November Weigh-In

November 30
Today's Weight:  166.5
Loss/Gain:  +5.5 lbs

Goodness.  The only good news about gaining over five pounds this month is that I put it on in the first half of the month and then stayed there.  I weighed myself a week after my husband got home, and we'd gone out of town for a couple of days, and saw the scale was up about five pounds.  I was like, "Yikes!"

Well, then I didn't get it off.  I finally did get a couple pounds down the week of Thanksgiving, but then the scale was back up today.

It's not that I'm learning that I have to still be diligent while in maintenance, it's more that I have to remind myself not to get lazy.  My workouts hadn't been what they were when training for the half and then the 10K in October and I was still able to keep my weight down.

Then I let my eating slide and the scale went right up.  So, I've set my goals to workout 4 days a week and get back down to 160 by the end of the year and I know that getting my eating back in order is key to doing this.

My husband is also up about 7 pounds since he got home, so we are going to work together to get ourselves back into better eating habits.  So, while I'm not so pleased with the gain, and subsequent sluggishness and pudgy feeling in my middle, I know I'll get it off.  Gaining permanently is not an option in my life now.  :)

My First Virtual 5K Turkey Trot

So...I've been perusing the internet for a bit looking for a virtual 5K to join up with on Thanksgiving Day.  Last year I did one and it felt so good to get out there and run a bit and be reminded of how thankful I am to have gotten better control of my health.  Since I didn't find anything locally I could attend or anything virtually that interested me I decided to do my own. 

To make it a little more fun I invite you to join me in committing to get some exercise over the Thanksgiving weekend and I'm going to put together a holiday-themed prize to give away afterwards.  Here are the important details...

Rules: 

• Simply run, walk or bike a 5K (3.1 miles) sometime during Thanksgiving weekend - November 28, 29th or 30th.

To be entered into the drawing for a holiday surprise:

• Leave a comment below stating what you will be doing.  You may enter my drawing even if you are doing an actual race in your area that day.  :) 
• For an extra entry into the drawing email me a photo of you before, after or during the activity at scrappin4fleia (at) gmail (dot) com no later than midnight November 30th.

Note:  At this time the prize can only be mailed within the US. 

I will compile the pictures and post them the Monday afterwards, along with announcing the winner of the drawing.  Have fun and happy trotting!

Lessons from Mom

Today is my mom's birthday.  My friend's mother passed away this past Sunday and another friend's father passed away this past Saturday.  My mother is a breast cancer survivor and knowing we came close to losing her a few years ago makes every birthday more special.

Being overweight is an issue both she and I have dealt with all of our lives.  Here are some of the best lessons in life she ever taught me with regards to my health:

• All things in moderation.  There were always treats in the house growing up, but we didn't just eat and eat them whenever we wanted.  
• Love yourself as you are.  Growing up I was a chubby girl and then teenager and I never once heard my mom tell me I was fat, nor did I hear her ever suggest I needed to go on a diet. 
• Keep trying.  If I did feel a little overweight and wanted to lose some weight my mom would encourage me as best she could; even if it was the 3rd time in a year I complained about my weight but did nothing about it.  She never suggested I'd failed so many times at weight loss that I should quit trying. 
• Dress for your figure.  My mom taught me to dress modestly and in a way that flattered my figure, no matter how curvy it was. 

So, to my mom I say, "Thank you, Mom, for your love and example in my life.  I wish you the happiest of birthdays!" 

New Jacket and SPI belt

Our temperatures dropped back down into more autumnal degrees today, so I pulled out my new jacket I bought for running.  I have to say I think wearing cute workout clothes makes everything better.  :) 

The little pink pouch hanging out the bottom is my new SPI belt.  I'm in love with it.  It holds my iPhone and keys while I run.  I am also kind of super excited that I am being able to wear it lower on the abdomen and it doesn't slide up to my waist.  

It's the small things that brighten my days sometimes.  :)

Note:  Did I mention I got a new Canon EOS 650D camera for Mother's Day/My birthday in July?  I can't remember... anyway..please excuse me as I tried taking a self portrait today with the timer.  Gotta work on that.. 

A Party & Chocolate Gifts

What a nice weekend we had!  Saturday we had a welcome home party for my husband with a bunch of friends coming over to enjoy some filipino food we had catered.  My husband is in the Navy, but attached to a US Marine Corps unit, so we live in a Marine Corps town.  Since we are surrounded by "jar heads" I had fun decorating with anchors and representing the Navy at our party.  :) 

A friend of mine gave me a gift since she said I was deployed also.  lol  She and her husband said they saw a sign that said, "He enlisted, She was drafted"  Of course, I fully support my husband in his job, but it was fun to get a little gift.  

When I opened it I was a little taken aback because it was all chocolate treats.  Yikes!  I will admit I've had three pieces already.  I know everything in moderation is okay, but chocolate treats have been a problem for me this past week or so.  Darn it... I was thinking, "Hm...can people please not give me chocolate gifts??"  I just have to put them up and save them for once a day. 

Today I went back to the gym and took the "Total Athletic Conditioning" class that I love!!  It rotates between cardio and core/strength for an hour.  It can be very hard, but I took it a little easy today to ease myself back into tough strength workouts.  

As for my Monday update: 

• I will exercise 4-5 days a week. I did workout 4 days last week! :)
• I will maintain 160, and maybe even lose a few more pounds by January. Fail.  The scale is up..thus this goal.  :-/

So, here we go!  New week and new days to work on those goals.  :)

What A Run!

Lately I've been babysitting a toddler on Thursday and Fridays, as needed.  When I first agreed to this temporary job I knew it would mean planning my exercise around the hours I would have this little one -- 8:30am-3:30pm.  So, yesterday I decided I would go run after she was gone and with the colder morning weather we'd been having it was going to be nicer out at that time anyway. 

What a great run it turned out to be!!

By the time I left to run the family was all home, everyone was occupied with something to do and I didn't have to prepare dinner because we had leftovers for everyone to pick on when they got hungry.  This fact, along with the fact that the weather was beautiful, spurred me to go ahead and run five miles instead of my planned four.  

I didn't push myself for any specific time, but allowed my body to just go.  Having not run very regularly since my 10K at the beginning of October I knew I wouldn't be very fast, but I wasn't worried.  I simply enjoyed the exercise, sometimes hardly believing I was still running for exercise. 

When I got home I looked at my Garmin to see that I had run 5.5 miles and my average pace was 11:13 minutes per mile.  Nice.  After a day of housecleaning I wore myself out with that run, but it was such a good feeling.  My legs were challenged and in a way they were reminded of what they are capable of.  I look forward to more running in the future!

My 2013 Holiday Goals

I've already written two posts this morning, but I wanted to post one more thing before I get too busy with my day and weekend. 

We are two weeks away from Thanksgiving.  And while I may think it's still a tad early the stores are beginning to hang Christmas decor and I've even heard Christmas music already in one store.  

Although I do love baking and sampling baked goods this time of year, it's the busy schedules that get me more off track than anything.  By off track I mean that I tend to kick exercise to the curb in lieu of needing more time to complete holiday tasks. 

Not this year.  I don't feel well when I skip exercise (this last month of hardly any exercise is proof).  And when I exercise I find it easier to stay better on track with my eating. 

So, in the spirit of all things party, holidays and fun…here are my goals for this 2013 holiday season: 

• I will exercise 4-5 days a week.
• I will maintain 160, and maybe even lose a few more pounds by January.

I think I'll check in on Mondays so that I can report on the week prior and let you know if I'm sticking to my goals.  

How about you?  Are you setting any goals for yourself during the holiday season?  I'd love to hear about it.  

Meanwhile…I may hang this on my fridge.  :)  

Scale is Up, But I'll Be Fine

If today was a "weigh-in" day as it was until about a month ago I'd have to come on and tell you that I've gained a few pounds.  I'd also have to admit what I could already tell physically; that I've put on a couple pounds, am not feeling so great and I need to get back on track. 

It's not a horrible gain, but I've been dipping too much into sweets and breads and I have not been feeling my best.  The lack of regular exercise in the past month (as compared to the months previous) is taking a slight toll on me as well.  

The good part??  This text conversation sums it up pretty well: 

Me: (after discussing how my Panera bread autumn squash soup in a bread bowl was too much bread for me)  Yes, I love the flavors they put together, but today was too much bread…especially since I've had lots of junk lately.

Steph:  That's how you know you've so completely changed!

Me:  Yay!!! 

Yes…yay!!!  TOM was here last week so I realized that must be why I was craving the soda and chocolate and carby foods so much.  However, I didn't quite bounce back from it like usual and I was beginning to feel it in my body -- and not like it. 

So, when the scale was up these past few days I knew why and I know it won't stay up.  Just this morning I reminded myself that I WILL NOT gain back the weight I lost.  Life happens, but I am living a new ending and I know I'll be fine.

Working Out with Hubby

My husband and I were able to get away alone for a couple days last week after his return from deployment.  When I booked the hotel I specifically looked for one that had a fitness center.  I figured we'd have extra time to at least get a walk in or something.  As I packed our bags I texted my husband to ask if he wanted me to pack workout clothes since there would be a fitness center available.  Honestly, I was kind of hoping he'd say "no..don't feel like it.", but he was like, "Yea!  I can't get to the gym today, so it would be good to go."

Oh darn.  I mean…yay!!  :)  Actually, I was glad he said yes, because I knew I needed to get some exercise done.  I just needed the little push.  So, I packed up my gym bag with our tennis and a set of workout clothes for each of us.

Friday morning after a leisurely breakfast we got dressed to go workout.  The fitness center consisted of two treadmills, an elliptical and a bike.  No free weights.  My husband was not impressed at all and was bummed about no weight, because that's his thing to do.  I just wanted to run for like 30 minutes, so I was fine with it.

Well, as we looked around we saw a flyer that the nearby Gold's Gym offered a free pass to anyone who was staying at our hotel.  So, we grabbed our hotel keys, wallets and water and drove over to the gym and ended up getting a good workout in.

I ran 4 miles on the treadmill and then did some core exercises and he worked out in the free weights area.  We both agreed that it felt really good to get some exercise done and I was tickled inside at knowing that a weekend getaway with my husband now includes fitness.  :)

(gotta love bright-sun-in-the-eyes pictures..lol)

He's Home !!!

I don't know if any of you that have been following my blog for a long time remember me mentioning last spring that I was going through something in my family and having to remember that food is not the answer. 

For the safety of my family I chose not to mention the issue on my blog.  The issue was ... my husband had just deployed.  He is a dentist in the US Navy and last March he left on the 26h Marine Expeditionary Unit for an eight-month deployment. 

This past Monday he came home - right on time! 

This was our first deployment and while not the easiest thing in the world we've ever done we made it through safe and sound.  And now you know why...

• ...it was a big deal when I called him "My Hero" months ago.  I had put on five pounds since he left and was very frustrated with how emotional deployment had me.  I emailed him that I refused to let this deployment be the undoing of my weight loss and he wrote me the most amazing, encouraging email.  
• ... I was kind of sounding in a rush to want to be at my goal weight.  Even though that didn't happen I lost lots of inches and have been able to maintain 160, which is huge success and good enough for both of us. 
• ... running the half marathon was such a big deal.  I decided when he left running would be my therapy and it surely was.  I almost didn't do it because he wouldn't be here to see me finish, but I knew I had to get it done and it would give me something else to focus on during the long months with him away.  
• ... having Stephanie to run the race with me was so special.  It would've been such fun to have her come anyway, but knowing she was there when my husband couldn't be meant more than I can say.  She even allowed me a few tears when we returned to the car afterwards as I missed him so much in that victorious moment. 
• ... I didn't blog as much.  Being a "single parent" for eight months took up more time than I realized it would.  Emailing him daily took up a large part of my computer free time, so my blogging time went down drastically. 

To make it through such a life changing event with my weight still at its lowest is an amazing feat for me.  My kids were great troopers through it all.  The girls put up with hearing more about my weight loss than usual I think and my son was the only male in the house for the duration.  My husband was a great support via email from all different spots of the world and we have actually grown in our marriage as we've been forced to deal with some issues in different ways due to the separation.  

Things are now beginning to settle back into a normal family routine and I'm so happy.  I'm very proud of my husband for his service and happy to have kids who endured the deployment without causing major upset to our life.  Trust me, not everyone had such smooth sailing (pun intended..he was on a ship..) during deployment.  I am a very blessed woman. 

So, thank you for putting up with my minimal blog posting and reading these past months.  I'm hoping to get a little more regular with both from here on out.

Weigh-In … 1st month of "Maintenance"

Yes, Hello… I am alive!  I meant to do this last week, but was feeling yucky so I'm just now getting around to updating you that I am still alive and all is well.  :)

October 31 Weight:  161.0

Loss/Gain:  + 0.5

I hovered between 159-161 pounds this last month.  Woot!  I think this first month of maintenance went well.  I do still have the desire to work on losing at least another ten pounds, but I must say that not having to think about losing weight this week relieved some pressure from my life.

I did not go crazy with my food, as my weight shows, but I just allowed myself to live like I always do without having to think "I need to see a loss on Friday!".  It was a nice feeling, especially with everything we had going on this month.

Today I went running for the first time in three weeks and it felt good.  Our weather has been a little weird and it was 70 degrees out when I went, so it was a little warm for my taste.  I took it nice and easy since I hadn't run in a while and since I'm recovering from a bad head cold.

The sun was out and it was a lovely day.  I felt so much better when I was done.  Later when I was running errands I felt the workout in my legs and it was good feeling.  My life is getting back into a normal swing of things again and the cold is draining away.  Glory!

Hopefully tomorrow my day will allow me to come on here and share some good news with everyone. :)  In the meantime...

Thanks for stopping by!