GLORIAMAJDI's SparkPeople Blog

Eating Weird

Tue, 14 May 2013 21:46:05 EST

I bought the Spark Solution and I was really excited to get it last week. I have been super busy with studying for an exam so I have slowly been reading it before bed each night. It has an awesome meal plan and grocery lists and everything laid out so it is super easy and nice. But....but....but. It has been almost six months since I had major surgery for acid reflux. I feel so much better and the greatest thing is that I am not choking to death on reflux anymore (yes, I had a very sever...

Commitments

Thu, 2 May 2013 20:22:45 EST

I sort of had a goal to take a certification exam this year. I must take it by June but I haven't really studied for it yet because my work schedule has been so busy and I have been getting home so late. This exam takes about four months of so of study time so I am sort of in trouble. I talked to my manager at work today about making time to get it done. I am going to change my work hours so I can get off 30 minutes earlier. That way maybe traffic won't be so bad when I leave (and I will...

The Weekend Has Arrived!

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 23:39:46 EST

Wow, this was a rough week. I worked A LOT! Certainly I have worked long hard hours in the past but not when I was trying so hard to keep up with healthy eating and with exercise. In fact, in the past when I have been working long hours I have resorted to the fast food drive thrus. This time I managed to stay in my calorie range and to get some exercise in some of the days, though not all of them. I really wanted to exercise last night but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I HAD to...

Walking

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 21:12:39 EST

Walking has been my main exercise for a long time. I love it. It can be done virtually anywhere, and it requires nothing special besides good shoes. I mostly walk outdoors but I have back up plans for those days when it is not nice out. I have a treadmill, I have Leslie Sansone walking DVDs and in a pinch I have been known to walk in the underground parking garage at work.

I have thought for a while that I need to beef it up. I already walk on big hills around the hilly city w...

A Cool Thing

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 20:52:54 EST

A really neat thing happened today. I met one of my SparkFriends in person! Portia and I both live in Middle Tennessee - she lives in one direction from Nashville and I live in the other direction. But I work in Nashville so she drove to my office today and we went for a walk in the park near my office - got our exercise in! I am not sure how much we walked but it seems like it was four miles!

Just a Bunch of Stuff

Tue, 9 Apr 2013 21:26:14 EST

I really love my job. The company is great and the benefits can't be beat. But I sure am hating the commute lately. It has been taking me at least an hour and sometimes a lot longer to get home in the evenings. Friday when I left the office rush hour was long over but it still took at least 30 minutes longer than it should have to get home! It's so frustrating. I don't want to quit my job in favor of one closer to home but I also don't want to spend the rest of my life commuting!
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Getting Enough Sleep

Thu, 4 Apr 2013 09:48:53 EST

I finished the sleep challenge a week or two ago but this is an ongoing struggle for me. I am being more consistent and getting to bed a little earlier than I had been but it is still not early enough. I am typically in bed for about seven hours but I am not sleeping that whole time as I wake up a number of times during the night. The only solution that I see now is to go to bed about 30 minutes earlier. If I am in bed 30 minutes longer, maybe I will sleep 30 minutes longer too. That sho...

Who Is Sabotaging My Plan?

Sun, 31 Mar 2013 17:48:19 EST

After I had major surgery for acid reflux, my surgeon told me I couldn't eat bread (and a few other things). That is okay with me. I do like bread but certainly I don't need it. Yesterday I was thinking about it. I could probably try bread again to see if I can swallow it. If not, I know that I should refrain from eating it and try again later. But I just don't care if I eat it or not so really, it seems like I should be telling people that "I don't eat bread," instead of "I can't have ...

Why I Am Doing This

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 22:27:17 EST

SparkCoach suggested blogging about my real reasons for my fitness and weight loss goals. This is pretty easy for me. I have been up and down in my weight so many times. This last time I had gotten in such bad physical shape that I didn't even feel like bending over to tie my shoes. During the winter especially my body ached all over and I got tired of not fitting well in the seats at concerts and stuff. I have family members and friends who can barely walk because of their weight. I am...

Sometimes I read comments and articles and it shocks me how mean people are

Sat, 23 Mar 2013 14:23:21 EST

I was just reading an article about frozen dinners written by the nutritionist, Becky Hand. She says that frozen meals are okay as long as we take care to chose those that are within certain criteria (for fat, sodium, etc.). And then I was reading the comments below. And I was shocked by the hate and animosity in those comments. I understand the purists think that frozen foods are not the healthiest choicest available. And I don't disagree. I admire and respect those who can cook at hom...

Motivation

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 12:46:26 EST

"Be miserable. Or motivate yourself. Whatever has to be done, it's always your choice." Wayne Dyer

"Believe in yourself! Have faith in your abilities! Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy." Norman Vincent Peale

"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail." Benjamin Franklin

"Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other one thing." Abraham Lincoln...

Challenges, Spark Coach, Fitbit

Mon, 18 Mar 2013 20:04:06 EST

SparkCoach wants me to blog today about the improvements I have had in my life since I've adopted healthier habits. But I have not blogged in about a week and it seems like I might have a few things to say other than that!

First, I have been super busy, but I have been getting in MORE exercise than before. I have continued walking at lunch time and since it is still daylight when we get home, I have been walking with my husband each night after work.

I still have a t...

Frantically Trying to Do Everything!

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 22:19:43 EST

Oh my gosh, I am just crazy busy! I just can't get caught up with everything that I need to be doing! Today SparkCoach suggested that I blog about fast meal ideas. I have been doing that...I plan out all of my meals two weeks in advance and I take into consideration what perishable items I will need (so that I can make meals using those first). I shop for the two weeks and each night I look to see what tomorrow's meals are so that I can be ready. I have been doing crock pot cooking and I...

What Happened to My Energy?

Sun, 10 Mar 2013 15:53:03 EST

It is such a gorgeous day! Even though it is really windy, it is 70 degrees and it feels so nice. It will rain later but we decided to make the most of it and go on one of our long walks. Usually we go about three miles, sometimes more. Today I thought we would do more but I just did not have the "get up and go!" Sometimes I am practically sprinting this route (which includes some nice hills and lots of pretty scenery) but today I could could barely get myself going. I was motivated whe...

Friday Night

Fri, 8 Mar 2013 21:19:13 EST

The challenge that I am doing to get more sleep - that has been going very well! My short term goal is to get seven hours a night and long term is 7.5 hours a night. Well, last night I got seven hours and 21 minutes - that is according to my Fitbit. Of course that is an estimate but I am thrilled! So, in order to get through the change to Daylight Savings Time relatively unscathed, I am going to bed early tonight and tomorrow night. No late night social functions or activities for me thi...

Great Day

Thu, 7 Mar 2013 20:07:43 EST

I had a REALLY good day! I didn't get as much sleep as I wanted last night but overall I felt pretty good today. Work was good, and the weather was nice so I was able to get outside at lunch time (okay, it was a bit on the chilly side, but the sun was shining). I fixed minestrone soup for dinner so that I can get some of those veggies in. After we ate I realized that I had forgotten to put the spinach in. I love spinach so I was a little disappointed about that, but I will cook it again ...

Sleep Challenge AND Better Eating Challenge

Wed, 6 Mar 2013 20:54:31 EST

I'm into the second week of the sleep challenge. My short term goal is to just get seven hours of sleep. Ultimately I would like to build up to at least 7.5 hours. This week I still haven't been able to achieve seven hours, but each night it has improved ever so slightly. There are a couple of things that I have done that seem to be helping. First, I dropped the temperature in the bedroom just a notch. I tend to be very cold but I kept waking up either freezing or too hot so maybe the r...

I Think This is Day 6 of the Sleep Challenge

Mon, 4 Mar 2013 19:46:36 EST

I can't remember for sure, but I do think that this must be day six, and I didn't do well last night at all. When I went to bed my husband was washing dishes and I am not sure why, but in this house the sound really carries so he was clanking pots and pans and making all of this noise and I couldn't go to sleep. I guess I ended up getting about six hours but it felt like less. I usually do not remember dreams but last night I do remember a couple so I do know that I slept. Part of the pro...

This and That

Sun, 3 Mar 2013 20:45:57 EST

Okay, this was a good day! It was sunny and pretty, though a bit cold so I went out and walked for about an hour. My husband didn't want to come with me this time so I took my iPod and I think that I actually walked a lot faster by myself.

On my sleeping, I wasn't good last night about getting to bed at the normal time. I know that they say that we should go to bed at the same time every night, including weekends, and get up at the same time each day, but on the weekends my hus...

Sleep Challenge Day 4

Sat, 2 Mar 2013 17:14:38 EST

I am not going to post all of the details for this day, but I guess I did get enough sleep last night. I had a really bad migraine yesterday and all I wanted to do was sleep. I was nauseated and dizzy and didn't even want to move. I didn't get in any exercise yesterday but I managed to get through work and get home (when I am like that I don't even want to drive but yesterday's commute home took an hour). We had dinner and had to run over to the store for something but then I went to bed ...

Time Issues, Again

Sat, 2 Mar 2013 11:51:43 EST

I am working on time constraints some more. I am constantly receiving hints and tips on saving time and I have been trying to put these into place to help me with getting things done. I get up pretty early already (4:30 a.m.) so I am probably not going to get up earlier to work out (I am already sleep deprived and working on getting more sleep). I do use my crock pot and I search for recipes that are easy and take little time. I prepare some foods ahead and freeze them, I plan our meals o...

Sleep Challenge Day #3

Fri, 1 Mar 2013 13:35:22 EST

Things didn't end up as well last night. I went to bed at around 9:00 and it was lights out at 9:35. So I ended up being in bed for seven hours even but the Fitbit says I only got 6 hours and 23 minutes of sleep because I woke up 15 times. That is even worse than the first two nights! Ever since we moved to the "suburbs" three years ago sleeping has been a problem. I never had an issue at our old house! I have tried everything to make sure that I get good quality sleep but for some reas...

Sleep Challenge Day 2

Thu, 28 Feb 2013 20:11:17 EST

Last night I was really happy because I was going to bed early. I did the things on my list and I got ready for bed early. I was in bed reading by 8:35. At 9:05 it was lights out. But I didn't sleep well and tossed and turned. I rarely have to get up to go to the bathroom at night but for some reason last night I did have to. Since I don't often have to do that I tend to try to ignore it and not go, and that usually cost me some sleep time because of course I lay there awake as the urge...

Sleep Challenge Journal

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 09:13:44 EST

I am doing the Better Sleep Challenge and need to journal about it each day. So I think that I will do it right here.

I am going to use my Fitbit to help me with this. I am not positive how accurate it is about my sleep but it seems to be somewhat close to true - so maybe not perfect but I think it will serve as a good estimate.

There are a list of questions that I should ask myself each day. This will be about yesterday and last night's sleep.

1. When did...

Challenges

Tue, 26 Feb 2013 12:09:40 EST

Today I signed up for the Official Better Sleep Challenge and the Official Eat Better Feel Fitter Challenge. I think that the eating one will be pretty easy for me. I do need to add in more veggies and that will be one of my goals for that one (I love veggies but still don't eat much since I had surgery for acid reflux). The other one, the Sleep Challenge, that will be a bit tough. I am in desperate need of more sleep so I think this is a good challenge for me to try. I get up at 4:30 a....

Ah Friday!

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 22:08:47 EST

Friday is here! 224

Usually I am not in a huge hurry for Friday to get here but this week has been a little more rough than I anticipated, so I am glad that the weekend has arrived. Nothing really bad happened (other than my car being hit), it was just super busy. I wasn't able to get as much exercise in as I wanted and I had a hard time tracking a couple of times (because I didn't have nutritional values for some foods that I ate while dining out). I did my best o...

Mixed Bag

Fri, 22 Feb 2013 00:01:45 EST

Today was a mixed bag. I had some really good things happen. And some not so nice things. One thing is that someone hit my car while I was in Panera with a bunch of my girlfriends. One of the employees was outside on break and saw it happen. The SUV hit my little car (and damaged it) and they didn't even stop! Of course this makes me unhappy.

I didn't get enough calories or protein in today but I did get some exercise! And now I must go because I have to get up in about fi...

Salad

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 21:02:58 EST

Usually I take my lunch to work with me, but on Wednesdays I eat lunch with my husband. We both really enjoy that little extra bit of time together. Today we went to a local place that we love. I got salad with balsamic dressing on the side. I dipped into the salad dressing but I still think that I ate a lot. I tried to estimate how much and I guessed four tablespoons. I am not a huge dressing fan to be honest but I do like the balsamic at this particular place. Usually I use about a t...

Such a Long Day...

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 22:28:26 EST

I got up at 4:30 a.m. for work and I didn't get home until 9:00 p.m. Had to log into SparkPeople just to make sure I got all of my food added. I am so tired and I got NO physical activity today...just sat at my desk until 3:00 and then went to continuing education where I sat for the rest of the day, until it was time to get in my car to come home. I didn't even get to go to lunch! This kind of schedule makes being healthy difficult. I am hoping that tomorrow will be better!

Rest Day - NOT!

Mon, 18 Feb 2013 20:42:01 EST

I need a rest day from exercise, and I thought that today would be that day. But it was just so gorgeous out today that I did a brisk 3.5 mile walk at lunch time! I could not let a beautiful day like this get by without going out and enjoying it. It is supposed to be rainy at least one day later this week...maybe that will be my rest day!

Went to the State Park Today

Sun, 17 Feb 2013 15:54:27 EST

Back before we moved three years ago we often enjoyed going to a state park that was near our old house. We went frequently and walked the trails there. We just loved it! I didn't really want to move so far away from it (we were about five miles away, now we are 30 miles away). So now we don't go there nearly as often. We sure do miss it! The last time we went was in August. So today we decided to head over there. It was awesome. We saw a lot of deer and we probably got almost three ...

End of the Week

Fri, 15 Feb 2013 20:46:55 EST

It's the end of the week and overall I have had a very decent week. I have stayed on track as far as my nutrition goes, I got physical activity in nearly every day, work went smoothly and all is good. But like everyone else, I do get frustrated at times. I think it is just because I am really tired. I work hard, I get my exercise in, I plan my meals and have been cooking at home. But I am getting behind on my other day to day chores around the house and I never have time to do any of my ...

Vegetable Soup for Supper

Sun, 10 Feb 2013 19:19:55 EST

My husband just hates vegetables. I think that the only one that he likes is corn. But we need to be more healthy, and in my view, that means more vegetables. So I am adding things to our meals that he would typical never ever eat. He hates salmon, but we have been having that. He doesn't like beans (as in legumes). He is pretty much against anything that isn't pizza, fried or candy. He never complains about the meals that I have been providing, but I can tell he isn't thrilled by the ...

My FitBit

Sat, 9 Feb 2013 16:19:34 EST

I think that today I need to talk about my FitBit. I have wanted one for a long time but I just didn't feel like we should spend the money on something like that. Then my husband's employer provided him a free one. Free! How lucky was that? He asked if he could get one for me too at a discounted rate. We didn't get one from them, but as it turns out, we ended up getting the FitBit Ultra (the previous model) on sale (since it is being phased out), and we also had some awesome coupons to ...

Weekend!

Fri, 8 Feb 2013 22:39:33 EST

Oh my, what a busy week it was at work. I am an accountant and we were closing the January books. I can always count on the first five business days being hectic and this time was no exception! But all in all, I can say that it went okay. I had planned ahead and had my meals figured out in advance - easy and fast to prepare. I only got to walk at lunch time on two of the five days, but I am still pretty happy with how it went. If I can continue to plan ahead for weeks like this, I shoul...

Too Busy

Sun, 3 Feb 2013 22:18:50 EST

As the weeks race by, I find that I have taken on too much for myself. I have always been one of those people who is overly busy....too many projects, too many hobbies, too many commitments. Through the years I have learned to say no, cut back and be more organized. But here I am on Sunday night, just like every other Sunday night, racing to get things finished before my busy work week starts.

As far as my health goes, I am trying to take small steps, but it is still a lot to ...

Strength Training

Sat, 2 Feb 2013 21:32:49 EST

Okay, I know that I am one of those people who needs to do her fitness early in the day...otherwise it might be missed due to scheduling or because of being tired, or whatever other excuse people tend to conjure up as the day wears on. So lately I have been going for a walk at lunch time. Now I need to incorporate in some strength training. That has proven to be a bit more tricky. But I think that I finally have this figured out. I just set a small goal for now! I know that small steps...

Crazy Week but Good Outcome!

Fri, 1 Feb 2013 19:24:41 EST

It was such a crazy week that I almost forgot about my good news! I ended up working very late four out of the five nights this week. I get up at about 4:45 a.m. and when I don't get home until 7:00 p.m. on some nights, it doesn't leave much time to do thing at home. But I did manage to have a meal prepared at home each night and I did get fitness in for three of the five days. Not perfect but not bad either!

So here is what happened...my happy news story! The company for whom...

Not Eating As Planned

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 21:58:56 EST

I had my breakfast, lunch and snacks packed for lunch, as I usually do these days. And all was well - I had my breakfast and my first snack as planned. But today I was providing lunch to my team at work to thank them for covering my work while I was out for surgery on my esophagus (for acid reflux). I was gone for a month and a half and they really took it upon themselves to keep my work done so that when I came back, I wasn't deluged! I ordered Jason's Deli for them, sandwiches, chips an...

Working Late

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 21:18:29 EST

Worked late last night and worked late tonight. Might have to work late tomorrow too. But I think that makes it even more important to be healthy. I am determined to stay on track! Last winter if this had happened, we would have eaten out and it would have been fast food - not healthy choices either. But I had already anticipated this, so last night we had chicken in the crock pot. Tonight we had salmon that was fast and easy to fix. Both days I walked during my lunch time. If I fall ...

Cooking at Home

Sat, 26 Jan 2013 17:35:14 EST

My hubby and I eat out for nearly every meal. Or at least we used to. In November I had surgery for acid reflux and that radically changed my eating. For quite a while it was just not feasible to eat out. Even now eating out can be difficult, but we do eat out on occasion. But starting sometime in December I decided that we need to start eating at home more often (almost all of the time). I just want to eat healthier. My husband would rather continue to dine out but frankly, he has hig...

Weekend

Fri, 25 Jan 2013 20:41:33 EST

I am trying to figure out how this weekend will go. There is so much to do and I wonder if I will be able to get it all finished. I thought that I would do some grocery planning and laundry this evening but as it turns out, I was behind on other things and I haven't gotten to that point yet...and I am so tired that I would really rather just go to bed! One thing that I would like to do is go to a state park to walk...but it is at least a 30 minute drive one way and we would probably stay a...

Friday Eve

Thu, 24 Jan 2013 21:23:11 EST

So, today was Thursday and for some odd reason I do not like Thursdays. I think it is because by this time of the week, I am so worn out from getting up early and going to work, putting in long hours and then trying to get everything done at home! Not only that but by Thursday I am so stressed out trying to get everything at work done by the end of the week. But, despite all of this, today wasn't too bad. I am a little stressed knowing that I only have a few days left this month to meet s...

More About Walking

Wed, 23 Jan 2013 19:30:56 EST

Oh my goodness, I was in serious danger of not making my lunch time walk today! I am determined to do it, but deadlines are looming and I had something that had to be done today. Since I rode on the van pool today, there was no way that I could stay late, so I had to get it done. I also have other deadlines coming up for next week and there have been meetings aplenty! So, I did something that I try to NEVER do, and I skipped lunch (I did eat, just didn't go out for a walk). Finally at ab...

Walking in the Cold

Tue, 22 Jan 2013 18:54:09 EST

Oh, it is so cold here today! Well, of course it is much colder in the north - my mom says the wind chill is in the negatives where my parents are at! It's not that cold here but in the mid-south, we just aren't used to this! So I knew that I needed to bundle up for the walk that I planned to take on my lunch break. I put on some tights and heavy socks, and then I layered some tops. I had my winter coat, my goofy looking hat (warmth before beauty) and my warm mittens. It was sunny and p...

Sleep

Mon, 21 Jan 2013 21:21:24 EST

I have such a hard time getting to bed on time....there is just too much that must be done and not enough time to do it. I am so aware of the impact that lack of sleep has on my health. I really want to get more sleep! So I have a goal to get to bed by 8:30. That will give me about 30 minutes of time to read and unwind, then I want to go to sleep around 9:00. Well, so far I haven't been doing very well with my goal. I am in bed too late too often. Sometimes I am not getting into bed un...

Vacation

Sun, 20 Jan 2013 21:22:47 EST

We are on a mini-vacation...just for a long weekend. It has been so nice to get away for a few days with my husband! And we have gotten in plenty of walking and hiking. That has been great for both of us! That was the easy part...the hard part has been the eating thing....I am pretty sure I haven't gone over, and in fact, maybe I have eaten too little. But eating out at small local places is just hard. I already know that eating out can be difficult because of tracking. We eat out a lo...

Eating More Calories?

Sat, 19 Jan 2013 09:52:29 EST

Just read a SparkPeople article about ADDING calories. I am sure many people wouldn't find that to be of benefit. In fact, up until a few months ago, I was ALWAYS adding calories, to the detriment of my waistline (and bottom). Adding calories has never been a problem for me, but losing weight and eating healthier has been a life time battle (I was a very fat baby). But strangely enough, I found this article to be very beneficial to me, and I will be utilizing some of the suggestions.
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Total Body Sculpting

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 17:56:44 EST

Got my new SparkPeople Total Body Sculpting on Sunday but due to scheduling issues I wasn't able to use it until today.....and I was so excited to try it! Today I did the barre exercises and I loved it! It is very different and I love how they show mods for advanced exercisers and for beginners. I've been walking almost every day and I will combine these workouts with my walks for toning and firming. Can't wait to try the other workouts on the DVD!

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Something Good Happened!

Mon, 14 Jan 2013 14:07:06 EST

I wanted to wear my jeans at Thanksgiving, but I discovered that they were just too tight....I could get them on and zip them, mind you, but the fact was that the belly roll hanging over the waistband was just not cute....or comfortable! So, instead I opted for waists with a bit of stretch...no jeans for me.

Then I had surgery for acid reflux, and ever since then, I have had bloating (because I cannot burp). So, although I had lost around 15 pounds, the jeans still weren't lookin...