It's Friday!

Went to the optometrist yesterday and yes indeed my vision has changes. The guy tells me that I'm barely legal to drive with my current vision. I then asked him then how is it possible for me to read the posters on the wall that are 10ft away. He then corrected his statement and said it might effect night vision...whatever. Of course I hadn't been to the optometrist in quite a few years, well beyond the every 2 years you're supposed to go. I wasn't exactly surprised that it changed.

I was surprised at the cost of lenses and frames. Shopper's Optical no longer includes the price of lenses with the frames and I had a mini heart attack at forking out over $300 for one pair of glasses. I realize that's probably not so bad but I think I'll keep my current frames and just get new lenses.

He also told me that my astigmatism isn't so bad that I could get by wearing normal contact lenses so he gave me a pair of Acuvue Oasys to try out. I popped a pair in at the office and whoa do they feel different from my other ones. Apparently these ones hold moisture better and offer UV protection. They sent me home with a pair in my perscription to try out for a week and then I go back and give my report. If my vision isn't really effected by the non toric then I can go a head with these one, if I notice a dramatic difference then it's back to Toric. I'm going to try them out tomorrow. Handed in my conservative pair of glasses for new lenses and got talked into the more expensive and thinner poly lenses ($184). Yes, vanity reared it's ugly head. When I get those back I'll get the same thing done with my "funky" pair. With Hawaii looming and not any real issues with my current glasses I can't justify new frames.

Went home for supper and opened up a can of Healthy Request Cream of Mushroom, it was disgusting. I think I prefer the low fat version that you add water too. So instead I had graham crackers and pudding cup for supper all within my points. I couldn't think of one thing to make for dinner and it was 7:30.

I really need to give the grocery list some thought tonight. I pulled out a WW hand out that I got ages ago called Today's specials it's got some great ideas in there so I'm hoping it will get me out of my rut of eating pretty much the same thing every week.

Not sure how WI will go tomorrow, I won't be surprised to see a gain just due to what week it is. My mind set is a new week starts tomorrow :)

Have a great weekend everybody!

Uphill Battle

So despite good intentions my supper didn't quite go according to plan. I was out of cooking spray for one thing so had to use oil completely forgetting that I own an olive oil mister doohickey. Then as I watched ANTM I munched on left over Raspberry Loaf that my Dad had bought on the weekend. A bit surreal watching models and eating baked goods. Biggest Loser is safely taped.

Stepped on the scale this a.m and 173 stared back at me so I have a 20pt day planned to shock my metabolism into gear and so far so good, I haven't eaten anything I haven't planned. I have an optometrist appointment after work so maybe I'll pick up a Sub at Subway and either take it home or eat it at the mall. I should definitely pick up cooking spray.

Our phone lines went down at work which put a bit of damper into getting things done. What a great opportunity to blog :)

I also don't have much to say today, perhaps more tomorrow.

Later

The week of the snack attack

I despise the week before TOM, I despise the fact that my inate urge is to seek out snacks and it always takes me a few days to figure out why. Then even though I know why, it still happens.
Blah, blah and more blah. I need to keep it together for the next 3 days. Stepped on the scale this morning and I was up half a pound...not too bad but as said above...3 days to go.

I was doing well until I watched someone eat Dutch Crunch chips in a meeting. I got Ms Vicky chips...bad but not as bad as normal chips at least I paired it with a Canada Dry Sparkling with lemon - love it and is equal to water no salt, no sugar, no apertame. The really crazy part is right now my stomach is grumbling.

I had Special K for breakfast because the egg on toast I planned didn't turn out so well. I was trying out this new microwave egg poacher. I followed the directions and put it in for the suggested time and it wasn't even close to being done. I put it in for a few more minutes and it looked o.k. Then I put it on my toast and it was super runny. Blah! My plan was to have protein for breakfast so the urge to snack would not be that strong. Special K is useless at keeping one feeling full.

Lunch and morning snack were perfectly OP. Then the chips...at least I can modify dinner and did have a good amount of points to play with.

Today is a rest day so I'm happy ANTM is on tonight. If I'm distracted I will not nosh. Have to tape Biggest Loser due to self imposed bed time.

There's a BBQ happening on Saturday so I should focus all my bad eating desires on that day...yeah that's the plan.

Must now go and avoid all things edible until supper (egg white omelette with veggies perhaps).

Out!

Tails of the Trail

I got a call from training partner at the end of the day yesterday saying she had to skip last nights workout. I, being a very focused individual at the moment, decided to walk home. I can take the pathway to my hood and then must access Douglas Fir Trail to get up the densely wooded cliff to where the neighbourhoods are. I've noticed for the past few weeks that all accesses to the trail have been closed due to repairs. I've also noticed how people push the barriers aside and use the trail anyway.

I headed off and went on my merry way wearing a shorter sleeved shirt than normal (planning for a workout without a back pack), of course I now had a backpack to lug home. I walked along the path right behind a woman with a Ironman t-shirt on. She was also walking and quite a distance since I was walking the same path but she had no water on her at all and it was warm. I passed her once but then she passed me, oh well I knew what lay ahead.

All of the accesses to the trail had been closed and reinforced. That meant I had to go to Edworthy park and then make my way up the hill. I got there (having now walked for about 7km) and had two options. First option was a very steep hill that had a dirt path and second option was walk along the long curving road that was an incline the whole way. I chose the road and considered it hill training. Wowsers I was winded when I got to the top and still had 6 blocks until my house. The miraculous thing was that pace didn't suffer at all. I thought I was going the speed of a snail up the road.

Thanks to that hike/walk my pack of mini oreos didn't get me off plan.

I made sure to stretch really well afterwards and actually got up today without any difficulty.

So tonight is strength training. I think I'll do the workout in G-Force with my stability ball and if that doesn't take 40min I'll add pilates.

My goal is to follow my training exactly up until the marathon and I'm taking it one day at a time.

To Success!

Scary Day

This morning one of my colleagues went into a diabetic insulin shock, we now suspect it was a diabetic coma. Thank Goodness he's o.k (been to the hospital and now resting at home) and everyone's first aid knowledge kicked in. The people who work on the same floor are all in a bit of shock. Completely understandable after seeing someone so full of life and energy hit the deck, those of us downstairs have just tried to be there for them. Of course everyone is better knowing he's o.k.

Of course anything else I have to say sounds meaningless in comparison to this morning. My afternoon snack was a mini bag of mini oreos...not the best choice but I have the points for it. 60min of hard core walking involving hills is on tap for tonight and it's been a beautiful day so that should be nice.

I made an oppointment with an optometrist...I haven't been in about 4 years so I thought it's time and that's what medical coverage is for. So I'll treat myself to some new specs and maybe some contacts. I think my twitch (which is much better thanks to a full night of sleep) might be partially do to with my vision changing and staring at a computer all day.

I've discovered a horrible tv time conflict...Ugly Betty starts this week at the same time as The Office and I can only tape one. Due to my vow of seeking proper rest this week I really shouldn't stay up and watch. Both Canadian and American stations have Ugly Betty on at the same time, I was hoping to find The Office on maybe a slightly different time on a Canadian network. Nada, in my fair city no Canadian network carries The Office...I'm traumatized. There is one option of salvation. I have a second tv in my basement but it isn't hooked to cable; however it does have a vcr. I'm hoping the Canadian channel has decent reception on the 2nd tv so I'll tape Ugly Betty downstairs and tape The Office upstairs. Fingers crossed.

Tomorrow another office birthday is being celebrated...thankfully I don't need to make it this time.

Until Tomorrow

Too good to be true

So my announcement of crossing into the 160s might be a bit early. Was up 2.2 on Saturday, not sure how that happened but I'm sure the cake-a-palooza might have been a factor. The weird thing is I weighed myself at home first and thought I'd see a stay the same based on that. Normally my scale and WW scale are off by at least a pound and a half (my scale being the higher weight). This Saturday there was a half pound difference...weird.

My leader told me I was looking really good and asked me if I was close to the top of my range. Still 30lbs away but I that was super nice to hear. I told her that I wear fat well :)

Today did 20km with training buddy and I seem to have my carb/hydration plan mapped out. Well it worked today so I know what I have to do for distances up to 20km. The longer we go I'll have to figure it out. I need to research fuel gels, I just don't embrace chewing while exercising.

We saw around 20 Greyhounds being walked on the path way during our whole treck. Apparently one of the groups of people who rescue retired racing Greyhounds were having a get together. They are some regal looking dogs I tell ya.

2 days ago my right eye started to twitch, just the bottom lid every so often and not in any regular pattern. Really annoying more than anything. So of course I hit google to find out the causes. Most likely due to stress and lack of sleep or dehyrdation. I haven't been feeling incredibly stressed but I think my subconscious is because I wake up chomping down on my night guard (pending marathon, cost of Hawaii so close to Christmas). Today I had a nice 2hr nap. Part of my plan this week it to be in bed for minimun 8 hrs per night to see if that helps. Even after the nap it's only twitched once...we'll see how it goes. Plus I know my hydration hasn't been stellar and with activity ramping up I'll have to keep an eye on that as well. Incredible how the body has little ways of telling you to smarten up.

Have a great remainder of your weekend everybody!

Channeling my inner 5 year old

Alright, it's either the pans or my oven or Betty Crocker. However only since using these new pans have I had issues.

I made the marble cakes last night and chopped off the time by 7 minutes and they still burned. So once again I'm trimming off burnt parts. Then I wait for it to cool and start to frost it. The cake starts to fall apart, the more I try to fix it and the worse it gets. It's now like 8:45 and there's no time to start over so I got creative.

Took a big bowl, chopped up the cake and frosting, put a layer of chopped cake, layer of pudding (German cooked chocolate pudding), some chocolate chips and repeat. I practically jogged to Safeway this morning and grabbed some whip cream. Brought the charger and maple syrup to work so I could make the whip cream. Even brought sprinkles to finish the whole thing off. I'm calling it Marble Cake Explosion. Wouldn't it be funny if people started to request it?

Hopefully everyone likes it.

I did earn a few ap at least and do have a walk planned for after work.

Got informed that I got a raise today retro active as of Sept 1....whoo hooo!

I might be back later to report on the cake.

Other than all that, scale looked promising this morning :)

Update:
Everyone loved the Marble Cake Explosion, in fact a few people said it was the best cake the ever had...whew!

A couple of people asked me how I baked a cake in a plastic bowl...duh...it's assembled in the bowl not baked in it.

Adventures with cake

First of all I can't believe it's Thursday, not sure what happened to Wednesday...oh yes Cake Adventures.

So on Tuesday I did bake one cake cut it into 2 layers and then realized there are 20 people in my office. This is not enough cake. So on the way home yesterday I swung by Walmart grabbed two more boxes of cake mix (it's a week night I'm not baking from scratch) and another container of icing. I did make the filling on Tuesday so that was good. I also picked up two 13x9 pans so I could bake the two layers at the same time and the same size and they were cheap. Walked home at an incredible pace because I knew baking, waiting for cooling, filling and icing were in my future. Walked in the door, whipped up the two cakes as speedy as possible. Set timer for the same time I baked Tuesday's cake at.

I scorched the bottom of each of the cakes. I was traumatized. So I carefully cut off all the black and dark brown bits, grabbed one layer of Tuesdays cake and created a not quite even layered vanilla with lemon filling and vanilla icing cake. The cake is on a metal tray. I brought it to work today in a duffle bag that I carefully guarded on the super packed bus. Apart from being heavy, I'm really hoping it's good. The bits that I trimmed off and the odds and ends from creation were good. So my evening wasn't exactly OP either :)

The best part is I get to do it again tonight but this time a marble cake with chocolate icing. At least now I know to bake it about 5 min less and will hopefully have no bits to cut off and munch on.

Tuesday I did do yoga and it felt awesome, last night was the cake olympics (running through Walmart and then speed walking home). Tonight will be yoga and maybe pilates because I have more time. Friday it's walking again but I'm not too sure how I'll get a cake and a back pack on the bus.

Watched ANTM last night and have no clear favourite yet. Not impressed with some of them but it should be an interesting season. My friend from Vancouver asked me to tape it so I'll have to mail that off today...yes I am an amazing friend since I'm an hour away...by plane.

Fell asleep 3/4 of the way into Biggest Loser, woke up with 30min left so I taped that and went to bed. I miss Jillian. The new girl seems cool but a little perky/cheerleaderish. Time will tell. I felt for the people who didn't get picked but I like the idea of home vs ranch. I think it will prove to a lot of people that you can succeed with weightloss on your own. The before and after shots always floor me. Tonight I'm excited about The Office premier but I'll have to tape it. Oy vey I'll have to set my vcr for all these shows that are on past my bed time and hope that Tivo soon comes North. Not sure if I'll watch Survivor tonight. I found it a bit boring last week.

I have my quarterly perfomance meeting today, hopefully they'll just tell me I'm fabulous and be on with it. It's technically the 2nd quarter we're talking about so all goals set in the first meeting still have quite a bit of time to complete.

Have a super day!

Atmospheric interruption

Oy vey I'm tired, doesn't help that I stayed up and watched Men in Trees. Today's weather is whacky, we have fog and it's a bit chilly. All I want to do is put my PJs on and have hot chocolate.

Alas not in the cards tonight. I must do yoga and start Birthday cake #1. It's pretty straight forward- white cake, Sheriff's lemon filling and vanilla icing. Tonight is baking the cake and preparing the filling. Tomorrow will be assembly and bake cake #2.

Last night I made the most awesome dinner. Sauted some onion and mushrooms in a bit of oil and put it in an omelette of one egg and two egg whites topped with low fat cheddar cheese and served with salsa. The only bad thing was I put a wee bit too much salt in the eggs. It was so good I actually thought of making it again. Tonight I think I'll do the onions and mushrooms again but have it with a lean boneless pork chop that's been shake n' baked and maybe some steamed broccoli.

Last night did 50min of fast walking with training partner so that was good. I've now been on plan for 3 days. The scale showed a bit of a gain this morning but I think that's due to the two days of cardio (16 AP in two days) and the salt of last night. Water is going really well today. I have even talked myself out of chocolate bar.

Last night my training partner and I were talking about that renewed sense of dedication you have when you actually start to notice the progress on yourself. I hope I can ride that wave for a while. I was totally craving pizza last night but avoided that. I think I might need to treat myself on Saturday after WI but being on a budget I should probably make my own :) I have a dentist appointment that day too and I hate the dentist.

Now I'm totally rambling...until tomorrow

Lost my TV Guide

And missed Amazing Race! I think I accidentally recycled this weeks copy because I had last week.
I love Amazing Race, I'm so disappointed. Hopefully OLN will carry it and do a repeat sometime this week.

I did buy a new tv guide because of all the premiers this week. I was seriously fretting over it.
Watched Men in Trees...not bad, will watch it again. Apart from that, most of the ones I want to see haven't aired yet. I'm so looking forward to Wednesday for Biggest Loser and ANTW. Plus I think Tuesday has the season premier of Gilmore Girls. I'm such a tv junkie.

Thanks for the kudos on 3lbs and 16k. Just to clear up a few things though I'm a marathon walker no runner. So any distances I mention is walking not running. The reason I walk as opposed to run is running put 4 times your body weight on your joints, walking 2 times. I also have shorter legs and longer torso so running has never grown on me. I do think that long distance runners are amazing, that's hard core to me.

I do walk very fast, beat quite a few runners in the half marathon in Vancouver too...not that it's a competition, I just want to be clear that it's not a stroll either.

Speaking of training, I will complete all my cross training exercises this week ie. pilates and yoga in between all that baking that I talked about yesterday. I haven't been very consistent lately and I'm running out of time. Of course I also have to schedule creatively so I can catch all those premiers :)

The 160s!!!!!

Down 3lbs even this week, putting myself firmly in the 160s. The real test will be not too celebrate with food and go back to the 170s next week.

The weigh in lady was so cute. She looked at me and said "You're down 3lbs!", my response "It's amazing what happens when you follow the plan.

So far so good for the past two days. Did 16k this morning with training partner and I can feel it now. There was a bitter cold wind that turned my hands pink even with gloves on.

Didn't do much this weekend so I don't have too much to say.

My challenge for next week...2 Birthday cakes. Two office birthdays back to back and since I'm baking the cakes I'll have to at least have a bit. The good thing is a few of my coworkers practically inhale the cakes and treats. I'll hold back and let them go first.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!

Divine Intervention

Went out to dinner last night and on the menu was mention of a Black Forest Cheesecake (picturing in my head the image posted here), being of German stock this cried out to me. So after my salad with dressing on the side I ordered it. It was disgusting. For one thing it was hot, since when is cheesecake served hot. It wasn't cheesecake like whatsoever. It was served with Bailey's Whip Cream, which looked like it came out of a Reddi Whip and melted to a weird liquid in 10 seconds. It was almost like hot cake with cherries in the middle. My friend ordered the same thing and hers was cold...what the? I had a bite and got it taken off my bill, so thanks to that it was an OP day. Perhaps it was divine intervention so I didn't blow my points for the day....

I've been doing so well and I have one day to go before weigh in.

Had to buy lunch today because all my lunch making motivation left me this morning. Had a beef stew with a dumpling so probably not wicked low in points but I'm not worried. It will be a low point supper and I've downed 1.5l of water so far.

Got paid today and my budget/frugal pergatory (or should I say...lifestyle) continues. Technically I'm saving for Hawaii but I should really keep this trend going. It's amazing how "I want it now" I am. Now I stop and think before picking things up and heading to the cash. I can also be found saying "Too expensive" out loud as I put products back on the shelf.
I've already budgeted my bus pass for October and this weeks groceries. I do have a whack of food in my pantry that I rarely get around to because I'm always after fast suppers. I must take inventory and maybe put a post it note on the fridge with potential ideas so point friendly inspiration smacks me in the head when I get home.

I also need to bake two birthday cakes next week...back to back I might add. Luckily the requests are simple but that means lugging my cake carry thing two days in a row on the bus...wheeeeee!

Must go and drink more water...have a great weekend everybody!

Blechy cold rain and (dare I say) snow

Cold rain is falling on my fair city today, as it did yesterday and it's supposed to tomorrow as well. Except the added excitement for Friday might be....wet snow. Yes, we haven't quite reached the first day of fall and snow may be here.

I call it the winter dress rehearsal; however it won't stay and probably melt fast enough. It will give everyone that one day to find their mitts and snow shovels and try to remember how to drive in slippery conditions. There will be about 100 fender benders, I will consult the magic 8 ball later to confirm that later. The best part is then it will be nice for a few weeks and we'll start the winter dress rehearsal all over again until it lasts for a week and everyone adjusts.

When I got home yesterday the desire to workout was not with me, so I weighed myself 172.5. I then exercised because the desire to cross into the 160s on Saturday is strong. Weighed my self this morning after breakfast 171.5...yeah! Tonight, I'm going out to dinner but I know the restaurant well and they have an amazing salad. It will be dressing on the side and water with lemon and I'm good to go. Am I scale obsessed?, perhaps, but it's more to measure progress because it's taken me all summer to lose the same 4lbs.

Watched Rockstar last night and while I'm not that into Lucas's style I did find it interesting that Canadians have won two years in a row. Yay us!

Survivor starts tonight and I'm excited. The first episode always determines if I'll actually follow it through the season.

The only thing that drives me a bit nutty during Fall TV Season is figuring out what new shows to try, so often there on at the same time as a tried and true favourite and the programming my vcr is like organizing my daytimer. I should really look into a pvr.

Have a great on plan day everyone!

So far so good

Whew my week is flying by and it's only Tuesday, which means it will die a slow death by Wednesday.

My scale is being really nice to me. 171 it says which means in WW land under 170. Why is it that it shows me that 3 days before WI? So much opportunity for me to blow it. Last night was a bit of a snack fest but I had activity points so it came out even. That will not be the case tonight as my activity will be 20min of Core Secrets and 20min of Pilates. So that's not earning me much. The desire to be under 170 will be one heck of a motivator.

So excited about the new tv season and my reality obsessive behaviour is salivating over next Wednesday...America's Next Top Model and Biggest Loser debut back to back in my tv land. I'm seriously planning my workout around it...I know...pathetic. Biggest Loser is switching it up by having people on the ranch and people at home compete against each other and then two home people get chosen for the ranch....goose bumps I tell ya.

I'm also intrigued by Men in Trees, Ugly Betty and Eureka. Watched Eureka and I think it's a keeper. Battlestar Galactica starts on Space October 3rd....can't wait.

To prove I'm a total geek...the new Star Wars DVDs are out today with the original 3 movies on DVD. I own every other copy of this movie so I'm destined to own this one. However, in my self imposed budget world it will have to wait.

I've also been having these weird cookie cravings, but I hunted down a recipe for Forget'em Cookies. Meringue base so the WW friendly egg whites and this recipe has chocolate chips folded in. I only have mini chips and I'm undecided about adding them. Not sure when I'll make them but tonight might be good and I can't have any until tomorrow (a walking night) because they sit in the oven overnight...got my thinkin' cap on my friends.

Apart from that not a whole lot to say, must go to the library tonight so may earn an extra activity point by walking home.

To Success!

Things to ponder

I was down .4 today which crosses me once again into the 171 area. It's taking me a really long time to break through the 170s and I think I figured out why, thanks to todays meeting.
It was like a light bulb going off in my head when she said this.

The key to success on Weightwatchers is following the program. Well duh...I thought. Then realized what I have learned to accept as staying on program is sticking to my points for each day. I know that the water and fruits and veggies are factors but I was never as concerned about those as sticking to points.

When she asked us what is staying on plan the group started to discuss. This one woman said that she thinks most of us including herself are only following half the plan ie. the points. I was like OMG she's right.

Do I ever really think about am I getting enough protein, do I hit my water target on a regular basis (not lately).

Wow! I went grocery shopping after my meeting with a whole new attitude.

On a side note: Before meetings I usually hit Tim's for coffee and a muffin (I only eat half). This morning that didn't happen because the line was huge and I ran out of time. Normally I would probably hit McD for breakfast afterwards (not saying I'll never do that again) but today I rethought because it didn't go with the rest of the day I had planned food wise. Saturdays are my higher point day but it's really easy to hog wild on those days. Instead I went to starbucks afterwards and got a skinny latte with sugar free hazelnut syrop. When I got home I made a healthier breakfast.

I so need to take this one day at a time and start thinking of food as fuel (the 80/20 rule). I'm getting a lot of activity so no worries there but I must also be diligent about crosstraining. 3 months from today I'll be in Honolulu mentally preparing myself for probably one of the most challenging things I've ever considered doing....my marathon.

Now I must go back and read week 1 so to refresh my memory on what exactly staying On Plan means.

I will be a success story!

The tale of two Yoga DVDS

I did as planned yesterday. Walked in my front door and changed into workout clothes, then proceeded to pop in a Yoga Dvd. A few month back I found one at Walmart called Geri Yoga with everyone's favourite (or not) Spice Girl Geri Halliwell. I had to admit that what I had seen of her recently showed a super toned body. So I picked it up for $12. It sat and gathered dust (as most of the workout dvds I buy do) until yesterday.
I took off the cellophane and started the disk. I lasted 10min, not because it was hard. It was boring, the pace was really slow, the instructions vague and Geri chatted all the way through it. Her chat consisted of really irritating banter with the yoga instructor Katy Appleton. Well I had enough of that.

I did not give up. Instead I popped in what I consider to be the creme de la creme of yoga dvds (admitting that I haven't tried many)...Namaste Yoga. I love this DVD for a number of reasons. The set comes with 13 episodes at half an hour each. So you never get bored. I think it's filmed in Victoria and the scenery changes all the way through the half hour. The creator is Kate Potter and it's her voice that guides you from position to position. It's great clear instruction and the set up of her workouts have you start at the "heart centre" focusing on breathing, then you do the dynamic flow of moves but always return to heart centre. I never got completely lost and actually felt a sense of accomplishment afterwards.

Tonight the plan is walking, it's supposed to be 40min involving some sort of hill. I live in a hilly-ish neighbourhood but I think I'll do my regular loop of 5.6km which should take roughly 50min. Sunday is only 9.7km but soon that distance will double...eeek. I really should track down some gels so I can start trying them to see what will work in Hawaii.

Have a great weekend everybody!

Enough with Blah on to a new attitude

I'm done feeling sorry for myself and my lack of motivation.
Yesterday when I got home, I immediately changed into my walking clothes and headed out for a minimum of 50min according to my training schedule. It was actually 53min and 5.6km a little slow for me. Made a great salad for supper afterwards. Did have a pudding snack later on but not bad damage done.
I think I did something to my right hamstring muscle when painting the fence because it's not happy. Better today but still sore.
Tonight I will go home change into workout clothes and do some yoga and dust off my turbo jam dvd.
Major victory of the day...I brought my lunch but the same thing I've brought for last two days. Went with my coworker when she went to buy hers but I came back to the office and had what I originally brought...whoo hoo. Saved money and points.

This weekend I think I'm going to try making a couple of casserole type things and then divide into individual servings and freeze. I would have to clean out my freezer before doing that so we'll see how intrepid I get. I do want to make the mexican pie in the ESBM cookbook.

To Success!

Blah to motivation

After my claims of being motivated and all that jazz I fell off the wagon. I went home yesterday stopped off at the libraby and then waited in the blechy heat for the bus because I didn't have enough sunscreen on to walk home. By the time I got home I was lethargic and tired. Had no yolk noodles and left over spaghetti sauce (not horrible) then had a banana with light ice cream and chocolate sauce (horrible). Didn't do any strength training. Just did dishes, took out the garbage and watched Big Brother...speaking of which...Boogie is an idiot. I want Janelle to win just because she's a bombshell with competitive skills and goes into every challenge full force.

Today had a very healthy lunch with me, I might be going out to dinner tonight - have a game plan for that and then I was distracted by a donut. I'm not going to berate myself for a donut alas life will happen but I can't let a blip turn into an all out fall out.

I think I need to start my plan at the beginning of my week, so Saturday which will also be exactly 3 months before my marathon and my normal WI day. I've been good with the walking part of training but I need to kick it in to gear in regards to strength training and flexibility if I can even think about finishing. There's still a few weeks before the long distances get really long (20k and more). So the next 12 weeks have to be serious just to avoid injury. I'm comforted by the fact that Training Partner picked up a book by Hal Higdon that supports what we've been doing so far. She joined and aquasize class which is such a good idea. I should look into my local pool.

Now I'm rambling...tomorrow is a new day!

I love Fall

So the weekend went by in a blur as long weekends often do. Here is a recap of my activities.
Saturday: Weighed in - down 1lb, very happily surprised by that since it's the week before TOM and normally a gain.
Spent the day with my friend from Fort Mac. Saw Devil wears Prada for the second time and then ate really really really badly ie. hot dog and fries and a Peanut Buster Parfait. Got to play with her adorable 16 mth old nephew for a bit too.

Sunday: Up at 7am and painted one part of my 6 foot fence (the long part), took most of the day and what now feels like 400 squats. My neighbours might think I'm crazy because I was talking to the spiders I came across.
Me:O.K I have to paint here so either you move or I knock you off.
The spider: silence
Me: O.K I'm knocking you off.

The rest of the fence is waiting for spring and a paint sprayer because it just takes too damn long to paint between the fence boards.
Also discovered how many people in my hood speed down the alley way.

Monday:
Headed out for my long distance walk which was supposed to be 14.5KM it was only 11KM. I did find the elusive parks that gain access to the pathways, actually discovered a few. All were closed off due to renovations or falling rocks...fine. Then I just did laundry, watered flowers and did household stuff.
Had a wee heart attack because I couldn't find the charger for my garmin. Then found it still in the suitcase I took to my Dad's...whew!!

Today:
Feel like I did 400 squats.

The reason I love fall is mostly due to all the fabulous colours and how it's still nice but not super hot, however today should be over 30.

Since it's almost a new season I also feel a bit of renewed motivation in terms of weight loss. The summer felt like one step forward and two steps back. My training will be hitting high gear soon so activity will be better. I'm trying to save moolah so making my own lunch will also be helpful. I think I need to re-establish my accountability to all of you so I'll be posting my food and activity again.

Today:
Breakfast:
1/2c Original All bran - 1
1/2c Milk - 1
1/2c Strawberries - 1
Coffee - 2
Milk - 2
Snack:
Grapes-1
Coffee - 2
Lunch:
1/2c Chunky Soup - 3
Tomatoe - 0
Carrot Salad - 2 (raw grated carrot with a 1 tbls of ceasar vinagrette dressing)
Yogurt - 2
Subtotal: 17pts
Goal today: 24pts
Point remaining: 7

Happy Long Weekend Eve

Death by chocolate was spectacular...only one option was so so. The rest literally to die for especially this thing called Chocolate Cream. It tasted like homemade chocolate pudding and it was in this cute almost egg cup size little bowl. I did wind up having pasta but only ate half skipped the sauces and just had veggies with it. Thank god I skipped the wine...$8 a glass at the Palliser. I was rail roaded by super expensive coffee...$5 for normal coffee. Alas it was all worth it.
Today I'm back on plan, had to buy lunch but had an awesome turkey sandwith on dark bread with a little mustard and a little cranberry sauce and veggies.

Tonight will probably be soup.

My Friend from Fort Mac is coming in tomorrow so my painting palooza will be delayed a day but apart from that it all looks good for the coming weekend.

I hope everyone has a great and safe Labour Day weekend.