Second Blog-aversary: My Achievements

If you've been following my blog for a while you might remember that I claimed 2011 to be 'The Year of Risk Taking'. Last year was the 'Just Do It' year with great success. So how did I do this year? Let's find out.

Taking risks can be more than just about weight loss. I took this thing seriously when it came to my life. In January I had an "epiphany" as I like to call it. I decided that I wanted to move away from field biology and try my hand at Environmental Education. By the end of June this year I had taken a serious risk, quit my current field job, moved to an island and started working in Environmental Interpretation and I now work at a science camp for 5th and 6th graders.

This year I also decided to take a plunge in to something I usually ran away from: intimacy. Low self-esteem and self-worth can really screw a persons perspective on themselves. It's kind of like the whole saying, "How  can you love others if you don't even love yourself?" Since I gained some confidence my relationships have taken a whole new level.

This year I've also tried to focus on my diet and tried different things. I attempted calorie counting, eating small portions/meals throughout the day, eating only when I'm hungry. I tried eating less carbs, eating less meat, juice fasting, and not doing anything on my diet and simply focus on exercise. All "diet" experiments came with mixed results and different levels of success in each.

With exercise my main risk and challenge was taking up jogging. I went from jog/walking to further jog stretches. I continued to the point of investing in running shoes (getting my gait measured and everything) and finally running in my first 5k race this November.

I hiked more than I have before. I've traveled a good deal within my state as well as having a couple of escapades whether or not I could afford it. LOL.

This year I was able to cross things off my Bucket List more than I have any year prior. Some of the items on the list were...

Drive a golf cart.
Learn how to use a bow and arrow.
Ride a horse.
Run a 5k.

...just to name a few.

So how do I feel?

I feel accomplished.
I feel stronger.
I feel more confident.
I feel.... good.

For the most part.
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But there are a lot more things I want to accomplish. This is just the start. There are a lot more goals I need to work on.

For 2012 I've decided to call it the year of  "Going for the Goal". What does this mean?

It means that I will focus on working on specific goals to better myself. Now isn't this what I've been doing already? Yes, but this year I'm planning on taking it to the next level. I will not stop until I make that goal. And then I'll keep going to stay at that goal.

This year I will try my hardest to do the things I've been planning to do for YEARS. I will try my hardest to take those dancing classes I've been talking about for almost a decade. I will try to finally learn how to ride a motorcycle. I will try to move to the areas I've been dying to see and of course:

It's time to finally lose the weight and work on getting to my goal weight (175 lbs) by the end of 2012.

No more excuses. No more worrying what people think. No more stopping because of worrying about expenses. I'll make it work. I'll figure it out. I'll save. I'll sacrifice. I'll do what it takes.


 This is the time to do it. I'm not getting any younger. (LOL). There is no one else to stop me but myself. Sure there is some unconscious sabotaging going on here and there but in the end it is my responsibility to resist, to ignore, to walk away from those temptations and those people.

My next post will be about the plans I have to start working toward that goal weight. I'm making a specific plan for the next couple of months to get me in to a good start for the rest of the year.

Have a good New Year everyone! Good luck on your goals, your challenges, your journey. I'll be checking in to see how everyone else is doing. LOL

love
-w0rld

How Serious Am I?

Hello Everyone,

Yes, I've noticed I've been gone since before Christmas. No, I'm not dead. Yes, I have been indulging in way too many sweets. No, I haven't given up. I never will.

I admit I've been a bit disappointed in myself due to the number on the scale and how much I've been gaining this fall. The plateau this year really hit my me hard and my frustrations have been showing itself by the gut that's pushing to come back and the rising number I can't stand to look at but can't deny is there.

It makes a person think. This is the time of year where you start looking back at 2011 and see what you accomplished, what you hoped for, what goals didn't quite make it.

For me the thing that I've been looming over is of course my lack of weight loss this entire year. I had hoped to reach my goal weight this year and instead I got stuck in the 200's all year. I had a taste of ONEderland for a few blissful-yet-excruciatingly struggling months this summer. Yet I noticed that after my birthday in August (and my failure of losing the amount of weight I wanted by then) I felt myself slacking. With that light slack the weight started roaring back as if a tidal wave that I had been holding back with all my strength had finally won and plummeted me.

Try holding back this monster

You can say I'm currently soaked and struggling to get back on my feet. While I stumble I start to think;
"Do I want to get up?"
"Why do I want to get up?"
 "Am I willing to fight the next round of waves?"  
"How badly do I want this?"
"How serious am I?"


Negative thoughts have been coming back these last couple of weeks. How I'm a failure. I'm not disciplined. How I haven't accomplished anything this year. How I've ruined all the progress I made last year. How I'm lazy and a glutenous slob wasting my time.

But then I started looking at old family pictures of myself. I noticed that girl and her sad eyes. Her big cheeks and her bad posture. That miserable little girl with the non existent self-esteem who longed for a different life and a different body. The girl who lived in her head while she left her body to rot.

Then I see pictures of me now. The independent woman who has explored her own state more than she could have imagined. The woman who loves to hike, lives to dance, and smiles like she means it. LOL.

I look at the medication I have to take and how much better things have gotten since I "got serious" two years ago and decided to do something about my weight and my life.

I look at my current job and how much fun I'm having and how much more confident I am when it comes to work and my skills.

So did I ruin everything by gaining weight this year? HELL NO. My accomplishments out weigh the down falls 10 fold!

I am no longer that sad little fat girl anymore.

I am no longer her:

Fall 2007

but rather I am her:

Fall 2011

Still learning but with much more respect, confidence and overall liveliness in her.

There is no way I can allow a pity party when I have worked and gotten so far.

The journey must continue!

So I'm here.

I'll post another post a late 'Blog-aversary' post soon talking about my achievements of 2011 and my plans for 2012.

I'm already working on them and will reveal all soon!

Why? Because I'm serious about this journey. No matter how many times I fall, drenched with trembling knees from one of those 'tidal waves' I will get up and keep going.

Have a great end of 2011. May your year have been awesome and may 2012 bring more accomplishment.

love
-w0rld

LAST CDCC Check In

I JUST got back from my trip to the Bay Area and I jumped on the scale this morning. The number wasn't too surprising but I was hoping for better.


Current Weight: 214.8 (+2.4 lbs from last week)


So this is the last weigh in of the Challenge was 213.4 lbs which means that at the end of the challenge I actually gained 1.4 lbs. So sad but true.


Now let's look back at the rules to see what happened:


Select a caloric daily limit on which you (and I) can lose weight weekly.


I did NOT follow this AT ALL. I stopped calorie counting early in the game and never truly re-started. I attempted different food diets never finding one that really stuck with me.


Exercise a minimum of 3x a week.


This I had no problems with. I have been able (for the most part) to have some sort of activity at least 3x a week. The consistency of my work outs were varied and my commitments to a specific work out was non existent but to say I've been a couch potato would be lying. Since my weight loss journey started exercise has hardly been the problem.


Hydrate sufficiently.


This I admit was yo-yo. I would hydrate well one week. Hydrate horribly the next. You would think I could keep up with something as simple as drinking water. But looking back.. not so much.


Choose 1 (or more) books and work on your main obstacle-to-losing issue(s)


I was all over the place with this one. I would start a book here, finish a book there and never actually started reading a book and finish it in one go. I did pick up a lot of random information that will help me but never dedicated enough time to one book alone.


And of course the last rule:


Get a smaller sized dress.


Here again is the dress I picked at the beginning of the challenge:

And here it is now

Now a part from looking much more tan (how does that happen in winter months?? Oh yeah I work outside. LOL) and although I still have the bulges showing I actually look a bit more toned. And I'll happily take that. LOL


I AM planning on wearing this dress for the holidays. Once I'll accessorize it with one of my favorite belts it doesn't look that bad. What do you think?

*Ready for the Holidays!*

  
I don't think it looks that bad. *nods* It will do.




So all in all I want to thank everyone that supported me. It was a great challenge and although I fell short I don't regret joining and keeping up with everyone. I will lose the weight. I just have to keep fighting against this yo-yo battle I'm in.


This is also my 2nd year Blog-a-versity. Two years in to w0rld's FAT blog and I'm still going strong. 


I'll make a new entry talking about my blogging anniversary later this week.


Thank you everyone!


-w0rld

Quick Check in from the Bay Area

It's Wednesday and I've been here since last Saturday. I'm having a blast and I'm living up to my promise to "go primal" and walk everywhere. For the most part I spent all of Monday, yesterday and now today walking around. One of them was an official hike.

I have a small blister on my pinkie toe (who gets a blister on a pinkie toe??) and I feel like stretching my legs every five seconds. It's awesome.

Here's a sneak peek of my hike yesterday. I'll do a thorough report when I get back home this weekend.

~on the way up the mountain~

Until we meet again

love
-w0rld

CDCC Check In/I'm in the Bay!

Hi Everyone!

So this week I'm going to be bumming it in the Bay Area! I got here last night and had a great time. Woke up this morning and looked at the scale..

Current Weight: 212.4 lbs (+0.8 lbs)

..and wasn't too daunted by the slight gain. Chances are the couple of "treats" I gave myself last week caught up with me. I'm pretty sure this week is going to help get rid of that.

Quick Update:

Exercise: I went on quite a few hikes last week. Four hikes with the kids, one of which was the major hike that took us to the local peak. It took me three days to get over my soreness from my new strength training routine and by the end of the week I ended up doing a less strenuous version of it so as not to pull anything.

Water: 4 out of 7 days. I definitely was not able to drink enough water most of the week but tried to make up for it by drinking tea.

Food: I didn't calorie count this week and it showed on the scale. I finished my last week for this season at work and we had to clear out the fridge for the winter. (The camp starts back up in January so I'm on "winter break") I definitely indulged in some extra food and called it my "duty" to finish my left overs. Was this smart? Absolutely not.

Support: Yes! I was finally able to go to some peoples pages and express my love and support to their blogs! I'm so glad I took the time! People are doing amazing progress.

This week is going to be interesting since I'm going to be couch surfing through out the bay area and (hopefully) walking around a lot. My lack of funds, my encouragement to use the primal form of transportation (that's called walking) and hopefully a trip or two to the trails this week will help get that number on the scale back down.

I arrived in the Bay Area last night and already had a fantastic dinner with friends (mmm Pho), a movie night, a quick flirting session at a starbucks, a twinkling gelato date in downtown Berkeley, and a late night attending a Holiday themed Rocky Horror Picture Show! This is going to be awesome!

One more week challengers! Let's make it count!

love
-w0rld

So. Incredibly. Sore

As I mentioned in my last post I've started a new strength training routine following exercises from a book. Things seem to be going well but yesterday's "easy" exercises left me incredibly sore. To top that I decided to go on a hike with my co-worker. We ended up going up and down a canyon for 9 miles. Guess what that did to my legs. Yup! Sore!

My shoulders are sore from carrying a backpack.
My triceps are slightly sore from Seated Dips and Let Me Ups/Pull ups.
My upper abs are slightly sore from Pilates.
My glutes are sore from squats.
My inner thighs are incredibly sore from Romanian Dead Lifts.
My knees are sore from hiking up hill.
My feet are sore from hiking downhill.
My quads are sore from all of the above.
My calves are not sore but might as well be from the pain I get when I stretch my legs.

What does this mean?

Elina had a great weekend!

I just have to keep it up this week and not go on an eating binge or something crazy like that.

I'm going to take a break today and let my muscles relax. I'll continue my strength training routine tomorrow morning.

love
-w0rld

CDCC Check In

Today I woke up and reluctantly stepped on the scale. The number I got was better than I expected.

Current Weight: 211.6 lbs (-3.2 lbs from the Thanksgiving fiasco)

So not bad! I'm sure restraining myself slightly this week, losing some water weight and etc helped with this loss. I'll keep it!

Of course this number is still horrendous since the Christmas Dress Countdown Challenge ends soon and I haven't moved very far from my 213 lbs start. I still have a couple more check ins and I'm going to hit the ground running to see how much I can improve in the little time I have left. I admit I've been slacking for the last few weeks.

I finally, while gritting teeth fearing what I would see, started calorie counting. I was shocked at the number and yet it made perfect sense. The first night I calorie counted I had consumed over 3,200 calories!! It was amazing what I thought was just " a handful of this" here and "an extra granola bar won't hurt" there came up to!

You would think I would know better by now but alas there was the proof. I continued to count calories for the rest of the week minus yesterday when the internet was down again. Whether I like it or not it just proves that calorie counting really works. Sigh*

I started playing with the numbers this week and seeing how long it will take me now to return to ONEderland with a healthy weight loss. I figured that if I'm able to lose 2 lbs/wk I could be back in the 190's by January 15th.
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I finally picked up my strength training book AND finished reading it. I bought the book this summer and started reading it. However due to whatever excuse I had at the time I didn't finish it and never got to learn the different exercises for my level and therefore, I never started my strength training routine. The book is You Are Your Own Gym by Mark Lauren

It's exactly what I had been looking for at the time; a guide to having my own strength training work outs without the need of a gym since I'm never near enough to civilization to attend a gym regularly. Also most of my exercises (at least the ones that have contributed to my current weight loss) are those that I've done OUTSIDE of a gym.

I finished reading it this week and started the recommended routine for beginners yesterday. The book has an entire section with explanations of different work outs. The pictures help and it also has suggestions on how to "kick it up a notch" when that exercise gets too easy. It's very well explained and is very realistic in it's approach on how targeting a specific area in your body doesn't work, how diet is incredibly important as well and how over training and injuries are dangerous. So far I love it.

One thing though, looking at the picture for One-legged Romanian Dead Lifts you would think they're pretty easy to do. WRONG! Those kicked my a$$ this morning! LOL
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My water intake has been ok. Last night I spent the whole day driving back and forth so I didn't get much of a chance to drink water, seeing as I forgot my water bottle. By the end of the night I felt it and had to wake up in the middle of the night to down glass after glass of water.
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Aside from my new strength training routine I was able to go on a couple of short but steep hikes this week as part of class. I mentioned this hike before in last weeks weigh in. The hike is short and steep but it gives me a great work out. Mainly because I have to beat the kids to the top so I can meet them up there, I have to RUN up the steep trail. So something that would usually take me 20 minutes with a steady-slow climb I have to do in 7 minutes before the kids start climbing. Of course by the time they get up there I've had time to cool down and look calm and collected. LOL "Yeah, no big deal you guys!" LOL.
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I've been absolutely horrible at being a good support system to my fellow challengers! I'm so sorry. Everyone has been so supportive and I haven't had the chance to reply to many peoples wonderful updates but please know that I AM reading them!
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So two more check ins left. Let's do this! I'll take a picture of my dress at the end of the Challenge with a before and after. We'll see!

love
-w0rld

Weigh In

Ok so now that I have a few minutes and I'm not rushing out the door to do something I can finally do a proper weigh in.

As I suspected here it is:

Current Weight: 214.4 lbs (+ 4.8 lbs)

A little scary. I knew  I'd gained weight with the amount of cake and over all food I ate (Thanksgiving week is also birthday week since 3 or 4 of my immediate family have birthdays in the same week. Crazy) but a 5 pound  gain? Even I admit that's absolutely ridiculous. Sigh* I'm sure I could blame some part of that on the T.O.M. but not enough to justify such a large gain.

I need to work harder this week. No excuses. This gain is too scary to ignore.

Work Out Achievement(s): Like I mentioned in my CDCC check in I didn't go out too much last week except for a 2 mile walk with my mother and some crazy dancing here and there. This morning I woke up sore from paint ball yesterday.

It was the first time I went paint balling and it was exciting. Although I wasn't very good (ok maybe I got out early most of the games) it just gave me motivation to want to do it again and work on technique and most of all aim. LOL.

However the squatting, running, ducking and etc assured that I had the sorest legs this morning. My front quads my glutes and my calves are sore. My left arm is also slightly sore from holding the gun. I have to work on my arm strength.
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This morning after my weigh in I had some time before my staff meeting so I went for a quick hike up one of our short but steep trails and took a moment taking in the gorgeous scenery as I planned my action for this week.
"Ok, now that I'm up here, alone and with time to think, what am I going to do about this gain?"
"Does this make me weak? Undisciplined?"
"What can I do to reverse the damage? What workouts can I do? What food should I avoid?"

Things like that.

That hike is really nice because if I try to go up at a relatively quick pace it gets my blood pumping quickly and the view at the end of the trail is very worth it.

Goal(s):
So besides continuing my water in take and etc I'm planning on working on strength training this week. Exercises I can do in between classes in my room for a few minutes and maybe bring out my pilates video this week should help, especially if I get lazy with the cold weather. I know this happens so I want to come up with a work out routine that can't leave any excuses.

That's all for now. I leave you with a picture of the paintball group yesterday. Fun times!

-w0rld

Super Quick CDCC Check In

Hello!

On my way to go to paint ball this morning! Woo! I've never done it before and I'm excited.

Here we go!

Current Weight: unknown!

I don't have access to my scale right now so I'll weigh in tomorrow.. Due to some over eating my guess is a gain. eeek!

Water. 2/7 days were great. I could have done better the rest of the week.

Book: I was home and spent the entire time reading the Hunger Games. Great trilogy. Not much insight in weight loss.

Exercise: I walked with my mom once this week. That was nice. I also danced the night away at least twice this week and that was awesome!

Support: Although a few people got some responses from me I spent a lot of time supporting my friend and my mom so real life support! And it felt amazing!

Ok gotta go.

Love,
-w0rld

Getting Emotional During the Holidays

I didn't want to post about this. I don't feel comfortable admitting how emotional I can usually be, and especially don't mention how I get during the holidays.

I consider getting emotional to be a personal weakness. But then I have to think about WHY I feel that way? Why are tears running down my face, when my life is going so well? Why, when the company I keep right now is so amazing?

I won't go in to detail about what issues I might have. But it does bring in a lot of things that, usually, overweight  people have.

~Bleh to frustrations~

These feelings bring back my insecurities. They bring back my low self-esteem full force. I feel unwanted, unattractive, annoying,worthless... You know, all that fun stuff. To the point that I start feeling depressed and sorry for myself. And then I feel angry because I'm acting like a silly pity-party child.

I don't usually talk to people about it unless I trust them completely. And if I do talk about it, it's usually things on the surface and I never let people in deep enough to the root of whatever problem I might have.

Because I consider these feelings to be a weakness I don't like to think about it or deal with it most of the time.

But then, of course the way I end up dealing with is what? You guessed it: Emotional Eating. 


... when in reality all I need is a hug. But I refuse to ask for one. Isn't that silly? Talk about being stubborn.

I don't want to feel this way anymore. I don't want to go back to emotional eating. I think I've grown to the point where I'm very aware of how I get, when I get that way and my actions toward it.

I think having that self awareness can work as a tool to keep me from the fridge. Writing this down now; out in the open where the public can read it, is also helpful and in my opinion, can be considered progress.

Hopefully one day I won't feel this way anymore. I don't want anyone's pity. I don't want any sort of sympathy or pat on the back. I might need it. But I don't want it. Does that make sense?

Did I over eat today? No actually. I did fine. I even got more than enough liquids in. It was great. The day was gorgeous. The company was nice. My roommates are amazing. I love where I live. I love what I'm doing right now. I'm getting goals accomplished.

But I'm missing something major. Something I'm afraid to ask for. Something I refuse to word out because I'm ashamed to ask for it.

I will not let food comfort me tonight. Instead I'm here. Writing this post and refusing to indulge in the lovely smells from the kitchen.

I'll stay in my room. I'll read my book. I'll brush my teeth. I'll go to bed. I'll feel better tomorrow morning.

Goodnight all.

love
-w0rld

CDCC Check In

Happy weekend everyone!

I woke up this morning with a slight surprise from the scale. It's not much but it's more than I expected and I'll take it!

Current Weight: 209.6 lbs (-0.6 lbs)

Seeing as I was feeling bloated and I didn't get much exercise in I was happy to see results even if it wasn't much.

The only exercise I got was working my arms while belay-ing kids up our tower twice this week. I went on a hike once and ... that's about it.

As for water I did ok but I was definitely dehydrated more than 3 times this week. I scrounged through my car this weekend and found my 64 oz water bottle. Perfect timing! That thing is so useful and easy. All I have to do is finish that water bottle.. maybe twice and I'm set for the day.

This week I got a little crafty and I created a small poster with a list of the reasons why I'm on this weight loss journey. I'll take a picture of it this week. I posted it on my wall right across from my front door and right above my desk, so that I can see it every time I walk in to my room. Nice~

I've been looking over The Spark; not really reading it thoroughly but going through it to remind myself of good habits and give myself some motivation.


This morning I got a great treat and I went on a trail ride around the mountains surrounding my current home. This was the second time I got on a horse and I was able to survive and have a great time. Talk about an inner thigh work out! Riding a horse (or in my case a mule. LOL. ) takes some work even if the one exerting most of the energy is the animal. LOL

When I get a chance I'll take a picture of the couple of horses I've been on so far as well as the poster.

I'm going home this week and I will collect my red Christmas Challenge dress and try it on again. I haven't lost much weight but it would be a good reminder of why I'm in this challenge to have the dress with me rather than two hours away where I can forget.


Thank you for all your support. I'll spend some quality blogging time doing my part!

love
-w0rld

Reflections/Going home for Thanksgiving

It's that time of the season! Time to go home and celebrate a glutinous holiday. Am I ready?

I'm not sure really. But I did try something different this week. I (except for the days I was in charge of dinner) decided NOT to eat at the dining hall the entire week and instead eat my own food. You might think this was a wonderful idea.. and it could have been, but in reality I used it as an excuse to finish up all my packages of curry from Trader Joes, finish all my leftover veggies that were going bad and just finish everything before going home for the holidays. I honestly don't think I lost any weight this week (I'll weigh in tomorrow morning and assess the damage) but it proved that I CAN resist the greasy, thick and fake food from the kitchen.... for the most part.

And you know what? For the most part I feel good.

Now it's time for Thanksgiving. I'm going to be re-reading sections of Bethenny Frankels book about HOW to eat. It helped me A TON last year and I'm hoping to use that tool again this year.

I was having an insightful conversation with a friend of mine about really looking in to the reason why I haven't been able to lose weight this year. Physical limitations vs. psychological. The idea of unconsciously wanting to keep my weight in the fear that I'll lose my identity if I lose anymore. It's definitely possible.

I'm going to be working on that this week.. and although I can talk about these reflections in my CDCC check in tomorrow I wanted to give it its own post mainly because it's something worth noting.

Do I have the strength to resist food this holiday season? Can I finally push myself enough to get past my unconscious fears and return to ONEderland?

Do I have the strength and discipline?

The answer is yes, it's in there. Now do I have the drive to push myself to get there? That's the real question.

Good luck to all this week!

love
-w0rld

Super Late CDCC Check In!

I'm not going to go off about how much I hate my internet right now, but let's just say I really hate my internet right now.

I finally have a window of working wifi so let's do a quick update

Current Weight: 210.2 lbs (+2 lbs)

Yeah, I'm not too happy that the little I lost came back again. I really got an eye opener this weekend and although it seems like I'm not doing much BECAUSE my wifi is gone I've actually been spending time doing some creative crafts I keep mentioning instead of procrastinating on facebook. LOL

Water was ok. I went on crazy hikes this weekend during the conference and I got to sweat (despite it raining all weekend)

My food was horrible. I ate three grilled sandwiches for lunch on Saturday and didn't stop there. In order to work on that I promised myself that I would NOT eat cafeteria food all week this week to see how that works.

I'm scanning the Spark right now for my book to help me create a couple of streaks.

I will take pictures of the cool project I made already .. when I have wifi! Gaahh!

Ok thanks for keeping me in this challenge. It was killing me that I couldn't update on Sunday or yesterday.

We'll meet again soon!

-w0rld

Absolute Technology Fail :(

I woke up Friday morning ready to do an early Christmas Dress Countdown Challenge update since I was going to a conference all weekend, to find that the internet was down. Hell.

The conference was in the mountains away from all technology, and so I decided to wait until Sunday evening to do a quick post when I got back to MY mountains.

When we got back I found out that the internet was STILL down and had been down all weekend. Short of taking my computer and driving 1 hour down the mountain I tried to call a friend to make a post for me (I don't have a smart phone, AND I do have crappy cell service) only to have my phone die on me.

Frustrations!

The internet finally came back on this morning. Too late I might add!

So I suppose I'm out of the challenge for missing the deadline. Absolutely horrible. I apologize. I'll update later tonight. The scale wasn't too happy with me either. Bleh

-w0rld

My First 5k!

I woke up yesterday morning at around 5 a.m. I wanted to get a quick walk/jog in before we even left the mountain to get my body moving and the juices flowing before race time.

It had snowed the night before (the first snow of the season!) and it was still pitch dark. I put on my layers and my new thick gloves on and started a power walk/trot. The stars were so gorgeous and the snow covered Jeffry pine trees looked so beautiful in the moon light I couldn't get over it. After a small loop around the horse pasture I came back and got ready for the race.

I told myself I was going to leave my bed hair for support.

My bed hair. Yes I know, it looks like my regular hair. Nice right? LOL

Eventually the house woke up and by 6:30 a.m. we were driving down the mountain and to Palm Springs. The race started at 8:00 a.m. at the high school track and went around the block. We got there with plenty of time and checked in. I got my number, my bag of goodies and a T-shirt. My co-workers and I all went for a quick warm up jog right before the race and I still wasn't nervous. I was sure I would make it to the finish line. I just didn't know how long it was going to take me.

My co-workers (minus 1) right before the race. The mountains where I live in the background.

We lined up and I gave my camera to our boss who came with to support us. Once the gun was shot we were off and three out of the 5 of us were out of my eyesight before I could blink. I quickly realized there was no way I was going to catch up to any one of them and settled to my pace. 

I can't remember exactly what song I had in my head but eventually I tried to keep time with a runner in front of me and came up with a "1, 2, 3, 4" pace. 

Right around the 1 mile mark when I was finally getting a good pace going. :)

Soon that person slowed down and I passed them. By the time I'd finished the first major loop I suddenly realized I was repeating a mantra the whole time-Elina style;

"You-can-do-it. Oh-yeah. You-can-do-it. Al-right." Repeat. LOL

My pace picked up a little bit by the end and I finally passed the person I had been following for most of the race. In the last tiny stretch I gunned it and sprinted like CRAZY to the finish line.

Gunning it. The guy with the mic at the finish line even commented on it. "Whoa! Look at her go!" He he.

I finished the 5k race at 35 minutes 18 seconds. My best time EVER!

The whole way I had support. Our boss (who took all these pictures) met us at different intervals in the race and was able to catch a lot of our moments. By the time I got to the finish line my other co-workers were also at different ends of the track cheering me on and I never felt so grateful for support in my entire life. It was AWESOME~

The entire Pathfinder crew. My boss is the guy with the skirt. Gotta love it!

I finished the race, hugged everybody and posed for pictures. I was already ecstatic with my timing and finding out that one of my co-workers actually got 2nd out of ALL the racers. But it got better. I soon found out that in our age division not only did the two guys in my crew win 1st and 2nd place but us three girls won 1st, 2nd and 3rd (I was third.)!

So not only did we have a great time but we all got medals!

                                  

Over all it was one of the best experiences. I'm mainly excited about my time and I KNOW I can do better than that. I admit my eyes peeled in surprise at the timer as I zoomed by. I couldn't believe the time. 

It was great. I will always remember the 5th of November, 2011 

"Remember, remember the 5th of November..."

LOL

Have a great week every one!

love

-w0rld

CDCC Check In

Good Morning!

Another week is over and it's time to check in. I had a pretty good week and I'm happy to report that the scale finally decided to agree with me a little bit.

Current Weight: 208.0 (-2.8 lbs from last week)

It helped that last week was pretty eventful at work as well as doing a few runs before the race yesterday morning.

On Tuesday I think, I went for a 2 mile jog in the early morning. I worked on my pace and my breathing. I was happy I went out in the morning before class, since I had been convincing myself I didn't have enough time before classes started to get a jog in. I proved myself wrong that morning.. and it felt great!

The rest of the week I was actually working my arms like crazy because I had two straight days of belay-ing (working the safety rope when students climbed one of our climbing walls--and then lowered them when they got to the top). The week had awesome weather until Friday when it decided to rain. That day was our final all-school hike. We walked 80+ kids up one of our trails with cold weather, biting wind and enough constant precipitation to keep everyone wet and/or soaked. I took refuge with one of my co-workers who, while hiking at an even pace, would start at the end of the line and work his way to the front. Once he got to the front he would hike ahead, stop, wait for the entire line to pass and do it again. He must have hiked up and down that line 12 times. I joined for 5 of those times. In other words I hiked that trail plus 5 in order to keep myself going as well as the kids.

And of course on Saturday I had my first 5k. I will be posting updates on the race in the next entry.

All I'll say for now is that it went fantastic and I really enjoyed it. That I was the last one in my group of co-workers didn't bother me. I went above and beyond what I thought I could and that's what matters.
---

For water intake I did pretty well most of the week though I admit a couple of days with my busy schedule, the cold weather and laziness to find my water bottle, left me pretty dehydrated.

I said I would look up the paleo websites someone gave me a couple of weeks ago and I STILL haven't done it. I'm starting to outline a collage I want to make with all my goals in them. I want to have something creative and time consuming that will remind me of why I'm doing this. Last year I was so focused and this year my focus has been off. It's evident in my lack of weight loss all year but I wouldn't say this year has been a waste. On the contrary I've grown a lot and learned a ton about myself, my career and my health.

But we'll get to that.

I want to continue thanking everyone that has been supporting me. The few comments I received on my last, nervous post before the 5k (either here on Blogger or on FB) helped tremendously. I will do my best this week to return the favor to my fellow Challengers.

Thank you!

<3
-w0rld

My first 5k race is tomorrow morning...

My first 5k race is tomorrow morning ...

and I don't feel prepared.

I know I'll probably make it in around 45 minutes.
I know I can make it without an mp3 player since I've been running without one for the last couple of weeks.
I know the route (through looking at a map) and I know that I'll be in flat, paved ground, which should be easy.
I know that I've been running in 4,500 ft elevation so far and the race will be closer to sea level; which means I'll have more air to work with.
I know I'll wake up early enough to take care of business (i.e. bathroom, stretching and other lil things)
I know I could probably push myself but I also know I can keep a pretty even pace the whole way.
I know I'm running this race with awesome co-workers that will meet me at the finish line.
I know the weather is supposed to be 67 degrees Fahrenheit and sunny.
I know I can do this...

...but I'm still anxious. I'm nervous. I'm worried that I DON'T have butterflies right now. Does that make any sense?

I took a shower tonight and I'm wearing comfy clothes. I'll be going to sleep soon to be up early tomorrow.

All will be well. Right?

Wish me luck!

love

-w0rld

CDCC Check In

The scale and I don't agree this morning;

Current Weight: 210.8 lbs (+0.6 lbs)

You see it says I've gained weight. I don't feel that way. I feel like I've lost, or have toned a bit. In other words I feel great and the scale can say whatever it wants today and I'll tell it it's got it wrong.

...However, eventually the scale has to start seeing it in my direction and I have to do a little jig to convince it.

What can I possibly do this week to make it see reason? Well I can train for the 5k I'm running next weekend. I can watch what I eat and maybe finally start calorie counting again since winging it doesn't seem to be working very well. I can make sure I drink enough water. Do you think the scale will change it's mind? We'll see.


Personification aside as I mentioned in my  last post I was doing pretty well this past week. I was able to hike, jog and enjoy some beautiful scenery.

One of the beautiful views from my hikes this weekend. The trail starts a few hundred yards from my bedroom.

I've also been paying closer attention to my food in take and so I haven't felt shitty these last few days. I do, however need to start calorie counting again since just watching what I eat doesn't seem to be enough.

My water in take has been ok. I'd say about 4 out of the last 6 days it's been fine.

I wasn't able to do my part as a support system last week. I need to spend some time and give some blogs some lovin' this week.

As for reading I decided it's finally time I opened up The Spark again. I brought it from home to read it and started reading some historical fiction instead (which still allowed me some insight on food consumption although not necessarily what I need to learn for my own issues) and this time I actually want to try the Spark challenge more literally. I remember that they had things like make a collage or jot down your fitness minutes etc, which I didn't really do the first time. I want to try it this time.

 Overall, although last week was much better than the last couple of weeks combined I can't continue on this path of weight gain, especially with the holidays literally around the corner. I need to get more serious. Honestly, it frustrates me to see how much I'm slacking. I'm supposed to be stronger than this right?

So this week "Get your act together Elina" is in effect. My plan is to simply refuse to eat at the dinning hall (their food is just all wrong for me) and prepare my own meals instead. I will re-start calorie counting and jogging every day this week. Out of all of them the jogging is what I dread. Although I know I can do it and I know I feel great after I'm done it continues to be a chore for me to get up and put on my running shoes.

Luckily the 5k I registered for is just around the corner so I CAN'T slack even if I wanted to. It'll be great.

I will do this!

In order to make sure I do it though I will do a daily update this week up 'til race day on Saturday 11/05/11.

Wish me luck!

-w0rld

Hiking in the San Jacinto Mts/I signed up for a 5k!

Hello everyone,

It's been so busy all week and before I knew it it was the weekend and my weigh in/CDCC check in is tomorrow.

I wanted to update before checking in simply saying that this week has been better.

The week started off mediocre on food in take, water and lack of exercise but around Wednesday/Thursday I finally started to get my act together and started paying more attention to my food and tried to make time for some form of physical activity. It helped that, depending on the schedule, my job sometimes requires hikes and running around. Working with 5th and 6th graders can do that to you.

It really started Thursday night, after a minor mental breakdown (probably had to do with hormones or being a girl, I'm not sure) and complaining for weeks that I didn't want to jog at night because it's been so cold I finally bit my lip, put on some layers and my headlamp and did a quick jog around the camp. A total of 14 minutes makes me believe that I probably ran around 1 mile. It wasn't much but it was the push that I needed.

Yesterday was a big day. I ran around with kids in the morning, went hiking with co-workers in the afternoon, went jogging with a buddy in the evening (it was so nice of him to keep pace with me although I knew how slow my pace must have been for that running fiend.) and not only that but that night we went to karaoke and I probably danced for 2 hours straight. (What can I say, Michael Jackson and old classics do that to me. LOL)

What hiking around my "backyard" looks like. Gorgeous neh?

My co-workers and I are supposed to be training for a 5k and I finally registered! It's official now, I'm running on my first race next weekend!

It's pretty awesome because this race is benefiting the Boys and Girls Club that actually started the Science Camp that I currently work for. It'll be a great opportunity to support the club as well as represent the camp, not to mention I get to finally fulfill my goal of running in a 5k! If you can't tell I'm VERY excited~ LOL

Today I went hiking again, trying out different trails from the ones my co-workers and I did last night. It was nice to move around and get acquainted with the trails, partly because I need to know them when I lead hikes for work but also because it's just damn gorgeous and I can't get enough of it.

I'll check in tomorrow with my Weigh In and more specifics on how things in the challenge are going.

Until next time!

<3 w0rld

Weigh In

Aaaah an old fashioned weigh in. It's been forever since I've done one of these since I started posting my weight and my goals in my Christmas Dress Countdown Challenge updates.

But since I missed weighing in I thought it would be nice to do a quick Weigh In today.

Current Weight: 210.2 (+ 1.8 lbs from last week)

Seeing as I expected my weight to be somewhere in the 2-teens I'm a little relieved that it wasn't TOO much of a gain. Either way a gain is a gain and I really need to get on that.

Work Out Achievement(s): The only real work out I did was Friday morning, when I finally got a chance to jog a loop around my new neighborhood and complete a 5k WITHOUT an mp3 player. I'm planning on signing up for a 5k (finally!) for November and I know they don't allow you to wear headphones, so I wanted to train that way. --- It also helps that my mp3 refuses to turn on sometimes. LOL

So I did a 5k in 45 minutes. Now I have to work on the time. Other than that, cold mornings, work and a convention kept me busy and a way from exercise (<---- horrible excuse!)

Goals: This weekend I actually had the luck to talk to a woman who knows a TON of resources for people interested in adjusting their eating lifestyle and gave me a lot of information. My goal this week, besides train for the 5k is to start researching this new information and try again on a new diet plan. 

I'll do another quick post later this week to talk about the juicing fiasco.

Morning outside of SFO and the bay. Lovely~

love

-w0rld

CDCC Check In

I just got back from an epic weekend outside of San Francisco, where I traditionally go to attend an anime convention with friends. It's awesome because it's sometimes the only time I get to see some people and it's a fun way to fan girl, and geek out with people who understand what the hell you're talking about.

Sadly because of that I just got back a second ago and didn't get a chance to weigh myself this morning so I'm guessing (due to my lack of exercise and excessive pastry eating) that --

Current Weight: 2-teens.. I wouldn't be surprised that I've gained weight. I can kind of feel it.

My water intake has been awesome. So much so that I had to pee every five minutes during the convention and it got really annoying.

I started reading another historical comic book about an inside look at Northern Korea from a Canadian animator who lived there for two months around 2005. Again I know it doesn't seem like it has anything to do with weight loss. But it opened my eyes further about how the U.S. is run compared to other countries and how our relationship to food can be so different from other cultures. It makes me a little ashamed at the amount of food we waste when there are other countries that have to ration out their food and etc.. Not to say that North Korea's methods are any better than ours but I did see that there are differences and how food really is a type of socializing tool and how different people use it for different advantages.

I finished my juice fast on Tuesday, one day early than the week I promised myself and honestly I had been cheating all week so I can't really say I was doing that great to begin with. This weekend I also had to deal with the fact that the only immediate food source was a small Starbucks inside the hotel I was staying in and that didn't help at all. The drinks themselves are a million calories and a pastry is double that. I'm scared to look at the scale tomorrow morning.. but I will.

Exercise was also lacking last week. I have been trying to catch up and learn new techniques for work, and also the weather in the morning has been getting colder and colder; so long story short I hardly did any jogging until Friday morning.

On Friday morning, before I got on a plane to San Francisco. I finally got off my ass and ran 3.1 miles in 45 minutes. Not my best time but pretty good considering that I was doing it outside a treadmill without an mp3 player. I have to start training up for a 5k I promised myself I'd sign up for for November. That'll be exciting.

This morning I also talked to two different people who are doing a Paleo lifestyle and I asked more about them. One older woman gave me a lot of links and material to look up and suggested a lot of books as well. I'm excited to look them up this week seeing as Paleo has been something I've been interested in for months now.

I'm sorry this post is super late. I'll update again tomorrow.

Until we meet again,

-w0rld

CDCC Check In

I admit I'm having trouble with the juice fast. I can't seem to commit to sticking with juice and pretty much I've been eating something every day. Usually I end up eating an apple as a snack between juice meals. Or a banana. etc.

It seems to help the urges and hunger; although the juice itself usually fills me up fine. It just doesn't satisfy that urge to chew! LOL.

I didn't think it was that big of a deal until yesterday. Yesterday some family from Mexico came to visit and through some delays we didn't get a chance to eat anything until 2pm. I. was. starving. (Well not literally.) We went to brunch and I wasn't sure what to order. I decided to ask for a soup. It came with a salad. So I ordered a salad. It also came with a muffin, so I ordered a muffin.

I ended up eating two servings of soup, the entire salad and the whole muffin. Not only that but when I got back to the mountains one of my co-workers made a carrot cake from scratch. Carrot cake is my favorite cake in the world and I admit I ate some. Too much really.

I told myself I'd go back to juicing the following day. And I have so far. But that slip really showed this morning.

Current Weight: 208.4 (+0.8 lbs since last week)

Aaaarrrggh! I didn't want to believe it. But there it is. I GAINED this week.

I'm relieved it wasn't too bad but I was still hoping for a loss. I'll have to do better this week. I have to.

On to the rest of the CDCC challenge:

Water in take: I did fantastic (I mean a juice fast. C'mon people it's all about liquids.)

Work Outs: I also did pretty well. I hiked two days in a row. Jogged two miles the next couple of days and somewhere in there my co-workers and I did some nice stretches, abs, and arm workouts. It worked so well I'm still a little sore two days later.

Book: I actually got engrossed in reading Maus, which is a comic about how a survivor of the Holocaust tells the story of his time during the war to his comic artist son.


Now I know this doesn't have much to do with weight loss but in reality it really got me thinking about the idea of wasting resources; including food, and living life to the fullest. Not to mention the awe I had about how this man used his resources and cleverness, as well as his people skills to survive. It's really a life lesson for me and believe it or not I really think I learned something from it.

I'm going to be going back to the Spark this week to help me stay on track and tackle this juice fast once again.

Support: I'm proud to say that earlier this week I finally had a good chance to go through many of my fellow bloggers posts and spread some love. The support I receive has been amazing and I wanted to make sure I returned the favor.

I'm going to San Francisco next weekend and I had hoped to be closer to my goal weight. Obviously that's been a huge struggle and I'm not going to make it but I'm hoping that I'll get closer to ONEderland once again.

Wish me luck and I hope everyones week went great!

-w0rld

Quick Update: Juice Fast Day 1

Yesterday I started my juice fast. The day before I went out and bought a TON of produce to use for the juicer. I felt bad because I ended up using a large space in the fridge. Thankfully we have 2 refrigerators.


I'm shocked to see how much food you use just to make 16 oz of juice. The concoctions I've created so far have been good, and last night I was fine. Today is day two. I'm feeling the effects today.

I have low energy and I just want to go to sleep. It's also been interesting being around my co-workers during meal hours. Watching them eat while I'm drinking a brown looking concoction is a little odd. But not as hard as I thought it would be.

It's the energy zap that's taxing me. I also know that a couple of people I work with aren't exactly thrilled with my decision and I have no desire (or energy HA) to defend myself. I don't plan to either. They seem to respect my choices anyway. So I'll take advantage of that.

In reality it isn't that bad. I'm just adjusting.

Wish me luck! And have a great up coming weekend!!

-w0rld

CDCC Check In/ A new challenge.

Hello Everyone,

It's Sunday evening here in the mountains and I finally got a chance to sit down and do my Xmas Dress Countdown Challenge Update.

Current Weight: 207.6 lbs (-0.6 lbs) This is a rough number from when I checked my weight on Friday and when I checked my weight this morning with my moms non-digital scale.

I'm actually pretty happy with this small loss seeing as I spent the entire of last week trying to breathe and stay dry. Last weekend I got this whinny cold and the weather had been rainy. Finally on Friday I was able to breathe much better and the weather got nicer but I still had a small cough and an old hooker smokers croaky voice. LOL

I went home on the weekend and I actually spent most of Saturday out shopping with my mom and my grandma so I didn't have much of a chance to stay home and pig out. My calorie counting has been horrendous but it's been somewhere in the 1800-1900's. My goal is to keep my calorie in take around 1400-1600 so I need to work on that.

Actually one of the things my mom and I ended up buying this weekend was a juicer!

A while back a blogger commented about a film they saw that inspired them. I looked it up and found it in Netflix. 

It's called "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead." (Btw, if YOU are the blogger who mentioned this film and are reading this now, please let me know. I forgot who it was! And I must thank you!)

A story about a man who goes on a juice only fast while touring the U.S. while battling a skin disease.

I showed the film to my mom a few weeks ago when we were talking about how we needed motivation. When I came back home this weekend my mom had looked up the website and had been looking up juicers because she wants to try the juice challenge herself. I got excited and told her I would try the juice challenge with her. 

Since I'm away from home right now we both 2 juicers and promised that we'd both start on Wednesday. Giving us both time to look up different ingredients for juices and time to go stock up on fruits and vegetables. LOL

I don't think this is a bad thing to do. It's kind of interesting to detox yourself and have a diet of only fruits and vegetables for a while. I don't think this could be a life long change. (I mean think about only drinking juice for the rest of your life. Yikes!) But I don't mind trying something new. More importantly I want to help my mom do something to get healthier. I want to support her and by doing this with her I feel like I'm helping her as much as myself. 

I'll post again soon when I'm ready to start the juice challenge. 

A part from that. I was only able to stretch and do some arm training last week seeing as my super stuffy nose and the weather kept me from doing any cardio. I'm really happy the weather and my health are almost back to normal. I'm itching to get my running shoes on!

When I went home this weekend I picked up my old Spark book. 

It really helped me start and keep with healthy habits last year. Seeing as I'm struggling with that now I'm hoping this book will help me regain some heavily needed focus.

On the upside. My water in take has been AWESOME. Trying to get my nose working I've been drinking tea (breathing in the steam like crazy) and water up the wazoo. One day I counted the cups of tea I had and it was up to 6 in less than 5 hours. Crazy. 

Goal for this week is to go jogging at least three times this week and get some hikes in. I want to practice archery more often now that I know how to use a bow and arrow and that will help my arm strength (pulling a bow string back to your ear is kind of hard!)

More updates with pictures later this week!

Have a great week everyone!

The mother-daughter challenge duo!

love

-w0rld

I've been sick... but getting better

Hello Everyone,

It's been a few days since I've checked in. Sad to say it but since last weekend I've been fighting a cold semi-successfully. Honestly, I seriously think my body has commitment issues because it looked like I was getting a fever but then it calmed down. And then it felt like I was going to get a sore throat but then it went away. Now I have this whinny half-ass cough that sometimes shows up and sometimes doesn't. I mean, cmon body! Either go all out and be over with or go away. Right? Right!

 The only thing that refuses to go away so far is my stuffy nose. My voice has also decided to leave me. Which isn't really helpful when you have to yell at 5th graders all week to stay in line and pay attention. LOL

The weather has also been pretty rainy, cold, and windy. Mixed in with a busy day and a wounded immune system and I haven't been able to work out AT ALL. All week! :(

I'm worried about my weigh in. I'm just hoping that my lack of appetite has kept my calories at bay.

Today is a good day. I feel better and the day is chilly but sunny. Aaah what you pay for living in the beautiful mountains.

I hope this week is going well for you and good luck to all this weekend.

-Elina

CDCC Check In/October Weigh In

My first week of work and my third week of of the Xmas Dress Countdown Challenge is pretty much over and since it looks like I won't get a chance to check in tomorrow I'm checking in tonight.

Luckily today is the first day of October (can you believe it?!) and I weighed myself this morning.

Current Weight: 208.2 lbs (-3.6 lbs from last week and -5.2 lbs since the start of the challenge.)

I'm incredibly pleased at my loss since I haven't been eating the greatest but boy have I been active! I arrived at the Pathfinder Ranch Monday afternoon. Throughout the week I've been shadowing my fellow outdoor educators and on Tuesday and Wednesday I ended up going on hikes with the kids. On Thursday I did my own strength training, mainly stretches and core work, and attempted to rock climb for the first time (Yikes! I need to work on my flexibility and arm strength.) On Friday the entire school ended up going on a big hike to end their week at the Ranch. I got to carry a big bladder of water the whole time and stopped at points throughout the mountain to fill up peoples water bottles. Let's just say over all I've ended up exhausted on more than one night! LOL.

My favorite thing so far was this morning. After a crazy night last night I was able to wake up early enough this morning and went on my first jog in this area. It was sooo beautiful. This place is a ranch community with large acres, horses gorgeous looking cabins and running dogs. The place is surrounded by pine trees and since it rained last night the entire jog smelled like pine. Mmmm. It was bliss. However I didn't take my watch nor do I know how many miles the loop I did was so I'll find out the next time I hit the pavement.

One thing I have been doing FANTASTIC on is my water in take. Not only is hydration necessary, readily available but it is REQUIRED as part of the job. I absolutely love it! I've been able to drink over 64 oz of water a day easily if not more so. I remember reading how to know you're properly hydrated when your pee looks like water with a very light tint of yellow. Maybe this is TMI but let's just say I've been peeing nearly clear. LOL

I've also finally started reading my book. I realized that the reason it's been hard for me to get in to this book is mainly because, although I do think I need to live more and be more assertive in trying to do more for my life (i.e. going out trying to find a better job, going out to actually do the activities in my bucket list etc) in reality I'm pretty pleased with that part of my life right now and feel there are other things I should work on right now. In other words I have other priorities. I need to find a book on emotional eating and actually spend time reading it!

One thing I definitely need to work on is supporting my fellow challengers. I've been so busy adjusting to my new life I haven't had the time to sit, and comment on blogs although I have been reading your entries!

We're doing so great! Thank you all for your support!

I'll talk about my goals for this next week on Monday at my regular Weigh In.

Have a great rest of the weekend!

-w0rld

Update..Finally!

Hello Everyone!

I can't believe it's already the belly button of the week and I STILL haven't gotten a chance to properly update this blog!

I have a few minutes before afternoon classes start so let's do this!

So last week, like I mentioned, I did great in work outs but pretty much mediocre in everything else. I need to really get cracking on counting my calories and reading my book and that is the goal for this week.

On Monday I spent the day packing and getting ready to start my new adventure at the Pathfinder Ranch Outdoor Education School.. where I'm learning to work as a Teacher Naturalist and teach outdoor classes to visiting 5th and 6th graders from different school districts in the Southern California area. I'm pretty much a year round camp teacher!

This is pretty awesome and it's very new to me so I'm hoping I can live up to the hype. Keeping up with 5th graders is hard work! My first full day yesterday left me completely exhausted and since I have to attend EVERYTHING (so I can learn it and then teach it) it was pretty hectic.

But this place is beautiful. The staff here is so far absolutely awesome and the routine is understandable. I'm having a hard time finding enough time to exercise but I'm sure once I get a routine going I'll be fine.

This week I'm just going to try and NOT eat everything at the dining hall. LOL.. which is going to be a challenge since this afternoon I already had 3 chimichangas for lunch! THREE! This pretty much means dinner is going to be carrots. LOL

Wish me luck and I hope your weeks are going well. I'm going to do my best to check out everyones blog and jot down my support. You guys are amazing and I thank you for all your kind words!

Hopefully later this week I'll have a chance to take pictures and then I can update with some cool images!

love
-w0rld

Weigh In... tomorrow

I said I would do a proper complete recount of last week but honestly I'm SUPER tired right now. I spent the whole morning packing, then driving, then getting oriented but I  made it to my new job and this place is beautiful. I admit I'm a little lost right now but I'm sure I'll get the hang of it soon.

Tomorrow is the first day. They have a pool here but I think I read that they have it closed for the fall/winter session. I guess it's time to find a new jogging route. A nice 3 mile loop would be awesome. Looking at the schedule it looks like early evenings are going to be the best time.

The people I'm living with so far seem pretty nice, energetic and roudy.. just the way I like them! LOL.

I'm glad I have ok wifi here. Which means I'll be able to keep up with the blogging world better.

I promise I'll spend time with a proper post tomorrow.. and hopefully once I get going I'll have some great pictures too!

Have a great week!

-w0rld

CDCC Check In

Checking in quickly since I have to be out the door in 30 minutes!

I just woke up, excited and hoping to see a nice new lower number on the scale after my intense work outs all this week. I go to the bathroom and find out it's 'that time of the month'. Soon any hope for a loss on the scale left. I hate period gain. Nonetheless here is my number for the week.

Current Weight: 211.8 lbs (-0.2 lbs from last week)

Fluids: I drank well most of the week but I need to keep a better system on my water in take since I drink out of two different water bottles and never know for sure how much water I'm drinking.

Calories: I admit I didn't count at all last week. Something tells me that wasn't such a good idea so I'll start again this week.

Book: I also admit I haven't gotten far with my book. I think I need to start a new book right now. I'm having a hard time getting past the first chapter.

Work outs: This is where I went above and beyond. In the beginning of the week (when I felt bleh) I hadn't done much of anything but by Wednesday I started swimming again. Since I now had a deadline (I found out on Wednesday) since I start work on Monday I told myself I had until then to try making it back to 50 out-and-back laps.

On Wednesday I did 30 laps.
On Thursday I did 40 laps.
On Friday I did 45 laps.
and last night I finished 50 laps... in 65 minutes. Not my best time but seeing as I haven't swam in over 4 months and this pool is longer than the one I was used to I think this number is ok.

I still feel great (if not a little tired) and I already noticed that one of my pants fits just a little better than it did last week so I'm hopeful. I was really hoping for a bigger loss this weigh in but I can't complain.

I'll do a more thorough recount of last week tomorrow at my regular Weigh In. Have a great Sunday!

-w0rld

How Yesterday Got Better.

So yesterday I wrote a post early in the day explaining how horrible I've been feeling the last few days and how hard it's been to get moving.

After I wrote that post I decided I needed to do something, Anything to feel some sort of accomplishment. After picking up the house, sweeping and washing dishes I decided I needed to do something more so I decided to make a list.

The first thing on the list was to finally mail my friend her charger which I kept forgetting to do, and then I was going to go to the grocery store to buy what I needed to make broccoli beef. While doing all this I wasn't feeling any better but I was doing Something and that was fine.

While I was looking up a broccoli beef recipe online (and cauliflower 'mac & cheese' yumm!) I got a call. I picked it up and it was the job I had interviewed for the day before. They had finally gotten a hold of my references and the second they finished doing that they called me to offer me the job.

What? A job? Me? And it starts next week? And it's in the field I've been hoping for? And it's two hours from my house so I can stay close to family? And it comes with housing? And I get actual weekends off this time??

I told the guy yes and thank you and I'll call him later so we can start talking about paperwork and details. I hang up and jump up and down with a little screech (I'm not a screamer so that's as far as I got. LOL). I updated my facebook status (yes, I know... lol) and went out to finish my errands.

I went to the post office and finally mailed my friend her package (I could hear the little box yelling "Alaska here I come!") I went to the grocery store and bought a ton of broccoli and cauliflower. Went home. Made the best broccoli beef I've ever tasted and had a cheese explosion with the faux mac & cheese.

I called the employer again and got all the details. Signed up for a CPR class, called up other places I needed before I head out next week and got it all done before 3p.m.

To top it off I had missed going walking with my mom in the morning so I told her if she wanted we could go walking after she finished work. I met up with her and we power walked the high school track while the football team practiced and the cheerleaders practiced cheering.

I talked to my mom about motivation for weight loss and we talked about how hard it is to change our habits. How much I've been struggling to lose weight the last month and she countered with having trouble losing weight the last 20 years. Touche' Mami. Touche'.

In the end as we walked we were pep talking each other and when we got back home I decided to try making banana nut muffins.. and then banana nut and zucchini muffins. Both batches needed sugar but turned out moist and fluffy. :)

At the end of the night I was tired, happy, and with a nearly complete crossed off 'To Do' list. But as 9pm rolled around I noticed that there was one thing I hadn't done yet... and that was swimming.

I promised myself I'd go swimming. I promised YOU, the blog reader I would go swimming. I didn't have an excuse (it's called 24 Hour Fitness for a reason) and after a little bit of inner whinning I got my swimsuit, my goggles and a towel and walked out the door.

I was surprised the gym was packed and the pool wasn't empty (why is 9:45 pm the perfect time to go to the gym on a Wednesday??) but I had a whole lane to myself.

I finished 30 back-and-forth laps and took a few minutes in the hot tub. When I got home I was exhausted but happy.

And the icing on the cake?

When I woke up this morning I felt good. I didn't feel bloated or lethargic. I woke up a little groggy but with energy. I woke up feeling skinny. I woke up feeling good.

Isn't it amazing how taking initiative and getting off your ass can help how you feel and what you do?

Have a great Thursday everyone and thank you for the kind words!

-w0rld