Thursday, March 30, 2006

10 things

I saw this on someone else's blog and couldn't resist including it on my own. Please pass it on.

10 Things

10 Favorites

Favorite Color: Don’t really have one.
Favorite Food: I like everything…that’s my problem.
Favorite Singer: Sade.
Favorite Song: “Jezebel” by Sade.
Favorite Movie: I can’t think of one right now.

Favorite Sport: Boxing.
Favorite Season: Fall.
Favorite Day of the Week: Friday.
Favorite Position: Huh? That’s a bit too personal to share.

9 Currents
Current Taste: None.
Current Clothes: Size 16s :-).

Current Desktop Picture: Dell computer’s default screen.
Current Location: Work (not busy as usual…sigh).
Current Time: 11:44 a.m.
Current Crush: My boyfriend.
Current Thought: Can’t share, but my boyfriend knows what I’m thinking.
Current Enemy: My self-defeating thoughts.
Current procrastination: Putting my needs first.

8 Firsts
First Best Friend: Kelly Sellers. We are sooo different now.
First Kiss: Calvin Dudley. For those who know him, please keep your comments to yourself :-).
First Screen Name: wednschild
First Time: March 11, 1993. I know. I know. I was old as hell, and it's pathetic that I remember the date, but the first time had to be special.
First Yearbook Caption: It was probably my name under a girl’s basketball team picture or some high school club picture.
First Crush: Timothy Seabrook from Mrs. Boho’s 4th grade class. I saw him once while I was out shopping about a year ago. I don’t know what I was thinking.
First Music You Remember Hearing: Maybe Donna Summer. I loved her.

First Car: A champagne colored 1991 Mazda MX 3. An old friend referred to her as the Space Potato. I called her Champagne Charmaine. LOL

7 Lasts
Last Cigarette: Freshman year of college. It was a one-time silly incident. I’m NOT a smoker.
Last Alcoholic Drink: Probably sometime in December 2005 or January 2006 before I started Weight Watchers.
Last Car Ride: This morning driving to work.
Last Kiss: This morning.
Last Movie Seen: Eight Below.
Last Phone Call: It was from my best girlfriend Kelly Moore.
Last CD Played: Prince, 3121. Awesome! (Satisfied, Tif?)

6 Have You Evers
Have You Ever Made Love to One of Your Male Friends: Unfortunately, yes. Big mistake.
Have You Ever Been Arrested: No.
Have You Ever Skinny Dipped: No.
Have You Ever Been on TV: No, not that I’m aware of.
Have You Ever Kissed Someone You Didn't Know: No.
Have You Ever Said You Loved Someone and Not Meant It: No.

5 Things
5 Things You've Done Today: Ate breakfast (cereal), drove to work, responded to emails that I missed while I was out yesterday, finalized project budget (YEAH!), and filled out this survey for my blog posting.
5 Things You Can Hear Right Now: My computer humming, me typing, people in the office talking, my boss’s chair creaking, and my thoughts.
5 Things You Do When You're Bored: Watch TV, surf the Internet, listen to the radio, talk on the phone, and read blogs.

4 Places
4 Places You Want to Visit: Jamaica (I love that place), Canada (I hear it’s nice up there), North Carolina (to visit relatives), New York (because it’s New York, of course), and Atlanta (to see my brother and my nieces and visit my alma mater, Spelman College).

3 People
3 People You Can Tell Anything To: I only know 1 person, and she knows who she is.

2 Choices
Black or White: Black.
Hot or Cold: Hot.

1 Thing
1 Thing You Want to Do Before You Die: Be a mom.

Feeling a little better

After my day of rest and pampering, I feel ready to be back at work. I got my eyebrows arched and a manicure/pedicure with my mom at a nail salon in town that I haven't been to before. My eyebrows have never looked so good. I'll definitely go back to this place. I also got a nice massage from the salon chair that I sat in during my pedicure. The vibrating rollers felt oh so good. Now my fingernails look neat and my toes look cute...well as cute as my toes can get. Unfortunately, when God was handing out toes and feet He really gave me some ugly ones, but I try not to complain. It's better than having no feet at all and the pedicure actually made them look much better.

My mother and I checked out a couple of furniture stores yesterday, and I think I found my new bedroom set. We went to this new store Bova Contemporary Furniture in Beltsville. I usually don't like contemporary furniture (because of all the sharp angles) and my first instinct when I entered the store was to leave, BUT I was pleasantly surprised by their bedroom collections. I saw one that I liked in particular. Now I'm trying to decide if the price is too high and unreasonable. Out of all the bedroom collections available, the one I really liked was probably the most expensive at about $2,000 for just the bed, dresser, and nightstand, which is all I need. I'm really wondering whether that is too expensive. What do you think? (Unfortunately, it's not shown on their website.) Anyway, I've decided to look at some other stores before I make my final choice. I didn't see any living room sets that I liked, so I'll take some more time before deciding on that.

I ended the day helping my sister pack and arrange her house for her impending move to Atlanta, so I didn't get a chance to try out my new exercise DVDs. It was just as well though. I didn't really feel in the mood to dance or kickbox anyway.

Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Taking the day off

I've decided that today is a good day to take off from work. Personal disappointments and work stress will be on the back burner today. I need a mental health break. I'm going to use this me time to spend the day with my mom getting our eyebrows arched and a manicure/pedicure, checking out some furniture stores (I need a new bedroom and living room set), and later maybe even working out to one of my new DVDs.

And for once, I'm not going to feel guilty for taking some me time. For some reason, my work days are extremely slow until I take off. Then I get all of these funky requests, even when I notify everyone that I'll be out. Well that won't happen this time. Today is for me (and my mom).

Maybe we'll even work in a massage.

Monday, March 27, 2006

Lesser of me

I was pleasantly surprised today when I stepped on the scale at weigh in and discovered that I had lost 4.4 pounds. Despite having the munchies all last week, I really tried to remain focused and only eat low point items when I had any cravings. I also think part of my success was because I may be over counting my points. I'm not being intentional about it, but I realized last week when I went to lunch with a coworker who is also following Weight Watchers that we came up with very different point values after eating the same lunch items. She is very strict about tracking her points through Weight Watchers online, while I was really lazy last week and guessed the number of points (which I don't recommend). Anyway, after eating our lunch, my friend tracked that we had eaten 13 pts, while I had tracked 17 pts for the same thing. I'm obviously cheating myself and need to make sure that I'm eating enough food everyday...but the 4.4 pound weigh loss is still great.

Another thing that I noticed was that I was less paranoid about how many points I was eating last week. I just ate when I felt like it and when I got the munchies I made sure I ate all low point items, like soup, veggies, low fat popcorn, etc. I even dedicated my Friday evening to going out with some friends and chowing down on all-you-can-eat crabs. I probably had about 8 or 9 crabs, which is a lot for me since I'm not someone who usually eats a lot of crab. By the way, they were delicious. Crabs are low in fat (and points) and I had about 10 points left over for the evening (that is unless I over counted points earlier in the day) so I ate until I was satisfied. It was very liberating to know that I could freely eat without being obsessed with points.

Now I wish I could find exercising liberating. Unfortunately, I'm still struggling with exercising. It was a little chilly last week so I didn't do much walking. However, yesterday I went shopping with my mom and nephew at Target and bought two new exercise DVDs: kickboxing and dance moves. I'm hoping that these DVDs will motivate me to get my body moving in the house when it's too cold outside. One of the DVDs even came with a pedometer. I'm going to start wearing it throughout the day to see how many steps I take on an average day and see how much I can improve on that.

One more thing before I forget...as I was looking (and struggling) to find something to wear this morning, I discovered that all of my size 18 pants (yes, I'm a big girl) are now too big (belts don't help at this point) and that I can wear my size 16 pants even though they're still a little snug. When I lose another pound or two, the 16s should fit perfectly. All my shirts are pretty baggy too. I'm determined to get into my size 14s by late May/early June. I have a whole bin of size 14 spring/summer clothes from when I lost weight a couple of years ago that I need to get into before the season is over!

I'm determined to be at least a size 10 by my birthday in December. That's my goal and I'm sticking to it!

Sunday, March 26, 2006

Sleeping (snoring?) in the hospital

Last night I went to the hospital for my sleep test. It was scheduled for Saturday night and not Friday night like I had posted earlier. Anyway, it wasn't too bad. It helped that I was sleepy when I first got to the hospital. Usually it takes me a while to fall asleep when I'm in a new environment (like a hotel), but I was so sleepy that I couldn't wait to get started with the test.

From the hospital's registration area, a nurse walked me to the sleep lab and showed me to a room that kind of looked like a hotel room. In it was a bed, dresser, a couple of chairs, and a bathroom with a shower. I don't know why I was so sleepy, but I was ready to jump in the bed and go to sleep right away. I changed into a t-shirt and shorts and sat in a chair while the nurse attached electrodes to various areas of my scalp (which was a little difficult since my hair is currently in braids), face, neck, and legs. I even had wires attached to my nostrils (Itchy...yucky) and a clamp attached to one of my fingers that monitored my oxygen levels. It took her about 15 minutes just to attach the electrodes and while she was doing this she was telling me about the procedure and why it was necessary and blah, blah, blah. Honestly, by this time I was so sleepy I wasn't really listening to her.

Anyway, when she was finished, I looked like some kind of science experiment with wires attached and taped all over my body. Again, I was happy that I was so sleepy because I think that if I wasn't it would have been really hard to get comfortable enough to fall asleep right away with my new decorations.

I was probably asleep by 9:30 p.m. and finished with the test by 4:30 a.m., but the nurse let me sleep until 5:00 a.m. Throughout the night, the nurse came to wake me up about 5 times to adjust a wire or the clamp that had somehow detached itself while I was asleep.

Overall, the experience was ok. I wish I hadn't repeatedly postponed the test because it really wasn't that big of a deal. Now I have to wait two weeks for my results and find out if I really have sleep apnea. I still hope I don't. Earlier in the day yesterday I found out that I actually know two people who have sleep apnea and use the breathing machine at night. I feel for them, because that's so not sexy, and it's important to be sexy in the bedroom. Anyway, I hope I don't end up in that situation, but I'll just have to wait and see.

Thursday, March 23, 2006

I heart Prince


This morning during my commute into work Donnie Simpson (or Donnie Simpleton, as my boyfriend and I like to refer to him) from 95.5 WPGC played Prince's entire 3121 CD, which hit the streets on Tuesday. WOW! I've always loved Prince, and I had heard reviews saying that his new CD was phenomenal. After hearing some of it for myself, I definitely agree.

I was surprised to hear how spiritual his new music is. There were a lot of references to his faith (he's now a Jehovah's Witness) and he's not his raunchy self anymore, but his music is still really good even after 29 years. I heard the tale end of the CD (about 4 songs) and they were all great, especially "The Word".

I'm going out during my lunch break today to pick it up. I just hope it's not already sold out.

Oow

Wednesday, March 22, 2006

Snore...zzzzz...snore

This Friday I have an appointment to participate in a sleep study that will determine if I have sleep apnea. I'm not sure why, but I've been finding reasons to postpone this appointment for the past 3 months. I've even been thinking about canceling the study on Friday because part of me feels like I can cure myself. I just need to lose weight, right? I think I'm also a little scared that the remedy might be worse than the snoring.

When my boyfriend first told me that I have a sleeping problem (i.e., snoring and gasping for breath in my sleep) I was determined to get to the doctor as soon as possible to get whatever remedy was available to cure me because I know that sleep apnea can cause high blood pressure (have it), memory problems (I have a terrible memory), weight gain (um...I'm seeing a pattern) and headaches (Whew! Don't have it).

I hate the fact that I snore. For starters, it''s very un-feminine (isn't snoring usually associated with men?) and the fact that I'm making loud animal noises in my sleep is just a wee bit embarrassing. However, in November, my boyfriend revealed that there are times while I'm sleeping when he can count several seconds between when I inhale and exhale and appear to be gasping for breath. Since I know that snoring, gasping for breath during sleep, and being overweight are all combined symptoms of sleep apnea, I went to my doctor to get a referral for a sleep apnea test.

So on Friday, I need to look forward to going to the hospital (where the study will be conducted) at 9:00 p.m. and sleep there overnight while they stick a bunch of electrodes to my head and monitor my sleeping. Snoring in the hospital. Fun. Fun.

The Today Show recently conducted a series of segments on sleep disorders. Sleep apnea was one of them. One of the people featured ended up having to sleep with a vacuum type thingymajig every night that blew air into her mouth to open her air passages. This did not look sexy, people. Although, I must say that the patient did feel very relaxed and well rested after sleeping with it.

I'm hoping the remedy for me will be to just lose weight, which I'm already currently doing. If I end up having to sleep with that vacuum thingy I'm sure my boyfriend will not be pleased. If he complained that a breathing nose strip I once wore to bed wasn't sexy can you imagine what he'll say about a big vacuum-hose attachment stuck to my face?! Sigh...

Anyway, I'm going to suck it up and go ahead and do this study. I can't keep putting this off. I may go to sleep one day and not wake up, and that REALLY wouldn't be sexy.

Monday, March 20, 2006

No Pudge brownies...yum!

Eat one brownie. It's your friend.
Eat the whole pan of brownies. Well...you're just greedy.

Last week, I went to the grocery store seeking to satisfy my sweet tooth craving in a healthy way. So I went down the snack aisle looking for something sweet but not extremely fattening and found the No Pudge brownies. These brownies are awesome. Add non-fat vanilla yogurt to the brownie mix, stir, bake and voila...12 brownies at 2 pts per serving. No fat and delicious!

So delicious, in fact, they're down right ADDICTIVE. Before I could stop myself I had eaten 3 brownies in one day. That's 6 pts folks. To try to curb this crazy craving, I wrapped the brownies in aluminum foil and stored them in the bottom of my refrigerator. Didn't help. The next day I ate 4 brownies (8 pts), and the day after that I ate another 4 brownies (8 pts). I would have eaten all 12 if my sister hadn't come over and eaten one of them.

How I managed to eat all of these brownies and only eat 3 of my weekly flex points last week I don't even know. BUT I do know this: No more No Pudge brownies for me.

Oh one more thing...there are directions on the box showing how to make the brownies one at a time. I could have done this, but of course I WAS TOO GREEDY. So sad.

More evidence of weight loss

Two more signs that I'm losing weight:
  1. This afternoon's weigh-in recorded a 1.4 pound weight loss. I'm now 17 pounds lighter!
  2. My boyfriend sent me the following email this morning: "...You should start wearing that outfit you had on this morning more often…. Looks like your point system is working.. *wink* *wink*"
Um... the "outfit" I was wearing this morning was panties. Yeah, just panties. So I guess my weight loss is really working.

Yeah me! :-D

Thursday, March 16, 2006

My man: The entrepreneur

For years, my boyfriend and I have been talking about wanting to start our own businesses: mine, a writing/editing and graphic design business; and his, a computer maintenance/repair/retail business. Well currently, my desire is still a dream, but over the past few weeks, my boyfriend has made his dream a reality.

He and two of his friends, in just a few weeks, have turned a $60 investment ($20 contribution from each of them) into almost $2,000 and are using this profit to further expand their business. They are distributing fliers, networking, and making plans to attend trade shows to get their business out into the public eye. And it's all working. The phone is ringing off the hook.

He's shown me over the past few weeks that dreams can really be achieved when you stop talking about them and start reaching for them. He's inspired me. I plan to start reaching for mine today.

---
Menu (so far)
Pineapples - 2 pts
Raisin oatmeal - 3 pts

5 pts (eaten), 32 weekly flex pts

Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Calling in the pro

I finally got around to calling that carpenter I mentioned in February. He's been doing work for my family and family friends for years, so I'm looking forward to seeing the work he does for me. My to do list for him includes replacing existing bathroom vinyl floors with ceramic tile and replacing parts of the wood trim on the exterior of my house that has rotted and repainting it. I'd also like to eventually get a new countertop in my kitchen, maybe some crown molding throughout the house and finally stain the back fence and patio, but all that can wait for now. I've decided that as much as I like the thought of do-it-yourself home renovation projects, more often than not, I have no real patience for doing them myself. So I'm now going to reach into my bank account and pay someone to do it for me. Oh the horror. I'm so cheap sometimes. Just the thought of paying someone to do this makes me want to do everything myself, but like I've finally come to realize...I HAVE NO PATIENCE AND NO REAL TALENT for this stuff. Sorry, I just had to emphasize this so when I ever decide to get cheap about this again (which is so in my nature), I can come back and read this post and remember why it's ok to pay an expert to do something that can be completed in less than a week when it would take me months to even get started.

Menu
Yogurt - 2 pts
Chicken with broccoli - 3 pts
Brown rice - 4 pts
Brown sauce - 3 pts
Spring roll - 4 pts
Potato chips - 4 pts
Chili - 4 pts
Salad - 3 pts
Cookie - 1 pt

28 pts, 35 weekly flex pts

One more thing... I didn't exercise today. It's freaking cold outside again and the wind is ridiculous. I hope it gets warm soon because I find that I really like walking, but definitely not in the cold. This crazy weather rollercoaster (85 degrees one day and 50 the next) is seriously messing me up.

Monday, March 13, 2006

1.8 pounds less of me

Today's weigh-in reflected a 1.8 pound loss. I was hoping it would be at least a 2 pound loss but 1.8 is close enough. I've now lost a total of 15.6 pounds. Woo hoo! My Weight Watchers leader made a big deal about my total loss because I'm the first in our group to lose that much. (We've only been together since late January.) It's a nice feeling.

Anyway, I'll celebrate tonight by taking a nice long walk with Kelli and my sister. My sister and I walked a pretty good distance yesterday and had a great time catching up while we were at it. I'm really looking forward to walking today.

Menu
Yogurt - 2 pts
Wendy's Madarin salad - 4 pts
Wendy's chili - 4 pts
Potato chips - 1 pt
3 chicken wings - 9 pts
Rice - 4 pts
Broccoli - 0 pts
Strawberry ice cream with whipped cream - 4 pts

28 pts, 35 weekly flex pts

Flavor Flaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaav

I have a confession to make. I love to watch Flavor of Love. I know. I know...shhhhh. Don't tell anyone. This is just between us.

The season finale was a little anticlimatic. I secretly was hoping Flav would either choose crazy New York so he could find out how crazy she really is (she would have been so good in a Flavor of Love 2...can you imagine having her mother facing Flav again???), OR choose Hoopz so I could witness New York go ballistic (a la the episode with Pumkin). Unfortunately, that really didn't happen. He chose Hoopz (whom I suspected he liked from the very beginning) and New York was more composed than I expected. She did break down in the car, but I was really expecting her to throw a tantrum in front of Flav when he chose Hoopz. That girl is so unpredictable, but GREAT BAD TV. The episode with Pumkin (this girl apparently has trouble spelling her name) spitting in New York's face was probably the greatest moment in bad TV history. It just was. If you didn't see it, you didn't see it...sorry.

Anyway, I'm looking forward to the reunion show in two weeks when all the crazy bitches...oops I mean witches...get together. Hilarity I'm sure will ensue.

Ok, until then I will go back to being my somewhat reserved self, with no one suspecting that I'm a Flavor of Love fan. Shhhhhhh

Saturday, March 11, 2006

Thanks for reading...now please leave a comment

I want to thank Losing Me (WeightWatchersEh) and Anonymous (my friend, Kelli) for reading my blog and leaving comments. It pleases me to know that there are folks out there that read my blog and enjoy my random little stories about my weight loss journey and anything else that pops into my mind.

Now I know there are others who read. You tell me often how much you like reading my crazy stories. Well, I'd really appreciate it if you could show me some love by commenting. I really get a kick out of it, and it helps me stay motivated.

Thanks!

You look like you've lost weight

I love those words. Particularly when it's from someone who hasn't seen you in a while and doesn't know that you're on a diet (or lifestyle change in my case). My lil' sis just arrived home from college for spring break and she told me she noticed my weight loss right away. What a nice feeling. It's one thing to feel the loss in your clothes, quite another for others to recognize it. Anyway, she volunteered to be my other walking partner this week. I'm determined to get this weight off and keep if off this time.

Friday, March 10, 2006

I ordered the wrong thing!

I'm really off my game today. First that silly song ringing in my head, then the wrinkled shirt and now this. Earlier this week I ordered a chicken steak and cheese (no mayo) sub from the deli in my office building. I figured it to be about 7 points. Well that sub was pretty darn delicious, so I went there again today to treat myself to another chicken steak and cheese sub. But, I didn't do that. I mistakenly ordered the steak and cheese sub instead (adding about another 3 points to my meal...darn beef). I didn't realize my mistake until I went to pay and the cashier asked me what I ordered. I say "steak and cheese," and then say, "oh no, I mean chicken steak and cheese". That's when I start to wonder. Wait a minute, did I tell the lady making my sandwich a steak and cheese or a chicken steak and cheese. Well when I opened the wrapping at my desk, I discovered a steak and cheese. So...I ate it.

It was pretty darn delicious as well (and I guess worth the extra points...sigh).

I'll have to do some walking tonight to make up for this.

Menu (so far)
Yogurt - 2 pts
WW chocolate bar - 2 pts
Salad - 2 pts
Steak and cheese sub - 10 pts
Potato chips - 2 pts
Bun - 1 pt
Chick'n patty - 3 pts
Lt. mayo - 1 pt
Salad w/ trimmings - 2 pts
WW chocolate bar - 2 pts

27 pts, 30 weekly pts

Signs I got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning

I can't get that STUPID song, "I'm N Luv (Wit a Stripper)," that they keep playing on the radio out of my head.

I picked out a wrinkled shirt from my closet, set it out to iron, took a shower, picked up the shirt, put it on, and went to work. So, yes, I'm wearing a wrinkled shirt at work. Fun. Fun.

At the car wash

Weird thing happened to me yesterday. Even though I'm running late for work, I decide to stop off at the gas station near my house to gas up and get a quick car wash. I hadn't washed my car since early last month, so my car was pretty nasty looking. There's nothing like a dirty black car. People were asking if it was charcoal gray. No, just very dirty.

Anyway, I go to the automatic car wash at the gas station like I've done in the past, type in my code, and proceed to get my car washed. Well everything goes as planned. The water starts, the soapy foam begins to coat my car, the big spongy mop thingymajig comes forward, and then....NOTHING. The damn thing just stops. Now, I've been in this automatic car wash before, so I know this is odd, but I continue to sit there for more than a few seconds like an idiot waiting for something to happen. I think maybe there was a power outage but from inside the car wash I can see that other service lights are on so that's not the problem.

Well after sitting there for about a minute (yes, I'm slow), I slowly back my still soapy wet car out of the car wash until I'm all the way out and then go inside the gas station to get my refund. Moral to the story: When you choose to clean a car over getting to work on time, you end up with a soapy, streaky, still dirty car.

P.S. As I left the gas station, I saw another car pull up to the car wash. It worked fine. As Homer would say, "DOH!"

No excuses

I did it. I got together with two of my coworkers and walked during my lunch break today. The weather was perfect, the air was fresh, and I felt rejuvenated when I returned to the office. We've decided on a walking routine of Monday thru Thursday with Friday being our day of rest (and day to eat out...yum!). I really had fun and look forward to next Monday (hmm...oh wait). Monday is weigh in day. I forgot. Well I guess that's Tuesday thru Thursday for me.

My friend and I have also decided to delay joining a gym (too expensive) and instead go for walks in the evening. We start tomorrow. Just planning this makes me feel so much better.

Menu
Yogurt - 2 pts
Salad w/ trimmings - 2 pts
Chick'n patty - 3 pts
Bun - 1 pt
Provolone cheese - 1 pt
Potato chips - 1 pt
WW chocolate bar - 2 pts
4 slices cheese pizza (yum!) - 16 pts

28 pts, 30 weekly flex pts

Thursday, March 09, 2006

Project Runway: Yeah Chloe!

Project Runway is my favorite reality show. Move over talentless American Idol singers (save for a few mentioned below) and bring on the designers. I'm sooo happy for Chloe. I was routing for her the whole way.

For all of you who would have preferred Daniel or Santino, I must admit that Daniel was a fierce competitor and I'm glad that he represented well. His clothes in the fashion show were beautiful and I could see myself (much smaller of course) wearing anything in his collection. Although I loved to hate Santino for most of the series, I must say that the end result was pleasantly surprising. I, like the judges, wish he would have been a little more out of the box (but not crazy like he was during most of the series), but I enjoyed his collection all the same.

In sum, yeah, Chloe! This is the second time I picked a winner in a reality show from the very beginning. Fantasia was the first.

My picks for the final 3 American Idol finalists:
- Mandisa (voice is amazing, but um...doesn't have the look)
- Chris Daughtry (a favorite since his audition)
- Katharine McPhee (great voice and definitely has the Idol look)

Still struggling

Well my last post indicated that I would be making a concerted effort to start exercising this week. Reality? That hasn't happened...yet. On Tuesday, I packed my gym bag in hopes that I'd go for a walk during lunchtime. Outcome? Didn't even get it out of the car. However, that same day I made plans with some coworkers to go walking during lunchtime for Wednesday. On Wednesday (or TODAY), I was ready. I had my bag ready with my tennis shoes, sweat pants, sweat shirt, etc. Anyway, at 1:00 p.m. I went looking for my coworker (she was just getting out of a meeting) and ... she forgot her tennis shoes. Now you know what I should have done. I should have put my shoes and clothes on and gone for a walk anyway. I even had a Walkman handy in case this very thing happened, but OH NO. Instead of doing what I had planned and getting my fat butt out of the office and outside to walk, I stayed in the office, sat at my desk and ate my lunch. UGH! I have issues.

Anyway, to somewhat redeem myself for not walking earlier, my friend and I checked out a gym this evening to see if we'd like to join. I'm pretty much sold that I'm going to join tomorrow. If I keep making excuses I'll never start. My friend is still deciding. I'm also DEFINITELY going to walk tomorrow regardless of what anyone else does. The weather is supposed to be in the 60s tomorrow so I really have no excuse.

If all goes as planned, my next post will be tomorrow, it will be titled "No excuses", and I'll have a rousing retelling of my initial foray into working out my booty...er...um...I mean body :).

Menu
Banana bread oatmeal - 3 pts
Salad w/ trimmings - 2 pts
Chicken dumpling soup - 3 pts
Crackers - 1 pt
Pretzels - 3 pts
WW chocolate bar - 2 pts
Steak - 10 pts
Mashed potatoes - 4 pts
Broccoli - 0 pts
Bread with butter - 2 pts

30 pts, 30 weekly flex points

This hasn't been the best week for me. I've already dipped into 5 weekly flex points. I'm hoping that my walk and gym visit tomorrow will make up for this bad start to my week.

Monday, March 06, 2006

Losing without exercising

This Monday weigh-in reflected a loss of 3 pounds, which means I'm down 13.8 pounds. I knew that last week was a good week for me because I didn't touch my weekly flex points and probably had about 8 daily points that I didn't eat. However, I expect this week to be hard because I'm finally going to incorporate more exercise, which I honestly haven't been doing much of lately.

Now I know you're thinking, "Hey, wait a minute! You've lost almost 14 pounds without exercising. That's great!" Well, it's not. When I lost 50 pounds a couple of years ago, I did it with little exercise as well. But at 50 pounds lighter, my body was still jiggly and I had no energy.

I know that my problem with exercise is mostly timing. I'm no good in the mornings because I'm not a morning person and I hate to get out of bed. And in the evenings by the time I leave work, travel 40 to 50 minutes home, and walk in my front door, I am tired and have lost any motivation I may have had to exercise. Maybe the answer is to pack some sneakers and go for a walk on my lunch break. Whatever I do, I'm going to make an effort this week to go for a walk and get to a gym. I must get my behind on an elliptical (the only exercise equipment I like) this week! I'm dragging my friend, who has just started Weight Watchers, along with me. I'm hoping that by the summer I'll be a bit slimmer and my body will have stopped jiggling...as much. Wish me luck!

Menu (so far)
Raisin oatmeal - 3 pts
6-inch Subway turkey sub - 6 pts
Oatmeal cookie - 4 pts
WW chocolate bar - 2 pts (uh oh, junk food cravings)

15 pts eaten (so far), 25 weekly flex points

Friday, March 03, 2006

An open letter to Montgomery County drivers

Dear Montgomery County Drivers:

You do not OWN the road. You do not ALWAYS have the right of way. No one anointed you with any privileges that allow you to refrain from obeying the laws of the road. You are, by far, the worst drivers in Maryland. I just thought you should know.

Signed,
Frustrated PG County Resident
Who Must Drive in Your County
Because I Work There...UGH!

This is my way of getting my frustration out, considering I've been in 3 near accidents in the past 3 days. Each time a Montgomery Country driver (or someone I assume lives in MO CO since this only happens there) almost runs me off the road. Just because you put on your blinker doesn't mean I should have to slam on my brakes to let you in front of me. Today, the near miss was so close that I honked my horn (for several seconds longer than needed) and slammed on my brakes so hard that everything on my front seat (my opened briefcase with all my paperwork, my purse, my coat, and my lunch) was thrown to the floor. Oh, and the driver's hand wave in her rear view mirror didn't help or excuse anything.

I am a courteous driver. If you put on your blinker, I'm usually gracious enough to let you in, but ONLY after you've provided enough notice and space for me to do so. Where's a cop when you need one?! Oh, I forgot. They're stopping people at gas stations.

Menu (so far)
2 WW chocolate bars - 4 pts (I couldn't help it. I woke up with a bad chocolate craving)
Raisin oatmeal - 2 pts
Salad with feta cheese - 2 pts
WW Ravioli Florentine - 5 pts
3 slices cheese pizza - 12 pts

25 pts (so far), 35 weekly flex points
*FYI, I fell asleep early last night w/o eating my final 8 pts of the day so I can have an extra 8 pts to eat today...YIPPEE!* Hmmm...that's so sad, but I have to take what joy I can get these days...LOL


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