Ugh.

Work has been crazy busy and stressful. I have missed every one of my fitness classes this week!!!

All in all, glad to put this one behind me!

Meals are planned for next week. I am having baked beans for breakfast. I know, crazy right? But beans for breakfast hold me over even better than oatmeal. Last time I did mexican style pinto beans with quinoa. But really, beans have enough carb that I don't think a grain is necessary. And I didn't want mexican again! Baked beans sounded good - a nice mix of spicy with a bit of sweet. Yum.

Lunch is "faux pho" (HA!) - a vegan knock-off of that yummy Vietnamese soup we all love. I am doing a raw cauliflower marinated "salad" to go alongside. I've been slack about getting raw foods in, I guess because it's cold! I am also going to make dehydrated kale "chips" this weekend. They are so good! And kale is really a wonder vegetable. I thought about putting it in the pho, but decided bok choy would go better.

Anyway, hope you have a great weekend. I have let tons of things slide this week - my house is a disaster. I called the 911-grandma hotline and my mom is coming over tomorrow to lend a hand. Have I mentioned she's the best?

No answers, just questions

It has been a tough couple of days. I spent about 2.5 days (Wednesday night through Friday night) on a food free for all (and I was sick in the middle even!), then felt better Saturday, then got stressed & lost it again yesterday.

I think it comes down to this: I know I CAN lose weight - I lost 25 pounds last year, I'm just not sure I have the discipline/will to make it happen.

Why can't I stop turning to food as a coping mechanism?

I'm not giving up - this week I am going back to basics, and taking a few days to take care of things I know will make me feel better. Stuff like hanging my kitchen curtains (I take them down when the weather is warm so we get more sun) and organizing my tupperware. I know that stuff sounds stupd, but getting stuff organized helps me feel more in control.

I need to make those things happen for myself. I ate a healthy breakfast and I have meals for the week pre-prepared so I can get back on track.

I swear I get tired of dusting myself off!

Have a good day!

About last night

For the first time in quite a while, I went on a serious eating binge last night. I'm talking saltines with vegan "butter" because I needed to EAT and there wasn't anything too decadent in the house.

I know what set it off and the fact is I'm not very happy with work right now. Simply quitting isn't an option. I am looking for other opportunities within the company, but I'm having a tough time dealing with the stress.

Exercise has been helping, but yesterday I was feeling irritable and my knee was bothering me and it just reached a boiling point.

I'm not sure how to handle this.

Stuff

So, the scale popped back down 2 of the 2.6 pounds that appeared after Sunday evening. That’s good – it puts me back where I was last Friday, but 3 days is a long time. Which makes me feel like having the treat was okay, but I probably went a little too overboard. Lesson learned – keep it in moderation. I am still thinking I will see some loss this week, so my overall plan is on track.

Last night was a “double header” at the Y – 5 pm water aerobics followed by 6 pm spin class. I had never had either instructor and I was pleased with both. The water aerobics class was the largest I’ve been in- 15 or so folks. And spin was full!

I left water aerobics a few minutes early (I missed maybe half the weight workout and the cool down) so I could grab a quick rinse shower and get upstairs for spin. I need to take some lotion to stick in my locker at the Y – my skin was itchy after the chlorine!

After I got home I ate supper and watched a little tv with the hub. I made sure to pack my gym bag so it was ready this morning. That was smart because I didn’t sleep very well and I was up for an hour in the night. So I slept a little later this morning so I’d be rested.

One thing I am finding is that I’m just not walking in the morning. I guess I’m working pretty hard between the 2 gyms but I miss my walks! I need to get in a couple a week, and I still need to add kettlebells in.

This 6 week session at work ends mid December. After this, there is the possibility they will go to 12 week sessions. Whether the sessions are 6 or 12 weeks, I think I will keep lunch yoga but drop the weights. I feel like I’ve gotten enough strength and stamina back that I could handle a class at the Y. That way I could do either kettlebell or a class if I didn’t feel like kettlebell. Chances are I would do a mix.

Anyway, I do feel like I am making progress – I can see the difference in certain yoga postures and I’ve moved up in weight in the Tone & Sculpt class.

Have a good day!

The down side to working at home and having dinner in the crockpot? Smelling the yummy aroma ALL DAY!!!!

Still Scary

The scale number is still scary. I know intellectually I didn't gain 2.6 pounds in one evening, but it still makes me feel nervous. I dunno - maybe I shouldn't have had popcorn! Frustrating!

Yesterday was yoga at lunch, 30 min Tone & Sculpt followed by 30 min on the elliptical after work, then home for a quick bite to eat then restoraative yofa at the Y. Long day - no sofa time at all!

Lunches are all cooked and packed - ready to be tossed into the lunch box. Tonight's dinner is in the crockpot and the gym bag is near readiness for this evening.

I just keep on keeping on! Nothing too exciting I guess!

Going to go vote soon. Have a good day!

Weekend

The trip to Asheville was lovely and it was great to see friends. I didn't get to the gym Saturday morning - I was tired & slept late. Normally I wake up naturally, so it didn't occur to me to set the alarm on a weekend morning. All I can say is I guess I needed the sleep!

I got ALL my cooking for the week done yesterday! I also made good progress on my bathroom curtains - just some hand stitching on one left to do.

My weight was down a bit more over the weekend. Last night I planned to eat popcorn & have some beer & watch scary movies. I knew I'd see a scary number on the scale as a result (hello, salt!), but I decided that it was worth it to me. I am drinking water like a crazy woman today in an effort to move that salt out of my system!

Today is the new session of classes here at work, so I have Tone & Sculpt this afternoon in addition to yoga at lunch.

My bike shorts came! I was so impressed with how quickly they arrived and they fit! That means I have no excuse not to go to spin tomorrow!

Wow that was a lot of exclamation points in one paragraph.

They boy is being a teenager and making us nutso. Please lord let me survive the teen years.

For lunches this week I have a mexican casserole type thing with black beans and quinoa and corn and tomatoes plus leek and squash soup. I used the greens of the leeks to dehydrate to use in salads etc and the whites I used in the soup. Easy and very good!

This morning I had oatmeal for breakfast. I used cranberries - having forgotten I bought a couple of apples to dice up & put in it. I am such a creature of habit.

Have a good day!

Woot!

First of all, I lost 2.2 pounds this week, bringing my monthly total to 5.4 pounds lost. Yes!

Yesterday, I walked 40 minutes on the treadmill prior to Tone & Fit. Yay exercise!

For all the folks around here who griped about it being nearly 80 at the end of October - we're back to shivering, happy now? It was in the mid 40s this morning. Brr!

I probably have written it every fall since I've had this blog, but I'll repeat it again this year: the seasons are pretty but I really was okay living in Hawaii where there is only 1 season "fabulous!". I dislike both cold and coats - you see my dilemna!

Tomorrow we are riding up to Asheville for the afternoon (a couple of friends are getting awards) and we really want to be there. Hub agreed that we will go AFTER I've gone to the gym. I can't decide if I want to do water aerobics or yoga. Or I could do yoga & then do some cardio on a machine on my own. Hmmm...

Money is a bit tight right now. Hub is working (yay!) but his team just started a new job and the foundations haven't been poured yet. With the rain we had, he isn't working today and didn't work yesterday. He cleaned around the house yesterday and is doing a few things for my mom today. So he's keeping busy, but of course this is unpaid time off, which puts a crimp in the budget.

Despite that, I did order myself a cheap pair of cycling shorts yesterday. My Pearl Izumi's were comfortable 30 pounds ago, but they are horribly uncomfortable now, not to mention I don't want to stretch them out & ruin them. I had a note this morning that they shipped yesterday! This will make spin class MUCH more pleasant. I consider cycling short a must.

I hope you all have a great weekend!

NSV

Yesterday afternoon/evening/into the night saw storm after storm roll through our area, leaving us popping between tornado warnings and watches - oh, and flash flood warnings. There was a lot of standing water on the roads already as I drove home, so I elected to stay put rather than go to water aerobics. I felt weird doing so, but I worked on lining my bathroom curtains.

Hub decided he wanted some milk (which I don't normally keep in the house except for almond milk) and asked if I wanted anything from the convenience store. I waffled a bit - I was feeling restless (probably due to lack of going to the gym) but said no. Go me!

I don't record my weight until Friday, but I've been weighing myself daily and am very pleased with what I am seeing. As of today's number, if I lose 10.2 pounds by the end of the year (just over 9 weeks), I will have undone the 15.6 pounds I gained this year. While I'm mad I gained, I'm glad I'm doing something about it now.

Take care of yourself

This article is well worth sharing. It's from this web site: http://refusetoregain.com/refusetoregain/ and is written by a doctor.

Swallowing the Universe
by Barbara Berkeley

Ever since Jonah was swallowed by the whale, the idea of being ingested remains a terrifying thought. In horror films, aliens gobble people whole. We fear being "swallowed" by the ocean, by storms and by quicksand. Perhaps we have nightmares about our planet being swallowed by a black hole.

We are frightened of being eaten, but we have little fear about what we, ourselves, choose to eat.

Unlike most posts on this site, this is not going to be a diatribe about sugars, starches or calories. Instead, this is a diatribe about safety and why we should be circumspect about the things we choose to swallow.

Aside from breathing, eating is the only act in which we take something from the outside world and make it a complete part of ourself. If you think of it, this is profound. The old saw "you are what you eat" is true in a very real way. The components of the things you ingest become the substance of your body. So too, their toxins...the unexpected hitchikers that accompany foods, drinks and medicines.

As the wife of a gastroenterologist, I can tell you that there is an inordinate amount of food poisoning in our world. Whenever someone gets a GI illness, they say they have the "stomach flu". More likely, they've been poisoned. Think about that: poisoned! While there is the occasional epidemic of Norwalk virus or other gastroenteritis, most of our unexplained bouts of vomiting and diarrhea come from contaminated food. This knowledge has made me think twice about the restaurants I am willing to trust. While it's always a crap shoot, if the chefs are a bunch of 18 year olds in a franchise at a highway exit, you can be sure I'm not stopping.

There has been alot written recently about contaminants that wind up in supplements and medicines. It has always astounded me that otherwise cautious people---people who buckle up when they drive, wear bike helmets, and floss their teeth---think nothing of taking potions they hear about on the internet or peculiar supplements that are not vetted by the FDA. Even vitamins branded with names of doctors, clinics and celebrities. Who is making these supplements and what in the world is in them? Are you really willing to put them directly into your Ferrari of a body?

This week, I saw a new patient who asked me whether she should stop taking her vitamins while dieting. When I asked her what she took, she produced a shopping bag full--literally. There must have been 15-20 different supplements in there, all from manufacturers I'd never heard of. Apart from the question of what these bottles actually contained, there was the larger question of whether healthy people should be taking vitamins at all. No less an authority than the vaunted Cleveland Clinic says no. And I agree. But then again, I'm particularly paranoid about my food sources. I do believe in fish oil, but I'd feel alot better if I knew the Norwegian guy who caught the fish personally.

You can call me crazy, but it only takes so many salmonella and e.coli outbreaks to tell us that we need to look out for ourselves. No one else is going to, at least not until after the fact. Consider the latest example, fines levied against pharmaceutical giant Glaxo for shameful practices in the manufacture of major drugs.

The New York Times reports:
Altogether, GlaxoSmithKline sold 20 drugs with questionable safety that were made at a huge plant in Puerto Rico that for years was rife with contamination. Cheryl Eckard, the company’s quality manager, asserts in her whistle-blower suit that she warned Glaxo of the problems but the company fired her instead of addressing the issues. Among the drugs affected were Avandia, Bactroban, Coreg, Paxil and Tagamet.

The article goes on to specify:
The plant was GlaxoSmithKline’s premier manufacturing facility, producing $5.5 billion of product each year. But Ms. Eckard soon discovered that its quality control systems were a mess: its water system was contaminated; its air system allowed for cross contamination between products; its warehouse was so over-crowded that rented vans were used for storage; it could not ensure the sterility of intravenous drugs for cancer; and pills of differing strengths were sometimes mixed in the same bottles.

Although F.D.A. inspectors had spotted some problems, most were missed. And the company abandoned even the limited fixes it promised to conduct, the unsealed lawsuit says. Ms. Eckard complained repeatedly to senior managers; little was done. She recommended recalls of defective products; recalls were not authorized. In May 2003, she was terminated as a “redundancy.” She complained to top company executives; she was ignored even after warning that she would call the F.D.A.. So she called the F.D.A. and sued. The agency began a criminal investigation and used armed federal marshals in 2005 to seize nearly $2 billion worth of products, the largest such seizure in history. Unable to fix the plant, GlaxoSmithKline shuttered it in 2009.

Who is looking out for you? Only YOU.
Here's what I recommend:

1. Carefully consider your food sources and try to eat in places that you know and trust. Foods that stand out in the open, like salad bars, are risky unless you know they are frequently cleaned and the food kept cold and fresh.

2. Don't eat unknown substances and supplements simply because they have an ad in Shape, Women's Fitness or the National Enquirer.

3. Don't assume that medicines are safe. Take the fewest pills you can. (But DO take meds if you need them!)

Your body is precious. Vet everything that you decide to eat by giving it at least a few moments of consideration. If it's worthy of you and your health, then enjoy. If it's suspect, unknown, or of uncertain value, give it the heave-ho.

Happy “hump” day

Yesterday I spent half my workday enjoying my job, and the other half feeling like I was getting the proverbial shaft. Not a good feeling. I ate Jalepeno Cheetos. Not a good way to deal with stress, but I’m proud of what came next.

I skipped my afternoon snack. I went to Tone & Sculpt & worked hard. I went home and while I made soup I asked the hub to make a big salad, of which I ate a huge bowl and then a smaller bowl of soup. We ate late (for us) – 6:45. I wasn’t hungry for the rest of the evening.

Anyway, one thing I need to remind myself is that I am not the kind of person who can stick to a plan 100% all of the time. Cheetos will happen from time to time. At the end of the day I hadn’t eaten more calories than I planned because I adjusted. I had planned to have a sandwich with the soup, but adjusted and had salad instead. Go me!

Tonight is water aerobics and yoga at lunch.

Like a rubber ball

The scale has been bouncing around like mad since last Friday - luckily it's bounced lower (well, not luckily - I've worked for that!), but still, it reminds me to watch trends and not single data points.

I didn't stay for yoga last night. I went to Spin class at 6, and by that time I was tired and really needed to finish my cooking, so I opted to go home and take care of that. I did soak in a tub and my back is fine now.

I brought my MP3 player in case I want to walk some before class this evening.

I had roasted brussel sprouts from the cafeteria with my lunch yesterday. I'm not a huge fan, but these were so good I asked the manager for the recipe! I'll be making them this weekend.

1200th post

Wow. That's pretty amazing.

Saturday I went to kickboxing because I am insane, Actually, the class itself wasn't too bad - but I did wake up extremely stiff yesterday, so decided not to do kettlebells.

This morning I signed up for the next session of fitness classes here at work - I did yoga at lunch again, and opted for the Mon/Wed Tone & Sculpt. That frees up Tue/Thur for deep water aerobics and/or spin class.

You know the '11' calculation? That is, you need your bodyweight times 11 in calories to maintain your weight. For my goal weight of 130, I would get 1430 per day to maintain that weight. That isn't very much! All the more reason to work on getting the most food & nutrition bang for my caloric buck, as it were.

After a wonderful weekend which I thoroughly enjoyed, I overate last night. Ugh! I know it's only one meal, but still. Grr.

I think tonight I will do spin and then yoga at the Y, and of course today is lunchtime yoga. Double yoga should help my back!

I hope you have a great day!

How lucky is that?

I've thought a couple of times it would be nice to have an extra swimsuit for the pool since I go to water aerobics multiple times a week. But if you've ever shopped for a"sport" swimsuit, you know they are quite expensive.

Anyway, this afternoon my mom was over and she was taking us out to supper. We had a few minutes to kill, so we rode down to Goodwill to poke around. Guess what I found? I brand new (tags still on) Speedo aquatic sport swimsuit in my size. Retail price on the suit $72. Goodwill price $3.50. Sweet!

Freaky Saturday

This morning I got up and was down another 0.8 pounds. Woo hoo! I had a few leftovers (I got up early) then had half a green drink before heading to the gym. I ended up doing kickboxing (which kicked my butt) and yoga. Then I finished my green drink when I got home.

Hub is gone for the day and I took the boy over to his grandmother's to mow the lawn. He's back now but it made for a very quiet, very relaxing afternoon. I had a nap and fell asleep listening to the birds. It was cold this morning but lovely today.

I wish the weather could stay like this until April! :-)

Have a good day!

As always, TGIF!

Well, today I weighed the same as last Friday. Eh, I'm okay with that. I didn't make Tone & Sculpt last night - I called the pediatrician to get the boy scheduled for a flu shot and they asked if I could be there by 4. Now, getting in to a pediatrician is like trying to get an audience with the Pope, so I said yes and bolted.

Last night's dinner was awesome - it was a take-off on a stuffed poblano chile recipe I found online. I'm lazy, so I roasted the chiles (on the grill) and them used them as the top & bottom of a casserole which had homemade mexican rice & beans in the middle. We had refriend beans on the side, served with salsa & guacamole. Yum-o! Mexican is my go to cuisine.

I haven't been getting enough greens and I've been feeling kinda overfull, so today I am having just green drinks for the day. I'm hoping the super infusion of greens and light eating will leave me feeling better. This isn't something I do often, but occasionally I get the urge and I'm left feeling better.

Not much in store for the weekend - I need to get my living room valences hung since soon it will be really cold and I'll want to be hanging curtains. Of course, that means I need to actually sew them! That was the one project from the house re-do that never got completed. My other project is to line the bathroom curtains. They are vintage and I don't want them to fade, and that room gets loads of very direct sunlight.

Yoga is late Saturday morning, I'm trying to decide whether I want to go to water aerobics or kickboxing beforehand. I'm leaning to water aerobics because I want to do Tracy's kettlebell workout Sunday.

Ah, the thrilling life of a jetsetter!

Mornings are definitely colder - it's 8 am and 38 degrees. The heat still isn't on and I have our bedroom windows and a couple of windows in the living room open. I wish I could have the windows open year round!

I hope you have a great weekend!

Decisions, decisions

I can hardly believe it, but next week is the last week of the 6-week fitness classes I signed up for here at work. Monday is sign-up for the next session, which starts immediately after this one. I am definitely going to do the Mon/ Wed lunchtime yoga. The Tone & Sculpt is being offered at 4:30 on Mon/ Wed or Tue/Thur. I am currently doing the T/Th which allows me to go to shallow water aerobics Monday followed (after a long break) by yoga and then the deep water aerobics with Jane at 6:15 on Wed. I like Jane’s class a lot, but I don’t like the Monday class, and the break between water aerobics and yoga is long.

Also, on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Y they offer a deep water aerobics class at 5:10 (I don’t know who teaches) AND a 6:00 spin class. In talking it through with hub, even though I’m not totally thrilled with doing both work classes on the same day (but it does have the plus of not having to bring in my gym bag so often!), I think I’m going that route simply because I have more options at the Y on Tue/ Thur and I can still get home on Monday in time to eat and have a break and then go to yoga.

The scale was back down to last Friday’s weight today. I made some good choices and some not so great choices this past weekend, and the result is that I’ll likely finish up this week where I was last week. I wouldn’t mind so much if I were farther along results-wise. Luckily, we don’t have anything similar coming up between now & Thanksgiving, so I have time to (hopefully) make up for the “lost week”. Ugh. Done can’t be undone – moving on now.

I am very happy that last night I told my husband I didn’t want to go to water aerobics and he told me I needed to and then I did! No excuses – just went. I keep telling myself “This is my life now.”

Last week I ate too big of a snack prior to class and felt a little pukey. This week I ate too small a snack and was starving! I called hub and told him to heat up some of the soup because I was so hungry! I had a bowl of soup & a small piece of leftover lasagna when I got home and it was wonderful.

I can’t decide if Saturday I want to do shallow water aerobics or kickboxing prior to yoga at 9:45.

Oh the frustration!

So, last week after working hard and eating well I lost 2 pounds. After a weekend spent on the road - making reasonable choices but eating out a lot, I'd gained 2 pounds. (Some water - my fingers were seriously swollen, but still). So frustrating.

That weight STILL hasn't come off. Big picture, I'm not freaking out. I don't go out of town regularly, nor do we eat out often.

The really frustrating part is that my knee is really hurting. It was stiff from the car ride, then I did something in water aerobics Monday, and it's still hurting. I really wanted to go to Tone & Sculpt, but it was hurting enough that I decided to stay off it. We do squats & lunges & I was afraid that would be too much - those are the movements that hurt.

Can I tell you how nerve wracking it was to decide not to work out? I felt like I'd never lose weight if I didn't go to the gym. Not a good feeling - forcing myself to exercise when something is hurting is not smart. (And I know the difference between hurt and sore.) I have yoga and water aerobics today, and I'm going to do both. Yoga will be fine, and I can be careful in aerobics.

Breakfast this morning was a vegan bean burrito, lunch is lentil burgers & a green salad & some beet salad, dinner is vegetable soup (I love my crockpot) and a salad.

I'm back!

The family and I had a great weekend in Maryland. We visited friends, the hub ate blue crabs, and the weather was awesome!

Last week I lost 1.8 pounds. I probably re-gained a bit over the weekend, I tried to make good choices, but it's hard when you are eating out so much. But he had a great time and that's what it was all about.

Spnding so much time in a (small) car meant my knee was sore Monday. Then I went to water aerobics and I think I may have done something because it hurt - a lot. I stayed home from yoga last night. This afternoon is tone & sculpt. I'll le tthe teacher know it's bothering me and do as much as I can. We'll see how it goes.

For lunch this week I made some yummy lentil burgers. I'm having them with a bit of sauce along side a spinach salad. I also made a marinated shredded carrot & beet salad that's yummy.

Breakfast this morning was oatmeal - my fall back plan.

Hope you have a good day!

Keeping it real

My dogs all have theme songs:

Bess: "Tiny Girl" sung to "Barbie Girl" (spoiled little chihuahua!)

Jordan: "Cute Stuff" sung to "Hot Stuff" by Donna Summer. I always loved Donna Summer.

Butch: Actually has two, as "Butchieman" may be sung to either "Spiderman" or "Candyman" from the original Willy Wonka movie, depending on which aspect of his personailty is being conveyed. Considering how much I hated that movie, I'm amazed I remember that song!

Maya: "Sweet Maya Girl" sung to "Sweet Caroline". I know, Neil Diamond, but she is so sweet and loving that she deserves a theme song as sweet as she is.

Last night I got home from water aerobics and I was so tired I had 1 Reece's peanut butter cup and a beer for dinner. I hope I don't get scurvy or rickets or anything. Le sigh.

Last night was deep water, which thoroughly kicked my butt. Good lord it was hard!!!

I was hungry all day. I mostly made good choices, but really too much beans & not enough vegetables. Must eat more vegetables!!!