347–So Close and Yet So Far

After work, my friend JoAnn and I met at the river to do our cardio.  I have to talk myself in to doing cardio, but when the weather is so nice and the view is this beautiful, it’s becomes just a little bit easier.
I just realized because of a Tweet tonight that Kale is in Arkansas (about 3.5 hours away).  So close and yet so far.

344–Twenty Left and I Got Nothin’

I am TWENTY posts short of completing “Project 365”.  It has really flown and has me wondering if I will keep up with a post/picture a day from here on out.
With that being said… I’ve had a pretty typical day (translation – boring).  Nothing much to post about.
Unless you want to hear how I brought my sweet Izzy to work with me this morning while the “bug man” came to spray at my house. 
Or how I did a circuit workout at my lunch hour.
Or ordered my usual Subway sandwich – turkey/ham on wheat with pepper jack, lettuce, spinach, tomato, green pepper and onion (which goes over real well with my coworkers).
Or how I nearly had a nervous breakdown getting groceries at Walmart tonight – it was a madhouse.
Or how I spent the evening watching last night’s episodes of “Army Wives” and “Coming Home” …and cried during both… then spent the rest of the evening reading.
I’m sure you don’t want to hear about that, so I’ll just post a picture of my Mads… the cutest little “fairy” ever.

338 - My Next Book and a Little Time with JoJo

I bought my next Kindle book tonight.  (Are you proud of me, Kayla?)

One Tuesday Morning / Beyond Tuesday Morning Compilation Limited Edition

 

Two books in one for $9.99!

 

Jodi and I talk to each other A LOT.  But, we haven't seen each other for a while lately, until today.  I meant to take a picture and totally forgot... so I'll just show you how we spent our time together.

Four miles along the river.  It's a beautiful walk and an hour of girl time!

306–Randomness

David and I stayed home for a quiet night – I’ve been fighting off a migraine all day – but Tyler and Daisy went out for supper with Maddie.  I took this picture of them piled up in the chair after they got back…

I was happy to see this number roll around today:

In less than a week, Kale will be home for a few days.  I wish Kayla could come for this trip, but we’re hoping she will be able to come for the 4th of July.

I got gas in my car today.  One of the gas stations in town had the price at $3.47/gallon and another one was $3.39/gallon.  Which do you think I got??

I was so saddened today by the news of a brutal crime at the Northpointe Baptist Church in Arlington, Texas.  Of course, as a church secretary, it hits awful close to home for me.  I read on one of the news articles that the church had a security system in place and was kept locked and guests were buzzed in.  I don’t know if that is true, but it makes me wonder what on earth took place. They assume robbery was the motive, but most (or all) churches don’t keep money at the church… the robber (or robbers) may not have realized that until it was too late.  The pastor was only in his late 20s and his secretary was in her 60s.  It is just so so sad…we have so much to pray for and about all around us.

297–My Day in Pictures

The morning started out a little rough… I dropped a contact down the sink (I guess?? I never could find it).  I’ve been wearing contacts since I was 18 years old and have never lost one down the drain – until this morning.  For those of you who pay like $25 per BOX… mine are $140 per box … that’s over $23 per contact!!! Yikes!

Then, I had a doctor’s appointment.

Need I say more, ladies??

The day got better when I got back to work.

Tonight Daisy had our Cubbies make “Noah’s Ark” with paper plates.  Then she gave them Beanie Babies to put in them.  So cute!  Here’s Tyler’s embellished version sans the Beanie Babies.

260–Monday Randomness

It’s been a busy Monday.  I got my workout in at lunch and after work this evening, Tyler and I went up to the church.  Randy was having practice with the worship team and we went to see if we could help with the audio/video stuff.

When we got home, David said that Tyler’s dog (Daisy) got after something in the yard (probably an armadillo – she likes to hassle them) and he thinks she ran through or under the fence.  Needless to say, she scraped her forehead up. Bless her heart.

My snack for tonight is an old favorite… yogurt and granola.  I usually use Kashi Go Lean Crunch, but tonight I had Bare Naked Vanilla Almond Crunch.  Most people think it looks disgusting, but it sure does taste good!

I’m updating my fitness blog tonight - today was weigh-in day.  I didn’t gain or lose this week.  I’m okay with that because 1) I know I ate spot on and got all my workouts in for the week; and 2) it’s high hormone week.  So, it’ll all be okay.

I ended up not getting in to bed until 11:50 last night after making a good effort.  Seriously, gonna try to get my posts up and get to bed.  Night all!

258–THIS Is What Makes It Tough

It is SO hard to eat out when you are trying to make healthy food choices.  And THIS is my weakness…

But, I’m happy to report that I ate just one!

I allow myself that “one” so I don’t feel totally deprived.  Another thing I try to do is have a glass of water gone before they bring my meal.  That helps to fill you up so you don’t over-eat.

Tomorrow is Free Day!!

253–Monday (Weigh-In Day)

There was snow on the ground this morning.  Only an inch or two, and it wasn’t very pretty, but it still meant that I couldn’t drive my car to work.  Tyler ended up not having to go in, so I took his vehicle instead.

Right now at work I’m doing all my end of month and end of year reports.  I get in a serious “zone” and I’m sure I’m not much fun to be around, but I’m almost done and then life will be back to normal.  Whatever normal is these days. Ha!

After work, since I didn’t get to the gym at lunch, Tyler and I headed there and I got my cardio in. 

As for my health/fitness goals - I weighed in this morning… typically, in the past, I weighed in on Sundays BEFORE Free Day eating, but I am weighing in on Mondays for now so that affects how much Free Day eating I do.  Anyway, I weighed in this morning and I was down 2.5 pounds for the week.  It would have been more, but that’s the Free Day effect.  (I was down 3.5 on Sunday morning). I’m going to try to update weekly on my fitness blog. (I did a horrible job last year!!)

I’m not following any eating plan. I’m simply choosing healthy foods and trying to make sure I eat plenty of good, lean proteins, whole grains, fruits, veggies, and healthy, essential fats.  It’s hard to eat enough when you don’t add junk or empty calories.  You really can eat a LOT of food and stay within a healthy calorie range.  That’s the bonus.

249–Cuteness & What You Can Get for 190 Calories or Less

These had Maddie’s name all over them!!

Adorable!!

I had my menu written out for today and my plan was to have leftover taco salad (like I showed you in my last post) for supper tonight.  But after I cut up my pita and put it in the toaster oven, I  looked in the fridge for the leftover meat… GONE!  I guess Dave had the same idea - he ate it for lunch.  So, I went ahead and mixed up my salsa/light sour cream/guacamole concoction (about 2 tablespoons of each) and used it as dip for my “chips and salsa”.  I was in heaven!  It seriously satisfied that craving I seem to have EVERY day for chips and salsa or guacamole.  I told Kayla that I may have found a way to cut back on my Chili’s bill. AND it’s only about 190 calories!!! That’s what I’m talking about.

One of my new year’s “intentions” was to try to get to bed earlier… so far that hasn’t happened.  Getting my start tonight!

Have a great Friday, y’all!

248–One of My Favorite Meals

Tonight we had tacos for supper.  While everyone else ate traditional tacos, I modify mine to make them healthier.

Instead of taco shells, I cut up a whole wheat pita and toast it in my toaster oven.  I use the leanest ground beef (I’d prefer ground turkey, but Dave won’t hear of it).  I mix up a little salsa, fat free or light sour cream, and guacamole and put it on top of the meat and veggies.  I also skip the cheese.  Seriously, I could eat it every day. (Approx. 330 calories)

Have I mentioned how much I enjoy having Tyler help me in Awana?  He’s so good with the kids.

247–New Title & New Mindset

Steve handed me a piece of mail today and told me that I must’ve got a promotion.

Bahahaha! No thanks, I don’t think I want that job.

On another note, I am working on my eating again.  I have really not eaten all that healthy for the last year or so.  And it shows on the scale.  I have about 10 pounds to lose (again) so I’m back to eating like this:

To be honest, I eat that for lunch nearly every single day (I know, I NEED to get rid of the Baked Lays, but I LOVE them!! Maybe next week.).  I am working on eating breakfast again… I’ve gotten to where I’m not eating in the mornings.  I’m also working on eating more healthy snacks so that I’m not starved to death by the time I get home … which makes me absolutely RAID the cabinets.  The quality of food you eat is reflected not only on the scale, but in the way your clothes fit, as well as your blood work, the health of your arteries, your pancreas, and all sorts of other ways.  I know all the right things to do, but if your mind is not in it… you won’t do well.  I’m working on getting my mind back in the game.  There’s no better time to start then when the holidays are over and a new year has begun!

I’m watching the Sugar Bowl right now, but I DVR’d the first episode of the new season of Biggest Loser.  I can’t wait to see the transformations and the changes they are making to the show.  I am hoping for less game-play and more focus on health and fitness! (I won’t hold my breath, though.)

177–Poked and Prodded

David and I both had doctors appointments this afternoon.  We NEVER go together, but since we both needed them, I just scheduled them that way.  I had a mole that I wanted to have removed… I hate moles and would rather have them gone than along for the ride.  So, by this afternoon, I had a flu shot, breast exam, and a mole removed.  I felt a little poked and prodded. Ha!

Tomorrow night the Awana kids are going to “trunk or treat” in the church parking lot.  They are always so cute and they have such a good time.  Fun is had by all.  Here’s the candy we’ve collected in the church office so far…

Maddie is going to debut her costume… she’ll be adorable!

173–October is…

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  Just saying.

So, today I had an appointment here:

And apparently I need to be MUCH better about taking my calcium, because my bone density test wasn’t so great.

The sky was pretty (and pink) this morning.  I tried to get it with my phone camera, but it doesn’t do it justice.

157 – Running

The weather has been so nice here.  I’ve been trying to take advantage of it and get my cardio in outside these days.  When I do cardio at the gym, I do “run/walk intervals”.  When I do cardio outside, I walk (and occasionally throw in a little jogging).  I have a hip flexor and a foot injury that flare up when I run outside on hard surfaces.  I’m no Spring Chicken any more, so when I switch to the outdoors, I consider the impact on my joints and bones – it trumps my running aspirations.  I’d much rather walk than be laid up with an injury.
Today was a busy day…my work day started with a funeral for one of our church members, then I worked out at lunch, got stuck at Walmart for an hour trying to get David’s prescriptions that I ordered refills on three days ago, went to see Jodi (she had her gallbladder removed today), ran home to get changed, then on to church to teach the Cubbies, and before going home we stopped at Ms. Charlsie’s so I could get her medicine sorted. Whew!
I got so tickled at Jodi today when she said that she told Gary that he better think before deciding to trade her in on a newer model because the next one may have all her parts and he’ll have to pay for all this stuff over again. Haha! She is so funny!

144 – Saying “So Long” and If I Could Have a Do-Over

These are my girls.  I have had the pleasure of training them for about a year and a half (with a break here and there).  I can honestly say that, just like you see on Biggest Loser, a trainer really does come to love and care about the people they work with (or work OUT). Leslie, the one on the left, is moving away this week.  She and JoAnn, on the right, are good friends and it has been so fun to get to know them and to work with them and see them on a weekly basis.  We’re sure going to miss you, Leslie!! JoAnn better get ready, I’m harder on a client when it’s just one-on-one. Ha!

A couple of girls that I think are just the sweetest young moms EVER gave me this blog award.  I am not real big on blog awards, but I liked Rule #1. So, I’ll share.

The Rules:
1. Answer this question: If you had the chance to go back and change one thing in your life, would you and what would it be?
2. The second thing you have to do is, pick 6 people and give them this award.You then have to inform the person that they have gotten this award.
3. The third and final thing is, thank the person who gave you the award.

The answer:
If I had the chance to go back and change one thing in my life, I think it would be to enjoy every moment with my children more and worrying less!  Many of you are young moms with young children at home.  I know how overwhelming it is… the responsibility to teach the right things at the right time; worrying about the safety of your child(ren); fearing that you have so much to do that your not spending enough quality time with them; worrying that your “no's” are more frequent than your “yes’s” and that your children will think you never let them do anything; the constant concern that something you do could “make them” or “break them”. 

I think I was in a constant state of worry.

I still worry, believe you me.  But, I am so much more laid back now than I was when my kids were young and I wish I could go back and enjoy the ride more.  Working with the 3 and 4 year olds on Wednesday nights makes me realize how sweet, sweet they are and how easy it is to enjoy them when you don’t have all that worry surrounding you.

So, if you have little ones at home… I hope you’ll take the time to just sit and watch them play; look deep into their innocent eyes; tell them often how much you love them; sit and talk and make believe; hug them and hug them again.  Those moments will be gone so soon.

I think all the blogs on my blog roll are great reads…so if you feel like answering the question, too… play right along.

Thank you, Kimberley and Kelley for thinking of me.  I appreciate your kind words even more!!!!  Kimberley has two of the cutest little boys ever!! (Check out their eyes!) She is such a good mother who treasures the moments she has with her family.  Kelley is a mother of two beautiful girls.  She has so much on her plate, but finds a way to make being a wife, mother, teacher, daughter all come together in a way that honors God.

Missing My Laptop

Kale has my laptop at his house.  She has had the required “surgery” and seems to have recovered nicely as per the reports I’ve received.  She’s still recuperating and is being monitored very closely and will be coming home to momma next weekend when my other “precious” makes the trip back for the weekend.

We are only seven weeks away from Thanksgiving AND the wedding.  Time is going by so fast and 2009 is almost one for the record books. I STILL haven’t found a thing to wear to the wedding.  I’m starting to get a little nervous.  I’m a big online shopper and have checked every store I can think of and have found nothing, notta, zip! I could really use some help in this department. I am leaning toward chocolate brown…so if y’all happen across something you think would work, let me know.

On another note, y’all know how much I LOVE “The Biggest Loser”.  As much as I love it, there are some things I truly have problems with:

• First of all, the past couple of seasons, we’ve seen the trainers behave in ways I believe (as a trainer) are not necessary to motivate people. This is and should be a family program, so NBC, please note that we don’t need the f-word bleeped out a million times a show to realize your trainers are intense.
• I also don’t care for the game play.  I think the show would do just as well, if not better, if it revolved totally around the health and fitness aspect and the emotional journey the contestants find themselves on.  Having experienced some form of it myself, I can tell you, that losing weight and getting fit is VERY empowering and it brings out some things in you that you don’t realize you have within you…whether that be purging negative self-talk or discovering strength and endurance you never knew you had.
• It’s awesome to see such amazing weight loss results at each weigh-in, but the show needs to remind the audience that these contestants are being watched with every morsel that touches their lips and are spending hours, 6-8-10 hours, in the gym each and every day.  Doing so can result in extreme weight loss, especially when they have so much to lose.
• The other thing that I have problems with is…the first rattle out of the box these contestants are expected to walk, jog, run a mile.  They are extremely overweight, out of shape, and obese…and from the shows own words… “very sick” .  From our perspective, it appears that these contestants take off in a run to try to reach that dangling carrot (immunity) first.  What we are not seeing, I’m sure, is that there are doctors, trainers, etc on the sidelines observing for safety (and legal) reasons.  But, the message is that the typical obese person can and should get up off their easy chairs and run a mile.  NOT! I would never do that to one of my clients.
• I do love the show, and I love how the contestants develop relationships and have a desire to get healthy for their loved ones and themselves.  I bawled over Abbey’s story of losing her husband and two young children tragically in 2006, or hearing how Shay has never felt loved.  I cheer each week for Rebecca and Amanda to do well.  I absolutely LOVE watching the changes occur both in the contestant’s bodies as well as their hearts and minds.

Well, now that I got that off my chest. As for me…I am happy to report that after 3 years of struggling on the scale, I have reached my goal weight and have lost almost 20 pounds since June.  And I did it without a trainer screaming obscenities in my ear!!  Although, there are a few times that I want to cuss myself for the workouts I put us through. Ha!

Hope y’all have a great weekend… we’ve got the Turkey Trot festival here.  We miss you, Mousie!

Need a New Heart Rate Monitor?

My friend, Amy, over at Chapters, is doing a giveaway for a Polar F6 Heart Rate Monitor (I’m needing a new one, by the way).  Amy and her husband, Dusty, have started a new business that, as a trainer, I think is so exciting.  It’s called “FitLab”, to visit their website click here.  They do metabolic assessments.  The concept is to do tests to give the client the tools he/she needs to have success in their fitness and weight loss efforts.  The tests evaluate how many calories a person needs to eat as well as what heart rate you should be working at to achieve your goals. VERY interesting stuff!!

They also have a Twitter account with some great fitness suggestions, tips, nutrition facts, etc.  You can follow them by clicking the button below.

They are located in Peach Tree, Georgia, but Amy does some testing away from home, so if you’re interested, contact Amy for more information.

And just look how cute those Heart Rate Monitors are!!

Why I Love It

After I got home from church tonight, I turned the TV on the Discovery Channel and found a show called “The 650 Pound Virgin”.  I had seen David Smith on the Today Show one morning last week talking to Matt Lauer.  His story is incredible.

His weight loss and life transformation began back in 2003.  He had reached rock bottom.  He had been abused, bullied, and ridiculed most of his life.  He even contemplated suicide.  Then he decided to do something about it.

He contacted, Chris Powell, a personal trainer and began a nutrition and exercise program and lost over 400 pounds in 26 months.  All naturally, by sound nutrition and exercise.  No surgery.

I always weep at stories like David’s.  I weep on pretty much every episode of Biggest Loser for the same reason. Stories like these are the reason I became a personal trainer.  I’ve never been 50 pounds overweight, let alone 400, but when I began my health and weight loss journey, I found that there are so many people who are on similar journeys.  I wanted to help other people find success in their efforts.  It’s so exciting and rewarding to me.

If you ever feel like you have too much weight to lose, or you don’t know how to get started, think about David Smith.  He made the decision to change the direction he was going and to fight for his health and his life.

David has his life back from the depths of despair today.  He and Chris are now best friends and roommates.  He is also a personal trainer, paying it forward.

What a great story.

Reflecting on Q1 2009

Can you believe it’s April and we’ve already gone through a quarter of 2009? My year so far has been productive…

This year I committed to reading through the Bible (with the help of "the Preacher's" devotional blog.)  As of today, we’ve finished the first eight books of the Bible and we’re currently enjoying 1 Samuel.  I am pretty proud of myself for staying on task and being more dedicated in spending time in His Word.  What a blessing it’s been!

I’ve also committed to being more intentional in my prayer life.  How often do we say… “we just need to pray about it” and then not spend time in focused prayer about “it”? How many times do we tell people “I’ll pray for you” with good intentions and then walk off and forget to pray?  I’m really working on being truly purposeful when I pray.

Someone who I am in constant prayer for is Baby Stellan and his family… please continue to remember them in your prayers. And if you haven’t seen this post about Stellan's Name Gallery, I encourage you to read it… it’s just so moving to me.

Another area of focus has been our family finances and budget during the first quarter of 2009.  I keep all my info on Quicken, and it’s easy to get behind on entering daily transactions.  So, I’ve been trying really hard to keep it caught up … which makes paying bills and balancing checkbooks much less time consuming.  I’ll continue to focus on this as well as trying to stay well within my budget parameters in the coming quarter.

Also, since January… I’ve been enjoying so many of my favorite reality TV shows.  ‘24’ (which I so wish was ‘48’); “American Idol”; “Amazing Race”; and a little bit of “Survivor” (I’m not a die-hard Survivor fan).  ‘24’ has me sleeping a little less at night – Just HOW is Jack going to get out of this situation??  On Idol, I’m still rootin’ for Kris and Danny, but I gotta say that our Arkansas boy, Kris, has totally become my front runner.  The boy can sing. (I’ve also gotta tell you that I picked Carrie Underwood and David Cook from Hollywood week of their respective years.  Just saying. Go Kris.)  I’m still liking the mom and son team on “Amazing Race” – momma got HOT this week – and gave us a scare!!  And I don’t have any favorites on “Survivor” because I just haven’t gotten that into it YET.

As for fitness… I’ve been working on that for years, but so far this year I’m down 7 1/2 pounds and will start with my second 12-week “challenge” next Monday. (See my fitness journal if you want to see my progress) I have no trouble staying committed to exercise, but it takes a large effort to stay on track in the area of eating for me.  Most people that know me, know that I am very strong in the area of willpower, but I’m at the point in my life that it takes a whole lot of effort to be able to lose any amount of weight. Oh, the joys of aging. Message to self – keep on keeping on. 

And speaking of fitness…

Jodi’s daughter, Jessica just started blogging.  Jess works at a running store where they specialize in doing gait analysis and helping customers find just the right shoe fit for their sport.  I’ve bought all my running shoes there for the past several years.  If you are serious about working out – especially cardio – you need to make sure you have proper shoes! I’m a big believer.  Jess is also a runner and is training to run a marathon.  Crazy, I know!  Her blog has some really interesting insight into running.  Stop by and check her out… and if you know some other serious runners who blog… give her some recommendations.

As for the second quarter of 2009 …

I am planning to better organize how/when I clean house. I cannot seem to find a plan that works for me.  Any recommendations? Do y’all clean a room a day? Do a task a day? Talk to me people… especially you “cleanies”.

A Healthy Meal

I used the old cast iron tonight!! Surprised, aren’t you? I made tacos… a healthy version.

I start with a bed of romaine lettuce on my plate and top it with a serving of cooked and seasoned lean ground beef. 

Add diced tomatoes, chopped onion, whatever healthy toppings you like.  You’ll want to add a little salsa or sour cream, but (Kale and) I like to mix a concoction of fat free sour cream, my favorite (Albert’s) salsa, and some guacamole and spoon that on top. 

The men in my house love the old store-bought taco shells, but I much prefer to cut a whole wheat pita into wedges and toast them in my toaster oven.

I served it with some fat free refried beans topped with a little low-fat cheddar cheese and pica de gallo.

That’s some good eatin’ and good for you!!

I’m just trying to figure out the cast iron, so before I started to cook, I added a little oil and wiped them out again with a paper towel.  The refried beans stuck just barely (but they’ll stick in any kind of pan).  The clean up was really easy on both pans.

Tyler asked me “what in the world I was cooking in?” Or did he say, “Are YOU cooking??”