Last day of January

It has been about four weeks that I have been working hard on getting more fit. I have found this last week to be the worst one yet. I have had to give aerobics on Tuesday. Patrick,my son, had a basketball game on Tuesday,Thursday and Saturday of this past week. All three of those days prevented me from working out. To me that makes for some stress. I really need to work out to keep the sanity. I don't know about you all, but working out keeps me centered. I have worked hard this week too at eating more organic. I have,however, drank more liquor this week too. Sheesh. I swear it is a balance. The more working out...the less liquor.
I have probably gained this week, but I only worked out one day. Weird???
I have to go.
This is how my week has gone. Totally not about what I need or want!
Good health!
Dianna

Monday, January 25th

It has been a couple of days since i've blogged. I've had some time to think about things. I think I am going to wait on the hysterectomy. I think this is the best. I also have been working very hard this weekend. I have had two bad days last week and I'm hoping that tomorrow goes well (my weigh-in day). This is my 3rd week of working hard.

I have read an interesting book. It is written by the trainer from the biggest loser!!! It is how our hormones effect our metabolism. I never read 6 chapters of anything, but the information is so interesting. It talks about the foods we eat and how they mess with our metabolism.
Here is a highlight of the big NO,NO's according to the book: Do not skip meals, you must trick your body into thinking it is not starving.
Eat organic! We are putting way too many processed things in our body! I believe this to be true! If something has too many chemicals and you can't pronounce them...you should not eat them.
The last thing....stop eating "diet" food...it contains way too many processed foods. I have always thought this about cokes. What the hell is it anyway????? We know where orange juice comes from, wine and milk. But where does Coke come from?????
I already buy organic milk and eggs. I think I'm going to work a lot harder at eating organic meats and cheeses too.
Keep burning those calories!!!
Let's keep on track together!
It takes time!!
Good Health!
Dianna

Thursday (Hard/Frustrating Day)

Right now, I'm waiting for my car. Toyota is changing my oil and rotating my tires. I came straight here from the doctor's office. I'm not happy. He is telling me that I need to seriously think about getting a hysterectomy. I don't want to. I'm so afraid of the side effects...hot flashes, no desire for sex, crazy hormones. I'm finding myself sad...frustrated...angry. I don't want to do this. I want it to be okay to say NOOOOOO! I want to eat a hot fudge sundae and climb into bed. I'm afraid.
I ate a good bfast and then not a very good lunch. I had some coffee and some popcorn. This is what they have at the Toyota dealership. I don't have any cash on me at all. This might be a good thing because I probably would buy a snickers bar. I don't even have any change...LOL!!
I have to pick up the boys after this. I hope the evening goes well. I'm going to try to stay positive and maybe even exercise.
More later!
Good Health,
Dianna

Tuesday (Official weigh in day) January 19th

I lost another 1 1/2 pounds...almost 2 pounds. It is my second week. Everyone knows that the second week is not as good as the first. I'm happy with that. I think I could certainly cut out some things and drink more water. Drinking more water is so hard for me. Not because I don't water, I just get so busy at work. Work has been driving me crazy lately. We are in the middle of scheduling our students.
I'm exhausted!!! Today, It's gotta be a short message. I have to get some sleep.
Good health!
Dianna

Is anybody still reading this????

5 mile run

Today, I actually ran outside on the Monon. Before I began the run, I was pretty certain that I would not be able to run all of it. I was wrong! I love it when I am wrong. I ran all of it. Okay, It was not very fast. I ran it all. It felt pretty good. I had more trouble with the lungs than the legs. I am so proud of myself.

I also want to talk about my calorieking.com. I have been counting calories since January 4th. I have to tell you it is certainly having an inpact on my habits. I have found that I have to think twice before I eat something. On Thursday, the nurse returned to school. One of her friends decided to bake her some brownies. I have to say I have had those brownies in the past, and they are fantastic. However, when it came down to it, I had second thoughts about the brownies. I kept thinking....damn, that's going to cost me a lot of calories. I will also have to put it on my journal. Noooooo...not worth it.
I have to say that we have a lot of temptations in our daily lives. It is hard!! I have to tell you about a temptation I had earlier today. I went to Patrick's basketball game and the guy that runs the concession stand told me that they are selling Long's donuts. Here's the thing....I love Long's donuts. I think it was a God thing that I did not have any cash on me. I actually have craved those donuts in the past and drove all the way to Speedway to eat some. I just sat there today and watched Patrick's game.
I was not entirely saintly today. I went out to dinner tonight to the Loft at Trader's Point Creamery. I had many items that were NOT low calorie. I had some Spinach articoke dip, Ham soup, a filet, a few bites of scalloped potatoes, and half of a brownie w/ ice cream. Fabulous!!!
We have to learn to navigate through this life with good and bad decisions. I think the most important part for me is not to be upset with the bad choices, but to look at the good choices. I ran 5 miles today! This was the first time in a long time. Will this be the last time I eat ice cream or a brownie??? I hope not. I hope I learn to eat some of the things that scare me and enjoy them, but not eat that kind of thing all the time. OR feel like it is a good idea to just go back to overeating and not counting calories. I think it is important to know that we are human and we will have good and bad days.
I may not have had the best day of eating, but I certainly enjoyed my dinner company and the food!
Good Health!!
Dianna

Wednesday, January 13th

Extremely long day! No exercise and not a lot of eating today. I had Cheerios for bfast and salad for lunch. I shared a burrito bowl from Chipolte. Not too bad when you share and don't put sour cream and guacamole on it.

Tomorrow, I am hoping to get some exercise in. Sheesh! I will definitely pack my stuff for Friday to work out. I'll work out right after work. I'm tired now. I don't have much to say.
Good health!
Dianna

Tuesday (Official weigh in day)

I weighed in today at 172.5 pounds. I actually lost 6.3 pounds. I will tell you that I am very happy with that. My big fear is that it will now stop coming off. I have been in the 60's before. I for the past two years have not been able to get past the 60's and into the 50's. It is one of the scariest things or hang ups I have. I so afraid that it won't happen no matter how hard I try! I certainly hope to get past that! Please God...this time!!! I have been following calorieking faithfully. I feel like I have to re-educate myself on what is okay. I certainly have been eating way too many calories on the fly. I should only eat 1200 calories....keep the protein up, watch the fat and carbs. This is much harder than anyone could ever imagine. I ate a snack size Almond Joy...thinking that's not too bad. Oh....WRONG! Almond Joys are 80 calories for that little bit. I will rethink that again. I could have eaten a lot more! I'm sure more food would have been more satisfying too. Alright....what is your biggest fear?
Good Health!
Dianna

January 9th

Today, I did Zumba and lifted (arms). It was a good morning and I'm so far keeping my diet in check. I think Saturdays and Sundays are a little harder because we are home or out to eat. During the week, I'm working so it is easier to be busy. I decided that I really like the CalorieKing.com website for tracking my calorie intake. I tried the SparkPeople (sort of) and found the website overwhelming. I decided to use the CalorieKing based on the fact that it was pretty simple to use. I am amazed at how many calories things cost. I didn't realize how bad I was eating. This will help keep me accountable. I hope that you are all working your programs and finding success.
I will weigh myself tomorrow. I lost some weight in the middle of the week, so I am hoping that tomorrow's weigh in will be good.
How's your plan working? What are you doing to watch your food intake?
Good Health!
Dianna

January 8th

I know that this blog is about my journey, but I would like to hear from other people. So, please feel free to respond.
I had a good day with the eating. I did not get a chance to work out, but that's the way it goes. I did, however, show some better discipline at dinner tonight. I meet some friends and we went out to dinner. This can be very scary when you are trying to lose some weight. Yesterday was a disaster. I ate over 2200 calories. This is too many when i am only suppose to be eating 1200 according to the CalorieKing. Today, was much less on the calories. I am glad about that!!
Bud Select, which I didn't think I would like, is a good substitute for other beers. It only has 99 calories. Good thing! It is much better than a margarita. I guess i didn't realize how many actual calories were in a margarita. I was shocked. I still would like to stick to my goal of losing 30 pounds. I feel like I am on that path. I also feel like I am still learning or relearning about what is okay and what is not. Sheesh! If only this were easy!!!
Tomorrow, I hope to do Zumba in the morning!
Good Health!
Dianna

January 7th

I'm feeling frustrated and a little angry tonight. I was wanting to behave when we went to family dinner. I didn't! I just was not strong enough to be a smart eater. It's been a long week....a hectic week. I am thinking I would like to crawl into bed and it is only 7:50pm. I ate two chicken tacos, chips and salsa,a little cheese dip, some guacalmole, and a medium size margarita. I really wanted the margarita more than the other stuff. I should have just had the margarita and nothing else. Shit! When I found out how many calories it has, I was just sad with myself. It has about 700 calories for 16 oz.. Carm says that's probably the size of the margarita....but I'm thinking it was bigger. I want to be more disciplined when it comes to nutrition. I really do want to lose 30 pounds. I know that I can not lose it eating out at Mexican resturants. I just didn't realize that I was taking in thousands of calories at one visit. It is depressing! I hope I didn't gain my 5 pounds that I lost.
I am looking forward to a restful weekend....secretly I'm hoping for a snow day. Since I was driving around...I have a feeling that we will have school tomorrow.
One bad eating day. I guess this is my slip. Let's hope they are few and far between.
Good Health!
Dianna

First weight loss

Alright! I lost 5.5 pounds according to the scale. I know that it is probably just water weight....but it is a change in a number! Yeah! It just continues to motivate me to want to lose more. I am now weighing in at 173.3....maybe I will be in the 6o's by the end of the month!!!!
I had a very long day today!! I just got home about 9:30pm....it is suppose to snow a whole bunch tomorrow and I hope that we end up having a snow day! I ate very well today and am happy that I was not tempted to eat things I should not. I had an opportunity to eat some cookies. We had financial aid night, so we supply cookies and juice. I just took a pass on those. I feel some good pride when I take a pass on good things like that!
How do you feel when you take a pass on what you consider a treat???
Keep working!!!
Good Health!
Dianna

January 5th

What are your triggers? What things or situations want to make you eat?

I think there are times at work that stress gets the best of me or when my own kids are screaming at each other. When life becomes hectic, I want to find my pacifier....it could be some chocolate, sour candy or even something crunchy..chips.

I also have issues with chips and salsa. I can NEVER eat just a few. Any time we go to a Mexican resturant, I look forward to the chips and salsa. Sometimes, I think the chips and salsa are the best things at dinner.

I think when I get bored, tired, and over hungry...I am suseptible to overeat.

I do think my biggest trigger is when I am unprepared. I don't pack my lunch, I'm hungry now, or I don't feel like cooking. I need to work at being more of a planner.

It is always good to look at where we make mistakes, and try to live a little better!
Good Health!
Dianna

January 4th

Back to work today! It has been a long day!! I am very ready for bed, but just want to blog about the day.
I do believe if we work hard and stay focused to what we want, we can get there.
I had a much better day with my eating. I'm just amazed at how much a person can consume in one day. I guess I just thought I was eating good things and right on track. I now realize that I have been eating way too many calories. This is why I am in the predicament that I'm in. I am looking forward to losing weight each week. I once had a friend that told me that you will not see the rewards of your dieting until a week later.
I worked my CardioBlast class very hard tonight. I feel like I need to work hard and get the weight off. I need to lose 30 pounds. I really want to do this and quit jerking around with my weight.
We'll just keep working. Keep drinking the water!! At least this is what I'm telling myself.
Good Health!
Dianna

January 3rd (Sunday)

Okay....I finally stepped on the scale. I was so afraid and knew it would be bad. Here is my moment of truth. I am weighing in at 178.6 pounds. Yikes! I'm so ashamed of letting my weight get way up there. I have figured out what I am doing wrong. I have been consuming too many calories. I just read an article in this American Fitness journal that I receive to my house every couple of months. It had an article about calories. It mentioned that the Adkins diet, although good can still lead to too many calories. You still have to burn calories. Even though you are cutting down on fat and carbs, but eating a lot of protein. Protein still has calories.
Okay, so here is what I decided to do. I am not going to do a fad diet...South Beach, Adkins, or anyother diet. I am just going to count calories. I have a copy of the Calorie King. They publish an updated one every year. I have the 2008 copy. I was looking through the book last night and saw that they have a free trial offer. I went to the site and it looks really good. All you have to do is type in what you weigh, your height,your activity level and it gives you a profile. You can type in what you have eaten and it will figure your carbs, fats, and calories. I just ate breakfast at Le Peeps and had a white omlette w/ white cheddar, mushrooms, and sundried tomatoes, oj, coffee w/cream, and a raisin english muffin w/butter. I'm already at 600 calories. Yikes! That is already half of the calories I'm allowed to consume. I'm trying to think of how to tackle the rest of the day. I think counting calories is the best idea. I did not realize that I was eating so many calories. I thought this mornings breakfast was not too bad at all. This is certainly going to be interesting. I think I'm going to keep doing the calories King counter. If you want to try it the website is www.calorieking.com/software.
Good luck!!!
Good Health!
Dianna

January 2nd

I had a great workout day today!! :) I worked out 30minutes on an eliptical machine, ran my one mile, and lifted my legs. I feel great! My eating today was not bad today either.
I saw a couple of my peeps from my aerobic classes at the gym and took a couple of minutes to catch up. Good job to Wendi and Amy, who were working hard in the gym today.
I've really been thinking about the rules we set up for ourselves when we diet. For instances, I have set boundaries around time to eat, snacks, and drinking more water. What rules do you set for yourself when you think about dieting? Are they realistic????
Tonight, I'm going to stay in and watch some tv/movie.
I hope you are all well today.
Good health!
Dianna

January 1st (New Year's Day)

Welcome 2010!!!! I certainly hope this year is better! It is very quiet in our house. I have decided that Monday will be my start day for dieting. I don't feel like this is the best day.
I feel like I don't have a lot to say today. I would just like to put my pjs on and just relax.
Tomorrow is Saturday and Patrick has a basketball game. I won't be able to do Zumba because it is the same time as Patrick's game. I will have to do something else. I might just have to lift and do some cardio. I might try my run again....hopefully I will continue to improve.
More to come.........
Good Health!
Dianna