Weekly Update...

Two days and two pounds later, here I am checkin' in! Yep, so I gained two pounds this week. I was pretty upset about it but now I'm cool with it. It wasn't like I was pigging out and eating anything I wanted so it could be a number of reasons for the two pounds. I hopped on the scale right before I was supposed to run 1.75 miles...yeah, not a good idea. It was pretty rough and it should not have been. It was only a quarter of a mile farther than I have already been. So I just chalk it up to being upset. But when my hubs got home, he made me feel better. He put things into perspective which I really needed! 

So I know what I have to do in the upcoming week. I was snacking too much and since Wednesday, I've cut that out. They were all healthy snacks (well maybe with the exception of pretzels) but fruit, raw veggies, 100 calorie packs-occasionally, and yogurt) but when I put it into my calorie counter, snacks counted for over 40% of my diet which is not good. We've had two snow days so I have had plenty of time to research and put things in place. 

I think that planning my meals out will be a great start! Next week, I will start eating fish only all the way until the end of February. I did it before the month before my wedding. It seemed to work so I will try it out again. I have found lots of yummy vegetarian and seafood recipes that I can't wait to try out. I did tell the hubs that I would still make dishes with chicken, but I just wouldn't eat them. 

So I am still doing well on this journey...in 4 weeks, I have lost 5.2 pounds and that's something to be proud of!!! I am hoping that next week is even better and I have faith that it will be!

Weekend Recap

Because I felt like I ate horribly on Thursday, I began a food diary on Friday. This really helps me because its one of the things I did during bootcamp and it makes me more aware of what I'm eating. I have done good so far with writing everything down. When I worked out Thursday morning before work, I felt like I ate a ton more than usual during the day. I mean granted it was all healthy food (pineapple, carrot sticks, yogurt, etc) but I still felt like I was hungry the whole day. For dinner that night, I only ate one fish taco. They were soooo good too!

Friday for dinner I ate one brats dog with a bun and baked tater tots with ketchup. I had written earlier that I was going to get up on Saturday before my hair appointment to work out. Well, good thing I called the gym on Friday to make sure they would be open at 6 AM; it turns out they don't open until 7 on Saturdays and Sundays. I was pretty bummed but quickly realized that meant I could sleep a little longer. :-) So anyway, I got up went to my hair appointment, came home, and then hit the gym. I finished under 17 minutes this time only because for the last quarter of a mile, I had a 5.9 pace.

I was pretty good at the game and afterwards Saturday night. So much unhealthy food was calling my name and I politely ignored it. I did eat really late after the game but instead of getting fried chicken wings, I had two fish tacos (one of my new fav foods) and only 2 bbq chicken wings with NO dipping sauce! I was proud of myself. Sunday we ate breakfast at the hotel and when I was full, I stopped eating. It wasn't all that great so that probably had something to do with it. I am a bit nervous about hopping on the scale on Tuesday, only because I feel like I have been eating a lot but like I keep telling myself, its not chips and dips and sodas and things like that that I am eating. We shall see! I need to lose at least two pounds...

Today will be another run/walk day and tomorrow I am supposed to run 1.75 miles so only a quarter of a mile more. I feel like I can do that. I am really loving this training schedule. I keep meaning to talk to some at the gym to help me with some toning and stretch exercises. When I did bootcamp, it was strictly cardio and right at the end, I added a body pump class. Maybe I will do that this time, once the 5K is over, I could focus on toning. I am starting to get more into the running. I didn' realize this was such a big accomplishment for me. Some people may say, gee a 5K ain't nothing, but to me it is. I have never been a runner and I plan on running the entire 3.1 miles. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can...

Feeling Guilty and Updates...

So on Wednesday, I treated myself to a chocolate chip whoopie cookie. It was like a sandwich cookie with cream frosting in the middle. I have had them before and they were yummy. I don't know if it was because I hadn't had sweets in about two weeks or because I knew I shouldn't eat it (even though it was a treat), but it was not good! In my defense, I picked apart the two cookies and did not eat very much of the creamy frosting. It was hard and tasted old but I still ate it. I guess that's the part I felt guilty about...eating when it wasn't even good. This has led to a lot of my over-eating.

I made up for that treat by hitting the gym bright and early on Thursday morning. I had a training after school and I knew I wouldn't be in the mood to go after the training and spending all day at work. Thursday's 1.5 miler was so much easier than Tuesday's. Maybe because I knew how long it would take me and I knew what to expect. I am anticipating that Saturday's run will be like a cake walk. I have a hair appointment on Saturday morning so I plan to get up early and get my run out of the way since we have plans on Saturday afternoon in D.C.

I felt really sore yesterday but did some stretches. I am feeling more "loose" today but my legs and calfs are still tight. Like my hubby says,
"No Pain, No Gain". I had him take a "before" picture of me and golly wow! I definitely need to drop a couple and its all around my mid-section. I had on a sports bra and yoga pants. I am thinking that I want him to take another with a sports tank and yoga pants. I'm just not ready to show that one to the world!

Weekly Update

Drum roll please.....................................I lost 4.4 pounds this week!!!!!! I was shocked when I stepped on the scale. I was just looking for at least a 2 pound lost but I almost started crying when I saw that I had lost 4.4 pounds. I even went out to dinner on Saturday. I ate pretty good. I drank water, had a little bit of the spinach dip appetizer not on bread but these cracker crisp things that were in the bread basket. For dinner, I had a crab cake sandwich sans the bread, a side salad instead of fries and dressing on the side. I planned on ordering dessert as a treat but instead a I ate three pretzel rods covered in white chocolate from the goody bag I received from the dinner. There was also dark chocolate and Reese's PB cups (my absolute favorite candy) in there but I didn't touch one piece! I actually haven't had any cravings for sweets which lets you know that I didn't need them! I do have a love affair with food, now I'm just remembering all the healthy food tips I learned in boot camp. Someone asked me "how hard it was to lose weight?" I know the person meant well but I am just using those insensitive words as my motivation to get through. To show that person that its actually not hard at all if I put my mind to it!

Yesterday was day 1 of training for the 5K in March. It was a pretty easy day as I just did a 5 minute walking warm-up,  3 minutes walk, run for 5 minutes-this was repeated three times. Today, on the other hand, was quite a bit challenging. I had to run 1.5 miles. I got tired right at one mile. I did complete the 1.5 miles at about a 5.3 pace running all the way in about 17 minutes!!! I was SO proud of myself. I had to keep giving myself a pep talk because I wanted to quit running especially right at the end but I was a little too close to the end. I am following this training schedule. I am actually a week ahead so I will just repeat the last week twice. Wish me luck because this schedule gets tougher each week! I am looking forward to the rest day tomorrow and hitting the treadmill again on Thursday. My hubby suggested that once the ice and snow slow down that I train outside some so I can get used to the actual race. I thought that was a great idea.

That brings my weight loss since January 4th to 7.2 pounds!!!! I am so amazed and even more inspired because I know that I can do this. I am more than halfway to my first goal of 10 pounds by Feb. 14th. I am actually only 2.8 pounds away and I hope that I can meet that by at least the 1st of February. We are going to a Wizards game on Saturday so I am hoping that I can keep my eating to a minimum. We shall see!!!!

Am I crazy or what?!

So after reading tons of weight loss blogs yesterday, I decided to run a 5K. I have always wanted to run a race but I never got myself together. I figured a 5K would be the easiest. If I live to tell about it, then maybe a half-marathon is in my future! The race is on March 20th. Yep, that's exactly 9 weeks from today. Good thing I found a training program that's only 8 weeks long. 

The great thing is that the race is called "Scope It Out" and its for colon cancer. I was REALLY wanting to run this race once I found this out because earlier last summer my aunt had a bout with colon cancer but now its all clear!! PTL for that but I thought this would give me very much inspiration especially when running and training get strenuous and daunting. I am nervous, excited, and scared but I know that I can do this! The naysayers will be my motivation. I know it will be hard but it will be worth it.

Bring It On!

I just signed up for a Weight Loss Challenge. We have to weigh-in on Wednesdays every week until March 30th. The one who has lost the biggest percentage takes the pot of $150. I am not even motivated by the money. I just don't like to lose but for some reason, I won't be sad if I lose because I will have gotten something out of it anyway. What you ask? A smaller waistline. :-) I still haven't gotten around to taking my before picture. I promise to take it this week probably only because I have to for the challenge. We also have to take pictures of the scale each week for the end results. I will probably end up taking those pictures with my camera phone since I don't take anything but my Nook, phone, and clothes into the gym with me.

As I said before my first goal is 10 pounds by Feb. 14th. I think that my goal for this weight loss challenge will be 20 pounds. I don't know if that's feasible because that's another 10 pounds to tack on. But I am consistently working out and eating right so with that said, there really is no reason that I can't do it! Right?!?!

I finally got some new workout clothes and for the low-low too! I love Target's clearance rack. 3 sports bras for $3.74 each, a pair of pants for $6.24 each, 2 long sleeves shirt for $3.24 each, and a cute track jacket for $6.24. I also went to Wal-Mart and got one pair of yoga pants for $10. Ross also had a good clearance rack with name brand (not that it matters) active wear. I got two sports bras (the long shirt like ones) for $9 and a pair of Adidas pants for $9.99 and a pair of Reebok pants for $7.49. I just washed and folded all of my workout gear and I think that I am set!

So BRING IT ON!!!

Weekly Update

I know that I am day late but last week was a good week. I lost 2.8 pounds!!! I am not getting my hopes up but I feel that was a good start. I am looking to lose about 1 to 2 pounds per week and I exceeded that wish/goal. Last week, I did not eat the best everyday but I did drink my 52+ ounces of water everyday. Every morning I drink a small amount of orange juice with breakfast. I found that I was "drinking" a ton of calories so I decided to just drink water during the week and if I want, I can drink ginger ale (the only soda I drink) or lemonade on the weekend. I really think the water has a lot to do with it and working out. Last week, I worked out four times. I will be the first to admit that I did not go hard in the gym, it had been about three weeks since my last visit so I wanted to ease back into things. I just did high intensity on the treadmill and ran for about 4-5 minutes. I want to get back into mainly running on the treadmill or at least doing intervals and maybe my cycling class. Last spring, I went to the 5AM on Wednesdays religiously. Then summer came and I got out of my routine and its been shot since then. Now, I struggle to get out of bed at 7AM on any given week day so I am going to build up the courage to start going back maybe when we are done with the snow. 

So this week, I am doing some of the same things as far as exercise and I am definitely eating better. I haven't had a piece of chocolate candy all week long and its Wednesday...shoot, that's an accomplishment in itself! I love chocolate candy and boy have I been tempted with all the Valentine's Day candy out but I take one look at the hearts and kisses and remind myself that V-day is my deadline for the first 10 pounds I want to lose. 

Today I have a snow day and I'm already bored so here's to drinking lots of water and staying out of the fridge and pantry.

My Inspiration

Have you seen the "new" Jennifer Hudson!?!? She looks AH-MAY-ZING!!!!! I should hang this photograph on my desk at work, in front of the workout area at home, and on the refrigerator. I can not get over how fab she looks. I know that she did Weight Watchers and I told my friend that I am going to try to do it on my own for about 4-6 weeks and if I haven't lost any weight then I will sign up for WW, especially if the results are this!!!!

My other source of inspiration is my sister. I was looking at photos of her on FB last night that my brother-in-law posted. She lost weight about three years ago and she has maintained and looks great!!!  Now, if I maintained what I lost, I wouldn't be writing this blog but 'tis is life, right?!?!?!

My hubby (thank you boo!) bought me two new pairs of running shoes (we are hoping to run a 5K or 10k this spring) so hopefully these new shoes will inspire me!!! I also went to Target last night to get new workout clothes but they were so expensive. I think I will go to Wally World this weekend because I know they have workout pants for about $10. I was looking thru my stash and that's what I need the most so hopefully I will be able to get at least two pairs of pants without breaking the bank.

One last thing that inspires me is looking at myself in the mirror and knowing I am not 100% happy with the way I look and feel. I *know* that I can do better!

What inspires you when it comes to exercise?

Goals for January

I think that setting 3 goals per month will help me attain my long term goal of losing 30 pounds. I still haven't come up with a deadline for the 30 pounds because I'm just not ready yet. I really could get by with losing 25 pounds but I want to get back to the weight I was at (or very close it) when I got married. I will also weigh-in on every Tuesday and post the loss (hopefully not the gain). I am thinking of getting a scale that measures body fat as well. The scale that we used at boot camp did this and it was nice because I got a weight goal and a body fat goal. I plan on taking a picture every 6 weeks to document my progress. I just need to get the first picture taken.

Since I've known myself all my life (lol), I know that I need to set small goals for myself. That being said, my goal for today is to not eat any chocolate candy today! This morning I had a half piece of WW toast with Nutella spread on it. So that should be my chocolate fix for the day. Now on to the real goals...

Goal 1: Limit my chocolate intake. I saw in Shape magazine that if you allow yourself two bite sized pieces of Dove dark chocolate then it will curb your appetite and for chocoaholics like me, it will give me my chocolate fix for the day. The thing is that I don't really like dark chocolate but I might buy it so I am not tempted to eat regular chocolate.

Goal 2: Lose 10 pounds by Feb. 14th. I know that it is going to be hard but I also know that it going to be possible. With this goal, I am committing to exercising at least three times per week. I am setting it at three but hopefully I will make it four times per week.

Goal 3: Drink at least 52 oz. of water a day. I know that's not a lot of water and that I need to be drinking more water but you have to start somewhere right!??! I have a water bottle that goes up to 26 oz. so I plan on filling it up twice a day and actually drinking all the water. I have added lemon juice today so hopefully that will help me!

I have been thinking of long term goals and here are a few. I want to lose 30 pounds-date tbd. I also want to fit into a pair of these black & white work pants that I got from GAP by the end of the school year-June 9th. They are waaaay too tight now! I can put them on a zip them but wearing them out of the house is another story. Another one of my long term goals is that I also want to get into a two piece by 4th of July. I guess long term to me is 6 months so I will continue to think about the weight loss goal and set a date soon.

Here We Go!

So I have been wanting to start a blog for a while now. I just didn't know what I wanted to write about...marriage, the state of Black relationships, family, photography, etc. So after joining hundreds of others at the gym yesterday, it hit me as I was briskly walking on the treadmill. As I excitedly came home and told D about my idea to blog about my exercise and food journal, he suggested that we make it a competition. We have competed before when it came to working out. We had to put money in a jar each time we worked out and we had to put even more money in on the days we didn't work out. We haven't discussed the details of this current wager, I just know that I want to come out looking better than ever and more importantly being healthier.

Almost two (gee, has it been that long?!?!) years ago, I decided to get on the exercise bandwagon because I was getting married on the beautiful, sunny beach in the Bahamas and we were also going on a cruise, so I wanted to wear a bikini for the first time in years. I began early on in 2009 by eating better and working out on my Wii. In March, I joined a boot camp which was the best decision that I had made concerning exercise and weight loss. I also contribute my 30 pound weight loss to the fact that I didn't have a real job (I was working odds and ends), so I was poor and saving any money I got for the wedding. Because of that, we did not eat out very often. But back to the boot camp; it was seriously the best thing! I hate that we moved and I have not been able to find anything like it since then.

So here I am now in 2011 trying to remember some of the things I learned in boot camp about healthy eating and exercising. I am committed to doing those things again but for the rest of my life. I think I looked at that time as only a temporary time, like oh, just let me look skinny for my wedding and then its over after that. And I quickly gained all the weight, plus some back over the past year. Like I said, its about life changing choices not temporary choices, so here we go!!!