Merry Christmas!

Katie: Weeks 50 & 51

Well, now, here's some unexpected progress!...

Current weight (Week 51): 130 pounds
Last week's weight (Week 50): 131 pounds
Total weight loss: 40 pounds

Man, oh man!  Sorry I haven't posted on time for two weeks in a row now!  I have been a busy little lady.  I always mean to post all day Tuesday and then somehow it just slips away from me.  Anyway, you may have noticed that I've gained back a couple of pounds.  So I'm just going to tell you the truth.  I haven't been watching what I eat or exercising a super great amount.  I love the holidays and I love all the food that comes with the festivities and I decided I'd rather work harder after the holidays are over than be cranky about giving up on good food and trying to be overly careful during this cheerful time of year.  So, sorry I'm not the best example right now, but that's the truth. 

And you know what?  I'm happy.  Not content to keep living this way forever and keep my pudgy tummy forever, but content to just enjoy the holiday season and then pick things up again later.  I am still going on walks when I can and I find that I still don't eat nearly as much as I used to, so I'm happy about that.  But with all that's been going on in our lives and some schedule changes we just haven't had time for a lot of running lately.  I hope we'll be able to pick that up again a little more after this week of craziness is over.  :)

And speaking of running...

I got some new running shoes!  I got them on a really great sale, so they were only $30.  Woot woot!  I've only been jogging in them once, but I've gone walking in them multiple times.  So far I like them a lot and I think they're better on my body than the old shoes.  And they're cuter than my old shoes.  :)  However, I am still having some soreness in the bottom of my big toes when I jog or do more intense walking in them.  Maybe it's my old orthodics in my new shoes?  I'm not sure.  But either way I at least feel better about having some new tread and a little more space between my feet and the pavement. 

Anyway, I am encouraged by the fact that I've been able to maintain my weight pretty well.  Since I haven't been watching what I eat and exercising as much I really haven't gone above 132 or below 130.  So I'm happy to be learning a little more about maintaining.  But hopefully after the holidays are over and we have a little more time (and a lot less sweets) I'll be able to work down to my goal weight and then maintain that.  :)

Oh yeah, and, just to let you know, I may or may not be posting next Tuesday.  We'll be with family and I'm not sure whether I'll be able to squeeze it in or not.  So in case I don't pop in next week...

Merry Christmas!

What Shall We Give?

Take a Break!

This season is always filled with so many things- parties to go to, deadlines to meet, presents to shop for, goodies to bake, etc. I am sure that I could work on things 24 hours a day and still not fit everything in...do you ever feel that way too? Well here is your friendly reminder to take a break.

Make sure you get a good night's rest each, or at least every-other, night so that you won't be "grinchy" during the day. The more rested you are, the better you feel- and the better you feel, the easier it is to make sure you get some exercise and resist all of those holiday temptations that you will undoubtably regret later. Remember that it is great to think of others this season, but you have to be a healthy you to do so...so take care of yourself! Climb in bed early tonight and don't feel guilty about it! :)

Kids and Christmas

A way of life

Why do diets fail? In my opinion it is because they are temporary solutions to a long-term problem...treating the downstream consequence instead of looking upstream to actually fix the problem. We view "diets" as something that we are going to do for a certain amount of time until we get the result that we want...but then what? If you go back to what you were doing then you will go back to the way you were. The same holds true for exercise- you can't think that you are going to exercise until this or that, quit or cut back, and then expect your body to stay in that condition. Sorry, I've tried it too, but it just doesn't work that way!

What we need is not a "diet" but a "way of life"...you have to completely change your way of thinking to be able to get (and even more so maintain) the body you want. I know it is hard...I haven't always been so disciplined about exercise; I had to make up my mind that it is what I really wanted and my life- goals, activities, day-to-day routines- all had to change. Change isn't terrible and I don't really miss the way I used to be- it isn't like I am depriving myself of the things I once loved...I made a change for the better!

I am 7 1/2 months pregnant and this morning I ran 5 miles. Some people think I am nutzo, but it is just my way of life and I really haven't thought too much about it. My daily exercise has become a part of me and my day seems odd without it...and it really doesn't matter if I am pregnant or if it is raining or if it freezing or so hot and humid or whatever, I just do it because it is part of my way of life. I don't consciously think about drinking a ton of water every day, but carrying a water bottle with me everywhere I go is just a part of my way of life and it seems odd when I forget to take one with me.

So as we approach the end of the year, I want you to think about what your way of life is going to be next year. What are the things you want to change? What new things do you want to institute into your routines? Everyone makes the New Years resolution to "lose weight" but I want you to think about the habits you want to make and if weight loss happens because of them, great...if not, you are still that much healthier! Lets try looking upstream for solutions!

Katie: Week 49

I've been thinking over things a lot lately.  Thinking through why I had myself set on getting down to 120 pounds by Christmas, why I got so frustrated when it wasn't happening.  And I've been thinking about some things over the past week or so.  Maybe these thoughts seem scattered.  I guess they are.  I myself haven't quite finished thinking through them and put them all together into a cohesive whole, but I thought I'd share them with you in whatever sort of in between thinking stage they're in.

Goals- Goals are funny.  Often we set goals about minute details in order to change bigger and more important things about ourselves.  (Or at least things that we deem more important.)  And we know that "by small and simple things, great things are brought to pass," but sometimes our goals can almost seem disconnected from the results we're hoping for.  For instance, other than for the sake of "meeting my goal" I could really care less about how much I weigh.  It's true.  What bugs is my tummy.  I was paranoid about it before I had Olivia, but after being pregnant once now I'm ultra paranoid about looking pregnant.  Because my tummy sticks out.  And I hate that.  And so, as a result, I set goals about how many times I'll go walking and running and what I'll eat and what I won't eat and, in general, how I spend my days.  And somehow the dislike of a tummy that sticks out becomes what my whole days is about.  And, while I do like going on walks and eating healthy food, I don't like spending all day thinking about my tummy.  On the other hand, I do think spending my time working on progressing toward being better is a good thing.  Am I doing both at once?  Am I being both self-promoting and self-degrading at the same time?  I really don't know.

Entitlement- I've been thinking a lot about entitlement.  It's a selfish and dangerous thing.  Always.  I've been thinking about this for a while now and I cannot come up with a situation in which it would be wise for us to feel entitled to something.  In a gospel sense, we might say that we feel entitled to be with our families forever if we are sealed in the temple and live righteously.  But I don't think that's right.  I think that if we've done all that then we seek for the blessings of the Lord.  He's promised us that we can be with our families forever if we're sealed in the temple and we live righteously, but we're never perfect.  We make mistakes.  I try to live righteously, but sometimes I mess up.  I think a mean thought, don't do something I should have done, do something I know I shouldn't.  So I'm really not entitled to be with my family forever.  I've been blessed with an Atoning Savior who makes up what I lack and lets me repent.  Are you following me so far?  In other words, we do our best in life--and we should--but, ultimately, every good thing comes from God, those things are blessings, and we're not entitled to blessings.

This past week- I know there are those of you who will shake your heads and roll your eyes at me when I tell you this, but here's the truth: I was really naughty last week.  I hate cookies and milk every night with Bryan and his sisters and our friends.  I didn't keep track of anything I ate.  And because the temperature outside was in the teens I think we only went on one actual walk during the whole Thanksgiving break.  It was bad, I know.  But you know what?  It was so nice.  It was nice to eat things I liked.  But even more than that it was nice to not be stressed about every single calorie that enters my body.  So maybe you (and sometimes I) will think that it was such a waste to be so stressed about my weight and work so hard and then go in the complete opposite direction, but it really was so good for me--mentally, emotionally.  I needed that break.  Because I certainly wasn't starving myself before, but it was getting to the point where I was eating as little as possible.  And even though the little calorie counter on MyFitnessPal wasn't giving me that "you haven't eaten enough calories" warning, I think it was doing bad things to my body to not be eating more.  But when you're working so hard at burning calories it's hard mentally to eat more, even if you know it's probably going to make your body function better.  So I still really like the tools on MyFitnessPal and I'll use them off and on as I see fit, but, for now at least, I'm not going to keep track of things quite so much.  I certainly don't plan to be quite so glutenous as I was over the Thanksgiving break and now that the temperatures have risen to be more reasonable I'll keep going on walks and things, but I'm not going to be writing it all down all the time.  It was just plain stressing me out too much. 

And so, now I'll post my weekly weight.  It doesn't really matter, but maybe after reading through some of what I've been thinking about you'll understand a little why I feel so blessed to still be under 130.  Because I certainly didn't deserve it after this past week.  But seeing this makes me feel so encouraged.  Even though it's up a pound from last week, it could have been up quite a few more.  And it's not.

Current weight: 129 pounds
Last week's weight: 128 pounds
Total weight loss: 41 pounds

Someday I'm going to make it to my goal weight of 120 pounds.  And I hope that along the way this sticking-out-tummy that bugs will disappear.

I'm going to keep working at it.

Christmas Spirit

Gobble Gobble

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is probably one of The Skinny's worst enemies, right? A day centered around stuffing your face silly is not really conducive to healthy eating habits. However, here is my tip for today: enjoy it!

Now you may be saying "wait a minute...did she just say go ahead and have whatever I want?" and the answer is YES! Eat whatever you would like today because celebrating a holiday doesn't come but once each year...but there is a catch! Only enjoy one, maybe two, bites of each thing you are indulging in; this way you don't deprive yourself and drive your mind crazy, but you also don't stuff yourself and make your body crazy either. Just take the time to really savor one or two bites...then fill up with your normal, good, healthy foods. And if you start your meal by downing a big glass of water, then you will feel fuller to begin with and desire even less of those yummy holiday goodies- I promise one or two bites of each will be plenty!

Be thankful for your body and treat it well today...it is always doing so much for you! Good luck!

Katie: Week 48 -- You were right

Well, now, here's some unexpected progress!...

Current weight: 128 pounds
Last week's weight: 129 pounds
Total weight loss: 42 pounds

Okay, so if you want to know something dumb about me it is this: I ask for advice and then I usually don't like to hear it.  So when I wrote that whiny post last week I rolled my eyes as I read all of your nice and helpful comments.  But you know what?  You all were right.

I don't remember exactly what day it was.  Friday?  I think?  But I just sort of gave up for a little bit.  The snowy weather that's come combined with my frustrations and I sort of took a little hiatus from my goals.  I talked through things with a few people who know me well and told me some things I needed to hear.  And after all that, I just felt like I needed to take the advice you all gave me and not stress so much about my goal to be 120 pounds by Christmas.  Let me explain.

When I made that goal I did it with the observation that I was moving along on-track really well, losing about a pound a week (and sometimes more) and I figured if I just kicked things up a notch, really stayed committed to my healthy eating and exercise goals, and worked just a little harder at it that meeting my goal of 120 pounds by Christmas would be a given.

At first it was great.  I was continuing to lose weight at the same quick and satisfying rate.  But then, as you all know, I got stressed.  Pretty stressed.  And the weight loss came to a screeching halt.  And I even gained a little.  And that just stressed me out more.  "Ahhh!  I'm not going to reach my goal in time!"  That was all I could think about.  Somewhere in there it had strayed from the nice, charming little goal it had started out as.

So I've decided to just keep on keepin' on and not worry about whether or not I make it there by Christmas.  After all, it's not a race.  And as much as I know you'll all look down on me for saying this, I really plan to enjoy all the yummy food that the holiday season has to offer.  I don't want to miss out on all that tasty goodness just to feel stressed and sad and only lose .2 pounds anyway.  This being said, I also plan to keep up a regular habit of healthy eating and, of course, good exercise.  I love my daily walks and even going running has been fun.  I don't plan to give those things up.  (Although I will admit that it is getting harder and harder to get myself motivated to go running now that it's getting so cold and the sidewalks are snowy and slick.  Not to mention it's usually dark outside by the time we could get started.  And I just loathe the indoor track.  Sigh...)

Also, I have made the executive decision to enjoy this current week as a vacation because--it is!  It's Thanksgiving break!  So I plan to keep going on walks and go running if we feel like it, but I'm not going to be keeping track of things on my little chart and probably not on MyFitnessPal either.  I just need a little break from the minute details for a bit. 

Anyway, that's all for now.  Hope you're all having a wonderful Tuesday.  And since I probably won't be posting again this week...

Happy Thanksgiving!

Parenting: Touching the Hearts of Our Youth

Kathy Week 47: Maintenance is Weird

Kathy's Week 47 Stats:

Two weeks ago Weight: 131

Today's Weight: 130

Starting Weight: 151

Total Weight Loss: 21 pounds

I'm still trying to figure out how to get my head around maintaining my weight.

With weight loss, there's a mission. Exercise more, eat less.

With weight maintenance, I find myself playing weird mental games with myself.
--How much (chocolate) can I eat and not gain the weight again?
--How little can I exercise and not gain it back?
Stupid, I know.
Living by these kinds of questions practically guarantees yo-yo-ing back and regaining the lost weight.

Some better questions might be:
--How can I make my food choices as healthy as possible, including my snacks?
--How can I fit a reasonable amount of healthy exercise into my life?

I found some helpful suggestions for maintaining goal weight here and here.
According to these websites, I should be getting more exercise than I am now, and it would help me to keep a food journal. Ummm...we'll see about that. I'm feeling burned out right now on maintaining a food journal, and the weather outside is frightful, making it discouraging to go out and walk. But I'm thinking about starting up with my weight-lifting program again, and I have been focusing on healthier meals the last week or so.

Speaking of healthy meals...Happy Thanksgiving!

Halloween had too much chocolate for me to handle, but I have some healthy recipes planned for our Thanksgiving meal, and I think I'll be fine.

Be sure to check the left-hand sidebar of The Skinny for the Apple-Cinnamon Sweet Potatoes recipe - so easy, so yummy, so low-calorie!

And I know that everyone has their own favorite way to cook a turkey, but my absolute favorite for quick, easy, no-mess, and moist is to cook the turkey in a Reynolds Cooking Bag. Genius.

Have fun, and enjoy the leftovers!

Whiny Post

I feel completely discouraged about trying to lose weight.  When I do the "right" things--go on walks, go running, eat right, have extra calories left over at the end of the day, drink enough water, etc., etc. I either stay at the same weight or gain weight.  But then yesterday I was so busy that I didn't even really get to go on a walk and I ate more calories than I should have.  And I lost .2 pounds.  Aghh!

I feel frustrated.  I feel like I'm playing a guessing game.  I'm on the verge of feeling superstitious.  It's ridiculous.

Anyway, just popped in to say that.  Sorry for the downer post.  But this is really what it's like sometimes.  Perhaps too much of the time for me lately.

Lately I keep wondering if I should just give up and relax and let it happen at whatever pace it's gonna happen.  I know that sounds lame, but maybe it's for the best?

Katie: Week 47

Same as last week...

Current weight: 129 pounds
Last week's weight: 129 pounds
Total weight loss: 41 pounds

I'll admit, I'm a little discouraged. I do have a few days where things just get too busy to exercise or keep track of calories, but for the most part I really have been so good about everything.  And yesterday I went on two walks--both about an hour each--and Bryan and I went running and I ate a good amount, but I definitely burned more calories than I took in... and I still came out at 129.4 this morning.  Bah.  I did make it down to 128.something last week, but things got crazy with a big Relief Society Christmas day I was in charge of and by the end of the week I was back up to 130 again, even though I really am not entirely sure why.

Sigh.

Despite/because of all this, I have raised my goals a little.  Instead of running 3 times a week I am now going to try and go running 5 times this week.  And I'm going to try and go on at least 1, maybe 2 walks a day whenever I can.  And, as always, I try to burn more calories than I take in, while--of course--still eating a healthy amount of the things my body needs.  I don't starve myself.

But anyway, I really am getting worried about whether or not I'll actually be able to meet my goal by Christmas.  If I do it will definitely be because of Divine Intervention.  Because, clearly, my efforts alone are not cutting it.

Oh, and before I forget (again) here are the pictures of me from last week:

 

Oh yeah, and one more thing.  Lately my feet have been hurting more often while I run and after I finish running.  I bought my running shoes back during my sophomore year of college (umm... four or five years ago?) and I think they're worn out and that this could be part of the problem.  But I really don't feel like shelling out the dough for new running shoes.  But is that probably the answer here?  Any input?  Because yesterday my heels were really sore when we got back from our run and while we were running the bottom of my big toes hurt.  Which is weird.  Anyway, advice would be much appreciated.

Happy Tuesday!

Thanksgiving Daily

I know it is Friday and I am late, but I am posting anyway. :)

I have a good reason for not posting yesterday...I have been in a bit of a rut this week. Not only have I come down with a cold, but when I went to the doctor on Tuesday she told me that I was gaining too much weight. Um, excuse me? I surely can't be the hugest pregnant person ever, right? I am still exercising plus my belly always measures the right size. I have been uber-frustrated this week trying to figure out what to do about it. Not that there can be a ton done about it, except hopefully slow down the weight gain a bit.

She recommended that I go on a diabetic "diet" where I cut some carbs and fruits with lots of natural sugar and bulk up on protein and veggies...and make any carbs whole grain ones. Uh. I don't really want to! It isn't like I am eating a bunch of bad stuff- my main craving is canned peaches- and I thought pregnancy was the one time I wasn't going to have to be watching my calories and such. As it turns out, now I am more concerned about my weight than I was before I was pregnant. Nuts.

So what do you think? Has this happened to anyone else? If it is really something that needs to be done for the baby that is fine but if it is just so I have less to lose later, I want to worry about that when the time comes and just enjoy pregnancy (and the holidays, hello!) As if my emotions weren't on overdrive anyway, this has really put me through the ringer this week...I have been angry, depressed, confused, frustrated, determined, apathetic, defiant, and most definitely cranky.

I am still unsure of what I should do about it...any thoughts?

Katie: Week 46

Same as last week...

Current weight: 129 pounds
Last week's weight: 131 pounds
Total weight loss: 41 pounds

Isn't funny how I was ecstatic about being at this weight last week, but I'm frustrated by it this week?  I guess that's part of being not-perfect.  We're always trying to be a little better.  Anyway, yes, I'm still at 129.  I'm pretty disappointed that I didn't break into 128 at all this past week, but so it goes.  Here's to hoping it'll happen this next week.  :)

Also, I have a little surprise for you all.  Are you ready?

I took pictures today!

I know, crazy, right?  Bryan and I actually happened to be home and up and ready this morning so I had him snap a couple of quick pictures.  The lighting is super bad, but--hey--beggars can't be choosers.  Not that any of you were really begging though... Anyway, here are the pictures:

Uhhh... so there are no pictures here.  Long story short, they will be up tomorrow.  Hopefully.  :)

Also, I had a yummy treat to share with you all, but I'm having issues with adding pictures to Blogger today, so perhaps that'll appear sometime in the future.

Happy Tuesday!

Kathy Week 45: I'm not motivated...

Still hanging around at 131.

Which is not the end of the world, after all. For a 56-year-old lady like myself, 5' 3" -- a weight of 131 comes in at BMI 23.2, very much within the "normal weight" category.

Still, it's 4 pounds over my lowest weight, during the summer.

Should I care? Is this my new happy weight?
(Not quite - according to the Happy Weight Calculator, I should aim for 128.9 pounds.)

Halloween was not good for my motivation. Way too easy to have chocolate candy in the house. Better still, chocolate candy with nuts...mmmmm....






I did use the tools at myfitnesspal.com religiously last week...for one day...and then I was snacking again.

Oh, yes, indeed, I do know what to do, and how to do it. I'm just not very motivated right now...

Here's a recent photo, reading a book with a granddaughter. I don't think I look fat. There's just that little middle-aged tummy...that's where the extra pounds always settle.

I guess I need to get myself back below 130, at least.

Get Going!

Here is my tip of the day....get up and get going!!!

I know, a little late in the day for such a tip, but nevertheless...try it! I know that sometimes I think that what I need is a little rest- afterall, my body has been working hard/I've had late nights/I was on my feet all day/my workout was extra strenuous/etc. However I know from personal experience that when I do decide to let myself "rest", it does not really feel rejuvenating...it makes me feel like a slob!

Now quickly I will make a disclaimer and say that you should listen to your body and rest when you really need it. That being said, you probably don't need to rest all day like you may be tempted to do. I know it seems like taking a day to just stay in sweats and craft or read or whatnot may seem like just the thing to get you in gear again (you deserve it afterall, right?) but I promise it isn't! Get up, get dressed and go for a walk or a bike ride. Find someone to serve. Do something productive! I promise that you will feel better when you have done your hair and have on real clothes and are out about somewhere. :)

It isn't too late to do it today...go for it!

Katie: Week 45 Yay! Yay! Yay! Yay! Yay!

Wahooooooooooo!!!...

Current weight: 129 pounds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Last week's weight: 131 pounds
Total weight loss: 41 pounds

Yay yay yay yay yay!!!!  I finally broke into the 120's!  Not including this week there are 7 more weeks until Christmas.  So I've just got 9 pounds left to lose in the next 7 weeks!  Yay!  And I totally feel like it's possible.

Oh, and sorry I forgot to check in last Tuesday.  Well, I didn't really forget, I just didn't get around to it.  But last Tuesday I was 131.  Woot woot!  Although, even though I didn't check in, I have been super diligent about keeping up on my goals.  And I'm especially proud of myself for staying strong even through Halloween.  I had a few pieces of candy the night of our ward Halloween party, but that was really it.  I just didn't want more than that.  And that is the part that I think is truly awesome.

As a recap of what I've been doing to reach my goals, I've been...
-entering all of my food and exercise into MyFitnessPal everyday
-striving to drink 8 glasses of water every day
-going on a walk every day
-going running 3 times each week
-doing 50 crunches every night
-eating less calories than I burn

Of course some days are better than others.  And last week I had a thing going on with my back so we had to skip running.  But I've tried to stay active no matter what and be diligent about eating fewer calories than I burn and it is totally paying off.  I really can't tell you how thrilled I was to get on the scale this morning and see it drop down into the 120's.  YAY!  I feel so close to my goal.

Also, I don't know that I've mentioned it on here before, but every Thursday on my regular blog I'm doing a "What I'm Giving Myself for Christmas" this year thing.  Basically I'm just trying to encourage others to make and meet goals by this coming Christmas.  It can be anything really, but if you're reading this on The Skinny then you're probably into fitness and weight loss, so a weight loss or fitness goal might be a good one for you if you'd like to participate.  I'd really love to have a bunch of people chime in and mention what their goals are and how happy they are to be working toward them.  It's just so deeply gratifying to see progress in myself.  Of course that's not something anyone can really give except to themselves, so I'm trying to pass on that feeling by encouraging others.  Anyway, so I'd love for you to share your goals here in the comments and of course it'd be fun to have you chime in on the linky party on my regular blog on Thursdays too.  But mostly I just want you to feel good about the progress you see in yourself.  Because the progress I've been making this past year has made such an enormous difference in my life.

Well, I guess that's it for today.  Today's going to be pretty busy, but I'll see if I can get someone to snap a picture of me and upload it later today.  :)

Happy Happy Tuesday!

P.S. Go Vote!

What do you know about FOLIC ACID?

Folic acid is a type of B-vitamin...Vitamin B9 to be exact. It is especially important because it aids in cell production...most specifically in producing healthy red blood cells which deliver oxygen to all parts of your body. Folic acid is needed particularly in women, women in child-bearing years, and children.

How do you get folic acid? Well some of the best sources these days are in breakfast cereals...but you must check your labels to make sure that it has indeed been added in a significant amount. Asparagus, spinach, liver, and sunflower seeds are all packed with folic acid; other popular foods that have moderate amounts of the vitamin include orange juice, bananas, corn, and romaine lettuce.

How much folic acid should you consume daily? About 400 micrograms daily is sufficient for most people; make sure you are diligent about getting your folic acid if you are pregnant or hoping to get pregnant! (And even if you aren't, it has been shown that folic acid has a role in preventing obesity and type 2 diabetes!)

Now, go get some!!!

Kathy Week 43: Feeling sluggish

I don't even know how much I weigh this morning...I'm on the road, visiting family...but I can be pretty sure it's 131.

Two weeks ago, I weighed 129. Last week I weighed 130. The last couple of days I weighed 131.

Hmmm...I see a disturbing trend...

It is so easy to rationalize (Rational Lies) this away.
After all...131 is still 20 pounds less than what I weighed on January 1.
After all...I've had two VERY stressful weeks at school, with too little time to exercise and prepare healthy meals.
After all...I still fit into my size 10 jeans.

The fact is, I am eating junk again. I am not being accountable to myself with myfitnesspal.com. I am not getting up early three mornings a week to go to the gym. And I AM gaining weight.

I know what I need to do. It's time to do it. I'll check in with you again in just one week, right back here on The Skinny. See you then!

Katie: Week 43 Committing to 13 in 9

Gettin' back in the groove...

Current weight: 133 pounds
Last week's weight: 134 pounds
Total weight loss: 37 pounds

Hey, guess what?  It's Tuesday.  Uhh... I kind of forgot.  Oops!  Sorry.  But I have good news!  I lost a pound!  Yay!  This past weekend we went to Ohio for the last of our school visits to look at optometry schools for Bryan.  So I was naughty and ate junk food while we were there (two words: pumpkin doughnut), but our friends that we stayed with were really nice and fed us all the time so we didn't have to eat out, so I think that helped a lot.  (Thanks guys!)  Also, I was a lot more determined when we got back from our trip to get back into my healthy groove, so the transition from bad to good wasn't so... well, bad.  :)  What've I been doing?

• Going on a walk every day
• Running 3 times each week
• Doing 50 crunches every day (real, focused crunches, not the sissy kind)
• Drinking 8 glasses of water every day
• Entering all of my food/exercise into MyFitnessPal every day
• Getting to bed by 11pm every night
• Doing something nice for somebody every day
• Recording my daily weight

Well, in theory at least.  I often fail at drinking all 8 glasses of water, but I'm working at it.  And I think in the past three weeks I've only made it to bed by 11pm one night (last night).  But other than that I really am doing pretty well.  And it is totally helping. 

Right now I'm 13 pounds away from my goal weight.  And it's basically 9 full weeks until Christmas.  So my goal is to keep working at it and give myself something for Christmas I've been wanting for a long time--a healthy, fit body (hopefully with a flat tummy--I'm getting there!).  13 pounds?  9 weeks?  You think I can make it?  I do!  Wish me luck!

My Running Season Finale

     Well, I just finished my race season on Saturday with the Blue Lake Run in Troutdale, OR. My running buddy and I ran the 15K and laughed when we realized the course was actually marked off in miles. Silly race people. Fortunately, it was a sunny, cloudless day for our entourage of supporters. (We were each hosting 2 Japanese high school students for the weekend. Big adventure!) So the big news is that I earned a ribbon! I had a general goal time of about 1:30 and I finished in 1:31:46, which earned me 3rd in my age division. I was pleased, but I always wonder if I could have sprinted sooner than I did. Oh well! Now I get to relax my schedule and just have fun with my running. I'm especially excited to sleep in later and run in the daylight.

     Overall, I think it was a good running season for me. This was only my second year with training for races, so it's great to see progress. I have shaved off about 3 minutes from my pace and basically met my goal times. For example, my time on the Best Dam Run 10K (about 3 weeks ago) was right at one hour but this past race I finished 10K in 58 minutes. So my message is that improvement is possible; it just takes some commitment. Saturday morning before the race my scripture reading happened to land on this:

"And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength. And again, it is expedient that he should be diligent, that thereby he might win the prize; therefore, all things must be done in order." (Mosiah 4:27)

     It made all the difference on race day, but it can have the same effect on every day that I need to accomplish something. I hope we can all remember to pace ourselves with running, walking, exercising, dieting, and really every aspect of life. With diligence we can all win the prize. We are each evidence of that.

     With all that being said, I will not be posting as often anymore unless I have an incredible running story or tip to share. Or if one of you lovely skinny ladies has a running question, of course. So this is my I'm-kind-of-going-away-but-please-don't-think-I'm-gone-post. I am still very interested in each person's progress and I will continue to check in here regularly.

Wishing you all the greatest success you could imagine,

Em

Counsel to Youth

One Quick Thought

So my honey took today and tomorrow off of work so we can celebrate our anniversary :) So here is my quick thought for the day: go do something with someone you love.

We started our morning with a brisk walk and it was so lovely...the weather was perfect and all but it was more the fact that he and I were together that made today's walk more pleasant than usual.

We are social beings by nature- that is why you feel so crappy when you are at home all day with no one to have a stimulating conversation with! So grab your darling, best friend, neighbor, daughter, etc. and spend some time doing something not only good for the body, but good for the soul as well :)

Katie: Week 42

Just having a little pity party for myself...

Current weight: 134 pounds
Last week's weight: 134 pounds
Total weight loss: 36 pounds

I was so good last week.  At the beginning of the week.  And then toward the end I got lazy.  And had a birthday party for my sister in law with a yummy cake and some yummy ice cream.  And then our weekend got busy.  But I did go for a walk every day and Bryan and I did go running three times.  That in itself was a big accomplishment.  But it's sad to think that I was down to 132 in the middle of last week and then got back up to 134 again.  Especially since yesterday I went on two walks and went on a really good, long (for us) run with Bryan.  I expected/hoped to at least go back down to 133 by this morning.  But instead I went up to 134.4.  What gives?  I'm feeling a little frustrated.

Then when I was checking the calendar a little big ago to see how many weeks we have until Christmas I was caught off guard by another something sad about my progress.  It's the middle of October.  If I had been following my calorie intake and exercise plan that I created on MyFitnessPal some months ago I would be at my goal weight right now.  And I'm not.  Boo hoo hoo.

I'm trying to make all this lead me to a feeling of determination rather than defeat.  But it's hard.  It's hard not to boo hoo over the whole thing.  I could be where I want to be right now!  But I didn't do the work.  Sigh.

Here's to another week of trying. 

I think I can.  I think I can...

Kathy Week 41: Feelin' Groovy

Several weeks ago I read through my daily journal from last year, and I noticed that over and over again I wrote about feeling stressed, overworked, tense, too-much-to-do, tired, etc, etc.

No good! That much stress sends me straight to the refrigerator or the candy aisle.

This fall, when heading back to work/school, I vowed to keep my extra commitments under control. I'm not perfect. This coming week is going to be a bear. It's just one of those "vortex" weeks when everything that only happens once-in-a-while just so happens to all get piled into the same week of the calendar. Most of that was out of my control, and the week will come and go, and then it will be over with. I'm budgeting my time, and I'll get through it!

But for the most part, I'm getting SO much better at saying "no." "No" to outside requests, but more importantly, "no" to the expectations and pressures I so often put on myself. I'm working on sorting out my priorities, and paying the most attention to the things that matter most.

Here are some things that get me through the day:

1. Fun, light-hearted oldies that help me relax. I'm breathing easier and smiling after I sing along with this one:



2. Listening to wise counsel. President Uchtdorf's counsel at last week's General Conference spoke right to my heart. I've gone back and listened to his talk a couple of times already, and I may have it memorized by the next time we have General Conference, in April 2011.

You can read it here. I like to read his counsel and absorb the ideas slowly, but I also love to listen to him and enjoy his warm spirit and kindly humor. It's like he's come to visit with me right in my own living room!


3. A little humor never hurts. Here's Anita Renfro with her spoof on Carrie Underwood's song, "Before He Cheats." This time it's "Before I Eat..."  Hahaha! Check out Anita's other videos on YouTube. Her humor will de-stress you every time.


4. And here we go with some pure relaxation - a wonderful spine stretch I learned in Yoga class. It's so easy! You should try it right now. (No, really, you should do this. You won't believe how good it will feel.)

First, lie on your right side. Legs are in the position of sitting in a chair. Right arm is straight out to the side, palm up; left arm is in the same position, palm down.

Then, slide your left arm in a half-circle, up and over your head. Bring your arm around to the left side. Your spine is beginning the stretch. Keep your hips still.

Finally, adjust your right shoulder a little to the right, so that your shoulders are both flat on the floor. You should be looking up at the ceiling now. Keep both palms up, and breathe evenly. Hold the position for a minute or so.

After a minute or so, bring your knees to center, and roll over to your left side. Repeat the stretch from the left side.

Now your spine, shoulder, and chest will feel more relaxed and aligned. You will breathe more easily and feel LESS STRESS!!!

That's all for today, except for a quick update on my weight maintenance. After the brief excitement of hitting my goal weight 127 a few weeks ago (haha--that lasted all of one day), I have been hanging out at 128-129. I'm still 129 this morning. I'm not counting every calorie, but I am watching my portions and eating (mostly) sensibly.  (All right, I confess, there were those two Rice Crispie treats last night...)

Anyway, I'm thinking that 129 may be my "happy weight" for now, and I'm feeling good about that!

Feelin' groovy!

Have a great week everyone! I hope you'll try some of these suggestions to be happy and stress free.

Take a Walk!

So my belly continues to get bigger and this week my running buddy, i.e. mom, was out of town. Basically that means I had no motivation to get up and jog my regular 5 miles. However, the weather has been particularly lovely in Houston and I just couldn't bare to let it go to waste. Thus, I have been taking morning walks...and boy are they lovely!

How nice it is just to get out and enjoy some fresh air! It makes my whole day go better if I start with a little outdoor exercise. So I walked. At first I didn't have a plan- just headed out without a thought. As I started walking though I began to make little plans...I am going to walk fast until I get to that tree/the end of this song/etc. and then I am going to take bigger steps until (fill in the blank). Some spurts I would focus on my posture, others on speed or size of steps or breathing or making sure I rolled through my whole foot and really pushed off from my toes to take the next step (an excellent calf-worker!).

Then I got ambitious; every so often I would do a set of lunges and squats. It was really quite wonderful and when I got home I realized that I had covered many miles and almost two whole hours. The next day my rear was even a bit sore which, as weird as it is to say, felt wonderful!

I have continued my morning walks this week as my mom has been gone and have even added in some jogging, just to mix it up and keep it interesting. :) So my challenge for everyone this week is this: take a walk! Go outside and enjoy the fresh air- I can guarantee you will feel good afterwards. And as you are walking around, have fun with it. Mix it up; pick different things to do or focus on while you are walking.

One thing I highly recommend focusing on is your posture:

-keep your hips tucked under (not pushed back causing your back to arch)

-point your knees and toes straight forward (not turned out or in)

-pull your shoulder blades down (not together as if they are meeting at your spine but down as if they would meet your rear end)

-elongate your neck by trying to increase the distance between your ears and shoulders (not by sticking your nose in the air!)

Good luck!

Katie: Week 41

Speaking of continuing in patience...

Current weight: 134 pounds
Last week's weight: 133 pounds
Total weight loss: 36 pounds

Things have changed for me.  Again.  I'm not really sure where to start, so I guess I'll just start wherever and cover all the things I'd like to say.  Bear with me.

So I've been a bit... umm... undermotivated... shall we say?  One of the devil's oldest tricks is to keep someone from fixing a problem in their life by telling them that there isn't any problem at all!  From the outside this sounds bizarre.  But it's happened to all of us, I think, at one time or another and I definitely fell for it this time.  Shame on me.  How human of me.  How mortal.  Bleh.  See, the more stressed and sick and lazy and busy I got, the more Satan kept telling me, "You don't even need to worry about eating healthy and exercising!  Your body is fine just the way it is!"  At first I laughed him out of the room.  (This, by the way, is what I should have kept on doing.)  But after days and weeks of hearing this I gave up and agreed.  "After all," I thought, "I can always pick things up again later when I have the time energy money motivation."  And so, despite all of your wise advice, I took a break. 

Now I don't think it's bad to take a break every once in a while.  But my reasons for taking a break were sad; I just didn't feel like doing what it took to be healthy.  And we were traveling and in between trips and I had a cold and whatnot.  But our most recent trip included eating out for every single meal of the day except for breakfast.  By the time we got home I felt like my tummy was bigger.  And it probably was.  By the time we got back, I was ready to get back on track again. 

I'm ready now.  Again.

I know I've gone through this whole cycle multiple times since I made my goals at the beginning of the year and I'm sure you're tired of hearing "I love this!"  "I'm sick of this!" round and round in this little cycle.  But I know I'm not the only one who goes through this with weight loss and health and fitness goals, so I hope it's comforting to hear from a regular person what it's like to keep on going.  It's hard.  It really is sometimes.  But it is doable.

We got back from our trip on Sunday.  That evening when Bryan and I were out on a walk I told him I wanted to get back into the swing of things, that I wanted to eat well and exercise and do more cardio and ab work to work toward the flat tummy I've been dreaming of all along.  After talking about some different options, we decided (Bryan's idea) to go running together three times a week.  I also decided on a few personal goals.  They're really nothing new.  But here they are in all their old school goal chart glory:

Oldies, but goodies.  These are the things that work.  For me, at least. 

And I've also returned to my other go-to success item:

The wrap.

For me, these are a super nutrient-rich, low-calorie food that tastes wonderfully fresh and fills me up.

Here's how I layer mine (calorie info from MyFitnessPal.com):

-1 Flat Out wrap (Spinach and Italian are both good)--90 calories
-1/2 Laughing Cow Light Original Swiss Cheese wedge--18 calories
-2 slices Tillamook medium cheddar cheese--110 calories*
-2 slices Jenny-O Sun Dried Tomato Turkey Breast--50 calories
-3/4 cup Earthbound Farm Spring Mix Salad Greens--6 calories
-4 cherry tomatoes--16 calories
-1 slice Western Family Kosher Dill Sandwich Slices--0 calories

I make sure and spread the 1/2 spreadable cheese wedge all over one entire side of the wrap and then I do everything else in two rows(ish) on just one half of the wrap.  This arrangement helps everything hold together better.
*I think my numbers may be off on how many calories two slices of cheese is since cheese is measured by ounces and not slices.  So your guess is probably better than mine.  It might actually be double this amount.  I honestly have no idea.
(Sorry about the weird spacing here.  Blogger is being kind of dumb.  The new picture uploader and I are still in a fight.)

Today I teamed this wrap up with one sliced banana and a cup of carrot juice.  It was really yummy.  And filling.  And all together (with the carrot juice and banana and my probably wrong amount of cheese) it came out to 450 calories.  Not bad, I say.  Not bad.

So, anyway, I know that today I weigh more than I did last week, but I don't feel stressed about it now that I'm doing what I can to really work toward my goals.  Hopefully this time I won't lose steam before I get there!

Happy Tuesday!

Continue in Patience

Katie: Week 40

Ugh.  This being healthy stuff is hard sometimes...

Current weight: 133 pounds
Last week's weight: 131 pounds
Total weight loss: 37 pounds

Grumble grumble grumble.  Harumpf. 

That is how I feel about the extra two pounds that have not-so-mysteriously returned.  I haven't been being a good girl.  I have been eating whatever.  Last week was basically a week of grilled cheese sandwiches because that's what sounded good.  And because we got back from one trip and we're headed out on another one soon and so we have a random assortment of food in the house right now.  And because I have been sick.  And--let's face it--lazy.  I haven't used MyFitnessPal in weeks, I think.

It's getting bad.  And with two more trips and not-long-enough gaps of time at home in between the trips and really good barbecue to test out while on the trips, I am just not feeling motivated.  I've been thinking maybe I should just officially take a break from trying too hard to be healthy until we finish all our trips so that I won't have to feel so mentally and emotionally weighed down by the few pounds of weight fluctuation.  But that might be a bad idea.  Any thoughts?  Encouraging words?  Carrot juice?

Kathy Week 39: Best Dam Run!

Kathy's Week 39 Stats:

Two weeks ago Weight: 128

Today's Weight: 128

Starting Weight: 151

Total Weight Loss: 23 pounds

Yes, I am in maintenance mode. I would like to maintain at 127, but I'm ok with hanging out here at 128, too. Since I don't have exciting weekly updates about losing weight, I've decided to start posting every other week.

I'm not worrying about entering every mouthful I eat into the calculator at myfitnesspal.com, as long as I stay at 128 or lower. If I get on the scale in the morning and see 129, then myfitnesspal.com becomes my best buddy for a day or two, until I see 128 or 127 on the scale. I sure don't want to get back to 130 or higher again!

Today Mark and I took on The Best Dam Run and Walk out in Estacada, Oregon. It was a beautiful day for a run/walk event - sunshine and a cool breeze, right along the Clackamas River. 

Before we even started out, we saw Emily and her two running buddies, (her sister Letia, and running partner Juliette). They had red "runner" numbers, and Mark and I wore green "walker" numbers.

It was a 10K race, most of it alongside the beautiful Clackamas River. Here we are at the start line, next to North Fork Reservoir.

Here's are our three runner friends again, ready for the starting gun! (Juliette, Emily, Letia)

And...they're off! Mark and I walked on the shoulder for a bit, to let all the runner types get past us. 

Most of the 10K was along this beautiful old highway, mostly shaded. The highway is only used by PGE trucks needing access to the dams, so there was no traffic. 

Almost back to Estacada and the finish line! Haha - I love it that the woman in front of me is walking with a cane. What is it about these older gals?? I was passed up by a woman with a cane in the Goat Mountain Gallop in April, too! We did eventually pass her, but only by jogging for a little ways. That blue sign says "Food 1 mile." Can't wait!

Crossing the finish line - walked/jogged 10K in 1 hour 31 minutes! Actually, we were a little faster than that, because we didn't cross the start line right as the starter gun went off. 

Mark and me at the finish line. Whew! Our knees are a little shaky, but we feel great!

Yum! Lots of water, lemonade, fresh fruit for the racers. Plus we got shirts and a cool medal.

We ended at the Estacada Farmer's Market - fun live music, lots of goodies to look at, people chatting after the race.

Thanks, Estacada! We had a great time at the Best Dam Run and Walk 2010!