On the Road

Retirement

2008-01-01T07:27:00.000-08:00

Oh, little blog, it's been fun. I've enjoyed playing with you over these past two years, but I think I have run out of steam. You taught me some good things, like the need to track my food and measurements in order to get things done and keep things moving. Thanks!

I appreciate all of you who have stopped by to read my little blog here, and I'm sorry that I have been fairly uninteresting or absent lately. I'm not going to give up on my quest for fitness, but my heart hasn't been in it for a while now. Also, this is my third blog and I need to downsize. If you've liked reading my blog here, then you might also like my non-anonymous blog, wildernesse. I have some semi-fitness related goals that are part of that blog, and I'm thinking that I will re-start the 1000 mile challenge in some form this year, too. (However, I'd like it if we could keep this blog to ourselves, more or less. It's one thing to post your weight and measurements online, and another to post them where your family and friends can read them!)

Anywho, goodnight little blog! Farewell, kind readers! Please drop in on me at my other address, and I will drop in on you, too!

Update

2007-11-23T07:29:00.000-08:00

I've been bad about updating, sorry! This is day 54 of 9# loss attempt. I forgot to weigh and measure today, so I'll do that tomorrow.

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving--we did, and we have leftovers galore. Yum!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 280

Weight and Measures

2007-11-16T07:14:00.000-08:00

Starting:
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

Today:
W: 156
M: 40-34-40?

I think my hip measurement was the same as my bust, but at this very moment I am not sure what it was exactly. Oh well, close enough! It is also Day 47 of my 9# weight loss attempt (such that it is).

Right now, I am having an ice cream struggle. Ice cream is how I put on these extra pounds from earlier in the summer. Eating a pint of ice cream every day or every other day can rack them up! I gained about six pounds. Ok, it wasn't all ice cream. It was also taquitos with sour cream. Those are my stress foods!!

Silly me. Anyway, B&J's ice cream was on sale this past week, and I bought 3 pints for $10 because I had actually planned for ice cream to be our [my] sweet dessert for a week. I ate one pint in two days. Dr. MM also had a pint of his favorite ice cream. He eats about three bites at a time, and then he's ok with putting it back in the freezer and not wanting it for a while. I've started eating the second pint, but realized that I do not need to eat two pints of ice cream this week! (What a concept.) So until Sunday, I am ice cream free. It is really hard, and I have had to tell Dr. MM that when I ask him if I can have ice cream, he should say no.

Ok, have to explain that one. Dr. MM does not normally give me permission to eat things like dinner, breakfast, lunch, etc. But, when I want something that I know I shouldn't really have--extra ice cream, a coke at midnight, etc.--then I ask him if it's ok. He almost always says yes, because he doesn't have food issues and he also spoils me so he likes me to have whatever I want. And because he thinks it is bizarre to ask him a question like this. It's really a way for me to pass the blame (what blame there is) off to someone else--He Said I Could!! I am not responsible for my bad choices because someone else allowed me to do it. It's a little screwed up, now that I think it out loud.

Anyway, I'm pretty good on my own about not eating it when I am by myself during the day. But I want dessert after dinner! So, I ask him and he says no. (Good Dr. MM.) In fact, he tells me to eat more of the butternut squash on my plate because it is sweet. What is he, some kind of tyrant?? Raarrrr. I rebel against this system I have created and enforced! (Lord, I'm a nut.)

After this, I am going to have to think more about when I want to have ice cream in general. It can't be an every month treat, so when does it make sense for it to be around? Not in the winter, when it's cold. Definitely as part of summery celebrations, but maybe not outside of them.

This really ties into my recent thinking about normal life and treats. Personally, I have more than enough of everything I need. For most things, I am at the point where any new items or experiences are not appreciated the way that they should be because they have to compete with the abundance that I already have. I don't like living this way--ungrateful and unappreciative, unable to see accurately the value of things and experiences. Especially when some of the abundance is junk. I've been trying to pare down my things and experiences so that I am able to appreciate more good and joy in everyday life. Ice cream is marvelous, but not when you have a pint everyday.

Falling Behind!

2007-11-14T08:22:00.000-08:00

Ok, I have weighed, measured, and walked but have not come here to update my site! Eep!

The last time I weighed, I weighed: 158
The last time I measured, I was: 40-34-40.5

My original weight and measures were:
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

So I'm smaller, but weigh basically the same. Woohoo! That counts as something. Today I am going to pick a workout from fit tv on demand and do that later in the day. And I might walk because it is a beautiful day outside and not even chilly.

And I walked 2 miles at a 16 minute/mile pace.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 284

Day 37 of 9#

2007-11-06T14:37:00.000-08:00

Just an update on miles. It is getting chilly around here, but this afternoon I had a nice slow walk at the park. Well, mostly slow. I'm just glad I got off the computer and did something outdoors.

I'm going to try the quick ab workout show again tonight. Today I am suffering from delayed death to my abs! Ok, I know that's not true, but I can't remember what the official name is. Marla knows what I'm talking about, but I can't find it on her site because I am searching for. . . "delayed death!" or something. Heeeheee.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 286

Day 36 of 9#

2007-11-05T07:54:00.000-08:00

I have always been fascinated with what motivates people. What makes someone get started on a project and follow through? What keeps them going?

Last night I watched The Am@zing R@ce. It never fails to inspire me, and make me laugh, and make me wonder about how women and men interact. Last night was the first episode in the new season, and my favorite part involved the donkeys. Having grown up on a farm, I always get a kick out of the episodes that involve animals because so many people seem to have no clue how to interact with them. I think that is stunning, because it is only recently that a person could get to adulthood without being involved with animals as food or transportation on a daily basis.

On the women in society issue, there are two teams of beautiful women who admit that they will use their looks to get ahead. Ok. One team even says that they have the beauty of women combined with the competitiveness and aggressiveness of men. Whatever. I am also always, always shocked at how people in dating/marriage relationships interact. People talk hatefully to their partners, put them down (not teasing), blame them, and just generally present a great image of verbal abuse. Also, last night, a woman was convinced they were going the wrong way, but her male partner basically ignored her--and, yes, they were going the wrong way. That has happened to me sometimes with Dr. MM, and it is very frustrating. The ignoring, not the hateful talk. I can honestly say that he has never spoken to me the way some of the men speak to their girlfriends/wives on that show, and I think he would say the same about me.

Anyway, I love this show. Some people are inspired by The Biggest L0ser, but losing weight for its own sake does nothing for me (apparently). Good for them, but it doesn't make me want to change my behavior. Watching TAR does--those people have to be able to keep running, biking, walking, stretching themselves physically. That is what I want--the ability to keep on going and doing something that is bigger than life! Ninj@ W@rrior does this too, in some ways--it comes on some game channel, and shows people with great upper and core strength. Last night after TAR, I went immediately to the exercise on-demand channel and did 10 minutes of ab work--OMG, death! Haha. And this morning I got up and got outside for my walking--14.5 minutes per mile, and I jogged almost half of it.

Now that I know TAR is good for me, I am going to make sure to watch it every week. And I will be on the lookout for other things that make me feel this way. Trapeze performances and ballroom dancing shows always did the same, so maybe I can find some kind of performance this month to continue to inspire me. Perhaps if I can keep inspiring events at a regular pace in my life, I can continue to push myself for the long haul.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 287

W/M

2007-11-04T06:44:00.000-08:00

Ok, so apparently I'm bored with my 9# goal. It's not that I don't want to lose nine pounds--I do! That would be great! But I don't want to do the work it takes. And our budget is getting tight, so I have to focus on buying cheaper food instead of buying food that is perfectly proportioned for my weight loss goal. And it is cold here in the mornings and I haven't really gotten my colder weather exercise clothes out. Basically, I'm just not planning. I've dropped off the fitday tracking, and I've stopped walking, but I've started eating Halloween candy! We can see how this is working. Also, because we are supposed to be using less water here, I have been drinking sodas. Doing my part to conserve! Ha.

Starting:
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

Today:
W: 158
M: 40.5-33.5-40.5

Yesterday, we did get out and walk again. So I got 2 more miles in, which is great. Can I lose a pound this week? Who knows, but I am aiming for any change in my w/m stats. I would like to walk 14 miles this week, and do two arm workouts.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 289

Miles update

2007-10-31T21:08:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 291

Day 26 of 9#

2007-10-26T06:57:00.000-07:00

Today is W/M day, although there will be disappointment on one of those fronts. I have not been walking this week, because I am grumpy and it has been raining. Not excuses, just letting you know.

Starting W/M
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

Today:
W: inconclusive. My scale would not give me a consistent reading today--it is between 156 and 158. Weighing went a little like: 156, 158, 157, 158, 156, 158, 157. I usually weigh myself 3 times in a row, just to make sure that the analog scale isn't too wacky. No help today.

M: 40.5-33.5-40.5

Last week:
W: 156
M: 40-33.5-40.5

There's some creep in the boobage! Haha. I need to get out of this funk and start walking again. Strangely enough, walking again would probably help me get out of this funk and the only thing I have control over. I can't say how long I will feel yucky, but I can make myself put my walking clothes on and download a podcast.

Day 21 of 9#

2007-10-21T09:58:00.000-07:00

Just an update that I did actually get up this morning and go for a walk. I've missed my walks!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 293

Day 20 of 9#

2007-10-20T15:15:00.001-07:00

We had a great afternoon walk at a park associated with the university. The trail description that led us there said it would be 1.2 miles, but I'm pretty sure we walked more than that. The trails weren't really marked all that well, so it was a bit rambly. It was a nice stroll, and I'm going to give myself the extra .07 of a mile--but no more!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 295

Day 19 of 9#

2007-10-19T09:32:00.001-07:00

Ok, so I have not tracked my calories or done any official exercise this week. This has to do with the fact that we were running out of food here at home, and I knew I wouldn't be as well-balanced. So I gave up! Also, I wanted to give my leg a rest and that just snowballed into sluggishness the rest of the week.

I am going to give myself two miles for all the walking we did at the fair--we walked pretty much the whole time we were at the state fair this week--from 4:45-9:45 pm. Ok, so we sat down while we ate and when we had a snack, but that was less than an hour. The rest of the time, we were on our feet. It was a blast--I love fairs, especially ones with all the animals and 4-H entries and different varieties of veggies.

As a result, when I did my W/M this morning this is what I got:

Beginning:
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

Today
W: 156
M: 40-33.5-40.5

Obviously, the lesson is that I should sit around on my rear all the time and eat pizza or fried egg sandwiches. I think that the weight/inches loss is just residual from the work I did in the previous weeks, and that a rest week is not going to set me back all that much. Next week, I will go back to my 14 mile goal and work on it.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 296.27

Day 14 of 9#

2007-10-14T19:22:00.000-07:00

Well, I did my final two miles of my 14-mile weekly goal! The bad news is that the muscle on the outside of my left knee has been a bit achy this week, so I need to be sure to stretch more. Right now, I'm not stretching anything but my back--it just feels so good when I'm all warmed up! That's not enough, though, so I will look up some good stretches and get to it.

On the eating front, I basically threw any and all healthy guidelines out the window. Three sodas. Yes, three. I should be awake until 5 am. Ha! Two packs of crackers. But, we had a pretty healthy soup for dinner and breakfast wasn't horrendous. I just didn't like what I made for lunch, and it wasn't enough. Tomorrow is another day, though. We'll see how that works out, I guess.

It's time for me to set another weekly exercise goal. I'm glad that I increased my walking mileage without any problem this week (the knee is not a problem, it will fix itself). This coming week, I want to increase from 14 miles to. . . .17. That will give me three days of 3 miles and the rest of them are two miles. Since I can get a leisurely and flat mile in at the park nearby with no problem most days, it shouldn't be all that taxing to add a third mile every other day. It doesn't have to be all in one piece.

I find that when I listen to my podcast, I walk much faster. Unfortunately, I've recently picked shows that are more opinion-oriented and found myself exclaiming OUT LOUD at random points. Or throwing my hands up in the air and making faces. So far, I seem to have been unobserved when shrieking What!? and Oh, PLEASE, but that can't last long.

And, I've finally walked my first 100 miles of my 1000 mile journey. No, it doesn't look like I will make it this year, but I'll keep it up until the end of the year. Just see how far it goes. I might try again next year.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 298.27

2007-10-13T17:31:00.000-07:00

Well, today I thought I would get a bike ride in. . .but I was lazy and played on the internet. I also didn't walk this morning, which probably has something to do with the internets, too. Grr! Haha.

And although I did finally eat something that was a veggie, mostly I ate donuts and had a fried egg and bacon sandwich for lunch. Stellar!

Other than that, my day has been excellent! I organized our outdoor storage, went to the farmer's market, walked (woohoo!) and watched some football. Nothing much, but a good day with beautiful weather. That stupid 14 mile goal this week has really gotten me moving, because I didn't want to blow it with only one day left. I'm sure I could have gotten four miles in tomorrow, but I would like to be able to get the bike out some, too. It's bad enough that I basically need to walk 4 miles every day until the end of the year to meet my foot miles! Hah!

Anywho!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 300.27

Day 12 of 9#

2007-10-12T08:24:00.000-07:00

Well, I did make it to the park yesterday to walk. But. . .because it has decided to be fall (finally) I only walked one mile because I got chilly! I'm going back this afternoon for my make-up mile, though, so no worries. Working toward a short-term goal has really been a good thing for me. Usually my goals are huge (like the 1000 mile project) and they stretch out for so long, I tend not to think about them too much any given day.

I also got up this morning and walked/ran my usual two miles. Instead of feeling hungry and grumpy the whole way, I ate breakfast first and puttered around a bit before getting out the door. I don't have to be tied down to a routine (although it helps)! I also ran one more section between intersections than I usually do, which is progress. I like that I am just running when I feel like it, and still making some progress. It would be wonderful if I could become a runner who runs for the fun of it! Maybe I can let that happen and not plan it to death.

Oh yes, and it is weight and measures day.

Beginning:
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

Today
W: 158
M: 40-34-40.5

I am getting smaller--it's not all in my head! The strange thing is that I don't feel any increased desire to stick to my plan because I'm seeing some results. Meh. Hah! I'm happier that I felt good running this morning. I do like the fact that my clothes are fitting a bit smoother, but it is not like a REWARD for hard work. Oh well, I'm going to keep working at it. The fact that technically I gained a pound and lost more in the measurement just highlights that the 9# weight goal is completely arbitrary. What if I smoothed my lumpy tummy out and never lost the weight?

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 302.27

Day 11 of 9#

2007-10-11T12:47:00.001-07:00

Well, I felt all my motivation leave yesterday. I'm not sure exactly why--I think part of it is because I felt so yucky yesterday. My head hurt most of the day, which I usually associate with not eating well. So I ate more and more until I just gave up and took some pain medicine. That is what I should have done in the first place because my blood sugar wasn't screwed up yesterday, it is just TTOM and I have a minor headache.

Arg. Maybe I was experiencing a little bit of perfectionism there, expressed in all-or-nothing thoughts. Whatever, I'm over that now! Sort of. I did not get outside this morning because I felt as if I just needed a rest. Don't worry, I'm still going to get my two miles in today! It will just be at a leisurely pace in a nearby park in another hour or two.

The weather is perfect for bike riding! It has finally cooled off--I was pleasantly surprised this afternoon when I ran some errands.

Tomorrow is W/M, and I am looking forward to seeing how this week affected those stats. I feel as if my clothes are already fitting a bit better, but I always feel better about myself when I am moving more, so I'm not sure that is an accurate feeling.

Also, my fitday will not be as accurate today. I made banana nut muffins to use up two overripe bananas, and had one for a snack. I might have another in about an hour, too! Besides the bananas and nuts, I also added oats to increase the goodness. I'm thinking of it as a decently healthy snack--not like a piece of fruit, but more nutritious than a soda and a pack of crackers. It makes me feel good to eat things that I've made. I'm keeping out a couple (for me and Dr. MM), but the rest are going in the freezer! That will give me almost a week of snacks or breakfast options.

ETA: I am interested in making these banana nut muffins even more full of yummy goodness. I guess I could change to whole-wheat flour and maybe add more banana and less oil. Hmm, I will have to look into that.

I'll update again later when I've gone to the park.

Day 10 of 9#

2007-10-10T08:05:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 305.27

I did not increase my distance today because I was starving! I just wanted to come home and eat my breakfast--probably because I slept later than usual. 14.5 minutes/mile because I ran part of it.

Day 9 of 9#

2007-10-09T16:20:00.000-07:00

It seems that I am always surprised that actual planning means something more than resolving to do something. Resolving to walk/run 14 miles this week just means that I pledge to do it, I think about it. Planning is more than just thinking about that, it means that I make sure that I have clean clothes to wear to do those things, that I eat enough to make it pleasant, that I set the alarm early enough to get out when I like to walk, that I write the email to my running partner, etc. I have to do something more than just put my clothes on and get out the door.

That is probably a common theme of all my entries here, and maybe that is what this blogging experience is supposed to teach me: in order to make a change in your life, you have to be willing to take action to support that change. It isn't enough to say that I will eat more green veggies. I have to actually go to the store and buy green veggies that I enjoy eating. That sounds simple, and it is for little things. The hard part is breaking the big things (I will live a healthy lifestyle) down into the little things that you can do.

This morning, I didn't have any clean workout clothes. None. It's laundry time, and I hadn't bothered to do it yet. So I didn't get up and walk today, which meant that it was pretty likely that I wouldn't do it at all. I almost didn't. But, after I got the first load that contained workout clothes out of the dryer, I thought--why not walk this evening? I want to meet my walking goal, and I want to get rid of these 9 pounds (7 remaining). So, I got ready and went. There were more bugs, people, and dogs than I usually see, but it was a good walk. I stupidly recorded a podcast that I had already heard part of yesterday, which was slightly annoying, but it wasn't the end of the world. Soon I may add more mileage to my route because I was just starting to feel really good at the end. Maybe tomorrow I will make a loop instead of just out and back!

Also, I think that the food has evened out some. I'm no longer ravenous, but still getting hungry around meal times and in the afternoon (snacktime). That is acceptable, and I'm still eating regular amounts of food. In other words, I don't feel as if 1700 calories is restrictive. Of course, I'm still planning my food out ahead of time, so when I get hungry I know what I can have. That helps so much. I am thinking about looking at weekly averages for my nutrition to give me a bigger picture, and because I think that might be more meaningful in the long run.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 307.27

Day 8 of 9#

2007-10-08T06:27:00.000-07:00

Well, this weekend was sort of a bust when it came to eating healthy--lots of snacking on the road and several restaurant meals. One of the restaurant meals was a "healthy" option--but it tasted way too sweet and the food was all overcooked. The rest were just the regular stuff I would eat at a restaurant normally--one fast food burger/fries/shake, one salad with lasagne, one general buffet meal (probably pretty healthy, actually, because it was real food prepared simply). We had cokes on the road and snacks--which isn't horrible, since otherwise I would have been drinking coffees. The bad thing is that I have had really bad indigestion most of the weekend, which I'm sure says something about the healthiness of the things I ate.

Anyway, the bikes weren't up for riding when I got there so I didn't get my 10 miles in. Oh, well. I will try to ride some this week, since the weather is so beautiful. Having a short term goal for walking/running really helped motivate me to get out the door, so I am going to set another one for this week. If I want to finish my 1000 mile walking/running goal by the end of the year, then I need to walk about 3.7 miles each day in order to make my goal. So if I wanted my weekly miles to reflect that, I would need to walk 26 miles this week. That's a pretty tall order, and I tried to give myself a little bit of a baby step last week by only requiring 10 miles. Ten miles is very do-able. Fourteen miles is probably very do-able. Well, I'm just going to set an attainable goal (very unlike me) and try for 14 miles at the minimum for this week. And a bike ride of any length. What matters is that I am working toward these goals

And, perhaps unsurprisingly, just like the food this weekend made my stomach hurt, the lack of exercising had some negative effects. I felt stiffer than I usually do during our long car rides and my sleep was definitely not as deep. I'm hoping that as I get back into my groove I will start sleeping better also.

On the healthy goals front, I have only progressed to number 11. I've been much better recently about dressing in things other than a free t-shirt and jeans, so I've been thinking about 11 for a while now. Most of my nice clothes are in the fall/winter season of my wardrobe, so I won't have as much trouble as I do in the summer. I'm looking forward to sweaters! I think I'm just going to scale down from adding something new everyday to adding something new from this list every week. This week, we focus on keeping old habits and adding nice clothes.

1. Floss every night.
2. 15 minutes of moving every day.
3. Eat a cup of green.
4. Use a moisturizer with sunscreen every day.
5. Say no to soda. (I've been sucked in again.)
6. Have a cup or piece of fruit.
7. Read your devotions.
8. Plan for 8 hours of sleep every night.
9. 15 minutes of upkeep so I can pass for a charming Southern belle.
10. Pick out some great earrings to wear.
11. Dress as if you are special.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 309.27

Day 5 of 9#

2007-10-05T06:14:00.000-07:00

Starting
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

Today
W: 157
M: 40.5-34.5-41

Well, I did get to see some progress today with both weights and measures. Woohoo! I'm sure getting out the door and doing some good work for myself is a big part of that. I'm already experiencing the usual side effects of exercising more, though: I'm getting to bed earlier and feeling better about how I look.

Today is a road trip for us, and we'll be away all weekend from the computer. I will try to keep track of my food, but there is not a lot I can do ahead of time. On the other hand, I will be able to exercise and hopefully get my bike miles in to meet my goal.

Yesterday was my first day this week of eating more than I planned by a decent amount--I ate a little bit of leftover potatoes and two pieces of cubed steak (instead of one). On the positive side, I got almost all my nutrients and the only real sticky points besides calories were fat % and fiber was a little low. I can live with that.

I've met my walking/running miles for this week, and I hope to get my bike miles in over the next two days (and maybe some walking, too!). Good for me!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 311.27

Day 4 of 9#

2007-10-04T06:44:00.000-07:00

Yes, I am still working on the fitness list--I haven't forgotten it! But I am stalled a bit, until I come back from the weekend. My mind gets stuck sometimes, and it's helpful to just start over again at some point. (And hope that I'm not too far from the starting point.)

I'm tracking the days of the 9# challenge because I want to see how long it takes to get to my goal, even though the deadline is the end of the year. Perhaps I will lose the weight before then, and I would like to know how long it took.

Also, I started out thinking that I wasn't very hungry on my new reduced-calorie diet--isn't that nice! Yeah, well that lasted about a day. I am hungry often, which is probably because I am exercising more regularly and eating less. On one hand, it is slightly annoying to have to figure out what I can eat in my plan. On the other, I don't mind feeling hungry--it bothers me MUCH more when it is time to eat and I'm not. Not that I eat on a strict schedule, but what I mean is that when I haven't burned off my breakfast enough to want lunch when I need to eat it (or I get grouchy/headachy). Being hungry should just be a natural and recurring part of the day, in my mind. It tells you when you need to eat and drink. Gah, but when you eat a snack, it should GO AWAY! Haha. If I am still very hungry every afternoon after this weekend, I may have to increase my calories so I have more fuel to do more things!

I have a running date tonight, so I haven't gotten my miles in for today yet.

ETA: Why is running + talking so much harder? I have got to work on my running so my partner doesn't feel like she is barely working. Only two more miles left--I should get those in tomorrow morning to meet my goal! Also, I wasn't so hungry today after my Cl!f bar with lunch. Planning out my day ahead of time is working out pretty well, because I know what my options are. For instance, I really wanted a glass of milk after eating my pre-run banana, so I juggled my calories around and did it. Of course, I think I am changing what we are having for dinner tonight, so I may not end up with what I started. Oh well. Tomorrow is W/M, and I'm really interested to see if there is any change yet.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 313.27

Day 3 of 9#

2007-10-03T06:48:00.000-07:00

Well, yesterday was a pretty decent day when it came to eating. I'm always surprised at how easily our regular food can fit into lower calories and higher nutrition--we had turkey chili last night, and I had multigrain crackers with it. Later, I wanted to munch on something--just not the small handful of salad that I had planned. We made a pot of green tea instead and enjoyed that with a little bit of honey. I ended up about 15 calories over 1700 in fitday, which is fine with me.

The only thing I need to be careful about is portion size--I measured out my chili serving--although usually I wouldn't eat that much more anyway. I forgot that I was only getting a half cup of yogurt in my plan yesterday, and thought I had a whole cup of yogurt--when I measured that out, I thought there would be no way I could eat it all. I did, of course, but it was really twice as much yogurt as I would eat normally.

Really, most of the time I don't eat horribly or even too much. I just get slack about eating leafy green veggies and give myself too many treats. And sit at the computer all day. What I've been doing is adding in all my food for the day after breakfast, to make sure that I am getting a good mix of nutrients and not going overboard on fat. Then, when I am hungry I know what I have planned and don't get off track. It is working out pretty well, so far.

This morning, I changed out my battery in my mp3 player and downloaded the latest podcast of the news show I listen to. I used to think that this just took too long to do in the morning, and so if it wasn't ready, I wouldn't walk. It takes about 5 minutes. It's not as if I have somewhere to be, so what is five more minutes? Only four miles left this week to meet my goal!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 315.27

Maybe it won't be that hard after all.. . .

2007-10-02T14:41:00.001-07:00

Well, yesterday I ate less than 1700 calories, and I'm on track to do it again today. Maybe it won't be such a burden after all--or at least as long as I keep my flavor of ice cream out of the house and stay stocked up on salad greens and fruit. Yesterday, I was very, very full after dinner and moaned about that forever--right now, I'm starving so I think I will have my snack now instead of after dinner.

On the other hand, I'm dead tired today--but I think that is the allergy medicine I took. Either my cats are really getting to me, or there is something in the air at this time of year that does not agree with me. Of course, because it's been reformulated, the medicine doesn't really work as well--my eyes are dry and the runny nose/sneezing has probably only decreased about 80%. Which isn't good enough, when coupled with the fact that I could probably sleep for a couple of hours. Next time, I will only take one of them.

I've just returned from my two mile walk this afternoon, which was nice--although my mp3 player's battery died a half mile into the walk. Grr. I even considered bringing along another battery as back-up, but didn't, which practically guaranteed that it would die.

Well, I am going to take a nap/watch tv until Dr. MM comes home for dinner.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 317.27

9 pounds to lose. . .

2007-10-01T06:51:00.001-07:00

My first step forward on weight loss: running/walking 2 miles at 14.5 min/mile.

My first step backward: eating a brownie for breakfast.

Hah! We don't have any food in the house, so a brownie is what it is. But, I made a huge list last night and as soon as I get a shower and write some emails I will be off to the grocery store. Woohoo!

This week, I want to walk/run 10 miles and ride my bike 10 miles. That is the minimum. Only 8 miles left to go, on the walk/run side. (Ideally, I would be able to do 25 so that I could keep up with my FMR and 27 for BMR--but we are just going to focus on getting out there. Yes, I still think that it is possible to meet my 1000 mile goal!)

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 319.27

My Hero

2007-09-30T14:35:00.000-07:00

Fitday, my hero. Ok, after being all demotivated after thinking about calorie restriction, I decided to play around and see if I could hit two birds with one stone. In other words, could I get my nutrients in (most over 50% RDA-wise) and still be at about 1700 calories. And, most importantly, not eat a ton of nasty diet food.

I don't like fat-free anything, although I will tolerate low-fat--and I don't do artificial sweeteners. And packaged food is not really my cup of tea, either. Which means that a lot of the tools that other weight loss bloggers use are pretty much out--no Le@n Cuisines for me, thank you very much.

The surprise is that I can do pretty well--the only thing that is knocking about in my calculations is iron (80%) and sodium (way, way too high). Everything else looks like I could manage it, and that I would possibly be tired of eating if I had to eat everything I scheduled.

Here is what my menu would look like:

Breakfast
Oatmeal, made with milk, and dried apricots.

Lunch
Turkey with swiss on wheat
crackers with hummus
spinach salad with roasted red peppers and black olives, lemon juice dressing
baby carrots
almonds
banana
(Note: I could never eat this much for lunch.)

Snack
cottage cheese with frozen raspberries

Dinner
Broiled cod
corn on the cob
1/2 sweetpotato with brown sugar
brussel sprouts
a pat of butter to share between veggies

Dessert
fat-free kettle korn
mug of milk

Ok, I didn't put the servings with them, but it would be what I think of as workable servings (half an ounce of almonds, 3 oz of turkey, etc.). I would be completely stuffed and probably wouldn't want either the snack or the dessert. Or the carrots, but I don't like carrots anyway. It always surprises me how much you can eat of veggies. When I first started nutrition tracking, I did have some lunches where I could not eat more than half of my lunch.

The thing is, that if I were exercising regularly, I probably could put that away much easier.

So, this might be do-able, but I will have to do some major menu-planning. So if my fitday looks as if I became superwoman and ate ridiculously well today, just know that this is me fiddling around with it.

W/M and update

2007-09-30T06:04:00.000-07:00

On Friday, I weighed in and today I measured, which brings us to:

W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

I am still working on my goals, but I am having the most trouble with eating my cup of green veggies and reading my devotions (of all things). Yesterday, Dr. MM and I went for a nice, brisk walk at a nearby park before eating Mexican food. OMG. I ate so, so much--or at least it felt like it. Really, I had a lot of chips and salsa, two large glasses of soda, about a fourth a cup of refried beans and the same amount of rice, and two chicken enchiladas. Not a horribly huge amount of food, I guess, but much more than I usually eat at a time.

We've decided that I'm not making enough food for our dinners usually, which is probably true. After a week of feeling just not right, I am usually dying for a really good meal that fills me up (and that I don't have to make). So, we are going to add another veggie to our meals, to get us up to three kinds instead of two. (We're a meat and two type of family.) Then maybe we won't feel the need to pick at snacks after dinner because we will be satisfied already.

Also, I am sick of being this weight/size. Actually, I'm just annoyed that my clothes don't fit as well as they did earlier this summer. Most of the time, I don't focus on changing my weight here because I would rather eat healthy foods and do fun, active things and let weight take care of itself. If it does. I do think that those things are more important than any arbitrary number on a scale, and that if I eat well and exercise then I can be happy and enjoy life. But this week, I have been annoyed at the four bulgy pounds at my waist. Grr.

So, I'm going to step it up a notch. I am going to focus on increasing my exercise, because a) I need to be better about that anyway and b) I don't like to mess with my food! Ha. And because I prefer to track vitamins and fiber instead of calories anyway. After all, I don't really know what calorie goal I should be aiming for anyway--2000 seems to be too much, everyone (on the internets) seems to say that 1200 is too low. This dieting calculator seems to suggest that if I wanted to lose 9 pounds, then I could only eat 1476 calories a day, but that is taking all 500 theoretical weight-loss calories from diet instead of diet + exercise. So. If I give myself 250 more calories, I get 1726. Which I think is not too low or too high (in my loosey-goosey Feelings, which is undeniably accurate).

The thing is that I don't care enough about making myself eat 1726 calories. As I wrote that paragraph, I became bored with the entire idea of focusing on eating less. Why? I think that it is because I will have nothing to show for it. When you can run a certain distance, you can participate in a race--where you can get a free t-shirt! Or you can ride your bike on a trip, and have pictures! Or do something with other people and have memories. You can't have memories of eating 1726 calories. Yes, technically, I will have weight loss to show for it, but what can you really DO with weight loss? Not much. Yes, some people can do more after weight loss, but I'm in the vanity weight-loss category. I'm just doing it to improve the fit of my clothes, and maybe the way I look in pictures--both things that I think are dumb reasons to change your body.

So now that I've demotivated myself, I think I will go get ready for my day! Ha! No, really, I would like to lose nine pounds by the end of the year, so I will focus on running a little bit more, getting my bike out of storage, and eating another serving of veggies for dinner. Or something.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 321.27

Day 9

2007-09-27T07:26:00.000-07:00

1. Floss every night.
2. 15 minutes of moving every day.
3. Eat a cup of green.
4. Use a moisturizer with sunscreen every day.
5. Say no to soda. (I've been sucked in again.)
6. Have a cup or piece of fruit.
7. Read your devotions.
8. Plan for 8 hours of sleep every night.
9. 15 minutes of upkeep so I can pass for a charming Southern belle.

Well, yesterday I did everything but say not to soda. Grr! I needed some caffeine in the afternoon to keep from snoozing, so that is where that came in. Otherwise, not a bad day. Of course, I am off to a bad start today because I didn't think about what I wanted to do about today. Sigh. At least I'm just adding earrings, which is one I do anyway.

Also, my running plus walking added up to being extremely hungry yesterday. I need to be more careful about eating a filling lunch. I'm glad that I have something to look forward to each day because of this list. It really helps to have it already thought-out and ready for me to try.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 322.27

Day 8, times 2

2007-09-25T20:28:00.000-07:00

1. Floss every night.
2. 15 minutes of moving every day.
3. Eat a cup of green.
4. Use a moisturizer with sunscreen every day.
5. Say no to soda. (I've been sucked in again.)
6. Have a cup or piece of fruit.
7. Read your devotions.
8. Plan for 8 hours of sleep every night.

The ones listed in purple are the ones that I am not having much trouble with. The rest I am either not doing or doing about half of the time. What was that? Planning! I should do more of that!

I'm going to bed in about 10-15 minutes, and I will be able to get 8 hours of sleep tonight. Flossing will be done with my evening chores. Tomorrow, I will have one of the single-serve packs of brussels sprouts for lunch as well as an apple. Water will be my friend! I will move my devotions book to my chair when I get up, so that I will deal with that at breakfast time. Also, I will find a podcast tonight to download for my walk tomorrow morning--and lay out my clothes for walking. Tomorrow, I will also be moving to day 9--15 minutes of upkeep. I will do that in the morning, after my shower (eyebrows tomorrow).

Today, I met up with a new potential running partner, who was very nice. We ran just over 2 miles at about 13-14 minute/mile pace. Perhaps it will work out that we can run together each week--that would be great!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 324.27

I return! Again.

2007-09-23T18:24:00.000-07:00

No, I haven't fallen off the wagon completely. We were on vacation, and the days leading up to vacation were wildly busy. That is why planning is essential. It is good to have this very basic plan, but I still need to check in on how I am going to implement it each day/week. Some building blocks are pretty easy to keep up once you start (moisturizer), but I sloth out of flossing and choosing green over potatoes if I have a chance. Tomorrow will be another day, though, and I am going to start it as if it is day 8--which means that I can actually start tonight with my plan for 8 hours of sleep.

When I weighed in on Friday, I was 158. This weekend we went to the beach, and spent a couple of hours yesterday jumping the waves on our boogie boards. Too much fun! I didn't get too sunburned, just across the tops of my shoulders. And I got to wear my brand new (clearance rack) tankini, which was fun, and it fit really well. I ended up walking around some each day as well, so a nice active weekend. We bought little boogie boards this time around, and next time we will get an umbrella and some chairs. I've never lived so close to the beach before, so we will just add little bits at a time until we are good going down for a day and hanging out! Of course, this will probably need to wait until spring--I don't think we can get back there in the next couple of weeks.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 326.35

Day Seven

2007-09-17T15:35:00.000-07:00

1. Floss every night. Check!
2. 15 minutes of moving every day.
3. Eat a cup of green.
4. Use a moisturizer with sunscreen every day. Check!
5. Say no to soda. (I've been sucked in again.) Check!
6. Have a cup or piece of fruit. Check!
7. Read your devotions. Check!

Well, I have already eaten about 3/4 a cup of green today, and dinner is still left. Good for me! I chose to get those out of the way as early as I could today, since other people were feeding me. There was a breakfast and lunch buffet at the meeting, so I had fruit medley for breakfast and then a little salad with lunch. Besides the roll, the salad was the best part of lunch--it was a catered Southern-style lunch, and most of it was just too heavy. Yes, I ate all the dressing anyway, but I love dressing, even when it is cafeteria style.

Yesterday, my nutritional picture was so-so. Only zinc was below 50%, and my calories and fat were inline with what I would like. The problem was that I ate so much candy corn. I don't know why I buy it, because I have no self-control with respect to it. Of course, it makes me feel awful. What I really would like is a single little snack pack of it, like I would get when I went trick or treating. That is enough.

I loved trick or treating, even when we would go to our elderly relatives' homes and get apples and sweet potatoes instead of candy (and one year I think we got quarters). They didn't do trick or treating, but they liked to see us dressed up. Then we would go to the two dozen houses in our neighborhood and get candy. If we were lucky, we would get home in time to give out candy to the couple of people who always came to our house. I grew up in a tiny little rural area (it's not really a town), if this sounds strange, and we didn't have any neighbors within a half mile of our house. When I got older, and my mom was an elementary school principal, sometimes her students would show up at our door--it was like a treat their parents gave them! That was fun.

Day Six

2007-09-16T17:37:00.000-07:00

1. Floss every night. Check!
2. 15 minutes of moving every day. Check!
3. Eat a cup of green. Check!
4. Use a moisturizer with sunscreen every day. Check!
5. Say no to soda. (I've been sucked in again.) Check!
6. Have a cup or piece of fruit. Check!

Ok, I haven't gotten my focused moving in today and I can't count mall walking again. I need to start making that a priority at the beginning of the day no matter what! I may do 15 minutes of Pilates or something before bed tonight and be able to check it off, though. Same for number 6--an apple is calling my name!

Yesterday, I ate a lot--2400+ calories. It doesn't show up on fitday that way because I am too lazy to put in the amounts for candy corn, and I ate a ton of it. (Today, too!) Of course, because I ate so much, my nutritional levels are pretty high--only vitamin D is below 50%. Fiber was ok, too, because of the popcorn. The major culprit for yesterday's poor calorie and fat choices is movie food--popcorn, coke (on my first no coke day), and chocolate-covered almonds. The good thing about these foods (not the coke) is that they are actually decent foods underneath the fatty coating. So, I'm not too upset about that--I could have eaten jr mints, which is pure sugar. I think from now on, I'm going to abstain from movie treats. They don't add that much to my movie-going experience, so it shouldn't be too hard to break that habit.

The great thing about having this list is that I am motivated not only to try to do the things on this list, but also some of the things that are coming up on the list. I feel pretty great about that. Oh, I just realized that I could walk up and down my stairs for 15 minutes and call it exercise. I would run, but we made jokes about the elephant living next door to us--really, I think it was their dog--because of our neighbors' stairs yesterday. I'm pretty sure that none of our neighbors can run as fast up the stairs as the "elephant" did.

Edited to add: I don't know what possessed me to walk up and down our stairs. I just did 10 minutes of it, plus 5 minutes of stretching afterwards. I like how off the cuff I am in the previous paragraph: "Oh, I'll just walk up and down the stairs. No big deal." Ha. On the other hand, I just found my rainy day exercise.

2007-09-15T12:35:00.000-07:00

1. Floss every night. Check!
2. 15 minutes of moving every day. Check!
3. Eat a cup of green. Check!
4. Use a moisturizer with sunscreen every day. Check!
5. Say no to soda. (I've been sucked in again.)

Yesterday, I ended up not planning well enough for my cup of green. Right now, my only options for green is salad. When I go to the grocery store next, I will have to get some broccoli for eating raw and maybe something else that looks good. Also, I should have had some salad for lunch, but I didn't think of it at the time. Just like exercise, I should eat the best at the earliest possible time.

Today, I am starting again with no soda. Living with Dr. MM, we have cokes in the house all the time, so it is harder to avoid them. I had one yesterday, but that is it. I know I can do this, it just takes a tiny bit of thought.

Yesterday, on the nutrition front, was not so great. Calories (1559), fat (29%) were ok, but I missed most of my nutritional goals. So I didn't eat a whole lot, but what I did eat was junky. Vit A, D, K, b-6, b-12, and zinc were all under 50% and sodium was high. Live and learn.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 326.85

Weights and Measures

2007-09-14T06:49:00.000-07:00

W: 158
M: 40.5-35-41

As for yesterday's nutritional break-down, we have a victory! Only five cookies! Perhaps that is because that is all that was left, but still less than the day before.

Most of my nutrient goals were hit, with only vitamin D under 50%. Others that didn't hit 100%: vit. A, vit B-16, vit B-12, iron, zinc, selenium (99+%), calcium, phosphorus, magnesium. Most of these were pretty high, besides D, I am only concerned about vit. A and will need to try to eat more of that in the next few days. Sodium was just over 2300, at 2386, so much better! Fiber was still low at 16, as was protein at 42. Fat was just a little high at 32% of my calories. Calories were good at 1811.

When I start recording, I am always surprised at how little I tend to eat when I am paying attention. I mean, yes, I ate five cookies and two chocolates yesterday, but if you take those away, then my calories are at 1400, which is pretty low.

Anyway, I need to think of ways to eat more protein. I have been wanting cottage cheese recently, and that usually increases my protein. Other than that, I will try to eat a good protein for lunch--like an egg or some tuna. That should help.

1. Floss each night. Check!
2. 15 minutes of moving. Check! (more walking at the mall)
3. Eat a cup of green.
4. Use a moisturizer with sunscreen every day. Check!

That is what I'm working on today. I didn't go walking this morning because my heel is sore. I think I caught it from Marla. Anyway, I figured I would give it a rest until I go shopping (again) this afternoon, and it will make me do my Pilates project that I have been putting off. Yesterday, I ate two mini-salads for my cup of green and will probably eat one more today for lunch. Also, I bought my moisturizer yesterday, so after I dry my hair in a minute, I will be able to check off number 4! I like having this list, because I can plan ahead for the things I want to do, but not have the pressure of doing them now. Planning is really one of the most important things for healthy living, so I'm glad I made up my little tool!

Yesterday' Nutrition Breakdown

2007-09-13T06:28:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the first day that I got back on track with fitday. I did pretty well, despite the three dinner rolls and six cookies. All of my nutrients are over 50%. Most were met, with the deficient ones being: vitamins A and D, iron, zinc, calcium (99+%), and magnesium. Sodium was too high, at 3288 instead of under 2300. Fiber was low at 13 instead of 19+. Calories were within range (1766) although heavy on the fat (37%). Protein was too low (72 instead of 124 grams). Maybe I can do better today on the nutrients!

Day three

2007-09-13T06:14:00.001-07:00

1. Floss each night. Check!
2. 15 minutes of moving. Check!
3. Eat a cup of green. Check!

Number 3 is the new thing I am doing today. I went to bed earlier than usual last night, so I got up not long after 8 am. Getting up at that time made it a lot easier to get outside. I even downloaded a podcast to listen to this morning, without it feeling like a chore! (Sometimes that sidetracks or demotivates me.) Basically, if it is after 9am, I feel as if it is too late to go outside and exercise. Why bother? I'm already being lazy by sleeping in! I hate sleeping in, it makes me feel very lazy and ruins my day. I did run some today, a little less than a mile (not all at once).

My cup of green today is going to be broken up. I think I will have some salad greens for lunch and then I will have some mixed veggies (including broccoli) tonight with dinner. That should get my cup of greens going!

Also, I have started recording fitday again. No judgment, just getting back in the habit--although I hope that I don't eat six cookies again today. Weight and measures on Friday!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 328.35

Sigh.

2007-09-12T19:11:00.001-07:00

Well, we all know where good intentions lead.

But, it is a new day! Or it will be tomorrow! I am trying to set up some basic routines to get me back on track. One of them would be to go to bed, so that I can get up in the morning and do some exercise. I walked all over the mall today, so I am more tired than usual. Maybe tonight will be the night!

Anyway, I am borrowing from Flylady and her 31 beginner's steps--I am going to create my own personal beginner's map to a healthier, happier me. Each day, I will add one new thing to my routine and build on that! (Today is day 2.) My beginner's steps are things that wrench me out of sloppy slug mode and make me feel my best. I do many of them everyday anyway, but sometimes I need reminders--like put on makeup! I like wearing good makeup, so I should take the trouble to do it. No, I don't know if I have all this spare time that I am making up 15 minutes here and there, but I can tweak it as I go along. Of course, I spend about 4 zillion hours a day on the computer, surfing the net, so I have plenty of time to work this stuff in. While this is the minimum I want to do right now, it is not ranked in order of importance. Also, somethings might overlap.

1. Floss every night.
2. 15 minutes of moving every day.
3. Eat a cup of green.
4. Use a moisturizer with sunscreen every day.
5. Say no to soda. (I've been sucked in again.)
6. Have a cup or piece of fruit.
7. Read your devotions.
8. Plan for 8 hours of sleep every night.
9. 15 minutes of upkeep so I can pass for a charming Southern belle.
10. Pick out some great earrings to wear.
11. Dress as if you are special.
12. Makeup!
13. Eat one serving of whole grains.
14. Make the bed.
15. Do something fun that you love (cook a great meal, read, work on a sewing project, etc.)
16. Eat a veggie with lunch.
17. Go outside for 20 minutes.
18. Take care of your hair.
19. Spend 30 minutes enjoying the end of the day before lights out.
20. Write someone you care about.
21. Do 15 minutes of stretching.
22. Drink a glass of water with breakfast.
23. Walk a mile after supper.
24. Go to bed before midnight.
25. Eat a piece of fruit with supper.
26. Spend 2 minutes cleaning out your purse.
27. 15 minutes of focused relaxation
28. Pick your clothes out for the next day.
29. Spend 15 minutes with Dr. MM.
30. Spend 15 minutes taking care of your desk.
31. Spend 2 minutes cleaning out your car.

Yesterday, I started flossing again. And today I walked at the mall for HOURS. Really and truly, I think I got there about 3 and I left at 7. Yes, I did buy lots of clothes, but not 4 hours worth.

Running, Day 1

2007-08-27T06:39:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 330.6

W: 155
M: 40-35-41

I've decided to start running. Not trying to run, not run/walking, not training to run. All of those things remind me that I'm not doing what I want to do, and they let me off the hook. If I'm not actually running, then it doesn't matter because I'm not working toward my running goal anyway. Or at least that is what I think my brain "feels." So, from now on, I am running four times a week and walking/hiking other days. Today, I ran my two miles at what ends up being 15 min/mile pace.

Good for me! I would like to be at 12 min/mile pace, but I will get there. Also, I need to scope out a longer place to run, because the program I'm using (one of the one's from Runner's World) called for 5 rounds of 2 min running, 4 min walking but I could only do 4 rounds on my usual route (after walking 5 minutes to warm up a bit). I know how I could extend it to 3 miles simply, but there is a giant hill that I am avoiding. Usually, I feel wasteful if I drive somewhere to exercise (or do anything else fun), but I've decided that I need to get over that. Either buy a bus pass at the grocery store and ride the bus or just get in the car and drive. Staying at home has a horrible effect on my mood, being such an extreme extrovert.

In other news--I passed the bar! It is so hard for me to believe, but I have an official-looking letter saying so! I am kind of amazed at the difference it has made in what I think is now possible (um, pretty much anything! Ha.), and am gearing up for the major job search.

And, randomly--no freaking wonder my clothes have stopped fitting! My waist is about 3 inches bigger than it was at the beginning of the summer! I think today might just be a wacky aberration of some sort, though, since the last time I measured I was four (4!) pounds heavier and an inch smaller. Weirdness. I am glad that I am losing the eat-my-way-to-passing-the-bar pounds. I am going to try to hold off on buying new career clothes for a couple more weeks, to let my body readjust to less stress/better habits.

Motivation

2007-08-23T06:41:00.000-07:00

Or, more accurately, lack of motivation.

I've been trying to cook dinner for us every night. It works out ok, and it does save us money from eating out at restaurants. Lunch is almost always leftovers. It's not like I'm doing a whole lot with the rest of my day right now, anyway, so I might as well make sure we are well fed.

Sometimes, though, even if I haven't done anything productive all day long, I don't want to cook. I just want to get out of the house, and not have to do any work. Like last night. I called Dr. MM about 7pm, asking him when he was coming home and if he wanted what I was going to cook. Hoping he would say he wanted to go out, of course. No such luck. I reluctantly agreed to cook what I had already offered to cook, and started working on it.

It was a pretty good dinner! Three veggies and homemade buttermilk biscuits. It took less than an hour to make, and I felt good about making something that we both enjoyed. Also, it was much less expensive than if we had gone out to eat--I would estimate it cost about $7 dollars for us both to eat that (it's hard to estimate how much an 1/8 of a teaspoon of baking soda costs, but I'm guessing not very much). It was probably healthier than restaurant food, even with the biscuits, too.

Anyway, I need a workout partner like Dr. MM. Someone who makes me follow my own best ideas, even when I don't want to. I know that I feel good after I exercise, and I know that it is good for me. I know that I have goals that I can't reach without putting in the daily work. And yet, I still can't get myself out the door in the morning. Sigh.

Another week.

2007-08-21T08:02:00.001-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 332.6

I took a break for the weekend, and it made it hard to stay on track. Oh well, at least today I got up and went. It looks like another beautiful day out there! I will have to think up something good to do today.

Yay!

2007-08-17T07:26:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 334.6

Another good day! It looks like rain here, which we need a great deal. I finally downloaded some podcasts to take on my walk with me, and I was a little apprehensive about venturing out in the cloudy-ness with my mp3 player. Of course, it didn't rain on me at all, and I'm glad I didn't wimp out.

I still have to tweak my podcasts a bit--I needed about 5 more minutes worth. (I'm downloading interesting sounding ones from npr.) Also, I had to fiddle too much with my player--I almost never use it as the player, but almost exclusively as a jump drive, so I don't know all its features still. It's only four years old! ha. That's ok, I'm glad I'm using it now.

Thursday.

2007-08-16T07:16:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 336.35

I ran probably a half mile of this, and I feel great! I'm so glad that I started working on this again.

Woohoo!

2007-08-15T10:00:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 338.35

I made myself walk this morning, and it felt pretty good. I'm glad that I'm getting back on track. While I'm job searching, I know that I will be stressed out at least part of the time, but I also know that it doesn't do any good (and a lot of harm) to let myself out of my routines. So I'm going to try to do them, no matter what. Which means that first thing in the morning (no matter what time), I put on my walking clothes and get out there. Maybe soon I can say they are walking/running clothes!

Also, on Monday, I weighed 157.

Back to Trying

2007-08-06T05:23:00.000-07:00

W: 159
M: 41-34-41

One thing that I haven't yet learned is that during times of stress, it does not help to lose all your routines. Eating crap, not moving, and letting the house fall in around your ears doesn't make you feel better or more in control. Surprising, right? Well, I'll just have to work on that from here on out.

Today, the air quality is not supposed to be good in the morning, so I will exercise this evening instead of now. Also, I will have to start making us healthy lunches and dinners. Breakfast is usually pretty healthy for me, and Dr. MM doesn't eat breakfast unless it's brunch or midnight.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 340.35

Update

2007-07-22T13:33:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 343.35

Wt

2007-07-13T09:53:00.000-07:00

W: 154

If I can make it two more weeks, I will have a break. Right now, I am not well.

Update

2007-07-08T19:28:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 344.85

We went hiking/walking at another very close county park this afternoon. It was nice to be outside, and I think this may be my favorite park so far. It just seems a little wilder than the other parks, and there were fewer people than usual. Fun! And we drove down to the next big park on that street, and on our roundabout way home found another park! This place is covered with parks! It's so funny that we are just in awe of all the parks and greenways and bike paths that exist in Raleigh and the surrounding areas. In Athens, maybe the parks were too familiar to us to be remarkable--and there certainly weren't any neighborhood pocket parks. Plus, Athens is much smaller than Raleigh. And what we are used to thinking of as "the city" is Atlanta--and Raleigh is hugely different (in great ways) from Atlanta.

Why, hello there?

2007-07-08T13:34:00.000-07:00

Hi.

I have leapt from any healthy, disciplined living wagon that exists, and am now drinking sodas, eating desserts 3 times a day, and taking naps as exercise. Bwhaha. What a life.

Actually, it is pretty awful. Most of it is a reaction to the bar exam which is looming at the end of the month, and which I have suddenly realized I may not pass. I may not pass, and this would be SO embarrassing. Well, half the time I think it would be so embarrassing because I would have to re-apply and get people to vouch for me all over again. The other half I think, Who cares, it is just A test. My self-worth is not determined by whether I have to take the bar exam again next year.

So, a lot of panicky, feeling like crap, anxiety. I've decided to augment that with eating lots of sugar and caffeine in order to heighten the anxiety and add headaches and icky stomach feelings. When I feel bad, I really want to feel bad! Icky.

Sigh. I really don't think I can make any plans for exercising or eating better until August, because if I start that, I will develop the most wonderful plan EVAH and creating the plan and working on it will take up valuable time in which I could learn about child support/wills and trusts/contract revocation/larceny/mortgages/business associations/adverse possession/products liability/hearsay/etc X 100! Did I learn anything in law school? Sigh.

I return!

2007-06-29T19:25:00.000-07:00

Well, there has been no walking since last I posted because The Moms have been here since Wednesday. It was actually great having them here, because they bought us a few pieces of little furniture and the kind of decorating stuff that I theoretically think is horrible, but secretly LOVE! And they helped rearrange the furniture and pack up the unpackables. Now our place looks more like a grown-up house (in other words, more like our parents') and less like two students with no design eye live here.

On the plus side, they "made" me shop most of one day and that was simply exhausting. I figure that walking around in stores and rearranging furniture counts for some kind of exercise.

Update.

2007-06-26T07:12:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 345.85

Today I did not want to walk. Why? Well, because I didn't like what I had to wear. I'm glad that I saw this for the pathetic excuse that it is, and just went ahead and got outside. Because I was hungry and a little grumpy, I allowed myself to just walk 1.2 miles. Of course, when I got to the place where I could turnaround, I thought--well, just walk to the end of the street. And when I got there, I thought--well, just do the rest of it. So I did! Bwhaha.

This is the last week of only walking. After this, Dr. MM and I will start run/walking some!

Upupdate

2007-06-25T09:38:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 347.85

Fascinating. Also, I bought a large load of junk food and ate most of it yesterday. Bored and lonely, despite having a pretty active day. Junk food, however, is not actually a friend or interesting companion. It does not do anything but make me feel bad. If I had a friend that made me feel as bad as junk food does, I would end that relationship or we would have a serious talk and set some boundaries. Sigh. I think I'm going to have to throw some ice cream away.

Update

2007-06-24T09:54:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 349.85

Arg!

2007-06-23T18:32:00.000-07:00

I went to the park near our house to walk, like I said I would. Did I walk at the park? No. Usually, it is hard to find parking at the park at busy times like weekends, but this afternoon there was a wedding! Arg! It was very frustrating to have driven somewhere especially to walk, and then have no where to park. Really, it just made me annoyed with myself because I can walk out the door of my house and walk, but instead I chose to burn some more gas to go somewhere to walk.

Anyway, I decided that I was just going to park at the place I wanted to get dinner from and walk around there for 30 minutes. Which I did! I was very proud of myself, because sometimes it is hard to go exploring by yourself--or at least it is for me. I walked up the street a little ways and crossed onto campus. It was great! Really, stepping onto campus was almost like walking through a park because the trees basically sealed me off from the busy street and it's summer so about the only people there are kids at various camps. Looks like basketball camp this week. I had a nice time, strolling through campus, and I walked for just over 30 minutes, roundtrip. It was a nice time of day for walking, and I liked seeing things from a different perspective. Walking gives you a better perspective of how places fit together, I think, and connects you more strongly with a location.

I'll have to estimate how far I walked, but I think about 1.2 will do it. Technically, I could have walked 2 miles in 30 minutes, but I'm pretty sure I wasn't up to that speed!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 351.85

Slow Learner

2007-06-23T15:20:00.000-07:00

Well, although I said "I should never let the promise of later exercise override the exercise I should do now" I have happily ignored that advice yesterday and today. Today I did have to get up very early and drive Dr. MM somewhere, but I could have walked when I came home instead of going back to bed. Ha!

I still have one more errand to run and so I am going to go to the park and then run my errand. Sigh. Anywho, on the eating front, I am tending towards some ridiculously high calorie days--I think I ate about 3000 calories two days last week. Why? One day I was very hungry, so that's fine. I'm also very bored and I am procrastinating. Really, I shouldn't be bored because I have a boatload of fun, interesting books to read, but once I sit down at the computer it is as if I cannot move from here, and all fun must come through this screen. There is also unpacking left to do, and I am being productive in those areas. Good for me! I am also being a flybaby, which is helping somewhat with my personal adjustments. Way to go! I am procrastinating studying, but I will work on that this week some more.

There are some things that I can do to get away from this computer and do something else. I can set the timer for 15 minutes, and then go read a book, watch a recorded tv show, watch one of my Netflixers, declutter some adventure boxes, or work on unpacking things, or go for a walk/ride my bike. I enjoy doing all of those things, but I somehow forget about them and get sucked into the computer. Sigh.

W: 151
M: 40-33.5-40

Sigh.

2007-06-21T18:49:00.000-07:00

No walk today. My excuse for not walking first thing, as usual, is that I was going to ride my bike to the park. I didn't. I also did not go to the park at all. From this, I learn that I should never let the promise of later exercise override the exercise I should do now. It wouldn't have hurt me to walk and later ride my bike, after all.

In any event, I have discovered cottage cheese. It is like a wonder food, because it has so much protein and so little fat. I've been eating it with canteloupe or with a little bit of sugar sprinkled on top. Delish! Really, it was on sale and I dropped a large carton of it in my cart, even though I don't usually eat it. Discovering it is like a pleasant surprise in the fridge when I want something to eat. I've been on a home food budget of $250 this month, and we have done quite well. It's not everything we eat, because Dr. MM eats lunches out and we had pizza the other night, but it is some kind of structure. Structure is something I enjoy, but can rarely impose upon myself unless it involves money.

Also, although I have not commuted anywhere this week by bike, I have not gone anywhere except my class. That's almost as good, since I'm not running half a dozen errand every day.

Update

2007-06-20T06:50:00.000-07:00

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 353.05

Urg.

2007-06-19T07:29:00.000-07:00

Well, I did walk today--first thing! The only problem was that first thing meant after 9 am, because I slept in. So it was much warmer than my usual morning walks, and I toyed with the idea of just letting myself walk a mile. Then I thought about the fact that it does not hurt me to sweat, and that I would have done the most strenuous parts already if I walked only a mile, so why not walk another flat mile anyway.

So I did.

Things are going well here.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 355.05

A little bit more

2007-06-18T06:28:00.000-07:00

Well, yesterday was weird. I didn't walk in the morning because I had some weird idea that it would make me late for church. . .at 11, of course. An excuse. Then, Dr. MM didn't want to go somewhere and walk in a park--so I could blame it on him, but really, I almost always walk by myself. I just didn't walk yesterday, and there is no reason for it.

What I did do, though, was eat like it was the last day on earth. Why? No idea. Well, I was probably tired and bored--I should have just gone upstairs, read a book, and gone to bed early. Next time.

But, that's the past! Today, I got up and walked longer than usual, probably fueled by the enormous amounts of calories I consumed the day before. It felt good to be outside, in the cool morning air, wandering around. Not very many people out this morning, so I had the whole world to myself.

ETA: As it is about halfway through the year, I went back and checked on the mileage I started out with for the 1000 mile challenge to see where I was. I am only 43.5 miles away from halfway for the bike miles remaining, but over 157 miles for the foot miles remaining! Good thing I'm walking regularly!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 357.05

Bike Commute 1

2007-06-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

I went to Target on my errand! Woohoo! It was an 8 mile round-trip ride, and the worst part was the first mile because it was uphill with no warmup. Otherwise, it was great and I tried not to think too hard about the fact that I had sweaty hair and a red face while I shopped.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 359.05

Weight and Measures

2007-06-16T06:13:00.000-07:00

W: 151
M: 40.5-32.5-40

Hmm. My waist measurement is much lower than last time, which is interesting, and I might be remembering it wrong. Sometimes when I don't write the numbers down immediately, they run all around in my head. So it might be 33.5, which would be a more likely number.

The weight, however, is correct (same number 3x in a row--that's my scale habit) and is my lowest weight recorded on this blog, as far as I can remember. Not bad. I think I'll keep walking--and I'm about to go ride my bike. This coming week is bike commuting week for me--except for my evening classes and big weekly grocery trip, I am going to try to ride my bike everywhere I need to go. We'll see how this works out.

Whee!

2007-06-15T13:43:00.000-07:00

Today was a fun day. I gave myself permission to do what I wanted after I went to my appointment, so I ate lunch out, went to the bookstore, and walked at the park. Then, I came home and read one of the books I bought. Fun times!

The weather here is still nice and cool, although sometimes a little overcast. I'm going to focus on getting my chores out of the way, and then giving myself permission to enjoy myself in the remaining time.

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 359.05

My Excuse Today

2007-06-14T14:05:00.000-07:00

It was overcast and might rain. I was tired. Those were my excuses this morning. It didn't rain, but I refused to go outside. Finally, because I was bored out of my mind, I decided that I would just go walk for a little bit before I had to leave for class tonight. So I did, because I realized that I would be extremely annoyed with myself if I came back here and wrote that I didn't walk again today.

The weather is perfect for exercising today. It is nice and cool and cloudy. I didn't walk as far as usual, but when I turned around to come home the sky was blue and beautiful. There were some clouds, but they don't look like rain. It is probably sunnier than it has been all day, right now, which is pretty nice.

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 360.55

Woohoo!

2007-06-13T06:27:00.000-07:00

I got up and walked today, albeit later than I wanted to. You know how I said yesterday that I can always get up early? Hmm. Today was a hard test of that rule, because I snoozed way too long. Maybe my brain knew I didn't have anything very pressing to do today, so it let me off the hook. Who knows.

I also measured my walk the other day in the car, and it is .2 longer than I thought.

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 361.75

Ok, ok.

2007-06-12T19:24:00.000-07:00

So I didn't get up and walk first thing this morning. I also didn't walk in the heat of the day, and when I came home it was 10pm. No walking. WHY NOT? Well, because I was lazy and didn't think I could get up early enough to walk and still get the cat to the vet at 8am. This is not true. Plain and simple, I do not have a problem with getting up too early. Ever. (Or close enough.)

This will no longer be my excuse. I have realized that I have an excuse for everything--and they are decent for the most part, but what is wrong with my excuses is that they are lies. Basically, my decent excuses cover up for the part that I am lazy and procrastinate. True. When I was in school, the fact that I went to school full-time, worked part-time, interned part-time, organized a major speaking event, and commuted to see Dr. MM every month covered a multitude of problems. And I was busy, but RARELY did those things prevent me from doing the other things I needed to do. It's hard to argue with 60 hour weeks, though, and it covered me up. I can almost always do whatever it is I haven't done, I just haven't wanted to do it.

So, I am going to try to see the excuse that I have used to stop myself from doing the healthy thing, and take it apart. At least I should be honest with myself.

getting back on track

2007-06-11T08:54:00.000-07:00

For the rest of the month, I am just going to get up and walk to the end of the road and back every morning. I've been reading about M@rl@'s walking, and it really energizes me to do it as well. Apparently, I'm rather impressionable.

Fitday is becoming a habit again, which is nice. I always like feeling more in control, and fitday certainly helps with that.

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 363.15

Out and about

2007-06-09T18:57:00.000-07:00

Dr. MM and I had a nice little adventure today at a nearby park. We walked about a mile, so that was good for us--eating wasn't so hot today, but at least I put it into fitday.

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 364.35

Nutrition Report

2007-06-08T19:28:00.000-07:00

Today wasn't such a bad day. There were veggies involved, even though it wasn't much. I'm lacking in the folate, niacin, vitamin e & k, magnesium, selenium, iron, and zinc categories (although only technically, because I'm taking a multivitamin now, but I still would like to get enough nutrition through my food). Sodium was 2529, which is just a tad over the 2300 that is recommended for a balanced diet. Fiber was at 18, and I try to get to 25. Saturated fat was at 10%, which is just right. All fat was less than 30%. Cholesterol was 140, and it should be under 300. 1967 on the calories front, and I think I am going to focus more on 1800 calories for now--but this is pretty low on the priority list, as usual. There is plenty of room for improvement, but it's not as bad as it could be!

I also went to MyPyramid site to help me think more about how I can balance my diet. It suggests for my height and weight and activity level (slothlike), with weight loss in mind, that I eat 1800 calories a day in the following breakdown:

Grains (6 oz total)
3 ounces of whole grains (oatmeal, X, X)
3 ounces of plain grains (1 slice of sandwich bread, 1 corn tortilla, tortilla chips) Extra tortilla chips.

Veggies (2.5 cups total)
.125 lettuce (other veggies)
.5 carrots (orange veggies)
.5 salsa (other veggies)
Total today: 1.125. Needed: 1.375 to meet goal.

Fruit (1.5 cups total)
.5 apricots
.5 orange juice
Total today: 1. Needed: .5 to meet goal.

Milk (3 cups total)
3.5 cups of 2% milk
Extra .5 cup.

Meat (5 oz total)
Ham (about 2 oz)
Nutella (about an oz)
Chicken (about 2 oz)

Extra Junk
Granola Bar
Nutella
Coke

So, cut out the extra junk, eat another couple of veggies for dinner and a whole grain and a piece of fruit. I can do that, and it would probably help in the nutrients part as well.

Weight and Measures

2007-06-08T07:30:00.000-07:00

W: 153
M: 40-34-40

I'm surprised the scale is not up this week along with the measurements, because I have been eating nothing but junk. In fact, yesterday I felt the sick ickiness of a person who has not eaten a vegetable in multiple days and who has been living off of taquitos and moon pies. Because those two things were making up about 75% of my daily diet. Toast was the other 25%. Hmm, why would I feel anything other than stellar?

But, we are back to our oatmeal and apricots today. I have a list for grocery shopping already made up, and fitdayed my breakfast. The other day, I realized that I have less motivation to eat well because I don't know what I'm lacking. There is no awareness of the good things that I am missing, or the crap that is filling me up. So, I'm back to fitday, which is a really great tool for me. Maybe this will help me eat more of the good stuff.

Woohoo!

2007-06-05T11:23:00.000-07:00

I went to the park to walk the loop around the lake--2 miles! Except that it is more like 2.75 miles. oops! But I did that too, because I had to get back to the car. I also scoped out how I could ride my bike there, and I hope I will soon have the courage to do that. Whee! Fun!

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 365.35

Bwhaha.

2007-06-04T21:08:00.000-07:00

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 368.1

I have dragged another person into lap-walking around the building during breaks. I passed her once, and then said--Have you taken up walking, too? She said that when she saw me doing that, she thought it was a pretty good idea. Woohoo! I have healthy influence! Ha. Anyway, now I have actually met someone in class and have someone to chat with on breaks. Maybe more will join us, although I'm feeling the stirrings of the chatty, outgoing gal that I am on good days--so soon I will know everyone's name and where they went to school, where they are from, where they are planning on going after this. . . etc. The move is wearing off, apparently, and I am ready to get back in the game and build a wild and wooly gang of people for fun and adventures.

Weight

2007-06-01T06:56:00.001-07:00

W: 153.

I am hoping to take a nice walking break today, apart from any laps I might make during breaks in class.

Not Quite

2007-05-31T21:25:00.000-07:00

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 368.28

Today there was a worker puttering around the hall, and it made me a little spooked to be the only one traipsing around in the back of the building with this "stranger." So, just one lap at a time. I didn't need to walk as much because I had a good dinner that didn't make me crash during class. Some is better than none.

Urgh.

2007-05-30T18:48:00.000-07:00

Bar review is boring as dirt. Actually, dirt can be pretty interesting so bar review is more boring than dirt. Tonight, I walked during the breaks. First, I paced the parking lot and then I walked 3 laps around the building. I'm going to give myself another estimated .3 of a mile there. Walking really wakes me up for another hour of notetaking. And at least I don't look like the other people outside who all have their phones to their ears during each break. Tomorrow, I should be able to get almost to an even number for FMR!

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 368.38

FMR

2007-05-28T10:41:00.000-07:00

Last night after we went to a movie, we stopped by the local park and walked a little bit in the evening air. The geese (with their babies!) were trying to get settled in for the night, and we saw some other birds as well. It was a very nice park and walk even if it was fairly short. But being active is all that matters, no matter how much you do. I've been getting FlyL@dy emails this week to help me build some more routines, and they have a saying that housework done incorrectly still blesses your family. That's pretty much the same for exercise as well--sort of like the #1 Edict of Exercise that M@rla has linked on her blog.

Tonight, I hope that we walk all the way around the lake. Dr. MM was not excited about this, but it will be good for him and us. Plus, I need to get out of the house--he's gone to work--and I enjoy doing outside things together.

Also, I have been having trouble eating enough (again). Mostly, I don't feel like eating lunch at lunchtime. While this is related to not eating breakfast early enough, I end up not eating very much and then winding down so much I have to take a nap! Then when I wake up, I feel so drained that I don't want to cook dinner. (It's dinner time at this point.) So we eat dinner later and later, and I usually eat some kind of junk food snack to perk me up. Sigh. Today, I made myself eat a quesadilla at 1:30, even though I wasn't hungry. Maybe that will help.

My goals today are: make dinner by 6p.m., clear enough space to put the desk upstairs, walk, clean a little bit.

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 368.68

New goals and thinking

2007-05-26T17:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I've had about a week off of my regular life. School is over--for good. It's time for the next step (bar review), which I am looking forward to because I will be out of the house.

I haven't had any soft drinks today, although I did have sweet tea--pretty much just as bad, but that's ok because it wasn't a soda. Baby steps back to the water. I did eat my oatmeal again for breakfast, so that's a good thing, too. Fitday is going to become a bigger part of my life again, even though I am now taking a multi-vitamin everyday on the suggestion of my healthcare provider. Other health goals to get back on track with: flossing regularly (and a dentist appointment next month), drinking water, getting enough sleep, getting enough movement.

Since school is out for good, I can focus on creating my own routines and not worry too much about homework and extracurricular activities. I'm job hunting, but I hope something will turn up soon. Whether a law job turns up soon or not, I will be earning money somewhere--just to get me out of the house and help me feel as if I am contributing. Some people are happy staying at home, but I am enough of an extrovert that I need serious interaction with multiple people each day so that I don't fall into a sad little cave of being very lonely.

Anyway, my new routines are going to include some good exercising. In July, Dr. MM and I are going to start a running program together to get us out of the house and our hearts going. He has lost probably 2 inches in his waist in less than a year by only walking up and down the stairs in our house and walking to lunch (2 blocks one way) during the workweek. His eating habits have not changed at all, and all of his pants are too big for him. I'm really glad that he's been moving more, but it will do us both good to get more intentional movement.

Next week, I start riding with the local recreational bike group on their long weekend rides. I also hope that I can start riding my bike to the grocery store nearby--or walking--and rack up some more B or FMR. This month, I am hoping that we can join the local university's rec center/gym (which will be much cheaper than anything else) and I can start going there to work on strength training.

A lot in the works! My long term goals now that my bike trip is over: I want to run a 10 mile race in 2008 (and maybe a half-marathon) and I would like to ride a century (100 miles in a day) by the end of the year. I don't think it would be too much to train for these at the same time, since they will peak at different times. It will probably be good for me. Right now, I am going to focus on taking a walk each morning before I get ready for the day--and that's it for this week! (I can do babysteps, but I prefer not to.)

That's where I am in this new phase of my life! Can't wait to see how it turns out.

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 368.98

Also, you can see that I need to do more than a mile per day for the rest of the year on both my bike and on foot. I had better hop to it!

Weight and Measures

2007-05-25T08:35:00.000-07:00

W: 153
M: 39.5-33-40

Getting back on track this week. After today, no more sodas. My good habit has been broken this month, but I'm going to start again!

Update!

2007-05-09T16:20:00.000-07:00

BMR: 351.5
FMR: 368.98

My dad and I rode our bikes from Nashville, TN to Tishimingo, MS this past weekend--about 150 miles in 3 days. We camped out and brought everything we needed with us. Technically, we walked some of the trip because of the hills--but since I did not envision pushing a loaded bicycle up a hill in Tennessee when I thought of FMR, they are going in the BMR column. What are you going to do to me?

That's what I thought.

Ha. We had a good time, even though it was tinged with sadness at the end.

Weight and Measures

2007-04-27T06:16:00.000-07:00

W: 152
M: 39-32.5-40
I made myself write them down so I wouldn't forget before I posted!

(Last previous M: 40-32.5-40)

Stopped the TFP exercise on Wednesday, but that's ok because I am now in exam mode! And celebration mode! Maybe we'll play again in a month.

Being Thrifty

2007-04-23T14:38:00.000-07:00

The hardest thing about this Thrifty Food Plan (TFP) is that I've been making it include all my meals and snacks. Otherwise, what's the point? Thirty dollars a week goes way farther if you don't count the restaurant meals every night, you know?

Anyway, it's hard to come home and eat what I have in the house every night. It would be much easier if I could just stop by the Mexican restaurant, or grab some lunch out. But no. I am being thrifty. Grr.

So far, so good, though. Last night I made chicken on the George and roasted potatoes in the oven. I have half of the chicken breast left over that I can eat tomorrow. Tonight I'm thinking that I will make some tilapia and a little bell pepper/red onion salsa and see what kind of beans/peas I have in the pantry. The bananas are getting ripe, and tasting a little bit grainy, so I think I will make muffins with them soon. Maybe tomorrow.

Anyway, these are the meals I have left:
pasta + sauce
chicken + frozen/canned veggies
tilapia + frozen/canned veggies (enough for probably 3 meals of this)
eggs to make omelets/french toast
and half a bag of little red potatoes
plus, oatmeal for breakfast.

I should be able to sail through Thursday, no problem. Although I did sort of cheat and eat a free lunch of a half a pita bread and a tiny bit of tuna salad at work. Free for me, though. Who passes up free food? Not me.

Deduction

2007-04-21T19:55:00.000-07:00

A pint of ice cream and a can of diced tomatoes: $3. ??. Apparently the receipt has walked off in the past half hour. Whatever, I have less than a dollar left until next Thursday, which is fine.

Weight and Measures

2007-04-20T20:42:00.000-07:00

W: 153

And I took measurements today, but that was this morning and I don't actually remember. I'll do it again tomorrow and see what's what.

Deduction

2007-04-20T20:15:00.000-07:00

Well, I wanted a snack today to take to work, so I bought some ok iced tea and rice snacks--$4.10.

That leaves me with $4.07 for Thursday.

And Marla, I don't know how well I'll be eating (nutrition-wise) while focusing on the Thrifty Food Plan. These are the calculations used to determine how much a person gets on food stamps, which is interesting because people with lower incomes tend to live in areas with little access to quality foods at anywhere near a decent price. The biggest challenge for me is to come home and eat whatever I feel like eating, instead of getting something on the way home.

Today: oatmeal with milk and tsp of raw sugar, glass of oj, leftover pasta w/sauce and grated Pecorino cheese, 1/3 pound of rice crackers, iced tea, two pieces of toast with nutella and a banana, and another glass of oj. I need some more veggies in my diet!

Thrifty Food Plan

2007-04-19T18:51:00.000-07:00

Marla inspired me to start back looking at my food bill again. I've decided to use the Thrifty Food Plan from the feds, so for my age and sex I get $30.10 a week. Yesterday I went to the grocery store and what I bought (plus my at home food) will start me off this week at $21.93. No, it's not a blank slate because I have a good deal of food here at home, but we'll play with this a while. (I'm incredibly lonely right now, so something to do is good.)

My $21.93 was not well planned out, so I will see where it gets me by next Thursday. But I got:
.99 a pound box of store brand penne pasta
1.67 a red onion
.06 a jalepeno pepper
2.30 a red bell pepper (spendy!)
1.08 a bunch of bananas
2.59 a bag of new potatoes
4.99 a gallon of oj
3.81 thin-sliced chicken breast
3.99 a bag of frozen tilapia
.65 half-dozen eggs
1.99 a half-gallon of milk
.65 TAX

Today: oatmeal w/ milk and raw sugar, two glasses of oj, a spoonful of Nutell@, pasta with tomato sauce and cheese, nasty ice cream. Sigh.

I have $8.17 left until next Thursday.

Slipping

2007-04-16T16:51:00.000-07:00

On Friday, I was either 155, 154, or 153. I think I ended up having a twice-read 154, but really I can't be sure. Eh.

It is less than 3 weeks until the huge bike trip with my dad. It's pretty exciting. I had four days of cycling planned out originally, but we have now extended it to "well, we have over a week's worth of time, why don't we just see how far we can go." So we may end up with a 250 mile trip or a 450 mile trip. Who knows. We don't. If we feel good on day 4, then it is anybody's game. I'm betting we feel great. Or ornery enough to continue down the highway with our home on our backs.

After that, it will be time to move to Raleigh and be with Dr. MM! I can't wait. We are planning on being fairly active when we are together and have our lives all settled out. We have decided to start running together and join the gym at the university. Also, there are so many other opportunities--like a weekly social bike group, hiking everywhere you turn, and fun paddling nearby. It will be great!

Right now, I'm just going to focus on continuing to go to my spinning classes when I can. I will try to walk on Weds and weekends when I get the opportunity. Mostly I need to focus on studying at this time of the year though.

Hmmm.

2007-04-10T17:48:00.000-07:00

Is it a good workout or not when you decide to walk some after spinning for the sole reason that if you collapse, at least there's a defib'er downstairs? Just joking. A little.

In other news, woohoo!, I went back to spinning!

BMR: 501.5
FMR: 368.98

Weight

2007-04-08T19:29:00.001-07:00

W: 154

Ice Cream

2007-04-02T17:04:00.000-07:00

I have eaten six pints of ice cream in three weeks, and I may be misremembering too low. Something has got to give. Every night I come home and I eat my random (yucky) dinner and a half a pint of ice cream. Yesterday I ate a pint and a half, although one was low-fat yogurt.

Partially my house is disgusting and I'm tired and I'm ready for everything to be OVER. I just want a week or a month of joyous fabulousness. Sorry for being a grump, but it's as if I've been working hard to accomplish the two big things this semester and now they're done and what else is there? Oh, woe is me and I just want to lay in the floor and howl like a petulant 3 year old.

Hmm, PMS or is my life really terrible? ha.

Weight and Measures

2007-03-30T17:11:00.001-07:00

W: 153
M: 40-32.5-40

March Challenge

2007-03-30T16:39:00.000-07:00

Obviously, I'm not going to meet my March Challenge. It was very do-able, which strangely enough could have been its downfall. But, when it got down to the nitty-gritty, I just had more important things to deal with this week than pounding out the necessary miles and workouts to get this done. My comprehensive exit exams for my master's degree were today, and I think I did ok. My sleep schedule is back under control, so that's nice. A bedtime before midnight, what's that about? Ha.

I'm not at all disappointed about my "failure" in the March Challenge (yes, I know it really ends tomorrow, but I don't think much will change). Part of it is that I don't really want my reward--a new outfit inspired me for a brief amount of time, but not long term. I also know that I will get my yearly Easter/weddings dress this weekend probably, and I would actually prefer to have cycling shoes and pedals. Yeah, I could have made those two things my goal, but I am going to get them no matter what. So, the next time I do a challenge, I will need to have a really good treat.

Also, about Sunday, I sat down and thought about how I could finish out the week and beat the challenge. I realized that it was very possible, and all I needed to do was schedule it in. Once I realized I could do it, it was as if I didn't have to. There was no more Challenge, because I knew I would be able to get all my miles and workouts in if I focused. Strangely enough, it is as if I prefer impossible challenges and then, when they are in the realm of possibility, I lose interest.

BMR: 501.5
FMR: 369.48

Really, this isn't so bad. I only have 870.98 miles left in the year long challenge, so I have finished the first 100 miles. Hmm, I will need to step it up. Luckily, April is going to be a wonderful month for me, where I enjoy myself and my last semester in school.

Update

2007-03-29T07:17:00.001-07:00

March BMR: 1.5
March FMR: 19.48
March Strength Remaining: 8

1 Year!

2007-03-25T17:14:00.000-07:00

Today is the one year anniversary of my blog! It's hard to believe that I have been here that long, but time seems to creep up on you like that. When I started out, I wanted this place to be a record of a more structured and disciplined life. It's fair to say that I'm not there yet. My first step on that journey was to work toward a healthy diet.

How have I done? Well, ok. I have stopped drinking sodas, and my water intake has increased dramatically. I started paying more attention to my diet, and learned that I needed to eat more dark green, leafy veggies and watch my sodium levels. Fitday has been a great tool.

Looking at my benchmarks, I have lost five pounds over the past year. That's been about on par for the previous two years after I gained a lot of stress weight from my first year in law school. I'm about the same weight I was before I started running that summer. I've lost four inches in my measurements in the past year. Using the same body fat calculator as I did in May, I have gone from 32% body fat to 30.88%. I am below average now, but still almost 9% higher than ideal.

Where could I go from here?

1. Recommit to recording my eating in fitday.
2. Plan my meals better, so I can keep my RDA's up, sodium down, and protein up.
3. Increase whole grain consumption, besides yummy oatmeal! Hello, brown rice.

I also want to be more active and fit.

1. Plan to exercise every morning.
2. Work on achieving my goal to run 10 miles in 2008.
3. Increase flexibility (backbend!).
4. Get serious about strength training.

Also, I need to increase the amount of sleep I am getting. Six hours of sleep is just not enough for me, and it makes it impossible to get out of bed to exercise.

I would like to thank all of you who have read my blog in the past year, as well as those who have written comments. I appreciate it!

MR

2007-03-24T16:33:00.000-07:00

March BMR: 1.5
March FMR: 20.08
March Strength Remaining: 8

2.29 miles in 40 minutes and 45 seconds, walking. Slightly hilly.

2007-03-23T15:48:00.000-07:00

Weight: 154

March BMR: 1.5
March FMR: 22.37
March Strength Remaining: 8

One down, one to go

2007-03-22T17:32:00.000-07:00

Well, one of the major procrastination bits is over. The next one is next Friday, but I'll make it! Big study session tomorrow.

Anywho, I have got to get going if I want my end of the month treat! I found the greatest, funniest shoes the other night at the mall. They have pandas on them! It could hardly be better.

In that vein, I walked to the grocery store tonight which is exactly one mile from my doorstep. If I didn't have to cross four lanes of fairly busy traffic without the benefit of a crosswalk to get there, I would probably do it more often. Maybe next month! Next month is going to be fabuloso!

So, updates. I also need to get back in the habit of logging my food in, but that might have to wait until I am inspired enough to start cooking/eating again. I hope there will be another update to the Strength numbers tonight as well.

March BMR: 1.5
March FMR: 24.62
March Strength Remaining: 8

Update

2007-03-19T19:39:00.000-07:00

March BMR: 1.5
March FMR: 26.7
March Strength Remaining: 8

This past week, I sat on the couch, ate very fatty foods, and procrastinated because of stress. Still doing that. But, on Sunday, we walked at this very pretty park near where we live in NC and where I can ride my bike to easily and have fun all the time when I live up there. Whee!

BMR

2007-03-10T19:22:00.000-08:00

47+ miles today on the bike. Beautiful weather. Three tough climbs, plus rolling hills and steep descents (I hate). Overall, I feel good but I'm really tired. More to come later perhaps.

March BMR: 1.5
March FMR: 28.7
March Strength Remaining: 8

Weights and Measures

2007-03-09T21:33:00.001-08:00

W: 153
M: 39-33-40

Yum

2007-03-08T17:19:00.000-08:00

No exercise today because I am full-on procrastinating. Well, not quite, but somehow it feels that way.

One good thing is the bulgur-lentil salad I made tonight for dinner. SO yummy. I have eaten more cherry tomatoes this week than I have in a year! Which isn't saying much, since I generally hate raw tomatoes of any sort. But there's something about them and hummus or lentils that is wonderful. It was a really easy salad--cook lentils and bulgur, chop up the veggies, mix together. Plus, I had asparagus. Of course. Cleaned the kitchen a little bit more, and I'm slowly getting the laundry done. I have to go back to the library tonight. Grr.

Blah

2007-03-07T19:57:00.000-08:00

Today was a blah day. I am a little stressed about an upcoming event, but can't do a lot about it right now. No exercise today because I am being lazy. No cooking dinner because too many dirty dishes (ew, I know--but I washed a load of dishes tonight). No getting up early because I didn't go to bed early. I even skipped a class today because I wasn't prepared. Procrastinated by reading a management book my mom sent me. Worked on my resume and wrote some emails, which is about the only positive thing I have done today.

Tomorrow I am not going to spinning because I want my legs to be fresh for Saturday's ride. So I guess I can get up early and do a strength workout. Yawn. To start my morning exercise ritual, I need to start getting enough sleep--which means I should go to bed now instead of listening to the news. Whatevah! Haha.

Tired

2007-03-06T18:03:00.000-08:00

I didn't get enough sleep last night, thanks to the mocha I drank for lunch yesterday. No caffeine! No more! Well, at least not in beverage form. ha!

Spinning was great today, even though the sub was there. She is growing on me. Then a mile afterwards on the track--no running because my sides were cramping up a little and I was keeping a good pace walking.

Tonight for dinner I was going to fry up some slices of the leftover polenta from last night, but that didn't turn out so well. Eh, not everything does. But I had creamy tomato soup from a box (yum) and some asparagus, my favorite spring vegetable! I only eat asparagus this time of year, so it a real treat. Plus, since Dr. MM isn't here, I could eat it every day if I wanted! Sometimes I want to. Dr. MM is not quite as big a fan as I am of asparagus. Tsk, tsk. A quick dinner, but I know that I haven't eaten a whole lot today. . .so I'm deciding between going out to get ice cream and eating the second half of the soup. Maybe both! I am in charge, so watch out!

No morning exercise today, although I did get up earlier than usual. I think that I will focus on doing either strength or walking in the mornings. At least right now, since I can't really wrap my head around anything else right now. And thanks for the link to the exercises, Trixie! I will have to scour it for ideas.

March BMR: 48.5
March FMR: 28.7
March Strength Remaining: 8

A new ritual

2007-03-05T18:13:00.000-08:00

Trixie asked in her last post what new rituals we could create that would operate to empower us in our daily living. I keep trying to post comments there, but since I switched to the new blogger stuff it won't let me! (So. . . thanks, Trixie, for your comment here!) For me, something that really worked out well in the past for me was exercising in the mornings before anything else got in the way. Today, I hit the snooze a million times so I didn't get off on the right foot--but I still got up and did half of my strength exercise (the abs component). Tonight I have done the arms part. I will have to write up what I am doing for my arms and get suggestions from those of you who workout about what I could do differently. I would love to have some links to good strength training sites that you have found informative! Or your strength routine. And stretches! All I have are a 5# and 10# set of dumbbells and an exercise/stability ball. And a yoga mat.

In high school, I took weight training (instead of AP Biology--it was science fair year) and really enjoyed it--but I barely remember the exercises and I don't have that kind of equipment. That was the best class--and not just because it was the closest thing to a senior skip class we had! The last class of the day, and we had to run around the school everyday to the weight room and then did weights for 40 minutes. It was great to see how much improvement we could make. I went from being unable to bench the weighted bar to benching almost twice as much by the end of the class. The athletes had to take it, I think, but a handful of us non-athlete girls took it too. Why? Because that's what the cool kids did, and we were on the periphery of cool. No, seriously, that was the reason.

Tonight for dinner is stuffed peppers--the stuffing is polenta with onions, rosemary, corn, and white cheddar. It's completely chock full of fat, even for me--and it takes an hour to bake! I didn't read that part of the recipe before deciding to make that this week, but whatever. I will have lots of leftovers! I know what I'm having for lunch tomorrow! Plus a spinach salad. Next time, I will probably put some sausage in it because it makes me want sausage tonight. That will totally lower the fat, won't it? Hee!

To update:

March BMR: 48.5
March FMR: 29.7 (I walked to the mailbox this evening and back--of course, I had no mail.)
March Strength Remaining: 8