Ok, here’s my first problems. Maybe someone has some suggestions. I’m not only doing cardio, but weightlifting with a former Marine. (yeah, that’s REAL fun. uh huh. *snicker*) So, I’m getting some nice muscle tone underneath the layers of fat, but it makes me CRAVE really bad food. Things that are high in fat, particularly red meat. Seriously. So, I’m doing well with the workouts and have that pleasant soreness you get when your muscles are tearing and rebuilding, but I’m eating like a horse!! I’ve not lost any weight, but my clothes are a little looser, and my rings are starting to spin on my fingers again, so I’m going to not let myself get discouraged by the stupid numbers on the scale. Still trying to work out a reward system for myself, too.
Misty, definitely go by clothes and not the scale. For one thing, muscle weighs more than fat. You could lose 5 lbs of fat, gain 10 lbs of muscle, and wear a smaller size of clothing. Check body measurements and use that as a guide. Second, red meat is not necessarily a BAD thing to be craving while you are doing weightlifting! You could try eating other protein sources, or indulge in lower-fat red meat cuts in small amounts. From my own experience, denying a craving makes you eat much more than you would if you let yourself have a little bit. Can I borrow Ralph? I could use an ex-Marine to kick my butt!
Ok, so I didn’t do so hot this week…but I did excercise once! :) Awhile back I had gotten ahold of the New York Ballet’s Workout Video Part 2…..Its kinda fun cause it incorporates ballet into a regular type work out…something that I like because I always wanted to learn ballet. Foodwise…I haven’t eaten as much this past week in but I probably ate as much calories, if that makes sense…. in other words I didn’t eat as much snacks but I probably ate more at meal times….not sure which is better…. oh well….I am taking the slow and easy method cause I know me…if I try to change overnight it won’t happen. Right now my main concern is finding a time to work out….I am starting to think that right when I get home from work will be the best time (I can’t seem to get myself up in the mornings, no matter what time I went to bed the night before). Glad to see you blogging away….I know its tough, but we can all do it!
Thanks, Aleta. I tried very hard to not be disappointed tonight when I went to the gym and had gained half a pound! LOL! Ralph says it’s not a big deal, that he can tell I’ve lost fat, so to quit stressing out about it. So that’s what I’m going to do. And if you could see the marks on my shoulders from the squat machine and the calve press, you’d probably rethink your desire to have a Marine helping you train. They’re so ugly! (uh, the marks are ugly. Not the Marines. The Marines are adorable! Like puppies!) LOL! Leslie, do you go to a gym and workout or do you do it at home? If you go to a gym, you might consider packing your clothes and shoes and things you’ll need in the car with you, then you won’t have any need to go home first. If I have to try and make it to the gym on my own (without Ralph), that’s why I do. I just have a bag that’s packed with things I use and need like TUMS, ponytail holders, hair clips, a book, a couple CDs and a walkman. I just leave it in the trunk of my car and use a small canvas bag for clothes that can be replenished each evening. It takes some of the temptation out of just going home and vegging for the rest of the evening. (I’m with you. I’m just NOT a morning person. I’ve tried it a few times and it makes me so miserable by about 2 in the afternoon that I don’t usually bother trying the mornings.) If you stay home, maybe if you have everything set up before you leave the house in the morning, it’ll be easier to get it done when you get home. Like have your clothes laying out and your exercise tape or apparatus that you use already in front of the TV or in the VCR ready for you as soon as you walk into the door. I go so far as to even have a bottle of water in the refrigerator waiting for me. I know that the less I have to do to prepare, the more likely I am to follow through with my plans. Jennie, good on you for taking advantage of some of your opportunities! I think it’s more difficult to do when you’re away from your home, your schedule and the things you’re comfortable with. Keep up the good work!! Even if you just improve a little at a time, it’ll make a big difference in the end! Sarah, your reward sounds fabulous! *g* I tried to get Ralph to help me think of rewards for 10 lbs, 20 lbs, etc and he just gave me a blank look. “You’ll be 10 lbs lighter. Isn’t that enough reward?” *sigh* Men. Sounds like you have a good support system and a good start, though! I know you’ll do fabulous!! Angie, you know, I gave up the chance to have a huge slice of cake in exchange for a Dr. Pepper earlier today. I LOVE the stuff. I know it’s bad for you, but I just can’t help it sometimes! Maybe you can implement that into your motivation? Once you accumulate 3 hours of cardio exercise you can have a can of Dr. Pepper? Or something similar? I’m sure you’ll think of something fabulous and congrats on the weight you lost initially! Try not to be frustrated with the three pounds. You did it once, I’m sure you’ll be able to do it again!!
Misty, I’m going to echo what Aleta said. Muscle does weigh way more than fat. When I was running track and throwing the shotput, people always underestimated my weight because so much of it was muscle. Plus, muscle burns more calories at rest than fat does, so the more you have, the better off you are, weight-loss-wise. I walked 2.6 miles today (two loops around the park) and kept up a pretty brisk pace. I’m planning to start running either Sunday or Monday, so my big goal this week is to get out every day but Wednesday and walk. I did better eating today, though I’ve figured that instead of breakfast lunch and dinner, I eat before work (usually abour 11), at work (usually about 7) and after work (lately, about midnight). Usually all I do after work is eat dinner, then read for a while and go to bed. I think I’m going to try cutting that meal down to some steamed or raw veggies and tea or water and see how that works. Oh, and I have another tip that I’ve found works really well. On Sundays (most weeks), I try and plan out my at-work meals for the week. Sometimes I’ll make a big pot of soup and put it in tupperware containers, or grill chicken. Monday and Tuesday’s meals go in the fridge, the rest go in the freezer, and I don’t even have to think in the morning. It helps me stay away from the restaurants and sandwich places downtown on my dinner break, plus I can keep the amounts fairly small. This was a great idea, guys. I’m a lot less likely to skip a workout or scarf down cookies when I know I’m “reporting” to somebody. :)
Did pretty well on the exercise thing yesterday, but not so good on the eating. Food: Had a cup of lowfat yogurt for breakfast (1.5 grams of fat) with a bottle of water. For lunch, had a chopped sirloin steak with a sweet potato (there’s that meat craving!) and then chicken salad on low sodium Ritz crackers for dinner. Had a midafternoon “snack” of a Dr. Pepper. Exercise: Bicycled for 30 minutes because all the treadmills and eliptical machines were in use. Worked legs for an hour after that. (Calves, hamstrings, quads, hips, thighs and butt) Weekly Exercise Plan: Tuesday: burn ourselves out on cardio - probably eliptical machines for an hour and then do crunches (because I forgot last night!) Wednesday: I play with the big boys in the weight room. (I work out with Ralph and his friend doing everything for the arms/back/shoulders/chest you can think of!) Thursday: Light cardio and legs again Friday: Heavy cardio and abs
1) The shit ALWAYS hits the fan at work between 11:30 am and 1:30 pm. This means that my ability to get lunch (from the cafeteria in the basement or outside at a restaurant) is often limited and never predictable. 2) If I don’t bring food with me, I end up…oh, say, eating Coney Island potato chips at my desk at 2:00 pm. Since I’ll be starting changes when I get back, I think a good thing for me do during the next week is to make menus, like Jennie talked about. What can I cook on the weekend and pack that I won’t get tired of during the week? Plan for lunch AND dinner. Plan healthy. For a long time, I used to bring a “vat o’ gazpacho” to work every Monday. Then, each day, I’d also bring in yogurt or string cheese (for dairy & protein) and pre-sectioned oranges or pre-washed grapes (for fruit and fiber). The gazpacho was spicy and filling, too. Here’s the (tweakable) recipe, for anyone who might like it. Since I used to share it with my then-office mate, who had cilantro issues, I left that out. Soup base 1½ bunches green onions, chopped, tops included ½ seedless cucumber, chopped ¼ green pepper, chopped 1 can (12.5 oz) diced tomatoes Combine in blender; puree. Empty into glass bowl Mix into base 1½ bunches green onions, chopped, tops included ½ seedless cucumber, chopped ¼ green pepper, chopped 1½ cups frozen corn, thawed 1 can canneloni beans, drained Stir into combination 1 cup tomato or V8 juice ¼ cup olive oil Minced garlic to taste Salt/pepper/other spices to taste Refrigerate until chilled. May garnish with additional green onion tops.
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Portrait of the Poet as a Teenager
by Caroline Hagood
Inside me there is a skirted issue
beginning to bare leg, a measles of infrastructure
so vast and vat deep that I am beginning
List of Funny Liberal Arts Classes
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CONFIDENCE
I am water. I am earth. My parents were fire and air. I was pulled from the womb unwilling to face the birth canal when another option was possible.
” — I Love Best Makeup“
One of the greatest difficulties in coming up with lesson plans and class activities is accommodating all the different styles of language learners. I’m sure we’re all familiar with the sensory preferences that every learner has:
visual
sensory
kinesthetic
auditory
However, when you combine these variances with that of personality types plus cultural differences, it can be overwhelming just trying to get your students to understand what you’re trying to do.
” — Teach ESL Blog“I’ve weighed myself this morning and have lost 2kgs so I’m happy. :) I did keep within my points though some days I didn’t eat enough. Being on afternoon shift I’d sleep late and not have breakfast. Have a little lunch then have dinner and nothing else.” —
Goodness girl, take care of yourself!
Well i checked the scales this morning when i was spose to wait till Sunday but i’ve lost a kilo already since starting the diet Monday…not that that means much *G* it will be up and down for a while yet but i always get excited when i see the figure going down not up!!! The food is actually pretty good with the meal plans although some of the amounts seem a little in excess…i’ll figure it out though. I think the meal menu idea is a great idea, should make it a lot easier for you and you know that there is something to go home to thats yumm and not take away! And i’ll just chime in my agreeance with everyone else Misty, last year i was going to the gym and working out doing weights etc and i was hardly loosing anything but i was getting more toned, i even had muscles *g* although its pretty dissapointing the scales won’t go down you’ll see the results in clothes definately. I’m really impressed with your exercise plan, wish i had the motivation to do something more like that :) Oh and that soup sounds yumm Aleta i’m going to make me some of that next week. Ok well I’m off to have lunch: chicken salad and ryvita for lunch day 3 and a diet coke cos its on the “free” item list :)
Aleta…thank you for the Calorie King site! I love it! Its just like what ediets used to be like! It even does meal plans :) Thanks for sharing!
Calorie King lets you look up the calorie count for lots of different foods, if calorie counting is your thing. It has lots on fast food, too. It never rains but it pours. This morning I threw my back out — picking up the newspaper, no less — so I have yet another “reason” why I cannot (1) exercise and (2) shop for healthy foods.