Thursday, August 30, 2007

What a day!

Well, I found my pedometer at school and wore it throughout the day and it kept up with everything. I went back to the eye doctor today to get a recheck of the contacts. As I was waiting my pedometer got stuck so i went to fix it and the clip popped off. I'm going to have to take it back to WM-ugh- I hate returning things there! I had to get a prescription filled at Target so I got another pedometer there (identical to the one I just bought at WM). However, before it broke I walked about 4.2 miles and I'm sure that I bumped that up to 4.5 at Target.

Breakfast- 1/2 pb sandwich, sb cereal bar
lunch- chicken salad, s-f pudding, grapes and kiwi, cheese
pm snack- curves granola bar and about 2 hours later I had a Special K protein bar
dinner- SB cheese pizza
dessert- nsa creamsicle

water: 3 bottles of 16.9 oz. each, 8 oz. diet coke and 24 oz. diet mtn. dew

Okay, now it's time for the article:

Step 3- Snack smartly

This step starts out by asking if the snack will give your body the enery and nutrients it needs. When deciding when and what to eat , remember that food is a fuel. The goal should be to keep yourself properly fueld and satisfied in order to stay away from temptations.

Snacking can help you beat temptation by being a bridge between meals.

-don't go too long between meals or your energy will dip and it's more likely that you will eat excess calories

-Keep hunger in check by eating a meal or snack that includes protein every three to four hours.

-Measure snacks out and eat from a dish-not the original packaging

-Healthy snacks are planned and not spontaneous

After determining your hunger you should take a minute to decide what taste or texture you want- salty, sweet, crunchy, or creamy. Here are some suggestions for each type.

salty: pretzels, a quarter cup of peanuts or whole-grain crackers topped with one tbs. of peanut butter
sweet: dried fruit with nuts, low-calorie fudge pop or fresh fruit dipped int bs. of chocolate syrup
crunchy: celery with tbs. of peanut butter, handful of wole-grain cereal or carrots with 3 tbs of low-fat bean dip
creamy: low-fat pudding, low-fat yogurt or sugar-free hot chocolate

Step 4 (which is the final step) will not be posted until Saturday (maybe even Monday). I'm heading to Ohio to visit my sister and the baby (and my brother in law) for the long weekend. Have a great holiday weekend!

Wednesday, August 29, 2007

I'm a dork!

I gave blood today and wore a skirt to school so I took a pair of capris to change into and I took off my pedometer and forgot to pick it up. When I left I had walked app. 3 miles so that's what I will go with. I did eat a little more today- not anything that I shouldn't have eaten but I don't know- I just seemed to be hungry all the time today.

breakfast- lite vanilla yogurt, 1 hardboiled egg
am snack (yes, I got one today)- sb cereal bar
lunch- turkey sandwich on 1 piece of bread with a slice of cheese, s-f pudding, 1/2 apple, turkey (from the school cafe- which thankfully meat is okay to eat)
pm snack- special k protein snack bar
dinner- grilled chicken, apple dippers (McD)- without the caramel (just the apples), curves granola bar
dessert- nsa creamsicle

I guess looking over it I didn't eat that much more but it just seems like it.

beverages: 32 oz. water, 16.9 oz., and about 8 oz. water (so about 55 oz.), 20 oz. dt. mtn. dew, and 20 oz. diet coke.

Okay, quickly- on to the article
STEP 2- Feed your hunger the right way

If, after asking the questions, you find that you are truly hungry then you should eat something healthy and satisfying. However, that usually takes time that we don't want to wait and so we make poor choices. The article suggests preparing healthy snacks ahead of time.

-Make a large roasted chicken or turkey- after serving it for dinner then chop it up and then add it to some homemade soup, a stew, or a chili

-Prepare a pot of Italian-style meat sauce. Use ground turkey breast, tomato sauce, shredded carrots, and herbs. Divide it into portions and then serve it with pasta or a sloppy joe or taco mixture.

-Roast a pork tenderloin- after a meal, cut up the leftovers and serve it with rice and bean, in quesadilla, or in a veggie stir fry.

Tomorrow will be step 3- Snack Smartly!

oh yea, I lost 1 lb.

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

Tuesday

Well, I took the article to school in case I had time and I completely forgot to bring it home so it will have to wait until tomorrow.

I did however walk at school (not as much as yesterday though). I only walked 2.6 miles today (I really don't know why it was different- I felt like I walked as much as yesterday. Who knows.

breakfast- 1/2 pb sandwich on whole wheat bread and sb cereal bar
lunch- egg salad with mayo and mustard, apple, s-f jello
pm snack-Curves granola bar
dinner- leftover roast beef (3 slices) with 1 tbs. gravy and 1 cup Brown Rice, string cheese

Water- 32 oz. plus another app 33 oz. is 65 oz plus 24 oz. dt mtn. dew

Tomorrow is weigh-in day but I'm supposed to be starting my cycle tomorrow so we will see how that goes. I did turn down brownies and chocolate candy today. Actually I didn't even crave it!

Monday, August 27, 2007

New Pedometer works great and article

I am loving my new pedometer. I'm thinking that I have actually walked more than I have been marking down. It shows that I walked over 12800 steps (give or take a few with "fake" steps that it recorded). According to this (which is actually probably pretty accurate) my miles today it was 6.485. That's a lot of miles. I'm okay with this!! Especially since my workout schedule is not really working right now!

breakfast- egg and sausage
am snack- South Beach cereal bar
lunch- turkey sandwich (deli turkey with a slice of 2% American cheese on one slice of 100% whole wheat bread), s-f pudding (chocolate mint fudge-yum!), medium size apple
pm snack- Curves granola bar (100 calories, 17 g carbs, and 5g of fiber)
dinner- 4 slices of roast beef with 2 tbs. gravy, 1 cup brown rice with cheese (and I Can't Believe It's Not Butter)

Water: 25 oz. plus 16.9 plus 16.9 (app. 59) plus 24 oz. dt. mtn. dew

As you can tell I was able to start Phase 2 of SB. I'm thrilled (now I can eat fruit-woohoo!)

Okay, on to the article- this came from the Sept. 3 (I think) All You magazine which can be found at Wal-Mart.

The article is called "Check those cravings- and lose pounds forever"

Step 1- Find out if you are really hungry

Ask yourself these questions: Has it been three hours or longer since the last time I ate something? Do I feel a gnawing, grumbling sensation in my belly? Do I feel tired, irritable, light-headed or weak?

You're truly hungry if you answered yes to two or more of those questions and you need to feed yourself what your body needs.

Now, ask these questions: Am I feeling sad, longely, bored, stressed, or anxious? Do I have a tast for something specfic, like salty chips or sugary candy? Do I feel an urge to munch on something right now?

If you answered yes to one or more of these you are having a craving and you're after something other than food.

How do you spot a craving and stop it in its tracks? Most cravings don't last more than 10 minutes so if you can distract yourself for that long it's likely to disappear. If you're cooking and you want to taste test- brush your teeth before you prepare food or chew gum. If you are serving your kids dinner= remind yourself that it isn't yours and then eat a healthy snack (this is if you are eating separate). If you are feeling down and you think of sugar= take a bubble bath or give yourself a pedicure- basically take care of yourself. You sit down in front of the tv and you need to snack= keep your hands busy (hey, make some cards!). You don't want your kids' leftovers to go to waste- serve them less and they can ask for more. If you are feeling anxious then call a friend (or get on and blog) to talk through your anxieties. If you can't get a hold of someone then get moving, walk around the block or something of that nature.

Come back tomorrow for Step 2- Feed your Hunger the right way (may not be until late- I have Open House at school).

Sunday, August 26, 2007

Sunday

Another "lazy" Sunday. I love Sundays. At church this morning the sermon as well as my ABF (Adult Bible Fellowship- aka Sunday School) were hand in hand and go along with the Wed. night class that I am taking. Our "theme" for the church is Love God, Love People, Impact the World. It was quite possibly one of the best sermons I have ever heard our pastor preach. The last 6 months have been packed with these types of sermons- he's gotten better and better! Anyway, on to other stuff.

Breakfast- egg and sausage
am snack- about 1/2 ounce of almonds
lunch- leftover from last night's dinner
pm snack- 1 tbs. peanut butter and a slice of cheese
dinner- as of now I haven't eaten yet

water- 60 ounces (as of right now), and a 24 oz. bottle of dt. mtn. dew

I also went to Joann's (to semi-return something) and then walked around Wal-Mart to get the rest of my groceries. I buy my "fresh" stuff at Kroger and my frozen and refrigerated stuff at wm (since it's cheaper). Other than that not much walking but again Sunday is my free day. (I didn't record yesterday's because I didn't get the pedometer until then). Hope you all have had an excellent Sunday- throughout the coming week I'm going to share bits and pieces of an article that I read today. It was very interesting and based on "training your body to make it through cravings" and how to determine if you are really hungry.

Saturday, August 25, 2007

Saturday

I got a lot done today! Woohoo! I love those type of Saturdays. I got my haircut and then went to WalMart and did some shopping. I found a pedometer that actually works (I think) so hopefully that will help a lot. I also went to JoAnn's and AC Moore where I did some fun shopping. Yippee!!

Breakfast- sausage patty and egg, 8 oz. milk
lunch- grilled chicken fillet from McD
pm snack- 1 tbs peanut butter
dinner -2 hamburger pattys (lean ground beef) with cheddar cheese and mozzarella cheese, green beans with almonds
dessert- nsa fudgesicles

Friday, August 24, 2007

Friday at last!!

Oh, YEAH!! Tomorrow is Saturday and the only thing I "have" to do is get a haircut. I'm so ready to do nothing! And, I'm VERY excited to get to sleep in.

Breakfast- egg and sausage patty, 8 oz. skim milk
Lunch- chicken patty, turkey, cheese, s-f jello
pm snack- nothing
dinner- Cracker Barrel (who has a low carb menu). I ordered a smothered chicken tenderloins (which is grilled chicken covered with bacon and colby cheese), side salad with ranch, double order of green beans

That was the most awesome dinner that I have had in a long time. It was really good AND if I had been going straight home i would have brought some of it home so that I could have had some of it for lunch tomorrow.

I also walked 2.5 miles yesterday and at least 2.5 miles today (but I'm pretty sure it was more). I found out that one of the reasons my pedometer isn't working is because it keeps being reset. Whenever I move a certain way or hold something against my hip around where it's sitting it's hitting the reset button. So, that's one problem with one of my "free" ones. I took the other back to Target because I never got it to work. I'm going to check out Wal-Mart tomorrow.

Thursday, August 23, 2007

thursday- the week is almost over

Today was a crazy day at school. The fifth grade teachers and students are gone on a "bonding" experience to a local retreat center which meant we didn't have reading today (our kids all move to their levels and the fifth grade teachers teach kids other than 5th graders). however we found out at 7:29 and we pick up our kids for the morning at 7:30- we literally had one minute to get ready for that. We aren't doing it tomorrow either but at least we had 14 hours warning!

Breakfast- egg, sausage with cheese (from an egg mcmuffin-without the muffin)
lunch-cheese and pepperoni from a pizza (nothing else from the pizza though), turkey (lunchmeat), cheese, and s-f jello
pm snack- peanuts
dinner- grilled chicken sandwich (minus the bun) and 1/2 a side salad from Wendy's
dessert- nsa creamsicle

beverages- 32 oz. water, 10 oz. water, 16.9 oz. water, 20 oz. diet coke (with ice from Wendy's)

Only a few more days on phase one and then I can start adding things in one at a time. I'm trying to figure out what I will add in first!

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

Wednesday

Well, at weigh-in this morning I lost another 2 lbs. from last week which is a total of 6 lbs. in the week and a half since I started the SB plan. I also have a success to pass along- well, I guess it's more of a "toot my own horn" type of thing. It goes along with my dinner menu so I'll share it there.

Breakfast- 2 hard-boiled eggs, cheese, 8 oz. milk
Lunch- chicken salad, s-f jello, cheese
pm snack- nothing- I ran out of time today
dinner- I went to Chick FilA and those who know me know I LOVE going there. And the thing is, I love the breaded chicken- it's just so good. However, it's definitely not good for you. I also like their fries-waffle fries of all things! YUM-O as Rachel says! Well, I stuck to my guns and ordered the grilled chicken fillet (no bun) and a side salad. I had about a teaspoon of ranch dressing with it (I just can't eat my salads plain and I'm not big on vinegary dressings). I also had a large diet coke. This is HUGE for me to actually order what I am supposed to going there. That's my place of temptation that I normally would stay away from (that and McDonald's). It's also a bit expensive but if I'm going to sit by myself in a fast food rest. (which I needed to do because I had something I was working on) then it's going to be c-f-a. I know that seems weird but it's one of my quirks!

I had about 30 ounces of water this morning, a 16.9 oz. bottle of water with crystal light lemonade, about 12 oz. of another bottle of water, the dt. coke, and a diet mtn. dew (20 oz.). So, I definitely didn't get my water in- I'll try that one again tomorrow. Have a great day!

Tuesday, August 21, 2007

Tuesday

I was not able to get my pedometer to work yet so i am estimating 2.5 miles (although I think it was more) so I will be returning it tomorrow (or sometime this weekend if I have a chance). I did really well throughout the day but then this morning i got a phone call for an emergency babysitting for tonight and due to a meeting at school I literally had just enough time to go home and change clothes. She told me I could eat whatever was there but the only thing in her fridge that was "allowed" was deli meat and it wasn't opened. I didn't want to open it because I didn't know how long it would last if they didn't eat it right away. So, I had some peanut butter crackers on wheat and about a small order of mcd's fries (they had a large in the fridge and I heated up a few). It's the first "cheating" I have done but there's no way I could have waited until 11 (which is when they are coming home) to eat something "healthy". I did well the rest of the day so hopefully I'm not doing too much damage.

breakfast- 2 egg omelet with cheese, 8 oz. skim milk
lunch- egg salad (with 2 eggs), s-f jello, string cheese
snack- string cheese, 3-4 nuts
dinner- peanut butter on wheat crackers, small fry

water- 32 oz. this morning plus 1 bottle plain water and 1 with crystal lite in it. dt. mtn. dew

Monday, August 20, 2007

Monday

Well, I tried the pedometer again and it didn't work again. I'll try it once more tomorrow (I am going to try to adjust the stride length which may change it- I took a guess before). So, I'll just go with about 2.5 miles because that's been about the average I have been walking.

Breakfast- 2 hardboiled eggs, 8 oz. milk
lunch- hamburger (app. 1 patty), green beans
pm snack- string cheese, 1 tbs. peanut butter
dinner- the topping of a pizza (I didn't eat the crust- only the cheese, sausage, and little bit of sauce- it was a generic pizza)
dessert- nsa creamsicle

water: 22 oz. this morning (plus whatever is left after the ice melts), 2 16.9 oz. bottles (app. 34 oz) so right now it's at 56 oz.

Sunday, August 19, 2007

Freebie Sunday

Well, I have decided that Sundays are going to be freebie days (at least until it cools down). That doesn't mean I'm going to eat what I want (I still will follow South Beach) but it means I'll take a break from the pedometer. I just don't walk a lot on Sundays because I do a lot of computer work and school work on that day and I pretty much go to church and then come home for the day. On that note- until now I have not been too hungry today- I never really ate lunch but I'm going to go fix some green beans for dinner. Have a great evening and I'll see you tomorrow evening!

Saturday, August 18, 2007

Strange Saturday!

Well, today was a very strange day. I went to Wal-Mart early this morning (around 7:45/8:00) because my batteries in my digital camera died. I needed to take some pics of some cards and to have it for the day at the park. I wore my new pedometer and I decided to test it against my old one to see if there was any difference. Well, there was for a while but then the new one does not keep accurate count. I know this because it said I only walked 2000 steps from when I put it on to when i came home. I walked all over that park today- there's no way it was only 2000 steps- especially since it said I had 1600 when I got to the park (which was also not right). Needless to say that pedometer is heading back to Target and I guess I'll have to break down and buy a more expensive one that 4.99.

Breakfast- scrambled egg, sausage patty
am snack- peanuts
lunch- 2 hamburger patties, hot dog (no bun, no condiments)
pm snack- 1 tbs. peanut butter
dinner- 2 egg omelet with cheese, 1 tbs. peanut butter

No veggies today- I need to up that tomorrow. I'll probably try to get a salad tomorrow or only eat veggies for lunch. The bad thing- payday isn't until Friday and I don't really have the money to go out and buy some more food. I'm almost 1 week through my 2 weeks of phase one.

ETA: I forgot to mention the water intake. I'm going to go through this bottle by bottle because I can't remember exactly how many I had. I started out with a 10 oz. bottle, 2 16.9 oz. bottles (all before 11:00 am), another 16.9 oz. bottle, , an 8 oz. bottle and another 16.9 oz. bottle. I think that's it (but there could possibly be one more bottle in there) so right now that equals 85.6 oz. Wow- I guess when you are out in the heat it's easy to drink it up!

Friday, August 17, 2007

Friday at last!!

Hallelujah it's Friday! It's been an extremely long week- I'm so glad it's over. However, tomorrow I get to spend all day at the park with kids- the same kids I was so glad to send out the door today. Don't get me wrong- I LOVE my job- it's just very stressful and time consuming. On top of that I have work at home to do this weekend and refuse to do it tonight. I do think I figured out one of the reasons I am so tired- I don't think I'm eating enough veggies- it's just hard in the time I have to eat lunch to eat many veggies. I also know that I am not really working like I should. However, next week the only day I will maybe get to leave work early is Friday. I have meetings Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday afternoons. I also didn't do much walking today- I feel like I walked more than or about the same as yesterday but for some reason there weren't as many steps on the pedometer. I did buy a new one because mine that I have been using was a "freebie" so I don't know if that may have been the issue.

Breakfast- 8 oz. skim milk, 2 hard boiled eggs, 1 slice of 2% cheese
am snack- nothing
lunch- 1 1/2 grilled chicken breasts, s-f jello, 1 slice of 2% cheese
pm snack- string cheese, 2 tbs. peanut butter
dinner- 1 egg and 1 sausage patty with cheese
dessert- 2 nsa creamsicles

Beverages: this morning 22 oz. of water, this afternoon 2 16.9 bottles of water, 24 oz. botle of dt. mtn. dew (the last one)

As of right now the steps for today are only about 4000 which is only 2 miles (I don't know what's up with that). I'll be updating the mileage meter (and I'm not going to keep track of them the rest of the evening).

Thursday, August 16, 2007

Much Better Thursday

Today was definitely not as stressful as yesterday but boy, I am exhausted. My plan is to stay and work at school tomorrow evening until about 5 or so to prepare for next week so that next week I don't have to stay late on the few days that I can (Monday and Friday). I have a meeting after school on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

Breakfast: scrambled eggs and sausage patty (from McDonald's), slice of cheese, 8 oz. skim milk
am snack- none
lunch- chicken salad made with 2 eggs, s-f jello, about 4 slices of cucumber, slice of cheese
pm snack- string cheese, 1 oz. almonds
dinner- 1 1/2 grilled chicken breast (small), sugar snap peas with butter (acutally it's I can't Believe it's not butter)
dessert- no sugar added creamsicle

Beverages: 24 oz. dt. mtn. dew (one more bottle), 32 oz. of water this morning, 2 16.9 oz. bottles and am working on number 3 and will probably get to number 4 because I'm so thirsty right now.

As of 8:30 my steps are about 9300 so i'm going to try to up it to 10,000 but unfortunately I don't have a lot of walking to around the house. First of all, it's not that big and second of all, after finishing this post I need to work on grades. This is the bad part of 1st grade- I actually have to keep grades.

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

"Wonderful" Wednesday

I had a good day "diet" wise but it was an extremely long day- very stressful however, I didn't want any chocolate (I actually had no desire for food but I was hungry if that makes sense)

Breakfast: 2 hard boiled eggs and 2 oz. cheddar cheese, 8 oz. skim milk
AM snack- nothing
Lunch- egg salad with 2 eggs, mustard and a tbs. of miracle whip (I know mustard is odd but I like the bit of flavor it adds), 2 oz. cheese, s-f jello
PM Snack- string cheese and tbs. peanut butter
Dinner: grilled chicken sandwich (meat only) and hamburger patty (no bun but greasy)- McDonald's
Dessert: s-f creamsicle

drink- about 20 oz. of a 24 oz. bottle of diet mtn dew, and I think I hit my 64 oz. of water today!!! I had two bottles at school plus a 32 oz. cup with two bottles in it!

On top of that I apparently did some major walking today. I didn't even realize I walked as much as I did. My pedometer shows 11,500+ steps but I take about 500 off a day since every little move triggers the step. I know that I did a lot of walking- back and forth in the classroom but I didn't realize it was that much. So, I walked about 5.5 miles today! woohoo!!! on top of that- when I weighed myself this morning (yes, I know I just started this on Monday but Wed. is my weighin day) and I have lost 4 pounds since Monday morning. Apparently something I am doing is working and I'm so excited that I have not "cheated". If I can make it for the first two weeks then I can start adding stuff back in.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Tuesday Update

I ended up walking 3 miles yesterday and 2.5 today. My food choices for today were again, pretty good.

Breakfast- 2 egg omelet (with a little bit of cheese)- woohoo the first omelet I ever made, 8 oz. skim milk
AM snack- again, no break for a morning snack
Lunch- leftover ground beef/hamburger with cheese (no bun), leftover green beans
pm snack- string cheese, scoop of peanut butter
dinner- egg salad (no bun)
dessert- no sugar added creamsicle

Water- 3 16.9 oz. bottles (a little over 50 oz.), 24 oz. dt. mtn dew (I only have 3 more bottles left so I would have to buy a cup at the store and I try to drink it at lunch so that I'm not up half the night. However, tonight some friends went to Z-Mex and I was going to an SU technique class with them so I went but didn't eat- I did get a 32 oz. diet pepsi. I still may get my 4th bottle of water down today (as long as I can get dt. pepsi finished- still working on it. Have a good one everyone!

Monday, August 13, 2007

Pretty Good Day (Food wise) that is

It was a bit of a stressful day at school but I stuck with it foodwise.

Breakfast- 2 scrambled eggs with cheese plus 8 oz. skim milk
AM snack - none (I have no break)
Lunch- 2 eggs in an egg salad, string cheese, cherry s-f jello
PM Snack- string cheese
Dinner- ground beef (hamburger patty) with cheese and green beans with almonds
Dessert- no sugar added creamsicle

I'll come back and do the steps stuff. Yeah, I'm so glad that I was able to stick with it today!

Forgot to add my water intake- I drink water using the 16.9 oz. water bottle because it's just easier for me to drink the individual bottles throughout the day. I drank 3 of them today which means I didn't meet my water intake for the day (I need app. 4 to be around 66 oz.) and I did have a 12 oz. dt. mtn. dew and about another 12 oz. at dt. mtn. dew at dinner. I'll add my steps tomorrow.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

A New Start and a New Challenge

I am starting with my new plan tomorrow. i have a stocked fridge and freezer ready for me to start with South Beach tomorrow. I'm just going to need to pray for the willpower to stay away from the stuff I need to stay away from. I am also joining in on the walking challenge. I found out that it's 514 miles to where Kim lives in IL. So, I'm going to go that way since it is the longer trip. I'm not sure I'll get much of a chance to go work out this week because I'm not on the routine of school yet so I'll do what I can and go find the pedometer and make sure I'm walking around the school as much as possible.

Wednesday, August 8, 2007

Not Good

Well, I'll make this brief and to the point. I have to go finish planning for our half day of school tomorrow. When I weighed myself this morning I had gained back the pound I lost last week. I wasn't really too surprised- I could kind of tell. My water drinking is definitely picking up though- I can tell that difference already. Monday I'm hoping to get into the routine of things again.

Also- on my last post I said those who were on the challenge with me- I actually meant those who were on this journey with me. If you are reading this because you are on the way to a healthier life please email me at the address in the post below with your snail mail. Thanks!

Tuesday, August 7, 2007

Blah- and Tuesday Tip

Well, I just feel sort of blah today- yesterday I did well, I had fruit and half a bagel for b-fast, subway for lunch (chicken and bacon ranch on wheat) for lunch, and grilled chicken and brown rice for dinner. I also had a sugar free pudding for dessert. Today however, I did fine until I didn't have a snack when I left work. If i had had a snack I would not have been hungry and would have resisted the temptation of the Sunchips better and then that led to the candy bar. Oh, so frustrating. However, tomorrow is another day and I will try again. I have plans- I just need to make sure I have my snacks with me.

So, my tip for today would be along those lines- before going shopping (which is what I did after leaving school) have some type of snack so that the temptation is not there to snack while out.

Also- I would like for all those who are participating in this challenge with me to please email me at zephan3.17 at juno.com. I would like you to email your "real name" and your mailing address. From time to time I want to send out RAKS of encouragment and I want them to be a surprise.

One last thing- I live in Knoxville, TN if anyone wants to participate in a virtual type of challenge like granny and kim. Just let me know. Have a great day!

Friday, August 3, 2007

Do It Anyway

I received this in an email a long time ago and printed it out. While moving I found it and thought that it was good! It goes along with the attitude being a big obstacle or building block to success.

Do It Anyway
Written by Mother Teresa

People are often unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.
If you are successful, you will sin some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.
If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.
What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.
If you find serenity and happines, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.
The good you do today, people will often forget tomorrow;
Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enoug;
Give the world the best you've got anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God;
It was never between you and them anyway.

Wednesday, August 1, 2007

Break Free of Your Food Addiction- article

I regularly get the Quick and Simple magazine and a recent one had a great article. I promised it yesterday and things got a little crazy and I completely forgot. So, here goes:. The question the article asks is: "Can you be addicted to food, a stubstance your body needs to survive?" Dr. Gold (a Univ. of FL addiction expert) says that yes, that as food addicts imagine their favorite foods it triggers "anticipatory brain changes that are virtually identical" to the changes in the brain of an alcoholic or drug addict. The article also states that a person addicted to food experiences many of the same withdrawal symptoms- irritability, moodiness, and anger- as a recovering drug addict.

There were 8 ways to tame temptation:
- Become a journalist- write down what you eat, how much you eat, and how you were feeling when you were eating it.

- Identify and dodge your triggers- keep a list of activities to do do when you have identified what triggers the eating. This is where card making/scrapbooking can come in handy- get your hands busy! If it's a person that triggers unhealthy eating- you might need to steer clear of that person for a while until you have the strength to stand up to her

- Slow down! Food junkies eat fast. Because we tend to eat so fast it takes longer for us to register that we are full. Dr. Gold says that for a thin person it takes 12 minutes to register that food has been eaten and someone who is obese it could take 20 minutes. A suggestion is to set a timer and eat with baby spoons/small spoon or forks to stretch out the eating time.

-Surround yourself with support- which is what we are doing- keeping accountable!

-Switch addictions- Dr. Gold suggests getting addicted to exercise. Do what needs to be done to make exercise a regular part of your life

-Downsize the dinnerware. Use smaller plates and bowls to keep portions more controllable

-Weigh every day. This is something that I personally do but I focus on every other day. It really keeps me aware and doesn't allow it to sneak up on me. I am able to know that I have overindulged and therefore need to adjust- and even though I KNOW it from my journal- the scale doesn't lie!

-Don't give up. Different people respond in different ways to different strategies- find what works for you!

It also included a quick tip- "announce an executive decision the next time you are tempted by food you don't need. Tell that doughnut- out loud- my body doesn't need or want you!"

Quick and Simple magazine- July 31, 2007- quickandsimple.com

WOW!!

I have not had a great week food wise with moving and haven't had made the best choices when I have gone out to eat. However, in spit of that I still lost another pound. I don't know how unless it's because i haven't been snacking. I haven't really had much time to snack- basically I have eaten my dinners and that's it. Who knows- I'm going to keep going and then next week I'm hoping to get in the gym. Hope you are having a great day!