Monday Weigh-In & Thoughts - August 23rd Edition

A pound loss...certainly nothing to sniff at, especially consider the complete lack of exercise the 14th-17th due to that nasty cold.

2.5 inches gone in the past 2 weeks...great news. Especially the hip & waist losses. My arms are still being stubborn, but that's OK.

My goal for the end of August is 228lbs...that means I have 2.6lbs to go. Unless I have a massive drop this week, I don't see that happening, but I'm certainly going to try for it :)

Food - My calories went bouncy-bouncy all week because of my weird activity level changes, which probably confused my body into that 1 lb loss. I think I ranged between 1500 and 1950 for week. That's a little more of a variety than I had planned, but it wroked out well.

Really focused on keeping my carbs at 230 grams a day or lower, and my percentage at lower than 50%. I nailed both of those for the week and am very pleased.

Exercise - 2 days of 50 min treadmill walks, 2.5mph @ 7% incline. My old treadmill is starting to protest all of this work, so I pray it holds out until I can get a membership at the local exercise center.

Did some strength training and a little yoga. Finally got in the pool on Saturday and felt great, mixing up my laps a bit by doing around 30 mins of crawl and 20 mins of breast stroke...took my time and got into a great rhythmn. Spent the rest of the time treading water and I was WIPED when I was done. Great workout.

Mood & Energy - A little better stress-wise. We're in the home stretch of this temporary arrangement of Adam's job and late nights of my stepson at the babysitter. I am officially over that nonsense and will be ready to celebrate the start of college on the 30th.

I'm also getting excited for that. I'm a total school geek, though, and always look forward to it. First day of classes for me is next Monday...woo hoo!

Upcoming week: Try to get back on my regular regime of exercise, because next week it switches up thanks to classes & slightly altered work hours. Continue to get excited about school...engross myself in work & get plenty of rest so that the week flys by!

Calorie range: 1,770 - 2,120
Treadmill (with 7% incline) @ 2.5mph - 3x a week, 45mins
Yoga - 2x a week
Strength training - 3x a week
Swimming - 1x a week, 45 mins crawl, 30 mins backstroke, 45mins treading water/goofing around in the pool

Like I needed something else to do

I took a few days off from work this week. Work is getting tough for me. I'm starting to get weary of the repitition of my job and of the long hours sitting at a desk all day. Being the self-proclaimed computer geek that I am, that just feels like crazy talk. But since I've become more active, I get antsy if I have to sit still for too long.

I think it's also getting difficult because I now have a timeline to change things. I know that in a year and a half, I will need to leave my current job (or take a sabbatical if they still offer it) to go chasing my dream, which will hopefully turn into a career.

This fall, I'm starting full-time coursework towards a graduate degree in Business Education. In the spring of 2012, I'll need to take time off in order to student teach for a semester. My hope is that financial aid will help us survive, and that I'll be able to land a teaching job that fall, either in high school business classes or middle school computer classes.

It's scary. It's exciting. It's making me feel impatient. I haven't had a class since 2003. I have to do this AND work full-time. And I want to be teaching NOW ;)

Am I going to be able to handle it all with a family & so much responsibility? I pray that I can. I wouldn't have dreamed of trying to do this a year ago, but lots of therapy & urging from my counselor pushed me to try this. I never thought it possible Adam & I could both go to school at the same time. Of course, I didn't think it was possible we could survive without him working, either, but here we are 8 months later and truly blessed to have made it through. I thank God for that because there were some scary moments during that time, but we were able to get past them.

So I am hopeful I can do this. To fully turn around my life, I NEED something to change. I need to find a job I love, something I truly want to do. And I feel like this is the direction I need to go.

One of my vacation days this week was spent getting my parking pass & student ID. 9 days until my first day of classes, and I am ready to get this bus rolling.

Monday Weigh-In & Thoughts - Wednesday the 18th Edition

Yay, it looks like Boo might finally have a home & the love he deserves.

Typically I do a Monday post, which is when I do my "official" weigh-in. However, I was super busy at the beginning of the week & just now had time to post.

Let's add to that the lovely cold I've been nursing for 5 days now. It was so bad Saturday morning I skipped my weekly swim. This did not make me happy, since swimming is my biggest calorie-burner of the week (and the most enjoyable), but I felt so crummy that I just couldn't do it.

And the yuckiness continued on until today, so I took a 4 day break from exercise. Not only was it the inability to breath properly due to stuffiness, but I was also extremely tired. I should've known something was up on Friday, when my regular workout left me extremely tired & a little nauseated. It was an effort just to get up & move around, so exercising was out of the question. Also, I wanted to give my body all the energy I could to fight off the cold as quickly as possible.

I did watch my calories & continued to eat as healthy as possible, while trying to throw in some cold-friendly items like orange juice & chicken noodle soup.

Good news from this? Even though I missed 2 days of exercise before Monday's weigh-in, I still managed to lose 2lbs, which I'm very pleased with considering how bad I felt.

Food - I did some mid-week tweaking on calories because I was burning too many & not taking enough calories in. I was ranging 1800-2000 a day. I also looked closely at my carbs & made sure they stayed under 230 grams a day, aiming for a percentage of 45-50%. I believe both really helped give me a good number on the scale. Of course, the nosedive in activity for Saturday & Sunday led to re-tweaking. Since I was burning a lot less those days than I had anticipated, I lowered my calorie intake a bit to compensate.

Exercise - I did my 3 days on the treadmill and Yoga on the other 2 days. I cut out Tae-Bo to try to lower my calorie burn a bit in anticipation of the big Saturday swim-a-thon, but obviously that didn't pan out. I'm still trying to find a balance of activity that gives me a good calorie burn, but isn't excessive. I did some strength training as well, but not as much as I wanted to.

Mood & Energy - It was pretty low all last week, and totally crashed on Saturday & Sunday. Trying to pick up extra household duties since Adam is back at work has put a lot of extra stress on me. I'm getting less sleep, I'm eating dinner later than usual, and the extra chores are causing some back pain...but it has to be done. Spidey is in 1st grade now & has homework almost every night, and by the time I get him from the babysitter after work, get home, do homework, feed the cats, feed Spidey, play the Wii with him (reward for a good day), and put him in bed, it's like 9:30 or 10 before I get to eat & sit down.

It's not anyone's fault...this is just the way things have to be for now. He's finally working the full week & we desperately need the money. I'd forgotten how hard it was with both of us working full-time & me out of the house almost 12 hours out of the day. I think this all led to me getting sick, which is usually what happens. Lots of stress = pushing myself more than I should = cough cough sneeze.

But we only have a week and a half more to go of this. Adam's last day at his job is the 27th, because as great as having the paycheck is, there is just no way we can do this & both of us go to college full-time & be there for Spidey. Financial aid will carry us with him only working part-time. I pray it will.

This (upcoming) week: The scale hasn't budged much since Monday, probably because I haven't been exercising. To compensate for the lower calorie burn for the week, I'm bouncing back down to 1700-2000 calories for the week. I don't anticipate a good drop this week, but I'm really hopeful I can knock out the last 3.6lbs this week & next week to meet my goal of 25lbs lost by the end of August. I'm going to keep trucking this week & get fully back in the groove next week.

Finally crawled back on the treadmill this morning. My body was not really happy about this, and even with just a 4-day break, my knee was grumbling.

Calories: 1700-2000

Wed, Fri: Treadmill, 7% incline @ 2.5mph - 50 mins

Thurs, Sun: 30 mins Yoga, maybe Tae-Bo, Strengthening exercises for upper, lower body & core

Sat: Swimming, 2 hours - 20 min crawl, 20 min backstroke, 10 min breast stroke, 10 min paddleboard, 1 hr general swim

Carnival of the Cats #335

Update: I know there are so many unwanted wonderful kitties out there, but this one in particular really speaks to me. I know it would break my heart if I were in this situation.
If you know of anyone in the Western Pennsylvania area (or beyond) that could give this poor little guy a home, please help!

A Home For Boo

Scamper: We has a sad. Momma's not feeling well, and she's been laying on the couch all weekend, too sick to play with us.

Pepper: I thought I'd help her fold clothes, but then realized the clothes were better beds than folded up in a drawer!

That's just what I need, cat-fur covered clothes, but what's new around here? Let's get the carnival started!

This should come as no surprise, but Cuthbert the cat reports that scientists have learned that animals are more intelligent than humans give them credit for. We felines have been telling you this all along!

Humans don't know how to make a bed, so Miles assists his human with making the bed, then pauses for a power nap and to admire his hard work.

The Kitten gives us further proof that humans are incapable of making beds without a cat's assistance. How could you possibly sleep without our lovely furs all over the bed?

Luna proves that black cats are an elegant complement to any shade, or they can stand alone as the ultimate masterpiece.

Felix: What a great idea, Pepper! I'll help Momma clean off her dirty desk. Well, I'll at least rid it of these fun little hair ties!

Kal-el: And I'll help break down the boxes with my big fuzzy butt. See? I've already started!

While the cats are busy, um "helping", let's continue with the carnival!

Oh my! Before Elvira could make it in for her, ahem, "procedure", she was stricken with urges that confused her and we're sure annoyed Nikita. But everything was "fixed" (ba dum dum) and Elvira is feeling a lot better now!

Nikita and Elvira also want to say thank you for their care package and tell everyone about BlogPaws 2010 West!

Nicky shows off his amazing blue eyes for the camera, and we learn he is not a fan of the bathing. As fellow felines, we completely understand, and good luck to your human with your future bathing endeavors!

Still recovering from surgery, but Maddie is doing well & is active enough to sneak off for unauthorized walks around the house. Get well soon Maddie!

Bagheera & Maggie: Whew, we're pooped! Momma does a lot around here, and now it's our turn for a nap!

Izumi: But first...Momma, hop to it & get us our dinner! We know you're sick, but opening cans is the one thing we can't do!

Oh, all right!

Before I gather up the gang for dinner, I want to say thanks for letting us host the carnival!

Next week's carnival is hosted by none other than the regal Nikita and lovely Elvira.

High Impact = less likely to knock you over with my bosoms

From screaming fatgirl:

Hmm. Maybe I missed something, but why not reduce the exercise so that you don't work your body so hard? That would make your calorie consumption fine and reduce your overall fatigue.

I'm doing both, really. I'm upping my calories a bit and I'm reducing my exercise to try to find a happy medium. I may not be cutting my activity level enough though. I'm going to try it at this level for the next week or two & see how it goes. I've got 2 more weeks until school starts, and when that starts up, I probably will only get 4 days of moderate exercise a week instead of 5, so I will dial it down even more then.

Another thing is that I LIKE exercising. It really helps keep me from dragging if I can get up & do something for 20 minutes a few times a day, and the 3-4 times a week I really push myself in longer workouts make me feel strong & accomplished.

Besides, I'm not going to DENY myself the ability to eat more healthy food ;) That's just wrong!

So happy it's Friday. Not looking forward to all the things I have to do this weekend, but it's a break from work nonetheless. And, hey, exciting! Carnival of the Cats will be here Sunday, so get your entries in!

Here's the new sports bra I got. I was all excited about the "high impact" thinking I could stop bullets with my chest. Alas, I think the high impact means it keeps OTHERS safe so I don't knock them over with the "girls" while exercising. Boo ;)

Calories! Oy!

RedPanda had a good comment in the previous post:

"I think people often over-estimate the effect that stress has on weight loss. If you're stressed out of your mind for an extended period - sure - your body may produce extra cortisol which makes it easier to gain weight. Day-to-day stress and lack of sleep may encourage you to reach for sugary snacks for energy, or produce a lacklustre workout. But I don't think regular day-to-day stress will inhibit your weight loss."

I would agree with that to an extent. One stressful day or two here and there, or one or two nights of bad sleep are not going to cause weight-loss issues. But I think I fall more into the "stressed out of my mind" category, and I've been on that ride for quite a few years now. It's one of the reasons I started therapy. It's better now, but I've got a long way to go before I can handle stress better. Also, lack of sleep gives your body even less time to recuperate from exercising, and when you've been hitting it 300% like I have, your body needs all the rest it can get. But it's not the sleep itself, it's the combination of too much exercise & not enough sleep.

I know I said last week's small loss didn't bother me, but something's been on my mind for a few days. Actually, more like a few weeks. The more I think about it, the more I realize it's not the small weight loss or previous losses that get to me. It's the constant fatigue that I hate so much.

One of the main reasons I started this change was for my health & energy levels. I suffered from high levels of fatigue, so crippling I couldn't do more than the bare minimum chores around the house. And after the first few weeks of exercise, calorie & carb adjustments, I did find that energy. I was almost bouncy, which is unheard of for me. I felt good mentally and physically.

I don't know when exactly this went away. Looking back, I suspect the energy rush only lasted 2-4 weeks at most. After that point, I've gradually been feeling more and more fatigued.

Some of it is major amounts of stress. Major financial issues, college, switching around schedules & having less rest time. My therapist is not surprised that I am so fatigued based on the major stress level I'm dealing with right now and have been for about a month now.

But it's been something more than that. I can feel it. But when I was dropping weight quickly, I was able to push through the exhaustion, because I was meeting at least one of my goals. But now I'm not losing weight AND I feel like crap. I've got to have at least one ;) Actually, the ideal is both, based on the success stories I've seen at Fitday, SparkPeople, and 3 Fat Chicks, that is an attainable goal. You don't have to be miserable to lose weight.

So we're going to try upping the calorie intake. I know, AGAIN. But SparkPeople's recommendations have been scolding me for weeks that I need to eat more calories to sustain the huge amounts of exercise I'm doing. I've been ignoring it, but it looks like I've been going through a wonky weight loss since I started adding more exercise without upping the calories. Based on what I've seen from other people warning about this & based on how I feel, I worry that my body is trying to hold onto whatever fat & energy it has because I'm not fueling it with enough calories.

So I'm going to follow SP's recommendations of 1820-2120 calories a day, staying on the lower end on low activity days & higher end on big workout days. I've also dropped down my calorie burn to 4000 a week, and I'm going to try to stick to that and not blow by it like I have been, logging 5000 calories or more burned each week. It means cutting out a little bit of exercise, but I think it's worth it. I want to exercise & enjoy it & be healthy, but there's no point in killing myself with exercise and not having energy to do more with my family & around the house.

Plus, I've got to create a do-able exercise schedule that I can continue with when I start school on the 30th. I'm not going to be able to work out 7 days a week, or probably even 6...so now is the time to make sure I have a good 5 day a week routine.

I'm not going to stress if my Monday weigh-in shows bad results. I know it's going to take a week or two for my body to readjust. And this will probably mean that I will have a more "average loss" of a pound or two a week. But you know, if I feel great, am eating right & exercising, then I can be patient.

Monday Weigh-In & Thoughts - August 9th Edition

So not a great result on the weight loss front for this week. I didn't even make a 1lb loss...a .8lb loss for a current weight of 233.6.

I didn't do much differently this past week than I did the week before, but there was a little less sleep, a little more stress, a few more carbs & one missed exercise day on the treadmill. So I suppose this shows the importance of getting a full night's rest & the impact stress has on weight loss.

But I still feel accomplished, because the scale is not bothering me at all this time. Last week was exhausting for me. The husband actually worked 4 nights, which meant that I was up and moving from 6:30am to 9pm every day, Mon-Fri. I was super tired and exercise was an effort.

Some nice inch loss on measurements, though I'm puzzled by the half-inch gain in the waist & hips. Muscle, perhaps? My clothes are starting to look pretty loose, which is exciting. So is the inch loss on my thigh. My thighs have been the bane of my existence even at my skinniest, so any loss there makes me happy :)

Food - My goal was 1,590 - 1,790 calories a day. I think there was one day that I didn't hit that goal, but I was only over by 100 calories. I did notice that most of my days were in the 1700s, which was a little higher than the previous week.

I was also too focused on carb percentages than carb amounts. While I was hitting my carb percentages, I went way higher with grams, most days over 230.

Exercise - 2 days of 45mins on the treadmill, 6.5 incline, more 2.5mph than 2. Skipped Monday due to exhaustion, but made up for it on Friday when I went 15 minutes straight at 2.5mph.

Strength training & Yoga 3 days out of the week, and my Tae-Bo tape 1 day. And 28 laps in the pool on Saturday with a boost in speed to try to add some intensity.

Mood & Energy - Another blah week. I was exhausted most of the week, and had to take a nap Sunday. Stressed over all the same old things...money, school, new dog, etc. It was a real effort to exercise this past week.

Upcoming week: Try to pull my calorie intake down to see more 1500-1600 days, with a little more zig-zagging of calorie intake. Also reduce number of carbs to less than 220. Treadmill exercise is getting ramped up, a 7% incline going at 2.5mph for at least 35 minutes. Will also push to do more daily walks at work & endure the heat. Will push a little harder during Saturday's lap swim.

This morning was a good morning. I got my treadmill exercise in and feel pretty good. Am hopeful this week will be better than the last.

Upcoming Week
Calorie range: 1500-1800
Treadmill (with 7% incline) @ 2.5mph - 3x a week, 35mins
Tae-bo/Yoga videos - 2x a week, 50 min (also 30 min Yoga on Sunday)
Energizing Yoga - 3x a week, 20 mins
Calisthenics - 3x a week, 2 sets of 15
Swimming - 1x a week, 32 laps total = 6 breast stroke, 6 paddleboard, 10 crawl, 10 backstroke

A Very Important Rant

Class, pay attention. This is very important.

Ahem *stands on soapbox*

1) Neutering your male dog or cat will not take away his masculinity, make him a pansy dog, or make him lazy & fat. Spaying your female dog or cat will not make her fat and lazy, and letting her have a "litter" will not calm her down. However, not spaying or neutering WILL leave you with 10,000 puppies or kittens. Yes it is your fault, even if your dog gives birth on someone else's property.

2) It is not acceptable to dump puppies or kittens at people's doorsteps, or in ditches, or places I shudder to think about, or worse, "take care" of them yourself with some horrible means of death. All that because you shirked your responsibility as a pet owner. NO ONE else should have to go to the expense & trouble of finding good loving homes for YOUR animals that should never have been born in the first place when there are so many homeless pets out there. But you prey upon people with a shred of decency and a heart. And who suffers the most here? The innocent animals, who did nothing to deserve the life you sentenced them to when you dumped them off. The animals who are scared & unsure what to do, who are hurt, run over, sick, or tortured by bored kids. I know times are hard, but this is never acceptable in any way, shape, or form. I wonder how you can sleep at night.

3) It is ALSO not acceptable to turn your dog or cat loose for any reason, whether it's so he can "roam", you can't be bothered to secure him appropriately, or you can no longer afford to care for him and you think it's better to let him loose and "give him a chance" rather than take him to the pound. You are not giving him a chance. You are dooming him to the same scary, pitiful, sad and likely short life the kittens/puppies in #2 are facing. I think we should be allowed to drop you off, Mr. or Mrs. Pet Owner, in the middle of Baghdad or Afghanistan with no food, water, or directions to get home because we as Americans can't take care of you anymore. How does THAT sound?

4) You might think animals are nothing more than property or something to own, but they are God's creatures as much as we are. I know in my heart God makes special notes about people who treat animals as such, with no heart or love. It's no better than torturing an animal, so don't kid yourself.

5) Yes, the pound should be the last option, especially if they have a short holding period before euthanization. But did you know that there are these magical little places called "no-kill shelters" and "rescues" that DO exist, even though you might think they are myth. I know it's a struggle to pick up the phone to call them or get online & Google them or contact local vets to get their names, but I think you can manage. More often than not, these people will work with you to get the animal to a safe place. You might have to suck it up for a week or two, but if you make an effort, you can usually find someplace for the animal that is not the pound or the side of the road.

6) There are also places that offer low-cost spay and neuter. Mobile units, vets, certain shelters that also provide spay/neuter. CALL AROUND. It's not that difficult to at least dial the phone & open the phone book (see #5). And if you can't find a low-cost option, start putting that $5 you spend at Starbucks each day or that $20 you spend on bi-weekly manicures in a jar and start saving up. Taking on the responsibility of a pet means you do whatever you can to ensure it is taken care of, and sometimes that means sacrificing on your end.

So the lesson for today? Get your head out of your ass & take responsibility for your pets. Take the best care of your animal that you can, and when you can't, do everything in your power to make sure the pet will be safe & happy in a new home.

SPAY AND NEUTER YOUR PETS

Class dismissed.

There's a sweet little stray dog hanging around the house that won't go away. He has no tags. We can't take in another dog (we've already adopted 2 neighborhood strays, Churchill & Lupin), but it just breaks my heart to doom this little innocent dog to the pound and a likely death because some idiot redneck in my backwoods hometown can't be bothered to be responsible for his animals.

We found a leash, some food & some water for him. Tomorrow Adam is taking him in for vaccinations & a checkup, and if all is well, we're going to introduce him to Churchy & Lupy & see how they get along. I've contacted a fantastic local shelter, and should hopefully only have to foster him for a few weeks before they can take him. (Cross your fingers)

See? IT'S NOT HARD, you lazy redneck fools.

Monday Weigh-In & Thoughts - August 2nd Edition

So it looks like my body just needed to readjust a bit. I blew out the expected loss of 1.5lbs with an almost 4lb loss for the week. Only 6.2 more lbs until my 2nd mini-goal is met! (losing 25lbs)

Almost every day I stepped on the scale this week, I was down. Even my "monthly visitor" didn't cause any gains due to water retention. I'm hopeful that the new BC pills are making a difference, and so far I'm seeing great results.

I've averaged a 2.6lb/week loss so far. I'm sure this will slow down greatly as more weight comes off. But I'm going to enjoy the ride while I can!

Food - My goal was 1,590 - 1,790 calories a day. With the exception of Monday & Friday, I did really well with my goal. I also made an effort to push my carbs closer to 55%, protein 25-30%, and fats 15-20% (similar to when I first started this) and I feel a LOT better. Current calories & ratios = good results. So this week? More of the same.

Exercise - 3 days of 45mins on the treadmill, 6.5 incline, more 2.5mph than 2. Got good & sweaty with this, but it didn't kill me, which is apparently right where I need to be.

I took Thursday off of it because I was exhausted. But I did do some strength training & Yoga 3 days out of the week, and my Tae-Bo tape 1 day. And 24 laps in the pool (we managed to scrounge the money to go).

This week? Will probably stick with the same exercise schedule, with a little tweak since I didn't work out this morning (stayed up too late last night). I've also been using work breaks for walks, shooting baskets, & playing Wii Sports, so that's squeezing in a little more activity time.

Mood & Energy - Mood isn't great. The monthly visitor didn't pack as much of a wallop as she normally does, and I think that's due to the Sprintec. But our dismal finances are making it hard to keep my spirits up. We need Adam to work 2 days a week to make it on our plan, and he's not even getting that right now. Energy is OK. If I was in a better mood, I think the energy would pump up a little.

Upcoming week: Try to keep a similar schedule as last week & see if I can see another good loss on the scale.

Calorie range: 1600-1800

Treadmill (with 6.5% incline) @ 2.5/2mph intervals - 2x a week,60 mins

Tae-bo/Yoga videos - 2x a week, 50 min (also 30 min Yoga on Sunday)

Energizing Yoga - 3x a week, 20 mins

Calisthenics - 3x a week, 2 sets of 15

Swimming - 1x a week, 4 sets of 8 ( 2 each freestyle,backstroke,breast stroke, and paddleboard)

Unappreciated by the four-legged furballs

Carnival of the Cats Submission. You can check out more kitties at the current carnival at One Cats Nip.

I get no love in this house.


Tiger: "Hmm, what's this I'm sitting on?"


Tiger: "Yes Momma, it's real cute. The tiger-striped cat is sitting on the Calvin & Hobbes book. I'm not amused."


Scamper: "Hi Momma, I like flip-flops!"


Scamper: "Mmmmm....flip-flop. Who needs a Momma when I've got flip-flops?"


Quixote: "Rub mah belleh, please."


Quixote: "Well now you've gone & rumpled my furs. Thanks a lot, Momma!"

See? No respect. That's OK, they'll need me to open their food come dinnertime. THEN they'll be grateful. You'll see.