Day 5

Thursday was a pretty good day.  I wanted to jot a few notes about how my eating habits have changed.  I am a lifelong diet conscious person, and have been a member of SparkPeople for 8 years now.  I log what I eat almost every day.  I don't skimp or cheat, or forget to log something.  If I eat an entire Tombstone Pizza on a lazy Sunday, then that's what I log.  If I can't be honest with myself, who can I be honest with, right?  Besides, lie as much as I want about my food intake -- but the scale won't lie for me! 

So here's the trend(s) I'm noticing:   

• I've reduced my calorie intake by 200-400 per day.   
• Carbs have gone from 204 to 89 per day.  
• My fat intake is a bit higher, (I think it's the cheese!)
• My protein went from 77 to 97.  

Significant changes, in my book.  But the best part is that where after lunch when a person usually gets that "3pm crash" and goes reaching for the sugary carbs or snacks, I don't feel the need!  I've also gone from 4-6 cans of Diet Coke a day to 1 per day.  And boy, do I look forward to that Diet Coke with my dinner!  I don't need a second can, I don't need a can to jumpstart my mornings at work.  Another weird side benefit is the occasional ringing in my ears (I've heard it relates to your caffeine intake). 
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Thurday, Jan 25 daily log:

Thursday, Feb 1 daily log:

It's amazing what changes take place when you start taking care of your health.  We all hear the noncommittal phrases of doing the right thing when it comes to our eating, but we all fall prey to the easy, the grab and go snacks, that seem to fuel our society.  I'm a numbers kind of person, and when the numbers don't lie......  I haven't made drastic changes, just a few little changes to start.  And so far, it's working out well.  Thanks, Plexus Slim ... I'll be starting my day tomorrow with my new favorite #pinkdrink !

Do you walk?

I love to walk!  That's been my mantra for some time now, especially since I moved to Arizona, where the days are awesome enough to walk just about every day of the year!  Yes, even when the heat is at its highest, we can still walk in the early morning.  Just before the sun rises is our coolest temp, a great time to be out walking!

By the way, Arizona is one of the few places where you drive to work with your heater on, and drive home with the AC blasting.  *laughs*


I've been wearing my SparkPeople tracker for about 3 weeks faithfully now, and seriously tracking the number of steps I take every day.  10k is my minimum goal.  If I get home and haven't reached that number, off I go for another walk with Sadie!   Lately, I don't have that trouble,

During the day, I can check my progress by tapping this.  All the way around lights up when I reach 10k steps.  When I get home and turn on the computer, it automatically uploads into my tracker so I have a record of how many steps, and tells me minutes if I keep the walk going for more than 10 minutes.  While I get a great number of steps in at work, its a few steps, then stop, then steps again.  The ones that last longer than 10 minutes are the ones that really count when it comes to weight loss or getting into shape.  I saw our local radio personality, NinaDonline, was wearing ankle weights to work to help with her #fitgirl goal.  Kudos, Nina!   (Wonder if that would work for me??? hmmm )

Today, I went to the gym - two days in a row! woo hoo!   Skipped the weights, just cardio today.

Elliptical 30 mins 1.97 miles.
11,956 steps (just 260 steps shy of my personal best!)
Almost at my goal!
Gotta work harder tomorrow :)

Speaking of work, I finally decided that I needed to talk to management about my problem child, Elvis.  Even the manager noticed and mentioned "You've been carrying him for a long time..." based on what they've observed when I am there, as opposed to when I'm not there.   There will be more discussion, I am sure.  I dislike having to deal with problems like this, but ... its not just a bother to me, it costs the company money as well.

Motivation

Sometimes its difficult to find the motivation we need to do the things we know we should, the things we want to accomplish.  And in this month of things for ME, I used a gift card and bought the SparkPeople Activity Tracker.  It's just a little thing (about 1x1") that clips onto your person, I wear mine on my shoe, and it records your steps, counts mileage and even calculates calories.


This morning, I downloaded the simple app, installed it on my computer then took the dog for a walk.  We scooted around our neighborhood like we usually do, and when I got back home, I tapped my tracker and it uploaded my data into my computer... I tracked 2624 steps, 1.1 miles, 25 minutes and 156 calories burned.  Wow.  What technology can't do these days! 

This is a terrific motivator - I'm looking forward to seeing just how much I truly do when I'm at work :)

Doing my ME things for this month wasn't going to involve spending money, this.... is totally worth it!

One Workout

This couldn't be more true --- 


But you have to make the effort!!







I sure didn't feel like hitting the gym  - after a 10.5 hour workday yesterday, I skipped out - but there was no reason to skip it today.  So I changed into my clothes , and hopped on the elliptical.  And before you know it, my 40 mins was up, I went 2.5 miles, and I was smiling :)    (( Total mileage to date:  264!! ))

Sometimes, all it takes is just a little effort on our part.... !

Pleasing ME!

We can talk about diets all day long, debate the paleo vs atkins vs HCG.  We can talk about how good exercise is for us, too.  But until you decide to do something, its all talk! 

I've been working hard on maintaining good eating habits, faithfully logging everything I eat at SparkPeople.com -- even the cheat stuff like chocolate!  I haven't always had successful weeks, but I've had more successes than failures!  I'm faithful about going to the gym -- the other day, one of the gals said "I can't believe how regular you come to the gym, you're always here!!"  And boy, did that feel good -- because what I'm doing is good for me, and its working!!!

I don't know what Weigh in Weds will hold for me.  I'm not worried about it, but I don't want to be disappointed either. Sure, I'd like to see a big drop on the scale, but I'm not sure it will be this week.  The weekend was busy with housework - I had to get everything caught up because I'm working another long stretch of 11 or 12 days in a row.  On top of that, there is a surprise audit some day this week, and a two day pre-inventory audit on May 1.  That means I need to keep on top of my game, and keep everything current.  Which causes stress.  Which creates chocolate cravings!  ugh

So, in order to feel positive about things, I decided to take my measurements again.  And I can definitely see results.  I've lost 3.75 inches off my hips, and 2.25 inches off my waist!!  Granted, that change was from my start with a trainer in March 2012 until today.  Loads of progress and 41 lbs -- woo hoo!!
When you add up all the measurements taken (ie waist, hips, calves, etc) from Feb18, 2013 to Mar 24, 2013, I've lost a total of 4.75 inches. 
(Funny how the quarter inches add up *winks*)

So .... don't think about a diet, don't talk about exercise ...
even if you only do 10 mins of exercise, or skip one donut, that's progress.  

A little every day will add up in a big way!!

If you want to try SparkPeople, (its FREE!) , look me up:  AZGAL50

Day 4

It was S.H.I.T day == So Happy Its Thursday!  hehehehe  I survived another day, even though not enough got done.  Only 6 more days to go.  When I think of it like that, my head hurts!  But I plod along, doing as much as I can .....

There was a celebration of sorts and my BigBox store provided lunch to celebrate 4th quarter earnings - there were sub sandwiches, chips, soda and cake.  Nothing real fancy, but I was diligent and stuck with my salad.  I had packed an extra protein bar in case the urge to indulge hit me, but I survived!  Sometimes its those little battles that are harder to fight than bigger issues! 

I'm gonna give myself a big pat on the back, I was checking numbers and stats and found that yesterday's weigh in was the mark of 35 pounds lost in the past year.  Yay!  When I realized that I'd reached a number I hadn't seen in ... ohhhh.... a long while... I remembered some custom sized toe rings I got when I still lived in California.  I slid them on my toes, and Taaa Daaaa!  they fit!  Who knew toes got chubby too???  *laughs*

Can't wait for sandal season to get here, and I can show them off :)

Here is today's quote from SparkPeople (where I do all my tracking)

And I think its important for us to remember.  So many of us gripe and want changes, but are unwilling to do those things that will create change.  It truly doesn't take much, its the little things that grow into bigger things that create change.  When I started at the gym, it was only 3 days a week; I could only walk for 20 mins on the treadmill and I was thrilled to be able to do one mile.  Now, two miles is the norm, but on days when I have a little extra time, my goal is 60 mins, or 3 miles, whichever comes first.  And my pace has increased, nothing less than 3.8 mph.  It took a while to build up, but just a little bit added up to bigger things.  The same can happen in our lives in other ways.  Maybe your goal is to be happier at work (yeah, I know, some things don't seem possible!! hahah)  but happiness is an attitude as much as anything else.  Sometimes all you have to do is smile.  It catches on and people smile back.  Pretty soon, people are smiling instead of being grumpies -- its the little things.  Got a project  that will take a lot of time?  Break it down into bite sized pieces, and do a little bit.  Pretty soon-- you're halfway there! 

Change isn't easy, but it's worth it!

All About Numbers, Gym Rat, pt III

Well, its been about 7 weeks now, and I'm still a regular fixture at the gym most days after work. (I actually dislike it when something in real life gets in the way of my routine now!) I think back on my first week of trying the elliptical machine, and how just 20 minutes was an effort, on the lowest resistance. Now, I'm up to 35 minutes, and over 2 miles in the that time, on resistance level 6.

The only real measurable progress in this has been all about the numbers. So that's what I track on a spread sheet on a daily basis. I track my minutes on cardio machines, and weights lifted. At the end of 7 weeks, here's what I have: 82.09 miles, 1570 minutes on cardio machines. And a total weight lifted of 141,425 pounds. (I count number of pounds x number of lifts... lifting a 12 lb weight 12 times = 144). When I track and total these numbers by week, I can get a sense of improvements. By giving myself 1 point per pound, and 1 point per minute, I am able to see at a glance just how much I've improved.

• wk 1 - 11642
• wk 2 - 13758
• wk 3 - 21775
• wk 4 - 170
• wk 5 - 29565
• wk 6 - 13295
• wk 7 - 52785

In case you're wondering, that's not a typo at week 4. After 3 weeks, I weighed in 3 lbs heavier, and thought for certain I was building muscle in places I didn't want .... so I stopped lifting weights that week to see if there would be a difference. Week 6 had a slight downturn for the same reason. Its very frustrating to watch these numbers fluctuate, and not see any weight coming off.

While its not always something I look forward, once I get inside the gym and into my workout clothes, I'm ready to keep working at it... cuz it makes me feel better, even if I'm not showing any improvements on the outside. One of the things I did the last time I charged my mp3 player was load a few different songs to shake up the routine. I have about 200 songs loaded up, so no two days are ever the same. (Thanks, Mike! for all the great stuff you passed along <3u! Banana pancakes played while on the treadmill today, I couldn't help but chuckle, and think of you!)

I also track all of this, plus what I've eaten on SparkPeople, the largest online dieting community and its free! It's a wonderful way to meet up with other people who want to lose weight, get healthy, or a combination of both. (If you join up, friend me! AzGal50 )

hardworking HUGS to everyone!