Strength!!!

So it has been a very, very emotional week. On Friday, a young, 13 year old boy in our neighbourhood accidentally killed himself by playing a game of auto-asphyxiation. I can not begin to explain how sick it was to learn of the details, at the same time joing a community and family in mourning this young life. I strongly urge all parents to speak to your children about this "game". I was surprised, when speaking to my 9 and 6 year old that they already new about it. Do not be naive. We continued to speak that some of these decisions have deadly consequences. Knowledge is power!

About a month ago, my 90 year old Baba took a fall down about 13 stairs - never broke a bone but hurt her shoulder and was pretty bruised up. On Monday, she was admitted to the hospital because her resting heart rate was way over 100. They have put her on blood thinners and continue to run tests. Hopefulloy she will be out of the hospital in a day or two.

And, as everyone knows that things happen in three's, today an aquaintance of my from high school, advises me that he underwent tests last week and they found a brain tumor. WTF!!! How sad, so enough is enough, I am trying to remain positive in the midst of all this shit.

I went to weigh in this morning as was down 3.2 pounds. I had actually gained last week 1.4 so the net result is 1.8 pounds, which I am totally happy with.

Hug your loved ones with extra tight hugs and tell them you love them! Life is too short to wait.

:O)

Weekend Strategy and Weigh In Results!

Firstly, after a week of what I had originally thought as crazy, I am excited to have lost 1 lb. As hard as it was to get in some exercise, I did manage a few walks and played outside with the kids. I find it easier lately just running around and playing with my kids as my form of exercise. I think it is very important for us to adapt to our lifestyle and incorporate fitness the best way we can, while still being health conscious.

So now I am into another crazy week. My husband is leaving this morning for Dallas, TX and leaving me with the following:

- 2 children
- 2 sets of swimming lessons
- 6 hours of hockey tryouts
- 1 football game
- 1 art class

I am not sure why he didn't leave a padded room for me, but I am determined to get through this weekend relatively unscathed. I am promising myself not to fall off the wagon just because we are busy. I am going to use this to my advantage!!

To all of you that have a busy weekend planned - we can get through it! :O)

TOM - I Really Loathe You!

I am really trying to get my head around how different my mental state is on the couple days leading up to TOM. I have unbelievable cravings and am pretty sure I could eat all day if I really allowed myself. I just feel blah! It slightly enrages me because I am so good for the remainder of the month and really feel in control.

My approach this time was to wean myself off of the crappy food and try and substitute with healthy cravings. HAHAHAHA!! That never worked! However, I did greatly reduce the amount consumed. I suppose I should be proud about it, but I am really only still looking for answers on how to combat the cravings.

This is going to be my ongoing goal for the next few months and I am really going to try and figure out what foods are the best to satisfy my cravings as well as not sabotaging my weight loss efforts.

As I was searching the internet, I came across this little chart. I am going to use it and see if it is effective.

The website is found here: http://www.fitsugar.com/How-Deal-Sugar-Coffee-Chocolate-Alcohol-Cravings-18176788

Sometimes Life is Just Really Hard!

Without getting into all the details, I had a very "trying" day on Sunday. It completely sucked all the energy out of me and for the first time in a long time I caved into the emotional eating.

I was aware that I was doing it, knew I shouldn't have been, but did not stop myself. However, what I did do, is say to myself "If you do need to emotionally eat, do it wisely." And by goodness, that is exactly what I did. I indulged in fresh cucumbers and carrots and had a piece of apple crisp.

Immediately proceeding said cave in, I went for a nap and awoke an hour later in a much better shape.

I really hate when this happens because I become rather grouchy and don't feel it is fair to the people around me. I even explained to my kids that I was grouchy and mom needed a break. They were so good with it.

It's all about thinking first and working through the difficulties, while being as honest as you possibly can.

Still hoping for good things at weigh in on Thursday, but time and the scale will only tell.

Here's to staying positive!!! :O)

I Am In A Way Better Place

Although I have had a rough couple of weeks, I am very proud to say that my weight loss efforts did not suffer by any means. I actually used the weight loss efforts as an escape from all the other "crap" that was going on around me. Who knew that I would be in a place where I didn't emotionally eat when things weren't going along perfect.

What a milestone that I was able to accomplish. I realize life has more turns, hills and cliffs than it does straight roads and I am willing to work with that and achieve a sense of balance between everything without make the situation worse by emotionally overeating.

I have really struggled over the last few years on making this journey truly successful. I am really attempting to come to new and practical realizations that will make this a lifestyle change that becomes more of a habit rather than constant work and effort.

I love my life and want to be around for a long time to enjoy it. :O)

Feel Like I'm Drowning

So I have had a really tough week. Many things are going on and are really, and I mean really, stressing me out. I have never been one to stress, but for some reason this week it is really getting to me. I am feeling so terrible, I feel like I could puke every few minutes. I have never experienced anything like this in my life.

I have decided to try and keep mega busy so I don't have to live the stress all the time, I am writing about it, hoping it will allow me to release some of it, I am picking away at the things I can control and trying to kick the ones I can't control to the curb.

I am hoping that my week of holidays will allow me to relax and find the good in life again.

In the meantime, I have still managed to control my eating and am happy to post a 1.8 loss this week. Thank goodness, because I am not sure what would have happened if this would have been a gain.

This is probably just what I needed this week to deflect some of the stress. Along with losing the 1.8 pounds, I also passed 25 pounds total lost and got my 10% key chain.

I will get through this! :O)

I am Thrilled

I have to say that after coming back from wiegh in today, I was extremely pleased. I lost another 3.2 pounds, after just being on vacation, and have lost a total of 21.2 pounds.

I can not tell you how happy I am that I made a decision to lose weight a couple of months ago. I feel successful and I feel that I am strong enough to continue on this journey for the long haul.

I often find myself reflecting on what a great place I would be in if I could just make the weight disappear. However, what positive lessons would I learn from that. I truly believe that I will be more aware of what I need to do to make this work as I continue. I think this is one of those life lessons I needed to learn for myself. I am prepared to make this work. :O)

Satisfied!

I am trying super hard to listen to my body signs when eating. I must remember to eat slow and to STOP once I am satisfied. This is sometime easier said than done.

I had weigh in at noon today and was down 0.8 pounds. After weigh in I came back to the office and heated up my lunch.

I had packed some leftovers from last nights supper, however, as I was eating my lunch, all of a sudden I felt like I overate. I obviously missed the signal (because of course I wasn't really paying attention) and not didn't feel too good. I still had my cherries to eat, which I was looking forward to. Now the old me would have still ate the cherries. But realizing that would make me feel worse, I left them and will have them as a snack a little later when I am hungry.

Although I missed the first signal, I was successful at not making another bad decision and for that I am happy.

I am looking forward to a week at the cottage and am looking forward to some fun activities with my children.

Have a great Canada Day weekend.

What Have I Lost?

This was one of the threads on the GDT and I must say I loved it. It gives you a bit of a visual in regards to the amount of weight you have lost.

1 pound = a Guinea Pig
1.5 pounds = a dozen Krispy Kreme glazed donuts
2 pounds = a rack of baby back ribs
3 pounds = an average human brain
4 pounds = an ostrich egg
5 pounds = a Chihuahua
6 pounds = a human’s skin
7.5 pounds = an average newborn
8 pounds = a human head
10 pounds= chemical additives an American consumes each year
11 pounds = an average housecat
12 pounds = a Bald Eagle
15 pounds = 10 dozen large eggs
16 pounds = a sperm whale’s brain
20 pounds = an automobile tire
23 pounds = amount of pizza an average American eats in a year
24 pounds = a 3-gallon tub of super premium ice cream
25 pounds = an average 2 year old
30 pounds = amount of cheese an average American eats in a year
33 pounds = a cinder block
36 pounds = a mid-size microwave
40 pounds = a 5-gallon bottle of water or an average human leg
44 pounds = an elephant’s heart
50 pounds = a small bale of hay
55 pounds = a 5000 BTU air conditioner
60 pounds = an elephant’s penis (yep, weighs more than his heart!)
66 pounds = fats and oils an average American eats in a year
70 pounds = an Irish Setter
77 pounds = a gold brick
80 pounds = the World’s Largest Ball of Tape
90 pounds = a newborn calf
100 pounds = a 2 month old horse
111 pounds = red meat an average American eats in a year
117 pounds = an average fashion model (and she’s 5’11”)
118 pounds = the complete Encyclopedia Britannica
120 pounds = amount of trash you throw away in a month
130 pounds = a newborn giraffe
138 pounds = potatoes an average American eats in a year
140 pounds = refined sugar an average American eats in a year
144 pounds = an average adult woman (and she’s 5’4”)
150 pounds = the complete Oxford English Dictionary
187 pounds = an average adult man
200 pounds = 2 Bloodhounds
235 pounds = Arnold Schwarzenegger
300 pounds = an average football lineman
400 pounds = a Welsh pony

To date I have lost a bald eagle.

I will have to do this little test every couple of months until I have lost a 2 month old horse.

Have a great one!

Holy Shit I did it!!

I got on a bike and rode it yesterday. It has been at least seven years since I have been on a bike, maybe even longer.

The kids wanted to go for a bike ride and begged me to ride mine and not walk. I must say, I was a little frightened that I would have problems maintaining effective tire pressure. Needless to say, we had a great time and I will definitely be doing that again.

I thought for sure my a$$ would be sore today, but maybe all the padding saved it. LOL! I look forward to the day where my jiggly parts do not get in the way of me peddling.

Here's to not giving in to tunnel vision and listening to your children every now and then. They really do know something!

Have a great day.

My 6 Week Plan

I have been known to hate, and I mean absolutely hate structured exercise. However, I realize to make the positive changes in my life, I am going to need to come to terms with some form of steady or regular exercise of some sort.

As I was surfing the web I came across a 6 week "Train to Walk a 5k" plan and thought that it would be something I could complete. It outlines what to do each day. LOVE THIS!!

So as of today, I have completed Day 1 and feel slightly excited to do Day 2. LOL! Hope this feeling sticks for awhile.

My hope is that once I complete the walking program and stick with it for a couple weeks, I will be ready to begin the "Couch to 5k" program and run 5k by the end of the year. I just have to stay focused and remind myself not to give up if something tries to get in my way.

I am ready to make these changes for a lifetime and don't want to give up or fail. I will continue to remind myself that this is the best choice and I want to be a positive role model for my family.

I CAN DO IT!!!

Missed it by that Much

Missed my 5% goal today by 0.2 lbs. Really?

Somewhat disappointed, but I will get over it. LOL!

The scale is definitely going in the right direction and over the 5 weeks I have been doing this, I have lost 12.8 pounds, which I think is just great.

I am going out of town again this weekend for my son's ball tournament, however, I am going to really, really try to be super good. Although I follow Simply Filling, I may just track my foods for this week, to keep me a little more accountable while we are out of town. I will endeavor to drink water and try and get some walks in.

Resetting my lifestyle is such a mental game, far more than any physical component. I hope that I am able to stay mentally focused for a lifetime and that it will only get easier and become a habit. :O)

What to do when....

your son is attending his first PanAm Martial Arts Games and you have just started Weight Watchers?

You go with him and be the proudest mom ever!!! We spent the last three days together, driving and sitting and not much of anything else.

However, I really tried choosing healthier food and drinking a lot of water. I am hoping that my choice selection will not go unnoticed at the scale on Thursday. However, if I have a slight gain or a STS I will not be disappointed as I know I could have and most likely would have made far worse choices had I not been following WW's.

I had a tonne of fun and was so excited to be a part of my son's journey while still continuing on mine.

I would say success for both of us this weekend.

Another One Bites the Dust

Another weigh in, another 1.8 pounds down. YEAH!

This next week will be somewhat of a challenge. My son is competing at the PanAm Martial Arts games and we will be away. So this means mostly eating out with a very minimal schedule.

I will however, pack fruit and some "wise" snacks to nibble on and attempt to make the best choices while we are away.

I am truly excited for him to be experiencing this great opportunity and I not going to let me issues get in the way of us having a wonderful time.

Here's to hoping he brings home for Team Canada.

Weigh In Week 3

Success!! Down another 1.4 pounds.

Every week when I go to meetings, I get nervous. As I am driving I can feel my stomach getting more anxious by the minute. How crazy is that? This past week had a whole lot of crazy to it and I guess I was just hoping the scale would still cooperate.

I always feeling a weight being lifted off my shoulder, once the leader tells me I did a good job and lost weight. Why is it that I need that reassurance? Is it that I have low self esteem, because I have never really pegged me to be that type of person? Is it I need others to validate my success?

My preference would be to go about doing my thing, making healthier food choices and incorporating exercise, quietly go to the meetings, weigh in, listen to the meeting and leave unnoticed.

Maybe it's that I am a bit embarrased for letting my weight get out of control. I never used to be overweight. Like many others, mine has crept up in the past 8 years since having children. But how does one gain 100 frickin' pounds in 8 years and not get a hold on it sooner. Oh well, there is no use dwelling.

I have made the conscious decision to say goodbye to the added baggage so I am around for a long time.

:O)

Reward for 5% Goal

One of the first goals I have set is to lose 13 lbs which is 5% of my total weight loss. It really does help setting smaller goals along the way and reward yourself for achieving them.

So having thought long and hard about this (actually not really), I have decide that a pedicure may be a very deserving reward once I reach my first goal.

I LOVE LOVE LOVE the spa!!! I am so looking forward to it. 4.2 lbs to go. With any luck I will be able to book my spa day by the end of June.

Here's to setting and achieving goals!

Here We Go Again!

As you can see my efforts went on hiatus, but we are back (with avengence).

I am currently working on Week 3 and have successfully lost 8.8 pounds. Of course, I am thrilled and am truly hoping I can get to my goal this time.

I am not even attempting to count points, this is what eventually drove me over the edge last time. I am strictly doing Simply Filling, with slight modifications.

I am way to busy to constantly be tracking the points. I just have to find what works the best and stick with it. Until my body requires a change that is. LOL!

My first goal is to reach my 5% of 13.5 pounds. :)

Back to Reality and Loving It!

So I seem to be back in the swing of things after a couple weeks off for holidays. Today was to be my weigh in however, we are so busy at work that I did not get out. However, I did weigh myself at home this morning and was the same.

I had a lot of catching up to do on all the blogs I read. All of these girls are amazing and extraordinary in their own special way. I must say though, I sure give the ones who post pictures everyday a lot of credit. That is my hope -- that I can get to the point where I can add more pictures to my blog. It just gets a little hectic being a mom of 2 active children and working full time.

Hope to have a great weekend in the rain!! :O)

A Quick Check In!

So I have been on holidays for the past week and a half and am loving it (other than all the rain). I am not neglecting the blog on purpose, just enjoying the time off.

I will be back at it full force on Monday and hopefully ready for weigh in on Thursday.

Have a great weekend! :O)

Weekly Weigh In

Well, was able to lose 2.4 pounds after a week of being laid up for a week with back spasms and then a big Ukranian wedding to boot. So I feel great that I was down the 2.4 pounds. I guess it is definately becoming second nature to pick whole foods and eat a lot of fruit and veggies. I have also snacked very little at night this past week, so that also may have something to do with it.

So I am also officially 1/2 way to my goal, almost 6 months to the day. Not bad!!

Tomorrow is my last day of work until August 4, 2009. I am thrilled and will be going grocery shopping to load up on healthy food for out at the trailer.

I was hoping to spend more time blogging tonight, but I am freezing and can't seem to warm up. So I will be back tomorrow.

:O)