Straying further and further away from the right path...

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

I've realized I've become complacent with my diet. Instead of tracking everything right away or before I eat, I've been tracking a day's worth of food at the end of the day. By then it's too late to fix anything or get back on track for the day, and I've also forgotten some of what I eat. I also stopped tracking when I drink diet soda, and am consuming almost double my daily sodium limits. I'm eating way too many pre-packaged, prepared, processed foods, and not nearly as many whole, fresh foods as I was when I began trying to lose weight.

Starting RIGHT NOW, I'm getting a whole helluva lot stricter with my diet. Right now I'm just slowly sliding off the wagon, bit by bit so I didn't even realize that's what's happening until it's almost too late!!

Changes starting NOW:

* NO MORE SODA, diet or otherwise. ZERO TOLERANCE. Drinking diet soda just makes me crave MORE diet soda, and then I don't get enough water for the day because I'm wasting valuable water-drinking time with soda.

* V8 DOES NOT COUNT AS VEGETABLES. Whole, fresh fruits and veggies AT LEAST 3 servings a day. At least 6-7 servings of fruits and veg total a day.

* MORE CALCIUM. I will drink skim milk EVERY DAY with my breakfast AND with lunch or dinner. If this means I need to cut out eating a snack pack so I have enough calories, then GOOD.

* ONE "TREAT" PER DAY MAXIMUM. This includes the little fruit snack packages, 100 calorie snack pakcs, and Skinny Cow and Weight Watchers ice cream treats. ONE A DAY!!! Not one fruit snack, one 100 cal chip bag, and one ice cream treat!

* STAY WITHIN SODIUM LEVELS. If something has too much sodium, I will NOT eat it! Or just have half. This also means cutting back on processed foods, such as lunch meats. Sorry Black Forest ham, I know you're lean but you just have too much sodium. Hello, chicken boobs.

And, while I'm at it, NO MORE SLACKING ON EXERCISE!!! Having "too much to do" is SO not a good excuse! I will walk with Dad RIGHT AFTER WORK, NO MATTER WHAT (unless he can't make it, in which case I WILL WALK ALONE!) NO MORE SLACKING, ME!

Also, I'm dropping back down to 1200-1400 calories for the rest of this week, in preparation for the craziness that is sure to be this weekend. I'm bringing Fiber One English Muffins, Skippy reduced fat peanut butter, and a bag o' apples with to the hotel this weekend, and that's going to be breakfast every day so I at least get ONE healthy meal to start my day. Lunch and dinner are going to have to be whatever I can scavenge, and I'll just try to make the healthiest choices I can with what's availble to me (likely mall food court food and things from the Con-Suite).

I'm SO EXCITED for Anime Detour this weekend!! There's going to be a masquerade ball on Friday evening, and dances/raves Friday night and Saturday night. I plan on dancing until I'm sweating buckets!! I'm also planning to get up a little earlier than everyone else and hit the pool and/or fitness center. =) I'm going to make it a great week, and a GREAT weekend, and I WILL get under that darned 200 lb mark by my next weigh-in, dag gummit!!!!!

;P

Elley

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

MATRIAYA 3/29/2011 2:56PM

The dance, espcially the rave on Saturday, will provide great exercise!! I will certainly be counting it!! Report Inappropriate Comment

RABBITMOM1 3/29/2011 10:33AM

GREAT ATTITUDE AND SELF AWARENESS!!!!! FOR WHAT ITS WORTH, I AM REALLY PROUD OF YOU ELLEY!!! GOOD LUCK THIS WEEKEND. HAVE A BLAST!!! HUGS Report Inappropriate Comment

Weekly weigh in - maintaining at 201

Sunday, March 27, 2011

Weekly weigh in: 201. I'm a little disappointed to have maintained this week, but not at all surprised. I didn't exercise at all on Thursday or Friday, and I hit Curves on Saturday but didn't do any cardio. I was supposed to be doing 1 hour a day of exercise this week, and clearly didn't. I also did succumb to a teeny tiny bit of stress eating while dealing with my sick puppy and broken plumbing issues (which I also blame for not exercising, even though it's no excuse). I also had trouble the last couple of days with getting enough water, getting less than HALF of what I'm supposed to.... Whoops! x.x;;

This just means I'm doubly motivated to really get my workin' out in. This week is my 90 minutes a day week, so let's GO, GO, GO!!! I'm going to go down to my Dad's at 10 and see if he wants to walk 3 or 4 miles, and I think I'll go do some WiiFit balance and yoga exercises for a while before then. I also have swimming with PeanutSJ tonight. =)

Next weekend is Anime Detour, and we're staying at he hotel on Thurs-Sat night (I think?) I'm sort of thinking about not going down there until Friday afternoon, so I can still get a Friday morning workout at Curves in. Atomikazi suggested I just go use the fitness facility at the hotel I'm staying at. From the pictures, it looks like they have a very nice, very LARGE fitness facility, and they also have a pool (!) so I'm rather looking forward to taking some time to do that. =)

Wish me luck, and I'm hoping for a great weigh in next Monday when I return from my "mini-vacation"!!

Elley

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

PEANUTSJ 3/28/2011 9:46AM

Yeah! We should TOTALLY SWIM at Detour! Report Inappropriate Comment

KAZINMICH 3/27/2011 7:10PM

Maintaining is good given the situation of the past week! Enjoy yourself at the hotel! Swimming is a great exercise. :) :) Have fun! Report Inappropriate Comment

Update on my puppy and my plumbing.

Friday, March 25, 2011

Thanks to everyone who sent good luck and prayers yesterday! I guess all the good luck went to Remy (my puppy), because he seemed fine when I got home from work at noon. So fine, in fact, that I canceled our vet appointment, and decided to just keep a close eye on him. He was still in high spirits when I left for work this morning, so it must have just been that something he ate disagreed with him.

I didn't get off so luckily with my plumbing issues. We paid Plumber #1 to come snake the drain again. He snaked it twice and got NOTHING out, and it was still backed up, so he referred us to "the camera guys," henceforth referred to as Plumber #2. Plumber #2 came out at about 5 p.m. and ran a camera down the drain, discovering a blockage. The blockage is actually out in the street - a repair that runs around $10k. OUCH! Luckily, Plumber #2 specializes in ground work and he said we could replace a section of line close to the house, put in an access pipe, and use water pressure to force the blockage out (a procedure that runs at about $4k). They're at my house working on that now, so I'm hoping I come home to a house that's NOT full of sewer water.

My basement flooded worse this time, and the carpets got wet. I'm not sure what we're going to do about that - I hope my mom has some good ideas. =/

I didn't exercise at all on Wednesday or Thursday, but I DID stick to my diet, so that's something. Went to Curves this morning and am determined to stay on that exercise plan until next Friday when we go to ANIME DETOUR!! =) Hooray for conventions!!

...I realized today that you can tell how stressed out I am by how many books I have with me. I currently have three books in my purse (a steampunk novel, a murder-mystery, and a biography of Lucille Ball) - a sure sign it's a high-stress time. I don't have any time to read today, but it makes me feel better just looking at books, and touching them, and knowing they're there. =)

I've got about 6 extra hours to make up from taking off work early yesterday and coming in late today, so I'm going to go get to it. Make it a great day, Sparkers, and thanks for helping my puppy feel better! =)

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

KAZINMICH 3/25/2011 8:13PM

I'm so happy your puppy is doing better!!!! :) :) :) I was worried for you both! I'm sooo sorry about your pipes!! What a complete nightmare!!!! Do you have home owners insurance? I would call them and ask them if they will cover damage to the house, if not everything. Make sure to take pictures of the damage too in case they will cover everything - before & after as proof. I really hope something eases up for you!!! Great job sticking to your meal plans despite all the chaos! What a nightmare!!! Report Inappropriate Comment

SUGARSMOM2 3/25/2011 3:10PM

am very happy the puppy is much better . sorry that the pipes are giving you such a hassle . and a costly one also . daily we deal with the stuff that happens and at times it seem overwhelming . good for you not to turn to food to gain control of yourself .nice move . Report Inappropriate Comment

MATRIAYA 3/25/2011 1:00PM

Oooh, which steampunk novel? Report Inappropriate Comment

PEANUTSJ 3/25/2011 12:13PM

Oh honey - I'm glad that Remy is feeling better! That's wonderful. As for your pipes... I'm really sorry that this is happening to you. It's good that you are taking comfort in your pysical proximity to books rather than splurging on McDonalds and icecream. I am excited about Detour too! I have earned a weekend "off" and Ken has promised to take me to Dairy Queen once with no comments about "calorie-killing" or how I'm working against the program. I figure that I deserve a small treat. Hope you have a good day, and if you want, I'd be happy to come over early and help with party set up tomorrow. Loves! Report Inappropriate Comment

Say a little prayer for me...

Thursday, March 24, 2011

I am having a really tough time of it right now… So if you’ve got any extra good thoughts, good juju, or prayers lying around, if you could send a little my way, it would be appreciated.

Our basement flooded. Again. For the third time in the past month and a half. Though I guess last time we just turned off the water to the downstairs toilet and hoped that was the problem. I’m calling the plumbing people who came out the first time and asking them to finish the job they started back in February, and this time clear all the way to the street instead of stopping once they’ve cleared the first knot of roots. I hate calling places and trying to get people to fix things. I don’t handle stress very well and have this tendency to cry. =/

I could probably handle this better if I didn’t feel so exhausted and worried about my poor dog. Remy (my Shiba Inu/American Eskimo mix puppy) woke me up at 4 a.m. Wednesday morning because he needed to go out and go potty VERY BADLY. I got woken up at midnight last night for the same reason, and he’d had a very nasty accident in his crate that needed to be cleaned up, and I had to stand outside for what felt like FOREVER with him. Again at quarter to 5 this morning, he woke me up crying because he needed to go out to be sick. Another eternity standing outside with him, and he also vomited this morning. I’m pretty worried about him, but I’m going to give it another 24 hours before I call the vet, I think. I just can’t afford vet bills and a bill for fixing my sewer problem right now, and I don’t know what I’m going to do if he’s not feeling better today. I mean, I’ll take him in to the vet, of course, but I don’t know how the heck I’m going to pay for it.

On a completely different note, I need some work shoes that actually fit my feet, and I suppose that preferably are not heels. My size 9’s are just way too big now, and every time I take a step I’m grabbing on to the shoes with my toes, trying to keep them on my feet.

I went down to the cafeteria for breakfast this morning and really wanted a donut and a Pepsi. REALLY wanted them. But I know that it’s only because I’m upset and stressed, and I’m craving the little rush the sugar will give me. I did splurge on breakfast, but I got an omelet jam-packed with every veggie the cafeteria had available, plus a little ham and cheese. The cafeteria man told me he’s making some kind of toasted sandwich with artichoke and sun-dried tomatoes for lunch, so I’ll probably splurge and get that as well, instead of eating the Lean Cuisine I brought. Dinner tonight was supposed to be crock pot mac-n-cheese with crab and veggies, but once again I didn’t get the crock pot started before leaving for work. Maybe if the plumber calls me back and I can get out of here early to meet him, I’ll have time to start it. Otherwise I have no clue what we’re having for dinner. At the rate I’m going with breakfast and lunch, it’s gonna end up being a salad. Oh well.

On a positive note, I did really well with my sodium levels yesterday! I managed to stay within my range (barely!) However, I didn’t do so well with my water consumption, only having about 5-6 glasses of water. Probably because I didn’t exercise at all yesterday – which was a mistake, because I can feel the depression pressing down on me. I really wanted to take a personal day today, but just couldn’t justify it. My team relies on me to be here and do my job, and I’d just feel too awful for taking a personal day to make it at all helpful.

I’m going to try to turn my attitude around and make today a positive one. I just have to be like the Little Engine That Could, and tell myself I think I can… I think I can… I think I can…

Elley

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

ELEGIACSTANZAS 3/25/2011 10:12AM

Oh love.:( What rotten luck is befalling you. I hope Remy is OK and that it's just a wee tummy bug. You've done so well to get where you are and I know you'll get through these challenges too, though you shoudlnt have to. Remember taking the time for you is important, you're not superwoman. Be strong duckling. Thinking of you. E xx Report Inappropriate Comment

MATRIAYA 3/24/2011 10:05PM

Lots of happy thoughts headed your way, my love!!! If you ever wanna see a fluffy movie, or grab a coffee (on me, since I know bills are a bitch) let me know. Report Inappropriate Comment

LVL20MAGIKARP 3/24/2011 10:24AM

Good Juju on its way! Report Inappropriate Comment

KAZINMICH 3/24/2011 9:56AM

I'm so sorry!! When it rains it pours!!! I just went through the new hot water heater, another vet bill, and some other expenses in the same week, I hear you on that! No Fun!! If the dog is peeing a lot, it could be a simple UTI, eventually they will get sick to their tummy if they aren't on medicine. There are a ton of other reasons why too, if he ate something that wasn't good for him is the most common. Do you know how to ebay? The reason why I am asking is a few years back Wendle ate a tube of Vitamin D & E ointment. This is very toxic to dogs. I call the animal poison control line, followed their instructions (induce vomiting and get to emergency vet clinic). When we brought him in, they got him hooked up to an IV, took a bunch of tests, had him vomit a little more. They said he needed to stay for at least 3 days and at the minimum would cost $2000. I didn't have $2000. I did have $900. Well, they wanted half up front. So I took as much money out of the bank I could (they were closed, ATM for $800 on two different cards). I told them to just do $800 worth of work for now, give me a day to get the rest. Well, I went on ebay that night, until the next morning and did 24hr auctions. I put up a pic of Wendle & my daughter, and explained the situation. People started buying stuff like crazy, then telling me to keep it. I sold a 5ft Wild E. Coyote stuffed animal 3 times, and I had an italian purse I got quite buy accident that sold twice, the first lady said to keep it, she paid $90 for it. The second time around a lady paid $140 for it!!! I put up auctions for hand drawn pictures of the bullmastiff as what they would win, and had my daughter create a bunch. I also made sure to include the vet name, number, location. The vets office had their handsfull. People were calling in with $5, $10, even $50 donations to save Wendle! In the end, I ended up raising $400 over what the final bill was, and donated that to the vet to help out someone who wasn't as lucky as us. I can give you helpfull hints if you do this, and the cheapest way to post auctions without the extra fees. Plus, if you are on any dog forums of the breed types of your dog, post there too what's going. I also created a link from paypal for people to donate directly. I made sure to send each and every donor a hand made thank you card when it was all over. I also kept myspace updated with his status at all times, and made sure that link was provided to anyone who wanted to read. I'm sending lots of positive thoughts, prayers your way!!!! So sorry you have to go through this. And I would cry too. I think crying when overwhelmed isn't bad, it can be a very useful release of tensions. Report Inappropriate Comment

WENDYLADY003 3/24/2011 9:34AM

You certainly have a lot on your plate right now! Hang in there, I know you'll pull through it all just fine. I'm sending you all the good thoughts I can muster!! Report Inappropriate Comment

PEANUTSJ 3/24/2011 9:22AM

Oh Elley. I'm so sorry. You are doing so well, I am sorry that all this has come crashing down on you. If you're up for walking around lake como tonight with me and my mom, you will have two people willing to listen to you vent and if you need to cry we will be there. If you need to be home to deal with all this stuff, we will totally understand that as well. I really hope things get cleared up, both in the basement and with Remy. Poor puppy. I do have a suggestion for your doggy. The last time Charles (mom's dog) was sick, we fed him boiled hamburger and rice. It's a very bland mixture, with a good amount of protein. It made him have the squirts for a little while, but it cleared out his system and he felt a lot better after a couple days. Sending prayers and good juju your way! Loves! Report Inappropriate Comment

DR1939 3/24/2011 9:07AM

Try to get in a little exercise. It can give you that energy burst that you get from sugar. Take care of yourself. BTW, I understand the frustration with the flooding basement. We've had repeated problems with this. We spend every spring in fear of the basement flooding. So far so good this year. Report Inappropriate Comment

Kind of a mish-mash of thoughts...

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

OK McDonald's. What part of "grilled chicken" makes you think I wanted hamburger and bacon in my snack wrap? Good thing I only ate half, so it ended up being the same calories as eating a whole grilled chicken... I'm sure it was WAY more fatty, though, and nowhere near as delicious.

Oh well.

I'm revamping my schedule for myself to be a little more broad, so I can incoorporate my idea to try one new fitness DVD a week. I also bought the Biggest Loser game for XBox Kinect, which I would like to try out this week. There just aren't enough hours in the day to do all the different fitness/exercise things I want to do! I might be a little addicted. ;)

I've been consuming WAYYYY too much sodium this past week or two, so I'm really going to focus on staying within my range for that for the next week. So my nutrition goals for the rest of March (only one week!) are:
* 8+ cups of water daily
* Stay within sodium range

WOO!

Yeah, I don't really have much to say. It poured rain all day yesterday, and today I woke up to 2-3 inches of snow. I guess I'm putting off C25K until it's actually spring. It's just too hard to adjust my speed on the treadmill, and I'm not up to trying to walk/jog in the snow and ice. No way, Jose. Maybe I'll just replace my C25K slots I've got scheduled to be time for a fitness DVD or game. Yeah!

NEW plan of action!:
Plan of ACTION!


Monday
6:00 a.m. Curves
4:00 p.m. Walk Away the Pounds w/ Dad
6:30 p.m. Zumba @ Curves
Tuesday
5:30 a.m. Fitness DVD/game
4:00 p.m. Walk Away the Pounds w/ Dad
7:00 p.m. Swim w/ SJ
Wednesday
6:00 a.m. Curves
4:00 p.m. Walk Away the Pounds w/ Dad
7:00 p.m. Fitness DVD/game
Thursday
5:30 a.m. Fitness DVD/game
3:30 p.m. Walk Away the Pounds w/ Dad
5:00 p.m. Walk w/ SJ & Stacy
Friday
6:00 a.m. Curves
4:00 p.m. Walk Away the Pounds w/ Dad
7:00 p.m. Fitness DVD/game
Saturday
8:00 a.m. Curves
10:00 a.m. Walk Away the Pounds w/ Dad
7:00 p.m. Fitness DVD/game
Sunday
6:00 a.m. Weekly weigh-in
6:30 a.m. Fitness DVD/game
10:00 a.m. Walk Away the Pounds w/ Dad
7:00 p.m. Swim w/ SJ


I'm also going to focus more on bringing my lunches, which I think should help with the sodium thing. I've been eating cafeteria food for the past week, which I guess packs a pretty big sodium punch. Ouch!

OK, I'd better scurry off to work. Happy Spring, y'all!!

Elley

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

IKKIMIKKI 3/23/2011 9:22AM

Wow! That is quite the schedule. Hope you made it to work without any problems. This ice/snow crud is the worst and def not safe to be jogging in. Nice that you just adapted your schedule and are keeping on rather than taking extra time off. Report Inappropriate Comment

WVFAITH 3/23/2011 9:06AM

Wow, I really admire your dedication. I wish I was more disciplined. Great job! Report Inappropriate Comment