Back on track

I suppose since this started out as a journal for my weight loss, I should pay a little more attention to posting more about losing weight.

Well, I would if I were losing weight. In order to not get frustrated, I've shied away from posting about it. That's not helpful for me or those of you who read this looking for hints or tips about weight loss. Although I will still wander occasionally, there will always be something in every post either with an update or a tip I'd like to share that I use or that has helped me. If I forget, don't hesitate to send me a comment and let me know!

I've been going to the gym 3 times a week. I've taken a break from training and trying things on my own. It's not going well. I'm stuck at 127/8 pounds. I've been there for over a week. I've decided to make smaller goals inside of my big goals (winning Waist Watchers and Sexy by Summer). I have a long piece of paper on the wall behind my desk with a countdown to May 6th which is the end of WW's. Each day I write which exercises I do. Why? Because I'm a visual person. I look at it every day and my goal is to do at least three 30 minute cardio sessions a day. Sometimes it happens sometimes it doesn't. Occasionally, life with 4 kids gets in the way of "me" time. I DON'T want to see a single blank day. I'd rather see 3 entries for each day, but I can only do my best and sometimes that means only getting in 1 or 2 workouts.

I have 3 important dates coming up in a few weeks. The first is March 25th when Channel 10 is supposed to bring the Waist Watchers contestants back on the show to see everyone's progress. This is big deal for me being the smallest contestant. The weekend after that is the one year anniversary of meeting my biological parents after searching for them for 17 years. I don't know what's planned for the anniversary but whatever it is, there will be lots of pictures taken and I definitely don't want to look how I look now! The 3rd is a slumber party with my girls who I've named the 9-5 Ladies (because we entertain each other during their work days). Again, lots of pictures and LOTS of food. Douglas isn't going to want to read this part, ha ha. I'm not going to go crazy on junk food but I am going to enjoy some good-tasting-as-healthy-as-possible-but- probably-not-yummy food. We'll probably be dancing around like fools burning off whatever we ate anyway!

So, there's your Slacker Fattie Tip for the day. Set small goals for yourself. You're less likely to give up if you do.

Sexy Meal Plan Tip – wash and peel carrots and put them in water in your fridge, same with celery (well, you don't have to peel celery, though). All you have to do is grab and eat for a quick, healthy, fiber-filled snack.

Be Perfect Today

When I got to AnyTime Fitness today, I asked Chris who works there, if he knew how many of the Waist Watchers contestants came in to do their official weigh in. Seven. Seven? Seven! Out of 25. Ummm, hello people! Free trip to NYC! Come on!

At the very least they could have had 3 months free at the gym. Most said it was too far to drive as we had to use the South Tampa location....did I mention it was free? There are 3 AnyTime Fitness locations closer to me but I drive the 15-20 minutes because it's FREE. Apparently one woman came in for a consultation but was never heard from again. Then there's The Guy. The only Guy in the competition, I think. The Guy seems to be my biggest competitor since he seemed very confident the day I met him at the kick-off. Plus, no offense, The Guy has a lot more to lose than me. I hope someone did his fat percentage because I want to blow him out of the water on that! But, alas, the rules are whoever loses the most. Well, me and my measly 25 pounds that need to be shed are still going to work hard. As I've said before, even if I don't win the contest, I'll still win because I'll have my body back. The one that my kids stole from me. I'm taking it back, kids! It's mine! mine! mine!

Douglas issued me a challenge. To be perfect for a week. No food cheating. No skipping out on cardios. Can I do it? I'm sure going to try. My mom always told me to do my best and that's all I can ask from myself.

Later, I received a text from my favorite trainer (ok, he's my only trainer, but he's really good). It said "Be perfect today!" Three simple little words with such a huge meaning. They are now in standby on my phone (that means that whenever I check my phone those 3 words are on the screen). Behind those words is a picture of my ultimate goal. I'm not sure if I'll ever get there but Jennifer Nicole Lee's before pictures were worse than mine. She issued a challenge for herself like I did. Baby steps, though. I'm busy working on being perfect this week. Actually becoming perfect is a different story all together!

Cardio Workouts Still Relatively Nonexistent

I'm eating an onion as I write this. That's correct. An onion. I am still depressed over yesterday's birthday celebration at Long John's Silvers. My son, for whatever reason, wanted fish. He hasn't had fish in over 2 years but that's what he wanted and LJS was the cheapest place to get it (Kelly campaigned for Red Lobster but was outvoted).

I didn't want to go because I knew there was nothing there I could eat. I was pleasantly surprised to see grilled tilapia on their menu! I ordered it without the rice but kept the vegetable medley, corn and breadstick. Hubby placed my order in front of me and I stared at it. Missing was my favorite fried fish, hush puppies, french fries and crumbs (the little pieces of fried batter that fall off the fish, mmmmm). Instead, I was looking at a white piece of something that resembled fish with some type of seasoning that I was sure I wasn't supposed to have but this was the best option. I took a bite. Blech. I took 3 more bites. Blech. Blech. Blech. I tried the veggies but they were just as bad.

Hubby saw me slipping into what I'll refer to as food depression. Being the good hubby that he is, he offered me a shrimp. And another. And one more. They tasted so good but I was left feeling so guilty. I have to be the judge and the jury when I cheat. It's really not worth it in the end. Yes, the food tasted good for the few meager seconds it was in my mouth but then it was on its happy way to clog my arteries and fuel the fat cells.

At least I resisted the chocolate cake. Douglas gave me a "D" for my food journal. It would have been an "F" but I got credit for only having a tiny bite of the cake. After all, it's not every day your only son turns 5.

(Off to lunch.....)

Tears, tears and more tears! I had lunch with my best friend from 9th grade. We hadn't seen each other in 20 years! It was so good to see Kristen. As I did back in 9th grade, I had to stand on my toes to give her a good hug. When we finally let go, we were both teary eyed. It was great to catch up and laugh with her and our other friend Becky (who acted as a TV for Maisie's entertainment). They both ordered the Chicken Quesadilla salad, mmmmmm. I ordered a plain hamburger. No bun. No seasoning. Just plain. And steamed broccoli and carrots. Determined to be a good girl, the first thing I did was cut the hamburger in half. I ate half and the other half is sitting in my refrigerator with the broccoli and carrots I didn't eat.

Lunch was over too soon and I had to go back to my real life as a Mommy. I had to go to Reyna's school and write a note getting her out of the scoliosis check and then pick up Kelly who called me to tell me she was dying (teen code for "I really don't feel good enough to stay at school”).

Then it was back to the "me" time that seems to have consumed 97.3% of my life – working out and The Dreaded Meal Plan. At least the muscle in my butt quit hurting from yesterday's torture chamber. I mean that in a positive way. After admitting to my Fried Shrimp Cheat to Douglas, I was able to semi-redeem myself by proudly stating that I got up off my lazy ass at 8:30pm and went onto the trampoline. I was aiming for 40 minutes but a cute 2 year old had a bad dream and cut my workout short.

My balance seems to be getting a little better which is a good thing. My knee didn't buckle when I stepped off the last step which shows I'm getting stronger as well. Yay! I brought along the 3rd Twilight book for my cardio time. I figured if I was immersed in the book I wouldn't notice how long I was on each piece of equipment. It worked pretty well for the stair master. I looked down just after 5 minutes. The elliptical…not so much. My Jell-O legs just weren't in the mood for that one. So it was off to the bike. I've taken to choosing the one with the seat closest to the pedals so I don't have to attempt to move it thus embarrassing myself even more as an obvious gym "newbie." I settled in, started pedaling and stayed there for an astonishing 15 minutes! Go me!

Oh, I really should have asked for help out of the store with the 40 pound bag of dog food I had to pick up tonight. It was a struggle to get it out the door and into The Bus with my sore and very tired arms. But I did it and now I have 2 happy-not-hungry-anymore dogs.