According to My Droid...

... I have 23 days left of this biggest loser challenge!

So I guess that makes this day 7. So fiance and I weighed in today, I'm down 1.4 pounds and he's up - since he hasn't really consented me to say his weight online I'm gonna keep that number between me and him. But I do feel like I'm off to a great start and this daily (sort of) message is a great way to stay motivated.

To catch everyone up, this weekend I went to Iowa and we think we determined our location and our date! For the sake of keeping things quiet until we actually announce our date I'm going to omit that from this blog today.

Anyways, I'm proud to say that I didn't eat too much junk this weekend. I did have to go out to eat every meal and as we all know, restaurants like their butter to make things tastier and and in the interest of keeping my spirits up I didn't look up the calorie content ahead of time. I had enough on my mind. But Friday we had Subway for dinner and we shared a bag of baked lays, I had a Dr. Pepper though, regular- ie full of unnecessary sugar. And that was the way of the weekend... drinking regular coke and such when an easy and healthier alternative would have been water. But when you go to sleep at 2:30am and wake up at 7:00am because of your internal alarm clock (darn you!) then you crave caffiene big time. I had some coffee but not a lot. Something is so tasty about a cool refreshing soda on a hot day.

So yeah, I had my weaknesses but as you can see I didn't do too poorly for myself because I am down for the week!

Since we're on the note of weaknesses, can I please tell you that B-Bops is just about the worlds greatest food and if you ever see one you should go in and order a number 1, without onions, but with cheese. Their french fries are simply decedant and the burger is like oozing with mayo and pickles and other delicious goodies that makes you KNOW that it's definitely setting you back but you're so enthralled by the taste of this concoction that you'd rather die than never take another bite. Moral of the story, if you haven't tried B-Bops, you probably shouldn't because it's really that good!

So now we're on to yesterday, I have to thank my fiance for taking time on his day off to meet me at the train with my running shoes. I forgot them in the morning and realized that I did just about 5 minutes too late. My motivation for the day must have been a 10 because when he dropped me off I thought to myself that it would be so easy to just get in the car and go home with him and watch Valentines Day which came via netflix that very day. But alas, I powered through telling myself that a workout is worth it, especially after all my "bad for you" eating this weekend.

Yesterday, I ate really well:
Breakfast:
Hard boiled eggs, whites
Glass of milk

Snack:
handful of almonds

Lunch:
Turkey sandwich with extra turkey, pickles, tomato and mustard

Snack:
Light string cheese

Dinner:
Guacamole with chips

Dessert:
Chocolate dipped strawberries

All in all I'm not proud with my dinner/dessert combination and if I could do it over again I would probably go another route, such as the strawberries without chocolate. Guacamole is so stinking good though that I can't help but want to nom on every last morsel.

What's new in life (sometimes I hate talking about only food in my blog so I'm gonna try and write more personal stuff in here).
I did end up watching Valentines Day last night. I heard from a few different people that the movie was hilariou but I didn't really see it as such. I will give it that it wasn't as predictable as I originally thought it would be. I did cry at the very end with Julia Roberts' homecoming which she flew 14 hours for and had to leave the very next day...

I would say that it's worth it but I didn't think it was as funny as everyone made it out to be. Probably a C+ if I was going to assign a grade. An A+ for me would be like Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, or 28 Days Later - this is just a frame of reference as those are some of my favorite movies.

On a completely unrelated note, my next week is going to be fantastic! We get Monday off for the 4th of July (I guess the stock market celebrates on the 5th). I love when 3 day weekends give you the day off on Mondays BECAUSE they sneak up on you. Like, you put in a full week and sometimes it isn't until Thursday or so that you realize that the upcoming weekend is a 3-day weekend! So you work your 5 days, get a surprise long weekend followed by a shorter workweek. When you get Friday's off it's kind of a let down because you just have a short week followed by a long weekend and then a full week.

That's just my opinion, what's yours? Do you prefer to have Friday's or Monday's off from work?? Please share in my comments section below, I love reading your comments!!!

I deserve a metal...

… For posting 3 days in a row! *I’m sitting back thinking that “We Are The Champions” is playing loudly*

So yeah, I definitely rule.

First of all, I would have to say HAPPY GAY PRIDE WEEKEND to all my friends (gay, straight, crooked (?) whatever you are!). I found this picture at someecards.com. A great place to go if you’re just looking for a quick laugh over something relatively topical.

So yeah on with the show, today I’m a little tired and slightly unmotivated to be healthy because I’m going to Iowa this weekend, that means I won’t really get a chance to work out and I’ll also be tempted by tons of fast food… BOO!

Yesterday’s Dinner: Small handful of almonds and a salad with garbonzos, tomatoes, parmesan cheese, romaine lettuce and olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I was proud that I didn’t snack even though I really wanted to last night!

Today:Breakfast: I had a small bowl of cheerios with milk
Snack: Banana and small handful of almonds
Lunch: Turkey sub (1/2), some chips (like wayyy less than ¼ of a bag of those “fun size” bags of chips) and an RC cola – been a long time since I enjoyed a good RC cola haha!
Snack: 2 string cheeses (spread out throughout my afternoon
“Dinner”: since I haven’t ate this yet I may need to update later, but I’m planning on just having instant oatmeal HOWEVER I get super tempted to get snacks at gas stations… Gosh the temptations!!!

So yeah, today my motivation is probably like a 7 and my eating is like 7.5… I don’t feel particularly great about that.

Part of why I’m so unmotivated is because I stayed up late watching a movie – I had to return the Netflix today so I’ll get a new one tomorrow, you know the drill. Watched Sophie’s Choice. I haven’t cried that hard while watching a single scene in a movie EVER. Definitely a slow start but very interesting.

The movie stars Meryl Streep, who lately I’ve started LOVING pretty much everything she does. If you haven’t seen the movie I recommend it, but definitely on a night where you’re by yourself or maybe one other person, it’s not a good group movie. Definitely a parent’s worst nightmare, hands down.

… switching gears, please wish me luck this weekend! I’m going to be on the road so I may not get 4 days of blogging in a row so forgive me for that! I hope that we find our venue this weekend, I’m prepared to set the date and announce it informally via blogspot and facebook. Sound cool? Thanks, glad we’re in agreement!

Day 2 - Challenge

Today is the 2nd official day of the challenge that my Fiance and I have started... The winner will clearly be me!

So far today, I'd have to give my motivation a 10! I'm raring to go work out tonight, which I actually didn't do yesterday because of a storm. Long story short, I could go to the gym and get done right when tornado-type weather hits with rain and walk home in that, or I could walk the 1.5 miles home straightaway - so I skipped the gym. I figure the 1.5 mile walk is great (even though I'm training myself to do that after I work out anyways) as a form of exercise.

Food Diary:
Yesterday's Dinner: Salad with garbonzo beans, romaine lettuce, tomatos, hard boiled egg (whites) and olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
I also had an ice cream cone :) - Yummy, and worth it! My little treat!
Later I had a small handful of almonds

Breakfast (today): Light and Fit vanilla yogurt with fresh strawberries.
Snack: Banana
Lunch: Small handful of almonds, instant oatmeal
Snack: String Cheese

Dinner is TBA, probably will just have to write that stuff down tomorrow again!

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Things going on other than being motivated and eating right, well there's the obvious stressors but I think things are going really well! I'm going to check out wedding venues in my college town this weekend, and hopefully set a date!!! Between you and me (and the world) I want to get this nailed down THIS weekend, better tell the Fiance to get his checkbook ready cuz we're making a deposit if things go as planned!!

Other wedding stuff, I have no idea how to plan for a certain number of guests! Honestly, I think we're going to have like 250-300 people show up. That's so nerve racking! Mostly because that's a lot of names to remember! More than anything I hate it when I can't remember one person's name out of a group of people, then when a new person joins our conversation I feel obliged to introduce and don't because I don't want to have the awkward "what was your name again" speech... sigh... I'll have to take pictures and study them at any showers that are held and such.

Any tips you have to remember names? I'm not going to use the Michael Scott method.

CHALLENGE ACCEP-wait for it-TED

So the fiancé and I have placed a bet. A “Biggest Loser” type bet where we see who has lost the most percentage body weight by July 22, 2010. That is one month as of yesterday.

I know I’m going to win! Why? Because I’m motivated and have steadily maintained a 15 pound loss for this year so far. ALSO I have you guys!!!

I know the whole maintenance thing is kind of depressing as I was doing such a great job there for about 2 months when I lost that weight… I gotta be honest though, I don’t regret being here at this maintenance level for the past few months. I’m actually quite proud and feel accomplished that it wasn’t just something that I did for a few weeks, found success and then gained it all back!

So the plan is to hit it hard! I’ve got my gym routine still in place, although I’m going a little less intense so I don’t a) overwork myself, b) get bored/anxious before going to the gym. When I first started working out in the burbs, my system was fantastic, I would get off the train and work out for nearly 1.5 hours before I got picked up by my then boyfriend/now fiancé. Well – I’ve gotta be honest with you ladies and gents, it’s hard to maintain that type of routine MOSTLY because it gets really boring to work out for that long!!

New Routine (I heard once that you should shake up your routine every 2-3 months to keep your body “surprised”)

Work out for 30-45 minutes 4-5 times a week, alternating cardio and resistance days. Yesterday was lifting for me. I find that I can do about 6 different machines, 15 reps, 3 sets each and that takes me a ½ hour. I don’t like lifting while I’m doing it but the next day I feel the DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness – thank you Dr. Fiance). Cardio days I’m not stuck on the treadmill, but I mix it up with the elliptical, stairclimber or bike. When all is done, then I walk about 1.5 miles home! Whew, sounds pretty doable if I do say so myself.

My goal for you folks at home is to report what I’m eating on a daily basis and NOT lie about it.

Breakfast – 4 egg whites, hard boiled
Lunch – Small handful of almonds, string cheese, spinach and garbonzo beans (with olive oil), and a banana
Dinner is TBA, however I plan on getting some sort of protein because I’m donating blood today…

Feeling at the moment: Satisfied, full even! I'm eating all of the food I brought in today BEFORE I donate blood.

Since I’m newly engaged I’ve got a new mantra, “would the bride want you to eat that”. I’m trying to consider my mindset about a year from now and think back to what I ate that made me feel uncomfortable in my dress… Keeping this in mind will be a good motivator until the big day. After which, I’ll need some more mantras to keep me at that level so I don’t balloon up like I hear some new brides do (I read recently that newlyweds gain on average about 20 pounds in the first year of marriage!).

Challenges!

Hello after a lapse in writing! Sorry to all my fans (Hi sister!).

Today’s topic is challenges!

I know I don’t have daily topics – but this has been a big one for me lately! Let me tell you, when I went to the bachelorette party 2 weekends ago that I didn’t care what I ate or drank for the entire weekend. Even worse was when I thought that I needed to get back on track on Sunday but was hungover due to the festivities the night before. That hasn’t happened to me a whole lot recently because I haven’t drank like that in months!

What’s the cure for a hangover? If you said greasy food, you are right! Well I kind of, sort of went to Burger King and got their Chicken Fries – 9 points - (yes, that was what I thought I could actually stomach) and regular French Fries – approx* 5 points – and a Sprite – approx 4 points.

*Please note I was having trouble with the bk website while finding out this nutritional info so that’s why some of these values are just approx

But it doesn’t stop there folks, just a mere 2 hours down the road I decided it would really hit the spot to get some Pizza Hut breadsticks from the Worlds Largest Truckstop and a frosty from Wendy’s.

To my credit, I honestly couldn’t eat all of this and ended up giving some of this food to my carpool buddies.

The challenges didn’t stop there, my bro came to town for St. Patty’s week! I was obviously super excited to see him but this lead to drinking a lot during the week an not counting points… whoops! I won’t go into the details because before you know it I had the St. Patty’s Metra Crawl (awesome) and literally ate everything in sight (and drank it too).

By the end of all this I could have given up, and honestly it was hard to get used to eating carrots for lunch when I have been enjoying fried things for a solid 10 days… but to turn it all around I had to (and still HAVE to) focus on what I really want. And it’s not 100% about weight loss, but also just being healthy! As of this morning I have hit the gym 4 days in a row and plan to take tonight off to spend time with the boyfriend. I’ve been really appreciating the fact that I don’t have a car and that I have “no choice” but to work out for an hour and a half until my boyfriend can come pick me up.

Monday – I did light cardio including 20 minutes on the stair climber, 25 minutes walking at a faster pace (I couldn’t bring myself to run yet), and then about 40 minutes on the recumbent bike. Very light stuff, made very easy by hooking my headphones up to the TV’s which are conveniently located on the cardio equipment. Honestly, with luxuries like this, why is our country still so fat? I can’t get over it.

Tuesday – Resistance training! I did about 9 different types of lifting equipment as I’m still not comfortable working on the free weights yet. I like having the machines show me what to do, otherwise I’m just staring at the free weights thinking “WTF are you for again?”. I’m open to trying new things but I kinda want someone to show me wassup!

Wednesday – More cardio! My memory is getting foggy as this week has been a blur, however I ran for 25 minutes at a 5.0 pace (12 minute miles) which is a pace that I’m comfortable running. I’ve always wanted to be a fast runner but I’m not sure that’s what I’m meant to do. In the past I’ve fell off the wagon several times because I force myself to run at a 6.0 pace (10 minute miles) and I get so winded and discouraged. I then went on the recumbent bike for about 40 minutes and then walked for about 15 minutes on the treadmill.

Please note that I do want to get faster at running and challenge myself, but now isn’t the time, I’ll slowly but surely creep my way up to a faster pace.

Thursday – Light resistance training. I didn’t go all out yesterday as I stopped along the train to check out a potential apartment for me and the boyfriend. I luckily ended the visit at the apartment with just enough time (like within seconds) to get the train to go north 2 stops to my town. Then I went to the gym for probably 30 minutes and just did whatever equipment I found enjoyable, some of my faves are leg workouts such as the leg press and the super slutty leg abductor and adductor – the machines make you open up your legs and either press the weights inward or outward depending on which muscle group you work, leading to the inevitable crotch shot. Please don’t judge me, I just want skinny thighs!

I weighed myself this morning and after 10 days of falling off the wagon and 4 days back on I am about .5 pounds heavier than I was on day one of my “falloff”. I’m calling it a wash though because it could have been a lot worse! The worst case scenario is that I never even update you all on my status because I’m still on a food bender. Luckily I’m back betch! Best get used to it!

Weigh in tomorrow, I’ll let you know the official status then!

Recommendations

As someone new to the blogging “industry” I have found that recommendations and ideas are just as important to capturing a reader’s interests and hopefully helping someone outside my bloodline.

That being said – I know sometimes my writing is poor, however to give you an idea of my day, I spend at least 8 hours doing computer work on a daily basis. When it comes to the weekend, my computer time is spent checking out facebook (every day) or PostSecret (updated Sundays).

Since I changed my WI day to Saturdays, that has resulted in a weaker display of my writing abilities. So I’m sorry readers, I’m really trying to find my voice in this world!

So my recommendation:
I am currently enjoying listening to Podcasts as part of my daily or, day I say it, hourly motivation? Sometimes I need that extra reminder that I’m in it to lose it (see what I did there?). My Podcast recommendation is called “Fat 2 Fit”, or as my boyfriend so lovingly said, “Fit to Fitter”. Awwww.

I really hope you check it out on iTunes or their website. They are two regular guys who have put out 90 (??) podcasts now and have great topics each week. The podcast follows a program of calorie counting, and establishing the habits of the healthy person you want to be. Their system relies on the practice of never eating below your BMR, and also to take other weight loss victories into consideration (ie losing inches) because it’s not all about the scale. Now I’m no dietitian like my sister but I believe they follow a healthy and realistic approach to weight loss; focusing primarily on the calories in versus calories out.

Here’s a personal victory today:
My boss brought in some treats (I’m talking every kind of cookie and brownie bites) from Corner Bakery. I didn’t eat any! And this was especially hard because I smelled the yummy chocolate when I was closing up the bags in the break room so they wouldn’t get dried up overnight. I’m such a good assistant. You could call me Mom of the office since I’m the only full time employee that empties the dishwasher!

Challenges:This weekend I’m going to a bachelorette party so I’ve gotta be prepared for the yummy food and alcohol that this will bring!