Just to clarify, when I refer to "diet" I'm referring to whatever I eat. Whether it's good or bad, it's still my "diet". One of my goals is to incorporate healthier food into my diet as a norm. I'm not going to ban all junk food forever, but I do want to take control and be more aware of what I eat.
I went out to dinner with some friends last night. It was a lot of fun, but I know I ate way too many calories.
The good:
I ordered red wine instead of a margarita (we were at a Mexican restaurant)
I stopped and did not finish the basket of chips in front of me which is what I usually do
I ordered fish tacos instead of chicken flautas
I drank a decent amount of water
The bad:
I still ate too many chips
The ugly:
I split a dessert that was easily over 1000 calories
I haven't eaten very much today so far. I did cut my coffee down to 18 oz and am doing fine on that, so that will be my norm for the next week. So far all I've eaten today is an extra fiber English muffin, my coffee, and a salad. I haven't worked out because my "good" foot was killing me when I woke up this morning, so I think I'll go this afternoon as soon as childcare is available. My plan is to do at least 45 minutes on the bike (not including my warm-up and cool down).
I'm also a bit bummed because it looks like a lot of my friends are planning on doing a Rock 'n' Roll half marathon in March (including one friend who swore she was never running more than 5 miles again). I really would love to do that one, but with my other foot bothering me now, I think that's my body's way of making me stick with my original plan of training for a triathlon first, then do another half marathon when my feet are better.
Thanks to everyone who has sent me encouraging messages, I appreciate it! I almost cracked and had an unhealthy lunch today (and we're going out to dinner again tonight), but I remembered I would have to write that I did that here so you guys kept me honest. =)
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Weigh in for Week 2 - 1lb down, 34 to go!
This morning I weighted 156 lbs, so one pound lost so far. I know most people would say "that's it?", but hey, one pound lost during the holidays is much better than a pound gained so I'll take it. =)
The fudge turned out well, I ate some yesterday, but not as much as I normally do. That was also my only "cheat" yesterday, with everything else I stuck with my diet. I will be giving some of the leftovers to my MIL when we see her tomorrow.
I'll be going out to dinner tonight and tomorrow night so this morning I did a lot of food prep for my breakfast and lunches over the next two days. I made two salads and sliced carrot sticks for me and the kids (they're underweight so they can have peanut butter with theirs =). I made a scrambled egg with "stuff" in it for breakfast (tomatoes, onions, garlic, and bell peppers). Yes I had one egg instead of egg whites plus a whole grain English muffin this morning along with my coffee. I also think it's time to cut my coffee intake again (I did this already last week) and will go from 24 oz to 18 oz starting tomorrow. I haven't had any fruit yet today so I'll plan a smoothie for my "snack" and this time I will measure out the ingredients for the smoothie.
I didn't workout yesterday, so today I'm planning to run on the treadmill and do one of the 20-minute Jillian Michaels Shred workouts. I like them, but I know I need to do more cardio which is why I'm going to run and do the workout.
For those who have asked me if my weight goal is realistic, the best answer I have is "I think so". My official goal is 122 lbs which is middle of the road BMI for someone my height. Yes, I know muscle weighs more than fat. The lowest weight I've been in the last 10 years is 132 lbs. That is when I was running a lot. That was good, but there was still room for improvement because I was not working out my upper body and abs and it was obvious compared to the lower half of my body. I'm fairly certain I can get down to somewhere in the 120s. Now I may hit 125 lbs, be in awesome shape and have to say, "Okay, that's it" if there's nothing left to lose but muscle, but I'll cross that bridge when I get there. I also don't want to sell myself short and slack off the last few pounds because I don't feel like it and tell myself that my body is "good enough".
That's it for today. I'm happy with losing one pound, and I hope I can have some weeks where I lose two or three pounds a week. I'm already less hungry than I was last week so that's definitely a good start.
The fudge turned out well, I ate some yesterday, but not as much as I normally do. That was also my only "cheat" yesterday, with everything else I stuck with my diet. I will be giving some of the leftovers to my MIL when we see her tomorrow.
I'll be going out to dinner tonight and tomorrow night so this morning I did a lot of food prep for my breakfast and lunches over the next two days. I made two salads and sliced carrot sticks for me and the kids (they're underweight so they can have peanut butter with theirs =). I made a scrambled egg with "stuff" in it for breakfast (tomatoes, onions, garlic, and bell peppers). Yes I had one egg instead of egg whites plus a whole grain English muffin this morning along with my coffee. I also think it's time to cut my coffee intake again (I did this already last week) and will go from 24 oz to 18 oz starting tomorrow. I haven't had any fruit yet today so I'll plan a smoothie for my "snack" and this time I will measure out the ingredients for the smoothie.
I didn't workout yesterday, so today I'm planning to run on the treadmill and do one of the 20-minute Jillian Michaels Shred workouts. I like them, but I know I need to do more cardio which is why I'm going to run and do the workout.
For those who have asked me if my weight goal is realistic, the best answer I have is "I think so". My official goal is 122 lbs which is middle of the road BMI for someone my height. Yes, I know muscle weighs more than fat. The lowest weight I've been in the last 10 years is 132 lbs. That is when I was running a lot. That was good, but there was still room for improvement because I was not working out my upper body and abs and it was obvious compared to the lower half of my body. I'm fairly certain I can get down to somewhere in the 120s. Now I may hit 125 lbs, be in awesome shape and have to say, "Okay, that's it" if there's nothing left to lose but muscle, but I'll cross that bridge when I get there. I also don't want to sell myself short and slack off the last few pounds because I don't feel like it and tell myself that my body is "good enough".
That's it for today. I'm happy with losing one pound, and I hope I can have some weeks where I lose two or three pounds a week. I'm already less hungry than I was last week so that's definitely a good start.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Week 2, Day 2
Official weigh-in day is tomorrow. I felt bad because last night I did well with my food until dinner and later that night. I was going to make holiday fudge, but didn't because I was afraid I would eat too much of the batter I was so hungry. I did crack and eat french bread, wine, and cheese... think the hunger problems were partly because my dinner was all bad carbs since I was trying to help finish leftovers. I ate dinner on a kids plate so I would eat less, but it still wasn't anything healthy (mashed potatoes, stuffing, sweet potatoes).
Positives from yesterday, swimming workout went well. I swam somewhere between 25 and 30 minutes. I also bought plain yogurt at the store. I made a smoothie with it today, it tasted fine. Of course I made a huge smoothie that was probably at least 300 calories since I didn't measure everything out, I will have to do that next time. I also bought some spinich salad with the intention of eating it over the next two days. I have carrots, bell peppers, and tomatoes too.
I have to make fudge this morning, hopefully I'm full enough now that I won't be tempted to eat too much of it (I'd be kidding myself if I think I can make it without trying any of it =)
Class tonight. I may run for 30 minutes on the treadmill before I go, we'll see, but I won't beat myself up if I don't workout today, but I do need to eat healthy all day, especially if I don't workout.
Positives from yesterday, swimming workout went well. I swam somewhere between 25 and 30 minutes. I also bought plain yogurt at the store. I made a smoothie with it today, it tasted fine. Of course I made a huge smoothie that was probably at least 300 calories since I didn't measure everything out, I will have to do that next time. I also bought some spinich salad with the intention of eating it over the next two days. I have carrots, bell peppers, and tomatoes too.
I have to make fudge this morning, hopefully I'm full enough now that I won't be tempted to eat too much of it (I'd be kidding myself if I think I can make it without trying any of it =)
Class tonight. I may run for 30 minutes on the treadmill before I go, we'll see, but I won't beat myself up if I don't workout today, but I do need to eat healthy all day, especially if I don't workout.
Monday, December 13, 2010
Week 2 (Day 1)
Again, I hope this is helpful not just to myself to be honest and keep myself accountable, but anyone else who maybe has trouble in this area. I just love food and I'm not a naturally skinny person so I have to work hard to keep myself in shape. I'm also healing from hurting myself back in September so I can't run as much as I'd like so I have to come up with other ways of working out.
If nothing else, just from being aware of what I eat last week has stopped me from eating more when I know I'm not hungry anymore. I'm also going to make it a personal goal to eat more fruits and veggies. My kids do a better job of eating them than I do, and I need to be a better example. I also realized I had not been drinking enough water since the weather has gotten colder.
So in one week, I'm more aware of what and how much I eat and the amount of water I drink. My plan this morning is to have a smoothie for breakfast. I have a lot of frozen fruit (with no added sugar) that I use. I also use 1% milk and fruit yogurt in them. One of my friends tells me I need to switch to plain yogurt because the flavored ones have too much sugar; but I'm not ready for that yet.
So yesterday was fondue night. On the plus side, we didn't do a cheese fondue, but we still had cheese slices and bread on the side. So the positive, I was aware of exactly how much cheese and bread I had, downside, I still had too much.
Workout I did yesterday was okay. I'll be deleting it from my DVR since I don't plan on doing it again. It had moments that were good and others that were not-so-good.
Workout plan for today is to swim and do yoga to give my legs a break. Tomorrow will be my rest day. I have no lunch/dinner plans for today or tomorrow so I can really watch what I eat; only problem is I'm making holiday fudge for my class tomorrow night. As long as I give most of it away and don't keep it at the house I should be okay.
That's it for now. Feel free to message me or post suggestions if you have them! =)
If nothing else, just from being aware of what I eat last week has stopped me from eating more when I know I'm not hungry anymore. I'm also going to make it a personal goal to eat more fruits and veggies. My kids do a better job of eating them than I do, and I need to be a better example. I also realized I had not been drinking enough water since the weather has gotten colder.
So in one week, I'm more aware of what and how much I eat and the amount of water I drink. My plan this morning is to have a smoothie for breakfast. I have a lot of frozen fruit (with no added sugar) that I use. I also use 1% milk and fruit yogurt in them. One of my friends tells me I need to switch to plain yogurt because the flavored ones have too much sugar; but I'm not ready for that yet.
So yesterday was fondue night. On the plus side, we didn't do a cheese fondue, but we still had cheese slices and bread on the side. So the positive, I was aware of exactly how much cheese and bread I had, downside, I still had too much.
Workout I did yesterday was okay. I'll be deleting it from my DVR since I don't plan on doing it again. It had moments that were good and others that were not-so-good.
Workout plan for today is to swim and do yoga to give my legs a break. Tomorrow will be my rest day. I have no lunch/dinner plans for today or tomorrow so I can really watch what I eat; only problem is I'm making holiday fudge for my class tomorrow night. As long as I give most of it away and don't keep it at the house I should be okay.
That's it for now. Feel free to message me or post suggestions if you have them! =)
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Week 1, Day 7, Saturday and a Jillian Michaels workout DVD review
The workout I was going to do yesterday required a step. Since I don't have a step I decided to look at workout DVD I have. I was originally thinking of doing Jillian Michaels's 30 Day Shred, then I saw the Banish Fat Boost Metabolism DVD I bought months ago, since it was a longer work out (50 minutes vs. 20) I decided to do that one instead. At the end of this post I will give a review of the video if anyone is considering buying it.
Long story short our evening plans changed, and instead of fondue dinner we had pizza (fondue will be tonight instead). I did okay not eating too much until later that night, late night snacking seems to be my biggest downfall.
Today it's going okay. Used a little extra creamer in my coffee to finish off the flavor I had. Not a good reason I know, but I justified to myself that it was okay to do this since I ate "weight loss" oatmeal for breakfast. =)
I'm still trying to figure out my workout plan for today. We'll be going to the last mass of the day and our family plans on decorating the Christmas tree before then. I also need to go to the store. Granted I could do these things after dinner and looking at Christmas lights tonight, but I know myself and all motivation will be out the door once we get home and put the kids to bed.
So my debate is should I do another workout DVD, or should I go back to my stand-by and run on the treadmill? I'm leaning towards the DVD; I have a cardio/kickboxing show I DVRd yesterday that I think I'll try today.
That's it for how my weekend's going. If anyone is thinking about buying a Jillian Michaels workout DVD, here is my review of her "Banish Fat Boost Metabolism" DVD:
The good points:
1) The main reason I bought this DVD is that it doesn't require any equipment. No weights, no steps, no bands, nothing except maybe a mat (but a towel works too if you have carpeted floors).
2) I like that it's a warm-up, cardio circuits, and a cool down. Any sculpting/ab work is part of the cardio circuits.
3) There are 7 cardio circuits and you can set the DVD up to pick and choose which ones you want to do if you're short on time and need to do a shorter workout.
4) The last and most important good thing about this video is this workout totally kicked my butt. I felt it last night and I'm still feeling it today.
Now for the negative:
1) The biggest negative point about the DVD is that some of the modifications for the exercises weren't obvious and she didn't show them or talk about them until they had already been doing an exercise for a while. Luckily I stuck it out and was able to finally see the modification, but I can see if someone hasn't worked out at all in a long time may get frustrated and stop the DVD before she has a chance to explain the modification.
2) The cool down/stretching part of the DVD could be longer. I would say that's true about most workouts, I can see they don't want people to hurt themselves trying to do stretches they can't do, and I know enough to stretch longer on my own afterwards. If I'm pressed for time I'm going to finish the DVD and not do anything extra on my own afterwards (which is my own fault, I know).
Overall I really liked the workout, I think I will try to do this one once a week; my only concern is if a beginner tries to do this workout. If you are a beginner, I would say don't get frustrated if you can only do 3 or 4 of the circuits to start with, you can always add on the rest the more you workout.
Long story short our evening plans changed, and instead of fondue dinner we had pizza (fondue will be tonight instead). I did okay not eating too much until later that night, late night snacking seems to be my biggest downfall.
Today it's going okay. Used a little extra creamer in my coffee to finish off the flavor I had. Not a good reason I know, but I justified to myself that it was okay to do this since I ate "weight loss" oatmeal for breakfast. =)
I'm still trying to figure out my workout plan for today. We'll be going to the last mass of the day and our family plans on decorating the Christmas tree before then. I also need to go to the store. Granted I could do these things after dinner and looking at Christmas lights tonight, but I know myself and all motivation will be out the door once we get home and put the kids to bed.
So my debate is should I do another workout DVD, or should I go back to my stand-by and run on the treadmill? I'm leaning towards the DVD; I have a cardio/kickboxing show I DVRd yesterday that I think I'll try today.
That's it for how my weekend's going. If anyone is thinking about buying a Jillian Michaels workout DVD, here is my review of her "Banish Fat Boost Metabolism" DVD:
The good points:
1) The main reason I bought this DVD is that it doesn't require any equipment. No weights, no steps, no bands, nothing except maybe a mat (but a towel works too if you have carpeted floors).
2) I like that it's a warm-up, cardio circuits, and a cool down. Any sculpting/ab work is part of the cardio circuits.
3) There are 7 cardio circuits and you can set the DVD up to pick and choose which ones you want to do if you're short on time and need to do a shorter workout.
4) The last and most important good thing about this video is this workout totally kicked my butt. I felt it last night and I'm still feeling it today.
Now for the negative:
1) The biggest negative point about the DVD is that some of the modifications for the exercises weren't obvious and she didn't show them or talk about them until they had already been doing an exercise for a while. Luckily I stuck it out and was able to finally see the modification, but I can see if someone hasn't worked out at all in a long time may get frustrated and stop the DVD before she has a chance to explain the modification.
2) The cool down/stretching part of the DVD could be longer. I would say that's true about most workouts, I can see they don't want people to hurt themselves trying to do stretches they can't do, and I know enough to stretch longer on my own afterwards. If I'm pressed for time I'm going to finish the DVD and not do anything extra on my own afterwards (which is my own fault, I know).
Overall I really liked the workout, I think I will try to do this one once a week; my only concern is if a beginner tries to do this workout. If you are a beginner, I would say don't get frustrated if you can only do 3 or 4 of the circuits to start with, you can always add on the rest the more you workout.
Week 1, Day 6
So update from last night. We went to a Christmas party earlier in the evening, then went to a country bar for a friend's birthday. After trying to be good and drinking a Michelob Ultra, I couldn't take it anymore and had real beer.
My husband's advice was that I may want to not plan on losing any weight over the holidays and make it my goal just to not gain weight until the holidays are over. He may be on to something there. I wasn't planning on another night out until Wed, but then my MIL called this morning inviting us over to her house for a fondue dinner tonight.
Also, unexpected surprise, an old family friend stopped by for a visit this afternoon. It was good to see him, but it did throw a wrench in my motivation to go to the gym today. My back-up plan is to either run on the treadmill at home, or do another workout I taped the other week. Haven't done this one before, so I'm not sure how hard it will be, but if I feel like it's not enough I'll do some interval training on the treadmill before tonight. I don't know why, but when I work out at home, I feel like I don't do as much as when I go to a gym. I don't know if it's because I do work harder at the gym since other people are around, or if it's just in my head because it seems like "cheating" if I'm working out at home.
I had a late breakfast (lunch) this morning with my coffee. I ate a reasonable amount, but the problem is I'm hungry again. I'm going to have some decaf tea to see if that fills me up, and if not, I may have a smoothie for my afternoon snack. I make them at home so I'll measure out how much I use of everything to keep the calories in check.
That's it for now. =D
My husband's advice was that I may want to not plan on losing any weight over the holidays and make it my goal just to not gain weight until the holidays are over. He may be on to something there. I wasn't planning on another night out until Wed, but then my MIL called this morning inviting us over to her house for a fondue dinner tonight.
Also, unexpected surprise, an old family friend stopped by for a visit this afternoon. It was good to see him, but it did throw a wrench in my motivation to go to the gym today. My back-up plan is to either run on the treadmill at home, or do another workout I taped the other week. Haven't done this one before, so I'm not sure how hard it will be, but if I feel like it's not enough I'll do some interval training on the treadmill before tonight. I don't know why, but when I work out at home, I feel like I don't do as much as when I go to a gym. I don't know if it's because I do work harder at the gym since other people are around, or if it's just in my head because it seems like "cheating" if I'm working out at home.
I had a late breakfast (lunch) this morning with my coffee. I ate a reasonable amount, but the problem is I'm hungry again. I'm going to have some decaf tea to see if that fills me up, and if not, I may have a smoothie for my afternoon snack. I make them at home so I'll measure out how much I use of everything to keep the calories in check.
That's it for now. =D
Friday, December 10, 2010
Week 1 (Dec 6th - 10th)
So here's a quick update of week one.
My starting weight: 157 lbs.
Monday I ran (jogged really) for 35 minutes on a treadmill at a 5.5 MPH pace. That doesn't include warm-up and cool down. Felt the normal soreness after not working out for a while, but my foot did not seem any worse for the wear.
I did okay with eating Mon - Wed. Monday was a big shock when I realized how much creamer I was putting in my coffee. Since then I've started measuring out how much I use and cut back on my coffee for tea (which I don't add anything to).
Thursday I went to a Christmas party and ate too much. Today (Friday) I am planning on going to another Christmas party, I've been trying to watch what I eat all day today since I know I'm not going to have "healthy options" at the party tonight. My plan is also to eat some popcorn and part of an apple as a snack beforehand so I won't be too hungry and pig out.
Today was the only other day I've worked out this week. A core workout by Petra somebody or other on the Fitness channel. It was about 45 minutes. She's British and for some reason that makes her perkiness less annoying to me than other fitness people on T.V. (Denise Austin comes to mind). My plan for this weekend is to cycle tomorrow (either stationary bike for 50 minutes or a spin class) and swim for 25 minutes on Sunday.
My starting weight: 157 lbs.
Monday I ran (jogged really) for 35 minutes on a treadmill at a 5.5 MPH pace. That doesn't include warm-up and cool down. Felt the normal soreness after not working out for a while, but my foot did not seem any worse for the wear.
I did okay with eating Mon - Wed. Monday was a big shock when I realized how much creamer I was putting in my coffee. Since then I've started measuring out how much I use and cut back on my coffee for tea (which I don't add anything to).
Thursday I went to a Christmas party and ate too much. Today (Friday) I am planning on going to another Christmas party, I've been trying to watch what I eat all day today since I know I'm not going to have "healthy options" at the party tonight. My plan is also to eat some popcorn and part of an apple as a snack beforehand so I won't be too hungry and pig out.
Today was the only other day I've worked out this week. A core workout by Petra somebody or other on the Fitness channel. It was about 45 minutes. She's British and for some reason that makes her perkiness less annoying to me than other fitness people on T.V. (Denise Austin comes to mind). My plan for this weekend is to cycle tomorrow (either stationary bike for 50 minutes or a spin class) and swim for 25 minutes on Sunday.
Why I started this blog
I will try to keep this brief. Long story short, I hadn't lost all the weight after having my second child, and even after losing that weight, I would still be about 5 lbs over what a "normal" weight for someone my height is. My strategy with my first born was running... a lot. I injured myself back in Sept and put running (and working out) on the back burner. I weighed myself this week, and I am only 10 lbs shy of being officially obese. This is no longer baby weight (the "baby" will be two next month), it is my weight and I need to get it off.
I have also wanted to do a triathlon for almost 20 years now. While I am allowed to run (some) again, I have to keep in down to no more than twice a week. So, my plan is to train for a triathlon to keep myself on track with working out in ways other than running.
My goals are 1) Lose 35 lbs and 2) Complete my first triathlon
So there you have it, I will be trying to update this daily and ask you guys to check up on me periodically and give me a kick in the butt if I need it. I will post my weight once a week, but in reality, I'll probably be weighing myself daily to keep myself on track. My goal will be to post my work-outs and how much I ate (approx) on a daily basis. Let's do this! =D
I have also wanted to do a triathlon for almost 20 years now. While I am allowed to run (some) again, I have to keep in down to no more than twice a week. So, my plan is to train for a triathlon to keep myself on track with working out in ways other than running.
My goals are 1) Lose 35 lbs and 2) Complete my first triathlon
So there you have it, I will be trying to update this daily and ask you guys to check up on me periodically and give me a kick in the butt if I need it. I will post my weight once a week, but in reality, I'll probably be weighing myself daily to keep myself on track. My goal will be to post my work-outs and how much I ate (approx) on a daily basis. Let's do this! =D
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