Move over Martha!!!!

So I've had quite the productive Saturday! I think it's much better handled in list form. I think it looks more impressive that way! lol

*Made Kevin breakfast
*Rocked out 30 min on the stairmill & 30 min on the elliptical + ab work
*Got groceries at Walmart (TONS of fresh produce!)
*Home to drop groceries, eat & off to another store for some sale items
*Back home to drop stuff off, make Jenna's Baked Beans & head off to Kevin's to shower
*Chatted with Kevin's roommate who has a new friend *wink wink*
*Headed back to my house to run dishwasher (minus hot water), wash dishes that didnt fit & tend to a few other things

OH & I also attempted to make some Homemade Larabars but I'm not sure it was a successful attempt. They are a bit sticky so it'll take some playing to get it right but I'll take cue from Angela & try some of her recipes that are similar.

Here's what I ended up with. My apologies for the small picture.



The little taste I had was yummy though. I just used dates & peanuts with just a tad bit of soymilk.

Tonight's agenda is probably a bonfire at a friend's house. He's the third of Kevin's friends to get engaged & they are the first to marry (November.) It'll be fun to hang out with everyone!

Enjoy the rest of your day!

Pressing on!

Morning all! I have to first & foremost thank the academy! hahahaha

Not really but I do need to thank you guys for the really insightful & thought provoking comments yesterday! It really sparked my thinking & as a result I posted a little diet timeline to recap what's transpired since I decided to REALLY get healthy & take control over my life!

I realized while doing that (you'll see my sidebar note) that I had the illusion of becoming a diet jumper. That's really something that drives me nuts & mentioned it to Kevin last night. The end result of that conversation (it was a brief one) was that I'm at least trying to fix things. That's a positive right? I was really uncertain whether or not to continue with SOS because I wasnt feeling like it was working. But I am going to try for one more month then decide.

The bottom line here is that I dont want to live on a diet & continually count every morsel of food that goes into my mouth. I also dont want to feel like I'm having to force feed myself my bodyweight in protein either. BUT I have to still acknowledge that my body has been through the ringer in the last year & see what needs to be done to fix it.

That may very well be just living a healthy lifestyle which is ultimately my goal. I'm having a good dialogue with a friend via email that is working with a nutritionist & it's interesting to see what she's doing vs. what my program prescribes vs. what I've been doing on my own (which is closer to what her nutritionist is having her do.) Anyway....lol

Last night, I made some dinner, took a cold shower (water heater still not working right) & we wandered a bit. This weekend will likely be pretty laid back since we were on the go last weekend. Kevin's not one to like to sit still so when he says he wants to do nothing then so be it!

Will catch up more later but that's the rambles for the morning. There's lots of stuff brewing in my mind but for now that'll do!


I'll leave you with this. It was the scene at my house this morning with my cat (Alex) who decided he really wanted some banana-blueberry smoothie! lol

Happy FRIDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wanderer

Do you ever have those moments where you aren't quite sure just how to start? I'm kind of there at the moment so if this seems uber rambly then you'll at least know why. Although those of you that know me (even virtually) understand that's how I am anyway!

Last night during cardio, my mind was wandering. That was in part due to my iPod freezing. I thought for sure it was dead but as of this morning, it's reset. It's 2 years old so it was possible that it was done for. It was used for the VERY first time ever during my second run in the Chicago Marathon. Good times!

Anyway, back to the wandering mind. You all know that I've been having little success with weight loss lately. I have been eating VERY well & not overdoing things at all. I'm really pleased about that.

I will drop a little then it goes right back up. It makes no difference if I eat very strict, track macros or just eat intuitively. That's what happens. My last drop with weight was with a VERY restrictive program that was low in carbs, very low in calories (around 1100) & caused me to have certain *ahem* issues (not pottying.)

So while busting out some cardio, I decided to remind myself of how far I've come. You see the little picture that I have on my profile. That was me when I finally sucked it up & decided to get healthy. The flexing pic was taken 4 weeks out from my first figure show. Now that's not realistic to maintain but I'd like to get closer to that again someday.

I'm not really sure how to get there. I'm bit frustrated & have emailed my nutrition guru to see what to do. I dont know if I can continue to just pay monthly for workouts. It's not sensible. Do I just eat healthfully & know that I'm taking care of myself?

I acknowledge the following:

*I've still lost over 100 pounds & maintained that loss
*I've completed the Chicago Marathon...TWICE!
*I've completed 4 half marathons
*I've completed multiple races ranging from 5K's to 10 milers to full marathons
*I've defeated binge eating
*I've created a life for myself with the help of my parents
*I've met the man of my dreams who I get to spend the rest of my life with
*I've got a great family & some really close friends (some of whom I've never met)
*I've got God by my side

I could go on & on but I wont. Sometimes I just need to remind myself of how far I've come.

I've also realized that people in our lives will come & go but the ones that are meant to stay put will. I'm okay with that because I know that every individual that crosses our path served a purpose. Perhaps they werent meant to be there forever. Shit happens as Kevin always says! lol

So a bit of a somber post today but not really in my eyes. I need to be reminded that I've never given up. I'm not now & never intended to though I'll admit I feel frustrated & uncertain what to do at this point.

But in the meantime, I'll train, I'll cardio & I'll eat knowing that I'm doing all the right things to take care of ME!

Bliss.....

No, I didnt have another dream about Marisa Miller (still giggling about that one!) BUT it is mid-week already! Gotta love a short week!

There is still no report from the vacation because I'm having water heater issues at home. So last night was spent with Dad trying to find the culprit & then I went to be early.

I noted on my Good Eats page that I was super hungry last night. I sometimes struggle to know if it's boredom or true hunger. Well, after ignoring it a bit then slugging down some Coke Zero, I realized I was really hungry.

Do you ignore your hunger for the sake of maybe dropping some weight? I want to lose some weight but really see no reason to starve my body to make it happen. I ate close to maintenance (probably just under) still & felt MUCH better this morning as a result.

I actually woke up hungry which surprised me since I had a later snack.

Plans for today are to get cardio in after work sometime & head to Kevin's to shower. I think Dad is coming over to work on the water heater again so that stuff will be worked around that.

By the way, that's a picture of my little guy when he was about 8 weeks old. He's a big ball of fluff now. He'll be 3 in about a month!

Happy Hump Day!!!!!

I kissed a girl?!?

I'm back & had a great weekend. Plans were semi-altered but we still hit our original destinations!

More on that later but I'll leave you with a funny of sorts.

Sunday night, I dreamed that I totally made out with Marissa Miller!!!! Not really sure why that happened but it was an interesting & VIVID dream! hahaha

I promise to catch up soon but it may not be until tomorrow!

Peace out....

It's just about time for me to head out for the long holiday weekend! Super excited about that!

The picture is of Lake Shelbyville & actually looks like the coves that we hiked on last fall. You heard about the spider incident that happened on that hike! Never fear, the bug spray with DEET is packed & ready to go. We WILL use it this time!

Today's been a nice day. Got to see my Grandfather, visited with our accountant (who's been around for a long time with our family) & chatted via email with friends. Did a little work too ;)

Again, there's been lots of "fat mentality" talk on the blogs in the last few days. Certainly, sparked by a lot of things. Catch some of them to see different perspectives & I really challenge you guys to focus on living life while loving the body you have. That's not to say you cannot make improvements but I'll say again.

If you dont love yourself in your current body then you wont love yourself in the body you want.

I hope you all have a really fabulous holiday weekend! Whether traveling or staying home, I hope you make it a great one!

Take care!

I appreciate the comments on the video. I hope it hit home for some of you. It certainly makes you stop & think about the things we say to/about ourselves. It really does affect our lives far more than we think.

There's been a great discussion at Healthy Tipping Point today as a result of that video. That's where I saw it this morning & felt compelled to share!

We ARE who we present ourselves to be. If you feel insecure, you will portray that & people will wonder what could be so bad. On the flip side, when you carry yourself like you feel a million bucks you will command attention. People will begin to wonder who you are, what your secret is & how you can live such a great life.

How do people see you now?

I could go on & on about that stuff. It's just my heart to have people believe in themselves. If no one had done that for me then I'd still be an unhealthy person!

The day was a good one. Quiet at work but that's okay. The industry is picking up & we are bringing guys back to work so that is a good thing. A quiet office is not always a bad thing!

I did my first official food blog picture tonight with my dinner. I think doing that daily would be alot but what a great way to keep accountable to myself (& you all!)

I came across a blog that had a clip from an article that related that folks that blog their food tend to be healthier. I guess with all eyes watching it happens!

My days still include their fair share of "forbidden" things.

Here's a little list of my naughty delights:

*Candy corn with unsalted peanuts
*Cool whip (yes...in all it's HFCS glory!)
*Coke Zero & Cherry Coke Zero
*McDonald's french fries (though it's been MONTHS!)
*Fair food (come on....who doesnt love a funnel cake?!?)
*Lofthouse cookies (truly a gift from Heaven!)
*Archer Farms (Target's brand) Monster trail mix

I'm sure there's more but those come to mind immediately.

Okay, so I digress. Anyway, things are good.

I need to pack for the weekend, charge the camera, drink my wine (a little Lambrusco) & plan to get to bed early tonight.

We are training in the AM & I might do a little cardio before that. We'll see what time I get to bed.

I will be around for just a bit tomorrow then AWOL until probably Tuesday. Will catch up then!

Have a FUN & SAFE holiday weekend!