Monday, March 31, 2008

Played Mind Games with Myself, and it Worked!

I really didn't want to exercise, so I played a game with myself: I could do 20 minutes instead of 60 minutes of moderate cardio on the treadmill, if those 20 minutes were supercharged. It worked. I did a 14 minute mile (2 minutes better than usual) and it felt good to really work hard.


I did really well with my diet today as well. My head is a little woozy so I might not crochet this evening as I had hoped.

Lots of stuff going on at our house- my youngest son starts baseball practice this weekend, and I have my first practice as a cantor at our church on Wednesday. My in-laws are coming on Friday to help us move 2 rooms around. The dining room and living room are going to be switched. There's alot of benefits to this, one great benefit being that I'll have a place to escape to that doesn't have me staring at the refrigerator! I can't wait!!

Saturday, March 29, 2008

Just How Many Points is the Baking Chocolate in My Freezer Worth?

I usually hate Saturdays for 2 reasons. First, my husband is often either working or doing farm work which makes the day feel like an ordinary week day. Secondly, I often want to eat something sweet or indulge and its about this time that if I haven't cheated yet, I will.

But today feels different. I purchased a Weight Watchers calculator (the blue one) some time ago and it has sat in a drawer for quite a while. When I got home the other day, I dug it out of the drawer, entered my information to figure out how many points I can have a day, and have been using it ever since.

I went to the grocery store this morning and used the calculator to decide what snacks and foods to buy for myself. I was astonished with what I could get! To give you an idea of what I am eating, here's a sample: I'm supposed to eat a min. of 26 points and I am sticking to that. I was able to have 2 fat free hot dogs, on lite buns with a little relish, a reduced fat cheese stick, and a 100 calorie hostess snack cake pack for, get this: 6 points! You have to be careful of which snack cakes you get. Some are worth 1 and some are worth 2 depending on the fiber and fat content.

Now, this is NOT going to turn into a blog where all I do is count out points and what I ate because frankly, I wouldn't want to read that! But I think the reason today feels calmer to me is that I don't have the voice in me saying "Eat, Cheat!!!" I know that I can have some sweet things today and still stick to my plan. I still have 16 points left today!

So, I just wanted to throw that out to you, if you are one of the blog readers who is struggling with weightloss and feel like it just isn't going to happen for you. I think I am going to join Weight Watchers in the next 2 weeks, but you know, if you want to do it and can't afford to join, you can buy a Weight Watchers calculator from Ebay for under $15 and use that for now. The one I have keeps count of your points for you, your water intake, exercise, calculates points and tracks your weight loss. That and good walking shoes equal a pretty cheap weight loss plan if you ask me!! P.S. Thanks Paula!

Friday, March 28, 2008

"Take a Deep Breath...and Try Not to Quit..."

FRUSTRATION!!!!! That's the word of the day. I should premise this by saying this is the wrong time for me to be getting on a scale, as I discovered this morning (girls know exactly what I mean), but I did it any way and man, WHY, OH WHY, did I do that to myself!!! I gained a pound! My first thought was, "forget counting points!" but I stopped myself and decided I would give it more than 48 hours. But what makes me mad is that I did eat alot less when away from home and denied myself alot of goodies and extra food. Just frustrating. I'm not asking for weight loss numbers like on Biggest Loser, I'm just talking about a pound or two!

Anyway, so I am picking myself back up by my bootstraps and I'm going to "get to gettin" as one of my favorite tv show hosts says. What else can I do? Whine, wallow, and lose ground? At least my waist is almost an inch smaller than when last checked, but not enough to move the progress scale below.

I have two choices. Move, or sit still and cry. If one of my boys came to me upset that they wanted something terribly but it was so hard to get, would I say keep trying or give up? We all know the answer to that! I'd say if you want it bad enough "GET TO GETTIN!!!"

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

A Pretty Good Day

I didn't do cardio today, but I did eat really well. The cupcakes are gone and I didn't eat any of them! I passed on dessert both nights which is great for me. Tomorrow morning we head home and I get back to a routine that I've discovered I'm not happy with. Not enough time for me to do what needs to get done in our home, and not enough time for me to do the things I want to do. I'm going to work on setting a realistic menu plan and a cleaning schedule that delegates more responsibilities to my sons. Even small jobs would help!

My sister in law has got me a little more than interested in weight watchers. I'm going to look into it and really give it some serious thought. If I do it, I would definately do the meetings. If you are using it, please leave a comment about how you like or don't like it. My new scale is waiting for me at home and I am going to weigh myself Friday morning using both the old and new to make sure it's accurate. Have a good night!

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

My Own Biggest loser Camp

We arrived at my in-laws house around 7:30 PM, tired and cranky from a long trip with 3 children and 2 dogs. I had a couple glasses of wine, but didn't eat the cupcakes sitting on the counter.

I'm happy to report that I walked this morning for almost an hour and have stuck to a very low fat/low calorie died today- still avoiding the cupcakes! I told my dmil that if I get home,get on the scale, and see weight loss, I'm coming back to live here until July. It's like my own Biggest Loser camp. There lots of people around so boredom is not an issue and it's easier to stick to eating healthy here.

The older children are off with my dmil and dsil for the afternoon and the baby is down stairs asleep so I am going to work on a quick poncho for her.

Crocheters will love this: My in-laws live about a mile from a fantastic yarn store and tomorrow we are going out to lunch where there is yet another yarn store! Woohoo!!! I'm like a kid anticipating Christmas!

Sunday, March 23, 2008

Happy Easter!!

Happy Easter everyone! I just looked at the countdown to the beach trip. 99 Days to go!!! Oh My!! I saw my friend (who's lost alot of weight) at church today. She looked awesome. She is such an inspiration to me. I am going to work HARD these next 99 days so my children can look at me and be proud at what I've accomplished.

I think I am going to start writing a post each day, so that I have to record whether I exercised and whether I cheated on my diet. A little more accountability never hurt anyone.

If you think about it, today is actually more like New Year's day than January 1st. Easter is New Year's Day for Christians, regardless your denomination. Yeah there's Pentecost, the Birthday of the Church, but Easter is when everything starts over in the liturgical year. So, let's treat today a little like New Years in that if you have fallen off the resolution bandwagon, get back on! Start again! We can do this!

I am going to visit my in-laws tomorrow until Wed/Thurs. I am taking my sneakers and workout clothes and will carve out some time, even if it's only 20 min. a day to exercise. And now that Easter is here, there's no excuse for eating desserts this week. Been there, done that.
So, I'll write tomorrow night to report progress. Have a wonderful Easter!

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Taking a Day for Myself

Every time I look at myself in the mirror, I feel a little ragged around the edges. So, I gave myself the day off and spent a little time on my appearance. After the baby fell asleep, I gave myself a manicure and pedicure and took my time curling my hair and putting on makeup. I feel alot better. It's a great thing to do for yourself when you are feeling a little down and my head constantly spinning is really bothering me. But when I go to Holy Thursday Mass tonight, I will feel more put together and prettier and that has to help, right? I'll be able to concentrate more on the Word of God and less on the words in my head saying, "boy, you really need to do something about your ....(fill in the blank)."

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Another Day, and 60 Minutes on the Treadmill

Even with 5 children to tend to, (the only difficult one was my 17 month old daughter), I still got on the treadmill and did 60 minutes of brisk walking (3.5-3.6 mph) today. I can go faster but wanted to play it a little safe today. I have that weird feeling you get when you have a head cold and your head is so woozy that you just want to lie down. In fact, I am going to bed. I was working on the Upsy Daisy Poncho and I finished a shrug for my youngest niece. I'm going to wait to sew the seam together so she can try it on and I can make an accurate fit. Looks good!

I added some new things to the blog for anyone who might find them helpful. One gadget estimates how much calories you burn for any given activity and the other is a calorie calculator. Let me know if you like them!

Tomorrow I'll do 60 more minutes on the treadmill, but at just a little faster pace. I also might try to do some weight resistance. We'll see how my head feels!

By the way, word of advice: Caffeine to combat dizzyness/light headedness, doesn't equal a clear head. It equals a very ALERT and DIZZY woman!! My husband said that I'm just now more AWARE of my dizzyness!!

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

I Believe There Are Angels Among Us

This was a hard day. One child was home sick and I think the withdrawl symptoms have kicked in. I was very light headed and dizzy. I didn't exercise because I was afraid I might fall off the treadmill. I was feeling bad about that, started to eat BADLY and that never helps anything, but then things started to turn around.

Have you ever heard the song by Alabama, "I believe there are angels among us"? I truly think God uses people to reach down and embrace us with His love and hope. I have this amazing friend, Jeanne, who has had such a difficult year. We are approaching the one year anniversary of her youngest daughter's death. She was 2 1/2 years old. Francesca was a precious angel. I was blessed with getting to help out their family today and my children got to spend time with two of her other daughters. They are spending the night with us tonight. They are such wonderful girls, I know my 3 children love having them here.

And then I got on Crochetville (message board for crochet fanatics like myself) and some dear lady left a message, which was actually this fantastic prayer that had me in tears. I'm printing it out and posting it on my frig. I wanted to share it with you so that you could also be blessed by it. If you are someone struggling with weight loss, copy the prayer into word, change the name to yours and post it on your frig and read it every morning like I will. I don't know the author's name, but I am so blessed by her and I want you to feel as good and hopeful as I do this moment. Bring on that treadmill!!!

"God give Carey faith in herself. Not only on the days when she is doing great and winning and nothing seems impossible, but on days when she wonders if she is brave enough, smart enough, strong enough. Don't let her quit, not ever. Let her keep faith in herself. No matter how many people discourage her, doubt her, laugh at her, warn her, think her a fool, don't let her listen. Let her hear another voice telling her, "You can do it, and you will!" If nobody else in the whole world seems to care or believe in her, let her believe in herself. I know there will be times when she will doubt her own ability, she will be discouraged, on the verge of despair. Don't let her give up, hang on to her!!! Fan the fires of her faith so that she will try even harder. Give her even more faith in herself. You are the source of her abilities and her faith. I know that you will give her what I ask...Faith in herself through your power and glory... In Jesus Name.... Amen."


P.S. Woo Hoo! she has a name! The wonderful author of this prayer is Tammy. If you feel blessed by this prayer, you can thank her!

Sunday, March 16, 2008

A Big Change in the Works

Before I tell you what's going on, I need to say a few things. First, PLEASE no emails or comments telling me I'm making a wrong choice, ok? My kindergarden report card didn't read "doesn't take criticism well" for nothing. Second, I am only revealing this information for full disclosure purposes and NOT for anyone to follow suit. And finally, my husband is a doctor and I would never do anything without his guidance and approval.

Ok, having said all of that, you're probably thinking I'm getting some type of surgery, but I am not! As you might know, I have been struggling with getting the scale to move for several months and I have come to the conclusion that something might be hindering my progress. Since 3 months after the birth of my last child, I have been taking Zoloft for what I believed to be post-partum depression. My husband never really agreed with that assessment.

Anyway, I've been taking it for over a year and one thing I can absolutely say is that I am easily 20 + pounds heavier than before the Zoloft and after researching this week, I have discovered that weight gain is a common side effect of the medication. While I won't say that the weight gain is from the Zoloft, I do think my ability to lose the weight is being halted by it. From what I have read, Zoloft can slow your metabolism to a crawl and make even the most ardent dieter's efforts worthless.

So, I have stopped taking the medication. Under my husband's guidance, I have tapered off from the meds and now face a possible 1-2 week bout with withdrawl symptoms. I am going to keep at the exercise, follow a 1500 calorie diet, and make sure that I get plenty of water, omega 3 and a multivitamin. I am also temporarily taking a green tea supplement to help get my metabolism going again. I'll make sure to eat meals often and am researching what I can do to help my metabolism.

Please, if you are on any anti-depressant, DO NOT STOP taking it without your doctor's guidance. Again, I am only writing about this as a part of full disclosure. I would never have stopped taking the Zoloft unless my husband was %100 with me, and he is.
So there you have it. Pray for me that I make it through the withdrawl symptoms without falling back on food. For the first time in a long time, I feel like there just might be some light at the end of this tunnel. The weight is not going to magically come off, but perhaps, just perhaps, I might start to see results from my efforts.

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Does Anyone Else Have This Problem?

I almost put off exercising....to clean....but I didn't. I put in 60 minutes (3.5 miles) and now my legs are jelly. Cleaning and maintaining our house is a huge problem for me. With a 17 month old home with me and two school age boys who need help with homework in the afternoon, I am finding it nearly impossible to get everything done. Our house was in complete chaos this morning and I felt so defeated by it all. It seems to come down to this: I either use nap time to exercise or clean and the good news for my body is that the exercising is winning. Unfortunately for our house, the cleaning is a horrible second.
I love to watch Jon and Kate Plus 8 and I am always amazed that their house looks pretty tidy for having 8 children. I have many friends with more children than me, heck, in my neck of the woods, having 3 children is a small family! I'm not kidding! That's another reason I am dedicated to losing this weight. I need more energy to be the mom that I want to be for my children. NOT a supermom. I don't ever want someone to say how great or perfect my life is...because it's not reality and I tend to stay away from moms who act like they never get frustrated. I'm a real person who gets frustrated, angry, and has a ton of self-doubt.
So, how do I get my house in shape? I know about Flylady and I've tried to follow her lead, but I have a ways to go. Does anyone else share this struggle? Off to shower and get the children from school, oh, and there's that dinner thing. I'm supposed to MAKE dinner, right? UG!!!

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Tired, But Working Hard

I have been very busy with my weight loss efforts. Yesterday I had two sessions on the treadmill and one today so far. But I am really tired so I might leave it at that for today. The baby was up a few times last night, so sleeping wasn't very restfull. I might just go to bed early!

Monday, March 10, 2008

Making the Most of My Days

Two weeks until Easter and I'm really going to work hard each day that I have. I'm not looking to lose some great amount of weight, but I would like to look a little better in the dress I plan to wear. But, hey, it would be nice to see the scale move!

I am also going to focus on the two crochet projects I have in progress. The first is the Upsy Daisy Poncho and the second is a shrug that I am making for my other neice (I made one earlier for her big sister).

There is a hotel in a nearby city that offers a fantastic brunch on Easter and we have reservations, so that is going to be my one free meal to look forward to after these next two weeks. Think good thoughts for me!!

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Such a Hard Day!!!

We might have a decent size house, but I tell you, the walls were closing in today. With all of the snow (at least 16 inches) and a house full of chaos (2 boys 9 and 6 and a 17 month girl, 2 dogs, and a cat), I think I was starting to resemble Jack Nickolson in The Shining!! All we needed was a maze in the back yard!
My eating habits were Horrrrrible today and I felt like a slug, but tomorrow is another day and I will get on that treadmill and make better choices tomorrow. I have a couple of weeks before Easter. It would be nice to see the scale actually MOVE!!!

Friday, March 7, 2008

Had a Good Laugh Today

I am constantly surfing the net for new crochet patterns and one of my frequent stops is Amazon.com to see what are the latest books being offered. I couldn't help but giggle at Amazon's latest "pairing" of books. They usually pair a book with another one as a package deal. Well there is a great book coming out in August titled Contemplative Crochet: A Hands-on Guide for Interlocking Faith and Craft by Cindy Crandall-Frazier. I can't wait to read it! But here's the funny part: of all the crochet books out there, which one did they think was the best to pair with a book on Crochet and Faith? Sensual Crochet: Luxurious Yarns, Alluring Designs by Amy Swenson!!! Now, I have this book and I LOVE it!!! I plan to make one of her designs in my weight loss quest, but, come on, that is just toooooo funny!!

Thursday, March 6, 2008

Back On Track

I did it! I got on the treadmill this morning and did 60 minutes of intense walking with some spurts of running. Now it's off to shower and go to see my grandfather. It's an hour drive, but very relaxing and I get to see my Mom too, not to mention the Starbucks along the way :)....

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

2 Good Days and One Bad...

Monday and Tuesday I stuck to my diet and did 60 minutes of cardio each day, but the power went out around midnight last night and things went down hill from there. We're lucky in that we have a wood-burning stove and a generator, but we only used it once to get the water pump and freezer/frig. working. The power was out for about 14 hours and with three children, YIKES!!!! I ate a good breakfast, but started to cheat soon after I called the power company and was told it would take until late Thursday night for the power to come on. Gee, do you think the two are related?

Obviously, the power did come back on earlier than expected (Yippee, Wahoo!!). If the power stays on, I am going to get on that @$%&!!! treadmill tonight and get right back to work! I would do it now but with the woodburning stove going, its really warm in here (nine year old had his shirt off earlier!)

I started the Upsy Daisy Poncho last night just before the power started to dim. I am going to enjoy working on this project! I'll write more tomorrow to say I did do my workout!!

****Update: Ok, there's no way on God's great earth that I am getting on the treadmill. My DH just put a few logs in the woodburning stove incase the power goes out again (crews are still working). That stove is about 3 feet from the treadmill and after 5 minutes, I'll collapse from heat stroke!! So, I'm going to crochet the evening away...****

Monday, March 3, 2008

Progress day!

Sorry, I meant to post this yesterday, but got sidetracked. Anyway, here's the scoop: I've lost another inch off my waist!!! I have also lost a half inch off my chest (under bra), thighs, and hips. But the scale continues to resist moving!!! UG!!! But at least I am seeing progress. I did 45-60 min. of cardio 5 days last week and stuck fairly close to my eating plan. I need to do alot more weeks like that! I'm going to check my progress again the Saturday before Easter.


Ok, now to the Hot Mama Swimsuit...It is so much more beautiful that I had hoped!!! I'm posting several pics of it for you to see. My husband just saw it and told me he thinks I hired out to have it made :)


Also, I am posting a pic of the dress I made my daughter for Christmas.

Check later on today for the reveal of the next project I'll be making!!

Sunday, March 2, 2008

Next Project: Upsy Daisy Poncho by Cindy Kamps


I'm really excited about this next project. I have been a huge fan of Designer Cindy Kamps for sometime and recently noticed her Upsy Daisy Poncho. It's beautiful!!! I contacted Cindy to ask permission to show a picture of the poncho and give info for you to get the pattern as well. She was very gracious and supportive. Something about yarn and the sizes of one's heart, I think. Haven't met a crocheter yet that doesn't have a super generous heart, have you?
I'll be doing the Upsy Daisy Poncho with Paton's Grace yarn in Taupe and Blush (essentially brown and pink), but in reverse of the picture so that the pink is the center of the flowers. I'm going to start it today!! Here's the link to her Ebay store. Once you do one of her patterns, you'll be "hooked". Ha Ha, couldn't resist!