Tip 3

Ok you guys know me by now. If I say I'll post later in the day, that probably means that I'll post tomorrow (or next month) lol. Yesterday, I went to Zumba at the gym, and also got in 45 minutes of shooting hoops beforehand. While shooting around, I was challenged to a game of one-on-one by an older gentleman who was also waiting for Zumba. He was pretty fierce competition, I have to admit. I won, but he gave me a run for my money.

Anyway, after that, I went to Zumba, taught by one of Facebook friends. I have to say, her class was intense. By the time it was over, I was wiped. Afterwards, I went home, ate lunch (spaghetti and tofu), and one of my girls hit me up to go watch some football and play pool at a local restaurant. Since I already had lunch, I just had a couple of r&ds (100 calories each), then went to a cookie party, where I had to judge. Dun dun dun!!!

But actually, it was all good, because I had planned ahead. Plus, the hostess was so kind as to give us knives to cut off only a portion to sample each cookie. Since I'm allergic to nuts, my selection was cut in half anyway, so I had the teeniest bit of about 6 cookies. When I was done, I went back and got two of my favorite cookies. It was practically impossible to keep track of these calories, but I must have done a good job, because I woke up this morning 1.5 pounds lighter.

So anyway, back to my tips. Here's a new one for you. I'll write more later.

Tip 3. Beware of the false bottoms.
Back when I started my weight loss journey, a little over a year ago, I weighed 224 pounds. Every time I tried to lose weight, I'd reach 214, and that's as far as I'd go. We filmed a movie back in 2007 and I was about 206 or 207 pounds. I'd dream for the day that I could be back there again. I thought I'd never in life be under 200 again, unless I was "lucky" enough to catch the flu. Once I hit 199, I thought I'd made it. But 190 feels much better than 199, and I'm sure 139 will feel even better.

Today, my size 12 jeans are starting to get that familiar baggy feeling. Hopefully I'll be in a size 10 soon. I'll be back later with another tip.

My Top 10 Tips for Weight Loss (Part 1)

Amidst many false starts, I'm finally beginning to get it together slowly but surely. But let's look at the positives. For the first time in my life, I've kept 30 pounds off for nearly a year. I can hardly believe that I've gone from a size 18 to a 12 and stayed there. Prior to this point, the lowest I've ever been was a size 14, the summer between freshman and sophomore year of college (10 years ago). But now I'm comfortably in a size 12. Crazy.

I'll tell you how I've bounced back in a while, but first, let me lay out my top 10 tips for natural weight loss (no fads included). As many of you know, I'm the fad queen. I've tried almost everything short of plastic surgery to shed the pounds, but nothing has worked besides good old fashioned hard work (I wish I could get those several thousands of dollars back, that I've spent over the past 20 years...sigh). When somebody told me this on FB (in not quite so many words), I got really angry, but she hit the nail on the head. So, here's a list of ways that I've successfully lost weight, with no gimmicks. Here we go.

Tip 1. Celebrate your successes...
There was a time in the very recent past that I'm sure many of the readers could remember, where weight was all I saw. I'd work out and work out and work out two, three, or four hours every day. If I lost two pounds in one day, I'd be somewhat satisfied. Anything less was a failure. This type of behavior is not healthy, and can eventually take you down a very dangerous path. My loooooooong break from dieting and working out was a blessing in disguise, because it allowed me to refocus and see that life was not all about the scale.

Now that I'm back, I realize that not working out didn't kill me. I'm in a much better position than I was at this time last year. If I lose a pound, that's great. If I don't, big deal...I'll lose it tomorrow. I'm just happy when I do.

Tip 2. ...but not too much.
In the past, I used to tell myself, "Ok self, you've been working hard. Once you get under X pounds, we will have Y to celebrate." There's nothing wrong with giving yourself incentives like this, but you have to be very clear and honest with yourself, that you will ONLY have that incentive. For example, if you tell yourself, "when I get to X pounds, I get pizza," it's very important to only get the pizza. There's no need for ice cream, mozzarella sticks, cheese cake, etc. Those can be incentives for other times. Or maybe you can give yourself a day to splurge and get it all out of your system, but the next day, back to work! Otherwise, as I have found, you may a) fall into the habit of eating crap, which is very difficult to break; and/or b) gain more weight than you anticipated, which will be hard to take off, and will probably discourage you, causing you to fall off the wagon.

Another disadvantage I've found about the incentive program is that I always end up getting impatient. For example, if I really wanted to have pizza, but kept putting it off every day because I didn't hit my target, eventually, I'd crack under the pressure and go crazy on some Papa Johns. The pizza became very important to me, more so than it was when I originally set the incentive. Quick fix? Go to the grocery store and get some diet pizza in the meantime. It will keep you from going crazy. (I really like the Weight Watchers pizza minis.) The bottom line is, don't deprive yourself, but don't go crazy with rewards either.

Today, I got up and got on the scale, like I do most other mornings. I weighed 191.5 pounds. While that is heavy to many people, to me it was a small victory because I haven't seen that number since probably May or June. I feel really good...this feels perfect for me, BUT IT'S NOT!!!! Hence:

Tip 3. Beware of false bottoms.
More to come on this, as well as the last seven tips. I've been at this for about 45 minutes, and I'm a bit tired of writing after this last week of finals. I'll be back later, likely after the gym where I'm going to Zumba and shooting hoops.

Beauty

You are beautiful, just the way you are. So am I. We all have unique things about us that make us beautiful. I just wanted to be perfectly clear. I've been on this journey for my entire life. It's kinda sad that it's taken me almost 30 years to come to this conclusion.

People may hate. People will always find something about you not to like. But instead of getting upset, look at the underlying reason for their hatred. There's something that you're obviously doing right, that they may not be.

Just let it go.

Booo on me

I'm not getting on the scale til November 10. I've gained weight. I can feel it. Last night I tried to go to the gym, but I got a flat tire, and the ensuing drama consumed the rest of the evening. Today will be different. Zumba after work with co-workers. Zumba after that with Carol. I don't have class this evening, so after Carol, going to the gym for arms and running. After that, kazaxe. I'll get back on track. Yaaaaaaay.

The Friendly Fever

Hey guys...I've been pretty silent lately because I've been knocked out of commission by a little bug. Thursday night, after Zumba, I knew I was coming down with something. By Friday morning, I had a fever and couldn't go to work. Couldn't work out either, much to my dismay; however, I ended up losing crazy weight, no matter how much I decided to pig out. For a split second, I got a taste of how it felt to be one of those people with high metabolisms that I envy so much lol.

Anyway, today I'm back at work, and feeling like I should have taken one more sick day. Yesterday, I was pretty much feeling like a million bucks, but today not so much. I had even packed a workout bag, thinking that I would hit up Zumba after class tonight. But now I'm thinking that's not such a good idea. I'll take one more day and get myself together. Tomorrow, I'll go all out as I intended, if I'm feeling alright. Plan for tomorrow: 5 pm Zumba, 6 pm workout, 8 pm Zumba...yeaaaaahhhhhhh booyyyyyyyy!!!

Today is October 25, and that means that it's check-in/cheat day. I use my fancy schmancy scale to measure my progress on the 10th and 25th of each month. This day is also my cheat day, where I don't count calories, and basically pig out hehe. Today, when I got on the scale, I wasn't happy with what I saw. Yeah, I lost like 4 pounds in two weeks, but my body fat percentage went up, meaning that basically all the weight I lost while I was sick was muscle mass. Boo on that. So, hopefully tomorrow, I will be good enough to go back to the gym, and start building back that muscle that I lost.

The Results
Weight: 193.6 (Down from 197.6)
Body Fat Percentage: 40.8% (Up from 39.9)
Total Body Water Percentage: 42.7% (Down from 43.4)
Muscle Mass: 109 (Down from 112.8)
Physique Rating (1-9): 3 (Stayed the same)
BMR (aka calories body burns at rest): 1622 (Down from 1672)
Metabolic age: 50 (Stayed the same)
Bone Mass: 5.8 (Down from 6.0)
Visceral Fat: 7 (Stayed the same)

By November 10 (next full weigh-in), I want to be at 189.9 or lower, with a body fat percentage in the low 39s. Fingers crossed :) TTFN.

Update: Bikini Challenge

This is me about a month into the bikini challenge. Picture taken last night.

Sorry I missed yesterday. This week has been crazy busy. Between standardized testing at work, class, meetings, teaching classes after school, trainings, etc, there hasn't been much time to write. I've been doing pretty well working out though.

Monday night I went to the gym, did 10 min on the elliptical, upper body pump, and 30 minutes on the treadmill. It was awesome because I worked out with one of my friends who I used to go to to the gym with, until she hurt herself. She needs a nickname too...how about O.G. (not original gangsta, lol...original gym buddy)?

Anyway, now she's feeling waaaaayyyy better. We did her routine on the treadmill, which was honestly a lot harder than I imagined. I realized that jogging is soooooo much easier than speedwalking, which was the foundation of her routine. My calves were burning by the time I got off that thing. She tried to show me the benefits of stretching (which I rarely do, because when I bend my head, I get dizzy), but I had to run out because my parking was about to expire.

Yesterday was my one free afternoon, so I used that to my advantage. I hit the gym for an early Zumba class, and was planning on doing the "Six Pack Attack" class immediately afterwards, but decided against it. I'm still somewhat self-conscious when it comes to group exercise. I really HATE being singled out, which instructors seem to love to do. It could be all in my head, but I hate feeling incompetent and in need of individualized attention. When instructors do turn their attention on me, I get embarrassed, and at that point, I usually walk out.

That's why I loved kazaxe, and stuck to it. In kaza, you have like 200+ people all dancing at once, so you get kinda lost in the crowd. Nobody makes you feel like an idiot. Plus the instructor wouldn't do that, even in a smaller class size. She's very supportive of people of all skill levels, and even teaches a basic steps workshop from time to time. Then when you start getting good, she might pull you up on stage from time to time to be one of the background dancers. That kind of attention I don't mind :)

Anyway, back to Six Pack Attack. I tend to shy away from the unknown, because I hate to fail. If I know I'm going to fail, I feel more at ease when there are other people at or near my level. But these folks looked RIPPED, so I decided to work out on my own instead. I did about 135 crunches on this strange machine at the gym (45 straight up and 45 on each side), and worked my legs.

By the time I got to Carol's Zumba class, I was exhausted. I did alright at the beginning, but by the end, I was dancing horribly. This is what happens when I get tired. Even Red Bull didn't help at this point. When I got home, I was very sleepy and sore. But this morning, I lost yet another pound. So it's working!

I have never been a big fan of working out alone. At least when my friends are with me, it feels more like fun. So these are the days that are the hardest, but I can't stop. Tonight OG has class, GB is going on vacay, and ZB, ZB2, and RB are not members of my gym, so it will be me, myself, and I. I can't wait til Friday when OG and I will hit the gym again. But other than that, I'll be on my own until Monday or Tuesday, when GB comes back. But I love seeing the numbers fall off the scale, so I'll keep doing my thing. TTFN :)


Let the gun show begin! Lolol just kidding)

Success!

YES!!!! YES YES YES!!! This weekend, I was able to achieve something I have not seen any other weekend for a very long time: a weight loss :) :) :) I am happy to report that I have achieved my goal of maintaining/losing weight, and have lost 2.2 pounds over the course of the weekend. This is particularly remarkable because I had, uh, what my dad calls "something that the whole world shouldn't know," but I'm sure you can figure it out, given the facts that I'm a 29 year old woman. Usually, during these, uh, times, women (especially me) have the tendency to pack on the pounds due to water retention, bloating, etc. But not THIS month! How did I do it? Glad you asked :)

I did kinda sacrifice my social life, but that was more due to pain than martyrdom. I did go out on Thursday night for some karaoke. However, this time I was smart. My usual tendency is to try not to eat too late, but then go out, grab a cocktail or two, then order some greasy, nasty food to go along with it. This time, I made sure to eat beforehand, and stuck to a nice white zinfandel.

Friday, I went to a Zumba party (also good for my diet). However, afterwards, I had cramps, so I went home and went to sleep.

Saturday, I worked. Also good for my diet.

Yesterday, went to Megaxe (two hour kazaxe), and got there late, but still did one hour. Then, I went to Zumba with my buddy (it was her first time...she did awesome)! As much as I tried, I couldn't replace all the calories I burned.

Today, I'm working, then giving a presentation for work, then going to the gym. Hopefully I can continue the weight loss trend. Wish me luck :) TTFN.

AAAAAH

Hey guys! Not much time to write. Today is crrrraaaazzzzaaaayyyyy. I have to finish two more papers for class today lol. Not much to report. Yesterday: ate, went to Zumba, etc. Today: eating, going to Zumba...lol. Same old same old. I'll probably be back on Monday unless something interesting happens over the weekend. Today's my Friday! Yeah!!!!! Ok peace out :)

I'm doing it!!!

I'm sitting here with my Fiji water...go me! I'm making myself drink this before I drink my sweetened diet tea, and especially my diet coke. This is a major accomplishment for me, because I think I haven't willingly drank a bottle of water in months. For shame, for shame. Well, at least I'm moving in a good direction.

Happy hump day everybody! Two more days until the weekend! Although I'm excited, I'm also terrified. The weekend is both my best friend, and my greatest diet saboteur. I had this same problem last year, when I had hit roughly the 20 pound mark. I was seeing a young man who liked to hang out with me on Sundays, watching football and ordering pizza. At first, my willpower was strong, and I'd turn down his junk food offers. However, when the pounds started coming up, I kept thinking, "ah, just one day a week won't hurt." Soon, I got into the routine of losing five or six pounds during the week, then gaining back every single pound in one or two days.

This has been the situation pretty much since. Although I am now single, I still seem to "wash my hands and dry them on the ground," as my mother would say. I need to break this cycle FAST, or I will continue going nowhere. But how???

First of all, I really need to consistently work out every day, if possible. I do great Monday-Wednesday, but Thursday I can only get half an hour in before class. Friday, I hang out with buddies and either play video games at home, go out to eat, or go sing karaoke. While it's great to have a social life, maybe we can find a fun activity to get us moving...basketball anyone?

Saturdays are hit or miss. I was doing well for a while, going to Powerflex and double Zumba, but I pretty much stopped that in May when I injured my knee. Maybe I don't need to go so super-hardcore. Last week, Gym Buddy and I ran on the treadmill for 20 minutes, then did the Stairmaster, then lifted. That was pretty good.

The problem with Saturdays, though, is that there's so many opportunities to go off-track. There are parties, restaurants, clubbing...AAAAAHHHH!!! It's scary. Like I said, I want to have a social life, but I really need to find that balance between being a wallflower and a "partee animul," as one of my friends says. Lately it's been the latter. Maybe clubbing isn't so bad, because you get to dance, but I really need to watch my calories in the evening.

Sundays are the double-tap to my diet (a la Zombieland). After going all partee animul the night before, there's no Zumba class to undo the damage that I've done. This would be another good time to go to the gym. I need to be more self-motivated, so I can do this and keep the ball rolling.



Every new day is an opportunity to be better :)

A for Effort

Yesterday, I said that I was going to be drinking more water. I get an A for effort lol...I did buy a water bottle. Did I drink it? No comment.

What is with me and water? It tastes like nothing, smells like nothing, looks like...NOTHING! I dunno why I can't seem to get into it. I like my drinks with fizz. That's so bad. Maybe I should get some fizzy water then lol.

Other than that, yesterday I did great! I actually ended the day below my calorie requirement on Lose It (which probably isn't so good, now that I think about it), but I ate healthier than I have in a minute. I got all of my food groups in, by eating Subway most of the day lol. I skipped my usual two cookies and instead just went for the sub. I had two footlong veggie delites (one for lunch, one for dinner) on wheat bread (fiber is good!). On my sandwich, I just got some cheese, lettuce, tomato, green peppers, and honey mustard. It's soooooooo good that I'm starting to crave it now. I'm turning into Jared lol.

Exercise-wise, I went to the gym with Gym Buddy and did some elliptical, then lifted weights for a little bit. Then we went to kazaxe. It was great.

Tonight, going solo to the gym, then meeting back up with Gym Buddy for Zumba. Hopefully Zumba Buddy will be there too. Gotta check with her.

Ok, that's about it for me. Peace out peoples!

Plan for today

Not much to say. I pretty much said it all yesterday lol.

Today, going to the gym then kazaxe. I'm going to try and drink more water. Hasta la manana.

10/10/10

Lol everybody's making such a big deal about today's date on FB that I had to post the date as today's title. Don't you love the new millenium? Every year, until two years from now, there's an interesting date like that when everybody starts freaking out and saying the world will explode. We're obviously still here, so I don't buy into those theories. The Y2K theory kinda freaked me out 10 years ago, but we obviously didn't have technical armageddon. Sooooo anyway...yeah.

I usually don't work out on the weekends. Friday, I didn't work out at all...just went to Olive Garden and karaoke. Yesterday, Gym Buddy and I went to Bally's and worked out HARD CORE! And believe me, when I say "hard core," I mean it. On the treadmill, I enjoyed a small victory, when I ran consecutively for 18 out of 20 minutes. I ran for over a mile, increasing the speed from 4.0 to 5.0 in small increments. It hurt like hell, but I kept telling myself that if I stopped, I'd be so disappointed in myself. So I kept going and going like the energizer bunny. I was so happy when it was over. So, now I know that I can run a mile nonstop. The kid is back! Gonna attempt to take it up to two, but I'll leave it at that so I don't injure my knee again.

After the treadmill, we went on the Stairmaster, aka Hell on Earth. I hate that damn thing. I can never do it right. Last time, I kept it at a level 1 pretty much the whole time. Yesterday, I attempted a level 5, which I maintained for a little while. Then I got really tired. I turned it down to a level 1 to catch my wind, then went to a 2 once I felt comfortable enough to do so. If I keep at it, I will probably get better at it soon.

We did the Stairmaster for 10 minutes. After that, we did an upper body workout by lifting weights, then abs. Theres another Hell-on-Earth machine at the gym, which is like a really high chair with no seat, and you have to lift your legs up. That thing freaks me out. I tried to do it, but my side pecs were screaming. Instead I did the situp board, which hurt like hell.

Last night, I went to my godson's birthday party. Didn't eat much. Then I went to the club with a bunch of friends. We had a really good time. I met a guy who seems to be cool, too. However, after the fun at the club, I was starving, so a couple of friends and I went to iHop. Bad, bad, bad. I had some mozzarella sticks and onion rings. Horrible! But it is what it is.

Now I'm up and about to go to my parents' house. If you remember, today was my day to weigh in. Here are my stats:

Weight: 197.6 (Up from 194.6)
Body Fat Percentage: 39.9% (Down from 41.0)
Total Body Water Percentage: 43.4% (Up from 42.6)
Muscle Mass: 112.8 (up from 109)
Physique Rating (1-9): 3 (Stayed the same)
BMR (aka calories body burns at rest): 1672 (Up from 1624)
Metabolic age: 50 (Stayed the same)
Bone Mass: 6.0 (Up from 5.8)
Visceral Fat: 7 (Down from 8)

So pretty much here's my interpretation:

Weight: I'm up 3 pounds, but apparently it's 3 pounds of muscle (and then some). So I'm not concerned.

Body fat percentage: I'm so geeked about this one. I have never been in the 30 percentile range. It's always 40 - 45. Although I know this is not far from 40, it's still significantly lower than it was two weeks ago.

Body water: I think this is good. I haven't been drinking more water, but I have been eating lettuce on my sandwiches almost every day. So yay.

Muscle mass: It's always good to gain muscle weight, even if it affects your overall weight. It burns more fat, as it obviously has done.

BMR: This is how many calories your body burns at rest. I'm glad it went up because I get to eat more lolol.

Metabolic age: No comment.

Bone mass: I gained .2 pounds of bone it appears. That's awesome, because I was concerned at first about how low the number was, as opposed to 5 years ago, when it was in the high 6 range.

Visceral fat level: This number reflects the amount of fat around your organs. I don't know what number would be considered good, or what number would be considered bad, but in any case, I'm glad the level has gone down.

The next time I'm weighing in with full details will be October 25. I figured today will be the best cheat date, since I just weighed in, so I'm moving cheat day to days such as this. Not counting calories today or drinking my magic slim tea. Tomorrow, back to the grind. TTFN!

Meh

I gained back some of the water weight that I miraculously took off yesterday. Water weight = false hope lol.

Well, all in all, I have a net loss of .4 pounds since Wednesday, which averages out to .2 pounds per day, which would be 36 pounds per school year. So I won't beat myself up.

I kinda expected this, considering Thursday is the day of the week when I really can't work out. I did half an hour of Zumba, but when you're used to doing a full hour, plus hitting the gym afterwards, your body won't really reflect much progress.

Fridays I don't usually go to the gym, but I think I'll start today. Tomorrow, I'll hit the weights in the morning, then hit Kazaxe for an hour, then Zumba. I need this because I have two parties to attend later that day: one for my godson, and one for Gym Buddy's sister. So this way, I can pig out at the parties with no guilt. But of course, I won't pig out too much :)

Sunday is the moment of truth, when I weigh in with all of the fancy bells and whistles on the scale. I'll see how far I've come (or fallen) in two weeks. I already know I've gained a couple of pounds, but I'm not concerned about that, because it's muscle mass. As long as I stick to what I'm doing, it will come off soon, once my metabolism starts working again lol.

That's about it for me. TTFN.

Another survey from Kenz

Ok here goes :)

1. What was your highest weight, what do you weigh right now and what is your goal weight?
My highest weight was 224, and that was about a year and a half ago. For what I weigh right now, you can look at the blog lol (I have this linked to FB, and I don't need my weight showing up in the preview for all 948 friends to see). My goal weight is 139.

2. What is your #1 motivation for losing weight?
Honestly, it's very superficial. I just want to see how it feels to wear a bikini and make guys' heads turn lol.

3. Have you always been overweight?
Yeah, pretty much. The last time I was anywhere near 139 was 6th grade lol.

4. When you want to give up what inspires you to keep going?
I usually take a break, then get mad when I start gaining weight. Also, my friends are very supportive.

5. What is the #1 thing you look forward to when you hit your goal weight?
I can't wait to wear a bikini lol.

6. Do you have support on your weight loss journey?
For sure...family and friends and readers :)

7. What is your favorite exercise?
Kazaxe/Zumba are awesome!

8. What is the most important thing you have learned on your weight loss journey?
Weight is just a number. Nobody really notices if you gain a pound, or five, or ten.

9. What is one thing you have given up that you miss the most?
Sleeping all day lol.

10. What is your strategy for losing weight?
Still trying to figure it out lol.

The Kid is Back (again)

People always say, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it." What I need to learn is, "if it ain't broke, don't tweak it!!!!"

If you recall, yesterday, I went back to what had helped me lose 40 pounds in the first place, the Lose It! app on my iPhone. I don't know why I ever stopped using Lose It!. Maybe I was bored with the monotony of always counting calories, but probably I was doing what I always do...being impatient and looking for the newest, quickest new fad to losing weight, which would end up not working.

Anyway, I decided to give it a try again last night. I tracked my calories and workouts to a T, and was (pretty much) honest. I went over my calorie requirements by like 200 calories, but I still lost an incredible TWO POUNDS from yesterday to today. Wowzers.

So this is where I will stay. According to the app, I will reach my goal of 139 pounds on April 24, 2011. Hopefully so :-D I want to get into my bikini by age 30, and that will be about 4.5 months ahead of schedule. So, technically, if I stick with this plan, I should be good to go.

Ok, so yesterday went pretty well. I had a carby breakfast from 7-11, as I did this morning. I pigged out at work on cafeteria food (yum yum), and by that time I only had like 200 calories left. But come 6 pm, I was starving, so I figured I'd grab some grub from Subway. I didn't get a pizza like I wanted to...instead I got a veggie delight on honey oat bread with some cheese, and some cookies and a diet coke.

Later on, I went to Kazaxe with Gym Buddy. Zumba Buddy and Other Zumba Buddy did this Brazillian butt lift class that everybody's threatening me with for next week lol. Anyway, I gave Kazaxe all I had, figuring that I'd make up for those cookies. Usually at kaza, I go all out at first, then take breaks here and there to catch my breath. But yesterday, I was like screw it! Let's go! I didn't break at all during class, and pushed through the pain. By the end, I was spent, but wanted to pump some iron, so G.B. and I went to the gym.

(Sidebar: I've been drinking Red Bull to give me more energy. I know, that's not good for you. But it's been working! Yesterday, I decided to try the low-carb Monster drink when we went to the gym for a pick-me-up. Didn't work.)

When we got to the gym, we worked upper body and abs. Then I came home, took some vitamins to get rid of the lingering sore throat, showered, and went to sleep.

This morning, my sore throat is gone. I'm kinda sleepy, but that's ok. Since I have to go to class tonight, I can only do about half an hour of Zumba. But I figured that into my Lose It! app, and after breakfast, I still have 1105 calories that I can have.

Ok that's it for me today. TTFN :)

Discipline and Feasibility

The title refers to two things I've been lacking as of late. Last year, when I lost 40 pounds, I had built a realistic plan for myself: one that was possible to follow, and that I followed religiously. Hence, I succeeded.

Lately, I'll admit, I have been both being too hard on myself and too lazy. I create these crazy expectations, like "I can't eat anything I like for two weeks." Then, I don't want to do it, so I don't. This gets me nowhere.

Today, I've decided to go back to what has worked so well for me in the past: the "Lose It!" iPhone app, which tracks your calories. I've taken off the setting to subtract an additional 150 calories from what it tells me I can eat to lose two pounds a week, because that type of behavior is what has screwed my metabolism to begin with.

Another step I've taken is to allow myself to get on the scale every day. Some people say weigh yourself only once a week. Some say don't weigh yourself at all. It's different strokes for different folks. I'm the type of person who, if she doesn't hold herself accountable daily, will think she can slack and will have infinite time to make up for her laziness. So I need that daily threat of having to weigh in first thing the next morning. That keeps me on track.

In other words...stop taking other peoples' word as gospel, and do what works for me :)

So, that's pretty much what it is. In other news, I was a little sick yesterday. I had a bit of a cold, brought on dramatic temperature changes. I was feeling pretty horrible last night, and didn't get a chance to work out as I wanted to. So, I pulled out all the stops and am happy to say that I'm now cold-free this morning (for the most part). How did I do it? So glad you asked :)

Janexx's Cold Remedy
1. Airborne (this crap you dissolve in water that makes you feel better for like 30 minutes. Then you end up feeling like crap again).
2. Vitamin B
3. Vitamin C
4. Bee Pollen (this stuff for allergies)
5. Nyquil
6. Melatonin (to help you sleep)

Man, that stuff worked like a charm :)

Tonight, if I still feel as well as I do now, I'm going to kaza and then the gym. I'll be sure to factor that into my calorie requirements for the day. If I decide to be "all-or-nothing" and try not to factor it in, this will screw my metabolism even more. So ok. I'll eat the extra 600 or so calories today, then burn them off tonight. TTFN.

Tuesday

Not much to say today either. Yesterday I had lunch duty at work, and had some mashed potatoes and a biscuit. Then for dinner I went to the food court at school and got samosas and basmati rice. Basically, it was all carbs. But it's all good, I needed it for kaza and the gym. I went to both with Gym Buddy. It was fun.

Today, I'm getting a veggie burger for lunch from a local restaurant, and probably some tofu when I go to my parents' for dinner. So today, it's turning out to be a protein day. Yay. Tonight, kickboxing with Gym Buddy, then Zumba with Gym Buddy and Zumba Buddy. Peace out.

Manic Monday

Hey guys...I haven't blogged since Thursday because the internet was out at my house. No big news to report here. Friday was a cheat day, so I cheated lol. This weekend I was highly unmotivated, so I slept, ate, slept, ate, ad nauseum. Trying to get back into the swing of things today. I don't have much of an appetite, but hopefully I can still go to kaza and the gym with Gym Buddy and possibly Running Buddy, Zumba Friend, and Other Zumba Friend. We'll see if I can hang. TTFN.

Surrrrveyyyy

Found this on an awesome blog I follow: http://alltheweigh2009.blogspot.com/2010/09/friend-makin-mondays-health-and-body.html

I took out her answers and put in mine...enjoy!

Health and Body Image

1) If you could magically change one thing about your body, what would it be?
I'd magically be at 139 with no exercise or dieting required lol.

2) What is your best physical feature?
My eyebrows, but I have to get them waxed lol.


3) Do you weigh yourself daily? Hourly? Weekly? Bi-weekly? Never?
Once or twice a month. I've been doing a good job at sticking to this. If you asked me a few months ago, the answer would probably be "three or four times a day."

4) Do you workout regularly? If so, how does if affect you from day to day?
Right now I can say yes lol. I've been consistent for a few weeks now, after a lazy summer. But before summer, the answer was also yes. Hmmmm...how it affects me...well it puts me in a better mood for one. And it also helps me lose weight/tone up. So yay.

5) What is the healthiest thing you do for yourself on a regular basis?
Probably work out. Other than that, I'm not very healthy. I don't drink water. I drink too much soda. I pretty much eat what I want. I don't sleep enough. Lol, so yeah, I'm healthy, but not.

6) If you could look like a celebrity, who would you choose to look like?
Chilli from TLC...I use to lie as a kid and say we were cousins because we have the same last name lol.

7) What do you do to make yourself feel pretty/handsome?
I get fancy, huh! Lol just kidding, but I get my hair and eyebrows done, and put on some decent clothes haha.

8) What are you most attracted to in the opposite sex?
Intelligence, sense of humor, kindness, sincerity...and, of course, good looks :)

9) Have you ever avoided situations because you didn't want people to see your body shape?
Not to my knowledge lol.

10) How do you feel about your overall appearance?
I know I'm cute. As for size, sometimes I think I'm huge, sometimes I think I'm not-so-huge...lol it depends on the day.

Day 3

The title is actually kind of a misnomer, because it's actually Day 4 of Operation Bikini. Ah well.

Yesterday was a bit rough for me. Got some bad news, and I was ready to throw in the towel for the day. But every time I do that, cheating for "a day" becomes curtain-time for my diet and exercise program until I gain a bunch of weight and feel the need to take drastic action. So forgive me while I pat myself on the back.

Ok the Janexx-loves-Janexx parade is over. Anywho, I stuck to my guns (for the most part) and had a bomb workout. The only thing I missed was dinner, but meh...I had a glass of milk. That counts, right?

I took a couple hours off work yesterday to go home and get myself together. Then I took a nap. I *never* get to take naps anymore...hee!

Woke up, went to kazaxe feeling super-rested. I danced the hardest I have danced in a long time, thanks to the magical nap and magical Red Bull (I know it's bad for you, but it's sooooooo gooooood lol). Gym Buddy, Zumba Buddy, Running Buddy, and (oh crap, I have to think of another "original" nickname) Other Zumba Buddy were there too.

GB and I then went to the gym. First, we hit the treadmill for 20 minutes. I walked the first five at a 3.0 (which is fast enough for my short legs). Then I ran for 10, increasing the speed every minute from a 4.0 to a 4.9. I wanted to quit so badly every single minute, but I wouldn't let myself.

At the end of those 10 minutes, I realized exactly how out of shape I truly am. But to be fair to myself, I was used to running a consistent 13-14 minute mile, even when I was at my peak. So, by the end, this was reaaaaaally pushing it.

I could barely catch my breath, but my heart rate dropped quickly, which is a good sign (I think). I walked the last 5 minutes, and ended up with a major runner's high when I stepped off the treadmill (yaaaaaay)!!!

After that, we went and did the Stairmaster. We were originally going to do it for 20 minutes, but we were both pretty tired by that point, so we cut it down to 10. I had to stay on a level 1 for most of it because I was exhausted. Knowing me, though, I couldn't let it stay at a 1, so I kept cranking it to 3, and finally 5. However, I kept having to take breaks because I was exhausted.

Gym Buddy did awesome, as always, and stayed at a level 9. It's good to work out with other people, because it pushes you way harder than you push yourself. If GB wasn't there, I don't think I would have gone to the gym at all yesterday. If I did, I would have avoided the Stairmaster like the plague. That contraption freaks me out for some reason.

After the Stairmaster, I did some crunches on this machine at the gym. I like using it, because the next day I'm always sore, but in a good way. After the crunches, we called it a night.

I went home, and could barely pull myself up the steps. Every night after working out, I like to try and soak in the tub because it relaxes my muscles. Last night, I was way too exhausted to sit in a tub for like an hour, so I took a quick shower and laid down. It took me a while to go to sleep, probably because of the nap and the Red Bull, but I'm up now.

Traffic sucked this morning. I left my house extra early to try and get to work on time, because we had something special going on. I sat there for an hour and fifteen minutes, and still arrived about two minutes late. D'oh!!!

Plan for today: for breakfast I had Slim Fast. I was still hungry though, and since it's better to cheat in the morning than later in the day, I got some Salt 'n Vinegar chips and a diet coke from the vending machine. I know, that's horrible, but it is what it is.

For lunch, they have yellow rice at work, so I'll have some of that. They give you kid-sized portions, so I'll also go get a veggie delight from Subway.

After work, I'm going to Zumba. It's so convenient that it's at like 5:30 today, because I have to go to class in the evening. If I'm hungry, I'll probably grab a veggie sandwich from the food court at school.

Tomorrow's a cheat day, because it's payday. Hee! Gonna hit up Dunkin Donuts for breakfast, this spot with tight veggie burgers for lunch, and Olive Garden or TGI Friday's for dinner. When I cheat, I REALLY cheat XD

2 in a row

What's up lovely people? Haha, I am blogging for the second day straight. Go me.

Honestly, this morning I am feeling a little craptacular. Very tired, very hungry...I blame this on a lack of sleep and lack of food. Both my fault. After some good advice from FB friends, I think I'll try to ditch the Slim Fast. The problem is, though, I'm very loyal, and this is the stuff that made me lose the weight in the first place...it's so hard to say goodbye to yesterday-EEEEEEE!!!!!

But whatever, what's done is done for today. I'll probably finish out this box if I can endure more days like today, then move on to bigger and better things. Like cereal.

Last night was pretty awesome. Went to the gym with my homie (ok gotta give her an anonymous nickname too...Gym Buddy will be her name. So original, right), then went to Zumba with GB, other friend (I could have sworn I already gave her a nickname, but I'm too lazy to go back to February's archives and look lol...let's just give her another original nickname and call her Zumba Friend), and GB's sister. By the time it was over, I was exhausted. So I went home, soaked in the tub, went to sleep, etc.

This morning I woke up, and I'm starting to feel the results. Like I said yesterday, I'm now comfortably in an Old Navy size 12, which is awesome for me because all of my adult life I've been in an 18. Getting to a 14 was a huge deal. 12 is even better. I tried on my size 10 dream jeans today, and they pretty much fit.

There's less goo hanging off my arms, which is also good.

I felt great until I drove to work, sitting in traffic for like AN HOUR, stressing about about being late. By the time I finally arrived at work, I was in a crappy mood, starving, and dizzy. Just finished my Slim Fast, and I feel slightly better. Lunch is in an hour and 45 minutes, so I can hold out til then.

I guess I'm making progress in that I now know that this dizzy feeling is not a good thing (what a convoluted sentence lol...when I'm thinking more clearly, I'll edit it). In the past, I would have said this is "the burn," and "no pain, no gain." No, this sucks. Feeling good is so much more important than losing weight at breakneck speed.

Anyway, today for lunch, I'm gonna have some corn, then my footlong veggie delight from Subway. For dinner, I have no idea. A shake at the gym may be a good idea. That's better than nothing anyway.

Workout-wise I'm going to Kazaxe with GB and ZF, then hitting the gym with GB. Yay! I used to hate working out, but with a friend, it's awesome.

Can't wait to weigh in on October 10, and see how far I've come.

OMG

Geez, I have been HORRIBLE about keeping a blog. My bad. Feel free to virtually smack me on the hand.

I guess part of the reason that I haven't kept a blog is that I haven't really been keeping up with the exercise plan. Whoopsies! This summer, I got really really lazy, and was just eating, sleeping, and watching tv (read: not much working out). I know I ran my mouth a lot about how I was going to drop X number of pounds by doing Y and Z, but I didn't do it, and ended up packing on some of the pounds that I had worked so hard to lose. Oh well, no biggie (lol I'm so "punny"). Here's the current state of affairs

Exercising
Lol, remember my big triumph back in the spring? I went from running no more than 30 seconds at a time to running 5 miles uphill, without stopping. Yes, it took me a little over an hour, but so what? I got it done. Well, that was a bit of overkill and I ended up jacking up my knees. So that was pretty much the end of that.

After a loooooong hiatus, I tried to get back into running during the summer. Frustrated at no longer being able to run more than a mile and a half without stopping, I quit that just as soon as it started. Sometimes your mental will mess you up more than your physical.

Well, now I know where I stand. If I can only run a mile and a half without stopping, then that's a mile and a half more than I would have done otherwise. That was about three months ago, so maybe now it's only a mile...or less. But really, who cares? If I have to break, then I have to break.

I've been doing pretty well with Zumba since the school year started. Now, gotta get back to the gym and back on the track.

Dieting
Like I said before, I was not watching what I ate at all during the summer. I was a bit mentally drained at the prospect of just eating raw foods the duration of my "summer vacation." What kind of vacation would that be?

When I came back from the break, I made a conscious effort to eat better, after seeing that I had gained like 15 pounds since my low point last May/June; however, that didn't work so well. I was so used to pigging out that it was hard to get back into good habits. I gave myself the deadline of my birthday to get it together...well, my birthday has passed, so now I've put into effect...

OPERATION BIKINI!!!!
Remember my ranting and raving about wanting to be in a bikini by age 30? Well 29 has come, and I have approximately 11.5 months to get it together. Piece of cake (haha pun again!).

For the past two weeks, I've been conducting independent research on the perfect diet/exercise plan (read: I've been consistently going to the gym and watching what I eat). So far, I've taken off 7 pounds since the beginning of the school year. I'm only weighing myself once or twice a month (at most), so it could be much more of a loss. Who knows, and really who cares? I promised myself that I'd be less neurotic about numbers, meaning the scale. What's the point of weighing yourself four times a day? Nobody else notices half a pound gain or loss but you.

Here are the basic tenets of Operation Bikini (I plan to ride this out until the big 3-0 next year, unless it stops working, then I'll have to tweak):

1. Stay off the scale except once or twice a month (scale = misery lol).
2. Combination of Slim-Fast and Subway plan for diet. (Meaning: one or two shakes per day, footlong veggie delight). HOWEVER I cut myself some slack. If, for example, someone brings in donuts at work, I will allow myself a donut. If they have something good in the cafeteria, I'll have some. If I go over to my parents' house and they order Chinese, I'll eat Chinese. etc. etc. etc. ad infinitum.
3. Zumba, Zumba, Zumba!!! (for the cardio)
4. Gym, Gym, Gym!!! (to get BUFF!!!)
5. Run, Run, Run!!! (to melt off the pounds)
6. Blog, Blog, Blog!!! (to keep myself accountable)

Well that's it for now. I'm comfortably in a size 12, so I didn't do that much damage.

By the way, my parents hooked me up with this tight scale that measures weight, body fat percentage, fitness level, the weight of your bones and muscles, your hydration level, number of calories your body needs per day, your body's biological age, and the level of fat around your organs.

EDIT: Here is what the scale said on September 25:

Weight: 194.6 (Booooooo!!!!!)
Body Fat Percentage: 41.0% (BOOOOOOO!!!!)
Total Body Water Percentage: 42.6% (?)
Muscle Mass: 109 (I guess that's good?)
Physique Rating (1-9): 3 (BOOOOOO!!!!! Well at least it didn't say 1 lol)
BMR (aka calories body burns at rest): 1624 (Ok, I guess...)
Metabolic age: 50 (WTF!?!? BOOOOOOOOO!!!!!)
Bone Mass: 5.8 (Dude, it was 6 something 5 years ago...dang, I gotta drink milk lol)
Visceral Fat: 8 (I don't know what scale this is on, so it could be good or bad...)


Ah well, it is what it is...hakuna matata!!!



*Face has been obscured to preserve anonymity lololol

Miss me?

Hey...ok, so here's the deal. I've been a bad blogger. A very, very bad blogger. It's been a month and a half since I last posted on this site. Totally not my fault.

Ok, it was.

Anyway I've been swamped, stressed, and basically just overwhelmed. A lot of things have been going on in my personal and professional life, where I just haven't had the time to write. Everything is good, though. Everything is normal now.

So, ummmm, what's new with you?

I'm on summer vacation now, but I'm not quite vacationing lol. Been running around like a chicken with my head cut off. This summer is not quite panning out the way I had hoped. I had envisioned much more sleep and much less waking up at the crack of dawn, but it's really all worth it...trust me :-D

Anyway, I was planning to be more on my diet/workout grind over summer break. It feels like summer's flying by, and here I am...in the same spot where I started. Didn't gain, didn't lose.

It's not like I haven't been working out. I've been kaza-ing two or three times a day, been hitting the gym twice a week, yadda yadda yadda. But have I been running? NO! Have I been eating right? NO! Today's the day I turn it all around. Well, actually, I turn it around starting tonight, because I already cheated today because of a stray cat on my porch...don't ask.

I'm a Virgo, and we're notorious for planning. So, here we go!

GET RIGHT DURING SUMMER DIET DO'S
- DO eat three times a day (breakfast: cereal; lunch: salad; dinner: veggie burgers)
Justification: I'm the kind of person who will either undereat or overeat. Three square meals will force me to be consistent, and not make my metabolism have MPD.

- DO work out at the gym five days a week (MW upper, abs, cardio; TR lower, abs, cardio; F cardio only)
Justification: Again, I'm all or nothing. I need to strike a balance and be consistent, so I don't burn out.

- DO include running in the cardio MWF
Justification: Running alone took 24 of the 35 pounds off me. Although I hate it, it's necessary for me. When I hurt my knee and stopped running, the weight stopped coming off. So gonna restart with the Nike+, on the treadmill, beginning today.

- DO sleep at least 8 hours per day
Justification: Sleeping is awesome.


Now here's where it gets tricky...


GET RIGHT DURING SUMMER DIET DON'TS
- DON'T get on the scale until I go back to work (scary!!!!)
Justification: I'm a scale junkie, and this is very bad when you're both afraid of success and afraid of failure at the same time. No wonder I've been plateauing!

- DON'T drink soda(ish)
Justification: Soda is empty calories...but what happens when the soda has no calories? Hmmm, still not good, but I'll definitely try to limit my diet coke intake.

- DON'T eat fried food (that much)
Justification: Fried tofu is the bomb, and I just bought a fry daddy. So that's awesome, but mozzarella sticks and french fries are not so awesome. So I'm definitely gonna cut back on my faves big time.

- DON'T drink alcohol (at the club)
Justification: Alcohol costs money. I don't have that much. While there's nothing wrong with drinking some wine over at somebody's house now and then, $60 bar tabs SUCK! So none of that.

So that's it. The hardest part will be staying off the scale, because you know how much of a scale junkie I am. OMG but wish me luck. I can do it. It's only 41 days (minus the three blackouts makes 38). I'm not going to die!

The goal is by the beginning of the school year, to be in a size 10 (you heard me...10!!!) and be somewhere in the neighborhood of 160ish pounds. It will be hard, but it's doable.

The current status...I'm in a 12/14 now. I'm currently fluctuating between 187 and 190 pounds. So I need to lose 2 dress sizes and at least 21 pounds, in 38 days. Like I said...totally doable.

I'm not supposed to be typing this right now, so forgive me if it's disorganized. I'm gonna come back and clean it up, and add emphasis to the fact that I'm staying off the scale for 41 friggin' days!!! Aaaaaaahhhhhh!!!!

Ok I'm done. Holla.

Update

Hey guys! I've been so bad about keeping a blog. I only have 6 minutes, so I'm going to cram in as much information as possible. Forgive me if this is messy and unorganized.

Since I've last been on here, I finished my 30 day challenge, and have begun a new one. THe last challenge didn't end very well...I started off strong, but faltered towards the end, as deadlines approached and stress mounted. I ended the 30 day challenge right where I started.

On Facebook, I asked for advice on what I should do next, since I was so tired of the plateauing. I considered going back on the cleanse, until one of my friends recommended raw foods. Hmmm...interesting idea, I thought.

I started doing raw foods last Friday. OMG. This is awesome. I'm a lot more lenient with myself than I was on the cleanse. I'm not the type to turn down free food lol, so if it's offered, I eat it, raw or not. This has helped me stick to raw foods, except for my one exception of cooked protein in the form of veggie burgers and tofu-products.

Today is day 7. I'm happy to report that I am 5.5 pounds down, and am now lower than I ever have been since the summer when I put on 30 pounds between 8th and 9th grade. I had established a weight range for myself of between 139 and 165 pounds. As of today, I am 184.5.

Busting through the 180s will be major for me. I vividly remember being 170-something and not having as many jigglies.

I started working out with a buddy, and she is awesome. I thought I knew everything about weight training at the gym, but I have a lot to learn. It's very beneficial working out with someone stronger, because it pushes me to be my best.

OMG they just made the announcement, so I've gotta go. Today, I will be able to eat real food, because I'm going to my parents' house later. Cannot wait :-D

Pictures coming soon =) Remember, I promised I'd restart them when I got under 185.

Love you guys! Muah.

Today's weight: 184.5 :-D :-D :-D
Total pounds down: 39.5
To 165: 19.5
To 139: 45.5

Day 14

Hey guys! Today is Day 14 of my self-imposed 30 day regimen. I'm glad that I'm taking pictures so that I can compare the changes. Even though I'm only like 4 pounds down, I'm starting to see improvement, which is helping me break my scale addiction. I feel like now I'm in scale rehab, so to speak, with the Weight Watchers, which only lets you weigh in like once a week. I'm doing well so far, but every now and then, I cheat and hop on the scale on a Saturday or so, after a late night of eating and possibly grabbing a glass of wine. But one or two days of bad behavior never negates the positive changes that I made from five days a week of working out.

I'm sorta rambling because I want to listen to my coworker's story, so I'm typing while listening...sorry if the post is kind of jacked up. Without any further ado, here are the comparison shots. Day 1 vs. Day 14.



The difference looks striking, but really I've noticed that the first one is zoomed in kinda close, so that distorts things lol. Here's Day 7 vs. Day 14.



I think the extra workouts plus the no fast food helped a lot. Gotta go do some work...end of the semester is near. Aaaah! Lol.

Pissed OFF!!!!

I just came back from my mile run. Today, I got a personal record. Why am I so pissed?

BECAUSE THE STUPID SENSOR DIDN'T REFLECT IT!!!

I should have been tipped off when I was walking around and my sensor didn't register that I was walking on it. Then it magically started working when I tried a second time.

Sigh.

Next, I started pushing myself...the hardest that I've EVER run! The Nike+ assured me that I was running an 11-minute mile. I was so excited! When I was at about 100 meters left, I was dripping sweat, like I never have before. I looked down at my iPod to see how much I was smashing my previous record of 13:08. It told me that I was now going 20 minutes per mile...um WTF???

I can easily walk a 20 minute mile. There's no way, as fast as I was going, that I was running one. Plus, I knew that the path I run is approximately half a mile around. I had started running even before I hit the path, and yet I found myself well into my third lap.

When I finished, my time was something like 13:50. On FB, I mistakenly put down that it was 13:30, but looking back, it was 13 minutes and 50 #$*@ing seconds.

So mad! I need a new sensor. I'll try again for the mile on Friday, but until then, I have the 5K on Wednesday. Joy.

Slow and Steady

I think I have found the secret to losing weight. Muhahaha. This has worked well for me the past couple of weeks, so I'm going to keep it up.

As you guys probably know, I'm doing the Weight Watchers Flex Plan. Basically, what it is, is that you get a specific number of "points" per day (I have 24), and you can eat whatever you want, up to that number of points.

You also have an additional 35 points per week, that you can use to splurge. Finally, you can accumulate even more points by working out (activity points).

Here's my system: Monday - Thursday, I try to accumulate all the activity points I can, through running, walking, Kazaxe, Powerflex, what have you. I try not to use any of my activity points until the weekend. Starting Friday, I start going crazy.

Saturdays, when I can, I will do Powerflex and double Kazaxe, to earn a whopping 20 points. That's almost a whole day's worth of points.

This plan is really paying off. I've lost weight consistently since I've been sticking to it. Last week was the only time I've gotten under 190, while not being either (a) on the cleanse, or (b) very ill. This week, I've lost another two pounds.

These are not the big numbers I've seen on the cleanse, but that's ok. It's consistent weight loss, and I've heard that it's recommended to only lose two pounds a week. When you lose quickly, you're more likely to put it back on (example A: how I went from 185 to 195 in the two weeks following the cleanse). Now, I'm back almost where I was at my lowest point during the cleanse.

Today on the schedule: run a mile, Powerflex, and double Kazaxe. I am so excited for Kazaxe this week, because I've made more new friends there, and we've spent the whole weekend hanging out. This makes it even more fun and interesting (as if that's even possible! lol). Kazaxe rocks!

Today's weight: 187.5
Total pounds down: 36.5
To 165: 22.5
To 139: 48.5
This week's goal: Double Kazaxe all week!

Size 12

Good news. Today, I am wearing size 12 jeans for the first time ever in life. EV-ER!



If I remember correctly, when I was about 10 years old, I jumped from a size 14 in girls' to a size 14 in adults' sizes. Surprisingly even to myself, I'm not as excited as you'd think.

Anyway, I went to Old Navy yesterday on my lunch break and got a 12. I took the advice of my coworker and did some squats to break them in, and they fit like a glove this morning.

I'm about to hit up the track around my job for 3.1 miles. This will help me out so I can focus on the readings I have to do for homework lol. I know I work out a lot, but lately I've been having a lot of energy (although I've been sleepy as a mug!), so it helps me settle down.

Later, I'm gonna shoot for double Kazaxe. It didn't happen yesterday because it was mad crowded, so I didn't stay for the second one (I hate crowds, especially doing them alone!). As long as I can get a spot in the front, I'll stay tonight.

Ok about to run this 5K. I'll holla!

What's up with the dream jeans???

Something isn't adding up.

I bought my current dream jeans in February. They're a size 12. Right now, I'm (barely) wearing a size 14. It depends on the cut. Some fit like a glove, one pair I've had to shelve because it's hanging off my rear like the 16s were. I'm down to my last two pairs of wearable jeans. It's time to transition to the dream jeans, right?

Wrong. I still cannot get them up my thighs. This is insane. It took me like three weeks to get from a 14 to a 16. Why is it taking me almost three months to get into a 12? I know I've plateaued, but not that much!!!

When I put this status on Facebook, a friend explained to me how this could have happened. To paraphrase her, some jeans are for people with chicken legs and big behinds. I am the opposite. I have thunder thighs and no behind lol.

Plus, when I read the tag today, I learned these are low-rise skinny jeans. No wonder! Now I don't feel quite as bad.

To remedy the situation, I plan to go to Old Navy and buy a size 12. Maybe they'll be dream jeans, maybe I'll already be able to fit into them. I'll have to try them on and see. If I'm already in a 12, I'll also buy a 10 as something to shoot for.

Today is Day 7 of my 30-day challenge. I don't see much change in the pictures, but maybe I will if I put them side by side. I do feel the difference. The one on the left is Day 1, the one on the right is from today. Check it out:







I'm about to go out and walk my two miles before I do my homework. Later, double Kazaxe. Cool beans.

Day 6

So here's the deal...I'm doing this self-imposed 30 day challenge, right? Today is technically day 6. I was supposed to stick to the plan for 30 days, which meant running three days a week, running two days a week, Kazaxe five days a week, and sticking to my weight watchers plan.

Running: check
Walking: check
Kazaxe: check
Weight Watchers: *buzzer*

OMG this kid was just walking down the hallway talking about Krabby patties (from Spongebob). Sorry. Random.

Anyway, I've been so good with the working out, and even threw in a little bit of Powerflex for good measure. I was actually doing pretty well with the Weight Watchers, until the weekend, especially Saturday. Saturday, I had Chipotle. I had Rita's. I had mozzarella sticks. Insanity.

I cheated a little bit and hopped on the scale Saturday morning, because I needed motivation to go to the gym. My weight was way below what I expected. This made me happy, so I worked my booty off for three hours. Then, later, my friend and I went to Chipotle. Afterwards, I went to the gym with with my other friend and ran two miles. Then we were hungry, and decided to go to Fridays. I was going to be semi-good and just get breadsticks and diet coke, but we couldn't find anywhere to sit, so we went to Applebee's, which has even less selection for vegetarians (as if that's possible), so I ended up getting cheese sticks. For shame.

Yesterday, there was more of the same misbehavior. What's even worse was that yesterday was my built in chill day for the week (i.e. no working out). I cut out all the nonsense by 5 p.m.

Not surprisingly, I have lost weight since last week due to 4.5 days of sticking to the plan. However, I have gained like a pound and a half since Saturday. That's exactly why I need to stay off the scale until Mondays. While I should be happy with my weekly progress, I am pissed at myself, since I could have done so much better.

Today, I'm determined to make up for my slacking. Monday through Thursday are always easy, because I wake up, go to work, maybe go to class, then go to Kazaxe. It's a very simple routine. Friday, there is no Kazaxe to keep me occupied. I need to find another workout class to fill in the void.

Anyway, on the schedule for today, I'm planning to run a mile, then later, do Pumpaxe and then Kazaxe. Pumpaxe is the Kazaxe place's version of Powerflex lol. Instead of using free weights, we use resistance bands. It kicks my booty. Happy happy, joy joy.

Today's weight: 189.5
Total pounds down: 34.5
To 165: 24.5
To 139: 50.5
This week's goal: No fast food.

Aaaah!!!

I was just talking with a co-worker, and I made the sad realization that, since I started writing this blog two months ago, I have only had a net loss of three pounds!!! Time to step it up :)

Duuuude, where's my gut?

Woke up this morning, and noticed more body parts missing lol, namely, most of my gut! How this happened, I don't know...maybe it has been gone for a while, and I just caught on. It's funny, because I haven't quite wrapped my mind around the weight loss thus far. I've weighed well over 200 pounds for most of my life, and it doesn't seem to be real that I'm below that line.

I honestly don't know how I got to this point. It feels like time has flown by since I got on this fitness kick. I remember putting in work at the track. I remember all the Powerflex classes. I remember going to Kazaxe religiously. I remember the cleanses, the Slim Fast, everything. But when I look back, all that work seems so...easy. It was fun! I honestly think that's what made the difference this time.

Like I said, I've been self-conscious about my weight since I was three years old. It's not that anyone made me this way...it just happened. I've heard horror stories from my friends about how they were overweight as children, and had to worry about dieting early in life. It was never like that with me. As a kid, I was what I'd call "borderline heavy." I've always had a lot of muscle mass (I started lifting weights in the garage with my parents and older brother when I was 3 or 4), so the scale has never been reflective of what I look like.

I hit 100 pounds when I was 9 years old. I was also about five feet tall, so that wasn't much of an issue, but I was definitely on the thicker side. I blew up at 13...yadda yadda yadda...if you want the full version then go back and look at the introduction.

I just forgot my point. Oh yeah. I've been on the bigger side since I was a kid, so it's weird for me to not be as big. I'd say that now, I'm back to being "borderline heavy." I was here ten years ago, but it only lasted a month. Really, I haven't been consistently borderline heavy since I was maybe 12, 16 years ago. Wow, that made me feel really old just now.

I have a feeling that I'm going to be under 190 on Monday. This dieting/exercising thing must be becoming a way of life, because now it doesn't even feel like hard work. (This post is probably really redundant, because I walked away to get lunch, then came back...I'm too lazy to re-read everything I wrote lol.)

Anyway, I walked my two miles today. Tomorrow will be interesting. Powerflex, double Kazaxe, and maybe running a mile to make up for missing Wednesday. I might just push the mile to Sunday, since it's a day with absolutely no working out anyway. Meh, whatever.

Swamped

Hey...yesterday I couldn't write because I was swamped. I had a crucial paper due for school and I just got it out by the skin of my teeth. I feel a little more relaxed now, but not really because I still have mad stuff to do.

I wasn't able to run my 3 miles yesterday because I was just that busy. However, I did do Kazaxe after work. That was fun. As for the run, since I am giving myself two rest days per week, I'll probably do the three miles today, walk two tomorrow, and run one Saturday or Sunday.

I'm noticing more and more changes in my body. Earlier in my journey, the changes were dramatic. Like, I would go to sleep, and wake up and feel the burn! Then I'd notice a body part was missing (read: derriere). But now, I don't feel the burn quite as much (partially because I'm not pushing myself as hard, but mainly because I have less to lose). Don't get me wrong, I'm still working out at least an hour a day, five days a week. But it's not three hours lol.

Last night, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror, and, to my surprise, noticed that my upper back was getting mad definition! I was amazed, and a little worried that I looked like a female body builder (my FB buddies caught a glimpse of my mixed reaction). But it's all good in the hood. Next step: I want my two pack abs! Not a six pack because that's a little too much lol. A two pack will be just fine.

On the schedule today: run 3 miles, then Kazaxe. Woooooooo!!!!

30 Day Challenge

Yesterday, I went to the track and did my mile. I still have a lot of congestion in my lungs left over from being sick, so I couldn't breathe very well. I started out very strong, but then had to slow way down. Still, I was able to get a personal record on the mile. If I can maintain that pace, I'll be running a 5K in under 40 minutes. My next race is on May 16, and I'm very nervous. I'm not a big fan of racing, but it gives me a goal to work towards.

After running, I went to Kazaxe (what I mistakenly used to call Zumba). It was great, as usual. I'm starting to know the people really well over there. I may not know their names, but I have nicknames for everyone who I don't know lol. For example, there is Screaming Man, Girl with Nice Hair, Dude with Nice Thighs, etc. Lol I can stick with Kazaxe because it's as much a social event as it is a workout. I have about 6 or 7 friends who are there on any given day. I like to socialize lol.

Today, I've decided to put myself on a 30 day challenge. Given my month off due to illness and injury, I've gotten very accustomed to slacking off, watching TV, sleeping, and eating junk. It's hard to create good habits, but very easy to adopt bad ones. Surprisingly, my weight has remained pretty stable during this time, as I'm hovering around 190, give or take three pounds. Last week I was under by 1.5. This week, I'm +1. It's like a see-saw.

Well, anyway, I'm ready to break the plateau. I took a picture of myself in my pajamas today. My PJs consist of a skin-tight shirt and my old high school gym shorts. Here is Exhibit A.


It's not horrible, but it's not very pretty either lol. Mind you, this picture is without any support (read: bra). So meh...it's whatever.

Anyway, I've decided to try and stick to dieting and exercising for a full month, and see what changes. I'm hoping by this time next month to be somewhere around 180.

Today, I have my Weight Watchers microwavable meals for lunch and dinner. I'll get a little bit of school lunch, too, because I can cram it into my daily points. I'm going to walk two miles maybe around 10 am. I'm alternating the running and the walking so that I can save my knees, but still put some miles on my shoes.

By the way, I took this picture twenty minutes later, after I got dressed for work.



It's amazing how clothes and a bra will hide all the jigglies lol.

Happy to gain?

Today, I see that I've gained 2.5 pounds since last week, but that's not a big deal. I would have expected to gain more. When you go from practically not eating, to eating regularly, it's inevitable. Stupid strep.

When I hopped on the scale today, I was very surprised, because I felt bloated all weekend. I went out of town for a gig, and sampled all the regional food. Combine this with not working out, and bam...instant weight gain. That's why I'm very happy with just 2.5 pounds of damage. That's easy to take off.

Yesterday, at Zumba (or, as I have been corrected, "Kazaxe"), there was the monthly fundraiser with two hours of dancing. After an entire month of not working out (2 weeks because of knee issues, 2 weeks because of strep), I was dreading it, but I knew I had to do it to get back into the groove. It was so much fun!

Today, I'm going to take it easy...sorta (I go hard! lol). I'm just gonna do one mile on the track, which will be like 12 minutes or so. Then, an hour of Powerflex class, because my muscles are crappy right now. Then, an hour of Kazaxe. Now that I wrote it, that is a lot...two hours and twelve minutes...but it really doesn't feel like it. If you've been following the blog, you know that I was up to five miles before my injury (or, as I should say, causing my injury). So, one mile isn't so bad. Kazaxe is hard work, but it's playtime for me, since my homies are doing it with me. We have fun. Powerflex is also not so bad. I just hate the squats and lunges. Other than that, it's cool...I'll just take some weight off the bar today.

I think I'm going to try and start doing the track five days a week, but I'll alternate between running and walking. Tomorrow, I plan to walk two miles. Wednesday, I'll run 3.1. Thursday, I'll walk two. Friday, I run one. That's a pretty good plan, I think. I'll get in a 5K at least once a week that way.

I need to get more serious about the Weight Watchers plan. I usually do very well the first three or four days, then I end up winging it and doing whatever I want during the weekend. Bad, bad, bad Janexx.

Today's weight: 191
Total pounds down: 33
To 165: 26
To 139: 52
This week's goal: Break the damn plateau!

The Sagging Size 14s

My size 14s are now officially sagging. Am I dreaming?

I no longer have enough booty to fill up the seat of my pants. Why is it that when we lose weight, we lose it most quickly from the areas that we want to stay big? That's a shame.

If I could specify where I want to lose weight, I'd definitely take some off my calves, my inner thighs, my middle, and my arms. The rest can stay as is. I really don't want to lose any more weight from my face or neck, because Skeletor is not a good look for me.

I tried on my 12s today, and I can now pull them all the way up, but they seem like light years away from being able to be buttoned. In reality, I know they should be good in 5 or so pounds from now.

I have NEVER been in a size 12. EVER. I went straight from 14 in kids' to 14 in women's. So this is exciting.

I just had a class come in, and I lost my train of thought, so I'll end this here. Gotta finish my homework anyway. See you guys next time!

Wow!

It's been a very long time since I've written. As you can see, I wasn't kidding in the Introduction when I said that I'm no good at keeping a journal lol. I was doing pretty well for about a month there, blogging every day, sometimes two or three times a day. But eventually, I fell off the blogging wagon.

This pattern is repeatedly woven throughout my life. The most notable example is my approach to dieting and exercise. I've said before that I often have an all-or-nothing personality, meaning that I will do something (i.e. going to the gym) to such an extreme that I burn out and never set foot in a gym for months afterwards.

I'm just now breaking that pattern in terms of my journey to weight loss, but I really need to break it in all aspects of my life. However, in all fairness to myself, I have to say that burning out wasn't the only reason why I haven't written...

(1) This is gonna sound like a total cop-out, but I have been SWAMPED!!! The life of an entrepreneur is much busier than I ever expected. Juggling that with school, work, and working out has been hard.

(2) I keep injuring myself, so I can't work out as hard as I did before, which makes for boring blogging.

(3) I keep getting sick! Last week was particularly bad because I was running a high fever that would not break. The doctor thinks it's strep. I'm on antibiotics and back to work today for the first time in a week.

Thanks to my swollen throat, which made it painful to eat, I'm now officially back under 190. Yay! Thanks strep! (*sarcasm*) The downside is that I can't talk or hear very well, and every time I want to eat, I have to take a Tylenol first :(

Can't wait until my body gets itself together...ears, throat, and knees...so that I can start working out again. Gah!

Today's weight: 188.5
Total pounds down: 35.5
To 165: 23.5
To 139: 49.5

Been a long time..

...shouldn't have left you, without a dope beat to step to.

Just kidding.

Anyway, sorry I've been MIA for the last few days. I've been super-busy, and also sick and injured. Both knees were jacked up by Friday, then I got my monthly visitor and had to recoup from that, then I caught a crucial cold that I still can't shake.

Right now, I just want to go to sleep. But I can't because I'm at work. I'm not looking forward to my 4-mile run this afternoon, nor to Zumba later on, nor to P90X. This is rare for me because usually I'm all about working out. Today I'm just not feeling it.

I was supposed to go grocery shopping and do laundry yesterday. That so didn't happen. I have to do it at some point this week, because I start Dr. Ian's cleanse on Thursday. Great.

I've put on two pounds, because I didn't feel like cooking or working out this weekend. I've been eating fast food, and have not been counting points.

I'm going to get back on track somehow. Hopefully I get back into writing every day. We'll see.

Yesterday's weight: 192.5
Total pounds down: 31.5
To 165: 27.5
To 139: 53.5

Humpty Dumpty

I'm very proud of myself for staying off my leg yesterday and giving it a chance to heal. Like I've said many times before, I have an all-or-nothing type of personality sometimes, especially when it comes to dieting or exercise. This has been my Achilles' heel, and the reason that I've never experienced success like this before.

Yesterday, I didn't even go to Zumba like I said I would, and that's a major step for me. Usually, I end up doing something stupid like pushing through the pain, and injuring myself even more. When I don't try to do this, I end up beating myself up for thinking I could have done more. That's usually a by-product of weighing in daily, and not seeing the numbers going in the direction I want.

With the Weight Watchers, I'm getting used to not weighing in every day. As long as I stick to my points, I trust that I will lose weight over the course of a week. This is a huge burden lifted off my shoulders, because I know that having an off-day here or there will not jeopardize six days of progress.

My leg feels good as new. That heat pack that my mom got me was excellent. I came to find out that it was knee pain that I was experiencing, not thigh pain. When pain is shooting through your leg, it's sometimes hard to identify the exact source.

The thigh pain was wishful thinking. I'd much rather pull a muscle than have knee issues. I know so many folks that can no longer run, or have had to have surgery to correct knee issues. At best, they have to wrap their knees or run with a knee brace. I better take it easy. Thankfully, today I'm running on a treadmill for the hilly course again. I don't have time to tackle the hilly monster outside my door before dark today. So, I'll hit the treadmill on my lunch break, and that will absorb most of the stress on my knee.

Later: Zumba, P90X (Day 3, although I skipped Days 1 and 2), One Hundred Pushups (Day 2). Great.

Jeans

I'm happy to announce that I am in the clear of my old size 16s. They are all too big, they all sag, they're all about to fall down, and they all make me look like I have no rear end, even with The Magic Button. So, I must now rotate between my two pairs of size 14s. Hopefully I will soon be in my 12s, so I have a third pair to use. I tried them on this morning, and they got a little higher up my thighs. I know getting past the booty will be no problem, since I have none anymore. I'm gonna keep crossing my fingers that it happens soon.

Ow! I Feel Bad! (aka Left Thigh, Cuz the Thigh is Right)

Aaaargh my leg is in pain! Yesterday was too much, with the running, then the sprinting, then like 5 minutes of P90X, then Zumba. This is the second time in two weeks my thigh is having issues. I'm about to bring my heat pack to work, and stay off it (except for Zumba, which won't hurt it too badly).

Today on the schedule, like I said, is just Zumba. I would do Powerflex but classes are back in session. If my leg feels up to it, I may try some P90X, but I have like no time today. So it would have to be on my lunch break.

Gotta run (no, not literally). I have 6 minutes to get out of this house, because where I live, Tuesdays are the days with the worst traffic.

Confessions of the Newly Buttless

Have you ever met a 190 pound woman with no butt?

If not, nice to meet you. You can call me Janexx.

*sighs* What a blow. The boys won't be happy.

Update

This is gonna be a quickie.

Weighed myself yesterday, don't wanna do it again today. I shouldn't be weighing myself every day, because if I happen to have gained like half a pound or something stupid like that, then it will frustrate me and likely take me off my course.

Yesterday was good. I was a little bad again, but meh, whatever. I went over to my parents' house and had some good food, including my new favorite, General Tso's Tofu. I also had a tiny sliver of carrot cake, a small scoop of ice cream, and 2 chocolate chip cookies. It wasn't as bad as it could have been. I did restrain myself.

Yoga was pretty cool. At first, I didn't get it, and it felt weird for me to do the stuff the instructor was asking. But by the end, I was so relaxed! I'm definitely doing it again next week.

Today on the agenda, running 3 miles on the track, then 600m of speed work, then Zumba. It's going to be a busy day, because I also have some reading to do for class tomorrow. I wish Spring Break were two weeks lol.

Yesterday's weight: 190.5
Total pounds down: 33.5
To 165: 25.5
To 139: 51.5
Waist: 39
Hips: 44
Thighs (average): 27.5
Dress size: 14
Bust: 41.5
Arms (average): 15

Daylight Savings Sucks!!!!

I hate Daylight Savings Time.

Yesterday, I was bad. Horribly bad. Everything was going well at first in terms of diet and exercise. That is, until I realized that this entire week, I'd been tracking my points wrong. I had listed Zumba under salsa dancing, when it should have been listed under hip hop dancing. After an internet search, I learned that Zumba burns 9.5 points an hour, instead of 2.5, as I had originally thought. When I corrected my mistake, I was left with 50 extra points. This was both a blessing and a curse. I went buckwild.

First was lunch at Red Lobster. Instead of getting a salad and one piece of cheesy bread like I had planned, I got an order of mozzarella sticks, two pieces of cheesy bread, and a baked potato. It was good, but the mozzarella sticks alone ate up the 19 points I had burned from double Zumba.

Next was the first party. I was being so good, logging my points, drinking my diet drinks, and not eating too much of the delicious mozzarella sticks, mac and cheese, and cornbread. It was difficult, but I made it through.

Around 12, my best friend and I left for my cousin's birthday party. This is where the trouble began.

When we got there, the party was jumping. My family is not originally from the US, and at a typical party of our culture, there is always BOMB food!!! Since I rarely get to eat it, I kept going back for more and more. There was rice, more mac and cheese, and fried okra. Then there was cake. At this point, I reverted to typical bad behavior, and swore I'd restart Weight Watchers on Monday.

I was going to stay at my best friend's house for the night, but I was wide awake. I got in around 5 am with the stupid Daylight Savings. I ate some toaster strudel and a hot pocket and went to sleep around 6.

My stupid alarm woke me up at 9. It was time for spinning. Hooray. I tried to go back to sleep, but I felt so guilty about the pigging out the night before, especially when I logged everything I ate and found that it was over 100 points. I was going to skip spinning until I cheated and got on the scale. You won't believe what I saw...

I'm gonna keep you in suspense. Scroll down.


Further.


A little more.


Almost there.


Ok here goes...

I wasn't supposed to get on the scale until tomorrow. Now I wish I hadn't.

When I got on that freaking scale, my jaw dropped when I realized that I lost five pounds in six days, even after yesterday's pigging out. What the bleep? THAT'S AWESOME!!!!!

I wish I hadn't gotten on the scale, so that I would have had the wonderful surprise when I was supposed to. Oh well, six days off the scale is still a major accomplishment for me. Anyway, I decided to challenge myself, to see if I can get into the 180s by tomorrow. If not, no biggie. But this challenge was enough to inspire me to get my sleepy booty into spinning class and work my hardest.

In about an hour and forty five minutes, I'm going to go and try yoga with one of my buddies. I hope there aren't too many "Down Dog" poses, since my wrist sucks. Tomorrow, my work twin is letting me borrow her P90X DVDs. That should be fun >:(
I'll let you all know how it goes. I WANNA GET RIPPED! Speaking of that, Powerflex is the bomb. I'm really starting to shape up, especially in the legs and derrière region :-D

See you guys tomorrow!

Watch out, She-Ra!

Yesterday felt so suckish, but today I woke up feeling like the Princess of Power. I did end up sticking to my guns yesterday and resisting the second donut. I also did my four mile run on hills. There's a monster of a hill right outside my door that I wanted to tackle, but it was raining. The last time I ran four miles in the rain, I wound up with a crucial cold that put me out of commission for a few days. It was too risky, so I just went to the gym and went on the treadmill.

While running four miles on a flat track was getting to be easy, the four mile hill course on the treadmill was extremely hard, mentally and physically. The hills made my legs burn. By the time I was done, my shirt was drenched with sweat for the first time ever, and I could barely make it up the stairs. But I felt awesome that I had completed the workout.

Afterwards, I had a reasonable dinner of soup and English muffins, with a Weight Watcher ice cream bar. I went out briefly to check out the venue for my upcoming musical gig, then I came home and crashed.

This morning, I woke up feeling awesome! My body feels so much more toned, although that could be my imagination. But anyway, today on the agenda, I have Powerflex and Zumba coming up. I may do two Zumbas and dip out early from the second one, because I have a meeting with a potential client at 4 to do audio for her singing group. We're meeting up at Red Lobster. Since I'm an ovo-lacto vegetarian, there's nothing for me to eat there except mozzarella sticks, salad, and cheesy bread. The mozzarella sticks would probably be 10 or 15 points, so I'll be going with a 2 point salad and one or two pieces of cheesy bread at 4 points each.

Later, I have to go to a party. If I'm not careful, today could really mess up my diet. I'll be tracking everything I eat and drink. I was going to bring a bottle of rum for the hostess, and I'll also bring along some diet coke for good measure. I'm not saying I'm going to drink alcohol, but FYI - rum and diet coke is only 1.5 Weight Watchers points. I'll see if I can also bring some chips and salsa to munch on.

Alright, it's 9:53. Time for me to hop in the shower for 11:00 Powerflex. I'll see you guys later :-D

Hard Day

Right now, I want to eat. This Weight Watchers Plan is really good, in terms of allowing for lots of cheating, but what happens when you run out of room for cheating?

As you guys know, I have 25 points a day that I'm allowed to eat. There's an additional 35 points a week that I can use to splurge any way I wish. There's also an activity points aspect that you earn from working out.

Last night, I went to Salsa dancing and had a blast. I kept track of everything I consumed. When I ran out of points around 11:45, I waited until 12 to add whatever I ate after that time, so that my points could reset (sneaky!).

I was mad hungry when I got home, so I had a Hot Pocket. When I woke up at 6:30 and ate breakfast, I had already used 11 of my points.

My co-worker brought donuts for everyone, so I took a plain donut for four points. Lasagna was six, and I had a whole rack of Keebler Club Crackers. Now, I find myself in a situation where I have used all my food points, I have used all my activity points, and I have used all my splurge points. I want another freaking donut.

Now, I find myself at a crossroad. I'm a grown woman. I know right from wrong. But I freaking want a donut!!!! I'm trying my very best to stick to my plan, which is to go home, run my 4 miles uphill, and rack up a crazy number of activity points. Then I'll finish eating my soup with my English muffin and butter. If I have enough points left over, I'll have some Weight Watchers ice cream too.

I'm not going to try and rationalize this time by saying that I can have the donut and run it off later. I'm already at -.5 points left over. I really want to skip the run, and if I give myself the donut now, I won't have any incentive. Nope. Gotta stick to my guns.