Today's my Friday! We leave tomorrow for NYC so I'll be off work the rest of the week and I won't be blogging :( I'll try to post my weigh-in tomorrow morning but that depends on how fast I'm moving around tomorrow. We're going to be rather busy in NYC so I don't think I'll get a chance to blog. At least, I'll be busy until my interview is over on Thursday morning and then I can relax afterwards.
We are traveling with all of our bags as carry-ons! I've never not checked a bag when I'm flying but since we're going to be in the city before we can check in to our hotel, we're traveling with all of our stuff in two backpacks...and, yes, my suit is going into a backpack (it's non-wrinkle and our hotel has an iron if it does wrinkle). We'll see how it goes. The hardest part so far has been the liquid restrictions. But we've made it work and if we do forget something, there's a CVS pharmacy half a block from our hotel.
I forgot to mention this but we have tickets to a taping of the Late Show with David Letterman tomorrow afternoon! Stephen's really excited. We never watch late night tv b/c we're both usually asleep before 9:30 but it's a total New York thing to do and the tickets are free!
Enough about the trip, this is an exercise/eating well blog. I went for a run yesterday at lunch and this time I was able to run most of the time. The reason I didn't run all of it is that my running endurance is not quite up to running 5 miles yet. This run was soooo much better than the run I did last week when my lungs were hurting and I had to walk almost the entire time. The air was a bit warmer (only by about 5 degrees) yesterday and I started off with a moderate pace. It felt so good when I was finished! I think my biggest problem last week is I started off too fast and that combined with the cold air, made my lungs hurt. I was super excited to go again today but it's raining!! I don't mind running in a drizzle or sprinkles but count me out for heavy rain when it's cold outside. Stupid, stupid weather.
I'll get in lots of walking in NYC tomorrow and Saturday when we're doing our sightseeing things. Thursday my interview isn't until noon so I'm going to get up, eat a light breakfast and hit the hotel gym for a little cardio. Stephen is doing his own thing on Thursday and the workout before my interview will give me an extra confidence boost. Friday I'm in a conference all day so I may not get a workout in but I'm sure I'll still get lots of walking done.
I'll talk to you lovely ladies later! I'm off to prep for my interview.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Monday, January 28, 2008
Monday of a Short Week
Today I don't actually mind too much that's Monday. I'm only working today and tomorrow and then we leave Wednesday for New York City. We spent most of the weekend nailing down our plans, where we're going to eat and so forth. Both of us are obsessive planners, particularly about trips, but this time we're even more crazy about planning everything out b/c for 2 days I'll be doing my interview and school visit and attending a conference (for the school) and Stephen will be on his own. Plus we're trying to make this trip as cheap as possible so we've researched all of our dining options and have almost every meal planned out. It'll be a good trip.
Other than planning our trip, we didn't do a whole lot of anything this weekend. We stayed at home most of the time in an effort to save money. We did watch "Shoot 'Em Up" on Netflix...I didn't like the movie at all. Normally, violence/gore doesn't bother me but this movie was just over the top. I do not recommend it at all. I like being at home and just chillaxin' over the weekend but I eat like crazy when I'm home all day! Part of it is boredom and part of it is that the kitchen is literally three steps from anything else in the apartment. I ate about 1000 more calories on Saturday and Sunday than I planned but I wrote everything down! It sounds strange to be proud of that but typically on the weekends I won't write anything down. But this weekend, I wrote everything down. That's a big step for me!! Even though I went over on my calories, once I analyzed my totals, it wasn't so bad. Yes, it's 2000 calories more than I'd planned on but it could've been worse.
Stephen bought a small grill this weekend. We've been talking about buying one ever since the summer but just never got around to actually doing it. So Saturday and Sunday night we had to grill! Saturday we grilled chicken and then I put it into a baked ziti made with whole grain pasta and then Sunday we had steaks, potatoes, and corn from the grill. So yummy!! Meat really tastes so much better when it comes off the grill.
Oh, and Oklahoma State lost the game on Saturday. We cannot play for crap this year. We played so badly that Stephen refuses to watch anymore OSU basketball games this year. It's his basketball boycott.
Other than planning our trip, we didn't do a whole lot of anything this weekend. We stayed at home most of the time in an effort to save money. We did watch "Shoot 'Em Up" on Netflix...I didn't like the movie at all. Normally, violence/gore doesn't bother me but this movie was just over the top. I do not recommend it at all. I like being at home and just chillaxin' over the weekend but I eat like crazy when I'm home all day! Part of it is boredom and part of it is that the kitchen is literally three steps from anything else in the apartment. I ate about 1000 more calories on Saturday and Sunday than I planned but I wrote everything down! It sounds strange to be proud of that but typically on the weekends I won't write anything down. But this weekend, I wrote everything down. That's a big step for me!! Even though I went over on my calories, once I analyzed my totals, it wasn't so bad. Yes, it's 2000 calories more than I'd planned on but it could've been worse.
Stephen bought a small grill this weekend. We've been talking about buying one ever since the summer but just never got around to actually doing it. So Saturday and Sunday night we had to grill! Saturday we grilled chicken and then I put it into a baked ziti made with whole grain pasta and then Sunday we had steaks, potatoes, and corn from the grill. So yummy!! Meat really tastes so much better when it comes off the grill.
Oh, and Oklahoma State lost the game on Saturday. We cannot play for crap this year. We played so badly that Stephen refuses to watch anymore OSU basketball games this year. It's his basketball boycott.
Friday, January 25, 2008
So Glad it's Friday!!
Title says it all...I'm wiped out. I had to be at work around 7 this morning to help with a conference so I'll definitely be leaving early today!
I went for my run yesterday at lunch and forgot how much cold air makes my lungs hurt. I could only run for about 1/2 a mile before I had to walk the rest of the way. That will not detour me from continuing to go...even if I have to walk until air is warmer, I will keep going. Maybe after a while, my lungs will get used to it and it won't hurt so much.
No big plans this weekend. Oklahoma State, my alma mater, plays basketball tomorrow afternoon and it's on TV here so I plan on watching that game. Stephen and I need to finish planning our NYC trip that we leave for on Wednesday. Other than that, maybe some laundry, definitely some interview prep (for me), and probably a trip to Target to pick up last minute trip items. We'll probably go to a movie and I'm pretty sure it'll be "Rambo" since we did see "27 Dresses" last week. Get a little, give a little.
Hope everyone has a great weekend!
I went for my run yesterday at lunch and forgot how much cold air makes my lungs hurt. I could only run for about 1/2 a mile before I had to walk the rest of the way. That will not detour me from continuing to go...even if I have to walk until air is warmer, I will keep going. Maybe after a while, my lungs will get used to it and it won't hurt so much.
No big plans this weekend. Oklahoma State, my alma mater, plays basketball tomorrow afternoon and it's on TV here so I plan on watching that game. Stephen and I need to finish planning our NYC trip that we leave for on Wednesday. Other than that, maybe some laundry, definitely some interview prep (for me), and probably a trip to Target to pick up last minute trip items. We'll probably go to a movie and I'm pretty sure it'll be "Rambo" since we did see "27 Dresses" last week. Get a little, give a little.
Hope everyone has a great weekend!
Thursday, January 24, 2008
The Planned Mashed Cauliflower Switcheroo of 2008
I've been reading on other blogs about making mashed cauliflower and how much it really tastes like mashed potatoes so I picked up a head of cauliflower this weekend at the store. Last night Stephen and I were having inside-out burgers and corn and I thought I'd give the mashed cauliflower a try. My plan was to make and serve it to Stephen letting him think it was mashed potatoes and then say, "Haha, that's actually mashed cauliflower." Well, what happened is that he smelled the cauliflower cooking and since we live in essentially one big room, he asked why I was cooking cauliflower. So I explain the whole mashed cauliflower thing and he just keeps giving me a skeptical look the whole time. When we sit down to dinner, he doesn't want any of his own but he does try mine. He thought they were okay but I didn't get them mashed very well so the texture was off (plus he knew it was cauliflower so he couldn't get around that). I was very impressed with how the mashed cauliflower really tastes like mashed potatoes. When I was mashing the cauliflower, I added just a splash of milk, black pepper, chives, and olive oil blend butter. I added more butter and pepper when it was on my plate. I was definitely skeptical of doing this but it is amazing how much the cauliflower really tastes like potatoes. So if you're skeptical about doing it, I say give it a try. I've got leftovers that I'm going to have tonight with my dinner. I'm definitely going to be making mashed cauliflower again, even if I'm the only one who's going to eat it. But the switcheroo I had planned didn't work out so well.
Not much else going on...I'm trying to get myself ready for lunchtime run here in about 1/2 an hour. I haven't been running outside in the cold weather all season so I'm a little worried but I just need to suck it up and deal. I'll be much happier when I'm finished with my run. I've been feeling my depression sneaking back on me (it's a combination of no exercise and the no sun, cold days of winter) so for my mental health, I've got to get some exercise today!
Sam is doing well. They think she could come home soon but it all depends on how much she starts eating on her own.
Not much else going on...I'm trying to get myself ready for lunchtime run here in about 1/2 an hour. I haven't been running outside in the cold weather all season so I'm a little worried but I just need to suck it up and deal. I'll be much happier when I'm finished with my run. I've been feeling my depression sneaking back on me (it's a combination of no exercise and the no sun, cold days of winter) so for my mental health, I've got to get some exercise today!
Sam is doing well. They think she could come home soon but it all depends on how much she starts eating on her own.
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Weigh In Wednesday
Starting Weight: 186.0
Last Week's Weight: 182.2
This Week's Weight: 183.6
Change from Last Week: +1.4
Overall Change: -2.4
Yeah, so my weight was up this week but, honestly, I was fully expecting it. I haven't been working out and with my birthday brownie cheesecake, I know I've been over on my calories. But you know what? It was my birthday which happens once a year and I can undo the damage the other 364 days of the year. I'm going to start planning out my calories and workouts over the week. Especially now that I've cancelled my gym membership and it's cold, I need to plan my workouts so that I'll actually do them rather than just say, "It's too cold." and not do anything.
So the plan for this week looks like this:
Today: 1800 calories, no workout
Thursday: 1600 calories, 60 minute walk/run during lunch
Friday: 1600 calories, helping with conference so no lunch break
Saturday: 2000 calories, gym at apartment complex (cardio and strength)
Sunday: 2000 calories, gym at apartment complex (cardio and strength)
Monday: 1600 calories, 60 minute walk/run during lunch
Tuesday: 1600 calories, 60 minute walk/run during lunch
An update on my niece Sam: the doctors now think that since she's so small (barely over 5 pounds) that eating every 3 hours exhausts her and she ends up burning more calories eating than she actually takes in by eating. They think she'll start eating more as she gains weight and they've got a feeding tube in her nose to give her food when she's too tired to eat. They no longer think there's any developmental problems. She has to start eating better and gain more weight before they let her out of neonatal ICU but the prognosis is much better today.
Last Week's Weight: 182.2
This Week's Weight: 183.6
Change from Last Week: +1.4
Overall Change: -2.4
Yeah, so my weight was up this week but, honestly, I was fully expecting it. I haven't been working out and with my birthday brownie cheesecake, I know I've been over on my calories. But you know what? It was my birthday which happens once a year and I can undo the damage the other 364 days of the year. I'm going to start planning out my calories and workouts over the week. Especially now that I've cancelled my gym membership and it's cold, I need to plan my workouts so that I'll actually do them rather than just say, "It's too cold." and not do anything.
So the plan for this week looks like this:
Today: 1800 calories, no workout
Thursday: 1600 calories, 60 minute walk/run during lunch
Friday: 1600 calories, helping with conference so no lunch break
Saturday: 2000 calories, gym at apartment complex (cardio and strength)
Sunday: 2000 calories, gym at apartment complex (cardio and strength)
Monday: 1600 calories, 60 minute walk/run during lunch
Tuesday: 1600 calories, 60 minute walk/run during lunch
An update on my niece Sam: the doctors now think that since she's so small (barely over 5 pounds) that eating every 3 hours exhausts her and she ends up burning more calories eating than she actually takes in by eating. They think she'll start eating more as she gains weight and they've got a feeding tube in her nose to give her food when she's too tired to eat. They no longer think there's any developmental problems. She has to start eating better and gain more weight before they let her out of neonatal ICU but the prognosis is much better today.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
I'm an Auntie (for the 4th time)!
Can't believe I forgot to mention this earlier but I had a niece born this weekend! She was born on Saturday...I was hoping for Friday (my birthday) but we're close to being birthday twinkies! Her name is Samantha James, but they're calling her Sam. If you don't mind, please send up an extra prayer for Sam as she's still in neonatal intensive care. They can't get her to wake up and eat at all. She's being fed through a tiny tube in her nose. Right now the doctors think that she might have some developmental problems but they're not sure what's going on. Just pray that she's okay and they find out soon why she won't really wake up. But, regardless, I'm an auntie again to a niece that I almost share my birthday with!
I'm baaack!
Hey, what's up? Feels like I haven't posted in forever, even though it's only been 3 days. First things first, eating was okay this weekend...would have been better had it not been for the brownie cheesecake and more wine than I needed but all in all, it was my birthday. Did not make it to the gym once and it has been very cold here so even the thought of going outside makes me shiver. Now on to the more fun stuff...
So I took Thursday off so I could have breakfast with my dad before he left. We ate breakfast and as we were taking him to the airport, it started snowing like crazy! You literally could only see a few feet in front of the vehicle b/c of the snow. So after we took him to the airport, we went home and watched "Grumpy Old Men" (b/c in the words of Stephen, you can only watch this movie when it's snowing).
Friday was my 25th birthday and we went to one of the malls looking for a particular pair of jeans (when we were back in South Dakota I tried on a pair of Lucky jeans in the Buckle that fit me perfectly but they were a bit too short). So we went to the Lucky store and they don't carry this particular jean...which makes no sense at all to me, it's a Lucky jean, the Lucky Jean Store should carry the darn jean. We found out that the closest Buckle store is 2 hours away. We did some other shopping and looking around. Friday night Stephen decides that we should go to Richmond (where the nearest Buckle store is) on Saturday and find these jeans. Since we don't really have any other plans for the weekend, I agree.
Saturday we drive to Richmond (about 2 hours away) and find the Buckle where I try on at least 25 pairs of jeans. Stephen was such a great help b/c he just walked around the store picking up jeans in my size and bringing them to me. Finally I find a pair of jeans and they were not the ones we came looking for but these fit better. We also decided to stay in Richmond overnight so after finding the jeans and looking around more at the mall, we go back to the hotel and watch "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" (good movie but very long) on pay-per-view. While we were shopping, it started snowing and we spent some time just watching the snow fall when we got back to the hotel. We go eat dinner and then come back to the hotel and sit in the hot tub for a while. I start throwing up in the middle of the night. I think it was a combination of my food for dinner and the hot tub.
Sunday I ate more carbs than I usually do but when my tummy doesn't feel good, carbs are about the only thing to keep it feeling somewhat normal. We drove home, took a nap, and watched football.
Monday we went to the grocery store and ran a few errands then we went to see "27 Dresses"!! Yes, it took me 4 days to convince Stephen to go see it but I finally got him to go! I thought it was a pretty cute movie. I'm not a huge fan of romantic comedy-type movies but I definitely thought this one was pretty good. Even Stephen said it wasn't that bad.
So, we had a pretty busy weekend. I'm like Sara, I like weekends with nothing to do but Stephen can't stand that. I could spend most of Saturday puttering around my apartment but Stephen has to be doing something all the time (which is annoying sometimes). Well, I'm off to catch up on all your blogs! Talk to you soon!
So I took Thursday off so I could have breakfast with my dad before he left. We ate breakfast and as we were taking him to the airport, it started snowing like crazy! You literally could only see a few feet in front of the vehicle b/c of the snow. So after we took him to the airport, we went home and watched "Grumpy Old Men" (b/c in the words of Stephen, you can only watch this movie when it's snowing).
Friday was my 25th birthday and we went to one of the malls looking for a particular pair of jeans (when we were back in South Dakota I tried on a pair of Lucky jeans in the Buckle that fit me perfectly but they were a bit too short). So we went to the Lucky store and they don't carry this particular jean...which makes no sense at all to me, it's a Lucky jean, the Lucky Jean Store should carry the darn jean. We found out that the closest Buckle store is 2 hours away. We did some other shopping and looking around. Friday night Stephen decides that we should go to Richmond (where the nearest Buckle store is) on Saturday and find these jeans. Since we don't really have any other plans for the weekend, I agree.
Saturday we drive to Richmond (about 2 hours away) and find the Buckle where I try on at least 25 pairs of jeans. Stephen was such a great help b/c he just walked around the store picking up jeans in my size and bringing them to me. Finally I find a pair of jeans and they were not the ones we came looking for but these fit better. We also decided to stay in Richmond overnight so after finding the jeans and looking around more at the mall, we go back to the hotel and watch "The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford" (good movie but very long) on pay-per-view. While we were shopping, it started snowing and we spent some time just watching the snow fall when we got back to the hotel. We go eat dinner and then come back to the hotel and sit in the hot tub for a while. I start throwing up in the middle of the night. I think it was a combination of my food for dinner and the hot tub.
Sunday I ate more carbs than I usually do but when my tummy doesn't feel good, carbs are about the only thing to keep it feeling somewhat normal. We drove home, took a nap, and watched football.
Monday we went to the grocery store and ran a few errands then we went to see "27 Dresses"!! Yes, it took me 4 days to convince Stephen to go see it but I finally got him to go! I thought it was a pretty cute movie. I'm not a huge fan of romantic comedy-type movies but I definitely thought this one was pretty good. Even Stephen said it wasn't that bad.
So, we had a pretty busy weekend. I'm like Sara, I like weekends with nothing to do but Stephen can't stand that. I could spend most of Saturday puttering around my apartment but Stephen has to be doing something all the time (which is annoying sometimes). Well, I'm off to catch up on all your blogs! Talk to you soon!
Friday, January 18, 2008
It's My Birthday!
Woo-hoo!! Today's my 25th birthday! Today I think I'll do some shopping and try to convince Stephen to see "27 Dresses" (if I'm going to be able to convince him, I'm definitely going to have to play the it's-my-birthday card). Yesterday Stephen bought me a brownie cheesecake for my birthday cake so I know for sure that I'll have some of that today...no guilt allowed!!
I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Quick Check-In
Working from home today so that I could have breakfast with my dad before he left DC. It's snowing like crazy here so I'm glad I decided to stay close to home!
Tomorrow's my birthday! Woo-hoo!! Don't have any big plans since I'm going to NYC at the end of the month and need to save money for that.
Sorry I didn't get to comment an anyone's blog yesterday...the internet server at work was all messed up yesterday and we didn't have internet for most of the day. :(
Anyways, talk to you later. I'm off to admire and stare at the snow!
Tomorrow's my birthday! Woo-hoo!! Don't have any big plans since I'm going to NYC at the end of the month and need to save money for that.
Sorry I didn't get to comment an anyone's blog yesterday...the internet server at work was all messed up yesterday and we didn't have internet for most of the day. :(
Anyways, talk to you later. I'm off to admire and stare at the snow!
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
Wednesday Weigh-In Week #2
Starting Weight (1/2/08): 186.0
Last Week's Weight (1/9): 183.2
This Week's Weight (1/16): 182.2
Loss This Week: 1.0
Total Loss: 3.8
So as you can see I lost another pound this week! Woo-hoo! I'm actually pretty surprised because my eating wasn't so good over the weekend so I was expecting a gain or maintain. This weekend I will do better--it's a 4 day weekend so I've got to!
Tonight Stephen and I are meeting my dad for drinks and dinner. My plan is to enjoy one drink before dinner (either a glass of wine or a rum & diet coke) and then one drink with dinner (probably wine). We're eating at a pizza place that Stephen and I have been wanting to try for a while. It's one of 4 pizza places in America that have been certified by the Italian government for being "authentic" Neopolitian pizza. I'm eating a little bit less during the day today so that I can enjoy pizza tonight! My plan for dinner is to have a salad and then 2 or 3 slices of pizza (depending on how big it is). This will be the last time I see my dad on this trip so I'm kind of sad about it. I didn't see my family for Thanksgiving or Christmas and I've been missing them quite a bit lately. I want to try to get back to see them but it's a money thing.
I've rethought my Valentine's Day Challenge goals. Originally I had a certain number of minutes I wanted to workout during the six weeks but I've been so burned out with the gym lately and it's too cold this week to run outside. I've changed my workout goal to be getting 4-5 workouts in a week. This way, I can go for shorter times at the gym or go for runs outside and not feel like I'm letting myself down. I just realized yesterday how much I've begun to hate going to the gym and I don't want to feel that way so I'm scaling back a bit on the exercise for now.
Speaking of the gym, my one-year gym membership is up in February and after that, I'm not going to belong to a gym anymore. Again, it's a money thing. The $70 a month I pay for the membership is not worth it, particularly in the spring and summer when I'd rather be outside running anyways. And with possibly going to school in the fall, $70/month can go a long ways to helping pay off some debt. Plus my apartment complex has a gym; it's kind of crappy but there are some weight machines and cardio machines down there so I can hit those for some cross training.
Alright, well I'm off to prepare for my interview I have in a couple of weeks. Later gators!
Last Week's Weight (1/9): 183.2
This Week's Weight (1/16): 182.2
Loss This Week: 1.0
Total Loss: 3.8
So as you can see I lost another pound this week! Woo-hoo! I'm actually pretty surprised because my eating wasn't so good over the weekend so I was expecting a gain or maintain. This weekend I will do better--it's a 4 day weekend so I've got to!
Tonight Stephen and I are meeting my dad for drinks and dinner. My plan is to enjoy one drink before dinner (either a glass of wine or a rum & diet coke) and then one drink with dinner (probably wine). We're eating at a pizza place that Stephen and I have been wanting to try for a while. It's one of 4 pizza places in America that have been certified by the Italian government for being "authentic" Neopolitian pizza. I'm eating a little bit less during the day today so that I can enjoy pizza tonight! My plan for dinner is to have a salad and then 2 or 3 slices of pizza (depending on how big it is). This will be the last time I see my dad on this trip so I'm kind of sad about it. I didn't see my family for Thanksgiving or Christmas and I've been missing them quite a bit lately. I want to try to get back to see them but it's a money thing.
I've rethought my Valentine's Day Challenge goals. Originally I had a certain number of minutes I wanted to workout during the six weeks but I've been so burned out with the gym lately and it's too cold this week to run outside. I've changed my workout goal to be getting 4-5 workouts in a week. This way, I can go for shorter times at the gym or go for runs outside and not feel like I'm letting myself down. I just realized yesterday how much I've begun to hate going to the gym and I don't want to feel that way so I'm scaling back a bit on the exercise for now.
Speaking of the gym, my one-year gym membership is up in February and after that, I'm not going to belong to a gym anymore. Again, it's a money thing. The $70 a month I pay for the membership is not worth it, particularly in the spring and summer when I'd rather be outside running anyways. And with possibly going to school in the fall, $70/month can go a long ways to helping pay off some debt. Plus my apartment complex has a gym; it's kind of crappy but there are some weight machines and cardio machines down there so I can hit those for some cross training.
Alright, well I'm off to prepare for my interview I have in a couple of weeks. Later gators!
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
An Epiphany
The cabin is in Ontario on Clearwater Lake which is just about an hour across the US/Canada border.
Jen's and Sara's comments yesterday really made me think a bit. I have thought about "saving" up calories from the weekdays and using them on the weekends. But I've been stubborn. When I lost about 40 pounds in college, I consistently ate the same amount of calories every day. I might have gone over on a few days but, for the most part, I stayed close to 1800. This worked for me in college b/c even if it was the weekend, I was at the library studying or busy doing something else so I never had weekends where I was just hanging out and chilling (I also didn't have a social life outside of my parents and my sister). My epiphany yesterday: that worked for me then but it doesn't work for me now. I have to change the way I'm doing it now to reflect my life at this moment. There's nothing wrong with me saving some calories on the weekdays to spend on the weekend. In fact that works better for me b/c then I can splurge, within reason, on the weekends and not feel so guilty about it. A much better plan and much better suited to my lifestyle right now. Thanks ladies for making me think about how ridiculous I was being!
Well, I actually have a small project to do today so I better get started on it!
Jen's and Sara's comments yesterday really made me think a bit. I have thought about "saving" up calories from the weekdays and using them on the weekends. But I've been stubborn. When I lost about 40 pounds in college, I consistently ate the same amount of calories every day. I might have gone over on a few days but, for the most part, I stayed close to 1800. This worked for me in college b/c even if it was the weekend, I was at the library studying or busy doing something else so I never had weekends where I was just hanging out and chilling (I also didn't have a social life outside of my parents and my sister). My epiphany yesterday: that worked for me then but it doesn't work for me now. I have to change the way I'm doing it now to reflect my life at this moment. There's nothing wrong with me saving some calories on the weekdays to spend on the weekend. In fact that works better for me b/c then I can splurge, within reason, on the weekends and not feel so guilty about it. A much better plan and much better suited to my lifestyle right now. Thanks ladies for making me think about how ridiculous I was being!
Well, I actually have a small project to do today so I better get started on it!
Monday, January 14, 2008
The Weekend Review
I'm so sad to see the weekend go away! I had such a good weekend hanging out with my dad and Stephen. Friday was Stephen's birthday so we both left work early and hung out at home drinking wine and watching movies, nothing too exciting but Stephen doesn't like to make a big deal out of his birthday. Saturday we cleaned the apartment and watched football. My dad came over for Stephen's birthday dinner and the meal was excellent! Yummy and healthy, the best kind! I was going to take a picture but it slipped my mind. Sunday we went to the grocery store and met my dad for "The Bucket List" and dinner. So, overall a good weekend hanging out with family and friends.
What wasn't good this weekend? My food. I don't know why but a switch gets flipped on Fridays and I seem to think that the calories I consume on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays don't count. Yes they do!! I'm really going to focus on writing down everything I eat and adding it up this weekend. Friday's my birthday but that does not give me a free pass for the entire day....I'll eat a healthy breakfast and lunch and splurge a bit for dinner. You can bet I'll have cake but only one piece. Then Saturday and Sunday I'll eat healthy and stay within my calories. I'm planning on going to the gym Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. I have a 4 day weekend b/c of my nice work schedule/birthday (Friday) and Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Monday). I have to get away from this disciplined eating on the weekdays and no control eating on the weekends. It's not healthy and on the weekend I undo all my hard work during the week.
As a motivational tool, I'm posting a picture of the cabin in Canada. Stephen's family owns it and I went this past summer for almost 2 weeks. It was so much fun! What wasn't fun about being up there is how uncomfortable I was in my swimsuit. It fit well but I wasn't physically comfortable being in it all the time. We are planning on going up again this year and I want to have lost some, if not all, of this extra weight so I'll feel more comfortable. So, here's the cabin (I'll also post on the side as a daily reminder):
What wasn't good this weekend? My food. I don't know why but a switch gets flipped on Fridays and I seem to think that the calories I consume on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays don't count. Yes they do!! I'm really going to focus on writing down everything I eat and adding it up this weekend. Friday's my birthday but that does not give me a free pass for the entire day....I'll eat a healthy breakfast and lunch and splurge a bit for dinner. You can bet I'll have cake but only one piece. Then Saturday and Sunday I'll eat healthy and stay within my calories. I'm planning on going to the gym Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. I have a 4 day weekend b/c of my nice work schedule/birthday (Friday) and Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Monday). I have to get away from this disciplined eating on the weekdays and no control eating on the weekends. It's not healthy and on the weekend I undo all my hard work during the week.
As a motivational tool, I'm posting a picture of the cabin in Canada. Stephen's family owns it and I went this past summer for almost 2 weeks. It was so much fun! What wasn't fun about being up there is how uncomfortable I was in my swimsuit. It fit well but I wasn't physically comfortable being in it all the time. We are planning on going up again this year and I want to have lost some, if not all, of this extra weight so I'll feel more comfortable. So, here's the cabin (I'll also post on the side as a daily reminder):
Friday, January 11, 2008
Just a quick one
Yea, it's Friday!! Woo-hoo! I'm so excited...plus today's Stephen's birthday so that's even more fun.
I just have time for a very quick post today. I'm only working 1/2 a day so that Stephen and I can celebrate his birthday. I'm actually helping with this conference today as well. It's very unexpected...just found out yesterday afternoon when one of co-workers essentially begged me for help. I don't mind helping but everyone keeps deserting me and this is the first break I've had since 7 this morning! Anyways, not much to say (and even if I had something to say, I don't have any time to say it!).
Have a great weekend everyone! Talk to you on Monday!
I just have time for a very quick post today. I'm only working 1/2 a day so that Stephen and I can celebrate his birthday. I'm actually helping with this conference today as well. It's very unexpected...just found out yesterday afternoon when one of co-workers essentially begged me for help. I don't mind helping but everyone keeps deserting me and this is the first break I've had since 7 this morning! Anyways, not much to say (and even if I had something to say, I don't have any time to say it!).
Have a great weekend everyone! Talk to you on Monday!
Thursday, January 10, 2008
No excuses
Happy Thursday! It's almost Friday! Woo-hoo! I'm really looking forward to the weekend...this is the first full 5-day week I've worked in several months and it seems to have exhausted me. I haven't been sleeping well this week though so I think that has more to do with it.
Yesterday I didn't go do my run at lunch. No excuse...I had the time, I had my stuff, just didn't do it. But I'm not beating myself up about it since I have put in some serious running time this week and (this sounds like I'm being a big baby) my feet hurt from that pounding. I've got to get new shoes soon and I've already started looking since it takes me forever to find a pair I like. On the way home from work, I got really sick on the subway. If you have to regularly use a subway/lightrail you'll know what I'm talking about; yesterday it was so jerky! I felt so nauseous, I couldn't read, listen to my MP3 player, even keep my eyes open. I had to take off my glasses, close my eyes and think about something other than the way I was feeling for the entire 45 minute ride! At times like that, I hate having to ride the subway to work. So when I got home, I ate some crackers and drank a Diet Sprite trying to calm my tummy down. The crackers and a bigger portion of lasagna than I'd planned for put me over on calories yesterday. I should've eaten a smaller portion of lasagna but by the time we ate dinner, I was pretty hungry. I was only 400 calories over and I've got an entire week to burn that off before next Wednesday's weigh-in so I'm not worried at all.
I'll end this post with a funny thing that happened to me on my way to work this morning. I walk from the subway station to my building (and get off a few stops before I have to just to get in the extra exercise). So I'm walking along carrying my gloves since it wasn't really cold enough for them and about 1 block before my building as I'm crossing the street, there's a car waiting on the light and the passenger starts motioning to me and yelling at me. I'm thinking "wow I must be looking pretty good today." So I'm feeling really confident and start walking with more confidence. About 1/2 a block before my building I look down and realize that I'm missing one of my gloves. I look back and it's in the middle of the intersection I'd just crossed. Luckily, no one had driven through the crosswalk so it wasn't dirty but I went back and got it. So that's what the guy in the car was trying to tell me, I'd dropped my glove. He wasn't hitting on me at all, he was being nice. I had to laugh at myself for automatically assuming the guy was hitting on me!
Yesterday I didn't go do my run at lunch. No excuse...I had the time, I had my stuff, just didn't do it. But I'm not beating myself up about it since I have put in some serious running time this week and (this sounds like I'm being a big baby) my feet hurt from that pounding. I've got to get new shoes soon and I've already started looking since it takes me forever to find a pair I like. On the way home from work, I got really sick on the subway. If you have to regularly use a subway/lightrail you'll know what I'm talking about; yesterday it was so jerky! I felt so nauseous, I couldn't read, listen to my MP3 player, even keep my eyes open. I had to take off my glasses, close my eyes and think about something other than the way I was feeling for the entire 45 minute ride! At times like that, I hate having to ride the subway to work. So when I got home, I ate some crackers and drank a Diet Sprite trying to calm my tummy down. The crackers and a bigger portion of lasagna than I'd planned for put me over on calories yesterday. I should've eaten a smaller portion of lasagna but by the time we ate dinner, I was pretty hungry. I was only 400 calories over and I've got an entire week to burn that off before next Wednesday's weigh-in so I'm not worried at all.
I'll end this post with a funny thing that happened to me on my way to work this morning. I walk from the subway station to my building (and get off a few stops before I have to just to get in the extra exercise). So I'm walking along carrying my gloves since it wasn't really cold enough for them and about 1 block before my building as I'm crossing the street, there's a car waiting on the light and the passenger starts motioning to me and yelling at me. I'm thinking "wow I must be looking pretty good today." So I'm feeling really confident and start walking with more confidence. About 1/2 a block before my building I look down and realize that I'm missing one of my gloves. I look back and it's in the middle of the intersection I'd just crossed. Luckily, no one had driven through the crosswalk so it wasn't dirty but I went back and got it. So that's what the guy in the car was trying to tell me, I'd dropped my glove. He wasn't hitting on me at all, he was being nice. I had to laugh at myself for automatically assuming the guy was hitting on me!
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Check out the sidebar!
I lost 2.8 pounds this week! Woo-hoo!! Basically, I lost my holiday pounds so I'm back to where I was before Christmas but I'm excited! Even though my calories weren't great over the weekend, I still lost so I'm happy with it. This weekend I will do better though. I've been getting great workouts in the last couple of days and hopefully it doesn't rain today at lunch and I can continue with getting my exercise outside. So my goals for the upcoming week are to continue with staying under 1800 calories/day and the same exercise goals as last week (3 cardio/strength days, 2 high intensity cardio days, and 1 low intensity cardio day). The eating might be a challenge beginning Sunday. My dad is coming into town for meetings so he will usually take Stephen and I out to eat several times. I'm still going to make good choices though! We're actually cooking dinner for him on Saturday night. Friday is Stephen's birthday and I'm going to make his favorite meal (and it's actually really healthy--orange and onion salad, pork tenderloin, green beans, rosemary potatoes). We decided yesterday that we would wait to have his birthday dinner until Saturday and then have my dad over to celebrate with us. I'm pretty excited about having him over as I have never entertained anyone in my apartment being that it's 400 sq feet. Plus I love my dad a lot and he's one of my favorite people...it's actually my stepdad but he and I are so much alike, it's crazy.
Well, that's a very rambly post...just have all these thoughts going through my head. Later gators!
Well, that's a very rambly post...just have all these thoughts going through my head. Later gators!
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
My Exercise Motivation
Hey everyone! I had such a victory last night...I got home and really wanted a glass of wine but knew that if I had one glass it would likely spiral into drinking the entire bottle. So instead I had a Diet Sprite and sipped on that while I was cooking. Quite honestly, I didn't really miss the wine so much. I was actually thirsty and Diet Sprite does a much better job of quenching my thirst than a glass of wine does. Yea me!
I went for a 6 mile run/walk yesterday and lunch and loved it! It was so great being outside and not freezing. I plan on doing it again today. Usually I try to mix up my cardio a bit more but when the weather's this nice, you have to take advantage of it!
So there's something, actually someone, I've been wanting to mention for a while and she's a such a motivation to me to exercise. She's someone I work with and actually has the same job title as me but is at least 15 years older. I don't want to mention her name just on the odd case that someone I work with stumbles upon this blog so I'll call her Awesome Co-worker. Now Awesome Co-worker used to be a professional ballerina! She toured with several big ballet companies overseas and all over America. She has a fantastic story about meeting her husband in Italy. After she got married she went back to school and got her degrees. But, here's the sad part...she was diagnosed with MS a few months ago and uses a cane most of the time to get around. MS basically slowly shuts down your nervous system; there's no cure for it, only treatments to prolong the envitable wheelchair confinement. I was talking to Awesome Co-worker a few weeks ago and she was saying how much she misses being able to exercise and just being able to move freely and walk around without fear of falling. This got me to thinking...I have no medical reason why I don't exercise more. Most of the time when I don't workout, I'm just being lazy. Why do I not take advantage of my reasonably healthy body and exercise? It was really an eye-opening conversation to me. Ever since then, on the days when I don't want to exercise, I think about Awesome Co-worker and the conversation we had. I stop feeling sorry for myself and go get some exercise. I know it's a bit depressing but I don't want to someday be unable to exercise and regret not doing as much now as I can. And, on that note, later gators!
I went for a 6 mile run/walk yesterday and lunch and loved it! It was so great being outside and not freezing. I plan on doing it again today. Usually I try to mix up my cardio a bit more but when the weather's this nice, you have to take advantage of it!
So there's something, actually someone, I've been wanting to mention for a while and she's a such a motivation to me to exercise. She's someone I work with and actually has the same job title as me but is at least 15 years older. I don't want to mention her name just on the odd case that someone I work with stumbles upon this blog so I'll call her Awesome Co-worker. Now Awesome Co-worker used to be a professional ballerina! She toured with several big ballet companies overseas and all over America. She has a fantastic story about meeting her husband in Italy. After she got married she went back to school and got her degrees. But, here's the sad part...she was diagnosed with MS a few months ago and uses a cane most of the time to get around. MS basically slowly shuts down your nervous system; there's no cure for it, only treatments to prolong the envitable wheelchair confinement. I was talking to Awesome Co-worker a few weeks ago and she was saying how much she misses being able to exercise and just being able to move freely and walk around without fear of falling. This got me to thinking...I have no medical reason why I don't exercise more. Most of the time when I don't workout, I'm just being lazy. Why do I not take advantage of my reasonably healthy body and exercise? It was really an eye-opening conversation to me. Ever since then, on the days when I don't want to exercise, I think about Awesome Co-worker and the conversation we had. I stop feeling sorry for myself and go get some exercise. I know it's a bit depressing but I don't want to someday be unable to exercise and regret not doing as much now as I can. And, on that note, later gators!
Monday, January 7, 2008
The Monday Report
So it's Monday (just in case you didn't know) and my eating over the weekend was okay. I got into this mindset on Friday that I wasn't going to count calories so I didn't. My eating was actually pretty good but the alcohol consumption wasn't. That has to change! Most importantly, I remembered this weekend how much of a mental "game" weight loss is. The second I thought, "I don't need to count calories. I'm tired of this. I need a break." I was done for the weekend. It was my whole approach to the weekend...I looked at counting calories as depriving myself instead of taking care of myself. I'm done with that mental picture. I've deleted it from my mind. And the way I felt last night was gross and disgusting and I'm tired of feeling that way. So I'm done with "bad" weekends and I'm back to the "nourishing" weekends.
It was actually a very relaxing weekend for me. We didn't have too many errands to run and since there were no movies showing that we wanted to see, we spent a lot of time at home. Which can be boring but after being gone for a week, I enjoyed it. I also cleaned my oven which was a big chore that I've put off for weeks now. I made a big pot of chicken noodle soup for lunches this week as well as the Hungry Girl's Oven Baked Omelette. I'm having the omelette for breakfasts this week...it's good and a nice change from oatmeal.
I am thoroughly looking forward to running outside today at lunch! It's going to be nearly 70 degrees here today (and most of the week) so I'm ditching the gym while it's nice. I caught myself smiling while walking to work this morning thinking about being outside during lunch...I was getting so tired of the gym, this will be a good change for me!
I'm ready to make this week fantastic!
It was actually a very relaxing weekend for me. We didn't have too many errands to run and since there were no movies showing that we wanted to see, we spent a lot of time at home. Which can be boring but after being gone for a week, I enjoyed it. I also cleaned my oven which was a big chore that I've put off for weeks now. I made a big pot of chicken noodle soup for lunches this week as well as the Hungry Girl's Oven Baked Omelette. I'm having the omelette for breakfasts this week...it's good and a nice change from oatmeal.
I am thoroughly looking forward to running outside today at lunch! It's going to be nearly 70 degrees here today (and most of the week) so I'm ditching the gym while it's nice. I caught myself smiling while walking to work this morning thinking about being outside during lunch...I was getting so tired of the gym, this will be a good change for me!
I'm ready to make this week fantastic!
Friday, January 4, 2008
It's Friday!
I had a craptastic night of sleep (and most people at work are still out until Monday) so I'm working from home today which right now consists of watching "The Hills." I've only seen this show one other time...it's so fake but I can't stop watching it! This is why I don't like to watch reality shows b/c once I start watching them, I can't stop, even if the entire time I'm watching it, I'm saying "This show is so fake! Why am I watching it?" But I can't turn the stupid thing off! Crazy, huh?
I didn't make it to the gym yesterday. I just couldn't get out into the cold to walk there. I sat in my office with my coat and scarf on for the entire day...it was that cold in there! I'm seriously considering joining Weight Watchers online. I like the WW program but there aren't any meetings close to where I work and/or live. But I want to make sure I'll actually follow the program before I sign up.
Not much going on here for this weekend. I plan on making Hungry Girl's breakfast casserole thing from yesterday's email and a soup or chili for next week's lunches. We'll probably hit up a movie and we've got a trip to Costco to pick up some meat for the freezer (pork tenderloins, chicken, flank steak, etc.) and other "weekend" stuff like laundry. Nothing too exciting.
Like Sara, I am looking forward to next week...it's supposed to warm up here so it'll be warm enough to run outside! Woohoo! I always forget how much I enjoy being outside until I can't do it for a few weeks b/c of the weather.
Well, I think it's time for a bubble bath and just some "Marissa" time. Have a good weekend everyone!
I didn't make it to the gym yesterday. I just couldn't get out into the cold to walk there. I sat in my office with my coat and scarf on for the entire day...it was that cold in there! I'm seriously considering joining Weight Watchers online. I like the WW program but there aren't any meetings close to where I work and/or live. But I want to make sure I'll actually follow the program before I sign up.
Not much going on here for this weekend. I plan on making Hungry Girl's breakfast casserole thing from yesterday's email and a soup or chili for next week's lunches. We'll probably hit up a movie and we've got a trip to Costco to pick up some meat for the freezer (pork tenderloins, chicken, flank steak, etc.) and other "weekend" stuff like laundry. Nothing too exciting.
Like Sara, I am looking forward to next week...it's supposed to warm up here so it'll be warm enough to run outside! Woohoo! I always forget how much I enjoy being outside until I can't do it for a few weeks b/c of the weather.
Well, I think it's time for a bubble bath and just some "Marissa" time. Have a good weekend everyone!
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Why is it so cold?
I am freaking cold today. I cannot get warmed up. I hate feeling cold. You know what else I hate? Waking up and hearing the wind howling outside. Normally I get up without a problem but when the first thing I hear is wind blowing, it sounds so cold and I just want to stay in my warm bed curled up. I'm trying to get myself ready to go to the gym in an hour or so. Since I have to walk 7 or 8 blocks to get there, I'm not looking forward to the cold wind outside. I'm really hating my sister and mom since they are flying to Hawaii today! I bet it's warm there!
Alright, enough negativity. I have a confession to make: last night I had two glasses of wine. It's totally against my no alcohol on the weekday rule. I'm okay with it though, and here's why: 1) I'm aiming for 1800 calories a day so I have 200 calories a day for "treats" 2) Wine is my biggest vice, not chocolate or ice cream or sweets but wine. I do need to stay with one drink a day since that's better health wise but I'm going to modify my no alcohol on weekday rule (for now) and say that I can have alcohol on the weekday but only if it's one drink and approximately 100 calories. (And really that should go for every day of the week, not just weekdays. Baby steps, baby steps.) I think I will try to get back to no alcohol on the weekdays rule but over my Christmas trip I got used to having 3 or 4 drinks a day so I need to ease back into moderation. You all probably think I'm an alcoholic since I talking about drinking a lot (I swear I'm not!) but having a drink with dinner is something I've gotten used to over the last couple of years. It's relaxing and I enjoy it but I'm working towards a more moderate amount of alcohol consumption.
Is anyone else as excited as me that tomorrow is Friday? Woo-hoo!!
Alright, enough negativity. I have a confession to make: last night I had two glasses of wine. It's totally against my no alcohol on the weekday rule. I'm okay with it though, and here's why: 1) I'm aiming for 1800 calories a day so I have 200 calories a day for "treats" 2) Wine is my biggest vice, not chocolate or ice cream or sweets but wine. I do need to stay with one drink a day since that's better health wise but I'm going to modify my no alcohol on weekday rule (for now) and say that I can have alcohol on the weekday but only if it's one drink and approximately 100 calories. (And really that should go for every day of the week, not just weekdays. Baby steps, baby steps.) I think I will try to get back to no alcohol on the weekdays rule but over my Christmas trip I got used to having 3 or 4 drinks a day so I need to ease back into moderation. You all probably think I'm an alcoholic since I talking about drinking a lot (I swear I'm not!) but having a drink with dinner is something I've gotten used to over the last couple of years. It's relaxing and I enjoy it but I'm working towards a more moderate amount of alcohol consumption.
Is anyone else as excited as me that tomorrow is Friday? Woo-hoo!!
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Warning! It's going to be long!
Hey everyone! I'm so glad to be back! The trip was good. Stephen's mom was so surprised. I got to see some things I've never seen before like Mt. Rushmore. But I'm so happy to be back to my apartment and my kitchen. Stephen's mom is nice but she's very OCD about cleaning and her house...to the point that I was uncomfortable putting dishes in the dishwasher b/c it's not how she would have done it. I just felt out of place. My eating was out of whack and off schedule. Plus it's cold in South Dakota and that just made me want to eat more food. There was only one day that it was above freezing! I don't know how you Canadians do it, that is too cold for me!
I started my Valentine's Day challenge today and weighed in to a not pretty number--186. So it's obvious my eating wasn't good during the trip. But I'm back to my routine today and am looking forward to hitting the gym in about an hour.
I got some nice gifts for Christmas from Stephen's mom and her friend Pat. I got a Eating Well cookbook, a super nice pen, and a book about South Dakota...all three gifts I really like. I also got my birthday present from Stephen's mom and it's a Black Hills gold necklace that I love! (Stephen also got me my Valentines Day present while we were in S.Dakota...a pair of Black Hills gold and pearl earrings. They're classy and something I can wear for the rest of my life.) Now for the bad present I got: Stephen's mom got me a purse that I really don't like. She was all excited about giving it to me b/c she loves hers but it's just not my style. I'm picky about purses and I want one that's so big but not too big, that's certain colors, etc. This is just not me.
I'm going to see if my grandma would use it and give it to her. I used it in South Dakota for appearances but honestly, I really hate it. I tried to like it but I don't like the color or the "backpack" feel of the bag.
I kept up with everyone's blogs while I was gone but didn't have time to make any comments. I'll be back to that today.
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