If I get fat and look like an egg.....

The cold just has me all screwed up. I stayed in bed this morning because it was all icy. Still have been doing my resistance training, though.

And I had pumpkin pie.

Ugh.

I'm loosing so much ground its not even funny. I might end up looking into a stationary bike or a small treadmill. The upside to this? I can rock out in the privacy of my room while riding! Ill keep you posted, maybe I can find a black Friday deal on one :)

I posted this picture on my desk:

It makes me smile every time I look at it. It also makes me want to get tattoos, but that's another story.

Peace, Love and Garbanzo Beans.

Weekend Rundown

So, I totally cheated at the end of last week. I couldn't rid myself of the sugary cravings. After thinking on why they were so strong, I think that the monotony of my lunches might have contributed to it. I switched it up for my lunches this week and am making Spelt Salad with White Beans and Artichokes from the Cooking Light website. I'm thinking I'm going to have to do a new lunch item each week just to keep myself satisfied. I paired the Salad with some Grapes and half of a Ezekiel English Muffin each day.

Yesterday marked the start of week 3 of my new venture. I still feel incredibly tired, and run down, but am hopeful that by the end of this week my energy levels will start increasing. While Thursday is a day of rest, Wednesday and Sunday entail LOTS of driving.

Obviously, my weekend was not as restful as it should have been - I'm typing this and falling asleep. Later, bitches.

High Winds & Headaches

The winds have been blowing like crazy since last night! I also have a headache, which I'm blaming on the winds.

I did so many things today that are contradictory. I woke up of my own volition at 5:15 and laid there waiting for my alarm to go off, then went on a walk. Did my normal mile, came back home, and went to work. Stayed true through breakfast, I got an OJ and a whole wheat bagel with tomatoes. Got to work, ran to the bank on my lunch, which left little time.....and I got a cheese-steak sandwich and fries with a Pepsi for lunch.

FAIL!!!!

I then proceeded to eat said lunch, come back to the office, and take some before pictures of my body for reference later on.

Still have the dang headache.

On a side note, I got some Glutamine Chewies (Sugar Free Candies) and though the Glutamine DID help with the soreness, the Sugar Free candy gave me a hell of a sugar/starch craving. I'm going to look into some plain Glutamine pills this weekend, because If its not the wind that is Causing the headache its the sweetness of the candy.

So, yes I made a bad choice today. It was the most horrible choice I have made in two weeks food wise - So, I'm considering that my splurge meal and I'm back on the boat. I'll let you know on Monday how everything went.

Addendum: Steel Panther & Headaches don't go well together. Bring me some Motrin, Bitches.

Almost done with week two!

Today's Tally?

1 Mile
25 Exercise Ball Crunches
25 Exercise Ball Reverse Crunches (Not to be confused with the reverse cowgirl)
15 V-Passes
21 Reverse Fly's
30 Bicep Curls
25 Cross Jabs (Each Arm)
25 Glute Bridge/Triceps Extensions

I was craving protein something fierce, so I went and got a Salad from the Salad place down the road, and had them add some BBQ Tri-Tip and Beans. It totally hit the spot! I did get an Izze Soda, but it was lower in calories than a lot of the iced teas! Alright, and I really wanted it. I was craving something sweet. 

My whole body is jelly! I guess that means that I'm working everything, though. Somebody suggested that I get some Glutamine for the aches, so I plan on looking into that tonight.

1 day away from the end of week two........

Thursday morning motivation!

Strength Exercises!

So, as I said earlier - in light of the current forecast.......

I am doing exercises on my lunch and breaks. Today's Log:

20 Exercise Ball Crunches
20 Exercise Ball Reverse Crunches (Not to be confused with the reverse cowgirl)
10 V-Passes
20 Reverse Fly's
25 Bicep Curls
20 Cross Jabs (Each Arm)
20 Glute Bridge/Triceps Extensions

Lets see if i can beat this tomorrow :)

Rain, Rain Go Away!!!

It was raining this morning, so there was no walk. Not a happy camper. I feel like I am making an excuse for not walking.

The reality of it is that YES it is raining, and YES my Dr told me to ice and take Motrin for my legs, so considering it inst supposed to rain tomorrow I can just take today as a rest day and resume it all tomorrow.

I plan on doing strength training today instead, and hopefully the rain will let up by tonight.

I'm concerned because there is not much to write about yet! Yesterday I went to work, had an awesome dinner at my sisters, we went to whole foods so I could look at breakfast sandwiches (I got two types - I will rate them later!), then we went to Joann's so we could get some fleece. Scrappy-Doo has been getting chilly in the mornings, so my sister offered to make him a doggie sweater If we found some fleece that I like. So, got some fleece, came home and watched some TV, then went to bed. Wanted to stay up last night researching some things but I was so dang tired that I fell right asleep.

Coffee, I need Coffee.....

Dr's Orders!

According to the Dr, its time to start doing some stretches and strength training - so I'm putting these here so I don't forget them (because if I put them anywhere else, I totally will). This is just me adding a couple of extra things a day for the time being:

Courtesy of Mountaingalinks.blogspot.com

Courtesy Womens Health Magazine

New Clothes!!!

OK, so in light of the weather I opted to purchase new workout clothes instead of my beloved pillow. I got a new sweatshirt (with thumb holes, pretty exciting!):

AND a new pair of pants......

Not to mention new socks, and a rocking thermal shirt. Last place I would have thought to look, but Costco had some awesome deals on the stuff. 

On another note, Im still having problems drinking enough water, so I got one of these last night.....

The only fruit I have at work at the moment is Bananas, Grapefruit, and Tangerines. I opted for the Grapefruit today, but we will see how that goes. 

Its rainy and cold outside, and though I did go on my walk this morning - all I seem to want to do is curl up on a couch by a fireplace. I seem to have lost my "oomph!" today. 

K, so Im going to go try not to fall asleep now, wish me luck! More tomorrow!

When life gets you down....

ITS FREAKING COLD!!!

Cold weather workout wear shopping totally commences today. My fingers are still hurting, and my nose and lips are revolting.

On a happy note, despite the fact that I didn't diet over the weekend (family birthday dinners and such), and did not walk -I lost 4 more pounds!!!! On a freaking roll, now! Thats 11   16 (I forgot my weigh in weight of 219!!!) pounds in two weeks!!!! BUCKWHEAT PILLOW, HERE I COME!!!

Didn't make it up at 5:30, however I was out of bed and on the pavement by 5:43 and managed to get a whole mile in today before I headed back to the house to get ready. Judging by the state of my legs, I think that I am going to do another week of 1 mile before increasing to 2 miles.

The good news is that if I keep doing what I am doing, that it should head in a downward direction once again shortly.

Just keep Swimming, Swimming, Swimming........

Stix & times of days that don't exist.

Science panther question: Do boobs have the opposite polarity than Stix? No really! Hear me out: boobs are always facing the other way from him, I have never seen somebody show him theirs.

Ok, so as much as I think Satchel is a retardedly brilliant musician, and is hot.....I kind of have a thing for Stix. 

I tend to like burly guys (no weaklings here!) and drummers have a special place in my heart. I know they're metal and hardcore and shit, but all I want to do is climb into stix's lap and hug him. 

True story. 

So, moving on: set this weeks alarms for 5:30, hoping that I'll make the wake up call.  After the horrible weekend I've just had, I could use the extra exercise.

It's getting super cold out in the mornings!!!! Going to have to look for some warmer workout wear, tomorrow. I'm currently working out in Capri length pants- which it's too damn cold out there, or as my father says, "it's colder than TWO witches titties out there!!!" And he would be right. 

Day 7 - Alarm Faux Pas

Evidently I set my alarm for 6am for Mon-Thurs, but not Friday.

Oops.

So, walking didn't happen this morning. I'm hoping to try to make up for it tonight in some form - either a walk, ice skating, heading to the beach for a night hike, something of that sort.

Still on the food bandwagon - had my normal Veggie Breakfast Sandwich for Breakfast, and my Tomato, Hummus Avocado Sandwich for lunch. One of the Sales Reps in my office brought me a Large Chai from Starbucks, so I will have to account for that when I eat dinner.

Had to drop my class this semester! :( The good news is that it got dropped before the deadline and so it wont impact my GPA. Additionally, the other good news is that I have more time to devote to this whole venture! At least until classes start in the Spring, that is.

I have noticed that since I have started eating healthy again, every time I eat or drink something high in fat (HELLO EGGNOG CHAI!) that I get childbirth like pains. Not very pleasant at all. I mean, its good incentive to keep eating healthy - but it would be nice if my body didn't feel the need to punish me with torture when I eat something not on the menu.

I'm going out to eat tomorrow night, which will be my first foray into the world of restaurants since I started this. I'm torn between ordering what I really want, and ordering what is good for me. I am in the hopes that there may be a happy medium on the special list, but I will no know till the time comes. However, as I sit here typing this I am realizing that desert is inevitable - so something healthy, a la' salad is probably in order.

More Good news - I paid off my MasterCard today!!! Other than my car (which I will work on paying down once all of the smaller ones are down) I have 4 Credit Cards, this one is done and next month I should be able to kill two more! Sometimes I hate being an adult, but I guess that's the way it goes.

Well, Im off to speak with an admissions counselor at Arizona State University! Wish me luck!

Weekend Reminder!!

Day 6 - (I feel like I should make a Stix joke here, but I am refraining)

I'm getting pretty good at talking myself out of bed (not to be confused with being talked INTO bed....) in the mornings. Almost through a whole week!

In the past 24 hours however, I have made two AWESOME additional discoveries.

#1 - Mendocino Mustard - Hot & Sweet

I wouldn't have believed me if you had told me before, however A) This stuff is wonderfully awesome tasting and B) Nutrition wise its amazing as well!
Total Fat: 0g
Total Cal: 20
Sodium: 0g
Total Carb: 3g

#2 - What started off as inspiration from this recipe over at  Simple & Skinny - Hummus Tomato & Avocado Sandwich, has now turned into this due to some tweaking on my end (also, not to be confused with twerking, which will never happen your dirty people) :

Tomato & Avocado Open Face Sandwich

2 Slices Large  Tomato
1 Half Medium Avocado
2 Slices Ezekiel 4:9 Organic Sprouted 100% Whole Grain Bread
1 Tsp Mendocino Mustard - Hot & Sweet Mustard
2 Tbsp Eating Right Roasted Red Pepper Hummus

Lightly Toast Bread and Evenly distribute both Mustard & Hummus over one side of each slice of bread. . Slice Avocado & Tomato and Place on top of bread. Eat.

OK, So I'm not the most animated Recipe writer - nor am I a talented food photographer, however you get the point. I ran the calculations and this comes in at the following nutritional value:

Total Fat: 13g (at least 10 of these come from the Avocado and are good fats!)
Total Cal: 351
Sodium: 288g
Total Carb: 44g
Protein: 10g (With 8 of these coming from the bread!)

Its a little higher on the sodium then I would like, half of the sodium comes from the bread & the other half comes from the hummus - so I think I'm going to look into both of those items next time I buy to see if I can find lower sodium options. I know for a fact that the Ezekiel bread offers one, so I may have to purchase it next time.

The point is this - I could probably eat this sandwich every day and be happy. It SUPER TASTY! (no, not 'THUPER! SUPER!) At least for the moment I have found something that I can eat for lunch that totally satisfies me, which I am finding is half the battle.

I was hoping to mix it up a bit this weekend and go on a hike! Unfortunately, though It looks like I will be doing quite a bit of driving, instead.

'Till tomorrow!

Soooo tired!

I'm not going to lie, when I saw that I had gained back 3 lbs this morning, my heart dropped. Then I realized it was water weight! Ick! The good news is that it will leave me again in a week, thank god. 

Another walk again this morning! Yay! I gave myself heel sores on yesterday's walk, so this morning I was prepared with mole skin. Sores just didn't seem like a good enough excuse to stop walking for the day. 

I was unprepared for today's meals, so I ended up at the bagel place for my usual , and the local salad place for lunch. Not bad choices , but definitely not the cheapest. Went shopping again tonight for some more lunch and breakfast items. 

Super tired today, so I'm going to turn in early. Keep rocking it! 

Day 4 -still trying to find my groove.

I didn't get around to writing yesterday, bad me!

Quick run through.

I made it out at 6am again!!! If you know me, you know this is a VERY BIG DEAL. I like to pretend that that time of day does not exist, and that sleep is the best thing on earth. No, really. I LOVE SLEEP!!! So If there is not a flight I have to make, your chance of getting me awake while Its still dark out is slim to none.

I found that I am already getting tired of chicken and steamed veggies. I'm not sure if its my body freaking out due to change of food or if I REALLY am already tired of it after 3 days. I'm going to make either some Chicken Salad or Egg Salad (healthy versions) to have on some Ezekiel bread today for lunch, I think.

I drank WAYYY too much milk yesterday. I didn't snack a lot, however I am concerned due to the fact that the Scale went up a few pounds today. I think this weekend I'm going to invest in a water filter and keep it in the office, I am notorious for not drinking enough water and right now is not a good time to encourage that.  I need more water to wash all the bad things out of my system, and my lips are thoroughly chapped.

I brought my Dumbbells into work today. I am going to use them on my lunch and on my breaks. I have completely neglected strength training as of yet (I've only been at this since last Saturday, so this is day 5.....), and though I understand it is best to do it right after cardio, I'm splitting it up for the time being in the name of getting used to my new morning routine. I'm afraid if i push it too hard at the beginning, that I will burn out very fast - and this will be all for naught. I'm hoping by next week that I may be in a position to wake up slightly earlier to enable extending my walk time.

Working out all of these logistics are the clincher. After a couple of weeks, I am in the hopes that I have a good routine down  - wish me luck & a new pillow.

Day 3-er....Part 2

I jumped the gun by posting earlier because I was so excited and wanted to write all of the good things down!! So now I have to play catch-up with everything else that should have been included in that post. 

Breakfast - Vegan Breakfast Sandwich! 

Simmer Down - these are actually pretty tasty. And by pretty tasty I mean VERY TASTY! These come in at around 200 calories per sandwich, and I had one and my morning Chai with Low-fat Milk. I'm looking into a cool little breakfast sandwich gadget so I can monitor the ingredients more and maybe add some veggies, and the next milk I buy will be Non-Fat. 

For Snack and Lunch I had a whole grapefruit, Steamed Veggies & a Steamed Chicken Breast with Fat Free/Calorie Free/Sugar Free BBQ Sauce.

Around 3 pm I started having SUPER BAD carb cravings. All I wanted was some fries, some Toast, a Baked Potato - It was quite the craving. I poured myself a glass of Low-fat Milk and it seemed to quench the Carb Craving - something I will have to remember! I had planned on having some melon, but I would still be craving If that was all I had. Onward and Upward. 

Dinner will probably be more cabbage soup. I eschewed the French Bread last night with it for a slice of whole wheat bread which kept me pretty satisfied. I will be looking at some Sprouted Grain Bread this evening as it is heavier in Protein, and less in the Carbs profile. 

ALSO: My favorite workout shirt is on sale at Old Navy for $15

Bottom Line is that I'm a slacker, and these are comfortable enough that I can wear them to bed, roll out of bed and put shoes on and go before I even realize what the hell I am doing. Which trust me, is a very good thing. 

G-O-L-D,  D-I-GG-I-N-G,  W-H-O-R 

E

*Queue 'Nicorette Celebrate Song'*

I did something this morning, that I have never done before......

I worked out before work.

Okay, so for most people what I did isn't a workout, I woke up at 6am and took Puppy Dog for a mile walk, but I'm totally counting it. If I can turn this into the norm, then that would be a great addition to my days!!

We had some discussions about how this is a "WALK, not a SNIFF," however the end result is still cardio done first thing in the morning - which will set my metabolism in place for the rest of  the day.

Additionally, pretty big news - last Monday I weighed in at 216 when I was at my Drs Appointment, this morning I weighed in at 207! DEFINITELY a nice motivator.

I have this little tracker that I found online that I keep posted at my desk, and I mark EACH pound off. Every 5 lbs I reward myself somehow.

Sometimes its something small, like an eyebrow waxing or a manicure or pedicure. Sometimes its something big - like a day trip to the Aquarium after I have lost 20 lbs, or a trip to see my Best Friend in Portland after losing 40 lbs! The point for me is to reward myself with things that are not food.

Just another 3 lbs and I can order myself a new pillow!!!!Hey now, don't diss the pillow - proper neck position is important!

......suck it.

Sunday is a Fun Day: AKA day 2

I was horrible last night!!!! My sister and brother in law brought home a whole sheet of Pineapple Upside down cake......and I had a piece. Day 1 and I'm already cheating!!!!! No bueno.

We'll, the good news is that we're into day #2, 99 cent day at Goodwill!!! You know what that means? Lost of walking!!

I ended up getting a brand new LL Bean jacket, a JJill shirt, and a new gardening apron, plus one of my favorite books 1st edition (the Birds Christmas Carol- tis the season!), as well as "The Biggest Loser-30 Day Jump Start."

I managed to get to page 55, Day 1 of the Jump Start Exercise Plan. So I put the book down and went for a 20 minute walk. I actually aimed for 30, but only managed to get to 23 due to loss of the sun. 

Moral of the story is this: I need to find a place that is lit during the evening to walk at. Even on a good night, I won't get anywhere till 6 at the earliest, so someplace with lighting is vital. 

For breakfast, I had a half of a Grapefruit, and some Orange Juice. We were running out the door, so probably not the best. 

Lunch was Steamed Veggies and scrambled eggs with a small amount of Mustard. 

Dinner is Cabbage Soup and some bread, which I will probably skip. 

All in all, a productive day. This evening should bring more reading of my book, and some research of a better place to walk in the evenings. 

Rock on. 

Steel Panther, or "yes, I know I'm bad"

Sometimes it's funny what it takes.

So last night I go to this awesome show with this awesome guitar player named Satchel.

 You see him and he's hot.......so then you watch him play, and his playing is so awesome that your eyes roll back into your head. Then you find out that he WRITES all of the music......and it's time to change your panties. 

So long story short, they pull chicks up on stage to dance during their set...

I want a piece of that. 

Sure, I got admiration for my boobs, but I want admiration for the whole package. 

I want 'Gold Digging Whore' to be my anthem instead of 'Thar She Blows'!!!!!

So, today I parked as far away as possible from every door. I stopped and got a shit-load of veggies and had veggies and chicken breasts for dinner. 

They're in Europe till April, so by the time they get back my ass should be ready to be pulled on stage. 

Fuckers better play an Encore

.