As you probably noticed, I changed my blog colors in preparation for my Valentine's Day Challenge. I just had a New Years Challenge to myself and I found that it really motivated me to hit the gym and knock off some minutes. Even though I only got about 1/2 of the minutes in, I'm confident I'll be able to hit my Valentine's Day goal.
We leave on Monday to head to South Dakota. For the most part, I enjoy flying. However, I do find it a challenge to eat in airports and also, I have no idea what types of food Stephen's mom keeps at her house. So, I am taking plenty of healthy snacks with me for the flights as well as to munch on during the week. I'm taking Fiber One bars, real fruit leather, clementines, small bags of high fiber cereal, and Teddy Grahams. I'm also bringing my water bottle so there's no excuse to not always have water with me. I am making some turtles to take but that's a gift for his mom so not eating those should be easy (otherwise I'd have to explain a 1/2 empty box of food and that would be awkward). Stephen's mom doesn't know we're coming and it's a huge surprise for her. It's lead to a whole web of lies this week though. She had her friend, Pat, send us our Christmas presents. Well, Pat knows we're coming so he actually kept our presents in South Dakota (they're hiding at his office). But Stephen's mom, Kathy, wants us to take a picture of our presents under our Christmas tree. We have had to come up with so many lies to explain why we can't take a picture. She's getting really frustrated with us but I'm sure she won't mind when she sees us on Christmas morning!!
Well, I probably won't post until I get back from South Dakota. I hope everyone has a great Christmas and stays safe and warm!
Friday, December 21, 2007
Thursday, December 20, 2007
New Year's Goals
2008 Goals (first 6 months): since I might or might not be going to school in the fall, my goals are for the first 6 months of the year. They may continue on to the last 6 months or they may be changed.
Physical
*Eating
-Eat more whole foods and less processed foods. Over the last couple of months, I've been doing well with this and actually I prefer fruits and veggies to processed carbs now.
-Stick with 1800 calories/day. Anything less than this is starving my body, particularly when I'm working out.
-Focus on getting in more protein and dairy servings. Good fuel for my workouts.
*Working Out
-Continue with working out, aiming for 5-6 days/week. This is a step up from 3-4 days/week I'm doing now. I also want to continue my regular weight training routine. Muscle burns more calories!
-Set 6 week work out challenges for myself. Even though I won't make my New Years Workout Challenge goal, I've been super motivated by it! The next one will be a Valentines Day Challenge Goal.
-Try classes at the gym! You pay for them…stop being shy and get in there! I miss my yoga and mixing up my routine will be great for my body!
Mental
-Take classes, either Italian or business school prep.
-Read more nonfiction books. I read a lot but I read almost all fiction, most of it chick-lit. While those are good for an escape, I also need to feed my brain a bit more.
-Read the WSJ every day. I want to go to business school so being up on the business world would probably be a good thing.
Financial
-Follow budget and debt reduction plan.
Overall Health
-Dentist and eye doctor appointments.
-Complete physical and blood tests.
I haven't gone to the dentist in about 3 years (I pay for health insurance, I should use it). I can receive a free physical and blood tests here at work once a year...I need to take advantage of it!
Misc.
-Italy scrapbook. Went to Italy almost 3 years ago...still don't have the scrapbook finished!
-Recipes into computer database. I got a computer program that basically serves as a computer recipe file. I need to put all of my recipes in there and use it to plan meals. This program is super cool...you can create menus for weeks at a time and then it will create a shopping list for you for one week, two weeks, etc! I just got the program last week.
Physical
*Eating
-Eat more whole foods and less processed foods. Over the last couple of months, I've been doing well with this and actually I prefer fruits and veggies to processed carbs now.
-Stick with 1800 calories/day. Anything less than this is starving my body, particularly when I'm working out.
-Focus on getting in more protein and dairy servings. Good fuel for my workouts.
*Working Out
-Continue with working out, aiming for 5-6 days/week. This is a step up from 3-4 days/week I'm doing now. I also want to continue my regular weight training routine. Muscle burns more calories!
-Set 6 week work out challenges for myself. Even though I won't make my New Years Workout Challenge goal, I've been super motivated by it! The next one will be a Valentines Day Challenge Goal.
-Try classes at the gym! You pay for them…stop being shy and get in there! I miss my yoga and mixing up my routine will be great for my body!
Mental
-Take classes, either Italian or business school prep.
-Read more nonfiction books. I read a lot but I read almost all fiction, most of it chick-lit. While those are good for an escape, I also need to feed my brain a bit more.
-Read the WSJ every day. I want to go to business school so being up on the business world would probably be a good thing.
Financial
-Follow budget and debt reduction plan.
Overall Health
-Dentist and eye doctor appointments.
-Complete physical and blood tests.
I haven't gone to the dentist in about 3 years (I pay for health insurance, I should use it). I can receive a free physical and blood tests here at work once a year...I need to take advantage of it!
Misc.
-Italy scrapbook. Went to Italy almost 3 years ago...still don't have the scrapbook finished!
-Recipes into computer database. I got a computer program that basically serves as a computer recipe file. I need to put all of my recipes in there and use it to plan meals. This program is super cool...you can create menus for weeks at a time and then it will create a shopping list for you for one week, two weeks, etc! I just got the program last week.
Doing Much Better
Thanks for your kind words yesterday. I'm doing much better today. Stephen took off early yesterday too and took me out to lunch and bought me some flowers. We watched "A Christmas Story" yesterday afternoon. My family and friends who all knew yesterday was a big day called me throughout the day to check up on me. I'm really blessed to have such great people in my life! The good news is that I still have pending applications at two more schools; one of the schools I have an interview with at the end of January and the other I'll hear from by January 28. So I still have some options available to me. I decided that if I do not get in anywhere this year, I'm going to reapply next fall (probably to different schools). If I don't get in anywhere, I'm going to make a career move to a different company or agency. Where I am now, I don't have hardly any responsibility and I have had no work in several months. It doesn't matter if I tell my boss I have nothing to do, assignments and cases always get assigned to other people. It's very frustrating and I want to be somewhere that I'm actually doing something and acquiring skills not just counting down the time to when I can leave.
So thanks again for your support! I really appreciate it! I'm working on my New Year's Goals today so I should have a post about that later.
So thanks again for your support! I really appreciate it! I'm working on my New Year's Goals today so I should have a post about that later.
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Weighing In
I weighed this morning and it said 181.2 which is a loss of about half of a pound. I'm losing weight but it's extremely slow. I've actually began to wonder if perhaps I'm not eating enough calories? When I workout I usually go for 1.5 to 2 hours (typically about 3-4 times a week plus other activities like ice skating or extra walking). Right now I'm eating about 1600 calories a day and quite honestly, I don't think it's enough for the days when I workout. I get in all my fruits and veggie servings (usually have about 10 servings of f/v a day) but I'm lacking on my dairy and protein. I think I'm going to up my calories back up to 1800 a day and add in a protein and dairy snack in the afternoon. I think my body has switched to a starvation mode and is clinging on to every calorie. Anybody have any thoughts about this?? I'm going to do some more researching about this today but from a few articles I found yesterday, I think I'm not nourishing my body well.
So today's the day I find out about my 2nd choice for grad school (I'm sure you are just as excited as I am, especially because once I find out, I'll shut up about it!). I am a great big ball of stress right now! I woke up at about 3 this morning to go to the bathroom and could not go back to sleep. So I laid in bed for an hour, watched TV for a while, played on the computer for a bit but never got sleepy. It's actually a little frustrating since Stephen and I live in a studio apartment, when one of us can't sleep, there are limited activities. Luckily, Stephen is a heavy sleeper so the TV or computer didn't bother him but I couldn't turn on a light and read a book. I was almost crying on the way to work this morning thinking about grad school. I've given myself a pass from the gym and from counting calories today. I just can't deal with it. I'm sure it would make me feel better but the thought of being away from my computer to work out seems ridiculous right now. So no inspiration here today for working out or eating healthy. I just keep telling myself, I just have to make it through today. On the way to work this morning I was driving Stephen nuts b/c I kept talking and most of it didn't even make sense. He just kept looking at me like, "I am so glad I am not spending the entire day with you." It's what I do when I'm nervous, I just ramble on and on (like I'm doing now!). And, on that note, I'll stop this post here.
So today's the day I find out about my 2nd choice for grad school (I'm sure you are just as excited as I am, especially because once I find out, I'll shut up about it!). I am a great big ball of stress right now! I woke up at about 3 this morning to go to the bathroom and could not go back to sleep. So I laid in bed for an hour, watched TV for a while, played on the computer for a bit but never got sleepy. It's actually a little frustrating since Stephen and I live in a studio apartment, when one of us can't sleep, there are limited activities. Luckily, Stephen is a heavy sleeper so the TV or computer didn't bother him but I couldn't turn on a light and read a book. I was almost crying on the way to work this morning thinking about grad school. I've given myself a pass from the gym and from counting calories today. I just can't deal with it. I'm sure it would make me feel better but the thought of being away from my computer to work out seems ridiculous right now. So no inspiration here today for working out or eating healthy. I just keep telling myself, I just have to make it through today. On the way to work this morning I was driving Stephen nuts b/c I kept talking and most of it didn't even make sense. He just kept looking at me like, "I am so glad I am not spending the entire day with you." It's what I do when I'm nervous, I just ramble on and on (like I'm doing now!). And, on that note, I'll stop this post here.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
One Day Away...
Tomorrow I find out about my 2nd choice for grad school. I'm trying to remain calm about it but inside I'm a nervous wreck! Yesterday it was so hard to sit through the day without anything to do at work. Today I brought my laptop from home and plan on spending part of the day playing games or something to keep myself occupied. Work will continue to be slow until after Christmas and most of my superiors are already gone for Christmas vacations.
I'm working on my goals for next year so I'll probably have a post about that tomorrow or even later today. I like to have goals for all areas of my life. And I think that this year I'll have goals for the first 6 months of the year and then set new goals when I go to school in the fall.
On the weight loss/workout front, things are going well. Made it to the gym yesterday and will do the same today. I don't know if I've ever talked about this but working out for me is so much more than the physical benefits I get from it, it's such an emotional and mental medicine for me.
I have had episodes of very deep, dark depression but working out keeps me from going into those episodes. I used to take a couple of anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medications but stopped (with my doctor's permission, of course) and started working out. I was thinking about this yesterday when I was at the gym and how much happier I am when I'm getting regular exercise. Activity is my medicine now and it's the one I prefer. Just like regular pills, if I go a couple of days without exercise, my body feels out of whack and I feel out of control. What's even more powerful for me is that my moods are even better when I choose activity as my medicine than the way my moods are when I chose pills as my medicine. Anyways, just some thoughts I had yesterday at the gym.
Alright, off to keep my mind occupied! Later gators!
I'm working on my goals for next year so I'll probably have a post about that tomorrow or even later today. I like to have goals for all areas of my life. And I think that this year I'll have goals for the first 6 months of the year and then set new goals when I go to school in the fall.
On the weight loss/workout front, things are going well. Made it to the gym yesterday and will do the same today. I don't know if I've ever talked about this but working out for me is so much more than the physical benefits I get from it, it's such an emotional and mental medicine for me.
I have had episodes of very deep, dark depression but working out keeps me from going into those episodes. I used to take a couple of anti-depressant and anti-anxiety medications but stopped (with my doctor's permission, of course) and started working out. I was thinking about this yesterday when I was at the gym and how much happier I am when I'm getting regular exercise. Activity is my medicine now and it's the one I prefer. Just like regular pills, if I go a couple of days without exercise, my body feels out of whack and I feel out of control. What's even more powerful for me is that my moods are even better when I choose activity as my medicine than the way my moods are when I chose pills as my medicine. Anyways, just some thoughts I had yesterday at the gym.
Alright, off to keep my mind occupied! Later gators!
Monday, December 17, 2007
What a Weekend!
I did it! I made it through the weekend and only ate 450 calories over my limit! While it's still over my limit, it's only by 450 calories and compared to past weekends of being over by several thousand calories...this is a victory! I knew I could do it! It was all in my attitude. This weekend I approached it and said, "I can do this. I've done it before." And you know what? That attitude shift helped me succeed. So for next weekend, I want to stay in my limit. It's definitely possible.
Goals for the upcoming week:
Eating--same as before: Monday-Friday 1600 calories/day, Saturday and Sunday 2000 calories/day (only 200 may be alcohol)
Exercise--Monday-Thursday 75-90 minutes cardio, 20 min strength, 10 min stretching; Friday 60 minutes cardio, 10 min stretching; Saturday/Sunday 120 minutes of activity (shopping, gym, park, etc.)
Alright, on to my weekend. It was good. We got all of our shopping and errands done by Saturday afternoon and we were ready for this big ice/snow storm that we had been hearing about for almost a week. It never happened! I think we got maybe one inch of rain and that was it. No snow, no ice, no sleet, nothing. Very anticlimatic. We went and saw "I Am Legend" with Will Smith. It was good but the infected people actually creeped me out quite a bit and I had trouble sleeping last night b/c I kept seeing them when I closed my eyes!
I am actually very excited about this week. Once I make it through Friday, I'll be off for 11 days! I'm going to South Dakota to meet some of Stephen's family. We leave on Christmas Eve and get back on New Year's Eve. And of course being government workers, we have New Year's Day off. Work is extremely slow right now so I've been working on some "personal" things at work quite a bit to pass the time.
I also find out on Wednesday if I got into my 2nd choice for grad school. I am actually so nervous about this already. I keep telling myself to just relax but time seems to be passing so slowly...I want to know right now!! I'm focusing on keeping myself (and mind) occupied over the next couple of days so it's not so bad.
I hope everyone else had a good weekend!
Goals for the upcoming week:
Eating--same as before: Monday-Friday 1600 calories/day, Saturday and Sunday 2000 calories/day (only 200 may be alcohol)
Exercise--Monday-Thursday 75-90 minutes cardio, 20 min strength, 10 min stretching; Friday 60 minutes cardio, 10 min stretching; Saturday/Sunday 120 minutes of activity (shopping, gym, park, etc.)
Alright, on to my weekend. It was good. We got all of our shopping and errands done by Saturday afternoon and we were ready for this big ice/snow storm that we had been hearing about for almost a week. It never happened! I think we got maybe one inch of rain and that was it. No snow, no ice, no sleet, nothing. Very anticlimatic. We went and saw "I Am Legend" with Will Smith. It was good but the infected people actually creeped me out quite a bit and I had trouble sleeping last night b/c I kept seeing them when I closed my eyes!
I am actually very excited about this week. Once I make it through Friday, I'll be off for 11 days! I'm going to South Dakota to meet some of Stephen's family. We leave on Christmas Eve and get back on New Year's Eve. And of course being government workers, we have New Year's Day off. Work is extremely slow right now so I've been working on some "personal" things at work quite a bit to pass the time.
I also find out on Wednesday if I got into my 2nd choice for grad school. I am actually so nervous about this already. I keep telling myself to just relax but time seems to be passing so slowly...I want to know right now!! I'm focusing on keeping myself (and mind) occupied over the next couple of days so it's not so bad.
I hope everyone else had a good weekend!
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Tremendous Thursday!
I am having a great day! Yesterday S and I had a lot of fun ice skating. We went to a different rink (which is outside but it was 55 degrees yesterday) and the ice and skates weren't as good as the rink we usually go to. We even shared a piece of cheesecake at the Cheesecake Factory. It was so good and I'm so glad we shared it b/c it was so rich, I don't think I could have eaten more than 1/2 of the slice anyways. But what's even more awesome is that even with the cheesecake, I still stayed under my calorie limit yesterday! I had to eat a smaller dinner than usual but I wasn't as hungry since we had cheesecake in the middle of the afternoon. This is just the confidence I need going into the weekend...I can do this, I can stay under my calories on the weekends.
I am still a bit bummed about not getting into my top choice but like Sara said, I believe that things happen for a reason. I'm positive that going to grad school is the right step for me, it's just a matter of finding the right school. I have a back-up plan in place in case I don't get into my top choices. I'll find out on Wednesday if I got into my second choice and I'll go from there.
This weekend is going to involve a lot of errands. I still have to get a few presents and I need to get them mailed on Saturday (since I'm not going home for Christmas, I am mailing all the gifts I bought for everyone to Oklahoma). The DC area is supposed to get a pretty significant winter storm on Saturday evening/Sunday morning. My plan is to get all my errands ran before Saturday afternoon so that if we get a lot of snow/ice, I'm not trying to get out in that type of weather. I have tomorrow off (I looooove having this alternative work schedule) so I plan on doing my shopping then. Hopefully, the mall won't be as crowded on a Friday as it will be on Saturday/Sunday. Have a good weekend everyone!
I am still a bit bummed about not getting into my top choice but like Sara said, I believe that things happen for a reason. I'm positive that going to grad school is the right step for me, it's just a matter of finding the right school. I have a back-up plan in place in case I don't get into my top choices. I'll find out on Wednesday if I got into my second choice and I'll go from there.
This weekend is going to involve a lot of errands. I still have to get a few presents and I need to get them mailed on Saturday (since I'm not going home for Christmas, I am mailing all the gifts I bought for everyone to Oklahoma). The DC area is supposed to get a pretty significant winter storm on Saturday evening/Sunday morning. My plan is to get all my errands ran before Saturday afternoon so that if we get a lot of snow/ice, I'm not trying to get out in that type of weather. I have tomorrow off (I looooove having this alternative work schedule) so I plan on doing my shopping then. Hopefully, the mall won't be as crowded on a Friday as it will be on Saturday/Sunday. Have a good weekend everyone!
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Wednesday Weigh-In
182.0--basically a maintain and it all has to do with my weekend eating. Not this weekend...I'm not doing all this work counting and busting my butt at the gym to maintain! I'm a loser and I'm going to lose next Wednesday.
I got some disappointing news last night. I found out that I didn't get into my top choice for grad school :( I'm pretty bummed about it but there's nothing I can do so I'm not wasting energy on moping about it. Big NSV: when I found out last night, I didn't pig out or go crazy eating everything in sight. Normally that would be my first response so I'm glad I've moved away from using food to medicate.
S and I did take today off to do something fun and I think ice skating is on the agenda! I know he's trying to cheer me up b/c I love ice skating and he doesn't really like it so the fact that he suggested we do it today, he's trying to cheer me up! So cute. Anyways, I'll be back tomorrow to comment and post on how I did at the holiday party. Later gators!
I got some disappointing news last night. I found out that I didn't get into my top choice for grad school :( I'm pretty bummed about it but there's nothing I can do so I'm not wasting energy on moping about it. Big NSV: when I found out last night, I didn't pig out or go crazy eating everything in sight. Normally that would be my first response so I'm glad I've moved away from using food to medicate.
S and I did take today off to do something fun and I think ice skating is on the agenda! I know he's trying to cheer me up b/c I love ice skating and he doesn't really like it so the fact that he suggested we do it today, he's trying to cheer me up! So cute. Anyways, I'll be back tomorrow to comment and post on how I did at the holiday party. Later gators!
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Holiday Party Tuesday
Today is the holiday party here at work and I have been dreading it. It starts at 12 and goes until 4 with lunch, desserts and alcohol provided. The lunch isn't catered but is more of a potluck type lunch. Here's why I'm dreading it: I hate, hate, hate eating potluck meals. I hate them so much b/c most people's food doesn't taste that good! I realize this sounds very cocky but my food tastes so much better than a lot of other people's food. And I'm not wasting my calories on food that's only so-so. So here's the plan for today, I'm going to go do my normal workout at the gym around 11. Come back and eat my brownbag lunch like I do every day. Then S might come over (or he might not) and we'll go at 2 to have dessert and maybe a glass of wine. I realize it's antisocial to not go for the lunch part of the party but I think it would be more rude (ruder?) to take my lunch in there and eat. Plus I want to workout like usual. And I can go around 2 and still get all the mingling and networking in that I need to do. I haven't decided for sure if I'm even going to eat dessert or have wine. I'll see how I feel when I get there.
I'm going to pat myself on the back for a minute...last night S opened a bottle of wine and I really wanted some but I just kept telling myself, "you had 3 bottles over the course of the weekend. you do not NEED any more wine." And it worked! No alcohol on the weekdays is still intact! Which is motivating me even more to not have wine today at the holiday party to keep my streak going!
S weighed himself yesterday for the first time in months. He knew that he was gaining weight and didn't want to see how bad it was but he finally bit the bullet yesterday. He weighed 179.2 (which is still very healthy and normal for his height) but that means he's gained almost 20 pounds since January, and most of it over the last 5 months. (He lost 50 or 60 pounds a couple of years before I met him.) Prior to August he worked at the same company but in a different position where he wasn't that busy so he would workout for 2 hours a day around lunchtime. In August he took a different position and he's super busy and can't leave during the day to work out. So we talked about it last night and he wants to get back into working out. He isn't for sure how he can work it into his schedule but I told him I would love it if we worked out on the weekends together (we used to do this a few months ago) and he would have at least two workouts a week in. I'm going to keep talking about it and encouraging him to find some time. I wouldn't mind if he came home later if that meant he was working out (honestly, I would love it b/c it would give me some alone time at home but that's a different post entirely). If nothing else it sounds like I have a weekend workout partner now! Anybody have any tips about encouraging your sig other to get back into working out??
I'm going to pat myself on the back for a minute...last night S opened a bottle of wine and I really wanted some but I just kept telling myself, "you had 3 bottles over the course of the weekend. you do not NEED any more wine." And it worked! No alcohol on the weekdays is still intact! Which is motivating me even more to not have wine today at the holiday party to keep my streak going!
S weighed himself yesterday for the first time in months. He knew that he was gaining weight and didn't want to see how bad it was but he finally bit the bullet yesterday. He weighed 179.2 (which is still very healthy and normal for his height) but that means he's gained almost 20 pounds since January, and most of it over the last 5 months. (He lost 50 or 60 pounds a couple of years before I met him.) Prior to August he worked at the same company but in a different position where he wasn't that busy so he would workout for 2 hours a day around lunchtime. In August he took a different position and he's super busy and can't leave during the day to work out. So we talked about it last night and he wants to get back into working out. He isn't for sure how he can work it into his schedule but I told him I would love it if we worked out on the weekends together (we used to do this a few months ago) and he would have at least two workouts a week in. I'm going to keep talking about it and encouraging him to find some time. I wouldn't mind if he came home later if that meant he was working out (honestly, I would love it b/c it would give me some alone time at home but that's a different post entirely). If nothing else it sounds like I have a weekend workout partner now! Anybody have any tips about encouraging your sig other to get back into working out??
Monday, December 10, 2007
Christmas Pictures
This is one of our Christmas pictures that we finally took this weekend. And here's a pic of just the tree.
Weekend Wrap-up and A Weight Watchers Question
Hmmm...well I'll start with the confession: my weekend wasn't good, food wise. Between Saturday and Sunday, I drank nearly three bottles of wine! Yes, I know, 3 bottles! I do love the wine (but I am not an alcoholic before you get too concerned). Last night I had a couple of glasses and actually didn't want any more but my head said, "you should have some now, you won't get any more for another 6 days." So, I think next weekend I'll put a limit on how much wine I can have and that way I'll truly enjoy it. I'm still going to follow my no alcohol during the week rule as that seems to be working out very well for me. I also made Christmas cookies last night for our Christmas party at work this week and I am very guilty of eating several balls of dough and some finished cookies. My explanation for my behavior this weekend is something I told myself mentally on Friday. In the midst of my crankiness and blah-ness on Friday, I acquired this "screw it" approach to the weekend and I don't know where it came from but suspect it has to do with my bad mood and wanting food to make me feel better.
So, here's my WW question: does anyone do WW online? I'm interested in WW (and have done it before with success) but actually making it to a meeting would be difficult. If you do use WW online I would like to know how you like it and what differences there are between WW online and WW in person. I'm just very curious about it. Counting calories works for me but there's no accountability to myself. With WW there would be more of an accountability.
Now onto this week's goals:
Eating--1600 calories/M-F; 2000 calories/Sat & Sun (only 200 calories each day may be used for alcohol)
Work Outs--I am getting back to my strength training schedule! So here's the plan:
Monday: 75-90 minutes cardio, 20 minutes strength, 10 minutes stretching
Tuesday: 75-90 minutes cardio, 20 minutes strength, 10 minutes stretching
Wednesday: 75-90 minutes cardio, 10 minutes stretching
Thursday: 75-90 minutes cardio, 20 minutes strength, 10 minutes stretching
Friday: 60 minutes cardio, 10 minutes stretching
Weekend: 120 minutes of walking (Christmas shopping!), cleaning, playing at park
Total: 480-540 minutes cardio, 60 minutes strength, 50 minutes stretching
I'm also going to look into the classes at my gym. I know they have yoga and I love yoga!
Well, I'm off to go raid the office supply closet at work...rumor is we got a new shipment of supplies! I heart office supplies!
So, here's my WW question: does anyone do WW online? I'm interested in WW (and have done it before with success) but actually making it to a meeting would be difficult. If you do use WW online I would like to know how you like it and what differences there are between WW online and WW in person. I'm just very curious about it. Counting calories works for me but there's no accountability to myself. With WW there would be more of an accountability.
Now onto this week's goals:
Eating--1600 calories/M-F; 2000 calories/Sat & Sun (only 200 calories each day may be used for alcohol)
Work Outs--I am getting back to my strength training schedule! So here's the plan:
Monday: 75-90 minutes cardio, 20 minutes strength, 10 minutes stretching
Tuesday: 75-90 minutes cardio, 20 minutes strength, 10 minutes stretching
Wednesday: 75-90 minutes cardio, 10 minutes stretching
Thursday: 75-90 minutes cardio, 20 minutes strength, 10 minutes stretching
Friday: 60 minutes cardio, 10 minutes stretching
Weekend: 120 minutes of walking (Christmas shopping!), cleaning, playing at park
Total: 480-540 minutes cardio, 60 minutes strength, 50 minutes stretching
I'm also going to look into the classes at my gym. I know they have yoga and I love yoga!
Well, I'm off to go raid the office supply closet at work...rumor is we got a new shipment of supplies! I heart office supplies!
Friday, December 7, 2007
Friday Randomness
Lots of things I want to talk about today. Not sure I'll have the time but I'll get started and see how far I get.
So, yesterday was a snow day. I picked up my vehicle at the auto body shop where it's been for the last week getting repaired from my wreck. It was finally finished and since there was ice and snow on the ground, I felt more comfortable driving my big SUV than S's little car. So we pick it up and then had some errands to run. (S got his brother's Christmas present and we went to see "August Rush"...such a good movie!) Well, somehow when they put the door back on my vehicle, they didn't hook up the power lock/unlock so we took my vehicle back to the repair shop. It only took them about 30 minutes and they did it while we were waiting so it wasn't too bad but just a little frustrating.
My sister called last night and she invited me to go with her and my mom to Hawaii in January! My mom has a conference in Hawaii every January and usually my stepdad goes with her, but this year the heater died at their house and since that's going to cost them about $10,000 to redo the entire heating system, they decided that he wouldn't go. So my sister decided to go with my mom since she's never been to Hawaii and since her hubby hasn't gotten her a Christmas present yet, her plane ticket to Hawaii is now her gift! I really want to go and it would be a ton of fun, just me, my mom and sis hanging out in Hawaii for 4 or 5 days. I thought about it and ultimately decided not to go. I've made a commitment to paying off some of my debt before I go back to grad school and as much as I would love to go to Hawaii, doing so would be putting myself even further away from my financial goals.
So, on to the topic of losing weight...I did really well yesterday (even though it was a snow day and felt like a Saturday) and stayed within my calories. I've been doing well eating wise and I'll continue that this weekend. Working out, I haven't been doing so well. I went Monday and Tuesday and then the snow actually did deter me from working out on Wednesday. I won't go today since I'm leaving work early as S and I have tickets to an event tonight. I need to get back to my strength training, I've been doing cardio only for the last couple of weeks, but strength training builds muscles and muscles burn more calories!
No real plans this weekend besides the Christmas event tonight so we'll see what we end up doing. I don't know if it's the weather, TOM, or what, but I feel so blah today. I'm not really excited about anything and I'd like to just lay at home in my warm bed. Well, I'll see you all on Monday...have a good weekend!
So, yesterday was a snow day. I picked up my vehicle at the auto body shop where it's been for the last week getting repaired from my wreck. It was finally finished and since there was ice and snow on the ground, I felt more comfortable driving my big SUV than S's little car. So we pick it up and then had some errands to run. (S got his brother's Christmas present and we went to see "August Rush"...such a good movie!) Well, somehow when they put the door back on my vehicle, they didn't hook up the power lock/unlock so we took my vehicle back to the repair shop. It only took them about 30 minutes and they did it while we were waiting so it wasn't too bad but just a little frustrating.
My sister called last night and she invited me to go with her and my mom to Hawaii in January! My mom has a conference in Hawaii every January and usually my stepdad goes with her, but this year the heater died at their house and since that's going to cost them about $10,000 to redo the entire heating system, they decided that he wouldn't go. So my sister decided to go with my mom since she's never been to Hawaii and since her hubby hasn't gotten her a Christmas present yet, her plane ticket to Hawaii is now her gift! I really want to go and it would be a ton of fun, just me, my mom and sis hanging out in Hawaii for 4 or 5 days. I thought about it and ultimately decided not to go. I've made a commitment to paying off some of my debt before I go back to grad school and as much as I would love to go to Hawaii, doing so would be putting myself even further away from my financial goals.
So, on to the topic of losing weight...I did really well yesterday (even though it was a snow day and felt like a Saturday) and stayed within my calories. I've been doing well eating wise and I'll continue that this weekend. Working out, I haven't been doing so well. I went Monday and Tuesday and then the snow actually did deter me from working out on Wednesday. I won't go today since I'm leaving work early as S and I have tickets to an event tonight. I need to get back to my strength training, I've been doing cardio only for the last couple of weeks, but strength training builds muscles and muscles burn more calories!
No real plans this weekend besides the Christmas event tonight so we'll see what we end up doing. I don't know if it's the weather, TOM, or what, but I feel so blah today. I'm not really excited about anything and I'd like to just lay at home in my warm bed. Well, I'll see you all on Monday...have a good weekend!
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Snow Day!
I'll be back tomorrow with a real post and comments but we got about 3 inches of snow yesterday (I know that's not a lot for you Canadians but for DC, it's a lot) so we got a snow day!! I'll see you all tomorrow!
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Wednesday Weigh-In
I am all about the alliteration in my post titles the last couple days. Anyways, so I lost 1 pound! I'm excited! Actually, a little disappointed that it wasn't more but I need to focus on the positive...I lost weight instead of gaining or maintaining. And, although I did well eating during the week, my weekend eating wasn't so good but on Monday I outlined what I need to do better during the weekend so I feel confident going into this weekend that I will do better!
Well, in other news, it's snowing here in DC! We might get up to 3 inches of snow but most weatherpeople are predicting closer to 1 inch. I heart snow! I don't like ice or sleet, but I love snow! I will NOT let this deter me from hitting the gym at lunch though! I repeat, I will NOT let this keep me from the gym at lunch! I am making this statement so you all will hold me accountable.
We have a bagel breakfast here at work in a few minutes. Our bureau does this every 3 or 4 months. They have bagels, donuts, coffee, and juice and it's basically a time for everyone to mix and mingle and catch up with what everyone in the bureau is doing. I think it really helps the top directors of the bureau. Since the top 10 or 15 people in my bureau work in a different building a few miles away, they don't always know what's going on over in my building. Anyways, it's kind of a nice tradition. In the past, I would say that I wasn't going to have a bagel but everytime I would cave and get a bagel (usually after I'd already eaten part of my breakfast and thereby putting me over on calories for the day). So I decided yesterday that I would change my usual breakfast menu to accomodate a bagel. Usually, I have oatmeal and an apple when I get to work (around 8:30) and then have a yogurt and a banana around 10:30. But today I had a yogurt when I got to work and then in a few minutes, I'll have a bagel at the bagel breakfast. So it works out b/c I know I get to have a bagel plus I still got some healthy protein and calcium in with my yogurt. Last Thursday I thought about getting a bagel as I was walking to work and then I thought, "No, I'm not going to pay for a bagel. I'll get to have a free one next week at the bagel breakfast and I'll be looking forward to it." And even though I love coffee, I will not have any of the coffee they serve at the bagel breakfast...it's atrocious!! Yech!!
Well, time to go get my much anticipated bagel! Later gator!
Well, in other news, it's snowing here in DC! We might get up to 3 inches of snow but most weatherpeople are predicting closer to 1 inch. I heart snow! I don't like ice or sleet, but I love snow! I will NOT let this deter me from hitting the gym at lunch though! I repeat, I will NOT let this keep me from the gym at lunch! I am making this statement so you all will hold me accountable.
We have a bagel breakfast here at work in a few minutes. Our bureau does this every 3 or 4 months. They have bagels, donuts, coffee, and juice and it's basically a time for everyone to mix and mingle and catch up with what everyone in the bureau is doing. I think it really helps the top directors of the bureau. Since the top 10 or 15 people in my bureau work in a different building a few miles away, they don't always know what's going on over in my building. Anyways, it's kind of a nice tradition. In the past, I would say that I wasn't going to have a bagel but everytime I would cave and get a bagel (usually after I'd already eaten part of my breakfast and thereby putting me over on calories for the day). So I decided yesterday that I would change my usual breakfast menu to accomodate a bagel. Usually, I have oatmeal and an apple when I get to work (around 8:30) and then have a yogurt and a banana around 10:30. But today I had a yogurt when I got to work and then in a few minutes, I'll have a bagel at the bagel breakfast. So it works out b/c I know I get to have a bagel plus I still got some healthy protein and calcium in with my yogurt. Last Thursday I thought about getting a bagel as I was walking to work and then I thought, "No, I'm not going to pay for a bagel. I'll get to have a free one next week at the bagel breakfast and I'll be looking forward to it." And even though I love coffee, I will not have any of the coffee they serve at the bagel breakfast...it's atrocious!! Yech!!
Well, time to go get my much anticipated bagel! Later gator!
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Tuesday Thoughts
So yesterday at lunch I decided that instead of going to the gym, I was going to run outside which is something I haven't done in a few weeks and I was really craving some sunshine and fresh air. Sounds like a fantastic decision right? It was actually a horrible, horrible decision. I forgot that DC was under a wind advisory with winds of 50 MPH expected. At times, I was running but I wasn't actually going anywhere, the wind was that strong! It was definitely a great workout though. When I got back to the locker room, my arms and legs were shaking! It was crazy. We have another wind advisory today so I'm hitting the gym!
When I got off the subway this morning in downtown DC, it was snowing! Not heavy snow or snow that's actually going to stick around but just these flakes falling from the sky. I love it when it snows! I love snowglobes so when it's snowing outside, I feel like I'm walking in a snowglobe, it's so cool!!
Tomorrow's my weigh-in and I'm actually looking forward to it. I've worked hard over the last week and I'm ready to see some results from the scale. I'm hitting the gym hard today and doing a last chance workout...I'm pumped!
When I got off the subway this morning in downtown DC, it was snowing! Not heavy snow or snow that's actually going to stick around but just these flakes falling from the sky. I love it when it snows! I love snowglobes so when it's snowing outside, I feel like I'm walking in a snowglobe, it's so cool!!
Tomorrow's my weigh-in and I'm actually looking forward to it. I've worked hard over the last week and I'm ready to see some results from the scale. I'm hitting the gym hard today and doing a last chance workout...I'm pumped!
Monday, December 3, 2007
Weekend Wrap Up
The weekend went really well!! Our plans changed, as they always do, and we didn't go ice skating on Saturday. The weather got pretty cold on Friday night and since it's really the first cold weather we've had all year, we just stayed home on Saturday. Yesterday we saw "Fred Claus"--we both thought it was a good movie. It's predictable, as all Christmas movies are, but it was good. Saturday I made a huge pot of homemade chicken noodle soup for S and I to have for lunches this week since the weather's supposed to be cold this week. So, due to the change in plans, I only got 60 minutes of activity in this weekend. Food wise, I did really well Friday until S wanted me to make oatmeal cookies. Instead of trying to talk him out of it, I made cookies. I had two cookies which didn't do too much damage to my calories for Friday since I was actually under for the day's total. Saturday and Sunday...I didn't do so well. Most of my mistakes were mindless eating. I would get bored, so I would eat or the basket of bread is in front of me, might as well have 3 pieces. Things like that.
So, some goals for the week ahead:
* Eating during the week--did very well last week. Keep it up this week! No alcohol on the weekdays really helps.
* Eating during the weekend--watch the mindless eating. Stop and ask myself, do I really want this or am I just bored or eating just because it's there. Don't know for sure all of our plans for this weekend.
* Activity--did pretty good last week. Didn't get in as much exercise as I had hoped but this week my goal is 450 minutes total.
All in all, I did well last week and I feel so much better physically and mentally. I'm going to rock this week again!!
So, for something not eating/exercise related, my financial situation is pretty tight lately. Again, it's all choices I made and I'm having to live with the consequences. I just got paid on Friday and already it seems like I have no money. I have money in my account but I have to pick up my truck from the shop this week and it's going to be expensive. They can hang on to my vehicle for 5 days after they finish the work and then after that, they start charging $50/day to have it there. Part of my problem is that my paycheck on Friday should have been several hundred dollars more than it was. I recently got a promotion and this paycheck should have been the first paycheck where I was making my new salary. But, as things go, the paperwork didn't get in on time and so it'll be my next paycheck before I see the new salary. I'm looking into getting one of those payday advance loans. I've never had to do it before. I think it's really my only option. My only other hope is if it takes the shop until sometime later this week to finish my vehicle. In which case, the free 5 days will be up close enough to my paycheck that I can afford to pay for it. My plan is to wait until they call and tell me my truck is done at the shop. If it's early this week when they call, then I'll get a payday advance loan and go pick it up. If it's late this week when they call, I might still have to get the payday advance loan but maybe not. It's totally my fault that I'm in this situation. I'm just really ticked at myself about it b/c I didn't follow my budget in November and now look at where I am. In December, I'm following my budget. I shouldn't be hoping that it takes the shop longer than anticipated to finish my truck. Oh well, live and learn, huh?
Alright, well, time for me to get some other things done today. Later gator!
So, some goals for the week ahead:
* Eating during the week--did very well last week. Keep it up this week! No alcohol on the weekdays really helps.
* Eating during the weekend--watch the mindless eating. Stop and ask myself, do I really want this or am I just bored or eating just because it's there. Don't know for sure all of our plans for this weekend.
* Activity--did pretty good last week. Didn't get in as much exercise as I had hoped but this week my goal is 450 minutes total.
All in all, I did well last week and I feel so much better physically and mentally. I'm going to rock this week again!!
So, for something not eating/exercise related, my financial situation is pretty tight lately. Again, it's all choices I made and I'm having to live with the consequences. I just got paid on Friday and already it seems like I have no money. I have money in my account but I have to pick up my truck from the shop this week and it's going to be expensive. They can hang on to my vehicle for 5 days after they finish the work and then after that, they start charging $50/day to have it there. Part of my problem is that my paycheck on Friday should have been several hundred dollars more than it was. I recently got a promotion and this paycheck should have been the first paycheck where I was making my new salary. But, as things go, the paperwork didn't get in on time and so it'll be my next paycheck before I see the new salary. I'm looking into getting one of those payday advance loans. I've never had to do it before. I think it's really my only option. My only other hope is if it takes the shop until sometime later this week to finish my vehicle. In which case, the free 5 days will be up close enough to my paycheck that I can afford to pay for it. My plan is to wait until they call and tell me my truck is done at the shop. If it's early this week when they call, then I'll get a payday advance loan and go pick it up. If it's late this week when they call, I might still have to get the payday advance loan but maybe not. It's totally my fault that I'm in this situation. I'm just really ticked at myself about it b/c I didn't follow my budget in November and now look at where I am. In December, I'm following my budget. I shouldn't be hoping that it takes the shop longer than anticipated to finish my truck. Oh well, live and learn, huh?
Alright, well, time for me to get some other things done today. Later gator!
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