I had a major victory (for me) at lunch today. I had planned to try this exercise class that's offered over the lunch hour. I've been wanting to go all week, but it's been exceptionally busy and I just hadn't made it. Today, I got away a little late, and then I needed to make a quick run to the Money Center before going to the rec center. There was a HUGE line at the Money Center, so as I'm sitting in line, I'm thinking I might as well skip doing any sort of workout today. I'm running late.
Then I had a good talking with myself. I asked myself if I am really serious this time about losing weight. Because that means commitment. That means that if things don't go the way you expect, you make adjustments, do the best you can, and keep working at it. It means not getting discouraged by ANYTHING.
So I convinced myself that the least I could do, even though I had a bite out of my lunch hour, was to walk around the track for 10 minutes. It took some strong and stern convincing, but I told myself this isn't about immediate gratification. It's not about "spoiling" myself by giving myself an "out" from getting some exercise in, even if it's just a little bit.
So I dragged myself upstairs to the track and made my first lap around. Hey, this wasn't too bad. I did another, and another, and another...Pretty soon, I decided not to stop at 10 minutes--I walked 20 minutes. I started toward the stairs, but before I got there, I took a detour and went to the arm cycle, which Matt has told me is a great cardio workout. I did it for 8 minutes, progressively adding more resistance and then cycling backwards.
And THEN I went back to work.
Thirty minutes isn't as much as I would have liked, but it's a whole lot more than I was going to do for awhile. And I know those 30 minutes of exercise matter, not only physically but mentally. I'll eat better. I already feel better. And the whole thing is a victory over my biggest enemy: myself.
Friday, January 14, 2011
Tuesday, January 11, 2011
Lunch-time post
I decided to stay in over lunch today. It's been snowing, and I just don't want to deal with it. So, while I'm munching on my sliced green peppers and cucumbers, I thought I'd post another blog.
Things are going well. We're on deadline here at work, so I didn't get to make it to the exercise class yesterday. However, I feel like I did well yesterday. I ate healthy foods, and even when I went to a friend's house for a euchre night, I snacked in moderation. The same goes for today.
I'm supposed to work out with my personal trainer today, but if we get a bunch of snow, I'll be rethinking that. Whether I go to the gym or home, though, I WILL work out. I have exercise videos and an exercise bike and absolutely no reason to not work out at home. We'll see how things go.
By the way, for the Peoria area people reading the blog, check out Aldi's. They have great pears, four for 99 cents, and they have 100-calorie packs of almonds, a box of seven for $1.99. I bought some cocoa roasted ones--no added calories or sugar, but wow are they fantastic!
When I told my trainer I was eating oatmeal for breakfast, he told me I should try to add some protein. I asked if he meant an egg...not at all my favorite...but he suggested almonds. These almonds not only help me get the protein I need but also satisfy the chocoholic in me. I definitely recommend them!
A friend at work suggested a few sites I might want to check out. Earlier in my lunch hour, I went to this one: http://skinnyemmie.com/
I really like it...especially her blog about the reset button. I hope you like it, too!
Things are going well. We're on deadline here at work, so I didn't get to make it to the exercise class yesterday. However, I feel like I did well yesterday. I ate healthy foods, and even when I went to a friend's house for a euchre night, I snacked in moderation. The same goes for today.
I'm supposed to work out with my personal trainer today, but if we get a bunch of snow, I'll be rethinking that. Whether I go to the gym or home, though, I WILL work out. I have exercise videos and an exercise bike and absolutely no reason to not work out at home. We'll see how things go.
By the way, for the Peoria area people reading the blog, check out Aldi's. They have great pears, four for 99 cents, and they have 100-calorie packs of almonds, a box of seven for $1.99. I bought some cocoa roasted ones--no added calories or sugar, but wow are they fantastic!
When I told my trainer I was eating oatmeal for breakfast, he told me I should try to add some protein. I asked if he meant an egg...not at all my favorite...but he suggested almonds. These almonds not only help me get the protein I need but also satisfy the chocoholic in me. I definitely recommend them!
A friend at work suggested a few sites I might want to check out. Earlier in my lunch hour, I went to this one: http://skinnyemmie.com/
I really like it...especially her blog about the reset button. I hope you like it, too!
Sunday, January 9, 2011
A successful day
I've had a successful day! I went to the Markin Center today where I walked a mile, worked out on various machiens, did wall push-ups, and all-in-all, had a great workout. After that, I stopped at Aldi's and loaded up on all sorts of fresh vegetables and fruit. Tonight, I made a great spaghetti sauce with lots of fresh green peppers, mushrooms, and onions served over whole wheat pasta and a really nice salad, too. I really felt invigorated this evening and got some things done around the house, too. I'm so excited. It would have been easy to skip the workout today, but I just told myself that achieving my goal is more important than anything else I would have accomplished.
I have my lunch packed for tomorrow and have clothes together to take for a workout over lunch. I learned there's a free streching and toning class being offered over the lunch hour on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays so I'm checking it out tomorrow. I'm actually looking forward to it! I think this will be good fr me. Lunchtime is my social time, and the thing that excites me about this is that at least one of my friends will be in this class too.
I'm geared up for a successful week of weight loss!
I have my lunch packed for tomorrow and have clothes together to take for a workout over lunch. I learned there's a free streching and toning class being offered over the lunch hour on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays so I'm checking it out tomorrow. I'm actually looking forward to it! I think this will be good fr me. Lunchtime is my social time, and the thing that excites me about this is that at least one of my friends will be in this class too.
I'm geared up for a successful week of weight loss!
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Back at it
Wow, it's hard to believe it's been close to three months since I last posted. My weight loss fell by the wayside, but I'm back with it! I have a new incentive: I'm going to Rome this fall, and I have a new goal: to lose 100 pounds by October!
I've been looking over the tour books, and it's clear there are lots of steps and hills in Rome, and I am determined that I am not going to be slowed down by all this extra weight. I get winded way too easily on steps, and it really annoys me. I don't want to live my day-to-day life like this, and I certainly don't want to bogged down when I go on vacation. I'm thinking I should have set travel goals along with weight loss a long time ago!
This week, I've worked out with Matt, my personal trainer, three times: on Monday, Thursday, and today and walked or worked out the other days except Friday. I didn't weigh myself until Thursday, and when I weighed myself again this morning, I already had lost 4.5 lbs.!
I'm trying to find ways to eat plenty of vegetables in ways other than just salads. Don't get me wrong--I enjoy salads, but I don't want to get bored. I'm always one who is up for a bargain, but I've decided I need to change my mindset if I'm serious about losing weight. I went to Buffalo Wild Wings before a Bradley game. Instead of ordering the wings, though, I ordered a chicken wrap with grilled chicken and paid a little extra to substitute the fries with salad. That's going to be my new approach: forget the price, and look for what's healthy.
I eat out a lot, and that isn't going to change. I'm a very social person, and I just need to make the right choices and keep my ultimate goal in mind. I know I can do this. Oh, while I'm talking about eating, I have to share about dinner last night. My sister Diane and I went to the Rhythm Kitchen in downtown Peoria. What a great place to find many healthy choices. We both chose a portabella pizza. A portabella mushroom cap is stuffed with spinach, turkey pepperoni and topped with a little mozzarella. A vegetarian version with soy mozzarella also is available. It was great...and it was very filling. It was served with a small wedge of garlic bread and a little side of fruit. I'd highly recommend it.
On to other things. This week has been a tough week for me emotionally. The reasons aren't important, what is important is that I have come to the realization that even though there are many things in life that are out of my control, the one thing I can control is me. I know that in the past, I've turned to food for comfort. I'm not going to do that anymore. That's self-defeating, and I have to stop that. Instead, I'm finding victory in making the right food choices, in making myself exercise when it's not even close to my favorite thing to do. I realize than an hour of effort in exercise s going to help me not only with my health in the long-run, but it's going to have an immediate impact on how I feel every day, right away.
Bradley offers a Weight Watchers program, and I learned on Friday that they just started a new session. I'll be able to join next week. I really know what I should and should not eat, but hopefully this will help keep me motivated and on track, too. I understand they have a new program, and one of the things is that they allow unlimited fruit in addition to unlimited vegetables. I'm excited about that. I really like just about every fruit, as well as most vegetables, but fruit seems easier to snack on. I think I'm really going to like this.
I'm also fortunate that I have friends at work who know that I've started a weight loss plan, and they are asking about how I'm doing and supporting me. They ask me how my work outs go and they've also given me some pointers. For instance, one of my co-workers said that she bought a special, smaller plate that is hers. I remember when I was in Weight Watchers before, that they suggested using a smaller plate, but I love the idea of buying some special dishes just for weight loss. I really like my winter, snowman dishes, and I've always used the salad plate as a dinner plate. I still have them out, and before I put away my winter dishes, I plan to buy a few smaller, pretty plates to use.
Another tip: Matt says it's good to drink a glass of water about a half-hour before eating. I've heard this before, but I've not really done it before. Overall, I've been trying to drink more water, as I know it's important to drink plenty of it. He also said he tries to eat some vegetables before a big meal, especially broccoli, to help feel full.
Anyway, I'm really exited about this. 4.5 lbs. in just a couple of days! My immediate goal is to lose 20 lbs. by the end of the month. I'm confident I can reach this goal. I'm willing to stay focused on eating right, be disciplined about exercise, and start being in control of my health.
I've been looking over the tour books, and it's clear there are lots of steps and hills in Rome, and I am determined that I am not going to be slowed down by all this extra weight. I get winded way too easily on steps, and it really annoys me. I don't want to live my day-to-day life like this, and I certainly don't want to bogged down when I go on vacation. I'm thinking I should have set travel goals along with weight loss a long time ago!
This week, I've worked out with Matt, my personal trainer, three times: on Monday, Thursday, and today and walked or worked out the other days except Friday. I didn't weigh myself until Thursday, and when I weighed myself again this morning, I already had lost 4.5 lbs.!
I'm trying to find ways to eat plenty of vegetables in ways other than just salads. Don't get me wrong--I enjoy salads, but I don't want to get bored. I'm always one who is up for a bargain, but I've decided I need to change my mindset if I'm serious about losing weight. I went to Buffalo Wild Wings before a Bradley game. Instead of ordering the wings, though, I ordered a chicken wrap with grilled chicken and paid a little extra to substitute the fries with salad. That's going to be my new approach: forget the price, and look for what's healthy.
I eat out a lot, and that isn't going to change. I'm a very social person, and I just need to make the right choices and keep my ultimate goal in mind. I know I can do this. Oh, while I'm talking about eating, I have to share about dinner last night. My sister Diane and I went to the Rhythm Kitchen in downtown Peoria. What a great place to find many healthy choices. We both chose a portabella pizza. A portabella mushroom cap is stuffed with spinach, turkey pepperoni and topped with a little mozzarella. A vegetarian version with soy mozzarella also is available. It was great...and it was very filling. It was served with a small wedge of garlic bread and a little side of fruit. I'd highly recommend it.
On to other things. This week has been a tough week for me emotionally. The reasons aren't important, what is important is that I have come to the realization that even though there are many things in life that are out of my control, the one thing I can control is me. I know that in the past, I've turned to food for comfort. I'm not going to do that anymore. That's self-defeating, and I have to stop that. Instead, I'm finding victory in making the right food choices, in making myself exercise when it's not even close to my favorite thing to do. I realize than an hour of effort in exercise s going to help me not only with my health in the long-run, but it's going to have an immediate impact on how I feel every day, right away.
Bradley offers a Weight Watchers program, and I learned on Friday that they just started a new session. I'll be able to join next week. I really know what I should and should not eat, but hopefully this will help keep me motivated and on track, too. I understand they have a new program, and one of the things is that they allow unlimited fruit in addition to unlimited vegetables. I'm excited about that. I really like just about every fruit, as well as most vegetables, but fruit seems easier to snack on. I think I'm really going to like this.
I'm also fortunate that I have friends at work who know that I've started a weight loss plan, and they are asking about how I'm doing and supporting me. They ask me how my work outs go and they've also given me some pointers. For instance, one of my co-workers said that she bought a special, smaller plate that is hers. I remember when I was in Weight Watchers before, that they suggested using a smaller plate, but I love the idea of buying some special dishes just for weight loss. I really like my winter, snowman dishes, and I've always used the salad plate as a dinner plate. I still have them out, and before I put away my winter dishes, I plan to buy a few smaller, pretty plates to use.
Another tip: Matt says it's good to drink a glass of water about a half-hour before eating. I've heard this before, but I've not really done it before. Overall, I've been trying to drink more water, as I know it's important to drink plenty of it. He also said he tries to eat some vegetables before a big meal, especially broccoli, to help feel full.
Anyway, I'm really exited about this. 4.5 lbs. in just a couple of days! My immediate goal is to lose 20 lbs. by the end of the month. I'm confident I can reach this goal. I'm willing to stay focused on eating right, be disciplined about exercise, and start being in control of my health.
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Here we go!
Matt, my personal trainer, emailed me last night to see if I wanted to meet today. Oh, yes, most definitely! I emailed him back and told him I have a new reason for motivation.
What is it? My cousin and her husband offered to turn in some frequent flyer miles to get round-trip tickets to Rome for my sister and me. It will probably be next October. That give sme a year to lose weight, get fit, and be ready to walk and climb steps all over Rome!
I can't tell you how excited I am. I feel like I won the lottery!
It's funny because I was telling Matt the last time we met that I need to get my mojo back. I'm not doing bad, but I'm also not doing great like I was this summer. As he said, this happen to everyone--getting to a point where you're in a slump. It's all about what you do with that slump that determines whether you succeed or not.
You can tell by looking at me what has happened in the past. Now it's up to me to be a success in weight loss. It's time to fight the battle, full-on, and reward myself with a fabulous trip!
How lucky I am to have this opportunity to go to Rome! My weight loss won't be luck...it will be pure work and determination. But the dividends will really pay off when I get off the plane in Rome.
Here we go! This is gonna be a great ride...and walk...and climb...and zumba...and workout.
What is it? My cousin and her husband offered to turn in some frequent flyer miles to get round-trip tickets to Rome for my sister and me. It will probably be next October. That give sme a year to lose weight, get fit, and be ready to walk and climb steps all over Rome!
I can't tell you how excited I am. I feel like I won the lottery!
It's funny because I was telling Matt the last time we met that I need to get my mojo back. I'm not doing bad, but I'm also not doing great like I was this summer. As he said, this happen to everyone--getting to a point where you're in a slump. It's all about what you do with that slump that determines whether you succeed or not.
You can tell by looking at me what has happened in the past. Now it's up to me to be a success in weight loss. It's time to fight the battle, full-on, and reward myself with a fabulous trip!
How lucky I am to have this opportunity to go to Rome! My weight loss won't be luck...it will be pure work and determination. But the dividends will really pay off when I get off the plane in Rome.
Here we go! This is gonna be a great ride...and walk...and climb...and zumba...and workout.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
The dress challenge
So, I did a little shopping tonight. I was looking for one thing, but came away with something completely different. I found a sale I couldn't resist: a dress, regularly priced at $78, for $14!!! I love this dress, and I have a wedding coming up next weekend...it would be perfect! This dress is made from that clingy, comfy material that many tops are made of these days, and it would have looked awful 20 pounds ago. In fact, I really would like to lose another five-ish pounds.
So, my challenge is on! Can I lose a little more weight in the next week? Yes, I can!!! Bring on the salad and fruit and other healthy foods. Oh, and here come walks and workouts, too.
The wedding I'll be attending? A dear friend of mine who I haven't seen in five years is getting married...I wish I had lost more weight, but at the same time, I lost SOME weight. Besides, the most important thing is we'll get to see each other and that's what matters most. He called me last night, and I was most excited when he said goodbye with, "See you next week!" I can't wait.
So, my challenge is on! Can I lose a little more weight in the next week? Yes, I can!!! Bring on the salad and fruit and other healthy foods. Oh, and here come walks and workouts, too.
The wedding I'll be attending? A dear friend of mine who I haven't seen in five years is getting married...I wish I had lost more weight, but at the same time, I lost SOME weight. Besides, the most important thing is we'll get to see each other and that's what matters most. He called me last night, and I was most excited when he said goodbye with, "See you next week!" I can't wait.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Back at it
OK. I promised a friend at work today that I would post a blog. She reminded me that I haven't posted anything since July 14 and added that it wasn't even a good blog, because it basically just had a link to another blog.
So, since July 14...I was still going strong for several weeks, but things have tapered off for the last week or two. I had food poisoning a couple of weeks ago. I was really sick for one day and then, didn't really feel like doing much for a couple days after that. That's all it took to get me out of the habit of exercising. Funny how that works, isn't it?
As I write this, I'm reminded of what Matt, my personal trainer told me. He said that everyone has lapses; it's what people do with these lapses that makes all the difference.
So it's time to pick myself up, dust myself off, and get back on the weight loss trail. My friend at work has been so good about exercising every day, and she looks absolutely beautiful. I have a long way to go, but there's only one way to get there, and that's to stay motivated.
So, with this blog, I'm pledging to get serious again starting tomorrow. Care to join me?
So, since July 14...I was still going strong for several weeks, but things have tapered off for the last week or two. I had food poisoning a couple of weeks ago. I was really sick for one day and then, didn't really feel like doing much for a couple days after that. That's all it took to get me out of the habit of exercising. Funny how that works, isn't it?
As I write this, I'm reminded of what Matt, my personal trainer told me. He said that everyone has lapses; it's what people do with these lapses that makes all the difference.
So it's time to pick myself up, dust myself off, and get back on the weight loss trail. My friend at work has been so good about exercising every day, and she looks absolutely beautiful. I have a long way to go, but there's only one way to get there, and that's to stay motivated.
So, with this blog, I'm pledging to get serious again starting tomorrow. Care to join me?
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