Post holidays...

Happy New Year! It's 2012--finally! I'm sure I've written this before, but I hate odd numbered years. I always do better with the even years.

Anyway--the end of my December was a bit nutty, but overall it was good. All except for the weight loss front.

However, there are articles such as this and this to get me back in the saddle.

Like many of you, I hate making "resolutions" because it's like they're made to be broken. However, I did create some goals for this coming year, and at the top of my list is

Make Health a Priority
This doesn't just mean losing weight and watching the scale numbers drop--this means making sure I am making the decisions I need to make in order to improve the quality of my life.

I thought I'd try something new to kick off the year...video blogging. I'm so behind on the times when it comes to all of this, but I thought it would be a fun way to start off a new year of my blog and my weight loss journey. If I want different results, I need to be doing something different, right?

Anyway, here it is...my first vlog...Enjoy!


Until next time

Thirty One Days of...

Wheeeeeeeeee!! Off we go!

Okay, so in typical Julia spontaneity (aka...no prior planning whatsoever), I have decided to do a December blog challenge. It was going to be 25 days (til Christmas), but what better way to do a countdown to 2012 than do one thing each day for my health...and blog about it.
So this is obviously still in the works, but the point of this is to blog once a day, even a small post. Blogs will be anything from what I ate (good AND bad), to my exercise, to a product or food review...anything to keep me focused on my health.

I didn't post last week--I had one all set up about Thanksgiving and all, but I never got around to posting it. Thanksgiving itself wasn't great, but nor was it entirely a washout...I didn't go overboard with all the courses, but I felt a lot like the turkey at the end...(stuffed that is). On the other hand, I did go for a morning run that day and the day after & a walk in between and even threw around the pigskin during our dinner intermission........yes...there was an intermission.

I haven't really been back on track since then though and I haven't weighed in either. My new job started, which means Monday AND Wednesday evenings are both booked from now on, so I'll have to find a new meeting to attend.
So back to the challenge...Day One will be creating a schedule. My first December after I started Weight Watchers, I read a tip to create a calendar for the month, with all the parties and other events filled in. The benefit to this was you could schedule around those events, knowing you'll probably eat more those days and can plan to balance out the week with better food choices as well as exercise.
As bad as I am at planning, the times that I do have a plan helps tremendously even if I don't follow it completely. Even just creating this challenge has got me motivated to make this month a very different December than previous years. Here's to a healthy change - Let's make the most of the end of 2011 together!

Will you join me in this challenge for 31 Days to Health? How are you dealing with the holidays? Ready to throw in the towel or determined to make this holiday season a healthy one?

Until next time

Holiday Fat becomes a New Year of Fit

Okay--I'll admit it. I was a bad girl this holiday break (slap hand)...

Part of the reason was on December 20th I came down with a horrible cold, fever, cough, etc...which had me out of commission most of the break. I could barely breathe without coughing which gave me no motivation to go running...or getting out of bed/off the couch. And although I did not each much the first part of the week I was sick, I paid absolutely no attention to tracking what I was putting in my mouth.

At first that was fine, because again, I wasn't eating much, but as I got better I did not get back into my groove. I got back into the fridge. I may be exaggerating a bit. I wasn't completely out of control. But I really threw it all out the window and in combination with not exercising at all (save one ice skating session and one all night walk through NYC), I was feeling lethargic and sorry for myself most of the two weeks I was home.

Actually, I'm surprised I didn't gain more than 1.2 lbs. But it was a sad sight to see that number bordering so close to my first weigh in on the new program a month ago...199. Ugh.

Side note--for any of you Weight Watchers regulars, beware this next two weeks. I got to the center to find a line wrapped around the entire reception area of people looking to weigh in and register. Ah, January. Surprisingly the gym was pretty empty when I went afterward.

Anyway-Now that I've finally gotten out of the house and am stepping back into a normal routine, I am getting back into gear. Most of that is the fear of preparation for my upcoming training run with Team in Training (TNT). 6 miles!! 6 miles!!! I've never run 6 miles!!! I've barely run 4...so back into training I go...

For my nitty gritty training & workout log, check out my fitness blog: http://livetofittolive.blogspot.com/

I also finally invested in the Nike+ system and got a pair of compatible shoes & the Nike+ Sport package for my iPod. I wanted the bracelet system, but it's more expensive and less available. I have a complicated relationship with my iPod. I love it, but I hate the fact that I don't really have a computer capable of freely using it. So to use the Nike+ system for the iPod is a little frustrating because I don't have iTunes loaded on any of my computers at home or at work other than my old one in storage. Anyway--once I get it up and running it will be a great tool for me to track my progress and push myself to become a better runner. :)

Anyway--even though I didn't have the most productive of holiday breaks, I am looking forward to kicking off 2011 the right way!

Until next time

I'm back...

she said sheepishly.

I haven't been a very good blogger. Nor have I been a very good healther. (Seriously the only the word I can think of at the end of the day).

Happy New Year by the way!

Let me quickly recap the last month. My last post was December 15th after a gain at weigh in. Well that was dumb, letting myself gain after all my goals and progress in getting back on track. And instead of getting back on the wagon, I drove the wagon off a cliff. So after three weeks, too many cupcakes and not remotely enough exercise, I have gained another 4.4 lbs, putting me way back up at 194.6. This week last year I was 196.8. I have managed in one year to lose exactly 2.2 lbs. Pardon my language but WHAT THE DUCK?

Seriously. What the hell happened in the past few months that I completely undid all the hard work I did this year??? Why can't I seem to stick to the plan anymore? Why am I so out of control with food? Why can't I live up to my own goals and expectations?

Well it was an odd year. Literally. I do much better in even numbered years, and 2009 was not my favorite. Sure, lots of great things happened, but there was some definite obstacles, mentally, physically, emotionally etc that I let get in my way.

I am determined that with the fresh year comes a fresh start and a fresh state of mind. I start this year over, not looking back except to learn from my mistakes. I start this year focused. With a plan, and the will to stick to it.

I spent my winter break inside. With food. I even made food in order to binge on it (cupcakes are my new enemy). What's worse was as I sat there, in front of my computer, listlessly watching movies and entire TV series, with my only exercise being trips to the fridge or the bathroom, all I did was feel sorry for myself. Good grief, I didn't even read any blogs as I avoided the reality of what I was doing to myself. All I did was remorse that I was allowing myself to revert to all my bad habits I'd lived with until I joined Weight Watchers. But I did nothing. I let it get worse. And now I'm starting from scratch.

Starting from scratch is fine though. I'm okay with that. It means leaving behind an old frame of mind to move forward. Learn from the past and emerging stronger.

I'm back, and watch out world, I'll be better than ever. This year, 2010, WILL be the year I take charge of my life.

Now I'm going to catch up on your blogs :)

Stay strong my friends.

Until next time

November happenings

Hello all! I hope you had a great Halloween weekend & didn't let the candy get the best of you. I had this fantastic post about the festivities which I wrote up last week but ended up losing once I started trying to change around HTML. Ah well.

A new week & a new month!

I am happy to report that last week was a good week. After going to weigh in on Wednesday, I had a successful week of eating.

My week's Achievements:

• Did not eat one piece of Halloween candy!
• Passed up on bar food Friday night after the show
• Stuck with homemade food and store bought food most of week/weekend rather than getting takeout.
• Returned to swing dancing last night & was better than ever!
• Tracked everything since last Monday (including donut binge on Tuesday) & since Wednesday did not go into weeklies until Sunday cast party.
• Have not touched donuts in freezer since Tuesday
  
• Have not touched ice cream in freezer at work (brought by boss on Friday)
• Have found various ways to distract myself from eating including knitting/crochet, gum, organizing...
  

I kept on plan, I resisted temptation, and last night's weigh in was a happy one. 4lbs! I'm very surprised it was that much since the previous weeks seemed so permanently damaging, but I guess making those changes made a big difference. It's kind of like the first weigh in all over again. So I'm back to 186.4

I did start fresh too by requesting a new membership book. I felt it would help me look at this next few months in a fresh light. Plus mine had literally fallen apart, so it was time. I had gotten a new one when they revamped the program last December (oh lord, I hope they don't make more changes this year!) so this is now my third membership book since I started. I definitely made progress since I started this last book, but not as much as I would have thought I would have. 13 lbs in almost a year. And of course that has been up and down as opposed to the steady loss I had the first 8 months.

So now I'm 21 lbs away from goal, and I probably won't be there by Dec 31st as I had hoped, especially with holidays approaching. But with two months left, I certainly can get out of the 180s. So that is my goal. I want to be solidly in the 170s by December 31st and celebrating a new year with a smile. Averaging 1lb a week I think is reasonable. Sometimes it will be more, and sometimes it may be less, but I can do it. I will do it. From there I will look at what I need to do to get to goal.

I really want to be at my goal weight before my 2 year WW anniversary in April, which again, is totally reasonable, but I need all my resources at hand, all my willpower and motivation charged, and I need to not let myself sabotage my efforts and to go on this roller coaster ride on the scale.

Oh, and here's my Halloween costume--Little Bo Peep. I spent the evening looking for my lost sheep. I didn't find them, but I did find some wolves...and NOT in sheep's clothing :)


Have a great day everyone!

Until next time

Off plan & off my rocker

I hate holiday weekends.

Love the idea of them, hate what it does to my weight loss focus.

I'm two days back from Memorial Day/Birthday extravaganza weekend and I haven't tracked anything in well over a week and I keep putting it off. I also haven't really exercised since Friday. And my eating patterns have gotten lazy.

I keep saying I'm going to get back on the wagon, plan out my meals, plan out my week, get myself back on a schedule, but I keep making excuses.

Excuses? I thought this month was all about NO EXCUSES!!!???

It feels so much harder--like I've been doing this for so long and I need a break. But I don't want to give up all the work I've done so far! But each day brings up another obstacle. A dinner out, a rainy day, no real food in the fridge...I keep having to make these decisions and feel like I'm fighting a losing battle with it.

And it doesn't get any better this week: dinner at a friends' house tonight, dad's birthday dinner out friday night, weather's crappy, no time to go jogging anyway, long days of work to deal with and then no energy to work out at home...

To top it off, I didn't weigh in on Monday since it was a holiday...not knowing how I fared this weekend is killing me and I feel like it throws my whole week off.

Argh...

Until next time

Oh Lookie--I reached 100

Not pounds silly - 100 posts!

So it seems that without knowing, I posted the photo montage as my 100th post. Yay me!

So back to my action plan for December. Less than one month left of 2008, and since 2008 was a big year for me, I figured I should make the most of this month and go out with a bang.

There is an article on ww.com titled 4 Insider Secrets to Surviving December. I read through it and the tips were quite interesting, so I thought I would employ a few.

First it says to ask yourself what you want to see happen this month. The obvious answer is to continue losing weight, but since December is filled with holiday hoopla and major food-temptations, that's not the easiest plan to follow. But if I break it down, it seems much more managable. There are four and a half weeks this month. If I lose about 1 lb for at least 3 of those weeks, I'll be happy. One of those weeks is PMS week which I probably won't lose and could possibly gain. But let's say my goal is to lose 3-4 lbs by Dec. 29th (the last Monday).

Next it says to draw a calendar for the month, mapping out and planning the month. Including holiday parties or occasions, PMS week, and other events to figure out how busy your month is, and how it will affect your points and exercise goals. So once I did this I was like--oh wait--why haven't I done this before? Not to say that things don't come up and what cravings or temptations get in the way, but seriously, by looking at this calendar, I can see what days I should be able to stick to my points, which days leave room for exercise, which days I have to curb my points because I will be eating higher points foods, etc. I can mark meeting days, as well as recording my weight each week to see the progress & effect of the week's activities. It also allows me to see which days I will probably not have time to make dinner and will have to grab something quick, so if I plan ahead, I can have a quick leftover meal or something.

Brilliant!

The problem is sticking to this calendar, keeping it visible, and keeping my goal in mind. It also means re-evaluate it on a weekly basis to keep it fresh, take into account weather for walking outdoors, and motivation. But I think I can do it. If I stick to it, it could be just what I need. It will also help me plan out my week meal-wise, which up til now, I have not done at all. But even as I drew up this calendar yesterday, I noted the two days this week when I will be out of the office & subject to eating a pre-chosen lunch. Knowing what each of these lunch menus would be, I was able to mentally prepare for adjusting my other meals. Today was pizza, tomorrow is sandwiches. Hence the light snacks I had on hand when I returned to the office since I only had one slice of pizza allowed me to choose to only have one piece of pizza. Yay me.

The other steps listed in this article include making sure you continue to weigh in weekly (I'm not adverse to that), attend meetings to talk to others about getting through this tough season (right-o), and swap tips with other members and leaders to help think outside the box (which is exactly what I'm doing here).

I guess when I find a new way of looking at things I tend to get really excited, hence the ridiculously long blog, but the difficulty is keeping that excitement to complete the goal. Well, I plan to keep that excitement, and keep on strutting my stuff this December - AND BEYOND!!

Who knows, 100 might soon have a different meaning...

Until next time

December is Strut your Stuff month

Why Strut your Stuff?

Strutting is an act of walking with your chest out & your head held high in order to show off.
It is also a method used to appear more confident and to make yourself feel good.

And by god--that's what December will be about. Pretending to feel good and maybe that will actually help me feel good.

This Thanksgiving weekend was a bust. Thanksgiving itself was fine. I ate perfectly controlled portions, skipped the point-heavy foods if I didn't really want them, and even went for a walk with my nephins to counteract the food frenzy. I made an excellent low-fat, low-sugar Too-Good-to-Deny Pumpkin Pie from Hungry Girl's recipe.

And even Friday was fine--I worked on cleaning most of the day so I wasn't stuck with nothing to do except eat. That came Friday night after making the mistake of buying a bag of Baked Lays and two bars of Dove chocolate. I mostly finished the chips on Friday night & had quite a bit of chocolate. Saturday I did finish the chips. And continued eating. And didn't go out at all until later that evening. But I got NO exercise. I stayed in bed reading most of Saturday, and then did nothing on Sunday but eat and watch TV and sleep. I didn't have a ton of fatty foods, but I certainly wasn't getting in my vegetables or paying attention to how many points I was eating.

And the fact that I was just moving from the bed to the kitchen to the couch to the bathroom most of those two days didn't help my energy level either. Anyway--I actually should be down with tonight's weigh in because last week I was up and it seems every other week is reflected in the weigh-in. But I've just been in a bummer of a mood lately.

So in order to counteract that, I want to strut my stuff this month--if only to help trick myself into feeling better. Shoulders back, puppies out, wearing my best, looking my best, long strides, head up, looking the world in the eye with a smile. I'm sexy and I know it. I'm going to strut it.

Watch out world--here comes Julia

Tomorrow, the first step of the plan.

Until next time

Tools for Living #3

So I haven't blogged lately. It's been busy. Memorial Day weekend wasn't as disastrous as I thought it would be. Well...except when I tried to calculate drinks in (margarita madness on Saturday). Fortunately I took advantage of the fantastic weather and got some outdoor activity in. Friday & Monday I walked the Croton Aqueduct trail (which is just beautiful) for an hour which I calculate about 3 miles round trip. And Sunday I went to the zoo and walked everywhere. We were there from about 11:30 til about 6pm, so I calculated about 4 hours of walking after taking out the stop & go of staring at animals. I was very happy about that.

The highlight of my weekend was Saturday night and dressing up for my birthday outing in a fabulous red dress I had purchased two years ago (the last time I was in good shape), and i was so happy with the way I looked in it. I accessorized with my white blazer & gold jewelry and shoes. I wish I had a full length photo because I looked amazing (if I can gloat).

Since Monday was a holiday, we didn't have our meeting which means I didn't get weighed in. I did weigh myself on the scale at my parents house which I am sure is not all that accurate, but I did just to record it. According to them I am now down another 2.6 lbs. Ha...if that's correct I'll be ecstatic. But I'm not counting on it. I think I'll go tonight to get a more accurate reading however painful it may be.

So here we go with today's tool: Empowering Beliefs (finally right?)

This enforces the concept of if we believe we can achieve. Just not quite as cheesy.
Beliefs, ideas that we think are true, strongly influence what we do, because they live in our hearts as well as our heads. The Empowering Beliefs Tool teaches you that you're more likely to succeed if you believe.

• That your weight goal is desirable and worth it.

• That you're capable of achieving your goal.

• That you deserve to achieve your goal.

I really don't think I have too much of a problem with this one. I do desire to reach my weight goal, I am capable (most days), and I definitely deserve to achieve it. But I do notice a difference in my motivation when I'm feeling good about myself and how I look. Like Saturday night. I felt like I should be in the Sex & the City movie because I felt that classy. And with that I proceeded to ignore my massive amount of calories & points consumed in the form of alcohol earlier that day. But the days where I feel crappy, look crappy etc., I am so much less motivated to keep working towards that goal.

Lately though I've been using that as motivation to say I know I feel crappy now, but I'll feel better if I go for a walk...or have some fruit, etc.

So how can I improve upon these empowering beliefs? Let's take the first one.
Is my goal desirable and worth it? Yes. I had several goals though. One of my favorites is to look good or as I had put it to "kick ass" in my bridesmaid dress at my brother's wedding at the end of August. It's definitely desirable. Why? Because it's a big family function, there will be lots of photos being taken, and I want to look good. Plus I will be surrounded by my skinny sister-in-law (to be), and her skinny friends. Now while I know there's no way I will be skinny like them (or really have a desire to be), and I know I'll stick out like a sore thumb no matter what, I just want to know I look good for the event. Plus I expect there to be hot guys there to flirt with.

Am I capable of achieving my goal? Yes. Hell, I am down 10lbs already, and I've only been doing WW just over a month. Another 10 lbs and I will be at my lowest weight since...well I really can't remember. And if I continue at this rate, by the end of August I could potentially be down almost 40 lbs. Again, that's a lot to ask for, but I truly feel I am capable of doing this and intend to stick to my goals and my plan. By storyboarding my path to success, I am able to break it down into smaller steps & smaller goals that I can achieve.

Do I deserve to reach my goal? Hell yes. No question. I deserve to be healthy. I deserve to be happy. I deserve to spend exorbitant amounts of money which I don't have to buy new sexy clothes. They suggest listing people who appreciate me & why and looking at me through their eyes. Or listing ways I've contributed to the richness of lives of the people around me. Uh...again we're bordering on cheesy, but I think of myself as a genuine and friendly person. I know my friends turn to me for advice and a shoulder to lean on. I have helped some of my friends through some emotional situations. My family appreciates me for my reliable personality and my grounded personality. My co-workers appreciate me for the ideas and energy I bring to the office, my knowledge of the organization, and my willingness to help and my positive outlook on our work environment.

Yay. That wasn't so bad.

Well, now I am pretty energized. I sort of want to go do stuff to continue my goals and plans. This could be an incredible summer if I keep it up.

Until next time!

La la la la To meeeeeeee

I'm 28 today. That's not as scary as I thought it would be. I've always enjoyed celebrating my birthday. Never hid embarrassingly when someone ordered a song at a restaurant. (Well, maybe in the 13-15 year stage) So I've been looking forward to my birthday since the calendar changed over to my favorite month.

Anyway--the past few days since my WW meeting, I've been having major point issues. I think it's because it's PMS week, so I'm craving either more food or less healthy food. Or I didn't have the right choices to make (/made the wrong choices). I'm not even to Friday and I only have 17 pts left for the week. I can make it through without going over, but I really have to make a good effort to keep my points down and get in more exercise.

Of course that might be a little difficult with Memorial Day weekend being here. And the fact that tonight I'm going out to dinner w/my family so it might be point heavy. I'm checking out the menu right now and it's definitely looking quite...fattening (but oh so good).

Maybe I'll go for a walk after I leave work. No wait...it's raining again. Boo.

Until next time.