What A Week!

Ok.  I'm back.  After a very long weekend, I needed a few days to recover and regroup.  I had a blast working Jamboree in the Hills.  I worked with a bunch of fun people and saw a lot of talented musical groups.  I'm not a fan of country but I can't deny that these people are talented.  Lynyrd Skynyrd particularly put on a great show, and Brother Trouble was a lot of fun to direct.  The food provided was ok.  I was very excited when we had dinner on Thursday night because they had pork, shrimp, and a nice salad buffet.  However, as the weekend continued the food became more processed and full of stuff I can't eat and the salad looked more and more questionable.  I stocked up on Atkins bars and ate those when I was hungry and the meals did not fulfill that hunger because of legal reasons.  I don't consider eating those Atkins products as cheating.  I do see them as a hindrance to my weight loss though.  In the past if my diet consisted of a lot of "frankenfoods" from Atkins products my weight loss stalls.

Sure enough Wednesday was weight day and I haven't lost anything.  I had been losing 2-3 lbs. a week.  I'm ok with this because I knew it was going to happen.  I took measures to avoid cheating at Jambo but I still slightly sabotaged my weight loss.  The good news is that I didn't gain anything!  I did trigger my cravings though.  I craved sugar and junk food like nothing else.  I have a confession to make.  Sunday night when I got home I was so tired and so hungry.  There was no food in the house that I wanted, and I really didn't want to cook anything.  I asked my husband to go get me a chicken nugget meal from McDonald's.  Like a dear he went.  When he gave me my food I just stared at it.  I literally stared at it for a long time.  My stomach was saying yes but my head was screaming no.  I had to tell myself that this junk food wasn't worth wasting all the time and work I had accomplished.  I went all weekend long without cheating and to end a strong difficult week on this note, it was just stupid.  So I gave the food to my husband and I apologized for asking him to get that food for me.  He gobbled it up.   Thank goodness.  I almost caved.  It was so close.  I cooked myself something to eat and I was so glad I didn't just screw everything up.  After about a day all my cravings had subsided.  I'm back on track and so happy I'm back in charge of my food.

Tuesday was Zumba day!  I wasn't able to get to zumba since last Saturday...that was 11 days ago!!!!  I was itching to get some zumba back in my life.  I spent 4 whole days listening to a bunch of country music.  As I mentioned I'm not really a country fan.  Honestly most of the stuff I listen to now is either Christian music or Zumba music.  While I was at work I kept seeing updates on Facebook about zumba classes and I wished so bad I could be there.  I seriously was going through some Zumba withdrawal.  So finally Tuesday I went to class.  As soon as the first song was played I was back in my element.  I got such a rush of energy and I kept up with the rest of the class to the best of my ability.  I did much better this class than in the past.  As soon as Tricia turned on a Raggaeton song I lost myself in dance.  At the end of the workout she played a Celine Dion song for our cool down.  The song was "I'm Alive".  Sure enough I was crying like a baby.  I really did feel alive.

After a long week, a long fun week, I am back in charge and I feel alive.  Jamboree was fun but I'm glad being back to my regular schedule and in charge of everything.  I have to kick this stall and get back on track.  After this week and all the possible bad choices I could have made, I'm calling it a success.  I had a close call but I did not fail.

Leave of Absence

This weekend I have a large country music festival I have to work.  So it will be a very busy weekend.  I will not have access to the Internet.  So my blog is going to take a vacation.  Thank you all for reading!  Once the craziness is done I will give an update on how I did.  I mentioned before I'm going to have to work hard to not cheat.  I'm going to need the strength to make smart choices.  I've lost 16 pounds so far!  How awesome is that?  I'm losing at a rate of 5lbs every 2 weeks.  Crazy awesome.  No country music festival long work weekend is going to screw that up!  Bring on the crazy country music lovers!

When I Grow Up...

I want to be a Zumba Instructor!  Yep I've decided it.  When I get down to the weight that I'm comfortable with, when I'm in better shape, and when my stamina as built up I am going to pay it forward and become a Zumba Instructor.

Zumba has given me such passion for being active and passion for life in general that I think it's only right to get my self certified and trained to help others experience the awesomeness that is Zumba.  I've been thinking about this for a while.  It's kind of funny, whenever I'm at home listening to my music I actually start choreographing in my head.  It's going to take some time though.  My stamina and confidence for that matter are nowhere near where they need to be in order to teach other people.

I think this is another great goal to set myself.  I will get healthier and in shape, and once Zumba helps me achieve this I will be able to help other people.  It is expensive to get trained though.  So now I have something to start saving up for.  It's going to take hopefully about a year to get where I want to be physically, so that gives me time to save up.

How To Become a Zumba Instructor:
Becoming a zumba instructor is easy. Just take the one-day Zumba Basic Instructor Workshop offered by zumba.com and you are qualified. It is also recommended but not required to become a Certified Group Fitness Instructor through AFAA or Ace Fitness. And you really should also be CPR certified. 

That being said it still takes a lot of practice hours to put together song lists, and to create and learn choreography. Once you complete the Zumba Basic Instructor workshop you can get a monthly membership to Zumba's Instructor Network (ZIN) and receive choreography DVD's and music CD's periodically. It also provides access to an instructor message board where other instructors discuss everything you need to know and need help with to teach zumba.

Do you have the skills to teach zumba? Are you enthusiastic about zumba and do you absolutely love it?? Then you have the skills to teach zumba! 


Like I said this is a ways off in my future but it's a great goal to reach!

Not Usually a Fan...

I'm not a big fan of  Michael Jackson.  Actually I tend to dislike him a lot.  I don't like the person or his music.  However, today during my Zumba class my instructor (it was awesome Amy today!) turned on Michael Jackson's "Man in the Mirror" song.  The first verse and the chorus of the song really hit me.  As much as I don't like Michael Jackson I really like what this song had to say.  It spoke to me as I was cooling down after another awesome workout.  This song spoke to me because MJ puts into words exactly what I'm feeling.  I'm making a change in my life.  It's a good change and it is awesome.  I feel great!  I have a ton of energy!  I have passion!  My TV is pratically turned off during the day.  I am a couch potato no more!  Great changes have been taking place.  It all starts with me.

So I guess you can say I like one of his songs...or at least part of his song. 

"Man In The Mirror"

I'm Gonna Make A Change,
For Once In My Life
It's Gonna Feel Real Good,
Gonna Make A Difference
Gonna Make It Right . . .

I'm Starting With The Man In
The Mirror
I'm Asking Him To Change
His Ways
And No Message Could Have
Been Any Clearer
If You Wanna Make The World
A Better Place
(If You Wanna Make The
World A Better Place)
Take A Look At Yourself, And
Then Make A Change
(Take A Look At Yourself, And
Then Make A Change)
(Na Na Na, Na Na Na, Na Na,
Na Nah)

Jamboree in the Hills

Today I found out for the first time in 7 years I will be working Jamboree in the Hills all four days!  Jamboree in the Hills is a 4 day country music festival.  My company broadcasts this festival on local television.  Normally I am the in house person to make sure everything at work was smooth.  This year I will be on site.  I've never done this before, but that's not what I'm really worried about.  I don't know what I'm doing but I have a good teacher and I am eager to learn.  By the end of the weekend I will know this job like the back of my hand!

My real worry is how working this 4 day festival is going to affect my food choices.  I heard that I will be getting a food pass to the place that all the staff and musical guests get to eat.  I can only imagine what kind of food will be there!  I bet it's gonna be full of a ton of food that will look good but will be so against my rules.  I'm going to have the biggest test of my life!  I will be working early days, and these days will be long.  I will be tired and tempted so many times.  I will have to find all my strength to not give into these temptations.

Another challenge will be to make sure I am eating enough.  I cannot and will not eat the food that is not allowed but I do need to make sure I am eating.  It could become very dangerous if I don't eat.  I have a plan though.  It's not ideal but it's what I'm going to have to do to stay legal and to avoid making bad food choices and undo all the hard work and progress.  My plan is to stock up on Atkins bars, and nuts, and maybe some beef sticks.  I don't know if I will have anywhere to keep stuff cold.  If I do (which I'll find out about later this week) I will also have some Atkins shakes and of course veggies.  I really hope there is a place to keep my stuff cold.... 

This is going to be on heck of a week!  I am determined to stay on track.  Wish me luck!

You Want Me To Do WHAT?

This Tuesday I went to my weekly Zumba class.  I love this class so much.  It's so hard but so much fun!  My stamina has been getting better and better.  I'm nowhere near where my instructor is at, but give it time.  I will get into the best shape of my life, just give it time!

My instructor is the one in all grey! Tricia you
are awesome!!!

I love my instructor.  She is flippin' awesome!  She has been such an inspiration and source of strength for me.  Her energy and love for life is absolutely contagious.  I have never been so excited to be active before.  I have never been so excited to get my bum off the couch and workout.  I've known about Zumba since '96 and as fun as the tapes are there is just nothing like a live Zumba class.  Like I said this woman is amazing.  She has given me such drive to achieve what I've always wanted.  This time around I am not just wishing for a healthier me, I am becoming a healthier me. 

Every class I struggle.  My stamina is weak.  I am still very out of shape.  I have a lot of weight that my knees carry.  Normally I stand in the back of the room in class.  For some songs (especially the ones with a lot of jumping) I have to stop and catch my breathe.  On most occasions I am unable to do a complete song without taking a break.

This Tuesday my instructor called me out a couple of times.  This pushed me to keep going.  A little later in the class she actually called my up on stage to do a song with her in front of the whole class!!!  I was so scared!  The last thing I want is people watching me workout.  I hate it when people watch.  It would be my main excuse to not workout at a gym or if the husband was home.  Normally I would shake my head no and politely turn down the offer.  Not this time.  I didn't want to let my instructor down.  I took a deep breathe and jumped up on stage with her.  This was the most terrifying thing I have done in a long time.

It was an eye opener for me to say the least!  Not only have I learned that it doesn't matter if people are watching me or even what I look like when I'm working out.  What's important is that I am doing what is necessary to become healthier.  The most important thing that I learned is that I do have the strength and the stamina to do a complete song.  There was no way I was going to take a break during the song while being on stage next to my instructor and with people watching me.  I actually did the entire song without taking a single break.  I do have the strength to keep going.  Winners never quit and gosh darn it I want to be a winner! 

I want to thank my instructor.  There are so many things to thank her for.  She motivates me, she inspires me, she shows me that I am good enough, she shows me that I am strong enough.  Honestly I could go on and on about her.  She is a true gift from God.  She is a witness to so many people.  She helps so many people.  I thank her for taking the time to help me.  Thanks Tricia!  You're flippin' awesome!

Feeling Alive!

I don't even know where to begin.  The title of this post sums it all up.  These last couple of months have been awesome.  I have learned a lot about myself.  I have a clear vision of what I want in life in regards to my health and well-being.  I am stronger.  I am not weak.  I have no cravings.  I do not give into temptation.  I am able to say no when offered something that is bad for me.  I have been able to make holidays and important events in my life to work for me, I do not need to eat the typical birthday food or holiday food to make the day important.  I stopped caring about the reactions from people I get when I turn down a popular food.  I am focusing on me.  I am important. 

I have dieted before.  I have worked out before.  Never have I had the mindset that I have this time around.  In the past I would get started and have this great goal in mind but I would get impatient.  I would lose hope.  I would get bored.  I'm going on 76 days straight!  Not a single cheat.  I'm still being active.  I feel great about myself.  I'm so proud of myself.  I feel great!  I feel alive!

I've lost 14 lbs.  This is awesome!  I still have a long way to go but I am remaining patient.  It took time to put the weight on; it's going to take time to get it off.  I think that is the key.  I'm not rushing to lose weight.  I have not set some specific goal by a specific day.  I am not pressuring myself to lose as fast as I can.  This is a permanent change I am making in my life.  It will happen.  It is happening.  It's happening at exactly the rate that it is going to take.  I'm excited.  I am not allowing myself to get discouraged.  I have nothing to be discouraged about.  I am making healthy choices and turning my couch potato lifestyle into a healthy active life.  My kids are learning from me to be healthy and active. 

Like I said, I feel so alive! 

The Eye Doctors....

Shudder.  I have to go to the eye doctor today.  It's nothing bad but it's been a few years since I've had my eyes looked and it's about time I go.  I don't like going to the eye doctor.  I don't know why but it's the same for every doctor.  It's probably a combination of having to re-arrange my routine, being vulnerable, and the money.  My eyes are steadily getting worse though so it's about time.

Usually in this situation I would eat some kind of comfort food.  Normally it would be ice cream, or fast  food, or both.  It's almost like I have this conversation with myself "well if I have to spend time and money at the doctors then I will spend money and eat this therefore it's justified..." or something really strange to that effect.  Any way to justify the junk I'm about to put in my mouth.  I'm not going to do that this time of course.  I've been very good and I have no desire to backtrack.

I am having a hard time filling that void or desire or whatever you want to call it.  I guess it's a small level of anxiety that I have whenever I have to go to the doctors, especially the eye doctors...glasses and contacts are soooo expensive!  So what to do with myself until my appointment?  Maybe I should work out.  That's always and option!

Phew!

This last week has been interesting.  A lot of different tests were thrown at me.  Tests to see how strong I am.  Let me list them.

Wednesday was the Fourth of July.  I already mentioned that I had succeeded in not eating anything bad.  That night though our power went out.  It remained out for all of Thursday as well.  We had nothing to eat besides snack food.  All of our veggies had gone bad.  There was nothing for me to eat.  We needed to get out of the house because it was getting hot and the kids were restless.  We went to McDonald's to get something to eat and to cool off.  I ordered a chicken salad but it was DISGUSTING.  The bacon was so gross I couldn't even think of touching the rest of the salad.  The bacon was like little balls of greasy fat.  The word 'crispy' was nowhere to be found.  It was nasty.  So I settled for 2 hamburger patties with cheese.  Not very filling.  That night also had to work so all I had were a couple of Atkins bars to eat.  We didn't want to go to the store to buy anything because we had no way of keeping anything chilled.  So I had some Atkins bars for dinner.  Not exactly what I wanted because they aren't the best things to eat but it's better than nothing and a whole lot better than fast food.  Our power came back late Thursday night and we were able to go shopping and re-stock our food!  So my first major food crisis was a success.  Instead of taking the easy route or using the power outage as an excuse to eat bad food.  I stuck with my plan and ate other food that is allowed in emergencies.

Friday at work we had our monthly Employee of the Month Party.  I'm on the committee so I needed to help serve the big Chocolate and Vanilla cake.  That cake looked so good.  It comes from the local bakery and I can honestly say they make the best cakes in the world!  I did not eat any.  I did not cheat at all.  There were pieces of cake sitting in the break room for my entire 8 hour shift!  Every time I needed to use the restroom or get my lunch or take a walk or whatever I had to pass those pieces of cake.  I didn't even stop to smell it.  I just kept moving.  Eventually the pieces disappeared one by one (and not by me!!!).  Employee parties?  No problem!

Things are getting easier for me.  Saying no to food is easy.  Having to explain why I don't eat that popular food item (pizza, etc.) is getting easier as well.  I no longer care what people think when I say no to whatever they are offering.  I'm getting stronger.  My clothes are getting a little bit looser.  My mind is clear, my goal is in the distance.  I am focused.

Happy 4th of July!

I did it!  I made it through my first major holiday and did not falter from my healthy lifestyle!  In fact I even took it up a notch to make sure I didn't sway and give into the usual Fourth of July goodies.  I woke up at 6:30am this morning so I could start the day off right and get some live Zumba in!  It was early but man alive the workout was good!  My instructor kicked my bum and made me work for it.  It was awesome.  What a wonderful way to start the day!  After class one of the ladies brought Mimosa's for everyone.  I absolutely LOVE mimosas.  I turned it down though.  As much as I wanted one I'm not allowed to have alcohol or orange juice right now.  I just sat and hung out with everyone drinking my water. When I got home after class everyone was still asleep so I was able to get a small nap in before everyone woke up...score!

My family and I had a small cookout.  I ate some chicken and a bratwurst.  It was soooo good!  My hubby knows his way around a grill that's for sure!  I had to run to work after that though.  I brought some more of the cookout food with me to eat for dinner.  It reheats great!  I also brought my trusty veggies with me as well of course.  I'm so full from the chicken right now the veggies will have to wait until a little bit later tonight.

It's a bummer I have to work.  I'm missing out on all the fun at home and I'm going to miss fireworks but at least I get double pay, haha!  Oh yeah today was weigh day and I lost another 2 pounds!  I've hit my 10 pound mini goal!  Click HERE!!!! to see my progress. All in all this day has been awesome.  My first major holiday since starting this way of life is in the books and I did not cheat, I stayed on track and I made sure I got a great workout in.  Here's hoping the all the other holidays this year are this easy!



Don't forget what this holiday is for!!!!!!!



Movie Time!

Yesterday as a continuation of our wedding anniversary celebrations we took the 3 little ones to the movies to see Brave.  It was a good movie.  It was full of all the stuff that I love (and kind of obsess over) about the Celtic culture.  The music was great, the scenery was awesome, the clothing, the dancing, the history...all amazing!  The story and the characters were fun as well.  I am definitely giving this movie 2 thumbs up, another win from Disney Pixar.

Seeing the movie was a lot of fun but there is the issue of the food that I had become accustomed to eating when at the movies.  My usual movie meal would be Nachos with extra cheese, a large cherry Icee, and twizzlers.  It never failed that that would be my food of choice whenever I went to the movies.  Going to the movies are one of mine and my husband's favorite pastimes.  As you can imagine it was going to take some strength to say no to this food. 

I came prepared though.  I only ordered a Diet Coke, and I packed a nice big bag of Green Peppers to snack on if I became hungry.  I did really well.  We ordered the kids popcorn, the hubby had nachos, and they all split some twizzlers.  I had my trusty Diet Coke and Green Peppers.  I didn't miss the movie food at all.  The hardest thing I had to deal with was my youngest trying to share her popcorn with me.  She would literally stuff it in my mouth and I had to strategically spit it out without her seeing.  I did not digest a single kernel of corn!

This healthy life choice is getting easier and easier.  I don't miss the food that I used to obsess over.  It has gotten easier and easier to say no to things I can't have.  I have been getting more experimental with my cooking.  It's been especially awesome figuring out some recipes of my own that incorporate more vegetables than fillers!  I really feel like this time I'm winning the food battle.

I am slipping a little on the activity part.  I partly blame it because these last couple of weeks I've had to go into work early everyday.  I have such little time in the day to cook, clean, spend time with the kids, work on personal projects, etc.  that it has been hard fitting in the workouts.  I know that these really aren't excuses.  I'm still working on trying to wake up earlier to get the workout in.  I'm hoping to start going to Zumba twice a week.  It's been so good to me and I can't get enough of the live classes.

All in all these last couple of days have been a true test of my will power.  I did not cheat when we celebrated our wedding anniversary and I did not cheat going to the movies.  This may not seem a big deal to some but to me it's HUGE!

The Computer

It seems I find myself behind a computer for the majority of my day.  At work I'm at a computer, at home I've been working on some personal projects that require me to be behind a computer.  In the past   I would always eat a ton while sitting at the computer.  I've been working on that bad habit and almost have it kicked.  If I am going to eat it's normally just a snack of green peppers or something like that.

I noticed today as I am sitting at my computer that my stomach started to hurt.  Not because I was hungry but because my muscles were starting to get tired of being clenched all the time!  I just started noticing it.  It's pretty awesome.  My workouts are starting to payoff.  There are muscles in my abdominal area!!!  Slowly I'm bringing these muscles back to life and I'm pretty happy about it.

Now since I sit in front of a computer most of my days I need to find some exercises that I can do to make use of my sitting.  Here are some ideas, I should start putting them into practice:

 

Celebrating 6 Years!

Today I celebrated my 6th year wedding anniversary!  It's been an amazing 6 years. I had to work so we celebrated during the early afternoon.  So we hired a baby sitter went out to eat by ourselves, we also went to a bookstore we both love but never have the time to get to.  It's been a long time since we've done that.

We went to a restaurant neither of us have ever been to, it's called Bahama Breeze and it's amazing!  I did so well.  My "cheat" at our anniversary dinner is that I had 2 Diet Cokes!  The menu looked amazing and I wanted to try everything!  I was good though.  I didn't cheat at all.  I ordered Grilled Shrimp for my appetizer, and for my entree I ordered a Grilled Chicken dish that came with sweet potatoes but I substituted the potatoes for a salad.  The Shrimp appetizer was HUGE.  There were at least 12 shrimp in the dish.  They were served in an amazing garlic butter sauce.  It came with some bread for dipping but I didn't eat it.  I saved it for the kids.

My entree was really good.  I noticed that the sauce that was on the chicken tasted a little sweet though.  I was curious so I looked on their website to see if they listed nutritional info.  Unfortunately I discovered that the Grilled Chicken had 11 carbs in it!  It must have been the sauce.  Oh well.  I'm not beating myself up about it, I just need to make sure I'm a little bit more careful in what I choose to eat, I think I'll need to pass on the sauce next time.  I don't think this is going to knock me out of ketosis.  I hope not.  Either way I think going out to eat for the first time since I've started this way of life was very successful!  I did not purposefully go off of my plan.  A little sauce isn't going to hurt me too much.  I just need to make sure it doesn't happen again.

As a gift, my husband gave me two Betty Crocker cookbooks from '62 and '72.  You have no idea how excited I am about these books!  My mother owns these books.  I grew up looking at the pictures in these books.  My mother also uses a lot of recipes from these books so I know that the recipes are good.  Also they are nice old fashioned recipes that I will be able to tweak very easily to meet my nutritional needs.  So awesome!  There's a lot of sentimental value with these books but it will make our family meals SO MUCH BETTER!

Happy Anniversary hubby!  I love you, and I'm getting healthy so you are going to be stuck with me for a very very long time!