ARW715's SparkPeople Blog

Spring Cleaning Begins Today

Fri, 24 May 2013 08:26:29 EST

Over the next two weeks, my husband and I have big plans to completely clean our house. It starts today as I tackle my closet. I am going shopping with my sister in ATL this weekend, partly for new clothes, but the real reason we are going is to buy storage solutions at IKEA. I am going to buy some things for our play room, if the toys don't fit they have to find a new home. My kids are going to their grandma's house for a week and we thought that would be a great time to tackle our study...

My yoga instructor noticed

Thu, 23 May 2013 22:39:35 EST

I went to yoga tonight and it was great. I felt cool in the hot room, the postures felt easy (almost too easy). It was over quickly. After yoga, my instructor calls me over. She had never done that before and I was worried about what she would say. She waited until everyone else was out of ear shot and said "Have you lost weight?" :) I was like "Yeah! 55lbs!" She smiled at how well I was doing now. I smiled all the way home.

Yoga and clean food day today.

***E...

NSV and dietbet

Thu, 23 May 2013 07:06:23 EST

I am so glad my dietbet is over! I don't want to step on the scales again for a long time. I hated being so focused on the number on the scale. I thought it was a good idea going in, but now I know I won't be doing another one.

Even though I didn't win, I had a great 4 weeks, I lost 5.6 lbs in 4 weeks! Lately I have been losing about 4 lb/month so this was a lot of weight loss for me.

I have been bemoaning the fact that I don't have any work appropriate summer shirts...

Accidental run

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:24:11 EST

I went out for a run tonight without a plan. I didn't know if I would do 1 mile or 3, I just started running. I ended up running through a lot of neighborhoods all willy nilly. I came home and did map my run and I ended up doing 3 miles! It started pouring down rain at one point and I almost stopped and called Mike but it slowed down. I am almost halfway on the miles for my challenge!

***Embracing 40 - The Challenge***
Days until 40th birthday - 52
Yoga classes atten...

I yelled at a lifeguard

Tue, 21 May 2013 09:59:40 EST

I love the Y. My kids love the Y. We have a great Y with a great kids pool with lots of fountains and sprayers and water falls. Unfortunately, the pool is run by the lifeguards which tend to be high school students with little adult supervision.

Last night, Mike and I decided to let the kids play at the pool while we took turns exercising. I wasn't planning to swim, so I only had on workout gear, planning to let the kids play in the splash pool.

When we arrived, we...

Embracing 40 - 8 weeks left

Mon, 20 May 2013 08:28:05 EST

I am 1/3 of the way to 40 (since I started this challenge) and I am only 1/4 of the way done on my yoga classes. I am on track for food and miles. I need to get to yoga more often!

I did go yesterday and had a clean food day. Today is a crazy day at work, bunch of kids starting for the summer. I don't know if I will have a chance to exercise today or not.

***Embracing 40 - The Challenge***
Days until 40th birthday - 54
Yoga classes attended - 10 (goal: 40) ...

Measurement Sunday

Sun, 19 May 2013 07:45:46 EST

I haven't taken measurements since February because I have misplaced my tape measure. Mom was nice enough to pick up for me yesterday so I am back in business.

The numbers are: Start- Feb 16 (last time I measured) - Current

Weight: 253 - 211.6 - 198.8 (weight is holding steady for a couple of weeks now)

Bust: 43.5 - 41.5 - 41
Waist: 42.75 - 40 - 38.5
Hips: 52.75 - 48.25 - 45.5
Thigh: 29.75 - 27 - 26
Upper arm: 16.5 - 15.25 - 14.75
<...

Saturday Morning Run

Sat, 18 May 2013 12:51:49 EST

I decided to go out and run the 5k course around my neighborhood this morning. It is the first time I have run 3 miles in a couple of weeks, I have been doing 1 or 2 miles instead for time reasons. I don't want to lose my ability to run 3 so I would like to do it once a week.

Today was cloudy and 70 degrees when I went out. The sun came out while I was on the course. I like having a big loop to run in our neighborhood, its easier to force myself to finish when I am out in the m...

Yoga! Finally!

Fri, 17 May 2013 08:29:29 EST

Were y'all missing SP last night? I went through withdrawal. It is still acting a little flakey this morning, so I haven't updated all my food from yesterday. I think it was a clean food day so I am counting it.

I finally made it to yoga last night! It was hard! I haven't gone in a week and I could tell. I plan on going this weekend, at least on Sunday, if not Saturday morning.

Thanks for all your comments on my post yesterday!

***Embracing 40 - The...

Update from last night

Thu, 16 May 2013 07:15:49 EST

Last night ended up being super busy with late work and a date with my neighbor to watch Downton Abby. I ran a mile in between. Still no yoga, Mike wanted to go to the Y. He has been sick and not working out so I was ok with postponing my short outdoor run. Yoga tonight!

Yesterday was a strange food day for me. I had chipotle for lunch and even though calories were ok, it felt like a lump in my stomach. I also got a smoothie from the health place next door to take back to wor...

walk it out

Tue, 14 May 2013 22:28:20 EST

I meant to go to yoga today but the timing didn't work out. I was all out of sorts this afternoon, it has been a crazy day. An early dentist appt, a little show at preschool, lots of impromptu meetings at work. I felt like i was spinning in circles.

I decided to take a walk tonight instead. I did the longest walk I have done in a while, 3.5 miles, around both the neighborhood and the lake. I took my little dog, she is 6 lbs but she was a trooper. She was nice and tired when...

Last night's recap

Tue, 14 May 2013 18:51:38 EST

I was so tired last night, I didn't check in. I ran 2 miles around the lake in our neighborhood. The path is mostly concrete sidewalks and I was in my first run on concrete. I was also wearing new shoes and listening to music on my phone (instead of a podcast or book like normal.) It was a good run, I enjoyed being outside on the path. My knees really hurt almost right away. I haven't had any knee problems this whole time so it was a disappointment to have problems.

I am hav...

Back!

Sun, 12 May 2013 22:12:37 EST

We are back from a weekend in Nashville. Saturday we ate a Buca di Beppo for lunch and then explored the Nashville zoo for 4 hours. We got Qdoba for dinner and took the kids to the hotel pool. This morning, we ate breakfast at the hotel, brunch with my mom and sis at O'Charleys (Mothers day + Valentines Day = worst days to eat out!) We went to Lion King, then home again. I got a yonana! I ate a lot of things I normally don't (read chips and bread) but hopefully it wasn't too bad a week...

Last check in before leaving

Fri, 10 May 2013 23:53:21 EST

The days are ticking down! I was in calories today but I had bread at lunch so I am not counting it as a clean food day. No exercise, just lots of running around. I bought new running shoes. The guy at the running store suggested I walk in them for a day so I plan to do that tomorrow. I will run on Monday or Tuesday to try them out.

The next two days I will be off to Nashville, no formal excise planned and I am not going to track while I am there (though I hope to stay on pla...

Yoga is kicking my butt!

Thu, 9 May 2013 22:37:51 EST

I went to yoga, ran 2 miles, and had a clean food day!

Today's yoga class was really strange. Someone passed out about 4 postures in. When someone gets sick in yoga, there is a domino effect, a lot of people start laying down and getting sick. While the teacher is dealing with her, I lose a contact (it was in my eye, but floating around). I tried to do some of the poses with blurry vision, but eventually I couldn't stand it any more and wanted to go to the bathroom and get it o...

Challenge update

Wed, 8 May 2013 21:24:52 EST

A great food day! I had to work late and missed my yoga, but I got out and ran on the street for a mile. Tomorrow I am going for another two-fer! I have to pick the kids up and so can hit the Y for an hour before picking up my oldest, and then yoga.

***Embracing 40 - The Challenge***
Days until 40th birthday - 68
Yoga classes attended - 7 (goal: 40)
Miles run - 7 (goal: 40)
Clean food days - 13 (goal: 40)
Letters of gratitude - 1 (goal: 40)

It's a two-fer

Tue, 7 May 2013 21:40:27 EST

Today I worked out twice! I had an hour break between picking up my little kids and picking up my big kid so I went to the Y and ran 2 miles. Since I was going for a lower distance, I tried to push myself on pace and it felt good! I didn't time myself, but it felt faster than normal. My friend wanted to go to yoga with me tonight so I went there too. I also had a clean food day.

I am still grinning about weighing in this morning. Hopefully my increase in exercise will solidi...

A very pretty picture!

Tue, 7 May 2013 07:00:57 EST

From 253 on August 20, 2012 to 198.8 on May 7, 2013. :) If you see me today, I am smiling!

Pre-tracking

Mon, 6 May 2013 19:03:57 EST

I am going to yoga in 15 minutes so this will be quick.

I made a huge crockpot full of green pork for this week. For sides, I have black beans and plantains (dinner) and carrots and hummus (lunch). I have already filled out my nutrition tracker for tomorrow. I am cracking down on food this week and amping up the exercise. I will break into the 100s this week! I have been sitting at 200.0 for too long!

Today was a clean food day and I am doing yoga. It is 10 weeks...

Making progress in Bikram

Sun, 5 May 2013 18:09:08 EST

I went to Bikram today and it was fantastic. The 90 minutes flew by, I tried my best at every pose, I did something new that I have never done in my whole life! There is a post caused standing bow where you reach down and grab your foot behind you (right hand, right foot). I have never been able to just grab my foot. I could stand by the wall and get my foot into my hand, but I never could just grab it without using the wall to assist. Today I grabbed my foot! It was amazing!

...

Saturday morning

Sat, 4 May 2013 09:05:41 EST

I feel like I post the same thing every Saturday. I love Saturday mornings. They are my favorite times of every week. Today is no exception. I am drinking my coffee, the girls are watching cartoons, it is pouring rain outside and no one has any desire to do anything but what they are doing right this second. Contentment.

Yesterday I took the afternoon off to be with my kids. I took my two little ones to lunch then to the Y. The Y lets 3 year olds into the big kid gym on weekda...

Tired

Thu, 2 May 2013 22:28:55 EST

Yesterday was a bad day at work. I had a very big deadline and I went in early and worked late to meet it. In the process, I drank WAY too much coffee. I don't know why I haven't appreciated the effect that coffee has on me in the past. Now, when I drink coffee in the afternoon, I can't sleep. So despite a crazy day, I was wired and unable to sleep until 11:30 or 12. Then! The TV came on extremely loud around 2:00. For some odd reason, I thought it was 5. I got up. I was checking my...

Quick

Wed, 1 May 2013 22:10:13 EST

Really hard couple of days at work, a big deadline was today. Super clean food days, but no exercise yesterday or today.

***Embracing 40 - The Challenge***
Days until 40th birthday - 75
Yoga classes attended - 4 (goal: 40)
Miles run - 4 (goal: 40)
Clean food days - 8 (goal: 40)
Letters of gratitude - 0 (goal: 40)

One-derland? Not yet.

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 09:20:45 EST

I went to yoga last night and sweated my hiney off, then weighed in this morning (camera at the ready) hoping to see 199.8. I didn't. I weighed in at 200.2. One-derland will have to wait until May. I am keeping my camera by the scale so you will be the first to know.

April ended up being a great month. I started my new challenge and have made some progress on it. I joined Bikram yoga and am enjoying more than ever. I can do the whole class now without laying down. For many ...

I fell off the plateau!

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 08:46:20 EST

I started the month at 205.8. I quickly lost down to 204.2 and was at that weight most of April. I weighed in at this weight for my dietbet last Tuesday (4/23). I was a little disappointed because I am so close to getting below 200, it was my goal for the month. When I weighed in last Friday, I was (very happily) down to 201.8 (yippee!). I hopped on the scale this morning and I was 200.0!!! I am so so close to hitting the 100s. I am going to check again tomorrow morning and see if I ca...

Tikka Masala

Sun, 28 Apr 2013 20:12:42 EST

After having the ingredients to make tikka masala for 3 weeks, I finally had time to make it. It was ok, though it was a lot of work and would have to have been amazing for me to put in regular rotation. Maybe it will taste better tomorrow.

I went to yoga and had a clean food day. :)

***Embracing 40 - The Challenge***
Days until 40th birthday - 78
Yoga classes attended - 3 (goal: 40)
Miles run - 4 (goal: 40)
Clean food days - 5 (goal: 40)
...

Run + challenge update

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 20:26:18 EST

What a day! My daughter started vomiting again this morning (the same thing happened last Saturday). She had to miss the birthday party, but I still went to the Y with the two little kids. I ran 3 miles and then took the kids to the pool. 3 miles was HARD. I ran 3 last week at the 5k, then I only ran 1 during the week on the street. I was so tired and hungry when I left. Mike and I went to a BBQ place we have been wanting to try for a while. I ate 2 hush puppies while we were waiting...

Saturday plans

Sat, 27 Apr 2013 09:05:23 EST

I wish I were able to sleep in this morning. The dog (MY dog) woke me up at 6:30.

To finish my embracing 40 challenge, I have been planning to do yoga 4 days a week - Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday. On Sunday, the class is at 3 pm, in Tuesday and Thursday it is at 5:30. But on Saturday, they only have morning classes, 8 and 10 AM. I have been struggling trying to make it to these classes. First of all, I love having a nice relaxing Saturday morning, drinking coffee ...

Still glowing from the weigh in

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 19:38:10 EST

I have been having to pinch myself all day, I can't believe I load 2.4 lbs!! WooHoo! Feels great!

I had a clean food day (I am going to stop eating now with a handful of calories to spare.) I had the best dinner. I started by frying up some garlic, onion, peppers, mushrooms, and bacon, after that was done, I added spinach and let that cook down. Then I topped it with three scrambled eggs. The eggs weren't quite enough to hold the scramble together, but who cares? I sprinkled...

Weigh in - Two big goals met!!!

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 05:42:04 EST

Today I weighed in at 201.8. 201.8!!! Last time I weighed in I was 204.2 which means I have lost 2.4 lbs for a total weight loss of 51.2 lbs. I was starting to feel on a mini-plateau, I spent most of the month at 204.2.

This week, I cross two goals off my list!
* Lose 50 lbs (203)
* Lose 20% of my body weight (202.4)

Now the big one! Hit the 100s! I don't think it will happen by the end of April, but I will weigh in on the last day to see. I. Can. Not. W...

No Birthday Cake April is almost over!

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 22:57:44 EST

April - every year a fight against the birthday cake. Not only do two of my daughters have birthdays in April, so does my husband and the kids of two friends. If I wanted to, I could eat birthday cake every day in April without too much trouble. This month I declared April a cake free zone and so far I have kept to my promise. :)

Today is my oldest daughter's birthday and my "mom day". She had a great time at a family and friend party at a local indoor play ground. We had piz...

Quickie

Wed, 24 Apr 2013 21:27:48 EST

Today has been a very stressful day at work. Most of the day spent in meetings, with "real" work around the edges, plus I took an undergraduate that works for me out to lunch at Olive Garden. I had the salad with light dressing and minestrone soup and was dying of hunger by 4:30 when we went to Jason's Deli for Isabel's last meal as an 8 year old. Two meals eaten out, but still within calories for the day: BooYa!

I had big plans to go to the Y after dinner and even packed my gym...

dietbet

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 21:43:16 EST

My dietbet started this morning. Actually it starts tomorrow, but I weighed in this morning. I weighed in at 204.2, the same as the last time I weighed in on SP about 1.5 weeks ago. I am definitely feeling a little bit of a plateau. I hope I "fall off the plateau" very soon. The dietbet will help keep me motivated, I hope, to stay true to my food intake and exercise plan.

I am tired tonight, I am going to fall into bed in a few minutes. My husband and I decided a workout sche...

Great Day today!

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 22:14:39 EST

In calorie range! No junk food! Ran 1 mile outside! With a hill!!!

***Embracing 40 - The Challenge***
Days until 40th birthday - 84
Number of yoga classes attended - 1 (goal: 40)
Number of miles run - 1 (goal: 40)
Number of clean food days - 1 (goal: 40)
Number of letter of gratitude - 0 (goal: 40)

Progress photo

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 19:26:10 EST

I made a progress photo out of the picture I took this weekend. My sister, Mary is standing beside me. I couldn't have done it without her!

Embracing 40 - T-84 days

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 10:58:03 EST

I started my challenge yesterday and went to my Bikram yoga. It was a great workout, though the room felt extra hot. Now that I know the routine, the 90 minutes goes by very fast. There are so many things I can't do while in the class, so many postures I can't even start. There as another lady there who is about my size who came up to me after the class and said "Can you do [posture]?" and I said "No", and we went on like that for a few minutes. She is in the same place as me with flexib...

Embracing 40 - The challenge!

Sun, 21 Apr 2013 13:11:28 EST

For the past 4 months, I have been focused on running the 5k, the one i finished yesterday. Now it is time for a new challenge.

My 40th birthday is 85 days away (12 weeks from tomorrow). I talked last week about my desire to embrace the number 40 and make it something positive, something to celebrate. So, in the next 85 days, I will:

1) Take 40 classes of bikram yoga. Bikram has a lot of mixed press. I don't even know that I would recommend it to anyone beca...

Race report

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 17:16:40 EST

Last night, I was very excited. I tried to get to bed before 10, but couldn't get to sleep before 10;30. Before I went to bed, my daughter was complaining with her stomach. About 12:30, she woke me up. She had an accident in her bed and was very sick to her stomach. I got up, got her changed, stripped her bed, and put her in another bed for the night. About 3 minutes after I got in bed, I started hearing a very strange sound. When I got up, she asked for a bucket in case she had to vom...

I did it! First 5k!

Sat, 20 Apr 2013 10:52:41 EST

Maintained a slow jog the whole time. We finished in 50 minutes. First goal of the year complete!!!

5k prep

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 23:07:13 EST

Tomorrow is the big day! I should be in bed now, but I am up drinking water and waiting for my sister.

I usually (well, always) run inside at the Y and tomorrow the temps are in the 40s at the time of the race. I almost had a clothing crisis! I dug deep into some drawers of workout clothes I have bought over the years and found a pair of running pants that I don't even remember buying. I am going to wear my no boundaries t-shirt and jacket. Have you guys heard of the NoBo pro...

Embracing 40

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 06:24:52 EST

Today is going to be a great day!
+ I don't have a bikram hangover! I must have had enough water yesterday.
+ I am up early to do a little SP and work.
+ I am going to have lunch at one of my favorite places and pick up my race packet.
+ My sister is coming!

I had a long talk with an old friend this past weekend. She is also turning 40 this year and she had such a positive view of it. She said she thought of 40 as finally being whole. So I am trying ad...

Bikram!

Thu, 18 Apr 2013 22:09:48 EST

I am worn out today. Bikram was so good! I felt strong. I did all the poses except the lying bow pose. Yippee!

I drank so much water today plus a big coconut water smoothie, plus more water. I hope I don't have a bikram hangover tomorrow.

I pick up my packet for the 5k tomorrow at lunch time. :)

The perfect day

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 21:32:13 EST

Today was a crazy hectic, normal workday with childcare issues and lots of running around.

For food and exercise, it was the perfect day.

I ate my eggs, fruit and coffee for breakfast. For lunch I had chipotle (burrito bowl, no rice, black beans, barbacoa, salsa, guac, and lettuce- so good!). I picked the girls up and headed right to the Y. I ran 3 miles!!! I took the kids to the pool. We head home and I made more black beans and eggs for dinner, yogurt and fruit fo...

Not enough food

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 19:10:19 EST

I had a crazy day. I had to give a presentation at 10 that I hadn't finished so I worked on that this morning, then gave it. I ran to lunch then had to sit on a telecon most of the afternoon. After all that was done, I went to the Y and ran 1.5 miles. I had planned/hoped to do 3 miles but I was weak and shakey when I got there. I had obviously not had enough food for the day. I was happy to do 2 miles (1.5 miles + .5 mile walking) and was able to get into a meditative state while runnin...

"I will never go back there again"

Sun, 14 Apr 2013 11:21:35 EST

I hope you guys are having a great Sunday morning!

Last night I did the big toy clean out in my little kids' bedroom. There were big storage containers in there full of stuffed animals, baby dolls, hard animals, and every happy meal prize for the last 5 years. They just kept piling up. Last week I had removed most of the stuffed animals. I plan to buy a storage organizer thing from Ikea and make a "zoo" downstairs - all animals have to stay in the zoo. Last night I sorted thro...

How many calories does an emotional conversation burn?

Sat, 13 Apr 2013 18:57:47 EST

Man, I am wiped. The day started early with a trip to target to get the birthday cake. Picked up the kids and got to the stables for the party. The party was 2 hours of running around, talking to everyone, interacting. It wore me out! I avoided the birthday cake and ice cream, then we went to mellow mushroom for lunch. On the way home from lunch my oldest friend of the whole world called and we had a 2 hour conversation. It was great (we haven't spoken in several months) but exhausting....

Weigh in and weekend plans

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 09:05:27 EST

I weighed in this morning at 204.2, 1.6 lbs down from 3/31, 49 lbs lost total. :)

I am so close to the 50 lb mark (203), the 20% mark (202) and of course one-derland! Maybe I will hit the first goal next week.

I had a bikram hangover this morning (as Kim said on my last blog - such a good description!) I woke up at 2:30 with a splitting headache. I got up and took some advil and drank an emergen-c and several glasses of water. I am going to have to remember how to...

yoga = OUCH!

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 21:49:03 EST

I went to Bikram tonight for the first time in 2 months. It was so so so very hard. I went in early and meditated a while. I love laying there in the hot meditating, I can almost fall asleep. Then class started. I had to lay down a lot. I just felt weak. It was good to be back,I hope the next time I go I can participate more. I have "joined" so I can go as often as I want. I need to go 2 times a week to make it financially reasonable.

Time for bed an hour earlier than nor...

dietbet

Thu, 11 Apr 2013 17:48:14 EST

Have you guys heard of dietbet? It is a website where you join bets with other members. You pay $25 into a pot and then try to lose 4% of your body weight in 4 weeks. Everyone who accomplishes their goal splits the pot.

I read the blog merrylife and Mary is starting a diet bet so I joined:
www.dietbet.com/games/11305
I thought it would be a fun way to challenge myself to lose weight. I also might do a month long workout challenge. I am still think...

cameo in video

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 20:31:52 EST

I was very honored to be included in this video. I am at about 5:45.
www.nasa.gov/news/budget/index.html