Haven't posted on here in a few weeks, but things are going great. I'm finally starting to see losses again - wahoo! Didn't reach my goal of being under 155 for my birthday, but I'm getting pretty close now and I'm pretty sure I'll be there before Christmas.

I got a cool new thing for my birthday - a fancy schmancy insulated lunch bag. It's made by Elle and it looks like a pretty cool purse. I just LOVE it. My MIL bought it for me but I picked it out - hahaha. Though I probably should have picked one slightly bigger, it seemed big enough in the store, but once I start packing my containers it fills up pretty quick.

Here's a pic of it:

Got hit with a flu a week and a half ago and that knocked me out for a bit. Still struggling with congestion, which sucks! But I've continued to exercise and it actually makes me feel better when I do.

I'm happy the scale has started to move again, but to be honest I couldn't pinpoint a change I've made that has made it go. Maybe I truly was in a plateau and have moved through - let's hope!

I have been pretty diligent about being aware of my true hunger levels. I've had a few nights where instead of supper I've had some chopped up veggies and a cup of tea - but that's because I truly wasn't very hungry and just sort of felt like munching. And the other day I was having a MAJOR chocolate craving. I seriously spent about 15 minutes in Shoppers Drug Mart trying to decide what would be "worth it". I could not find something that I felt would be worth the indulgence and finally settled on a 100 calorie Cadbury Almond Thins bar (I love those). And it was just right!!! I really wanted super smooth chocolate over whole hazelnuts, but it wasn't there. So I decided to go for the small reasonable indulgence rather than wasting 5 (or more) points on something that I didn't truly want.

I've also had pasta quite a bit lately. I know, pasta, how can that be something to help move the scale? But not just any pasta! I love pasta, plain is really the best - and of course alfredo is pretty darn good too. Plain I could probably eat 3 or more cups without even blinking an eye. Now ... with a red sauce, not so much - it just becomes OK for me, the first few bites are great but the rest, bleh. My husband loves it though (and thinks I'm amazing even though I just pour on a jar of premade sauce). So a few weeks back I made it and just had a 1 cup portion. And I found that it feeds my carby, pasta craving, but because I don't absolutely LOVE the red sauce, I don't overeat it - but I still enjoy it! I've been experimenting with sauces and last night I found a super spicy sauce that is wonderful. I really enjoyed it, but again - after 1 cup I'm done and don't want anymore. Lasagna is the same for me, I like about a 1 or 2" square and after that I can't stand the taste. HAHA self-controlling foods - gotta love it.

Seems no one is around today - hmmm. Very quiet around all the boards/blogs that I visit. Figures since I'm bored out of my gazoo today!

Did my terrible three last night and saw some great improvements from 3 weeks ago.

Wall Sit - went from 2:30 to 4:00 minutes
Plank - went from 2:00 to 3:00 minutes
Push-ups went from 25 (angled against a picnic table) to 40 girly push-ups. Then later on (after I'd worked out for a while) I tried "real" push-ups and did 6 - though I think I could do better than that if I tried them before I got tired. Next time I'll just start with the real ones as it would seem I've mastered the girly ones.

Did the activity challenge last night of exercising through commercials. Did it through a 1/2 hour show earlier on in the afternoon, then through the entire 2 hours of Biggest Loser. WOW - that's alot of commercial time. It was actually kind of fun - even if the kids did think I was a bit nuts. Certainly didn't need to keep the fire stoked last night :)

I'm bound and determined to see a loss tomorrow. The last 2 days in a row have showed a gain though so I'm quite apprehensive. At this rate I don't know how I'll be under 155 for my birthday in just over 2 weeks. And I wanted under 150 by the new year. Wonder if there's a limb I could have removed - hahhahaha. It has to be water retention, though I can't feel or see it. I started doing some reading again on the South Beach Diet today. I tried it a couple years ago and couldn't really stick to it, but even what I did do I lost some, and I wasn't in the frame of mind that I am now. I "think" my diet is OK, but maybe that's the problem and I need to try something new. Always such a guessing game. I personally know a couple people who have done it and had amazing results, long term too. There's just a few things I don't completely agree with and struggle with. Seems that certain foods (like potatoes) are completely forbidden and I know that I wouldn't give them up. But maybe if I just did the 2 week Phase 1 to give myself a little boot ... I don't know .....

I hate the scale - hate it, hate it, hate it, hate it!!! GRRRRRRR!!!! Did I mention that I hate it? It's evil & nasty. They should install one in every prison cell just to drive the inmates crazy. ERGH!

I KNOW that daily weighing results in fluctuations, I'm OK with that. It does NOT derail me. But sometimes they just plain don't make sense.

Yesterday I ran in the morning outside, did some strength moves in the afternoon during commercial breaks, then in the evening I did a Bodysculpt class, lifted some weights and ran again. I drank lots of water. I ate very cleanly. And what do I wake up to this morning ... a 2.4 gain from the day before. ARGH - I just want to bang my head against the wall. How on earth can that be? I just know it better be gone - and soon - because I just won't stand for this!!! :)

I did however pull out the measuring tape today because I thought if I'm doing all this work and not seeing any change on the scale I darn well better be seeing some on the tape. At least I have a teensy bit of good news there as I did see 1/2" off my waist, 1" from under my bust and 1 1/2" over my bust. Though zippo from my belly, hips or thighs - which is where I'd really prefer to lose it. Hopefully that will come next. This is over the last 3 weeks so I guess I should be happy.

They say muscle weighs more than fat and that when you're putting on muscle your weight may not change - but they also say you only really put on a couple pounds of muscle. If that's the case then I must not be losing much fat and just putting on muscle - which also doesn't make sense to me.

All this said ... I'm not going to stop doing what I'm doing. I love exercising. I love the way it makes me feel. I know that I'm getting so many benefits from it - better skin, better immunity, more energy, more positive attitude about life and all that other good stuff. Same with my diet, I know it's healthy and I can feel the benefits from the changes I've adopted and I love that. So quitting is NOT in my agenda, even if the scale never budges. That doesn't mean I can't get frustrated from time to time though.

WOW, it's been a week since I've posted. Guess I've been too busy exercising! I had a great week and am feeling great. Done alot more strength training than I have in a long time and it really does tighten everything up.

Had a great dinner tonight of teriyaki chicken (my own yummy homemade sauce), rice & oriental cabbage salad (again, a homemade dressing). Mmmmm. After my workout I'm having a glass of milk and that will complete another great OP day!

This weekend I'm finally going to get to that salmon recipe I mentioned a couple weeks ago too.

I'm happy that I had a loss this week, but it was more a few days ago - so fingers are crossed and determination is in place to have an even better loss next week. I really want to be under 150 by the end of this year. And I certainly want to be under 155 for my birthday which is in just over 3 weeks. So 3.4+ lbs in 22 days - should be doable but I have to stay focused, determined & active!

Should have used the duct tape yesterday because after I got home from class my mouth lost control :(. And .. I didn't get in the extra minutes I needed so I ended up 30 min short for my weekly goal of 350 minutes.

So ...... today I had a wonderful OP day and felt really good. I think I was being too restrictive yesterday and it left me feeling unsatisfied. Tonight I had a wonderful dinner with Herb & Lime Sole Fillet, Brown Rice & Chinese Cabbage Salad with red peppers. Mmmm, mmmm, good! On top of that I made a HUGE batch of cookies (I have a certain extended relative who is nagging me to come through on a promise to send him cookies so I need to stockpile - haha) and my son made a batch of cookies and I only had ONE! YEAH - that's one of my goals to limit treats to once a day.

Also, I decided that my first 30 min of exercise from this week gets added on to last weeks minutes and I still have to do 350 for this week - so total 380 this week. I've got 30 down and plan to get lots in this weekend.

I've set up my activity challenge for this week which is creating the following strength routine:

♥ 3 sets x 12 squats with bicep curls, pulse between sets
♥ Push-ups - first set to fatigue, stretch then 2 sets x 10
♥ Wall Sit - 1 set to fatigue
♥ 3 sets x 12 front & lateral raises combined
♥ 2 sets x 15 Calf Raises - rotating foot position between sets
♥ Plank - first one to fatigue, stretch then do 1 more minute
♥ 5 min abs of various crunches

Though I know myself and once I get started on this I'll probably add some more - like tricep moves, inner/outer thigh, etc. But this is my bare minimum and I will do it at least 3 times this week.

This day hasn't been the greatest so far, though I suppose it is far, far from the worst - so for that I will be greateful. I sure am glad this is a short week though. And DH came home last night after being away for a week so I'm happy about that too.

Did some shopping yesterday and got a couple little things for Christmas. Also cleared out the Halloween decorations, and just like Wal-mart, put up a couple Christmas ones - haha. Just a couple, I swear! Though I think it may be fun to take out a couple every day until the end of the month.

DD has her final volleyball tournament today. She's very glad that it's over. Was fun at first, but it's not her thing other than the fun of hanging with friends.

I'm determined to reach my weekly goal of 350 minutes of exercise per week so that means I have to put in a little extra this evening to get there. The rain is holding off and it's just windy right now so I wouldn't mind getting out for a good 'ol power walk.

Been OP so far today and going to stay that way if I have to duct tape my mouth shut to get there! There really is no excuse for not being OP. I just have to make it happen.

After the run today we did weights and I made sure to test my fitness level with push-ups. I was able to do 25 on an angle against the picnic table. I'll be sure to test them the same way at the end of this challenge.

I'm thinking the rest of the day will be pretty lazy - other than some housework. Came home from the run, soaked to the bone, and had a nice long bath. Now I'm about to watch a movie, relaxing on the couch in front of the fire with a cup of peppermint tea. Ahhhh....... Maybe I'll even get a nap out of the deal. :)

Just got home from dinner out with some friends to celebrate a birthday. It went pretty good. I did have some of an appetizer that I didn't plan on having, but I paid attention to have a reasonable portion and not just gobble it up. Then ... and this I'm REALLY proud of .... I cut my meal directly in half and only ate half. Had the rest boxed up which I brought home and gave to my MIL. It was a spicy breaded chicken burger and fries, so not healthy, but I had it in an OK portion. I'm actually glad that my MIL ate the rest because I was already satisfied and really didn't need the leftovers. And I actually feel very full still (a couple hours after eating). I'm so glad I didn't eat more or I would have felt horrible right now.

Also did the wall sit today and got 2 min 30 sec. I really wanted to do a bit more but I'll work on that over this challenge and I WILL improve. For some people this would be a really good time, but I know I have pretty strong legs, and probably even stronger will & determination. I'm quite competitive with myself that way. Didn't help that I did it with socks on and my feet were slipping away from me. But to be honest I don't think that made too much of a difference really.

Also attempted to do the push-ups but my dog and one of MILs decided I looked like I was having too much fun without them and so they started to run around and roll underneath me. I got to 12 but had to keep pausing to wait until they ran out from under me and then they started licking my face and I couldn't stop laughing. So I abandoned that for now and will do it another time when I don't have little rodents underfoot. Figured under the current circumstances there was no use trying the plank either. :)

So here's the pics of before and after my haircut today. I swear I didn't mean to look as miserable as I do in my before pic. Just a matter of timing. And the camera moved just before it went off so it was sideways and my editing program isn't working. You can't really tell how long my hair was in the before pic but we cut quite a bit off, especially in the bang areas. Now the trick will be to see if I can style it on my own. :)


....... ............

Day 1 of the challenge was a success! (hey gotta celebrate every little success, right??!!) I did slightly break one of my rules by having 2 sweet treats yesterday, but I stopped myself before I went any further. And I followed all the other rules. Plus I got all my OP elements in.

Got a bunch of stuff to do today and with all the rain I don't even want to face 1/2 of them. UGH! If I could stay in the entire day today I would :). Well except getting my haircut - that I really want done - even if I have no idea how I want it cut. I just want a bunch off, sick of it hanging in my face. It's gotten way too long.

I recently read some things in that Kathy Smith book I've been reading. With everything I went through last month with ending that friendship I had, this really struck home:

"Our friendships are, in many ways, mirrors of who we are. The people we choose to surround ourselves with for fun and recreation, for companionship and company, reflect our values and interests."

"...you have the power to improve your life by changing your relationship to health and fitness - one step at a time. Let your feet lead the way. It doesn't matter what diets or programs you've failed at in the past. We'll leave them there, where they belong. Forget about any therapies or self-help groups you may have tried and abandoned for lack of success. Put aside your skepticism. All the evidence you need is right in front of you: Changing nearly every aspect of your life - becoming who you'd like to be - is as easy as making a choice. That's all. You can do it! You have the powed!"

"Achieving good healt and an optimum weight is not a concrete goal that can be reached as easily as multiplying two times two, because factors change constantly in our lives; we have to understand that the process is ongoing; it never ends. We're always fine-tuning and adjusting for circumstances."

"Just keep putting one foot in front of the other, one step at a time. Follow the program and good things will happen."

I love how she often refers to "one step at a time" which is what I've named my blog - hahha. But I really do believe in that. And I've really come to believe what she says about friendships being mirrors of who we are. I'm coming to understand that my weight management IS a life long process. There was a time when I wished/hoped/thought that I just needed to lose the weight and all would be fixed. I've often wished that I would just change and never have to think about it again. But history will tell me that it couldn't be any clearer that that isn't realistic. I will ALWAYS have to be aware, always have to stay active and pay attention to my weight and my health habits. That's just a fact of life and I may as well learn to enjoy it along the way, which I am doing.

New day, new challenge and I'm ready to GO, GO, GO!!! This weeks challenge involved identify what our nutritional challenge is and brainstorming 5 ideas to cope with it. After much thought I came up with this ....

Nutritional Challenge

Challenge: Limit foods that offer no nutritional benefit

1) Allow no more than one "special" coffee per week, plan for it and enjoy. This also includes the use of sweetened creams which I tend to abuse.

2) Allow no more than two servings of an alcoholic beverage (as in - 1 single serving bottle, 1 normal size glass wine) per week and can only be consumed on one day. Must count points!

3) No purchasing unhealthy foods, or foods that are a challenge for me, from the bulk bins. (i.e. swedish berries, pretzels, chocolate covered almonds, dried pineapple …. )

4) Limit servings of sweet treats to maximum one per day. They will be there another day to enjoy.

5) Lots of baking planned for Christmas (gifts, etc.). Always chew gum while baking and package as soon as possible and put away. Refer to item #4 for limits to consumption.

I plan to put this to the test this weekend as I begin my jump on Christmas baking. As well, there's a chance we may be going out for a friends birthday this weekend and I know I'll be challenged with drinks and quite possibly fried foods and lots of other unhealthy choices. So I need to make choices that are good for me. I want to take this next step and continue down the path I've been going for this past year and I'm ready to committ to moving forward.

Another part of this week's challenge is to set 3 goals for the next 3 weeks. Mine are:

1) Log at least 350 minutes of exercise each week

2) Run the "loop" twice on my Sunday run with two or less stops

3) Make a recipe using salmon which I enjoy but keep putting off


I need to push myself a little bit harder. I've been close on the exercise, but not always consistent and I need to be consistent. For the 2nd item I really wanted to set my goal to run the loop twice without stopped, but then I thought about it. The groups I run with does intervals, usually 10-15 minutes run & 1 minute walk. I could go on without them, but to be honest I wouldn't want to be too far ahead of them on the trail all by myself. Though once I'm fit enough to run the whole thing I'm pretty sure I could convince a couple of the girls to run straight through with me.

And item #3 is just something I've been wanting to do for a while. I LOVE salmon but always put off cooking it because it's a bit more expensive than other meats and the kids won't eat it. But I've been drooling over a couple recipes for a few years and really need to give it a whirl. I could probably modify these recipes, but I think I might just save up the points and have them as is and enjoy them full flavour in a reasonable portion. I'll probably be deciding between these three recipes:

Grilled Salmon with Habanero Lime Butter

Teriyaki Grilled Salmon

Spinach Stuffed Salmon Fillets

I don't think I could possibly feel more pumped this morning. Had a crappy sleep, but eventually woke to find wonderful, glorious, beautiful sun shining in the window and a light dusting of frost had touched the earth. Ahhh, so serene! Being on the "wet" coast and it being November - these days are few and far between.

Then I came into work, turned on the comp., checked the WW's site and saw that I am teamed up with an amazing group of ladies for the next challenge. I just feel revved up and ready to go!!! Some thinking to do for this weeks challenges, but I'm looking forward to them.

Tonight is another Boot Camp - woohoooo!!!!

Got a bunch of stuff done last night on a project I'm working on for Christmas. I've been planning this for some time and am actually doing it now and I think I'll really get it done in time. Hoping it turns out well.

Still working on my list of goals and will publish as soon as I think they're done.

End of the OP challenge and I'm happy to report that I ended with a loss! WOOHOO - not an amazing loss, but a loss nonetheless. It was starting to look like I might end the challenge weighing more than when I'd started so for this I am happy. Over the 9 weeks I lost a grand total of 0.6 pounds :). But hey, better down than up - right?! I refuse to see any negative in this.

Actually I feel pretty good these days. Last week was tough. I think Sat morning I was actually up to 161 and this morning I was 158.8 so that was really good. Been catching up on my sleep a bit too which probably helps.

Got a call from the local TOPS leader last night. I wanted to start this week but they're having a weigh in only meeting due to another group needing the room they use tonight. So I'll start with them next week. At least check it out and see how it makes me feel. Will have to run it by some friends to see if anyone is interested in joining in (don't want to get in heck again for not letting everyone know - haha). Anyhow, the leader sounded quite nice on the phone and gave me pretty much all the info I wanted without me having to ask so I take that as a good sign. She said alot of their members follow weight watchers because it really is a great plan. That was nice to hear as I think I'd like to stick with that because I know it does work.

I've been reading an old book by Kathy Smith - Getting Better All the Time. I've had it on the bookshelf for years but only ever read bits and pieces. But I picked it up the other day and took it in the bath and actually started at the beginning and really read it. She's got some really good stuff in there!

I'd say the most striking for me, at this moment in my life, was a part she has that addresses the different options for the make-up of your diet. Higher protein, higher carb, higher fat, lower fat, lower carb .... She shows 3 different pie charts showing different approaches you can take, and has meanu ideas for each. I've loosely been following the idea of the slightly higher protein one because with the things she had listed there it sounded like this might be a bit more ideal for me. And I've been thinking for a while that I need to incorporate a bit more protein in my life - especially with all the activity and weight training that I do. Will have to see how this goes over time, but I think it's a positive change to try.

WOW, Boot Camp was amazing last night! Especially these tricep lifts we did. They way the instructor described how to do it finally hit home with me and I was able, for once, to really target those wobbly wings back there. I can sure feel them this morning.

Still feeling exhausted and desperately need some more sleep. But I feel like I'm turning a corner and I'm feeling more positive than I have in a few days now. I even had the 'out of left field' thought that there's 2 more days left in this month and then November will be my month. Not sure where that came from or why I think November will be the turn around, but it's there. Here's hoping that I'm right. Alot has happened this month and I'm thinking that that is being put behind me and it's time to move on.

Today my husband and I have officially been "together" for 20 years. We met Oct 27th at my high school dance when I was 15 and he was 19. We both liked to jive dance (odd but it was kind of the thing at school at the time) and we were both good. My (male) friend/dance partner had asked him to show us some moves and we were really good together so he asked me to a dance that weekend - neither of us had interest in dating the other. But we went to the dance, had alot of fun, a few slow dances ... and here we are 20 years later! Hard to believe that much time has passed.

Got my bread all made last night - 6 loaves! Baked two - sliced one for eating this week and just wrapped up the other. The other 4 I packaged up and put in the freezer. Except ... in the middle of the night it suddenly dawned on me why I should have shapped them approximately into a loaf before I froze them. But I packaged them flat, so maybe have to make them into buns or something after I defrost. I'm really getting into this make ahead cooking, though I'm far from organized with it yet.

Did a nice walk with the german shepherd Heike last night. Sure is different taking such a big dog - when she sees something that piques her interest I really have to hang on! But she loves to get out and I'm glad to take her.

Someone ... please ... shoot me! I can not believe I gained again this week and am officially just over my starting weight from a challenge I started 8 weeks ago. This is insane! My journal is 100%! I get tons of APs! I've checked, and rechecked my points/journal/APs to make sure I'm not missing something. I'm not undereating either. As far as I can tell I am a WW's poster child right now. And if my measurements mean anything I haven't gained muscle and lost fat. Though I didn't check my body fat from beginning to now - mostly because in that aspect I believe my scale is a liar and very inaccurate.

So VERY frustrating!!!!

Anyhow, did a nice long walk with a friend last night while our boys were at soccer. Walked with her for about an hour and when she had enough I continued walking by myself for another hour. Weather was so nice for a fall night!

Also, my husband picked up 20 lbs of chicken yesterday so when I got home from work I took all the skin off the drumsticks, chopped up some of the chicken breast tenders into stir-fry pieces, and washed up the remaining - then packaged them all up into seperate baggies with varying marinades and stuck them in a freezer. For under $30 I put together 10 (or maybe 11) meals. Gotta love that price!! Made some of my homemade teriyaki -mmm so good and put that in a bunch of them, plus fajita marinade, sundried tomato, spicy thai chili, & honey garlic. My son wants me to do ribs too in the teriyaki.

Have to make some more bread tonight too! Look at me - Miss Domestic :).

So looking forward to lunch today. I love Subway's roasted chicken breast salad (and sandwich), especially with the honey mustard dressing - mmmm. I had leftover grilled chicken so this morning I chopped it up, along with all the salad fixings - and I mixed up a batch of honey mustard dressing using fat free mayo (mmm - so good). I can't wait for lunch!!

Trying hard to ignore the scale reading from this morning and move forward. I did avoid going on it for most of last week and even though that didn't work for me for this weigh in, I think I'll try it for this whole week and see how it goes. I'm getting desperate to try anything - haha.

What a crazy weekend. Felt like I never stopped doing something and it's actually hard to remember everything I did and everyone I saw - haha. I think that's a good thing.

I made bread this weekend, which I haven't done in a long time. A friend of mine, who is also in a financial crunch, said she's been doing that for a while and I thought it was a great idea. It wasn't the healthiest recipe, it was kind of a halfway healthy recipe with oats and some whole wheat flour - but the family liked it. I'm going to seek out some better recipes though and can always make different types. I'd like to freeze some dough and then when you want it you just take it out and leave it in the fridge and I can bake it to have with dinner.

Went to the Women's Show Saturday night. Been going for years and it's always a good time - though I think next time I'll go on Friday like I normally do because the freebies are SO much better. Ran into an old friend who's son went to school/soccer with my son when they were little. He's a firefighter and was part of the firefighter calendar fashion show they had there. So that was pretty cool seeing someone I know doing that.

Also, they had a TOPS booth at the show and I spent a couple minutes talking to the lady there. She gave me some good info but seriously they need to find someone a little more inspiring to man their booth. And when I mentioned that I was thinking of going to my friend that was with me she completely surprised me and said she would be interested in checking it out too. I didn't expect that as I've never really witnessed this friend being interested particularily in health/nutrition/weight loss. So I mentioned it to another friend the next day and she too may be interested. In a way I'm happy these ladies want to come along, but I also had kind of wanted to go into this on my own to get started. Not sure how to explain that - I like the idea of going with friends, but I guess I wanted it to be just about me and not feel like a group activity. The group things are great, but sometimes I feel that if your friends drop off it's almost harder to keep going. Anyhow, I'm happy for them that they want to try this too. I have to phone the lady about it today.

Sunday morning I went out with my "running" group, except I walked with two other ladies this week. I just didn't have it in me to run this weekend and really enjoyed our walk. We went on a different trail and it was quite hilly - also quite slippery and lots of things to trip over so I'm glad I walked.

Sorted out some things with that friendship I ended and stayed up really late writing her back on Saturday night (which will leave me tired for a few days). People have said I'll feel better once it's behind me. Part of me does feel better for getting it out, but it's never nice to end a friendship. Even though I can't be friends with her doesn't mean that I wanted to hurt her feelings - which how do you not when you're telling someone you don't want to be friends with them anymore.

It was hard to do, very, but I've now done the first step to dealing with my "situation". Ending a long time friendship that had gotten kind of toxic. A little afraid of what the fallout will be. I don't doubt there will be some kind of backlash.

I actually wonder how much this situation, and the stress from our current financial situation due to our relatively new company, affects my weight. You always hear that stress can be a factor, but I've always thought that was for "other" people, that I'm stronger than that. But maybe I'm wrong, who knows.

I've never thought of myself as an emotional eater, and still don't. I know that recently my eating has been OK, but yet I'm still not losing, and occasionally gaining - so could it be stress related???

I sent an e-mail to the area coordinator for TOPS. I haven't decided for sure if I'll go or not. She gave me the phone number of the chapter leader for more info. I like the idea of the groups and the "games", I just don't know if it will be what I need. Not sure when I'll decide on this.

I'm feeling so frustrated today. :( I feel like I'm working so hard and just not getting any results. Some days I can suck it up and appreciate all the other benefits of a better lifestyle. Other days (like today) I just want to bang my head against a wall until either it breaks, or I do. This week was pretty darn good, very active and mostly OP. And the 2 days that I wasn't 100% OP, I wasn't way off either. I certainly was within my weekly extra points allowance. So by all means I should be losing.

If it were just a week here or there it wouldn't bother me, but this just keeps dragging on. Obviously I must be doing something wrong - I just can't pinpoint it. ARGH!

I find myself laying blame that I didn't work out last night. Realistically though missing one workout shouldn't make a difference. I was exhausted and knew my body needed the rest, and I stayed OP.

I don't know ... guess I'll just keep plugging away. I DO know what giving up does - it makes me fatter, and I don't want to go there. I'll just have a little pity part for a while :(.

Today is also a bit of a stressful day because I have to face a situation with someone that I've been avoiding for a while now and can no longer avoid. It must be done, but it doesn't mean I have to like doing it. I know what I have to say will hurt her, but it's not fair to leave her wondering what's going on. I need to have the strength to stick to what I feel and be honest.

OMG Yesterday was SO much fun. Went out with the family and some great friends. We took 2 double seater ATVs and 4 dirtbikes and went up some backroads. What a gorgeous fall day and so wonderful to be out with friends, family & fresh air! It was my son's first time out on the trails on a dirtbike and he had two crashes, one where he got pretty banged up. He was taking it easy but experience can sometimes be a bit expensive to obtain. Got in quite a bit of activity though because there was lots of technical areas where most of us had to get off and hike up the steep, rocky terrain (even the dog ☺). Poor hubby bore the brunt of it as he had to keep running down the mountain and bring up the bikes for those of us who didn't have the ability to do so.

I also dragged my butt out of bed early in the morning and went out for a long jog/walk. It was SO foggy, but lots of people were out and I actually really enjoyed myself. I didn't connect with my running girls in time and they had gone to another location, so I was by myself.

I'm really struggling with a few things that I have been pondering. I've been working out - ALOT! I'm not complaining, I quite enjoy it and I really do feel so much better when I'm exercising regularily. And my eating, while far from 100% really hasn't been horrible overall. Yet I'm not losing weight. I've been bouncing within a 4 lb range for a good 6 weeks now. I've had some really bad days, sometimes a couple in a row. But overall it's been decent and I should be at least losing a little. I'm really not sure what is going on.

It's got me thinking that maybe I need to look a bit more at what I'm eating. Maybe it's that I'm not getting enough protein. On my "off" days I know I'm getting very little, if any, protein and no milk (another high protein food). And I've been doing alot of weight bearing activities lately, so maybe I'm not feeding my muscles properly. I'm definitely feeling the effects of my exercise. And I can't buy into the argument that I've gained muscle which weighs more - because I'm not noticing any real change in how my clothing fits, in fact some things I think are a bit tighter. I'm definitely retaining water, every day I have deep grooves at my sock lines. Yet I'm drinking lots of water and I don't think I've changed anything with sodium intake.

It just gets so frustrating at times, though I'm nowhere even close to consider giving up and returning to old habits. Even if I'm not losing weight, I'm not gaining, and I feel great!

Stayed OP today - yeah!!! Was pretty busy too though so it wasn't exactly hard. We're refinishing our garage and I had to screw on the cedar boards. My one arm is so sore - from fingers to the entire shoulder. DS had a soccer game this morning too and came SO close to scoring a good goal - he's just starting to play forward after many years in defense.

I was really proud of myself for part of yesterday. I was busy doing my OAMC in the morning/early afternoon. Then DH called up some friends and invited them over to play Scrabble last night. So my plans to work out in the evening were shot. But ... rather than just let it go at that, I dragged (yes, literally dragged) my butt downstairs and hopped on that treadmill. Though, what an awful workout.

Usually I enjoy working out. Sometimes I hate the first few minutes, but then I get going and I remember what I love about it. But yesterday I just couldn't get there. I cursed every step I took, hating every second - but knowing that I needed it. I managed to get 30 min of running and 45 walking - so I guess it was OK.

Bad thing about yesterday was DH bought these Butter Toffee peanuts and they kept finding their way into my hands. At something like 250 calories per 1/3 cup it was pretty ugly. I swore off of them today though.

Tomorrow we're hoping to go out with some friends on our ATVs and dirtbikes, which will be alot of fun AND a non-food activity! Gotta love those. And I'll do my Sunday morning run with the girls too. That should keep me away from mindless snacking for the day. Let's hope for good weather tomorrow!!

Will come back to update in a bit - off to pick up DS.

Just wanted to make note of this website I came across today. Not exactly weight loss related, but rather just some ways to be a bit more organized, plus save money. I'm always a bit interested in Once A Month type cooking. I've dabbled in it a bit, but never really gotten serious. Here's the website, to be looked over more in depth later .... http://www.frugal-moms.com/

Had a great day yesterday. Ate within points, got in 50 minutes of exercise, and really pushed it by running faster on the treadmill. I used to always run at about 6.0 mph and have been struggling with that. I started wtih 5.0, but then (as per usual) I got competitive with myself and decided I wanted to do 4 miles in 40 minutes. So that meant I had to step it up. I moved up to 6.0 mph, then 6.5, then 7.0 and for the last bit did 8.0 (phewf that one was hard). But then I went back to 7.0 and it seemed almost easy. And ... I got 4 miles done in just under 40 minutes.

Not sure what the heck is going on with the scale. I was 158.0 yesterday morning, ate really well, exercised. Before bed I weighed myself and was 159.0, normally that would ensure a loss by the morning as I usually lose around 2 lbs overnight. But, when I got up I was 159.4 - so I gained 1.4 from the previous morning and .4 while I was sleeping. How the heck does that happen??? I'm baffled. I actually asked my husband if he happened to notice me get up and go eat something in the night, which of course I didn't - haha. GRRRRR, so frustrating. I'm not going to get hung up on it because I'm sure it's just some stupid unexplainable fluctuation. It's just annoying, that's all.

I sure got those APs this weekend. It was tough work, but had to be done, and certainly challenged me. Last night I also ran on the treadmill for 80 minutes (well 82 to be exact) - 7 miles, and 840 calories burned (according to the machine). Did not eat the greatest yesterday, but could have been worse and with my earned APs I only went over my daily allowance a little bit.

Goals for this week are:

1) once again do a minimum of 30 minutes of exercise every day

2) although I'm allowed 35 extra points per week, I don't lose when I dip too far into those. This week I won't allow more than 10 extra points.

3) Per the OP Challenge - do something nice for myself. I'm going to try to book some time at the spa. I need to use up my gift certificate soon anyway. Alternatively I'll either book a haircut, or just buy myself a magazine and relax with some candles and a nice cup of tea.

4) Per the OP Challenge - push myself harder in my workouts. I've been doing this for the last week but I'll push harder. This week I'll log more running time than walking. At Boot Camp class I'll push myself a bit harder, especially during the cardio portion. And at Bodysculpt and Abs, Butts & Thighs class I'm going to add another riser to the step portion.

5) Make stir fry at least once this week. I find this is a really good meal to keep my evening points in control.

6) Maximum 3 meals to be bought this week, even if they are healthy like Subway. Eating out is a waste of money and most of the time it's healthier to make my own meals.

Today will be a challenge to get my exercise in. My daughter has a volleyball game after school that I'm driving some of her friends to, and then tonight I have a soccer meeting, plus I really want to watch 90210 - heehee. But I'll fit it in somehow!

It was so nice out yesterday that I just couldn't hang out in the house and I went for a nice long walk before my Boot Camp class. Class was good too. We did some of it outdoors which was great. Love the fresh air and the cool temps of fall.

Apparently I could get in lots of APs this weekend as we just had two big trees taken down on our rental property and we have to go clean it all up. I just hope the rains stay away because I'm not into working out there in the rain. But what must be done, must be done. The tenants are crazy about their yard and won't want it left sitting there.

Didn't sleep well last night and am dog tired today. Got up too late and didn't have time to make lunch or breakfast so have to eat out for those meals, but will chose wisely. Breakfast was McD's english muffin and a fruit & yoghurt parfait without the granola. I'm thinking lunch will either be a subway sandwich or salad (depending on today's deal) and of course my massive container of veggies. Not a clue what dinner is, will have to stop at the store on the way home. Chicken Stir-fry or Beef & Broccoli would be good though to get in my oil for the day. Finish it all off with a Chai tea while watching So You Think You Can Dance and that will be a good day!

Tuesday - 120 minutes of exercise - WAHOOO!!!!

60 min walk with Tia
60 min Boot Camp class

Points eaten - 25
AP Earned - 6 (or more??)
OP day - YES, again!

Tuesday Exercise - 70 min walk with the German Shepherd. I haven't taken her out in a long time and she was pretty good. Only almost knocked me off my feet once when I was standing on the side of the road talking to my husband and she saw a cat in a yard and ran after it. :) And she's also a heck of a lot stronger than my little dog.

Points eaten - 24
AP Earned - 4
OP day - YES!

Been having some great OP days lately, unfortunately the other days are so OFF OP that I don't even want to think about them. It really is important for me to journal everything, EVERYday!

I've prepared my written journal for every day for the next week and really don't want to leave any ugly, empty pages. I've also pre-planned my exercise for the week as our mini challenge is to get at least 30 min every day. So here's what I have planned:

Tue - 30 min running & 30 min walking on treadmill
Wed - 60 min Boot Camp class
Thu - 30 min running on treadmill & 30 min weights
Fri - 60 min Abs, Butt & Thighs class & 30-60 min walk (hopefully outdoors if weather is OK)
Sat - 30 min run on treadmill & 60 min walk outdoors
Sun - 90 min hike up local mountain or running with group (hoping for the mountain)
Mon - 60 min Bodysculpt class (if it's on) & 30 min walk on treadmill

Even though I have the gym at home, I'm finding that taking the fitness classes pushes me a little bit harder to do things I might avoid when working out on my own. I'm really hoping that our running group goes hiking this weekend. It may be one of the last weekends that the trail is open for this year as the frost/snow could be coming soon.

Went shopping today and bought a nice new pair of pants and two tank tops. While I'm nowhere near my ideal weight, I still feel so much better about shopping now than I did a year ago. Things actually look OK and I'm not so disgusted with myself. The pants I got are a little bit snug, but still reasonable for wearing in public. I'm hoping they inspire me to work that much harder (ya know like on The Last 10 Pounds Bootcamp show). They're also a bit too long, which is normal for me, so I'll have to get them hemmed.

Yesterday and today are not OP days :(. Yesterday I was within points but had sandwiches for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Just happened that way and didn't allow for enough of the right stuff. Too many things going on and not any preplanning. Today I'll be a little over points and don't have any milk in yet. Though I haven't had dinner yet and could just have 2 cups of milk and a bunch of raw veggies, that just might do the trick - hmm it's a possiblity. I still have to workout tonight too.

I just have to post a link to this post on another blog http://doinitforme.blogspot.com/2008/09/weigh-in-process.html. So funny, and scary how true that I do alot of those things (not all) before I have an official weigh-in.

Last night was Boot Camp and I'm LOVING it!!! Hopefully I'm not as stiff this week. I just love doing so many different things and challenging my body in different ways. I've been so bored with the typical step class and such that I've taken on and off for years. This really inspires me to get out there and try new things.

Hmm, let's see, we did (among other things like alot of sprints): Burpees, push-ups with an elastic band across our upper back for resistance, planks, jumping jacks, combination tricep curl/bicep curl with opposing arms while balancing on one foot, "axe-chopping" while on one foot, lat raises with an elastic, overhead presses, bent arm lateral raises, inner/outer thigh raises (with a weight on mid thigh), and a variety of ab exercises for upper and lower abs.

I'm so glad I'm already signed up in the next session. If they add another day of it that I can attend I'd love to. Definitely worth the $6 per class.

Also tried another new recipe last night. It was OK, but not outstanding. I wanted it to have more flavour and I certainly didn't find it spicy at all. Perhaps some hot sauce or cayenne might do the trick, or more garlic. Should probably just be called Marinated Pork Chops. Original recipe called for chili sauce, not powder, but I didn't have any - maybe that makes a different.

SPICY MARINATED PORK CHOPS

3/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon chili powder
3 cloves of garlic, minced
5 large pork chops

In a large resealable bag, mix together the soy sauce, lemon juice, brown sugar, chili powder, and garlic. Place the pork chops into the bag, carefully seal the bag, and marinate for 6-12 hours in the refrigerator. Turn the bag over about halfway through.

Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat. Grill 5 to 7 minutes on each side.

Mmmm, made a meatloaf recipe from Weight Watchers last night. So good! The family loves this one (other than my picky son). I've adapted it a bit from the original recipe.

MEATLOAF

1/2 c. Ketchup
1/2 c. BBQ Sauce
1/4 c. Minced onion
4 Green Onions - chopped fine
3 garlic cloves - crushed
1 tbsp. Brown sugar
Salt & Pepper
2 Large egg whites or 1 whole egg
1 1/2 lb. Ground Beef
1/2 c. Quick-cooking oats
1/4 c. Ketchup
1/4 c. BBQ Sauce
Cooking spray

Combine 1/2 cup ketchup, 1/2 c. BBQ sauce, onions, garlic, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and egg in a large bowl; stir well. Add meat and oats; stir just until blended. Shape mixture into a 8x4-inch loaf on a broiling pan coated with cooking spray.

Brush remaining 1/4 c. ketchup & 1/4 c. BBQ Sauce over meat loaf

Bake at 350 for 1 hour and 10 minutes or until done. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

Also I have two new food finds - All Bran Bars new flavours - Cinnamon Oatmeal and Chocolate Chip - both 2 pts per bar. Personally I find the Cinnamon Oatmeal absolutely amazing - and the kids love them too. I dipped it in my tea and it felt sinful. Just had the Chocolate Chip one and it's definitely good, but if given a choice I'd take the other one first. The Chocolate Chip one is probably better dipped too.

Tonight is my Boot Camp class. I sure hope that I recover better this week. I've been pretty active so I'm hoping that helps.

Weigh in day ... and I'm down 0.2. Not outstanding by any means, but I'm down so I'll take it.

Did a long walk last night - 90 minutes. Found a steep hill and went up and down it a couple times, that was a pretty good workout! Though I think next week I'll find a safer place to walk because the last 20 min of my walk was in almost complete dark, other than the odd streetlight, and not in a safe area..... and I was wearing all black. Not the smartest thing I've done this week and I won't do it again.

Also made pumpkin pie last night and was so proud of myself for only having one small slice and still being within my daily points target - well below if you factor in the exercise.

My parents are coming into town this week. I think we'll have the WW's meatloaf for dinner one night, and I'd like to try a recipe for Spicy Marinated Pork Chops another night. I'll post the recipes after I've made them. The meatloaf is good for sure. I also have a recipe for Tandoori Chicken that I'm eager to try, but not sure if my parents would be into that.

It's coming up to one year since I've been successfully losing weight again. I'd really like to be down 20 lbs, so that would be 2 for this next week. I think I could pull it off. 20 lbs doesn't seem like much in a year, but I'm actually quite happy that it's going slowly. I have a history of losing a bunch quickly, then putting it back on. This way it's more like a definite, long term, change of lifestyle and doesn't feel like I'm either on program, or off. I have off days, sometimes many in a row, but not off weeks or months like I did before.

Well didn't I disappear off the face of the earth - haha. Not sure why I never got around to posting this weekend.

Friday went to gymnastics with the kids and had actually a pretty amazing workout. I haven't been in a while and was worried because I was (and still am) a bit stiff from the boot camp class. But I think it actually helped to loosen me up a bit.

Yesterday I made the Sesame Chicken recipe that I posted. It was OK, not outstanding but definitely worth a try. I think it needs more flavour but I can't think of what. I marinated it for about 4 hours or so, it should have gotten the flavour in that time. Then I broiled it in the oven. It may have been slightly overcooked as the family wasn't all present when it was ready, but it was the flavour that wasn't quite enough.

I also made an amazing apple pie last night, mmmm..... from apples off our tree, so yummy. I managed to only have one forkful of pie, but I do have a very odd weakness for dough, yes even disgusting pie dough and that's a bad one, so unhealthy. But at least I didn't have a full slice of pie as well. And I probably ate a whole apple while in the process of slicing them up, they're so sweet and good.

Had a great workout last night. 60 min of running (in 30 min intervals) with 30 min of weights and ab work in between sets. I was going to do 10 min intervals interspersed with weights, but I felt good so kept going and next thing I knew I was at 30. Pretty proud of that.

My parents are coming into town this week so I may have to seek up some new recipes to try while they're here.

Class was pretty good last night. Though, while it wasn't easy, I would have liked it to be a bit harder. Did a variety of sprints/runs alternated with some strength moves - push-ups, burpess (OMFG!!), planks. Did some lunges, a ton of squats and the move that is killing me today - outer thigh abduction ... ouch! Then did a bunch of different weights and sit-ups. I haven't done squats for a long time and actually missed them(that sounds weird even to my ears). I think I'll perform my own boot camp class at home at least one other day per week as I like the basic idea of it and the variety of mixing things up.

Made a yummy veggie pasta salad this morning for lunch (which I'm eagerly waiting for heehee). And I've been looking for some new ideas for dinners. Going to try this one this weekend:

Sesame Chicken Strips

6 Chicken Breasts, 4 oz each, cut into thin strips
2 tblspn. sesame seeds

MARINADE
½ c. chicken broth
2 tblspn. soya sauce
4 tsp sesame oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons fresh ginger, grated
½ tsp ground coriander
few drops hot pepper sauce
¼ c. finely chopped parsley
¼ c. finely chopped green onion

Combine the marinade, add the chicken and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least 15 minutes (or longer for more flavour).

Preheat broiler. Drain the chicken & discard the marinade. Sprinkle chicken with sesame seeds.

Broil 4" from the heat for 3 minutes. Turn and broil for 3 to 5 minutes more, or until the chicken is no longer pink.

You could do this with whole chicken breast too, but I’d think you’d want to marinate it longer to get the flavour infused. You could also thread it onto skewers if you wanted, make sure to soak them in cold water first if using wooden skewers.

I also have a hankering for Grilled Tomatoes (like you get at the Keg) topped with olive oil, salt & pepper, some parmesan cheese and maybe cilantro or oregano. Mmmm - so good!

Wearing my new jeans and fitted sweater today and not only are they comfy but I feel pretty good wearing them. WAHOO!! Hubby gave me a hug this morning and said I felt slimmer - hahha. Sad thing is he probably could tell as he's very intune to minor changes which can be a good thing and a not so good thing depending on which direction it's going.

Did pretty good last night. I only drank water, and a ton of it - at least 3, maybe 4 500 mL bottles. And I snacked on alot of veggies with very minimal dip. But I did have a few of those greasy (yummy) spring rolls and a couple deep fried cheese sticks. All in all though I kept it manageable.

I was really proud of one thing though. My SIL brought up her annual cookie exchange that I've participated in for years. And a few years I've done my own as well. When she mentioned it I immediately said I'm not participating in it. I think she was surprised, but I just know that every year it's a problem for me. I can not handle having that much variety of delicious baking around me. Plus having to bake 12 or 14 dozen (or whatever it ends up being) means in my house I have to bake about 25 dozen because my family eats so much of it. I know they'll still want me to do some baking but I'll do it just for us. Besides, they usually prefer my stuff anyway so this will be better.

I need to get some more variety in my meals. I'm starting to feel a bit stagnant. Part of the problem is I need to go shopping and I'm not in town as much as I used to be and hate to drive in just for shopping. But I really do need to do it soon.

Excited to start my new class tonight!! I hope it turns out to be as good as I'm hoping and I don't get disappointed. It's only 6 weeks though for this first session so I can see how I feel and decide if I want to do the 2nd one or not.

Down 2.2 this week!!! WAHOOOOOOO!!!!

Last night I ran for 40 min on the track and walked 50 minutes. There was a Cardio Core Boot Camp class going on in the inner circle while I was running. Looks like a pretty tough class, but fun. They sure used alot of equipment.

Also got a call last night that the Boot Camp class I wanted to go in (that we were waitlisted for) has added another class. So YEAH we are going to do that class instead of the Kickboxing one. I'm quite happy about that. Plus it saves me a whopping $6 and change so that's all good.

Tonight my SIL is having one of those home party things so I have to stay strong with all the appy's (a big weakness for me). I've already decided though that I will not drink wine tonight. It's just wasted points which I'd rather save for other occassions. Will get myself a big glass of water instead and enjoy a few of the appy's in reasonable amounts.

Didn't get around to posting this weekend. Friday I went out shopping all day and had a blast. Bought a bunch of things for the house AND some clothes!!! I HATE buying clothes. I even bought jeans which is amazing because I can never find them that fit. The ones I got are too long, but otherwise they fit pretty good. And I got a nice brown sweater and a really comfy, silky short sleeve top. The top is quite different from something I normally wear, but I like it, and it feels so good. The two tops were mediums, they're a bit snug but not horribly so. I didn't want to get the large, since I'm shrinking and all - heehee.

Saturday my son had his second soccer game of the season and it was horrible and I actually kind of felt depressed for a while afterwards. I sure hope things will turn around for the team otherwise this will be a tough, tough year (again). Had a relaxing evening at home, ate too much but accounted for it all and just used up some flex points. Watched that movie What Stays in Vegas - that's pretty funny, predictable, but funny and cute. I like Ashton and Cameron and thought they were good together.

Sunday I was supposed to do the Terry Fox run but M had to cancel to do yard work and my son decided not to come, so I didn't feel like going alone. I probably should have, but actually I didn't sleep all that well that night and slept in which felt really, really good! Then I got a whole bunch of housework done and attempted to cut the lawn until the stupid mower had a problem. I did get on the treadmill last night though and my love of running is just increasing like crazy again.

La Tortilla Factory Wraps

Oh My Heaven ... yesterday at the produce store I found some wraps that are amazing!! In fact, they appear too good and I'm very skeptical. They're made by La Tortilla Factory and one wrap is 100 calories, 3 g fat and 12 frickin' grams of fibre. Not to mention 9g of protein which is nothing to shake a stick at. I calculated them at 1 point with a 4g fibre cap. But, seriously.... I can't believe that so I'm counting them as 2 points for safety sake. I've used one today to make a wrap sandwich for lunch. It's Tomato Basil Flavour and I filled it with ham, romaine lettuce, tomato, cilantro (YUM!) and then 1 tblspn of light ranch dressing mixed with Louisana Hot Sauce for a kick. It looks so pretty - heeheee. They're kinda expensive - 4.59 for 6 wraps, but I'm hoarding them from the family.



I've discovered a few things in the last 24 hours. One - rice from my rice cooker is a challenge food. I have a hard time stopping with a single serving and will need to be more diligent with that. Two - Maple & Brown Sugar Oatmeal is too sweet for my tastes now. I'm going to have to start with regular and flavour it myself with less sugar. Too bad because I love the stuff as an easy and quick breakfast. The next one I've known for a while but rediscovered last night ... Three - A big warm cup of tea in the evening, especially if it's Chai made with just a splash of milk, is really satisfying and much better than munching and it really does stop a craving for something sweet. Especially when you don't really have anything sweet in the house and the alternative is to just eat your way through the cupboard until you do find something.

So my new runners are amazing! 30 min run (in 8 min intervals) on the treadmill last night and they felt fantastic. I left the run until LATE, didn't start until 10:40. But, as usual, I slept fantastic afterwards, I think I'm lucky that way.

The Boot Camp class is full - overfull. Including me and M, there are 11 people on a waitlist. Would be nice if they'd add another class. We're signed up for the 2nd session though which starts Oct 29th. And in the meantime I'm going to sign us up for Kickboxing Boot Camp. Kinda scared about the Kickboxing portion but want to give it a try. It's only 7 classes, though we'll probably only take 6 because the last class overlaps with the first class of the other session (same date & time - different location).

And I've decided to go ahead and do the Terry Fox Run this weekend with the girls. It's on our "normal" running day anyway, pretty much same location, and similar distance. Only difference will be that it's on the road and it's a big group setting. I'm a bit uncomfortable with it but need to push myself to try different things and I think this will be a good group run to start with as the committment level is very low. We'll see how I feel about it. Was going to do only 5K and run the whole thing but thought about it and will do the 10K. We already pretty much run that distance, time really doesn't matter, and I want more exercise. I'll just walk as needed, which may be more than usual as it's supposed to be hot. I told M I'm going to run at my own pace though and meet up with her at the end because I want to see how I can do. I love that she's so cool about things like that and it doesn't bother her at all if I want to do my own thing. I'd like to get out and get one of those water bottle belts so I can drink along the way. Need one anyway!

Week One Success (sort of)

So to start off I had a loss this week, 0.2 - but a loss. At least it's in the right direction. Given the lack of OP days I had this past week, eating tacos for dinner last night, and a little irritating monthly visitor - I think all in all it's not too bad.

Went after work yesterday and got new runners. I had bought some at the beginning of summer - same style and size as my previous pair (Saucony Grid 8 1/2) - and they were insanely tight and uncomfortable. Seemed a bit tight in the store, but once I got really wearing them they're horrible. Stupid me waited too long to take them back so now I'm stuck with them. Hopefully my daughter will wear them. I was hoping they'd "break in" and I realized that it was me that was going to break. So I'm trying a brand I've never had before, Adidas Response Cushion 16 - Size 9. Took them out for my 90 minute walk last night and I think they're a winner. I could possibly use some inserts for arch support, we'll see. Going to try them for a short run tonight and see how that goes. My son bought the same runners (in a men's version of course) in a Size 11 1/2 - YIKES! He's 14 and only 5'6" (and a bit maybe). Obviously his feet are well into their growth spurt.

Went to sign up for my Boot Camp class last night and wouldn't you know it ..... the computer was down at the location I went to. So I have to either go somewhere else or go back another day to sign up. GRRR. Not sure why but I KNEW that was going to happen. I played the scenario over in my head before I got there. Oh well, that won't set me off, I'm doing that class!

Back to blogging....

I want to give this blogging thing another try. Was doing really well with my weightloss until a leg injury and summer derailed me a little bit. Got down to about 152 around May/08 and as of last Tuesday I was 159.2. So I guess that's not too bad if I look at it overall.

Started a new challenge on the WW's boards and it's getting me fired up, though I've got a ways to go to be completely OP again.

Started running again the last 2 Sundays with my running gals. My one friend has also been off for some time so her and I are getting back into it together. I'm a bit more ready to move on and go faster/longer, but it's probably good for me to not push it too fast right now. Besides, I'm thoroughly enjoying our time together and it is only once a week. For now I want to keep at her pace and we'll see how it goes over time. Sad (for me) that the other girls have improved so much since I last ran with them.

Next week I'm starting a Boot Camp class with my friend I run with. It's only 6 weeks, but I'm very excited about it. It will give me another thing (besides the Sunday runs) that I'm committed to and have to go to. Plus Mondays are designated long walks days while my son is at soccer practice and I usually get a good 90 minutes of hoofing it.

Been making some positive changes in my way of thinking and the people I'm surrounding myself with. I don't want or need negativity in my life. Picking apart other peoples faults, or everything that's wrong in this world is just a downer, as is jealousy. I want fun, I want enjoyment, I want support and encouragement - from me and to me. I'm trying very hard that when others start a bashing session to walk away from it and focus on something else. I can't change other people by talking about what bothers me about them. But I can change how I let it affect me.

My fitness goals for this week are:

Mon - 90 min walking
Tues - 30 min run on the treadmill
Wed - 20 min run & 20 min weights
Thursday - Off (multi-sport evening)
Fri - 30 min run on treadmill & 20 min weights
Sat - Probably Off
Sun - 5K Terry Fox Run - might do 10km, haven't decided

Had a good day yesterday. Made a really yummy dinner from one of my WW's cookbooks. It was snapper and you covered it with a "sauce" made of olive oil, flour, lemon juice, green onions, parsley, salt & pepper - then it baked in the oven at 500°C for about 10 minutes. I broiled it for the last couple minutes because the fish was thin and seemed mostly cooked but the topping was still kinda soft. It was crispy and so yummy. Will probably have again tonight.

So dinner was the fish with broccoli, caesar salad, and a warm scissor roll dipped in olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Then I made a dessert with 1 - 19 oz. can crushed pineapple, 1 package FF vanilla pudding mix and 1 cup of light cool whip. YUM!!! Dipped into my APs a little bit but I earned alot more than I ate.

After that I went down to the gym and did 30 minutes on the elliptical and 35 minutes on the treadmill plus a bunch of strength exercises.

Tonight after I drop K at the gym I'm going to go up to the pool and a try an ABS only class. It's just a 30 minute class, but all abs. Hopefully the cardio room isn't too busy and maybe I can get on a bike or some machine different from what I have. Then when we get home I want to get 30 minutes on my treadmill and/or elliptical before One Tree Hill comes on. Gotta get in lots of extra points for my BLC team!

The Final Countdown

Moved to the Weight Loss Progress Chart

Beginning Blogging and a little history

I've seen a few people on the WW.ca board that have blogs at this site and it's something that I kind of wanted to do. So here I am.

Background story.....

I originally started WW's on Feb 5, 2001 at 160.8 lbs. My MIL came to me one day and said she was frustrated with her weight and she was going to give it a try. I had also struggled with my weight for a number of years and decided if she could do it so could I. I was really successful. I lost weight every week except one where I gained .2 and I attained Lifetime membership around June of that same year with a weight of 135 lbs. I got down to 130 lbs. a little bit after that.

I managed to pretty much maintain that for about 6 months and I can remember the day I was just over 137 lbs which meant I would have to pay at a weigh in. I was so ashamed and couldn't face it. I refused to go back to weigh in until I was back under my goal limit. I did go back, but never again at goal weight. I put about 10 lbs on in the next year and by 2004 I was back up to my original starting weight. By 2007 I was 15 pounds OVER my original start weight. I went back to WW's many, many, many times but never with much determination. Occassionally I'd lose 5 or 6 pounds, but I couldn't stick to it.

September 2007 I went for breakfast with a friend who I'd exercised and done WW's with in the past. She had also achieved Lifetime in the past and put it all back on plus. We discussed our weight and how unhappy we were and decided we would go to the next meeting. I still wasn't completely committed to it and really struggled. But having my friend there, as well as another friend who I had encouraged to join, really made it so that I had to go. I didn't want to disappoint my friends, and they needed my support to. If I quit it would be that much easier for them.

I spent the first few months just barely doing the program. Weigh-ins are on Fridays and I give myself that day to loosen the reins. Usually after the meeting we go to McD's for breakfast. But I began turning Friday into Friday and Saturday, then until Sunday, then until Monday. Then worrying about the weigh in I would almost starve myself and manage to either maintain, lose .4 or less, or gain a teeny bit.

Because I had been on/off the program so many times, this time I chose not to tell anyone I was going again, other than the friends I was going with. My husband was working out of town so it wasn't hard to keep from him. Around the end of November we were putting in a gym in our basement and my husband started asking me about my goals - what I wanted to lose, if I was going to take my meausrements, etc. Also, one morning when I was going to my meeting he was around and wanted me to do something with him and I had to make up a story about where I was going. I didn't feel good about that. It was like lying, except I wasn't really doing anything deceitful, I just hadn't been ready to share. For the first time every, I came completely open with him about my weight. I told him I'd been going to WW's, had been having a hard time and in 2 months I had only lost 6 or 7 pounds. AND I showed him my weigh in book. He was quite surprised about what my actual weight was, but was actually quite supportive and appreciative that I'd shared with him. Now I share with him all the time and he's way more supportive than even the first time I went through it.

Since that time I started to get more serious about following the program and getting committed. Putting in the gym has really helped and I now work out frequently. A few weeks ago I was talking to my sister and found out that she too has been a secretive WW member since November and has lost close to 20 lbs. I am SO proud of her and I think she's going to do really well. She is so determined and focused and it makes me so happy to see. She mentioned a website she's been going to and a challenge that she had joined. This got me pumped up and I joined in too and it's been alot of fun and I'm really feeling committed now. I have now lost 13.2 pounds.

I haven't been to a WW's meeting since December. I find the leader of the meeting I was attending to be very uninspiring. I will continue to go about once a month, hopefully when I've reached certain milestones - for each 5 lb loss, for my 10 %, goal weight.... I also want to try another meeting time and see if there is a different leader.

I've set myself some fitness goals. I want to be able to run for 30 minutes without stopping at a speed of 6 mph. At the moment I can do 11 minutes non stop. Last night I did 13 minutes, with one 15 sec break and also included several intervals where I increased my speed to 7 mph. My other goal is to be able to run 5 minutes at 8 mph. That's pretty hard. I can do 1 minute - but it's a struggle and I'm completely out of breath after it. My fitness is improving. I've noticed my heart rate doesn't go quite as high as it used to, and it comes down faster than before. At the moment when I really push it, it will go up to 179, and after running 30-40 minutes (with stops) it takes about 4-5 minutes to come down to 120. On average it's around 160 while running at 6 mph.

I wanted to have before, during & after pictures. And I thought I had before pics that I'd taken within the last 6 months or so. I looked for them this weekend and realized my "before" pics are from December 2005 and I was about the weight I am now. Oh well :( At least I have something.

So here begins my online journey.....