Bridesmaid Bookcamp

It's August!


It's actually 11 days into August already! 


Where has the time gone? 


It hit me earlier this week as I got back into my normal routine that we are closer to the end of the year than from the beginning, which means I have a lot of events coming up:


September: 5 year college reunion


October: Visit to Chicago to see my brother, sister-in-law, and one of my best friends.


December: Home for the holidays seeing lots of old familiar faces


March: I am going to make my debut as a wedding planner


June: Three weddings to attend: 2 of which I am in.


August: 10 year high school reunion


Lets face it. I am SIGNIFICANTLY overweight and have been whining about it for years now instead of doing something.  

I have a lot of important things coming up and I am sick of being the fat friend, always a bridesmaid, the larger older sister, the one who is "curvy". 


Although I don't want this blog to turn into my own version of "Bridget Jones' Diary" I hate to admit even she would gasp at my starting weight and the journey ahead.  


(its not hard to pick me out of the photo. Hint: I am not black)


So, with weddings and reunions on my brain I want to start my pathway to losing weight today.  


Its time to rethink what I eat, drink, and how active I am.  


Guess I better start setting the alarm clock for 5:00 a.m. to hit the gym. 

Day #22: Things I am Grateful For

Day #22: Today I am Grateful for The Gym

Yep, you heard me right. 

I am grateful for the gym.  

Tonight it allowed me to clear my head, get out some built up energy, and just zone out.  

Tonight, I needed to clear my head and get away. 

Tonight the gym was my escape. 

Tonight was one of the first nights of many at the gym

Work out

Last night I bit the bullet and went for my first workout in over a month.  Although I started off slow, I did the elliptical for 40 minutes and it felt great.  I felt like a new woman afterward.  I think this one day kick start was exactly what I needed to get my butt in motion.  

Workout

Well folks, after talking about working out, planning to work out and buying a gym membership I finally went and did it last night.  My community was hosting a free fitness class at our local community house and after twisting my roommate and her friend's arm they went along with me.  To our surprise it was not so much a taught class, but more of an "instructor" putting in a video and the rest of us (including her) following along.  It was intense for me though.  My heart rate was up within 5 seconds and by the end of class I feared I might actually die of a heart attack.  

I felt good though.  After finally catching my breath and realizing that I am TOO FAT for life anymore I really want to shed this excess weight.  Life might be a little easier without the extra 70 lbs of fat I am holding onto.  Yes, I am hoping to make it to my gym tonight for another workout.  This time just on my own.  

After class the instructor brought out some of her shakes for us to try.  She is a Beachbody instructor which means she promotes many fitness videos and Shakeology.  I had heard of it once before but promised myself I would not get sucked in to buying a product as I have many times before.  However, i have to admit.  The shake was DELICIOUS.  The concept is to replace one meal with a shake to help in weight loss, keeping you regular, and dropping your cholesterol.  Our instructor not only let us sample it in class but she gave us a free packet to try at home.  I had mine for breakfast this morning and still agree its delicious.  I don't know if I could finish an entire serving in one setting, but I drank about half of it.

Cost of the Shakes are about $120 for 30 servings.  Most Shakeology users generally have 1 - 2 shakes daily, which can really add up in cost.  Is it worth it? Right now I can't financially afford to buy Shakeology but it definitely was delicious. 

  

Couch Potato?

Its no lie that I am overweight and tend to make silly excuses for skipping the gym.

I have tried everything in the book from:

Its too expensive to have a gym membership

to 

My cramps are just too bad to make it all of the way to the gym, 

but eating ice cream will make my cramps go away.

I am the only thing stopping myself from losing the weight and getting in shape. 

And I know that needs to change.

While browsing through my ON DEMAND recently 

I stumbled upon a whole world of free and fun exercising.

Exercise TV has a wide range of free exercise videos right on your TV. 

Even better they have free downloadable exercise plans from their website.  

So, if you are finding yourself making excuses like I have, try sliding off the couch, putting on some sneakers and exercising in your own living room.  

Its free, its fun, and its only 30 minutes of your day.  

Come on, I think even I can give up 30 minutes of watching tv so get my heart rate up.

Change

Ghandi once said

We must become the change we want to see.


I can't believe we are already 10 days into March and I haven't done much in terms of changing my eating and exercising to lose the weight.  I keep stressing over making sure I lose the weight, but I have a million excuses as to why I can't exercise that day.   


The things I want in life to change for the better won't until I start making the change myself.  My goal was to start implementing 30 minutes of physical activity each day.  Leaving my "fat friend" label behind is not going to be easy journey, but am I ready to push myself for that change? On the exterior I can't think of anything I want more, but why can't I mentally push myself to start making this change? I need to jump start my routine tonight! No excuses.

Snacking before Dinner (Is it a Do or a Don't?)

Growing up my mother would always yell at us as we quietly opened up the snack cabinet or fridge, when she wasn't looking, to grab a snack before dinner. She must have had eyes in the back of her head to see us, however, immediately the lecture on how eating before dinner would ruin our appetite would begin.  Now that I am on my own schedule and only cooking for one, I am free to snack and eat as I please, which could be the reason I am not 50 lbs overweight.  


For all of you pre-dinner snackers, check out Real Simple's 9 Healthy pre-dinner snacks to curb your appetite, while cooking.  I have to say after reading these I immediately rewrote my grocery list so that I could start preparing these amazing snack.  My personal  favorite is number #2! What a great idea.


1. Cashew Strawberry Crunch
Think of this as a gourmet cook's PB & J. Spread 1 tablespoon of cashew butter on a slice of Ryvita Fruit Crunch. (Or substitute peanut butter and Triscuits.) Drizzle with ½ tablespoon honey and top with sliced strawberries. 


2. One Minute Antipasto Plate
Roll a thin slice of prosciutto or ham around a part-skim mozzarella string cheese. Eat with a few olives and grapes, or add roasted bell peppers (from a jar) drizzled with balsamic vinegar. 


3. Pineapples and Pistachios
Combine about ¼ cup dried pineapple pieces with about 25 pistachio nuts. (For a treat, use chile-lime pistachio nuts, available at specialty stores.) Other winning dried-fruit-and-nut combos: raisins and peanuts, apricots and almonds, cherries and hazelnuts.


4. Cottage Cheese and Apples
Slice an apple, such as Fuji or Granny Smith, and top with ½ cup of low-fat cottage cheese (look for 4-ounce four-packs from Breakstone). Or replace the fresh apple with two drained cinnamon-spiced apple rings, such as Musselman's (which can be found in the canned-fruit aisle).


5. Cheese Melt
Spread ½ teaspoon of spicy mustard on a cocktail-size slice of thin whole-grain rye bread. Add a thin square of sharp Cheddar (about the same size as the bread) and broil until the cheese melts, then top with a slice of tomato and a sprinkling of caraway seeds. 


6. Parmesan Pita Chips
Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of grated Parmesan evenly over a 4-inch whole-wheat pita. Dust pita with ¼ teaspoon dried oregano and broil until the cheese browns. Cut into quarters


7. Creamy Feta-Walnut Dip
Place 2 cups plain nonfat yogurt in a sieve lined with a coffee filter. Let stand in the refrigerator for 1 hour or overnight. Discard the liquid and spoon the thickened yogurt into a small bowl. Add ¾ cup (3 ounces) crumbled Feta cheese, 2 cloves minced garlic, 2 tablespoons finely chopped toasted walnuts, ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, and ¼ teaspoon hot sauce. Mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours to allow the flavors to blend. Makes 1½ cups. 


8. Edamame
You can buy these in your frozen food section.  Just heat in the microwave.  Sprinkle with a little salt and enjoy!



9. Fresh Veggies and Dressing
Slice a cucumber into strips and place on a plate with baby carrots or baby corn. Dip in a lower-fat dressing, such as Annie's Naturals Roasted Red Pepper Vinaigrette or Trader Joe's Carrot-Ginger.

(Photo and recipes courtesy of RealSimple.com) 

Multi-tasking

Tonight while I was lounging on the couch watching TV I realized that I could be exercising at the same time. I decided to run into my bedroom and grab my weights to do a few exercises as I caught up on my DVR.  I don't know why I didn't think of doing such a simple task in the past, but as part of my year to lose weight, I am realizing its all about the minor adjustments to my everyday activities that will help to shed the pounds. Next time you turn on the TV, grab your exercise ball or weights and do a few reps while you enjoy your evening programs.

Is it the hormones?

I am not sure if it is because Aunt Flo is coming or just a sign of old age, but I have cried twice  three times during tonight's biggest loser episode. Yep, its official I am turning into a 45 year old cat women.

Juices: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

While sitting at home recovering from an awful stomach virus, I decided to start looking up healthy food and drink options.  Today I couldn't help but laugh as I thought back to the quote in the movie The Devil Wears Prada when she says "I am just one stomach virus away from my goal weight".   There are only 37 days left before my first weight check in and I still need to lose 10-15 lbs, so I figured I might as well use today to start changing my diet.

On the WebMD website today they featured the best and worst juice drinks.  I am not much of a juice drinker,but I do occasionally grab an OJ or Lemonade on the way to work.  The line up included:

Worst:
Juice Cocktails
100% Juice -- Can still have a lot of sugar in it

Best:
Vegetable Juice
Pomegranate Juice
Cranberry Juice -- packed with vitamin C; However, drink unsweetened cranberry juice
Blueberry Juice
Acai Berry Juice
Cherry Juice -- It is said to drink this before and after a work out to reduce workout pain
Red Grape Juice -- Good for the heart
Prune Juice -- high in fiber, reduces constipation
Orange Juice 

WWBJD

I channeled my inner Bridget Jones today and I realized I need to step up my diet and fitness regime.  I have a lot of events coming up that should help serve as motivation for me to achieve my goals. I know, I have to be realistic when writing this, but I also want to try hard to put this goal into action.  I mean WWBJD. (What would Bridget Jones do).

The plan is as follows:

April 7 (51 days from now)-- My spring/summer hobby of kickball begins and I hate to rejoin the team with the addition of my dear friend hips and double chin.  -- Weight loss goal for this date 10-15 lbs

May 7 (81 days from now) -- Stopping by a rugby game where I will inevitably run into my college boyfriend and a recent hiccup in my life.  OBVIOUSLY I want to look my best when I just "happen" to run into them.  -- Weight loss goal for this date another 5-10 lbs

June 4 (109 days from now) -- My one and only 2011 wedding.  And since I am starting to become a pro at this whole bridesmaid thing, I might as well turn my focus onto losing some of my junk in the trunk.  -- Weight loss goal for this date is an additional 5-10 lbs

September 16 (213 days from now) -- My 5 year class reunion for college.  How am I having a reunion for college already? Didn't I just graduate? By this date I want to be at the weight I was when I graduated college. -- Weight loss goal for this date is 10-15 more pounds from the previous weigh in.  

Totaling 30-40 lbs between now and September. I feel like I can do this. I just need to put more pressure on myself to do so.  

Goodbye Valentines Day sweets and treats...hello zumba, pilates, and yoga.

Guess I better choose wisely at the Italian restaurant I am heading to this evening. 

FFH Countdown

When I was in college, my girlfriends and I decided we needed a name for the days where we were lazy, pigged out on junk food, and only left the house to go to the tanning salon.  My longtime roommate and friend came up with FFH meaning Fat F*cking Hogs.  We used to joke around and call ourselves that on our worst days when we needed to laugh.  The code name sort of stuck and anytime we wanted to use the phrase it made us all laugh and remember the good times of college. The problem was, I lived with 5 beautiful skinny, healthy, in shape girls. To this day, I still wouldn’t consider any of them FFHs, but sadly in my life that name is something I am saying to myself as I continue to bake up deliciously fattening treats for me and my current roommates.

Although the term is still a joke between us all, I decided to use it as a way to motivate myself for getting thin.  Yes, I would be considered the “fat friend” of the group.  You know the one girl everyone has in their circle that is larger than the rest.  Her personality is great and she is beautiful on the inside but let’s face it she has some junk in the trunk and her use of the word “curves” is kind of a subtle way of saying she has packed on a few pounds over the years.  Now that I am slowly approaching 30 years old (ok, I have a few years left but it feels like it is approaching sooner than later), I want to rid myself of those FFH moments and get fit and fabulous this year.  I have joined my local gym, trust me this was a HUGE step for me because I loath working out, I signed up for Weight Watchers, and most recently set a weight loss countdown on my phone.  It’s kind of hilarious to see the countdown.  When you pop open my phone the first thing you notice is a huge pink block in the center of the screen that reads: FFH Countdown, proceeded by the number of days left.   

Today’s countdown number? 114.  I have 114 days until the next wedding I am in and need to lose at least 30-40 lbs before then.  That makes I need to kick my butt into shape now.  Let the shedding of my FFH days begin....

maybe there are cute trainers at the gym???