Today's DEHRT

More to come....
"The past does not define us, the present does" Jillian Michaels
Diet: Discovered a WONDERFUL website http://emotionaleatinghelp.org/, it has a lot of great tips on it, as well as talks about an Emotional Eating Bach Essences kit which I picked up the essences for yesterday, I must say I think it is already helping, normally when I stress I eat, eat, eat, and drink TONS of Diet Coke (with splenda) well today I am remaining calm and not really obsessing about eating my stress away.

Exercise: Planned: WATP DVD

Housework: Goals for today:
1 load of dishes
Put up christmas tree
1 load of laundry put away and folded

Religion:
Taking care of me: Discovered Bach Essences, and OMG what a difference, the past few days have been extremely stressful with work, have had a few 'fires' with complaints I've had to put out, normally this TOTALLY stresses me out and I am on edge, but the combo of essences I am taking TOTALLY are helping me remain calm. Like this morning Rob was late with the car, so therefore I wasn't able to leave by 6:15 which is my normal time I leave for work by, normally I get pissy, and agitated, and I was able to just take it all in stride. YEAH!

My DERHT Challenge

Diet:
I have been REALLY REALLY bad about drinking all my water lately, relying a lot on Coke (regular not diet) so add that to the BLOAT and #, and lack of losing weight
1- Drink my water 110oz per day (which is about 1/2 of my body weight)
2- Cut the carbs, I eat way too many of them, and my body doesn't process them right
3- Prepare meals night before (breakfast/lunches) for work days
4- Lose 6# before January 1, 2010 (2# average loss per week)

Exercise:
1- 5 Days a week
2- Variety so I don't get bored

Religious:
1- Read Scriptures Daily
2- Attend Church Weekly
3- Be my hubby's missionary

House:
1- End the Chaos (Can't Have Anyone Over Syndrome) by starting FlyLady again
2- Scoop Kitty Litter boxes daily
3- At least 1 load of dishes per day until caught up
4- Actually Hang up & fold the clothes so Rob doesn't have to go laundry basket treasure hunting to get dressed for work

Taking care of me:
1- Take pills 2xday
2- Daily Shower
3- Daily put on makeup (I hardly ever wear it anymore)
4- "Me" time at least 1x week (bubble baths etc).

Inspirational: Woman won't let disability keep her from weight-loss goal

Wow! What a story...she is paralyzed from waist down yet still goes to the gym and has lost weight!
ksl.com - Woman won't let disability keep her from weight-loss goal

Long time...no see....

First off, I must apologize for my absence. I am not the worlds greatest blogger, and we are heading into winter now, I suffer from depression and it can be worse in the winter times. I am not too thrilled with my weight as of late, I am up to 220#, I was diagnosed with Aspartame poisoning in October, yep that artificial sweetener that is in Diet Coke....it can cause MAJOR problems, I now have an 'aspartame' detecter in my pinky finger....lol, any time I eat/drink anything with aspartame in it, my pinky finger tingles. It was in my pinky finger/ring finger and part of my palm on the right hand. The Dr scared me to death telling me that aspartame has been linked to MS (Multiple Sclerosis) and MS type symptoms. I have had maybe 1 or 2 actual diet cokes or coke zero's since I found out, which is MAJOR for me, I am still drinking soda, but not as much and trying to stick to regular coke (not good for calories) or diet coke sweetened with splenda. So if you are a diet soda drinker.....use caution! I was actually having extreme side effects from one of the depression pills I am on (neurontin) as it is a nerve drug, and my nerves were on edge from all the aspartame I was drinking....pretty scary stuff.

My Uncle Larry passed away a little over a week ago, he was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer the end of august. It was hard, but I am comforted with the knowledge that I know I will be able to see him again someday, and that he is with my Grandfather and my Aunt Lorna (whom died before I was born). My Grandpa died when I was a senior in high school, I actually lost 3 of my grandparents in 1 year...it was tough, and I really haven't lost anyone super close to me since (1995).

Anyways I just wanted to pop in and say, yep I am alive! I finally updated my blog it is no longer halloween time :-) I hope to be able to blog again soon.

New Weight Loss Support Message Board

A message board I have been a member of for almost 2 years is shutting down :( (Choosing 2 Lose) so in an effort to stay in contact with some of the friends I have made there, my darling hubby has set up a Weight Loss Forum/Message board for me, I would love to see you there!

http://nttw.rnht.net/

It doesn't matter where you are at in your weight loss journey, beginning, end (at goal) etc, this message board will be there to support you through it all! There will be a great bunch of ladies who will be there! Hopefully will get some men supporters as well :)

I have a drinking problem......

Water that is! (no alcohol for me) Today this is what I drank:


32 Oz Water w/cranberry energy powder stuff
52 Oz Bubba Keg, Ice Water
52 Oz Bubba Keg, Ice Water
32 Oz Water w/strawberry energy powder stuff
33.81 Oz (1 Liter) Coke Zero
20 Oz of Diet Sunkist

Which totals to be 221.81 Oz and I'm not even done for the day, it's only 8pm and I am usually awake till about 11pm! I do not feel water logged or bloated or anything, so what gives? I know about 104oz were consumed on my drive home from work (it took 1 hour 45 minutes due to a BYU Football game...unfortunately I live about 20 miles North of BYU..average speed on the freeway 20mph UGH from about 40 miles away from the stadium! And I got home 45 Minutes AFTER the game started...sorry just my rant). So you can imagine...I was about to pee myself when I got home, had to park, run in and pee then unload the furkids. LOL. I have a Dr's appt on the 12th to discuss side effects of the Neurontin I'm on (seriously feel like I'm having an out of body experience when I take it....yet I've been on it for 5+ years...it's just recent), so I am planning on discussing it with him to see what he thinks. I do know that drinking Diet Coke increases thirst, so that may come into play, however I did not consume that much (for me) diet coke today.

From what I have read I should be drinking about 102.5oz of water per day (1/2oz per pound), what do you do if you are still thirsty after drinking that much water? How do you curb drinking too much?

RIP Sweet Viggo

RIP Sweet Viggo

I am posting this as there are several who read this blog who have worked at Camelot Pet Resort, and probably knew him:
Yesterday my sisters dog, Viggo, a miniature schnauzer passed away suddenly. My dad let the dogs outside before he went to an orientation at school (he teaches vet tech students), and my mom went to let the dogs in about 20 minutes later and all the dogs but Viggo came inside, my sister was talking about taking Viggo to work with her for her trainee to learn how to groom schnauzers so my mom thought that is where he was so didn't think anything of it, so when my dad got home they called my sister and she had not taken him, so they went to go find him, and found him dead outside. He had an autopsy performed today, and his heart basically ruptured, it had a hole in it. He wasn't showing any signs of having any problems, was always a very active sweet boy, he was our Little Doggie Daycare Mascot at work, so I got to seem him 4-5 days a week, as he came to work with my dad, as well as I lived with my sister for the 1st year of Viggo's life. So please keep her in your thoughts. He was only 5 & 1/2 years old.

Hungry Monster....

1- On Plan: I ate WAY too much.
B: Banana, 1/2 Cup Shredded Wheat w/skim milk
S: Broccoli w/lite ranch dressing
L: Nachos w/cheese
S: Banana, Apple, Broccoli, Carrots, Trail Mix, Nachos w/cheese
D:Chicken w/Four Cheese Potatoes
2- Water Only had 4 diet cokes which is a good thing for me, considering that we are broke until next week and I can't afford to buy more...I'm rationing...good for the diet
3- Exercise: Only exercise I did today was walking to the dumpster which is about 9 townhouses up the hill...so not a big exercise day...it was rainy and dreary, even snowed a little today although it didn't stick.
4- Productivity: Can we say I was VERY lazy today? Took a 2 hour nap with my hubby, then woke up and played on the computer/internet for hours! Then ran to the bank and was going to pick up some cat litter but their machines were down, so I came home, did a couple loads of laundry and cleaned up a little bit, took some garbage up to the dumpster, but I am quit dissappointed in my activity levels today....it was my day off I spent the majority of it on my fat a#$. I should put I shocked my husband as I did 4 loads of laundry today and even got them hung up in the closet and folded and put away in the drawers (my usual is just to leave them in the clothes baskets...I'm lazy what can I say?)

Daily Summary: It was my day off...I was very lazy, I didn't watch a ton of TV, but did watch Criminal Minds and then about 1/2 of CSI New York, where I fell asleep in my chair and woke up around 1:00am then went up stairs, I feel horrible as I left my dog Shellie outside, from about 9pm till 1am and it was VERY VERY cold last night, and since she's not an outside dog she doesn't have any shelter outside to keep her warm I had a hunger that would NOT die today, I felt like no matter how much I ate I was still hungry.

Quick Question for my readers? What do you do when you have those days where you just can't get enough to eat, no matter what you do? I tried sipping on water, drinking peppermint herbal tea, munching on vegetables. It just seemed like I wanted to keep shoveling crap in my mouth. How do you keep the hungry monster at bay?

Tuesday September 29th

1- On Plan:
B: Onion Bagel w/cream cheese
S: Broccoli w/lite ranch dressing
L: Chicken BLT Salad w/ranch dressing
S: Celery w/peanut butter
D: Grilled Salmon Patty, Mixed Veggies, Small Baked Potatoe
2- Water I did reasonably well but I still drank too many diet cokes.
3- Exercise: 15 Minutes on Elliptical while watching TV
4- Productivity: I put a yes and no on this one as I did better than usual, but still watched TV. This was a hard one as the NCIS TV Shows were on, but what I did was worked on folding laundry while watching them, and on commercials worked on picking up things, load of dishes etc, which is a lot more productive that my usual.

Daily Summary: Today I drank a lot more water as I was using the Crystal Lite powder mixins, but I still drank too much Diet Coke, weigh in today was up, which is no big surprise with the free for all weekend I had, so I am gonig to stay on track this week so I can lose it again! Sometimes I think my body subconsciously does not want to get below 200# either that or I have some bigtime fear of doing so which I do not understand as it seems like everytime I get within range (5# to go) I sabotage myself...but I WILL do this. The thigh seam on my scrub pants started to split today...luckily my mom owed me some scrubs for my birthday so I begged her to take me to walmart as I live 30 minutes away so it's not just like I can run home quick and change. This has me to thinking I need to do something about my "Sims" thunder thighs (I get them from my dad's side of the family I think). As this is the 2nd pair of pants I have split in a week!

Monday September 28th

Well I decided that I would start keeping track today, since this weekend was my birthday and I wasn't exactly very on plan, as hubby spoiled me big time! And I know I have mega water gain because of it, so I would have been posting a bunch of no's, but I am back on track. So here goes nothing...
On Plan Exercise: Water:
Breakfast: Onion Bagel w/cream cheese
Snack: Broccoli & Celery dipped in light ranch dressing
Lunch: Garden Salad, Roast Beef/Swiss Grilled Sandwich
Snack:
Dinner:
Exercise: 30 Minute Walk with my dog (ever tried walking a dog that is in heat? NO the funnest of times...she's wearing a cloth diaper but had a couple boys who thought that she needed a boyfriend....she's getting spayed about a month after she finishes her heat cycle....not only does she have health issues, but I don't think I would like to pass on her OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder and Hyperactivity to her puppies, I don't think I could live with myself :P.
I will come back after dinner to finish posting. I have decided to start over with the FLY Lady thing, I started and did well for about 2 or 3 weeks, then let stress and depression get in my way of keeping up with things. But I'm once again tired of living in CHAOS, and am going to do something about it. We have decided we have a fork monster that is hiding all our forks, we only have about 4 that are in the drawer right now...

Words to think on....

Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence. -Helen Keller
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"Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and upon which we must vigorously act. There is no other route to success."
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There are many fears in the minds of man, but none so subtle, yet so effectual, as fear of failure.

We are so afraid we've been unwise and wasted valuable time and it makes us wonder how many times we've failed those who depended upon us, and how many times we've failed ourselves.

Time seems too short to make up and overcome the things long past. It seems sometimes that opportunities are there and gone before we've had time to make use of them. We condemn ourselves so much for the lack of knowledge when we most needed it. But if decisions were made on afterthought, they might not be as wise as those made quickly, without time to think.

We should no longer think about past failures, nor give undue thought to our chances for future ones, but only begin now to do the very best we can.

True failure comes only to those who stop trying, for no age, no time, no place can stop the person who decides to try one more time. As Frederick William Farrar, English author, has written, "There is only one real failure in life that is possible, and that is, not to be true to the best one knows."

By Joyce Sequichie Hifler

My new personal challenge

I do better when I have to be accountable so therefore I am starting another 'personal' challenge (personal as because I suck at organizing and keep up with a bigger challenge, I can participate but not manage one), this time I am going to stick with it, I think this is the 3rd or 4th one I have started this year and so far have remained the same except for the Biggest Chooser Challenge (Over at Choosing 2 Lose--Awesome Weight Loss Forum) where I am down 11# + FINALLY! Well I had a goal last year/new years to be at my goal of 150# by 2010, well seeing as how that's 50# away I don't think there is anyway I will make that in 3 months, I would have to lose 16.67# a month, which could happen but I don't want to set my goal too high. So I am going to shoot for 30# which will be a 10# loss each month until Jan 1st. That will put me at 175#, and 25# away from my ultimate goal. I AM going to do this!

I am TIRED of getting winded just walking up the small hill to my mailbox/dumpster, I am TIRED of waking up each morning in pain from my joints because I have extra weight on them, I am TIRED of having NO energy because I am fat, I am tired of splitting my scrub pants on my thunder thighs, I'm TIRED of wearing out my thighs on my pants because my flabby thunder thighs rub together then I walk, I want a thigh gap! And last but not least, I am tired of having empty arms! I do not know if my lack of conception is due to my weight or my hubby's weight or not but I'm sure it's not helping. I want a baby! I'm DONE With FAT gosh dangit!

I am a big time list person so I hope you don't mind my list of how I am going to accomplish this goal of mine.

I will do the following to reach goal:
1- Stay on Plan (Tips on how I am going to do that)
a- Prepare breakfast/lunches for work night before including snacks
1- Eat Healthy Snacks NO MORE Bags of dorritos
2- Drink more water than Diet Coke/Coke Zero
3- Exercise at least 30 minutes 5 times a week
1- Walking
2- Walk At Home DVD's
3- Elliptical Machine
4- Crunch/Squats/Lunges Challenge (200)
4- Limit couch/tv/internet time, be active in some way whether cleaning/scrapbooking/sewing/playing with dogs/cats/chinchillas or whatever NO Addiction to TV
1- Get home from work by 7pm, work on dinner and cleaning until hubby leaves for work around 9pm then spend an hour unwinding with tv/internet then prepare and go to bed at 10pm.

Since this is a Christmas Challenge for me here are my trackers:
No
Yes
I will POST my status each day/week to keep track of how things are going.

__________________

Brrr...it's cold outside.

It is a COLD day, had to pull out a jacket, we are starting to get freezes here....I HATE living in Utah some times. Before long we will have snow on the ground UGH! My legs/joints are so stiff and sore because of the drastic weather changes here, we were in the upper 80's last week. I hate it! It wreaks havoc on my bones. I was slightly disappointed in my weigh in this morning not even a pound loss...but hey it was TOM so I guess I should be grateful it wasn't my normal 5# water gain. I haven't been exercising as 'hard' this week as I was having issues with my legs and potassium, but I got me some bananas, and have been eating baked potatoes and they seem to be doing better so I'm going to kick it back into gear. The new TV season has started, and I did exercise a little yesterday while watching some tv, I was using my elliptical machine. I'm going to have to work hard not to become a vegetable on the couch this tv season, I am an ADDICT to many shows....CSI NY, Miami, Vegas, NCIS, The Closer, The Mentalist, Numbers, Two and a half men, Cold Case...this list could go on and on....but I am going to make it a goal to be active while watching TV whether it be exercising on my elliptical or working on websites or stuff on my laptop, and not just veg, it is also my 'weak' point for eating mindlessly so will have to keep that in check too.

Oh and found out today my dog, Shellie (golden retriever) has a bladder infection, we put her in doggie daycare and all the boys were going NUTS trying to hump her, so I pulled her out and checked her thinking she was coming into heat, nope she has blood in her urine, this will be her 3rd bladder infection and she turns 1 tomorrow. She has a recessed vulva so we are wanting her to come into heat so it swells and pushes it out so she's not as prone to infections, sorry if TMI. She's my special girl she also has Diabetes insipidus (can't concentrate her urine) so has to have injections twice a day.

One Day at a time

I am such a bad blogger lately! I must apologize for that. I have been mega stressed with work, had to let someone go (first person I have ever fired by myself) and that was really sucky! But it was long overdue. Things already are running smoother, I am not wondering whether or not we will be lucky enough to be graced with her presence each day. (she had MEGA attendance issues). Anyways it's nice not to have to worry about it any longer, it was really stressing me out...As for the weight loss goes, I have lost 12# in the last 2-3 weeks, right now I am a little stalled as it is TOM and I always gain water weight then. I'm proud of myself at work instead of just sitting around, my brother and I set up a 55 gallon tank that's been sitting around for over a year in our cat room, it's gonna look so cool when it's all said and done, I will post pictures. I *might* be getting 2 chinchillas (adorable little soft as heck critters). They are up for adoption cage, supplies and all and they are 'rare' colors so are normally over $100 each plus the cage and supplies...just have to convince hubby that we need them :) ...which I am working on...he's almost there....Here are some pictures of them right now there names are Snowball and Dexter, I am thinking of Snowball and Midnight or Salt and Pepper :) Snowball is a Pink White and Dexter is a Black Velvet for their colorings.

More to come later.....

Remember why....

Today's post is going to focus on remembering why I am losing this weight...or attempting too....It was an afternoon in July 2008, when I had just gotten home from shopping at Walmart and Harmons, I bought a lot of junk food, and it exhausted me just bringing in all the groceries. Then I went to put on my 'lounge' pants and split the seam on the thighs...that was my defining moment, the moment that made me say, enough is enough, and the moment that changed my life. I decided then and there that I HAD to do something about it. Granted my journey so far this year hasn't been all that it should/could be, but I am focusing on the future, not the past, I am doing pretty good this week, losing weight well and exercising each day. I am losing this weight for better health, for a chance at conceiving (hopefully...if that's in the cards for my hubby and I and God's will). Also so that slight exercise won't wind me and make me exhausted, stiff and sore....such as walking up the street to pick up the mail.

Saturday's Food Intake 9/5

On Plan: Water: Exercise:
The scale is going consistently down each day, something that I haven't seen for a while. YEAH! I just hope I don't blow it this weekend as I ALWAYS blow it on the weekends when I am home, it's a lot harder to stay strong for me, guess I just need to keep myself busy and then I won't be tempted to eat crap, although with as broke as we are right now, we don't have much in the way of crap in our house at the moment. YEAH!
Food Intake: B Green Smoothie, Steak, 2 Eggs, Cheese, 1 Banana
L: Green Apple, Garden Salad w/tuna, carrots w/low carb dressing, steamed veggies
D:Orange Garden Salad (Grilled Salmon, Cucumbers, Olives, Cheese, Romaine Lettuce) w/low carb dressing, Peanut Butter/Soy Sauce Chicken/Bell Peppers Low Carb Tortilla Wrap
Snacks: Green Bell Peppers, Cucumbers, Activa Yogurt Key Lime
**Green Smoothie: Parsley, Ginger, Pineapple, Honey, Water, Splenda
Exercise:40 Minute Walk with Dog, 10 Minutes Leg Exercises

Stress..Stress...GO AWAY!

On Plan: Water: Exercise:
***Warning....I'm kind of verbose today*** :) Woot Woot! No frownie faces yet! I have had such an incredible amount of stress this week, I think it's a test to see if I will break my diet. Today I broke down in the bathroom at work and cried for 30 minutes. The business that I love and have put a lot of effort and my life into is struggling to stay above water. It breaks my heart. We are trying to turn things around but it's looking very bleak. Then we have a little adoption kitten who was pulled from the shelter with a fractured leg, we surgically repaired it (put a metal pin in it) and about 5 days after we got him he started getting sick, he has a respiratory infection, but it's extremely severe and with pneumonia, so he has been on deaths bed for a week. Here is his picture, these were taken the day we got him before his surgery. He has been severely dehydrated and hasn't eaten on his own since last Friday...we are giving him subcutaneous fluids, medications for his infection/pneumonia and putting drops up his nose to clear it out so he can smell so he can eat. He is also on a heating pad. He is improving today though, I thought we were going to lose him yesterday, he went hypothermic on us (temp 95) and was barely responsive. But he's looking better today, and even purred. Poor little guy has lost a lot of weight. Sorry for going on about him...animals are my life....next to my husband....I have a lot of compassion for special needs animals.




I was so depressed about the business, and the kitten, I was having an incredibly hard time, Hubby told me that I should pray to help take some of the 'doomsday' feelings away, and I did, it helped throughout the day. Now mind you I am the one who served 18 months on a religious mission, not my hubby, he is a convert to our church, and he is such a strong man, he is always the one who has to remind me to talk to my Heavenly Father. I was able to stay more focused on positive aspects of the business and get work done better, I was efficient this afternoon...depsite everyone deciding to show up at once right before my lunch break. I am quite proud of the fact that I was able to stay on plan as usually at the first sign of stress, I start eating badly. So far so good. (It helps that we are broke beyond broke right now so I can't rush to walmart to pick up junk food.....lol) I think I have 2 more days on the detox drink, my tongue is still slightly white, that's what they say to use as an indicator. I am proud of myself though instead of coming home and sitting on the couch with my laptop I did some cleaning in the kitchen and organized the 'dog' corner (where we keep all their stuff etc.)
Food Intake: B Green Smoothie, Detox Drink, 1 Apple
L: Detox Drink, Green Apple, Garden Salad w/tuna, carrots w/low carb dressing
D: Detox Drink, Garden Salad (Grilled Chicken, Cucumbers, Olives, Cheese, Romaine Lettuce) w/low carb dressing, Steamed Broccoli
Snacks: Green Bell Peppers, Cucumbers, Detox Drink, Celery
**Detox Drink Lemon Juice/Maple Syrup/Cayenne Pepper
**Green Smoothie: Parsley, Ginger, Pineapple, Honey, Water, Splenda
Exercise: 30 Minutes Walking with my dog

Stress....knicked in the bud....

I am going to start using a 'checks n balances' type system as I am a nut :) I am going to start keeping track of my days with my little smilies:Yes:No:
On Plan: Water: Exercise:
Well for as stressful as today was, I did amazingly well.....it was a VERY long day at work 15 hours altogether including commute time (I'm on salary so no overtime :( . My only dog I groomed today was a Schnauzer who had bad teeth and arthritis so she really didn't want to be groomed too badly, they wanted her face shaved and it was causing her pain.....so she was a battle to groom. We had an emergency come in at 6pm (closing time), it was a Shih Tzu newborn puppy who was born with it's intestines outside it's body, then the mom was having complications so we had to assist her with the delivery, we were able to poke everything back in and sew the puppy at, it has a 50/50 chance of making it. I was there until 9pm. Which totally stressed me out as the people were there from 6pm on waiting for my dad (vet) to get there as he was teaching school, puppy was not in immediate danger so I stabilized it, then we waited for him to get there at 8pm, Rob has to leave for work by 8:30...it takes 23minutes for him to get to work and right now we only have 1 car....so that was MEGA stressing me out. But he woke up with a bad belly so called in sick to work today...that eased my mind. I walked with my dog, Shellie in our doggie daycare room at work since I figured it was gonna be a late night.....30 minutes. So that was my 'bonus' for the day.
Food Intake: B Green Smoothie, Detox Drink, 1 Banana
L: Detox Drink, Green Apple, Garden Salad w/low carb dressing
D: Detox Drink, Garden Salad (Grilled Chicken, Cucumbers, Olives, Cheese, Romaine Lettuce) w/low carb dressing, 5 french fries
Snacks: Green Bell Peppers, Cucumbers, Detox Drink, Popcorn
**Detox Drink Lemon Juice/Maple Syrup/Cayenne Pepper
**Green Smoothie: Parsley, Ginger, Pineapple, Honey, Water, Splenda
Exercise: 30 Minutes Walking with my dog

New Month...New Game Plan

This is this mornings weigh-in....UGH! What happened? I am so disappointed in myself. I have been teetering and not doing what I should do for months now, am going to get back on plan today. I am doing a 3 day detox to see if that helps jump start the losses again. Then I am going to get back on track and STAY ON TRACK. I would like to lose 30# by the end of the year. Not my 'loss' goal but it will be considerably closer than I am now. I am going to start exercising again, I must, not only for my sake, but my poor Golden Retriever is going stir crazy (which drives me crazy as well) without our daily walks. Hubby just loaded my Ipod with tons of new books so I'm set. My books of the moment are JD Robb's "In Death" series, I've listened to about 4 of them now and am hooked....Nora Roberts is one of my favorite authors. Anyways I listen to my Ipod while I am grooming, depends on the day whether I am in the mood for music or books, but it's nice to have. My hubby says I have listened to my ipod more than I ever listened to my creative player that I've had for a while. In my opinion the ipod is easier to use. Anyways getting off track here, just wanted to say I AM back on track...or getting there...hopefully no more de-railings!

I lost 12 inches today.....

Of HAIR! I have been growing my hair out since 2005, and decided since I always have it pulled up and off my neck, it was time to cut it! So I cut off over 12" of hair today! Here are some pictures, the first one was taken before, then a few afters, sorry my face is a mess...had just finished shopping and unloading groceries and it's SUPER hot today. My hair is naturally curly and shortness REALLY brings out the curls. What do you think?

Epiphany of the day....

Today has been somewhat weird...well my cat Munchie had to visit the vet today...he HATES car rides as when he was younger he had both knees operated on and one of them got infected so had to visit vet/grandpa lots. Well ANYTIME he rides in the car he poops, pees and vomits in his carrier, usually getting it all over himself. So today was no different, within a minute of getting in the car he did his normal poop/pee/puke....so much fun have to smell it for 30 minutes in the car. So I am giving him a bath and I express his anal sacs/glands...if you don't know what those are they are glands that sit on either side of dogs/cats rectums and are similar to the scent gland of the skunk...they STINK to high heaven...anyways I squeezed his sacs and the contents went flying all over me, my shoulder, face, glasses, eye....hair...I stunk to high heaven, so I had to take off my jacket and wash it and try to find something here to wear in the meantime, had to wash my face and my hair AT WORK, we had another groomers jacket but it was a medium, I am wearing a large to x-large in my tops, so I decided I had to wear it, it zipped up but was tight around my ghetto booty (rear end) so I had to slit the sides of it to wear for an hour or two. Well It wasn't too snug around my chest/stomach area, so I have decided I need to get my butt into gear and make it so I can wear mediums again. It felt nice.

So my ghetto bootie is out the door....anyone know some good fanny exercises I can do to loose my lower half? I AM going to get back on plan next monday...I know I should start today, but my hubby has his birthday this weekend and we already have plans for some not so good foods.... :) Anyways that was my epiphany today...I'm going to lose my fanny, I want to be Hot for the Holidays! I am going to do the Lean for Life Diet, that worked for me, and was pretty easy to stay on a few years back, I just have to be determined, no more lame-o excuses.

Here are some pictures of the 'medium' top. My top that I am wearing normally is a Large. I have a 'slender' waist, it does have a little bit extra on it but I'm excited.

Am I concerned enough?

I work for a veterinarian, and we have this sweet client who owns beagles, anyone who has worked for us over the years remembers her and knows her well. She is very concerned about her pets, she has no skin kids, so she calls us numerous times a day with every little thing that is going on in her pets lives. She lost her older beagle (16 years) back in December just before Christmas, she has a new little one and she calls with questions and concerns about her as well.

This got me to thinking today, am I concerned enough with my health, my wellness, my weight? I have little to no willpower and need to improve. Yesterday it was a struggle for me to walk up to the mail box, which it was about a year ago when I started this journey, sad to say I haven't been exercising like I should, I have been in a mega slump when it comes to exercising and eating right, but I am pulling myself up, getting back in the saddle and am going to do this! I have done so well, I started at 250#, and am now at 214.6# which is a gain from my lowest, but at least I have lost. I have lost 35.4# (14%) that is definitely something to be proud of. I have been invited to several challenges, and I'm still debating on whether or not I want to join them, I feel so overwhelmed sometimes keeping up with everything, I have a lot going on in my life right now, so I am considering them.

So my challenge to myself for this next week is to get off the couch (I am addicted to TNT shows) and exercise, either that or use my Elliptical Machine while watching TV, that I can definitely handle...just have to declutter it...it's collected a lot of things on it! I will do this! Today at work I am doing doggie daycare so that is keeping me somewhat active. YEAH! Every little thing helps.

For a cool weight loss percentage calculator: http://www.fitwatch.com/qkcalc/calculate-weight-loss-percentage.html

Am I allergic to sugar?

So since Friday I have had MASSIVE gut aches to the point that I curl up in a ball and don't move, It is right below my rib cage, and taking my licorice root for my GERD (reflux) helps, I'm taking 2 capsules as needed. Anyways I called and talked to my Dr today, and we think that my body may be 'reacting' to sugar...guess that's my body's way of getting my butt back on plan. Today Reese's Pieces set it off. I only ate a handful and within 15 minutes my gut ache was there. So he suggested that I cut out sugars, refined/processed foods and eat more natural things for a week and see how I do, if not improved I will go in for an ultrasound. Anyone have any tips and/or suggestions on how to do this? Any cool recipe sites or informational sites that anyone likes? I have NO clue how to do this. Does this mean I should cut out Diet Coke? Would Diet Rite be okay since it's sweetened with Splenda or would that make me react too? He suggested I go and talk with his nutritionist, but we just can't afford that right now. My bloodwork all came back good except that I am STILL Vit D Deficient so have to increase back to 5000 IU twice a day again.

On a sadder note...my weigh in this morning 215.2# EEEEKKKKKK!

Nothing short of a miracle...

I haven't gained weight these past few weeks. Probably because for the last week my throat has been swollen and sore...yet again! Sunday night I thought my hubby was going to have to take me to the emergency room. He had me use his asthma nebulizer and that really helped. I have strep throat (am pretty sure, going to Dr next week) again, with a sinus infection , this makes #3 this year. Wondering if I need to have my tonsils removed.

I am 209.2# as of this am, and that is a miracle to me as I haven't been eating very good, staying on plan or anything, but starting tomorrow I am back on plan. Am considering doing the lean for life as I really need to kick my butt back into weight loss gear. I think my throat is still a little too swollen/raw for exercise as just walking up to the mailbox last night killed me. Anyways just wanted to pop in quickly and say hello.

Update Face Pictures

This first picture was taken back on 7/14/08 (which was about when I started this weight loss journey)
The other 2 Pictures were taken today. One with my hair down and one with my hair up, I normally wear my hair up at work.

I'm alive.....

Well this cartoon fits me perfectly lately...well for the past 6 months, I have literally lost and relost the same weight over and over again. I am now 1 year into my weight loss journey and have a measley 40-45# (depending on the day) to show for it. I could be at goal, if I would quit giving into my stress eating, and would start giving it 110% for my diet and exercise routine. I've been doing semi-better lately. Although hubby bought an icecream maker (it is automatic makes icrecream/sorbets in less than an hour WITHOUT requiring salt and ice! It's amazing!) so we have been tinkering around with different recipes, and such. I am bound and determined to get back on plan and stay there!

Fabulous N Fit by Fall Week 2 Checkin

Name: Heather T (No Time To Weight)
Pounds Lost This Week: .2# (not bad for being out of town)
Total FNF Challenge Pounds Lost:2# total (209.8#)
NSV's This week: I stayed pretty much on plan while I was out of town, having only 1 cheat!
Day's Exercised: 4, I was sick
Inches Lost (optional): Didn't Measure but did today so we can see next week's loss.
This Week's Motivation: My motivation this week was a website/blog http://zeusmeatball.blogspot.com, this guy has lost 200# in about a year and a half! Amazing!
Weekly Summary: It went well this week, especially for being sick and being out of town.
Room for Improvement for next week: Less 'crap' foods when at home, more exercise. Got to get back into the routine.

Are you Serious????

Today I made a quick trip to walmart to pick up some stuff, and I always end up getting a cold drink out of the end displays...well I LOVE Sunkist, so I grabbed a regular one as Walmart very rarely has the Diet Sunkist in the little bottles up front, as that's what I was craving at the moment. Anyways I was looking at the bottle after I had drank some and OMG....what a shocking moment that was!

Calories in 1 cup (8oz) 130
Calories in 1 Bottle 320

Holy cow! Can you say that is about a meal? Good grief! That was definitely a learning experience! Check those labels! What I have done in my 'diet coke' addiction.....is buy the 2 liter bottles and then fill 20oz bottles to take to work with me, it ends up being cheaper than can's that way. I usually buy the Walmart brand "Sam's Cola Zero Calorie" unless Diet Coke is on sale (79 cents is a good buy for me), then I get the Coke Zero. Anyways this has got me thinking about 'serving' sizes as well, as I know oftentimes we are in a rush, routine or whatever you want to call it and end up eating/drinking more than we should.

Here is an informative article I found all about Portion sizes:

Portion control and knowing what a portion or serving size looks like is so essential for not only losing weight, but also maintaining your weight. Did you know that there are some basic ways that you can remember what a portion size looks like, or be able to assess how many portions you are about to eat? Too often we eat without measuring, therefore we might think we are eating sensibly, but in actuality we are taking in double or even triple the serving size. Below is a fun and easy guide to refer to for identifying one serving!

Use these comparisons to keep your portions in check. (Nestle.com)

• A baseball or size of your fist- would be one serving of vegetables or fruit
• Tennis ball- measures to about ½ cup of food (for example, ½ cup ice cream)
• Golf ball or large egg- is about a ¼ cup of dried fruit or nuts
• Six dice or one domino- would equal one serving of cheese
• Deck of cards or the palm of your hand- equivalent to a serving of meat, fish or poultry
• Tip of your thumb- about one-teaspoon of peanut butter
• Computer mouse- one serving of a baked potato
• CD (compact disc)- equals the serving size of a waffle of pancake
• Check book- equals a 3 oz. serving of fish
• A rounded handful- about one half cup cooked or raw veggies or cut fruit, a piece of fruit, or ½ cup of cooked rice or pasta

Other friendly tips:
1. Look at your plate of food. Roughly half of your plate should be full of vegetables, one-quarter should be your protein, and the last one-quarter should be your starch.

2. Read food labels. Every one of them displays the serving size. It’s usually not one entire package.

Here is another one that shows serving sizes using your hands as a guide:
http://www.prevention.com/cda/article/handy-portion-control/ccd688dc78803110VgnVCM10000013281eac____/weight.loss

I am going to print both these charts up, laminate them and put them on my fridge and in my lunch bag so I can have them at work!