Thinking Ahead

You might have noticed the colorful new link on my sidebar.  I've joined South Beach Steve in his 100 day challenge.  It's still incredible to me that we're in the new millennium, much less that there are only 100 days left in 2010 (as of next Friday).  I am so close to reaching my WW goal, but it seems to me that I've started treading water in the pool for a while now and that I haven't been making much progress.  I know I CAN do it, but now is the time to declare I WILL do it.  And I'll reach my WW goal before January 1st 2011.  So there.  Click on the sidebar picture to link to the details of the challenge, I'd love some company.

Thank you for your encouraging words to my post last Wednesday.  I admit I was discouraged, but reading your comments and your posts has helped me regain my drive.  I've had a bit of a problem with Mr. Munch over the past couple days, but I've kept up with my exercise and the fridge is stocked with good healthy food for the coming days.  And yes, I drowned the offending contraband in the sink and then consigned it to the trash can in the garage.

This morning was beautiful (again!) and I ran over 5 miles.  Some time this week my Nike+ gal in the right sidebar will shout that I've run 1000 miles (that's since mid Oct 2008).  I'll be sure to mention it that day.  Stay tuned.  I went to Praise Moves again on Friday.  I was able to stay for the entire 75 minute class and it really felt really good.  The stretching is great for my body and it makes me more mindful of my posture.  In addition I like the company.  Tomorrow I think DH and I will try to get in a long bike ride (unless he has another soccer game to referee in which case I'll go alone).  I want to ride over to DC to the beginning of the C&O canal trail.  I really want to bike the C&O from Harper's Ferry to DC this fall.

One of the beautiful lilies from my garden

So far I'm doing pretty well in fitting in all the things I need and want to do in my days.  I think that, like so many of you, I might cut down on my time spent blogging (writing and reading) if I find my days getting too short.  I'd hate to do that, so I'm going to see if I can be a bit more disciplined in how I spend my time.   We'll see.

Happy Week End.

Whew!

And who says SAHM's don't work.  I've had my three grands (8, 2.5, and 1) since about 7:30.  I've helped put together two jigsaw puzzles, organized a swim in the little backyard pool,  watched them chase big beautiful butterflies around the garden, played backup safety to J's multiple attempts to crawl up the stairs, played name that tune on the "p-nan-o," had multiple potty/new diaper excursions, made "surprise sandwiches" for a picnic lunch, dealt with the county inspector who was checking out our new furnace/AC system, wiped up lots of spills, searched for bathing suits, sun block, sun glasses,  & towels, put J down for his morning nap, played a board game with the two older kids, read stories for each one, folded one load of laundry, started defrosting the fish we'll have for dinner tonight, refereed a few territorial squabbles, found a necessary pacifier, and, finally, gotten the younger two down for their afternoon naps.  I'm bushed.  Right now I have B watching a Star Wars video and I have a good book and a huge glass of ice water waiting for me.    The babies sleep until 3:30 or 4, so we'll have another flurry of activity then until their parents come for them between 5:30 and six.    Tonight, a quiet dinner, then to the gym for my Tuesday workout.

Mr. Munch is flitting around the house trying to tempt me with dried apricots and a small piece of dark chocolate.  I thwarted him somewhat, by including those two things as key ingredients for the kids' "surprise sandwiches."  Peanut butter, strawberry jam and today's surprise ingredients.  I might have hinted to them that the next time might feature M&M's.

I'm wearing a shirt that hasn't fit for almost a year.  Not only was it too snug at tummy and bust, but the short sleeves were way too tight.  Not anymore.  It fits well and I feel good in it.  I keep snatching glimpses of it in the mirror to remind myself that I don't really want to snack mindlessly.  I want to keep on losing and toning and being able to wear cute stuff from the closet.

My Splenda campaign is going swimmingly.  I've set a goal to limit my added Splenda intake to two packets/day.   This morning, I'm proud to report, I had my shredded mini-wheats sweetened with . . . peaches!!  SCORE!  They were great, as is.   I've got a few more weeks of peach season to learn to enjoy the taste before I face naked shredded wheat sans Splenda.  Think I can do it?  I do.

My WI is tomorrow and I have, in the past, managed to sabotage my good week with senseless, day-before-WI high-salt snacks.  Get out of my face, Mr. Munch!  I don't care that there's a package of indivual chip bags in the garage.  I'm not gonna play your games today.

I'm not entirely confident that I will actually lose anything tomorrow.  I sure want to and my weekly loss usually only shows on the scale on the very last day--all at once.  Even if I'm not going to lose, I don't want to add to any possible gain by blowing it today.  I feel that I've been following my plan closely enough to have earned a loss.  Exercised 45+ minutes for 6 of 7 days; OP every single meal of the week; eating more slowly at dinners; cutting down Splenda; keeping portions under control.  I'll for sure do my "last chance" Wednesday morning run before I go to my WI.   I run every single Wed morning (no kiddo's) so if I didn't I would through things off.

At my WW meeting a couple of weeks ago the leader was talking about plateaus.  She didn't say, but strongly implied that a plateau is indicative of some lapse in adherence to the program.  I'm not sure I agree.  I've had weeks where I was positively angelic, but registered no change at all.  I do think that in the process of weight loss, there are going to be periods when your weight stabilizes for a few weeks before it starts going down again.  Maybe the checking for discrepancies process that my leader suggested is a positive thing in any case, in that it's always useful to spot check things in any venture and you might just find something you can do better.

What do you think?  Do you think that plateaus are a natural part of weight loss, or should they be seen as clues that one needs to mind the p's and q's of the Plan more closely.

Be sure to check in tomorrow evening to learn . . . the rest of the story!

Blessed Relief

The long-promised cold front finally blew in this afternoon bringing a torrential thunder storm and a 27 degree drop in the temperature!  It feels so good that I almost don't even care that I was in the line at Safeway with a full cart of groceries when the rain let loose.  Picture me dashing out to my car (virtuously parked at the far end of the lot from the door) with a hastily contrived  plastic bag rain hat, complete with the Safeway logo.  LOL  It reminds me of the funny little fan shaped plastic rain hats that my mother used to keep, always, in her purse--I used to make fun of her, but I'm older and wiser now and I just got my hair beautified yesterday.

B, J, and E trying to beat the heat in a little back yard pool.  At least I thought it was a little pool until I had to blow it up.  I think the 40 minutes I spent blowing into that thing must be worth several hundred calories.  LOL

My Splenda Reduction campaign is going well.  I'm opting to put both of my two daily alloted packets on my morning cereal.  It's okay that way and I may cut down to one packet in a few days.  I don't like unsweetened coffee, so I'm going without now. It's interesting how many people offered me coffee today.  Two different friends suggested we get coffee after church and  DH had made me a gorgeous glass of iced coffee (doctored with a few packets of splenda) which I had to turn down.   Not a great hardship; I usually only drink it two or three times a week and I've always preferred coffee ice cream to real coffee!

Our thermometer reached 105 yesterday--that's hot HUMID 105, not the dry 105.  I basically stayed inside all day.  I thought about running early, and even set my alarm, but the thermometer was up to 89 at 6 am and I decided to skip the run.  I ended up not doing any exercise--the first day since June 5 that I've not exercised.  I missed it.  I don't want to make a habit of skipping, but I'm not going to obsess about it either.  Today I got up early and ran for 30 minutes before church.

I've been fighting Mr. Munch today.  I thought I'd kicked him to the curb, but he must have blown in with the storm.  The damage is one 3.5 oz dark chocolate & hazelnut bar--eaten half-soaked in the car on my way home from the storm.  It was good, but it's behind me now.  Pan seared scallops with mango-avocado salsa, petite peas, and couscous are on the menu tonight.  I think we'll eat early.  DH took B (our visiting 8 yr old grandson) to the movies to see Toy Story 3 this afternoon.  He had a coupon for a free movie popcorn & drink, so I imagine B won't be too hungry.  DH, going on 2 years at his WW lifetime goal weight, won't indulge in movie munchies and will be very hungry.

Do you remember Lot?  And specifically Lot's wife?  She's the one who was being hustled away from her home in the sin-ridden city of Sodom and Gomorra, but she looked back once too often at her comfortable home and was turned into a pillar of salt.  I sympathize with her.  I think of my former way of living and know that it wasn't healthy, but, once in a while, I remember waking up to pancakes and syrup with a big glass of OJ and no run through the sweltering heat in sight.   Now I don't want to go back there, but sometimes . . .  I'm just saying.

Now, so you don't think I'm going to turn into a pillar of salt, I'll give you FIVE reasons I like living  (and eating) just the way I am:

1.  It so much easier to get out of my hot sweaty sports bra  now.  

There were times when I seriously thought I'd have to call for help.

2.  Today I ducked out of my shower to make sure J. was getting ready for church.  My bath towel wrapped nicely around my body without leaving any gaps.  (You know what I mean!)

3.  I like being able to say that I run 12-15 miles per week.

4.  Clothes shopping is so much easier.

5.  I love cooking great, healthy, delicious meals for myself and for my family.

Leave a comment and tell me one reason why you'll never go back to the "bad old days."

Funk Recovery

Yesterday I had a funky day, diet wise.  It was Thursday, and one of the days I watch my grand babies.  It was also a record-breaking hot, muggy day.  The babies arrive early and are here for 10+ hours.  I love 'em to pieces and we have fun together, but, somehow, yesterday I was feeling frustrated.  J still takes short-ish morning and afternoon naps, E takes a long afternoon nap.  The awful weather outside, the fact that the double stroller ended up at their house this week,  and their scheduled naps and bottles, made me decide not to try any outings yesterday.  My scheduled exercise on Thursdays is a gym date with DH, after supper.  But I was feeling antsy and cooped up in the house.  I think the kids felt it too, because mild-tempered J used his brand new teeth to bite E's little leg when she wouldn't let him touch one of her toys.

The cooped up feeling led to my old enemy Mr. Munch making his presence known.  I ate my good breakfast and my good lunch, but was sorely tempted by the kids' pretzel sticks and E's peanut m&ms (a potty training reward).  Fortunately my pantry is swept pretty clean of some of the big players in the bad snack department, but I remembered that there is a stash of York peppermint patties (reader beware, don't fall for the Costco size box, like I did).  I started remembering how much I enjoy popcorn, too.   By the end of the afternoon, the score was Mr. Munch -1,  Me- 0.   DH got home, I fixed our nice OP dinner and we went to the gym.

I felt disheartened by my succumbing to emotional eating, but was able to climb back onto the high road and it's yesterday's news, not today's.   I totaled up the points of all my  munching and was somewhat consoled to find that I ate only about 7 points worth.  Not everything I ate was a bad food (popcorn's okay, and the piece of whole wheat toast  is okay, too), but I want to be more in control of what I'm eating.  I get to choose and plan, not Mr. Munch.   Do you hear me, MM??  Hit the road.

My weight this morning had a little blip up, but I'm sure it will go back down.   I did a 3 mile run first thing and DH and I plan a long bike ride after dinner tonight.  I drew strength from reading your blogs (thank you, thank you) and I did a little reading in Refuse to Regain while I was getting my hair colored.  I didn't enjoy the off-plan eating yesterday, but I am feeling good about turning from that behavior and reclaiming my life.  I'm off to visit my Dad in the nursing home.

What do you do to recover from off-plan eating?