Got my new shoes yesterday....

My new running shoes arrived on my doorstep yesterday.  Too bad it was after I'd already run 20 minutes on the treadmill in my OLD shoes.

Not that the old shoes have had that much use, they're just not really running shoes.  Back when I did the boot camp thing, I learned the value of good running shoes.  I'm excited to try them out.  Maybe this weekend!

Went to a lunchtime pilates session with Dionna today.  Me likey pilates!  I'd do it daily if I could afford it!

Last night I made a really yummy smoothie.  I will share the magic secret:

Use a little nonfat milk, some frozen berries, a half a banana, some splenda and a teaspoon of peanut butter.  I put it all in the Magic Bullet (Yep, we bought it) and presto!

It was so good, Ivy and Mary had some too, and even Tony liked it!

Heading home from work in a few minutes.  I just got some amazing news I'm not allowed to share with the public yet, but I should be able to by tomorrow morning.  I'm just saying, if you're in the Los Angeles area on November 7th, you may want to mark your calendars :)

Ciao!

What do you mean "dieting" isn't enough?

I am the laziest person in the world.  I mean it.  It's like inertia with me, an object at rest remains at rest.

A year ago I pre-paid a month's mortgage to a private gym so that I could have personal trainers, 4 times a week for 9 months.  Started doing that, and (while I didn't really lose all that much weight) I stopped gaining it.  I still have a good 20 or so workouts left with them because of appointments missed, vacations, etc., and I've started going back weekly, on Mondays and Tuesdays.

My workplace also sponsors a weekly workout at Cardio Barre, which is just a block or so away from our office.  That's what I do on Thursdays.

And my mother gave me 8 sessions with Dionna Veremis, a pilates instructor that I see on Fridays.

You'd think with all that working out, I'd have buns of steel and washboard abs, right?  Yeah, not so much.  What I do is wonderful, and healthy and super fantastic, but it's not enough.  The twice weekly workouts at the private gym amount to about 40 total minutes of cardio a week.  I should be doing that in one day.  The Cardio Barre workout is intense and great for toning, but the cardio section of the workout is so fast that I can barely keep up.  And Pilates is amazing.  Honestly, I had no idea how much I would love it, and I truly do love it, but it's not cardio.

Cardio is what is going to get this weight falling off me the way I want it to, and it's high time I just accept it.

Over the weekend, Amazon.com had a Daily Deal for a pair of highly rated running shoes.  A few years ago, I was doing a Boot Camp program that I really, really loved.  Unfortunately, when I got my new job in North Hollywood, I could no longer make it to the boot camp on time without being late to work, so I had to sacrifice it.

One thing I did learn, however, is that I can run.  Okay, maybe not run, but certainly jog.  By the end of my second tour of boot camp I was jogging a mile without having to slow down to walk.  The other thing I learned was that in order to do that, I had to have decent shoes.

So when my shoes come in (which should be tomorrow) I think I'll be taking them out for a spin around the neighborhood.  It's insanely hot these days and I may need to rethink that and head over to the 24 Hour Fitness, where both Tony and I have a membership we haven't utilized in two years.  I'm sure the treadmills miss me.

Blogging my ass off

You heard of that show, "Dance Your Ass Off?"  I haven't actually seen it, but know of its existence because of one of my favorite shows "The Soup."  They say Joel McHale watches it all for us (presumably so we won't have to), and they mean it!

Anyway, so I was thinking today as I waited for my appointment at Jenny Craig, that I should really start blogging this whole weight loss thing more seriously.  I should "blog my ass off." Then I realized that's what I'm actually going to try to do.

See, if I'm putting it out there in the world that I'm going to do something, and the world comes back the next day to check on me, it sure would be embarrassing to say, "Well, I didn't really do that thing I told you I would." When nobody's checking, it's easy to rationalize.  Not lie...rationalize.  Like how I just rationalized that it's not a lie.

I was really hoping for a solid three pound loss this week.  I've been stuck in the neighborhood of 27 pounds lost for a few weeks, with that 30 pound goal just there, so close I could...taste it (pun intended).  Really thought I had it this week, too.  Not only did I stick to the meal plan, I also stuck to the gym!  I worked out three times this week and everything.

I'm not disappointed, really, that my weight loss this week was about a pound and a half.  That's better than a pound gained.  I just wish I could have another one of those "Wow!" weeks where I hit a new milestone...like getting out of the 220's and into the 2-teens.

So now I'm at 28.4 or 28.6 pounds lost, which is seriously (pardon my French) a good solid shit away from 30.   I know I can do that this week!

With the notion of "accountability" in mind, I am going to now pledge to you, oh loyal reader, that I will stick to the meal plan this week, work out FOUR times and even throw in at least two dog walkings.

Alrighty...time to reward my good work with a little Wizard101 time!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Much like a meal replacement bar, this is a blog replacement

I started my weight loss blog in April 2008, soon after I joined and started following the Weight Watchers plan.  I was doing well for a while, but eventually I stopped putting very much effort into it.  I never did gain all the weight back, but I was no longer trying to lose it.

But the idea was still there.  Still wanted to do it.  I had to lose 100 pounds and I had to do it soon.  I was turning 30 that summer.

Well, now I'm 31.  In April 2009 I made an appointment to see a doctor.  No horror story here, I was just tired and hungry all the time.  He basically told me there are three programs out there that tend to work for people when it comes to weight loss:  Weight Watchers, Lindora and Jenny Craig.

I'd tried the first two already.  Lindora works just fine, but you have to go every day, it's very expensive and there isn't a Lindora center near where I live or work.  Weight Watchers also works, but it's not ideal for me. Maybe a little too much freedom, not enough accountability.

That weekend, I woke up early and started reading up on how Jenny Craig works.  I decided to jump right in - called the center near my house and went in.

I signed up that day and came home with a week's worth of meals and a plan.

And it started working!

By the time Tony and I went on our vacation to London, I had already lost 16 pounds.  I'd met my goal, to comfortably fit in the airplane seat.  And my reward?  Well, I didn't know it was coming, but Tony proposed while we were in London!

And so it has continued.  Last Sunday I was at 27.2 pounds, and I've been hovering in that general area for about three or four weeks.  My goal this week is to hit that coveted 30 pound weight loss goal.  I worked out, I ate right and I am firmly committed to getting to that point!

Next short term goal is to lose 40 pounds by the end of September.  It's totally possible, I just need to stick to the exercise plan and the diet.

Anyway, this is the first post of the new blog.  I'm sorry it wasn't working out with the other one, it just got too difficult to manage (and my name is going to be changing soon, anyway.)  I'll be a bit better about this one.

The good thing about the other blog is that it let me build pages where I could post stats, goals and rewards and whatnot.  Maybe this one will allow it too, I just need to learn how.  Until then, enjoy the long weekend, everyone!

Next weigh in will be tomorrow morning at 10:35am.  I hope to come back and post some good news!