5%

Tonight was my 5th weigh-in at WW. I hit my 5% goal in only 4 weeks! I'm ecstatic. I'm down 10.4 pounds since I started. Next goal: breaking 180.

So, what have I been up to? Well, I'm a terrible snacker, so instead of hitting the candy machine at work (read: cheez-its and m&m's), I bring a TON of 0 & 1 point snacks with me to work - pears, apples, grapes, 97% fat free popcorn, baby-bel cheese. The other thing I've been doing is, rather than cutting a recipe down to avoid leftovers, I use the leftovers up. I cook up the recipe & then divide it up into the number of meals for which it was intended, then I eat them up. It makes it so much easier to not be caught off guard. For example: going to Noah's bagels on the fly, thinking, "Oh, a turkey wrap on wheat should be pretty healthy." That's a negative. 14 points. And not even that tasty.

So, tip of the week: Plan ahead!

Back at it.

Hello, blogosphere...it's been a while. Obviously the Nike Women's didn't happen for me. It was a crazy summer, and when the commitment deadline approached (i.e. the deadline to commit to $2.5k), I chickened out.

So...after a summer of doing not much productive by way of losing weight, I got on my kitchen scale 2 weeks ago for the first time in 2 months, and saw what I was afraid of - I'd gained about 7 pounds over the summer. I was almost back to my highest weight that I'd ever been, which was way back in high school. It was time to take action.

I did WeightWatchers with my roomie senior year, and lost almost 20 pounds. I knew it worked, but I also knew it didn't work for me if I didn't have support. So I decided to take the plunge and join the meetings. I'd always had a fear of them because I thought they'd be a bunch of fat old ladies & they'd judge me for being my size at my age. But that's not the case at all!! They range in age from 20's on up. Both genders. And there's absolutely no judgment. I'm half-way through Week 2, and so far, so good. I'm 5.2 pounds down. My goal is to lose 40 by May. I'll try to update each week with new recipes I've tried and my progress.

To find a WeightWatcher's meeting near you, click here

Look, Ma! I ran!

Ok, so it was only a mile, but I did wake up at 5:50 to run this morning. Thanks in large part to JWalker waking me up. It is much easier to tell one's alarm to shut up than one's friend.

But this is where I got to run this morning. So all-in-all it was worth it. Buddy run tomorrow, short run on Wednesday, and track practice on Thursday. Is it really only 125 days until Nike?? yikes.

Good News, Bad News Part II

Well, the good news is I've been running with some girls fairly consistently(except this week because of midterms) and I think I've lost weight.

The bad news-I've also lost a lot of muscle :( and haven't been very consistent with weight training.

La-Awesome job on the marathon training! I'm a proud running mama..even though I know running you did NOT go tonight ;)

Cross training = anything but running, basically. weights, biking, yoga, playing a game of tennis. Anything that gives your body a break from running for a day and works some different muscles but you're still remaining active instead of doing nothing. Make sense? 

Let's both keep up the great work and by Christmas (or thanksgiving) nobody will even recognize us!

Good News Bad News

Good news first - lost 1 pound on Monday weigh in! woo hoo!

bad news - I haven't worked out since Monday morning, when I ran (actually, more like a shuffled) 2 miles.

But Mario's dragging me out to Lake Merced to go running tonight. Even though I'd much rather curl up in bed with rocky road ice cream & Finding Nemo for the 3rd time this week.

But I have people to prove wrong. So running I will go. :)

Three down, 23 to go.

Today we went to the Baylands in Palo Alto for our first group run. Let me tell ya. Running with people (even complete strangers up to that point) is so much more fun than running alone. I made it to mile three. A new personal record. And I'm so excited that I get to do this once a week until October 18!

Here's a pic of some of the girls I ran with today. This is what we look like after 3 miles of running (and one mile of walking).

Here are some lessons I learned today:

1. Cotton is Rotton. They coaches told us this...when cotton is wet it doesn't feel good. But i didn't want to be cold, and the running top I have that is of appropriate fabric makes me look like a sausage. So I wore it under the UT t-shirt. It was super humid out there, and the cotton felt really heavy. Not comfortable.

2. New shoes, while awesome, sould perhaps not be broken in on a 4 mile course hello, 4 blisters!

3. More than 3 hours of sleep would have greatly improved my performance and overall feeling of wanting to die.

More soon!

-Lauren

Little Miss Brainy

Please consider this blog post as official notice that Ms. Emily Christine Margaret Mary Kotara got inducted into the Honor Society at the University of Texas at Galveston Grad school this weekend. 

 

Congrats, Sister Friend!!  I'm so proud of how well you're doing!! 

Death Wish

Hello, all!

Today officially begins my training for the Nike Women's Marathon.

We had our Team-In-Training kick-off yesterday, and our first group run is on Saturday. Today's schedule: Run 2-4 miles. Pretty sure I'm going to be closer to the 2 end of that spectrum.

Also, here's my plug - donate to me! I'm raising $2,600 for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. Part of me is worried that the fundraising is going to be more difficult than the actual running. To donate, go here: http://pages.teamintraining.org/sj/nikesf09/lkotara.

Words of encouragement are appreciated as much as donations (maybe more)!

Also, found this awesome article about marathon training and weight loss.

Emily - Question: 2 days a week we're supposed to do "light" workouts - i.e. a short run and/or cross training. Any workout ideas for cross training? The idea is to give the running muscles a break, but the gym doesn't have a whole lot of weight equipment other than a few for the arms.

I'm Still Alive!

I have no excuse for my lack of posting.  Or my lack of motivation.  I wish I could say that I've been too busy running every evening to post, but that just isn't the case.  

BUT!  I'm starting training for the Nike Women's Half-Marathon on October 18.  Depending how it goes, I may push for the full marathon.  But seeing as how 2.5 is the furthest I've ever run outdoors...that's doubtful :)

Sister, congrats on being the only person to keep up with this thing, even though it was my idea.

So...training officially starts on June 6, but I think I need to get out there before then so I don't die.  I'll keep you guys posted on my progress/workouts.  I can tell you one thing...my afternoon snack of Cheez-its is probably gonna have to go.  

We're taking Mike out to In-n-Out for his birthday at lunch today, then tomorrow I'm officially back on the diet wagon.  May 21.  Mark your calendars.

Oh man...what I wouldn't give for a margarita on the beach right now.  

Hello Blog, It's me, Emily...

Is anyone there??

Talk about a hiatus from everyone? Are we all too scared to admit our failures? Or too busy to post our success? Nope..can't be that...nobody is ever too busy to brag :)

BUT I know sister has been doing well with running!

I'm finally getting back into the swing of somewhat of a routine of working out and eating healthy(er) since I'm back in Galveston after finals, a week off, then camp with cafeteria food. AND I haven't been drinking alcohol...tonight was actually the first night in a while and boy, was that Cinco de Mayo marg strong!

So, here are my new goals:

Running regularly to train for the half-marathon in January (& maybe one in November, too!)

Lift weights at least 2x a week

Eating healthier (ie. cut down on the sweets)

Get bikini ready for Hawaii!!

Get my weight down by at least 5 lbs by Aug. when I go to the dr. (Doesn't sound like a lot, but it kind of is since I'm also lifting weights again!)

Here's to Mexico! ayy yii yiii!

YES!

I went for my longest outside run today in a while. I was really stressed out and didn't want to go, but decided to at the last minute. Granted, it wasn't very long, but it was the small push I needed to start again. Stress relief and a good run! :D I'm ready to take on the world now...

I'm horrible

at keeping up with this blog-thing lately.
So far this week, I worked out Sun, Mon, Tues and yesterday. Decided to take today off and hit the gym or go for a run tomorrow. Yesterday's weigh-in was a gain of a pound, but who knows why. I'll weigh in again tomorrow if I go to the gym. (See, I'm getting obsessive about it.) When I was visiting lala, I think I weighed myself at least 3 times a day.
The good news is, I'm finally almost finished eating my bday desserts and then I'll be back to no sweets in the house. Buttermilk pie can't be all that bad for you, with all that dairy, can it? And more good news--I finally have been going for longer and harder runs, which has been feeling great! (Well, after, not during.)
Lots of news lately about red wine being good for you, especially because the French are so healthy. I'll give some credit to wine based on research, and mind you, I've never been to France, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say they have much more active lifestyles than the average American. We'll do anything here to be able to drink more booze. Hey, I'm all for it :) Just kidding MOM!

Guess Who Lost Two Pounds

MOI! And that's just since Sunday!

And, despite yet ANOTHER 12 hr work day, I did go home and make some Italian Wedding Soup last night, because I ran out of turkey breast and cheese slices (which was my dinner Monday & Tuesday nights).  The soup turned out pretty well, except a little chicken-brothy.  Maybe next time i'll use half chicken broth half water or something.

I'll post the recipe soon so you can try for yourselves.

I am glad this is working, though.  Since I just ordered a bridesmaid dress one size smaller than I probably should have to avoid a $25 extra fee.  (I call BS on that one)

Also, thanks for sending the marshmallow fluffies, Mommy!  Although,  I can't partake until Sunday, since it is processed food.  :(  :(

Update, yo!

Ok, so 2 days in, and it hasn't been too bad.  Breakfast and lunch are easy:

Breakfast:

Smoothie (1 cup yogurt, sliced strawberries, blueberries, raspberries)

1 egg (just whites) - 7 pts.

Lunch:

Salad (spring salad mix, sliced turkey breast, strawberries, parmesean cheese, chopped pecans, tomatoes, Raspberry vinaigrette dressing, sliced mushrooms) - 5 pts

Snacks:

tea, fruit salad (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries), baby carrots - 2 pts

I worked until 9:30 the last two nights so here's what dinner looked like:

sliced turkey breast, cheddar cheese slices - 7 pts.

The hardest part is when I get a craving for something salty in the afternoon.  I think tomorrow I'll save the tomato for an afternoon snack - tomato with salt.

Also, working until 9:30 leaves no time to make dinner, which means I'll be having the EXACT same thing tomorrow.  That does not excite me at all.  Also, tomorrow Pam comes with her delicious catered lunch tomorrow.  AND we have birthday cake in the afternoon.  Both will be SERIOUSLY hard to avoid.

5 more days...

Don't forget weigh-in tomorrow. 

Challenge

So, tomorrow I'm starting a new project.  I've been thinking alot about what I eat, and I've been thinking for a while that for my main meals I really don't eat that badly, save for the occasional poker night pizza or something.

Really where I have a hard time is with snacking.  Wheat thins, pretzels, cheeze-its, chips & salsa.  Basically alot of processed foods.

So I'm challenging myself this week to only eat foods that I've prepared, or that are raw.  The only exceptions would be Dairy.  I obviously don't have the resources to milk my own cows or make my own yogurt.  

I just want to see how hard it is to avoid all of that processed food that is so much a part of American Cuisine.  Also, that stuff isn't cheap.  It adds up.  So, maybe I'll save some money, too.

So, I'll keep you posted daily on what I've been eating.  

Wish me luck!

Update

Weighed in Wednesday after step and was the same weight. Have to admit, I wasn't too terribly disappointed considering the terrible foods I ate over spring break and the lack of exercise. This week I managed to get in workouts on Tues, Wed and yest. Going fishing in a little while, so no working out today, but fishing wins!

Tues - 25 min on the treadmill, volleyball game

Wed - Step for an hour

Thurs - Body conditioning class (1 hr)

So far this week: approx. 1500 calories burned.

So I googled "rain" images to celebrate the week of rain we've had here, and this is what came up:

ridiculous

still no weight loss.  and this week hasn't been good...working until 7:00 every night, lots of errands.  Leaves no time for exercise.  J & I are starting a 5K training program though.  Will post more later.

and then

I made some banana bread.

Yum-o!

Tonight was a simple, but tasty meal.  The chicken I made up, the carrots are from Better Homes & Gardens cookbook.

Chicken:

In a small saucepan, melt a tablespoon of butter.  Saute about a quarter of an onion over medium heat.  Add 1/4 c. bbq sauce.  Lightly season 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken breast with seasoning.  Add to saucepan & cook until done (around 8 minutes).  

Carrots:

Add 1 lb baby carrots to boiling, salted water.  Cook covered until just done (about 8 minutes).  Drain and set aside.  In the same bowl, combine 1 tbsp butter or margarine, 1 tbsp honey, 1/4 tsp dried thyme, crushed, pinch of salt & pepper.  Cook until combined.  Add Carrots back to mixture & stir until combined (about 2 minutes).

Oh yeah..

...I've also managed to keep a consistent weight this week even with the bad habits..this is according to the crap scale at the house. Will weigh in Wed. at the gym after step. can't wait!!

I'm BACK!

Went on a little hiatus during spring break. Managed to get a couple of semi-workouts in over the break but nothing since early last week. Hoping for good weather tomorrow to go for an outdoor run. I have a lot to catch up on this week but need to get back into a good groove. That's my key for success.
Had some good (fattening) meals and some healthy ones, too, thanks to sister. Wasn't too hungry tonight so settled on some Bush's baked beans for dinner. talk about healthy.

MIA

So...this is the longest i've gone without posting.  Yes, mom.  It is because I've been being bad.  I've actually been doing pretty well with running - going about 3 days a week.  But the diet has been harder.  I think because I was working so hard at eating well, and it's has not paid off AT ALL. 

It's so frustrating!  I know that I slip sometimes, but i'm still eating so much better than I had been.  So I'm going to try to re-set.  I don't have a plan yet, but I have to do something.  There's only like 7 weeks left.

baaaad

i am eating caramel fudge cheesecake from papa dante's in bed. i wonder, since i really didn't eat all day, if this little slice of cake is within my 1500 caloric intake range. hmmmm... i do know one thing: milk makes this experience 100 times better!

2 For 2

Worked out for the second day in a row last night.  That's awesome, because normally I'm good if I work out two weeks in a row.  I ran down to the bay and back (just over a mile), then came back and did this workout.  (thanks, Emily!) Only, one iteration of it kicked my butt.  So, while I made it through the lather & rinse steps, "repeat" was just too daunting a task.

Let's see if I can make tonight day 3! 

oh.  and don't forget about the weigh-ins.

2 Items of Interest

1.  I worked out last night!  Wahoo!  I did:

• 5 minute warm-up
  
• an for 15 minutes (1.5 miles)
• 5 minute cool-down
• 10 minutes of weights

I had planned to do an hr workout, but I didn't get off of work until 7:30.  This meant that if I worked out any longer I wouldn't get to eat dinner until, like 10.  

2.  We were talking about Easter candy at work today.  I said my favorite are those marshmallow bunnies.  Not Peeps - the ones that come individually wrapped in matching cellophane.  No one had heard of them.  So I turned to Google to illustrate my point.  Then I came across this: 

JESUS PEEP??? SERIOUSLY?  So I sent it to a couple people at work who I knew would find it amusing.  one of them responded with this:

A PEEP SHOW! Bah Ha Ha Ha!

Thought you guys would enjoy those.

Happy Tuesday.  Remember what tomorrow is!

Ok, fine. But she's still annoying.

Tried a new recipe today.  I was hungry for pork, and happened to find this recipe on caloriecount.about.com.  This is one of my favorite diet sites.  It's very comprehensive when it comes to the food database, and users add their own recipes.  It has a handy tool where you can import your own recipes and it'll give you the nutritional value.

This particular recipe is credited to Rachel Ray.  I find her extremely annoying, and have never made a recipe of hers strictly on principle.  This one just sounded way too good, though.  And easy.  Which is important, since I've never made pork before.  It was SOO good.  Jack approved as well.  So I may try another of Ms. Ray's Recipes, but only ones I find online.  You can find the recipe here

Emily - love the workout chart.  I did walk to the park today.  It's only 1/4 mile from my apartment, so I wouldn't consider it a workout, but it was a little exercise nonetheless.  

One good thing about Spring Forward - I will actually get to see daylight when I leave work, so hopefully will start running again in the evenings.

Emily - so far, so good on the weather for your visit!

Let's Rodeo

So all last week I was eating (mostly) well in preparation for the rodeo, since I knew I would be splurging a little. I ended up eating a big brisket sandwich with some kind of jalapeno bread, shared a piece of pecan pie with my friend, and had a couple of drinks. The worst part? I didn't regret any of it. DELICIOUS. I managed to recover pretty well until last night when I had french toast at a little diner at 2am.

Also did a 5k this weekend. Finished it in 30 minutes, so not too bad, but did make me realize how much I miss/need to be running outside again. After, they had fitness tests. Skipped out on the flexibility because I already know I'm not, but had a BP of 98/56 and % body fat of 27.8. That SUCKS. 21-25% is the "doing well" category.

I found this chart on shape.com and kind of fell in love with it. I always put little stickers or a star on my calendar on days I work out so I feel like a loser on the days I don't, but I like the way this breaks it down. Go here: http://www.shapeonline.com/2006/imgs/beachbody.pdf


Goals for the week:

• Get 4 long workouts to make up for leaving town Friday, including an outdoor run
  
• Eat healthy until Thursday, when at the rodeo again
  
• Maintain workouts & healthy eating while in California

Three Cheers For Kerri & Emily!

Week 3 Weigh-ins are here.  Here's the progress.  0 is the baseline, which means that we ALL weigh less than when we started.  WOO HOO!

Sadly, I think I've hit a plateau.  Which is really bad since it's Week 3, and my net weight loss is a half a pound.  

Goals for the week: 

1. Stay below my points every day.  Using bonus points is cheating
2. Workout more than once a week.  I'm contemplating joining the PJCC, because I'm much more motivated to workout in a class environment.  I get bored working out on my own, and tend to quit the second it gets hard.
3. NO MORE CANDY!  I should've put carrots in the Texas Independence Day Pinata.  

The Formula for Success

Is apparently to not munch of crap food when you're not hungry. Lost 3 pounds! :D

Workouts this week:

Monday - Home workout (strength training)

Tuesday- Ran a little over 5k in about 32 minutes

Wednesday- Step class

Thursday- I plan on getting my HR up by watching bullriders at the rodeo. But really, weights or running again for the 5k

I'll try to scrounge up some more work out tips this weekend and post them.

CAN'T WAIT FOR CALIFORNIA!! T-minus 9 days.

Welcome Back!

Glad to see you back here, Keke.  

Don't forget to weigh in today, gals.  I already weighed in this morning, but I didn't like it, so I'm going to work out after work and see if that helps.  Is that cheating?

I've been bad the last few days.  I hate that I'm an emotional eater.  Monday night I went and had a drink at BJ's Brewhouse with one of our Colorado guys that's in town.  Yesterday I ate way too much leftover pinata candy.  I took it to work so that I wouldn't eat it.  Only now I eat it at work.  But everyone at work knows I'm on a diet, so they ridicule me when I get up to go get some smarties.  That helps.

So enough about that for now.  Emily, I would like this opportunity to discuss your impending visit.  I could do this via email, but this way we'll make Kerri jealous and she'll want to come out here to see me, too.

Friday:  Emily Arrives at SFO.  Grab Some dinner, chill out, maybe go out for drinks.

Saturday:  City!  We'll do all the things you haven't gotten to do yet.  Go shopping in Union Square, ride a cable car, get some gelato in Little Italy, Tulip Garden, hit the sack early

Sunday:   TAHOE!  

Monday:  Lauren has to work, so you can spend the day recouperating.  But maybe meet up for lunch?

Tuesday: Point Reyes.  It's an hr and a half a way, so I figure we can leave like around 8, head up there, see some whales, and come back to Foster City that evening

Other options:  Santa Cruz board walk, a second day in the city, what do you think?

No Miss Goody TwoShoes Here, Either.

Splurged and had a vanilla milkshake today. Couldn't help it! I've been craving one for 2 weeks already. Did a home workout today and running tomorrow to prep for the 5k I'm running on Saturday. YIKES. I've been doing tons of cardio but haven't just RUN outside in forever. What happened to the days when a 5k was an easy run?
I promise I'll remember to weigh in Wednesday when I'm at the gym for step. At least I'm going to try my best to remember.
Gotta go...multi-tasking is causing me to miss important parts of The Bachelor finale.

Ideal Weight

My ideal weight is 40 pounds away. Geez.

I've been a bad, bad girl.

So, after having not been to kickboxing in several days, I am back, baby! And I am eating GREAT on the weekdays and eating terribly on the weekends. Kinda. But when it comes to "dranks," I am sticking to wine and vodka as much as possible. I didn't weigh in last week but when Wednesday rolls around, I am all over it. I just need reminders. LaLa. Oh, and I played a bit of tackle football while drunk Saturday night and had such a good time but I am almost positive that I broke my spleen.

Down With Mexico! Viva La Tejas!

I was really bad this weekend.  And I can't even blame the whole thing on Texas Independence day (only the frito pie, beer & tequila).  The rest I just blame on my lack of will power.  Saturday I did ok...mostly because I was too tired to eat much, but Sunday I had 2 slices of pizza & a chipotle burrito.  I'm scared to put it in my spreadsheet.

Two more days until the next weigh in.  Although, apparently I'm the only one that actually does the weigh-ins, so you two shouldn't worry yourselves.

Happy Texas Independence Day girls!  

AND Another Thing!

So, Keke - I was facebook stalking you today to see what you've been up to since you haven't posted on here since like 2002.  Then I happened to come across this little message:

I mean seriously?  SERIOUSLY?  More attention?

Ow.

I'm in pain.  Even more pain than yesterday.  Yesterday only my arms and legs hurt.  Today my arms legs and abs hurt.  In fact, my abs don't just hurt, they're so tight, I've been having to fight not to walk hunched over.  

But beauty is pain, right?  RIGHT?  It friggin better be.  

Itsy Bitsy Teenie Weenie Yellow Polka Dot

BIKINI?
No thanks. Did get into one today to lay out by the pool, but only because there was nobody around. That was a BIG step in the gaining self-confidence department for this girl.

FINALLY finished with the busy weeks so hopefully I can get into a normal routine for the next 2 weeks and semi-keep it going over spring break. Managed to fit in that weight/body conditioning class on Tuesday. I was SORE. LOVE IT. Didn't work out yesterday, but had enough coffee to keep my HR pretty high the whole day. Does that count? Today was about 40 min cardio and 10 min ab, but it was a light day because 4 hours of sleep isn't fun.

And here is the treadmill workout I promised:
0-4 min: Walk at 3.5 mph on a 3-6% incline. It should be steep enough so you really feel your glutes and calves working.

4-6 min: Jog at 5 mph on 0% incline

6-8 min: Walk at 3.5 mph on 3-6% incline

8-10 min: Run at 6 mph on 0% incline

10-50 min: Repeat circuit 4 times

50-52 min: Cool down at 3mph on 0% incline
It's pretty tough at first, so if you need to bump the speed down on the 6 mph or take it down 10 minutes, go for it.

Also, I've been listening to Tracy Byrd this afternoon. Remember when I was in love with him? (bday present HINT)

BREAKING NEWS!

I actually worked out for an hour yesterday.  5 bonus points for Lauren!!

Good Luck

One:  Mimi - Good luck on your test Thursday.  Don't stress eat.  Workout instead.  I'm probably the last person that should be telling you that, but learn from my mistakes.

Two:  Tomorrow is Second weigh-in, lest we forget.  As such, I'm declaring today Skinny Tuesday.  So no Mardi Gras pigging out today, ladies.  Good luck at the scales.

In other news...since I discovered the sabotage that was my Weight Watchers spreadsheet on Sunday, I've turned myself into a Rabbit.  I went to Trader Joe's and stocked up on organic, all natural everything:  salad, tomatoes, artichoke, fresh green beans, fruit, and pretty much everything else Mother would approve of.  

So, I've been eating really well the last...well...yesterday.  I did well on Sunday, except JWalker had us over to watch the Oscar's and made us enchiladas.  I couldn't be rude, right??  Turns out ONE enchilada is a serving.  Not Two.  I thought this would be an excellent opportunity for a lesson in healthy eating.  I made a chart to demonstrate:

Keep in mind my daily point limit is 24.  On Sunday, I had one actual meal - dinner.  The enchiladas alone were 16 points.  It was the only thing of actual substance that I had all day.  Not to mention my Starbuck's trip cost me 11 points for breakfast. 

Compare that to yesterday.  I actually ate quite a bit, and still came in 2 points below my point target.  I did get lazy and popped a frozen pizza in the oven for dinner.  But, because I ate only what was in a serving, and not half the pizza like I normally would, it really didn't cost me that many points.  

Emily - I still haven't worked out this week.  But I swear I'm going to tonight. 

Kerri - where the heck are you??

Alright, I know I said no gorging today, but I'm going to go have another Diet Coke, since I can't have any more until Easter.  Plus, they're 0 points, so they don't count.  :)

Quick One

I'm exhausted. One midterm today and a killer one Thursday = NO FUN. Still managed to get in an hour of cardio. This time it was a treadmill workout where you do intervals of running at different speeds and walking on inclines. Burns a lot of calories, so I'll post it later this week when I have time. I'm off to sleep as tomorrow will be non-stop studying. Hoping to try out a weight-class at the gym if I have time.

Happy working out this week!!

Goal for the week: Make it through Thurs at noon with some kind of physical activity besides walking between the Starbucks counter and the table I will be occupying there for the next 3 days and try to avoid this theory:

Cake Makes Me Happy

You know I had to make a Cake post.  And I ain't talkin' 'bout the pastry!  The concert last night was amazing.  Beforehand we went and ate at Zachary's Pizza in Oakland.  It's this tiny restaraunt is in this cool corner spot.  We had reservations and it was still a 30 minute wait, that's how packed it was.  But the pizza was SOOO worth it.  We had Chicago Style Deep Dish.  It's the thickest pizza I've ever seen in my life. The crust wasn't thick, it was just deep and piled high with cheese, pepperoni, mushroom and fresh diced tomatoes.  I know it had to be really bad for me, but I didn't drink so I justified the extra calories :)

On a depressing note, I got on the scale this morning, because I've been doing pretty well with my points - at least compared to last week - and I wanted to see if it had made any difference.  ABSOLUTELY NONE.  I started wondering if the Weight Watcher's spreadsheet I'd found online had a bad formula or something, so I did a little research this afternoon.  Sure enough, the formulas were completely off.  It turns out on days when I thought I was staying within my point range, I was actually about 10 points over.  No wonder I haven't been losing any weight!  

If there's anything that proves there's no substitute for the original.  That being said, I am really cheap, so for now I've fixed the spreadsheet and will continue to use it.  

So...here's hoping the next 3 days are productive on the weight loss journey.  Also, I have yet to work out this week, which means I'll have to do my 2 workouts Monday & Tuesday (Oscar Party Tonight)

losing weight is hard.

Little Miss Disappointed.

Well.  Initial weigh-ins are in.  As you can see from the chart below (yes. I made a chart), it's not looking good for our first week.  Instead of putting actual weights on the chart, I just charted change in weight.  So, since Emily and I gained weight, our lines went up.  Kudos to Kerri (where is that girl?) on at least maintaining. 

I would like to give myself a pat on the back, though.  I ate only 24 points yesterday!  I didn't even have to dip into my bonus points.  YES! Can I get a virtual high-five, please?  Now I need to work on working out.  I had every intention of using the workout Emily posted last night, but instead I went to California Pizza Kitchen & bought jeans at Banana Republic.  

Anyway - Happy Thursday, Girls.  I hope we all have a better week this week.  I want the next pair of jeans I buy to be 3 sizes smaller.

Weighed in before and after step, because I wasn't satisfied with the before number. After sweating for an hour, I was 1 lb. more than last week. I'm going to say this is normal weight fluctuation. "Oh, puh-lease" (this is what my brain is telling me). It's okay..next week starts Lent and my quest to once again give up chocolate, which will be harder than last year, I'm certain. Thought about throwing alcohol in the mix as well, but I gotta have one or the other to put me to sleep at night.

By request, I will find my old workout plans I had to make in my kinesiology class, but until then, I'm bringing you wisdom from the trainer who tried to kill me 2-3 days a week. If you ever live in Austin, you should look him up. (Jeff, I'm trying to get you business! :) )
This is from his blog, which you can find HERE.

15 Modified Pushups
30 Jumping Jacks
12 Modified Pushups
30 Second Plank Hold
8 Real Pushups
30 Bicycle Crunches
45 Second Wall Sit
Lather, Rinse, Repeat.

One thing I know for sure is that it's important to get some kind of strength training in with cardio. Muscle actually burns more calories/fat. So get some!

Kerri, are you alive?

Time To Get Serious.

Little Miss Greedy and I are fat!  I did my weigh-in this morning.  I'm up 2.6 pounds from last week.  I am attributing it to the fact that I have no concept of portion control (thanks, Dad).  When I let myself get really hungry, I don't know when to stop.  This is especially true of foods that come in bags or boxes, where I have to pay attention to how much i'm eating.

So here are my goals for week 2:

1. Stay at my 24 point goal every day.  
2. Work out at least once this week (baby steps, right?)
3. Eat 5 times a day.  I find when I have a snack between breakfast and lunch & lunch & dinner, I don't feel the urge to gorge on tortilla chips when I get home.

Well, Shucks.

A week already? Crap. & since Mom will read this, by crap I mean, oh dang. This is why I don't do "weigh-ins." But I will give in and do mine tomorrow anyway.

Healthy eating progress? No chocolate cake for bkfst = good. Chocolate for a snack = improvement, I would say.

Workout progress? Did step yesterday for cardio day. Today was upper body weights. Hopefully I will manage to get something in during the hectic-ness that will be me going home briefly Thursday.

Goal: Start running outside again to get over my rut of working out only in the gym.

Goal 2: Hurry and finish school so I can hire a professional to kick my butt working out again. & throw in a chef while I'm at it, I guess.

Nervous?

So...tomorrow is first official weigh-in, girls.  Is anyone else as scared as I am?  I have been horrible with my eating since Friday.  To the point that I haven't even recorded anything I've eaten for the last 4 days.  bad Lauren!

I think in the spirit of motivation, we should start making weekly challenges for each other.   These can be anything that we think will help each other lose weight.    Thoughts?

There should be punishments if the challenges are not met.  Of course, this would all have to be honor system, but I think we can do that.

One step forward, 7 back.

Where do I even start? Got to Austin Friday and was greeted by red velvet cupcakes and wine. Then Trudy's marg & tacos. Followed by 6th street. Then lunch out with others, brownies with others, finishing Saturday with bbq from Salt Lick & then chocolate chip pecan cake. YIKES. My stomach needs to be pumped. Don't get me wrong, it was all delicious, but I don't want to even LOOK at sugar until, well, tomorrow, maybe.

Glad to be back in Galveston where I can manage to maintain working out regularly and eating (mostly) much better.

As for step tomorrow, I'll be feeling and looking a little like this:














On a good note, We did encourage healthy habits of others when we were on 6th street by doing the following:
1-One of my friends pulled out her hospital ID badge and told people smoking in the bar that she was with the Austin health dept. When the guy started smoking another cigarette, she pulled out her phone and told "back up to come help." So, we helped somebody smoke one less cigarette.
2-Telling somebody who offered me a cigarette, "no thanks, I like my lungs."

In which Lauren tries to lose weight by chopping off all her hair

Bad news.  Apparently hair does not weigh that much.  Even as much as I have (had).  I cut like 7 inches off, and was convinced it had to at least drop my weight by a pound.  I have a TON of hair!  It wasn't all in vain, though.  I do like the haircut.

Anyway...here are pics of the new 'do: 

        

Your Weekend Guide

It's Paycheck Friday, Girls.  You know what that means - time to drink some calories!  So, I made a chart to help us avoid the bad stuff: 

Happy Valentine's Day!!

I hate saying "No" to delicious treats...

A'ight... So here's the problem: Craig. When he is in town, I eat terribly and I don't exercise; I am healthy in cycles of three weeks at a time. Time to break the vicious cycle... Starting in three weeks cause that is when he comes home -- the real test.

And last night, I made crab cakes, spinach and black-eyed peas. I sauteed some sausage in Jamaican Jerk sauce but only had a few slices of that. That was more for Craig. Then he had a Drumstick (the ice cream cones with the chocolate at the tip of the cone) and I had two bites. And then... it was like Lestat... One taste of blood and I was hooked. So I had a scoop of mint chocolate chip. SINNER! AND I DIDN'T EXERCISE!!!

But this morning I ate an apple for breakfast (still hungry) and might have a granola bar as a mid-morning snack. AND ALL WATER.

For lunch I will have soup, although it is kinda full of calories. But it is only a small portion. And dinner might be sushi. Anyone have any idea how bad sushi is for me? Like, I usually get the veggie and spicy salmon rolls. Is that bad? Anyone? Bueller?

Today's Workout

Today was a weight training day, so a friend and I dusted off an old workout I stole at one point and did some circuit stuff. Did I want to go to the gym at first? No. Was it productive? yes. Fun? also yes.
Advice: Work out with a friend. It makes you keep going.

YUMMY!

Ok.  So I swear I'm not going to do 3 posts a day everyday (can you tell I'm excited?), but I made this for dinner tonight and it was SOOO good.  So I had to share.  I got it off of caloriecount.about.com.

Chicken with Asparagus and Roasted Red Peppers

makes 4 servings.  15 mins prep, 30 ins to cook.

1/2 cup chicken broth

1 lb. chicken breast

1/2 lb. asparagus

7 oz roasted red peppers, drained and chopped

1 clove garlic

1/2 cup chopped tomato

2 tsp balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup low fat mozzarella

1/2 c. chopped onion

Directions:

• Brown chicken in large skillet w/ chopped onions
• Once browned, add broth and cook (appx 15 mins) until chicken is almost cooked through.
• add asparagus, red peppers, and garlic
• Continue cooking 10 minutes, until chicken is done and asparagus is tender
• Place tomatoes in skillet during last two minutes of cooking
• Sprinkle with vinegar. Top with mozzarella cheese and serve

And it's only 271 calories (4 points!)

Steppin' Up to the Challenge

Nerd, I know. You'll understand if you keep reading.

I'm so glad we're all doing this together. The only times I really stick to things like this are:

a) when I'm being held accountable

b) when there is competition involved

c) when there's a chance to win something

Unlike some people seem to think, I do need to lose more than 2.3 ounces and regain muscle lost from 2 years (off & on) of working out with my trainer. booooo

Here's my goal:

To look like I did in this picture, taken in Aug. 2007. And, yes, I still have the bathing suit to try on in the end like a cheap weight-loss commercial.

The problem: I hate scales. As in I get obsessive-compulsive and end up weighing myself more times than necessary a day.

Today's workout: My new adventure. Taking a STEP class with an overly-flamboyant instructor. I love it, even though he says right and I'm usually doing left. Burned 541 calories to make up for the 541 Valentine hearts & mini-chocolate chips I ate today. Anyway, I highly recommend it for a cardio day.

Good luck suckers!

Lauren's Week One.

So...I technically started this thing a week ago today...but I guess I'll start my "official" weight tracking starting today.  I just wanted to let y'all know that, unfortunately, I went over my 24 point target 4 out of the 7 days this week.  One day I actually consumed more than 24 points in one meal (more about that in a sec).  On the bright side, I did my weekly weigh-in this morning, and I lost 3 pounds this week!  HELL YES FACE -->

So. While my diet could still use some work, it's nice to be reminded that Weight Watchers really does work!  I'll work on getting a spreadsheet added up here in case you guys would like to start using it.  I find it much easier than counting calories.

And in case you were wondering, here's how you eat more than an entire day's worth of points in one sitting:

• Velveeta Queso (about a cup): 9 points
• Bean Dip (1/2 cup):  1 point 
• Mission Tortilla Strips (20):  4 points
• Peperoni, Tomato & Mushroom Pizza, Original crust (2 slices):  9 points
• Corona Beer (1 beer): 3 points

The Weigh Down Low Down

Ok girls.  Now that this has turned into a group project,  I'm laying down some ground rules (btw these are all negotiable with a quorum vote): 

1. I hereby call October 28 as d-day.  That is exactly 37 weeks from today.
2. Winner will be determined by % of total weight lost.  This is because if some people lost 30 pounds, they would be non-existent.
3. Weigh-ins are every Wednesday.  I don't know how I feel about the entire inter-web knowing my weight, so we may just report pounds lost, not actual weight.  Feedback?
4. Prize is yet to be determined.

Happy losing!

You're going down, Kotara!

Question:

If you throw up, do you get to subtract points?

On an unrelated topic, He's Just Not That Into You is EXCELLENT.  I'm so Gigi.

Points consumed: 27

  

Where I Introduce Myself

Well, Hello!

So...here's the back story on this blog.  I've been a fatty pretty much all my life, but I've had periods (however brief) of acceptable weight.  I moved to San Francisco 10 months ago from Texas and I guess maybe I've been too busy enjoying my new life that I haven't really be doing so hot at keeping in shape.  I got on the scale on Wednesday and made my wtf? face (that's my sister doing the wtf? face with me): 

I was quickly approaching the weight I was my Senior year of college (which was almost my heaviest), before I started Weight Watchers.

I decided it was high time I do something about this.  

Weight Watchers is pretty much the only "diet" (don't tell them I called it that) that has ever worked for me.  The points made it super easy to count my calories, and it made it easier to decide what I wanted to splurge on and what I didn't.  So, taking all of this into account, I promptly decided to go back on WW.  Then I promptly went over my points values the first two days of my new diet.  So much for resolve or will power or whatever you want to call it. 

So this led me to here.  My biggest problem with my MANY plans to lose weight is that I lose my resolve the moment something cheesy or chocolatey walks in front of me.  This is my way of holding myself accountable.  I figure if the world can see my failure, I'm more likely to step away from said cheesy & chocolatey things.  Even if no one ever sees this, it makes me feel better that it's out there.

Points allowed: 24

Points used today: 29 (darn those peanut m&m's calling me from the candy machine!)