And so we begin again...

So, I found out this week how NOT to travel for work. When I picked my hotel, I only made sure that the hotel had a fitness room. I did not check on running trails and none were close. I picked a hotel that was booked and so the fitness center was packed and I couldn't get in. I did do the 30 day Shred one day in my room, but stayed up too late on other nights to be able to get up early.

I also stopped tracking after Tuesday lunch. So, I don't even have the information on what I did eat. What I am going to do this week is roboot to my 4 pound loss week and do it all over again. Plus, I am in town this week, so I have my running plan in place.

So, away we go!

Keep on Trucking

I did it again!!! And there is no oops about it!! I lost 2.2 pounds for a total loss of 88 (on WW)! 12 pounds until goal! I weighed at the Mckinney location this morning after marathon training since my buddies weren't going this morning (Missed you Sandra!). I was super excited at my weight loss so I stayed for the meeting. Vicki, the leader, gave us the following recipe:


Garden Pasta Salad (Serves 6/ 1 cup, 4 Points Plus)
1 9 oz pkg fresh cheese tortellini
1/3 c light Northern Italian salad dressing w/ basil and romano (Ken's Steak House Lite)
2 TBS chopped fresh basil
2 TBS fresh lemon juice
2 c chopped fresh tomato
1 c chopped seeded peeled cucumber
1 c sliced green onions (about 3)
*Cook pasta according to directions. Drain and rinse with cold water; drain. While pasta cooks, combine dressing, basil, & lemon juice. Stir with whisk. Add pasta, tomato, cucumber, and green onion, toss well.

Another tidbit for lifetime members with no eTools: My fitness pal is free and has a phone app.

Now, this week is going to be hard. Week 3 is when I have fallen off the wagon the las 3 times. In addition I am traveling for work almost all week. And I have girls' night out tonight. Fun will be had for sure! I just need to keep planning and keeping my eye on the prize.

Bueno Victory

Tonight I had a big personal victory. I had a meeting with our outreach pastor at Corner Bakery so we had dinner. I had planned for it within my points and even figured out half of my favorite chicken pomodoro panini was the same number of points as half of the bavarian ham. I was quite satisfied. Once I got home Brad wanted to run errands but had not eaten dinner. We went by Taco Bueno. Oh it was hard. They have my most favorite mucho nachos. But...they ate 35 points-ish...and I was already satisfied. AND I would feel miserable afterward. So, I had a lemonade and enjoyed the company of my husband without giving into the temptation. While I haven't been 100 % game on this week, but I have tracked everything. And it hasn't been wheels off...so Saturday might be one pound? I hope!

4 Pounds Closer!

I did it! I lost 3.8 pounds this week! After a humid evaluation run for marathon training, I headed up to the McKinney Weight Watchers and weighed in. It was a big Woohoo moment for me. Like I said earlier in the week, I pulled my menus from a week in April when I dropped 4 pounds to get remotivated. Following that eating and exercise plan, I just trucked through the week, only making slight modifications. Not that it was a big surprise, but I did see that eating at 10pm will surely put the weight on. The next morning I was up almost 2 pounds, erasing my hard work. Luckily, since I do weigh daily, I was able to make this observation and make a correction.

So, what's going on THIS week? I have 2 planned dinners out...one is a happy hour with my girlfriends and one is a church meeting. So, what to do? One thing is for sure, I will be tracking everything that goes in my mouth. Another lesson from this week was that I learned that a jigger of vodka is 4 points. That's a lot out my 29 for a day. So, the lesson learned? One drink is enough. I will also know what I am ordering before I go. This is what I have to do to ensure that I am successful. It may sound like a lot of work, but after awhile it becomes second nature. You can learn to pick out the best options, or sometimes just the nonworst.

So, I am following my sandwich lunch of this past week with some similar dinners. An 4 days of running to boot! Here we go!

Spinning my wheels

Today was a big success! I had a long conference call this morning after which I was totally famished. I did not want to go to spinning, but I knew I needed to. I didn't get up this morning to do 30 Day Shred or walk the dog. And I knew that I wouldn't have the energy tonight after my hair appointment. And I also knew I would feel so much better after I went. Well, surprise surprise! I did feel 100 percent better after class. I got over my hunger after the first 5 minutes and didn't think about it again until I got back to my building.

so, what does this mean for tomorrow? I will likely run at lunch tomorrow even though my department is going to lunch. They are going out for Mexican which I love, but I need to be good. After all, day before weigh in? I need to stick to the plan so that this weight loss continues. I figure if I keep doing what I have been doing this week, I will keep getting what I am getting. Yea!

The next race is the Too Hot To Handle on July 10. Anyone care to join me?

It keeps getting better

Today was a much better day for running. I went running around 11:15 so that the heat would not be as intense as it was Monday at 12:15. While it was still hot, almost 100 degrees, I still pounded the pavement. I did have a great playlist which is key for me to stay distracted from the shin splints that I was feeling in my legs on each of the hills. And I also started contemplating whether or not I would run my marathon for a charity. I have mixed feelings about this and am still considering several options. The buildings and people watching downtown also make great distractions. It ended up taking me 38:47 but I do not know how much of that time what hanging out at crosswalks, waiting for the light to change. I am looking forward to Saturday's evaluation run. That will tell me about where I am at. I don't imagine that I am much below an 11 minute mile, but I can hope, right?

The best thing about following the April eating plan and keeping up the exercise...the scale keeps going down each day. I am looking forward to the scale on Saturday. I pray that it shows that I have 15 vs 18 pounds to go!

What was I thinking?

It is HOT in Texas, hitting 100 degrees already and it is only June. Some of you might think this is normal, but I am here to tell you no, not yet. This time of year our highs are normally in the mid-80's. Yes, we do have 100 degree days, but those usually come mid to late July and hang on strong through August and September, and often until October. At lunch today I took my run outside in the middle of downtown Dallas and over to the Katy Trail. Luckily, the Katy Trail has some shade. And, with a little over 1 km to go over my 5k run, I stopped by the AAC and visited with my aunt. It was a nice break and then I ran in the last 1.4 kilometers to the Y, I was pouring with sweat...which I always count as melting fat so I know that I am going in the right direction. And to run 5.01k in 36:15 is a really good time, especially with this heat. Thank God my marathon will be in February. But, even in February, you do have to watch for the occasional heat spell here in Texas. Whew! Now for some carrots and a ham sandwich!

A Brand New Day

Today is the beginning of a new day...a new week in fact. Over the last 3 weeks, I have gained 6 pounds back again. It is so disheartening. I was 6 pounds from goal over a year ago and now I am 18 away. Travelling and half marathon training derailed me over the last year.

HOWEVER! This week begins my marathon training for the LIVESTRONG Austin Marathon which will be February 19, 2012. I am determined that this time I am not going to gain weight through the process. I am going to lose and I am going to hit goal weight! After 3 years on Weight Watchers, I have lost a little over 80 pounds. I have even been at the point that I had lost *almost* 100! But I have never hit it! I want to hit it so bad. Unfortunately I fall into entitlement eating. I eat things because I feel that I deserve them. "I worked out so hard"..."I've had a bad day"..."It's my birthday". And while I agree that every now and then it is good to treat yourself, it is not good to blow 5000 calories in one meal. Unfortunately, what I have learned about myself is that the original cheat meal leads to other cheat meals and that leads to a 4-6 pound weight gain in one week. I try to stop the gaining but inevitably, the second week is usually another 2 pound weight gain. By week 3, if I can do it, I can finally stabilize. By then, I feel really miserable about myself, but vow that THIS is the week...and I start over again. So, that is what this week is for me. Saturday, I was down 0.4 pounds but that was after being up 4 pounds 2 weeks prior and 2 pounds the week after that. So, to me, it was zeroing out.

I went onto Weight Watchers eTools and printed out a week in April of this year that I lost 4 pounds. Now, I am shooting for 2 pounds, even though 4 would be nice. I am going to try to eat what I ate that week and exercise under my new exercise program. My current exercise program is this: 30 Day Shred every morning followed by a 30 minute walk with my dog. At lunch, MWF, I am running for 30 minutes or a 5k, whichever time allows...although I would love to do a 30 minute 5k, I am just not there yet. With the 100 degree heat this week here in Dallas, it should prove to be detoxifying. On Tues/Thurs at lunch, I will go to spinning at the Y. I will finish up by running an evaluation 3 mile run on Saturday for marathon training before heading to Weight Watchers. All that being said, I did not wake up in time to do the Shred or walk the dog this morning. However, I am motivated to do it when I get home. I have got to get this weight off!!! Now is the time!!!

Lemonade, in the form of an Elliptical machine

I went over to the Y expecting to go to spinning today, after waffling over spinning or running, having missed my run yesterday. Well, long story short, they lost my laundry. This would not be so bad, except that I only have one sports bra over there and the prospect of doing spinning or anything else without hurt just thinking about it. So, I waited for 20 minutes while they searched everywhere. In the end, they found it right where it should have been, but under something else. Unfortunately spin class was already started and too full to enter once I was ready. So, I did an interval workout on the Elliptical. Surprisingly, my quads are really sore! Yea! I love being sore after a workout because it means that I worked!!

Now, I can go through my afternoon knowing that I burned at least 300 calories and that I am back on track after a bit too much celebrating for Mother's Day!

The Ice Cream Monster

I am the person that loves ice cream so much that I can and will eat the entire container, no matter the size. If you were to give me a 2 quart Dreyer's container of Drumstick flavor, I will have it finished by the end of the evening. If you give me a pint of Ben and Jerry's Americone Dream, I will have it finished by the end of the show that I am watching. The same is true for my favorite Haagen Dazs, Midnight Cookies & Cream. The only ice cream that I can truly refuse is Butter Pecan, which I find quite revolting. Hence, it is usually the only ice cream that might have in our freezer for any given period of time. This is also because Brad has impeccable will power and can eat 1/2 - 1 cup and be satisfied. The Ice Cream Monster inside of me will not be satisfied unless I consume the entire container of whatever I am eating. I have tried stopping, but I usually end up back in the kitchen, sneaking bites whenever I get up.

So my solution has been to not keep ice cream in the house. Occasionally, we will buy the coveted pints, but not more. Otherwise, we head to DQ or Braums for their portion control. Now that we are experiencing a little bit of the summer like weather in Texas, my cravings for ice cream are ramping up. It is a hard craving to deny. What usually happens is that I deny myself for a good while and then all of a sudden, I don't just fall, I plummet, off the wagon and into the depths of ice cream goodness. This not only derails my weight loss efforts, it also wrecks havoc on my bank accounts.

In the spirit of trying something new, I came across the Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches last night at Tom Thumb. They have changed their packaging so that each sandwich is individually wrapped, just like Weight Watchers. Each sandwich is 4 points plus, just like Weight Watchers. But, they are $2 cheaper per package! And, they have a few different flavors. I have always liked Blue Bell Cookies & Cream ice cream, so I was hoping for the best! I knew that Skinny Cow had a great product because I used to eat all 6 sandwiches in one sitting. But now, with the additional step of unwrapping each sandwich, somehow I am tempted by them a little less. It is not the actual unwrapping is what keeps me from eating them. It is the fact that my husband would see the wrappers in the trash and *might* say something. He is not the food police by any means, but he would make a comment and I would feel like that 6 year old who stole Daddy's drumstick from the freezer and got found out.

Last night I had my one and I was satisfied, not going back for a second. I hope that I can keep this up!

The Loss of an Energy Bar

Tonight I am mourning the discontinuation of my favorite "energy" bar, The Twisted by Premier Nutrition. I had recently found this bar to be a good meal replacement when added to a fruit for a quick post workout lunch. I had trouble finding it at the retail locations indicated on their website, so I ordered 36 bars from their website and had them delivered just last week. Tonight, as I was looking at their website, trying to give my sister some of their nutrition information, I noticed that they had discontinued the entire line of bars. Travesty!!! And I cannot find out why they have been discontinued. I hope that this is only a temporary discontinuation. Maybe there has been a run on pretzels or nougat?

My nutritionist, Meridan, has said that it is only a glorified candy bar and of course, as I type this, she is on the Channel 11 news! Oh goodness! She's after me!!! Her argument is based on the ingredient list. It is not all natural as compared to the Clif bar.

After I get through my current stash, I might just go back to the Snickers Marathon bar. The only place that I have ever found them are at 7-11 individually. I only really like the Multigrain bars and Sam's carries them in the variety pack, but I am not a big fan of the taste or the points plus values of the other flavors in the pack. Or, I might just have to find myself a more natural bar that I like...and that has chocolate.

An Apple A Day

An apple a day does in fact keep the doctor away. I am very lucky to be thriving through this cold/flu season. I have continued to take my vitamins (a multivitamin, Cooper Complete Elite Athlete and Omega 3 Supplement) in addition to eating 2-3 fruits per day. Of these fruits, at least one is an apple. This helps maintain a healthy GI system and healthy teeth. I have found that I really like Honeycrip Apples that are in season from November - January. You might see them at Whole Foods or Central Market a little later than this but it is rare and they are usally quite expensive at that time. Another favorite is the Pink Lady apple. It is very similar in flavor profile, crisp and sweet, to the Honeycrisp, but it has a longer season. Recently, the prices on Pink Ladies has risen and I have found that Gala apples are particularly sweet this year. I have found them at Kroger mostly and occasionally at Walmart. So, how do you determine if an apple is ripe? I smell them. If they smell "Apple-y", then I know that they are ripe. So, munch on an apple today! You will be glad you did!

Tasty Afternoon Treat

Over the past two weeks, I have become overly disenchanted with my afternoon snacks. In addition, I have been ravenously hungry as soon as I get home, spurring me to eat a lot of snacks while waiting for dinner to cook. So, I have been on the search for a high protein, low carb snack. Today, I tried edamame in pods that I found at Sam's. They are in small, individually portioned packs and come in right at 1 WW points plus per pack, with 8 grams of protein. The fact that there were so many to eat helped with my chew factor. In my mind, the more I chew, the more satisfied I become. It took me approximately 30 minutes to eat the entire pack as I did it while reviewing a spreadsheet. The true test will be the 6:00 test. Am I ravenous or am I doing okay? They come with seasalt to put on them after you steam them (you steam them right in the little packets). I wonder if I could boost the flavor by adding other seasonings...maybe a trick to try on the weekends!

Five New Things

This week at Weight Watchers, our fearless leader, Sandra, charged us with trying 5 new things over the course of the next week. I feel I must follow this advice closely because last week, she said track, I did, and I lost 3.4 pounds! So, I will follow this advice, in addition to tracking and hopefully we can lose one or two more pounds this week.

The first thing that I am trying is to grow something different. I had to give up my beloved ivy, Fred, when I left Cooper two weeks ago as I downsized from a nice sized office to a cubicle. Scoobie and Max would eat Fred, so he could not come home with me. Yesterday, we found a cute little jade plant at Lowe's. I bought a Notre Dame inspired (of course!) pot, some cactus potting mix, and now we have Freida:



After watching many Gardening by the Yard shows featuring Paul James, I have been inspired to grow succulents, but have never found a place for them in our landscape. This is my first step and I am really pleased. Who knows? I might have Hens and Chicks someday!

Tasty Salad - An Oxymoron?

I know, most of you are saying, tasty and salad do not belong in the same phrase. How about satisfied? That is the other adjective that describes the salad that I had today at Avanti at Fountain Place. It was a Salmon Cobb salad. It had grilled salmon, roasted tomatoes, feta, and a poppyseed vinaigrette. Only 8 points on Weight Watchers when I cut out the egg. I also used a trick from my good friend Jill. I got the dressing and the feta on the side. I put on the 2 Tbs of dressing and about 1/8 c of the feta on my salad. So good! And because the salmon has the healthy oils and protein that I need, I feel completely satisfied! I even skipped the bread basket with the olive oil sitting next to it! I was going to snap a picture with my phone but in the fanciness, I thought it would be inappropriate. I will go back, but I am in the mood to explore the great downtown of ours and see what else has changed since I worked here 13 years ago. From what I can tell from my research, Mariano's has left downtown for Skillman and that makes me very sad. Alas, El Fenix is within walking distance, but I can have that in Plano any time. It's time to celebrate the new!