Weekend

Yesterday morning we got up at a reasonable hour....DBF made coffee...which was lovely as I haven't had him around to do that for over a month! We relaxed with our coffees and laid around for a bit while he caught up on a load of laundry and repacked his bag for his trip to visit his son.

We decided to go out for brunch since it was our only other meal together and since neither of us had any desire to cook. We hit up our favorite little diner close to home, where I had a breakfast clubhouse with pan fries and some more coffee. Bigger breaky than I would normally go for, but it was for breaky and lunch so it totally hit the spot.

After I dropped him at the airport for about 2:45 I headed back into town and hit up the gym. I did my Friday routine of hill intervals on the treadmill, followed by my strength training (since I didn't get to the gym on Friday...had to make up for it). Not quite as sweaty as usual, but still a good workout. My arm is still really bugging me...and will require a few more chiro trips...but it doesn't seem to affect my workout too much.

Then I stopped at the grocery store to stock up for the week. Lots of veggies, fruit, juice, some new edamame hummus, and a pack of sushi for dinner. Oh, and I found those new After Eight 90 cal Singels bars. Chocolate Mint can be my kryptonite....well, any of those snacky chocolate things can be...which is why I don't usually buy them...but I've been really in control lately so I thought I'd give them a go.

I had an Arthurs Berry Smoothie for my after-gym snack, then the sushi for dinner, and a bowl of Special K later in the evening. I felt snacky but stuck with grapes while watching a movie. :) (Notice I didn't eat any of the After Eight bars!) Came up short on my water for the day, but that seems to be the way it goes lately...I need to work on that.

Today, I got up late. I took a run over to Starbucks for a latte and came home to enjoy that while reading my book. I had an All Bran bar with it, but now I'm thinking I need an actual meal so I think I'll use up some veggies and make a small Greek salad. Dinner is going to be a new Rachel Ray recipe for a chicken & spinach casserole which I'll be able to portion out for the rest of the week.

Right now I'm waiting for a girl to come see one of our Kijiji items...but she's 45 minutes late so I think if she's not here by the time I eat my salad, I'll be adding some protein and hitting the gym. Tomorrow is a holiday and the gym is closed so I think I'll do extra cardio and a lighter, modified strength routine. The weather is still shitty so it's a good day to do indoor stuff.

Happy long weekend everyone!

Date Recap

Dinner was lovely. The restaurant was a little different than we expected, but still very nice. The food was excellent, our waiter was very attentive and knowledgable, the wine was perfect (we are picky and generally don' t agree!) and I didn't feel like I'd overindulged at all. Loved it.

We were smart and skipped the appetizers. I always feel obligated to order multiple courses at a nice restaurant, which is so silly because then I'm uncomfortable from eating too much. Instead we started with a drink and that hit the spot. Besides, they bring a basket of bread and breadsticks, plus a little veggie & dip plate...so cute!

It's a traditional European style steakhouse, so you order everything a la carte...which worked out perfectly because we could just share our side dishes. DBF had a dry-aged New York striploin which they cut to size right there at the restaurant. I had a local petite filet mignon. 6 oz is just perfect for me! :) He chose the truffled potatoes, and I chose tempura onion rings and asparagus two ways. Just the right amount of food...in fact, we didn't even finish the asparagus. Everything was super yummy....but the steak was definitely one of the best I've ever had. DBF rated his as in the top 10 for him, but remember he's from the prairies so he's had his fair share of good steaks over the years.

After dinner DBF let the waiter convince him to try a specialty Grand Marnier. I hate regular GM...I find it very harsh....but this one was made with some special fancy oranges and aged 15 years....I didn't try it, but it smelled fantastic. DBF ordered me the creme brulee as he could tell that I wanted it but wasn't going to order it...haha. I always have to try creme brulee at any good restaurant. Theirs wasn't the best, but I'd rate it top 5. (And yaaaieee for me, I stopped eating about 1/2 way through because I was full and didn't need anymore.)

We then walked a few blocks for an after dinner drinky-poo. Just one vodka-soda and then we decided we didn't feel like being in a hot, crowded restaurant so we came home.

A lovely evening for sure!

Uber-Cheat Day

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee! Honey is finally home today! 33 days gone. (don't remind me that he's leaving again tomorrow though....)

So, in usual Bi0nic family fashion, we have planned ourselves an "uber-date". This is what we call our date nights that involve fancy restaurants, expensive wines, and slight overindulgence. :)

We are going to CUT for a lovely dinner. I can already taste the boconcinni salad and the local filet mignon and the lovely red wine and, and, and.... I've heard nothing but fabulous reviews from friends about this restaurant. Mostly about the food, but a lot about the great service and the little extras that they offer (like placing a little hook on the table for a purse to hang on, remembering which coat is yours, walking you to the door at the end of the evening).

Needless to say, today is a planned non-OP day. There will be no counting!

In preparation for the evening I'm carefully making sure to include protein in my breakfast and lunch, and sticking with fruits or veggies for a couple of snacks. I don't have time for the gym since I need to get as much work done as possible so I don't have to keep working after I pick DBF from the ship, but I will be doing a few sets of crunches on my ball, tricep dips, lunges and squats....just to make sure I'm all ready for my cute dress tonight!

Did I mention weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Rocky Mountain Willpower

OK, this is the biggest friggin NSV of the month. I'm giving myself the Golden NSV Award 2008 right now. (Fine, I made that up, but I'm so freaking proud of myself.)

I was at the mall....trying to find a cute clutch for my dinner outfit for tomorrow night. (The fact that I didn't find one is another story...) Smartly, I did eat my dinner right before I went so I wouldn't be hungry. But who needs to be hungry when there's the smell of chocolate wafting around the mall.

Normally I would get past those lovely cocoa smells by maybe grabbing a coffee, but I already had a latte today and I didn't feel like a boring old decaf coffee. So I kept walking, walking, walking. I passed the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory THREE freaking times. Not on purpose, but I swear it's like the scent of chocolate was dragging me past their display window. I even went downstairs to get away from it (telling myself I was going back to look at another store...haha) but there's a Laura Secord down there!

Thankfully, Laura doesn't really do it for me. Too perfect and prissy in her presentation.

But RMCF has big globs of fun fudge, and those macadamia moguls, and bigass tigerbutter cups, and even though I don't really dig on candy apples those hugeass chocolate and candy covered things they sell just look so damn good.

As I was leaving the mall, I had to go past one last time...but because it was 8:59 I couldn't bring myself to interupt the poor girl that was trying to close up. Wait, no, screw her! It was MY willpower dammit. If I'd really wanted it, I wouldn't have cared that she closed in one minute. HA, so ya, yaaaieeee me.

But I have learned that I need to plan that as one of my splurges sometime soon. They don't show them on the website, but they had cookies there that were loaded up just like those apples....I saw one that was a hugeass choco chip cookie, topped with seafoam candy and then coated in chocolate. Oh. My. God. *drooooooool

Go Go Gadget Gymbo

Yesterday I just didn't feel right all day. Lethargic, headachey, and just off. I've felt like that quite a bit lately, so hopefully it has something to do with whatever chiropractic problems I'm having and after my visit today things will start to perk up for me.

I ended up working mostly from the couch yesterday and just felt a constant need for a nap. 4:30 came and went, and I was still working and feeling tired so my big plan for an afternoon gym trip didn't happen. I ended up making dinner early so I'd be ready when the Kijiji guy showed up to look at our fridge (he bought it, thank God!). I'd at least made myself presentable by the time he came.

After he left I was just laying on the couch staring at the TV and decided that was stupid. It's 8pm, the gym is open til 10pm, get off your ass woman! So I did. Went upstairs, switched into my workout gear (as opposed to the other Lulu gear I was already wearing), filled my water bottle and went. Yaaieeee me.

I had to cut my HIIT a bit short and left one thing out of my strength routine to make sure I didn't run overtime....we have to be out of the gym BY 10pm. It was still an excellent workout and I'm proud of myself for sucking it up and not just giving in to laying on the stupid couch. Came home for a bowl of yogurt , chopped banana and berries and the best shower I've had in a while.

No gym today....have a chiro appointment in a couple of hours and I don't like to aggrevate things by working out. If the weather was nicer I might go for a walk, but Mother Nature is being a cow this week. No biggie though, my body could use some relaxation once I'm not so stiff anymore.

Eats for today are eating up some stuff from the fridge...

- PC BM bagel w/ natural PB & 1/2 banana
- skim milk
- coffee
- Greek salad w/ light feta & crackers with goat cheese
- granola bar
- grapes
- grilled marinated shrimp, with steamed veggies, maybe some Asian slaw
- Bear Paws & tea

One Fish Two Fish

I was invited out for dinner last night, which was a nice change for mid-week! We had planned to go to a nice restaurant downtown, but when we got there they said that we needed reservations. Wha? It's Tuesday and 3/4 of the restaurant is empty. Apparently they had a few big tables coming in soon. So we ended up just going to the pub across the street....which is fine, but I'd been planning some shellfish or grilled fish or something and at a pub I rarely trust anything that isn't deep fried. Ordering seafood at a low-end pub always seems like food poisoning just waiting to happen to me. So I ordered the fish & chips. But I only ate one piece, a tiny handful of fries, and the 1/4 cup of coleslaw...then I was full and busy chatting with my friends so happily had the rest packed up for tonight. I didn't even have a drink...just diet Coke.

I tried to figure it out when I got home, and even if I ate 15 points worth...which I probably did...I was still right on my points for the day. I was busy catching up on blogs and work when I got home so I didn't even consider an evening snack. This is HUGE for me. haha.

So all in all it worked out.

This night out did cut out my idea to go for a walk last night, but such is life. Visiting with friends overrides a walk most of the time. :)

I'll be heading to the gym late afternoon today. I'm powering through work so hopefully I'll be done by about 4:30...I want to hit the gym between 5-6pm as I have to be home for a Kijiji guy to come see our fridge. No walks or bike rides since it's gross, windy & rainy out today.

Today's menu is pretty easy...

- Starbucks triple grande no-fat vanilla latte (I'm heading out for this right now!)
- All Bran Bar
- grapes
- Italian Soup with croutons
- cucumber slices & what's left of the baby carrots
- maybe 1/2 banana before the gym if I feel like I need it
- leftover fish & chips
- Bear Paws & skim milk

Snack Attack - Bear Paws

Because Cat asked! Dare Bear Paws

They are a cookie that is shaped like a Bear Paw! And you should check out their website just because it's got a fun song...so cute!!

I once got a sample of the chocolate chip variety in the mail. They are soft and chewy and yummy. So when I saw them on sale with the back-to-school treats at the grocery store I couldn't resist. I got the Brownie flavor and the Banana Bread flavor.

They are wrapped in little packs of 2 pretty decent sized cookies....I'm hard pressed to actually call them a cookie though because they are soft...more like a brownie or even a muffin top. Most varieties are around 210ish cals per pack, so they wind up being like 4 points...but with a coffee, tea or glass of milk they are a yummy afternoon or evening treatie.

:)

Crabby Crabberton

Not so much crabby this morning as just feeling blaaaaah. I woke up feeling sort of nausiated...I'm guessing from my late evening workout. I hate that. I guess when I finally get my ass to the doctor I should see if she can check my iron levels and stuff like that. I am sure getting my neck and shoulders adjusted by a chiro will help too.

So yup, got to the gym for around 7pm last night. HIIT on the cross-trainer, followed by my full strength training routine. Week two is so much less painful! Lunges...no problemo. :)

Problem was by the time I got home I didn't feel like cooking a full dinner, so I had another bowl of my Italian soup and some Bear Paws (yummy!). I felt pretty good and got to bed at a relatively decent time. Had an OK sleep until about 7am when I started tossing and turning. I should've gotten up, but had no reason to so I didn't. Then I felt yucky when I did get up. Boooooo.

Anyway, busy work day so taking it easy on my poor body today. I wanted to get out for a walk at noon but I'm still feeling wobbly so I think I'll wait. Lots of time tonight to get out for some fresh air and a good stretch.

Today's eats...

- ff vanilla yogurt with blueberries & raspberries
- Special K vanilla almond with vanilla Almond Breeze
- coffee
- grapes
- Italian soup with croutons
- granola bar
- dinner out....not sure yet....
- :)

Weigh In

I'm crabby this morning, so no long post just yet.

Weigh in is good though... 151.4... down .6 pounds from last week...lowest I've been in forever.

No gym this morning. Finally got a decent night's sleep and there was no way in hell I was cutting it short to go work out. I can work out this afternoon or evening.

I did start to experience this weird tingly pain I occassionally get in my arm over the weekend. In the past the only thing that fixes it is my chiropractor so I guess I'm finally going to have to suck it up and find a chiro here in Hali. Leave it to me to wait until it's an immediate issue.

Afternoon edit: Just got off a crazy long conference call staff meeting....whew. Still have an hour of work to do and it's already 4:35....booooo. Hopefully can head to the gym after that, but I did have a kijiji guy ask if I could be home tonight. On one hand I want him to come and take this fridge off my hands, but on the other hand I hate waiting when I could be doing something constructive at the gym.

Today's eats:

- cofffeeeeeeeee
- All Bran bar
- Italian Soup with croutons
- granola bar
- carrots & hummus
- if I'm going to the gym right after work: natural pb on a small tortilla, small glass of skim milk, then dinner when I get home
- if I'm going to the gym later, I'll eat dinner first and have the snack when I get home
- dinner is my second chicken burger patty, grilled and served with another tomato & goat cheese salad (no bread left though!)
- ff vanilla yogurt with fresh berries

Hard Worker

Yesterday I made a really easy, yummy meatball soup. I got the recipe out of Chatelaine. It took less than half an hour and now I have lunches for the week. Plus two yummy chicken burgers that I made with the leftover ground chicken. I will post the recipe later tonight.

The weekend has been a bit of a blur. I don't even remember everything I did yesterday, but I know that there was laundry, picture hanging, dishes and a thorough cleaning of my car. I didn't get the porch scrubbed because I decided to just suck it up and buy our own power washer, but of course it was too late to go shopping for one. I spent the evening just puttering around the house and watching TV. It was nice to have a day off from the crazy exercise.

I did stay up too late though...reading in bed. I just wasn't tired....which is actually getting annoying. And I got really hungry at like 1am....also annoying...so I had a couple of Lifestyle blueberry cookies and the rest of that organic granola bar I had started in the morning. This basically killed off any FP I had left, but that's fine...I reset tomorrow morning.

This morning I was up early because a friend was coming over to help with a few things. After he left I went straight to Rona and picked up a small power washer. Just right for what we would use it for. Then since I was on a roll, I went straight over to Home Depot and got a fabulous new lawn mower. I've been dying for one since last year so just bit the bullet and bought one.

So of course, my exercise today has been power washing the front porch, mowing my front lawn, watering the grass and working in my garden. I'm thinking about an evening bike ride too....but actually I think I feel more like a walk. Just me and my iPod. Yup, I think so!!

Today's eating has been sporatic at best, but still OP. Dinner will be my proper healthy meal of the day...

- coffee
- granola bar
- small tortilla slathered with hummus
- Babybel cheese
- Crunchie bar
(wow, can we say unhealthy?!)
- dinner is a chicken burger patty (ground extra lean chicken, fresh parmesan, basil, garlic) grilled and served with tomato & goat cheese salad (tomato slices marinated in a bit of balsamic & olive oil, with chopped red onion and dollops of herbed goat cheese), and the last chunk of fresh focaccia
- ff vanilla yogurt with fresh blue/black/raspberries
- maybe a pack of those Pringles Stix thingies for a crunchy snack later

On a Roll

Yup, 6pm on a Friday evening I gladly packed up my gear and took myself to the gym. I had a Friday workout plan that didn't get done early in the day and I'd be damned if I was going to miss it. :) HIIT for 22 minutes on the treadmill, followed by my ENTIRE strength training routine...including the dreaded lunges. Go me. They hurt, but today my legs are loosening up so it was totally worth it.

Went to a little birthday get together for one of my neighbors later last night. Her hubby had bought up half the gourmet cheese in town. I sampled a few and double sampled a couple of the best, had only two glasses of red wine, and was thoroughly pleased with myself. All yummy, all within my weekly points, all good!

This morning I had intended on trying out the yoga class at my gym, but some stupid people had made plans to come buy and purchase our old fridge & stove this morning. I say stupid because the arseholes never showed up. Argh. So instead I went and ran some errands. Have lots to do today so it was nice to get a bunch of stuff done early, but a piss off that I missed yoga due to some rude dillholes.

I am going to wash my car and wash & scrub our front porch so I can paint it tomorrow. Later I might mow the lawn and when it cools off go for a bike ride to make up for missing yoga.

Food today:

- 1/2 of an all natural brazil nut "granola" bar -so good!
- Starbucks Double Shot on ice with vanilla - so freaking good!
- scrambled Egg Beaters mixed with egg whites, in a small tortilla with light cream cheese and salsa
- fresh pineapple
- that's as far as I've planned....except I have myself a donut treat for later in the day :)

Stiffalicious

Yup, still stiff. Mostly it's just going down the stairs that is a problem. I must look hilarious.

This didn't stop me from getting myself to the gym for my cardio session last night though. I ended up going much later than planned, due to some Kijiji visitors...but I would've just laid on the couch given the opportunity so instead I didn't even sit down. Just grabbed my bag and went (it helps a lot when I already have my bag all packed). I was feeling sort of emotionally crappy for some reason and started thinking about food...so I'm really glad I made it out the door.

Did 20 minutes power walk on the treadmill, 20 minutes on the crosstrainer (two 5 minutes sets running forward, two 5 minute sets running backward), and 10 minutes on the recumbent bike. It should have been 20 minutes on the bike but I was running out of time and wanted to get in a full series of crunches. I love that apparatus that helps with crunches....still a great core workout without all of the stress on my back....it's the one you lay on and sort of rock yourself forward with your arms. I do a set of 25 normal, then 25 with knees to the right, then knees to the left, then another 25 normal. 100!

You would think with all this exercise I would sleep better but I'm still having trouble. Overactive brain starts working too much as soon as I turn the light off. Last night I went to bed by 11, read until 12, tried to sleep until 1 but ended up turning the light back on, getting a piece of cheese and reading until 2. So needless to say when my alarm went off at 7:15 for the gym I didn't listen to it. I think that was part of the problem on Monday morning...I'd barely had 5 hours sleep....and I wasn't about to have that happen again. I'll try to get there after work today since I don't have plans until later this evening.

It's HIIT on the treadmill today, plus strength training...somehow I think I might have a lot of trouble with the lunges though!

- Special K vanilla almond w/ vanilla Almond Breeze
- coffeeeeeeeee
- fresh pineapple
- Greek salad with fresh focaccia & hummus
- granola bar & skim milk
- mini Babybel if I need it
- leftover grilled smokie & steamed veggies
- wine & snacks at neighbors tonight! :)

Walking is overrated anyway, right?

Ha! Can you say stiff? OMG.

I had a dentist appointment so no gym for me. I can't skip 2.5 hours of work in the morning. Gym is strictly cardio day today anyway, so I can either go after work or actually get in a really good long walk tonight if the weather stays as good as it is right now. I'd aim for a bike ride, but I don't think my poor quads could handle it right now. I haven't been this sore since I started kickboxing and wasn't prepared for the craziness of the stretching and activity. Good pain though!

Yesterday was Day 8 OP. See, once I got over that three day hump I am just rolling right along. I occassionally think about candy or big carby treats, but the ideas mostly just fade...no crazy cravings. Love it! I also went for two walks yesterday...one short to check my mail, then another longer one after dinner when I could feel myself getting bored and restless. I think they helped keep from totally seizing up from the morning's gym session.

Nothing else exciting to report. Today's menu is eating up what I have on hand.

- Vanilla Shreddies with vanilla Almond Breeze
- coffee
- Bolthouse banana berry smoothie
- Greek Salad & 1 slice fresh focaccia with hummus
- plum
- maybe a mini Babybel cheese if I need it
- grilled smokie and steamed veggies
- Liberte vanilla yogurt with fresh berries (so yum!)

I don't even like Jell-o!

Why did we buy a house that is ALL stairs?

Yes, I topped off last night's fab workout with another one today. I know I shouldn't do two days in a row, but I was determined to get back on schedule right away. No excuses for falling off the new schedule! My legs are like stiff jello now....wobble wobble. Hopefully I don' t just wobble right over and down the stairs!

So I got up a bit early and got an hour of work in, then with nothing pressing to be done immediately I got into my gym gear and headed out. (Yes, I ate a bowl of cereal first!) I did 22 mins of HIIT on the elliptical (5 min warm up, 15 mins of 30:30 sprints, 2 min cooldown). Followed it up with my new strength training routine - minus one thing because I ran out of time. I think my new routine might be a bit too long for everyday workouts...so I'll just remove one different thing each time....just to mix it up a bit.

My plan is to do HIIT on M-W-F, each day using a different machine. On those same days I will do a variation of the strength training plan I've created for myself. On Tues & Thurs I will do 60 minutes of cardio...split between 2 or 3 machines...plus either extra crunches, squats or lunges. Sat and Sun I'm either going to try out the gym's yoga classes or if the weather is good go for a long walk and/or bike ride. Plus any other walks or bike rides I can get in during weeknight evenings.

I felt it today. Like, really felt it. Those lunges are awesome! I have to say that my butt never ever felt like it had been worked out with any of the exercises my trainer gave me, so after searching online I decided that lunges looked like a great all round exercise for the glutes and everything around them. Sure enough, they are. Sometimes I actually wonder if my trainer knew what she was doing. She worked me hard but I really never felt like I was targeting any of the areas I had asked for. Maybe I just didn't like the exercises she opted to give, and therefore wasn't seeing the results because I wasn't pushing myself? Oh, who knows. But for now I'm loving the lunges....even if I do feel like I might fall right over after I'm done.

Today's menu is produce heavy to make up for skipping my veggies last night....

- Special K vanilla almond/cinnamon pecan mixed together with vanilla Almond Breeze (pre-gym)
- Starbucks Double Shot on Ice w/ vanilla (2 points!)
- PC BM bagel with tomato slices and light cheddar grilled under the broiler
- raw cauliflower & baby carrots with hummus
- grapes
- pineapple
- bigass Greek salad w/ light feta, grilled Greek marinated shrimp, fresh focaccia bread (can't wait!)
- fresh berries with Liberte vanilla yogurt (I stocked up on fresh raspberries, blackberries and blueberries)

Plus I still have a few APs if I feel like a granola bar or Lifestyle cookies or something.

If my legs will let me, I'll go for a neighborhood walk later today too since the sun is out but it's not crazy hot.

Whew!

McWorkout

I love it when I leave the gym feeling like I actually worked out...hard. Especially when it's under my own steam and I didn't have a trainer or anyone there that I was trying to impress...except myself!

My headache stayed with me all day long, but it wasn't getting any worse...mostly just annoying...so I said screw it and went to the gym after work. I'd had lots of food today so I figured I was good to go.

I kept my cardio lighter. It was supposed to be a 60 minute cardio day according to the fabulous new schedule I made for myself...but I was determined to make up the missed strength training so I just did the first 20 mins of my planned cardio....hills on the treadmill. Then I picked up my strength routine right where I got so rudely interupted by my stupid nausea yesterday. I've created my own new strength routine using moves from each of the routines I got from my trainer, plus adding some of my own to target areas I really want to work on.

For the first time ever I did full sets of stationary lunges, and boy am I going to feel it tomorrow. LOVE IT. My legs even felt a little like jello when I was walking out of the gym. I am so excited.

I want to add in back bridges to work on my abs at the end of my routine, but believe it or not all of the floor mats were taken so I left them off today. I think I might actually go do them now before I take my shower. Who says I have to do them at the gym right?

Tomorrow I will pick back up with HIIT and the full strength routine (and no I'm not taking a rest day even though I did most of the strength tonight because I want to get back on my proper planned schedule). Here's hoping the HIIT doesn't land me on my ass in the bathroom again. (I've already stowed a protein bar in my gym bag...and I'll make sure to drink my smoothie before I go this time.)

....hehe....oh and I should admit that I scrapped the smokie and veggies and just went for a cheeseburger and small fries. It ended up being only 2 points more and since I had just sweat my ass off I'm not worrying about 2 points. :) I'll eat extra veggies tomorrow. And now I have all the Olympic glasses so I really have no reason to talk myself into McD's anymore.

Scale

I think my scale needs a new battery. It couldn't make up it's mind for weigh-in this morning. It fluctuated up and down a whole pound. The first number I saw was 151.4 which was so exciting that I actually giggled out loud. Then it reset and was jumping around between 151.6 and 152.6...I even saw a 154 in there somewhere but I disregarded that! I settled on marking down 152 as a good compromise. Fine with me, since it's the lowest I've been in TWENTY weeks. Yup, I said TWENTY weeks...that is FIVE MONTHS people. Insane. I lost 4 pounds in just this last week. Amazing what six days OP can do for you.

:)

So that's the good news.

The bad news is that my new gym plan is already failing due to yesterday's incident. Today I was supposed to go in for one-hour of cardio...which I had already decided I would cut in half and then finish up the strength training I didn't get to complete yesterday...but when I woke up I still had a niggling headache. It was enough to freak me out and so I didn't go. I soooooo don't want a repeat of yesterday.

The timing of this pisses me off to no end. I soooooo have the mojo back for my gym time and this happening now is so annoying. If I'm feeling better after work, I'm going in for the cardio. I'll have had two full meals plus snacks by then and I'll just be sure to listen to my body (although yesterday it all happened so fast that I didn't have time to adjust).

I did get out and mow my lawn last night in the cool evening air after dinner, so that's something. Just not enough something to get my toning done the way I want. I actually kept myself OP yesterday too....even while making sure to get in protein and carbs and sugars to try to make sure I felt better.

Today I was up early (if I wasn't going to the gym then I was at least going to catch up on the work I didn't get done yesterday)...so I started out with my Bolthouse smoothie and some coffee. Next I'm heading down for some Special K vanilla-almond and then my pre-lunch snack will be some fresh pineapple. Lunch is a PC BM bagel with cream cheese & tomatoes. Blueberries need to be eaten up so those will tide me over until dinner. If I do go to the gym I will definitely be eating a granola bar on the way there (and keeping an extra one with me...thanks Jen!). Dinner plan is for a BBQ smokie with raw veggies & hummus for dipping. I need some dairy so maybe some milk with dinner. Evening snack can be grapes, and/or maybe some yogurt or ff ice cream.

Blood Sugar

Well that was certainly an awful start to the day.

I sat last night and wrote out my fitness plan for the week. I packed my gym bag, filled my water bottle, laid out my gym clothes, and set my alarm for an hour early. I even wrote out my menu plan for today so I wouldn't be humming and hawing about what to eat.

My alarm went off this morning and I only hit snooze once. I got up, washed my face, pulled my hair back, set up the coffee maker, and got into the car by 7:45 as planned.

Got to the gym and started my new Mon-Wed-Fri routine of 20 mins of HIIT...today on the crosstrainer. Pushed myself and got through it all hot and sweaty and feeling great. Headed over to the weight area to work on my strength training. I rewrote my routine last night....combo of favorite exercises from the two routines I have from my trainer sessions...got through the first two machines, but as I was starting my second set of tricep pulldowns I started to feel woozy. This reminded me that I had forgotten to drink my planned smoothie before I left home, but not eating before a workout isn't at all unusual for me so I thought nothing of it. But the wooziness didn't pass so I decided I'd better take a break.

By the time I got to the changeroom I was having full on spins. I went to a bathroom stall so I could sit down somewhere private...plus I thought I might puke. I was extremely lightheaded and I think I may have actually passed out for just a second because I wound up sitting on the floor of the stall. I sat there for a really long time until my breathing and heartrate returned to normal. Then I stood up and had to lean there for a while longer until my head stopped spinning.

I washed my face and towelled off, but I was all sweaty....like cold sweats. Basically I felt disgustingly drunk.

I managed to cool off enough by pulling my hair up and changing out of my runners....so I decided to go outside. Sat in my car for a while, and thankfully was able to drive myself home.

Got home, went straight to the fridge for the juice I should've had earlier....then straight to the couch where I fell asleep right away and slept for two hours. Woke up, still felt like human jello so had a bowl of fresh pineapple and then a chocolate granola bar. Obviously I'm assuming my blood sugar must be all out of whack for some reason....so I was trying to pump it up quickly.

I ended up going back to sleep for another hour, then forced myself to get up and at least check on work. 3.5 hours behind. Lovely.

Since then I've had a big bowl of cereal, lots of water, and I'm now considering some Advil and some more protein. I still feel like shit....like I'm hungover...which obviously isn't the problem.

I know people get nauseus or sick from working out too hard all the time, but seriously....this was no harder than I've ever worked out and I hadn't even made it 2/3 of the way through. WTF? It was fricking scary that's for sure.

Anyway, I'm hoping that eating will cure the issue and I'll be feeling back to normal tonight. I guess if I do, the rest of my activity will be mowing the lawn in the cool evening air....or maybe it will be continuing to lay on the couch with my laptop and bad movies. I am hoping for option A.

What a freaking piss off that this would happen on my big day of re-committment and gym excitement. Argh.

(Oh, and to top it off, of course I forgot to weigh-in....so I don't even know if my days of OP have panned out.)

Sunday Brunch

Day four completely successfully! Yesterday was actually quite easy. Went with a bowl of Kashi Crunch for breakfast with a glass of Bolthouse fruit smoothie. Totally filling and kept me going until early afternoon when I had an extra cup of coffee with an All Bran bar. I did a bunch of chores around the house so I was busy and didn't even notice I was getting hungry until I sat down to read a magazine. At that point it was already mid-afternoon so I made my Mexicali wrap (small tortilla, 1 serving egg beaters mixed with 1 serving egg whites - scrambled, topped with light cheddar and salsa)...so yum! I didn't have anything else until my late dinner...around 7:30 or so. Ate one mini Babybel while I was prepping, then had tuna noodle casserole I found in the freezer served with a massive pile of steamed carrots, cauliflower and green beans. I was so full that I didn't even want a snack later. That's a huge NSV for me!

No workout, but I'm not feeling it and my focus is on my counting right now. I'll get there, don't you worry about me. :) I would have gone for a bike ride but the rain just kept coming...what a dismal day.

Today I'm off for Sunday Brunch with some girlfriends. The menu isn't posted online anywhere, but it's a fabulous little bistro so I'm sure I'll find something suitable. My only real goal is to avoid greasy panfries and I don't think that will be a problem. Either a nice omelette or some poached eggs are what I feel like today.

Because of the late breaky I'm just tiding myself over with some Bolthouse smoothie....I bought the Strawberry Banana one this time and it's soooooooooooo good. 2 points for 3/4 cup.

After brunch I plan to do some wandering downtown. I haven't really done that since we moved here....sad, after 7 months! Hopefully check out the LuluLemon store and American Apparel....maybe see some buskers....and maybe a coffee and magazine at the public gardens. Of course, this all hinges on Mother Nature bringing on the sun for once.

Hope you all have a good Sunday planned.

Over the Hump

I did it! Made it through day 3. Now for 4 - 5 - til weigh-in - and on from there.

I ended up totally messing with my menu yesterday, but in the end points were all still good. I was on the phone with my new bosses for hours so ended up missing lunch and a couple of my snacks. Thank God for the coffee I had prepared. And boy am I glad I got out for that walk before we got into the calls. I was slightly stiff and very hungry at the end of the work day.

Normally that kind of hunger would lead to some kind of binge, but I managed to hold it off by having one of my planned muffins then hopping in the shower to freshen up. I decided to get out of the house for a bit, so ran a few evening errands and got a 2 point iced coffee to keep my tummy happy while I was doing those. I was even in two different grocery stores (plus Costco) and never strayed off track or bought any "extras". Quite proud of that.

I got into the mood for something Mexican while I was out. So I got a new jar of salsa, and came home and made my WW frozen Santa Fe Beans & Rice...topped it with salsa & light sour cream and ate it with a tossed salad and a warmed small tortilla. Perfect.

I got some of that Breyer's Fat Free Double Churned Ice Cream because my fudgicles have gone all wierd and the ice cream was on sale. I had a 1/2 cup serving after dinner and it was pretty tasty but the consistency sucks. Is it always all soft and smooshy like that? I'll eat it but I won't buy it again.

So today the goals are to maintain the OP status and try to get a workout in. I was looking forward to some major activity mowing the lawn but it downpoured again overnight so the grass is waterlogged. Hello? Summer? It's Bi0nic calling. Just wondering when the hell you are coming back to town?

I think I'm going to make some coffee and make myself a little Mexicali style breakfast wrap. Then see where the rest of the day leads. I've been thinking about sushi a lot lately too...maybe that will be dinner....if I don't get around to making those 1-point eggrolls. :)

Happy Weekend everyone.

T G I Friday

I don't usually think that, but today I do. Work has been extra busy the last couple of days, and I'm looking forward to not spending 10 hours staring at this screen.

Managed to stay OP by the skin of my teeth yesterday, so that's two days in a row. Gotta hold on for day 3 and then I'll be over the hump. Thankfully I don't have any huge plans for the weekend so I don't think there will be any challenges to blow me off course. I'm hoping the weather is drier and maybe actually sunny so I can head downtown to the waterfront and maybe to the park with an iced coffee and a book. Come on sun!

Getting to the gym still hasn't been working out for me though. I have to figure a different time to do it I guess, since mornings are not my friend right now. I'm still getting crappy sleeps, so getting up early is not happening. I don't really like evening workouts, but I'm thinking that's the answer for now. At least I got a few bike rides in, and hopefully another one tonight.

I think I might have a tiny bit of my cooking mojo back. I was flipping through ESBM last night (I used one of the marinades for my chicken last night) and saw a few things that I wouldn't mind making. I've been meaning to make the 1-point eggrolls too. So I think maybe a little meal of Asian appies might be in the plans this weekend. We shall see.

Edit: I just got in a 20 minute walk around the neighborhood. Looks like the sun might stick around for my evening bike ride too. Nice.

Today's menu looks pretty much the same as yesterdays, except I'm out of Asian slaw....

- Special K with vanilla Almond Breeze (I ended up switching the cereal to breaky yesterday and having the cottage cheese for my evening snack)
- coffeeeeeeeee
- blueberry muffin
- pluot
- PC BM bagel with light cream cheese & honey
- grapes
- blueberry muffin
- tossed salad with marinated grilled chicken breast
- cottage cheese with chopped orange
- maybe tea and a couple of those Lifestyle blueberry & brown sugar cookies (yum!)

Still Half Asleep

I did it. Made it through yesterday ON PLAN. In fact, I think I was actually under my points, and that rarely happens. I made it through the movie with just water...didn't even have the chips I planned. I had changed my mind and decided I wanted to have decaf latte during the show, but didn't make it in time to stop for Starbucks and the theatre didn't sell coffees so I ended skipping having anything. I was actually really hungry...like loud grumbly tummy hungry...dinner was too light...but I couldn't think of anything at the theatre that would be worth eating so I just toughed it out. Didn't even snack when I got home because it was too late and I was exhausted again.

The shrimpies I made for dinner were really good. I think I'll experiment with different spices and make them again. So easy....these ones were just tossed in a bit of olive oil with paprika, a bit of cayenne, & salt. I served on top of a crunchy salad. So yum.

Oh, and I got out for my bike ride last night. I had a looooooong work day, so after dinner I was tempted to just crash on the couch until it was time to go for the movie, but instead I decided that I had plenty of time for a quick ride....so I hopped in the car and headed down to the trail. 8km in about 23 mins....I'm getting pretty comfy on that ride so I'll have to start venturing further when I have the time.

I haven't even thought about today's menu so I guess I'll do that now...

- yummy blueberry muffin
- coffee
- cottage cheese with chopped orange
- toasted BM PC bagel with light cream cheese & honey
- grapes
- another muffin
- dinner will be marinated BBQ chicken with leftover Asian slaw
- evening snack of cereal or something similar

Keeping Busy

Well at least when I'm really busy I'm not stuffing my face.

Last night I didn't get to bed very early...stupid Big Brother! I took a Tylenol Night capsule to try to knock myself out...I think it worked for about 4 hours....but I still started tossing and turning in the wee hours. Argh. Don't you hate when you are exhausted but just can't sleep? So I ended up sleeping in right until I had to start work (well "sleeping" would be pushing it) so no gym for me today. Double Argh.

Anyway, since I got up work has been non-stop, so all I've had time for is a bowl of Special K, a blueberry muffin and only one cup of coffee. I'm going to cram in a salad before the next conference call and have another muffin and coffee to tide me over until dinner. Dinner will be those shrimp that I was supposed to have last night, with more salad. Keeping it light because I'm going to the movies tonight.....

I think I'll pack my water bottle and stop to buy a bag of Baked Lays on my way there. Sour Cream & Onion are better than yucky greasy popcorn anyway, right?

The sun came out briefly this morning but seems to be gone again now. Will we ever get our Summer back? ...it's depressing. If I have time after work, before the movie, and if it doesn't start raining I will try to get on my bike for a ride....maybe at least to the store for those Baked Lays.

Here's hoping today's plan sticks!

It's got to be something to do with the shit weather!

Ugh, even after that post this morning, and a pretty decent food day....by the time afternoon hit I just felt like crap and my eating went that way too.

You know...I said to someone the other day (sorry I don't remember who!) that Day 3 is the hump. If I could just get through three days OP, I think I could hang on. But this one day on/one day off crap is just killing me.

The weather is shit today. Grey, wet and gloomy...which is not helping my mood. I'm still totally exhausted from my terrible sleep last night and it's caused a headache that will just not go away.

I didn't feel like cooking so dinner was a bowl of cereal (even with those lovely prawns all ready to go) which I followed with a whackload of peanuts and then some toast with cheese. Like, what the hell? None of that made me feel any better. Now I just feel guilty on top of everything else.

Gah.

I'm going to drink some water, make some tea, have a shower, and try to go to bed early.

Tired Tuesday

So last night I fell a little off track at the very end of the day, but not too much so I'm not going to beat myself up for it. I mean, I did go to the gym in the morning AND did go for another lovely bike ride so I'm sure it all pretty much evened out.

Last night I also made a batch of blueberry muffins. I have been on a real blueberry kick and since I'm running low on snacky things I decided that it was a great idea. And boy was it ever...they are soooooooo yummy! I used the trusty Banana Bran Muffin recipe, but subbed in 1 1/2 cups of fresh blueberries and a big squirt of honey in place of the mashed banana. Added a bit of extra water to make up for the liquidity of the bananas. Worked like a charm. So good!

I wanted to go to the gym this morning, but the company I work for has been in the process of selling and it finally closed last night so I had lots of last minute stuff to get done today....plus I had the VW dealership picking me up at 10am to go get my car (was in for a broken window clip)....so unfortunately the gym had to take a backseat. I will try to go later today but I imagine work will get insane once all the West Coasters get up and realize everything we have to do for the transition.

I woke up super exhausted today. Partially because I stayed up a bit too late, but also because I had a very restless sleep. I hate that. My eyes feel like they are full of sand. I see a nap in my future (if I can sneak one in between work stuff).

Anyway, foodwise I have lots of yummy plans for the day. Had one of those fab muffins for breaky and am now enjoying my coffee. I'll follow up with another pluet (tastes like a plum to me!). Lunch will be eating up the last of the egg salad, but on crackers because I ran out of tortillas. Hummus and baby carrots for the afternoon snack. And I have another Rachel Ray recipe for dinner....Cuban Shrimp (basically prawns marinated with some paprika and other spices) which I'm going to put on top of salad. Then cottage cheese and maybe another muffin in the evening.

It's wet and disgusting today so probably no bike ride, but if it clears up I'll be out there tonight!

Keep on keeping on...

You will all be so proud of me! (Well I think so anyway!) I got up early, got a bit of work started, then put on my gear and went to the gym!

It wasn't the best workout ever....I still wasn't feeling it...but I did it, and that's what counts, right? I did a 25 min power walk with inclines on the treadmill, then 10 minutes face-paced on the elliptical. I was planning to do my strength training routine today, but the weight area was packed and I didn't feel like dealing with people. I did get in three full sets of tricep pulldowns and 100 varied crunches though so that's something!

As long as the weather holds I will also go for another bike ride tonight. Wisely, I left my bike in DBF's car so I don't have the excuse of not wanting to load it up.

I came home to a big bowl of Special K Vanilla Almond with vanilla Almond Breeze and my morning coffee. For lunch I just had another egg salad on a tortilla and I'm about to eat a pluet (cross between a plum and an apricot apparently). Dinner is leftovers from last night, but I'll probably make a salad too because it's not a lot of food. If I'm hungry between now and then, I'll crack open the hummus with some baby carrots. And for a snack tonight I have cottage cheese. Yum!

Sunday Start Up

Instead of waiting until Monday like I usually do for my "re-starts"...I woke up on the right side of the bed today and decided today was the day. (Amazingly actually because I had a major bought of insomnia last night which made me super, extra cranky.)

Got up and chugged a glass of water, made coffee, made egg salad....then changed my clothes and headed right outside to mow the lawn. This is a major workout. Our yard does not seem all that big, but it's on a weird slope and because it hasn't been mowed in two weeks it was like a major jungle. (side note: our lawn mower sucks ass...I'm shopping for a new one this week) I mowed the whole yard, raked it all, and weedeated all the edges. It doesn't actually look all that great, but once I get a mower with a bag I'll go over it again and keep it nice and tidy. It was a helluva a workout!

Came in and made egg salad in an Ancient Grains tortilla and enjoyed it with my coffee on the deck with the newspaper. Followed this with some fresh blueberries and lotsa water before my shower. Actually ended up heading out to see if I could find a lawnmower, but too late in the day so I only made it to one store. I did, however, finally get to the Sears Outlet store and got a WICKED deal on a bed for our spare room. That store is awesome. Avoided the temptation of any sort of drive-thru beverage, and ate the All Bran bar that was in my purse when hunger attacked.

Came home and made a recipe from my new Rachel Ray magazine...my rule is that if I'm going to buy it each month I have to make something out of it. I did pork & pineapple skewers with pineapple rice. The marinade was good, so the skewers I'd do again...but the rice was pretty boring so I doubt if I'd bother with that in the future. Probably just serve it with some fresh veggies stir-fried on the grill next time.

Then....you won't believe it....I went for a bike ride! I know, I've been saying for at least 3 months that I needed to get my bike on the road. Well, while cleaning the garage yesterday my neighbor saw my flat tires and pumped them up for me. That was really all that was holding me back, so tonight I loaded the bike into the car and headed down to the local trail. I started at the parking lot and just rode until I hit what seemed like the end of that particular section. According to the map I rode about 8km I think.

So here I am, ready to enjoy the rest of my evening with tons of points left and no cravings for junk. I think cereal and a plum are in order to celebrate my great day.

Thanks for the great comments. Those last two almost had me in tears. You all are fabulous.

Slowly but surely...

I'm still here. Still no gym. Still on a crap food bender. This is the worst one in two years I think. Just can't seem to get a hold on it. I'll do good all day long, then fall off the plan come dinner time. I guess once I'm done working and my brain can wander, I get sad again and lean on my crappy food choices as some sort of crutch. Argh. I don't even remember ever being quite this bad pre-WW. I probably was, but just didn't admit it.

Today was a happier day though. Our two fabulous friends came over and spent the entire afternoon helping me unload all the crap from our garage, sort it all, then move back the keepers in MUCH more organized fashion. The anal, tidy freak in me is so much happier now. It's freaking amazing. I now have photos of the big "for sale" items and in no time the garage will actually be a garage, not an oversized storage locker.

It was great to have a happy day after the two weeks of unhappy. It will still be lonely tonight without my furry man laying faithfully by my side though. I don't know if that will ever feel right.

Anyway, food wasn't even on my mind today. Ate what I wanted and just didn't give a flying frick. I'm going to bed tonight with a good attitude for the menu tomorrow. Let's hope I wake up with this same attitude.

(Oh, and my neighbor saw that my bike tires were still flat...from our move, seven months ago...so he pumped them up for me....so now I can drag my sorry cardio-free-for-far-too-long lungs around the block tomorrow.)

Seeking Gym Love

Still can't find the "want" to go back to the gym. It's only been a week so I'm not freaking out yet...but I guess I'd better get on it soon or it will be even harder.

Last night I really had planned to go, but by the time I finished my work day I was just exhausted. I've been like that since everything started with the doggie. My mental exhaustion is dragging my physical exhaustion along with it. Instead, I ended up doing chores around the house...still worked up a sweat scrubbing the tub and vacuuming....so I guess it wasn't a total loss. I just couldn't see myself on the gym equipment last night.

I'll snap out of it soon. I promise.

Food was all good yesterday though. I made a stirfry with chicken and honey for dinner...leftover for tonight. I was still hungry later so I had a bowl of Special K and that did the trick.

Today will be much like yesterday....minus the Starbucks trip...

- Bolthouse Berry Smoothie (I don't know why they call these smoothies...they are all juice)
- coffee
- Cinnamon All Bran Bar
- Source ff lemon yogurt with blueberries
- egg salad on PC BM bagel with onion sprouts
- baby carrots with hummus
- Sweet n Salty PB bar
- leftover chicken stirfry
- evening snack....maybe cereal, maybe Lifestyles cookies, who knows....

Better-ish

Thanks to each and every one of you that left me a comment over the last few days. I can't tell you how much the extra support has helped. I never would have thought that just a few words on a page could be so comforting, but they are. Blogland is amazing, isn't it?

Yesterday wasn't great foodwise...but I think it was the end of the eating for emotion. I did fast food for the third time in a week and my body is now rebelling. I'm only allowed to go back to McDonald's to get my Olympic collectors glasses. No more 8pm cheeseburgers.

I took myself for a haircut today. It was nice to do something just for me and to not talk about the doggie for a little while. Still the same cute hairdo...just freshened up and a little shorter in back. Good for the driver's license photo I had done today....after remembering that I should have done that about 4 months ago after we moved here. Ooops. I'm going to get my passport pic today too since I have good hair.

Food so far has been just a latte, a plum, and egg salad on a PC BM bagel. I'm about to make a snack of baby carrots & cuke slices with some hummus...and I think dinner will be something light involving a zucchini. Fruit and yogurt are on the plan for my evening snack. Maybe a handful of almonds before I hit the gym later too. Just cardio today to ease myself back into things I think.

I'm going to cuddle the kitty now. Thanks again.

Meh

I'm sure you can all understand that I'm not much into writing out my menus...or even thinking about what I'm going to eat for the next few days. It's been a rough week...and yesterday was a terrible day. (see my other blog if you aren't sure what I'm talking about).

I didn't even think about food all day yesterday...not even coffee. I finally forced a bowl of Kashi into myself in the early afternoon because I didn't think it would be good for me to go into an emotional situation and then have some sort of blood sugar crash. Afterwards, my friend took me for coffee and cookies so I could try to shake off the tears and relax a bit.

I'll even admit that in the evening I put on my sneakers to go for a walk, but I just couldn't handle a walk without Mojo. Too sad just yet. So I ended up going to get McD's for dinner. Not the healthiest choice obviously but it filled the hunger hole and I had the points for it since I'd barely eaten all day.

I'm trying to be better today but cooking definitely isn't high on my agenda. I will try to stick to the healthy options in my fridge and maybe by this evening I'll feel like distracting myself with cooking. Facing the gym might be tough too, but I'll see how it goes. I'm fine one minute, then not the next, so it's tough to know how the day will play out.

Thanks for all of the warm comments on my other blog. I really appreciate all of the wonderful support.

Shrunk made me do it!

Thanks to Shrunk's comments this morning, I was able to stay on track today. Every time I think about that bag of Cheetos or the rest of that Club Soda Cake I think about her comment and how I have to report back here. :) Nothing like guilt to keep you on plan.

So, here it is:

- Bolthouse Berry Smoothie
- coffee
- All Bran Bar (can I just say that I actually prefer the Honey Nut over the Choc Chip)
- 1/2 banana
- leftover hashbrown casserole
- Sweet n Salty PB bar
- cherries
- leftover turkey taco mix in grilled zucchini boats with light sour cream
- skim milk
- Club Soda vanilla cake
- and now I'm snacky so I'm having grapes

25 points - wooooooooooooo

I also went for a great 35 minute walk around the neighborhood. It's a little wierd walking without the dog...that will take some getting used to. The good part is that I can walk further and faster without the dog pulling me...but I'm not sure that is such a great trade at this point.

So, thanks everyone for the support...keep it coming. :)

One day at a Time

Well, it's Monday so that must mean it's "restart" day. Seems to be a theme these last few weeks. Thankfully, even after my cocktail of sodium and sugar, the scale showed me staying the same this morning. I don't think I could have handled seeing a higher number so I am now motivated to kiss those Cheetos goodbye.

Mojo is staying consistant so that is helping. I can handle him the way he is...even though I know he must be so freaking uncomfortable all the time...as long as he doesn't take a turn for the worse today I might be able to hold myself together. It's a work day for me today so maybe that distraction will help too.

I am not planning my menu, but will check in tonight and let you know how the day went. There is a shortage of veggies in the house, but I think I have enough to get through the day. No gym today because of the holiday, but the rain has let up so I'll try to get out for a walk. I could use the fresh air anyway.

Thanks for all of your support. Happy Natal Day! (or insert appropriate provincial holiday of your choice)

Depression Cocktail

That's what I'm calling it. The cocktail of junk food that I consume when I am depressed or otherwise emotionally exhausted.

Cheetos - salty carb group
Mike n Ikes - fruity candy group
Bridge Mix - chocolate satisfaction group

I make a little bowl of each and eat them until I have a tummy ache. It's a ridiculous ritual brought on over the years, but it's my ritual and aside from admitting it here I am not going to dwell on it. I'm soaking it down with a ton of water and will recover from it when the bag of Cheetos is empty.

What I really want is to slather it all in KFC gravy, but I'll hold off on that particular sodium disaster....for now.

It's August

Wow, with everything going on I didn't even realize we were in a new month.

I'm not doing goals for August. I've done OK with July's goals but nowhere near as well as I would have liked. After a couple of months of just OK, I think it's time to take a break from the goals and just do the best I can.

For July I did surpass my distance goal. I made it close to 90km...and my goal was 75 so I'm pretty pleased with that. My OP days fell way short at only 12....and my workouts didn't pan out either...only 16 out of the 20. So close, but not close enough.

August will be all about me being the best me I can be.

Exhausted

Emotionally and physically. Without getting into too much detail, I found out yesterday that Mojo is in renal failure. He's home for weekend, but the prognosis is BAD.

By the end of the day yesterday I was so tired I just wiped out when I finally got to sit down. Doggie had to go out about every 2-3 hours, so my sleep was sporatic at best. I'm just drained and I'm unsure about leaving him alone so I won't be gyming it today. I actually think I would feel good if I went, but I just can't do it. The weather is ass, but if the dog seems comfortable for a while I might try to get out for another walk around the neighborhood. We'll see how it all goes.

Last night I ended up making a homemade open faced taco thingy for dinner instead of the Smart One. The vet suggested I try cooking Mojo some ground meat to see if he would eat (he didn't) so I cooked up some ground turkey, pulled some out for him, and did the rest up for myself. I added a packet of taco seasoning, some frozen spinach, corn & black beans. I put it on top of a small tortilla, then topped with light cheddar, salsa and light sour cream. It was actually pretty good and I have lots of leftovers so I don't have to worry about meals this weekend while looking after the dog.

Eating is actually the last thing on my mind, but so far this is how I see it for today...

- lotsa water, I'm crazy dehydrated and thirsty
- Bolthouse Berry Smoothie slurped from the bottle
- coffee...although believe it or not I'm not overly into it today
- small Ancient Grains tortilla with natural PB & 1/2 banana
- cherries
- Source ff lemon yogurt & raspberries
- there's salad to eat up, so that will probably do for lunch type meal
- dinner is the leftover turkey taco stuff
- some sort of evening comfort treat....maybe a cupcake or hot chocolate or something

I needed the fresh air...

Ha, so now I don't have to take my exhausted ass to the gym tonight if I'm not up to it...and I won't feel guilty because I just did a nice 30 minute walk around the neighborhood. Of course, now I'll probably fall asleep on my desk....but at least I'll have 2 APs to feel good about. :)

Well, mapmyrun seems to be having embedding issues today....but it was 2.4km.

So tired.

I'm exhausted. Don't know why I stayed up late last night...talking to my Mom about the dog and doing some puttering around the house. I always do that when I'm stressed...clean, bake, tidy...I'm such a girl. Then up early again to pick doggie up from overnight clinic and return him to our vet for day 3 of IV fluids. He needs to start eating dammit! Poor guy just can't seem to get better.

No gymbo for me this morning...just too poopered to really do anything functional. Hopefully I burn through some work and get an afternoon nap in....then maybe hit the gym before I go get Mojo this evening (hopefully to bring him home, not to take him to the overnight clinic again).

The lovely Miss Jennifer asked if I meal plan.... yup! For the most part anyway. I'm a shop-a-holic so I always have too much stuff in the house, so I at least plan each day in the morning...but if I have time I'll plan a week in advance....or at least a tenative plan anyway. Often (especially when DBF goes away) my plan is based on what needs to be used up. Generally it keeps me in line, and I have something to look forward to.

Today's plan is this....

- Bolthouse Berry Smoothie chugged from container
- Starbucks double tall no-fat vanilla latte (I deserved this today!)
- small ancient grains tortilla warmed with natural pb & honey
- Source ff lemon yogurt with raspberries
- another tortilla wrapped with light cream cheese, turkey & veggies
- cucumber slices
- strawberries
- I gotta tell ya there may likely be another trip to SB for some afternoon caffeine
- dinner is going to be a Smart Ones Santa Fe Beans & Rice....with salsa & light sour cream, and a handful of scoops.... plus salad if I have time.
- evening snacks are grapes & a pb Sweet n Salty bar (if I can wait that long!)

If I do find the energy for the gym, I think it's going to be mild cardio....treadmill and bike maybe...maybe a stint on the rowing machine. I'll let you know how it works out.