Fitness Friday: Week Eight…Run Over By The Wagon

May 18, 2012 By 1 Comment

I haven’t just fallen off the wagon, I’ve been run over by the wagon. I went out of town for work this week, and it’s safe to say there was a little bit of crazy happening for me in the food department. More than a little bit. If you follow me on Instagram, you saw every bit of food I ate over the last three days. And it tasted so very good.

But I’m back in the office and home now. Let the detox and climbing back on the wagon begin!

Successes

  • Umm, I didn’t actually bathe in the bourbon sauce from the bread pudding?
  • Weight…I maintained at 278. Which, to me, means that my body is giving me a second (or eighth) chance to get it right this week.
  • Inches…I also maintained here (I lost a bit in the waist, but gained a bit in the belly, so it’s a wash).

Challenges

I had wondered since I started the program how I would do when I went out of town and it wasn’t so easy to drink my H2Orange and regulate my food. Now I know. So I guess it’s both a challenge and a success?

How was your week?

Past Posts on my fitness Journey…

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Home Inventory Made Easy & Giveaway!

May 15, 2012 By 12 Comments

I like to be prepared. William thinks I’m paranoid, but I like to call it prepared.  Luckily, he goes with it. One of the ways my paranoia preparation rears its list-making is disaster preparation. We live in hurricane country which means for six months of every year, we know that a giant storm could hit our area and either cause drought-busting rain or full-out demolition of homes and businesses. For the record, I’d take a hurricane over a tornado most days. We also live in an apartment complex and, for some reason, that makes me really nervous about fires. I don’t know that there are really more fires in apartment complexes, but I worry that a random neighbor is going to fall asleep with a lit cigarette and burn us all out.

Anyway…I like to be prepared. So I was excited to get an email from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) telling me about a new app they have called myHOME Scr.APP.book. This free app helps you create a home inventory in case of theft or giant storms or smoking neighbors. I loved this app you guys. It allows you to scan barcodes, take photos of the items, list the cost of the item when you purchased it, and more. When your inventory is complete, it creates a file for emailing…in case you lose your phone in a fire. The app is easy to use and has all the information you need to file a claim with your insurance.

I love knowing that if something ever happens, I won’t have to try to figure out a home inventory in the middle of chaos. As a bonus, this app is also great for figuring out if you have enough home owner’s or renter’s insurance to cover all your stuff.

Go out and download this app! And start cataloging all your stuff. Before hurricane season begins.

You can learn all kinds of interesting things on the NAIC site. Everything from life insurance to home owner’s insurance and how to reduce risk. Soon, you too can be as paranoid prepared as me!

The nice folks at NAIC have provided a $50 gift card to Best Buy for one of my readers! Leave a comment below telling me which item in your home you would inventory first and I’ll pick a winner on May 21st!

 

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Fitness Friday: Week Seven & Greta Goes Gluten Free

May 11, 2012 By 8 Comments

Every week, along with my progress update, I’m sharing guest posts from friends who are making changes in their lives to live more healthily. This week my guest poster is Greta Funk. Recently, Greta and her family started living gluten free because of a diagnosis for one of her children.

Greta’s words…

My two year old daughter was diagnosed with Celiac Disease in February.  Because it was the toddler who could no longer have gluten, and she’s too young to really understand why, I made the decision to cook only gluten-free meals at home. People probably thought I was crazy, but I didn’t want her to accidentally get a bag of Goldfish, or have a fit because she couldn’t have Goldfish. So anyway, for the past two months, we have completely revamped the way we eat.

It has been HARD. It has been overwhelming, and stressful.  And I am just now starting to come out of that fog and feel more comfortable with what I’m cooking and buying.

Because anything specifically labeled “gluten free” is automatically twice as expensive as regular food, I’ve done a lot of cooking from scratch. I roast a ton of veggies (cauliflower, asparagus, potato “French fries” and Brussels sprouts are our new favorites). I prepare meat simply, often in the crock pot with just barbecue sauce or salt and pepper. We don’t eat a lot of breads anymore, because they take a lot of extra preparation to get from oven to table, and we don’t rely on “convenience” foods at all anymore, unless it’s something that I’ve made ahead of time and frozen. Pasta dishes are also simpler, with gluten-free noodles and homemade sauces, low fat cheeses, and meats. We’ve also tried new things, like quinoa (which, we discovered, is delicious!).

If there is one positive aspect to her diagnosis, it is that it has forced me to take a good long look at what I’ve been feeding my family and make better choices. Unprocessed, whole foods have definitely become the norm in our house.

I think it’s too soon to see dramatic changes in my health (or my husband’s), but mentally and psychologically, I feel much better about the foods that I’m eating and cooking. I make better choices as a whole, and I’m proud of that.

Greta is a Stay At Home Mom of four children under seven years old. She doesn’t control the chaos, she just tries to contain it, and she documents it all at Gfunkified.com.

Sherry’s Week Seven Update

Well. Like last week, this week was a tough one for me. I can’t believe how easily I was thrown off course in this whole living-healthier endeavor. I haven’t given up, and I know I’m going to do this thang, but it’s easy to get frustrated. I am working on fixing my heel and knee so I can work out without pain, so I know that will help me to stay on track also.

Successes

  • Not many. I managed not to eat my weight in cake, so I guess that’s good.
  • Weight…Somehow, I lost two pounds this week. I’m not sure how that’s possible, but it’s encouraging. I’m at 278, so 12 pounds during the program and 23 pounds from my heaviest of 301.
  • Inches…Again, in the “weird” department, I managed to lose half an inch this week. So, I’ve lost 22 inches since starting the program!

Challenges

  • Everything. Everything was a challenge this week. I ate too many times when I wasn’t hungry and I let stressful situations lead to eating.

How was your week?

Past Posts on my fitness Journey…

 

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Fitness Friday: Week Six & Kim Borchert Inspires!

May 4, 2012 By 2 Comments

I can’t believe it’s been six weeks since I left the fat-girl closet with you all! In addition to my usual updates, this week starts a series of guest posts I’ve lined up to share with you. I have so many friends who are inspiring me with their life changes and I wanted you to hear from them. This week’s guest is Kim Borchert. I asked Kim to write a guest post because she a super busy woman who set a fitness goal and worked her (normal-sized) butt off to reach it. She’s inspiring, ya’ll!

Kim’s words…

“I have never been an athletic girl. I danced for 7 years and played soccer and even football. But I was always the one with the pot belly that couldn’t run the mile without getting winded. I was slow and while I loved playing games, hated the competition of it all.

Then in Jr. High I tried the track team. I was good at sprints – short and fast distances were good. But I still didn’t love it. I had always loved the water, so in that time, I joined a city swim team. I loved the non-contact sport and loved being in the water. Again, I was never very fast, but I really enjoyed myself. I swam and joined the diving team in high school. This lasted until middle of my Sophomore year when we moved. My new high school not only didn’t have a swim or diving team, but it didn’t even have a pool!

The rest of my high school days were spent trying to avoid running. My senior year of high school I even took a modern dance class to avoid running.

It has been 17 years since I graduated from high school. In that time I have tried running and never loved it. I have fallen in love with cycling, and kept up my love affair with swimming. In the last 10 years however, I have given birth to 5 babies. Five pregnancies in 8 years really took a toll on my body and as much as I tried, I was not getting the weight off.

Feeling frustrated and really defeated I had decided this was just how my body was going to be. It was what it was and there was nothing I could do about it. Then I had an opportunity to train for a 5K or a half marathon with the help of an experienced mentor.

I jumped on this opportunity. I wanted to do something for myself. I wanted to prove to myself I could do it.

For 15 weeks I ran at least 4 times a week. I was slow, oh so slow. When I started I could barely run a mile and a half. I will never forget after my first run crying that there was no way I would be able to run 13.1 miles when I couldn’t even run ONE!  My wise husband reminded me I wasn’t running tomorrow and to just take it one run at a time.

I did this. I took it one step at a time. Some miles were easier than others. Some miles were fun and some were downright torturous. But, 15 weeks after my 1st run, I did it. I ran 13.1 miles and finished my first half marathon.

I say first because I absolutely will do it again. The weight is coming off, but more important, I found myself. I found parts of me that have been buried for longer than I can remember. I found that I enjoyed taking care of myself and that I was worth it.”

Kim is the Mama to 5 hooligans, 1 in Heaven and 4 on Earth. She and her husband are recent transplants to Texas and she loves running in the mild Texas winters. You can read more of her ramblings on her personal blog, Prairie Mama and follow her on Twitter!

 

Sherry’s Week Six update:

Successes

  • A gallon of H2Orange every day this week.
  • I put on a pair of 24 pants I haven’t been able to wear in two years (and they are kind of big!) When I started my program, I was wearing a 28.
  • One exercise session this week.
  • I had my yearly physical last week and my numbers are already improving!
  • Weight: I maintained again at 280.0, so I’m still at 10 pounds lost on the program and 21 pounds lost since my high of 301. While this is good, it’s also frustrating to know I’d be losing if I were following the program more closely.
  • Inches: I lost 2.5 inches this week! I’m down 22 inches total so far!
  • I saw several people this week who I haven’t seen in a couple of months and they all commented on the weight loss. It was fun to know that other people are noticing.

Challenges

  • I had several episodes of sugar cravings (they corresponded directly with stress) that I gave in to. I didn’t beat myself up over them, but it’s something I think I’ll have to watch my whole life.
  • I wanted to exercise more, but wasn’t able to get it done.
  • There were one or two times when I ate when I wasn’t hungry.
  • I’m really having to fight getting upset with myself when I don’t have a perfect eating day.

 

How was your week?

Past Posts on my fitness Journey…

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Fitness Friday: Week Five

April 27, 2012 By Leave a Comment

This is definitely a week to chant the mantra, “In it for the long haul, in it for the long haul.” Because I didn’t just fall off the wagon, I fell off it and it dragged me and then it ran over me. So…I am finding the wagon and getting back on every day. In other news, I’m going to have guest posts coming up. You’ll hear from people who are making healthy choices and the things they are doing to make that happen. I can’t wait to introduce you to (and learn from) these awesome friends of mine!

Successes

  • A gallon of H2Orange almost every day this week.
  • Two sessions of Jillian Michael’s 30 Day Shred.
  • I’m counting the fact that I felt like I had gotten hit by a truck on the day after my birthday as a success. Because before I started this program, it would have just been another day. So, yay for feeling like crap!
  • Weight: I maintained at 280.4 this week. Whew…
  • Inches: I lost .5 inches this week. I added in a couple of spots (waist and tummy), but lost in a couple (hips, thigh and calf), so it pretty much evened out.

Challenges

Please read the opening paragraph. I had an awesome birthday on Tuesday, and it involved a lot of food. Obviously, I’m not to the point where I can be trusted to treat my body well off the program yet.

 

I’m taking a picture every 10 pounds :) . Newish picture!

 

So, how was your week?

Past posts from my fitness journey…

Week Four

Week Three

Week Two

Week One

I’m Fat, But That’s Changing

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Fitness Friday: Week Four

April 20, 2012 By 1 Comment

This was a hard week. I had a really stressful work week and I used that as an excuse to eat three different times when I wasn’t hungry. I know that doesn’t sound like that huge a deal, but it was. I mean, the whole point of this program is to only eat when you’re hungry. So… blech. But, I’m in it for the long haul, right? I will continue to work on making myself as healthy as possible.

Successes

  • A gallon of H2Orange every day this week.
  • I walked twice this week for 30 minutes or so each time.
  • I hit almost 10,000 steps once this week!
  • Weight: I lost a couple of ounces, but after the week I had I’m just happy not to have gained. (10.2 pounds lost in the program, 21 pounds lost since August)
  • Inches: I lost another inch. I gained in some places, but lost in others, so it averaged out to another inch. (19 inches lost total)

 

Challenges

  • Stress eating. I had hoped that I would react better to stress than I did, but I didn’t. It’s something I’m going to have to work on, obviously.
  • I wanted to exercise a lot more than I was able. My heel is just killing me and really restricting how much physical activity I can accomplish.
  • Stress eating. It was such a challenge this week, it gets two bullets.

So, how was your week?

Past posts from my fitness journey…

Week Three

Week Two

Week One

I’m Fat, But That’s Changing

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New Life Shoes Review and Give Away. Winner Update!

April 13, 2012 By 14 Comments

For all of you Moms out there, think back to how achy your feet got while you were pregnant. About half way through both pregnancies, everything from my feet to my hips to my back were either sort of sore or downright painful all the time. Or maybe that was just me?

Remembering that feeling, I am excited to show you guys the New Life Shoes (and give a pair to one of you)!

There are two things about these shoes that make them awesome for pregnant women: (1) Multiple layers of cushioning that are adjustable, and (2) Z-Fit fastening.

The layers allow you to adjust how much cushion you need (especially awesome when your feet might be more swollen). You can remove one of the layers depending on what you need that day.

But the real magic of these shoes is the Z-Fit fastening. You guys. You don’t have to tie them or re-tie them. All you do is pull on this strap and it tightens (and you flip a little buckle to loosen them). The strap fastens on the inside of the shoe and you, literally, only have to get the shoe up to your knee to be able to fasten. No more trying to reach all the way down to tie! No more making your friend/husband/kid tie your shoes!

The bonus to these cool shoes is that they were created by an OB-GYN and shoe designers with more than 80 years of experience between them. A lot of research and science went in to these shoes. And they are a San Antonio company! I love Texas companies doing cool things.

Right now the company has the Ashley athletic shoe available for purchase, but will soon have dressy shoes and sandals!

I’ve worn the pair they provided for me on walks, to the grocery store, and walking around the hospital. Although I’m not pregnant, I have a couple of issues with my heel and my knee that make having good shoes important. These shoes were not just easy to put on and tighten, but also didn’t hurt my heel and kept my knee in check.

So, visit the New Life Shoes website for more of the details on their technology. If you would like to enter to win a pair of these awesome Ashley athletic shoes, please leave me a comment with the size and color you’d like and your due date. A winner will be picked on Tuesday, April 24th (it’s my birthday and I want to be able to give a present).

Good luck!

I was not paid for this post, but I did get a pair of Ashley athletic shoes to try out. I wouldn’t tell ya’ll to get shoes I hadn’t worn myself :)

Update

Congratulations to Diana! You won the New Life Shoes! I’ll be contacting you with the information to claim your shoes :)

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Fitness Friday: Week Three

April 13, 2012 By 4 Comments

Three weeks in! Here’s the breakdown for the week:

Successes

  • I’m still steering clear of caffeine for the most part. Over the last week, I had one can of diet soda and one 20 oz. bottle of diet soda (consumed over two days!) This is a giant improvement over the 3+ bottles I used to have every day.
  • I drank a full gallon of the H2Orange every day this week. And learned that I don’t love the cherry pomegranate Crystal Light.
  • I added two exercise sessions. I walked about a mile with the boys once this week and a mile and a half by myself yesterday. I’ve also been trying to get more steps in at the office (taking the long way around or tagging along if someone needs to run an errand). And I’m sitting on my exercise ball at my desk at home (that’s for the core or something, right?).
  • I know this wasn’t one of my goals for weight loss, but not buying breakfast or as big a lunch every day is saving me a lot of money! Bonus!
  • I only ate when I was hungry!
  • Weight…I lost 3.4 pounds this week! That means I’ve hit the 10 pounds lost since March 26th! That is also 21 pounds lost since my heaviest last August. Doing the happy dance!
  • Inches…I lost 5.75 inches this week. The biggest change was in my abs, which I expected because my, umm, lady friend left today. I was happy to see the first change in my bicep, though, as that’s always the last place to lose for me.

Challenges

  • Y’all. Easter chocolate? The Devil. I did have four pieces of chocolate candy this week. It was fun size, but I knew I shouldn’t have it, but did. Not beating myself up about it, but it’s been a challenge to resist the kids’ candy.
  • I am not hungry at dinner time any more. This isn’t bad for my body, but I miss eating with my kids. So it makes me want to eat when I’m not hungry. I still sit with them at the table while they eat, but it feels not the same.

Lessons

This week’s lesson in my program was about Sugar (aka, the Devil’s tool). I knew we (Americans) ate a lot of sugar, and I knew that it was bad for you…but I hadn’t really looked at the numbers before. It’s estimated that Americans eat 200 pounds of sugar per person, each year. In 1948 we ate 15 pounds of sugar per person, per year. I’m fairly sure I’m responsible for at least 70% of the daily allotment of the people who don’t eat sugar. I’m also noticing how much sugar is in processed/packaged foods. I feel dumb for not noticing the impact before now. A couple of the stats that freaked me out the most were: (1) the caloric density of one slice of shortening-iced birthday cake with a scoop of ice cream is the same as 1/2 pound of cooked pot roast, (2) one slice of pecan pie has the same caloric density as four English muffins, and (3) one package of peanut M&Ms has the same caloric density as 6 large peaches.

These lessons are important because of the awareness. I can’t pretend not to know these things any more.

So, how did your week go?

Previous weeks…

Week Two

Week One

I’m Fat, But That’s Changing

 

 

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Fitness Friday: Week Two

April 6, 2012 By 7 Comments

Week two is done! This week was more difficult than I expected, but I made it through. Here’s the breakdown:

Success

  • I’m sleeping better. This is a huge one for me. I know that a big part of this is that I’m having almost zero caffeine now that I’m not drinking as many diet sodas. I may have one with lunch, but that’s the most (and that’s not even every day).
  • I’m not as tired during the day. I have so much more energy during the day and I’m not crashing in the late afternoon like I usually do.
  • I’m still managing to drink the gallon of H2Orange every day.
  • Weight…I have lost three more pounds (that’s 6.6 total so far).
  • Inches…I lost another 1.5 inches! My abdomen measured an inch bigger than last week, but I’m not stressing as I fully expect that to be an area that fluctuates a lot.

Challenges

  • Sugar…as I mentioned last week, sugar and sweets are my biggest challenge. I had a serving of peach cobbler at my Grandma’s house last weekend and a candy apple yesterday. I’m not happy about this, but knowing I’m in the for the long haul, I’m trying not to let it be a huge downer.
  • Eating when I’m not hungry. The major point of the program I am on is to retrain yourself to know when you are really hungry and to only eat at those times. Twice this week I’ve eaten when I wasn’t hungry, but rather because it was “time” to eat. Each of those times I’ve eaten a normal portion and I’ve still felt sick to my stomach afterward. Ooooohhhh, so you’re only supposed to eat when you’re hungry!
  • Sugar. This is Easter weekend, y’all. With all the treats and sweets that implies.

Past Weeks

Week One

I’m Fat, But That’s Changing

So, how was this week for you?

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Fitness Friday: Week One

March 30, 2012 By 13 Comments

I made it through my first week, y’all! I started the weight-loss program through my hospital and it’s challenging a lot of my thinking. This week has been pretty big for me though! 

Successes

  • Within two days of starting the program, I noticed that the constant swelling of my feet and legs that hasn’t gone away since I was pregnant with Tobin went away! My hands are also significantly less swollen (which is great for putting on my wedding ring).
  • Zero sweets/sugar for the week. This one is really my biggest challenge. If I didn’t love candy and pastry like I do, I wouldn’t be fat. I’m not exaggerating. I don’t overeat meals, I overeat candy and sweet junk. So, for me to go an entire week without added sugar or candy is huge.
  • The program asks us to drink at least 60 ounces of this concoction they call H2Orange (seven parts water to one part orange juice with a package of Crystal Light powder for flavor). I’ve had a full gallon every day this week. Which also explains the awesome disappearance of the swelling.
  • Weight…I’ve lost three pounds this week! I’m so excited y’all! I know a lot of this is water weight and I have a lot more to lose, but I’m taking my successes as they come.
  • Inches…This really blew me away, but I’ve lost 10.75 total inches this week. What?!? It came off everywhere except my arms. I was stunned when I measured this morning.

Challenges

  • I really, really wanted some candy on Wednesday. Thankfully I have some great support folk who talked me down. But it was the first hard core craving I had this week.
  • I’m spending a significant amount of time in the bathroom from all that H2Orange. But yay for no swelling!
  • I don’t eat dinner with the family any more. I mean, I still hang out with them while they are eating, but I don’t get hungry for dinner until much later in the evening than they eat, so I don’t eat with them.

I’m sure I’ll be reading this post later, when the pounds and inches are coming off so quickly, but I’m savoring the success this week! How did your week go?

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