Snow, Halloween, and a New-Found Love

Well, since the last post, there has been good, bad, and ugly. I always like to get the bad news out of the way first, so let me 'fess up. I faltered a little bit over this past weekend. I drank some calories (between soda and liquor), which I never allow myself to do. I didn't track. At all. I didn't exercise, at all. I ate fast food at a birthday party (yes, I am hanging my head in shame). I consider this a stumble, but not a fall. Why? Because I am back up and at it, with my resolve stronger than ever. And because it was really only one day that I was a horrible wretch, coupled with a few days when I was less than perfect.

The ugly? On Saturday, OCTOBER 29th, in the great city of New York, it snowed! This did not effect my weight loss journey, but I have to admit that the implication that we are in for a rough winter has shaken my psyche a bit. With our co-op on the market, I fear that people will be hesitant to really move during this winter, since such an early storm might indicate we are in for a rough one. Let me clarify by saying that I love our apartment. Truly, I do. We have decorated, and personalized, and built memories. This was our first home together. We've had Christmases here. We brought our daughter home from the hospital to this apartment.

But, let's be honest. We are two adults, a little doggie, and an ever-growing toddler. We have also outgrown. It makes me sad that I have to think of what to buy my daughter for Christmas in terms of what we have space for rather than what Santa and I feel she should have. What does any of this have to do with staying the course and losing weight? Well, frankly, everything and nothing all at the same time. The root of it is that it is affecting me emotionally, and I have quite the history of being an emotional eater. However, I think that I've found a new outlet, in addition to blogging, into which I can channel my feelings and energy.

Which brings us to the good: Kickboxing! Where have you been all my life??!? I have to say, I am not the girl who likes to work up a sweat. I cannot stand to feel sweat dripping anywhere. But, I On-Demanded (yes I just made a new verb) a kickboxing video a few days ago, on a whim, and I am hooked. Aside from being forever indebted to the On-Demand function, I don't understand how I have overlooked this exercise for so long. It's better than Zumba, and I didn't think I would ever be able to say that about anything besides sex and chocolate! I have been researching in the area, and came across a class that is advertised as 3 classes for $19.99, which seems a little too good to be true, given the fact that this is New York, but I will call tomorrow and find out for sure.

So, although I have been absent, for which I apologize, I am back, stronger than ever, and re-motivated, thanks to my new-found love. I hope all of your journeys continue to generally move forward, even if you have to take a tiny step back. Feel free to message me if you want to chat or bounce around ideas at denised519@aol.com

Another Pound Bites the Dust

Take that baby fat! Ordinarily, I would be disappointed at "only" a pound coming off, but I have a new resolve to look at that pound as one pound that will never be back. Well, okay, being realistic, it will probably be back sometime during the cooking of any future babies, but it will not be back due to my poor habits. I feel like I read somewhere that you have to eat 3,500 calories to gain a pound of fat. I can't imagine consuming that many calories without doing something to burn some percentage of them off. I am not sure if there is any truth behind it, especially since I can't remember where in the world I read it, but if it helps me stay focused, I will just tell myself that it's true.

The past few weeks have seen quite a bit of success, having lost a little more than five pounds. Normally, I would see this as so much success that it would be permissible to stop trying, or at least ease up on myself "a little bit." Not this time. I am not allowing this little bit of progress to turn into one celebratory takeout night that ends up lasting the entire weekend, and then extends into next week. No, sir. If I want to continue to make progress, I cannot think of food as a reward or celebration. It is fuel, plain and simple. And there are plenty of ways to make it tasty without loading it with butter, oil, sugar, and God knows what else. I am feeling good today. Instead of looking forward to Chinese takeout to kick off the weekend, I am looking forward to baked chicken drumsticks and roasted red potatoes with garlic. That's Friday's dinner down, Saturday and Sunday to go. Let's keep it goin'!

I Used to Be Fat...

The title still makes me cringe, but I find myself fascinated by this show. I have a ton of admiration for the teens who take part. For those who are unfamiliar with the show, which airs on Tuesdays at 10 p.m. on MTV, it is based on the premise that overweight teens who want to lose weight dedicate a summer to losing a load of weight, while eating healthy and exercising rigorously. Often (if not always?), the challenge takes place the summer before these teens are set to begin college, suggesting that they use college as their fresh start. I can just imagine the dedication it takes to spend your last potential summer of relaxing with friends and being kids, instead focused on losing weight.

I do have to commend the efforts of both the teens and their trainers. The show is definitely less militant than The Biggest Loser, but I still watch and have to wonder how realistic of a path these teens are put on during the summer. These teens often do not work, do not seem to spend time with friends, and have no other responsibilities aside from focusing on losing weight (with the exception of one teen who I saw on the first season who worked). What I am always left wondering is, what happens when these kids go to college? Sure, they are training their brains to make healthier choices, but they are still away at college. Crappy food, for the most part, is unfortunately cheaper. They have also spent an entire summer, with the support of a trainer, focused on losing weight and nothing else. How do they maintain the eating, the workouts, and the determination when faced with the new challenge of living away from home for the first time, taking college courses, and building new friendships?

Maybe I am just not comprehending how they do this because I have just recently found my determination to lose this weight. I envy their willpower and ability to commit at such a young age. Here I sit, ten years older than this kids, and wish that I had decided to make the change when they did. Better late than never!

Bye Bye Booze- originally posted 10/16/11

I was doing so well with blogging, and then came the weekend! In my defense, we had company basically all weekend, and it would have been rude to be on the computer, but in reality, I really didn't have much to say. Now as I find myself being tortured by my husband watching the Giants game (ugh, is it February yet??), I have some free time to write.

My eating this weekend wasn't catastrophic, but it wasn't 100% responsible either. I have found that when I have a drink or two, I tend to overeat. For some reason, I seem to justiyfy to myself that good wine (or fancy-mixed-cocktail on the menu) needs to be accompanied by "good" food. I put "good" in quotations because once I have that drink, my definition of the word "good" changes from my usual, level-headed defintion of good food as nutritious, to my old-college-days definition of good food as "tastes good because of all of the crap in it." I don't believe that this is even a result of alcohol influencing my judgment, as I usually order my first drink and my meal at the same time. Rather, I think it has a lot to do with that mentality of "kicking back" and having a drink, so in my mind, I don't have to be as responsible about my eating, either.

So my decision for today? Until my mind can wrap itself around how illogical this way of thinking is, alcohol is now off the table, too, regardless of the quantity. Disclaimer: this new rule entirely excludes Thanksgiving and Christmas, as those days are, and always will be a lost cause for logic standing any chance of getting in my way on my quest to the food and booze :)