The Holidays

The holidays are a very challenging time for staying on the weightloss wagon.  There are parties and family gatherings and food and drinks and sweets and candy, and it is all so hard to resist.  Honestly, I don't really think you should.  Now, I don't think you should totally let yourself go for the 2 weeks leading up to and including Christmas, but having a good time and enjoying good food with family and friends isn't going to totally undo everything you've worked for so far.  The key is to be conscious of when these parties are, and to try and stay on track as much as you can before and after them.  For instance, if you have a party Saturday night, make sure you eat lighter foods earlier in the day.  By all means, do NOT starve yourself because you will end up making up for it at the party with unhealthy foods.  Actually it's better to do the opposite and eat all throughout the day and stay satisfied so you don't overeat all the goodies.  Have a wholesome breakfast, a mid-morning snack, a filling, but very healthy lunch, and drink a lot of water before you go to the party.  This will keep you from stuffing yourself with the fabulous goodies. 

I also understand that it is extremely difficult to keep to a workout schedule during this time.  But you must try to keep moving.  Walk the stairs at work, do some jumping jacks and crunches at home, park farther away when you go gift shopping, try and keep yourself moving and working.  And as soon as it is possible, get back on track with a regular workout schedule.  Try and opt for healthier options as often as you can, but indulging a little bit will be fine.  And honestly, it's ok to feel guilty.  I feel guilty when I know I COULD have worked out, but didn't, or I COULD have said no to the extra cookie, but I didn't.  It's ok to feel guilty because it will keep you from making that bad choice again.  But don't let that guilt consume you.  Use it to your advantage.  Then get back on track.  Cheats will happen, it is inevitable, but don't let it ruin all your hard work, or even a whole day.  Get back to what you know you should be doing. 

I am going to Smackdown tomorrow night :) and we are going to Indiana for a few days to see my parents for Christmas.  I plan on working out a little while we are there, but there is no gym at my disposal so I will have to work out at home with my mom, but that's ok.  You can get a great workout at home.  Just get up and move!  Have a great Christmas season, make good decisions, stay active, have fun, and stay on track as much as you can!  And after it's all said and done, get your butt in gear and get back to it!  Work hard!

Eat, Shrink, and be Merry!! 

Merry Christmas Everyone!

Obstacles and Your Ability to Work Hard

We all face obstacles to our goals, not just in weightloss but in life.  The key is to identify these obstacles and to think of ways to overcome them.  In many cases, our biggest obstacle, the most difficult one to overcome, is ourselves.  I know that I have a nasty habit of over-thinking things and making nothing into something, and then trying to rationalize why I have done it.  One of my personal goals, which I have repeated many times already, is to stop making excuses.  Just DO it.  (I now understand Nike's slogan from the past 20 years.)  Making excuses only hurts you, no one else.  Say you have a bad day at work and you think to yourself that you really just need to go home and rest and you'll work out tomorrow instead.  You're not punishing your job or the co-worker that upset you, you're only hurting yourself by making excuses.  As I have said before, exercise is a great stress reliever and it can really take your mind off things.  Sometimes I'll be on a machine, like a treadmill or eliptical, and I don't think of anything.  It's the perfect time to clear your mind.  You aren't going anywhere so you don't need to watch out around you, you aren't bothering anybody so you don't need to worry what others think about you, it's total YOU time.  I like to watch the distance, time, and calories burned, and focus on only those things.  That's all that matters in that moment. 

When I'm working out, I'm doing it for me, no one else.  Your body can take a lot of hard work.  The issue often times is overcoming your mind.  Your brain is going to tell you that you are tired and you should slow down, but if you listen to your legs, or whatever muscles you happen to be working, they are doing just fine.  Jillian Michaels has a nice saying, "If you aren't going to puke, faint, or die, keep going!"  Your body can take it.  Get past your mind.  Workout time is not a time to look cute and worry about what other people are doing.  I have a goal when I'm at the gym.  I work out as hard as I can in hopes that when I go in the locker room to get my stuff to leave, I look in the mirror and I say "whoa!" I want my face to be red and sweaty, my hair to be messed up, my clothes to be damp, the whole she-bang.  Those are my signs that let me know that I know I tried my hardest.  I'm not there to impress anybody.  I'm there to work.  If you want results, you've got to put in the effort.  If you're not breaking a sweat, a GOOD sweat, then you're probably not pushing yourself hard enough.  You can do it.  You've got to get past your mind telling you anything different. 

A Few More Recipes Really Quick

Cream Cheese Chicken:
Ingredients: Frozen chicken, light or fat free cream cheese, black beans, corn, rotel. 
Directions: Put all in crock pot on 8-10 hours.  Shred and serve over light tortilla chips. Great dinner, cheap, and easy!

Baked Tomato Parmesan:
Ingredients: 4 tomatoes (halved), 1/4 cup freshly shredded parmesan, oregano, salt, pepper, 4 teaspoons olive oil.
Directions: Preheat oven to 450.  Place tomatoes cut side up on a baking sheet.  Top with cheese and spices, drizzle with oil.  Bake for 15 minutes or until tomatoes are tender. 

Balsamic Honey Glazed Oven Roasted Carrots:
Ingredients: 2 pounds baby carrots, italian seasoning or Mrs. Dash, olive oil, honey, balsamic vinegar. 
Directions: Roast carrots in oven at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes with some seasoning and a little olive oil.  Pull out and drizzle with about 2 tablespoons olive oil, 3 tablespoons of honey, and about 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar.  Put back in oven for about 5 more minutes.  Roasted to perfection!

Bodyrocker's Deviled Eggs:
Ingredients: 6 hard boiled eggs, 6 teaspoons plain yogurt (no mayo!) 3 teaspoons mustard, 2 teaspoons finely chopped onion, sprinkle of chili powder and paprika, small amount of honey (optional)
Directions: Slice eggs. Take yolks out and put in a bowl yogurt, mustard, onion, and honey.  Mix well!  Sprinkle with chili powder and paprika. 

More to come!!

Quick Meal Ideas

For those of you on a tight budget, I have some new ideas for you. 

1.) Mexican Chicken Soup: Super easy, super cheap, super healthy, and really tasty!!
1 can chicken
2 cans diced tomatoes with chiles
1 can black beans
1 can corn
1 can chicken broth
*put all ingredients in a big pot and heat together until heated through.  Enjoy!

2.) Fiesta!
1 lb hamburger (very lean!)
1 can chli beans
1 can diced tomatoes
1 onion
lettuce
low fat shredded cheese
fritos (optional)
brown rice
taco sauce

Brown hamburger with onion.  Stir in half the can of diced tomatoes and the chili beans until all are heated through. Boil rice. 

Put things on your plate in this order:
Fritos (optional, really good for those who are NOT dieting, but I always use a few for the crunchiness)
rice
meat mixture
cheese
lettuce
tomatoes
taco sauce

Be careful not to put too much of any one topping because it loads up quick! 

More to come!  Gotta get to the gym! Come join!

At-Home Workouts!

I know that sometimes getting to a gym, or even getting outside isn't feasible.  The weather doesn't always cooperate, and maybe you don't have a gym membership.  What have I been saying?  No excuses.  I will start with a couple of minimal-cost suggestions.  Workout videos.  There are some GREAT ones!  Personally I have Jillian Michaels' 30 Day Shred, and I have a Special K 10 Minute Solution video.  Both are great workouts and only take 10-20 minutes.  They both have cardio and strength exercises.  Maybe you don't have 5-10 extra dollars to get one, or maybe you don't have an open television in your house to be able to monopolize.  I have found and come up with a couple of completely free, complete workouts that you can do at home in under and hour. 

Workout #1
*50 crunches
*25 leg lifts
*50 bicycles
*15 squats
*50 calf raises
*25 arm circles (add weights when you can/if you have them)
*25 fast bicep curls (add weights)
*15 pushups
*50 jumping jacks
*2-30 second planks
*40 jumping jacks
*30 crunches
*20 squats
*10 pushups
*30 jumping jacks
*5 pushups
*30 high knees
*10 crunches
*7 squats
*5 pushups
*10 crunches
*5 pushups
*7 squats
*30 jumping jacks
*1 minute wall sit
*5 pushups
*30 high knees
Repeat!  (If you can't repeat at first, that's fine, do it all once.  When it gets easier, repeat it.  Work hard and don't give up!)

Workout #2
*100 jumping jacks
*90 crunches
*80 squats
*70 leg lifts
*60 jumping jacks
*50 crunches
*40 squats
*30 leg lifts
*20 jumping jacks
*10 minute run

Workout #3
*100 jumping jacks
*10 crunches
*10 squats
*10 pushups
*20 bicycle crunches
*20 russian twists
*10 second rest
*30 second plank
*10 second rest
*30 second wall sit
*10 back stretch
*75 jumping jacks
*20 russian twists
*20 bicycle crunches
*10 pushups
*10 squats
*10 crunches
*25 jumping jacks
Repeat!  (This one is made to really do twice, so don't skimp!)

All three of these are really good workouts that you can get done in less than an hour, at home, for free, with no television, and not taking up much room.  I do it in the living room off to the side so Josh can still watch tv.  No problem!  So stop making excuses about not having the time or the space or the money.  You have to put the effort in to get results.  Make it a part of your life.  Try fitting it in 3 times a week.  You can do it while you watch your favorite shows!  You can do it.  Manage your time and get off the couch!  I'm here for you! 

Katie

Seeing Results

One of the most frustrating things about TRYING to lose weight is actually waiting to see the results.  No doubt, seeing the results that you want is going to take MUCH longer than you would like.  That has been my biggest obstacle to persistence.  I want to see results as soon as I start making an effort.  I'm a huge fan of instant gratification.  For example, I was a server at a restaurant for almost 5 years.  Perfect job for instant gratification: you work hard at pleasing your customers and you get a tip (most of the time) that made it all worthwhile.  Losing weight is not like that.  You have to give it your all for WEEKS before you see any changes which is really difficult for someone like me.  I have read that it sometimes takes even 12 weeks or more before you will start to notice changes in your body.  That is 3 months!  It is hard to do something for 3 months and not get any gratification for your work.  The key is to KEEP GOING! 

Exercise is the most effective yet also the most underutilized stress reliever and anti-depressant.  If you're feeling bad about your body, there's no better way to get out of your funk than getting up and moving.  And have fun doing it!  Josh (my boyfriend) and I went to the arcade last night after our dinner date.  Yesterday was supposed to be a day of rest for me, but I found that there are ways even in the arcade to be active and break a sweat!  Now, we are an extremely competitive couple, so we are always striving to beat each other so usually when we play something we play it multiple times to prove who is better.  We started out playing the game where you throw a football into different point holes.  Arm workout!  Then basketball.  Another arm workout!  Then Josh and I played laser tag and it was great!  Got a good deal of cardio in from running around like maniacs chasing each other with lasers :) Then when we got out of the battle zone we went back into the arcade and played Dance Dance Revolution, which is a pretty good cardio workout itself!  Just goes to show you that you CAN have fun and be active! 

Josh and I also have a good time playing on the Wii Fit.  Of course we are constantly competing, but that's what makes it last so long and become such a great workout.  I have also heard that there are some pretty great activities with the Kinect.  The point is, keep what you're doing fun because that will keep you doing it!  And the longer you do it, the more results you will see!

If you focus on making every day a day that you are proud of, you will see the results.  Don't give up! And this is something you can take into every aspect of your life.  Work hard.  Keep going.  Set your sights on something and make it happen!!  Not just your weight loss goals, if you have any, but anything that you want, you can do.  Something my mom always told me will fit well here (and you'll probably get a lot of my mom-isms), "You can do ANYTHING you WANT to do."  Period.  No excuses, no exceptions. 

Some Motivation for Today

I found this…

Living a sedentary lifestyle, women burn about 1,200 to 2,000 calories per day, and men burn roughly 1,800 to 2,400 calories. A sedentary lifestyle includes only the light physical activity associated with typical day-to-day life, according to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute.

So that would be why nutrition information is based on a 2,000 calorie diet.  Because that’s how much you will burn just by living J.  In order to lose weight effectively, efficiently, safely, and keep it off they say you should burn at least 500 more calories a day than you eat.  Which means you will burn off the 2,000 you ate by living, so burn an extra 500 calories and badabing badaboom lose weight!  Unless the only weight you have left to lose is in your brain and your bra, in which case the effort would be to maintain your current healthy lifestyle.  So don’t think that if you eat 2,000 calories in a day that you have to work out long enough to burn 2,500 calories because God takes care of the first 2,000 for you every day by waking you up! 

Go ahead and get moving people! 

An Introduction

My name is Katie.  This is my first time blogging about anything and I'm interested to see how this works.  For those of you who don't already know, I have decided to start a new, healthy, active lifestyle that I plan on living for the rest of my life.  The purpose of this blog is to help myself be able to express how I'm feeling, what I'm doing, and to keep track of my progress, but I'm also interested in trying to motivate others to live healthy and stay active.  There are so many reasons to eat well and be active, and I'm not going to really go into listing them for various reasons.  1.) Everyone's reasons will be different.  2.) We have all heard of the "health concerns" with being overweight and inactive.  3.)  I am not a fan of redundancy and therefore will not list all the things you can Google for answers.  I'm planning on sharing recipes, workout routines, and fun ideas that will help me and others commit to a healthy lifestyle.  In order for you to understand why I'm doing this, I will give you a little background. 

I am 24 years old, and I've never been a skinny minnie.  I've always been athletic, playing softball, basketball, and volleyball all through high school.  I played softball in college, and I play co-ed tournament softball all through the spring, summer, and fall.  In high school I was at a fairly healthy weight because I relied on my mom for meals and grocery shopping, as most kids that age do.  I probably maxed out at about 155 pounds in high school. 

During college I still lived at home because our house was virtually on campus, so there was no point in spending $11,000 a year on room and board.  Anyway, that meant I could still rely heavily on my mom for the meals I ate as she did all the grocery shopping.  One of the greatest parts of college is the freedom and independence that is gained at a pivotal point in your life.  That independence, for me, meant going out to eat, fast food, eating at the dining hall with my friends (which was obviously buffet-style) and just doing (and eating) whatever I wanted.  Although I was fairly active, I was eating much worse, and I didn't care.  Even when I noticed in pictures of that I was the largest among my group of friends, I just tried to play it off and say, "I've always been a big girl."  My thought was, I'm Italian, and we love food, so it's ok.  I didn't want to face the fat.  And the truth is, I'm NOT a big girl.  I don't have a large frame.  It's not ok for me to have been around 175 pounds when I graduated college. 

After college I got worse with my eating habits and worse with my exercise habits.  I thought, "I don't want to work out because I don't want muscles because eventually muscle turns to fat and I don't want to be that fat."  My irrationality now astounds me.  Where I got that idea from, I will never know.  Anyway.  I moved out on my own when I had just turned 22, only a few months after graduation.  Of course I was excited to start my adult life, but that also meant even MORE freedom.  Grocery shopping completely on my own, fending for myself for every meal, no one nagging (motivating) me to work out.  So I stopped all forms of exercise, with the exception of softball (which I now realize is not a real workout, as my mom has told me for years).  I didn't FEEL like working out.  And when I hit 180 pounds due to my lack of exercise, horrible eating habits, and horrible food choices, I thought, "I'll start running and that will fix things."  Well I pulled that stunt about once every 3 months, I would work out for about a week, not see any results, get totally discouraged, and give up.  I did this for what turned into 2 years and an extra 17 pounds.  All this time my body image slowly deteriorated, causing my self-esteem to tank and my physical self-loathing to take effect.  I maxed out at 197 pounds with virtually no desire to look in a mirror because I thought I looked horrible, no self-esteem (which was a big problem for my boyfriend, who calls himself "best in the world," to understand), no motivation to change because I didn't see a point, and irrational thoughts about how I like food too much to go on a diet.  I believe that is what some would call my rock bottom. 

I don't know exactly what caused the change in my mind, but whatever it is, I'm glad it happened.  I went to the doctor, whom I hadn't seen since my days in the 160s and weighed-in at 197 pounds with high blood pressure.  I thought...I'm huge, and unhealthy.  Something just clicked in my brain.  I decided that I have got to get moving.  I have got to make a change.  I've got to stop the excuses.  I hate when other people make excuses, so why am I doing it??  I decided to start fresh.  To be healthy, to be happy, to be at my ideal weight.  I used to make excuses about how they say the weight for someone my height should be between 132-155 and that is grossly skinny.  It's not.  My goal weight now is 150, and even with all my fluctuations is never to go into the 160s again (other than if I ever get pregnant).  I want to be strong; I want to be healthy; I want to be happy; I want to be proud of myself (for something other than my intellect). 

Lucky for me, a week after I decided to make a change, my company decided to start a weightloss incentive program.  There is a health kiosk where I can weigh in once a week, and I took a short class on the important aspects of healthy eating and exercise.  I learned that I should be eating 5 times a day.  Breakfast, mid-morning snack, lunch, mid-afternoon snack, and dinner.  Each MEAL should consist of 4 parts: a protein the size of my palm, a QUALITY carb the size of my fist, and fill the rest of my plate with veggies.  Each SNACK should have a protein and a carb.  Now I must say, I don't follow this to the T because I had to make it fit my lifestyle, but the biggest thing I have learned is PORTION CONTROL. 

I learned a few things about myself in the first week of my new lifestyle.  I learned that much of the time I ate when I was not hungry.  I ate when I was bored, when I was sad, when I was happy, when I wasn't even thinking!  I just ate all the time.  And what was worse, every time I ate, I stuffed myself.  Not sure why, but I did.  I ate until I almost felt sick, every time.  Like someone was going to take the food away from me and I was never going to be able to have it again. 

Here is the important part, and where I start sharing my knowledge...I have since learned how important it is to LISTEN TO YOUR BODY!!  Your body tells you all kinds of things if you will just pay attention to it.  It not only tells you when you're hungry or thirsty, it tells you what nutrients it needs and even more importantly, when it's satisfied.  Note: not full...SATISFIED.  I have also learned that it is OK to indulge a little bit here and there.  Someone has a birthday?  Have a piece of cake...just don't have 6.  Someone selling donuts for a fundraiser?  Have a donut...just don't have a dozen.  Don't limit yourself so much that when you finally give in to tempation you OVERindulge and then feel horrible about yourself.   Once again, listen to your body.  I really can't stress that enough. 

My boyfriend and I have started going to the gym.  I get excited about going.  I have also found a new addiction: Pinterest.  I have found a lot of motivation from their fitness portion, not to mention some fabulous at-home workouts and recipes.  The rest of my entries won't be so long...but I wanted you all to know how I got to where I am.  Since I started my new lifestyle I have lost 13.4 pounds.  I have 33.6 more to go and I'm sure it is going to be hard.  But I am motivated.  If you have any advice or thoughts, please feel free to share.  I hope this blog can help someone other than me.  Then it will REALLY be worth it.  Thanks!!

Katie