Goodbye February, Hello March

February was a pretty decent month for me, but I am glad to see it go. Only because it takes us one month closer to Spring! Im so over this winter. While we havent seen the amount of snow the east coast has...its been enough for me. Warmer temps, sunshine, melted snow, no ice...sounds just about perfect to me!

So want to hear some results on my fantastic February? Of course you do! Now exercise wise I had a fabulous month! I ended up with 24 workouts! Can I get a Woot! Woot! Here is the breakdown:

Not to shabby. I died out the last week due to these nasty sinus infection Ive been fighting. I felt it hitting on Tuesday night and Wednesday and Thursday I was down for the count. Friday I tried to pull it out and felt decent, but Saturday and today I felt like absolute crap while running! Im hoping that this is the last of it. I feel better...but its all that phlegm that is keeping me down!

Now for weight and measurements. I took them this morning...so here is my 30 day update:

Weight: Down 4.5 lbs
Waist: Down 0.5 inch
Mid Belly: Down 2 inches (this is where most of my weight is)
Bust: Down 0.5 inch
Under Bust: Down 1 inch

Am I happy with this? Im always happy with a loss. But its a little frustrating. If I had a healthy thyroid I have no doubt the numbers would have been a bit higher. But slow and steady wins the race I suppose. I just have to keep at it, and stay consistent. Eventually Ill get where I want to be. Now that I feel comfortable with my workout schedule, I will try more this month to work on the diet aspect. It can always use some work!

I am very happy with the way I feel these days. I feel strong again, fit, and my moods have been great. That alone is such an amazing thing!

So lets see what March brings. I know a St. Pattys 5k is on the agenda :)

Going Strong

Despite feeling a little off physically this week, Im still going strong! I usually can tell when my thyroid level is low, and usually Ill just sleep, sleep, and sleep some more. But Ive decided to do just the opposite. Regardless of how tired or exhausted I am, I still am trying to stick to my workout plan. So far, so good. Im right on schedule.

It feels good to be on a regular active schedule. Not only does it help my moods and release stress, but I can feel myself getting more fit. Sure not every workout feels top notch, but every workout gives me more confidence! Im half looking at myself in the mirror these days. :) Im experiencing, one again, the ups and downs of workouts. I love that great workout where I feel I can conquer the world. And those struggling workouts are just as great to. When I push through those barriers, I again feel on top of the world. My run today was like that. My legs have been achy, especially my knees. And it felt like I could feel every step through my entire body. When I got to 2 miles I just didnt know how Id make it another mile. Than the music carried me through once again. I was listening to some techno, Beckers and Hatfield....a track called Excuses (Weekend Heros Remix), and it just picked me up.




Techno never lets me down! Seriously its like it knew I needed to hear it at that point. A light bulb clicked, and I picked up the pace. At one point I wanted to just start pumping my fists in the air. Ahhh, dont you just love music?! It got me through that last mile...and I felt fanfuckingtastic when I was done. Now Im really exhausted...guess who will be getting a good nights sleep tonight?! Im sure Ill sleep like a baby :)

Weigh in was yesterday, and I was down 1.5 lbs. Not to shabby. I was happy to see a loss, after last weeks weigh in.

But still only 1.5 lbs in two weeks isnt anything to scream off the top of the mountain. My food needs some serious improvement. That combined with my workouts...I could seem some great results! I need to get a plan in place to work on that....

Well thats all she wrote folks. Time for bed.

Can I Have A Do-Over?

Ever have one of those days when you wish you could just go back to bed? Its like a snowball effect...and you think what else?! Please stop! That was the kind of day I had. Damn I hate those days.

This picture is perfect. And it made me laugh, which is a good thing after the day I had!

Lets just rehash my day and see how bad it really is. Or lets just get it out so I can move forward. Whatever makes me sleep better at night, eh? I went to bed at a decent time last night...right around 9:30. So that gives me a good 8 hours of sleep. Well I woke up around 5, and had to pee really bad, so got up to take care of that. And of course had an hour till I had to get up, so by the time I fell asleep I had to get right back up. I think that screwed with me. See with my thyroid issues...I need a minimum of 8 hours of sleep or its hard to function. I got up around 6:15, and started my morning ritual. Prepare the dogs food, shower, flat iron my hair....and I was dragging butt. While flat ironing my hair I burned my finger..twice. I clamped my whole hand actually. Lovely.

Next up was the scale. Dun Dun Dun. It is weigh in day for my Biggest Loser Challenge. I was a little anxious about this weigh in. I was afraid the drinking I had done over the weekend might deter my weigh in..but I really pushed it out the last few days. Sadly, it wasn't enough.

I had a 2lb gain, which takes me back to square one. VERY disappointing, and put me in a foul mood. I know Im having a few mishaps here and there. But my workouts are really being pushed....and its frustrating. If I had a normal working thyroid Im almost sure Id drop weight.

The next few events happened once I got to work. I started to put my things up, change out of my boots and realized that I had Grants debit card in my purse. DAMN IT! I call him and sure enough he doesnt have any cash on him. So I had to head out to meet him. The drive there wasnt to bad actually...given it was middle of rush hour. The drive back was horrid. HORRID! So it took me twice as long to get back. By the time I got to work it was 8:30...an hour and a half after I usually get there. I would be there so late which really annoyed me. What can you do?

I continued on with my workday, and soon realized that one of the hems in my pant leg came unraveled. Lovely one leg was now longer than the other. UGH! Seriously? Everyone and anyone at work really just got under my skin from that point on. Especially one coworker who keeps asking me how to do the same thing day in and day out. Around lunchtime I decided it was time to call it a day. I took a half day. On the way home I just kept replaying how crappy my day was, and decided eating would only make me feel better. Im not losing weight anyways, so whats it matter? So I stopped at Qdoba and got my 1000+ calorie chicken nachos, with a big Coke.

The only happy part of my day was coming home to my furbabies, eating my chicken nachos, and watching Biggest Loser. How ironic to be stuffing my face while watching a weight loss show? Can we say pitiful? Did I feel better? For about 10 minutes. Than the stomach ache started. It felt like I had a ton of bricks in my stomach? So than I felt like crap again. Not just physically, but mentally. Why do I do this? Why do I let food comfort me, when that comfort is oh so short? I know better than this! The best thing would have been to go to the gym!

So the rest of the day/night I just lounged around feeling sorry for myself. Im so lame.

And on that note..tomorrow is a new day. I will make it better than my last.

Lazy Sunday

Its been one lazy Sunday. Although we are all allowed a lazy day here and there right? I probably take them more than I should though.

Yesterday I was super productive. Got all the house cleaning done, as well as the laundry. So really today all I had to do was get a workout in. So I worked on yet another blog design. I think I really like this one, lets see how long I keep it. :p

Last night we went out to the bar to hear some techno music. We brought a couple friends of ours that normally dont listen to techno. It made me happy since I try to get my non techno friends to come out with me once in awhile, and am usually unsuccessful. Its nice to take them to a piece of my world. :) And it appeared they had a good time. She did say it was fun, but not a fabulous time. LOL Ill take that! Derek Plasklaiko did tear it up last night. Loved it! I drank regular beer last night....which probably wasnt a good idea. I hope it doesnt derail my weigh in this week. Today I ate unhealthy and drank way to much pop to. Im realizing that when I make one bad choice, there are many more bad choices that follow. So I have this bad feeling Ill have a gain this week. I had fun though, so if I do have a gain Ill just work harder on next weeks weigh in. Finally, after a very long day in my recliner I got up and did the 30 day shred. Thats whats so great about that workout, its 20 minutes...so really there is no excuse why you cant squeeze it in. As usual, I felt much better after I did it. :) And Im right on track with my exercise goal for the week. YAY!

Just watching the Grammys now. Its a decent show this year. Ill probably stay up to catch the MJ tribute. But than to bed..because its past my bedtime. lol Watching the Grammy's is not making me think about my normal Sunday blues. Thinking about going into a job that I dislike so much, for another long week. Ahhh yes, the Sunday blues. They get me every week.

But something exciting is happening this week! Ingrid Michaelson's tour dates are being announced!!!! I hope Detroit is on the tour!!!!! Something to look forward to this week :)

Wow, if this isnt a complete babbling post...I dont know what is! LOL

Another Pound Gone!

Weigh In day is here again...how fast you came! And Im happy to announce I have another pound gone. Slow and steady wins the race I suppose :)


I felt really strong with my workouts this week. I actually completed five days! Cycling, Running, and the 30 Day Shred. One day I even squeezed in two workouts. I forgot how much I love cycling class. It really has put a fire in me again. And I just saw that they added a Saturday and Sunday class. Another reason to not drink on the weekends, and get my ass out of bed early! Now as far as the eating...I need some help there. My soda intake is out of control. I need to eat more fruits and veggies. And fast food should NEVER be an option. So as you can tell my goals didnt work so well with me. Lets reflect shall we?

Last Week Goals:

• Only one 20 ounce pop every other day - I did good for about 2 days, than had at least 20 ounce per day
• Exercise 4 days - SUCCEEDED! Worked out 5 days!
• Eat a fruit/vegetable with every meal - I maybe ate 1 a day - its a start I suppose
• NO fast food (embarrassing that I even have to type this) - Failed 2 times

So...yeah. I was lucky to lose 1 pound! I have my mojo going with my workouts, so now time to add in another healthy goal. I really want to kick this soda habit. So I need to ponder on another way I can do this. I did buy milk this week. I usually drink pop with my dinner, so now Ive decided to try to drink milk with dinner instead. We shall see how that works out. Im going to focus only on two goals this week, and if I succeed than we will add a third next week.

This weeks goals:

• Exercise: 4 days of cardio, 3 days of strength, 1 day of Yoga
• Whenever I want to drink soda, I will drink milk instead

Okay, no excuses. I should meet both those goals! Im putting all this work into my workouts...why do I want to sabotage myself by eating so unhealthy? Seems like such a dumb thing to do, right? And Im not dummy...so enough is enough! :p

Oh, and a bonus motivator is coming my way. There is a department weight loss challenge going on at work. Basically we just weigh in on Tuesdays at work, but its the honor system. We dont have to share our weights..just the percentage we lost. And we can chose to go into the, "Gamble To Lose" program. We pitch in $10 in scratch off tickets, and if we maintain or lose we dont do anything else. But if we gain than we have to add in $1 scratch off card for that week. At the end of 8 weeks the top 2 losers when the scratch offs. I love scratch offs! And lets be honest...a lot of things dont really motivate me. Ive done biggest loser challenges before, where everyone knew my weight. I still at times couldnt find the inspiration or motivation to do what I needed to do. Instead I showed my gains, almost not even ashamed at times! Sad, isnt it? But something about doing this at work, around coworkers, who see you in the cafeteria eating breakfast and lunch. Now that SCREAMS motivation to me! LOL

So BRING IT ON! :p

Biggest Loser Weigh In 2

Today was our Biggest Loser Challenge weigh in.....and Im happy to say I took a 1 pound loss. Yay!


Last night when I was at cycling class I felt like I was doing a last chance workout. LOL Something about getting in a great workout the night before a weigh in....and something about all the calories you burn in cycling class!

Ill be honest, I thought maybe I would see a bigger loss, and than I reflected back on my week. I had quite a few ups and downs. A few really bad meals and way to much pop. I did workout more times this week than I have in a while. Two days I jogged, one day of 20 minute shred, and a cycling class. Normally I might get one day of the shred in. Sad, isnt it? I will say that my recent health problems of migraines and nausea can really put a damper on my workouts. Not that Im trying to make excuses, but somedays I cant work through it. :( I also was pretty good at staying within my calorie range...now if those calories were healthy or not is another story. Ive been using the Lose It App, and it calculated 1700 calories a week will bring me in at around a 1 pound loss a week. The 2 pound loss had a 1500 calorie limit which felt to low right away. I sort of even felt hungry at 1700 calories. So Ill have to play around with my calorie range, as well as the foods Im eating. Im sure if I ate foods that filled me up more, than I wouldnt be so hungry at this calorie limit.

I think setting goals is a good start. So here is my goals for this week:

• Only one 20 ounce pop every other day
• Exercise 4 days
  
• Eat a fruit/vegetable with every meal
  
• NO fast food (embarrassing that I even have to type this)
  

That seems very doable. Heres to a better week, and another loss!

Biggest Loser Challenge

Tomorrow I'm starting a Biggest Loser Challenge with some online friends. Ive done this challenge many times before. Very unsuccessful. I'm hoping this time is different. Actually I NEED this time to be different.

So we take take a before picture, every week we send in a picture of ourselves on the scale, and at the end we send in an after picture. The person who has the highest loss percentage after 12 weeks is the winner. Normally there is no money involved, but a group of us have decided to do money on the side. I think its up to a $100 pot right now. Thats a nice chunk of change :)

This group of us on the side made our own little private facebook group. I think that the little competition going in there will be great! I also am trying to commit myself to running a half marathon for my 30th birthday. Well actually its the weekend after my birthday. That would really kick my butt into gear. I havent signed up yet...but think I should. That would be the only thing that would really motivate me. Putting money down that I cant get back!

Any suggestions on how I could make this challenge work for me, and not get frustrated and give up...are greatly appreciated. Because we all know Im the queen of do overs.

I havent been on the scale in sometime...so it will be interesting to see what the scale says in the morning.

Dun. Dun. DUN!