TGIF Again

I'm SOOOO glad it's Friday. Not like I have some stellar weekend plans or anything. I'm just glad I don't have to go to work for two days. I gave my notice at a job I've had for almost 5 years, which is bittersweet. I am looking forward to starting school in September, but it will definitely be a major life change, which is always kinda scary.

I have not had a good week in terms of my eating this week. This is a time where my knowledge of my own ability to discipline myself is somewhat of a drawback. Part of it is somewhat calculated, but part of it is pure laziness. My week has epitomized the law that a body in motion stays in motion. Once I relaxed my perameters, it became easier to continue to do what I've been doing. But having a built-in STOP sign (June 30) did not help my self-discipline. I have been exercising, but not as diligently as I usually do. I figure 'I'm gonna have to bust my ass in July, so I might as well relax for the moment'. Wrong or right, it is what it is!

I'm trying to keep this blog simple because there seems to be so much stuff in the air that's complicated, and truth be told I have enough complications in my life already. I am not ashamed of the fact that I am in counseling, which I started when I realized that the majority of my family is crazy. For real. One of the things that my counselor emphasizes with me is the importance of self-awareness - what we say/do, and why we say/do it. In spite of the fact that these are 'only' cyber relationships, I hope that we are all willing, when necessary, to look honestly at ourselves and be the bigger person when we have screwed up. There is really no need for any of us to be involved with a group of people unless it makes a positive impact on our lives. Once that stops, it's time to go. I hope it doesn't come to that for anybody.

Warning: this has nothing to do with diet, average weight or exercise.
I saw God today. I had lunch with Him actually, in the form of a woman named Cindy. I have known Cindy for 15+ years. She has played a major role in my life. I mean, when I broke up with my first real boyfriend, she stayed on the phone with me until all night until it was time for her to go to work, and didn't complain. She was a big sister/mom to me for a long time, and we fell out of touch. Well, I disconnected from her for no good reason. Well, I thought it was a good reason at the time, but in retrospect it was a really sucky one. But I digress. I reached out to her years later, and instead of being standoffish or stank, she welcomed me back with open arms. Ever since I called her out of the blue one day, she has been a great friend, and she represents God to me, whether she knows it or not.

Now, back to weight loss and the like. I got a great compliment today. Someone told me I look really fit, like I've been working out for a long time. Moi? Oh, please, say it again. :) I didn't make it to the gym this morning, but I did go to the track later with my GF, and had a nice interval run. It was different to run at the track with my heart rate monitor, which let me know that my exercise was pretty comparable to what I do at the gym in terms of cardio. Based on the way I ate today (a cookie, part of a brownie, pizza...), I will probably not lose any weight again this week. But, I know that come July 1, I will hit the ground running, cuz that's what I do. I actually, in my mind, decided that (not for lack of consistently trying) I will probably not have the body I want until next summer, and that's ok. Cuz next summer, I will be a force to be reckoned with! I looked for some races to run. Is anybody familiar with the Puma Pursuit? There's one up here in July, but I don't know what it's like, I'm thinking about doing it.

All My Fault

Well, I didn't lose any weight this week, but I have noone to blame but myself, and I know exactly what I did wrong. So... this week, back to business - no Rosie's treats, etc. But, on a more positive note, I took some measurements today. I have lost 10 inches off my waist since September. Whoa. About 5 inches off my hips, and a few off my thighs and arms, thank God. I decided to just call Afterburn a wrap, and today I made up my own workout, which was kind of fun. I wanted to see how much stronger I am now.
Deadlift - 90 lb barbell (used to do 50)
Split Squat - 20 lb dumbbells (used to do 12)
Push Press - 20 lb dumbbells (used to do 17.5)
Lat Pulldown - 100 lbs (used to do 75 or so)
Pullover - 15 lb dumbbells (used to do 10 or 12 - don't remember)
Lunge - 22.5 lb dumbbells
I'm still strategizing on how to double my weight loss for the sizzler challenge. In June I only lost 3 pounds... a far cry from 10! But I'm gonna figure something out Closers, don't you worry.

TGIF

I dunno what it is, but today just was not a good eating day for me. I got up early and worked out (good). But I ate carbs afterward (bad), twice (worse). French toast sticks and corn bread. Hours apart, but not a part of my plan. And then I missed a meal, for no apparent reason except the fact that I probably overate and therefore wasn't hungry, and was busy. Therefore, I know I didn't have enough protein yet today. It just makes me feel off. I don't know how it's gonna affect my final weigh-in on Sunday, seeing as how my weight seems to be slow to re-calibrate this week. So at the very least, I will expect to be the same on Sunday, which will be better than being up a little honey, but nowhere near as good as being down. Of course, I will have noone to blame but myself, so whatever.

I'm looking forward to a fresh start in July (maybe that's part of the problem). Although I am not by nature competitive, I definitely throw myself into what I do, so I will go all out to pull my weight. No pun intended. ;)

Nothing Much Again

Not too much to say today. I'm ready for the summer sizzler challenge. Bring it on FAT! Tomorrow is another early wake-up day, in spite of my Monday workout. I decided to cut my Afterburn program short, so I'll only be doing one week of the last section. Awe shucks. I do appreciate Afterburn, and I don't feel like a quitter, but I am looking forward to being able to create my own routines, and get some extra cardio in for the team. It's all about the team baby! My schedule is more open during the summer, the kids I take care of are in camp until 4:15, so I might even do some double cardio sessions. Woo hoo! By the way, if anyone is interested in a portable vegetable, I discovered sugar snap peas last week. Usually I have carrots with one of my lunches, but the sugar snap peas by Mann's give me another veggie for the afternoon. They're good, nice & crunchy. My brother will be here in a couple of weeks. I'm looking forward to seeing him & my sister-in-law, and it'll be cool cuz I'm about 25 pounds smaller than the last time they saw me. They're both losing weight too, so I guess we'll all be shadows of our former selves. Yay us!

Bobby Knight - "Most people have the will to win, few have the will to prepare to win."

That's a good one, and it seems appropriate since I saw it after spending about an hour preparing for my day tomorrow. I know I've said it before, but if I had to do a David Letterman-type Top Ten List for weight loss, preparation & planning would be close to #1. I know for me, not having food ready opens the door to temptaion, and I usually walk through it! Since I'm on the subject of temptation, I was at Rosie's bakery, and I fully intended to buy myself a little treat. I eyed some cookies, thought about a smoothie, and ended up with... NOTHING! I definitely felt better walking out of there with nothing than if I had something. I did, however, indulge in something later that was a definite no no too, daffy. Bad girl. Just one less thing I can have come Sunday I suppose. Oh well...

I just want to gripe about a jerk at the gym. He pissed me off so bad I told my brother on him. Like he can do something from Texas. I also told my GF, who is local, and could/would do something. Anyway, I wanted to use the Smith machine for one of the exercises in my set (inverted row), and this guy (the loquacious one I've mentioned before) was using it, and he didn't let me work in with him! Can you believe it? Never in all my gym life, has someone refused to work in with me on a machine. And all this time, I thought he was obnoxious. Now I find out he's a jerk too. I'm not bitter though, I will just never smile at him again. J/K.... kinda. :)

On a final note, I got a nice comment from someone who hasn't seen me in about a month. She said 'you're losing weight! you go girl!' I'm going Mary! And I tried on a skirt that I wore to a 4th of July cookout last year. I had to pull it on over my head because it didn't fit over my hips & thighs. Even pulling it over my head required a lot of wiggling! Tonight I put it on, intending to wear it tomorrow, and it's too big. Like, give it away cuz you will look like you have no shape in it big. Yay!

Life...

Today was a 5 am day. I think I deserve 2 stickers for a 5 am gym day. The reality is that for me, getting up early in the morning is not easy. I like the gym, so going any time of the day is fairly easy. Six am? Not so easy. It challenges my commitment to working out, and it challenges my commitment to my overall plan to lose weight. Perhaps for someone else, going at 5 am is easy. My brother gets up at 4:30 am and doesn't even break a sweat. Figuratively speaking. But truth be told, I'm proud of myself when I get to work at 7:30 knowing that I have already have a full-body workout - weights & cardio. I put it ahead of my desire to sleep and my comfort. The bed feels good! That having been said, I'm not used to such a long day, and I find myself a bit irritable around 2:00 pm. Today I was saved from driving to a bunch of local sporting goods stores by a young City Sports employee named Greg. Greg found my little charges acceptable soccer shoes in their respective sizes. Thanks Greg! I didn't have it in me to go to another store. Of course, later I did have to return to City Sports, since an inattentive employee gave me the wrong shoes. But whatever. There is definitely a down side to starting my day so early. I did partake in one of my cheat meals today, partially. A cookie that I love so much, and I didn't even have a desire to finish it. Truthfully, after the first bite I was done. I mean, I ate a few more bites, but my heart wasn't in it, so I threw the rest away. There was a time (not that long ago) when I would have eaten a second cookie, whether my heart was in it or not. Thank God for progress!

2 Pounds Baby!

I got a nice surprise this morning - my weight was down 2 pounds, to 162. It was a surprise because I went out to lunch with a friend yesterday and had pad thai and a thai iced tea (both were yummy). So I was prepared to not go down. I had even planned to make yesterday (Saturday) my weigh-in day instead of today. But there was no need for that, so I'm happy. Unfortunately, I didn't make it to the gym today, but that just means I have to get my a$$ up at 5:00 one of these lovely mornings. I probably will do that tomorrow just to get it over with. I'm watching Celebrity Fit Club right now, and it's really inspiring to see how people have changed their bodies. It's funny to look at pictures of someone who has lost the same amount of weight as you and say 'do I look that different?' I don't have pictures of myself at my highest weight (a blessing and a curse I suppose). Actually today I put on clothes I just recently bought, and they are fitting looser than they did 2-3 weeks ago. That's a nice feeling... I may be approaching another size, which would mean I have lost 3 clothes sizes during this journey. Woo hoo!

Disclaimer

Just in case anyone wondered, I did not write the post yesterday - it was a sparkpeople healthy reflections email. Should have said that yesterday, but wanted to clear it up just in case.

Well, I don't have much to say otherwise. Today was a fine eating day. I have a 1:30 - 4 class which can be a challenge, especially because there are 3 (count 'em, 3!) vending machines immediately outside the room. Normally I just walk past them without a second... ok, without a third glance. But today I actually stopped and looked. Strategically, I left my wallet in the classroom, ensuring that my decision would be thoughtful not spontaneous. Regardless, I did not purchase anything at the vending machine. Instead I waited until I got to the previously purchased cans of tuna fish that awaited me in my car. Victory! I have to wonder though, if I didn't have the tuna fish waiting in the car, would I have deviated from my plan? I'm convinced that planning/foresight is one of the most important components to success.

I find the ups & downs of this journey fascinating. There are times when it's easy. And other times when it's not so easy. Sometimes, you just have to keep pushing even when you see no results. And sometimes, the results you see motivate you. The thing is, wherever you are you never know when you're going to turn a corner and post a big (or small) number. Which is why you just have to keep pushing no matter what. I'm pretty good at that. I look in the mirror, and I'm proud that I have lost 36 pounds. I wish I had pictures of me at my highest weight. But I am nowhere near satisfied with where I am or how I look, so the idea of quitting is just not even an option right now. Now that I've started, I know that I can finish, so finish I will. Wherever we are on our journey, I hope we all find whatever it is that keeps the fire burning so we can finish what we started.

If anybody reading this is interested, check out the Celebrity Fit Club finale on Sunday (VH1) at 9. It's cool to see how some of these people have changed their bodies. People always say 'if I had a chef like the stars I could lose weight too'. Maybe, maybe not. It still requires discipline, which you can't buy! And these celebrities have definitely put in the work to lose weight at a reasonable pace. Plus Dustin Diamond is CRAZY, and Harvey hates him, which is fun to watch.

Seems Appropriate...

People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing--that's why we recommend it daily.

- Zig Ziglar, motivational speaker



What do you do to motivate yourself?

Makes sense doesn't it? The secret to staying consistent with your goals is to stay motivated. That means finding ways to fire yourself up on a daily basis. Being inspired at a seminar, by reading a book, or while talking to a dynamic speaker is easy. But what happens when you're on your own? To follow through on that burst of motivation and reach the finish line, you need regular booster shots. Give yourself those little positive reminders that you have an important job to do and a good reason for doing it. What's pushing you? Surround yourself with visual, verbal, and physical "pep talks" that trigger that motive. It doesn't take long for dust to gather on your momentum, making your goals turn stale. A daily dose of motivation kicks off the dust before it can settle and gives you a fresh, clean start.

Uh oh!

I didn't write yesterday, but for the sake of honesty I have to say that I did eat something I shouldn't have - dark chocolate covered figs. They were good. But it was bad. Now that that's out of the way, I have to give myself props for resisting homemade brownies earlier in the day. It seems like this week so far my carbs are a little higher than I would like for them to be. We'll see how that plays out this week I guess. Other than the chocolate/fig (who woulda thunk it?) slip-up, yesterday was a fine day.

Today was a workout day. Woo hoo! Those swiss ball push ups are getting a bit easier, I can do 15 now, even though they are certainly not full extension. Chest touching the ball? Ummm... no. But I am definitely seeing gains of strength in other exercises, which is a nice feeling. I was looking at the calendar today and I realized that I only have 6 more weeks of this program. The thought has crossed my mind to stop sooner, but it would really only be because I saw some exercises up ahead that look mighty tough. But I remember weeks ago looking at what I'm doing now and thinking 'I can't do that!', but I'm doing it. So, I plan to go ahead and finish it out. Unfortunately today I twisted my ankle walking down the stairs. Not at the gym mind you, but walking down the stairs at the movie theater. Go me. Funny, cuz my first thought was 'I hope this doesn't make me miss a workout!' But a certain someone won't let me work out if my ankle remains swollen and tender. Thank God for the restraining forces in our lives huh? :) Anyway, I hope it's ok, cuz I have to chase a highly active 18-month old around in gym class tomorrow, among other things. There was something else I wanted to talk about today, but um... I don't remember! Oh well, it'll come back to me for another day. I'm sure you will all be waiting with bated breath. Not. :)

Still the Same Honey

Well, the bad news is that I am the same weight today that I was last Sunday. The good news is that I am the same weight as last week, which means I didn't gain any. As I mentioned earlier, I am convinced that my lack of weight loss is due to TOM (never thought I would use that acronym!), which means that if I stay on track, the weight will show up, or disappear from the scale, next week. I worked hard this week, stuck to my plan, did everything I was supposed to do, so I definitely don't expect that I really stayed the same.

Today was my cheat day. Most of my 10% 'off-plan' eating was done within the 3-hour carb window, so that's a plus. I had some ice cream today. It was SO GOOD! Brigham's Big Dig ice cream with peanut butter sauce. Mmmm! Me & my GF also had chicken pesto pasta for dinner, which I haven't eaten in a long time. It was pretty good. It's funny to look back at how I used to eat - 1,000 calories/meal sometimes. OK, a lot of times. Whoa! Today I had to measure and weigh everything. Yes, even on my cheat day, I weighed & measured. My, how times have changed. Thank God! But Sundays remind me of how far I've come from, which is always nice to see. My calculated deviations from my plan will help keep me on track for the next week.

Have a good week everyone... I hope we all shrink!

Well, I guess I should start with yesterday's 5 am wake-up call. Mission accomplished, but I was tired as hell yesterday, pretty much all day. Not a good thing. By Fridays I am usually tired of eating the usual - tuna, protein shakes, etc., so sometimes it's hard to resist the temptation to indulge a bit. But, with my Sunday weigh-in/cheat day in the forefront of my mind, I made healthy choices and yielded not to temptation. Yay me! It's amazing to me how much easier it is to make better, healthier choices when you have a goal, whatever it may be. Although for now my goal is to lose 14 pounds by September 1 (around the time that school starts for me), I'm beginning to embrace the idea that this process will take longer. I might get to 150 and not be satisfied, and if not, that's ok. I can continue, with school & work & life, to lose weight and work on my body until it's where I want it to be. I was concerned about clothes, being able to buy one size, and just being able to manage the tedium of weight loss with a full schedule. But I will keep plugging away until I see the body I want in the mirror. It's funny, because I have nearly 3 months before my new schedule starts, but one of my main thoughts is 'when am I going to work out when school starts'. I guess that goes to show one of my priorities.

I am noticing, pretty much every time I work out, that I can do a bit more - lift more weight, do more reps, burn a little less. It's a good feeling. It's also nice to be able to walk into the weight room with all that testosterone and feel confident that I belong back there just like they do.

I got a couple of nice compliments yesterday & today. Someone I hadn't really seen in a while said 'you look great! wow, look at you' (if i wasn't a chocolate baby, i might have blushed). And someone at the gym told me I'm in great shape. I take her comments with a grain of salt, because I think she is often trying to get a compliment herself, but still - I certainly don't think of myself as being in great shape. So it was nice to hear regardless.

Well, tomorrow is d-day. My weight has come down nicely this week, in spite of a little spike that is probably the result of pre-menstrual water weight gain. I see no reason why I shouldn't have lost at least 1 pound this week, so I hope that's what will show up on the scale tomorrow. I am looking forward to my reward of indulgence tomorrow. So much food, so little time! But you know what, I think of all the things I could eat tomorrow, and I don't feel pressed to get them all in. It's just food, it will be there whenever I want it. I have realized that a lot of my cravings are short-lived if I don't indulge them right away. Not bad for the girl who was embarassed when visitors saw the trash bags full of empty orange Sunkist cans. The girl who very rarely, if ever, resisted a craving or turned down a sweet. I have never enjoyed the times when I have exercised no control over my eating habits - it makes me feel ashamed, among other things, which means it's really no fun. No more of that!

Last thing... if you can talk on the phone while on the Arc Trainer, without even breathing hard, you're not working hard enough. Why do people think I got up early (for me) on a Saturday morning to listen to their conversation on a cardio machine? I wish there was a 'no cell phone' rule at my gym. But really, people, let's get focused, shall we?!

Rise and Shine!

I am all ready for a 5:00 wake up call - bag is packed, lunch is packed, breakfast is ready to be blended. Now all I need to do is go to sleep. Today was a long day, but it was a good day. I had an interview, which went well. It was a self-esteem boost, because they liked me, they really liked me! I have gone through a lot of things over the past couple of years that really tore down my self esteem and identity. Or, pulled the rug out from under me and forced me to establish my own identity and develop confidence in my intrinsic worth as a person. Funny as it sounds, losing weight has helped me. I am doing it! I am in control of my eating. The weight that I gained behind my negative stressful experience, gone! (hey, does anybody ever wonder, when you lose weight, where does it go? hmmm....) Never, before September 12, 2006, had I made a decision to lose weight and really done it. Stuck to it, and lost 36 pounds. So now I know/remember that I have the internal fortitude to discipline myself and achieve a goal. Not saying I'm finished, by any stretch. But I remember a couple of years ago I used to have a mantra - you don't know what you can do until you do what you think you can't do. I definitely believe that, and I'm sure, in all of our various stages, we can attest to that. It's not just looking at a picture and seeing triceps pop, it's knowing that you alone are responsible for the tricep popping. What a good feeling! Well, I have waxed semi-philosophical long enough. Off to bed for me!

So Tired...

I have been on a roll, so I didn't want to miss blogging today, but I am so tired after only 3 hours of sleep and a 12-hour day of work, plus an attempt to get ready for a long day tomorrow that includes a job interview, counseling, class & work. I was supposed to be in the bed already. Anyway, nothing special to report today. I'm excited about Rob's all-time low! My weight is coming down after my cheat day on Sunday. I missed another meal today (sorry dr. berardi), but stayed within my parameters, which is a good thing. I discovered some sausage patties from Trader Joe's that are really good. Better than the veggie sausage patties from Morning Star, which are bleh, as Kristen would say. Does anyone else out there think it's funny that you can like and be attached to and interested in people you have never even laid eyes on? I do, but maybe it's just me. I'm proud of myself that I made a decision not to go to the gym tomorrow morning. Sounds strange I know, but there was a time that I just would have irrationally and unnecessarily pushed myself to get up at 5:00 am and go two days with too little sleep. Of course, I will be getting up at 5 on Friday, but at least I can get a decent night's sleep tonight. That is, if I ever take my a$$ to bed! On that note, g'nite!

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Can I do a little gym venting? There's a man that I see regularly at my gym. The problem is that he talks more than he exercises. Literally. Another fellow gym regular who has recently made some positive changes in her physique, was accosted by him today with some (true) training advice. He followed her around while she did her workout. I have seen this man tell people in much better shape than him that they need to lose weight. He told this woman that her boyfriend needs to get into the gym more often. It's too bad, because what he was telling her (about training with exercises that use multiple body parts rather than isolating muscles) was true, but he is so obnoxious and audacious that it makes it difficult to listen to him. I just don't want to become his next victim, now that we have made eye contact. I go to the gym to WORK OUT, not get unsolicited advice from someone who barely does 2 sets per hour.

That having been said, today was a rather stressful day, but I made it to the gym, and saw gains in my strength. I managed to eke out 15 swiss ball push ups (not full extension though) for the first time, which is a struggle. I have also noticed that I am recovering at a higher level, which means that my cardio capacity is improving. Yay! My eating was rather off - I missed a meal, and my post-workout meal was over 2 hours after I exercised, which is BAD. But other than that, all things considered, not a bad day. I'm ready to go to bed and start all over again I suppose!

Up A Little Honey

I do not plan to report the daily fluctuations of my scale, because it would be boring, but I am up a little (2.4 lbs) from my day of indulgence. I might actually tone down my indulgence a bit next week, and just pick 1 or 2 things and stick with that. Anyway, I write down my weight every day so that I can track how it goes down, so I expect the number to start moving tomorrow.

It's interesting, because I have really only lost about 3 lbs since I started doing Afterburn, but I definitely see more than 3 pounds worth of changes in my body. Overall, I look more muscular and defined (even my GF says so!), which is great. Don't get me wrong, I still have 14 pounds to lose, because there's still plenty of fat surrounding the muscle, but I see curves and definition in places I didn't see it before. Nice! I'm working toward the day when my bicep muscle is obvious even when my arm is just by my side. I have been working out for a long time, and this is the most progress I've seen. I know it comes from eating well and the type of exercise that I'm doing. So I guess I should be happy with a pound or so per week, if it actually looks like more than that. I'm about to just start rambling, so I'll end there.

Down 1.4!

Well, in about an hour, my cheat day will be over. It was great - I ate breadsticks, a steak & cheese sub with a few french fries, an ice cream bar, and most of an orange Sunkist. Big fun. I didn't even bother to tally up my calories, but I'm sure it is well over my allotment for the day, so what difference does it make. I did make it to the gym today, so most of my cheating was done within my 'carb window'. Silver lining I suppose. Today got me to thinking about the importance of having goals and stuff, because it was thinking about today that helped me to resist the various temptations that presented themselves this week. And by the way, I did lose 1.4 lbs, bringing my weight to 164 (at my last weigh-in I had gained weight, so the 1.4 loss is from my previous week's weight of 165.4, but this week I have lost 3.8 lbs). 164 is a signigicant number to me, because, throughout my weight loss journey there are numbers that stick in my head. 164 is one of them - it is a weight that I used to be satisfied at. A couple years ago, I looked at myself at approximately this size and said 'I could stay this size, I just need to tone up'. I no longer feel that way. I am even prepared to lose the 14 lbs I have left and still want to lose more weight. That will be fun. Well, I'm off to enjoy the last hour of my cheat day. Ta ta!

A Good Week

Did I mention that yesterday for one of my meals I drank vanilla protein powder with... WATER? In order for you to appreciate the significance of that, you have to know that I have a VERY difficult time drinking nasty stuff. More than the average person. But I have grown throughout this journey, to the point where I can now stomach things that are good for me, but nasty. I grew up hearing 'some things you eat cuz they're good to ya, some things you eat cuz they're good for ya'. But I never believed it - I only ate stuff that was both. Now, sometimes I eat stuff just because it's good for me. Gotta do what I gotta do. It does make the stuff that's only good to me taste that much better, so it's kind of a win-win. But I was very proud of myself for guzzling down that little concoction.

Nothing really important to talk about. I fulfilled my gym requirements for the week - 4 weights/cardio sessions. Got up this morning and went. I was the only girl in the weight room for a little while, which is always interesting. And my workout kicked my butt. For some reason, squatting while holding 50 pounds over my head (on a smith machine) really gets me. Not to mention those swiss ball push ups (yuck) and single-leg deadlifts. Fun, fun, fun. But now my week is over, tomorrow is weigh-in day, and I get to eat what I want. There's an orange Sunkist in the fridge with my name on it. Other than that, I have no particular food plans, except to enjoy my cheat day!

A Girl's Gotta Do What A Girl's Gotta Do

Ironically, I was thinking about what I was going to title this blog early this morning, and now I don't remember what they were! Anyway, I did it - I got up at 5:00 this morning and made my way to the gym. I actually managed to get almost all of my workout in (brutal), with the exception of 3:00 of cardio. Most of the morning, I was recalling the days when I used to get up at ungodly hours on a regular basis. It was good to remember that I definitely have a 'do what I gotta do' in my spirit. I haven't had to tap into it much lately, so it's good to know it's still there. I've still got it baby! Marcol is right, it's genetic. My brother has been known to get up at 4 am to get his workout in. It's always interesting to me when people make excuses, because, as I said before, we find a way to do what we really want to do. Although exercise is not as important as diet when it comes to weight loss, exercise is the key to having a toned, muscular body, and to being strong. That's more important to me than the numbers, although the numbers do matter!

It also struck me today how easy it has been to eat right this week. I'm sure that I could have found temptation if I wanted it, but I have been VERY focused, and it's a great feeling! It kind of ties in to my other post, because I have found that one of the things that helps me stay on track is having a cheat day set aside. Cuz let me tell you, on Sunday, it's ON! I plan to have an orange Sunkist, and almost whatever else I feel froggish enough to eat. Isn't it funny though, how a lot of times your taste changes, and you don't even want what you used to, or you can't eat as much as you used to? Another thing that helps is having goals, even the ones as small as wearing a new pair of sneakers (they did feel great Lacy!), or just wanting to lose weight and get a star on my calendar. I was reading something that talked about setting goals that are behavior-based... maybe I'll paste some of that in tomorrow. Until then... nighty night.

Cheating

I received this via email from precision nutrition. It's part of '10 rules of good nutrition', but this one seemed appropriate in light of what I've read in a lot of blogs. If you are interested in the other rules, let me know.

8) Have 10% foods.

I know you cringed at a few of the rules above – perhaps #6 in particular. But here’s a bit of a break. 10% of the time, you can eat whatever you want.

That’s right, you heard me. 100% nutritional discipline is never really needed to completely change your body. The difference between sticking to the rules 90% of the time and sticking to them 100% of the time is minor, really.

But here’s the catch: make sure you do the math and determine what 10% of the time really means. For example, if you’re eating 6 meals per day for 7 days of the week – that’s 42 meals. 10% of 42 meals is about 4 meals. Therefore you’re allowed to “break the rules” 4 meals each week. If you skip a meal or eat something not on the plan, that counts as breaking the rules!

This program contains mostly 90% foods but I'd imagine that those of you who have eaten pizza for your 10% foods in the past will really enjoy our Chicago Deep Dish Pizza recipe in Precision Nutrition!