Until Tuesday...

I leave tomorrow morning for my cruise.  I am UBERexcited and haven't even begun to pack!  Worst procrastinator ever right here folks.  Hope y'all have a great week and I will post pics and LEGENDARY tales of my journey when I get back.  Until then...an early Friday Funny...

Can I Get "OH YEAH!!!"

First...a little business.  I wanted to send a big thank you to Heather and Ronnie for the Stylish Blogger Award.  I have already done the post with all the stuff but thank you guys so much for thinking of me!  If any of you aren't following these lovely ladies, please check out the links above.

So...I did Week 3 Day 1 of my 5k training program.  Can I get an "OH YEAH!!!"  It's 3 minutes of jogging with 2 minutes of walking and you do this 5 times.  That's right...Do that math on that one.  That's 15 minutes of jogging and 10 minutes of walking.  That means...yes ladies and gentleman... I am jogging more than I'm walking!  There's a 5 minute warm up and cool down that's brisk walking but I don't really count that as my workout.  I kicked this day's butt!!!!  I did the whole workout...didn't walk when I was supposed to jog...didn't hyperventilate when I was supposed to push through.  And it gets even more impressive.  My gym has TV's on all the cardio equipment (I LOVE this).  So there I am...jogging away enjoying an episode of Sex in the City when it goes kaput.  No signal.  I did the whole second half of the workout TV free...just staring at my ever reddening face in the reflection of the screen.  Not only did I push through that little mental block but I also thought to myself "Hey...check that out.  My face looks thinner."  Good news all around my friends.

So that's all I really wanted to share today.  My oldest is finally over her little bout with the flu (I hope).  My youngest is starting to complain a little so I'm almost betting she catches it.  I've got a scratchy throat this morning so I'm going to the drugstore to pick up some Zicam and load up on Vitamin C.  I WILL NOT be sick on this cruise....so help me God.  Please send healthy thoughts my way.  And since I'm in THAT kind of mood...I leave you with "Deep Thought Tuesday.

Even if you are on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there.

Just Another Manic Monday

Good morning to one and all.  First, I'd like to thank Heather for the blog award.  Will do that post a little later this week.

Second, it's that time of the week again...my weekly weigh in.  195 lbs.  -1 from last week.  So the 0 lb change on Friday turned into 1 lb by Monday.  Go figure.  I'm happy...makes Mondays something to look forward to.

Thanks all for the hair loss reassurance.  Per Lynda and Lori's advice, I will be upping my protein immediately.  I'm starting to add a scoop of protein powder to my morning coffee and will be giving Lynda's smoothie a try next week. 

Exercise went well this weekend.  I got in my Week 2 Day 3 5k training on Friday.  Blech.  Still definitely not a runner.  My BFF and I went to Latin Heat on Saturday.  Apparently, the last 2 weeks (the only 2 weeks, for that matter) were being taught by substitutes and the regular lady was back on Saturday.  Holy cow!  The turnout was amazing (at least 40 people there) and I can see why.  This chick could probably kill me if she wanted to but, luckily, she didn't.  Great workout though.  I like it more each time I go.  Sunday, I was a lazy blob.  So be it.  Today I start Week 3 Day 1.  I'm going to give this a try and if I just can't cut it, then I'll repeat Week 2.  No shame in that.

My daughter is still sick.  Pretty sure it's the flu.  Hoping she's feeling better this morning but we'll see.  If not, it's off to my mom's house again.  *sigh* 

So for any new followers and because I like to toot my own horn to my old followers, I walked the Susan G Komen 3 Day in November.  As a reward, my BFF (who did the walk with me and kicked its butt) and I decided to do a girls' cruise to celebrate.  The time has come, my friends.  We leave for Long Beach this Thursday and set sail on Friday.  It's a short one - just 3 nights with a stop in Ensanada.  I'm glad it's short.  I've never been on a cruise before and both my sister and my mother are prone to seasickness (both have gotten seasick on every cruise they've done).  I'm coming armed with Dramamine and hoping I take after my dad.  The biggest stressor of this is 1) leaving my girls for those few days and 2) finding stuff to WEAR.  I'm not feeling particularly good about any of my clothes right now so it's been tough deciding what to take.  Shopping is out of the question so I'm trying to make do.  I mean, jeans and tshirts I can handle.  It's the "clubbing" and "dinner" outfits I'm having issues with.  I'm sure I'll figure it out.  I'm getting pretty excited about the whole thing now that it's finally here.  Any tips from veteran cruisers out there?

So I suppose I've babbled enough for a Monday morning.  Hope everyone has a great week!

Friday's Food For Thought

And so it's Friday.  Thank goodness!  I've been coming in early to work the last couple days (like 4:30 in the morning kind of early) and I'm seriously tired.  My oldest isn't feeling well.  I'm pretty sure she has the flu.  I'm very lucky my mom is around to watch her during the day but she's waking up a lot at night. 

I had my annual review at work yesterday.  It went VERY well.  Turns out they love me!  I got a decent raise (first decent one in awhile) and a small bonus that will help me get caught up on my student loan payments.  I also found out that I have an interview of sorts (they're calling it a "discussion") for a management role with a different part of my company.  If the right offer came about through this, it would involve a long distance move to a much colder climate and a very challenging workload.  On the one hand, I'm excited for the opportunity; on the other hand, I'm kind of nervous.  We'll see how it goes.  It would definitely have to be the right offer and my company is notoriously cheap so I don't think they'll get  in the ballpark to where I'd move for the position.

I'm doing Week 2 Day 3 of my 5k program today.  I packed my gym and I'm ready and raring to go.  I have Latin Heat tomorrow so I'm excited about that.  I did a preliminary weigh in this morning and I've lost 0 lbs so far this week.  I seriously don't know how this could be possible when I'm actually watching what I eat and working out.  All through December, I ate what I wanted and drank what I wanted and didn't work out and lost 4 lbs.  Ugh!  I'm trying not to let it get to me because my official weigh day isn't until Monday and this could be some kind of fluctuation type thing but it's tough not to be discouraged by it.

It's official.  My hair is falling out.  I've always had really thick hair so I'm used to losing some in my brush or in the shower but this crazy!  Luckily, I've read enough blogs to know that this is pretty normal and it can last awhile but then my hair will grown back in healthier and shinier than ever.  RIGHT!?!?!  I've tried the Biotin but it doesn't seem to be helping.  Any other tips?

Well, I guess that's about it for me.  Hope everyone has a fantabulous weekend!  And, of course, I leave you with a Friday Funny...

Award Post & Runner's Help?

OK...so finally getting around to this. 

Special thanks to Patrick for the Irresistibly Sweet Award.

With this award I need to list five guilty pleasures and then pass this on to three fabulous (& sweet) bloggers that I know and love.

Guilty Pleasures:

1. Twilight movies - I haven't read the books because I heard they're awful and the movies aren't that great either but let me tell you what is... Robert Patterson.  OK...so I don't know how old he really is so it might make me a perv but OMG...he is so freakin' hot!  OK...now that I've cooled off...moving on...
2. Buffy the Vampire Slayer - Are you seeing a theme yet?
3. TMZ - I am a news hound but it was starting to depress me reading bad news day in, day out so last year my New Year's resolution was giving up the news.  I know it seems immature to make a resolution to NOT know what's going on in the world but I digress.  The one current event thing I allowed myself was TMZ and now I'm hooked.  My news shut out only lasted 3 months but for those 3 months I learned all about pop culture.  (I'm noticing a TV/movie theme...hmmm... a guilty pleasure is sitting around doing nothing???  Maybe)
4. Chickfila - You'll notice that I mention this place often.  I LOVE this fast food chain.  Best chicken sandwiches EVER
5. Bath & Body Works - I put the whole store on here because I think everything they have is just fantastic.  I'm sure most men would think it's silly to spend that much on body wash and lotion but it makes me feel so pampered.  Even my hubby likes his body wash that I got from there.  Truth be told, he'd be just as happy with Lever 2000

3 Bloggers I know and love and who are, in their own rights, irresistible sweet...

1. Amanda
2. Lisa

3. Bonnie

Thanks to Renea for this one...Rules:

1. Post and link back to the person who awarded you this award - Done


2. Share 7 things about yourself

• I'm a closet super hero that comes out in the form of night terrors where I run around my house and try to save the world.
• I am the baby of the family and spoiled rotten.
• I've always wanted to be a cowgirl - dress up in a cowboy hat and boots and boot scootin' boogie at a honkey tonk.
• I really dislike cauliflower - but it's growing on me
• I used to spend a couple weeks every year up north at my grandparents' farm.  I lived down south in a town of about 20,000 people and my cousins considered me the cousin from "the city."
• I'm a lean, mean fraud fighting machine.
• When I was a kid I used to have 2 finches.  One would always lay eggs and I would check every day to see if they'd hatch.  They never did.  It dawned on me YEARS later that both birds were girls.  Ummm...I never said I was real bright.

3. Award 15 recently discovered great bloggers (or as many as you can)

• Sorry - there's just no way I can list 15.  I follow so many.  All are wonderful because I only follow wonderful blogs.  See my side panel and click on any one of them for inspiration

4. Contact these bloggers and tell them they’ve won! - Done (more or less)


Alrighty...so you now know more about me than most people in real life.  Thanks again to Patrick and Renea.  It never gets old being recognized for this little blog of mine and I'm still so fascinated by all the people who take the time to follow along.

Now onward to my running question.  I completed my Week 2 Day 2 workout last night.  Ugh.  I seriously don't think I'll be able to move on to Week 3 next week so my question is this:  To those of you who have never been "runners" and then later did...how long did it take before it seemed to get easier?  When did you feel like you were getting into a good groove?  I just don't feel that I'm improving.  Also, are there any recommendations for a website/literature on good running form?  It dawned on me as I was doing this yesterday that I don't know if I'm running properly.  I mean...I'm not suffering so I would think it's OK but it may not be the most...efficient...way to run?  I don't know.  I've never been much of a runner...even when I played sports...running laps was my least favorite thing to do in the whole world.  I will say this.  I have had NO residual pain the day after my 5k training.  I attribute this to stretching.  I use the stretch machine (I'm not sure if that's what it's really called) after every 5k workout and it seems to really be helping the day after.  So this is the lesson for today:  STRETCH.

Happy Thursday everybody!

MLK Weekend in Review

First item of business...my weekly Weigh In.  You may have figured out that I do this every Monday.  If not, you're not really paying attention.  Anyhoo - 196.  That's 1/2 lb down from last week.  *sigh*  Don't get me wrong...always happy when the scale is still moving in the right direction but this was the first week in a long time where I really focused on WHAT I was eating and making sure I was EXERCISING.  Other weeks, I really focused on HOW MUCH I was eating as opposed to what and exercise was practically nonexistent.  Why is it when I get serious about fitness and health, my body says "Whoa there Slugger!  What is it you think you're doing exactly?"  I've decided my body is just rebelling against the 5k training I'm doing...trying to talk me out of it.  Well..not this time.  This somewhat disappointing weigh in did not lead to a binge or anything remotely resembling drowning my sorrows in food.  Moral victory there.

Workouts - Yes I did my 2 workouts on Saturday.  I did my last 5k workout of the week and my Latin Heat class.  It is, as it turns out, Zumba.  I over heard the instructor talking to one of the uber-excited workout people about it and she made the comment that she's been teaching Zumba for over a year now.  So there you go.  I liked even better the second time but I think it's because the music was better.  Anyhoo...between the 2 workouts, I was beat.  Monday came and I started Week 2 Day 1 of my 5k training.  Whew.  That's gonna kill me.  For those wondering, it goes 2.5 minutes running followed by 2.5 minutes walking.  You do this 5 times.  My pace is holding steady at 4.3 but it is taking me longer to recover so we'll see how it all goes.  It works out to 1.75 miles in a 1/2 hour.  Not awful.  Week 2 Day 2 comes tomorrow.

Social Life and a NSV - Some of you my recall my "Shy" post.  I had a goal of becoming more sociable.  I think I did alright this weekend.  Friday night, I went out dancing with an old friend of mine.  She's single and hot (always has been).  The last time I went dancing with her was about 40 lbs ago.  I didn't get hit on once that night.  Friday night, I got hit on several times.  Now, I'm still the one who gets stuck with the "ugly friend."  You all know what I'm talking about.  If two of you go out, chances are your hot friend gets hit on by hot guys and those guys all have a less attractive friend.  For you men out there, it works the same way.  There's the hot chick and then her less than attractive friend.  But ugly friend or no, it's nice to feel desirable.  LOL.  Now, before anyone starts thinking I'm having marriage difficulties, I'm not.  I even went home and told my hubby I got hit on by no one older than 24 (awesome! LOL).  He actually said, "Great! I know you were a little bummed no one hit on you last time."  Does my guy rock or what?  The real NSV though is that I didn't get worn out dancing.  40 lbs ago, my feet and back were aching just an hour in and I had to stop to rest several times.  This time, I stopped once because I was really hot and wanted water and another time because one guy entirely too handsy so I had to make an excuse to get off the dance floor.  Saturday night, my hubby and I went to a 70's/80's themed skate party.  You read that right.  And yes, all these people are in their 30's going to a skate party.  These are my hubby's friends and they are... an interesting group... to say the least.  Anywhoozle, the NSV here...I dressed up in my best 80's garb that I had laying around the house and wasn't self conscious a bit... aside from that whole "please let other people dress up" thing.  That didn't have anything to do with my appearance so much as my "i don't want to look like a dork" obsession that was discussed previously.  So there you have it, not only did I get out and socialize TWICE this weekend but felt pretty good doing it.

Awards - I have been awarded with 2 awards this week!  Award post to follow in the next day or so but wanted to get huge thanks out to Renea for the Stylish Blogger Award and to Patrick for the Irresistibly Sweet award.  I admit...I don't think anyone's ever called me irresistible sweet before...irresistibly wicked, sarcastic, witty, etc...but never sweet.  Go figure.  Anyway, I am truly touched.  Thanks again!

For those States side and had yesterday off, I hope you enjoyed your long weekend and aren't having too hard of a time getting back to the grind.  For those who didn't have it off, you didn't miss much.  For those globally,  Happy Tuesday!

Random Friday Thoughts

Happy Friday to one and all!

So I'll start with a few NSV's.

• Yesterday, a girl from work said "You look really cute today."  I was wearing an outfit I had worn dozens of times before.  I took it to mean, "OMG!  You look so much thinner, I could hardly recognize you!  You're turning into a full blown hottie!"  Yes, I'm sure that's exactly what she was going for.
• I sucked in my stomach yesterday and noticed a difference.  OK...not sure if this is just me, but it got to the point with my weight that if I sucked in my gut, you couldn't tell a difference.  It didn't really move.  Yesterday, it did.
• I went to the store after work to get pita bread and ranch dressing.  I stopped in front of the frosted cookies (my absolute FAV) and looked at them.  I REALLY wanted to buy them.  I walked out of the store with pita bread and ranch dressing.

So I didn't sleep particularly well last night.  Not real sure what the problem was so I hit snooze a couple time this morning and didn't have time to pack my work out bag.  I'm supposed to be doing Week 1 Day 3 of my 5k training today.  But now I have no workout clothes.  I wasn't going to feel too bad about this but as if he could read my mind, Patrick posted THIS on his on blog.  Talk about feeling totally called out.  Now, I still can't do my workout today.  I have plans this evening; otherwise, I would go home, get my workout stuff and go back to the gym but not enough time for that because I only had enough time in between work and plans to do my training.  Absolutely CANNOT jog in jeans...oh the chafing!  But in light of missing today, I'm doing 2, yes count them - 2, workouts tomorrow.  I already had plans to go to Latin Heat tomorrow.  Now, I'm going early and am going to complete my Day 3 before the Latin Heat class.  Will I be tired?  Oh yeah.  Will Latin Heat be extra tough?  Probably.  But I absolutely cannot get derailed from my 5k training.  I did the math and if I did the training for the 5k, 10k and half marathon consecutively, it would take me 33 weeks.  That leaves 19 extra weeks for breaks, injuries, repeating weeks because I'm so out of shape, etc.  I must stick to plan.  So, Patrick, while you've made me feel uber-guilty for not working out today, I'm kicking butt and taking names tomorrow. 

So my insurance crap is done and I have an appointment with my doc for my next fill (possibly).  It's not until 2/10/11!!!  Now, this isn't one of those offices that is hard to get into.  He's gone next week and then I'm gone the second half the following week and the first half of the week after.  Ugh.  So, I have almost another whole month before a fill.  I'm doing OK with food.  Not starving between meals or anything so I think I can stay on track.  While I wanted a fill before my cruise at the end of the month, I would only be able to get in a couple days before and I don't want to risk being stuck at sea and unable to drink anything because I'm too tight or something.  If I could get in next week, that'd be a different story.  But alas, it is what it is. 

So there you have it.  My random musings for the day.  Hope you all have a fabulous weekend!  I leave you, of course, with a Friday Funny.

Week 1 Day 2

Ugh.  Seriously...why does seem Day 2 was harder than Day 1.  Same routine, same amount of running, same amount of walking.  I did it...that's the important thing.  I have such a long way to go on my fitness level but that's alright.  I also did some weights while I was at the gym.  My running program is only 30 minutes so I have time to do some weight training these days too.  It feels really good to be working out again.  I'm hoping it gives me a little jump start to my weight loss too.  1 lb a week is a great pace but I really want to kick some butt this month.  My goal is to not want to kill myself when I have to try on swimsuits in June.  We'll see. 

So who wants to do an "Over/Under" on how many days before the fitness craze of the new year ends?  If I see one more Jenny Craig commercial, I'm going to stab myself in the eye with a pen!  OK...not really but I needed to make a dramatic point.  I read a blog over the holidays (sorry - can't remember which one) that ranted about how everything on TV during the holidays is tempting you to eat, showing you all these yummy, delectable goodies and telling you how it's the time of year to indulge.  They tell you it's OK to eat it because that's how you bond with your families at the holidays, it's how you create memories with your loved ones and how you deserve it because it's been "a rough year for everybody."  Even the shopping networks are willing the ship chocolates, cookies, hors d'voures, steaks, side dishes, etc. right to your door.  You don't even have to get off your couch to have high fat, high carb, not-so-nutritious food delivered and practically spoon fed to your drooling mouth.

Then New Year's comes and BAM!  Now all the shopping networks are selling Tupperware to take your lunch to work and home exercise equipment to collect dust in your bedroom.  Commercials are guilting you into joining gyms and buying healthy frozen entrees.  There's the one commercial where everyone's buttons are popping because they gorged themselves over the silly season.  Another one where a woman has reindeer following her because they think she's Santa Claus because of her big rear end and red coat.  It's demoralizing.  They spend 3 months telling you to eat, eat, eat and then they'll spend the new year chastising you for being weak and overindulgent during the holidays. 

Even the talk shows, morning shows, and news shows are out to get you.  It's been nothing but doctors and personal trainers on TV for the last 2 weeks telling you how unhealthy it is to do this and how much better it is to do that.  They're giving out all their normal advice - If you feel hungry, go clean your house.  We've talked about this before.  The advice for dieting is absurd. As if anyone would rather clean their house than eat ice cream.  Asinine.  I think what I find even funnier is they target people who have just "gained a few lbs over the holidays" but those aren't the people buying.  The people buying are people like you and me who start every year with the hope that this year will be different.  The people who just gained a few lbs will lose those lbs in the first month or so.  They'll just tighten it up a bit and go about their merry way.  But people like you and me will buy into all the hype, absorb all the professional advice, choose a plan and hope against hope that this is the plan that will do what all the other plans failed to do.

So let's take some guesses.  How many more days of being inundated with fitness and nutrition stuff do we have to endure?  We're already on day 13 so start counting from here.

So many years have started with me saying "This is the year I get healthy."  The difference this year?  I mean it.

And I'm already 30% successful.  Ah...the New Year.

5K101

Good morning,

I'll say this.  It's going to take quite awhile to make me a runner.  Hoo Doggy!  So, the podcast I found that I liked is not the Couch to 5k program.  It's called 5k101.  Same basic idea.  It's an 8 week program instead of 9 but you gradually work your way up to running 5k without stopping.  The first week is jogging for 2 minutes and walking for 3 and you do this 4 times.  It's like starting somewhere between week 2 and 3 of C25k.  And like C25k, if you don't feel ready to go on to the next week, you just repeat the week you just did.  Overall, I feel OK with it.  Both programs tell you not to worry about your pace but being the humans we are, we need the validation that we're "doing it right."  I was aiming for 5 mph.  Didn't happen.  I never would've made it through.  So I settle right at 4.3 mph.  Not great but I figure once I can run at all, I can then work on my pace and try to improve my time.  I got through the whole workout and even stretched when I was done.  Go figure.  Today, my glutes hurt but otherwise I'm in pretty good shape.  I'm doing Day 2 tomorrow. 

In the next couple weeks, I'm going to sign up for the 5k.  I've walked one before but the goal is running here.  It's an 8 week program but realistically, it's going to take me longer than that to get into a decent groove.  I'm aiming for the 5k in late March or early April.  Nice thing about living in AZ is that they have TONS of these things so it shouldn't be hard to find one. 

Hope everyone's having a great day!

Weigh In & Latin Heat

Weight this morning - 196.5.  Another lb down.  1 lb is a week isn't that quick but as long as the scale keeps moving in the downward direction, I'm happy.

Latin Heat was freakin' awesome!  I still don't know if it's actually Zumba.  I've never been to a Zumba class before so there's no way to know for sure.  I'd like to go to an official Zumba class sometime so I can compare.  Did I look like a dork?  Absolutely!  As did at least 20 of the other people there.  It was a lot of fun though.  It didn't seem to be as good as a workout as my step class but I also didn't feel like I was going to pass out in the middle of it either so I enjoyed it more.  I think I'm going to make the Latin Heat class a weekly thing for me.  My BFF said she'd join me once in awhile too so that's fabulous!

I start my Couch to 5k training today.  I found a podcast on itunes that I think will work for me.  The music isn't as big of a deal for me as just someone telling me when to run and walk.  Most of the pod casts seem to have a lot of techno music and I just don't think I need to feel like I'm clubbin' with the cast of Jersey Shore while I run.  I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow.  My main goal is just not fall off the treadmill...please God...don't let me fall off the treadmill.

Happy Monday to one and all!

P.S.  I live in AZ and as some of you may have heard (it's been all over the national news), a horrible event happened in Tucson over the weekend. 6 people were killed and 14 were injured by a seriously mentally disturbed individual in the name of political craziness.  President Obama has asked the nation for a moment of silence at 11 a.m. EST.  Please keep the victims and their families in your thoughts.  Also, please let this serve as a reminder to everyone that it's OK to disagree and to debate.  In fact, it's what our country was built on but it's so important to remember that TV show hosts and newspaper columnists are paid to entertain, increase ratings and readership, and get people riled up.  But sometimes, it can give a psycho a cause and I fear that's what happened in this case.  It's important to keep it all in perspective.

Embracing Dorkdom

All I can say is TGIF.  This week has sucked as has the last few weeks actually so I keep holding out hope that next week will be better.  I had to have my car fixed on Tuesday and then I had to stay home with my sick daughter yesterday.  As my dear hubby pointed out earlier today, I found the worst way to put together a 3 day workweek ever.  Well, anything worth doing is worth doing right. 

I have my first Zumba class tomorrow.  I'm so excited!  It's not really Zumba, it's called Latin Heat at my gym.  I asked the guy if they had Zumba, he said yes and pointed to the Latin Heat class on the schedule.  I asked him if that was the same thing and he said it was.  I'm taking him at his word.  I've heard fantastic things throughout these blogs about Zumba so I'm hoping (1) this really IS Zumba and (2) I like it.  I already know I'm going to look like a dork and I'm OK with that.

I've been thinking a lot about this whole "looking like a dork" thing.  I'm not sure if I'm the only one who still uses the word "dork" but roll with me here.  Throughout my whole life, my biggest goal and what I wanted to accomplish more than anything in the whole world, is not looking like a dork.  It doesn't seem that difficult right?  When I was 6 years old, my parents took me bowling for the first time.  My feet were so small, I had to bowl in socks because they didn't have rental shoes that fit.  Did I suck?  Yep...at first.  But later, I joined leagues and played tournaments and won trophies and all that good stuff.  I tried softball without ever picking up a bat or glove in my life and loved it.  I got very very good at it.  Was I worried about looking like a dork then?  No.  I was 8.  When I was 14, I went tubing down the Salt River (as you get older, this becomes drunken stupidity) in a BIKINI!  That was the first time I ever looked at myself and said, "Oh geez. I hope I don't look like a dork."  And there it started.  I've been worried about it ever since.

So one of my goals for this year is to stop worrying about being a dork.  In fact, I'm going to embrace my dorkdom.  I think it's a law when you become a parent that you become a dork.  I remember always thinking my parents were dorks and I often wondered why they didn't care they were dorks.  I sure cared they were dorks.  So...in the spirit of embracing my dorkdom...I'm trying Zumba tomorrow and I'm going to go all out and not worry about how I look doing it.  I'm also going to try rock climbing.  Not REAL rock climbing but like going to a rock gym.  I have a friend who does this and I think it sounds like a lot of fun.  I asked her if they have a weight limit (I'm sure they do so I need to research this) and she told me not to worry about it.  Obviously, this is someone who (1) has never been overweight and hasn't feared not fitting into a "standard harness" before or (2) has never worried about looking like a dork.  But so what if I look like a dork trying to climb a wall?  If it's fun...I'll just keep practicing until I don't look like a dork anymore.  I also want to try kayaking.  I like boats and water and I figure it's a good workout.  My mom went kayaking once and pretty much paddled herself in circles.  Did she look like a dork?  Probably but eventually she straightened out and was able to actually paddle somewhere.  I think part of what kept me away from the gym so long was worried about looking like a dork.  If you think about it, this obsession is pretty self involved.  As if ALL these people are worried about the dork on the treadmill.  Whatevs.  I am dork...hear me roar!

With that, I leave you with a Friday Funny.

Fruit Chicken Stir Fry

This week is going pretty good so far.  I made it back to the gym on Monday.  It felt good to back into it.  I took a walk with hubby and my parents' dog yesterday so got in a little bit of activity.  I'm hitting the gym again today so feeling good all in all.  I'm starting my C25k plan next week.  I wanted to download a couple pod casts that tells you when to walk and run so I don't have to keep staring at the clock.  That would drive me crazy and I think that's one of the reasons I had such a hard time the first time I attempted the C25k program.  The other reason being, of course, that I was 30 lbs heavier.  Hoping it's not quite as difficult this go 'round.



I made this and got mixed reviews.  I liked it a lot and hubby gave it an A+.  The kiddos liked the chicken and oranges but not the veggies but they're kids so what do you expect.  A couple tweaks: I used oranges instead of nectarines and added a bag of mixed steamed veggies to the dish.  Delicious!  I also didn't eat it with rice or couscous...just the protein and veg.  I think the calories listed include the rice.  Sodium is a little high because of the soy sauce so you might want to account for that throughout the rest of your day.  The recipe also suggests you can use peaches or plums instead of nectarines if you prefer.  Enjoy!

3 tbsp reduced sodium soy sauce
4 tsp honey
4 tsp red wine vinegar
1/2 tsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp curry powder
1/4 tsp hot sauce
Dash ground allspice
1 tbsp cooking oil
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite-size strips
1 small red sweet pepper, sliced thin strips
2 medium green onions, bias-sliced
2 nectarines, cut into 1/2 inch slices
2 c hot rice or couscous

1. For sauce, in small bowl, stir together soy sauce, honey, vinegar, cornstarch, curry, hot sauce and allspice.  Set aside.
2. Pour oil into large wok or skillet.  Heat over medium-high heat.  Add chicken, sweet pepper and green onion.  Cook and stir for 3 to 4 minutes until chicken is no longer pink.  Push chicken mixture from center.  Stir sauce; add to center of wok/skillet.  Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly.
3. Add nectarine slices to chicken mixture.  Cook and stir for 1 to 2 minutes or until heated through.  Serve over hot rice or couscous.

Nutrition:
319 cal, 6 g fat, 66 mg cholesterol, 501 mg sodium, 35 g carb, 3 g fiber, 31 g protein

Year In Review - Looking Forward

Some of you may recall my 10 in 2010 post here.  I listed 10 things I wanted to accomplish in 2010.  Let's take a look.  I've crossed out the ones I accomplished.

1. Potty Train my youngest daughter
2. Get a book contract for my nonfiction piece
I'd still like to do this...but I don't see much time for writing in my future
3. Lose 60 pounds (how many times have I made that resolution?)
30 lbs - not bad.  Better than most years. Also important to note that for the first 5 months of the year, I couldn't lose much because I was playing the insurance approval game.  Not an entire fail on this one.
4. Obtain and contribute to an actual savings account
5. Create a weekly budget
6. Stick to said budget
Oh!  That's right.  I had to stick to that budget...my bad.
7. Walk 4 times a week
I totally did this from May to November...not too shabby.  Not a total fail.
8. Leave a note for my hubby somewhere once a week where I can tell him why I appreciate him or just to say thank you for something he did.
I did this only twice.  Pitiful.  He also didn't seem to like this idea.  Must find a new way show my appreciation.
9. Complete Couch to 5K
Total Fail - made it to week 2.  *Sigh*
10. Participate in the Susan G Komen 3-Day for the Cure

OK.  Personally, I think 2010 shaped up pretty well.  I did a lot better than I would have in years past.  No, I am not doing 11 in 2011.  And I'm still an anti-resolutionist, but I do think it's great to have goals and a plan so here we go.

1. Run a 5k
2. Run a 10k
3. Train for the PF Chang's Half marathon to be completed in January 2012 (this is my new big challenge - more to come)
4. Make a weekly budget (sound familiar?)
5. Stick to said budget (since now I know where I went wrong)
6. Try my hardest to be a better wife, mother, sister and daughter...remembering how precious this time with my family is.  Even if they don't make the effort, it doesn't give me an excuse not to.
7. Try to stick to the 80/20 rule.  (My hubby and I are both trying to eliminate processed and unnatural foods from our diets.  I think if I can do this 80% of the time, I'll be in really good shape.  More to come on this also)

So there you have it.  My 7 in '11.  Get it?  7 11?  I'm a dork...moving on.

In other news - Weigh In Day again.  197.5...another lb down.  Can I get a Heck Yeah!?!?  So my total for December was 4 lbs.  This isn't great but I still lost weight over the holidays so I'm stoked about that.  My band has been a little tighter lately.  I can't seem to eat bread at all at this point and get stuck on things that I wasn't having issues with before.  I haven't gotten a fill so I'm thinking it's the added stress.  I won't be seeing the doc again until mid January so I'm rather grateful for the extra restriction.

Hope everyone had a fabulous weekend and Happy Monday to one and all!

Reflection on Onederland

First, I'd like to thank everyone for your thoughts and prayers during this time.  It never ceases to amaze me the amount of support I receive on my little blog.  My parents made it to my sister's house in record time and initial reports are that it may be even worse than we thought.
@Mo & Kristin:  Thank you so much for the ideas.  Once I have a better idea of what we're looking at, I'll definitely get the ball rolling on a scrapbook of sorts for my sister's family. 
@Patrick:  Thank you for the reminder of how far I've come this year.  Since I'm a little behind posts, I have a new year's post planned where I go into my next challenge.  I went out for New Year's Eve and partied and Lord help me...it felt nice to just celebrate the end of an exciting year the beginning of one, God willing, filled with hope.  Now without further ado...Onederland.

The weigh in was bittersweet.  One the one hand, I was totally ecstatic to finally see a 1 at the beginning of my weight.  I saw 199 about 3 years ago for about a month.  That was going to the gym everyday and breastfeeding (which, for anyone who doesn't know, is GREAT for weight loss).  Before that, I saw Onederland for 2 months in 2004 doing South Beach.  I have officially lost 30 lbs...30% to my ultimate, holy-shit-balls-can-you-believe-it goal. 

So I've lost 30 lbs and my size 18W (stands for "Women" but let's face it, it might as well stand for "Wide" or just quit the pretense and make sizes in "F"s for fatties.  18Fat, 20Fatter, 22Fattest, 24Freakin'Kiddin'right) jeans are literally falling off me.  So I took my Christmas money from my mom and headed to Fashion Bug to buy a new pair of jeans.  Excitedly, I grabbed several size 16's and headed for the dressing room.  After 30 lbs, I thought 16 was a safe bet...just one size and one W down.  I've been reading blogs of ladies who are at a higher weight fitting into 16's.  Even accounting for my short stature, I thought I was OK.  Not even freakin' close.  Ummmmkay.  Moving on to 16W...maybe just the little extra give I need.  Nope. They zipped, they buttoned but can we say muffin top?  Not attractive.  So I check the rack again...feeling dejected and like a total failure...no 18's.  Just 18W.  Do they not make 18's anymore?  *SIGH*  So into the dressing room I went.  Swimming in the 18W.  WTF????  So I hit another store that actually has 18's without the W.  They fit.  I'm not crazy about the fit.  Perfect in the stomach, loose in the butt and legs.  Seriously?!?!  I've lost 30 stinkin' pounds and all I've dropped is a W?!?!?  Can this possibly be right?

So needless to say, my initial exuberance in entering Onederland was quickly undone by one shopping trip.  I was reminded once again of why I started this weight loss journey in the first place.  On the one hand, I feel I've already come so far but it certainly drove home the point that I'm nowhere near done.  It also made it nearly impossible to celebrate the victories I've made.  It also brought all those negative self talk comments screaming back into my head.  "Hey Fattie!  Thought you were making progress?  Think again.  Why don't you go drown your sorrows in a Peppermint Chip Shake from Chick-Fil-A?  You'll feel better.  Those jeans don't fit now...what difference will the shake make?"  Well, I can say that despite the yelling, there was no shake.  I went and bought the size 18's to get me through the next month or so and hopefully that will be enough time to get me to anything starting with a 16...even if there's a W in front of it. 

Ugh.  2011 isn't really starting off all that well, is it?  I hope you're all having a better go of it so far.