90 POUNDS!

Wow. So, this is me, here, 90 lbs. lighter. I thought it appropriate to take a picture (or, rather, press Mara into service as photographer) right after I worked out, all sweaty and unadorned. You'll have to pardon the whiteness of my belly, that is not a photo effect - THAT IS HOW AMAZINGLY WHITE MY BELLY IS, DON PROTECTIVE EYEWEAR NOW! I thought I cropped more of that out but, there you have it. Some parts of me have not seen sunlight for a good decade or more. My apologies if I burned a hole in your monitor.

Anyway, I am all sweaty and no make up because that is how I made it to 90 lbs. Lots of sweaty, lots of veggies, water and fiber and lots more sweat. I set a doable goal for myself which really does the trick for me. I needed to lose 3 lbs. to reach that magnificent and absurd number of 90 lbs. lost. So the past two weeks I have done my regular 2 mile dog walk every day and am keeping up with my strength training but I've added 30 - 60 minutes on the bike several times a week. I'll hop on the bike for 10 minutes and then do 2 minutes of abs, then rinse and repeat two more times. 'Cause, you know, who can't do 10 minutes on the bike? If I tell you to do an hour you'd probably balk. But 10 minutes, ok, that's doable. Plus you have to want to reach that goal more than you want to make that excuse you are forming right now about why you can't go do 10 minutes on the bike (or whatever equipment you are currently using for hanging clothes and towels). Rain, cold, hot, tepid, whatever, doesn't matter. Make a date and respect it.

I am so proud of myself for getting here and I know I can get this last 10 lbs. off too. And then there will be partying. Serious, craziness will ensue when I hit that 100 lb. goal. But right now, I just have 3 to lose. Just 3 'cause I know that's a goal I can live with.

With a Little Help From My Friends

Whatever goal you are trying to reach is made so much easier if you have support. Weight loss, just for instance, is easier if everyone in the house is on the same page. It really helps if no one goes out and buys those items that are on your own personal no-no list. My list includes, but is sure as hell not limited to, cookies. I can eat me some cookies people! I don't buy them and if I make them, the kids both like baking, I make sure they have a good home to go to so I am not tempted. They are like chips for me, if ya eat one, why not eat a dozen?! I remember in the interview for Atlanta's Biggest Loser the producer asked if I had any diet restrictions as they were providing the Good Measure Meals. I replied "No, I'll eat anything, I mean, look at me!"

So my present goal is to get to 90lbs. lost. I have really upped my cardio and am really watching what I am eating. It is working but I am also taking a month off from my regular classes with my trainer - SCARY! So I invited peoples over to work out with me on Saturday morning. Many thanks to Signe and my neighbor Kristin for showing up to walk the dog and then endure some strength training with me. We did abs, we did some joint mobility, we did some stick work and some heavy bag and kick boxing and ended with a good stretch. It was phenomenal to have others beside me to keep me on track. It does so help to have a buddy, or two! There's the accountability of knowing that people are coming over to work out so there's no sleeping in, and it's just more fun. I'm sure I would have walked the dog by myself, I do it every day. But would I have gone on to do all the strength training we got in? I'm thankful I will never know!

Baby Steps to Success!

Ok, it's working. I am now at 135 lbs. and so happy to be away from 138. I truly hope I NEVER see that number on the scale again. Phew! What am I doing that's working? Well, it boils down to lots and lots of sweat. It's so simple. It just ain't easy, baby. I religiously do my 2 mile dog walk EVERY DAY. Yup, every day, no slacking off. Except, ok I did just do my dog walk sans dog. He was being a total turd this morning and I thought I might just leave him somewhere if I tried to walk him. Take that Rowdy! Why don't you try NOT being such a freaking creep and then you get to walk with me and pee at Sparky's house. Sparky is a microscopic terrier who lives down the street and Rowdy loves him and always leaves him a pee message at his mailbox. I guess my point here is that even though the dog woke me up at 6am I still got my ass out the house and did some sweating.

But I digress. So 2 mile dog walk every day. Abs every day. Then I've been adding either a 1.5 mile run or a good 30-45 minutes on the spin bike. Clay bought the spin bike for himself but his butt never gets on it! It's mine!!! Ha! Then 3 days a week I do strength training. Qu'est que c'est 'strength training'? Well, I'm glad you asked, in French and all. Push ups of various kinds, more ab work, various martial art moves to get the hips and shoulders opened up in preparation for kick boxing on the heavy bag or wailing away with my kali sticks. I have learned that keeping all the wonderful muscle I have built is essential for weight loss and then maintenance. I have worked so hard for all these muscles and refuse to lose them. I am going to be the grandma with the cut shoulders!

Plus I am celebrating every small victory. And making my next goal really attainable. My next goal is 2 lbs by next week. Very doable and it will get me to 90 lbs. lost!!! Wow, that will be something to celebrate, but not with cake or alcohol or other empty calories. Maybe a new pair of shoes though.

Scary Territory, ooooohhhhh

So I am entering the unknown. I have put my gym membership on hold for 4 weeks. This means I will not have my 2 day a week hour long sessions with my trainer/coach/guide/mentor Sule Welch. It's frightening but I feel it's the right decision. I have been feeling overwhelmed with all that needs to be done between now and school starting, keeping the kids entertained everyday during the summer, keeping up with work while finding something for the kids to do, relatives coming to visit. It was starting to stress me out!

Plus I've been sitting at 138 lbs. FOREVER!!!! CURSE YOU 138!!!! I NEVER want to see that number again. I go a little up or a few pounds down but I keep coming back to 138. I guess my bod is happy here but I AM NOT HAPPY. I am 5'1" and this is not where I should be. And one of the key adages I have come away with on my weight loss journey goes thusly:

If you keep doing the same things you will get the same results.

So I am shaking things up by taking the drive to Marietta to work out with Sule out of the picture. I don't feel too frightened because I take him with me wherever I go. This is the genius of the workouts he's created! I now know how to kick my own ass. Also I am upping my cardio in the hopes that it will spur me to lower numbers on the scale. I know that I have to be impeccably precise with what I am eating to get this weight off. I am staying away from almost all processed foods unless it's got a big ole heap of fiber in it!

So, I am off to the heavy bag and the spin bike to get my sweat on and get to my goal. It will happen. Plus I had success over the weekend getting on the bike to watch some Netflix movies that had been sitting in a drawer for a month. Today 'Sherlock Holmes' is coming in the mail and I plan to watch it while spinning my ass off, literally. Bye bye ass.

Trigger, and I don't mean the horse

So, what is it that triggers eating for you? I have learned my triggers intimately over the past year and it is invaluable information. I used to think it was ye olde blanket 'emotional eating'. Well, yes and no. Turns out when I get worn out that's when I make bad decisions about what to grab on a foray to the kitchen. That's when I head to the kitchen and I start hearing things about what a hard day it was and perhaps even a little pat on the back about how well I held up through it all and don't I deserve that cookie sitting there... just waiting and looking up at me with puppy eyes saying 'Eat Me'? Most days when that cookie bats it's eyes at me I look at it squarely in the chips and say 'Hell, no! I don't deserve a cookie! I'll tell you what I deserve - I deserve to lose weight, make it to my goal and feel damn good about myself. That's what I deserve!'

But on a day when I have been stressed to the max or just beat up by life in some way and it's the end of the day and I am exhausted I start listening to those pro eat the cookie arguments. They start making a lot of sense to me at that moment. It all starts to sound darn logical and that's when I go, ok, come here cookie!

So yesterday when I had to go visit my parents and deliver some sad news about a death in the family and my car broke down instead I knew I was in danger of going home and tearing through all the leftover birthday cake. I was sitting there on the side of the freeway making frantic calls to Clay and to the tow truck company and praying that no one took the curve too fast and shaved off the side of my stranded car. It was boiling hot and pretty nerve wracking and uncomfortable and I was soooooo happy once safe at home in the cool. So I had a beer. I know that's kind of a strange solution to have empty calories to stave off the siren call of the leftover birthday cake but dammit, it worked! I had one beer, it was cold and refreshing and helped me calm down and I was able to go eat veggies and hummus when I ventured into the kitchen.

So, know your triggers and have a plan when they pop up. I'm not saying your plan should involve drinking a beer! If that's what I was promoting you'd see a beer ad to the right of this blog entry, go ahead and look: no beer ad there! Just be prepared when you are in that situation where you know you might make some bad eating choices. Even when you are vulnerable you still have the power to look at that cookie and tell it to stuff it's chips where the sun don't shine!!!

The Birthday Gauntlet

So, July is birthday month for my family. It actually starts in late June. Planning, gift buying, cake making, party organizing. I'm exhausted. How did I survive and not gain weight through all this? Well, I did have a couple of small (I'm talking tiny) pieces of cake. I was buying and making cakes and I do like sweets. Past experience has taught me if I try to go hardcore, no cake at all, I will end up drawn like a moth to whatever leftover cake there is to be had and attack it like a pit bull with a, well, something attacked by a pit bull which could be anything.

So, no hardcore for me, I know better. I will be stalwart for a certain amount of time and then crumble into a cake eating frenzy in the kitchen. Yeah, it's all about the covert cake eating at that point. Because it's a law that if you stand in the kitchen eating leftover cake and you don't even use a fork then there are NO CALORIES! I bet you knew that already! But this journey has been all about not repeating past mistakes. I have really learned that if you keep doing the same things you will ABSOLUTELY get the same results.

So I had small nibbles of cake and survived just fine. I also got on the bike for a half hour instead of collapsing and watching tv after William's birthday party. Hey, I even gave my popcorn to the kid next to me! I passed up movie popcorn - that is how bad I want this last bit of weight off!

Also I was in charge of the menu at the celebration at my folks' place and I made sure to get a veggie platter so I knew I would have something to eat. Give me veggies and hummus and I can avoid the mini tacos and the chips, salsa and queso. Ha - take that you sizzling, mini beef tacos from Trader Joe's! I don't need you! I am eating carrots and grape tomatoes and edamame hummus - in your face you oily bits of meaty goodness! As Coach Sule says not having a plan is a plan to fail.

Sneaky, not so much

Tried to sneak out and get an early morning walk before the hubby left and the kids awoke. Alas, it was not to be as the husband foiled my plans by getting ready and leaving for work. So, I adjusted and hopped on the stationary bike for half an hour. I watched part of a Netflix movie that's been sitting around for a month. That's killing two birds with one stone if you ask me! Exercise and entertainment!

By the time I was done there the kids were awake so I made them breakfast and hit the road for the 2 mile dog walk. After that I headed over to Amy's house and we did some of the strength training exercises that I've been doing for over a year. She's quite the kick boxer! Then I remembered to stretch after I got home, I often forget that important step.

So, although things didn't go according to plan I made darn good use of my time today. Also I am drinking a cup of detox tea every day. It's a mild diuretic so I have to increase my water consumption. It's a natural way to cleanse the system. I'm not getting on the scale until Friday so I don't get too obsessive. I'm expecting some good results tho!

Sleep, get you some

Are you getting your 8 hours? Or have you never gotten 8 and think sleeping 8 hours is for babies or narcoleptics? I may change your mind right now. There have been studies in the last couple of years linking sleep to weight loss. As in if you do nothing else but increase the amount of sleep you get to 7.5 or 8 hours you will lose weight over time. That's right, that's what I said, just getting more sleep will help you lose a few pounds. So just think what would happen if you got more sleep and started walking a couple of days a week! Wow, the possibilities!

I feel like I am joining a revolution. I am now one of a host of lifestyle changing folk who are sounding the clarion call of HEY - YOU OUT THERE - START TAKING CARE OF YOURSELF NOW!!!! We cannot go on eating fast food and living life in the fast lane of career, parenting, and stress.

Ok, I'm getting a little preachy. And here I am talking about sleep. So, ease up now. Relax. Get some rest. That's what I really meant to say. Ok, I'm icing my heel in the hopes that my heel will heal. I am nothing if not consistent in my abiding love for puns of all kinds. And now I am going on my 2 mile dog walk and later I will see what kind of craziness Coach Sule has in store. All that should lead to a nice nights sleep.

Up A Wall

Off for my normal 2 mile dogwalk this am. I just walked instead of running a bit as my heel was pretty sore this morning. Then we took the kids to the new climbing place off 85. I've never really climbed before but I think it might be fun. Now that I'm way smaller and way stronger than I've ever been I think I could probably haul myself around off the ground a bit. Unfortunately, it was closed except for the kiddie part so just the kids did the climbing. They had a great time and are now quite worn out.

I was up late and then up early so I am feeling pooped this afternoon. But, I am not satisfied with just a 2 mile walk. Need-More-Cardio! This is how these last lbs. will come off. Cardio cardio cardio...... But, my natural inclination right now is to lay on the couch. I find the easiest way to combat this inclination is to get up off my ass and move! Drink a big glass of water and get moving. Turn on a fan, or the ac and shake what your momma gave you! So I am going to get on the bike and do 30 minutes mixed with some abs. And after that, I will have earned the couch.

Going Medieval on my own Ass!

So here's my plan for losing this last 15 lbs: go ape shit crazy and exercise all the time. Yup, that's pretty much it. I've been sitting here going up and down a few pounds for a couple of months. I have come to the conclusion that it's going to take the same kind of effort to get started exercising to lose this last bit of flab.

Yesterday I did my normal 2 mile dogwalk where I try to run a bit but really just end up dragging Rowdy around because he doesn't like to run. And he weighs 90 lbs. so I really can't make him do anything! Then I came home and watched a movie with the kids, it was nice to have that rest. After that I got on the stationary bike for 10 minute intervals broken up by 3 minute ab sessions. Coach Sule has given me a zillion ab exercises so I have so many to choose from! I think I did 4 of those and then, to mix things up, I ran down the street and back up. Then I did 2 2min. drills on the heavy bag. Then I panted, drank water and stretched. I burned 740 calories and that's without counting the dog walk!

So today's plan is a 1.5 miles dog walk followed by a 2 mile run if my heel allows, it's been giving me pains. After that, more cardio. Tomorrow I will take it easy and just do a walk. It's gonna take some crazy but I am ready to flip the switch and make this happen and get to my purple hair. I've found that my success is directly linked to how badly I want it. I guess that's what you call determination. How badly do you want what you are after? Do I want to lose this weight more than I want to sit on the couch or go read a book? Yup. I have been mucking around with this long enough and am ready to see magic numbers on the scale! I am so proud of myself for what I've accomplished so far and that really helps push me forward.

It Has Begun

Here I am. Jumping on the bandwagon and getting my Blog on. It is, of course, going to be skewed to weight loss/fitness/lifestyle as those are my current obsessions. My family is always my main priority but I figure they can all start their own damn blogs if they want their 15 minutes, right?

To catch you up I started out last year weighing 225 lbs. In January of 2009 I applied for and was chosen as a contestant on Atlanta's Biggest Loser. I was picked by Sule Welch to be a member of the Pink Team and he was the coach. We worked out 5 days a week and got Good Measure Meals for as long as we remained in the contest. After 12 weeks I was the winner for the Pink Team and I'd lost 39 lbs. This meant I was still fat. I mean HUGE! Thus began my weight loss journey and the impetus for this blog.

The name comes from my goal of getting to 100 lbs. lost (I am at 85 lbs. lost now) and the fact that I am dyeing my hair purple when I get there. And getting a tattoo. Ok, I'm not sold on the tattoo but I'm really considering it. But I want a dragon tattoo and then I'll be like the Stieg Larsson book that's hugely popular right now. Gosh darn it, Stieg beat me to it.

I promise to get pix up and get all linky and stuff on you but right now it's 10pm and I have to finish a Netflix movie that I've had for a month. I am a movie slacker lately. And then I have to get my ass to bed as I worked out for an hour and a half today and I know I need rest. I'm going to post about what's worked for me so far and about the draconian lengths I am going to have to go to to get these last 15 lbs. off. But I am going to do it. Come on along for the ride.