Something that made me smile

I have on a size MEDIUM top today. It's a little Hanes v-neck t-shirt and it's pink and green striped. I didn't think it would look right on me yet, but I was gonna wear it over the summer. It fits just fine. Now, my friend got me a Bob Marley t-shirt, it's a size LARGE and it's too tight. Go figure. But I was so happy with how it fit. I can rock a MEDIUM t-shirt. Whose upper body is this??? I'm talkin' bout other folk ain't ready, lol, I'm the one who ain't ready! I'm starting to focus on all the good things I do. I will take note of the bad things simply to change the habit. Otherwise, it's all good!!!

Good day

so far, lol. As of this morning, I am at 181.5.

I walked to work; it took me about 30 minutes, just like I thought. So before my first class, I already have over 4600 steps. All my classes are in the computer lab today, so I don't have to do a lesson. I'm going to read during that time. Nothing on running right now, just healthy and weight-loss and walking. I figure I have to get ready to run, but I have to at least get back where I was before 5/4. *sigh* I'm trying not to be intimidated by this whole marathon training ordeal. I need to blog about all that.

I'm out of the maintainance state of mind and back into the LET'S GET THIS WEIGHT OFF state of mind.

:-D I feel good.

The No-Money Diet

I wonder if I can get paid for this. I'm SURE I could write a book on it!!! When I have NO money, I eat the best. Not necessarily the least, but there is NO junk. I can only eat what I already have at home. And as usual, the worst thing I have is cereal. I haven't even been drinking coffee. AND I gave away my espresso machine. Today's weight? This morning it was 182 and when I got home from work it was 181. I'm almost positive it'll be at 182.5 tomorrow. I have been clockin' madd steps on my pedometer. And haven't even exercised. But starting tomorrow, it's ON. I WILL be walking to work from now on. Why, because gas is $2.99/gal and Monique doesn't pay that much for gas. She'd MUCH rather walk. COOL on that. I mean, seriously, it was $2.70 this morning and I thought THAT was expensive. I was coming to accept $2.59, but $2.70 was pushin' it and $2.99 is out of the question. My tank is on E and that's how it will stay. So I'll be walking to work and back every day; that's 3.8 miles. That's not including what I have to do to train for the marathon. The weight should start to melt off.

Here's the thing. Can we discuss something? Ok. Look at this picture:

I stopped exercising in around November. I started going to Pilates when? In January, I think. I went to Pilates just a few times, though. The point is, I have no idea how from 8/7/06 to 3/12/07 my face thinned out like that. WAIT! I was consistent about writing down what I ate until February, around the same time I stopped going to Pilates class. And I think for the most part, I stayed around 1500 calories. There were, of course, off days. And I always parked really far at work. I guess I did do some stuff to stay on track. I'm always so hard on myself. It's not until I come to this blog that I realize I'm not all bad. Why are we so unforgiving of ourselves? Why do we beat ourselves up over little mistakes? When you think about it, it's just silly.

So what was I saying? Oh, the weight should melt off. And it should. I mean, if I was half-assin' it for three months solid, and now I'm picking back up for real? Meaning, nutrition AND exercise, not just one or the other? Yeah, the weight should melt off. I have more motivation besides the Marathon. I'm kinda-sorta in a wedding in July. I'm even planning on buying a dress in the wedding colors. And the reason is two-fold. One, people really are noticing the difference. And I know I should, too, but I really haven't. Not until that picture up there. And so if people are noticing, I want to look nice. This is the first time vanity has played a part in my journey. I mean, it's first and foremost right now. I know the weight will come off, so my focus needs to be tone and look good. And come July, I should be able to see a difference. There will be people at this wedding who haven't seen me since 247lbs. And it makes me feel good when people compliment me on the weight-loss. I feel like I've accomplished something I should be proud of. Most people know how hard it is to lose weight, and having others acknowledge that accomplishment fills me with such a good feeling. . . a job well done. My friend came to visit last weekend and I hadn't seen him in a year. The first thing he said to me was, "Damn, you're skinny as hell!" (this is not true; I'm a size 12. I'm hardly skinny; let's be clear.) The last thing he said before he left was, "You look good; what an inspiration." I had to break out in a big smile both times. And I had on too-big clothing, too. But I guess compared to what I was, I do look skinny now. I showed my students pictures from my study abroad (10 years and almost 70lbs ago) and they said I used to be huge. So now I'm starting to expect the reactions from people when I haven't seen them in a while. Otherwise, it will make me feel self-conscious. So since I know people are going to notice, I want to look cute. The second reason is I STILL haven't had the opportunity to shop for something really nice in this new, non-plus size. I'm kinda excited to even go looking. I'm wondering if I should buy two different dresses, one size 10 and one 12? Because what if I thin down more than I expect and a 12 is too big? I don't think that'll happen. I think if a 12 is too big, it won't be sloppy too big. We'll see. And by then I will be able to tell my friends I ran a 5K and that I'm training for a marathon (and in this precise moment, I use the word "training" very loosely). How wild is that? The last time they saw me, I was over 200lbs and for some, I was close to 250lbs, and by then I'll be around 171 (hopefully) and a runner?! It trips me out! LOL!

So back to the No Money Diet. Tonight's dinner was rice and beans. I added some diced tomatoes and chili seasoning to the kidney beans. It was delicious; the leftovers will be lunch tomorrow. I'm happy with the scale again. I know that I'm not going to buy any foolishness when I get paid. I want to continue to see results. I'm back on plan, baby! And it's going to be so easy to phase into FS because of how I've been eating on the No Money Diet. I just have to buy plenty of produce because I'ma be all fruited out, lol. I need it to cleanse my system. And I'm not dreading FS, either. I kinda welcome the challenge, because, really, that's all it is.

Seriously looking forward to leaving the 180's, and for good this time. I'm seriously NOT trying to climb back above 182.5. I'm not. I remember this feeling. This is how I felt when I started WW last year. Positive. Strong. Sure. Ready.

I'm ready

I'm sincere and focused and back on the bandwagon. I gave away some food and I threw some food away (candy, cookies, and ice cream). I had company this past weekend that was here to help me move, and they don't eat healthy so I had all KINDS of stuff left in my apartment. I had to get rid of all that mess.

I have taken out my food journal. The last time I wrote down what I ate was 2/27/07. It's only been 8 weeks, but it feels like forever. I was at 181lbs then and I'm at 184.5 today. My weight fluctuates (especially after a weekend like this past one) but always settles at around 182. My body really likes that weight. That's too bad, because we are about to get right down in the 170's and just keep it movin'. So just now I wrote down what I've eaten, starting on Sunday, 4/22/07, even though my food choices were horrible. But I'm being accountable to myself. Since I'm writing down what I eat, I know I will think more about what I eat before I eat it. I'm ready.

Today I will start to transition into Fat Smash. I know I need to do something because my stomach doesn't feel like it should and I just feel BLECH. I don't like feeling like this, so I need to do something. How I've maintained my weight is a mystery to me, seriously. Anyway, I'm making some chili tonight for dinner and I'm not going to include any meat, BUT I need to eat it with some crackers. I haven't bought bread since before the Passover, so that won't even be an issue. And I'm not spending money on eating away from home, I should be cool. I'm going to use my transition time to come up with more meals to last me the whole 9 days. And I'm going to try to stick to it to the VERY best of my ability. If I don't, I'll only let myself down. And the way I see it, if I can commit to running (or run/walking, whatever) a marathon, then I can commit to eating differently for a little over a week. It seriously is not that bad. Plus it will help me get back on track with my eating habits. And it may help me to do the WW Core plan instead of flex points. We'll see. But I'm serious and I'm dedicated. I really want to succeed at this marathon thing and it's more than just exercise. I need to pay CLOSE attention to what I eat if I'm gonna be a runner. So I have to look at it as a necessary part of my training. If a kid can go thru chemo, I can give up meat and pasta and junk food for a week. Oh, and caffeine. *sigh* Right after I publish this entry, I'm going to get coffee. The no caffeine thing is going to be VERY hard. VERY. I hope I don't kill no kids.

Activity? Haven't been doing so well at that. I'm going to Pilates today for the first time in around as long, 8 weeks. But my body needs it. I think I have 4 classes left, so I need to get 10 more. I've been wearing my pedometer consistently for about a week. I've been doing OK with my step-count. Yesterday I only got up to around 6K. So today I'm shooting for 12K. There's no excuse, really, because I have a fitness center with a treadmill. I went to the library yesterday and got more books. I had gotten a grip of books about running (I'll discuss those when I update my MV blog), but I wanted to get back into some regular health and fitness books. So I picked up the Mayo Clinic books again (Healthy Weight for Everybody and Fitness for Everybody). They have a new one, well new to me, The Mayo Clinic plan : 10 essential steps to a better body & healthier life, so I got that, too. Then I got these two books that look like textbooks. One is called Physical Activity Epidemiology and the other one is about developing strength training programs. I also got more books on Pilates and working out on the ball (I even got an Idiot's Guide for the ball). I need to come up with a strength training routine that will work for me to tone my arms, abs, upper thighs, and back. Those are my target areas. So I'm gonna read that and come up with what I'm going to do. I'll have a variety of exercises I can do so I don't get bored, using either weights, resistance bands, or my own body weight. Then I also got a book on cross training (I think it's for Dummies).

So that's that. Look for an update in my MV blog later today as well.

What is goin' on???

More details later, but I've gained a lot of weight in the last week or two. I'm at 193.5. I don't know what happened. I've just been eating and eating. I don't know if it was being on spring break or what. All I know is I need to get it in gear. More on this later.

I'll run a marathon when PIGS fly!!!

I totally forgot!!! I've decided to train for a marathon! Now, I don't know if I'll *run* in the marathon, but I'll definitely walk. So I'm going to start training now for next year. That way, if I *do* decide to run, I'll be already training for it. We'll see. I'm kinda excited to have something to work toward.

http://www.flyingpigmarathon.com/

I have a friend who is also going to do it, but I think she's planning on running. I'll definitely keep y'all posted on this. I'll probably start a blog about training for this once I start, cuz it'll need to be separate from this. Just to track how many miles I walk each day and at what pace, etc. Maybe I'll add jogging or sprinting (for only 90secs) to my walks. We'll see.

I just know that when I accomplish THIS, I will feel SO good about myself and it will solidify in my mind just how healthy I really am. Losing the weight is not enough for me, I really want to be FIT!!!

Why am I super excited about this, though?

Measurements (YEAH BOYEEEEEE!!!!!)

Ok, here they are:

Bust - 37.5 (was 44.5 in 2002)
Upper Arm - 11.5 (was 14.25 in 2002)
Waist - 32.25 (was 39 in 2002)
Hips - 40.5 (was 48.5 in 2002)
Upper Thigh - 26 (was 30.5 in 2002)
Calf - 14.5 (was 16.5 in 2002)
Wrist - 6.5 (didn't measure this in 2002, but a bracelet bought in 2003 is now too big)
Ankle - 8.75 (didn't measure in 2002)
Back - 33 (was 34.5 on 11-11-06; didn't measure in '02, but wore 42D bra, not sure of new size, but my bras were all too big)

So it looks like I've lost almost 7 inches off my waist! And my thighs ARE shrinking even though they don't look like it! And my BACK!!! I complain all the time about the back-fat, but it's shrinking, too!!! Monique, you are doin' something right, you just have to IMPROVE on what you're already doing and KEEP doing it!!! I have lost a grand TOTAL of 32.75 inches!!!

Motivation like a mug!!! I just stopped typing and started back; I've been dancing around my living room for like 30mins. I've gotten over 4,000 steps from it, too!!!! I can't wait until I have the body of MY dreams!!!! Not what media tells me I should want, but how I picture my body. I'm motivated and I'm ready to drop these last 25lbs.

OK, back to my dance work-out. :)

OH! I need to shout out my sorors Tra and Cheleski for the encouraging comments!! We help each other...

Stay encouraged!!!!

Slowly, surely...

I'm gettin' back into gear!!! I'm down to 176.5 as of this today (I haven't eaten today, yet, though). I did some stability ball exercises this morning (that I got out of Fitness magazine). I'm mad it's gotten so cold cuz that totally nixes walking outside. But that's cool cuz I move a week from tomorrow and I'll have a fitness center!!! Even though I said I'd never lift another weight, I think I may do a little weight lifting. I have a new friend who used to be a football player and now is a health/PE teacher. Little does he know he's about to be my personal trainer (as far as weights go). Even though I'ma continue with Pilates, I am paranoid about burning the back fat, arm fat, and ab fat. So I'ma do Pilates AND a *little* weight training. It's the Feast of Unleavened Bread, so I can't eat anything that has leavening in it (yeast, baking soda, sodium bicarbonate, etc) and I'm sure that has contributed to the weight-loss. Y'all know how much I eat bread! This is the ONLY week out of the year that I don't. And I'm only halfway through the week. The truth? I don't miss it all that much, but it can be inconvenient. I mean, I wanted a PBJ sammich the other day. Instead, I had to cook. Which is good, right? I made mac-n-beef, a BIG pot. I'm so sick of it; I'ma freeze most of the rest and make some chili. I REALLY need to find some Matza if I'ma make chili. I can't eat chili without some type of carb. That's not totally true, I've done it before, but it will make me miss bread/crackers. Anyway, I'm rambling. I'm about to take my measurements and post and compare to the last time I took them and to my original measurements from 2002. I've also taken pictures that I plan to post as soon as I can get them on a disc. Ok, so lemme take the measurements. BRB...