I hit the gym for a cardio zone class - that's where you get on your cardio machine of choice (mine was the treadmill) and move the intensity up and down depending on what the instructor is telling you at any given time. I love it so much. I really push myself and burn a ton of calories, which is always a positive thing. I swear my face is still red and it's 5 hours later.
Tonight we're having a belated 30th birthday celebration with the boy's parents, but I know the menu where we're going and I've already made a choice - the orange-cranberry glazed chicken. Can't wait! Let's just hope I can control myself around any dessert that comes my way.
Friday, March 28, 2008
Tagged
So the lovely Kim tagged me a few weeks ago and I am a slacker, what can I say, but I decided this morning might be a nice time to share some random, non-important facts with you all. I have been contemplating doing one of those "100 things about me" posts for like 2 years but for some reason I'm not sure I can even come up with 100 things. We'll see if I can even come up with six things. Okay, so.
Here are the rules.
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
Six non-important things about me:
1. I was born in Midland, TX - the very place the Bush's are from. But I moved when I was six, so I don't claim it. ;)
2. I always leave drawers/closets/cabinet drawers/the dishwasher just slightly open. It drives me husband nuts. But I say we have to set that shit free because if that type of thing ruins our marriage, that's just sad. It should at least be a major problem like his inability to pay any bill on time. But that's another story...
3. My little sister and my husband's little brother are dating. And they just moved in together. I don't think I've ever said that on this blog. But we all hang out together all the time, and it just happened. It was weird at first, but now I kind of like it. Makes hanging out with the fam much more bearable when my sister and I can give each other sideways glances.
4. Speaking of in-laws, mine make their broccoli casserole with breadcrumbs (like for Thanksgiving, etc.). I find that to be totally weird. My family always made broccoli casserole with rice. Either way I think broccoli casserole is gross. Just give me the broccoli alone thank you very much.
5. I barely ever shave my legs. Like maybe once a week, or in the height of the summer, maybe every 3 days. I'm blonde, my hair is fine, you can barely notice it and I just don't feel the need. I'm over it.
6. My little dog - I've always called him the dogger here - his name is Saucer. I don't know why I named him that. People always ask me. I tell them that was just his name when I got him. It just seemed like that's what I should call him. But when people hear me talking to him on the street, half the time they think I'm saying Salsa. And I hate that. I did give my dog a silly name. But dammit it's not Salsa.
I'm supposed to tag people now but I think I'll just say tag to everyone - go for it. It's kinda fun!
Here are the rules.
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
4. Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.
Six non-important things about me:
1. I was born in Midland, TX - the very place the Bush's are from. But I moved when I was six, so I don't claim it. ;)
2. I always leave drawers/closets/cabinet drawers/the dishwasher just slightly open. It drives me husband nuts. But I say we have to set that shit free because if that type of thing ruins our marriage, that's just sad. It should at least be a major problem like his inability to pay any bill on time. But that's another story...
3. My little sister and my husband's little brother are dating. And they just moved in together. I don't think I've ever said that on this blog. But we all hang out together all the time, and it just happened. It was weird at first, but now I kind of like it. Makes hanging out with the fam much more bearable when my sister and I can give each other sideways glances.
4. Speaking of in-laws, mine make their broccoli casserole with breadcrumbs (like for Thanksgiving, etc.). I find that to be totally weird. My family always made broccoli casserole with rice. Either way I think broccoli casserole is gross. Just give me the broccoli alone thank you very much.
5. I barely ever shave my legs. Like maybe once a week, or in the height of the summer, maybe every 3 days. I'm blonde, my hair is fine, you can barely notice it and I just don't feel the need. I'm over it.
6. My little dog - I've always called him the dogger here - his name is Saucer. I don't know why I named him that. People always ask me. I tell them that was just his name when I got him. It just seemed like that's what I should call him. But when people hear me talking to him on the street, half the time they think I'm saying Salsa. And I hate that. I did give my dog a silly name. But dammit it's not Salsa.
I'm supposed to tag people now but I think I'll just say tag to everyone - go for it. It's kinda fun!
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Transportation
The whole slow carb thing is going well, but not exactly as planned. Of course I should know that because nothing in my life ever goes exactly as planned, but it is what it is. I'm actually sort of bored out of my skull a tiny bit right now because I'm stuck in my house, carless and the dog can only go on so many walks. And today is supposed to be my weights day and I wanted to go the gym, but I guess I may have to improvise and do some sort of bodyweight workout or something. Or maybe I'll see if there are any yoga workouts on TV or something.
The good news is, I'm supposed to be getting a rental car either tonight or tomorrow (apparently my car needs an entirely new engine, thank god they are paying for it, but I guess that takes a while to repair so they will be giving me a car.) It's weird not having a car though, because Denver is such a car city. I mean it's not terrible, I could probably get on without one, but I'd have to do a little more planning in advance.
Our public transportation is just not up to par with some other cities. Now I know Denver is nowhere near the size of DC (in population of course, not actual area because DC is tiny) but when I lived in DC I never drove anywhere. I always walked, or took the metro, or the bus. It was great. I never had to worry about my car if happy hour went a little long (which it often did) and I never thought twice about trying to find a parking space or any of that other lame crap that comes with driving. And - I was saving the earth. Yay!
The whole public transportation thing was sort of a novelty to me when I moved to DC because I grew up in a southern suburb of Denver and the closest I had ever been to a bus was to look at the side of one. Taking the bus just wasn't really something people did. There were barely any routes, and the ones they did have meant it took forever to get anywhere. And then I went to college in Boulder, and we did have buses there, but they didn't really seem like buses because everything in Boulder is just so pretty and clean and sparkly and I swear it's not even a real city. The people who live there are robots. They call it the Republic of Boulder for a reason.
So yah, when I got to DC I was all excited by the metro and I rode it everywhere and I loved coming down the tunnel. It just made me feel so urban! grown up! and smart! And looking back, it wasn't really all that great, but without a car this day, I'd give anything to have a little train right down to my gym so I could go, instead of surfing the net and hoping there's a yoga show On Demand. I guess if I was being really fit and all that I could just run the three miles down there, but it's rainy here today, and I'm a baby, and I don't wanna. So I guess I'll just sit here a little while longer.
The good news is, I'm supposed to be getting a rental car either tonight or tomorrow (apparently my car needs an entirely new engine, thank god they are paying for it, but I guess that takes a while to repair so they will be giving me a car.) It's weird not having a car though, because Denver is such a car city. I mean it's not terrible, I could probably get on without one, but I'd have to do a little more planning in advance.
Our public transportation is just not up to par with some other cities. Now I know Denver is nowhere near the size of DC (in population of course, not actual area because DC is tiny) but when I lived in DC I never drove anywhere. I always walked, or took the metro, or the bus. It was great. I never had to worry about my car if happy hour went a little long (which it often did) and I never thought twice about trying to find a parking space or any of that other lame crap that comes with driving. And - I was saving the earth. Yay!
The whole public transportation thing was sort of a novelty to me when I moved to DC because I grew up in a southern suburb of Denver and the closest I had ever been to a bus was to look at the side of one. Taking the bus just wasn't really something people did. There were barely any routes, and the ones they did have meant it took forever to get anywhere. And then I went to college in Boulder, and we did have buses there, but they didn't really seem like buses because everything in Boulder is just so pretty and clean and sparkly and I swear it's not even a real city. The people who live there are robots. They call it the Republic of Boulder for a reason.
So yah, when I got to DC I was all excited by the metro and I rode it everywhere and I loved coming down the tunnel. It just made me feel so urban! grown up! and smart! And looking back, it wasn't really all that great, but without a car this day, I'd give anything to have a little train right down to my gym so I could go, instead of surfing the net and hoping there's a yoga show On Demand. I guess if I was being really fit and all that I could just run the three miles down there, but it's rainy here today, and I'm a baby, and I don't wanna. So I guess I'll just sit here a little while longer.
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
Slow Carb
Whirlwind traveling means I'm not a very good blogger doesn't it? Where to begin? Well Vegas was incredible - hubby and I had an amazing time together and we really went all out. We did not even come close to winning any money, sadly quite the opposite, but we just had so much fun together. We stayed at the new Palazzo hotel, which is connected to the Venetian if you guys know Vegas. It just opened in December and since we went mid-week, we were able to get a pretty darn good rate. The pool and the spa there still aren't open, but we were able to walk over to the Venetian's facilities and use them, which was really nice.
I didn't do great with food, but I didn't do terribly either. I ended up eating lunch a couple of days at the Canyon Ranch Spa Cafe, both times after good workouts, and the food was amazing. It was so nice to see a menu with all healthy options and know the nutrition facts were right there in front of me. I loved it. The food was ridiculously overpriced as it usually is in hotels like this, but I was so happy to be able to sit and enjoy some yummy organic iced tea and eat a whole wheat BBQ chicken wrap and cucumber salad and know everything I was putting in my mouth was fresh, nutritious and all around good for me.
Now all of that may or may not have been negated by the giant fudge cake thingy we had to celebrate my husband's 30th b-day, but it doesn't matter because it was perfect and fun and really it's all good. After about four hours of sleep on Friday night, we returned home on Saturday morning, where I immediately started doing laundry and preparing for the party our best friend's were having for yet another celebration. I did manage to sneak in a nap before picking up the chocolate chip cookie cake (what can I say, the man has the food preferences of a six-year-old) and heading to the party. We had such a great time with our friends, playing Rock Band and generally lamenting this new "grown-up" phase that is going to be our 30's (although I've still got two years before I get there).
I had Sunday at home to prep for my newest project - a modified "slow-carb" diet for the next couple of weeks - more on that in a few. Then Monday my girlfriend and I headed to the mountains for two days of snowboarding (she's a teacher on spring break). I got home last night and played trivia at the local pub, but I'm proud to say that I've been sticking to my plan and I think I'm going to have a very sucessful week. I am looking forward to a couple of days at home though - this running around has me exhausted!
So what is this slow carb diet? Tim Ferriss has had a post up about how to lose 20 lbs of fat in 30 days for some time now, and I've looked at it I don't know how many times, but it just seemed pretty daunting to do something that extreme. But I decided to bite the bullet and go for it, albeit with some modifications. Frankly this is more of a core/South Beach/Body For Life thing than what Tim outlines, but I don't expect to lose 20 lbs in 30 days either - I know myself and I know what's realistic for me.
The bottom line is that I'm trying to avoid sugar, white flour and anything else that is going to spike my blood sugar and I'm trying to mix protein and a slow carb, like beans, with veggies in all of my meals. I had a great day doing it on Sunday, and then Monday and Tuesday were difficult because I was on the mountain most of the day, but I did my best and I'm down about 2.5 lbs since Sunday (which means I lost that Miami weight, gained some back, and lost most of it again). I know most of that is probably just water weight and bloat from my trip to Vegas, but I'm confident I'm going to see some good movement on the scale in the next couple of weeks, which is sadly more than I can say for most of this year. No more of this up and down crap!
On that note, I'm off for a run, even though I'm super sore from snowboarding. Just trying to get the muscles loose I guess and then it's coffee with one of my dearest friend's from high school who is in town for a few days. I can't wait! Hope everyone is having a great week so far! I hope to catch up on your blogs tonight!
I didn't do great with food, but I didn't do terribly either. I ended up eating lunch a couple of days at the Canyon Ranch Spa Cafe, both times after good workouts, and the food was amazing. It was so nice to see a menu with all healthy options and know the nutrition facts were right there in front of me. I loved it. The food was ridiculously overpriced as it usually is in hotels like this, but I was so happy to be able to sit and enjoy some yummy organic iced tea and eat a whole wheat BBQ chicken wrap and cucumber salad and know everything I was putting in my mouth was fresh, nutritious and all around good for me.
Now all of that may or may not have been negated by the giant fudge cake thingy we had to celebrate my husband's 30th b-day, but it doesn't matter because it was perfect and fun and really it's all good. After about four hours of sleep on Friday night, we returned home on Saturday morning, where I immediately started doing laundry and preparing for the party our best friend's were having for yet another celebration. I did manage to sneak in a nap before picking up the chocolate chip cookie cake (what can I say, the man has the food preferences of a six-year-old) and heading to the party. We had such a great time with our friends, playing Rock Band and generally lamenting this new "grown-up" phase that is going to be our 30's (although I've still got two years before I get there).
I had Sunday at home to prep for my newest project - a modified "slow-carb" diet for the next couple of weeks - more on that in a few. Then Monday my girlfriend and I headed to the mountains for two days of snowboarding (she's a teacher on spring break). I got home last night and played trivia at the local pub, but I'm proud to say that I've been sticking to my plan and I think I'm going to have a very sucessful week. I am looking forward to a couple of days at home though - this running around has me exhausted!
So what is this slow carb diet? Tim Ferriss has had a post up about how to lose 20 lbs of fat in 30 days for some time now, and I've looked at it I don't know how many times, but it just seemed pretty daunting to do something that extreme. But I decided to bite the bullet and go for it, albeit with some modifications. Frankly this is more of a core/South Beach/Body For Life thing than what Tim outlines, but I don't expect to lose 20 lbs in 30 days either - I know myself and I know what's realistic for me.
The bottom line is that I'm trying to avoid sugar, white flour and anything else that is going to spike my blood sugar and I'm trying to mix protein and a slow carb, like beans, with veggies in all of my meals. I had a great day doing it on Sunday, and then Monday and Tuesday were difficult because I was on the mountain most of the day, but I did my best and I'm down about 2.5 lbs since Sunday (which means I lost that Miami weight, gained some back, and lost most of it again). I know most of that is probably just water weight and bloat from my trip to Vegas, but I'm confident I'm going to see some good movement on the scale in the next couple of weeks, which is sadly more than I can say for most of this year. No more of this up and down crap!
On that note, I'm off for a run, even though I'm super sore from snowboarding. Just trying to get the muscles loose I guess and then it's coffee with one of my dearest friend's from high school who is in town for a few days. I can't wait! Hope everyone is having a great week so far! I hope to catch up on your blogs tonight!
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Vegas!
Quick note to say goodbye - hubby and I leave for Vegas tomorrow morning! Woo hoo! This past weekend was incredibly difficult, and I have no doubt Vegas will be even harder. I'm seriously contemplating a major dry out when I return - but more on that next week. In the meantime, I'm just going to do the best I can and enjoy my vacation with my husband.
Have a great week and weekend everyone!
Have a great week and weekend everyone!
Friday, March 14, 2008
Travel
Thank goodness - the scale is on the way back down. I don't know if I'll actually lose lose any weight by next week, but hopefully I can at least drop that icky 3 lb gain. Yesterday was great - I had lunch with my mom and got the Miso Sea Bass - yummy.
Then I went to the dentist, which I do not love, but the cleaning was relatively painless and no cavities, so I feel pretty good about that trip. My afternoon was spent coordinating the one million trips and weddings my husband and I have coming up, including:
What I'm a little worried about is the dent they may put in my eating plan, or more than likely, the girth they may add to my waist. Traveling is always hard on me; I seem to revert back to my childhood eating patterns of just eating whatever the hell I want and thinking I'll fix it "when I get back." But that of course has not worked for me in the past, so I'm going to try to figure out a new way to approach traveling.
I thought I did that last week in Miami, but clearly the results on the scale showed otherwise. So for Vegas next week, instead of just trying to do okay most of the time and then blowing it, I'm going to give myself permission to go crazy for one meal, but that is it! Otherwise, I'm on program and I'm focused toward my goal. I know I won't have any trouble getting workouts in, so that's good at least.
On that note, I'm off to the gym, and then to volunteer in a friend's first grade class. Have a wonderful weekend!
Then I went to the dentist, which I do not love, but the cleaning was relatively painless and no cavities, so I feel pretty good about that trip. My afternoon was spent coordinating the one million trips and weddings my husband and I have coming up, including:
- Vegas next Wednesday - Friday for his 30th b-day
- Copper Mountain in two weeks for a friend's engagement party (this is just one night)
- Beaver Creek in April for another friend's wedding (weekend)
- Vegas again for me for yet another friend's bachelorette party (I'm a bridesmaid in this one - eek!)
- Austin (Lake LBJ actually) over Memorial Day with our best "couple friend" to celebrate their 30ths!
What I'm a little worried about is the dent they may put in my eating plan, or more than likely, the girth they may add to my waist. Traveling is always hard on me; I seem to revert back to my childhood eating patterns of just eating whatever the hell I want and thinking I'll fix it "when I get back." But that of course has not worked for me in the past, so I'm going to try to figure out a new way to approach traveling.
I thought I did that last week in Miami, but clearly the results on the scale showed otherwise. So for Vegas next week, instead of just trying to do okay most of the time and then blowing it, I'm going to give myself permission to go crazy for one meal, but that is it! Otherwise, I'm on program and I'm focused toward my goal. I know I won't have any trouble getting workouts in, so that's good at least.
On that note, I'm off to the gym, and then to volunteer in a friend's first grade class. Have a wonderful weekend!
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Weigh In
The weigh in this morning was not good. Up 3 lbs. I have no idea why. Okay that's bullshit I actually do know why - it's because I ate like crap in Miami, but seriously, not bad enough for 3 lbs. And I was actually 1.5 lower than what I am today yesterday so I've got to think that some of that is sodium, water retention etc. but I'm just going to record it and move on. Ugh.
The good news is, I've had a really great couple of days. Planning out all of my meals, sticking to my plan and getting my workouts in. I even used that frozen turkey meat for tacos last night (thus the sodium thing) and got a few other things crossed off of my list as well. I started doing the research for a doctor and am a little overwhelmed at all of the options, so I may just have to close my eyes and point and hope for the best, but I think we'll be okay.
It's supposed to be another beautiful day here so I'm going to go hit the pavement with the doggie and enjoy the sun before the snow comes back (which it's supposed to later this week). Lunch is going to be a simple sweet potato, salad and cottage cheese (mainly because I bought these sweet potatoes and I keep not eating them and I need to eat them). Then I'll probably have yogurt for a snack. The most difficult part of my day will be dinner because I'm off to my weekly Wednesday girl's dinner, but I already know we're having a shrimp pesto gnocchi from an old issue of Cooking Light, and I'm just going to stick to ONE glass of wine and skip the bread. I will skip the bread. I will skip the bread. Say it after me I will skip the bread. I don't need bread if I'm going to be eating gnocchi for dinner.
Well that's it for me today. Hope you all have a great one.
The good news is, I've had a really great couple of days. Planning out all of my meals, sticking to my plan and getting my workouts in. I even used that frozen turkey meat for tacos last night (thus the sodium thing) and got a few other things crossed off of my list as well. I started doing the research for a doctor and am a little overwhelmed at all of the options, so I may just have to close my eyes and point and hope for the best, but I think we'll be okay.
It's supposed to be another beautiful day here so I'm going to go hit the pavement with the doggie and enjoy the sun before the snow comes back (which it's supposed to later this week). Lunch is going to be a simple sweet potato, salad and cottage cheese (mainly because I bought these sweet potatoes and I keep not eating them and I need to eat them). Then I'll probably have yogurt for a snack. The most difficult part of my day will be dinner because I'm off to my weekly Wednesday girl's dinner, but I already know we're having a shrimp pesto gnocchi from an old issue of Cooking Light, and I'm just going to stick to ONE glass of wine and skip the bread. I will skip the bread. I will skip the bread. Say it after me I will skip the bread. I don't need bread if I'm going to be eating gnocchi for dinner.
Well that's it for me today. Hope you all have a great one.
Monday, March 10, 2008
Things I Need to Do to Feel Successful
Okay so since I'm not working right now, and especially since I was in Miami last week, I've been feeling a little slothful and just generally like I'm not getting things completed as well as I'd like to. This is going to be kind of a boring post, but just to keep me accountable, I've decided I need to list out here the things I'd like to do to help me feel successful this week. Getting back on the right food track this weekend didn't go exactly as I'd planned after an impromptu dinner invite from friends last night, so the first part of that is planning my meals.
So this week I'd like to:
On a side note - my husband is turning 30 next week and he doesn't have a general physician, but I think this might be a good time for him to get a basic physical and just make sure everything is working properly and all of that. He seems perfectly healthy, but you never know right? The problem is - I have no idea how to find him a good doctor. I'm sure our insurance company has some recommended physicians so I'm going to try to check that out, but if anyone knows any good sites or anything like that I'd love to know.
So as part of my promise to plan my meals, I'm going to do it here today.
Breakfast (already had it) - Kashi Vive cereal w/ half a banana and skim milk
Lunch - spinach salad w/ homemade baked chicken strips, walnuts, cucumbers, carrots, craisins and light dressing
Snack - Fage w/ honey
Dinner - sweet potato gnocchi w/ sage and asparagus
Have a great day everyone!
So this week I'd like to:
- Plan my meals every day and track my food!
- Get a workout in at least four out of five weekdays, including 3 strength days and 120 minutes of cardio
- Incorporate veggies into both lunch and dinner every day
- Take the dog on at least a 30 minute walk every morning
- Clean both bathrooms
- Dust and mop all hardwood floors
- Put the Honda on Craig's list
- Use the turkey in the freezer for at least one meal
- Go through the mail every day and get all bills paid on time and quickly
- Buy N. a shower gift
- Find doctor and schedule physical for hubby
On a side note - my husband is turning 30 next week and he doesn't have a general physician, but I think this might be a good time for him to get a basic physical and just make sure everything is working properly and all of that. He seems perfectly healthy, but you never know right? The problem is - I have no idea how to find him a good doctor. I'm sure our insurance company has some recommended physicians so I'm going to try to check that out, but if anyone knows any good sites or anything like that I'd love to know.
So as part of my promise to plan my meals, I'm going to do it here today.
Breakfast (already had it) - Kashi Vive cereal w/ half a banana and skim milk
Lunch - spinach salad w/ homemade baked chicken strips, walnuts, cucumbers, carrots, craisins and light dressing
Snack - Fage w/ honey
Dinner - sweet potato gnocchi w/ sage and asparagus
Have a great day everyone!
Sunday, March 09, 2008
Sunday Brunch
Oh my lord. Paula Deen is trying to kill us all. She is making fried bacon wrapped macaroni and cheese right now. Wow.
Anyway, I was up and at 'em early this morning but it's my day off from working out, so I flipped on Food Network to see what was up. I swear I love food porn so much. I guess that makes me a stereotypical fat girl doesn't it?d Whatever I don't care. I'm just exploring my newfound cooking skills right now so it's fun to see what I can come up with.
This morning I made the hubby and I a nice Sunday brunch - coffee, scrambled eggs with spinach and cheese, strawberries, and some cinnamon toast. Yum. I haven't had cinnamon toast since I don't even know when. It was quite delicious and healthy and well balanced in terms of nutrition.
Today we're heading to REI to check out some snowboarding equipment and then I guess we're just chillaxing the rest of the day. Short post, but I just wanted to check in and say hi. Hope you're all having a nice weekend!
ETA: Here is Paula's recipe. Insanity I tell ya.
Anyway, I was up and at 'em early this morning but it's my day off from working out, so I flipped on Food Network to see what was up. I swear I love food porn so much. I guess that makes me a stereotypical fat girl doesn't it?d Whatever I don't care. I'm just exploring my newfound cooking skills right now so it's fun to see what I can come up with.
This morning I made the hubby and I a nice Sunday brunch - coffee, scrambled eggs with spinach and cheese, strawberries, and some cinnamon toast. Yum. I haven't had cinnamon toast since I don't even know when. It was quite delicious and healthy and well balanced in terms of nutrition.
Today we're heading to REI to check out some snowboarding equipment and then I guess we're just chillaxing the rest of the day. Short post, but I just wanted to check in and say hi. Hope you're all having a nice weekend!
ETA: Here is Paula's recipe. Insanity I tell ya.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
Welcome to Miami
Hi! Sorry I've been MIA this week. I unexpectedly got to go to Miami with my husband on a business trip! W00t!
He had to go for a conference, so the hotel was free, and then we used frequent flier miles for my ticket, so it was ALL GOOD. Too bad the hotel totally sucked. Well not really sucked but it was quite shabby. So I spent all day Monday flying because I had to connect and yadda yadda and then Tuesday and Wednesday chilling at the pool/working out/EATING and then we came home today.
The good news is - I did get some hardcore workouts in, but the bad news is that I ate more than enough to compensate. Way more than enough. Eating out every single meal is just freaking difficult. I brought granola bars for breakfasts and nuts for snacks, but other meals weren't so hot. Eh, it is what it is and I'm back on track.
We woke up at 4:45 ET this morning to catch our plane, which means 2:45 MT, so I'm super duper tired today, but I sucked it up and went to the grocery store this afternoon to stock up for the week. We're going to Vegas in two weeks for my husband's 30th birthday, so for the next two weeks I'm going to try to stick to a fairly strict plan for the next two weeks and see if I can get back in the swing of things prior to our trip. First stop - trainer tomorrow.
I'm so sorry I haven't been around to comment on your blogs - I'm trying to catch up though so know I'm reading! Hope everyone is well!
He had to go for a conference, so the hotel was free, and then we used frequent flier miles for my ticket, so it was ALL GOOD. Too bad the hotel totally sucked. Well not really sucked but it was quite shabby. So I spent all day Monday flying because I had to connect and yadda yadda and then Tuesday and Wednesday chilling at the pool/working out/EATING and then we came home today.
The good news is - I did get some hardcore workouts in, but the bad news is that I ate more than enough to compensate. Way more than enough. Eating out every single meal is just freaking difficult. I brought granola bars for breakfasts and nuts for snacks, but other meals weren't so hot. Eh, it is what it is and I'm back on track.
We woke up at 4:45 ET this morning to catch our plane, which means 2:45 MT, so I'm super duper tired today, but I sucked it up and went to the grocery store this afternoon to stock up for the week. We're going to Vegas in two weeks for my husband's 30th birthday, so for the next two weeks I'm going to try to stick to a fairly strict plan for the next two weeks and see if I can get back in the swing of things prior to our trip. First stop - trainer tomorrow.
I'm so sorry I haven't been around to comment on your blogs - I'm trying to catch up though so know I'm reading! Hope everyone is well!
Friday, February 29, 2008
Friday
Well the dinner with the husband's boss went fine. We had a traditional Swiss dish called Raclette. Have you guys ever had it? It's sort of like fondue, only you kind of melt the cheese over the veggies/meat under a little burner thing. It was actually kind of awesome - I want to buy a set. I loaded up on veggies only and although it was a lot of cheese, I think I did pretty well. I had broccoli, zuchinni, squash, asparagus, red and green peppers and snap peas. I also had 2 tiny pieces of bread, but for the most part I was very pleased with myself.
I ended up making a chocolate chip cake to bring - it is a very naughty recipe but I thought they would appreciate something homemade, and I was right. I also had a teeny tiny slice of that but I counted it in my daily points allotment and when all was said and done, yesterday ended up being a pretty damn good day. I did get on the scale this morning, as I do every morning, and was up a little, but I'm okay with that, I figure its mostly bloat and what not, and hope to see it come off in the next five days.
The kids were there, and one did in fact perform a Hannah Montana song on her little karaoke machine for us. And that's all I'll say about that.
This weekend should be interesting - today I'm having lunch with friends at a fun restaurant called Sputnik with a ton of vegetarian/vegan items on the menu. I've heard about this place for a while now and I'm pumped to try it.
Tonight should be low key as I'm getting up early to go to Breckenridge and go snowboarding, after which I will meet up with a ton of girls for a bachelorette party up there. The party is actually starting tonight, but one of my close friends and I are sort of fringe friends with this group of girls, and while we were invited, we thought the whole weekend might be a little much, so we decided to go hit the mountain tomorrow and then go for tomorrow night only. Should be interesting because the bride's mom and mother-in-law-to-be will be there.
I've been told this won't be an issue and the party will be in full swing and the booze will be flowing, but I'm hoping it means things tu!rn out to be a little more low-key than some bachelorette parties I've attended (mine included). That means I'll be able to monitor my alcohol intake and not go overboard with that or with food. Because lord knows if I get drunk, I'm liable to eat anything and everything.
Anyway, I'm off to pick up my friend for lunch and then I'll hit the gym afterward. Have a great weekend if I don't "see" you!
I ended up making a chocolate chip cake to bring - it is a very naughty recipe but I thought they would appreciate something homemade, and I was right. I also had a teeny tiny slice of that but I counted it in my daily points allotment and when all was said and done, yesterday ended up being a pretty damn good day. I did get on the scale this morning, as I do every morning, and was up a little, but I'm okay with that, I figure its mostly bloat and what not, and hope to see it come off in the next five days.
The kids were there, and one did in fact perform a Hannah Montana song on her little karaoke machine for us. And that's all I'll say about that.
This weekend should be interesting - today I'm having lunch with friends at a fun restaurant called Sputnik with a ton of vegetarian/vegan items on the menu. I've heard about this place for a while now and I'm pumped to try it.
Tonight should be low key as I'm getting up early to go to Breckenridge and go snowboarding, after which I will meet up with a ton of girls for a bachelorette party up there. The party is actually starting tonight, but one of my close friends and I are sort of fringe friends with this group of girls, and while we were invited, we thought the whole weekend might be a little much, so we decided to go hit the mountain tomorrow and then go for tomorrow night only. Should be interesting because the bride's mom and mother-in-law-to-be will be there.
I've been told this won't be an issue and the party will be in full swing and the booze will be flowing, but I'm hoping it means things tu!rn out to be a little more low-key than some bachelorette parties I've attended (mine included). That means I'll be able to monitor my alcohol intake and not go overboard with that or with food. Because lord knows if I get drunk, I'm liable to eat anything and everything.
Anyway, I'm off to pick up my friend for lunch and then I'll hit the gym afterward. Have a great weekend if I don't "see" you!
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Brownie Hell
Weigh in yesterday - I gained .2. Boring. I am bored with writing the same shit about gaining a .2 here and losing .6 there. This week was not in the right direction and last night I kind of let it all go to hell because I was just frustrated but I'm trying to pull it back together today.
Yesterday started out great - I did a bunch of errands, then met with the trainer in the afternoon and was subjected to another brutal workout. I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but most Wednesday nights I get together with a group of girlfriends to have dinner, catch up, drink wine, and usually watch some bad reality TV. Last night it was my turn to host, so I decided to attempt some cooking.
I started out making the fudgy mint brownies that are on the cover of this month's Cooking Light (I looked but I don't think they've posted it online). It was kind of a comedy of errors because I ran out of chocolate syrup and had to run to the store mid-mix, then when I was making the mint glaze, I accidentally dumped about half a bottle of green food coloring when I was only supposed to use 2 drops. Oopsie. The brownies turned out to be a sickening green color, but they tasted really great. Too great.
I also made a really yummy Sun-Dried Tomato Tortellini Soup and a nice salad, which was a nice healthy meal for the most part. But when the wine started flowing and I started getting compliments on the brownies, I suddenly couldn't stop eating them. As a result, I kind of having an icky wine/sugar hangover today and I'm just feeling kind of blah.
The bad news is, tonight we're having dinner with my husband's boss, and we've been asked to bring - you got it - a dessert. I think I'm going to go to Whole Foods and pick out something I don't really like so that I'll avoid eating it. I thought about bringing the leftover brownies, but unfortunately we don't have enough for the couple and their kids.
As an aside - my husband has worked for this man for years and he and his wife (about 20 years older than we are) have been asking us over for dinner for a while now. We've finally accepted, and found out their 3 kids will be there too. They range from like 9-15. Is that weird? I don't know, I feel like it's kind of weird.
Anyway, I'm trying to get back on the positive tip this morning, so I'm going to head out for a long walk with the dog, shower, and then get my day moving, before the big dinner. I'll report on it tomorrow. :) Hope everyone has a good one!
Yesterday started out great - I did a bunch of errands, then met with the trainer in the afternoon and was subjected to another brutal workout. I'm sure I've mentioned this before, but most Wednesday nights I get together with a group of girlfriends to have dinner, catch up, drink wine, and usually watch some bad reality TV. Last night it was my turn to host, so I decided to attempt some cooking.
I started out making the fudgy mint brownies that are on the cover of this month's Cooking Light (I looked but I don't think they've posted it online). It was kind of a comedy of errors because I ran out of chocolate syrup and had to run to the store mid-mix, then when I was making the mint glaze, I accidentally dumped about half a bottle of green food coloring when I was only supposed to use 2 drops. Oopsie. The brownies turned out to be a sickening green color, but they tasted really great. Too great.
I also made a really yummy Sun-Dried Tomato Tortellini Soup and a nice salad, which was a nice healthy meal for the most part. But when the wine started flowing and I started getting compliments on the brownies, I suddenly couldn't stop eating them. As a result, I kind of having an icky wine/sugar hangover today and I'm just feeling kind of blah.
The bad news is, tonight we're having dinner with my husband's boss, and we've been asked to bring - you got it - a dessert. I think I'm going to go to Whole Foods and pick out something I don't really like so that I'll avoid eating it. I thought about bringing the leftover brownies, but unfortunately we don't have enough for the couple and their kids.
As an aside - my husband has worked for this man for years and he and his wife (about 20 years older than we are) have been asking us over for dinner for a while now. We've finally accepted, and found out their 3 kids will be there too. They range from like 9-15. Is that weird? I don't know, I feel like it's kind of weird.
Anyway, I'm trying to get back on the positive tip this morning, so I'm going to head out for a long walk with the dog, shower, and then get my day moving, before the big dinner. I'll report on it tomorrow. :) Hope everyone has a good one!
Monday, February 25, 2008
Happy Medium
Monday. The weekend was good for the most part, lots of fun with friends and family and enjoyed watching the Oscars last night. Too much booze was involved as usual, but I'm hanging in there. My little sister, the one who just turned 16, met my other sister (26) and I for lunch in Cherry Creek yesterday, and then afterward we hit Target to check out the swimsuit selection because both sister's are going to Mexico (at different times). Well we didn't end up with any swimsuits, but we did end up with cupcakes. How does that happen?!?
Anyway, we went back to my house and made them, had a great time doing it too, and then I promptly sent all but four home with the little sis, who was going to hand them out to her friends and what not. Other sister and I split one, and then the hubby ate the rest. Cupcake crisis averted, and a good time was had by all.
This morning I got up and took the dogger for a walk, hit the gym for some weights, and now I'm laundering/cleaning/computering. Last night in bed I started thinking about what I'm doing with this weight loss thing though and I'm having some serious internal struggles.
The weight is sort of coming off, I mean very very slowly, so in a way I'm okay where I am. I'm enjoying working out as much as I am, and I think I'm making fairly good food choices, while still living my life the way I want to live it. But....
But.
It's not coming off the way I want it too. As fast as I want it to. I mean we're almost to March and I've only lost 6.8 lbs this year. And every week when I weigh in, I keep thinking, I should be doing better. I have no excuses not to be doing better. I should go hardcore. I should only eat protein and veggies. I should workout 2 hours every day. I should. I should I should I should.
It's the constant argument I have with myself. Do I want to live my life and enjoy it - meaning eat right/lose weight but not be so strict with myself that I can't enjoy a glass of wine or three/Cadbury egg/club sandwich and fries occasionally if I want to. Or do I want to be really strict for a couple of months - a year even - lose this weight, and then enjoy my life after that?
Writing it, and reading it - it sounds stupid. Of course I can't put off enjoying my life while I lose weight. Life happens while you're losing weight. Isn't that one of the old WW slogans or something? But am I enjoying my life a little too much right now? And isn't this euphemism of "enjoying my life" how I got fat in the first place?
I don't know. I don't really have any answers for that right now. I guess I'm just trying to find a happy medium. A place where I can lose this weight, but also have fun with my friends and enjoy being in my 20's and having an awesome husband and family and friends and everything else I'm so lucky to have.
One day - even one meal at a time is the best I can do right now. So today for lunch I had some yummy chicken rollups and an apple. No processed crap anywhere in site. And tonight I'm meeting friends for dinner, and I hope to make a good choice, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. And then I'll have tomorrow. And the next day and the next day. And hopefully, eventually, I'll figure this out.
Anyway, we went back to my house and made them, had a great time doing it too, and then I promptly sent all but four home with the little sis, who was going to hand them out to her friends and what not. Other sister and I split one, and then the hubby ate the rest. Cupcake crisis averted, and a good time was had by all.
This morning I got up and took the dogger for a walk, hit the gym for some weights, and now I'm laundering/cleaning/computering. Last night in bed I started thinking about what I'm doing with this weight loss thing though and I'm having some serious internal struggles.
The weight is sort of coming off, I mean very very slowly, so in a way I'm okay where I am. I'm enjoying working out as much as I am, and I think I'm making fairly good food choices, while still living my life the way I want to live it. But....
But.
It's not coming off the way I want it too. As fast as I want it to. I mean we're almost to March and I've only lost 6.8 lbs this year. And every week when I weigh in, I keep thinking, I should be doing better. I have no excuses not to be doing better. I should go hardcore. I should only eat protein and veggies. I should workout 2 hours every day. I should. I should I should I should.
It's the constant argument I have with myself. Do I want to live my life and enjoy it - meaning eat right/lose weight but not be so strict with myself that I can't enjoy a glass of wine or three/Cadbury egg/club sandwich and fries occasionally if I want to. Or do I want to be really strict for a couple of months - a year even - lose this weight, and then enjoy my life after that?
Writing it, and reading it - it sounds stupid. Of course I can't put off enjoying my life while I lose weight. Life happens while you're losing weight. Isn't that one of the old WW slogans or something? But am I enjoying my life a little too much right now? And isn't this euphemism of "enjoying my life" how I got fat in the first place?
I don't know. I don't really have any answers for that right now. I guess I'm just trying to find a happy medium. A place where I can lose this weight, but also have fun with my friends and enjoy being in my 20's and having an awesome husband and family and friends and everything else I'm so lucky to have.
One day - even one meal at a time is the best I can do right now. So today for lunch I had some yummy chicken rollups and an apple. No processed crap anywhere in site. And tonight I'm meeting friends for dinner, and I hope to make a good choice, but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. And then I'll have tomorrow. And the next day and the next day. And hopefully, eventually, I'll figure this out.
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