Weekly Workout Thread 26th Dec till 31st Dec

[Dee*Jay]

Let me start by saying that DJ is VERY subject to the power of suggestion. All this talk about McDonalds... I had a Big Mac for lunch (hangs head in serious shame).

BUT I am over that now (and it was probably the only BM I''ve had for at least two years, although I do have a McD cheesburger and fries for lunch about 3-4 times a year).

The happy hubby is off to the grocery store and I have given him a long list of lean meat, fruits and vegetables to stock up on. Plus, I will do an hour on the eliptical tonight, and I am going to try to do *something* every day. Even if I can''t get to the gym there''s nothing stopping me from doing pushups or situps or leglifts or SOMETHING in my own house. The Demon will probably think it''s just some new sort of game and the happy hubby won''t care so I might as well get down on the ground and do something. If only I could find those damn free weights. I hate to buy more right away becuase I know the instant I do the other ones will turn up. I''ll give the house one more look-over to see if they''re around...

 

[Sevenwires]

Hello ladies! Thanks Lorelei and Tybee for the welcome.

Lorelei, you’re so right about the water consumption. I used to drink more water too. Man, I don’t know what happened to me … it seems like I “used to” more everything. In my work I’m usually in and out of the office all day. Before when I stayed in the office more, I drank more water. But since I started running around I think I barely get three cups of water in me a day! Now that I’m reading this as I’m typing, it doesn’t look really healthy.

Okay, mental note… must drink more water.

Coda – I know I’m gaining my weight through my bad habits, aka not drinking enough water, snacking too frequently on junk, not exercising enough etc. And it’s also the age. I thought I could be slender forever doing nothing! NOT. And like you, I know how to eat healthly… but I just don’t pay enough attention to what I eat. Normally I eat a pretty healthy breakfast, lunch, and dinner.. but it’s in-between the eating that I’m bad bad bad! I was taking mental notes on what I was snacking on all day yesterday, and here is what I came up with -- 2 pieces of See’s candy, 4 butter Danish cookies, 1 red bean ice cream bar, and half a lean low-fat burrito. All that in between my regular meals! No wonder I’m not losing any weight. RAR! And my absolute weakness is for McDonalds Fillet-O-Fish. I just can’t get enough of that stuff! I usually try to limit myself to once every two weeks. I’m going to head to the market today and stock up on some healthy snacks. And I think I should do a cleaning of my kitchen to get RID of unhealthy snacks.

Oh, and after my workout and shower at the gym yesterday, I got on the scale less any clothing,… and I weigh 122! I thought it was 120! This must be all the holiday weight. Boo!

Okay so for breakfast today I had 4 scrambled egg whites and 1 yolk, 1 slice of Milton’s whole grain toast with a tiny tiny bit of butter, 1 cup of non-fat milk. Now I just have to figure out what’s for lunch. Maybe a grilled chicken salad from Mcdonalds?

So yesterday I went to the gym, got on the treadmill and attempted to run a mile. I said ‘attempted’. By the time I was 0.70 into the mile, I HAD TO STOP. After that I did sporadic sprints and walks. I stopped completely when I reached exactly 2 miles at 30 minutes and some odd secods. I guess I felt good because I was sweating like a mad woman. I don’t think that workout was long enough. But it was all the time I had till my appointment with a client at 5 yesterday. And after the workout, I still had to shower. Today I’m going to FORCE myself to go to the gym after work before I go home too. Hopefully I’ll do 30 minutes of treadmill, and then maybe 45 minutes of weights, and then 30 minutes on the elliptical.

Hope everyone has a great day…

Mara, coming down with that cold/flu? I hope not. I just had the stomach flu not too long ago.. Getting sick sucks… hope the chills was nothing and you’re fine now. And yes, I’ll post some pics of ole Bella here soon!

 

[Mara]

DJ a big mac?! YIKES! That''s like 3 days of your fat intake right there...!!

Whenever you feel the McD urge...get a cheeseburger and a small fry. They are not THAT bad for you, and will hit the spot with fast food taste and some grease yet not give you a heart attack.

I am not a huge fan of fast food (I love walking by it and smelling it but eating it is another matter, and done very rarely!!)...but when I do HAVE to partake, I try to educate myself ahead of time on the places and what is ''acceptable''..aka when I have to eat at Taco Bell I can get the beef burrito supreme with no sour cream and a regular taco, both are my favorites and it''s 550 cals and about 15g of fat. Within the ''range'' for a splurge and I love TB so it hits the spot, keeps me satiated for another 6 months and doesn''t blow my cals for the day.

Off to the gym now!! I just hit up the mall, yikes it''s scary out there! I exchanged some stuff that Greg and my Dad got me at Nike women for some more cute, more me outfits...including some yoga tank thing that Eva Longoria wore on Desperate Housewives, it''s cute. I also fell in love with some Paige Denim Jeans that I am going to try to find online for less than at Nordies.

 

[Dee*Jay]

OK, I went to the gym straight from work because I felt like I needed it after the Mac-fest that I had at lunch (but I do have to confess that I enjoyed it!!!).

One hour on the eliptical for 576 calories.

And now the happy hubby is making adobe rubbed chicken and a salad for dinner. (Thank god for the happy hubby or I would never eat a decent meal in my life!)

Tomorrow I think I will try the treadmill--not running (which I HATE) but just a very fast walk. If that works out I can alternate with the eliptical and maybe be less prone to injury (and boredom). Still no sign of the free weights though. Damn--maybe I imagined them...

 

[Sevenwires]

I was thinking about hitting mall tomorrow. Wanted to see if there are any good sales actually going on. I have this itch to spend $$$ thought I probably shouldn''t after Christmas and all.

My mother is hosting a dinner tonight so I should get going soon. But I''m telling myself I MUST stop by the gym first. Today for lunch I had McDonalds chicken nuggets (5 pieces) and a small order or fries with diet coke. I drove up to the drive through with the intentions of ordering a grilled chicken salad... but the fried stuff smelled so good!

It''s terrible.

Okay, heading to the gym now...

Have a good night ladies....

 

[Rod]

DeeJay and Sevenwires, repeat after me............McDonalds is Evil, McDonalds is Evil, McDonalds is Evil.......LOL Just thinking about McNuggets or Big Mac's makes my cholesterol rise a couple points. But I'm glad you made it to the gym DeeJay and burned off at least a portion of the fat in that burger..........

Thanks for the thumbs up on the Ultra Deluxe place. It may be a more likely option than we thought. We no longer have an appointment with the builder of the deluxe detached townhome, because he found out we would be making an offer contigent on our condo selling and he just won't entertain a contingent offer. That's kind of foolish IMHO, because we have a prime condo on Tampa Bay in a highly sought after building and it will sell. But he did make our buying decision a little easier. In the meantime, the builder of the condo we saw last night has called our realtor twice today to let him know he really liked Charlie and me, and since he's really picking out who he sells homes to in his building, he would love to have us as tenants and neighbors (turns out he and his wife bought a unit just like the one we are considering and will move there when their kids move on to college, or so he says). He's perfectly willing to take a contingent contract and make a few modifications based on comments we made when we saw it. So, he's leaving the entier tower open tomorow (he and his family are going skiing for a week), so we can come in during the day and stay as long as we want and go from floor to floor looking at units and the finishing touches. We're still not sure about the uber price ($435/square foot - yikes), but we do appreciate the attention to the high quality materials and touches included in that price. So, we'll just have to see.

I let my staff go home early this afternoon for the holiday. Then, I was able to head to the gym as I said I would and have a great workout. Since it's Friday, we went for Sushi at our new favorite Sushi restaurant, which is literally steps from the gym. The Sushi is simply the best we've ever had anywhere. It certainly helps to make us not miss Tampa so much. In fact, Charlie has simply fallen in love with Raleigh and even if we could just go back to our beautiful condo in Tampa, I think he'd opt to stay up here. Funny, how quickly he's become adjusted. Since I truly love my new job, I'm also enjoying our new surroundings.

Mara: If this condo had three bedrooms, it would be easier to justify. But with only two bedrooms, we would just not have a guest room because we both need to be able to work from home occassionally and a home office is important. Not that we get many visitors, but it's something we need to ponder. Now, on the other hand, since we'd be living in downtown Raleigh, there is a very nice hotel just steps from this condo, so if anyone really wanted to visit, they could stay in the hotel within walking distance. Hmmmmm, maybe that would be an advantage, not a disadvantage..........LOL

Anyway, it will be interesting to see the condo during daylight hours. It's certainly jaw dropping impressive at night. I hope we have the same feeling during the day. We'll work out tomorrow afternoon and then for the first time in a couple of months, we're going to a movie tomorrow night. It's an obscure movie, can't really remember the title, but got a good review. The only location it's playing is an old-tiem theatre that evidently plays the more art-house type movies, that of course is right on the outside of downtown. Yet another reason we want to live in downtown. It's just more urban, and liberal..........HA HA

Have a great weekend everyone!

PS: Jeff, where are you? Maybe you're working out so much, you just don't have time to check in.

 

[Dee*Jay]

Date: 12/29/2006 9:36:45 PM
Author: Rod

Mara: If this condo had three bedrooms, it would be easier to justify. But with only two bedrooms, we would just not have a guest room because we both need to be able to work from home occassionally and a home office is important. Not that we get many visitors, but it's something we need to ponder. Now, on the other hand, since we'd be living in downtown Raleigh, there is a very nice hotel just steps from this condo, so if anyone really wanted to visit, they could stay in the hotel within walking distance. Hmmmmm, maybe that would be an advantage, not a disadvantage..........LOL

Rod, sweetheart, I have a FOUR STORY THREE BEDROOM TOWNHOUSE WITH A FAMILY ROOM and (drumroll please!) NO GUEST BED!!! Of course I am kidding with you, but there is a really lovely hotel at the Merchandise Mart, which is literally less than one block from our complex, to the tune of 99 bucks a night.

What's that Mastercard slogan? PRICELESS!

 

[Rod]

Oh My Dear DeeJay............Thank you for making me laugh. Charlie says I worry too much about what other people would think if we spent so much money on so little space. Or what out of town guests might say if we said, "sure, we''d love you to come visit, here''s the number of the Radisson near us, where you can make your reservation!" And in my own mind, I just worry that I''d regret not having more space. We''ve had no less than 3000 square feet in our homes over the last nearly 20 years, so it just concerns me that less space might be difficult to adjust to. But then there''s that killer view. And then there''s the imported marble baths, and the European cabinets and the Toto tolets and the high-end baldwin hardware and the custom made solid wood entry doors and the system that is installed in your car that recognizes your car as you approach the garage and just opens the garage gates for you without even having to push a button and............Oh, why do I agonize so.........??

I just received an email from the developer we met last night. He wanted us to know how excited he is we might buy a unit in his building and that he believes based on the people he''s sold units too, we''d be SO happy to live there. Either he''s a genuinely nice man who truly believes we are the right people, or he''s desparate to sell one of the larger more expensive homes in the building. I hope he''s the former, not the later........We did click when we met. It turns out he works out at the same gym we do. And he''s a runner and offered to let me run with him soon. In fact, he showed up in his running clothes when we met last night. That was kind of impressive to me. He was comfortable enough to be wearing jogging shorts and running shoes to show a high end property. Am I talking myself into this place????????????????

Thanks again.

 

[Dee*Jay]

Rod, let me tell you a funny story. Four or five years ago my mother came to visit my husband and me in our lovely three bedroom brownstone in the Gold Coast of Chicago. About three days into the visit she made the comment that maybe if we (the happy hubby and I) "did a little better in our careers we could afford a nice house in the suburbs some day".

Now let me tell you, for what we paid for that lovely little "pied-a-tier" in the Gold Coast we could have bought (literally) A MANSION in one of the Chicago suburbs, but we chose to live where we lived and have the lifestyle that we wanted.

This is YOUR house (and Charlie''s too, of course). But whatever you want to come home to every day!

(OK, Dee climbs down off of soapbox now!)

 

[Rod]

Date: 12/29/2006 10:15:45 PM
Author: Dee*Jay
Rod, let me tell you a funny story. Four or five years ago my mother came to visit my husband and me in our lovely three bedroom brownstone in the Gold Coast of Chicago. About three days into the visit she made the comment that maybe if we (the happy hubby and I) ''did a little better in our careers we could afford a nice house in the suburbs some day''.

Now let me tell you, for what we paid for that lovely little ''pied-a-tier'' in the Gold Coast we could have bought (literally) A MANSION in one of the Chicago suburbs, but we chose to live where we lived and have the lifestyle that we wanted.

This is YOUR house (and Charlie''s too, of course). But whatever you want to come home to every day!

(OK, Dee climbs down off of soapbox now!)

You crack me up. And you make much sense. Thanks for helping me put things in perspective!!

 

[Dee*Jay]

My pleasure! Just let me know when the housewarming is (I bring good gifts, LOL).

 

[Rod]

Date: 12/29/2006 10:20:38 PM
Author: Dee*Jay
My pleasure! Just let me know when the housewarming is (I bring good gifts, LOL).

Will do! But, I''m afraid we won''t have a guest room, so you''ll have to leave your fabulously tasteful gift and then check into the very nice hotel just up the street. That won''t be an issue for you, now will it????? LOL LOL

 

[Mara]

oh rod who cares what anyone else thinks about YOUR home and how you spend your $$ on it. my mom is DYING for us to sell our cozy townhouse and buy a 'real house' even if it's a SHACK somewhere in a good neighborhood, because she is sure that houses appreciate more and 'portia wants a yard'.

she practically talks about it almost every time we see her which is oh...2x a week?! and sometimes i think hmmm maybe she's right (about portia wanting a yard not the appreciation!)...maybe we should sell our place and 'move up' to an 'adult' lifestyle in a house. hehee. but our townhouse is 3 years old, we love it, it was brand new when we bought it...it has all the posh amenities we have grown to love and unfortunately, expect. when we look at houses that are 200k more than what we can sell our townhouse for...we look at remodeled 70 year old houses...with nice sized yards but a ton of maintenance...sometimes not totally remodeled, or with a gross bathroom or a kitchen from the 60s. no air conditioning, no walk in wine pantry...no walk in pantry. sure we could 'put all that in' ... but why? our townhouse has it already!!! and we don't plan to have kids for a few years, we love the locale of our place, greg walks to the train and takes it to work 4x a week which saves him a huge commute.

anyway...we have a guest room and we love it because greg's family can come from out of town to visit, but don't let that make your decision for you. no one is going to mind having to stay in a hotel....honestly we could care less when we go visit people if we can stay in their house or in a hotel...sometimes i might even like to stay in a hotel because then you can escape and have some 'alone' time when necessary. this is your house, your life...you guys should do what makes YOU happiest and everyone else and what they might say or think be darned. whenever we get around to moving and getting that 'real house'...i'm sure my mom will be ecstatic (well as long as it's here and not in another state, lol)...but until then she happily comes to visit us in our townhouse.

on a workout note, hit the gym today and burned 525 cals...i had a really lean eating day because i knew we were going out to dinner tonite and also when i am off and running errands i tend to eat less...i wish i was always like that! having a desk job makes me more prone to snack and even though it's healthy stuff, it still adds up sometimes. so today i had fiber cereal breakfast, then a luna bar for a early lunch snack. then i didn't get back home til 4pm and ate this weird canned tuna salad thing from bumble bee with wheat crackers. then i went to work out and then came home and showered then we went off to dinner which was fish and chips at this place over in half moon bay on the ocean. love their clam chowder which is not made with any milk products, it tastes a lot like a vegetable or chicken broth base which is YUM. it's won a bunch of awards. then my dish had scallops, shrimp, calamari and 2 pieces of fish with chips. i tend to pull most of the tempura stuff off of at least 1/2 of it because it's too thick and after it gets 'wet' aka with malt vinegar it comes off anyway and it tastes just as good. so wasn't too bad for me. and two glasses of iced tea to help replenish my water!

the funniest part is that all day up til late afternoon i only had 540 cals in terms of eating. then i went to work out and burned 525! and i felt fine afterwards for 2 hours! it wasn't til about 30 minutes from eating that i started to feel like i needed to eat some food. funny how the body works.

oh another perky note..i went to the mall today and i fit into AE size 4 jeans...haha..but they sooo weren't comfy. i'm kind of in that weird area where my size 6 jeans are getting too loose (i have a big gap of material at the back of my waist over my butt where it bunches now) but the 4's don't fit me yet. it's actually easier for me to buy expensive jeans that come in waist sizes aka 28 or 29 because it bridges the gap more with sizes. i did find a pair of paige denims in a 28 that i WANTED to buy. but i am going to try to find them online first before ponying it up to retail. so while i am not trying to lose any more weight (and i haven't..i'm stable at 138ish and have been for the last 2 weeks)...my body seems to still be changing it up a bit. however, i have ample hip bones, so doubt my hips are going to get much smaller if at all. i should kind of plateau at some point very soon i would imagine!

anyway, rambling...but it's another gym day tomorrow for me. we made our reservations for NYE dinner with some friends and the menu sounds divine so i am seriously looking fwd to that on sunday night. can't believe another year is around the corner!!

have a great saturday everyone!! and DJ good for getting a workout in after the McD splurge. seven...we need to break you of that bad drive through habit too! healthy and mcdonalds on a daily basis are typically not synonymous...hehee. there are a TON of healthy lunch options out there, you just have to do the research and/or be prepared or both.

 

[NYCsparkle]

Hi all!!!Great progress everyone. I haven''t been able to post due to a computer glitch,but thats all fixed now.

I can relate to the mc d wantings. I ALMOST caved the other day and got large fries and a cheeseburger while i was out and smelling their aroma. My husband (thankfully) steered me to the wrap place instead, which was just as satisfying. December is a hard month to stay healthy and motivated with all of the snacks, treats, truffles, chips, mixed cocktails, chocolates, and everything else that december seems to bring. Thank god the "evil"

month is ending. On a happy note i''ve been eating healthy with some days of engorgement thrown in.

I''ve been walking alot...ok shopping, but it is walking...lol the scale and tape measure are showing my efforts as are my clothes....my arms are nice and toned from carrying my son. have a great new year and keep working out and working to eat healthy!!!!!

 

[Mannequin]

Hi everyone! I lurk this thread CONSTANTLY and I am going to finally get active posting on it.

I am sick of feeling unhealthy and unfit, and I am ready to jump on a fitness plan and adjust my eating habits now. I can make it my New Years Resolution.

My wedding is going to be in 7 months, so I have ample time to lose the 30 lbs. or so that I would like to take off before then. My dress purchase has been made, actually in a size a bit larger than needed because the neckline is going to be altered, but it would be nice to have to take it in all over.

I am about 5''3" and weigh approximately 185 lbs. (UGH

) The weight is carried in that good old fashioned cheerleader way, so it''s fairly evenly distributed all over. I am a middle school teacher and I am fairly inactive right now, because my horse is an hour away and it''s dark by the time I get out to my parents'' place to groom the dirty guy and ride. I was taking a Monday aerobics/weights class from October to this month.

I am currently signed up for two aerobics/weights classes beginning the week of the 8th and will be attending those on Mondays and Tuesdays. FI and I will also be taking a ballroom dance class on Wednesdays starting Jan. 17th. At home in the apartment here, I have a few videos and DVDs that I can watch and exercise with, and I have a Swiss ball, a mini stepper, and some dumbbells (5 lbs.) to use. There is also a gym at school available to use with treadmills, ellipticals, bikes, and weights. I usually eat a decent breakfast and lunch, but it''s dinner and snacking that KILLS me. I am a candy freak, I admit it. I''ll be focusing on making sure I fill up on the healthier options at all my meals to eliminate the snack attacks. My goal is going to be a 1-2 pound loss each week. I''m open to suggestions and advice on how to best manage that weekly loss from now until July.

Anyway, just wanted to post my baseline info and work down from there. Thanks in advance for any input or support you might have!

 

[Dee*Jay]

Hello Equ - welcome!!!

I forgot to ask a question about my workout last night. I tried to use the arm things on the eliptical but it occurred to me that I had no idea what to *DO* with them. Am I supposed to pull? Push? Something else? I had my hands on the bars and my arms were just kinda "going along for the ride," but I'm guessing that's not right!

For breakfast I had an apple, but then decided I was still hungry so I'm having 1/2 cup oatmeal with a little bit of brown sugar. We have lots of left over chicken in the fridge from last night so I'll have that with a salad for lunch. And tonight we're going to some swanky restaurant for dinner with a tasting menu so I'll have limited control over what I eat--but for $95 dollars for 9 courses I'm probably going to have at least some of everything they put in front of me. (Sometimes I wish the happy hubby wasn't such a foodie... )

The treadmill will be today's new adventure. Originally I thought, oh, I'll just go 5 miles. Well then it occured to me that I have no idea how long it even takes me to walk a brisk mile so maybe a better goal is to walk for and hour and see how far I get, LOL.

 

[Mara]

welcome equi and welcome back NYS!

NYS...i said it up above but here it is again...whenever you (collective you) feel the need to splurge with some mc donalds...(we all do it sometimes, well except for rod)...then get a small cheeseburger and a small fry. it is enough to fill you up and give you that same greasy taste you are craving...but you don't totally blow anything at all. it's a bit more fat and calories than you might typically consume for a lunch or similar but i know from experience that when you are able to eat at a place like that in moderation and feel full and satiated and happy with yourself for not ordering the double QP or whatever...it is a better feeling long-term and you feel more 'empowered' next time to make the right choices. really i don't feel guilty whenever i go to TB as long as i don't order 5 things off the menu. hehee. whenever we travel in the car aka road trip, we HAVE to get a sausage mcmuffin with egg and hash browns, serious guilty pleasure for greg and i. but we do it like 2x a year. so when we do it, i don't really worry about it. but if i was there every week, yeah probably not the best habit to have.

equi...if you have lurked on this thread you probably know how it all operates around here...i would imagine you have some tips from listening to all of us ramble on about what to eat. i would also check out the diet/nutritionists article i read the other day and posted about what they said, i think its on page 1 of this week's thread...it has some great notes where if you follow i think it would help. my biggest thing is 'preparation'. if i did not have our house and my work environment prepared with foods and things that i like to eat that ARE healthy for me then i am sure it would be really hard for me to stay on track especially when i was just starting out with the better lifestyle kind of thing. i don't understand those people who say oh i am trying to lose weight and cutting out all this great unhealthy stuff i love...but i am keeping it around for my husband to eat even if i can't. many of these people know that their willpower is not the best (mine surely isn't a lot of the time)...and then they wonder why they fail. sure if you have willpower of steel, then by all means operate like that. but for the other 90% of us...hehee...i don't keep anything bad for us in the house for the most part. i do get greg his sugary trix or froot loops cereal, and i keep a slow churned or lowfat ice cream in the freezer (which i also eat) and we have rich dark chocolate in the house for dessert but other than that...we don't keep a lot of yummy icky stuff around. if i make cookies, even if they are healthy ones, i only make a 1/2 or 1/4 batch because unless i give those away i'll want to eat them.

oh that reminds me....in that nutritionists article, they had another thing they said which i just remembered, was 'it's a lot easier to stop eating something before you start'. that is so right for me. it's much easier for me to not eat something than it is for me to have a little taste then tell myself thats it. of course if i really want something i will eat it but if i don't really want it, and it's a 'treat' or super sugary or something, then i don't want a taste either.

DJ...i *love* being a foodie!!! food is the best to me. and i think because i have that love of food, it's also driven me to seek really tasty ways to still eat really well with a healthier lifestyle. i was thinking the other day, remember the old days when a diet meant you ate cottage cheese with fruit and ate yogurt and had things like celery for lunch? EW! no wonder everyone thinks diets are gross! or being healthy is gross. well nowadays there are so many options and recipes and things like cookinglight and all these online resources like sparkpeople etc to say that's bunk, you don't have to eat a bunch of nonfat crap just to be healthy or whatever. i love making healthy dishes for us that are low in fat and calories and taste good. this turkey lasagna is the biggest hit with Greg and it's sooo good for us! i can even splurge and have two servings and it isn't anything bad. so for me taste and loving what i eat is huge...if i didn't have that, i'd be a really unhappy person! (as i type this i am thinking of our 5 course $95 new years eve dinner we are having tomorrow night, lol...the restaurant gal read me off the menu and i am already planning what to get, hee hee).

anyway, breakfast today was nutrigrain wheat waffles and some butter and sugar free syrup with flax seed, yum. coffee. greg tried to get me to have some trix to which i 'just said no' to....but maybe i'll have some later, though honestly i can only have a tiny bit of the stuff or else i get a massive sugar rush then feel sick. i'm hitting up the gym this afternoon and then tonite we are eating leftover turkey lasagna, with toasted sourdough and salads. yum! have a great day everyone.

 

[DonaBella]

Well, this is my first post to this thread. I am very serious about getting into better shape and becoming over all healthier. As I scanned the posts before posting my own stuff here, yes, I agree, this month and really November(because of Thanksgiving) are really tough months for eating.

For me, its not just eating. Its a challenging schedule of family and work obligations. I am the type of person who can schedule out what I will eat, stick to that pretty well for the most part, but fall short at getting to the gym. I feel SO much better when I spend my 3 days a week at the gym. Everyone in my home benefits. I am more upbeat, more energetic and much less likely to be moody or whatever. With the dynamics in my home, it will take alot of readjusting to make sure I get there(to the gym), but I am determined to do all I can to make it happen.

I really need this thread...

 

[KimberlyH]

Morning All:

Rod: I would not worry about the lack of a guest bedroom AT ALL! My parents have a 3 bedroom 2 bath house and when we go to visit we always stay in hotel for the convenience of not having to fight for a bathroom and share space with my sister, BIL and 1 year old nephew who are almost always there when we are. We have never felt slighted for being in a hotel, it''s actually quite enjoyable. My husband wouldn''t have it any other way. We turned one of our bedrooms into a spare room and will convert the other into a spare bedroom eventually as wel (it is currently a holding tank), but no one ever felt slighted when I lived in a 2 bedroom condo and there was no room for people to stay (except some girfriends who opted to sleep on my living room floor, which was a-okay with me). People visit to hang out with you during the day, not sleep in your house, so don''t let that hold you back.

We had an early morning wake up call, my MIL was taken to the ER at 1 a.m. and we were informed at 6 a.m. I have been a total slug since we got home from the hospital.

Today will be my day off from exercise, I''ll workout tomorrow morning.

We had veal for dinner last night with corn and a delicious fruit salad. We may go out to dinner tonight, possibly Thai food. Tomorrow we''re staying home and avoiding the madness. I''m going to make a nice 4 course meal and we''ll just relax and enjoy the evening.

Hope everyone is having a great day!

Welcome/welcome back to the WWT sevenwires, equ and deanna!

~K

 

[Dee*Jay]

I went and did an hour on the treadmill. Damn I walk slow! About 3.2 mph was comfortable for me, although I did have a problem in the beginning where I had a terrible cramp on the side of my calf. It was like a shin splint but on the side and I had to stop several times to stretch it before I could really get going. After that I probably *could* have gone faster but when I ratcheted the speed up toward 3.5 or 4 I could feel the muscle tightening up again and I wasn't gonna chance it.

Only burned 250 calories and went 3.18 miles but I figure it's a nice every-other-day alternative to the eliptical. My heart rate stayed in the 120-125(ish) range, which is about 65% of my target heart rate so it was still a fat burning endeavour, and I did work up a bit of a sweat, although not *much* of one, LOL.

Just had some roasted chicken from last night but our dinner reservations are still 4 hours away so I will probably get a banana in before then too. (Which is better than the Walker butter cookies I was eating last night while we were on those crazy threads about Harriet's stone and what to do with $48K!).

ETA: Better post my question about the arm thing on the eliptical machine again becuase I think it kinda got lost up there. What exactly am I supposed to *DO* with the arm things? Am I supposed to pull? Push? Something else? I had my hands on the bars and my arms were just kinda "going along for the ride," but I'm guessing that's not right!

 

[Tybee]

Kim,
I hope your MIL is okay. Nothing worse than rushing to the ER in the middle of the night! Yikes! You deserve to take it easy.
DeeJay, I think that the arm thing on the elliptical is supposed to help you get a fuller body work out. Think of how people pump their arms while walking or running. I don''t think that it''s supposed to be too much extra, so having your arms going along for the ride is just fine.
As far as walking on the treadmil, good for you! Your training your body and getting it used to all of this stuff. I applaud you for not pushing your muscles to the point of injury. Soon enough, my friend, soon enough!
Today is a "day of sloth" for us. Somehow we got talked into hosting some friends for dinner and drinks tonight. That''s all I need, lol! More food and drink! Too bad I just LOVE having people over! We''re off to the grocery. Will work out super hard tomorrow.
After Monday the gym is sure to be PACKED with the yearly New Years Resolutionists!

 

[Mara]

lol tybee i was thinking the same thing re: NY resolutionists...clogging up our gym machines!! hehee. unfortunately (or fortunately?) they don't typically last that long as they get tired of 'dieting' and working out and end up slacking off.

so i hit up the gym..i only did 40 minutes on the elliptical because greg wants to take a long walk later...so i didn't want to be totally pooped for that. also i was kind of tired today, the consecutive day workout thing sometimes can get to me.

so while at the gym i got this craving for something that i have been thinking about on and off all week and has not been satiated. tuna salad! that canned stuff i ate yesterday with it's odd taste just whetted my appetite for a REAL yummy non processed version.

so i got an apple and some celery at the market next to the gym and also got some multi-grain rice cakes. i love tuna sandwiches on toasted sourdough but the calories in bread can be detrimental to an afternoon snack (50-100 calories per slice). so these rice cakes only have 30 calories each and pack the 'crunch' factor i was looking for. i mixed together a bit of chopped apple and celery with a small 3oz can of chicken of the sea tuna in water, added some pepper and some 'light' best foods mayonnaise (which tastes pretty darn good mixed with tuna and other things), tossed in some cajun seasoning on for a bit of spiciness, and then layered it on a toasted rice cake. YUM. i am in LOVE with this new creation. and best part is it's under 200 cals (~190ish) and gives me a nice boost of protein and fresh fruits and veggies and some multigrain. i can definitely tell i will be adding this into my snack afternoon repoitoire or for a quick lunch boost where i don't want a 'meal'. it was super tasty, and i'm full. yay!

on another positive note, i had the gym trainers test my body fat...it's been about 2 months since i last tested i think. it was about 21.5-22 i think back then. well it's 20 now!!!! i am sooo jazzed!! the guy showed me the chart and for my age, weight, height i am right on the high end of low which is like 18-20 for women. 'normal' is like 21-28 or something like that. so he was saying i was very fit for my age...haha.

anyway, tonite is turkey lasagna leftovers with a fresh romaine salad with bleu cheese and some chopped apples and vinaigrette.

have a great night all, congrats on doing some cross training DJ...definitely don't push too hard til your body is ready. it pays to try to listen to it. oh and i agree re: the arm things, i don't push or pull...just kind of let my arms hold them and i feel it working my sides and torso more than when i don't.

tybee have a great time tonite! kimberly have a nice relaxing day.

 

[Modified Brilliant]

Hi everyone...just checkin'' in.

PLEASE...just DO SOMETHING!!

Okay...so I couldn''t make it to the gym this week but instead I did the following:
situps,pushups,medicine ball 12lbs, ran in place,watched my food intake.
I use the medicine ball like a basketball and attempt Harlem Globetrotter type fancy moves
without breaking something in my house. It really helps with dexterity and hand/eye coordination.
I highly recommend it while watching TV. Just watch where you move the ball

Happy New Year...I can''t wait for 2007 to come marchin'' in.

 

[basil]

I had a pretty good workout day today. This morning, I ran outside on the trail by my house for about 30 minutes. It''s extremely hilly, which I''m not in good shape for at this point, so it was pretty challenging!

This afternoon, I bought some 10 lb weights and used those to do some of the strength training exercises that I''m working on (I am still using the 8 lb ones for some because I can''t quite maintain good form with the 10 lbs). My mom told me to buy a new work-out outfit as a late Christmas present, so I picked up some boot cut dry-fit pants, a long sleeved top, a tank top, and a new sports bra. Nothing like a new outfit to motivate me! So I did about an hour of strength and core training too.

As far as eating, it''s been kind of bad. For breakfast, I ate two slices of toast and the rest of the creamed eggs. Even though I know things are bad for me, I''d rather eat it than let it go to waste. One might think I was raised in the depression or something! For lunch, I had a small serving of leftover pasta, and a single serving container of cottage cheese. I got hungry around 3, so I had a small bowl of Special K with skim milk. Then for dinner I had a foil-pouch Indian meal from TJs with some brown rice and some lowfat yogurt mixed in. I''ll probably eat a container of blackberries for dessert, and maybe a glass of milk later on.

 

[Mara]

Basil, congrats on getting a workout in!

I'm curious...you said your eating has been kind of bad. Did you just mean the creamed eggs? Because honestly, that's the only thing you listed which might be remotely considered 'bad' and maybe not even BAD depending on what is in them. Even if they have cream or milk or whatever in them, that's still not BAD necessarily.

I think it's important for people to realize that just because you eat one thing that might be a bit fatty or higher calorie does not negate 99% of good lifestyle eating or similar. Pasta is not a big deal if you just have a small serving. You are having fruit, cottage cheese, milk, etc...that's all healthy. Toast is not bad at all either. In fact I might have two pieces tomorrow morning with breakfast...big deal!

I always hate when I see people on here not giving themselves any positive credit for eating. Today I had a bowl of Greg's Trix cereal. Does that mean my eating today was kind of bad? NO WAY! The bowl was 120 calories and like 1g of fat. Sure it had 13g of sugar but I went to the gym right after so at least I put my sugar high to good use.

Quite honestly, I tend to believe that people can eat almost anything as long as you don't eat the whole bowl, whole pot, whole casserole dish, whatever. And even if you do that once in a blue moon, it's not the end of the world either as long as you have a generally active lifestyle. We should all be giving ourselves some great credit for belonging to this thread, checking in...and doing well 99% of the time!

 

[basil]

Creamed eggs is this dish that my family has once a year (on Christmas). It''s basically a cream sauce (butter, flour, milk, and cream) mixed with hard boiled egg whites, served on top of toast squares, with crumbled yolks on top. It wasn''t a small portion, so basically I ate a lot of cream sauce. I don''t really even want to contemplate the amount of calories in that.

The rest of the stuff is what I normally eat, and what I manage to gain weight eating (even with a more healthy breakfast than creamed eggs). I don''t eat a lot of chips or desserts at baseline, so it seems that I need to make some changes other than just "eating healthy" in order to lose weight.

 

[diamondsrock]

well this is my first post too to these threads. So much good information here.
Mara you are an inspiration to healthy eating that I should follow.
My probem is mainly my sugar addiction. Cravings for sugar that I just don''t understand. I had stopped for a while and then sugar didn''t taste as good, but then something stressful happened and I got hooked again. I need to break that habit quickly. It''s amazing how many of my favorite foods (almost all) contain sugar.
I recently bought a stationary bike and have been going on that. It was boring but I listen to my ipod and now I read as well so it''s not so bad. I much prefer walking outside, though. That is my favorite activity with the dog, and it just makes me feel so good to get the fresh air and watch her enjoy the exercise as well. She loves long walks and always looks up at me admiringly when we get home as if to say, "Thank you!!!"
So I will follow this thread as well as the other newcomers.
If I could lose 10 pounds I would be thrilled, although I''ll settle for five. More important is for me to get toned up as I am pretty flabby, espeically around my abdomen.

 

[Mara]

basil sounds like you are on the right track with adding workouts then. i didn't really lose much by healthier eating, until i started REALLY going to town on the workouts. i would work out 2-3x a week and walk a few times a week, and eat pretty healthily and just kind of look more toned...but not lose anything. i had to jack up the workouts to 5-6x a week and get even better on the eating before i saw real progress and even then it took me a while to lose 'fat' and build up muscle enough that the scale finally started moving. it took a lot of patience unfortunately.

welcome diamondsrock!! we are just about to go for a walk with portia too...hehe..gotta love the little white pups who love to go out and get some fresh air. on the sugar habit, start weaning yourself off slowly. i cut out all sodas and juice drinks, then i slowly ate less things with sugar in them or processed items. healthier cereals, breads with no sugar, pastas with less sugar. eventually i even cut sugar out of my coffee in the morning which took me FOREVER. now i don't even really miss it...though i do have a bit sometimes on weekends in coffee. sugar is totally addicting for sure. i don't think it's really that possible (or desirable?) to cut sugar out entirely but as long as it's in moderation and you have that awareness of it, for me i don't really think about it much. also i have started doing things like using brown sugar for baking or cooking and also sugar subs like sweet leaf from whole foods instead of regular sugar etc. anyhow welcome!!

we just had our turkey lasagna (omg it was so good after 2 days in the fridge! i heated it up in the oven), fresh salads and french bread. now we're heading out for a 'medium' walk which is about 2 miles...and then we'll have dessert (the oatmeal chocolate cookies i made which we LOVE and some milk) and play monopoly...hahaa. i got the game for greg for xmas, and he is obsessed with beating me! even though so far i have won 2x. hee. maybe tonite is his night!

 

[Rod]

Thanks Mara: We shouldn''t care what anyone thinks, but oddly we do. Still, we spent a great deal of time there today, and even during the day, it was just incredible. We are really seriously considering it. I even spoke with my parents to guage how they''d feel if they had to stay in a hotel when they come visit and they indicated they wouldn''t be upset at all. In fact my father seemed to appreciate how we are more interested in quality over quantity. So that was good.

So sorry to hear about your MIL Kimberly. I hope it''s not serious and she comes home soon.

Welcome to all the new members! It''s great to see you join our healthy family! I hope you get lot''s of healthy tips and motivation from the great group of people here!

We didn''t get to the gym today, which wasn''t good. We wound up spending the day with our realtor looking at condo''s and we''re spending time with him again tomorrow, but our time together will be AFTER a workout, which we''ve already scheduled. I would not be happy about missing two days in a row from the gym. We never miss two days (we did workout yesterday). So, we''ll work out tomorrow and we also will work out on New Years day (since our gym is open all day on New Years), which puts us back on schedule.

Anyway, if I don''t get a moment to wish everyone a Happy New Years, please know that I wish you all the best in the coming year. And I also want everyone to know how very much your support has meant to me over the last couple somewhat difficult months. The loss of my job. The move. Then our Sakai almost dying and you were always there to let me know you cared. You guys ROCK!!!

Have fun, but be safe tomorrow night!!

 

[Mara]

Saw this tonite on sparkpeople and thought it was a great top 5 .... !!

"About five percent of people who lose weight actually keep it off for good. What do they know that you don''t...? "
http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/wellness_articles.asp?id=423

one thing that i know has been huge for me is that i love food, so i always love when i come up with a new idea or a recipe or i find a fave recipe that is more healthy for me and tastes REALLY DARN GOOD. like the turkey lasagna. it almost just validates that you don''t need a ton of cream and butter and full fat cheese for something to be super yummy. and i like experimenting. i think if i didn''t like to cook for us, i''d get bored with just the stuff that is out there ''ready made'' kinda thing. but i love cooking light and finding recipes online when i get hit with an ''urge'' (aka chocolate oatmeal cookies!)...and then seeing if they come out good. so yeah the whole enjoying yourself thing in that list resonates hugely with me. also with things like the gym or similar, i try to not dread it, and make it ''fun'' or at least listen to fave music and/or daydream about something or read a magazine while working out. because yeah if you hate it or are totally unhappy while doing it, you won''t want to keep up with it. for me also, knowing what a difference things like food and exercise HAVE made for me make me enjoy it even if it''s not always fun...haha. because i know the results make me happy.

anyway have a great night all, it''s bedtime for us!