Post-Christmas Weigh-In and Hot 100

I made a comment last week that I WOULD lose weight over Christmas week.  Well, guess what?

I did!

Somehow I managed to shave off 1.6, which I realize isn't a huge number, but it is a loss over a difficult week for me.  I will relish it!

This puts me at -23.2 pounds total.  I'd hoped to have been down much more than that by now, but somehow I lost my mojo between Thanksgiving and now.  It's no excuse; just what happened.  But I am pretty sure now that I'll have my regular routine back, I'll be chucking those pounds again!

So how about a little Hot 100 Update?  This is the last one!  The challenge is over, so let's see how I fared:

1.  Lose 15-plus pounds by the end of the year / end of the challenge.  I had been so certain that I would reach this one, but I'm not even close.  During this challenge, I've lost 8.2 pounds, which is just over half of my goal.  Bummer!  I'll have to lose that in January instead.

2.  Get more sleep.  Some nights are better than others, but I really have improved quite a bit here.  I do notice a real difference overall when I get enough sleep.  The surprising side effect for me is that my diet/exercise are better when I'm not sleep-deprived as well.

3.  Start taking vitamins.  I started off really strong with this one, never missing a day.  Then I forgot one day.  Then I forgot a couple of days.  Then I went a really long time without taking them, and now I'm doing better again.  Yes, I had a fistful of them today, in fact.

4.  Make a plan for eating and exercising over the holidays and stick to it.   Well, it could have been better for sure, but I did manage a modest weight loss over the latest holiday.  I should have made a more solid plan to get me through, but I'm pleased with this one as a whole.

This was a fun challenge, and I enjoyed having the weekly updates to keep me focused.  Thanks to Steve at Log My Loss for putting this one out there!

It's New Year's Eve, and I'm not going out tonight.  We almost never do for this holiday.  But we will make an effort to stay up til midnight (sorry, goal #2) and might have a little glass of bubbly.  No party buffets, no overindulging in alcohol, and no high heels tonight.  Many years ago I would have been horrified by this prospect.  Tonight, I'm looking forward to a cozy little ringing in of the new year here at home with my honey and my sleeping kids.

Wishing you all a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous 2011!

Ta-Daaa!

My eating has been a challenge this holiday, but I did accomplish a goal.

A little backstory:  Because we had people coming in from all over and at different times, we wound up having our big holiday meal Sunday night and opening gifts on Monday morning.  So I had a little delay in the festivities.

Then after gifts were opened and leftovers consumed, my husband and I geared up and went out to walk the hilly road called Holdsworth Drive.

Did the whole thing, baby!  It was about 3.6 miles total, I think.  (Been awhile since I measured it out.)  I know for some of you die-hards, that doesn't seem like much, but at my fitness level and with all the hills, it really was pretty big for me.

It was windy, but the weather was really nice otherwise, and I had my fella with me.  All good!

And now for the photo proof of my quasi-5K:

Wait for me, dude!

Don't know if these pics do justice to the hilliness of this road

Big hill coming up in the distance!

Blue skies and sunshine

I think I might do this again sometime!

Hot 100 Update and Weekly Weigh-In

It's not a good number, folks, but here's the honest truth:  I gained FOUR LOUSY POUNDS this week!

I had four -- count 'em, FOUR -- holiday events this week alone.  So I guess I gained a pound at each event.  I wasn't even going to weigh in yesterday, but I figured I can't hide from it, so I went ahead and weighed.  Oh, and I didn't fall down dead as a result.  So that's where I stand, and it's not even Christmas Day yet.

Lest you think I'm feeling defeated, I'll tell you I'm not.  I'm not quitting.  I'm planning for moderation through the next couple of days.  I plan to have some of my old once-a-year favorites, but not go insane with it.  I'm going to get my weight off.  It might not be this week, but I'm not out of the game yet!

So here's my Hot 100 update:

1.  Lose 15-plus pounds by the end of the year / end of the challenge.  It's not looking good, though my weight is still down during this challenge.  Just not sure I'm going to hit the goal.  We shall see!

2.  Get more sleep.  As usual, it kind of just depends on the night.  Lately I seem to have more trouble, with all the items on my to-do list dancing in my head after the lights go out, but sometimes I get lucky and drift right off to sleep.

3.  Start taking vitamins.  See #2 - hit or miss.

4.  Make a plan for eating and exercising over the holidays and stick to it.  Well, clearly this week got away from me.  Correction -- I didn't stay on top of my game this week and gained weight.  Too many opportunities to be off my routine got the best of me.  I'm not happy about it, but at the same time, I'm not freaked out about it either.  I know the way this works and what I need to do.  I'm not going to moan about gaining weight and having no idea why.  I also know that I'll be able to lose this little bit of holiday weight, and I know how to do it.  It might not be the most fun in the world, but it's a pretty simple theory.

Merry Christmas!

The Weather Outside is Not So Frightful

Some of my fellow Hill Country Texans are complaining that it's hard to get into the Christmas spirit with this warm weather we're having.

Monday I took my daughter to Chili's Restaurant for lunch.  The bank sign next door showed this temperature reading:

Later, as I was running errands, my car showed this exterior temp:

Yesterday we were in the 80s.

Traditional snowy Christmas weather?  No, it's not.  But it still got me in the Christmas spirit, because for one thing, I LOVE warm weather and sunshine.  For another, while some people were skidding around on the ice or getting stuck in this...

Source: The Daily Caller

...I was enjoying my green salad at Chili's with this view of blue skies from our table.

at Chili's Restaurant

Yesterday evening, I went for a long walk at the track and felt comfortable in my t-shirt with no jacket.  Last night I sat on my back porch under a bright moon and a sky full of stars.  

So while the sun and warm weather have given me lots to be cheerful about, I'm just as excited to learn that, in traditional Texas style, our weather is expected to take a dramatic turn for Christmas.  It should be much cooler, with a high temperature in the upper 40s.  Nice and crisp for Santa!

We used to live in a city that got lots of snow each year.  Snow can be absolutely beautiful.  If you're in the snow, I hope you're enjoying it.  Build a snowman, go ice skating, sip a big mug of hot chocolate (from a healthy recipe, of course).  

Wherever you are, I hope you're finding happiness in the midst of this busy season and finding some peace in the slower moments.

Weekly Weigh-In and Hot 100 Update

Nothing too exciting to report in the weigh-in...I lost 0.2.  Yep, that weight is just FLYING off of me!  Sigh.  I have no excuses.  I know what I need to do (and you know what you need to do too, don't you?).  I just got busy and didn't make eating right and exercising enough of a priority.  It's the holidays, but I don't want to pack it all back on just because it's a festive time of year.

This means I am currently down a total of 25.6 pounds from the start.

Now for the Hot 100 Challenge Update:

1.  Lose 15-plus pounds by the end of the year / end of the challenge.  I'm 4.4 pounds away from meeting this goal.  Hmmm... I realize that's close, but I also realize that Christmas is in a week and I only have two weeks left in the challenge.  I'm going for it, no matter the odds!

2.  Get more sleep.  Doing better, most nights on this.  It doesn't hurt that my 3-year-old is sleeping all night in his own bed sometimes now.

3.  Start taking vitamins.  Hit or miss.  I'm not sure why, because for a long time this was the one I could count on knocking out of the park every time.

4.  Make a plan for eating and exercising over the holidays and stick to it.   I'm hosting Christmas for extended family this year, so I'm already trying to sneak in healthy options to my menu plans.  I won't be able to avoid serving some old-fashioned calorie nightmares, but it's just once a year, and I do know how to control myself. 

Have a great weekend, y'all!

My Super-Duper Saturday!

Saturday I walked MOST of the hilly road in my town called Holdsworth Drive.  After I walked it, I went and checked the mileage, and it was 3.2, which is just short of the whole thing.  I will get there, but that was pretty good for the first run.  Perhaps I shouldn't use the word "run," because running I most certainly was not!  It was a lot of panting and whining and legs threatening to quit.  But it was really good, and my big ol' glutes are still a little sore today.

Then my hubby Mike went to ring the bell for Salvation Army for a little while and I let the kids go bonkers in the backyard, and we took the kiddie art easel out there and made Christmas paintings outside too.  Love this December Texas weather!

After that, we cleaned up and hit the road for our annual drive to Johnson City to look at pretty Christmas lights.

First up was a quick stop between Kerrville and Fredericksburg to say hello to "Scrappy."

Scrappy - Yep, that's his real name!

Next we stopped in Fredericksburg for dinner.  The case of cheesecakes looked ever-so-enticing.

I did wind up with a teensy little molecule of a bite of one of these, but no more than that.  And I ordered a sensible meal and ate a reasonable portion of it.  The chips, however?  Um, that's another story.  But I did track it all like a good Weight Watcher.

After dinner it was on to Johnson City.  First stop was the courthouse, where lots of people were milling around and waiting to go inside to a craft fair.  

Courthouse

 Because we weren't all that interested in going inside, we walked a couple of blocks over to a church that had a living nativity scene, complete with live animals and a real baby.  They even served hot chocolate and cookies afterward.  The kids indulged, but Mike and I did not!

After that, we went to the park/courtyard area which was all decked out.  It was fun to walk around in all the little holiday scenes.

Finally we left there and went to -- (I'm not making this up) -- the electric company building.  It's actually a huge building with a lot of land around it.  Santa was there for the kids, they were selling hot apple cider, and there were hayrides and horse and buggy rides.  The most amazing thing is that they light up all the trees with a gazillion lights.  It doesn't really show up in photos, but it's just incredible to walk under these trees. 

Our daughter took this picture of me and Mike.

As we were leaving town, I noticed this little beauty salon called Truvy's (like in Steel Magnolias) and had to snap a quick pic of it.

Then it was back home, listening to Christmas music in the car, and arriving home with two kids who were already sound asleep.  

Good old family fun!

Hot 100 Update, Thanksgiving Edition

My update for the Hot 100 Challenge:

1.  Lose 15-plus pounds by the end of the year / end of the challenge.  I'm getting there!  I am just 3.8 pounds from reaching this goal!

2.  Get more sleep.  Hit or miss.

3.  Start taking vitamins.  I'm still doing well with this one, even though I might forget now and then.

4.  Make a plan for eating and exercising over the holidays and stick to it.  I totally showed Thanksgiving who's boss!  I managed to eat a little of my favorites, had a wonderful time with family (still at my parents' house right now), and didn't overdo it.  It was cold here the whole time, and I didn't get in much exercise, but I'm still pleased with how I did.

That's it for now, because I'm now going to visit the family and watch more football.

Hope you all had a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Weekly Weigh-In

As I've mentioned, I weighed in yesterday (Tuesday) rather than on my usual Thursday due to the Thanksgiving holiday.

Good news!  I had a loss.  Got a couple of little tokens at my meeting.

A new 5-pound star AND my 25-pound magnet

My total loss as of yesterday?  That would be a big ol' 26.2 pounds, thank you very much!

I wasn't going to weigh until next week, but after the bad week I had before, I thought I'd better go ahead and do it.  So glad I did!  Obviously, it was fun to hit a milestone, but I think even more than that, it was good for me to have that anchor before the holiday.  It reminds me of how far I've come, and in some ways of how far I still have to go.  But most importantly, it reminds me of what I already know: I can do this!  

Oh, and I pulled the bossy card yesterday on my Weight Watchers buddy, Mandy.  She felt she'd had an overeating weekend and wasn't going to weigh in until next week.  Mandy is one of those rare Weight Watchers who does not own a scale!  So each week she weighs in, she gets a total surprise.  I weigh every day, and think I'd freak out under the pressure, but it works for her.

So since she didn't want to go and see a gain, I badgered her and pushed her until she finally just agreed to go weigh.  And guess what?  She LOST almost 2 pounds since Thursday!  Mandy got a 5-pound star too.

Even if we had gained weight, I think it would have been good to go.  Whatever you're doing regularly in your weight loss journey, I hope you'll engage in that before the holiday, just to keep you centered.  If you decide that Thanksgiving comes around once a year, so you're going to eat with abandon for the big meal, then go right ahead.  But let me just remind you that it's Thanksgiving DAY, and there's really no reason to blow the whole week just because you go a little crazy with one meal.  Don't let that lead to an entire week of overindulgence.  Because you really don't want to have to go into the Christmas season with an extra 3, 5, 8 pounds to lose.  You know that's no exaggeration.  I could easily gain that in a week.

So enjoy your Thanksgiving feast, or stay on your usual program.  I'm not telling you what your own plan should be.  But I am encouraging you to stay in control of your own efforts in the days that follow.  Believe me, you'll have another chance to eat that stuff again in a few weeks, so just relax already!

I'm really going to focus this year on the reason for this holiday -- giving thanks.  I have so many things to be thankful for.  We all have difficulties, but when we focus on the blessings in our own lives, it's easy to see that life is good and that there are wonderful aspects of just being alive.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Halloween Happenings

Friday was the "Pumpkin Parade" at my daughter's elementary school.  The kids bring decorated pumpkins to school, display them on stage, then form a parade to view the pumpkins and show off their costumes.
Some of my favorite pumpkins:

Because we'd been in such a hurry to get to the Pumpkin Parade, my 3-year-old son missed his breakfast at home.  We had some errands to do, so we stopped to get him a kolache.  What did I get?  Black coffee and nothing else!  (Had a protein bar in my purse, so I was all set.)

Later we took the kids to Fiesta Texas (Six Flags) for Fright Fest.  It was lots of fun, and the weather was perfect!

Giant Ferris Wheel

Despite my efforts to avoid buying candy for trick-or-treaters, I freaked out at the last minute and remembered the last couple of years when they came in droves and cleared out all the candy.  My next-door neighbor even had to come over to get some more because she ran out so early.  I knew I wouldn't have enough non-candy items to give out if we had the usual army of tots.

No, this is not the extent of the non-candy items I purchased for trick-or-treaters.

I went and bought several bags of candy just before dark.  Yes, some of it was chocolate, but I was confident I could resist the lure of binge eating it by the fistful.  Mostly, however, I was excited to solve a Halloween mystery:  It DOES exist!  A candy that doesn't call my name, that is.  Kids love 'em, but these are completely safe in my presence - Sour Patch Kids.

Sour Patch Kids Candy

I'm not saying I didn't sample a little candy.  I did.  I wish I hadn't, but I did.  What I didn't do was go nuts.  I wrote down EVERYTHING I ate too.

At one point the bell rang, and I could see through the window on my door that there was a tall figure standing alone on my porch.  Here's what greeted me when I opened the door.

My (normally) perky blonde neighbor

Took me a minute to recognize her!

I haven't gotten in nearly enough exercise this week, unless you count walking the kids down the street and up the hill.  Um, probably not.  So tonight I had not one, but TWO friends asking if I wanted to go walk.  So the three of us (me, Denise and Mandy) went for a walk.  Denise has a great little trail all mapped out.  It's 3.5 miles, and it's got some nice little hills along the way.  It was still really warm, even with the sun going down.  It certainly wasn't the November evening I see in the movies.

I'm wondering how everyone did with temptations this weekend.  For those of us who were less than perfect, just turn it around now.  Go work out, plan out your day's meals, whatever works for you.  We are about to be bombarded with two full months of opportunities to mess up our healthy plans.  How will you deal with it?

Betcha Can't Eat Just One

Yesterday I fouled up.

Here's what did it:



Feeling festive, I bought a bag of candy corn.  I don't normally keep treats like this in the house anymore, and this is one of those items that only comes out once a year.  "It's for the kids," I told myself.  Apparently, I lie to myself on a regular basis.

I realize there are worse things in the world, but I shouldn't have eaten as many as I did.  On a positive note, I wrote down the calories, calculated the Points, and went light on the rest of the day.  This enabled me to stay within my calorie range for the day, despite having about three servings of tri-colored sweetness.

Who said, "A calorie is a calorie, no matter what the food is"?  I'm gonna have to call B.S. on that.  As far as weight loss/gain, I might not argue the point.  However, by last night, I felt gross from all the sugar.  Had I enjoyed 480 calories worth of, say, apples or veggies or almonds, I don't think I would have felt the same as I did after 480 calories of corn-shaped sugar and corn syrup.

My plan for today is this:

Eat my regular breakfast and lunch.
One or two SMALL, healthy snacks between lunch and dinner.
Extra water.
Lean dinner.
Nothing after 6:00 PM.
Cardio.

I weigh in tomorrow at noon.  Hope I haven't blown it.  I've exercised more in the past two weeks than I normally ever do, so at least I know I'm doing something good for my heart.

I will be very diligent today and might try to come in a couple hundred calories below my norm.  I'm not going to starve by doing this for one day.  Tomorrow I will resume my regular pattern.

This is a good reminder to me that I need to be more careful with my environment, especially around the holidays.  I make it far too easy to set myself up with excuses during these months.  I really convinced myself that candy corn would be a safe bet, since it's not chocolate.  Clearly, I'm not that picky in how I blast sugar into my system.  Good to know!

Anyone else have a Halloween food item that triggers overeating?

Spooky Shindig

I took my three-year-old son to a Halloween-themed birthday party full of preschoolers yesterday.  So cute!

Instead of a big cake, there was an army of skeleton cupcakes  (forgive the photo quality - I took them with my mobile phone):

Beware!

Luckily for my weight loss efforts, these little guys couldn't be quickly and discreetly gobbled down in a corner somewhere, so I passed on the cupcakes.  Instead, I watched the kids play sweet little games like "Pin the Spider on the Web," "Musical Ghosts," "Bobbing for Apples," "Painting Pumpkins," and a mummy game where they wrapped each other in toilet paper.

Smiling Skeletons

This was also served, so I could munch without fear.

Haunted Bunny Food

 Then after partying down with the preschoolers, I headed to the gym, where the elliptical was my evening activity.

Making Progress!

This was a good test run for the upcoming holiday parties, I think!  What strategies do you have for dealing with the holiday festivities?