small steps

3 days at 162.5 and reporting 18 miles on the 100 mile challenge (which I have adapted to be more miles each week and at least 200 miles.
Went to the caps game last night. Ate tuna fish on crackers beforehand to avoid the arena dinners. Success there. I did have some of DH's popcorn, and 2 beers. Dh bought me another beer, but I decided I would forget about the money faster then the pounds. Had a rather emotional conversation with DH on the way home and after taking the babysitter home. It will most likely be the start of many. We had plans to go to a party tonight, but the snow is keeping us in. Less drinking and no hotel food should help me start the week off right. :)
Did level 2 and 3 of jillian with my ever helpful kids this morning. Since I didn't do anything Thursday and Friday, I won't start level 3 in earnest until Monday at the earliest, so this was just a preview.

So no huge leaps or bounds, but entering Feb much better then I entered Jan!

Progress has been made!

It seemed like it was never going to happen, but all of the sudden my body woke up and noticed that I have been working out. Whew! I was starting to worry there a little bit. Today I weighed in at 162.5. Not a huge change - but MUCH better then 165!! I am less stressed then last week and have been doing my best to eat well, rocking the speghetti squash I cooked earlier in the week as my dinner side as everyone else eats the carbs. Feels good to have an alternative. I just have to keep one available, my DH, not so good with remembering the veggies for meals.
Anxious about 2 planned nights out this weekend. I took such a hit with our night out at the melting pot, I have to figure out a plan. I think I can eat dinner at home tomorrow before we go to the game. Usually I would just wait to eat at the rink, so that will help. Not sure about Sat nights function. Hotel food. Maybe just eat little portions. I think it is the alcohol I am really concerned about as I will want to drink, some at least.
Time to go get the kid to start the round robin for tonight. Tonight will be day 9 of level 2 on the 30 day shred. I plan to take tomorrow off, then move to level 3 on Saturday.

January 26th, 2010 - status

I did it times 2!!!

First I did level 2 all the way through!! I didn't stop any exercise before she said I could. :) I still don't think I am doing the last set of abs correctly, but I still did it.

The 2nd is a little more silly, but just as fun for me. I got through the bubble balance game on the Wii. I have serious spent too much time in my life on this game, but it is good for the abs. Now I have unlocked the advanced level. What have I done?! LOL.

Did great with eating today. only treat was my sunchips with dinner. One of hte bloggers I read is doing the experiements from the Beck diet. Today's was to understand that hunger is not an emergancy. I kept that thought in my head all day. Even though I took a granola bar to TKD, I didn't eat it. progress.

Doing much better on my sleep this week. Still haven't lost any weight, but I feel better. Today at least.

I have not gone off the deep end.....not yet anyways.

Last week was really a busy one and that will be a continued story for the next 3 weeks. I was sleeping poorly and going to bed too late last week, as well as, skipping meals and making up for them with bad food decisions over the weekend. Basically I need a reset. Today was pretty good way to start. Ate only what was in my lunch box; yogurt, apple, blueberries, sun chips, eating well frozen meal. Made speghetti squash to go with some yummy fish for dinner. Did Jillian level 2, and 53 minutes of wii - mostly cardio.
I reported 17 miles in the 100 mile challenge last week and my goal is to increase my milage every week. What I achieved was fewer days of working out, but more time and hopefully more intensity to the days I did get it in. I am hoping this week won't be so hard with many fewer plans in the evenings, which allows me flexibility for post work or post bedtime workouts - or both. :)
I did give up my vow to give up soda, but I am still working on having it only every other day and in small amounts. I still have all my nails. After 37 years I can't believe it. I can't get cocky now, but I am having to put the polish on them less and less.
all that being said - time for bed!

I was right!

 I knew this week was going to be hard and I was right. I didn't figure out how to work out on Tuesday or Thursday, but did do the 30 day shred level 2 (day 3)and 20 minutes of elliptical on Wednesday. Will get back to it tomorrow, if we have a snow/sleet delay, I might even get it in early! Tonight I went out with friends to say good-bye to a friend moving to CA. Fun night, but bittersweet. We have been hanging out for about 3 years now, hard to believe.

I think I must have eaten 6,000 calories at Melting Pot because I am definately still fighting to get that back off. Ugh, such a set back. I am feeling fat and looked like I was poured into my clothes today - so not in a good way!

 I have given up on my no soda pledge for the moment. I still have all my 10 nails (yea!)and decided that my workout routine should be my next habit change to focus on. Don't want to take on too much and then fail. Speaking of taking on too much, I really need to cut back on my volunteering! So much going on.

Very much past my curfew, which has been out the window all week. I am sure the lack of sleep isn't helping anything!

Night, Night.

SOO tired. January 18, 2010

I had the day off and I am so far past my internet curfew! UGH, UGH, UGH. I couldn't face Jillian today either. Now I wish I had. I did do 50 minutes on the elliptical and 30 stupid minutes on the Wii trying to master a balance game. Tomorrow and this week should be VERY interesting and will challenge my ability to keep to good eating and working out. that being said, I have to get up at the crack of dawn to get to a meeting afer I drop my daughter off. All I wanted to do tonight was read my book.....best laid plans. 

Night!

January 17, 2010 - status

Good day today. power went out this morning, so went back to bed and slept late. LOVE IT. 

Did 30 minutes on the elliptical and then did level 2 of Jillian. maybe should have waited in between. I wasn't my usual perky self. :)

164..... I looked at my calendar and I am average of 1 lb less each week. its something.

I did get a new computer bag to reward myself with when I hit 155. Let's hope my current bag doesn't fall apart before then!

I haven't had much to say have I? status

Well the Melting Pot was in a word YUMMY. I fully enjoyed the food, which is something I can't always say. I find I just eat because it is time to. I, of course, have control over breakfast and lunch, but dinner is always with the family, so happens by 6:30 no matter if I am hungry or not. I find I have loaded up during the day and eat more then I should because it is there. I am proud of myself today though. After such a treat last night, we had breakfast for dinner tonight. I didn't like the way the potatoes cooked, so I didn't eat them, even though they were on my plate. I also didn't eat the bacon I cooked up for the kids. Veggie omelet, and milk for me. Overall a good eating day. I should think so after last night!!

Workout: 30 minute elliplical and day 11, level 2 of 30 day shred. I have done level 2 before, but this is the first day I did it officially. Just like level 1, kicked my butt. I did more then I expected though. Played Wii with the kids, but not anything worth counting for exercise, just plain fun. We don't worry about the weight since we know last night was a bruiser. :)

What gets me is that I had all day pretty much to work out, but still waited until 4:45, which is when I work out during the week.

Quick update

Waiting for the babysitter to come so we can head to the Melting Pot for Restaurant Week. Did level 1 and 2 of 30 day shred today. Just a few minutes of Wii today, all balance. Didn't do too well. 163 wiegh in. Keeping steady. Fully expect the wine and food tonight to push me back up a little. But at least I prepped with a good workout.

Got to run. More during the 3 day weekend. Yea!!!

Jan 13, 2010 - status

ok, well I did so well until I finally sat down tonight. Just been running around so much today and tomorrow isn't going to be any different. Ate well, well.....ugh except for those damn candy cane hersey kisses. I think there are only 5 left in my bowl in the office.  I think I kept it to 6 today. This is the first time I am eating after dinner and I have a small bowl of pita chips.....and a glass of wine. Only 17 minutes to internet curfew. I went to be earlier last night, but didn't actually go to sleep. Maybe tonight, I am certainly tired enough.

Weight 163.5 (again), 30 day shred level 1 only today. 20 minutes on Wii. Not steller, I had every intention of doing level 2 of 30 day shred, but after bedtime got caught up in picking up and planning for the cub scout meeting tomorrow.

On to tomorrow.....I don't think I will workout at all, but we will see.

Jan 12, 2010 - status

today was just, um....worthless.

I was exhusted when I woke up this morning. Got to work late. Had a meeting I wasn't too into. Had lunch - what was left of it since I ate most of the morning. Bought another bag of sunchips from the vending machine. Did NOT have a soda all day though! After lunch I went home and slept for 3 hours. I wouldn't have gotten up if I didn't have to get my son to TKD. Did that, then ate dinner with the family - even though at this point I wasn't reallt hungry. Good news was I did level 1 and part of level 2 of the shred. no Wii tonight. Now watching the Biggest Loser with no snacks for the 2nd week in a row!

time for internet curfew. I have decided that night time computing and TV watching is really negatively impacting my schedule.

night!

Jan 11, 2010 - status

ugh, I just need to keep my hands out of the damn pantry! I should work out my calories today, but I haven't gotten on the logging site yet. I had yummy white chili leftovers for lunch today. Much better then the usual hummas and pita!
Another thing, why do my shins hurt so much after the first routine in 30 day shred? The rest is fine.

Today - 164, 30 day shred, elliptical came back out of the closet and I did 20 minutes. No Wii time, DH hogged it.

I wonder if I can do 200 miles for the challenge? Hmm.....

Nailbiting and next steps.

well, my workout schedule has taken a hit or two, but overall a positive change, that I need to work into my life permanently. Another change I talked about was nailbiting. I started again (maybe for the 120th time in my life - at least!) before Christmas with a new determination. So far I believe I have been on target for 21 days and I have had only 2 casualities. That is really good! I did find my hands being drawn into my mouth earlier today, but just pulled out my trusty icky tasting polish and put it right on. My hands still look a mess because of the dryness of the season and my cuticles, but at least the next time I go in for a manicure she will have something to work with! I wonder when you can declare a habit dropped? Is 30 days enough?

Been pondering the next victim in the list of bad habits - soda. That would be a financial AND diet benefit. I am going to let it simmer for a little bit. I know I need to go back to my can every other day like I was doing before. I fear I am addicted and HATE the withdrawal symptoms. Not a good reason to keep drinking it though! If only water was more exciting.

Jan 10, 2010 - status

Did so well the first part of the day....then the packers game came around. Some heartbreaker. Snacks, snacks and more snacks. at least some of them were veggies.
I didn't do Jillian today for no good reason. Basically I couldn't get the DVD player that is hooked up to the TV with the Wii to work and was too self conscious to work out in front of DH. I did do 15 minutes of cardio, 10 minutes of strength, so not exactly the same, but close. :)
I felt pretty proud for doing even that though since I was up for 2 hours in the middle of the night with DD.

New week. Let's hope it is a good one.

100 mile challenge

I posted 11 miles the first week and that is after missing a few days! I earned 4 more miles today!!

Jan 9, 2010 - status

I am beat, of course it is almost 11 pm, so that should be expected I imagine. Today was just a mismash for some reason. I ate too many nuts in my passes through the kitchen, but was determined to get my workout in since I took yesterday off. It was delayed until after the kids' bedtime because I actually left the house by myself this afternoon and went to the mall. Unheard of for a few reasons. One, it isn't in my nature to shop.  I am not very good at it and I find I have a lot more money if I don't even try it, unless necessary. Why I was so moved today is a mystery and to make things even stranger I went to the "big" mall in the area. OMG, the traffic was so horrible. I kept thinking, how did I make it through Christmas with NO trips to the mall and now I am here? One garage had absolutely no parking and I was ready to bag the whole thing, when on my way out I decided to try one more place. Got into a space zippylike and hustled into Macy's. I had some sweaters to return, a giftcard to use up and determination. I went through the handbag section about 4 times (I told you I am not good at this) convinced I had missed something. Nothing was calling to me until I found this one bag. Of course no tag, no clue how much it was, although everything was about 50% off. Anyways, the original price was more then I have ever spent on a bag, but with all the returns, discounts (ALWAYS ask at check out if they have a coupon you can use, I got an extra 15%) it was only 30.00 for a 160.00 bag.

Anyways, today - 30 Day Shred day 6, Weight 164.5, eating was grazing like. 200 calories for breakfast, but more then made up for that in snacks. 40 minutes on the Wii. overall not too bad. May make up for the 2 glasses of wine last night.

Jan 7, 2010 - update

ok, too tired to talk much tonight. 163.5 this morning. Split my workout in 2. a little Wii before TKD and Scouts for DS and then Jillian day 5 after bedtime. DD screamed through the whole workout. I wish she could put herself to bed. We did ignore her though - ferberizing a 4 year old?

treats - had 2 hersey kisses, a handful of spiced nuts (d&^% him for bringing them into work again). avoided the maggiano's return at work and had pita and hummas for lunch during book club.

think I might go pop a 100 calorie bag of popcorn and finish watching the game. tomorrow I will report my miles for the 100 mile challenge.

Jan 6, 2010 - status

ok, too tired to talk much today.

Went to work, had our holiday lunch at Maggiano's. I did ok. 1 bruchetta, 1 stuffed mushroom, 1 italian salad serving.  4 entrees, I filled the plate with tastes of each. I did notice it was a smaller then usual plate. water with everything. Taste of cheesecake and tea for dessert.

Dinner at Founders Day meeting. chicken, rice, salad. 2 glasses of wine. Might have negated the gain/loss I had this morning. :(

weight 164, 30 day shred day 4, 20 minutes on Wii.

must go to bed.

Jan 5, 2010 - update

Today was very exciting because I met with 2 kitchen designers. One was a followup to a meeting I had in early December. She came over to show 2 concepts she had drawn regarding the room. The one with moving no walls was almost exactly the same as Home Depot and other outlets worked up for me. Reassuring, but not very exciting. The other was interesting, but she did keep the 2 dining spaces. We had a great talk about moving walls, putting the laundry in a cabinet vs room and other options.
The 2nd visit was with a new designer and she seemed to have some good ideas. I am pretty sure I am going to work with her on a fixed price basis to work up some designs.
I slept horribly last night, so did not get up again today. *sigh* I did do day 3 of the 30 day shred right after the bus stop. Did 30 minutes on the Wii this evening.
Last night I joined the 100 mile challenge - see sidebar. 100 miles in 3 months. every 15 minutes of working out equal a mile. Should be a motivator for me. 7 miles so far this month!
weight 166, waist 37, eating pretty good. No sugary snacks!!

2009 Goal recap continued

They wouldn't be goals if we didn't evaluate our progress would they?

Ok - weight goal of 140 - I think I have already let the cat out of the bag in letting you know what 2010 looks like, that not only did I not lose the 10 lbs intended for 2009, but picked up a few new/old ones as well. I am sorry to say the last month of the year was actually the worst (approx 6 lbs gained), when I was actually thinking about getting back on the band wagon. Too much thinking I would take care of it tomorrow I guess. Alright, well we are back on track and thinking clearly again, so enough about that.

Enjoying exercise. Ugh, will I ever become one of those people? I think there is hope, but it is a sliver of light at this point. I have worked out more than I ever thought I would in my lifetime, so I would say I am making slow progress in liking how exercise makes me feel. I still believe the key to this is to pick active activities to do with my family. That takes mental energy to think/plan, but is possible.

Nail biting, another fun one. So my latest research says that breaking a habit takes 21 - 32 days depending on who you ask. At this point I have gone about 14 days with only 2 nails taken down. I purchased new anti bite polish and carry it in my purse, so if I notice my hands in my mouth - which is the main issue - I can whip it on right away. This has helped a great deal more then, just saying I couldn't bite, but not being as worried about my hands being close to or in my mouth. Trust me this stuff tastes gross. My nails are not growing as fast because of winter maybe, and I think this is actually a help. I am working to keep them filed down as well.

Jan 4, 2010- status

ok here goes today.

started the day with a major fail - either I can't set an alarm or I slept through it. Either way, my plan to fit Jillian in before the bus stop was not happening. (to be honest I haven't set an alarm consistently in um like 8 years - yes my oldest child is 8!) Will try this again tomorrow. Working from home, so just have to fit the workout in, not the shower too.

However, I did rush home and get day 2 of the 30 day shred in. I also did about 20 minutes of Wii, including a 10 minute run. Totally don't trust that thing. There is NO WAY I ran over a mile in 10 minutes. I average a 14 minute mile. But hey I jogged for 10 minutes, there is something there. :)

weight 165 - I know I shouldn't weigh in everyday, but really I don't get too upset about an up trend as long as it doesn't last. Overall I am just looking for a downward trend. I haven't revisited calorie counter, or seen what Sparkle people is like, but that is on my list.

Food - did pretty well today. 2 Hershey kisses at work, scary snacking right after my workout while cooking dinner - but really amounted to about 20 almonds, 1/2 piece of banana bread and I think that is it. Feeling a snack coming on now though. Just need to resist. I already had my peanut butter cluster for dessert! Going to get some tea.

total fail on the signing up for classes. They started on Sunday. I think I could still get into Pilate's on Sundays, but really want to take the INOVA class on Mondays. Just have to get DH to agree to do kid duty that day. That class doesn't start until the 25th.

I said I was going to measure my waist today, but haven't done it yet. Since it is so damn cold today, I may just put it off until tomorrow. Snuggling in my quilt with my computer for warmth right now!!

2009 Financial goals

to be honest I have to start here as I feel the best about my progress in this category. :)

1. Home Equity Loan - well I haven't exactly paid the last cent on this puppy, but I have a good reason- honest! I went from a balance of 34,876 (approximately) to 8,000 at the end of the year. I have the money to pay off the loan - more on that in a minute, but didn't because part of our "relationship" balance with the bank is this loan. I need to keep 15k in the bank to maintain the interest rates, lack of fees etc for our service level. For now I am not interested in switching banks, so slowing my payment plan was part of maintaining our target "relationship".

The reason these funds were important was because I was busy syphoning off any available money into a ING account with the title of Kitchen. (so excited!) I met with 2 contractors in September to discuss my thoughts on the kitchen and to double check my budget ideas. They both agreed we could remodel the kitchen for the proposed 30-40k. At this time we have 28k in the ING account. I am going to continue to plan for and select contractors for this effort, but won't kick off the actual project until the budget for my job becomes clearer - maybe May. So I have about 5 more months to put aside some more money - which I may need since my eyes are getting bigger the more I research this project!

Goal 2 - Education
I have been reading and meeting with the financial planner this year, so I consider this checked off. We purchased term life insurance and are poised to make some changes to our retirement and/or 529 savings. I am not sure exactly what this will look like yet. I would like to get a better feel for our taxes for 2009, which I will do in Feb.

2.5 - Energy Audit. I had this done over the summer and was surprised that we didn't seem to have the leaks I thought we would. We did add more insulation to the attic - my bedroom seems warmer, so maybe it is working. Unfortunately the ceilings cracked in many places and had to be fixed. The company took care of it, but it was a pain - everything had to be patched then repainted.

3. Mystery Shopping. I did about a C on this. I was very strong through the spring with picking up assignments, but I have a lot going on in general, so this became more intrusive. I also think because we were meeting our savings goals it was much harder to see the 10-15 dollars as important in the whole scheme of things. I still get alerts, but haven't acted on any assignments in awhile. I think this is ok for now.

4. No new debt. In short - check. We had some dicey months with fixes and new tires on the truck, etc, but I just pulled back on the kitchen fund for the month and made it work. We seem to have sailed through Christmas with little damage, so unless there is some huge bill lurking out there, we will start the year out in good shape. I did my best to buy things with cash/debt - including the wii and it seemed to work.

Jan 3, 2010 - status

165.5 weigh in
30 day shred level 1, 30 minutes on Wii - 309 calories
Food - meals were good, snacking at Pack planning meeting on nuts and various other treats. Water = 3 glasses

A new year 2010

ok, I will get to reviewing my goal success and fails in 2009, but first 2010. Looking forward!!

Fitness has to be my number 1 priority this year. In 2008 I lost 20 lbs, but managed to gain it all back, most of it in the last 6 months. Turning things around has been on my mind, but not in my actions. Certainly the treats of the season were not kind and I did nothing to stop them.

We received a Wii and Wii fit from ourselves (aka Santa) this Christmas, so I have been investigating that as a fun way to squeeze a few more calories out of a day. It is, of course no way to get real weight loss progress. So I have been working on 20-30 minutes. More of a routine creating exercise, then anything else.

So 20 lbs is my goal for 2010, but more then that number is making the time and enjoyment for exercise. If we can make more active activities part of our life, then that is the real change. I am also nooddling, but not yet committing to something like walking a marathon. I want to spend more time checking out the training timeline and see what marathons are walker friendly. If I can walk a marathon, maybe someday I can actually run one! Mentally my mindset is not there yet. So one foot in front of the other until then.