Monday, February 28, 2011

Wow! What a week! (and a WooHoo Weigh-In!)

I'll start by apologizing for the lack of posts this past week, but I have been so busy!  I hope you don't forget that I am a full-time working mom to a 3 year old rambunctious little boy and a wife.  Having said that, you can see where my blog might take a backseat for a few days.

Speaking of my son, we learned this week that he is going to have to have ear tubes put in and his adenoids removed.  I have so many emotions surrounding this recommendation, and not even really from a 'surgery' standpoint.  Yes, the surgery stresses me out, especially the anesthesia, but I am more conflicted with how he ended up with so many illnesses to begin with.  Yes, I suffer from the typical syndrome called "mommy guilt" and it is something that I just can't seem to get away from.  My son was in private care for the majority of his early toddlerhood until we made the change and enrolled him into pre-school.  I knew that a whole host of illnesses were going to slam our lives, but I didn't anticipate that he would constantly be sick for the next entire year!  It has been one sinus issue or ear infection after another since April of 2010.  Having said that, I would enroll him all over again if I had the choice.  He LOVES school and his friends and his teacher.  Unfortunately, sickness is going to be a part of it.  My guilt lies with the fact that he was very rarely sick before going to school and I feel like he is now having this surgery as a result of a selfish decision on my part to put him into school.  There were many, many reasons why we took him out of private care, but it doesn't really lessen the blow of watching your child suffer from chronic nasal and ear problems.  At any rate, we are where we are, and I can't go back and change it.  I can only pray that our next step will help resolve some of his issues for good and that Our Almighty Physician will lay his hands upon my son and make him better!

OK, enough with my ranting and sadness...

My WooHoo Weigh-In for today found me 1.2 pounds lighter this week.  Not as good as I had hoped, but I know I slipped this past week, so I anticipated this result.  A loss is a loss and I'll take it!  And as for the Mexican I had last Friday, it made me feel quite sick to my stomach, so it really wasn't worth it.  Major lesson learned!

Monday, February 21, 2011

There is something to be said for...

Waking up late, exercising in the morning, eating gooey oatmeal, cleaning your home at your own pace, showering at noon, grocery shopping alone, throwing your hair in a ponytail, wearing no make-up, the still of an empty house on a rainy day, and brushing your teeth even later...

"WooHoo Weigh-In"

I had another fantastic WooHoo Weigh-In today.  Another two pounds of me are gone forever!  The number on the scale truly is significant to me today because I officially now weigh the same amount that I did when I was six weeks postpartum.  I know that sounds a little weird, but I didn't gain that much weight during pregnancy and when I had my six week check-up, I actually felt really good about myself and the amount that I weighed.  But this time, I have worked harder to get here!  Last time, I lost due to postpartum stress. (Oh, and I also pushed out a kid, but who's counting, really?)

Today is a work holiday for me and my son's school was open, so I went ahead and took him.  It was his teacher's first day back from her 10 day vacation, and I know he missed her.  She is absolutely wonderful and I know he is happy there.  And I am happy here,  ALONE!!  My husband is an "essential worker" in the health care field, so he doesn't have these fun holidays off. 

I've already worked out for the morning and am ready to do some hefty cleaning!  It doesn't sound like a fun day off, but it is personal cleansing for me.  I hate it while I'm doing it, but it brings me total satisfaction when I'm done!

Oh, and I tried McDonald's fruit and maple oatmeal today.  Really good, but honestly, not worth it for th calories it packs.  290 for a small bowl.  But it was tasty and will give me the fuel I need to get through this busy morning!

So, here's to you past, present and future Presidents!

Thursday, February 17, 2011

Got 30 minutes?

If you do, and you want to do the same exercise that I did tonight...then try this!  It's free!

Leslie Sansone's 2 Mile Walk!  I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it!  And I did it right in front of my computer.  You don't need a lot of room!

Let me know if you make it all the way through!

And, no, I'm not related to Buddy from Buddy's Carpet (you Daytonian's know who I'm talkin' about).

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

This isn’t going to happen overnight…

OK, so I am about six weeks into this whole lifestyle change thing and I just can’t help but feel some doubt from time to time.  Doubtful that I can really pull this off, doubtful that I am strong enough to make a significant change, doubtful that I can actually do this or that exercise routine, doubtful that I am eating the right things, just a  lot of doubt!  I suppose that is a very normal part of the process.  I have been at this for six weeks and didn’t even really see real results until last week.  Of course, that is my own fault, but I am convinced that I have to pick up the pieces and keep going!  I need and HAVE to do this! 
Today I had a little bit of a milestone and while it may seem silly to those of you who don’t have this problem, it was a big deal to me!  I walked through our coffee break area at work, and once again, someone had brought some kind of devil snack to share with those of us who would take the bait.  It looked really good, so I thought, “Well, I haven’t had any chocolate in a while, I’ll just have one little piece.”  So, I took a piece and went and sat down at my desk.  I took one bite and it didn’t taste good.  And then (and here’s where I had a huge breakthrough), I threw the rest away!  Wow, what a concept?  If you don’t like it, don’t eat it!  You have to understand, I used to be the kind of person who ate just to be eating.  I love food!  But I think I’m starting to learn that I don’t have to eat all of the time.  I don’t have to finish something, even if it doesn’t taste good, simply because it is sitting there. 
Just a few thoughts that I had today and needed to convey by writing them out.  I believe everyone needs a good brain dump now and again.

Monday, February 14, 2011

"WooHoo Weigh-In"

Happy Valentine's Day!  I had two very significant things that occurred today already.  One, my husband gave me a new pedometer for Valentine's Day.  I have been wanting one and was SO excited to get it!  No, it isn't one of those gift that offends me.  I actually asked for one.  Now...a new vacuum, perhaps...

And two, I had a 2.8 pound loss today!  WooHoo for weighing in!  I am actually very excited about this!  Now, I am trying to keep my expectations low because I do realize that I may not have weigh-ins like this all of the time.  But for now, I am thrilled!

I took the time last evening to go outside for a walk.  The weather change is fabulous in Ohio right now.  I managed to get in 2 miles, which made me feel really great.  I want to take advantage of this weather while I can because those of you who also live in Ohio know that it could change in a instant.  I remember snow days as late at April.

I hope you all have a great Valentine's Day!  Make sure to kiss the one you love!

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Hooray for Saturday!

I'm just sitting down for a second on this busy, busy Saturday.  I have pretty much been active all day which makes me feel really good!

I have managed to continue to work out this week by doing the ExerciseTV videos and I am so excited to be adding a new routine to my fitness with weights.  A friend of mine at work was kind enough to loan me a set of dumbbells, and I am so ready to get started!  I also ordered myself a food journal this week with the recommendation of another blog I follow: priorfatgirl.com.  I hope I claim this title for myself one of these days!  The post can be found at http://www.priorfatgirl.com/2011/02/what-goes-up-must-come-down.html.  I purchased the DietMinder Personal Food & Fitness Journal.  Not only will this help me to be accountable to myself, and all of you, but it will help me log and track how I'm doing and where I can change things. 

I have an awesome crock pot potato soup almost ready to go with some yummy sourdough bread to top it off!

Have a fabulous weekend, friends!

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Cardio is good!

After Sunday's snafu with my weigh-in, I decided to kick it up a notch this week with my eating habits as well as some additional cardio activity.  We are in the process of installing a new TV, so I had to find some exercises via ExerciseTV on the web.  I swear I love that channel/website because they offer free videos online!  So, my computer room isn't the best place to workout, but it is doable. 

Monday night I chose two walking segments that were 1 and 2 miles.  I had to break them up in order to give the kiddo a bath, but I finished 50 minutes of cardio that night.  I rested Tuesday, but was back at it today.  I actually ventured down to our gym facilities at work with a friend of mine.  It's funny because I have been at the same job for three years, and tonight was the first night I went to our gym!  Anyway, I did 30 minutes on the elliptical machine and barely felt like I had done anything.  I did sweat, but then again, I always sweat.  Nothing new there.  After a lot of play with my son (and a crash face first into the coffee table, lots of crying, and lots of hugging), I wasn't quite finished, so I picked up an extra mile with ExerciseTV online.

I am planning to buy a small set of dumbells so I can start to do some minor weight training/sculpting on my off nights.  ExerciseTV has some fabulous upper body workouts that I am really interested in trying!

As far as food, I need to start holding myself accountable by blogging about my intake.  Not that I'm doing bad by any means, but to see it written down might help me make some adjustments here and there.

But for now, I'm heading to the bed to relax and do some reading!  Have a good night all!

Monday, February 7, 2011

Weighing In

OK, so, I got my scale in the mail last week after the horrible snow/ice storms that we had in the local area.  I waited two extra days for it, and it was killing me, even though I wasn’t going to weigh in until Sunday.

At any rate, I used it on Sunday and felt completely shattered.  After scraping myself up off of the floor, I truly had to tryand keep it very real and explain it like this:  “Terri, you started this journey on January 5th and had no idea what you weighed.  When you weighed in on January 23rd, you couldn’t even provide an accurate weight because your scale was about as ghetto as all get out.  So, what are you so upset about?  Take the number you got and go with it.”
OK, I feel much better now.  I’m still scared to death to report any real number.  It is so cliché to say, “Well, it’s just a number…it really doesn’t matter…and blah, blah, blah…”  But you know, and I know, that talk like that is simply untrue.  How do women measure one another?  By weight and size.  No matter what.  Period. 
With that being said, I plan to continue to weigh in on Sunday’s and I plan to report my progress that way. 
On the coffee front, I finally found the coconut creamer that I thought was going to change my life.  Instead, I learned that I miss my regular creamer that much more!  But I’m not going back to the nasty calorie-laden creamer at this point, but I do plan to tweak it just a little.  Maybe I’ll do half of each type for a while? 

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Happy Saturday!

Well, I'm still totally bummed that my favorite routines aren't available on Exercise TV.  And I don't really feel like doing anything on the Kinect.  So, I decided to vacuum the entire house.  Takes about 30 minutes and has lots of ups and downs.  I need one of those calorie counting things to see just how many calories I actually burn.  It's better than nothing, right?

We are going out to eat tonight at the Spaghetti Warehouse.  Ah, my personal carbohydrate Hades.  But, I've already checked out the nutrition info online and I guess I'll just have to pick the least damaging item on the menu, which means something with the lowest calories and fat content. 

I finally received my new digital scale.  I'm excited to use it tomorrow, but yet, I'm scared to death.  It's been two weeks since I weighed myself, and I am so afraid nothing has changed.  I guess at the very least, I am healthier!

Have a good weekend everyone!

Friday, February 4, 2011

More lessons learned...

Lesson #1: Anytime you want to find a food item that is unusual or a little quirky, visit Health Foods Unlimited in Dayton, Ohio.  They have everything and I mean EVERYTHING.

Lesson #2: Not everything in said health food store is healthy. :-(  You have to read labels, although I admit I have no idea what I'm reading yet...

Now onto lunch to eat my Lean Pocket with ham and cheese and my Baked Doritos!  Cheers!

Thursday, February 3, 2011

It's been a looong few days!

Well, between the snow and ice, it has been very interesting around here the last few days.  I was ready for a good, consistent workout on Sunday night and I turned on Exercise TV only to find that my videos were gone!  Not only the walking videos I like, but most of the videos!  AGH!  I settled for a short 25 minute cardio workout followed by more frustration with the Your Shape Fitness Evolved game for xBox Kinect. 

However, on Monday, I decided to do some searching on the Internet and found several You Tube tutorials for the game.  Yes, success!  So, I did that on Tuesday night as well.  And "WOW!!" do my thighs hurt, even today!  Nonetheless, I will march on and continue this good fight!

I finally decided to contact the company that makes the coconut milk creamer to ask where in the heck I can get it in Ohio.  Three minutes later, they sent me a message telling me exactly where to go and even the name of the salesperson I can ask for help!  Talk about customer service!  I have to give a big shout out to "So Delicious" people for being fabulous!

Also, I actually decided to break down and buy myself a digital scale.  Due to the bad weather we have had, it hasn't arrived yet.  But I do plan to use it once a week on Sunday mornings.

I got my first compliment yesterday...my husband said, "You really look like you are losing weight."  Thanks, babe ;-)  (P.S. You can tell me that anytime you want!)