365 Days Later

One year ago tomorrow Tiffany and I had this crazy idea. I have to say, I think it was a pretty good one. I weighed myself this morning, and according to my bathroom scale I weigh 222.0 pounds. At first I was kind of disappointed because I was down to about 216.something in November. But then I remembered that one year ago today I was a donut away from 250 pounds. So over the past 12 months I have lost a total of 27.8 pounds. Whoooooooo!

Part of me thinks about the people that drop 50, 60, 70 pounds in a year, but you know what? 30 pounds is nothing to sneeze at! Plus, this season I got to see some people that I only get to see a few times a year, and they all made comments about how much weight I've lost. Ego boost!

So, now heading in to Year 2, I still have some work to do. I need to lose another 50 pounds to meet my original goal. And I need to get back in control of my eating. I may have kinda sorta let things get out of hand over the holidays. Possibly. :-) But, not only do I know what to do now, I also know I can do it. Last year at this time I was thinking "is this really going to work?" Yes, Jen. It will.

This time, I'm going to do things slightly different. I'm going to make a list of things I want to accomplish each month. I love checking things off of lists. I mean, who doesn't? There is something strangely satisfying about drawing a line through a task. No? Maybe it's just me. Anyway, I've gotten off topic. So I'm going to make a list of things to do in January. Some of them will be tasks like "log my eating every day" or "workout 4 times a week," and some of it will be goals like "lose 10 pounds." I think having this visual reminder will help me in the long run.

Alright, I guess that's about enough for this one little post. I got up early so I can go to cycle class at the gym this morning. I haven't gone in over 3 months. While I love working at the gym, usually the last thing I want to do is go in when I don't have to be there. But I miss Ride a lot, so I'm going this morning. I'm going to have to start convincing myself to workout after my shifts. It will be on my list. ;-)

New Year, New Me.....Again.

If that title seems a little depressing, despondent and down then good. (like the alliteration? haha) I'm feeling all of those things.

In my last post I gave all of my reasons/excuses why I've been MIA. The main reason was my heel injury. I was put in a cast for 3 weeks...I got it off yesterday! yay! But over those three weeks was Christmas and our vacation back home. EVERYTHING revolved around food. We had 8 Christmas celebrations/meet ups with friends and family (Jen included!) and 7 of them were over some sort of food. Oy! I haven't stepped on the scale....I'm a little scared. Back to the cast/foot issue. I asked the doctor when I could start running for exercise again and she laughed. Boy, that's encouraging. She explained that, while I feel much better I have a bigger chance of injuring my foot again or stunting the healing process which is still going on. She gave me the timeline of 2 1/2 to 3 months...so I'm looking at March before I can begin a return to running. That means I'll be able to walk for 5 minutes and run for 1 (doc's orders). Now I wasn't running marathons but I was getting 3-5 miles in at the gym before my lameness set in! This is such a disappointment! She suggested I start by swimming and biking which is doable but not what I wanted to hear.

Last year Jen and I made goals, mine was to lose 75 lbs...I lost nearly 30 and then I stopped. I've gained a lot of it back but now that I'm "cleared" to do exercise I hope that since I did it last year I'll have an "easier" time losing it all again and completing my goal. This coming year will be interesting. I'll be dealing with another deployment, which can be a gift from the weight loss goals, because if I'm bored or sad or mad that my husband isn't home I'll just head to the gym. work it out there. So my goal is what it was last year. 75 lbs.

75.

Merry Christmas to All..

Wow, it's been over a month since either of us posted. I'm sorry. I guess the holidays just made time get away from me. I always over-do for people at the holidays. I don't know why, but I feel the need to shower people with gifts... but I do that all year, too. Anyway, so with all of the things that I wanted to make for people, I forgot to find time to blog. But I'm still alive.

Somehow, I have managed to stick to my goal of maintenance over the holidays. Purely by the grace of God, given how I've been eating lately. But the focus starts again tomorrow.

Alright, so I have more to say, but I have to be up early tomorrow for work. I will do my best to post tomorrow afternoon. With that, to all a good night.

Stress Eating and Other Bad Habits

I feel like everything I have learned about how to eat properly has disappeared. No. I take that back. I've suffocated it with carbs. There has been a little voice telling me not to eat that, I'm not hungry, get a glass of water! but I eat anyway. And it's not because I'm bored, it's because I'm stressed. In the past few weeks I took my last Praxis tests (or at least I hope they were my last), my mom had surgery and subsequently had to spend the night in the hospital unexpectedly, and I've been averaging 15 hour days between 2 jobs. Yeah... So I've been stress eating.

Luckily I only gained a few pounds, and I'm still under my 30-lbs-lost mark. I just can't seem to progress from here. What really sucks is that one of my 3 (yes, three) jobs is at a dang gym! But by the time I get off work, I need to go home and go to bed so I can get at least 7 hours of sleep before waking up to start the whole process over again. I don't really have time to get my workout in. So I'm trying to focus on my eating habits. I know weight loss is 80% diet anyway. I've done... not horrible this so far, but let's remember that Thanksgiving is the day after tomorrow. I'll just have to be smart about things. Easier said than done.

I sent a cover letter and resume to a principal about a position I heard was open. Any and all prayers and positive thoughts are much appreciated. I don't want to say that it would save all of my stress problems, but it would definitely help me relax.

Well, I guess that's all I have for this post. I hope all of you have a wonderful, blessed Thanksgiving!

If you are what you eat....

......then I need to eat a skinny person. Stat.

Have I used that one before?

So I guess you\'re wondering who I am. I deserve that. I\'ve been gone for some time now....I think Jen has single handedly doubled our blog posts since late august when I think I last posted.

Let\'s face the facts. I\'ve been avoiding the blog like it was a bill collector.

I have had a busy last few months....I was going to say difficult but that's not true, it's just been busy. I've gained a considerable chunk of what I lost back. There. I admitted it. My reasons/excuses are as follows:

Injuries:

Mainly my heel/foot. Beginning in April I started having severe, and I mean severe, pains in my left heel. After months of writing it off as being associated with working on my feet I went to the doc. I had xrays done and an exam (which consisted of the dr feeling up my foot) he said I had plantar fasciitis, basically the muscle connecting the ball of my foot to my heel was improperly stretched. He referred me to a specialist and gave me a verdict of limited duty...stay off the foot unless necessary or surgery would be needed. So besides work I couldn't really do anything...not that I wanted to because the pain had gotten so bad. So one month later, in October, I saw the podiatrist...she had the same diagnosis, exercise induced plantar fasciitis. Same verdict but now I had a pretty back and blue foot brace which I was supposed to wear whenever I was home or asleep and shoe inserts and the directive to follow up in 6 weeks. I made the appointment...it was supposed to be the 15th of this month...central booking screwed up and put me down for the 1st. So I wait for another appt. The pain has lessened but not enough to feel good walking on it. Other things wrong with me are back spasms and lower back pain..this could be brought on by the way I was favoring my foot and walking a different way, I wanted to ask the podiatrist before I saw my regular doctor again.

Work:
Over the last couple of months I've worked, on average 50 hours a week, with some weeks being much more. This is me, on my feet, walking between the camera and a kid for 12 hours each day. I get up at 3 in the morning, I get home at 4. Sometimes earlier but either way, I'm beat. I go to bed at 8:30 or 9 in the evening...I have very no time to cook breakfast, I'm gone for lunch and by the time I get home I have no desire to stand in the kitchen, we've resorted to eating out. A lot.


What do you get when you eat out and can't exercise? FAT.

So her I am, about to face the very real fact that the holiday ar coming and I could very well put on every last pound I lost this year by the time 2012 rolls around. (mmm....rolls)

So with that, I have a pre-new years eve resolution: maintain.

I'm deliberately not stating my weight...why ruin the holidays?! I'll let ya in on it, maybe, in the future.


So I'm back.

Forgotten Review

For my birthday this year I got this totally awesome gift from a lovely friend of mine. Yeah, except that my birthday was May 7 and I totally just forgot to tell y'all about it!

Anyway, as you can probably guess, it is a water bottle. But even better, it is a water bottle with a Brita filter built in!I really like it, and it definitely helps me drink more water throughout the day. I'm kind of picky about my water (as in I don't drink tap water if I can help it) and this bottle leaves no trace of that "tappy taste" lol. So I can fill up using water fountains and sinks when I normally would have just bought a soda instead. It holds 24 oz, so I do pretty well meeting my 8 glasses a day. Buuuuut.... if I'm being completely honest, it does annoy me sometimes.

There is a design flaw with the way the lid attaches. See, you have to squeeze the water through the filter and into your mouth, and about 20% of the time water will leak from where the top screws on. Sometimes it's a few drops, sometimes it feels like half the bottle landed in my lap. :-( I have taken to cupping my hand under my chin when I drink from it. Right now I'm actually using it as a portable filter. I fill it up at the water fountain and then transfer the filtered water to an aluminum water bottle. It works.

Target had some that were a little different when I was looking before I got this one. I'm curious to read the reviews on those. If I remember correctly, they were a harder plastic. I wonder if you would still be able to squeeze them? Anyway, hope you're having a great Friday!

Shopping Success

Today was the first day that I have attempted to go clothes shopping since I started losing weight. I am happy to say that it was a success! It took a few tries for me to find my new size, but I found it and it is smaller!

The whole reason I decided I need to go shopping was because my pants selection for work was seriously lacking. Seeing as I have lost 30+ pounds, they are baggy, saggy, and generally unprofessional looking (which makes me feel like an unprofessional slobby Bobby). And I think we've all been told that we should dress for the job we want. Well, I don't want to be Batman, and I don't want to be a slobby Bobby. I want to be a middle school teacher. So I need to start dressing and thinking like one. I was able to find 3 pairs of dress pants that I liked and that fit. I'll probably have to go look for some more pants later, but this will help out for now. Plus, when I wear things that look more professional, I'm less likely to get mistaken for a new student (which happens a lot at the High School.... do I look THAT young??).

I'll admit, part of the reason today was my first shopping trip is because I HATE looking for dress pants. Let's face it. I have some hips, people. Overweight or not, I will be a curvy girl. And for some reason, most slacks are not made for girls with hips, especially girls with hips and not a lot of thigh. Blah, oh well! Regardless, I found some pants that fit and look good and I'm excited. I'm going to test drive one of these new outfits tonight. Mr. Wonderful and I are going to see Young Frankenstein at the Theatre (that's how they spell it) this evening. I'm excited x2!

Alright, I'm going to go... do something else! Have a great Tuesday!

Best Guesses...

As to where my "co-blogger" is? I've seen her fb pic change, so I know she's still alive and whatnot. I'm just not entirely sure why she hasn't been posting. Although, I'm not taking it personally, since she hasn't updated her other blogs in forever either.

Here's another picture of me, pretty much full length. It was taken about a month and a half ago at a fundraiser/fashion show my bf was a part of. Not to make excuses, but I'm wondering about the lens the photographer used. Or maybe I'm standing at an awkward angle (I was posed with a friend who I cropped out in case she didn't want to be in my blog). Anyway! I was at a fundraiser and that was a dress I bought 3 years ago and never wore because I got too big. Yay for fitting into old clothes! Yes, that is a glass of wine (read: empty calories), but it was the first one I'd had in months. I kind of regretted going over my calories that night, but it was for a good cause. :-D

Oh, happy November! I can't believe that it's already November... My favorite time of year, but still. Halloween went fairly well here. I didn't make it to any parties, or even get a chance to carve a pumpkin. Work, work, work. That's ok though, I need the money. I'm a little worried about my eating this month. I will be first to tell you that Thanksgiving is my ab fab holiday. I'm a Christian, and I love Christmas, but even Christians (or maybe especially Christians?) have to admit that Christmas sometimes seems more about Santa and presents than the birth of our Savior. But that's a whole other sermon that I won't get into right now. I love Thanksgiving because it gets people to think about what they are thankful for and notice their blessings. And then there is the food! Soooo much good food! I think I will be able to pay attention to my eating and make smarter decisions this year though. It is becoming ingrained in my actions. I love it!

In other news, I want you to look at this picture. For those of you who know what kind of ring this is and what it symbolizes, slow your roll. That's NOT what I'm trying to tell you. What I want you to notice is that IT FITS!!! I bought this ring forever ago, and it was a little snug when I got it. Needless to say, there was a point that I couldn't even get it over my knuckle. I put it on my key ring for probably a good 2-3 years. The other day I noticed it and decided to try it on. Voila! That might make me happier than losing a pants size. Ok, maybe not, but you know what I mean!

Alright folks, it's been kind of a long day. I'm going to head to bed. I hope November is good to you all. Good night!

Comparison...

Comparison is not always the thief of joy. Sometimes it brings the joy!

I know I've been promising a new pic for months and I have failed to deliver. Well, no longer! It's just a head shot, but I think it's crazy that you can really tell a difference, especially in my cheeks.

You like my super-awesome rubber ducky shower curtain? I took the picture to show my friend my new bangs (which are so short my hair must be straightened for the next few weeks lol), hence the fact that I'm not facing straight into the camera. Since the picture turned out halfway decent, I decided I would go ahead and post it.

Anyway, there you have it. A friend of mine took a picture of me the other day. If and when she posts it, I'll do another side-by-side. Alright, I got called to do a half day of subbing today so I need to get my stuff together. I hope you all are have a wonderful Wednesday!

Another One?!

Yes, and not just one, but 2! Really, I am just posting to let you know that I finally posted an update in the other blog. Yep, I bet you thought I forgot about it, didn't you? Nope! Well, mostly because I cant, because it's on my "your blogs" line-up whenever I log in. It's taunting me, reminding me what a bad blogger I am. But no more! You beautiful people have a recipe waiting!

Anyway, here it is, Monday again. I have to go to one of my too-many jobs here in just a minute. Luckily, it's the only one I needed to get to today. I need to get more organized about this whole multiple-jobs thing. I need to prepare my meals and such beforehand. I always mean to pack something healthy the night before. Inevitably, I end up throwing together a lame sandwich the night before and stopping for dinner at a fast food establishment. I plan to start doing better this week. I'm going to go to the store after work and see what I can't find.

Ok, I need to finish getting ready for work. More later!

Slackers abound!

Wow... I haven't posted in 2.5 weeks. It feels like longer than that, but either way, it's been too long. And I have no clue when my co-blogger last made a post. We've really slacked off lately!

Anyway! Things have been going well, though. I recently started yet another job. For those of you keeping count, that makes 3! Four, if you count baby-sitting, which I do as much as I've been doing it lately lol. But this new job is at the gym I go to. I'm hoping that since I'll already be at the gym, and already in workout clothes, I'll have no excuse to not to workout. Plus, they freeze my account and give me a free one as long as I work there. Even better!

I've hit another plateau. I'm remaining steady at the 30 pounds I lost, but I haven't really made any progress since then. It's because I've been lame about my working out and such. Like I said, I'm hoping this new(est) job will help me in my endeavors. And my personal trainer told me that employees get good deals on sessions. I'll have to see.

Alright, I need to get back to job number one! I'll try to post a more substantial post later!
- Jen

Post Number 79

Yeah... I'm not feeling creative today. I'm actually feeling rather blah. I have been stress eating lately, and I'm trying to snap myself out of it. I know I'm not hungry, but I'm irritated, upset, and bored. I'm trying to find other ways to keep my hands busy, but that's frustrating me too. I just feel like I'm in a really negative space right now, and I can't decide how to get myself out of it.

I know, this isn't a very informative post. Like I said, I'm not in a happy place. Dwelling on what's PISSING ME OFF (!!!!!) is not going to help me get back to a good place, so I'm going to try to move on. And I'm going to try to do that now.

- J

And I was right.....

Not only did I not LOSE weight over the past 2 weeks, I actually gained. And significantly. According to the scale this morning, I gained 5 pounds in the past 2 weeks. I am so disappointed in myself. I'm not going to beat myself up over it because it's done already, but I am seriously disappointed in myself.

How did I manage to gain 5 pounds in 2 weeks while supposedly on a diet? Very simply. I didn't pay one bit of attention to anything I was eating. I had days when I ate things that were IN NO WAY health. Fried chicken, pizza, cookies, and all sorts of other things that a "good" dieter wouldn't touch. Then I had days where the foods I ate were not really that bad, I just didn't pay attention to my quantity.

So basically, my slip-up is all about quality and quantity of my food. Lack of one and too much of the other. I could also blame it on my lack of tracking. The biggest thing I noticed was that when I stopped tracking my food, it got easier to ignore what I was eating. At first, my lack of tracking was not on purpose. Between my two jobs and social obligations, I just kept forgetting. When my schedule calmed down, I was just out of the habit. So today I am making sure to track everything. I am also going to work on more crafting. Keeping my hands busy keeps the snacking down.

Alright, enough moaning. Let me set a realistic goal this time... I want to lose 3 pounds in the next 2 weeks. I also want to make it to the gym at least 3 days each week. I went to Centergy and Ride on Saturday for the first time in probably 2 months and I am still paying dearly for it. My legs and abs are still sore. That's just proof that I need to get back to work. Wish me luck!

Hmmm

So... I'm really thinking I'm not going to meet that crazy goal I set for myself. I might have even gained weight overall. We shall see in the morning....

Thirty One Point Six!

So, I have been trying to write this update for like 5 days now. But life being what it is, I have had a hard time sitting down with collected thoughts. Just ask my co-blogger, over the weekend my thoughts were spastic at best. I have no real reason for my thoughts being so scattered. I'm blaming a cold and subsequent medications, though. :-D

Anyway, I'm down 31.6 pounds (in case you were confused by the entry title). It's finally starting to sink in that I'm actually losing weight and becoming healthier. A few weeks ago I was able to fit into a dress I haven't worn in almost 3 years, and Friday I comfortably wore a pair of jeans that used to feel like they were cutting me in half. It feels good to know that I am finally making visible progress.

Knowing where I am now weight-wise (218.2) and where I was when I started this blog in January (249.8), I am somewhat dissappointed in my overall health for the past few years. When G and I started dating, I weighed right around 210 lbs. I'm not exactly sure since I hadn't really stepped on a scale 2-3 years at that point. When I joined the gym 2 months later I was 214. I accounted that to the holidays (we started dating in November and I joined the gym in January), and the fact that most of our dates involved going out to dinner. But I was going to the gym now! and I was going to workout! Except that isn't how it happened. Instead, I was paying for a gym membership that I didn't use how I should and I ended up gaining 4o pounds in 2 years. How ridiculous! Now, yes, I can blame it on depression, emotional eating, and other factors, but really... 40 pounds in 2 years? What was I doing? Nothing.

I'm not trying to beat myself up about anything. It's just kind of interesting to see what carelessness can do to your waistline. It also reminds me how my way of thinking about food has changed. I have learned how to make smarter choices when dining out, and I try to think aobut the overall health benefits of my food when I'm cooking at home. I'm proud of my progress, but I also recognize I have a long way to go.

Ok, this is all philisophical and stuff. I guess I should let you get back to your day. I hope it's a good one! Oh, and for my goal this week... I would like to lose 4 pounds in the next 2 weeks. Here's hoping!

Well Then: or Yes Then No

So, yay! When I weighed myself Friday morning, I was down to 219.8. That means I had lost exactly 30 pounds. Whoo hoo!!! Except that then I went to a burial service (for a wonderful lady who will be missed very much) and in true southern fashion we ate afterwards. Fried chicken, mac and cheese, corn bread, pasta salad.... Are you seeing any vegetables? And then of course there were cookies, cakes, and brownies. Yeah.... Then to make matters even better, I took Tony to a roller derby that night and we split a chicken tenders basket and a popcorn. At that point I was just too tired to care.

So when I woke up this morning and weighed myself, I was at 220.4. I gained back 0.6 lb over the weekend. Not good, but I've already done my damage. Now to start again. That's the wonderful thing about this time around. I'm not going to give up because I didn't make my goal. It's life. I mess up, and then I try again. And I can only be so upset. My pants are practically falling off. And I was able to fit into a dress that I haven't worn in almost 3 years. Obviously I'm doing something right, even if I get a few things wrong.

Ok... I need to get off here and do... something! I hope you have a good week!

- Jen

On my way

So today's weigh in was 220.4. I forgot to take a picture, but I promise that's what it said lol. So I lost 1.8 pounds in a week. Not bad. I'm only 0.6 away from losing 30 pounds! I'm really happy with that. I need to lose 2.2 this week to reach my goal. But I'm on my way to my goal.

I picked up a new cookbook the other day. I haven't been able to try any of the recipes, but they look delicious. It's not just recipes, but it's also got a brief narrative about how she got to the point of where she needed to live like this, and in turn write the cookbook. I like those. Don't just tell me I need to lose weight. I know that or I wouldn't have picked up your darn book! Tell me why I should listen to your version of why I should lose weight. Which she did, because I bought the book. :-)

This of course reminds me that I haven't uploaded a new recipe to the recipe blog in forever. I need to get on that. I've had a couple of good, low-cal recipes lately. I'll just need to sit down and decide what I want to put out there. Unfortunately, finding the time to do so is probably going to be a challenge. Eh, enough excuses, I'll find the time. Just for you!

Alright, I need to go find something to eat and then run errands before work. Have a good week!

- J

Hi ho, hi ho

It's off to work I go... There are several pros and cons to working multiple jobs. The biggest con I am feeling is the fact that I really want a nap. The biggest pro I am noticing is the fact that it cuts down on my boredom snacking! I would say my bank account, but I haven't drawn a check from the second job yet. Soon. :-)

It's been a good week so far. I'm working a lot (as I said). I haven't made it to the gym though. :-( One of the guys from my spin class came into the pet store last night. That made me miss the class even more. I'm hoping I'll be able to go to class this coming Tuesday. I'm sure my legs and rear are going to love me, but that my fault for missing class. Of course, I didn't do it on purpose, but whatever. I neeeeeed to start strength training again. Haven't I said that recently? I actually have the stuff at home, so not making it to the gym is not actually an excuse. I'm lame, I know. But tomorrow I'm working stock, so that will definitely count as my strength training for tomorrow.

Hmm, not much else in the health department. I'm just working towards my goal. I'm hoping I can make it with my lack of training the past few days. I think I'm making pretty good progress. I've been watching what I'm eating, and at least I move around a lot at the store. Maybe I'll try to do some reps of something between school and the store today... we'll see. I'm not making promises knowing what's in store for me tomorrow morning lol.

I'm looking forward to moving down the next level. The last time I weighed less than 220 was when Greg and I first started dating, almost 3 years ago. And I'm sure I was less than 200 when we met over 4 years ago. That was back when I was a restaurant manager and spent 8 hour shifts walking the dinning room or running through the kitchen. I was miserable in that job, but I was definitely healthier!

Alright, I guess I've rambled enough for today. I'll check in again on Monday if not before!

- J

Splurges and Consequences

So I gained half a pound since I last posted a weight. I know exactly why, it's not that hard to figure out. Last night we may or may not have gone out to the Olive Garden...it's never ending pasta bowl and while I only had one bowl and a bite of the second bowl I still had a breadstick and salad and a glass of wine. I thoroughly enjoyed the meal but lets face it, it was probably equivalent to an entire day of calories. But you know what, things like this are OK, so I set myself back I understand what I did and I understand what I need to do. Sometimes you need a little comfort food ;).

That being said, I am nearly into the 170's I would LIKE to get to 179 in the next two weeks. I'll be braving the mosquitos and heat this week to make it happen!

Busy Monday

So I missed my weigh in this morning.
I will try to get it on Thursday my next day off. I'm waiting for then because my normal weigh in time is around 8/9 in the morning. I'll be opening the next two days so I'll be at work by 7:30.

I did make a delicious meal tonight. Loaded baked potato soup with lite sour cream, small amount of milk, Turkey Bacon and baked potatoes. We had little Ham and cheese sliders to go along. Delicious.

Until Thursday!

Happy Dance

Slow and steady wins the race. Or at least achieves the goals. Look what I woke up to!

Please ignore my nails and the fact that I need to sweep the floor. I don't even remember the last time I posted a picture of my scale... But look! All 2s! That does amuse me a little. Plus the fact that it's the same upside down (except for the decimal). So, let's see... 249.8 - 222.2 = 27.6 pounds lost! And if I keep happy dancing, it will be 28 before the end of the day! lol

I'm also happy to say that I'm starting to notice the change in my clothing. My shirts were a little loose before, but my pants were still the same size. The other day I noticed that my pants are starting to fit a little looser, too. Finally!

This progress has encouraged me to set a goal for the first time in months. Seeing as I am 2.4 pounds away from the be 3-0, I'm going for it. My goal is to lose 4 pounds in the next 2 weeks. I'm tempted to try to get down to 219.8 by next Monday, but I know what my week ahead looks like and I'm not sure I could do it. Plus 3 pounds in 1 week is not really healthy (or reasonable). So anyway, that's my goal. Do you hear me, Ms. T? Do you have a goal, too, perhaps??? No pressure or anything.

- Jen

Early Morning Blogging

Although, I guess I could say that it's late night blogging since I have yet to go to sleep. I can't get comfortable. I haven't been feeling too great for the past few days and right now I think I'm running a bit of a fever. It's not horrible, but I feel like I'm just radiating heat. I have an ice pack on my neck and its helping a bit. Anyway, enough whining about my silly little illness.

So, I am pleased to announce that I am finally down over 25 pounds! I'm down 26 pounds in fact. I think that being at work, on my feet and running around for 4-6 hours a day has helped. I love my job. I especially love it if it's helping me continue with my weight loss! Saturday I worked stock from 6-11, so basically I spent 3 hours moving 20-40lb bags of pet food and cat litter, and the other 2 hours putting up overstock. It was quite a workout! I have to do it again next Saturday. At least I know I'll get one decent workout in next week!

My eating habits have not been what they should have been lately. I have been eating what's easy instead of what's healthy which I don't really like. Actually, that may be part of why I got sick. I don't remember the last time I had a decent serving of vegetables. Bad, diet blogger. Ok, now that I've admitted my problem, I need to work on it.

Alright... I think I'm starting to cool off a bit. Maybe I can get some sleep now. I hope so anyway. I promise I'll try to blog again, and better, soon.

Goodnight!

- Jen

hot hot hot!

I shaved my legs for this blog.

No really, I just hopped in the shower, shaved the necessary parts and came back to the computer to write my blog.

Ok, so this is how it really went down.
"Oh, It's Monday, I better blog before Jen kills me over the interwebs."
*sits down to blog*
"I should probably weigh myself, too."
*heads to the bathroom*
"Man, it's hot, I need to put on a dress; I should probably shave my legs so I don't look like a Sasquatch running around the house."
*hops in shower*......*weighs self*
"Much better, now it's time to blog"

And you have my thought process on why I felt it necessary to shave before I sat down to blog. Totally unnecessary. Totally worth it.
Why is it so hot, you may ask. Or you might not ask because you already know or just don't care. Our AC is broken. We're waiting on the repairman to come out this afternoon. It broke on Friday. It has been a sweltering 94 degrees in the house over the weekend. I spent one night here and that was enough so we hightailed it over to our friend's house for the last two days. We're back and I'm dying. Hence the need to put on less clothing which meant shaving. and I feel like I'm talking in circles. Blah!

On to the goods!
Hopped on the scale and I am down to 185.4. Woot woot! That brings me to a total of 26.4 lbs lost since the journey began!

Please ignore the horrible pedicure. It's pathetic, I know

Yay! And here's a picture of me, down 26.4 lbs!

185.4 lbs =D 

Oh, and I bought a real bike...not a stationary one, although I'd like one of those too! It's a really intense whole body workout!

Operation Lazarus

I know! It's been like 3 weeks since my last post! I promise, I did not leave you all hanging on purpose. I have been sans laptop for about a month, and sharing the desktop was not conducive to my blogging. But thanks to my awesome friend Brad my laptop is back from the dead. And it's even better than ever! :-D

Anyway, the past month or so has been... a struggle. My eating habits went to pot and my working out was eh to say the least. I have to say, it is very difficult to eat healthy when you're broke. The cheap stuff is soooooo unhealthy! Not that you didn't know that, but still. But, I'm happy to report that I'm down another 2 pounds! That brings my current loss to 24.2 lbs. Whoo hoo!

I'm also happy to report that I am now employed. I recently started working at a local PetSmart. I've only been there a week, but I like it so far. My co-workers are nice and my job is pretty fun. I primarily work with the small pets (fish, reptiles, gerbils, hamsters, etc.) which means lots of running around. Hello, skinny jeans! Also, I will pass the gym on my way to and from work, so hopefully that will encourage me to go work out before/after work. We'll see. I haven't done a decent strength training session in what feels like months.

Well, I guess that's enough updating for now. Hope you have a good week!

- Jen

Oh Hey, I Have a Blog?

.....that I haven't kept up with in what seems like forever (ok, it only seems like forever because it has been forever). Kudos to Jen for keeping up the good work and carrying this blog on her back.

I'm not even sure what to write about. I don't know how to not sound like a broken record. I've been pretty complacent in my ways. I've had to give up running (ok, it was more like jogging with long bits of walking) because I'm having problems with my heels so I've been trying to hop in the pool for cardio...that goes well for a little bit and then it ends as sunbathing, which is me floating around on a raft...not so heart racing. I will say that I have seen the scale over the past month go from 186 to 188 down to 183.4 and back up to 187.6 (wait, haven't I been this weight before?)

What could I do? I could try harder, I need to try harder but at this point I'm at a loss. I'm a little burnt out. I'm sick of planning meals, I'm sick of watching what I eat, I want to eat a cookie, I want to have that big mac, but I also want that skinny body, those size 8-10 jeans, that flatter stomach.

 I am at war with myself.

Blergh...

Ok, first things first. I'm still holding at my current weight. This weekend was not a healthy weekend, and I'm not super happy about it but whatever. Moving on.

Can someone PLEASE tell me how in the heck I have lost 20 pounds, but not a pants-size? I was an 18 when I started this little adventure. Today I found some cute pants that were a 16 and I figured 20 lbs down, that has to be at least 1 size, right?" WRONG! I couldn't even get the darn things over my hips. Grrrrr.

This was, of course, after I got stung by a wasp and a few other bummer things that I don't feel like going into. Basically, today was not a good day. I'm just going to try to chill out for the rest of the day and hope tomorrow is better.

- Jen

Busy Day

I have to say... I am pretty darn good at throwing a meal together. This morning I decided to break out the crock-pot so I wouldn't have to cook after spin class. I just looked in the fridge and threw some stuff in with frozen chicken and cooked it all day. So good. I'm glad I paid attention to what I did. I will post the recipe in a minute.

Today was a very athletic day. Diesel and I went for a walk this morning and then I went to spin class this afternoon. We walked for about 45 minutes. Since I knew I was going to class tonight and would NOT feel like an evening walk for D, I made our morning walk a little longer. Although, I'm not sure it worked. He keeps wandering to the front door and looking at his leash. Spin class was good though. I should sleep like a rock tonight lol.

[EDIT: No, it did not work. I ended up taking Diesel out for a 15-minute walk. Such a slave driver workout buddy!]

Ok! So here is the recipe, as promised.

Italian Tomato Chicken

Serves 4. Each serving is approximately 90 calories.

8 oz boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 15 oz can diced tomato

1 C frozen 3 pepper and onion (I used Kroger Recipe Beginnings)

2 T sun-dried tomato vinaigrette

1/4 C banana pepper rings

Put all ingredients in a crock-pot and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Use 2 forks to shred chicken. Enjoy!

I served mine over whole wheat rotini. Yum!

New Workout Partner

Yep, I officially have a new workout partner. Not on purpose, but sometimes these things fall into your lap and you have to make the most of it.

His name is Diesel Barksdale, and so far he's made me do more cardio than I have in the past I don't know how long. But How could you resist that face?
It was a roundabout way that he ended up my new workout buddy, but I think we're going to get along well. Yesterday he insisted on going for a walk around the neighborhood. Then Greg and I ended up taking him for about a 45 minute walk. He was exhausted when we got home last night. Then today I took him for a quick morning walk before I went to the gym for a class. Apparently Mr. D did not care that I had already done cycling and strength, he wanted to go for another walk. So we went for about 20 minutes. At that point I was worn out and in desperate need of a shower.

I did not meet my goal for this week. I maintained though. And consider the time of the month, I'm not surprised. I don't think Diesel's going to let that continue too long. Alright, well I'm going to go enjoy the rest of the holiday. I hope everyone has a safe and fun day!

- Jen

Random Musings

So yesterday I decided to punish myself. After going to Spin class, I (push) mowed the front yard and part of the backyard. If you had ever seen my backyard, you would know what an undertaking that really is. I'm not sure what prompted my self-torture. Maybe subconscious punishment for missing the gym? Regardless, I knew I was in trouble when I had trouble getting dressed for bed. I took 2 Advil last night, so at least I'm able to move this morning. Silly girl.

As you know, I like to crochet. See this post if you don't remember. I have discovered that when I throw myself into a project, I don't snack as much. Actually, I don't snack at all. If I feel the need to eat while I'm working, I think "ok, I'll go get something after I finish this part." Next thing I know it's an hour later, I finished the project, and my snack craving has passed. So then I start another project and start the whole process over again. Of course if my stomach is seriously growling, I do get something to eat, but it helps cut back on the mindless, emotional/boredom snacking. I used to do the same thing with cross-stitching, but it's easier to put one of those projects down than these lol. I just need to find a new project. I actually have one in mind, I just need to see about materials.

Hmm, anything else? Oh! I think that Ms. Tiffany and I need to go back to our original idea of goals and rewards. I'm not really sure what the breakdown of that was. Anyway, since I decided this mid-week, I'm not going to hold her to anything until next week. My goal is to be down 2 more pounds by Monday, July 4. There, I said it. I have 17 blog followers holding me accountable!

Alright, I guess I need to get off here and be productive or something. Have a good Wednesday!

- Jen

:-D

So, if sleep deprivation is the diet killer, I think compliments might be the diet resuscitator. Last night I went over to my boyfriend's house to watch True Blood. I saw his mom (she lives next door) for the first time in months (and yes, I hadn't seen her for months lol), and the first words out of her mouth were "have you lost weight?" Why, yes ma'am, I have. :-D I told I had lost about 20 pounds since the last time she saw me, figuring that 18 was close enough to 20 at this point, especially after last week's mess of a "diet." Anyway, it just felt great that someone had noticed the change. She said she almost didn't recognize me at first. I don't know if I've changed THAT much, but it was nice either way.

So I weighed in this morning to see how things are going, and I am ever so happy to say that I have finally lost over 20 pounds!!! I've lost 21.2 to be exact. It only took me 6 months, but who cares?? It's gone and I don't ever want to see it again. I'm a quarter of the way through my goal. It might have taken me a little longer than I would really want, but I'd rather be making slow progress than no progress. I think it helped that I was finally able to get to the gym this week.

Alright you loyal 16, I've gotta get to work. Thanks for stopping by!

- J

Little Bit Of A Rant.

So as many of you know, I did a local weight loss competition at the beginning of the year. Since I lost the initial weight it has been a little harder to lose additional weight. But that's mainly for a lack of trying hard enough. The "leader" of the competition was pretty much not a nice person, still isn't. I will say that "leader" only held that competition to get attention and free product. Which she got....in spades. Now said "leader" is holding another weight loss competition and it just makes me shake my head. I can't decide if this is really to "lose the other 20 lbs" or if it's for all the attention and praise she gets. How is this different than our blog here at FCD2SD? (wow, even the abbreviated title is long!) It's simple. Jen and I pretty much work at our own pace, if we don't lose, we don't lose and we get back up on it. We certainly don't plaster it all over facebook. We simply post our thoughts and feelings and maybe a picture for the 16 fans we have on Blogger and whoever wants to click a link we put on FB. Sometimes we don't even post it to FB. I'll be posting this one because I want people to know that I don't think said "leader" is doing it for the right reasons. I know she'll never read this (unless it's directed to her by someone else) and I don't give two shits (although if I did, I'd probably lose another pound!) let her read it.

That rant out of the way......I've lost a whopping 0 lbs.

Sleep Deprivation = Diet Killer

Unfortunately, I have gained 2 pounds. But if I tell you what I ate this past week, you would be amazed that I only gained 2! Thursday - Sunday I ate a bacon cheeseburger, fries, half a package of double stuffed heads or tails Oreos, various sandwiches, practically an entire pizza, pancakes, sausage, french toast casserole, breakfast casserole, and biscuits. Oh, and a candy bar. I'm not exactly happy with what I ate, but the damage is done.

So what does this have to do with sleep deprivation? Most of it was eaten while I was volunteering at the Relay for Life. I was awake from 7:00am on Friday til about 8:30am on Saturday. I ate to stay awake and my options were not healthy. Then it felt like I didn't do much besides eat and sleep for the rest of the weekend. Add that all to the fact that I didn't even look at the gym last week, it's a wonder I only gained 2 pounds!

I think another contributing factor was that I stopped logging my calories. I had been really good about logging everything I ate, but the closer I got to the event the less time I spent logging my food. And of course when I stopped logging, I stopped paying attention to what I was eating. Classic case of not taking my own advice. I don't know how many times I've told people that when they don't record what they're eating, they stop paying attention. Lesson learned.

So I'm back on the wagon. Again. Logging my calories and trying to keep moving. Maybe I need to keep crocheting to keep my hands busy. We shall see.

- J

I'll Take It!

In a week with a crazy, stressful schedule, no gym time, and horrible eating habits I managed to lose .6lb? I will take it, thankyouverymuch! I guess that goes to show that I am making healthier choices, even when I'm not aware of it. And isn't that the point of this whole adventure?

The past few weeks have been good, but hectic. As I have mentioned a time or two, I participate in the Downtown Knoxville Relay for Life. My team has gone a little fundraiser crazy in the past few weeks. We have had 3 fundraisers since May28, and we have another one on June 11! Then the actual event is on June 17-18. Our team, the Improv Ninjas, is selling shirts, bracelets, key chains, and handmade ninja dolls to raise money for our team. Aren't they cute?

But who, you may ask, is the creative genius making these adorable dolls? That would be me. I have made 32 of these cute little guys (10 of which were custom orders) and every single one of them has sold. Which is awesome. What's even more awesome is that if my hands are that busy crocheting (not knitting), then they aren't putting food in my mouth. Even better! I need to make about 25 more before Saturday, and I hope to have at least 40 to sell for the actual event. Since these take me about an hour each, I guess I should stop typing and start working! Especially if I want to go to spin class this evening.

Ok, we're off!

WhoopsieDaisy

So two weeks ago I wrote ecstatically about finally getting out of the 188's, I also wrote about my worries for my weight loss, diet and exercise during the move into our first home.

My fears were confirmed this morning as I stepped onto the scale. But not exactly as bad as I thought it would be. I'm at 188.8, a 1.2 pound gain. Reasons for the gain include, eating out numerous times while moving and setting up our kitchen...at the end of a long day of moving and unpacking I just didn't have the strength to cook, we also had two pool parties complete with alcohol, hamburgers and hotdogs, I didn't limit myself at all on any of those things. Basically, I switched off my diet brain. But now it's back on, I've been cooking the past couple of days and we won't be eating out as much as we have been lately.

On a happier note, I've been living in a bathing suit the past two weekends! It's been awesome!

Ok, so that's a swimsuit cover up...but it's still awesome! 

[Insert Witty Title Here]

Sorry, but my brain is not feeling super clever this morning! Oh well!

I am pleased to say that I finally FEEL like I'm making progress. I'm noticing a difference in the way I look and in the way I feel. And I've FINALLY gone down a size. Sort of. Some things I can buy a size down. Some things I'm still in the same size, but they fit better. Overall, it's a good feeling.

I also like the fact that eating better is becoming more automatic for me. I have been dieting since I was like 12 or so and obviously it never took. I think that's because before I was using such strict diets. Diets that said "you can only eat these foods" or "you can never eat that again." And honestly, that's crap. I'm never allowed to eat dairy? Or breads or pasta? Any diet that is immediately undone by a slip (or a party where I didn't cook the food) is not a diet I want anything to do with. I would much rather do something that I can stick with for the rest of my life. So that means eating the foods I like, but in smarter ways and smaller quantities. And it allows me to make smart choices in different eating situations instead of seeing a list of things I can't have. Hopefully doing things this way will help me stick with it.

In other news, I am totally addicted to Spin class. As much as I loved running, I love cycle even more. I think part of it is the fact that it's a class. The instructor is talking so I don't get bored. Plus, the class I take is choreographed to the music, so you're focused on the beat and such. Before you know it, you're almost done. Love it! I'm actually going to class tonight and I'm very excited about it lol.

Alright... I think I've rambled enough for now. I'm going to go find something to do. Hope everyone is having a great day!

- J

PROGRESS!

Ignore the awful pedicure! I am making progress! I am down to 187.6 that is 23.4 lbs since January 3 and 11% of my body fat! woohoo!

We are moving this weekend.........I am hoping to lose a pound but I am skeptical because usually with moving there is eating out because you don't have the tools to cook readily available. SO my goal is to make healthier choices when we inevitably eat out. 

Happy Monday! 

188.0-9....aka ridiculousness

(It's a word, I checked)

In the past four weeks I have weighed myself religiously just like the 14 weeks before that. The only change was that there was NO CHANGE. Well, not a substantial change. I fluctuated between 188.0 to 188.4, 188.7, 188.9 (eek!) I'm currently at 188.6. What is my body's deal with this number?? I have no attachment to it, I swear! My body, on the other hand, has a love affair with it.

On one hand, I am so thrilled that I'm "maintaining." On the other hand, I HATE that I'm "maintaining." I'm nearly 20 weeks into our 52 week journey. OY! We're nearly half way through this! With these four weeks behind me I am now averaging just over a pound a week lost. That's pathetic. Simply pathetic. 22 lbs in 20 weeks, it needs to be more. Especially if I'm going to reach the ~50lb mark by the end of the game this winter!

I need to think long and hard about what it is that is missing. I can't come up with a plan until I find out what is not working. That probably means a trip to the doctor as well. I'll continue to maintain even though I'm trying to lose. **le sigh**

Goal: July 4th, be down to 180.

Take... 5?

I hate how much I've said "ok, this week I'm going to recommit to my goals..." But here I am, saying it again. I will say that while I did not have a good two weeks (or fortnight if you want to sound uppity), I was able to maintain my weight. I look at that as a victory.

Sadly, I was not able to meet my 20 pound goal by my birthday. Last week was really a not got week for me mentally, physically, or emotionally. For the past 2 weeks I've just felt rundown, tired, and generally weak. I worked out some, but my running got cut short because I just could not get my legs to go any farther. I haven't given up though! I'm going to go back and do one day of week 3 and then start week 4 again!

The mental/emotional thing came from outside stress. As I mentioned before, I thought I had misplaced my laptop. Who does that? But I've been stressed and scatterbrained lately, so there you have it. Except, no you don't. Because when I came home from the store on Friday, our 42" TV was gone. Now I KNOW I didn't misplace that! Apparently, someone has been coming into my home and taking my things. I don't know how many of you have ever been robbed, but there's a certain emotional hole that it leaves. Especially since whoever this person is has to have been watching the house to know when all of us are gone. Which means it's probably someone we know. Anyway, that on top of everything else and I just crashed. I just ate what I saw and didn't think about calories or portions or anything other than mindless munching. But I'm back on the program today.

Ok, I think that's enough for now. I'm going to go to work now. Hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's Day weekend!

- J

le sigh....

Today sucked for both your bloggers. I will let Tiff fill you in if she wants to, but my day started off mediocre and went downhill from there. I did lose 2 pounds, but since that's actually still up from where I was, I didn't celebrate it like maybe I should have.

The biggest (and worst) news of the day? I seem to have lost my laptop. How? you may ask... I DON'T KNOW! I am notorious for losing my keys, my debit card, and other small items, but how in the HECK did I misplace an entire computer??? The likelihood of it being stolen is slim seeing as all of our TVs are still here, as well as my iPod and other valuables. Plus my old laptop (it's broken, but you wouldn't know at a glance) is right where I left it. Needless to say, I am feeling a little frustrated and upset. I probably cried for about 2 hours. I tore my room apart. I have looked EVERYWHERE in the house. And when I say everywhere, I mean it. I looked everywhere from the dirty clothes hamper to the kitchen shelves. I cannot find it anywhere. The stress of that may have weakened me towards eating my feelings.... tonight they tasted like a double helping of rice pilaf. :-(

I didn't get to the gym either. I worked from 9-2, then I had to run my little brother to the doctor for an emergency appointment at 2:50 (long story, but he's cleared for school tomorrow at least). When I got home, I realized that my laptop is missing so I spent the rest of the day searching for it (when I wasn't crying my eyes out at the thought of replacing it on a nonexistent budget or all the files that I can't replace). At that point I really wanted to go to the gym and do a spin class or something, but by that time all the classes were over. I could have gone and ridden the bike by myself, but it's different when there's an instructor. Overall, very lame of me but what's done is done.

Ok, I now have to go try to get some sleep. Tomorrow's a new day, and maybe the laptop fairies will find my computer in the night. Here's hoping!
-J

I'm FIFTY!

Ok... for those of you that DIDN'T watch SNL in the late 90's early 2000's, that joke is lost on you. But because I still quote it to this day, and if I stretch the definition a little it's almost fitness related, I will share it with you.

Moving on! This is our 50th blog post. Can I just say how proud I am of Tiff and myself for not letting this blog die away like so many others? And for not turning it into a long list of excuses as to why we're struggling with our goals? I think we've both been pretty good at admitting "well... that was dumb of me to have 18 milkshakes and 4 cheeseburgers... no wonder I gained my weight back." Not that I think either of us has had a milkshake since we started this thing (I have had a few cheeseburgers), but you get my point!

So, as promised, I was going to explain further about my lack of progress. To be perfectly honest, I don't know what happened to make me gain that 2 pounds back that I had lost. I stuck to my calorie goals and drank plenty of water. I was a little lazy with my strength training, though. Maybe that was it. The last pound I gained came from going out with Greg twice for his birthday, once to Smoky Mountain Brewery and Once to Red Robin (I told you I had a cheeseburger) and eating waaaay too much on Easter. Between all that overindulgence and working more days, I didn't have time for working out. Lamesauce on my part.

This week I am trying to do better. I'm still working towards my goal of a total 20 pounds lost by my birthday... which is only a week from Saturday. I'm not going to beat myself up if I don't make it, but I think I still need to work towards it. Plus, even if I don't make it by my birthday, at least I'll be that much closer to making it at all! Positive, positive, positive.

Speaking of positive, I decided to reward myself for making it to -10lbs. Greg and I were killing time at Target before his Red Robin birthday dinner, and I bought myself a bracelet (I would have posted a picture, but the target site is being ridiculous). It says "dreams become reality one choice at a time." I thought that was appropriate given the circumstances. I have also decided on another reward for myself when I accomplish a my C25k goal.

I found it through a website called One More Mile. I had posted a status on Facebook about how I was always pleasantly surprised when running didn't kill me, and a friend (who is a runner) posted a link to one of their shirts that says "Running won't kill you, you'll pass out first." Ooh, a new place to shop?? So I started looking through their stuff and saw a tab that said "penguin." Now if you know me at all, you know I had to click! I saw this and decided that I would use it as motivation towards that goal. I mean, hello! Inspiration and a PENGUIN?? It will be mine... in about 2 months, lol.

Speaking of my running, I'm doing pretty well if I do say so myself. This week is week 3 and it (obviously) didn't kill me! Almost. I actually had to stop half way through the first time I tried because I was having trouble breathing. It was an Allergy thing, not an exercise thing, but it still upset me. The next night I went through it again and finished. I prayed for 25 minutes straight, but I made it. Seriously! It went something like "Ok God... I know this won't kill me, but I might need some help getting through... just help me breathe through the next 90 seconds... ok, thank You... now let's get through that 3 minute run... ok one minute down, God, help me get through the next 2...." and before I knew it I was in the cool down stage and I was fine. I needed to go again yesterday, but uhm no. I don't know if any of you heard about the storms passing through the South, but it was pretty bad out there, and I was not about to risk my life (or my car!) for I a run I could do today.

Ok, I guess I need to get to that run. I don't have a lot of time before going to work, and I really want to get it done. Later all!

- Jen

Lazy Morning

So I'm sitting in my bed watching Regis and Kelly banter in a weird, flirtatious way. I feel like I'm still recouperating from the previous work week. I went to the gym but I didn't meet my goal for gym. I ate out and I ate cookie dough. But mostly I worked. I worked nine days straight. I'm not complaining, but I had no time for me. It was work work work. I got really upset, I would come home, exhausted, so I would go out to eat instead of making a healthy dinner. I tried to eat healthy out for the most part so that's a plus. My husband had also been gone for quite some time now, and on top of that we are still dealing with the stressors of home buying and the financial aspect of that. So anytime I hit a bump in the road with that I'd grab a spoonful of cookie dough. I am lucky I didn't gain all my weight back! As it stands I'm fluttering around my last weigh-in weight of 188.8 and 190. But today I'm like at 189. So at least I am maintaining. I really don't know how to balance everything in my life. Before, I didn't have a job, and when I took this job I was skeptical about still having time for my goals. I was right in my doubts. I need to figure all this out but it isn't going to happen in the near future. Mitch comes home, my mom comes to visit and we are loosing a good, trained worker this week at work and we have SIX new trainees coming in.

Overwhelmed doesn't begin to cover it.

Short and (Bitter)Sweet

I have a friend picking me up in 10 minutes to go help her move furniture all day, so this is probably going to be a little rushed. Sorry.

So my goal..... *sigh* Not only did I not meet my goal, but I actually gained a pound from my weigh-in 2 weeks ago. I'm now 237.6. I'm not surprised, but I am disgusted. I weighed myself this past Wednesday and saw that I was back up to 235.8 or so. Then the rest of the week dissovled into birthday meals and eating my feelings. Both bad.

But now I think my ride is here. I will try to post more details and a new goal tonight.
- J

Happiness :-)

I'm in a pretty good mood these days! First of all, the scale is moving in the right direction, and in a consistant manner! I've lost about 16 pounds, which feels awesome! It's hard for me to tell much of a difference by looking at myself in the mirror. We don't have any full length mirrors in the house, so I can't really examine myself (or take self-portraits lol). I am noticing a difference though. I take a yoga-ish class at the gym, and of course there are mirrors there to check your form. I used to get disgusted with how big I was. During the last class I noticed that I look a little leaner. Yay!

I'm also in a good mood because of my oh-so-wonderful boyfriend. He said I wasn't allowed to talk about him on Facebook anymore, but he didn't say anything about my blog! [insert evil laugh] Apparently, my bragging about how wonderful he is was ruining his street cred. For those of you who have never met this man, street cred is not something you would have considered him having to begin with. Anyway, Mr. Wonderful is very supportive of my new eating habits and exercising. He's actually the one that got me going to the gym 2 years ago. And for Valentine's day he got me a Smoothie King gift card because I told him I really didn't want any candy. But back to his more recent wonderfulness! Yesterday he told me he could tell that I was starting to slim down. The fact that he, a GUY, noticed and told me that made my freaking day! He didn't even notice when I got a haircut and had bangs all of a sudden. He also said it was easier for him to pick me up (also for those who have yet to meet him, he is a 6'5" goofball who likes to pick me up just because it seemed like the thing to do). That's not saying much, though. He works out like a machine, and I used to fight him every time he started to lift me. I guess I was embarrassed that he might throw his back out or something. Anyway!

More good news has been my workouts. I have been sticking with my c25k training. I did w2d2 today. It didn't kill me! I thought it might there for a minute, but I lived! Part of my problem was not eating enough before I started the jog. I just started running out of steam at the end. I made it though! I may do Week 2 for a few extra days before moving on to Week 3. When I survived today's session, I don't think I'm ready to move on just yet. I also had a session with my trainer the other day. It was the first time I've seen her since October! She kicked my booty, and I loved it! My legs were pretty sore though, which did not help my running! Oops!

In other news, I posted yet another recipe. I have really enjoyed this one! I took it for my lunch yesterday. I will definitely be making it again. And soon probably! I need to start playing with more breakfast ideas. I seem to be stuck in cereal rut, but that's mostly because I'm lazy. Oh well! Alright, I think I'm done for this update. Hope everyone is doing well!

- Jen

What??

Have you ever looked at the scale and been confused? The numbers just didn't make sense to your poor little brain. Well that happened to me this morning. Huh?? I'm sorry, but I'm having trouble processing the fact that I have actually lost 15 pounds! My first reaction was "those 4's must be in the wrong place. It should say 244.3." So I did it again. Nope 234.4! So I took a picture. I'm so excited. And this means I'm right on track for meeting my goals. Tiffany better be picking out something good! I already have hers lol. Anyway, I have more to share and a recipe to post, but I'm actually at the gym waiting for a class to start. I was just so excited I wanted to share! - J

The time has come....

...My local weight loss competition has ended and I didn't win, I did, however, come in 3rd place (at least that's how it's looking as of right now!)

Since January 3rd when I started this whole mess I have: lost a total of 22.2 pounds. 10.25% in body fat. Gone from a size 16 to a size 12 (and those are starting to get baggy). found my waist! Gone shopping in my own closet and completed a 10k in under 3.5 hours. IN THE MUD. I have newfound self confidence and I am loving my new body.

But my time in weight loss world is not over. I am glad that the competition is over, towards the end I feel like it dragged by, I love who I met and who I've made friends with throughout it and the motivation and support but after awhile I felt that we were just repeating ourselves and we all had lives to live as well. So I am not terribly sad it's over, I am happy that we all made it through and now we can move on to the next step in our lives. That step for me is continuing on to lose another 40 or so pounds by the end of the year. I want to be skinny AND healthy.

I need to get back on track with goals just like my buddy Jen. I am ready to start posting goals again. Nothing crazy big but enough to get me motivated. So my goals are as follows:

Gym: 6 gym workouts before next weigh in
Pounds: Lose 5 pounds before next weigh in
Target: abdominals and legs. I may be losing but I still feel squishy!

Lastly, I'll leave you with a little mosaic that I put together of my time in the local competition!

Goal Reboot

Ok, so it's week 15 of this lovely little blog, and Tiff and I have been kind of slacking in the goals department. I don't even remember the last time I set a weight loss goal, and I definitely did not meet my running goal. Although, When I weighed myself this morning the scale said I was 236.4 pounds. That's a loss of 13.4 pounds! I'm very excited about that. That being said, I still want to recommit to setting and achieving goals. So, I declare today to be a new day and a good restart! So here are my current goals:

1. Lose 4 pounds in 2 weeks. Sound familiar? I figured I'd go back to the basics for this one. So hopefully I will weigh no more than 232.4 on April 25.


2. Be down a total of 20 pounds by May 7. That is my 27th birthday and I would love to have that as a present to myself! That means I have 26 days to lose 6.6 pounds. I think that's doable, especially if I can lose the 4 pounds in 2 weeks!


3. Stick with my 5k training! I have started a 5k training program again. This is the actual Couch-to-5k program. My last one was a little demanding for a beginner. I think C25k will be a little more reasonable for me to stick to.

So, I have declared my intentions publicly. And I have every intention of keeping them! But now, I need to go to work! Both on these goals and to that place that pays me for working! Have a great day all! -J

Late Night Posting

Well, I guess it's not that late. Anyway I'm updating. I don't have much to say, but I felt the need to post. Here we are!

First of all, I just finished a book that I'd like to recommend to you.

I really enjoyed it. She talks about several things that I had not thought of before, and it's really helped me recognize a few things that I needed to change about my eating habits. I bought another book, but I haven't started it yet. I'll let you know once I get into it.

Next, I believe that the time has come for Tiffany and I to get back to our goal setting and such. We both kind of got off track with that. She's been really busy (as she's mentioned) and I've been super stressed and unfocused. I've done really well with my calorie intake lately. I finally broke that 10 pound wall! And I've restarted my 5k goal. Needless to say, I did not meet that goal as I had hoped. But I'm going to start again. I'll leave the details for tomorrow, but I have a better outlook this time.

Hmmm, I guess that's going to be it for tonight. There's more I could say, but I want to wake up early tomorrow so I need to get to sleep early! Plus, I want to save some of it for my goal posting. I hope you all had a good weekend. See you tomorrow!

- Jen

Breakfast Recipe Posted!

I know, it's 11:00 and I'm posting a breakfast recipe. Crazy times. Anyway, I made my meal for in the morning, tonight. Here, I'll even give you a preview....

Doesn't that look yummy? And less than 200 calories a serving.... Just saying...

Ohhh, I know I need to post more. I need to give a good, detailed update. I also need to take and post some recent pics! Maybe I can get those taken tomorrow. I'm not making any promises, but I will try! Anyway, I hope that you all are enjoying the recipes! Be back later!

- J

First Week of April Already?!

So here I sit, 4 days into april...actually 3 months into this weight loss challenge we set for ourselves/each other. That's a quarter of a year. There are only 3 more quarters to lose the weight. At this point I have sat down and really reevaluated my goals in the numbers department. As I continue to lose weight and my body changes I am beginning to realize that I might not look "healthy" at 130 lbs. As much as I'd love to say that I weigh that much, I'd also like to keep my curves and not look sick. On the other hand I also want to stick with the goal I set originally and not "quit" it. It's a tough decision. So I'm doing what I do best. I'm waffling. What does that mean? It means that if I make it to 145-155 I might start to maintain my weight/health and not strive to hit 130 lbs as suggested by many weight loss sights and even my doctor (for my height and age group). I won't make that decision until I get to that point and I evaluate how I feel and how comfortable I am in my new body/new weight.

Make sense? Good! So my new goals/numbers are as follows (tentatively, of course):

Starting Weight: 211 lbs
Current Weight: 188.8 lbs
Lbs lost since January 3: 22.2 lbs
Lbs lost this past week: .2 (I'll get to that later in the post)
Body Fat Percentage lost: 10.52%
Lbs Left to Lose: 43.8 lbs to get to 145/ 33.8 lbs to get to 155
Height: 5'5"
Age: 24

It's all about being and staying healthy...if my body doesn't look right at 130 lbs then why struggle to get there? Ya'know?

So onto this past week...I only lost .2 lbs...a half of a half a pound! Ugh! At least the week before I lost 1.2 lbs! I've had a lot of stress this past week...coupled with the fact that I've been at work 7/7 days and factor in a wedding with an open bar and a delicious meal...and I'm happy I actually lost weight instead of gained weight!!! I also canceled my gym membership this week. Whhaaaaat??? Yeah, I loved that gym, but the money is needed somewhere else currently (buying a house, every little bit helps) and I get in free on base...no the classes aren't as good but hopefully I'll be able to go back to the big gym in a few months...we'll see! I can still use the gym until the end of June.

So here's my picture for the week! It's NOT a full length, I'm sorry, but it's my favorite of the week and I think it shows how far I've come and how comfortable I'm becoming!

I seriously love this picture...I bought that dress last Summer but couldn't wear it. Now I can! 

More New Recipes

Tonight's dinner was delicious and healthy. So I posted the recipes. I suggest you go try them. I made Roasted Vegetables and Potatoes. There were tons of leftovers, so I think I may make a frittata for breakfast tomorrow. Hmm, sounds good already.

So, in other news..... I FINALLY LOST 10 POUNDS! Actually, I had lost it a week ago, then I went out of town and gained 1.6 pounds back. But now I'm back down. Yaaay! It took me long enough! But seeing this progress gives me some encouragement. :-D I'll try to take and post pictures soon. I know I've been slacking in that department.

I also met my goal for working out 10 out of 14 days. It was a little hard with me being out of town, but I made it work.

Alright. I know this was kind of a lame post, but there you have it. I'm gonna go... do something else. Later!

- J

New Recipe and a New Bike!

I know, newness all around! I posted a new recipe over on the other blog today. It is for the granola I made today. I also got a new exercise bike! FOR FREE! My friend runs a thrift store and she gave it to me as payment for going on a pick-up with her this morning. Heck yeah! I've already been using it, too. That granola requires you stir it every 15 minutes, so I would bike in between. I ended up doing about 26 minutes on the bike (because I didn't have this genius idea until about 30 minutes in lol). And it's pretty quiet, so I won't really distract anyone if I ride it while we watch tv. EXCITED! I had been looking to buy one for a few weeks now, but I couldn't really afford it. I can afford free! I need to look up the instruction manual to see about some of the electronics.

Ok, well, I really just wanted to update you on the recipe. I'm off to a fundraiser!
-J

I'm so Busy!

Jen wasn't kidding when she said I was busy! I'm swamped, today is my only day off and it's spent making sure my husband is ready to wait on the Navy. I was however able to get a 3 mile walk in with my two biggest puppies Ace and Fitz. I also had a weigh in for the competition I'm a part of...and my goal was to be in the 180's but I missed it......by .1 lb. yeah...weighed in at 190.0. I was thinking about doing anything I could to drop to 189.9 because that still counts, that's still in the 180's! But alas, I could do nothing to drop a point. damn. Oh well, I'll give you an updated picture of myself from this week! I'll be going house hunting again tonight with my hubby!

me at 190.0 lbs! 

Alternative Workouts

Ok, so I'm being a total blog hog this week, but Tiff is super busy lately. Glad for her, but that means you get more blogs from me! Yay! :-)

Yesterday was a day full of "alternative workouts." Yesterday I hauled, I dug, and I hoisted. Today I hurt lol. See, this week my brother has been visiting and doing some work around the house. Yesterday was spent "reclaiming the backyard." We had some massive overgrowth of privot and such, so I got to play with the hedge clippers while my brother went to work with the chainsaw. After that, my younger brother and I started raking leaves and throwing them in the compost heap. Then I planted my peach tree. I don't know why, but I have been obsessed with the idea of having a peach tree for like the past month. So yesterday, Mom bought me one (thanks Mom!). But that meant I had to dig a hole and put it in the ground. Then my brother was nice enough to build me a box to put around it so it's easier to mow around. Now I just need to go get some mulch to put in the box. Here is the finished product (minus the mulch):

Isn't it pretty? I doubt it'll bear fruit this year, but maybe next year. Luckily, my co-blogger said that it could count as my workout for yesterday, so that means I accomplished this week's half of my goal. I'm thinking about going for a walk later today, but I don't know. There's some more yard work that needs to be done. I'll get some exercise one way or another!

I haven't been to the gym once this week, but I still got my five exercise days in. It was nice to do something different, and even better to do something that was productive for more than just my health. It was also a nice change of pace. We planted some herbs, vegetables, and melons, too, so I'm looking forward to working with those soon. It looks like I will have a season filled with alternative workouts!

- J

P.S. I also posted a new recipe! Go check it out over here!

Goals and Other Such Nonsense

I have to be honest. I really don't think my 5k-in-less-than-45-minutes goal is going to happen by the end of the month. Mostly because I have not done my training for it in over a month. Well, I've done a few runs in the past couple weeks, but it's been sporadic and my heart's not really in it. I think my problem was that my training schedule was a little too intense for the time I had to commit to it. I was supposed to run and/or walk 6 days a week for 6 weeks. That plus my normal workout just got to be too much.

I hate the fact that I couldn't keep it up. I love running. Not only do I love the endorphins (whoo! Runner's high!), but I also like the act of running. The rhythm of it is awesome... when I can do it. I want to get that feeling back, so I am going to try the Couch-to-5k program. A friend of mine is doing it and seems to enjoy it. Plus there's a Droid app that has the program on it. If there's an app for my phone, I'm there!

I'm doing well on my current goal. I haven't made it to the gym yet this week, but I have done an exercise DVD 4 days this week. Honestly, it makes me sweat harder than most of my gym workouts! Wednesday was my third workout and it was REALLY hard for me to convince myself to do the video again. It's a pretty intense workout! But I finally talked myself into getting it over with. It sucked and I was so sore and tired when I was done, but I did it! And when I did yesterday's workout, it wasn't nearly has difficult.

The DVD has 3 levels of workouts. You're supposed to start on the first one and then after a few days, move on to the next, then eventually to the third. During the first workout she says that if your on the 5th or 6th day of that workout, you can probably feel a big difference in your endurance from the first day. I have to say she's right! It makes me sweat, but it has gotten a lot easier to make it through. Today will be day 5. I'll probably stay on this workout at least 8 days. If level 1 was this bad, I'm scared of level 2! Of course, if I get into it and I feel it's too intense, I can always go back, right? Right!

Ok, so today is gorgeous, so I'm gonna go outside. later all!

- Jen

Weigh-in; Round.....wait, what round is this?

Oh who knows!
So we are halfway into March and since January 3rd, I've lost 20.2 lbs. that's a 9.6% loss in body fat...I am on the cusp of being in the 180's (I'm weighing in at 190.8). My goal for myself was to be in the 180's by today's weigh-in, I failed in that aspect, but I did cross over the 20 pound marker! So I am celebrating that victory!

I've not been setting myself goals either, mainly because I am very busy as of late. I was just promoted to Assistant manager at Smoothie King and will be training to be a manager here in Jacksonville. Couple that with taking care of 4 dogs by myself and house hunting...set in stone goals got pushed out of the picture. I've been making goals that kind of "meh" when it comes to goal making...like being in the 180's, or finally losing 20 pounds or getting to the 10% body fat loss. I got one!!! haha

These next four weeks I am going into beast mode. trying to run harder, longer, faster etc.