no news is good news

Usually in my case, when I have no news it's because I am ashamed of my choices. :)  I won't blog if I've been bad.  Silly, but I guess if I don't say it out loud, it's not a problem.

HOWEVER, no news has been good news! I have been maintaining a steady level of weight.  Not lost anything more, but just staying between 180-182.  Which consistency is huge for me! I am just enjoying that. 

Since July hit things have just been busy. We went on our outdoor adventure vacation.  Hiking and climbing and traveling.  It was a lot of fun.  I was so proud of us for choosing to spend our week together being active and eating healthy snacks/dinners (except when my husband at White Castle! YUCK!)

After vacation week, my friend came into town.  We did lots of shopping and eating out and I was a good girl! Proud of myself and my will power. 

Last week, I took a road trip with my parents to see family in Tennessee.  I love my aunt dearly so please don't mistake me when I say this, but there really wasn't a chance to over eat at her house.  She weighs 5 pounds, and now I know why!

She eats like a mouse.
...and I eat like Templeton (you know...the fat rat from Charlotte's Web?). 

You couldn't help but eat less when you were around her. Which actually turned out to be extremely helpful! Didn't gain a single pound on that trip (even though gummy bears and chips were consumed in the car!!)

This week I have been preparing for school and enjoying my last few days of total freedom.  Come next week, I will be in full school mode.    The crock pot will become my best friend.  The luxurious breakfasts will come to a stop.  And I will struggle to exercise at 6am instead of 7.

SO...if you don't hear from me for a while, please call me out on it. 
because chances are...I am in hiding.

Scale Malfunctions

I usually weigh myself four times a day.  Sounds like a lot.  I know some people say only weigh yourself once a week or once a day,  but here's why I choose to step up four times a day:

#1: I weigh myself first thing in the morning, to see the "true" weight as some may say.  Theory is, after your first urination in the morning, that number is your TRUE weight.  I don't know if that is for sure, but I normally see a 1-2 pound difference from the night before.

#2: I weigh myself mid morning, because usually it's a pound or so lighter than my morning wake up weight.

#3: I weigh myself mid day, to see how I am doing with staying on track for the day. If I am already pigging out, the scale will show me in numbers.

#4: I weigh myself at night, to see how I ended the day to keep track of foods that may or may not have worked well for me. For example: maybe I ate a lot of sodium, I can numerically see the bloating on my body.

Now, something weird has been happening.  I have been weighing myself at night, and in the morning I have actually been weighing MORE.  Now keep in mind, I usually see a 1-2 pound "weight loss" over night.  Basically over night I finish metabolizing my food, sweat and move around like a wild cat.  So usually I see that I don't lose any additional weight on average, but I definitely am not use to GAINING weight.  I am slightly annoyed and curious.

Curious, because I am not sure what the trigger has been.
ANNOYED, because it's no fun to wake up in the morning and face that stupid scale.

I am not a fan of this new trend occurring and hope that it is just needing a new battery.
because surely it's nothing I am doing, right?

Oh well.

The next three days, my husband and I are getting our hike on.  We will be going to HaHa Tonka State Park today to hit the trails. Wednesday and Thursday, we will be heading to Elephant Rocks, Johnson's Shut ins Park, as well as Taum Sauk Mountain.  

Expect pictures of our conquest to be posted soon.
Have a great week!

You just don't see it

When you're living in the moment you just don't see how you really look.

In my high school/college years, I actually had major amounts of confidence issues because in my group of friends I was always "the chunky girl".  Somewhere along the line, I picked up enough confidence to believe I was adorable, and I went that route.  No sense in trying to put lipstick on a pig right?  I actively sought the "adorable" title instead of trying to win the "hot" or "beautiful" pageant. 

I look back now, and wish I could have really looked at myself for who I was.  Not comparing to who was 10 sizes smaller than me, because with my genetics and my body type I'm never going to be those girls.  Never.  I accept that now and just long to be healthy. 

That girl 8 years ago, was hot. 
...but I didn't see it.

She was thin and fit. 
...weighed 145, walked miles every day, and dancing every weekend.

She was vibrant and funny and happy and smart.
...Deans list every semester, graduated with honors.

So...Why didn't I see that then? 

It is a shame that we constantly berate ourselves trying to be someone else, when we just need to accept who we are.  You are YOU.  You can't change it.  You can't be sad about it.  You have to make the best of what you are given and see yourself for what you are.

...and by that I mean, you are whatever you WANT to be.
If you want to be HOT don't let yourself down by settling for "adorable". 
If you want to be adorable, hey! Rock that, too. 

Just don't sell yourself short, because life will pass you by then all you have to look back on is the missed opportunities to be a better you.

Yum

 

Microwave Omelet Taco

2 Egg Whites

Any chopped veggies

*Frozen chopped spinach, peppers, mushrooms, onions are my favorites.

1 slice of Fat Free Turkey

1 Small Corn Tortilla

1 slice Fat Free Cheese

Salsa

Olive Oil Cooking Spray

Spray a glass bowl with cooking spray (I use cereal bowls) and scramble the two egg whites in the bowl. Make sure you scramble the eggs really well or they will BLOW up out of the bowl.  

Add your chopped veggies and chopped Turkey, scramble with the eggs.  

Place in the microwave for 1 minute (if any egg liquid is left add an extra 30 seconds).  

Meanwhile, spray a small skillet with the cooking spray and heat the tortilla until desired texture. 

Slide egg omelet from the bowl onto the tortilla, add cheese and salsa. Fold and eat.

BOOM.  It takes maybe 5 minutes total to get everything out, mixed up, heated up, and put together.  This keeps me full from breakfast to lunch.  And trust me, that's a tricky thing to accomplish :)

Apple Body Jeans, Boots with the Fur

Slowly, but surely. 
Slowly, but surely.

I have been super enthusiastic about staying on track, and not sweating the small stuff (like having mcd's for dinner last night!)  I took a note from Dr. Oz.  I watched his show about body types and what they have to do with how you metabolize your food.  It was very interesting to see why I fail so often when I try so hard.

Apple Body Type
What does an apple look like? Apples have a tendency to put on belly fat, may have round faces, have humps on their upper backs and may have thin legs. (**This is SOOOO me**)
According to Dr. Morrison, traditional methods of weight loss like cutting calories and aggressive exercise routines do not work for this body type. Why? A low-calorie diet and too much exercise translate as starvation and stress to this body type, which can increase the production of cortisol, the stress hormone. Increased amounts of cortisol can slow metabolism and is known to contribute to belly fat and an increased waist size. Cortisol also floods the body with sugar. When your body does not use it for energy, it gets stored as fat. Belly fat is especially dangerous because it surrounds so many of your vital organs. Apples may also suffer a lot of inflammation or pain, particularly in the joints, back or neck. They are also at greater risk for high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes and breast cancer.
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/better-metabolism-your-body-type

Since hearing those words, I have drastically changed my attitude towards my "diet".   
Because I can't diet.
I can't work out for an hour at a time. 

It leaves me hungry, grumpy, and stressed about why I am not making more progress.  This also means I don't count weight watchers "points" any more either.  Keeping track of numbers and math stressed me out as well. 

The more I stress, the more I pack on the pounds.
(this also explains why I gain back weight during the school year!)

This may explain why I have been able to slowly shed one pound at a time.  I feel more at ease and unpressurized to lose dramatic amounts of weight when I "diet" and exercise.

Check out the Dr. Oz link above and see your body type and what might work best for you.

a bright yellow ball

This is actually much more relaxing than it looks.  If you are struggling with lower back pain (*or even the lady cramps), this pose is mucho beneficial to relieving some of that pain.  You stay in this position for 5-10 minutes and just breathe.  Your thighs will be slightly sore from being stretched, but you will feel relief in those key areas.
I have participated in some light yoga this week(*this pose has been a go to) and I used my brand new, bright yellow, stability ball yesterday. 

Now, I know my dear husband thought I was crazy as I was sitting on the couch blowing up this ginormous ball with a hand operated pump. Mind you, I was blowing it up at 9pm.  But I wanted it to be ready for me yesterday morning.  I read an article about how to become a morning workout  person.  One of the tips was to mentally prepare yourself for what you wanted to do the next day.  Make a plan so you don't have to just "figure it out".  Because if you do that, you won't ever "figure it out".

Been there. 
Tried that. 

So Tuesday night, I blew up that beast and remembered I had this pinned up for just this very occasion:

 

Now, most of these are easy for beginners.  I did find myself struggling with #2 and #5.  So I also used the exercise chart that actually came with the ball.  I decided to do these exercises during the commercial breaks while watching the view.  I must say...I was a tad bit sore today.  

On an unrelated note, I had a quiet victory last night.  We went out for dinner---MEXICAN.  Where the chips are delicious and everything is covered in cheese.  I did devour the chips.  OOPS! But I wasn't even half way through my delicious chicken with peppers/onions/mushrooms when I WAS FULL.  I was literally in pain.  Couldn't eat another bite kind of full.  At first I was disappointed, because it was delicious and I wanted to eat it! Then I realized what that meant: I have begun to shrink that stomach where I don't need to eat as much at one time!  WOO-HOO!  A few months back, I could have licked that plate clean then gone out for ice cream.  I was pretty proud of me. 

...it's the little things in life.

Yoga--how hard can it be?

Last night I got seemingly bored, so instead of going to the fridge (*because that is totally where I was headed!)  I decided to try one of the yoga workouts I found on pinterest.  I had just gone to the chiropractor this afternoon for a routine crack-up and felt like I needed to stretch out.  So I tried this video:

The workout is only 10 minutes long.  So I figured I could keep up for that long.  Because I mean really, how hard can yoga be right? Stand here, squat there, breathe.

Yeah, I was kind of wrong. 

I'm not saying I was panting like a do or sweating puddles, but I was surprised at just how un-agile I actually am. At certain points I was actually glad she would say "inhale/exhale" because quite frankly, I was forgetting to breathe at all.  I was a little busy trying not to fall over.

Overall: I was sore in my legs by the time it was done.  My arms are sore today.  I felt like my body was stretched and I slept well last night.  I would rate this video as a success and will be adding it into my list of things I can do.

You should try it too. It's only 10 minutes, right?
For any more workout ideas or suggestions follow me on pinterest:  Dieting Drama Queen Inspirations
I only pin things that look like something a lazy girl might be interested in doing.  So if you're looking for something hardcore, you might need to browse someone else's boards.