Lost 100

Thanks!

I am thankful for being able to run in Central Park this Thanksgiving! Grogeous day- 60 & sunny!

It was important for me to give thanks today for my beautiful & amazing body & I couldn't think of a better way to give thanks than to do something active & in nature!

Holidays Scaring You? Plan Out Your Workouts for the Week!

                                So it's Thanksgiving week!  So excited....but I know there are those of you shaking in fear because you know this is the time of year you can easily pack on 10-15 lbs. between this week & the 2nd week of January.  Maybe it's time to change your story!  Instead of same old-same old, make this the year you maintain, or better yet, lose weight this Holiday season!  How?  Simple:  PLAN.  You heard right, plan it out! 

This week for instance I know that I have relatives coming and it's easy to miss a workout.  Well, instead of waiting to plan until the day of, I know exactly what I'm doing this week.  And everyone else will just plan around it or go on without me. 

• Tuesday:  interval cardio class, gym 12:30PM-1:30 PM, abs, weights, more cardio to follow
• Wednesday:  running in early AM (7 am baby!), evening masters swim program 8-9PM
• Thursday:  Thanksgiving!  running 6 miles in Central Park after watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
• Friday: 7:30 AM  Masters swim program, followed by weight training session
• Saturday:  Pilates
• Sunday:  running in AM

Another important thing to remember:  take a daily walk after dinner.  Make it a family event if you'd like.  Catch up with your Great Aunt Sally over a 3 mile walk after Thanksgiving dinner.  You don't need workout attire, but the simple act of moving around will keep your metabolism going and keep you from stuffing yourself to the breaking point!

Good luck--and don't forget the silly, but true old adage:  If you fail to plan, you plan to fail!

Happy Thanksgiving week :-)

Anatomy of a Breakdown

So, I'm back from our vacation.  I have to say, I think I've learned a bit about myself over the past few days.  I went into my Easter trip to my mother-in-law's larger than life (eek, that pun WASN'T intended!), I had it all figured out--I had MASTERED my eating/diet!  Boy, just when you get a little cocky that's when life kicks you in the ass.  And can I say one thing...'ouch'.

Prior to our trip I had adopted a new way of eating & frankly I was kicking butt and taking names.  I dropped 14 lbs in 2 weeks!  I realized a lot of this was detoxing my body and water weight, but I did take it off and keep it off, my clothes felt looser, I even wore a couple pairs of underwear that normally rode too low on my tummy and 'rolled' over (well, actually, under) my infamous low-belly overhang.

So, I'm going gangbusters, so what happens?  A total breakdown of the mind-meets-food-meets-mouth.  Yes folks, I went off the plan.  Yep.  Did it feel good?  Hell no!  Every bite I was taking I was screaming at myself, crying internally, yet somehow did not stop.  I even snuck into the bathroom with my journal and tried to figure out what the hell I was doing.  It didn't work, everyone thought I was sick and then people needed the bathroom and so I exited and had yet another slice of ham.

Not that I believe everyone must eat only a prescribed number of calories every single day of their life.  But I guess my frustration stemmed from having made a 32 day commitment and then breaking it.  I learned that I still have some issues around food.  I eat for emotional reasons, and what's great is that I'm doing a bit of work right now to figure out exactly what those emotions are and how I can handle them differently (in the past I would say to myself, well at least I eat and don't starve myself, cut myself, smoke pot, am a nymphomaniac--I call this the Jerry Springer phenomenon:  we compare ourselves to the least common denominator in humanity, instead of striving to live up to the best role models). 

So I know I eat for emotional reasons.  I know I wasn't hungry.  I also learned that I need structure.  Some people can 'wing it'.  I hate those people.  I am not a 'winger'--first off I don't have long blond hair and a twin and a famously deceased dad (sorry, bad 80's rocker joke).  Seriously though, structure is what I need, at least right now.  A plan.  A way to quantify the stuff I'm putting in my body.  This is why they recommend you 'write it down'--because most of us must need this--quantification!  

Now my only saving grace in all of this is that I became violently ill with a stomach virus (imagine that?!).  So, I actually did not gain (or lose) a pound in my week and a half 'off program'.  I would not recommend this method.  It is not fun to be as sick as I was, it really sucks when you are so sick you don't want to read, check e-mail or even watch TV.  If you can't even watch TV or a movie you have become a true slug!

I am back to being cognizant of my food choices....planning....journaling....choosing better foods for each meal.  I feel more in control and that's good.  AND I found out I'm going to be featured in Health magazine and have my picture taken (yikes!) so I have some extra motivation for staying in control and staying focused.  Wish me luck!

EVEN CHRISTMAS TREES HAVE BODY IMAGE ISSUES!

We went to cut down our Christmas tree last week and this tree caught my eye...I call it the 'anorexic tree'...even Christmas trees have been seduced by the media/diet industry standards and this poor Arborvitae has succumbed to the pressures!

I recommended a new 'arbor-face group' for this uber-skinny gal...'recovering arborexics, full figured is beautiful'...

HI-HO HI-HO IT'S OFF TO THE GYM I GO

So, I burnt my turkey, I ate 2 slices of pie, I had 1/2 a bottle of vino....

.....what's a girl to do?  Repeat for the next 4 days, right?!

WRONG-O!

Get thee to the gym.  I'm off to the gym for some cardio infusion, strength training and core---and I'm drinking heavily today.  Say what?  I'm drinking heavily today--WATER, good ole H2O.  Why repeat the bad habits of the past day...this is where to draw the line: I had my fun, I celebrated like crazy, but enough is enough...solid healthy eating for the next few weeks is essential.  To be honest, I'll probably forgo making Christmas cookies this year because I just don't need that crap in the house.

THANKSGIVING--GIVE THANKS FOR YOUR BODY & MOVE IT!

Just a friendly little reminder that you should give thanks for your body!  It allows you to walk, run, talk, hug, cook, eat, kiss, skip, hop, ride a bike, jump, climb, have sex (come on, you were thinking it too!), ride a motorcycle, ski, skateboard, ride a horse, etc.

What a wonderful thing it is the way our bodies work.  Give it a little gift today....take a long walk, go for a jog, ride your bike....just do something to say 'thanks for all the little things you allow me to do, now let me take care of you'.

It might seem silly, but deep down you KNOW it's true.  So yes, eat some yummy foods and give thanks for the harvest, but give thanks for your amazing, wonderful, beautiful body too!  We are heading out for our run in about 30 minutes.

Happy Thanksgiving!

DOES HALLOWEEN HAVE YOU RUNNING SCARED?...TRY THESE TRICKS FOR GOOD TREATS!

With Halloween just about a week away, many of you may be dreading having to go out and buy candy for the trick-or-treaters as well as having all that candy in the house after the kids get back with it... What's a girl to do? Well, I have some GREAT ideas to share... There are a ton of treats that are not 'food based'...we'll start with the newest fab this year...play doh.

1. The folks at Play Doh wised up and realized how many people feel like they're feeding the childhood obesity beast...they put Play Doh in little 1 ounce jars and are selling them in packs of 20, 25, 40 and 50! I bought mine today at Target, 25 for $4.99. Yep, it may be a tad more than you're wanting to spend on the neighborhood kids, but is it worth it to keep candy/junk in your house?
2. Temporary Tattoos. Kids LOVE these things. Here are some 'Dora' ones I found on the Oriental Trading Company Website.
3. Stickers! I found some great stickers today at Target, 20 sheets for $1.99. Often you can find them even cheaper. Here are a couple examples from Oriental Trading Company.
4. Bubbles. Kids love bubbles! Plus, this time of year you can find them at up to 75% off as stores are trying to clear their shelves for Holiday merchandise.
5. Pirate stuff. Boys (and girls) are still gaga for pirates, the craze reached fever pitch during the Pirates of the Caribbean movies & is still going strong.
6. Crayons. Crayons, coloring books, anything art related will make kids smile.
7. Kaleidoscopes. I'm even fascinated with a kaleidoscope! You can find them at dollar stores or Oriental Trading Company.
8. Puzzles. Little puzzle boards (like a 1-dimensional rubik's cube) will keep kids busy. You can even find holiday themed ones.
9. Clappers. Sure the noise will drive you crazy, but then again at least they aren't eating sugar...
10. Water. You can give a bottle of water, or better yet, give a BPA-free reusable bottle to encourage kids to drink more water (of course, if you get 100+ trick-or-treaters this could bankrupt you!)

If you MUST give out candy, research has shown that choosing just ONE kind of candy will help you eat less, the rationale being that if you have 5 different kinds of candy (kit kat, reeses cups, snickers, milky way, M&M's...those aren't my favorites or anything...haha) you will feel inclined to 'try' each kind instead of keeping it to one piece total. Interesting...

Another option is giving out candy you don't like. To me, that's kind of like throwing a party and serving food you don't like or re-gifting crappy wine...

Finally a few don't:  do not give out homemade candy apples, homemade brownie, apples, popcorn balls, etc. Parents won't let kids eat homemade treats (unless they know you really really well) and the time and expense just isn't worth it for something that won't be appreciated.

What other ideas do you have???????