Easter Sunday

Happy Easter every one. I am not really much for holidays so. Nothing special here. My sister and her husband are here so they can visit with my nephew. The Easter bunny did visit though.

It looks like I haven't posted in a few days. Thursday and Friday I didn't really do much. There was a lot of running around with the kids. Doctor did clear me back to full activity so that is a great thing! I have been working it! Well trying anyway. I have been working on the C25K slowly to get back to where I was before I started. I am finding that 12 days of nothing did make a huge difference in where I was before my down time. I am basically repeating some of the weeks within the program so I can get back to where I was. It will take me a bit but I will get there. So Saturday morning I got up and ran. I am back to 5 minutes at a time which is good. And I burned a total of 610 calories! I was up to 8 minutes at a time. I am going to continue with 5 minutes for few more days.

Last night I went out with the girls! We went and listened to a 80's - 90's cover band. We had a blast! We drank and danced the night away. It was a fun night. I went with old reliable Pomegranate Mojitos! They are so good!

We had a shotski too! Fun stuff! Cinnamon Toast Crunch shots! YUM!!! Yes on a snow ski at that! We are a pretty crazy bunch when we get together.

I have pretty much been cooking all day so far today. We are eating here shortly.  Ham green bean casserole and Baked potatoes.

 

I leave you with a picture of my puppy mooching for breakfast human food this morning! He is so stinking cute!

 

Have a great Easter everyone!!

Back on the Wagon!

Woo Hoo!! I've been sitting around for 12 days. I couldn't take it anymore. I go see the doctor tomorrow and I feel good! So I went for a run tonight. 4.1 miles. I went slow. I did the first week of the C25K. Run 60 seconds, walk 90 seconds etc. And I did it twice. It is going to take some priming I think to get e back where I was before surgery. That's ok. I will take it slow. So first day back 526 calories! I'm good with that.

And the snow is melting and the days are getting warmer! Legs were a little shaky after 4 miles though LOL. Oh question, My feet didn't like my socks tonight. I think I have small blisters on the bottom of my feet. What can I put over them so I can run some more this week?  

 

I am so excited for spring! I love Spring! I would love for it to be spring all year round!

 

Confession....I am behind on reading all of your blogs. It's been a crazy few days and I haven't been able to read for the last 4 days. I am back on track with my reading :) I've so missed reading about everyone's accomplishments. I have been trying to get caught up slowly.

 

I am pretty sure I have found my green zone. I don't feel the need for a fill and I am not eating all the time. I do however feel like I eat just because. I totally need to figure out how to get over that! Head hunger. I've seen a lot about that in the blogs I have read recently. How do we get past the eating just to eat thing?

 

I hope everyone is having a great evening! Cheers! And Sweet Dreams!

 

 

Mad Monday Weigh In..

216.8! Loss of 2 lbs! Whew! I was so afraid that the scale was going to say bad things after all the different fluctuations I've had over the last week since my hernia surgery. So glad to see that the number went down after all!

So my totals are:
58.2 lbs down since 8/22/12!

43.6 lbs down since surgery on 10/15/12!

 

Been kind of a long day. I am going to go get caught up on everyone's blogs. I've been slacking all weekend.

 

I really need to get clearance from the doctor so I can get moving again. I so need to start moving!!

 

Have a great night everyone!

OMG My Ass Hurts!!! & BYOC (Thanks Drazil!)

OK More like the tail bone area. WTF!?!? It doesn't hurt a lot to sit, but going from a sitting to a standing position is excruciating!! It doesn't hurt to walk either. This has been going on for a long time. I get massage regularly. Thank goodness I have a massage tomorrow. And my belly is tender too! Blah, maybe I'm just really tired. Anyone had this issue?

So I am waiting for the pain killers to kick in. So very glad its Friday!

Thanks for your help!

OK On to BYOC! So fun! Thanks Drazil!
1-What was your favorite cartoon as a kid? Is it still on today?

• Who remembers Battle of the Planets. Loved that show. And of course the Super friends!
Neither is still on these days that I am aware. The Super friends maybe in some form. All the super hero's have their owns cartoons now :)

2-Describe your favorite piece of clothing.

• .My WAY over sized sweats and hoodie. Everyone has always said that as I lose weight I should retire these clothes. But there is something about swimming in these sweats and hoodies that is so engulfingly comfortable. I don't think I will ever change that even when I am thin!

3-In the hopes of convincing Summer to arrive – I’m asking this question. Name a summer tradition you currently have or a tradition you want to start for every summer.

• At least one party. Not necessarily for a specific occasion but just to party. Because everyone needs to party like its 1999, and girls just wanna have fun right!?!?

4-For all of the newbie bloggers out there getting to know everyone – let’s answer this one. How long have you been blogging, what is your theme and how did you pick your name? Why did you start blogging? What kind of blogs are your favorite to read and follow?

• I started blogging about 3 weeks post-op. I use the ocean background because I love the ocean. Wish I lived closer to one. But I like the Colorado weather too. I struggled with my blog title for a while. I decided on Banded and Going Strong because I wanted a constant reminder to keep going. Banded is merely a tool but I need to push through the obstacles to keep going strong! Make sense? I started blogging because a friend of mine said I need to keep a journal. I had never blogged before so this was a bit out of my comfort zone. Since I was making all these changes getting out of my comfort zone was going to be a continual pattern. So I am doing everything I can to keep me out of my comfort zone. I pretty much only read Weight loss related blogs. I get my inspiration from those I follow. And you all keep me grounded and on the right track. The accountability is awesome!

5-Repeat question: Summarize your week in blogland and in real life for us:

I blog about the real me. I hold nothing back here and am 100% honest no matter how humiliating or embarrassing it may be. If I am going to be successful in this WL journey then I need a place I can do that. I find that the community does not judge. This is important.

This week in blogland. I had hernia repair surgery last Friday and I am recovering. The fact that my company is closing is becoming more of a reality as the days get closer. I have done a lot of reflecting this past week. I am especially thankful to my followers and the bloggers I follow. I love Arrow, Supernatural, and Beauty and the Beast and are so glad they are all back on this week. I watched Breaking Dawn Part 2 this week too. Yes, I am a twimom. I love Twilight. And I will admit it!

And I have a massive pain in my tail bone. My literal pain in the ass.

Cheers to you my friends :) Have a great Friday night!

Change is coming...

In the land of more upcoming lay offs....A typical day at work use to be hair pulling, mind boggling, eye rolling, daily dancing in the isle, hurry up and slow down kind of days. When the sale of our company was announced a few days after Thanksgiving that changed. (We got our lay off notices on Christmas Eve too, how thoughtful!). While the hair pulling, mind boggling, eye rolling still continues the dancing in the isles has all but vanished. It's sad actually. For the last 7 years I have worked for this company. I have met many people. Good, hard working people. I have spent the majority of my "awake" hours with these people.

There was 250 of us total. By February 26th we'd lost about 50 people. On February 27th 100 people were laid off. There is about 20 more people leaving around April 12th and then I will be in the next wave. 100 more people including me, will be laid off on May 29th. The remaining 30 or so will hang out til November. S'ok, most are looking forward to new opportunities. Many have already found new opportunities. Some will completely relocate east and start new lives. Kudos and more power to those people!

Me, well, the hub and I own an auto repair shop. I will be focusing my efforts on that. I've always thought of myself as adaptable. This is going to be a tough change. But that's ok. I will sit back and ride the wave til May. I am actually looking forward to working from home June, July and August before having a physical presence there in September. I hope everything works out.

Can't say that is as hard as the weight loss changes I have made though!

After all, this has been the year for change right!?!? And it all started with a decision, or rather, a choice, that I made about a year ago.

What have I found since then? What's been one of the coolest things about this whole thing so far?

YOU! I have found support in places I never would have thought to look! Who knew that I could find more support in strangers than in my home, neighborhood, or local circle. Who knew.

You all are so very awesome. And I know I've said it before, but Thanks!

So on that note, I leave you with a few more shout outs. Because everyone needs to be shown the love! And I believe in paying it forward! :)

Ryllie posted a challenge to post things that weigh as much as I've lost. Sounds fun so here goes! Are you game?!?

1) a 5000 BTU air conditioner
2) as my hub would say, "over 1 super large bag of dog food"
3) about the size of an average 8 year old
4) 4,480 quarters (if I did the math right)

Stop by and say hello to Harli and Jennifer too ~ They need love too.

One great thing about the company winding down!?!? I got caught up on ALL of your blogs today! I just hope I don't run out of internet! :)

Have a great night everyone!

One more shout out!

Still showing the love! Say hello to Mon! Recently banded too! Thanks for supporting them too!

Chris

Shout out!

Hey Y'all! Just a quickie for now. Rachel is newly banded. So is Pumpkin! Share the love :) Head over and say hello! :)

Chris

HELLLOOOO!!! I'm still here!!

That's what my band said to me tonight! I've been wondering why I hadn't heard from her in a while. Ya see, I think I have found my green zone (or I am super-duper close)! I had my last fill on 2/13 followed by a slight unfill on 2/17. And I can't say I have been hungry this past month. I've only lost 4 pounds this past month but my choices haven't been great.

Anyway, I decided on some corned beef for dinner tonight. Left over of course from Sunday. I was only a few bites in and I was STUCK!!! Yep still there. I've been wondering where she was this past month! So glad her reminder was relatively suttle. Sometimes her reminders last a long, long time!

Green zone, yeah, I'm thinking I am there. We will see how we do this month. But I am super close if not there already! If I continue to lose this month then I will probably pass on a fill next month. Time will tell!!

So we shall definitely see what the future holds!

Back to work tomorrow! And I am getting anxious about the workout thing. Really hoping I don't gain weight this week doing nothing. I sneezed today and it was the worst! OUCH!!!I coughed too....not liking either of those! And I am super bruised & swollen!!! I hope this improves a bunch by next week. Yes this hurts a bit!  (Sorry gross I know!)

 

On that note...Have a great night! Arrow & Supernatural both start back up tomorrow! Thankfully Beauty and the Beast started back up last week!

Mad Monday Weigh in....

is being skipped this week due to surgery. Here's why!

Friday morning when I weighed I was around 217- 218, but then Saturday when I weighed I was 224 (WTF) 7 lbs up!?! Then Sunday when I weighed I was 228 (Holy WTF) 10 lbs up! No way. So this morning when I weighed I was at 220 (8lbs down from yesterday morning and 3 lbs up from Friday. I asked many of you if this was possible and everyone said stay away from the scale.

So since this HAS to be surgery related. I am skipping this weeks weigh in. There is no way I have eaten enough calories in the last 3 days to gain 3 lbs let alone 10 lbs. And I have not worked out since Thursday because the doctor told me I need to take a break but still, I can't gain 10 lbs sitting right?!?! So....

My recliner and I have been cuddling for 3 days. My belly is swollen and really bruised.  I went for a short 1 mile walk on Saturday and I was kind of sore afterwards. So I have elected to take it easy and take a few days off so I don't create more issues. I probably did more today then I should have getting ready for the carpet cleaner guy to come. So. I sit and watch TV and read your blogs and surf the Internet! :) My O'Ryan has been keeping me company!

So today's major announcement!?!? We are celebrating!! The big 50!! Nope not lbs or years! Followers! I have 50 followers today!

Thank you for all of your support and encouragement! It really does mean the world to me! And even though I may not respond to every comment, I do read every one! My followers ROCK! And make this journey bearable! Thank you for being my inspiration! Happy Monday to you!

Tell me this is not possible!!

OK Scale whore here! So naturally I have to weigh myself everyday because it is like a bad addiction. Yesterday morning before surgery I was about 217- 218 today when I weighed I was at 224. Please tell me I did not gain 6-7 lbs since I had surgery yesterday!!! I have basically had 4 bowls of soup chicken and dumpling soup (homemade by mom), 1/2 c applesauce, a protein shake and a 1/2 brownie in the last 2 days.



Please tell me this isn't possible!!! :-(

What to do?!?!

OK So I am on restrictive exercising for the next 10 days because of my hernia repair surgery yesterday. It's only been one day and I am already getting fidgety. What am I gonna do. I can't swim or run or use the elliptical. Nothing extraneous. I had to get out this morning so the hubby and I went for a 1 mile walk. I didn't even get winded. And apparently we walked a a pretty good pace because we hit one mile in 18 minutes and 41 seconds. He was afraid I was going to walk 5 miles or run so he is monitoring me. I promise I will behave!

So there isn't enough of this to keep me occupied.

And I am not much of a reader. I will spend lots of time on the Internet. Any other non-strenuous activity recommendations out there?

 

Thanks of course for your help! and Happy Saturday!!

Everything went good today!

Short and sweet! Thanks for reading! Too tired for more today...

Have a great weekend!

Chris

Accidental NSV!!

I went for my run tonight. I am on day 2 week 5. Day 1 of week 5 was 3 sets of jogging for 5 minutes, walk for 3 minutes. So when I got to today's run I figured it was the same. I mean so far each week I have done the same thing for 3 days each week.

So I was listening to my ipod and I wasn't really paying attention to the countdown on my phone. I was jogging along wondering when the 5 minutes was going to be up. It seemed like the longest 5 minutes ever! But I kept going. I got to my second set of 5 minutes and when that was over  it said "workout complete!" What?!?!? I thought maybe I had ran for 5 minutes 3 times and not counted correctly. So during the cool down walk I pulled my phone out and looked at it.

I was floored by what I saw! I actually jogged 2 sets of 8 minutes! 8 minutes!! I couldn't believe. I thought the program messed up so what I restarted it. I ran the first set of 8 minutes. So I completed 1 1/2 of todays routine. I could not believe that I ran for 8 minutes! Wholly Cow!!! So excited! 8 minutes! 3 times! 3.28 miles! average time per mile was 16.12 minutes! That's 30 seconds better than last week! I consider this my accidental NSV for today!

So overall, today's workout was swimming for 30 minutes and the C25K for 53.05 minutes. For a total of  579 calories today!

OK Off to bed for me. Surgery bright and early in the morning. I have to be to the hospital by 6 for 8 AM surgery.

I hope everyone has a great Friday. I will try to update tomorrow! Thanks for stopping by!

5 months post-op 2 days early...

So I will be 5 months post-op on Friday! Woo hoo!

What does this mean for me? Well....lets see....it means that 11 months ago I made a choice. I looked in the mirror one day and couldn't smile. I didn't like what was looking back. I stood in the elevator to my office and looked at the ground and couldn't see my feet past my belly. I was winded walking from the parking lot to the building. I was tired ALL the time! And maybe the worst thing of all! I kept telling myself I was fine and I this is all that I was going to become. I was my worst enemy. I had excuses for EVERYTHING!!

One day a VIP in my life said to me. "Please do something, do something for yourself, I need you to be around for a long time." Do something for myself, this is something I never really thought about. So, I called and made an appointment with CBSI for information, and before the appointment was over I had decided to bite the bullet and do something for ME. I didn't do it for the kids, or my mom, or my sisters, or my nephew, or my husband, or my brothers....I did it for ME! With tears in my eyes I looked at my used, run down body, and I said "I will do it for me." I have made so many changes.

The first major choice, I quit smoking. Yikes! I have been smoke free for 11 months today! My excuse before, I didn't want to quit because I would gain weight. And I did. I gained 17 lbs in the 4 months following my decision to change. And I looked in the mirror again, now at my highest weight ever of 274.8 and I was disgusted and angry. That was the moment I decided I would not be defeated. I sat and thought long and hard about what I wanted to do. I found exercise I enjoyed. I started slow, but I started. I lost 14.6 lbs before surgery, leaving me only 2.6 lbs heavier then when I quit smoking 6 months earlier. Proof that I could be smoke free and lose weight! This was the first NSV for me and I didn't even know it.

Since surgery I have lost 41.6 lbs. I have averaged 8.32 lbs per month. I can swim for 20 solid minutes without taking a break, I can walk up 2 flights of stairs and still breath when I reach the top, I can chase the girls around the house and catch them, I can jog for 5 minutes, I sleep solid all night long, I can workout on the elliptical for 45 minutes and live, I have dropped 8 pant sizes, I can see muscle definition in my legs, but most of all, I can look in the mirror and smile. I'm not there yet, I still have 73.6 lbs to go, but I see the hard work paying off. I see the changes in my body, in the way I feel, and in pictures I would have never taken before. And this is only at 5 months. 6 months will be epic!

It's been hard, but the hardest thing, was putting me, and what I wanted before everyone else. I have always taken care of everyone else, and back burnered anything I wanted for me. No one ever asked what I wanted. My VIP said, "I just want you to be happy." I had never thought about those words before. At least not in the context I do now. The first step to being happy, was finding happiness in myself. Believing in me.

So I plug away every day, I sweat, I moan and groan and I complain, and then I breathe and smile. And I see changes. And I've gone from rarely taking pictures:

To being proud of the changes I have made and not being afraid to let the world know it: I am almost 1/2 of me!

SO I say....

HELLO WORLD! I HAD LAP BAND SURGERY TO HELP ME LOSE WEIGHT AND IT'S BEEN A LIFE SAVING & LIFE CHANGING DECISION! IN MORE THEN ONE WAY!

AND I WOULD DO IT AGAIN!

Happy Thursday to you! Have a great day!

Popcorn Intervention!

I think I have a popcorn problem! More specifically a caramel popcorn problem. I mean it is 94% fat free butter popcorn and sugar free caramel but OMG it is so good. I eat the WHOLE bag!! And my band has no problem letting it slide through. I'm gonna have to stop or learn how to eat only 1/2 the bag. There is only 285 calories in the whole bag even with the caramel but still. I'm eating it when I'm not hungry. I think there are a lot worse things I could eat. But I really am having trouble curbing the caramel popcorn intake.

The time change is still kicking my butt! Thank goodness tomorrow is Tuesday! The kids have doctors appointments at 2:30 so I am getting off work at 1 so I can get home and get them. Then I will rush my daughter to her tennis match and meet my sister at the house so she can visit with my nephew. He has an orthodontist appointment tomorrow night too. So tomorrow will be a very busy day!
 
I was lazy today. I so was not feeling it. I went swimming for 1/2 hour and burned 159 calories. And then I went to the salon next store and got my nails done.  That's all I did today. Yes I was a slug. Tomorrow I will find time to fit in a run and a workout in between monitoring my sister and nephew and running around.

I really have to keep it going though. I only have 2 more days and I have to take it easy for 10 days. I am having surgery to repair a hernia on Friday morning. The doctor has already said that I will have to do nothing more than walk for 10 days. Similar to lap band recovery. So I am going to have to really watch what I eat and go for some serious walks. By my calculations I will be able to get back at it on the 26th. I think I will have to ease back into it after a 10 day break.

Here in Colorado we have some of the coolest weather! What is the saying? "If you don't like the weather, wait 10 minutes, it will change".  A few days ago we had blizzard like weather conditions.

Then it was 50 degrees yesterday, and then last night it snowed!  March is apparently our snowiest month.

 

The rest of this week is supposed to be beautiful here! I love Spring! It is the perfect time of year. Not too hot not too cold. I wish it could be spring all year round! I might have to break out the motorcycle Thursday! Ah Spring is almost here!



 Have a great Tuesday night!

Mad Monday Weigh In!

Happy Monday everyone! Tell me, does the time change affect anyone else? I was so tired today! YIKES! And I thought I got enough sleep last night. For some reason the time change always kicks my butt!

OK on to my Mad Monday Weigh In....and the results are!?!? 218.6! Down 2.8 lbs this week! Woo Hoo! I love progress! It makes all the pain and sweat worth it! So glad I recovered from party week!

So my totals are:

56.2 lbs down since 8/22/12!

41.6 lbs down since surgery on 10/15/12!

 

Super Excited!! I am only 8.8 lbs from my  1/2 way point! I would really like to his this 1/2 way point by my 6th month post-op check up in April. My 6th month appointment is on April 17th. So that gives me about 5 weeks to lose basically 9 more lbs. I think I can do this. Maybe I can be in Onederland by June!! OK...breathe....don't think too far ahead Chris! I have to remind myself to slow down every now and then :)

 

Today's work out was so hard to do. I was so tired. I went swimming after work and really wasn't feeling it. I even tried to cancel because I was running late, but they said they could still get me in because they had one free pool all night. So I took that as a sign that I was supposed to go. I did pretty good. I burned 179 calories swimming. That's pretty typical for swimming. And since they didn't need the pool I stayed a few minutes longer.

All the way home I thought about how I wanted to skip tonight's workout and just sit on the couch and watch TV. Tonight was a run night, I so didn't want to do it! But I did it anyway. And I'm glad I did. Today was day 1 week 5 of the C25K. 5 minute warm up, 5 minute jog, 3 minute walk, 5 minute jog, 3 minute walk, 5 minute jog and 5 minute cool down. I was so tired I really didn't think I was going to be able to jog for 5 minutes tonight let alone 3 times. But I did. I kept looking at the clock and saying "OK 4 more minutes", "OK 3 more minutes", "OK 2 more minutes", "OK OMG, Please hurry up!". My husband came home while I was running and wanted to talk while I was on the treadmill. Needless to say it was a short conversation because I can't really talk and run. LOL. I have to breathe instead! Luckily he caught on quick and let me finish. My run was good for 244 calories. So today's total was 423. For a tired work day I think that is  acceptable! I was going to try for an even 450 (I don't like odd numbers) but I was so ready to be done tonight. Important point of today. I did my workout. I finished.

So on to bigger and better things! My bed! I am so excited to sleep tonight lol. And it's not even 11 yet. Yes this is early for me. I am so not a morning person!

 

So I leave you with a hurricane hair picture. Yesterday when we were visiting with my sister, my nephew, my sister and I went in a hurricane machine at the mall to experience 78 MPH winds. I think I have felt winds like this on our porch but my nephew really enjoyed it. I ended up directly under the blower so I looked like Cousin Itt by the time we were done. Can you see the resemblance? I'm the tall one on the right. LOL My little man was lucky, his hair is super short! No muss there!

 

Good night friends! Thanks for reading and have a great Monday night!

Sunday....

Today was a good day. I worked out first thing this morning. Today wasn't a run day but I wanted to run....so I did the C25K day 1 week 1. Just 60 second interval running. I noticed it is way easier for me to run for 60 solid seconds. I even run at a pretty good pace. But I think the early weeks of the C25K are good in between my run days! I also did the calorie burn on the elliptical for 20 minutes today, So all in all I burned 400 calories today!

My sister was supposed to come down today to visit with her son. I know I have addressed this is previous posts but my sister is a recovering drug addict and I have been taking care of her son for the last 16 months. I have been fighting his father in court trying to get custody of him but it was deemed that his father is not a danger to my nephew so my nephew will be going to live with his father this summer when the school season is over. He is not yet aware of this and it is going to be hard for him because he would rather be with his mom. And he doesn't want to live with his father, and his father has no idea what it is like to take care of him. I feel so bad for the kid.

 

On Friday his school called me because he was in group therapy and he got so upset he started talking about how he wants to hurt himself and has been trying to do so by doing things like throwing himself down the stairs. Luckily we have not had any major accidents. This poor kid has dealt with so much in his young life over the last 4 years. He is only 9.  My sister has been clean for the last 7 months. This is the longest she has ever been clean. I have high hopes this time! Her son was looking so forward to her visit today, but the starter in her car went and she couldn't make it. So I took him to see her. We spent most of the day driving (1 1/2 hours each way) and we spent about 3 hours visiting.

 

It was a good visit. And my nephew was happy. Hopefully he will have a good day in school tomorrow and he will have a good week. I personally think the more he gets to see her the better he will be. She basically abandoned him and has hardly talked to him over the last 16 months. She is trying, finally.

 

OK Onward! I leave you with this! Borrowed from Julie ! Thanks Julie!

Have a great evening!

The Day After...

One thing I can say is that when I skip working out one day, I work hard to make up for it the next day! WOW! I feel good today! The family is still the same but I feel good today. I feel so much better after working out this morning. And I really pounded hard today. I didn't go outside because of the blizzard. Which turned out to not be horrible. We got about 6 inches total. This was early on, only about 2 at this point.

I got up and before I even came downstairs I got on the treadmill and did Week 4 day 3 of the C25K, that wasn't enough, I wanted to do more. So I did Week 1 day 1 of the C25K also. The I hopped on the elliptical for 1/2 hour! I did a 20 minute calorie burn workout and 10 minutes free and easy.
I burned 750 calories before breakfast! And over 5 miles!

 

Food wasn't horrible. I did pretty good except for the Taco Bell Dorito Taco and the small slice if Ice Cream cake I had today. But I am not beating myself up over that since I did burn 750 calories this morning.  Totals totals:

Calories: 1410.12

Fat: 53.91

Sugar: 64.41

Protein: 85.82

 

My hair loss is slowing down too. This is great news! It needs to slow down more but its getting there.

 

Not sure what I am going to do tomorrow. I kind of want to run again. I know I am not supposed to run two days in a row, but what if it's like C25K day 1 again? Yikes I said it AGAIN!! I WANT to run. Still amazes me that I actually say that. What do you think?

 

Have a Great Saturday night all!

 

A family apart......

OK I am going to vent for a minute. Why here? Because no one I know reads this really, at least I don't think. So here goes....

We went to dinner tonight. I received a gift card from work today and thought it would be nice to have dinner as a family. That is something that just doesn't happen often...so we went to Red Robin....well...I love my family ....really I do....but...

Everyone in our family expects support from me. Husband, kids, mother, sister, nephew, etc. But man, I ask for a little and I get nothing. Not only in the weight loss area, but in the human area too. My kids sometimes, (pretty rarely), back talk something horrible. But it is happening more often. I know they are teenagers and it is expected. But sometimes the blatant disrespect is baffling. I didn't raise them that way and if we hadn't been in the car I might have really let her have it. I would have gotten my teeth smacked out of my face if I talked to my parents like that. But it would be nice for once for the hubby to speak up in my defense. "Don't talk to your mother like that" would have been a great response. Instead I got nothing. NOTHING!!!

I am to the point I think it would be best for us to not even live together. There I said it!! I have felt it for so long and never said it! I even said it in the car and NOTHING!!! ARGH!!! I am so frustrated!!

So yes, this family doesn't feel much like a family. I know I know, this is all normal, but some days are easier to ignore than others. Today is not one of those days.

Anyway, I have figured out that stress makes my band feel tighter. This is something I have read on a lot of your blogs. But I felt it today. I wasn't hungry AT ALL today, but I ate anyway. I think I probably could have just skipped eating most of the day.

Bad food choices today! You bet!! Let the weekend sabotage begin! NO NO NO!!! At Red Robin for dinner I had 1 onion ring, a few spoonfuls of Artichoke Spinach dip, 1/2 a bacon cheese burger, a few fries, and yep I drank raspberry ice tea with dinner. The I came home and ate an entire bag of popcorn with sugar free caramel on it!! Let the guilt set in.

Nope didn't work out today either. Had to cancel my swim appointment because of work. Then had to get home to take the girls to the orthodontist, then straight to dinner an home around 9:30 pm to eat popcorn. Yes I'm tired. I didn't get all my water in either....

I was supposed to run yesterday and didn't because of my knee, didn't run tonight either for what ever reason, and now its supposed to blizzard tomorrow.

OK I'm done. Off my pity pot. Time to get back on the hamster wheel and make things move again.

Maybe it's the 2 days with virtually no exercise that have me feeling like a slug...Have a great weekend!

OK Ten Things Thursday Take II (Awesome NSV as #10)

Second stab at this! Lets see if I have 10 things for today....(Major NSV at the end!)

1) Less than 90 days left to another road in this journey called life. No drinking this week! Thank goodness! So hard to say no...

2) I didn't run today. My knee is hurting pretty bad. Even kicking in the pool. My brother said to take it easy so I fought the guilt off and didn't run today. I went swimming, burned only 150 calories and then came home and gave my knee a break. Tomorrow night I will run!

3) I have some kind of a skin rash going on around my eye and on my back. WTF is that?!?! Heat rash maybe?!?! From sweat?!?!

4) I am looking forward to weigh in day on Monday. I think the results are gonna be great!

5) The weathermen are calling for a MAJOR snow storm this weekend starting tomorrow. Yes I live in Colorado, but I don't really like the cold or hot. I need to live somewhere where it is always Spring!

6) Work is super slow and has been boring lately. Yikes...

7) I am so bummed that Arrow, Supernatural and Beauty and the Beast are on hiatus (mid season intermission). Next week Beauty and the Beast starts back up and Arrow and Supernatural are the week after that. It makes me sad, this means the seasons are almost over....No clue what I am gonna watch from June to October...

8) I am having a really hard time thinking of 10 things today....

9) A week ago at Lane Bryant I got 7 pair of jeans size 14 (in anticipation of the future) for $14. Yes $2 a pair. I had originally ordered the wrong size online and used $100 of real women dollars when I did. I returned the wrong jeans to the store and had them order the right ones. The ones I really needed were marked down to $12 & $22 per pair. Then they honored my real women dollars too. $14 baby!!

10) MAJOR NSV ALERT!!! Those size 14 jeans came in today. So I thought I would go try them on....and OMG....they fit!!! And comfortably fit at that! That is 8 sizes down. I was a size 22 when I started all this! On top of that, I went and got out an old pair of Rider jeans and they fit too! A little snug but not bad at all!! Loving this! See!!!

Have a great night folks! TGIF! One more sleep and it's FINALLY here!!!

Hump Day!!

Happy Hump Day everyone!!

The week is 1/2 over and I am so ready for Friday!

Tonight we went to my youngest daughters Varsity Basketball awards ceremony. And my baby lettered!! The highschool my girls go to is new. it's only been open for 3 years. It has 9 - 11 graders. The Varsity Basketball team consisted of only freshman and sophmore players. She is only a freshman and she was benched for the majority of the season. She played a few minutes in about 8 games. She was so discouraged and wanted to quit at least 5 times (probaby more) that I can remember talking her down off the ledge. She came home crying several times from practice because of the starters making fun of her but I didn't want her to quit. 2 reasons - 1) She would regret the decision to quit in the long run, and 2) She started basketball season and she needed to see it through. Finish what she started. I am proud of her, she did finish. It was a very hard season for her. But she toughed it out and in the end it was all worth it! Especially her face! She was glad she lettered but this is not what she was super excited about.

Her first High School Varsity Letter! But this is what she got really excited about!

The coaches named her the Most Improved Player! He even touched on the fact that she wanted to quit and toughed it out and finished the season. This meant more to her then lettering and truth be told, I teared up. Just sitting here typing this is making me tear up!

She hasn't had the easiest life, my little girl, so moments like these really get to me.

 

OK Thanks for letting me boast about my girl!!

 

So on to today's workout. No swimming because of the basketball party. But I came home and got on my elliptical. I think my HRM was dirty or something the first time. Because I know the calorie burn isn't right on it. I did one of the pre-programed calorie burn workouts and the elliptical said (277 calories) vs the HRM that said (143 calories): I know this is wrong. The ellitical runs about 25 calories faster than my HRM so they are usually close. So that being said I am calling this first 20 minutes 250 calories give or take a few.

For the second round I decided to do the C25K on the elliptical just to keep going. I washed the chest strap of my HRM really well and tried again. I got much better results the second time around. The elliptical said 248 calories and my HRM said  234. We will say about 25 calories difference even though the pictures say 18 (I didn't stop the HRM right away).  So I'm going to call today about 500 calories. I'm good with that! Big pictures again sorry...

Food today was great!

Calories: 1096.88

Fat: 19.88

Sugar: 59.00

Protein: 78.13

 

OK folks! Have a great night! It's sleepy time!