Website Wednesday

Hi, Everyone! Today's website is a useful tool for getting outside and getting some exercise in. It's called Map My Walk and can be used to map out and calculate places to trek in your area. It's especially helpful if you are trying to meet a specific mileage goal or are walking somewhere where there isn't a road you can drive on and use your odometer. It also allows you to track goals and find walking groups or events in your area. Check it out!

Tuesday Treat of the Week - Klondike

Has anyone else had these? Vanilla ice cream, chocolate shell, 100 calories of yummy deliciousness. 'Nuff said! They are a perfect sweet treat for ice cream craving times!

Monday Morning Check In

Hi, Everyone!

I hope you all had fun weekends! Over here, Saturday was busy with trying to get 8 hours of sleep, squeezing in some light weights (man, are my legs feeling those squats and lunges!), my writing critique group meeting, and 8 hours of work. Sunday was a lazier day and I was enjoying vegging out a little too much. I didn't get nearly enough of the things done that I'd hoped to before I had to work last night... including only getting in a 20 minute walk instead of an hour, but I'm glad I at least got out there!

Then, after work, I went with one of my coworkers out to a dive bar where one of my other coworkers was tending bar to have a couple of beers. It probably wasn't the best decision (and I was really regretting it when my alarm went off this morning), but I had a good time. Of course, getting only 4 hours of sleep on the night before kicking off a 75 hour work week (in addition to going to see The Lion King and celebrating Halloween) is something I am sure I will live to regret at least a little.

Oh, and less than a week until my novel-writing frenzy begins, too! I've been doing a little outlining and character sketching on my breaks from the PT job.

So tell me, how did your weekends go???

Crazy

It's official. I've gone off the deep end. I just signed up for NaNoWriMo. 50,000 words in 30 days. You can keep track of my progress here.

By December I might be comatose. At the very least, I'll be in a sleep-deprived, caffeine-induced alternate state of being. Feel free to send Starbucks gift cards. ;o)

Friday Weigh in

Hi Everyone,

It's Friday, which means weigh-in day! I jumped on the scale as soon as I got into work, and I was down another 2 lbs. So, when you add that to the 4 lbs I'd lost as of Monday, I've lost a total of 6 lbs so far... right on schedule!

Last night, I met a new workout/activity partner for the first time. We met up at the beach near Torrey Pines, walked up the big hill (that's part of it in the background of Narwal's picture), then hiked down the beach trail (Alberthong's picture is near the end of the trail), then walked along the beach next to the cliffs to get back to our cars (the water looked a little closer than in avbizzguy's photo). All in all, about a 3 mile trek. This weekend, we'll probably be hitting the Encinitas beaches.

Have a fantastic weekend everyone! I'll be back Monday with a weekend re-cap!

Thirsty Thursday

On Thirsty Thursdays, I'll be exploring the benefits and effects of different types of beverages while maintaining a healthy lifestyle, as well as taking the time to share some healthier alternatives for nights out on the town.

The first Thirsty Thursday post has to be about the most important beverage out there for a healthy lifestyle... water. Now, I won't deny that there are all kinds of conflicting reports out there regarding how much water a person needs to drink on a day to day business. But I can tell you that from my personal experience, it seems as though I lose weight quicker and more consistently when I'm consuming a lot of water. It makes me feel like I'm flushing out toxins, helps me feel fuller more often, and hydrates me for workouts. When I'm paying attention to a healthier lifestyle, I make sure I get at least 8 glasses, but I feel even better when I'm drinking at least 12.

Anyway, I found the information on this website informational and more in line with my own personal philosophy on drinking water. I hope you find it interesting, and let me know - do you agree with the importance of drinking water to maintain a healthy lifestyle, or feel that the guideline of 8 glasses/day is overly hyped?

Website Wednesday

Hi, Everyone! First, a brief update - after having surgery yesterday to clear a second blockage, uncle should be going home today, yay!

So, it's website Wednesday, and today I'd like to share something I find inspirational. If you watch much of the Today Show in the mornings, you've probably heard of this before. It's the Joy Fit Club, and I like to browse through the myriad examples of people who have lost over 100 hundred lbs. and kept it off. In particular, I like to look for people in similar situations as I'm in - women in their early 30s of around the same weight I was when I started or that I weigh now. I find it helps motivate me to read these stories and see that I'm not alone and that it can be done. There are also some good articles on health and fitness tips, too, so check it out!

Happy Wednesday!

Tuesday Treat of the Week

I think one of the important things about making a lifestyle change is not to deny yourself your cravings, whether they be sweet or salty. If you do, you're only setting yourself up for eventual disaster! The good news is, there are still ways to indulge, but indulge smartly. Take Jillian Michaels, for instance. In her diet tips on Self, she says, "I try to get my dark chocolate in somewhere throughout the day. I have to have it. I work it into my calorie allowance and I will always have 200 calories of chocolate...always!"

So today's smart snacking treat of the week is Dove's Promises in Dark Chocolate. 5 squares are only 210 calories, which means you can spread them out during the day, or enjoy them all during your peak craving period. I know the time I usually crave something sweet is right after lunch, but this allows me to have two or three then, and then the rest of them after dinner, if I so desire. Although I don't usually like dark chocolate, these are creamy and delicious. Give them a try the next time you have a sweet tooth.

Monday Morning Check In

Good Morning, Everyone!

So, the end of last week kind of fell apart. My uncle had his second massive heart attack in five years on Thursday afternoon. He died and was revived three times. Essentially, there was a blood clot lodged in one of the stents from his last coronary, and there was 90% blockage. So, they cleared the clot, put in a new stent, put him on a respirator, put a balloon pump in his aorta, and kept him sedated. I took the day off from my FT job on Friday to go visit with him.

I'm happy to say at this point that things are looking good. They've taken out the balloon, removed him from the respirator, stopped the sedation, and he's eating. I'm planning to go visit after work today, provided he's still there. The last time he was given his last rites, he was out of the hospital in three days. Of course, not many people live to say they've been given their last rites twice, and I hope this time he'll make the changes he wasn't ready to make after the last incident, mainly to stop smoking.

Of course, this also calls to mind the fact that life is short (he's in his early 50s... way too young for this) and that we need to take care of ourselves and the gift of life we've been given. That being said, I'm glad to be on this journey to improving my own health right now. I weighed in when I got to work this morning since I wasn't here on Friday, and I'm down 4 lbs. I seem to be right on track with my goal so far. Yay!

So tell me, how are you doing with your goal? Or how was your weekend? Check-in time!

Website Wednesday

It's my intentions to post on the blog nearly every weekday, but unfortunately I didn't make it here yesterday to post. However, I'm back today for our first Website Wednesday. I'd like to spend Wednesdays sharing with you different websites I find inspiring or helpful in some way to help us with the motivation and tools to achieve the goals we've set for ourselves.

Today's website is The Daily Plate. I was first turned on to this website a year or two ago and loved it right away. The free part of the site allows you to keep track of the calories you consume and expend on a daily basis with a huge, searchable database of foods (even brand names, stores, etc.) and activities, track your daily water consumption, set a weekly weight loss goal and track the daily caloric goals that should be followed to meet that goal, and input and graph out your daily/weekly weight totals. And that's just scratching the surface of the free possibilities and doesn't include the additional benefits you get with a paid membership. The site has since joined forces with Livestrong to provide even more services and support.

I hope you find this site as helpful as I do. :o) Let me know what you think. Also, if you have any suggestions for sites you use for resources and motivation, let me know so I can check them out and potentially highlight them here on the blog.

Happy Wednesday!

Manic Monday

I was hoping to get this posted earlier in the day, but it's been a little busy today, and so I'm just now getting to it.

The weekend was pretty good. I was at the PT job till after midnight on Friday night, then an 8 hour shift on Saturday, but then I went dancing after that on Saturday night (my second favorite way to burn calories). That was fun. I worked again Sunday night, but not before I got out and stocked the fridge and cupboards with some healthy foods for the week. Oh, and I slept in a bit on Sunday, too.

All in all, a decent weekend. How about you?

Just do it!

It's Friday morning and I'm raring to go! I only got 4 hours of sleep last night, but instead of splurging on my venti Starbucks white mocha, I sprinkled some of the Via instant coffee on my oatmeal for the caffeine boost with significantly fewer calories. Definitely a good trade off on the health-front, but 4 hours of sleep is just unacceptable. The experts are saying these days that a good night of sleep is important in weight loss and being healthful.

So how am I going to fix this? Well, I can't guarantee myself 7-8 hours of sleep per night with my two jobs, but what I can do is make some changes. Last night, I got home from the PT job at about 12:15am. As usual, I needed some time to unwind, so I turned on the laptop and the TV/DVR. And I went to bed at 2:30am when I had to be up at 6:30am for the FT job. So, the new plan is to get home, get ready for bed, slip between the sheets, and read for half an hour. With this method, I should be relaxed and ready for bed by about 1:00am, adding an hour and a half of sleep to my total. It's a start!

Anyway, I got in to work and weighed in on the hospital scale so I have a starting number. Friday mornings will be weigh-in days, and I'll be sure to keep you all apprised of my progress. And if you're joining me, I'd love to hear how you're doing, too! Happy Friday, friends. Have a great, healthful weekend, and I'll report back on Monday!

Empowering

The other day, I started thinking about my 33rd birthday. It occurred to me that 33 is a nice number. It has a quiet beauty to it. And 3 is my favorite number, which makes 33 doubly good, right?

I embarked on my 32nd year 2 weeks freshly divorced from the person I thought was the love of my life, the person I had spent the last 12 years with. I knew 32 was going to be a challenge of healing, re-evaluating, and redefining myself as a person. And so far, it's been all that. I also made the decision back then that I was going to give myself that full year to do all those things uninhibited. I didn't want to jump into any long-term relationships or fetter myself with deterrents to that path of growth that I desperately needed. It was a good decision.

But now that I've been able to do some of that growing and healing (don't worry, I know I'm not done yet!), I find myself looking outward a little more to the future that lies ahead of me. I think that 33 has the potential to be the best year of my life so far, and what's even better is knowing that I have a lot of control over making it happen!

So here I am. Tomorrow, I will be 22 weeks away from my 33rd birthday. And I am challenging myself and empowering myself to start laying the path that will ensure an incredible 33rd year. My first goal in that direction is to lose 66 pounds in 22 weeks by re-establishing a healthier lifestyle. I'll be chronicling my journey here, as well as any other goals I add as additional bricks along the path, and invite you all to come along.

How about you? What goals do you want to achieve? Will you challenge and empower yourself to achieve them alongside me? Let me know in the Check In below. And maybe then, we can prepare for our best year yet, together.