The Skinny

Easy Berry Smoothie (2-4 points)

2011-11-14T10:04:00.001-08:00

Easy Berry Smoothie (2-4 points)

2 cups mixed berries*
1 cup fresh spinach
2 cups fat free milk

Put all ingredients in a blender and blend to desired texture.

The entire blender full of smoothie is 4 points. The glass you see above has about 1/2 that much. So if you only have one glass, it's only 2 points!

*I bought a big bag of frozen mixed berries from Costco which made this really easy (and much cheaper than buying all those berries fresh).

Okay, so maybe you noticed that I snuck in an entire cup of spinach.
But can you see it now?
Me either.
Nor could I taste it.
So pack it in and give yourself some extra nutrients for no extra points and no funny taste!

Aside from the couple of spoonfuls I snuck in before I took the picture, this is the entire amount of smoothie it made.

Also, this is random, but if you have a lame blender (like me) and it dissuades you from making smoothies, just add more liquid. Chances are, it'll run just fine.

Homemade Coconut Macaroons!

2011-11-13T17:58:00.001-08:00

I love coconut macaroons. But with the average store-bought cookie clocking in somewhere between 3 and 5 Weight Watcher points (up to 160 calories per cookie)...and those are the ones without the chocolate dip...it's hard to justify them as a healthy snack choice!

Enter this healthy Coconut Macaroon Recipe. It's been on a 3x5 card tucked into my cookbook forever...I don't know who to give credit to, but I tried the recipe this weekend, and it's a keeper! After I calculated the recipe's points and figured out that these cookies are only 1 point each, I decided to whip up a batch.

You know what's even better than being low in calories/points? Super easy-peasy to make!! I kid you not. You can whip them up in 10 minutes or less, then sit back and wait for the timer to go off.

Yummy!!

OK, I know this photo makes them look like white blobby puffballs,

so you are just going to have to take my word for how good they are.

Slightly crunchy on the outside, fluffy and moist on the inside...mmmmm!

Coconut Macaroons
2 egg whites
1/2 tsp vanilla
dash salt
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/3 cups flaked coconut

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees, and spray a cookie sheet with Pam.
Beat the egg whites, vanilla, and salt until soft peaks form.
Gradually add the sugar, beating until soft peaks form.
Fold in the coconut.
Drop from a teaspoon 1/2" apart on the greased baking sheet.
Bake at 325 degrees for 20 minutes.
Cool on wire rack.

Makes 20-24 cookies.

1 hike ≠ 1 milkshake

2011-11-12T13:53:00.001-08:00

Mark and I went on a glorious fall afternoon hike yesterday. We hiked steadily--a good pace, uphill and down--for 3 whole hours!

Whew! I was a hiker grandma, for sure!

I was careful with my food choices, and carried a healthy, nutritious, low-points lunch.

Wonderful exercise and healthy food. Win-win, yes? Ummm...no.

Because by the time we got back into civilization, I had waaaay too many rumblies in my tumbly.
After hiking 3 hours, I could certainly justify a small milkshake, right?

Wrong.

When I got home and entered my exercise and my snack into my Weight Watchers points tracker, I ended up regretting my milkshake.

Hiking for 3 hours = 9 activity points
1 small McDonald's vanilla milkshake = 15 food points

Oops. Lesson learned. Next time I'll take a little more (as in, quantity) healthy food with me!

Hot Cocoa with Chocolate Chip Ice Cream (2 points)

2011-11-10T10:31:00.001-08:00

Hot Cocoa with Chocolate Chip Ice Cream (2 points)

1 cup water (0 points)
2 TBS hot cocoa mix (2 points)
2 TBS chocolate chip ice cream (0 points*)

Fill a mug with 1 cup water.** Heat in the microwave for 1-1 1/2 minutes. Spoon hot chocolate mix into water and stir. Top with ice cream and enjoy!

*No joke! The ice cream really doesn't count if you only have 2 TBS. Sweet!

**I actually used a little less than 1 cup so I could leave enough room in my mug for the ice cream.

Oatsies and Scrabbled Egg Whites (revisited) (4 points)

2011-11-10T08:53:00.001-08:00

Scrabbled Egg Whites (2 points)

1/8 cup onion, diced (0 points)
5-6 slices fresh mushrooms, diced (0 points)
3 egg whites (1 point)
1/2 slice of deli ham, diced (0 points)
5-6 cherry tomatoes, sliced (0 points)
1/2 cup fresh baby spinach leaves, chopped (0 points)
2 TBS shredded Mexican* cheese (1 point)

Spray a non-stick frying pan with cooking spray. Saute the onions and mushrooms on medium heat while you prepare the rest. Put everything else except the cheese in a bowl and mix it up with a fork. Remove the sauted onions and mushrooms and add them to the egg mixture.

Spray the pan again with cooking spray and then scrabble the egg mixture like you would normally cook scrabbled eggs. Move scrabbled egg whites to a plate and top with shredded cheese.

*This is just that shredded cheese mix intended for tacos. We had it on hand from--believe it or not--some tacos we made a couple nights ago.

Oatsies (2 points)

1/4 cup 1 Minute Quick Oats oatmeal (2 points)
1/2 cup water (0 points)
1/3 TBS brown sugar (0 points)

Put the oatmeal and water in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat on high for 1- 1 1/2 minutes. Stir in brown sugar.

Serve with a tall glass of water.
________________________________________________________

This breakfast was really yummy and satisfying. I think I like the eggs even better today with the onion, mushrooms, and spinach. It just gave it more color and flavor, I think. Also, adding the spinach was an easy way to pack it with that much more veggie goodness.

I had initially planned on having some fruit with it too, but once it was all prepared, it just seemed like plenty of food already. Also, I had already had a banana earlier during my morning walk.

Now if only I could bring myself to wake up early enough to make this for Bryan before he leaves for school...

Scrabbled Egg Whites (2 points)

2011-11-09T08:00:00.000-08:00

Scrabbled Egg Whites (2 points)

3 egg whites (1 point)
1/2 slice of deli ham, diced (0 points)
1 stalk green onion, diced (0 points)
5-6 cherry tomatoes, sliced (0 points)
1/2 clove fresh garlic, diced (0 points)
2 TBS shredded Mexican* cheese (1 point)

Put everything except the cheese in a bowl and mix it up with a fork. Spray a non-stick frying pan with cooking spray and then scrabble the egg mixture like you would normally cook scrabbled eggs. Move scrabbled egg whites to a plate and top with shredded cheese.

Serve with a side of fruit and a tall glass of water.

*This is just that shredded cheese mix intended for tacos. We had it on hand from--believe it or not--some tacos we made a couple nights ago.
________________________________________________________

This is what I ate for breakfast this morning.
Instead of a bowl of rice chex with skim milk.
There's kind of a difference between the two.

Why the big change?
I joined Weight Watchers yesterday.

I've been hearing good things about the new-and-improved Weight Watchers program from my mom, mother-in-law, and father-in-law for months now. And being on my mom's health insurance (oh the joys of being under 26... and having really nice parents) makes it so I can be in Weight Watchers for free.

So I had been thinking about joining for a while, but then after I read this post on my sister-in-law Holly's blog yesterday, I finally made the plunge. No offense to mine and Bryan's parents, but I think seeing somebody my own age enjoying Weight Watchers made it that much more appealing to me. So, thanks Holly. (And sorry to Mom and Trish and Greg for calling you old. I didn't really mean it, promise.)

Apparently the way it works to get Weight Watchers for free through the health insurance is that you only get 3 months free at a time. And in order to qualify for the next 3 months, you have to actually be consistently entering in your weight and what you eat and everything. Which is totally genius because otherwise I would be really likely to be a lazy bum about it.

When I signed up and got everything started yesterday, I was 150 lbs.
This morning I was 148 lbs.

Haha, actually, I think that has very little to do with Weight Watchers and everything to do with, I don't know, maybe Heavenly Father trying to give me a little push start. Because last night I went to the Relief Society pie night and, ya know, ate a lot of pie. Although I guess I have the whole Weight Watchers thing to thank for my choosing to eat really tiny pieces of each pie instead of really big ones. And even though it just sounds wrong to join Weight Watchers and then go to pie night, I think it was actually really good. For a couple of reasons.

First of all, eating all that pie had me majorly sugared out. My desire to eat sweets right now is considerably lower than normal. Nothing like a good pie binge to make you hate sugar for a while.

And, second of all, it was a good practical situation to show me that being on Weight Watchers doesn't mean I can never splurge. Because, even though I ate all that pie, it didn't put me "over" on calories or points. It just pulled from my flex points that I get each week. So instead of the program telling me, "You are such a fatty and all you ever eat is pie and you should be disappointed in yourself" it said, "That was fun, but let's be good for the rest of the week, okay?"

All in all, I'm happy about Weight Watchers so far. While the website does still seem a little intense and overwhelming to me, I've already picked up quite a bit about how to use it. I think it's going to be a good thing.

Here's to slimming down, eating healthier, and getting that $100!

Lucky 7!

2011-11-06T18:04:00.000-08:00

After 6 weeks of attending Weight Watchers, I have lost 7 pounds! This morning the scale gave me the happy news: 134 pounds.

I am kind of surprised that I like the Weight Watcher eating plan so much! They upgraded it a few months ago to align with the latest information about healthy living. I appreciate the guidelines toward health instead of focusing on calories.

I get 29 "points" every day. The points are based on a formula for fat, carbohydrates, fiber, and protein. I find that I am paying more attention to those numbers now, and not just the calories. For example, both a banana and 1/2 cup of ice cream have about 100 calories. But the banana is 0 points, and the 1/2 cup ice cream is 3 points. It's a no-brainer that the banana is healthier, but now I don't feel guilty for eating it.

I really like the flexibility with the plan. In addition to my daily 29 points, I have another 49 "plus" points that I can use every week, however I like. I can save up to use them all at once for a special event, or I can spread them throughout the week.

I had a little time to myself yesterday evening, so I dropped by Goodwill for a shopping trip to celebrate my smaller self. I bought a size 10 skirt! And this adorable sweater. It is so comfortable, and I love the way it camouflages some of my neck wrinkles.

Mark took the photo when we went with our Primary children to the temple this afternoon.

Holly and Arora - Arora did not want to leave! Her mommy had to promise that they could go back again soon.

The white marble spires were beautiful in the autumn sunshine.

Tonight for dessert, I'm enjoying a wonderful Cherry Cheesecake recipe from the Weight Watchers website. Mmmmmm! You can find the recipe here.

$100

2011-10-27T19:27:00.000-07:00

Umm... does anyone still read this blog? If so, I have something to tell you.

First off, I guess a confession is in order. I have been a super bad example for the past many months. As it turns out, preparing to move across the country, selling all our stuff, moving across the country, buying new stuff, having to work outside the home, and then having my husband start optometry school are, ya know, stressful. And apparently they make me deserving of as many treats as I want. Which is a lot of treats. I may or may not have kept us in constant supply of homemade cookies/cookie dough for the past many moons. Let's not talk about it.

What we should talk about is $100.

Now, to all you filthy rich folk out there who bathe in your coins each night, $100 might not seem like a lot of money. But when you are poor students with zero income, $100 is pretty awesome.

It's also what I am going to win.

Earlier this evening I was sitting at the computer. Bryan was sitting on the floor. I looked in the mirror and said, "I'm getting fat." To which my husband mistakenly replied "Me too," instead of "No you're not, you're beautiful."

So that was that.

We made a deal (and pinky swore on it) that whoever loses the most weight between tomorrow morning and the morning of December 24th (Christmas Eve), will win $100 from our bank account to spend however ~~he/~~she chooses.

All I have to say is, it is so on.

Also, I need rain boots. It rains a lot here. Not like Oregon rain, which I am used to. It's this crazy cold rain that you can't just dodge by avoiding puddles. No rain boots = no walks when it rains. Which = no exercise every time it rains. Which is a lot lately. Bah.

Must. Buy. Rain boots.

The end.

Weight Watchers Update

2011-10-17T21:30:00.000-07:00

My first week on Weight Watchers didn't go too well. I gained a pound. I wasn't tracking my eating. I claimed I was just too busy!...but I think I was just making excuses.

The second week went better. I took the time to set up the "eTools" that you can use with Weight Watchers. Wow. I've been a great fan of myfitnesspal.com, but the Weight Watchers eTools are even better. They are free for 13 weeks with a special code for joining. I think I will be hooked by then, and will want to pay the $13 monthly fee for this tool.

On my second weigh-in, I had lost 4 pounds (really 3 pounds, since I gained a pound the first week). I'll weigh in again tomorrow, and I think it will show another weight loss. According to my home scale, I've lost another pound (maybe 2?) since last week. I'm pretty happy with a program that helps me lose 4-5 pounds in 3 weeks.

Their new program is called Points Plus. Instead of counting calories, foods are rated on a points system that takes into account the fat, fiber, carbohydrates, and protein. I get 29 points every day. The "Plus" part of the plan is that I get an additional 49 points to use however I want throughout the week. It's nice because I can splurge on a special event, or spread the Plus points more evenly throughout the week. One of my favorite things: almost all fruits and vegetables are free points. Even bananas! When I get hungry or munchy, I can eat an apple or a banana and it doesn't count as points for the day. This system is helping me think "healthier" instead of just "low calorie." For example, I can eat 1/2 cup ice cream for 100 calories and 3 points, or a banana for 100 calories and 0 points. Guess which one I choose? You're right...sometimes I choose the ice cream, if I have enough points in my daily/weekly "budget." But lots of time I choose a banana or an apple instead.

The online eTools have a calculator for recipes, which is really easy to use. I can take one of my own recipes - enter the ingredients and number of servings - and it calculates the per-serving points for me. The eTools also have an easy way to mark favorite foods, recipes, and meals, so that tracking became really fast and easy once I got a bunch of "favorite" foods marked. There is a smart phone app that works on my iPod touch, so I can track and calculate points when I'm away from the computer.

The week before I started Weight Watchers, I weighed 141. This morning on my home scale, I was 136. My pants are starting to fit better again, which makes me very happy!

A Little Help from my Friends

2011-09-27T20:33:00.000-07:00

Remember the old Beatles tune, "I'll get by with a little help from my friends..." That's how I've been feeling lately about trying to maintain healthy weight and fitness levels. For a long time I was stuck in the 136-ish range. That wasn't my ideal weight, but it was livable. My clothes weren't too tight, and I felt pretty good most of the time.

Then we went on a long road trip this summer, and I got out of my exercise and healthy-eating habits. There wasn't a big change right away, but over the weeks, the pounds have been creeping back on, while the motivation to be healthy and fit has continued to slip-slide away.

Gah. Yesterday morning I weighed 141 pounds. I've regained half the weight I lost last year. I knew I had to do something.

Yesterday afternoon I got an email from one of the administrators at the high school where I teach. It was time to start up the staff Weight Watchers group again. We have a sweet deal with our health insurance that pays for the cost of the WW meetings, as long as we attend 10 meetings in a 13-week period.

I could have joined last year, but you know what? Last year I was a weight-loss snob. Let those other folks check in at the weekly WW meeting. I certainly didn't need that. I had lost 20 pounds, and I was maintaining just fine, thank you. (Not.) I'm writing today as a sadder-but-wiser girl. Because you know...I could use a little help when it comes to losing weight.

So I went to the Weight Watchers meeting and signed up this afternoon. I might learn some new information about healthy eating or exercising. I might find some great new recipes to fill me up without making me fat. I might finally stop sliding into too-much-junk-food-when-I-don't-need-it snacking habits.

Maybe.

I suspect that most meetings will simply remind me to follow the healthy principles that I already know. The ones I used successfully here on The Skinny to get down to a healthy weight a year ago. It's not like I don't know about healthy eating and exercise and the importance of being fit. So what do I hope that Weight Watchers will give me that I can't do on my own?

Friends. Not some random people I only say "hello" to at a Weight Watchers meeting, but people I know and interact with every day. Colleagues who are also trying to get back on a healthier life-style track. Folks who will smile at me in the hall as we pass--they won't say, "Oh, have you lost any weight today?" but I'll know that their smiles are giving me extra encouragement. Not to mention the weekly weigh-ins. Oh yes, accountability is a very good thing for me.

I'm not planning to make my Skinny posts into Weight Watchers testimonials, but I'll keep you posted from time to time.

Have you used Weight Watchers before? Any tips or hints for me? What is your motivation to live healthy, fit, skinny lives?

Zucchini Invasion

2011-09-06T06:50:00.000-07:00

Question: What do you do with a 22-inch zucchini?

Answer: Try out some new zucchini recipes, of course!

Here are some delicious new recipes we tried out this week.

Summer Squash Casserole

Here is a delicious Summer Squash Casserole we enjoyed on Sunday. Yum! It was a quick, easy side dish. Just 234 calories / serving (3/4 cup). I borrowed this photo from the link - we ate it so quickly that we didn't get a photo!!

Zucchini Pizza Casserole

This Zucchini Pizza Casserole was another big hit. The preparation was a little more involved, but it was a delicious main dish. I cut back on the cheese a little bit. Another plus for this recipe is that it's a gluten-free way to enjoy the flavor of pizza.

You make it in 2 steps.

First you make a base that is almost like a simple souffle. It bakes for 20 minutes.

Then you add the hamburger, cheese, and green peppers (also from our garden!) and bake for another 20 minutes. You end up with this delicious serving on your plate:

This 1-cup serving is 311 calories - not bad for a main dish serving!

Expressions of Love

2011-08-07T08:48:00.000-07:00

Great News!

2011-07-18T18:19:00.000-07:00

Hey Skinnies! Miss me yet? Of course you do. Well I am not completely back from my blogging break...the moving truck comes this Friday...but i had to share some great news with you!

I am in the 130s!

This was espeically great news since I had been on vacation for 10 days, without a scale and eating out a bunch. However remember that I never planned on taking a break from exercising and such, just blogging. :) My vacation even included a 5k with my 2 sisters and mom; lots of other family members ran too in the 10k, 5k, and 1 mile races. It was so fun (even if I did have to wake my sleeping baby to arrive on time!)

Anywho, my pre-pregnancy weight is 133 and I am at 139 and some ounces so I still have a way to go, but it is still so exciting and encouraging to see a "3" as the second number on the scale now- wahoo!

Keep up all of your hard work and I will be back soon! :)

I Don't Know How Much I Weigh...

2011-07-08T06:40:00.000-07:00

Aggh - I'm on a 3-week vacation without a scale! I feel a little insecure about the whole thing. Even when I'm in a naughty phase, and the scale keeps creeping gradually up-up-up, at least I KNOW it. Now I feel like I'm floating without my anchor.

So we are on a 3-week road trip. I left the house with all kinds of promises to myself about only eating healthy. So far we've had two days on the road. The first day my promises-to-self flew out the window - munched on too much salty popcorn and too many almonds. Wait, that's better than cookies and milkshakes, right? The second day I did better. It helps to keep the food in the back of the car and out of reach as we're driving along.

Now we are at my brother-in-law's house for a two-day family reunion. This BIL loves to cook, so there will be lots of eating included in the activities. I'm reminding myself to monitor portion sizes.

I guess I'll be monitoring weight with watching to make sure that my pants aren't getting too tight, etc. We did get out for a 30-minute jog yesterday morning, and we'll be heading out for another jog in just a few minutes.

Coming Clean: Mark and I wrapped up the "Clean" cleanse last week before we left home. I'm glad we did it. Because of our upcoming trip, we only ate Clean for two weeks instead of the recommended three. I think a third week would be hard, but maybe I'd just get into a rhythm. Mark thinks we should try it again sometime, so we'll see. The first week I lost a LOT of weight (142 to 135 - wow!). The second week I maintained at 135-136. After coming off clean, I easily maintained at 136.

Now I'm traveling without a scale for 3 weeks...I don't know how much I weigh! But I do know that I want to get more exercise as we travel, and I'm going to keep reminding myself how much better I feel when I make healthy eating choices.

We camped at this little cabin on the Snake River in Idaho on the first night of our road trip.

The Civility Experiment

2011-07-03T07:39:00.000-07:00

Moments That Matter Most

2011-06-26T08:23:00.000-07:00

I need a break...

2011-06-23T13:59:00.000-07:00

So life is getting a bit crazy around here...we are moving and I have started packing and the boxes keep piling up. Plus we have a baby that we are still trying to figure out- just when you think you've got it they go through a different phase, right? And next week we will be on vacation for over a week, just in time to come home and finish moving and all the fun that goes along with that.

So here it is...I am taking a break.

Not a break from exercising or trying to drink water or toning my arms, but a break from blogging. There just aren't enough hours in the day right now and I hate feeling like I "have" to do something as frivolous as blog. So keep up your good work and I will give you an update in a month or so!

Happy Summer!

Kathy Week 77: I Feel So Squeaky CLEAN!

2011-06-20T21:20:00.000-07:00

Well, I did it. I took the plunge and started the "Clean" cleanse diet last Wednesday.

I plan to stay with the cleanse for a full two weeks. The author recommends three weeks, but we'll be traveling by then, and I don't think I can manage the blender meals while we're on the road.

So far I have been eating CLEAN for 6 days.

I was skeptical going in, but I wanted to give it a try. I wasn't having much success with other methods of getting my weight down those last 10 pounds. Plus, I noticed that I was pretty much constantly puffy, with swollen knuckles, etc. Maybe there are some foods that my body isn't tolerating so well? Maybe it's true that our modern lifestyle is filled with toxins and my body was on overload?

I talked it over with Mark, and he said he wanted to try it, too. Yay! That makes it so much easier than trying to prepare food for two different eating styles. Mark is a CHAMP. Plus, his stomach had been bothering him for a while, and he wondered if cutting out some foods would help him feel better.

So far, the thing that has amazed us both the most is that the foods for the cleanse are so amazingly delicious. And filling. We hardly ever feel those hunger twinges.

Bonuses so far: I am sleeping 8+ hours a night with no difficulty. If I wake to go potty I can fall right back to sleep. My rings fit over my knuckles early in the day (used to be I'd wear them on the wrong finger until the afternoon, when the swelling had finally gone down enough to get them on the right finger).

And I am losing weight!

Hoo boy. It's almost a little scary, except I feel so good. I don't have food cravings and I am almost never hungry. Wait, I take that back. Tonight I was longing for a piece of garlic bread to go with the lamb chop I was enjoying. But seriously, I cannot believe how the pounds are dropping off.

How much weight have I lost?

On Wednesday morning I weighed 142 pounds.
This morning I weighed 136 pounds.

6 pounds lost!!!

I know, of course, that the first two or three pounds were extra fluid my body had been retaining. But I am back to a weight I can live with while the rest of the pounds come off gradually.

Seriously, Skinnies, I am very pleasantly surprised so far with how well this is working for me. I have read lots of articles about unhealthy cleanses. I knew the red flags: all you lose is water weight, they strip your body of nutrients, you are constantly hungry, etc, etc. But when I read the book, I was impressed that this cleanse isn't so extreme. The food portions are reasonable, and the food variety is very healthy.

Now, do not go to the Clean website and buy all those products. WAAAAY too much money.
If you are interested in trying this yourself, just buy the book. Clean by Alejandro Junger. You can pick up a used copy for $8.00 on Amazon.com.

In a nutshell, here's how it works.
Eat a "liquid meal" (a smoothie) for breakfast.
Eat a full meal for lunch.
Eat another liquid meal (a cold "soup" made in the blender) for dinner.
Allow at least 12 hours between dinner and the next morning's breakfast.

The book comes with 7 recipes (each) for smoothies and soups, and 21 recipes for full meals.
The recipes are AMAZING. There has only been one so far where we didn't say, "Oh my gosh, this is SO delicious! Can you believe how good this tastes??"

Or you can create your own food choices, using the the Clean "Yes" and "No" lists for food choices:

The "NO" List:

Citrus, grapes, bananas, dairy, eggs, gluten grains (wheat, oats), beef, pork, soy products, peanuts, corn, tomatoes, potatoes, butter, margarine, mayonaise, alcohol and coffe (I don't use those anyway), soda, refined sugars, honey, maple syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, chocolate.

The "YES" List:

All fruits except the ones listed above, all vegetables (preferably fresh), dairy substitutes (rice milk, almond milk, coconut milk--unsweetened--YUM!!), brown rice, quinoa, other non-gluten grains, fish, chicken, turkey, lean lamb, split peas, lentils, legumes, sesame/pumpkin/sunflower seeds, pecans, almonds, walnuts, nut and seed butters, olive oil and other healthy oils, water, herb tea, agave nectar (small amounts), stevia sweetener

Ready for a recipe? Here is one of our favorite breakfast smoothies:

Berry Smoothie with Coconut Milk and Cinnamon

(Makes 2 servings)

2 cups mixed blueberries and raspberries (I used frozen)

1 1/2 cup coconut milk (I buy it in the health food section at the grocery store)

1/4 avocado

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 to 2 teaspoons agave nectar

1/2 cup ice

Check back next week and I'll tell you if the CLEAN cleanse is still working for me!

Week 10

2011-06-09T19:16:00.000-07:00

For better or worse, the scale is broken. Well it isn't really broken, it just needs a new battery and that really isn't super high on my to-do list right now. (This may be a great thing because my birthday was this week and we have had treats a plenty around here!) Although it might just be because I wore them last week (in pain) and so now they are stretching out, but I wore a pair of my pre-pregnancy shorts today and they didn't feel half bad! Go me! :)

Honesty: You Better Believe It!

2011-06-05T11:46:00.000-07:00

Kathy Week 75: Looking for some motivation

2011-06-04T12:22:00.000-07:00

Bleh. I weighed 140 pounds this morning. I think with the pressure off this last week...no more school play, no more house guests...I got a little careless. I have to admit that it didn't help that my secret pal in the play gave me several candy bars. Sigh.

I hope this isn't creeping middle age weight gain. I want to be healthy and fit! It's always tougher at the end of the school year, just because I'm worn out, and it's hard to resist chocolate and other yummy things.

Plus, we've had the wettest spring on record around here. Wet and cold. No fun. I know, I know, five months ago I said that I was going to go out running no matter what! But I confess my motivation has been slipping lately. The weather in Oregon doesn't usually bother me, but lately it's been getting me down!

Today? It's gorgeous out. We'll hit 85 degrees today, the first time all year. Yay yay yay yay!

I'm stuck indoors this morning, proctoring the S.A.T. at the high school, but the minute I'm done testing, I'm heading for the garden. Lots of yard work waiting for me--and lots of calories to burn!

I need some motivation-inspiration. Any ideas?

Weeks 8 & 9

2011-06-02T16:36:00.000-07:00

Week 8 143.8

Week 9 143.2

Slow and steady my friends. Unfortunately just because the number on the scale is going down doesn't mean my ab strength is coming back. And I had a cuckoo experience at the store that left me with 3, not 1, big container of ice cream...that doesn't bode well for this week! Wish me strength!

Kathy Week 74: Maintaining during a tough week

2011-05-30T12:48:00.000-07:00

I promised myself that if I could just maintain (138 lb) last week, I would be happy. I knew it would be a week with almost zero exercise and strange eating schedules. Mark and I were in the high school play, The Hobbit both elves - you can see pictures here - which meant that there wasn't time to go to yoga class, or go running, and we had to cram meals into almost no time at all.

Plus we had company coming into town at the end of the week! Lots of opportunities to get off track, but I am happy to report that I still weigh 138 today. I recorded calories all week on the myfitnesspal.com website, and I was committed to plan ahead for shopping/meal planning, so we did not eat any fast food all week. (I made an extra batch of last week's quiche recipe, and we bought some frozen meals in the health food section at the grocery store.)

We have some beautiful weather today, so I'm headed out to work in the garden! Have a wonderful, skinny week!

Sold

2011-05-22T13:30:00.000-07:00

So... I have a confession to make.

I sold our scale. Weeks ago.

As some of you already know, we're moving next month. We've decided that most of what we own is just junk anyway, so we're selling almost everything and just moving with what will fit in our car.* So when one of my good friends sent me a message on Facebook a little while back asking if we were selling our scale, I said yes. A few days later they came and got it and I haven't had any idea how much I weigh since then.

When one of my other good friends came over and took a tour of our empty apartment I was listing off some of the stuff we used to have in the bathroom and I mentioned that we had sold our scale. I was both surprised and delighted by her response of, "Don't you love not having a scale?"

I'll admit that up until her comment I had mostly been considering the lack of scale to be a source of guilt and a bit of a nuisance. But after her cheery comment about it being so great, I found myself instantly agreeing with her. The guilt remained since I've been blabbing about getting down to 135 by my birthday, but it has actually been a huge relief to have no idea how much I weigh. The truth is: I don't care.

As for my goal, I'd still like to meet it, but mostly because I'd like to slim down in general. But I'm coming to terms with the fact that it may not happen by my birthday. There are a lot of reasons why. Here are some:

I no longer have a scale, so I'll have no idea if/when I reach my goal.
I sold both strollers (i.e. a little tricky to go walking).**
One of my good walking buddies moved. To Wisconsin.
My other good walking buddy is enjoying her husband being home more... which means less time for walks.
It has been raining. A lot.
We have been buying Oreos. And I have been eating my fair share. And enjoying it.
Our lives are currently on no kind of regular schedule so I often go a few days before I realize I haven't gone on a walk.

So, there you have it. Those are just a few of my lame excuses. Still, lame as they are, they are real. Anyway, to those of you still working on the goal to be 135 by my birthday, I commend you. Will I be meeting that goal with you? Who knows.

*Both my parents and Bryan's parents are being kind and driving some of our stuff out to us later this summer. And we've mailed about 5 boxes of books to ourselves via some nice friends who already live in the place we're moving to.

**This is actually a pretty lame excuse since a very nice friend has already offered to let me borrow hers. Also, we should be getting a new stroller I ordered tomorrow.

I Am a Child of God

2011-05-22T11:03:00.000-07:00

Kathy Week 73: Back on Track

2011-05-21T19:45:00.000-07:00

I had a much-needed wakeup call this week.

I've been slacking off about food choices. An extra milkshake here. A light-night dish of ice cream there. They add up, and I was pretending not to notice.

Tuesday morning: 140 lb. Oh, no!!
As long as I'm still in the 130s, I can pretend I'm not really gaining. I can't ignore it once I hit the 1-4-0.

Tuesday night: Relief Society, and a presentation on health and wellness.
Just what the doctor ordered!

The presenter was my dear friend, Liberty Fort. More about what she had to say in a minute. What really caught my attention was what she had to show. (Wish I'd snapped a photo with my phone...)

She had two small tables in the front of the room. Each table had food on it. Equal calories on both tables. But. There was LOTS of food on the table on the left. You guessed it--all healthy food. Enough to fill you up all day, and it looked delicious.

The table on the right...not so much. It was mostly processed foods, and the calories added up quickly. If that was what I ate all day, I'd have a rumbly tummy. She made the point.

And speaking of foods that fill you up, before I go any further, I want to share a new recipe I found today:

Crustless Swiss Chard Quiche

I made it this evening for dinner. It's a keeper!
Only 177 calories per serving, and get this: a "serving" is 1/4 of that pie!
Be still my heart. So yummy. So filling and satisfying.
I am excited to have leftovers to enjoy!

You can find the recipe and nutrition info here.

And speaking of tracking calories and nutrition info, I'm happy to report that I'm back on the wagon with myfitnesspal.com. Why do I ever stop using this friendly little website? So easy to track food and exercise. And free...

But now, back to...

Liberty's Wisdom

Liberty is a Physician's Assistant, so she has lots of know-how from her training and her work with patients. She shared five keys to living a long and healthy life. (I knew all of these, of course...but it was motivating to hear them again from a friend, especially on a day when I knew I had to make some changes.

The Five Most Important Keys to Health:
1. Don't smoke
2. No more than 1 alcohol drink per day
3. Eat at least 5 fruits/veggies every day
4. Exercise at least 45 minutes, 5 or days/week
5. Maintain an ideal body weight (BMI 19-25)

How am I doing?
#1-2--I've nailed those. No prob.
(So encouraging to know that I am already living the 2 most important rules!)
#3? Most days. If I'm not into junk food.
#4? Ouch. How do I come up with 45 minutes/day?
That's a tough one. But some is better than none, right?
#5...I'm working on it, ok?

One last thought...
Along with the food visuals on the two tables, the most motivating thing Liberty said was this:

My body is an instrument of service. And Christ paid the price for me to be here and serve.

Wowza. That puts healthy eating and living into a whole new ballgame, no? Like if I don't take care of my body, I'm disrespecting Jesus. It's not just about wanting to look good or live a long life. It's a way I can show my love, gratitude, and faith in the Savior. I guess that thought really hit home with me because it's something I've been trying to articulate for a long time, but I hadn't put it in a way that was quite so powerful before.

I have a killer week ahead of me, so I'm headed to the store in just a minute to stock up on fresh veggies that I can cut up and have all ready to go in the fridge. I'll buy a few frozen dinners from the health-food section (a little more moola, but they will help me stay on track during a week that I'm in the high school play). AND I'll continue to make healthy eating choices with myfitnesspal.com.

Have a great week, Skinnies!

Week 7

2011-05-19T21:00:00.000-07:00

This one will be quick...I am getting up at 4am to take my parents to the airport! But I had to share the good news; I am getting so close!

143.8

Just over 10 more pounds to go to reach my pre-pregnancy weight! (Which is 133 for any of you that forgot!) Granted I know they will be the hardest 10 pounds, but it has only been about 4 months and so I am feeling really encouraged and really pumped about it all. Wahoo!

Week 6

2011-05-16T14:25:00.000-07:00

Yes, I am late. But I did weigh in on Thursday...

144.8

Still moving in the right direction, slowly...and I have been so hungry the last couple of days and eating lots so who knows about this week. I am doubtful that in another month I will be down to 135 (anyone remember Katie's goal???) but at least I am not gaining any weight at the moment. Plus I have hope to be back to my pre-pregnancy weight of 133 before the end of the year which is my New Years resolution. And at least I did go on a jog this morning.

My arms are definitely getting some shape back...I have a little line and everything. This is mostly due to the fact that my baby boy is a chunk, not that I am really doing any great arm exercises. I will take what I can get!

I am exercising most days, however there have been a day here or there that I have skipped jogging in the morning and then never make it up later in the day.

Water is still my biggest challenge- and boy do I know it! I can tell at the end of the day just how thirsty I really am. I have a big water jug that I try to keep around me whenever I am home though and try to refill it more than once in a day (it holds 4 cups). I don't always make it, but I'm trying.

In other exciting news, I just signed up for another 5k...this time on the 4th of July in Provo, Ut! We will be there for a family reunion and there are probably already 20 family members signed up to do the 10k, 5k, or 1 mile race. I contemplated doing the 10k, but considering that Utah doesn't really have any air (well, at least that is what it feels like when you are coming from a humid and sea-level location!) I thought that the 5k would definitely be more fun...the 10k would have been doable, but the 5k will actually be fun. Wahoo!

Anyone else signed up for a race???

Kathy Week 71: Balega Socks ROCK!

2011-05-07T21:30:00.000-07:00

I. Am. In. Love.

One of my coworkers gave me a pair of Balega running socks. (Thanks, Laura J!) She blathered on about how wonderful these socks are, how much I would love them.

I was skeptical, but she was right.

I put them on this morning before a quick run, and I kid you not, I could not believe how they felt. They molded softly to my foot. They felt so amazingly wonderful that I forgot I had them on.

I hate to admit it, but they were just what I needed. Ummm, have you noticed that I haven't posted for three weeks? Perhaps you thought to yourself, "Oh, she's probably too busy out running to take time to post..."

Not. More like too-busy-traveling-and-hosting-house-guests-and-stuffing-myself-like-crazy-with-all-kinds-of-naughty-food, and therefore feeling too guilty to post.

The scale showed, it too, with a couple of (yikes!) blips up to 139.

This morning, hooray, it was back to 137. And we are almost finished with the current round of craziness to our schedule. I love visiting family, and having them come visit, but it is so much more difficult--at least for me--to stay on track when there are so many "special" events going on. Anyone else out there have a hard time with that scenario?

Anyway, I haven't been out running for three weeks. It seems like every day I don't run makes it more difficult to convince myself to go out for a run the next day. And so I am in love with my new Balega socks. After three weeks of almost-zero exercise, I was short of breath, but my feet felt great. I wanted to run! Anything that can pump up my motivation is a plus in my book.

I checked online and found lots of info about Balega socks--just google the brand name, and you'll get lots of hits. They come from a small company in South Africa. The name means "to run with speed" in Zulu - how cool is that? I found the best online prices here and here. The pair I have are the "women's Enduro sports," and you can pick them up for about $6.50 per pair.

Why not indulge yourself? They feel so good on your feet! Treat yourself to a Mother's Day gift that keeps on giving--happy feet while you exercise. And speaking of happy feet, I'm going to treat myself to a manicure tonight before I go to bed. It's my Mother's Day gift to me...along with a good run this morning in some amazing socks.

Week 5

2011-05-05T10:15:00.000-07:00

145.6

Progress. A little bit. It may be due to the fact that I hardly had time to eat anything...eating is so crazy with my little one. I rarely have time to make a real meal and so I am just snacking and such here and there and eating when he goes to bed- yes, all of these are really bad habits that I am aware of and planning to change...someday.

But nevertheless the scale moved- wahoo! I have been getting plenty of exercise lately and my arms are definitely getting a little bit of their definition back...the water intake could still improve even though I am doing better about drinking while I nurse my little guy.

And alas, no pictures yet of the exercises I had planned to share. If there is a moment this week where my son is awake (I use him for the exercises) and my husband is home (to take the pictures of course) I promise I will snap them!

Everyone go outside and enjoy that it isn't summer yet...because all too soon we will be wishing for a cool breeze! :)

Weekly Check-in

2011-05-02T06:53:00.000-07:00

Good morning!

This is Lisa. Checking in to see how I did on my weekly goals.

They were:

1) Work on portion control.

2) Fruits and veg vs. cookies and ice cream and etc.

3) exercise for 1 hr. a day

And the results?

1) GOOD! I felt much more in control this week for the most part! I had to consciously think about not trying to eat as much as my husband and that helped. A lot. Also, drinking lots of water at meals helped. I think sometimes I'm actually thirsty when I think I'm hungry. Thanks to my mom for teaching my that little trick!

2)This went better. One night we "cleaned the sink" at Angie's (a local diner) and I was physically sick the whole night. There were three of us and it had been planned for a month or so, so I didn't feel bad celebrating. But I did go a little overboard. But we finished it!

3) Uh, this went ok. Could have been better. I got at least 30 minutes a day of walking, working in the garden, trudging up the hill to campus, so I feel pretty good about that.

With spring finally coming, it'll be easier to be outside, which for me equals happiness and shedding that winter weight. It's like coming out of hibernation. And spring is coming soon!!

Week 4

2011-04-28T09:17:00.000-07:00

146.2

Slow and steady my friends, slow and steady...at least I hope! This week has been a bit of a challenge- my very cute and normally very pleasant baby is going through his 3 month growth spurt and has turned into a not extremely happy guy who rarely sleeps and eats non-stop...can you believe at 3 months he is 18 pounds? Yikes! What did I do? He is completely breastfed though and the doctor isn't worried, but still. Anywho, bottom line is that we haven't had the easiest week. Plus my mom is out of town...which means I am all alone!

And you know what? I still went running this week! Monday I had an early appointment so I skipped the workout to ensure both me and my son were dressed in time, but I have run 2 1/2 miles, outside, pushing the jogging stroller for the last three days. Tuesday and Wednesday it was in the 80s already when I ran and I sweat like never before. Today was a bit cooler, which was lovely, but it is still a hard run and I am amazed that I have done it. Never say never my friends!

So if you are thinking it is impossible for you to exercise, let me tell you that it is not...so go do it!

(And stay tuned for my baby-friendly-but-not-necessary exercises...I don't want this post to be too long and I don't have the pictures ready anyway!)

Day 2

2011-04-26T08:31:00.000-07:00

Bryan and I went running for the second day in a row today. Boo-yah.

We've been saying we want to get back into going jogging for the past little while, but things were so busy with Bryan's fall classes and finals and graduation and having family in town that we finally decided to just wait to start until the fall semester was over. Lame? Perhaps. Realistic? Yes.

Yesterday we went jogging for a whopping 10 minutes and then decided we were done. Today we went for 15 minutes, but we were in the indoor track (because it was snowing--blah) and so it felt like three hours. Especially since it was only the short track this morning. (Alex knows what I mean.) Sometimes they shut down the back part of the track (for... whatever) and make you run on the first 2/3rds of the track. It's something of what I would imagine it would be like to run on a hamster wheel. Anyway, my point is that our 15 minutes this morning is especially commendable since it was hot and stuffy and boring.

In other fitness news from my life, I am now back down to only one walking buddy. :( My BFF Sarah moved away (today officially--good luck driving to Wisconsin with two kids under 2 Sarah! Haha.) and now I'm down to just one walking buddy again. When Sarah was gone over the summer last year I started walking with my friend Katie K. Since both Katie K and Sarah have two kids each, one of them was bound to have something going on on any given day (sick kid, grocery store trip, etc.) and so it actually worked out pretty well for me to cheat and have two walking buddies. So it'll be sad to just go back to one now that Sarah's gone. On the other hand, I am SUPER grateful that Katie K. is still here. Bryan and I were counting up all of our friends that moved out this past weekend and Katie K. and her family are truly some of our only friends left here. I guess that's what happens when you live in a college town and everyone else graduates faster. Haha. Also, Katie K. is awesome to go walking with because she totally whips my booty into shape when she takes off at power walking speed with a double stroller. To say that she is more fit than me would be a bit of an understatement.

Anyway, things are generally going well as I work toward my goal. Not even a full pound of weight loss yet since I first announced my goal last week, but considering the fact that A.) we just had family in town that stuffed us with lots of yummy treats and B.) I'm just getting back into the swing of things, I'd say it's pretty good that I've even lost half a pound.

Oh, and for those of you who are curious (which is probably nobody) I'm back to using MyFitnessPal again. (Any of you out there with an ipod have my great envy.) Doing it on the laptop is not as convenient as I'd like. And it's not as cool as my mother-in-law's Weight Watchers program (it looks pretty snazzy). But it is free. So for now I'll continue to use it. Not that I've been within my calorie range yet. But I think today I will be. Wish me luck.

And best of luck to all of you who have decided to join me in my goal to be 135 lbs by my birthday, June 20, 2011! You have no idea how much more committed I am now that I have company and it's way more fun to have you all along for the ride, even though none of us live near each other. :) Thanks so much for your support! And best of luck as you work toward that goal too!

As of right now I'm aware of the following people joining me in my birthday goal:
Alex
Mom
Lisa

Anybody else want to join? :)

I'm back...

2011-04-25T12:37:00.001-07:00

Hello! I haven't made an appearance on here for quite a LONG while...

Let me reintroduce myself.

I'm Lisa.

I'm Katie's sister-in-law. Kathy is my brother's mother-in-law (I don't think there's a word for that, but she's family.) Last spring/summer I was training for a triathlon and some runs and felt really fit, healthy, etc. However, my weights gone a *little* up since then. I got married in December, then moved up waaay north (= looong winter), and started a new, intense semester in school. I stepped on the scale last night, curious as to why some of my dresses weren't zipping up and almost said a swear word at the number that was blinking below.

I'm not quite ready to post it here, but I'm making a goal, along with Katie, to be back down to 135 by her birthday, less than 2 months away.

Specific goals:

My number one vise is PORTION CONTROL. I'm not going to restrict myself on any foods, but I am going to be very aware of the amount of food I'm eating.

We have lots of fresh fruits and veggies in our house, so those will be my snacks - not the cookies, brownies and ice cream. Those will be for special occasions.

It's still wintery here and the free on-campus gym is about a mile away. That use to be my excuse to not go, but NO MORE. I'll set aside an hour a day to exercise. My schedule will allow for that now and I don't think I'll have that convenience in the future.

Week 3

2011-04-21T14:18:00.000-07:00

Victory! We have some good news folks...

146.6

The scale budged! Now my weight fluctuates a bunch so I am not going to hop up and down yet, but wahoo! All I can say is that I have been trying to be consistent and give it time...I have been running every day- nothing far, a mile here and two there, but I am feeling good and trying to just get out and do it every morning. The true test will be next week when my mom is out of town...she usually motivates and enables me to go! The water intake is still not as great as when I was pregnant, but I am getting better about at least grabbing a bottle of water when I sit down to nurse...whether I chug it or not!

I have some good exercises that you can do with your baby (don't forget that mine turns 3 months on Tuesday and weighs over 16 lbs!) that I will hopefully get pictures of so I can post them next week!

Have a Happy Easter and don't eat too many Cadbury Eggs!!!

I have a goal.

2011-04-21T07:42:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was April 20, 2011.
I weighed 140 pounds.
I want to be at least 5 pounds lighter
By my birthday, June 20, 2011.

I've been getting tubby lately.
Worrying that people will think I'm pregnant.
(I'm not.)
Holding a pillow in front of my pudge when I sit on the couch.
So that nobody will see the bulge.

I eat too many cookies.
I don't eat enough fruits and veggies.
Or drink enough water.
Or exercise enough.

Now that Bryan's done with the semester
It's time to start running again.
I'll keep walking.
I'll drink water.
I'll track my calories.
(At least to some degree.)
And my exercise.

135.
Happy Birthday to me.
Soon.

After that?
I'll work toward 125.

Kathy Week 68: Diet or Discipline?

2011-04-17T08:43:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking about this a lot lately.

It's easier for me to "go on a diet," with a structured eating plan and a specific goal, and the sense of a timeline--as in, it will end at some point--than it is to be truly "disciplined" about my eating on a long-term basis.

Dieting is only useful to a point. What I really need is to develop discipline.

Hmmm...not so much of that around here over the last couple of weeks...

I was actually really inspired by the "Clean" eating plan in Alejandro Junger's book. I followed it pretty closely for a couple of weeks, and while I didn't experience a dramatic weight loss, I generally felt good. My chronic sinus congestion / headaches disappeared, I had more energy, I just felt like I was in control of my eating. I wanted to exercise, and I did.

Then life got in the way. I went out of town, Mark got really sick, the weather was horrible. Blah, blah, blah. So many ~~reasons~~ excuses to let things slip. It's not like I'm binge eating or anything, but I'm back to snacking on sweets, I haven't exercised in two weeks, and I woke up this morning with that classic sinus/tension headache. Plus, the scale is creeping up to 137. It hovered on 138 for half a second, so I know I'm headed in the wrong direction. This just isn't working for me.

In addition to the physical dis-equilibrium I am feeling, I noticed this morning as I was praying that I just didn't really feel like praying very much. I didn't want to focus on the quiet thoughts and feelings that help guide me through the day. Wow, that got my attention. Not feeling as well physically is beginning to affect me spiritually.

Isn't it interesting that "discipline" and "disciple" come from the same Latin root? As I am strengthened in my physical discipline, I can be a better disciple of Christ. That sounds good on paper (or blog?), but I know that it's hard to put into practice over the long term. Discipline, discipleship...both can be difficult to maintain consistently.

This promise from the Book of Mormon gives me hope: "And if men come unto me I will show them unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them" (Ether 12:27).

For sure, this is a weakness that I would like to change until it becomes a strength.

So...here comes a new week! I am committed to begin exercising again (ugh...it's always hard to get started again...feel so stupid and weak...). I don't think it will be realistic to eat with the "Clean" diet for the next little bit, as we'll be traveling again this week, and then we have two weeks of off-and-on house guests, but I can choose discipline/discipleship when it comes to snacks and treats.

And best of all: we have SUNSHINE in the forecast for the whole week ahead of us! That will lift my spirits, for sure, and help me to remember to "walk in the light" and make better choices.

Have a wonderful week, Skinnies! I'd love to have an "atta-girl" comment to encourage me, and I'm thinking of you, too.

Mini-Hamburgers - Frugal Food Friday

2011-04-15T06:04:00.000-07:00

I know...you're shocked! There hasn't been a Frugal Food Friday in AGES. I'm going to try to post more often...but no promises.

We like hamburgers occassionally at our house as an easy meal to through together, and I came up with a great way to keep encourage you to eat more veggies and less of the hamburger.

Buy the mini ones! The package of mini-hamburgers was the same price per pound as the 1/4 pound hamburgers, but since they're smaller you get more per package (cheaper!) and they're fewer calories each...just 120. This leaves you a little less full...and gives you more room for a delicious salad.

In this case we had Rainbow Cole Slaw, a favorite with the kiddos. (And those are homemade whole wheat hamburger buns...probably not fewer calories than store bought, but delicious and whole grain.)

Week 2

2011-04-14T12:47:00.000-07:00

147.6

Well, there hasn't been much progress this week, but I haven't moved backward either! And I was admittedly not as good as I should have been...I may or may not have eaten more than one cupcake on a given day! I have had daily exercise, except for Sunday which is the day of rest after all. I have done a little better on drinking more water throughout the day and having balanced meals. At least dinner is a balanced meal- breakfast and lunch when I am on my own it is all to easy to just have a few crackers or a bowl of cereal or something else real quick and easy.

On a high note I would like to say that not only did I run outside this week, but one day I even pushed little Leo in his jogging stroller which is a completely new workout! Usually he walks with his Grammie while I run and then we meet and finish the walk together, but Grammie wasn't available one day this past week and we ran by ourselves! It was harder, but not impossible :) And I am starting to get my line back on my arms...carrying that carseat with my 16 pound baby has an upside!

Here I go this week...hoping for some great results to share with you next week!

Hello, it's me again...

2011-04-10T13:50:00.000-07:00

No, I haven't fallen off the face of the earth. Yes, I do still remember The Skinny. I just haven't had much to say for a while. And weighing in hasn't been my thing. Mostly, I just haven't had a whole lot of direction with how I want to take care of my body. I'll spare you the excuses. But today I've been thinking a lot more seriously about wanting to make a change (or changes, probably) and be a better steward over my body.

I'm going to try writing on The Skinny again. It may not be on Tuesdays. It may not be once a week. And I may not bother weighing in anymore. Not because I'm embarrassed about my weight (I'm 140 today), but because I want to focus more on healthy living than on the scale. Of course I'll still weigh myself, but what I'm saying here now is that I'm making no commitments to be consistent about when I post on here or what I post about.

That being said, I'm still not sure yet what my plan is going to be. My mother-in-law has been chatting with me about Weight Watchers this afternoon and it sounds great, but I'm not up for paying for weight loss and I don't have an i pod to keep track of it all on. And of course those things aren't fundamental, but I think they do help.

Anyway, I'm going to try to work out a good little plan for myself. In the mean time, if you all want to pray for the snow to be over and done with here, that would be okay with me.

Kathy Week 67: Off Track

2011-04-09T08:56:00.000-07:00

My week got complicated.

On Sunday evening my husband noticed a sore red bump on his forehead. We thought it was a bad bug bit. It was much worse by Tuesday afternoon, so I took him to the doctor.

Diagnosis: Shingles.

Ugh.

Shingles is a painful reappearance of the chicken pox virus. It usually appears in older adults. So far, Mark's case seems to be relatively mild, but it's still no fun. Between taking him to doctor appointments and running to the pharmacy and trying to be a good, sympathetic nurse...I didn't get any exercise this week after the Monday night yoga class. :( I wasn't able to pull together very many "real" healthy meals.

Bottom line: weight 136 this morning.

Mark is beginning to perk up, and I'm hopeful to get back into a better routine this week.

(But last week, I really did RUN an errand! Hahaha!)

A short report

2011-04-07T20:31:00.000-07:00

Week 1 - 147.6

Well, tonight's report is going to be quick...long days with a little one around! Basically I didn't do that well. I tried to drink more water, but most days my efforts were mediocre. I thought and wished for more balanced meals, but it just didn't happen between my baby boy and work-a-holic husband. I can say that I got exercise every day...sometimes it wasn't more than a walk pushing Leo in his stroller, but it was at least something.

So here I go, trying again this next week...

Kathy Week 66: Oh, Fickle Scale!

2011-04-02T08:58:00.000-07:00

Ugh. 137 this morning.

Here is how the week went with my scale:
Last Saturday 136
Sunday 135
Monday 136
Tuesday 136
Wednesday 135
Thursday 134 !! Woo hoo!! :)
Friday 135
Saturday 137!?! You've got to be kidding.

How did I gain 2 pounds after I spent a whole hour sweating while I pushed the lawnmower around yesterday afternoon? (It's a BIG lawn, believe me - good exercise!) Could one dinner of pizza followed by a 100-calorie ice cream cup and a serving of bread pudding really do that to me? Water retention?? I don't know.

I keep reminding myself that it's about living healthy. I am on a downward trend, weight-wise, even if the trend isn't moving as quickly as I'd like.

Here's a quick recap of my weight on April 2 over the last 5 years:
2007 132
2008 138
2009 147
2010 141
2011 137

So I do know that I'm headed in the right direction. I just have to keep on keepin' on!
Maybe I'll have something exciting to report next Saturday, but my scale seems to delight in going UP on Saturday mornings...

I've been continuing to run and do other healthy exercise. This week I "ran" an errand by running to Walgreens! And I mowed our huge backyard yesterday during a brief sun break--that got my heart rate up and I was sweating for an hour, tussling with that mower.

Here are a couple of recipes I'll be using this week.

The first one is a new one for me:
Crockpot Chicken-Rice Soup.
It meets my 3 main criteria: easy, healthy, and delicious.

I'll let you know next week how it turns out.

The next one is for Mango Smoothies, from the Clean book by Alejandro Junger that I mentioned a couple of weeks ago.
Once again, it meets my criteria: simple, healthy, and yummy!!
It's perfect for an after-school snack.

Mango Smoothies
makes 2 servings

1 1/2 cups coconut milk (unsweetened)
1 cup frozen mango chunks (I like to cut them smaller before blending)
1/2 cup pineapple chunks (I use the pineapple tidbits)
2 tsp agave nectar (or honey)
1/2 cup ice

Blend until smooth - pour into 2 glasses - enjoy!

Have a great week, Skinnies!

It is time!

2011-03-31T09:06:00.000-07:00

All right, here I am...ready to face facts.

Fact: I weighed a healthy 133 lbs before getting pregnant with Leo. I was running 5 miles at least 3 times and week and feeling and looking fairly great. It wasn't perfection and I wished that I could lose another 5-10 lbs to get back to where I was in college, however it was good and I felt good.

Fact: I gained about 40 lbs during pregnancy, tipping the scales at 175 right before birth. Yes, this is more than the recommended, but I was still exercising daily and so I think it is just what my body needed...obviously. The doctor I went to had me very concerned about what I was eating and I quickly figured out that it didn't matter if I was a saint or sinner about my diet, I kept gaining what Leo needed....so sure I splurged here and there but I really was pretty good about my eating during pregnancy because I loathed getting on that scale at the doctor and having them tell me again to watch it.

Fact: I came home from the hospital 20 pounds lighter...but that is what happens when your baby is 9 pounds of it! Plus I had more than the "normal" amount of fluid and we all know that water weighs a lot.

Fact: The scale has been stuck for the last few weeks. I started to shed pounds when I got home and then I hit 150 and have been stuck. Ugh. Obviously this whole "I can eat whatever I want because I just had a baby and I am nursing" mentality is not going to get me my pre-pregnancy body back. Even though I have been hitting the gym (and even ran outside this week for the first time!) I am not losing pounds. Sure I feel stronger and more like normal, but call me vain because I want to be 133 again! And I want my regular clothes to fit again...yes, I can get them on now, but that doesn't mean that they look or feel great.

So even though I want to live in fantasy land forever where I can do whatever I feel like whenever I feel like it, it is time to get my body back on track. So here we go Skinnies...

Starting weight - 148lbs

Goals

Long term

weigh 133 lbs

have toned arms

fit comfortably into pre-pregnancy clothing

Short term

eat balanced meals

exercise daily

drink lots of water

I will report next week!

Kathy Week 65: Welcome Spring!

2011-03-26T19:25:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful Spring Break vacation trip to visit family, but it was hard to "behave" completely on my eating. This morning the scale said "136." I'm sure having a tough time getting my weight to 130-ish, where I would like it to be!

I hope the spring weather will help. We got out for a short hike today along the Salmon River Trail, one of my favorites.

The trail goes right along the river for most of the way - lots of views of the fresh, sparkling water. Oh, the air smells so good!

Everywhere along the trail there are little streams and waterfalls that come rushing down the mountain toward the river. So pretty!

We hiked a mile or so along the river, then turned around to head back to the car. It was starting to rain, and getting a little late. But we'll be back out for more hikes again soon!

Recipe Alert!

Back at home after the hike, I tried out two new recipes this evening.

My, oh my, they are so very yummy. Luckily I snapped a couple of photos before we gobbled them up, so I can show you this deliciousness, and I will give you the links to the recipes, too.

Avocado and Papaya Salad

I found the recipe here.

I made these changes:
1. Added a few blueberries. They look beautiful and are full of anti-oxidants. So healthy, so yummy.
2. Used Annie's Lite Raspberry Vinaigrette salad dressing instead of making the dressing in the recipe. The recipe was headed that direction anyway. Have you tried this dressing from Annie's? It's SO GOOD and only 40 calories for 2 Tablespoons.
3. I wish I'd torn up the lettuce leaves before putting the fruit on top. It was kind of a pain to cut them up for eating.

Roasted Asparagus with Olive Vinaigrette

The recipe is from the Real Simple magazine, here.
We've had it two nights in a row now, and I am going to have to buy some more asparagus. Mark and I both in love with this recipe.

The only things I did differently were:
1. I cut the recipe in half, since there are only 2 of us.
2. I used fresh cilantro instead of parsley. Yum yum yum.

Seriously, we agreed that both of these recipes taste better than what you get in a fancy restaurant, but they are so simple and healthy.

Oh, and by the way...papaya. I bought this fruit for the first time a couple of weeks ago. We had it fresh when we were in Guatemala, but for some reason I never tried it here in the U.S. What was I waiting for???

If you haven't tried it yet, here are my papaya recommendations:
1. For your first adventure with papaya, buy the smaller kind of papaya, which comes from Hawaii. It looks a little larger than a pear. The bigger kind is the same shape as a small football, and it's a lot of fruit to consume. The smaller ones aren't so overwhelming. They cost more per pound, but go ahead and just buy one to see how it works out for you.
2. When you buy it, you shouldn't detect a fruity smell. Once the papaya has that fruity smell, it's overripe, and it won't taste as good.
3. I looked online at this website to learn how to cut it up. I hadn't known they have so many seeds! The seeds are edible...a little spicier than we like at our house, but they might be just the thing for you. Or you could plant some and get a cool plant like this one.

Well, Skinnies, that's all I have for this week! I hope the spring is lovely wherever you are, and that you are getting out and getting some healthy exercise. I get to start my yoga class with my husband again on Monday night--hooray!!--and I'll be getting out for some runs, too. See you next week!

One last pic from our Salmon River hike today.

Yes, that is SNOW in the foreground.
Hurry up, Spring!!

Lets make today a good one!

2011-03-25T06:32:00.000-07:00

I ran! Well, kind of. I ran on the treadmill...I know a lot of people count that as the same as running outside; I don't but I consider it a great precursor! I have been doing the elliptical for two weeks as recommended by my doctor to get my insides firmed up and used to the extra movement, but today I jumped on the treadmill instead. (I was feeling pretty amazing after 6 hours of blissful, silent, uninterrupted sleep!) I was surprised at how quickly I found my rhythm again! The last time I ran (5 miles) was December 10th!

So there is hope...if you have skipped a workout one too many times and now think "I can't do it...it will be so hard to start back up...blah blah blah" GET OVER IT! You can do it! Get out there and get some exercise today! Statistics say the "average American" is about 20 pounds overweight...and you definitely don't want to be just "average" do you???

And in case you are in need of a quick dessert to satisfy those sweet cravings, here is one I have come to love!

There isn't really a name...should I take suggestions???

Cube angel food cake and put in pyrex (or something). Mix up one small box of sugar free vanilla pudding with 2 cups skim milk and wisk in about a 1/2 cup fat free sour cream. Pour over the angel food cake. Open a can of lite pie filling (so far blueberry and cherry have been the best) and pour on top of the pudding. Chill and serve! :)

Kathy Week 64: Magical Shoes

2011-03-19T10:48:00.000-07:00

The Fairy Tale of the Magical Shoes

nce upon a time there was a princess who dreamed of running. In her dreams she felt light and free as she sped across the land. But when she tried to actually run, she felt heavy and clunky. It felt nothing like her dreams. She was sad and discouraged.

The king and queen worried about their princess. They watched her from the castle window as she ran around and around the moat, huffing and puffing in her heavy old clunky shoes, and the king had a wonderful idea. He would obtain magical shoes for his little princess so she could run as free as her dreams.

The king called in the best cobbler in the land to make the magical shoes for the princess. He sent runners to every corner of the world to find the best, most magical shoe materials. The elves and fairies pitched in to help, and before long, the shoes were ready. They were white and silver, they sparkled in the sun, and when the princess wore them, she could run faster than ever before.

Alas, she still huffed and puffed. Even with magical shoes, she still had to keep running every day to get a little stronger every day. But with the magical shoes she had more spring in her step, she could feel the energy coursing through her muscles, and as she kept after it, week after week, she began to feel light and free as she sped across the land.

The End

Ahhh...new running shoes! Aren't they just the best! They do feel magical, for sure. We live in such an amazing world, where something like running shoes, composed of parts from around the world, and manufactured halfway around the globe, can be purchased just around the corner. It is a little like a fairy tale, when you think about it.

I've know for a while that it was time to replace the ones I bought last year. So I've been saving up, and this week I went back to the Portland Running Company to buy some new running shoes. Magical! They are the same brand and model I bought last year (why fix it if it ain't broke?) but I definitely notice the difference.

And then...since I'm such a novice runner, and since I'd been saving up my pennies...I asked the clerk for recommendations for running pants. Oh, my! These make a difference, too! I was surprised at how they feel. Their snug fit feels good when I run. She talked me into a shirt made out of the technical fabric that wicks away moisture--not that I sweat hard enough to notice it yet--but it feels good and I know I'll get years of wear out of my new running clothes.

I had an interesting "ahah!" moment yesterday. Mark and I were laughing and reminiscing about a memory from our trip to Guatemala in 2004. We had gone to the Mayan ruins of Tikal, and we were huffing and puffing along the trail to one of the pyramids. I remembered thinking at the time that it was embarrassing that I was so out of breath. But it hit me yesterday--I weighed 175 pounds back then! The "ahah!" moment was the realization that now I weigh 40 pounds less than that.

Wow--I am healthier at (almost) 57 than I was when I turned 50. I am maintaining a healthy weight, I can run and lift weights and do yoga, and I am eating better than ever.

Speaking of eating...that little "letter to my mouth" I posted last week actually helped me get my head straightened around about making food choices, and I've been doing much better this week. I followed most of the recommendations for an "elimination diet" in Dr. Alejandro Junger's book, Clean. I first heard about the book in this article in Outside Magazine. The article piqued my interest, so I bought the book. I'm not sure I agree with all of his ideas, but he had some suggestions that really got me thinking.

For the last week, I have not eaten any of the following foods:

The "NO" List:
Citrus, grapes, bananas, dairy, eggs, gluten grains (wheat, oats), beef, pork, soy products, peanuts, corn, tomatoes, potatoes, butter, margarine, mayonaise, alcohol and coffe (I don't use those anyway), soda, refined sugars, honey, maple syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, chocolate.

Here's what I've been eating instead:

The "YES" List:
All fruits except the ones listed above, all vegetables (preferably fresh), dairy substitutes (rice milk, almond milk, coconut milk--unsweetened--YUM!!), brown rice, quinoa, other non-gluten grains, fish, chicken, turkey, lean lamb, split peas, lentils, legumes, sesame/pumpkin/sunflower seeds, pecans, almonds, walnuts, nut and seed butters, olive oil and other healthy oils, water, herb tea, agave nectar (small amounts), stevia sweetener

How did the week go?

To my surprise, I have not been hungry. I thought I would miss my favorite breakfast, but I switched over to brown rice for breakfast, and I actually like it better. I bought some gluten-free crackers and I've had a little turkey or kale butter on them at lunch instead of a sandwich.

(If you're going to use brown rice, follow Polly's suggestion and go with the short-grain brown rice. WAAAAY better. So yummy. I cook it in my cheap-o rice cooker and it is so easy-peasy. I buy the short-grain rice in the bulk food / health food section at my grocery store.)

I lost 2 pounds. The dark circles under my eyes are lighter. My sinuses aren't congested.
Hmmm...maybe I have some food sensitivities I haven't been paying attention to? Maybe.

Dr. Junger recommends eating this diet for a week, and then going on a 3-week cleanse to rid the body of toxins. The cleanse consists of eating a "liquid meal" (soup, smoothie, etc) for breakfast and dinner, and a regular meal from the Elimination Diet for lunch.

The health teachers at my high school have their students read articles about not going on cleanses, because they are too extreme and unhealthy. After reading Dr. Junger's book, his program seems more moderate and healthy than the ones the health teachers are concerned about.

I haven't decided yet if I'm going to do that or not. If I do, I'll check with my doctor first, and I might wait until summer vacation, when the food prep would be simpler.

In the meantime, I'll be traveling to visit out-of-town family several times in the next couple of months, and I'm not going to impose special eating plans on my hosts. For now, I'm impressed with not only this week's weight loss, but also how good I feel, so I'll probably try to eat mostly from the "YES" list as often as it's practical.

Well, I've blathered on a bit today. I'm feeling good and grateful to be healthy and have running gear and an abundance of nourishing food easily available. Reading about the struggles of the Japanese people at this time really makes me appreciate grocery stores and the farmers who grow the food I eat. We are so blessed, and my heart really goes out to the people and their struggles.

On to a new week! It's spring break in Oregon, and I get to meet my newest granddaughter this week! I hope you are healthy and happy, too.

I've never been sorry that I went to the gym

2011-03-18T13:36:00.001-07:00

So I am a new mother and still work from home...that means I am exhausted. My mind, my body, everything is tired. However I have started to get back to the gym a few days a week and you know what? Even though I am tired, I have never been sorry that I went to get a quick work out in! I always feel good afterwards and I think it gives me an extra boost of energy throughout the day. Plus it makes me happy and you know what they say....when momma is happy, everybody is happy! So if you are contemplating exercising today and can think of eight hundred reasons why you shouldn't, I get you...I have been there....but just do it! You will feel great later, I promise! :)

(Oh and yes I know I promised to come back with more healthy recipes for nursing mothers and everyone else, however the truth is that I am still figuring it out and have spent my few precious moments of non-baby time exercising or working from home rather than blogging...sorry. Someday!)

Kathy Week 63: A letter to my mouth

2011-03-12T12:28:00.000-08:00

Dear Mouth,

What's up with you, anyway? Do you think you in charge of my body or something? I always thought it was my brain that was in charge, but lately I'm not so sure. I've been trying to convince myself otherwise for a long time, but to be honest, I'm not really sure that I can trust you. Even when the rest of me wants to be slender and svelte, even when my brain knows that I don't need another ounce of food, even when my stomach is sending out "full" messages, you keep slurping up morsels of this and that. Why do you do this to me?

Yes, I'm talking to you, Mouth. To every bit of you: the tongue that is infatuated with the texture and flavor of food, the teeth that relish a good hard crunch, especially when my jaw is getting tight with stress, the lips that love to linger over sips and flavors.

If I even think about food, you get busy with your salivary glands, lubricating and setting me up for a complete loss of willpower. And if it's chocolate I'm thinking of? Then there's that tingle in the back of my mouth, like a little whisper saying, "Come on, just one won't hurt." And probably "just one" wouldn't hurt, but you say it over and over and over again.

Mouth, don't get me wrong. I love your smile, the way you kiss, the kindness you express, the laughter that comes bubbling out of you. You are a wonderful part of me. Truly, I'd be nothing without you! But we have to work out this eating thing. You don't get to be the one in charge. You are only one little piece of me, and all the other parts--hips, thighs, upper arms, jowly cheeks, bum, and the belly fat, too--they get to vote from here on out. When I'm tempted to eat, I'm going to be checking in with the rest of me to see if I'm really hungry or not, and to choose the quality of food you'll be taking in.

Really, this will be so much better for both of us. You'll have more time to smile and laugh, and the rest of my body will get to be skinnier. So don't take it personally when I don't come around so much at snack time because, really, it's not about you. It's about ME! And I want to be healthy and fit.

Until our next meal together, Kathy

PS: Today I weighed in (again) at 136. Sad to say, I was actually pleased about that, because I peaked at 138 a couple of days ago. The spirit has been willing, but the flesh ate Girl Scout cookies and donuts again this week.

PPS: At least I did get back into running again! I was out three different days, two miles each time. Usually it's no fun when I start, but it feels so good when I'm done!

Unselfish Service

2011-03-06T10:36:00.000-08:00

Kathy Week 62: Going Bananas

2011-03-05T09:51:00.000-08:00

I love bananas. The other day, I got to thinking about how much I love them, and I did a mental estimate in my head as I was driving:

1 banana / day x 50+ years x 300+ days per year = at least 15,000 bananas I have eaten in my lifetime.

YUM.

So I was thrilled when I ran across this article in Shine magazine that calls bananas "the ultimate hunger-buster." Bananas, the article says, are loaded with a kind of starch called "resistant starch" (RS), which helps to curb hunger.

Slightly underripe medium bananas have 12.5 grams of RS, which is more than most other foods. Ripe bananas have 4.7 grams of RS, which is still enough to keep hunger pangs away.

Guess I need to eat more slightly underripe bananas...I have had another naughty week.
Current weight = 137. Not much exercise. Tsk, tsk, tsk. Time to get back on track.

Breastfeeding

2011-03-03T14:27:00.000-08:00

So first let me give my disclaimer- if you choose not to or can not breastfeed, this post isn't intended to make you feel bad. I recognize that there are a lot of reasons that someone would use formula and I am grateful that in this day and age we have that option. Also, if breastfeeding isn't a topic that applies to you, keep reading! I promise that you can benefit too! That being said, I really wanted to breastfeed my little guy and thankfully everything worked out so we were able to...but I am definitely learning a bunch of things!

First off, every single thing I eat goes to my milk and thus my baby. This more than anything else has helped me to change some of my eating habits...only the best for my boy! :) Now I know that there are plenty of people these days that breastfeed and don't really change their diet, but I wanted to make the best/most nutritious/easiest to digest milk that I could and that required some definite changes.

I am not eating any foods that would be super acidic or gassy, spicy or garlicy, etc. To say the least it is a fairly bland diet. Oh and one more thing- no chocolate! It is said that chocolate is hard to digest in babies (like in dogs) and can give diarrhea....and since I would rather be safe than sorry, chocolate is out along with tomatoes, onions, beans, anything in the cabbage family, etc.

So what is the point? How is this relevant to you? Well I have been finding that meals are a struggle for me- just what exactly do I eat? I am hungrier than ever and it seems like everything has at least one no-no on the ingredient list. So I am here to share some recipes that I find that would be good for breastfeeding mothers...and everyone else!

The first recipe is for "fluff"...maybe it has a real name, but my grandma always called it "fluff".

Fluff

1 container whipped topping

1 container cottage cheese

1 small box jello

fruit

Put all ingredients in a big bowl and mix! Serve chilled. So easy that I can do it with my baby in my arms! :)

Now my favorite is orange jello with mandarin oranges in it, not only because it is delicious but because it is a year-round go-to with no fresh fruit needed. Other favorites include raspberry/strawberry/cherry jello with strawberries/raspberries/blackberries.

This recipe helps me eat cottage cheese which I definitely am not a fan of plain. But it is a great snack as it is high in protein and calcium. Plus if you get the fat free cottage cheese and cool whip and sugar free jello, it is about as healthy as a sweet treat can get!

I will be back next week sharing more recipes and ideas!

*Side note: Altering your diet while breastfeeding is seen as old fashioned...however I am just here to say that I can count the times on one hand that my baby has spit up, diaper changes are quick and painless, and he is hardly fussy at all. I would much rather have an easy baby than deal with spit up or a gassy baby!*

Kathy Week 61: Naughty Girl

2011-02-26T10:32:00.000-08:00

It's been a tough week. I only got out once to exercise because we've had record lows and snow, I've been feeling under the weather, and my plate just got too full. Oh, and did I mention that every time I go to the store lately those cute little Girl Scouts accost me with their cookies? Sigh.

Anyway, the one time I did get out to exercise was great. Mark and I spent President's Day with family, and the grandkids went with me for my run!

We went for a 2-mile jog at the local high school track. Seth and Katie (she's not pictured) rode their bikes, and little Becca even got in the action with her stroller on part of a lap.

Then, later in the week, we had a snow day back at home (we are major snow wimps in the Portland area) and since then we've had record cold weather, and I just can't seem to make myself get outside and exercise.

I'm just being such a whiner, I know, but I am so ready for warmer weather and good times outdoors.

Remember my little hyacinth I bought a couple of weeks ago? Well it bloomed this week, and guess what--the hyacinth aroma made Mark's allergies act up, which aggravated his sinus infection. I had to agree with him--that really was one pungent little plant. I relegated it to the back porch, but even then its fragrance was pretty aggravating, so now it's banished outdoors, where it's suffering in the 20 degree weather. Poor little flowers!

Anyway, between the lack of exercise, the car trip, and the Girl Scout cookies (all right, I confess to a couple of milkshakes, too) I am back up to 135 pounds today. Not the end of the world--a gain of 1 pound--but surely the wrong direction to be headed.

This week I'm going to concentrate on feeling better and getting out for some exercise...if I don't feel up to a run, then at least I need to get outdoors and walk.

O Remember, Remember

2011-02-20T20:12:00.000-08:00

Kathy Week 60: Orange-Sesame Chicken

2011-02-19T08:35:00.000-08:00

Just hangin' out here at the ole weight-loss plateau:
Still jogging 2 miles, 3x/week
Still 134 pounds...
(But that's good! Last week I had a one-day spike to 136, so at least I didn't stay at that weight!)

I tried a delicious recipe this week from Prevention magazine's "Active Calorie" recipe file:

Speaking of recipes...don't forget The Skinny Recipe Index on the left side of the blog.
I check it often when I'm trying to figure out what to fix for dinner.

Orange-Sesame Chicken

Work time: 30 minutes
Total time: 35 minutes
Servings: 4

Ingredients:
2/3 c short-grain brown rice
3/4 c orange juice
1/4 c cider vinegar
2 Tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 Tbsp brown sugar
2 tsp cornstarch
2 Tbsp sesame oil (I substituted canola oil)
1 1/2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp minced fresh ginger
1 tsp red-pepper flakes
4 ribs celery, thinly sliced
4 carrots, thinly sliced
2 c frozen peas, thawed (I substituted frozen/thawed green beans)
2 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds (I substituted sliced almonds and pumpkin seeds)

Directions:
1. Prepare rice per package directions.
2. Combine orange juice, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, and cornstarch in small bowl while rice cooks and whisk until smooth.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large frying pan over medium-high heat. Add chicken, garlic, ginger, and red-pepper flakes. Cook until chicken begins to brown, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to plate.
4. Add celery, carrots, and remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Cook until celery begins to soften, 2 to 3 minutes.
5. Return chicken to pan and add peas. Reduce heat to low and add juice mixture. Cook 2 to 3 minutes longer, scraping up any browned bits on bottom of pan. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve immediately with the rice.

Nutrition Info:
(per serving) 532 cal, 45 g pro, 53 g carb, 8 g fiber, 14.5 g fat, 2 g sat fat, 625 mg sodium

Note:
This recipe has a nice "zing" -- not too hot, but if you're serving it to a family with young children, you might want to cut back on the ginger and red-pepper flakes.

Katie: Week 60

2011-02-15T08:03:00.000-08:00

One, two, skip a few...

Current weight (Week 60): 136 pounds
Last week's weight (Week 57): 138 pounds
Total weight loss: 34 pounds

Sorry I've been a little MIA lately. I don't even really have a great reason for it. Anyway, I'm just going to keep this short and say this:

Hooray for Spring weather on its way!

The past couple of days have been beautiful weather here lately and it is so encouraging to be able to go on walks and spend time outside, even just playing on the playground. And this means we can finally start running again!

Kathy Week 59: Uh oh...

2011-02-12T13:07:00.000-08:00

Gahhh. Got on the scale this morning: 136.
Too much stress-related eating this week, not enough logging food choices on myfitnesspal.com

I want spring!
I want sunshine and warm afternoons!

Today at the grocery store I bought these hyacinth bulbs. I know they'll probably only bloom this one time since they were forced, but I couldn't help myself. Do you know this poem? I've loved it for years:

If of thy mortal goods thou art bereft,

And from thy slender store two loaves alone to thee are left,

Sell one, and with the dole

Buy hyacinths to feed thy soul.

Moslih Eddin Saadi
Gulistan (Garden of Roses)

Ok, so I'm certainly not bereft of my mortal goods, but I decided it was ok to spend $2.99 on some hyacinths to feed my soul. I'm excited for them to bloom sometime this week! I love the idea that we need beauty in our lives as well as the "necessities."

This week I'm trying out a couple of recipes from the "Active Calorie Diet" recipes at prevention.com. You can find a bunch of them here. I don't buy their claim that I don't need to count calories...I know how I tend to "fudge" (no pun intended) when I'm not tracking myself...but I am intrigued by the idea of eating higher quality foods for the calories that I'm "spending."

I also found out yesterday that I won't be able to go on the 5K run I signed up for in April. Boo hoo. We'll be out of town that weekend, it turns out. So I'm going back to the Runner's World racefinder to check out other races in my area. I'm still running 2 miles 3x per week, and my knees are holding up ok so far! Yay!

In the middle of a crazy-busy week, I had this happy news, and I posted photos here.

Happy Valentines Day this week, dear Skinnies! Spring is coming...I just know it is...

Continue in Patience

2011-02-06T14:27:00.000-08:00

Kathy 58: River Run

2011-02-05T10:00:00.000-08:00

If you missed Alex's post about her darling new baby, be sure to check it out here! Congratulations, Alex!

I went to mapmyrun.com this morning, to check the distance of one of my favorite walking paths.

It is exactly 1 mile from the trailhead to the other end of the path, at a pedestrian bridge over the Clackamas River. When I mentioned this to Mark, he said, "Oh, that doesn't seem so far," and he agreed to go with me on my morning run today.

This week I ran 2 miles on the track on Monday and Wednesday after work. This morning I was ready for a little scenic variety!

Here I am at one mile, just after I turned around at the other end of the bridge.

It's overcast this morning, but we only had a few drips, not real rain.

Heading up a slight incline. Just at the top of the hill, we saw one of our teacher friends from the high school. She gave me an "atta girl" as I chugged up the hill - it's so fun to have encouragement!

We stopped a few more times to catch our breath than I do when I'm out by myself, but I still had a great workout. It's so much better with a buddy! I was thrilled that Mark was finally over his cold and sinus infection, and that he felt like he could go out with me for a run.

Weight statistics this week: b-o-r-i-n-g...
Still 134...

I want to start adding some weight-lifting into my non-running days. I plan to do some squats and lunges to strengthen my leg muscles. I've been having a wee bit of knee discomfort at the 2-mile level, so I may drop back a bit on the distance for now, or break it up with some walking stretches.

Any other suggestions?

Have a great week Skinnies!

I lost 20 pounds this week!

2011-02-03T18:20:00.000-08:00

Yes, it is true...I finally had my precious baby boy and came home from the hospital about 20 pounds lighter. And while I won't brag about him (sorry, he really is just perfect!) I will share a few details of his birth. No, not the gross kind- you can keep reading :)

I had to be induced because our little Leo wasn't coming on his own and was getting pretty big. I am about 5'3 and semi-petite framed and wanted to have a vaginal birth and they were estimating his weight at about 9 lbs...he ended up being 9 lb 1 oz, 22 in long. Anywho, they started an IV and broke my water in the early morning; I labored all day and pushed for a little over an hour before he arrived, shortly before 9pm.

My doctor was concerned because he was a big baby that I wouldn't be able to push him out, however when all was said and done she commended my athleticism (knowing I am a runner and dancer) and said that it was probably the reason that I was able to do it. I have recovered really quickly too- sure I am tired, but who with a one-week-old isn't? My body has done really well and I was up and moving around almost immediately. I contribute this too to the fact that I was good and healthy and active before and during my pregnancy. So all in all I guess I just wanted to let all you Skinnies out there know that it is worth it- the exercise, the sweat, the healthy eating...it is worth it! Because when your body has to go through something traumatic, such as birth, it does so much better if you are in good shape!

Now I am counting down the days until my doctor gives me the go-ahead to start exercising again (not to mention until it gets warm enough to take my boy out!) I truly miss it and have never been more grateful for a healthy body than now. Sometimes our motivation comes out of wanting to look a certain way, which I understand and fall victim to as well, but try really hard this week to focus on making yourself feel good and healthy...no matter what size you are or what you look like!

Sweet Tooth Attack

2011-01-31T18:12:00.000-08:00

Hey Skinnies -

I ran across these healthy dessert ideas in a magazine article I clipped back in 1998.
(Yes...I've been working on weight control for a l-o-n-g time...)

But these are great ideas! You can have ONE of these 100-calorie treats each day.

100 calories:
1/2 cup fat-free frozen yogurt
1 slice crumb cake (1 oz)
1 graham cracker topped with 1 1/2 tsp peanut butter & 1 tsp semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 slice fat-free poundcake (1.2 oz) topped w/ 1 fresh strawberry & 2 tsp strawberry jam

50 calories:
12 chocolate-covered raisins

250 calories:
(For a little splurge on the weekend)
Oatmeal Cookie Sandwich:
scoop 1/4 cup vanilla ice cream between two 3-inch store-bought oatmeal cookies

1 Chocolate Eclair

And here are a few more ideas...

50 calories or less...
12 jelly beans
1 frozen fruit-juice bar
1 1/2 pieces red stick licorice
2 small lollipops
2 hard butterscotch candies
1/3 cup caramel popcorn
1 packaged chocolate-chip cookie (2 inches across)
5 small chocolate-covered mints

100 calories or less...
4 chocolate kisses
3 chocolate graham crackers
1/2 cup fat-free vanilla pudding
1 frozen fudge bar
3 chewy caramel candies
1 fat-free chocolate-coated frozen yogurt bar
2 vanilla sandwich cookies
1 low-fat almond-flavored biscotti (small)

250 calories or less...
1 fudge brownie (1 1/2 x 3 inches)
1 cup raspberry sorbet
1/2 cup premium chocolate ice cream
1/18 of a 9-inch chocolate layer cake with chocolate frosting
22 chocolate-coated peanut candies
1 vanilla milk shake (7 oz.)
1 hot cinnamon roll (2.3 oz.)
2 large peanut butter cups

Kathy Week 57: Play Day

2011-01-29T12:17:00.000-08:00

Slept in 'till 8:30 this morning!!

Amazing. During the week the alarm clock goes off at 5:15 am, and so I almost never sleep past 6:30 on weekends. I guess my body needed the rest--I've been feeling a little sleep-deprived the last few days, and oh, what a luxury to get to sleep longer. There's quite a bit of research that connects getting enough sleep with losing weight in healthy ways. If you're stuck on the scale, you might try heading to bed a little earlier!

Speaking of scales...
I had some happy news at the scale this morning: 134.
(Last two weeks I was at 135.)

Running report: Yes, I ran 1.5 miles 3x last week.
I'm aiming to run 1.75 miles 3x in the coming week.
My knees are a little tender, so I think I'll go back to running at the track for the coming week. It has that nice rubbery surface, which is more gentle for the joints. I enjoy the variety and views of running on streets, but I need to be kinder to my middle-aged body for a bit.

Since we were already way past breakfast time, Mark and I decided to go for a little breakfast date. We headed for a local path along the Willamette River, with a nearby McDonald's as our destination.

The local sternwheeler tied up at dock.

Fishermen out on the river.

The boat dock.

Ready for breakfast!

(We ran into some longtime friends, also out for breakfast, at McDonald's. Thanks, Edria, for snapping the photo!)

At McDonald's I enjoyed a yummy bacon/cheese/egg biscuit (420 calories) and milk (100 calories). They have a pamphlet that lists all of their nutrition info. Mark tried their new oatmeal, which is actually quite tasty (yes, I snagged a couple of bites), and at only 290 calories and 5 grams of fiber, I plan to select that for my breakfast next time we head to the golden arches. I usually grab an Egg McMuffin (300 calories), but I like the fiber options with the oatmeal.

Our walk to McDonald's and back to the car was 1.3 miles of beautiful river view. Before heading home, we stopped off at Spicer's to load up on produce. Love the funky feel and beautiful produce selections of this little produce store.

Have a great week, Skinny friends!

My advice to all of us this week:

Get enough sleep

Eat lots of healthy produce

Get some exercise

And remember to get out and play with your friends/honey/kids, too!

Katie: Week 57 Confessions and A Re-Start

2011-01-28T08:37:00.000-08:00

Ok, so I'm posting a little late this week. And--oh my...

Current weight (Week 55): 138 pounds
Last week's weight (Week 51): 135 pounds
Total weight loss: 32 pounds

Part 1: The Confession:

Hello. My name is Katie. And I am addicted to food. Especially sweets.

I know, I know, we all joke about using a line like that. But, for the most part here, I'm being serious.

Some of you may already know this, but my husband and I are also addicted to West Wing. It's a TV show from the 90's about the inter workings of the west wing of the White House. Neither of us watched an episode when it aired on television, but we now own the first four seasons on DVD. And it's actually kind of funny that Bryan and I are so into this show because it's super political and neither of us are really all that into politics. But it also happens to be very well written and--most of the time--pretty funny. So anyway, we watch a lot of West Wing.

And there's this one episode where one of the characters is talking about his addiction to alcohol. And he says something like, "I don't understand people who can just have one drink. I can't understand why anyone wouldn't want to keep feeling this way. It's not a matter of smart and stupid. I'm addicted." (And for those of us with morals out there, I'll just add that he doesn't say this to justify continuing his habit. He just says it when he's trying to explain how he used to be.)

Anyway, back to what he said. When I watched this episode for the first time I couldn't help but think, "That's how I feel about brownies!" And then, the moment after I'd had that thought, I recoiled. Really? That's how I feel about brownies? It startled me, but it's true. I really can't understand people who just want one brownie. Or one cookie. Or one helping of a dinner that tastes so good. Even if I know my body doesn't need anymore, I just want to keep tasting that good food.

Then, when I was at my in-laws' house for Christmas I was reading a copy of Prevention magazine and it was talking about a study that somebody had done recently to prove that people really can be addicted to sugar the same way that people can be addicted to other things. And, reading this, my initial thoughts from that episode of West Wing came back to me. Is it true? Am I really addicted to food, especially sugary foods? Yes, I think so.

Part 2: The Re-Start

I had let myself relax on my health goals over the holidays. And I guess I just kept thinking that I would automatically feel motivated to jump right back into my goals again the moment we got back home. But I didn't. And I kept waiting to feel motivated. And I haven't.

Even my sad attempt at doing something (making homemade meals) last week didn't really pan out to be all that helpful. Mainly because I kept making sweets and meals with a lot of meat. No good, no good.

So, last night as I was getting ready for bed and thinking about how my tummy just keeps getting bigger and how I do not want to completely regress, I decided it was time to get back into the swing of things even thought I still don't really feel all that motivated. So, last night, I wrote down some things on the old goals chart again. And I wrote down some goals. And this morning I started entering everything into MyFitnessPal.com again. Sigh.

I know that these are good things, but I think I've been having a harder time getting super motivated this time around because it's beginning to set in more and more (especially with my recent weight gain just in the past week) that if I'm really going to reach and maintain my goal weight, I'm going to have to make permanent life changes, and not just stick with things for a few months.

Anyway, my goals are super exciting, but one other thing I wanted to mention was that in the article I was reading in that Prevention magazine it talked about ways to combat sugar addiction. And one thing it said is that, when we eat something sugary, our bodies want more of that. But if we hold off on sugar for a few days, it gets out of our blood stream and then we don't want it so badly. And I know that entering everything into MyFitnessPal is always a sure way to get me to majorly cut down on treats, so I'm going to be cutting way back on the sweets.

And I had a friend mention to me the other day that she's made a lot of progress in her fitness goals simply by cutting out dairy (she's lactose intolerant anyway, she says) and red meat. I don't think I'm ready to fully cut out either, but I have been thinking a lot since my conversation with my friend about not eating so much red meat. And, to help with that, I bought some chicken breasts on a great sale the other day.

But... uhh... here's the thing. I don't really have any great (and healthy) chicken recipes up my sleeve. Any great ideas? (Easy ones, please? Especially crock pot meals?)

Anyway, I'm still feeling pretty blah, but I do want to move forward rather than backward. Any encouragement you have to offer would be much appreciated. Thanks everyone.

Kathy Week 56:

2011-01-22T09:16:00.000-08:00

Good morning, Skinny Friends!

Today's weight...same as last week...135.
(But since the scale tipped up to 136 for a couple of mornings this week, I guess I'm not complaining.)

Ok, so the weight thing is boring. But I am very happy to say that I feel a little stronger in my running today than I did a week ago.

I ran 3 times again this week. Ran 1.2 miles each time, according to mapmyrun.com.
Instead of running to the nearby track (lots of rain this week = mushy muddy path), I ran on sidewalks to the nearby elementary school and back. It was nice to have streetlights in the evening.

Which brings me to a question: AM or PM?

What is the best time of day to run?

Haha - just asking that question, I know the answer:
Whenever you WILL run.

But I have been thinking about this. Some days, I run first thing in the morning. When I do that, I have more energy after I get home, and I seem to get more done during the day. Other days, I run in the evening. When I do that, I have more energy as I'm running; my form is better, I just feel like I'm a better runner, and I enjoy the running a little more.

Does anyone have any advice on this for me?

It was on one of those evenings that I was running this week, enjoying the feel of my body moving, thinking about becoming a runner this year, I decided: IT'S TIME TO SIGN UP FOR A RACE.

Yes, I did it! I signed up for a 5K race in April!
(I found it by going to this website and entering the info for location and type of race.)
After looking through the list on Running World's website, I thought that Running for Risa, on April 23, sounded just right for my first race. (Any of you Portland-area locals want to run it with me?)

Alex and Emily were right when they posted on The Skinny last year about this time and said that signing up for a race helps you stay motivated. So true! Now I feel like I have a motivation to prepare for the race. I need to keep running, adding a little to my distance each week, and I need to address my eating habits, which have backslid into some sloppy tendencies over the holidays.

Now that I've signed up for my very first 5K ever, here are my training goals:

1. Continue running 3x per week. This week I'll be running 1.5 miles on 3 different days.
2. Walk the running distance (1.5 miles...or more...) 2x per week.
3. Track my meals/calories on myfitnesspal.com again. Sigh. I wish I were perfect, and could eat just the right amounts of very healthy foods without having to track what I eat. But I'm not. At least not yet. So in the meantime, I'm just going to be very grateful for quick and easy tools that make it simple to behave myself.

Ok, Skinny Friends, I think that's all for today. I welcome your advice and encouragement, and I'm sending it right back atcha!

The days are getting longer, and spring will be here before we know it.

Whatever your goals are for health and fitness in 2011, you CAN do it!

Blueberry Raspberry Whole Wheat Oatmeal Muffins

2011-01-19T13:36:00.000-08:00

Like I said in my last post, I got the urge to make muffins this morning. And, despite (or because of?) a minor miscalculation on my part, they turned out REALLY good. And not just like "they're pretty good for being healthy muffins," but like, "I'd want to eat ten of these even if I didn't know they were only made with wheat flour." Want to make some too? Here we go...

Blueberry Raspberry Whole Wheat Oatmeal Muffins
(recipe adapted from the basic muffin recipe in Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook, pg. 115)

Ingredients:

1 1/3 cup whole wheat flour
3/4 cup rolled oats*
1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 beaten egg
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup cooking oil
3/4 cup frozen (or fresh) raspberries and blueberries

*I used quick oats since that's what we had, but I imagine old fashioned oatmeal would work fine too.

Combine whole wheat flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl. Once ingredients are combined, make a well in the center.

In another bowl (I do it in my 2 cup measuring cup so I can measure my ingredients and then I don't have to get another bowl dirty) combine milk, oil, and egg. Pour all at once into the flour mixture. Mix until combined.

Mix in blueberries and raspberries (no need to thaw, if frozen).

Spoon muffin batter into 12 lined or greased muffin cups.

Bake for 18 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of a muffin comes out clean. Cool on wire rack.

Mmmmm. Try not to eat too many. ;)

I'll admit that I kind of messed up. I meant to do half white flour and half wheat flour, but I miscalculated (story of my life) and realized that I had added the entire amount of flour after I finished adding the wheat flour, so I figured I'd just see how things turned out. And they turned out great! Really--so, so yummy.

Olivia and I already shared 4. (eek!) :)

Enjoy!

Katie: Week 56-- A new goal

2011-01-19T13:13:00.000-08:00

Could the title of this post possibly be any longer?...

Current weight (Week 55): 135 pounds
Last week's weight (Week 51): 136 pounds
Total weight loss: 35 pounds

Blah. That is how I've been feeling about weight loss. And eating healthy. And remembering to weigh myself. Which is why I didn't check in yesterday. I just forgot to weigh myself in the morning. Lame, right? Right.

I've had a hard time getting back into the swing of healthy living since we got back from Christmas vacation. And then we had a big family wedding (Yay Lisa!). And then Bryan started a new semester. So things were just kind of crazy. Now life has settled down a lot, but I've still been feeling blah about healthy living. And a big part of that was due to the super cold weather we were having. (See last week's post for more whining about that.) So I haven't wanted to set goals for going running or going on outside walks since I know I'd be frustrated and stressed if I couldn't meet the goals due to bad weather. Aaaaaanyway, I've been due for a goal. And this morning I thought of one. And I'm actually pretty excited about it.

I'm going to make things from scratch this week.

I'm not generally the kind of person who just loves to cook. I don't look up new recipes. I don't try new ingredients. Out of necessity, I cook the same five meals all the time. And since I get sick of those meals I don't cook all the time. And--ahem--we've been having a lot of store-bought cookies lately. (Sheepish face) So it was a little strange when I suddenly got the urge this morning to bake muffins, but I decided to go with it. And it was while I was mixing up muffins that I decided to make things from scratch this week.

Oh, I'm sure there will be plenty of things I eat that I don't make from scratch, but my goal here is to eat meals prepared at home. And I figure that, this way, if I want some cookies then at least I have to want them badly enough to make them. And I can make them with whole wheat flour. And there's no way they will be as bad as the store-bought cookies we've been eating. (Heh heh...)

So, to make it all happen, I've already made a batch of SUPER yummy muffins (I'll share the recipe for that in an upcoming post, hopefully later today if my internet connection will stop going on the fritz.). And I planned out a couple of meals and went grocery shopping. And I bought bread flour. Yes, I'm going to attempt making bread again. Or at least I'm telling myself that I will.

And you know what? I'm excited about it. And that's the first weight-loss/ healthy living thing I've been excited about since we got back from Christmas break. So, while it's not quite the same as counting calories and running three times a week, it's a start. And that's important.

Anyway, I'll try to share recipes I try this week as often as I can. Even if they're just the same ol' same ol' ones I always make. Wish me luck! :)

Kathy Week 55: Checking In

2011-01-15T07:40:00.000-08:00

Not much news to report. January weather...bleh.

I did get out and run 3 times this week.

Weight this morning is 135. Double bleh.

The one bright spot in my Skinny life for the week: I ran 1 1/4 mile on my third run. So that's my new goal for this week. Run 3 times, 1 1/4 miles each time.

Oh, and also, get my weight back to 134, at least.

Maybe I need to go to this website to get myself out the door. I need to get outside and play!!

Sorry, I guess I'm in a mid-January slump, but at least I'm hanging in there. Hope you are, too! I keep reminding myself that every day, there are a few minutes more daylight than we had the day before...

A Dangerous New Years Resolution

2011-01-13T08:40:00.000-08:00

So I made a New Year's resolution to be back to my pre-pregnancy weight...yikes. I haven't even had the baby yet and I am already thinking about losing my baby fat! And I have plenty of it...I have gained almost 40 pounds this pregnancy! Yes I know this is more than the traditional healthy recommendation of 25-35 pounds, but it is obviously what my body needed and so I am not that concerned about it...even if my doctor is!

Anywho, so I have this goal and it is kind of frustrating not to be able to get to work on it now while I have the motivation. And then I thought on my walk this morning that I am already working on it by keeping some sort of exercise in my daily routine- and while I will definitely have to step it up to lose the extra weight, it is nice to know that I am not going to have to completely overhaul my habits. I think that is what we should all strive for...not to just make changes to lose some weight but to intend to make a change for life.

So even though I am not to the point where I am going to up my fitness routine yet, I am making some life changes now; I am focusing on drinking lots of water and getting more veggies into my daily meals. What are you going to change this year? Not just for a set amount of time or until you are a certain size, but what life change are you going to commit to this year?

Wish me luck that I have the baby this week...he is so low now that sometimes when I walk in the mornings I think he might just fall out! (Wouldn't that be nice?) And get ready to get back to some intense exercise with me in a month or two! :)

Katie: Week 55 Coping with a New Year

2011-01-11T09:45:00.000-08:00

ehhh...

Current weight (Week 55): 136 pounds
Last week's weight (Week 51): 130 pounds
Total weight loss: 34 pounds

Sigh.

I ate too much during the holidays. Too much eating and not enough exercising. Though, to my credit, I did go running once and to the gym once while on vacation. And I have tried to go on walks as often as I can since we've been back from vacation. But it's harder right now than it used to be.

My excuses/ struggles in not progressing in my weight loss goals as much as I'd like are three fold.

It's very cold outside.
My daughter throws tantrums nearly ever time I go on a walk.
I still want all the goodies.

The first two problems are connected. While I'm certainly not excited to go out and run or go on a walk in the frigid weather we've been having (since about the middle of December) I'm still willing to do it. And once I get out and get going I don't really mind it so much. So if it were just up to me I may skip a few days here and there, but I think I'd still be pretty good about getting out and getting some healthy exercise.

Unfortunately, it's not just up to me. As a stay at home mom, my life is inseparably connected to my daughter, now almost 1 1/2 years old. And she has developed two likes/ dislikes that have recently made it nearly impossible for me to enjoy outside walks. First of all, she's officially started walking. And with that new-found independence has come a dislike for being strapped into the stroller. She does okay for a while, but after a certain amount of time she just screams when I don't let her out and walk. This combined with her utter refusal to keep a hat or mittens on has made outside walks in the frigid cold an impossibility for me for the time being. It used to be a somewhat manageable problem. But with the temperature below freezing every single day, I just can't keep her outside without a hat and mittens on. We have a great little snow suit for her and I've done my best to bundle her up, but she screams when anything covers up her hands or head and she screams when they get cold. Agh. So for now I've decided to surrender. At least until the weather gets warmer or until she'll tolerate things to keep her warm, I've consigned myself to inside walks only. Needless to say, we've been doing a lot of mall walking. And it's good, but it's just not quite the same, you know? Doesn't quite burn calories the same way as walking up and down hills and walking longer distances. That being said, there are some definite perks to walking indoors, especially at a place like the mall. Most especially, we can stop and go back to the car whenever we want and there's easy access to public restrooms. Both of these are major pluses when your walking partner (i.e. my walking partner) is 8 1/2 months pregnant. :)

As for the third problem, the eating too much. Gah. I don't know. I know I've been eating a lot less at home than I was when we were on vacation. And I'm glad about that. But I'm still hooked on the little things--cookies and milk or a little bowl of ice cream at night. And I don't feel ready to give it up. I think mostly that's because I feel like I have to do all or nothing. And I don't want to go completely without sweets. I think it's a struggle I'll be working on for a long time. It's hard.

Anyway, I'm not progressing as quickly as I'd like to be right now. But I haven't given up. I'm going pretty slow at the moment, but I am still going. And, at least for now, I'm proud of that.

Mormon Messages: What Matters Most

2011-01-09T10:47:00.000-08:00

Kathy Week 54: I Am a Wealthy Woman

2011-01-08T06:00:00.000-08:00

For a novice runner, I couldn't ask for a better place to run. There is a middle school track at the end of my street. How sweet is that!!??

This is so perfect. I run out my front door, down the street to the path, and then across the field to the track. That's 1/4 mile. Then I run around the track twice--1/2 mile. Then back home for another 1/4 mile, and I just ran a mile!

I thought it was just the rich people who had something like a track in their back yard. I realize that I am a wealthy woman!

I ran this route on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday this week. Monday was slightly damp, Wednesday was overcast, and Friday was a light steady rain. Temperatures were in the high 30s or low 40s.

Mark ran with me on Friday, and I was able to run more than him!! Not that I mean to be competitive or anything, but I would just like to point out that this was the first time we've run together that he had to stop and walk while I kept running. Of course I was nice to him about it, but I have to admit that I was secretly just a little tickled.

My weight is still 134. The weather forecast is cold and icky this coming week, so I don't feel any pressing need to raise my weekly goal above three miles for next week. I think it's a good way for me to maintain my commitment to running.

A friend recommended this website for getting started as a runner. I read through the different pages, and realized that I am already way better at running than the "couch potato" status the website describes for beginners.

Are you just getting started on running? Not sure you can do it? You CAN!! I am 56 years old and out of shape, and for years I believed I could not run, but I am doing it. If I can do it, you can too. I don't run fast, and I don't run far, but I AM becoming a runner, a little bit at a time.

Will I lift some weights this coming week? Maybe...
Count calories?? Never can tell...

But for sure, my skinny friends, I will be running.

What makes you wealthy?

I'm not sure how much I weigh today

2011-01-04T18:28:00.000-08:00

Hey Skinnies!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas break! I had a great time out in Virginia with my fun in-laws and then back here at home for my sister-in-law's wedding. We ate and played and ate and played and ate and ate some more. I literally gained ten pounds (I think) since Thanksgiving. But I've already lost at least half of that since we came back--not even really from doing anything. Anyway, we've still got some family in town and it's been pretty cold outside and my daughter has been sick, so I haven't really been getting back into my regular groove yet. Part of me would love to switch back into mega workout and eat healthy mode, but the other part of me is content just to kind of ease back into daily life for a few more days while we've got family in town. So, anyway, I forgot to weigh myself today. But I did have fun watching my little girl count the days on the calendar and tell me what a doggie says about ten billion times. Life is pretty quiet and slow right now. I'm sure it'll pick up again soon. Probably by next week.

Until then,
Katie :)

Happy New Year!

2011-01-04T08:26:00.000-08:00

So I know it isn't my regular posting time, however I just wanted to wish y'all a very happy new year! My posts may be a little irregular in the coming weeks, but I am still thinking of all of you!

I will admit that this year it was a little bit liberating to have the new year roll around and not have to start trying to up my exercise or change my eating habits right away...I will get there this year for sure, however at about 8 1/2 months pregnant it isn't really the time to start doing sit-ups and such! But I want you all to know that the first thing I do each morning (besides brush my teeth and make my husband breakfast and a lunch, of course) is get out and go for a walk; it has been about a month since I stopped running but I still walk a couple of miles each morning. And you know what? I feel great! Sure my back aches here and there and little things like that, but for the most part I feel really good and I know that it is in large part to my staying active throughout my entire pregnancy. Mentally I am invigorated to get a lot done each day when I start with exercise while physically it has helped me to not be so achey and actually sleep pretty well still at nights.

So I know that this is a time when a lot of us feel a tad bit more motivated and pretty soon it just seems like too much hard work, but I can testify to you that if you keep at it you will feel fantastic. You will feel proud of yourself as well as healthier! 2007 was the year I whipped myself into shape and I wouldn't go back for the world...no amount of sleep or snacks or anything is worth how great I feel inside and out each day now! Lets make 2011 your year!

Good luck!

New Year's: Look Not behind Thee

2011-01-02T08:12:00.000-08:00

Kathy Week 53: Hello 2011!

2011-01-01T17:08:00.000-08:00

Dear 2011,

Ready or not, here you are, a brand-spanking new year filled with 365 mornings just waiting to surprise me! What kind of year will you be?

It's kind of hard for me to believe that Katie organized The Skinny a whole year ago! I've been a bit AWOL for the last while, but I'm ready to get back on track with my health goals again.

Remember this photo?

Ouch! One year ago today. Weight: 151 lbs. The weight can creep up so easily, no?

By summer I was here:

So much healthier and happier! My weight was just below 130 in this photo.

Today it's in between those two: 134 on the scale this morning, and for the last 2 or 3 weeks. Not as much fun as 127, but a whole lot better than 151.

Katie and I have both mentioned in earlier posts that we have love-hate relationships with the scale. Yes, it's a useful tool for monitoring one aspect of our health. But on the other hand, both of us have experienced times when worrying about the scale/calories/numbers has taken over our lives. How to strike a balance??

So in this new year, I've decided that I will continue to monitor my weight with a daily weigh-in...it's been a morning habit for years...but my focus is going to be on counting miles, not calories.

That's right, I said miles, as in, I want to be a runner.

When I mentioned this to one of my grandkids last week, he immediately wanted to know if I would be running a marathon. Ah, um, hahahahaha. I don't think so. Like I said to hubby today, I don't know if you can call what I do on the track "running," exactly. I huff and puff. Today (32 degrees plus a breeze outside) I only ran for 1/4 mile before I was beginning to wheeze a little and I just didn't have any oomph. I walked the rest of the mile.

But I'd like you to know, 2011, that I want you to go down in my history as the year I became a runner. Last week I ran a mile or more, on three different days, even though one of the days was rainy! I looked online for tips on how to run in the rain, and you know what? I didn't melt, I didn't freeze, and my shoes dried out just fine in front of the heater vent, with newspapers stuffed inside.

The forecast for most of the week here is clear and cold, but my goal is to get out and run at least a mile, at least three times during the week. I'll be checking in again next Saturday to let you know how I did. Until then, welcome, 2011!

Sincerely, Kathy

PS - Dear Skinny readers - What are your goals for a healthier 2011?

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-25T05:00:00.000-08:00

Katie: Weeks 50 & 51

2010-12-16T06:41:00.000-08:00

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?

2010-12-12T14:15:00.000-08:00

Take a Break!

2010-12-09T12:17:00.000-08:00

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

2010-12-05T00:30:00.000-08:00

A way of life

2010-12-03T07:50:00.000-08:00

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

2010-11-30T08:27:00.000-08:00

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

2010-11-28T11:28:00.000-08:00

Gobble Gobble

2010-11-25T07:24:00.000-08:00

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

2010-11-23T09:02:00.000-08:00

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

2010-11-21T10:58:00.000-08:00

Kathy Week 47: Maintenance is Weird

2010-11-20T19:27:00.000-08:00

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

2010-11-18T07:47:00.000-08:00

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

2010-11-16T09:27:00.000-08:00

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

2010-11-14T10:39:00.000-08:00

2010-11-12T09:29:00.000-08:00

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

2010-11-09T20:14:00.000-08:00

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...

2010-11-06T12:50:00.000-07:00

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!

2010-11-04T14:17:00.000-07:00

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!

2010-11-02T08:34:00.000-07:00

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?

2010-10-28T14:45:00.000-07:00

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

2010-10-23T07:13:00.000-07:00

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

2010-10-19T20:22:00.000-07:00

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

2010-10-18T11:47:00.000-07:00

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,

Counsel to Youth

2010-10-17T20:28:00.000-07:00