My Bank

Christie had an excellent post on Monday about "the bank". 

When it’s in the bank that means you can draw from it — FOREVER. When you face adversities in your workouts, running in the rain or the cold or the heat or the wind or you swim in cold water or maybe you didn’t get any sleep and you work out anyway or you forget to bring your socks to the gym or you work out on an empty stomach — whatever it is, environmental, physical, mental, whatever you face goes right into the bank. And you can draw on it forever.

Races and PRs are definitely bankable items for me.  I know I can run 13.1 miles.  I know that I can run 5K in around 32 minutes - even if my training times don't reflect that.

Thinking about the Disney Marathon and possibly a triathalon in May, I start to doubt myself.  Those are lofty goals, what if I don't have it in me.

Whenever I vocalize doubts that like a good friend reminds me - running my first 5K in less than 34 minutes was a lofty goal but I still did it.  Running a half marathon 6th months after my first 5K was a pretty big stretch but I did it.

My bank doesn't just extend to exercise.  "If I can bungee jump - I can zipline."  And I did.

I'm going to keep telling myself - "if I can zipline, I can learn to ski."  Tonight I'm headed to Ober for my very first ski lesson, several of my coworkers will be going - including my boss who has graciously offered beginners lessons. 

The question for the week was what have you banked this week to draw on in the future.  On the surface (besides my fun tonight) my week doesn't look like much.  A few weights sessions, a couple runs, a spin class & a swim aren't anything terrible out of the blue for me.  The hike I'm doing tomorrow (assuming I'm don't injure myself tonight) isn't all that noteworthy - I've been to Gregory's Bald before, although we are taking a different trail up.  Looks like I'm out on the hike since we've still got quite a bit of work to do around the house.  Suck.

But the habit I'm in of doing 7-10 workouts a week is definitely bankable material. 

Then again getting back into the habit of spin class and swimming has provided me some bankable material this week.

Not to mention my heart rate monitor - I was disappointed that it didn't have a timer or a calorie burn counter built in for me.  But I love keeping track of my heart rate to know how hard I'm pushing myself.  5.7 MPH on the treadmill might not be fast for you, but my heart rate is 180 so I know that I'm not phoning it in. 

And how bout that 3.6 pound loss this week?  As much as I fight and get frustrated with myself I need to remember this moment and never let myself quit.  Just keep pushing!

Last night I attended a group run with the friend that originally got me started running and her husband.  I always go into thinking what a fun social event it will be.  Like last night we got to test run a new pair of New Balance trainers.  Afterward we all headed over to Buffalo Wild Wings for some good eats and drinks.

What did I bank from the run itself?  That I'm not a fan of group runs.  I get the point - to have a running partner, see new scenery, and (if you're like me) challenge yourself to step up your pace.  The problem?  I don't know the area so my friend has to stick with me - only she runs a bazillion times faster than me.  (She's more of a 9/9:30 m/mi I'm a 11:30 kinda girl.) 

I'm not mentally tough enough to be wheezing and gasping for breath, then when I apologize hear "no problems, this is just an easy, social run."  Easy my @$$.  Last night we went out quicker than I'm use to (I'd guess around a 10 m/mi) and by mile 2 I was hurting.  Coming back was seriously slowed, and we ended up with just under a 12 minute mile pace.

I'll probably group run again, assuming that I don't catch a case of the "I suck"s.  Can a negative thing be banked?

Then again, we did go to Buffalo Wild Wings afterward, where I had a major victory.  I walked into the restaurant with only 460 calories left to consume.    For those who don't count calories, a typical dinner for me runs between 500-600 calories.  If I'm going out, I usually have to tweak it to give myself more.  The reason places like Applebee's advertises having 500 and under calorie meals?  For a restaurant they are rare.

So what did I do?  Sent a panicked email to April asking for help.  I wanted wings and beer.  Without some sort of game plan, I knew I would walk out having consumed 1,000+ calories of said items.  As usual, her plan was brilliant, and I walked out of there with 62 calories remaining for the day.

What'd I have?  A salad, no cheese no crutons, w/25 calorie dressing that I brought with me and 6 naked wings with medium sauce on the side.  Oh, and a beer.  Miller 64 to be exact.  It was perfect.  I went in, ate what I wanted (sort of) and walked out completely stuff without an ounce of guilty.

Let's face it, the breaded and fried wings may taste good as their going down, but they are totally not worth the guilt they bring later.

I can walk into a restaurant armed with healthy alternatives to my favorites and walk out with out the guilt.  That's totally banked!

What about you?  What have you banked this week?

House pictures!!!

Okay don't get too excited.  I'm only posting pictures of the two rooms that are done.  Pathetic huh?  A 2500 square foot, 3 bedroom 2 bath house (plus a den, living room, kitchen, mud room and formal dining room) and I only have two rooms complete.

Part of that I'm going to need your help on.  Because Jay and I are picture whores though, I'm saving the "help me!" post until next week.

Without further ado - I give you BJay's farmhouse (that's our super couple name just in case you didn't know)...

The guest room:

The quilt is one that Jay's grandmother made for him before she die over a decade ago.  The bedroom suit was given to me by my grandmother, when I moved from my crib into a big girl bed.  I love that these heirlooms work perfectly in the house!

The sewing table was purchased at Salvation Army for $20.  It had a ton of paint on it, as well as a couple of piece of chewing gum.  Originally I had just requested the gum to be scraped off but then Jay took it on as his new woodshop project.  And subsequently injured himself (if you're not familiar with the story read about it here and here).  He finally finished it just before Christmas last year and it turned out beautifully.

The chair is one that was refinished by my grandfather and he reweaved the seat of the chair.

Now on to the living room...

These pictures are walking corner to corner so you can get an idea of the flow of the room.

The secretary was also a gift from Jay's grandmother.  We purchased the couch at a yard sale for $160 and the pillows were an apartment warming gift from my sister way back in the day when I first moved out on my own.  Who would have thought they would have travel with me through 3 moves.

I can't remember where the coffee table came from (other than from the bowel's of Jay's parents basement - I swear its got more stock than Wal-Mart) but it opens to create a really cool hiding space for blankets.

For the longest time (when it was at Jay's apartment) I thought his plant was real.   I was amazed at how healthy he kept it looking (while the rest of the place was utter chaos).  Turns out its fake.  And I'm an idiot.

There you have it.  The grand tour of the only two rooms in my house that are complete.  Tune in next week for "How the beep is Brooke going to liven up these dead spaces."

WIW - Spring Fling!

Today starts the first Day of the Sisterhood team challenge.  I'm super excited to get started, but first some Olympic challenge house keeping.

There is a tiny little matter of the medals I won.  *runs to twitter to make sure she won something*

I won 2 bronze medals in the Shrinking Jeans olympics:

• completing 96 pushups in 3 minutes
• cycling 6 miles in 24:10

I claimed 3 silvers:

• holding a wall sit for 5:36
• running in the 4 X 1 mile relay (team time 37:36)

and the medal (of any color) I'm most proud of...

• completing the mini-tri (swim 500M, bike 12 miles, run 3.1 miles) in 1:54:30

Finally for my gold stash:

• 1/2 marathon relay (or 3.28 miles each) team time 2:17:05
• crunches in 3 minutes 224

Now on to the future challenge.  It looks like the teams haven't been put up yet, but since I've got a busy day ahead of me I'll get on with the way in.  (Please forgive me if I don't get to your blog today.  I'll try to catch up tomorrow I promise!)

Last week: 129
This week: 125.4
Goal weight: 120

I lost 3 and a half pounds!!  Not sure what that was about - I don't think I really lost that much in fat.  Maybe it was water weight, maybe it was whatever I was holding on to from stress.  Or maybe (just maybe) I've been doing it right for a few weeks and it took changing things up with the Olympics to really push my body to get rid of that fat.

Who really cares - I lost over 3 pounds!!!

*does happy weight loss dance*

Now my goal weight doesn't seem so lofty and impossible any more.  Plus I'm banking this for motivation in the future.  When weight loss is stagnant and I want to give up or compromise my goals - just keep pushing.  It will happen.

Never give up.  Never surrender!!

So, how'd you do this week?  I'd love to come celebrate with you (or encourage you if you had a bad week - it'll get better, you can bank on that!)

True Confessions Tuesday - The Valentine's Dance Edition

Happy Tuesday to all! 

Wanna here my confession? 

• I seem to be eating everything in site

Okay so that was the lamest confession in the history, but seriously other than my constant hunger I've been good!

So I'll confess one more thing - then take my pennance for it.

• I've had pictures of the Valentine's Charity Banquet that Jay & I worked and I haven't posted them yet.

That's right, I can give Jay evil eyes all I want about the SuperBoo pictures and blame him for the lack of house pictures...but I've had these (thanks to Brandi, who periodically let me steal her camera that night) since February 15th.

As the loose lovely Golden Girl Blanche Deaveroux says Better Late Than Pregnant...

Guys are so luck at events like this.  Jay has worn the same suit, button up, and tie (I swear I think he only owns one tie) for the past 4 events.  This year, however, I bought him a pair of new black dress shoes for Valentine's day.  Maitenance and upkeep aren't his strong suits so his last pair may or may not have looked like he stole them off a sleeping homeless man.

The best picture I have of my $12 designer, size 0 dress (not that I'm bragging or anything) is this shot of me and my mom.  She and my dad helped out last year and decided to join us again.  They had the dreaded coach check job.  Newbies always get that job until they move up in the world.  My mom, however, said that she really enjoyed it so they might have found someone to take it on every year.

A big thanks to Maria for letting my borrow the necklace.  I wasn't sure what would be best with a low v like that.  Thankfully she bought out the jewelry store before arriving and had an extra for me to borrow.

Is it horrible that I love this picture of me but poor Jay looks like he hasn't slept in 4 days?  Hopefully the formal photo of the two of us will be a good one of both of us.

And the final photo of the evening was on our dinner break.  I was flighting about taking care of some terribly important task and left him alone at our table.  Apparently, he found the keynote speaker very interesting.

While I was insecure about the way I looked all night (just in case you missed it - I don't have the boobs to fill out a size 0 dress), the point of the evening was to raise money for a good cause, Cystic Fibrosis research.  If Jay's silent auction tab was any indication, the night was a success!

Moving Monday!

I have excellent news to report - the move happened this weekend.  I will, therefore, not be going to prison for causing my husband harm. 

The bad news is that there are still no pictures.  Jay can't find his card reader so as many as I take it does me no good.  Yep, I'm ordering a camera off amazon today.

When my alarm went off at 7:00 Saturday morning I was excited to get things started.

"Its moving day - hurray, hurray!"

Jay mumbled that I was only enthusiastic because "all you have to do today is point and tell people where to put things."  A comment he later swears he doesn't remember.  I don't buy the I was asleep defense.

A friend and I scrubbed the house Saturday morning with high hopes to mop the floor, then go for a run while the floor dried.  We kept finding things that needed doing, so the run never happened.  My mom arrived around 11 to help, and my dad met Jay, my BIL, sister & their crew at the rental to pack up the UHaul.

Trip one in the UHaul truck (not the attachment, the biggest truck UHaul makes) we got most of the major furniture.  The girls continued cleaning while the guys went back to the rental house for round two. 

If I can for just a moment, I'd like to brag on what a great job my niece did helping out.  I had left a list of things for she and my sister to do at the rental while the boys were loading boxes, thinking that she would like a sense of helping out.  I figured she'd help for a few minutes, then get bored and move on.

Instead she packed up all my shoes, all my purses, then started matching the boys box for box loading up the truck.  All of that and she'll only be 6 in May. 

While most of the boxes didn't get unpacked Saturday, we did get all the furniture arranged properly and each box is at least in the room it will call home.

When I get free labor I use it - we were going pretty much all day and didn't stop until 8PM.  

I was in bed, fast asleep, by 9:30.  I woke up the next morning with a list already in my head of things to do, but Jay had went to bed later than me (as usual) and wanted me to stay in bed and snuggle him.  I might or might not have complied, falling asleep again and not waking up until well after noon.

We unloaded some boxes to reuse and headed back to the rental for one final trip in the UHaul.

You are certainly free to judge me - I 100% agree that its ridiculous that any two adults would have enough crap to need 3 largest truck UHaul makes trips to transport most of it.

That's right - we still have a little in the rental left to pack up.  Thankfully a trip or two in the car as we're cleaning the place up should finish the job.

The first room I wanna post pictures of is the guest bedroom.  We used a combo of things from his grandmother and from mine and made it the perfect farmhouse room. 

Hopefully I'll get pictures to yall before the end of the week.

Monday Project delayed

Okay I had this really cool awesome post planned out in my head - I even took pictures for it last night.

Only my husband is a craphead, and transferring pictures for me doesn't rank as high on his priority list as giving himself oral cancer whilst reading how we're all doomed on the Ron Paul message boards.

Let's all take a moment to shoot him dirty looks.

Okay so that didn't work, but I am buying myself a cheap digital camera so this doesn't happen in the future.  He says "oh you can just use mine" but what good is using his if I have to wait several days for him to get me the pictures?

Having said that I don't wanna do the post without the pictures, so I guess this will just be homework I'm turning in late.

Speaking of late homework...I did something yesterday that I've never done before swam, then biked, then ran - the Sisterhood Olympics Mini-Tri!!!!

500 meter swim
12 mile bike
3.1 mile run

I'll have to tell you that 10 laps in the pool was the hardest by far.  I'm not a swimmer, never have been.  When I was little I learned how to splash around, stay afloat, and propel myself from one side of the pool to another.  But actually swimming, not a single lesson.

Side note: any parents of smaller children I beg of you get your child real swimming lessons!!  Its seriously no fun having to learn how to do this stuff as you're approaching your 30th birthday.

A few months back I bought a rockin' Nike suit to try my hand at swimming.  With a body like mine, one piece suits make me look like one of those 5 year olds at the pool.  You know the ones, they've got a little pudge in the belly region but they haven't started to develop "up there".

Yep that's me in a one piece, belly-bigger-than-her-boobs-blob.  Two pieces are much more flattering.  They mostly come with underwire and give the illusion that I have something.

A two piece like this, however is not condusive to lap swimming.

(I would have had a picture of the Nike sport suit but well...)

*Glares again at Jay*

Any way the swim sucked but I finished in under 30 minutes so I was happy.  Then it was on to the bike section.  It was on the recombant bike, which I hate but its the only one they have in the fitness center and I wasn't about to bike in 40 degree temps with a wet head. 

By the time it got to the run I was getting excited - only 5K left and I had really done it!  The first laps of the run sucked, but by the last two I was really pushing it. 

My goal for the entire mini-tri was to come in under 2 hours - which I totally did!!!

Now I'm looking into doing a sprint tri on May 31st.  Now to work on the whole breathing while swimming thing!

PS - next week I'm skiing and will give you the full report on that "something new" too!!

Book Review: The Gospel According to Lost by Chris Seay

Initially I was thrilled when I saw that Thomas Nelson Book Review team (now known as BookSneeze) was offering The Gospel According to Lost by Chris Seay as one of their featured books.  I've been hooked on the television show Lost since the first season aired 6 years ago.

Seay's book promised a spiritual take on the show and its characters.

When the show first started, I joined the official ABC Lost message board, made online friendships with some great fans (a couple of them even met up with me on my trip to California).  What does that have to do with Seay's book?

He disappointed me.  Maybe its because I'm use to discussing the show with ladies who sit down and watch the show with a note pad - jotting down anything and everything for discussion later. 

The book felt more to me like one of those popup video recap shows.  Seay would address a character each chapter, summarize their story, then at the end would add a little "pop" of their spirituality at the end of the chapter.

A little been there, done that for me.  Maybe it would be more enjoyable for the more casual fan of the show.

The Shrinking Jeans Olympics

Today is weigh in Wednesday and since I didn't like what the scale said this morning I'm trying not to stress too much about the scale, I thought a little deversion would be in order.

Did you know that the Sisterhood is hosting its own Olympic competition?  Check it out over at The Hood.  While the games are already underway, there are new challenges daily, so its not too late to check in.

Can I admit to you that I'm nervous about tomorrow?  I decide to use this week as a week to change up my routine and add something different in.  So I signed up for the mini-triathlon.  10 laps in the pool, 12 miles on the bike, then 3.1 miles running. 

Am I crazy?  I'm having to take time off work to do this - what do you think?

(My gym pool doesn't open until 6 AM, and it'll take me at least 2 hours to complete - I have to be at work at 8.  The pool isn't open for lap swimming after 3:30 PM, which rules out after work.)

So why am I taking time off for a challenge I know I won't win?  Because it'll be a challenge just to finish, and I like a good challenge. 

Thankfully only 3 of us are crazy enough to tri have signed up for it so as long as I finish I'm pretty much guaranteed a medal.  And a bazillion calories burned.

Speaking of pushing myself....I took the plunge yesterday and signed myself up for the Disney Marathon!!!  I'm hoping to finish in about 5 hours, but since its over 10 months away I think its a little too early to set a time goal.

Okay now what...this post isn't long enough to hit "publish" yet, but continued typing would probably just cause a downward spiral into me complaining about my lack of weight loss, how I hate my body, etc. 

So what's a Option B girl to do?

Hmmm...

Oooh - Over the weekend I got the new Beth Moore book!  For those of you unfamiliar with her work - she's the author of many in-depth Bible studies as well as a great speaker.  She takes one particular subject, then does an insanely thorough job of unpacking what the Bible has to say on that topic.

Her newest book?  So Long Insecurity, You've Been a Bad Friend to Us.

I bought (and finished) Galloway's Book on Running this weekend (found it for $1 at the flea market), so I'm excited to move on to this new book.  I just don't want to start it until I have enough time to really dive in.  This is a lesson I desperately need, and I don't just want to skim through it.

My mom also signed me up for the live simulcast she's doing on the same topic at my parents' church and am looking forward to that next month.

And in unreleated news, tonight some friends and I are checking out the newest show in town Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.   Unfortuantely, it won't be for a performance starring Melinda Doolittle, but it'll be fun none the less.

Now to figure out somewhere yummy, yet healthy for dinner before the show.

So how'd you do this weekend?  Blog all about it then link up over at the Sisterhood.

Choose your own adventure

Good morning! Today is my first day back from the long weekend - gotta love that President's Day Holiday.  I celebrated the great men of our country's past by taking it easy.  If I had a good weekend completely depends on perspective.

I spent a good portion of the weekend hating my body. 

So its either -

My body is a magician's attempt to saw a little boy, and a chunky woman in half, only he put the wrong pieces back together.

or

I have the body of an Olympic speed skater.

Seriously - look at one of those chicks next time they are on TV.  They've got this tiny upper body then the thighs of a body building man!

As for Valentine's day either -

My husband complained the whole time we worked the charity event, then just bought something at the silent auction just to give me a gift.  No matter that the present didn't have any of the cool features that I requested.

or

Jay and I attended a formal gala where he purchased a heart rate monitor (the gift I requested for Valentine's Day) in a silent auction.

You can see how this is stacking up right? 

So while I can sit back and tell you that most of my weekend sucked, its probably just a case of me being a spoiled little brat with PMS.

Moving a long to President's Day, either -

We lost power because my husband doesn't plan properly, nor does he document important decisions.

or

We spent a romantic evening snuggling and reading by candle light.

Here's the deal - when he turned the power on at the farmhouse, the utility company asked for a cutoff date for the rental.  Jay told them Feb 15th, then never thought another word about it.  Not even when I called him yesterday and told him the power was out.  "Maybe someone hit a pole on the next street up."

Our power goes out all the time for no apparent reason.  I'm one of those people who don't call it in because I assume the rest of the neighborhood has.  No point in bugging the crap out of them - its not going to get the power back on any faster. 

But after 2 hours of no power, I finally called it in.  At 5:01 PM. 

They promptly called Jay back and told him that the power was off because he told them to cut it off.  Due to the late hour they wouldn't be able to turn it back on until tomorrow.

Did I mention it got into the 20s last night? Thankfully the house is well insulated and we like to snuggle. 

I loaded the perishables in the Fridge in my rolly cooler and put it on the back porch.  Its cold enough that it'll be fine - unless a neighborhood stray cat or dog has learned how to unzip a zipper.

Since this is True Confessions Tuesday over at the sisterhood I'll leave you with one final confession.

Either -

I ate like crap all weekend, shoveling food into my mouth with reckless abandon.

or

I did a wonderful job of enjoying myself this weekend, without obsessing over weight loss or calorie counting.

So you see, the choice is up to you.

and that's no bull.

Rethink Monday Project

This week's Monday Project is reviewing the past challenge.  Have I been rethinking things? 

What happened over the past 7 weeks?

A quick summary, I worked out quite a bit.  44 times since the first of the year to be exact.  I was hit or miss on the eating - my aunt's 80th birthday, the Super Bowl, the in-laws in town.  I didn't shrink, at all.  I definitely did rethink my motivation and what prompts me to keep at it.

Did you find victories? Did you find non-scale victories?

Non-scale were the only victories I found.  The biggest one was my new PR at the Race Against Racism 5K.  I did my usual crying fit, but the victory came when I was able to pull myself together and show my family, that nasty cough, and myself that nothing was going to hold me back.

Did you do something you’ve never done before? (And in a good way?)

No...not yet.  I'm planning on skiing for the first time every in two weeks.  I'm a little nervous that I'll hurt myself, but I'm looking forward to it.  And you know without a doubt you'll get the full report.  Also, I'm looking forward to trail running at the wild life preserve once we get moved into the house.

How much did you lose?

Nada.  I think I'll survive.

How much did you gain in knowledge and preparation?

Quite a bit.  Learning how to improve myself, yet be happy with who I am is still a hard journey for me.  It'll take more than a few weeks of working on it.  I am, however, thankful for this challenge getting the ball rolling.

I also gained strength.  Not the mental, theoretical "maybe I'm not a fat ass" kind.  But pure brut strenght.  Okay so maybe that's exagerating a bit.  I'm definitely lifting more now than I was when I started.  I don't think I'm eating enough to build muscle, but I'm definitely building strenght.  I squatted 120 this morning! 

Did you like this challenge?

I totally loved this challenge.  I think so much of diet and exercise is mental, I hope more challenges to come incorporate more brain power!

Time for you to report in!! 

Rethinking the Final Week

Don't worry, its just the end of the challenge - I have a feeling I'll be rethinking my shrink for years to come!!

Okay let's get the pesky little numbers out of the way.

Starting weight: 128.8
Last week: 127.6
Challenge goal: 124

This week: 128.6

Okay so I've accomplished nothing scale-wise this challenge. I have to be okay with that.  A wise woman told me yesterday - I can do anything that I want to do.   Losing more weight just must not be a priority right now.

Wanna know a secret?  I'm kinda glad. 

I have body image issues, more than the average woman I think.  (Who knows I've never been any woman but myself so how can I really judge?)  I also have obessive tendencies.  I get focused on something and it becomes my world.

So the more I think about it, not losing weight is a good thing. 

Because it means that I have something more important in my life right now.  (In case you haven't heard I'm moving into a farmhouse built in 1900.  No, not the 1900s.  1900.  Meaning its 110 years old.  And, no I don't have "after" pictures yet.)

Why set weight loss goals if I'm not going to put my effort behind them?  I'll only be disappointed.

So from now until we're settled into the house, maintenance will be my goal.  Another smart woman told me yesterday that ranges were good.  I'll maintan my weight between 127-129 and keep my calories between 1600 and 1900.

I'm working out 7-10 times a week, working a full time job, packing, cleaning, and updating the house.  I need my fuel!

So how'd you do this week?  Did you acheive the goals you set for yourself this challenge?  Drop your link over at the Sisterhood and tell us all about it!

True Confessions - another deep one

What's the difference in being content with where you are and being complacent?

And since it's True Confessions Tuesday that means you can't give me any crap.



See, the button says so!

In all seriousness, though, how do I know?

Excluding hormone induced crying fits I know I'm not fat.  I know that I could not lose another pounds and have a body most women would love to have.  (Is that cocky?  I don't mean it to be.)  I've worked hard to get where I am, but I understand that my level of neurosis commitment isn't practical for many people.

Am I greedy for wanting more?  Maybe.  Probably.

Like any other woman, I have good weeks and I have bad weeks.  Two weeks ago my confessional was 100% positive.  Contentment.

This week is very similar - yet another "rare" event caused me to throw my calorie counting out the window.  Only somehow this week I don't feel as inspired.

Is it because its easy to say that I'm okay with it the first week I'm stagnant, then after a few weeks I start to get frustrated?  Complacent.

Right now I'm considering just going back to maintenance.  I'm still not back where I was before my holiday eating spree/exercise break.  However I'm thinking about taking 2100 calories out for a spin.

I know I won't be happy with myself until I at least get back to 125.  Maybe 120 was unrealistic on my part.  Or maybe, just maybe, I need to believe in myself - in the person I am when I'm working out 7-10 times a week.  Because that person doesn't stuff herself on velveeta & hormel chili dip served w/tortilla chips.

She is an athlete who considers food fuel, not entertainment.

I want to be her.

I am her.

So I guess I answered my own question - what's the difference?

Attitude.

I can be content enough with myself to slide a little for a week.  When I start to wallow in it is when the complacancy tries to kick in.

So now its time for me to kick it back into focus.

Normally I try to balance my calories out.  If I go over by 100 today, I eat 100 less tomorrow.  After this weekend, that's just not possible.  But I do have the power to wipe the slate clean.

Starting today its 1650.  I can't worry about my weekend mistake.  I can't afford to repeat it either.

Today is all I have.

I'll also admit to having a mini meltdown last night.  Have I  mentioned how great of a husband I have?  I did a complete emotional 180 out of the blue, sobbing uncontrollably.  Somehow he didn't freak out, didn't get upset with me, and did what he could to help me get back to the other side of the 180. 

Not sure why he loves someone as crazy messed up emotional as me, but I'm certainly grateful.

Okay off of me on to you...got something you need to get off your chest?  Blog about it then link up with the Sisterhood.

Monday Musings

Because I'm sleep deprived and totally random like that.

*Friday night I borrowed this Buffalo Chicken Chili recipe from Jen and totally had to improvise.  I meant to grab the things I didn't have at the store (celery, more carrots, a bay leaf, that fancy paprika) but was a sweaty mess from running after work.  When I got home I decided I'd try it any way.

I used ground turkey instead of ground chicken, italian seasoning instead of the bay leaf, and just did without the other stuff.  I must say it was really good.  My in-laws and Jay stayed late at the farmhouse working, but all commented on how great the house smelled when they got home (4 hours after I cooked it!).

So much so that Jay had a bowl for breakfast the next morning.  And they all had a bowl for breakfast yesterday morning.  Either that's the greatest recipe ever, or they really just don't like oatmeal. 

Next time I'm going to make sure I have all the appropriate veggies, and instead of ground chicken try cooked, cubed chicken breasts.

*Friday night and Saturday morning I was a house packing machine.  I'm starting with the stuff that we rarely use, like the fancy dishes in the china cabinet.  I ran out of newspaper around 10 am on Saturday, so I shifted my focus to the CVS closet (making sure I have at least one of everything in the closet in case we run out between now and then.)

*Saturday afternoon I headed over to the farmhouse.  Jay is super picky and hasn't let me do much, but he lightened up on Saturday.  I actually got to paint the kitchen wall behind where the refridgerater will go and behind where the stove will go.  and the electrical box.  I would have never thought to paint it, but Jay suggested it and it made a world of difference.  It being white made it very noticeable up against the yellow wall.  Now it blends well, and hopefully will virtually disappear once we get a shelving system or desk in that hole.

*Jay with the help of his former boss (who he built log homes with/for) installed the new baseboards.  I was a doubter at first, but they are freakin gorgeous!!  They still have to be caulked/painted but they already look incredible!

*Our new appliances arrived this weekend.  They were supposed to be delivered Saturday night, but after some much needed ranting by my MIL they were finally installed yesterday afternoon. 

*Yesterday was my first training walk for the Mountain Man March - its a marathon coming up in April.  A friend of mine put together a team of 5 to walk in honor of her husband who is currently surving in Iraq.  The group did 12 miles, but I had a Super Bowl party to get to so I "only" did 10.  Surprisingly it was easier than I thought.  And with a group of girls yacking, 2 and a half hours goes by more quickly than you would expect.

*I finished two of the challeges I was doing yesterday - 200 squats and 200 sit ups.  I had only finished week 4 of the 6 week plan, but the end of the week called for the test to see how many I could do.  I managed to churn out 200!  I'm moving on to week 5 of the 100 pushup challenge and find myself in column 2 this week!  (I've been doing column 1 which is easier.)

Hmmm...I think that's it. 

How was your weekend?

Thursday's Ten (a day late) - Valentine's Edition

Lora fired up the bat signal yesterday, in search of Valentine's ideas for that special someone.  Only I was to busy rambling to answer the call.  I shall remedy that today.

1. I love Cherie's suggestion of kidnapping them and forcing them to have fun. 

2. Making a coupon booklet - a tried and true cheap way to say "I love you" on Valentine's day.  I think my FIL might have made fun of me for over using this idea yesterday...not sure though. 

3. A homemade candle lit dinner.  (Lame?  Maybe for your s/o.  Mine loves food.)

4. A heart rate monitor.  Nothing says "I <3 you" like a heart rate monitor.  Perfect for that exercise/calorie counting junkie wife of yours.  (This will probably be the one day Jay doesn't read my blog.)

5. (For her) Flowers.  Not roses, but her favorite flower.  Skip this option if you have to ask what her favorite flower is.

6. A massage - they're wonderful, take a lot of effort on the part of the giver, and now days everyone is stressed enough to need them!  Just be sure to light candles so its at least a little romantic.

7. A love note.  Not a card with your name signed at the bottom.  But an 8 1/2 X 11 piece of paper filled with your favorite memories together, reasons you love your s/o, and general happy thoughts about them.

8. A 6 pack of beer.  (Once again totally not lame at my house.  I took Jay a 6 pack to the farmhouse last night and you would have thought a Playboy bunny had just stopped by for a visit.)

Which brings me to...

9. A new outfit.  For you to wear.  For him to enjoy.

10. A kiss (or ten) for every Valentine's day you've spent together.

And if all else fails, grab a card and write "I love you - most - est - final" at the bottom.

What other ideas am I forgetting?

Happy Friday!!!

This news update brought to you by...

The letter "S" for sleep, and the number 8, for how many ours of said sleep I'd like to get.

This week has been busy to say the least.  Jay and his parents have been working at the farmhouse all week.  I (sorta) feel bad for not heading there after work and joining them, but there is more at the rental for me to do. 

Last night's excitement included shopping for boobs (when you don't have them you gotta buy them), dryell, then never ending food prep.

***Every year Jay & I volunteer at a Valentine's Dinner & Dance to benefit Cystic Fibrosis research.  My boss has two children with CF, and we try to help out with as many fundraising events as we can.  Since I need a dress every year, I start my search for a great deal every year.  Part of it is fun, but at the end of the day the formal dress is just a uniform I need to work in.

I try not to spend too much money, so I hit after prom sales at the mall.  I also scope out the formal section at the Repeat Boutique sales.  I found this year's dress at Repeat two sales ago.  Its marked "designer" and I ended up paying only $12 for it.  (Its a size 0 and flares at the waist to accomodate my non-zero hips & legs.)

Background info: Since its a consignment store - all sales are final.  Also, the 70% off sales are so popular, they open up the back storage room as a community dressing room.  Under garmets are a must!

I got the dress home to try it on for Jay, only it didn't fit in the chest.  Apparently I'm a less than 0 chest size.  Since I couldn't take it back I was only left with one option - implants.

No, not the surgical kind.  The kind that you tape into the dress then tape the dress down.  This should be a fun experiment.

***Seriously - dry clean only on a pair of pants I want to take to a consignment store?  I'll spend more on the cleaning than I'll make.  Dryell to the rescue!!

***My other fun adventure last night had me elbows deep in chicken breasts.  Since a lot of the recipes I use call for cubed cooked chicken, I try to bake it in large quantities and freeze for easy use later.  That keeps me from being lazy and relying on a can of chicken from the pantry.

Only I've been lazy lately.  With the move so close, I'm trying to hold off on going to Sam's club until after the move.  Who wants to have to pack and move all that stuff from the rental to the farmhouse?  So I was down to 1 can in the pantry and no cooked chicken in the freezer.

I spent around an hour (not including baking time) preparing the chicken to bake.  Then once it was done, cutting  it up into bite size pieces, dividing it out into 6 servings (my frugalness hard at work - making 3 pounds of chicken work twice as hard), then vacuum seal and throw in the freezer.  Not to mention dishes.  I was too lazy to hand wash them, so I rinsed them out and threw them into the dishwasher even though they single handedly took up 1/4 of my dishwasher space.  A dishwasher that I had just unloaded.

By the time I was done I was ready to crash.  Sadly it was just shortly after 8.

***The 12" baseboard materials have arrived and are in the process of being made.  Jay showed me the sample yesterday.  They are going to look great!  The white will really make the yellow of the kitchen and the tourquise in the master bedroom pop.

***We had to get an electriction to move up the outlets.  The farmhouse is in two parts - the original house and the addition.  The original already has 12" baseboards, the addition did not.  The outlets in the addition would have prevented the 12 inchers being installed, so we had them moved up to accomodate the base.  While he was there we had him convert them all to white, and add GFI outlets in the bathrooms and in the kitchen.

***Jay is plugging the holes in the under-the-stairs/hot water heater area so that we can use it for storage.  There are currently corn cobs under there where a critter (or two or three) has gotten in and had dinner.  I don't wanna open my Christmas decorations come December and find said critter.

***Jay's mom worked yesterday on getting the stains off the wall paper.  I was a little leary of trying to clean it - I'm sure screwing up antique wall paper isn't hard.  I'm glad that I wasn't there when she did it.  Saved me a lot of anxiety.

I'm getting really excited.  This is really happening.  Jay & I are going to have a kick @$$ beautiful house!!!  We were hoping to move this weekend, but that's just not going to happen.  We've rescheduled moving day the weekend after Valentine's.  Hopefully we can have everything ready to go by then.

I know the suspence is killing you.  I promise before and after pictures, but you've just got to be patient and wait for us to get to "after". 

Sorry for the randomness, but my mind is too tired to focus on just one thing.  Hope you're having a great week!

Rethinking My Shrink - Week 5

If you heard my confession yesterday, you'll know I was expecting the scale to be kind to me this morning.  To be more accurate, I was hoping the scale would be nice to me, but fearful that it wouldn't budge.   Then where would I be?

My in-laws arrive late Monday night (after I was already in bed) and certainly wasn't up when I left the house yesterday morning at 6 AM - don't blame them, you've gotta be insane to get up that early.  Um.  Did I just call myself crazy?

Any way last night was the first time I've seen them since New Years.  They worked all day at the farmhouse helping Jay out.  Since I haven't seen them in over a month, I felt bad for going to bed at my normal 9:15.  I actually made it until 10 last night.

I was definitely paying for it this morning at 5:40 when my alarm went off.  By the time I got to the gym I was still just barely awake.  I groggily stepped on the scale and held my breath.  As exhausted as I was I knew I'd have a breakdown if I'd gained, or really even if I hadn't lost.

I looked down and saw...

Challenge goal weight: 124
Last week: 128
This week: 127.6

Seriously??  So it was almost half a pound, I can't be upset with that at least in my blog. 

I was going to use this week to see if 1650 calories is still what I need to eat to lose weight, and I'm still not sure.  I guess I'm going to keep it the same for another week or two and see what happens before I  it.

I have a million things running through my head as to why it was only 0.4 pounds.  Hopes - That I'm stressed like Jillian said last week and that's what is causing it to be so small.  Fears - that my body is adjusting to all the exercise and the calorie restriction and I'll have to work harder to see more of a result.

But for now, I'm not thinking about it.  Like I said give it another couple of weeks before I analize it to death.

And now...for what you've really all been waiting on - pictures of the hooker boots!!!

This is a pair given to me by my mother.  Not sure if a pair of boots originally worn by a Sunday school teacher in a classroom of 4 year olds can be called "hooker boots" but that's what I consider them.  Crazy thing, even in a pant size 4/6 my calves are big enough that I struggle to get them zipped.  I'm not sure who they were designed to fit.

These are the more hooker-y of the two.  Higher heel, more sassy design.  Unfortunately, I've worn these to death and the fake suade is coming off these K-Mart blue light specials.  I know, if they were true hooker boots it would have been a red light special, but I was too cheap to pay for a different colored bulb.

Also, I was asked about the signs on my bathroom mirrors.  They are just further proof that my husband and I are that sappy sweet couple who requires those around them to have airsick bags.

In the rental, we have a double bowl vanity, and have the sign to us taped above our sink.  Not sure what we'll do with the signs when we move into the new house and just have a single sink in the master.

For the grande finale...

This is what a Sisterhood hooker looks like after getting up at 5:30 to work out, working out again at lunch, grocery shopping after work, then trying on/taking pictures of a stack of clothing for blogging purposes.  Try not to be too scared.

True Confessions already?

Looking over the past week, I'm not really sure I have much to confess.  Grabs calendar to look at daily calorie intake/exercise logs. 

Okay first with the workouts.  Sure I skipped a run or two. 

Tuesday - Intervals = 3 miles

I think this was the day I tried to run a 10 minute mile, but couldn't do more than a half mile at that speed so I turned it into interval work.  Also did week 3, day 1 of  100 push up challenge, 200 sit up challenge, and 200 squat challenge.

Wednesday - Weights, Pilates

I dropped a run this day and felt guilty.  I had already dropped Monday's run to take spin class, but I just didn't have the motivation to complete a 3rd workout that day.

Thursday - 3 mile walk, 3 mile run

I hit the treadmill bright and early before work to get my 3 mile run in.  Since I had no lunch plans, a friend and I walked 3 miles just to enjoy the day.  I also completed day 2 of the challenges.

Friday - Weights, Spin

Early morning weights as per my normal routine.  My mom and I usually eat lunch on Friday's, but since she was out of town I hit the lunch time spin class.

Saturday - ummm....

Oops I totally forgot that I was supposed to do day 3 of the challenges.

Sunday - nothing (horrible habit of mine, not working out on the weekends)

In my defense, both days were spent packing the rental house all morning and cleaning the farmhouse all afternoon.  By then end of the day my body was exhausted!

Monday - weights, 3 mile run

Weights again in the AM and a 3 miler at lunch.

I need to somehow figure out how to spread my workouts out.  I don't think taking two days in a row like that off is good for my body.  Especially when I'm going to cram  two workouts a day in the remainder of the week.  I just don't know how to set time aside for working out on the weekends.  Its so much easier when I have the structure of my job to work around.

As for my calories, I made a small goof on Sunday night but beyond that I've been spot on.  I got out a bowl and counted out my preztels to equal one serving.  I crashed on the couch with my splurge of a Diet Dr. K and a bowl full of pretzels.

44 per serving seemed high, but then again pretzels are low calorie so I didn't think much of it. 

Until Jay said something.  If my husband thinks a portion is big it must be.

Reading the label more accurately, there were 44 servings per container.  One serving was only 14 calories.  Oops. 

I whipped out my super nerdy cool formula and figured how many calories were left for Monday and Tuesday.   1650 X 7 - calories consumed Wed - Sunday/2 = 1625.  Looks like I wouldn't have to start to fix my mistake after all.

PS - Eating everything I wanted yesterday, I only consumed 1569 calories yesterday.  Which means, averaging everything out, even after Sunday's moment of idiocricy, I can have 30 calories more than my average daily allotment.

All of this is to say that apparently I have nothing to confess.  If I don't rock the scales tomorrow I'm gonna need some serious encouragement!!!

Finally - the Deal Post!

Not this past weekend but the one before, I went to the Repeat Boutique 70% off sale. There are really only two days a year I go to this store for the winter 70% off sale and the summer 70% off sale. Because, let's face it, I'm too cheap to spend $15-$20 on a pair of used pants.

I don't care if they are in good condition and would have been $60 new in the store. When you start taking 70% off that $15, now we're in business.

In trips past, I go in looking for pants coming out with $100 worth of really inexpensive tops. Pants have always been a difficult fit for me, which I think most pear shaped women will attest to.

This year would be different, I told myself. Although I feared it wouldn't be. I'm a different size - I've changed the shape of my body somewhat. Also, I'm armed with the knowledge of what brands fit me and what don't.

I live in the outlet store capital of the world, and I've come to learn that Gap and Banana Republic fit me well. I've also learned that I'm a size 4 in both brands. 

We arrived about 20 minutes before the doors opened - this is very much one of those arrive early so you can get a place in line and wait for the doors to open kinda sale.  When the doors finally opened, I made a bee line for the trousers.

After trying on 3 times as many as I actually purchased, here's what I ended up with.

A pair of more casual American Eagle pants.  While I can wear them to work, I also thought they would be good for hiking in the winter.  The zippers just below the knees don't create the most flattering line on my short stubby little legs, but they are a practical, heavy duty pant.

A pair of Ann Taylor LOFT cord khakis, even though these are size 4s they are a little baggy.  I'm not sure if that's just the cut of the pant or if that's what happens when you get into the world of more pricey name brands.

These Banana Republic pinstripe pants are my pant of choice for today.  They are a somewhat awkward length - too long for flats yet slightly too short for hooker heels.  Boots would probably be a good middle round with them.

A pair of more casual green Banana Republic pants that are a little less fitted than the dress slacks.

These are definitely pants for flats, but I loved the pin stripe in them.

Okay so maybe in this picture it looks like a couch, I promise they are cute in person. 

I've never heard of the Madison brand, but I thought these chocolate pants would be cute on a more casual day.  They are size 6 and fit well everywhere but the waist.  As per my usual with pants Typical of the problem I use to have with pants, they do have some gaping in the waist, but nothing that can't be belted.

From the dress pants section, I moved to the jeans.  Since I have shrunk - thanks to my Sisters - I only have two pair of jeans fit me.  One pair is baggy, and the other pair fit well and I have no clue how I stuffed my sausage legs into them 10 pounds ago. 

I found a couple pair of jeans, both fairly casual.  Ooh, I forgot that I bought a pair of dressy jeans at Planet Xchange a month or so ago.  Obviously not much in my life calls for dressy jeans, since I haven't worn them since buying them and had forgot about owning them.  Here are my two new pair of casual jeans.

These are J. Crew (size 4 - gotta love those expensive brands).  Not quite as flattering in the picture as I wanted them to be, but they'll do.

And my Aeropostale size 5/6!  Totally exciting for me because I've never had luck buying brands that are aimed toward teenagers.  But here I am - and a 5/6 no less!!

The all of pants averaged about $5 per pair.

I ventured toward the skirts, but didn't have as much success there.  I found one skirt that fit me well, but since it was a designer label it was a bit more pricey.

Jay wasn't thrilled with me sharing my belly button with the world, but I suppose he'll get over it.  Even with the discount, the skirt was still $20.  In a land of $5 pants, $20 is a lot to spend on a skirt.  Even if it is wool.  Apparently the designer label makes the skirt more valuable.

Since the label is what was so expensive, I might as well show it off too right??

I only found one dress that worked for me.  It was a medium, but since it was a wrap dress I made it work.  Plus it'll be something workable in my closet if I ever unshrink.

I can do quite a bit with the dress - make it more casual for work, make it more conservative for church, or dress it up for date night.  (If Jay and I ever have one that is!)

Finally, I got a belt.  With strictly utilitarian purposes in mind, I found this cute belt for just $1.

Being the pear that I am, I have trouble with my pants gaping in the back.  Belting the pants, causes a bulge in the front, when I try to lay my blouse over top the belt buckle.  I figured a belt like this with a tiny little buckle was the perfect solution.

I walked out of the store that day spending slightly less than $75 after tax.  Needless to say I was incredibly please.

So there you have it.  I hope it was worth the wait!!