Some updates since I've been gone...

I figured I would update those who may be interested... or not on whats been happening in the past 6 months.  Lets see... some key points.

- In March... I met a great friend (aka my BFF now), who was nearby this whole time.  We have become wonderful friends and I really do my best to support her and help where I can.
- In April... My husband and I went to see Daniel Tosh.  He is definitely worth seeing in person.  We love Tosh.0 and had a great time.  It was our 5 year anniversary celebration.
- In May... We also went to see Kevin Hart, that is my husband's favorite comedian.  Hilarious and I'm glad we went.  My daughter finished out her Spring softball season, the team lost all games.  I think there were like 12 in the season.  LOL.  Its all good, she had fun and enjoyed it.  Both Aries and Naty made it on the straight A honor roll.
- In June... Natalya had a bad burn, 2nd degree.  She was trying to cook ramen noodles by herself in our microwave.  As she pulled the  bowl down from the microwave (which sits above the stove), she poored it down the front of her chest and belly.  It was a scary thing.  But the good news is she healed up quickly, still has some scarring but not too bad.  Thanks to Dell Childrens Hospital.  She was going almost every day for treatment.
- As for the summer time... I've been working non-stop, tons of overtime at work.  Basically killing myself to make ends meet until my husband finished school.  Unfortunately, he hit a snag and was out of school for attendance.  It was appealed but he was not approved to re-start school until August 27th.  In the end, it worked out because we saved money on daycare costs during the summer for the kiddos.  And I didn't have to miss work and he was able to take Naty to her doctor appointments for her burns.  For the rest of the summer...we did nothing big.  Saving money for the kids school clothes and thats about it.  I really wish we could have taken a real vacation.  One day.
- In July... celebrated a birthday with my good friend, Becca Dawn.  I also completed my LTC designation!  Yay, I did actually complete something.  I'm so proud of myself.  So that means I'm officially an LTC (long term care) Professional.  Currently working on other designations until I can go back to school for my bachelors next year.
- My oldest son started 7th grade, which also meant he started tackle football with his middle school.  My daughter started 3rd grade.
- We also signed my daughter up for softball again (and to be honest... she is soooo good).  Well she keeps getting better.  Every time she's up to bat, she hits it.  I'm very proud of her efforts.  We also signed her up for Brownies in Girl Scouts.  I am now a member as well... to help out the troop when necessary.
- As for little Brayden, still bad as can be.  Tee hee!  But he's officially potty trained and is talking in full sentences now.

And now that school is back in... we are just busy busy busy. 

Oh and a last thought......... LOL.

I'm backkk...

And after the long period of time being gone... yes, I admit I have gained back approximately 12.8 lbs.  Do I feel bad, kind of.  But then again, I just chose to give up the entire thing.  I was tired of dealing with the whole thing.  I was being extremely lazy.

I have no excuses.  I basically stopped all logging of food, ate whatever I wanted... when I wanted.  Didn't follow any lapband rules.  Didn't even attempt exercising.  I even stopped drinking water like I should.  All built habits out the window.  And the result... that gain and horrible cholesterol levels. 

Where am I at now... who knows, I just know I need to get back down again.  I kind of feel like maybe if I make smaller goals of losing, then it will not seem so overwhelming.  I have a hard time sticking to things too.

So here I am again... getting back up again to lose the weight I've gained back and get back to healthy again. 

In other news.... I have a new BFF.  Like seriously... her name is Crystal.  We have a ton in common, we met because our two oldest children were in the same 5th grade class and are now 7th graders.  We hang out a ton and now even work together.  We both realized we are enabling each other's bad habits regarding food and well...... weight loss.  So we are going to attack the weight head on together.  Its nice to have this support nearby.  I am hoping this rubs off on my husband as well... I think he was shocked to see his weight hit over 300 lbs himself.  So its time to get in gear... even with the holidays coming. 

I will try to blog more about other things happening.  Today is the new beginning....... back to food logging, food weighing, water consumption, vitamins again and even exercising.  Gotta get my fat ass slimmed down... :)

-- peeks head in -- Hello!

I know, I know.  I've been gone for a minute.  Lets just say I've been under a lot of stress and feeling in a funky depressed type of mood.  I've been working A LOT.  But that's no excuse.  Which also means I just plain ol' stopped doing everything related to weight loss.

Life lately >>> Working a lot, stress of not having enough money to cover everything... being the sole bread winner is starting to get to me.  But I made a promise to my husband that I would do this with no major complaints because we are sacrificing for him to finish cosmetology school.  And believe, I have been counting down the days.  At this point 3 more months.  Lol.  But its going to be worth it in the end.  I know this... he is talented.  Check out what he did to my hair... he did an asymmetrical bob and my carmel highlights.  I've received so many compliments.  And still do.  He even did my niece's hair and color.  He is very talented.  I even watched a documentary with him on Vidal Sassoon.  Very interesting stuff.  This is his passion and I'm happy to see him fulfill it.  And I know not too much longer... plus the good part is, he has a lot of salon's who are trying to recruit him due to his talent.  He's definitely not your typical hair stylist.  And I admit, he is teaching me to be more out of the box.

Anywho... After being in the dumps though, I finally have decided to get back in the weight loss thing again.  I have noticed that in the past couple of years I have stopped the weight loss thing around this time of year.  But I'm getting back on track now.  My friend Nik from Nik Gets Fit is doing a Weight Loss Challenge that starts on May 1st and goes for 12 weeks.  I decided I'm going to do this.  This is what I need to get going again.  And it also helps that we had to put $5 in the pot... winner gets all the dough, plus a Polar HRM and some Urban Decay makeup.  And even if I don't win... I still win personally by losing some weight.

I'm excited... which is the typical thing I go through when I start/stop the weight thing.  I just hope this is the thing to break the cycle and keep me focused enough to be dedicated and keep going.

Well... back to working on claims.  Laters.

Weigh In for 3.11.12

Boooooooo!!!  Not a good week.  Definitely fell off and I'm not too proud of it.  I hate this cycle.  I wish I would just commit and stick to it.  I know for a fact if I do the 3 things... Exercise, Watch my Calorie Intake and drink my water.  I will lose.  I know it works for a fact.  So why can't I keep to this?

Anywho...

Weigh-In:  209.0

I'm up 1.6 pounds.  I know what caused it.  I was way under calorie range every day except Saturday.  I'm talking about 1100 and below.  Some days under 1000.  The problem was, I didn't get in much exercise nor much water either.  I'm talking about days where I didn't drink water at all or maybe 3 cups in general.  I don't know why I struggled so much drinking my water the past week.  Even the week prior it was kind of hard.  Saturday I went wayyy over in calories and sodium.  Mainly because I made these Meatball Marinara sliders.  So good but so bad.  Add in that I think its caused me to be irregular again.  I can feel it in my pouch area. 

Another revelation, I really need to seriously leave the bread alone.  I get stuck every time now.  No matter how much I toast it.  I've known for a while but I just keep trying.  I don't know why either.  Its something in my head.  I hate fighting the head battle.  Breads are my weakness outside of sweets.  I've learned to stay away from french fries due to this but for whatever reason I still attempt to eat sandwiches.  I did this when I tried to eat a tuna fish sandwich last weekend.  I have to get myself in check.

As for exercising.... I only walked for 30 minutes the entire week.  Not good. 

So definitely pulling myself together and getting back in gear this week.  My job is starting a Zumba class two times a week.  Free class tonight to see if we like it.  I'm going to do it this evening.  And if I enjoy, I will purchase some additional classes.  At least do it once a week.  They have a deal, which is 6 classes for 25 dollars.  I'm thinking I can pay for it with my HSA account.  I brought my Polar HRM to see how many calories I burn tonight. 

That about wraps on the weight loss front.....

Weigh In for 3.4.12, Softball Fun

Hola everyone...

So lets talk about last week...

On the exercise front, I did pretty well.  Lots of walking at work.  I did 135 minutes of walking, goal was 120 minutes.  So I'm happy with that.  No time in with Jillian Michael's.  My legs were sore for about 3-4 days after last Sunday's workout with Jillian.  I'm talking about my entire leg, inner/outter... all over!  Lets just say I was walking funny.  Haha.  I planned on doing some workouts with Jillian but was pretty busy this past week.  I need to make sure to make time though. 

On the calorie intake, I stayed under.  Did go over a couple of days on sodium.  I got most water in but had two days where I didn't get all 72 ounces in.

So weigh-in for yesterday was -

Weigh-In:  207.4

So thats 0.4 pounds down from last week.  In total weight lost I'm at 35.6 pounds since the beginning of this whole thing.  I never really knew the big total.  Not bad, too bad its taken this long to get there.  LOL.  The ultimate goal is to hit Onederland soon!  I was hoping to be down 1.5 pounds from last week but its all good.  As long as the weight goes down, I don't care. 

I can say that I put on a pair of jeans I used to wear a few years ago... and a pair of work pants.  Both were pretty loose.  That means I'm close to changing pants size.  Whoop whoop!! 

We set up our computer at home but can't find the mouse.  So unable to do any uploads from there on photos.  Blah!

In other news... my daughter started softball last week.  She had two games, both games her team lost by 1 point.  This is her first time ever playing a sport or doing an activity in general.  She had a breakdown on her second practice because she didn't understand the game.  But since then has been doing much better.  I think she's starting to enjoy it more.  I'm happy to have her involved in something.  And if she likes it enough to do it again for another season, I may volunteer to help out the coach or something.  I can play some softball, I believe... haha.

Check out this cool photo of her... at her first game.

Oh and regarding BOOB's 2012, I am going... and think I have found my roommate.  So excited!  That about wraps things up.

Anywho... have a great day everyone!

BOOBs 2012!

Well it looks like the info is up to go to Chi-Town.  I am definitely going!  I want to meet all of the wonderful ladies that I have been reading about.

Only thing..... I don't have a roomie :( 

If anyone is still looking and would like to room with me.  HIT ME UP!  Thankkkkk youuuu!

Weigh In for 2.26.12, Lowest of the Lows

Hola people!

I still have no access to a regular computer at home.  Plan was to hook up the computer yesterday.  Its still in a box.  Never got to it.  Still unpacking and things but almost done.  Can't wait to get all the boxes GONE!  Now onto the weight loss front...

Weigh-In:  207.8

(No picture, couldn't find camera)

Thats 3.4 pounds down from last week.  So happy to have lost the weight I gained back over the last few weeks and be at my lowest weight of all time!  I managed to be stay under calories all week long and get in all of my water.  Add in the fact that I did walk almost every day last week while at work.  It was nice weather and I felt better afterward.  I got in 148 minutes of exercise.  Original goal was 120 minutes, I believe.  So I'm really proud of myself.  Crazy thing I thought I didn't do well last week.  LOL.  Maybe because the week went by so fast and I couldn't focus on much, at least it felt like that.

Also... I finally broke out my Polar HRM and the Jillian Michael's Shred It with Weights dvd yesterday.  LOVE the Polar HRM, very easy to use.  Second.... the dvd, today my legs... well actually since I exercised yesterday and even more today my legs are aching!  But it's worth it!  I'm feeling better today.  I do feel like I have more energy.

I also have been really good about getting my vitamins in... and I've upped my Vitamin D intake... I'm taking 1800 iu a day compared to 1300 iu usually.  I can definitely feel a difference with my energy and I'm not sure if its helping the weight loss or not.  I ready an article about how it helps you lose weight... if you take at least 2000 iu a day.  Plus since I knew I was low on Vitamin D... it has helped in not feeling so tired.

Overrall this past week, I think I got an A-.  :)

Now for this coming week..... keep up the same momentum!  Same goals and hopefully lose 1.5 pounds

Hope everyone else has had a great weekend!



Self Sabo? Or just lazy... Gotta stop the excuses

Lets keep it real... the last few weeks have been rediculous!  I realize as I get to a low for myself on the weight front, that I go and sabotage myself for some reason.  I don't know why either.  I really need to pull myself out of this and stop repeating the cycle.  I hate being this way.  The only good thing about this blogging and reading other peoples journies is its keeping me in check for the most part.  Otherwise I'd be back up to 220 again.  Even with the band.

No official weigh in again this week because we haven't had a chance to unpack all things but we got a lot done yesterday.  I did weigh myself to see where I was and I was back up to 211.  I hate that I gained back the 3 pounds I had lost just like that.  But who's to blame for it, ME.  I put all the bad food in my mouth.  Add in last week..... I've been doing pretty good with getting walking in at work of 90 minutes a week.  But then I had a few days in a row where I went on a Sweet Binge.  Yes... a binge.  I mean I literally within 2 hours ate like 6 mini-sugar frosted cookies, 1 snickers bar, 1 cookies and cream hershey's bar and who knows how many Dove chocolates.  I knew something was wrong with that........

I lost my pedometer...... actually my 3 year old did.  He got in my purse and dumped it and put it somewhere.  Found it yesterday under our couch in the livingroom.  My Polar HRM still is in its box... inside another box.  I will be pulling it out this week.  I also got my 2 Jillian Michael's dvd's in the mail.... thank you again Sarah!  I will be using them... making sure I have some hand weights in my closet.  Will eventually get a kettle ball.  I'm very excited... and kind of scared of Jillian Michaels!  Haha.

Outside of seeing that number, I did have two people who haven't seen in a while say I looked like I lost a lot of weight.  Even though I technically haven't in months.  But maybe its inches.

Yesterday me and the hubby got a lot done at home.  Unpacked quite a bit, hung up pictures.  We finished unpacking.  Finished my daughter's room and Snuk's bedroom.  I am so sore from working on the house all day yesterday.  Still quite a bit to do but its almost back to being normal again.  Next step is going through all things and getting rid of crap.  Like a ton of old clothes I never wear! 

And next...... my daughter will be having her first practice for softball this Thursday.  She's never done any sports, so lets hope she has some natural talent.  LOL. 

Anywho... the goals for this week:  Stay under calorie goal for day, get in 120 minutes of exercise this week and get water in every day (even on weekends).  I gotta get back to where I was quickly!  And keep moving forward!

Alright, alright, alrightttttt...

So Valentine's Day was great... no flowers, cards or teddy bears.  But its all good because my Hubby does this every year and I told him he didn't have to this year.  Because this year I did it for him.  I got him a gorilla sitting on this box with "love" and "kiss" written on it and it was filled with chocolates, chocolate covered pretzels, caramel popcorn, cookies, etc.  He loved it!  And felt extra special.

Outside of that... we went rollerskating last night and out to dinner with my bestfriend and her boyfriend.  Wooo... it was definitely noticeable that I hadn't been skating since early December.  My legs were burning so bad and I was out of breathe.  It was adult skating night too and they had a deal for Valentine's Day, buy 1 get 1 free for admission.  Awesome!  After that we headed out to dinner, after the dinner rush.  Ate some mexican... at least I attempted to.  I ordered fish tacos and they had this mango sauce on the side, I thought it would be sweet since the sauce name included "mango".  NO!  I about died.  I usually can handle spicy food, but this was a whole other level.  I think it may have had some habernaro in it.  That ruined the first taco after one bite (and yes, I took a big ol' bite and swallowed it).  Went for taco number two... got to half way on it.  Very plain tasting and not what I was hoping for.  Blah food all the way around.  Very disappointed and it takes a lot for me to say that about food.

In my doggy news... Booger got nuetered last week, along with vaccinations, nail clipping and microchipping.  He's done well.  Funny thing... when the kids seen him and looked at where is boy parts were, my oldest said it looked like they were deflated.  Then my daughter goes "so they let all the air out of them?".  Hahaha... I love kids. 

He was doing great afterwards, but then two days ago started this hacking cough thing.  He was up all night with it.  So we took him to the vet yesterday.... they said it was either allergies or kennel cough.  So they gave him a shot of cortizoid and antibiotics.  If its allergies... the hacking should decrease by today, otherwise its kennel cough.  And since then... his hacking/coughing has stopped a lot.  Very minimal.  It makes me feel much better for my boy.  Outside of that, the vet said he was very healthy all the way around.  And his incision from his surgery was healing up nicely.  Definitely feeling much better. 

Here's a pic of him yesterday morning....... laid out after being up all night coughing.

In the meantime, still have lots of unpacking and organizing to do this week.  The house looks a hot ass mess!  And its driving me nuts but I also have to pu tin a lot of time at work this week.  Hoping we can get things back in order. 

Also, I found out that Kevin Hart is coming to Austin.  I'm so excited.  Waiting to buy tickets this Friday.  This is my husband's favorite comedian.  He is pretty funny....... and it looks like a no go on Drake concert.  I'm okay with that. 

On the food front... I'm doing great so far this week.  Some set backs yesterday with all the damn chocolate candy deliveries.  LOL.

Laters.

MIA for a bit...

Been gone for a minute, even on MyFitnessPal.  Been sick, then add in moving.  Its just thrown a lot off for me. 

So no weigh in this week.... everything is still packed down and well I can even admit I ate nothing but fast food from Wednesday until about yesterday due to stress and this moving crap.  We found out last Thursday we had to be in our new apartment and out the other one by today.  I'm basically exhausted from packing up, moving and cleaning...... and now to unpacking.  Add on being sickly.

I'm back to working and hoping that things get back into normal mode.  I got my Polar HRM in the mail last week and I'm making sure to eat good things again this week.  Plan is to detox my body from all the horrible crap I ate last week.  Get back into the groove of things, plus get more exercising in.  With all the unpacking to do, I'm sure that exercise will help.

Plus I have lots of overtime to do at work...... I'm so behind from being off for 2 days.

BTW... no cable or internet until tomorrow.  I guess thats a good thing?  Laters.

Weigh In for 2.6.12

Alright... so the reality!  Ahhh!  Last week I did GREAT on my water intake (minus the weekend).  I really need to work on getting water in every single day but I managed to get in 72 to 96 ounces every day.  Yay me!  On the exercise front... not as much as I wanted but I did manage to get in 90 minutes last week.  Which was broken up with walks at work on my breaks and one fun dog walk!  I'm moving a little more. 

Now to the not so good news.... food intake.  I did well overall for the week minus 1 day where I went wayyy over on calories.  We ate lots of frozen appetizer type of things.  Not good and add in they have high sodium.  So I really went over sodium intake 2 times this week.  So now to the weigh in.

Weigh-In:  209.4

So yeah, up 1 pound.  Not proud of it but I know what I did this past week to cause it.  So gotta get back in gear this week.  Also I reviewed my pedometer website... and my step goals this week are to do at least 6,250 regular steps and half of that as aerobic steps.  Which means I need to get out there and walk for real!  Here's hoping for good weather and if not, heading down to the gym. 

Need to focus!

Internet = Boring, Life Lately

I'm feeling pretty good today.  At work, but its okay.  I've been quiet lately and I don't know why.  Am I bored with the internet?  Probably.  Considering I've been on this thing hard core since 1999.  Running a fansite and part of messageboards, social sites, etc.  Now I'm like blah.  Not sure if its because I'm older or what.  I don't get on Facebook much these days.  I check but really don't post.  I kind of feel like I have nothing to post about.  I'm not up for entertaining others.  Plus, life seems really boring to me right now.  All I'm doing is working and going home.

Which then got me to thinking about how I haven't had no one-on-one time with friends or done anything fun in a while.  Main reason I want to go to the Drake concert.  Trying to wait it out to get the tickets.  Hoping the prices drop down because folks are CRAZY.  This is Drake!  And they paid $79.95 for the ticket originally and want $250-$500.  Uggghhh.... NO!  I'll get our tickets... plus I'm cheap.  But I admit I have fear I'll mess it up for me and my girl.  I will put this in God's hands... cause reality is, we have worked hard and not done much.  Plus last we concert we went to was Nelly in 2006 in Houston.  We had a blast.  Thats probably where Nelly came into the equation in my dream.  Haha.

Outside of that, at home... we're preparing for our move.  The house looks strange with all the stuff off the walls.  We have white marks all over the walls to cover stains by the kiddos.  I just can't wait to get the moving done.  I hate moving.  I even admit last night when I took the dog out for a walk, I creeped by our new apartment to get a view.  Just curious.  Can't wait, I will also be closer to the apartments gym. 

Ohhhh and I got tickets for me and the hubby to go see Daniel Tosh in April.  Thats our anniversary present.  We both love his crazy comedy and of course we watch Tosh.0. 

As for the weight front... not sure how the scale will look tomorrow.  I know I had like 1 bad day of going over calories for the day and at least 2 days of high sodium intake.  But I have been getting my water in, so hopefully it clears out.  Gotta get the food choices in check asap. 

Non-commenting, NSV's, Drake Dream, etc.

Sorry for being a bad fellow cheerleader to all those in the weight loss fight.  I've been busy working and haven't really felt like getting on the internet much lately.  Also dealing with things personally and kind of felt like I don't have much to say.  Maybe a little blah lately, who knows.  So I apologize to folks I follow and not commenting much.  I am going to try to get back involved again and comment more.  PROMISE!

Now onto some NSV's for me...

• Had to finally buy new bra's, down from a 40D to a 38D (and man, it makes me look like I lost a ton of weight, haha.  At least I feel like it does and feels good to have better support).  I was debating if I should go with a 38 or 36.
• Also got new undies, went from a size 10 (that were seriously baggy, Hubby told me to get new ones) and I'm in a size 9 comfortably, have some old size 8's I can squeeze in... :)
• Work pants are also very loose in the leg/butt region and noticed some gap in the waist.  I think I'm close to a size 16.



Ahhhh...I <3 Drake!



Next, last night I had this dream about me and my friend going to see Drake in concert.  We haven't bought the tickets yet (sold out here) and I really want to go.  So I wanted to wait to see if the price would drop on Stubhub... well in the dream, that was what we were doing.  I figured as it got closer to the show we would get better seats at a lower price.  Then they were no longer selling the tickets and we couldn't go to the show.  But we did see that Nelly was coming (not sure where Nelly fit into this, haha).  I felt so bad... for letting my friend down.  LOL.  We went home... and some other friends were there, who went to the concert.  Just disappointing and then Drake showed up!  I was like a groupie.  LOL.  Then I woke up. 

Either way, I'm hoping we can go see Drake in real life.... just don't want to pay 150.00 or more on a damn ticket far away.  I hope I don't screw us over on good seats to get a lower price.... waiting it out.  Uggghhh.

In other news... back to taking my vitamins again, I had stopped because I ran out and was low on funds.  But got my adult gummy vitamins, viactiv for calcium and vitamin D and B12.  Lets see how it makes me feel.  Also gonna work on drinking all my water this week.  I realized I haven't been drinking much at all the last few days.  Like no urge.  Not good.

Alright... thats my randoms.  Laters.

Weigh In for 1.29.12

Alright so for the past week, I probably got a "C" for participating somewhat.  Lets see, I know for a fact, I didn't get all of my water in each day of at least 72 ounces.  I did stay under calorie goal but that was mainly because I wasn't eating breakfast.  Which then resulted in me making bad food choices, like eating fast food.  And even then, I know on Friday I over ate cause I got that pain in my side.  I haven't done that in a long time.  We ate chinese.

So here's my weigh in for the week:

Weigh-In:  208.4

So thats a loss of 1.4 pounds.  I do also admit I did more walking at work.  At least 3 times this past week.  I didn't go walking after work.  I wish I would have.   I have been using my pedometer and keeping tracking of my steps.  I guess its "baby steps".  Plan this week is to get my protein powder to do my shake in the mornings again so I have some sort of breakfast and hopefully that will curb the bad food choices.  

More updates later...

Weigh In for 1.22.12, I'm a Winner!

Alright so last week was not a great week in the food department.  I openly admit that I went over my calorie intake about 3 times last week, nothing totally horrific but still.  It was the cookies dammit.  I love sweets and for some reason my body wanted it too.  Or head hunger.  Also TOM came and visited too.  Definitely a hard battle that I lost.  These are the same days I had a hard time getting at least 72 oz of water in too.  Now onto weigh in for this week.

Weigh-In:  209.8

That means I'm down 0.4 pounds since the last weigh in.  Not 1 pound like I was aiming for but a loss is a loss, right?  The good thing going for me was that I did actually start moving aka exercising.  I was walking on my breaks at work and I did walk hard core one day last week.  Which in turn left my legs so sore.  Didn't know that was possible.  I also did some overtime at work.  So overall, I did have some set backs but I did make some moves forward with the exercising part of this journey.

In other news, I am a WINNER!  I joined the Jillian Michael's giveaway on FatSoSarah's blog.  And I won!  So awesome... and I'm so excited.  I've been wanting the 30 day shred video (and still plan to buy that one) but was waiting until we moved down to a downstairs apartment (since I have butthole neighbors).  And I won... I haven't won anything like this in I couldn't tell you.  I'm so excited because I really want to do this.  Especially purchase a kettleball for my arms.  LOL. 

Also, we're moving down to a 4 bedroom 2 bath apartment on February 10th.... on the bottom floor.  My apartment manager came to our door Friday night to let us know we got this apartment and its all wood floors!  That means all the kiddos will have their own bedrooms and more space and we can walk as hard as we want.  And I can exercise at home if I want.  And especially use my new workout DVD's. 

So excited!  And definitely feeling very blessed.

*** Oh yeah, someone left an anonymous comment... saying they liked my blog, etc.  I just wanted to say thank you for visiting.  I don't know who it was... :(

Bad day yesterday, but back on track today

So yesterday was my job's monthly potluck for the January birthday's.  I was in charge of coordinating things.  That included buying food for the event when people gave me money.  I did that.  I even kept the food hidden away in my house for about 5 days with no one touching it.  Then yesterday, I ate the crap at the luncheon...... mainly about 10 cookies.  Why?  I don't know why.  I ate like half of that, knowing I messed up.  On top of not walking at all yesterday.  Then figured once I got home... well keep going since I messed up already.  Ohhhhh the fat girl mentality. 

Yeah..... lets just say, went well over my calories for the day.  And I only got in 6 cups of water.  With no exercise.  NOT GOOD for yesterday. 

Its all good, because this morning.... back to the usual.  Have my lunch prepared, my protein shake and will do my walking on my breaks and this evening when I get home.

Guess who exercised yesterday?

Yep... thats right, ME!  I walked yesterday at work on my afternoon break.  And then I went to my apartments gym and walked for 40 minutes, then walked some more with my son and the dog...so I could get over 10,000 steps on my pedometer.  I feel so good today.  Even more chipper.

TOM is around the corner, ready to pay a visit.  Wish he would just hurry up and come and go... lol.  Other than that... plan on walking for my morning break this time, as well as my afternoon break.  And I don't want to push myself too hard... but I'm afraid if I don't keep going with at least walking... I'll fall back into laziness.  So I'll go walking again tonight.

And yesterday was a good day.... stayed well under calories, got my water in and NO SNACKING.  What? Yes. 

A good day.

I also realized, I have not put on my work out clothes since September.  Actually getting myself dressed for it, helped.  Will do this again this evening.

Weigh In for 1.15.12

Alright so last week was wayyy better for me on the food front and water intake.  So-so on the exercise.  But overall, I can give myself a grade of a C.  Mainly because I could have put more effort into the exercise thing since I said I would do at least 30 minutes of walking, 3 times a week.  I definitely procrastinated... but I'm having some issues as before with getting going.  I really need to resolve this issue asap!

Weigh-In:  210.2

So that brings me down 1.4, not bad.  Basically what I was looking for this past week.  So lets see what goals were met and not met.

• Stay under calorie goal every day - DONE (I did have one day I went over sodium big time)
• Get at least 72 ounces of water in each day - DONE 
• Do 30 minutes of walking, 3 times this week - FAIL
• Lose at least 1.5 pounds - DONE (I just used the number off MyfitnessPal but since my scale is done on "even"s, I say I accomplished this one)

 So not bad... although I didn't walk "walk", I did get some major cleaning done around the house.  I feel good about this since it was much needed and I did work up some sweat.  One of my changes this year is helping out more around the house ---- I admit, since I work so much I've let the cleaning thing go and relied a lot on my husband.  So I'm putting forth the effort to pitch in more.  As for the walking, I know I procrastinated to the point that I didn't get it done.  I felt motivated somewhat to do it, then once home... and sitting down, its like my butt was clued to where I was at.  I just didn't want to go out in the cold, or go down to the apartments gym, or even where my work out clothes because my legs were hairy.  Yes... lots of nice excuses.  Amazing how we talk ourselves out of things we don't want to do.  LOL.  

In other news, I got my FitBug pedometer.  I can use this with that new wellness program at work and get points for doing 10,000 steps or more a day.  I figure, I can do some walking on my breaks... indoors.  Our building is huge.  I think this will push me... since I still want that damn Polar HRM.  In my mind --- I believe if I have this thing, it will drive me to want to work out more... since I'll see actual numbers that reflect what I'm doing.  Crazy thinking.... who knows.  Lol.  So I will be using it this week. 

Anywho... gotta get going and ready for work this week.  

Goals for this week ---- same as above and lose at least 1.0 lbs come weigh-in. 

Fat So Sarah Giveaway

So... I seen this on my other friend Sarah's blog... and thought I'd join in because of course I could use some kind of work out stuff like this.  Sorry Sarah.... lol.

Just started following and will still follow even if I don't win.  LOL.

So check out her blog... and I figure since I don't have many followers... its more beneficial at this point.  Hahaha...

http://fatsosarah.blogspot.com/

Almost started walking...

So I haven't done any walking yet this week... but I really felt the urge to do it yesterday (which is good for me and my need to get going).  So today I plan on going to the gym in our apartments and hitting up the treadmill (possibly the ellipitcal if I'm feeling good after 30 minutes of walking). 

I do admit... I ordered the Fitbug (which is a pedometer) through my job and this new wellness program.  I have kind of been waiting for it to come but I want to get this walking going.  Especially because I was invited to do a 5k with a local running club out in Georgetown.  They do these 5k's every third Saturday a month and its only $1, which goes to help pay for costs at the park they do this at.  Plus the kids are free, so I figure I can take my two oldest kiddos with me to enjoy some walking/running.  The next one coming up is on the 21st.  I think I'm going....... help me prepare for another 5k.

The BOOB's ladies in the Dallas area plan to attend the Color Run.  I really want to do this one too... and plan to pay for my fee this coming weekend, so I will be there.  This same 5k is being done in Austin on February 4th as well, but thats just too close of a date... I need more time to prepare with just starting out.  LOL.  Plus I figured it would be more fun with other friends.  So I will be attending the one in Dallas.  Can't wait.....

Never thought that I may enjoy running or even do a 5k, but its a possibility.  Lets see how this goes...

Inner Struggles

I've made goals to accomplish for my weight, but there are other things I want to accomplish and make changes with as well.  I've always said that I'm a work in progress.  The problem has been, I have not been actively participating in making changes to be "in progress".  I'm tired of it.  I'm now 31 years old and I feel like I'm in the same spot I was in 5 years ago.  Still struggling when it comes to weight, to my relationships, my love/self worth for myself, finances, spiritually, etc.  I want to be a better person overrall.  And I sit and compare myself to others (for some reason) when instead I need to look deep down within me and make the changes to be in a better position for myself.  To be happy in general.

Basically....... I am my own worse enemy.  I have been standing in my own way for so long out of FEAR.  Fear of what?  Fear of failure I suppose.  I have to stop this mentality... I know we all have fear, thats fine.  But I need to embrace those fears and overcome them, no matter if its a positive or negative outcome.  Because eventually this is what leads to success in any goal.

So outside of the weight loss goals...  I realized there are some goals I need to set up for myself this year for inner peace.

I will think this over this coming week... and post on my "Goal Page".

Starting Brand New, Weigh-In for 01.08.12

After lots of thinking and consideration in the past week, I've decided to press re-start on this game of weight loss.  Starting anew I think will help me get back in the game and not focus so much on the previous failure.  I really want to focus and commit to this thing... I've even set up some goals and will make a Goal page (kind of like my weight loss page).  I've taken my measurements for today as well and weighed myself.  I also plan to take photos of each weigh-in no matter what the result.  I have to stay accountable.  So now onto weigh-in for today.

Weigh-In:  211.6

Yep, I'm up.  I have to admit this past week was hard on me... I've been eating lunch in our work-cafeteria.  I have no idea what they use, but I'm pretty sure its a lot of pre-packaged, high processed food.  Definitely high in sodium and definitely NOT good for anyone trying to keep their weight down or really lose weight in general.  I still have a week of lunches on my card that I bought, but I can always get a salad since they have a salad bar to use and bring some grilled chicken and hard boiled eggs to help with the protein.  I did manage to get in quite a bit of water, so I'm proud of that and knowing that I drank 18 cups (144 oz) of water in a day for 2 days in a row, lets me know I can do it every day.  I've also been drinking a protein shake each morning for breakfast and will continue to do that.

So I restarted my ticker for weight loss on MyFitnessPal to ZERO.  I even re-opened my diary because it helps me accountable.  No more hiding the stuff I do (I did that for about 3 weeks).  Log every single thing I put in my mouth (minus vitamins).  Starting weight being that number above.  Here are my measurements as of today as well:


Neck - 14 1/4 inches

Arms - 15 1/2 (right) | 15 1/4 (left)
Chest - 39 1/4 inches
Waist - 38 inches
Hips - 50 1/2 inches
Thighs - 27 1/2 inches
Calves - 16 1/2 inches

This Coming Week's Goals ----- Stay under calorie goal every day.  Get in at last 72 ounces of water, but aim for up to 144 ounces.  Do 3 days of exercise at 30 minutes each (walking is what I will start with this week). And come next weigh in day, lose at least 1.5 pounds.


Ultimate Goal come a month from now, which is 2/12/2012 - Lose 7.5 pounds, that means be at 204.4 as of this date.  I feel this is attainable.  I would also like to see some inches lost at this point as well.

I will do this!

Blah Blah Blahhhhh...

So after some days of feeling down... I think I've realized that the reason I'm feeling this stressed feeling is because I want to change so many things about me, the things I do day to day... not just healthwise, but my relationships.  Add in the aftermath of Christmas... and dealing with birthdays, lots of money going out of the bank and not enough coming in to cover all of it.  Yes!  I was freaking.  And yes, I was handling all of my stress with food. 

I do have to say... this is my first real attempt of being an active participant in losing weight.  And during this time I've been dealing with all the guilty feelings I have toward food now.  Prior to this.... straight denial.  I hate feeling like this regarding food, probably why I was in denial and why my clothes got smaller. 

I've also sort of realized I have no real goals, nothing truly keeping me accountable besides the scale and well I have to get things together.  Especially if I want to really fulfill the word of COMMIT I chose for this year.

A good thing that started at the New Year was that my company is now doing this Vitality Program.  Basically... it motivates you to be healthy... and live healthy with points that you can cash in on.  Right now, I really REALLY want this POLAR Heart Rate Monitor.  This thing costs over $100.00.  Thats a lot for me, but I know I need accurate numbers to stay accountable when it comes to calories burned, etc.  This is the thing I've been aching for and almost got... but put it back while at Academy the other night.  Then I sign up for this program through my job... and if I get to Platinum status with my points (which is 10,000) I can use those to get it!  Great idea to me... and if anything, true motivation.  So far with doing some online courses and educating myself on things more... I've earned 1325 points.  I think this is possible.  And you get points for exercise, or checking out/joining a gym, etc.  Even submitting preventative services to them.  And they have even more goodies on there to get. 

I think it boils down to me needing goals, small ones... and rewards.  So far... I have 90 days with the Vitality program to lose 13 pounds.  Definitely acheivable.  I'm going to think long and hard this weekend on these goals/rewards.... for the big long term goal.

Now back to my blah state of mind........ :) 

The truth is...

I'm not sure where my head is right now.  I guess I can say I'm totally off track on the whole weight loss thing.  And I'm having a hard time getting back on it.  Where's the drive, where's the motivation?  I really want to do this thing and get healthy... but I'm almost content with things.  Why?  I'm not sure.

Its like I don't want to deal with this right now.  Example >>> lack of not blogging as much.

The only good thing happening at this point is I'm still tracking my food.  I haven't gave that up.  Its the water intake (that I'm lacking more lately) and the total lack of exercise.  I know if I exercise, it will help this process even more.  I know what I'm suppose to be doing...... I know this, but why can't I just do it!

Ugggh... I hate this feeling.

Truth is... I'm stressed.  I can feel it finally catching up to me.  You would think it would cause the opposite but I'm noticing I am more snacky lately because of it.  I'm stuffing my stomach... knowing damn well, I'm not even hungry.  I'm arguing in my head....... and then I hit "f%*k it" mode.  Then I feel the guilt of it later.

This sucks.

Happy New Year, Weigh In, etc, etc...

First off I wanna...

Please don't be offended by the middle finger for the 1. LOL.

Now that thats out of the way.  We had a good New Year's Eve... spent it at home with the kiddos.  Fixed the kids some Pigs in a Blanket, chips and dip and the hubby hooked us up with some Garlic and Honey BBQ Wings.  Delicious!  The kids drank some sparking Red Grape juice and the hubby had his Big Peach soda with his Peach Ciroc.  No drinks for me, not much of a drinker.  I actually bought me these Strawberry Daquiri drinks from Walmart but didn't drink it.  And a couple of photos for your viewing pleasure....

My niece... ready for 2012.

Boogy was partying too.

Snuk and Naty... ringing it in.

As for weigh-in today... I weighed in at 209.4.  Which means I'm up by 1 pound.  Its all good because holidays are gone and its time to really focus and get thangs in gear (FOR REAL!) Oh how the scale is the devil, do you know when I first stepped on it this morning... it said 198.4.  Seriously.  I knew it was wrong.  Re-stepped and it was saying 198.8.  I knew that was impossible because to be honest, although I didn't eat horribly this past week... I knew I haven't been exercising or really focusing on what I've been eating.  However, I have got in some walking time since the new dog has come to live with us.  I actually enjoyed it.

After much thought and consideration, I do have a food scale... so I will be focusing more on weighing out my food portions.  I do think it will be in my best interest to successfully lose more weight to start preparing my lunches/dinners for the entire week... on Sunday's.  So I'm going to work on that tomorrow (since I'm off from work).  I also realize for me to get exercise time in... I will have to do it once I get home from work or else I won't do it.  Totally cut out the snacking as well.

In other great news... the Saints will be playing the Lions next Saturday in the first round of Play Off's.  I was so hoping for them to get 2nd seed but the 49er's pulled through.  Oh wells.  I'm so ready for another Super Bowl with them in it!  And the whole team has been doing so great this year.  Yes, I openly admit... I am a football fan!

Also we got the dog a new crate... its pretty nice and very spacious.  Found it on Craigslist for $70.00 and it typically goes brand new for $300.00.  I ended up having to leave Boogy for about 2-3 hours on Saturday... when we initially left, he was whining and started doing his deep bark.  But then I came back in and gave him a snack to focus on when we left.  I'm not sure if afterward he was barking or anything (hope not, due to our neighbors below).  But when we returned (because all I could think of while gone was that he was howling the entire time we were gone) he was actually quiet and asleep.  I hope this works while we're all at work/school this coming week.  Haha.  Oh and another good thing is him and Romeo (our big boy cat) are getting better around each other.... check out the pics today.

Romeo checkin Boogy out...

He was trying to share with Romeo.

He apparently thought this was a dog bed.  Lol.

Thats about it for me today......