Low-Fat Kat

Looking back over my posts...

2010-03-09T02:10:00.001-05:00

...is affording me a good overarching view of the past week, and I don't like what I see. Pretty much every day has included some kind of alcohol and/or dessert - the two things I should be avoiding like the plague right now.

I'm writing this more as a preemptive strike, because I know you guys probably picked up on it already. I'm fussing at myself so y'all don't have to (because I hate getting fussed at by others!!). Birthdays are over. I've run out of excuses and rationalizations. I'm facing the scale on Wednesday and have pretty much guaranteed myself some piss-poor results.

I'm hovering at 205 right now and am SO READY to be in Onederland. I have been losing all this time, albeit veeerrrry slowly. Cutting out the items I should avoid anyway and cutting back on the "use sparingly" things are my goals for the next two weeks in order to get back on track.

In my head, I wasn't doing too badly, but photos don't lie (another awesome advantage of blogging). So there it is. And here it stops.

Holy third wheel, Batman!

2010-03-09T01:10:00.005-05:00

I kid, I kid. I went to dinner tonight with two very dear people – my friend of many years, Richard, and his sweet fiancée, Lisa.

Because they’re both such awesome people, I didn’t feel like a third wheel at all! Though it would’ve been nice to have a date.

I tweeted earlier that I almost miss having only 3 outfits that fit. It took me over an hour to get ready tonight, thanks in part to my indecision about what to wear! I pulled like 40% of the stuff in my closet out to try on and even opened up a box of skinny clothes I had taped shut months ago. I’ll probably end up taping it back because I’m still not there yet, but I officially have a size 14 dress I can fit into, and another size 14 dress that I can fasten but can’t breathe in. Breathing’s overrated anyway, right?

Back to our regularly scheduled topic.... Tonight, we went to my new favorite place, Gervais & Vine – yes, the same place Mom and I went exactly a week ago. This was Richard and Lisa’s first time going! Lisa and I started out with 2.5oz of pinot gris and chardonnay, respectively, while Richard had a glass of…gaaah I can’t remember what varietal – some kind of red.

Our eats included a hummus platter:

Fingerling potatoes with a white truffle aioli (a repeat from last week…this is one of my favorite dishes):

Beef and gorgonzola:

Eggplant fries – another repeat from last week (horribly unflattering…sorry, fries):

The entire spread (with my water glass in the way…oops).

After I finished my chardonnay, I had 2.5oz of the Argentinean Malbec I tried last week…something about red wine (wine in general, actually) is just damned sexy, right? One of my favorite sensations comes from sticking my nose down in a glass of red wine. Awesome.

Aaaand we might’ve had dessert. [FACEPALM]

Apple frangipane and bourbon pecan pie. They weren’t HUUUUGE servings, but that doesn’t matter. It doesn’t redeem the fact that I partook.

Remember when I was all “no more of this crap” the other day? Why didn’t I listen to myself? I didn’t eat much dinner at all, but that doesn’t entitle me to get dessert. We weren’t celebrating anything, so there’s no excuse. I’d take myself out back and kick my own ass if I wasn’t so snuggly warm here on the couch.

Katherine, when will you learn? When will you either stop declaring stuff or start following it? You can’t put your foot down without meaning it, because it diminishes your credibility and makes you less accountable to yourself. Willpower, listen to Brain…she knows what she’s talking about.

Other mundane things from today:

Lunch was chicken (with some Boar’s Head spread I got in the deli section of Publix…I’m addicted to those things now) and green beans;

Bigelow’s Ginger Snappish tea:

Awkward photo of the day:

(Have I mentioned that the brightly-colored thing in the background is the pool table? We keep a sheet on top of the cover for added protection from this guy and his “brother.”)

I can’t think of any interesting questions to ask, so tell me something about yourself – hidden talent? secret obsession? little-known fact? Wow me.

Whole lotta pictures and some astronaut ice cream

2010-03-07T21:17:00.003-05:00

Y’all know now that I’ve gotten this damn camera, my posts are going to be picture-heavy to the max, right?

So long as we’re on the same page.

I started out this loverly Sunday morning with blogs and coffee + a cocoa shake (my breakfast most every morning) – the best way to begin the day.

I made a brunch around 1:30pm of scrambled eggs, a huge amount of veggies, and a sprinkling of cheese.

This afternoon, Mom and I drank our snack while working on dinner.

And while dinner did its thang on the grill, I did my thang with the camera.

Maddy's impression of a T-Rex:

(toldja we haven’t really gotten rid of our tree yet)

Dinner was one of the best burgers I’ve ever had, wrapped up in a big ol’ lettuce leaf and finished off with some low-fat cheddar and various accoutrements and green beans on the side.

A little while after dinner, Mom and I snacked on some astronaut ice cream we found squirreled away somewhere (still in date…score!)! I used to get this stuff every time I visited our state museum as a little kid…it’s so weird!

Have y’all had this stuff? Is there a special snack that makes you think of your childhood?

Down the rabbit hole

2010-03-07T00:22:00.003-05:00

After drafting my post this morning, I hurriedly got ready to meet a few of my best friends for lunch at Al-Amir in Irmo (Mediterranean food). We were kicking off Kaycee’s birthday festivities!

Here’s a picture of water, because Imogene makes even the most mundane beverage look awesome.

To start, I had a feta salad – romaine with cucumber, red pepper, feta cheese, a couple of kalamata olives, and a vinaigrette, I believe.

Ohhh olives, how I love you so. For my entree, I ordered chicken kabobs.

The chicken was awesome, and it had peppers, onions, and squash alongside it (I admit, I kinda picked at the rice). I did ask for some tahini after a few bites because it was a bit dry/boring…I’m cursed to rely on condiments. Then after lunch, we went for gelato on the other side of the restaurant.

I got cookies and cream:

[Sigh.] Alright, I’ve gotta cut back on all this crap now that the birthday celebrations are over. I’ve had quite a few biggish indulgent foodstuffs this week, and the party’s over. After we finished up at Al-Amir, we headed over to the movie theater to see Alice in Wonderland!

I need to cut and paste these together so we’re all included and have matching facial expressions. Naaahhhhh…

Verdict? The movie was really good! Though I can see why it got mediocre reviews – it wasn’t earthshatteringly awesome, but it was a fun cinematic experience, and I want my own copy when it comes out on DVD. Plus, it turned me onto Johnny Depp again, so he’ll be the object of my affection in the short-term future. (PS – for those who saw it, did you think the dance just RUINED it like I did? SO DUMB.)

For dinner, I made a shrimp taco recipe I found in one of those Weight Watchers cookbooks you can buy in the grocery store checkout. Essentially you toss shrimp in a dry-rub, pan sauté them, then put them in a soft tortilla with various toppings.

That + this:

Equals this:

While it was cooking, I had a couple ounces of this and wasn’t too impressed:

This is “sweet tea wine” that I found for cheap at World Market. It tasted like a bad malt beverage, like a wine cooler or Hard Lemonade-type drink. Soooooo sweet. I think I’ll save the rest for when I have company or visit somewhere and can bring it as a “hey, y’all gotta try this crap” sort of thing.

Instead of putting my dinner on tortillas, I made a salad out of it – lettuce with lime juice, shrimp, bell peppers, salsa verde, green Tabasco, some cheddar, and sour cream. I barely ate half and packaged up the leftovers for Mom to have for lunch tomorrow. There’s something about leftover seafood that turns my stomach; I just can’t do it.

Are there any foods you’re weird about eating leftover? Any other idiosyncrasies with food? For instance, I’ll drink after someone, but not if it’s milk. I CAN'T drink milk after someone. Also, if I drink milk, it’s got to be ice-cold and alongside something (like cereal or baked goods). Also, are you addicted to condiments like I am? What are your favorite low-cal, low-fat, low-sugar condiments?

Imogene and Chocolate

2010-03-06T10:20:00.001-05:00

I got a package yesterday…

…and inside contained my new baby, Imogene.

She takes very pretty pictures…

…and some awkward ones, too.

Sony Cybershot point-and-shoot	Nikon D3000 DSLR

Imogene is a whooooole lotta camera, and I think I’ll be trying to get to know her better all weekend long!

There were two FedEx trucks to come through our neighborhood yesterday; the second came bearing Imogene, but the first came bearing a GIFT!!

Psshhhh I’ll be nice to anybody if they reward me with chocolate!!

A 30-day supply of dark chocolate from TCHO (which I had heard great things about and had wanted to try for awhile!). HOLY CRAP. Too bad Kevin doesn’t live closer or I’d totally stalk him. Actually, it’s probably best for him that he doesn’t. Because I’d totally stalk him.

How cute is this package??

There are four different flavors inside – fruity, citrus, chocolatey, and nutty:

I thought it meant that each would have NUTS or FRUIT in them, but it’s this subtle hint of flavor…no…essence, instead.

Kevin, they’re rad. You’re rad. Thank you.

I’m off to hop in the shower and get semi-presentable…we’re celebrating my friend Kaycee’s birthday today by going to a Mediterranean restaurant and then ALICE IN WONDERLAND in 3D!!! That was one of my favorite Disney movies as a little girl, and I friggin’ LOVE Tim Burton and Johnny Depp. Also, I can’t wait to see Alan Rickman as the caterpillar…I kind of love him. I’ve been seeing so many movies lately, I don’t know what to do with myself!

See any good movies lately? What’s your favorite movie of all time? Guilty pleasure movie? Any actors or actresses that will lure you to the box office just by being cast in a movie?

My cheeks hurt

2010-03-03T11:39:00.002-05:00

Last night I went out with my best girl friends to – guess what? – celebrate my birthday!! The plan was to go bowling and eat ~~bar food~~ while we were there, but at the last minute we decided to eat beforehand at Wild Wing Cafe. I decided ahead of time that I would drink up to two beers (depending on how I felt after #1) and have one of my favorite guilty pleasure meals – the Buffarella buffalo chicken wrap!

Beer #1 was a Yuengling (so Kevin could live vicariously through me!). (Hey, Carol…is that #boobiewed enough for you?). The gals (my friends, not my boobs) and I shared some not-awesome spinach dip while we waited for our food (but we were so hungry we ended up eating a bunch of it anyway)

And here’s my glorious Buffarella (I usually get it with fries, but I went with the celery instead, saving a billion calories and a couple of years on my life)

It’s soooo spicy, you have to chug your beer to put out the flames engulfing your tongue, which is why I ordered beer #2, a Blue Moon (unpictured due in part to the effects of Beer #1). Also, Catherine ordered a liquor drink for the table that I had some of…it was pretty weak, but I’m sure it helped my loopiness.

We left Wild Wing and drove to the bowling alley (we had a DD!) where we discovered it was league night. Damn. I knew I should’ve called ahead. It was soooo cold and rainy that instead of standing around and planning from there, we all jumped in our cars and headed to a movie theater down the road where we realized we were just in time for Valentine’s Day. It was just what I expected it’d be – fluffy, a little silly, a little sappy…just what I needed during girls’ night. Too bad we weren’t the only ones in the theater, because we wanted to be rowdy!! I got a teensy $1 popcorn and Coke Zero for the movie but didn’t eat much popcorn on account of the Buffarella. I didn’t need the popcorn, but I wanted it. Stupid. I ended up bringing 2/3 of the bag home to Mom, though, because we’re dorky like that.

The cast of characters:

I was so surprised that shirt fit (and was even kind of loose!!)…I haven’t been able to wear it in YEARS, and I unearthed a pair of jeans at the last minute that were a little snug but fab-looking. The last time I remember wearing that shirt was either in 2005 or 2006, and it was tiiiiight then:

Remind me never to cut my hair like that again, please. Ok, back to last night…

Throughout the movie, we kept getting texts from husbands/fiancees/moms that it was snowing in the area, but we didn’t think too much of it…until we walked outside and saw THIS:

GIANT CLUMPY SNOW!!! AND IT WAS STICKING!!!

I was SO giddy about the snow! I think all of us were!!! After getting dropped off at my car and brushing the snow off my windows, I drove home (cautiously slow) and popped A Christmas Story into the DVD player. Last night was one of those nights that makes your cheeks hurt from smiling so hard.

For those of you who live where it only snows a couple of times a year, do you have any snow traditions? I’ve always saved A Christmas Story for Christmas Eve, but watching it last night was pretty darned sweet!

Wine and tapas and cake…oh my!

2010-03-02T09:00:00.002-05:00

Last night, Mom and I properly celebrated my birthday by going out to dinner. Oh yes, the dragging out continues and WILL CONTINUE for another couple of weeks. I wanted to do something a little special and out of the ordinary, so I picked Gervais & Vine in Columbia. I’ve only been once for an alumni event, and I really liked the atmosphere – it’s a wine and tapas restaurant, and it makes you feel chic and sexy to just walk through the doors (or at least that’s how I feel when I’m there!). I got all dolled up in pants I’ve never been able to wear (bought ‘em small off the clearance rack years ago in the hopes that I’d lose weight; I pulled the tags off tonight and they fit perfectly!) and a coat that has never buttoned (another “too good to pass up” deal that I just knew I’d lose weight and fit into soon after buying it ). I felt only a little bit sexy, though, because I had to wear a long-sleeved shirt to cover up my leper spots. [sigh.]

First off, I started with a half glass (LOVE that they offer 2.5oz portions!!) of unoaked Chardonnay – I don’t think I’ve ever tried one, but I wasn’t as huge a fan.

I’m definitely no wine connoisseur (but I sooo want to be!), but I like my chardonnay dry and strong-tasting, and this wasn’t much of either. Don’t get me wrong – I liked it, but I liked my second chardonnay, one from Louis M. Martini, better. My third glass (keep in mind, these were all 2.5oz servings!!) was an Argentinean Malbec, and it was ohhhh so good.

What’s even better is that Mom mentioned we were celebrating my birthday, and our waitress comped my last glass! I’m such a sap – after she told me and walked away, I got verklempt. I blame it on the 5oz I’d already had.

So the food….ohhh the fooooood. They specialize in Mediterranean-style tapas, and their prices range about $6-9 per item. Our dinner was surprisingly budget-friendly for such a neat experience! We settled on three dishes:

Moroccan-spiced pork with gorgonzola fondue
Crispy fingerling potatoes with white truffle aioli and fresh herbs
Eggplant fries with romesco and honey-yogurt sauces

Ah. Mah. Gah.

I felt perfectly full when we were done – not stuffed, but very satisfied. However, we had plans to get dessert a few blocks away at Nonnah’s, a place known for their amazing baked goods. When we first sat down, we ordered a cappuccino; I was so excited to see it served with a palmier cookie and a swizzle stick!! I LOVE those!! (poor lighting + poor camera = poor photos)

For our desserts, I chose the surprisingly light Strawberry Amaretto: White cake soaked with amaretto flavoring layered with strawberry cream covered with chocolate ganache and topped with fresh strawberries dipped in white chocolate (check out that sexy chocolate-covered strawberry on top! Though I was disappointed I couldn’t taste any amaretto)…

…and Mom chose the Triple Mousse Cake: White genoise with alternating layers of vanilla cream, chocolate mousse, raspberry mousse finished with whip cream. (There’s no whipped cream! Not that it needed it…)

We finished every single bite, and I paid for it on the walk to the car, the drive home, and a few hours afterward. Good lord, I was SOOOO FULL. I definitely went overboard, but that damn cake was so good, I had to keep eating it. Sidenote – last time I went there, I had the carrot cake – one of my favorites, and it was AMAZING. Also, I was thisclose to selecting the lemon cake because it sounded fairly light and refreshing; I’m a fan of lemon-flavored baked goods, so I’ll probably choose it next time I go…in a year or so.

Though my waistline can’t afford to go to Nonnah’s very often for dessert, I hope I get to go back to Gervais & Vine soon – Mom was nervous to try it at first, but I think she’s been converted. Hopefully I’ve made an addict out of her and it won’t be long before our next visit!

What’s your favorite type of cuisine? Sushi-lover? Italian fiend? I’m definitely digging the tapas-style restaurant…I wish Columbia had more!

A day which shall live in infamy

2010-03-02T00:53:00.006-05:00

February 28th. My birthday. The day during which I ate enough sugar to give me a hangover on March 1st. Though it was so worth it.

After I felt kinda poopy about my birthday, I cheered up when Mom offered to get Panera takeout for lunch. Because it was my birthday, I threw caution to the wind – I usually just get a salad, but I opted for a half fuji apple chicken salad and half of my absolute favorite – French onion soup with cheese, croutons, and a whole grain baguette. I could probably subsist on that soup every day if given the opportunity. That, and my buffalo chicken salad.

Also, Mom brought me some of my favorite flowers – tulips!

Brooks is thoroughly enjoying them. After lunch, Mom surprised me yet again…

…with a ginormous birthday cupcake! She was so nervous that she was throwing me off my diet, but I had prepared to go a little hog wild on my birthday, so I was glad to partake! Apparently she couldn’t choose between chocolate and vanilla, so she got both. We split the vanilla one after lunch and had some Ben & Jerry’s Half-Baked FroYo alongside it.

I could’ve done a better job of picture-taking (moving the damn newspaper and scotch tape, for instance), but I was in too big a hurry.

The cupcake was indeed half (whipped) icing. And indeed soooo good. I also got some moolah to put toward the DSLR I’ve been saving for!

Do any of you have a Nikon DSLR? I’ve got a 35mm Nikon and am hoping I’ll be able to use my mamma jamma zoom/macro lens if I get a Nikon DSLR. Research so far has suggested I should be able to, but I also want some basic feedback on how happy people are with theirs. I think people are going to always be split on the Canon vs. Nikon debate just as they are Pepsi vs. Coke, Jay vs. Conan, and PC vs. Mac. Alls I know is I want my camera soon and am looking to buy in the next few days! We went to Best Buy to play with them yesterday afternoon and stopped by World Market where I got some bitchin pajamas I’ve been eyeing for months – they were on sale on my birthday – a sign!!

Dinner was leftovers from a meal I never documented – pan-fried turkey breast cutlets with a lemon caper sauce and steamed asparagus.

(I really need to pull out my pretty silver plate again…this 70s dinnerware is really bumming me out, man) Then we split the 2nd cupcake…

…and I woke up today with a sugar hangover. Yesterday afternoon after eating that cupcake at lunch, I was DRAGGING to the point that I could’ve laid down in the middle of the grocery store parking lot and taken a nap. I was finding myself not making sense in conversation, unable to focus, and I KNOW it was because of the sugar. It’s SO WEIRD how I’m able to identify that now, and I wonder if I used to be that way when I ate sugar fairly often, or if my body got so used to it that it didn’t affect me much.

After dinner, I got to work on a cheesecake for one of Mom’s co-workers who happens to share my birthday. I knew I wanted to make something chocolatey and hopefully caramely, but I didn’t have any direction as far as a recipe goes. I took to Twitter a few days ago to ask if anyone had a surefire one to share, and who should tweet back but Philadelphia Cream Cheese’s Twitter account! They sent me a link to their recipes page and have been so nice in Tweeting back and forth with me! I LOVE when companies have a social media presence; it makes me want to do business when companies care enough (or are at least smart enough) to talk with their customers! Anywho, the recipe I chose was this chocolate turtle cheesecake, but instead of making it in a 13x9 bar pan, I made it in a 9” springform pan and baked it for 1hr 30min, turned the oven off, and left it in there for an hour more. I haven’t tried a piece yet (Mom brought one home and froze it for us for later), but it got RAVE reviews from the birthday boy and the rest of their co-workers. Thanks, Philly, for giving me some guidance and making me look so good in front of Mom’s friends.

Do you have a go-to recipe you cook or bake for birthdays? Any birthday in general or specific people’s birthdays? Mom always makes Dad this AMAZING strawberry pie for his, and for my grandmother’s, Mom makes an out-of-this-world pumpkin cheesecake. I probably look forward to their birthdays more than they do, just so I can have some of that once-a-year dessert!!

Chili’s is the new golf course

2010-02-28T12:12:00.003-05:00

Hey guys! I hope you’ve had (and are continuing to have) a fabulous weekend!

Yesterday Mom and I kicked off my birthday festivities by going to hang out with my grandmother for the day!

She’s so awesome. We had some errands to run while we were there, and while we were out and about, we went to Chili’s for lunch (“’Chili's is the new golf course. It's where business happens.’ Small Businessman Magazine.”). I was really jonesing for a margarita on the rocks, but I resisted. Woo! I had the Monterey chicken – complete with cheese and bacon on top. Best choice on the menu? Nope. Better than the deep-fried dishes that my dates chose? Most probably.

I got double broccoli instead of the mashed potatoes it came with. Also, because TODAY’S MY BIRTHDAY, we all split dessert – chocolate chip Paradise pie. My grandmother offered to hold the plate for me while I licked it clean, but I’m trying to soften my image a bit, so I turned her down.

It’s definitely weird to be more in tune with my body now…years or even months ago, I would’ve eaten all this without batting an eye and kept eating the rest of the day without issue. However, I didn’t even need to eat dinner last night, I was still so (uncomfortably) full all evening long.

Today I’ll be doing something birthday-ish, but I don’t know what yet. I was going to drag Mom to see Avatar in 3D again and have been okay with those plans for the past couple of days, but suddenly this morning I had a change of heart. I’ve been sitting here catching up on Google Reader for the past…3 hours – holy crap – so I really need to get up and move and do something fun/productive/worthwhile, but I’m a little depressed (WHY is that a theme with me lately?!?! Arrrgh!!!) The older I get, the more sad I get on my birthday. I think if I were at another place in my life, I’d be super happy to celebrate, but I feel almost guilty and undeserving of a celebration these days. Oh god, that sounds terrible, and I’m starting with the “what if” and “could’ve” talk again, and I want to slap myself, so I’m just going to stop.

If you were in my shoes, what would you do on your birthday or a perfect day off? Shopping? Movie? Crafting? Booze-a-thon with your BFFs?

Dr. Strangebrew or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying about Fat Loss and Love Myself

2010-02-25T23:54:00.001-05:00

This Society Series post comes from a surprise author. Read on….

Think you’re comfortable in your skin? How many of the following fatty scenarios can you relate to?

After helping a friend one afternoon, he commented that it would be cheaper to repay me with cash than buying me lunch. I laughed it off.
My coworkers relentlessly tease me about my love of chocolate, especially cookies. I have playfully retorted that it is my “crack”.
The employees at the local chocolatier, who indirectly contributed to my weight gain, gave me a nickname after I returned day after day for goodies. I’ve lived up to my nickname.
At a party, a new acquaintance flattered me when he said I looked good for being able to eat so much, to which a long time friend teased, “Well, I don’t know about that,” while tapping my belly. I think I joked I was pregnant.

Being a realist and always open to self-depreciating humor, I have NEVER taken comments toward my weight personally. Obviously, others have picked up on that and openly poked fun at me. I was skinny as a rail when I was a kid, and my mom even teased that I had a tapeworm. I don’t think I was more that 115lbs when I graduated high school. Never would I have imagined that I would get as big as I did, ballooning up to 238 lbs on my five foot nine (and a very important three quarters of an inch) frame. But that was on purpose, or so I told myself. Though now in retrospect, there were some poor dieting choices involved. And those pictures weren’t as flattering as the mirror was telling me at the time. Whether I was that skinny little kid or the much bigger person I am now, I have always had a voracious appetite. I love food, especially chocolate sweets. While I’m currently 203, I’m struggling with my last few pounds to reach my goal of 190. My trainer wants me to try for 180, but I resist because I don’t think I’ll look good at so LIGHT a weight. That’s right; I won’t look good if I get any smaller! I’m proud being big; I worked very hard to get here. I love my body, how it looks, and I’m very comfortable in my skin. But like it or not, I have to shed my excess fat.

Oops, did I forget to mention that I’m a guy? That’s right, a male, and struggling with my weight. Despite regular exercise, my body holds on to the last bit of fat because of my diet. I cheat on it. That’s a big no-no because I’m trying to get down to 4% body fat from 11% in 16 weeks time. You see, I’m training for a bodybuilding competition. Think you have it tough trying to get into that bikini or bridesmaid dress? Any excess fat I display, wearing only skimpy posing trunks, on a stage in front of hundreds of people, risks getting booed, or even laughed, off stage. I used the phrase “struggling with my weight” cause it’s a make or break deal for me. If I don’t look like I’m making progress, my trainer calls me a failure. Even my friends level with me and tell me that I look like shit. Talk about pressure!

Being a guy losing weight isn’t much different from being a girl losing weight. I have the firm belief that there exist some very important tricks to successful weight loss, but there are even more important attitudes and realizations about losing weight (to losing, and not keeping it off, which is an entirely different goal and deserves a discussion of its own). Follow whatever diet and exercise program that you, or your physician and you have decided on. But what diets, doctors, trainers, friends, and family won’t tell you, but I’m going to share, I hope you will consider.

Losing weight is lonely. No one but you has anything to gain. Your husband, in honest discussion, may say it’s good for your health or a better sex life, and may even change his lifestyle to support you, but it comes back to you making the commitment to yourself. Your best friend may be sympathetic, but she doesn’t care whether or not you lose weight. That may sound mean. But it’s the truth. She may hope or pray that you reach YOUR goals or for you to be happy, but the only person with any vested interest in YOUR weight loss is you.

Do it for yourself. Not your hubby, the cute guy you’d like to impress, because your children said something, or you overheard a hurtful comment and decided to prove someone wrong. That can be your motivator, but do it for you. I once trained a girl whose husband was deployed in Afghanistan. He loved her for her. When she told him she had begun an exercising program, he told her, “Don’t lose MY muffin top!” She wanted to look her best cause she was going to meet his family, which was her motivation. But the reason why she came into the gym everyday was for herself. That’s why she exceeded her goals (and MINE!), even after I finished training her. And her husband, children and extended family loved the results.

Be confident in yourself that you’re doing well. You make progress; you have setbacks, but if you keep at it, pat yourself on the back. I can’t tell you the countless people I see in the gym who make dramatic changes in front of my eyes. You don’t see it because you see yourself every day. You are your own worst critic. I don’t notice that you slipped up on your diet or you skipped Monday’s workout, but I notice those sweatpants are looser, or that your face is looking slimmer. Keep at it, and soon you’ll notice that those pants are fitting looser, too!

I cheat on my diet all the time. But I tighten it to compensate, or increase my cardio when I need to, and other times button it down completely. I take it seriously, but I don’t let it consume me. Yes, I worry because I HAVE TO be a certain weight, but you shouldn’t just because you decide you deserve a double chocolate brownie sundae. When you beat yourself up for failing to stick rigidly to your expectations, the only thing you end up doing is beating yourself up with another double chocolate brownie sundae. Stay focused, remember your obligations to yourself, self-discipline yourself for your transgressions, and you’ll be okay.

Admit that you’re pretty. Let me be frank, fat can be brutally ugly. I’ve seen girls who physically look disheveled and emotionally are probably destroyed. What a horrible place to begin a diet from. But as you lose weight, that affects your outlook. You smile more. You feel better. You look better. But even if you haven’t lost as much as you would like, admit to yourself that you look good. Be a little cocky! If you look in the mirror and those size 14 jeans that you can now fit into makes you think that you look awesome, then you look awesome!

Whatever your weight loss goal, good luck! Work hard and help inspire others. By the way, the nickname the employees at the chocolate store gave me was “Smiley!” Just the attitude you need to reach your goals.

Did that make anyone else a little misty-eyed, too? This post was written by Kevin who has recently started blogging at littleBIGkev. Also, read his hilarious tweets @littleBIGkev. We started to do this solely as a guest post over here to help with the initial “wow, the author’s a dude” shock factor, but if you’d like to leave a comment, please head over to Kevin’s blog where it’s also posted and leave him some love!

Sexy anti-itch sleeves

2010-02-25T14:33:00.001-05:00

I’ve been posting too many serious/deeply psychological/Debbie Downer posts lately, so I’m going to attempt a fluffy happy one today. Also, I just installed the Disqus commenting system, and I need to give it a whirl. I like to respond to every single comment, even if it’s just something short like “nice pic,” so this way, I can use threaded comments (i.e., responding to each individually) instead of posting one massive lump response comment to everyone.

Yesterday I went to the doctor to check in, and I lost 3.5lbs last week. I’m having a little reality check about it; I was hoping to lose close to 10lbs doing all-liquid like I did the first week I tried it, but there were some holes in my plan. 1) The first week I did it, half of the weight I lost was water. It spoiled me to lose close to 10lbs and skewed my expectations. 2) I CHEATED. 3.5 pounds is a lot to lose in a week, especially after a beer binge, so I’m slapping myself in the face, patting myself on the back, and moving on. Operation 13 by 26 was unrealistic, so I’m scrapping it. My body will get below 200 when it’s good and ready.

By the way, my doc had some interesting insight into the relationship between alcohol and weight loss. Insulin helps your body store glucose, and glucagon has the opposite effect – it helps your body take glucose out of storage and burn it. Well, alcohol inhibits glucagon, so there are no glucose withdrawals, only deposits when you drink. I’m sure I learned that in the endocrinology class I took a million years ago, but it really puts it into perspective when you think about it in terms of metabolism and weight loss. She also estimated that for every alcoholic beverage you drink, you keep yourself from losing as much as a pound. Now, I don’t know where she came up with that figure, but its enough to scare me into being a teetotaller (almost).

After my appointment, I met up with my cousin who works on that side of town. He’s always kind of been the big brother I never had (and he’s got a pretty bitchin’ girlfriend – Hi, Susan!!), and he’s such a sweetheart, he paid for my lunch! We went to Applebee’s, and I got the Grilled Chicken Dijon and Portobellos off the Under 550 Calorie menu; it usually comes with mashed potatoes and steamed veggies, but I got double veggies instead (by the way, it’s funny how their “seasonal” vegetables happen to always be the same everywhere at every time of the year. “Seasonal,” my foot.)

After finishing lunch, I had some errands to run. I returned to Jewelry Warehouse to find something to put my birthday coupon toward, and I went to two of their locations before finally finding MY RING. And I was told they didn’t make them big enough for my middle finger…psh.

It sounds cheesy, but I got it so I could wear it all the time as a reminder of my long-term goal. Hopefully as I reach for food/drink that are counterproductive to weight loss, I’ll take a split-second to look at my finger and think to myself, “is it really worth it?” I’m hoping it will serve as a cue to action for me. A few people in an old Weight Watchers group of mine utilized this strategy and it helped them make better decisions.

So back to eats; I had a couple of shakes yesterday, and last night, I got the munchies. I need to plan better. Maybe if I say it enough, I’ll magically wake up one day and start doing it. I know, I know, that’s not how it works…. Last night I had a couple of potato chips with beer cheese dip (uggggh – at least it wasn’t a handful!) and turkey and cheese.

I must not have ever had swiss cheese by itself before, because it sucks! Or maybe this was just a bad batch…I’m not a cheese connoisseur. It was waxy in texture, not very flavorful, and therefore not worth it, so I ate a couple bites and gave the rest to the dog.

I’m so over this whole poison ivy nonsense. It stings, it itches, and it makes me look like a leper. The first night I realized what it was, I went to bed in these sexy gloves I got from Delia*s back in the day:

and actually managed to keep them on all night! They were kind of snuggly, and they kept me from scratching (I think). Then last night, I kept wanting to scratch when I was doing stuff around the house, so I fashioned myself a pair of arm covers out of an old pair of tube socks.

Sexy, right??? They did what I needed them to do, though!

Thanks to all of you who have joined our iChange support group – I’m still trying to learn the ins and outs of how the site works, and it’s helping to realize that everyone will be able to see everything I eat, for better or worse. I’ve already gotten some feedback about a little chocolate meltdown I had yesterday, so it’s helping me to be up front and honest about my setbacks and really analyze why the happen and how I can deal with them in the future. Haven’t joined yet? You still can! Sign up – all the cool kids are doing it!

iChange Support Group

2010-02-23T23:25:00.001-05:00

Hi, everyone! I hope your week is off to the right start! I’m battling a wicked case of the itchies thanks to some poison ivy I picked up this weekend. Bollocks. I can’t believe I’ve NEVER gotten it before – I’m sure I’ve been in it, but I’ve never gotten a rash. Too bad I can’t still say that.

Over the weekend, I was contacted by someone from iChange, a website founded on the idea that weight loss happens best when people have social support – sound familiar?

On this website, you can log your daily caloric intake and exercise; write journal entries; log your measurements, stress, energy, water, sleep, and mood; create and join groups based on interests; find support through other members; and read articles written by the experts on staff – all for free! They also offer paid services – for $19 a month, you can work with a dietitian who will give you a plan, check in with you, and monitor your progress.

This is where it gets cool…

They’ve set up a group for me and any of you who want to join in, and a dietitian, Diana, will be working with us! Here’s what Diana says we should expect during our month-long challenge:

I will be your personal dietitian who will closely observe your health and habits. Based on my observations, I will recommend basic, but important, ways that you can manage your health and get your weight at the level you desire.
I will coach you on how and what to eat over a 30 day period.
I will check on you regularly to make sure you are making progress and counsel you on how to get more out of the program
I have placed you in a group with other challenge members who will support you and look to you for support. Click on the Group link on the lower right side of this page to check in on the group activity.

…and here’s what we will need to do during the challenge:

Follow the nutrition guidelines I send you. They are included in one of the first five tasks in "My Checklist" on the upper right of the page.
Complete your online Nutrition Journal every day. It is important for me to see what you are eating so that I can start to identify changes to your diet. The Nutrition Journal is located on the right hand side of this page. Remember to include EVERYTHING. There is no judgment here. I can’t do my job properly if you are not totally honest with me.
Complete the Water Tracker so I know how much water you drink every day. Water is vital to weight loss and wellness.
Complete the Activity Tracker to tell me how many minutes of activity you do every day. Your activity can be any form of activity, whether it is walking around the block, lifting weights in the gym or simply dancing in your living room.
Send me or the other team members a message any time you have a question or just want to send some words of encouragement. To send me a private note, just type my name, Diana, into the “To” box above, write a message and click send. I’ll respond as quickly as I can.

Now, I’m not sure exactly how this will go for me since I can’t follow her nutritional guidelines 100%, and I know some of you out there are on other diets or have dietary restrictions, but I’m interested to see how this pans out! I know I’ve got some questions to ask her at least, and I’m pretty sure some of you would like to pick her brain as well.

When this month is over, we’ll still get to keep our little support group (it’s a free feature of the site that anyone can participate in) and any other groups we choose to join, and we can still use the tools. And if you decide you really like being able to talk to a dietitian on a regular basis, you can pay to continue using their services!

Here’s the link to my group:

http://www.ichange.com/partners/lowfatKat

All of you are welcome and encouraged to join, and I hope it will be a worthwhile experience for all of us. I’m not sure if you have to create an account before clicking that link…will someone try it and let me know how it works?

Please ask me any questions you might have – if I don’t have an answer, I can pass it along to someone who does!

Old habits die hard

2010-02-22T19:59:00.006-05:00

This past weekend was our 2nd work weekend at the lakehouse (our 1st one was recapped here). While I only worked one day last time, this time I stayed from Friday to Sunday (read: worked twice as hard as before). Everything is still sore.

On Friday, my uncle cut down three trees on the property, and we all helped haul them down to the bank limb by limb.

First mistake – instead of drinking ALL my shakes that day like I should’ve and then supplementing as needed with proteins and veggies (not on the agenda this week, but I’d totally allow it after working hard), I only had my first morning shake and then subsisted on trail mix all day. TRAIL. MIX. With M&Ms. Not the worst thing in the world, but it didn’t do me any favors. And here’s the kicker - I planned well. I set myself up for success. I brought all my shakes along with me. However, in the face of temptation, I go for the easiest, tastiest option – not the best. Looking back, I should’ve set an alarm and stopped to take a shake break every 3 hours, no matter what. That way, I would’ve had a slap-upside-the-head cue and might’ve been more likely to act. [sigh]

That night, I made mistake #2 – getting the guys to pick up a 6 pack of Blue Moon for me at the store “because I’d earned it.” Here I go again with my “I deserve a treat” thinking. Waiting until this week to treat myself by getting a massage would’ve been a much healthier plan, but I had that “I need to unwind” feeling, and hard labor calls for beer. So I had 2 on Friday night and might’ve participated in some Dreeting. I purposefully DIDN’T bring beer for this reason. I stopped at the store on the way to the house and totally could’ve gotten some, but I deliberately passed over the beer because I didn’t want to sabotage myself. However, in the passion of the moment (i.e., after hurling logs for a few hours), I caved…as usual.

The next day, we were joined by several more family members and participated in a few projects. My team took the giant pile of tree limbs and trunks, cut them to manageable size, and burned them at the water’s edge, then we shoveled off dirt that had washed around our boathouse and boat ramp.

Lifting and carrying and throwing those limbs and shoveling all that dirt reeeeeally took a toll on me. It wasn’t the most brilliant thing to go on an all-liquid diet when 2 of the 7 days on said diet would be filled with hard labor.

So on Saturday after a particularly hard bout of shovelling, I went inside to catch my breath only to beat the lunch crowd by about 5 minutes. I snagged a breadless sandwich from the kitchen…

…and had a 2nd unpictured one about half this size a short while afterward. I’m not counting these as mistakes, because I truly needed more calories from healthy sources. This was lean lunchmeat, a piece of cheese and lettuce, and mustard. Mistake #3 was following it up with…

…one of these little cream-filled Little Debbie oatmeal cookie pie thingamagigs. I used to go apeshit over these as a kid, and I learned this weekend that I haven’t grown out of it; I had a 2nd before the weekend was over. Oh, and before I went back outside, I also had a brownie and slice of poundcake. WTF, Katherine?!?! Neither were particularly good, either – it so wasn’t worth it! Yes, I was participating in some heavy physical activity and needed sustenance, but that doesn’t give me the excuse to reach for empty calories, simple carbs, and sugary sweets.

I went back outside, got back to work, dog-sat a bit (or rather, he sat on me)…

…and grabbed my first beer of the night at around 6pm when the bonfire got good.

Over the next 5 hours, I had 3 more.

I get this way about quantity – when I lived alone, I’d make a HUGE batch of pasta + sauce + vegetables + cheese and eat it out of a ginormous bowl. Now, lots of people say that’s the wrong thing to do because you have no visual cues about when to quit. However, that’s the only time I’d get to practice listening to my stomach, and because I knew I couldn’t eat the whole thing, I’d stop when I was full. If I served myself a certain amount, I’d most likely jump back up and get more, even if I wasn’t still hungry.

This is the problem with the 6 pack – I wanted to finish it all. If I had gotten a larger quantity, I probably would have stopped earlier because 1) there’s no way in hell I could drink all of them, and 2) I’d have lots of leftovers to take home. For some reason, I thought “oh, I’d better finish it off.” Why? Because I couldn’t leave two in the fridge for next time I came up to the lakehouse? It’s stupid to bring two home with me? I’m the same way with chocolate – if it’s a HUGE quantity, I’m better about portioning it (ok, who am I kidding? I’m terrible at portioning it), but if I CAN finish it all in one sitting, I’ll probably succeed or get sick trying.

And because my inhibitions were lowered, I ate bread for dinner. Just bread.

The next day was lower-key, labor-wise, but my aunt baked cookies. Y’all know where this is going. I had my breakfast shake, worked a bit outside, had some meat and cheese for lunch (instead of one of my lovely shakes packed in my cute little lunch bag), then followed it up with…4 cookies maybe?

I’m trying not to beat myself up over this weekend, but it’s hard. I put certain measures in place to help myself succeed, but I always stop short of making certain I DO succeed.

I find loopholes.
I make excuses.
I fall into old patterns.

I can pinpoint exactly what went wrong and the line of thinking that led to it. Hell, I realize what’s going on AS IT’S HAPPENING, but it’s somewhat rare that I stop it in its tracks. It’s been known to happen, but it doesn’t happen often. This is probably leading to a post I’ve been mulling over for awhile on self-sabotage, so I’ll stop it there, lest I give away all my secrets early.

Does anyone else have this issue with portioning and cues to quit? What about rationalizing “I deserve this [treat/out-of-the-ordinary food] because…”?

**Editing to add that I bounced back today - I'm back on-point with my diet, and I haven't been a total Debbie Downer, despite what this post might suggest!

Guest post on Then Heather Said

2010-02-20T17:00:00.000-05:00

I was honored that Heather at Then Heather Said asked me to write a guest post for her More Than Series. She’s explaining through these guest posts what healthy living blogging is all about, even beyond what shows up in our Google Readers. (She can explain it a little more eloquently than I’m able to, so clicky the linky and read it in her words).

I’m copying and pasting her post here, so my post is bookended by Heather’s words.

More Than: Kat from LFK

20 02 2010

Hi, THS readers! I’m Kat from Low-Fat Kat, and am honored to be doing a guest post for Heather! When I was working on my Master’s degree, I did my thesis on social networks and virtual communities and how they could benefit healthcare organizations and hospital systems. At the time, I was focusing mostly on what I knew from Facebook, MySpace, and the networks our professors used in college – WebCT and Blackboard. In my head, I was thinking of this ginormous network wherein patients could talk to each other, share information with their healthcare providers, schedule appointments, and retrieve information and resources.

A mouthful, yes? Well somewhere in my book (I’m calling a spade a spade here), I briefly touched on how virtual communities can improve the health of their members through social interaction – the topic I want to focus on for this post.

One of my attention-grabbing examples was that of a girl who turned to the PostSecret Community forums for help. She was in her early 20s and lived in a society where women had very few rights, especially those regarding sexuality. She discovered she was pregnant, and she risked exile or even death (at the hands of her own family, mind you) for seeking an abortion or having a child out of wedlock; she was a literal case of “damned if you do, damned if you don’t.”

She came to the PostSecret community looking for suggestions or any help that could be offered. People from all over the world were researching women’s shelters and doctors in her area that might be willing to help her; they were researching chemical abortifacients she might be able to find nearby, and they were researching halfway houses for her, if she had been willing to carry the child. Outside of helping her find physical resources, two of the biggest things the community offered her were “merely” a shoulder to cry on and an ear to listen. When she was contemplating aborting the child by her own hand, people talked her out of it. When she sought out an abortion from a reputable professional and took a few days off to recover, a virtual vigil was held on the forum – people praying for her, talking about her situation, offering nothing but well-wishes. Her situation really struck me as unique but yet universal – we turn to virtual communities to gain support and to find like-minded people who help us find and establish our places in life.

When I was writing my thesis, I understood and appreciated the points I was making about virtual communities, but I wasn’t a “capital-B” Blogger at that point. It wasn’t until a year or so ago when I started my blog and unknowingly created my own little social network (hi, guys!!) that I truly understood the impact virtual communities can have on their members. Unlike some of my in-real-life (IRL) community members, the people who make up my virtual community were handpicked by me. I follow people who struggle with the same things I struggle with (being a bit too addicted to chocolate and baked goods, for one), those who have succeeded where I intend to succeed (losing and keeping off large amounts of weight), and those who have stories different than my own but that intrigue me (being vegan, being gluten-intolerant, having kids, or recovering from bulimia to name a few). I’ve surrounded myself with various positive influences and have thus shaped my own reality.

I’ve done every diet under the sun and have struggled with my weight for over 20 years (a fact that royally sucks when you realize I’m writing this post a week shy of my 26^th birthday). I’ve succeeded at many, but have always gained the weight back and then some. The problem each time was the same – my lifestyle never changed. A diet is like putting a Band-Aid over a severed artery. It might temporarily fix the problem (very temporarily – this metaphor isn’t my best), but that Band-Aid won’t hold for long. Each time, I’d lose 5, 20, 80 pounds, and go right back to the life I had previously been living. Quelle surprise – it ain’t gonna work that way.

Now, I’m not saying that it’s anyone’s fault but my own that I gained the weight back, but it’s pretty common knowledge that people with social support are the most likely to succeed at changing their behaviors – I could get all nerdy on you and find some resources to cite, but this post is long-winded enough already and still has a way to go. I’m also not saying that my IRL friends and family weren’t supportive; they just didn’t truly understand my plight and often didn’t know how to help me.

The #1 problem I had each time was failing to change my lifestyle – we’ve established that. The #2 problem I had was not surrounding myself with the right kind of support. I’ve never had a close IRL friend who has struggled with their weight like I have; my friends were always the type to eat whatever they wanted without gaining an ounce, and we never really engaged in physical activity when we hung out, so exercise was always a chore. I’d like to think that if my social norms had changed early on – i.e., “everyone works out regularly” or “no, Katherine, it’s not normal to eat dessert after each of your three daily meals” – making those lifestyle changes would’ve been a helluva lot easier then than they are now that they’re so deeply ingrained.

So how am I wrapping all this up? Through blogging and tweeting, my case is semi-parallel to that of the pregnant girl in Jordan – I had a problem, I knew I couldn’t face it alone, and I needed people who knew what they were talking about to help me. Even though I knew HOW to lose weight (calories in < calories out), it’s a very difficult thing to put into practice. Before I could succeed at it, I needed people who had lost weight to help me know how to change my lifestyle. I needed people who were in the process of losing weight to show me I wasn’t alone and to lean on when it got hard. I needed people who were losing weight in different ways so I could make informed decisions and figure out my best shot at success. I needed to tailor my own social network to suit my requirements, and blogging has allowed me to do that.

I have made friends from all over the world through blogging – people who are so like me, it’s scary (scarier for the audiences who read our Tweets and comments, I’m sure). I’ve “met” people who annoy the crap out of me, but I still read their content because their viewpoints, while opposing my own, make my experience more well-rounded and better-informed. I’ve created my own little virtual community because the one I physically inhabit was lacking something. That sounds like a blow to my IRL friends and family, but it’s not – I was missing something in my life, the absence of which caused me to be unhealthy and left me feeling lost, despite years of health and weight loss education. Through blogging and tweeting, conversing with people who truly understand me and have the same issues I do, I’m getting better at this healthy living thing day after day. When I falter, I turn to them for support. When I succeed, I turn to them for praise. This healthy living blogger community is my “something missing” – they let me know what it truly means to live a healthy lifestyle by comparison and are helping me make the lifelong changes I need in order to become the health nut I so desperately need and want to be.

To learn more about Kat and her journey to lose at least 100 pounds, visit her blog. You can follow Kat’s 140 character long thoughts by reading her twitter feed.

a few of Heather’s favorite posts by Kat can be found here, here, here, and here.

Thanks, Heather, for letting me be a part of this series! I hope it sheds some light on how our little virtual community helps us take our healthy living efforts day by day.

Formspring sheep

2010-02-19T01:08:00.008-05:00

I’m SUCH a sheep! I hate jumping on bandwagons, but I totally did today. That anonymous “ask me anything” website has me by the balls.

http://www.formspring.me/LowFatKat

Go. Do it. Ask away. But please be kind. I do cry easily.

I thought I’d get emails alerting me when people had asked questions, but I didn’t (maybe I’m missing something in the settings?), so I was surprised when I logged in this evening to find two AWESOME questions waiting for me! Seriously, I was so scared of what I’d find at first, but I was so happy to get two very legitimate questions that I was very happy to answer! Pardon, but my answers got a little verbose.

What type of diet are you on? I would love to lose 40 pounds, I'm currently overweight and need to lose. What do you eat, what can't you eat?

The diet that I'm on is essentially low-carb, [low-calorie, low-fat, higher protein]. The physician that I see has 4 different diet plans ranging from most restrictive (500 cals/day, all-shakes, what I'm currently doing this week as I need a kick in the pants) to least restrictive (eating in moderation, 1200-1400 calories).

I'll answer like I'm on my "normal" plan [edit – this is the 2nd most restrictive at about 800-900 calories/day]; I have 2 shakes a day and 2 meals a day [and I take vitamins and supplements]. My meals consist of lean protein and non-starchy vegetables. It's been hard for me because I was a vegetarian before doing this plan, and I feel like such a hypocrite, but I'll be going back to being a veg-head when I reach my goal weight.

I mix my morning shake with coffee (the shakes are actually good, by the way!) and usually have either a cold one (shake, not beer...boo) in the afternoon or a "hot chocolate" at night. Meals consist of a salad with chicken or chicken/pork/fish and veggies on the side. At this point, I can't eat any grains or starches (so no rice, beans, grains of any sort, potatoes, corn, legumes, etc.) and no dairy (I've been nibbling on cheese lately and got to where I was eating too much, hence me doing the kick-in-the-pants liquid diet for a week).

I'm not sure if I'll first reach my goal weight before switching plans to a less-restrictive diet, or if I'll switch when I'm close. When I went on a similar program before, lost a whole bunch of weight, then gained it all back, it was because I went straight from eating this restrictive diet and going right back to eating normally. I didn't "taper" back to less-restrictive diets and thus learn how to eat "normally."

What scares you the most about meeting your weightloss goal?

I LOVE this question, because I thought about it twice today, and it actually stopped me in my tracks both times. It's so weird you (whoever you are!!) asked it, because I hadn't really thought of it before today!

Today on a whim, I tried on one of my favorite dresses from "back in the day." It's a size 14 from a "normal" store - the Limited, and I was expecting to get my arms/shoulders stuck halfway through then have to tear it back off. Well, it FIT. And I looked damned good, I have to say (might take a picture soon!) I have a couple of other "goal" dresses from when I was thinner, and as I was admiring myself in that size-14 dress, I literally stopped in front of the mirror and thought "well what happens when I finally fit into the others?" Almost like a "well, now what?" sort of thing. I've had these dresses in mind for years, and I'll be so excited when I fit into them, but there are other dresses in the world, and other accomplishments beyond fitting into them. I guess my view has been so narrow regarding my weight loss goals, that I'm worrying what will happen when I get there.

When I had lost weight before, fashion got kind of scary. I know what silhouettes look best on me now; I know what fabrics to avoid and what styles to embrace in order to flatter (read: HIDE) my figure. When I lost weight, all of a sudden I didn't need to make those safe fashion choices anymore. I had an endless ocean of possibilities to choose from when it came to clothes (my wallet and closet were my only limiting factors, of course!) I do believe that I've gained a better sense of fashion since the last time I was slim, so I hope I won't feel as lost as I do this time around, but it's still scary to essentially realize that everything you know about dressing your body is suddenly wrong.

The OTHER thing I'm worried about is something that Jen (http://www.priorfatgirl.com/) Tweeted about tonight. Here's what she said:

"100 pounds lost and I can only admit to struggling more than I did 2 years ago. Seems to be no "final" destination."

All these years, I've always thought "when I lose the weight, I'll be fine, everything will be perfect, and I won't have any problems left." Well, I've known that's not *really* the truth, but weight loss seems to have this mystical "things will be better when..." attribute about it. I've just written a guest post for Heather (http://thenheathersaid.com) that will go live soon wherein I talk about how blogging has slapped me in the face with reality. All of these fit girls whose blogs I read have to work HARD to maintain their weight. You don't just shed it and that's it - that's why I'm back in this position after having lost weight a few times already. I'm not naive enough to think I can go back to sitting around eating entire boxes of macaroni and cheese after I reach my goal weight, but blogging has opened my eyes to the reality of just how hard you have to work to keep it off.

So, short story long here, the thing that scares me about reaching my goal is: what if that's the easy part? What if I reach it within the next year and spend the next 60 years working even harder to maintain it? It's a harsh reality I'll have to face, because I'm beginning to really realize it's the truth.

To whomever asked these questions – thank you! I really appreciate it! Ask away, guys!

Getting the hell off my laurels

2010-02-18T00:53:00.003-05:00

I checked in at the doctor today and broke down in tears in front of her for the first time since I started going in November.

I lost 1 lb over the past two weeks. One measly, stupid pound.

Granted, I was wearing (heavy) jeans this time, and on my scale at home, I’ve lost 3lbs during that same timeframe, but enough excuses. I've been resting on my laurels lately, and that really sucks, especially considering my most recent goal. I’ve lost 40lbs on this plan so far, and I’ve been getting bored. I’m motivated by success, but I’ve started taking it for granted. I’ve done OK at my sugar detox, but I’ve still slipped up lately, and thus my addiction isn’t getting any better. I’ve been going to the gym about 3 times per week and taking fitness classes that I used to be too scared to take, but I’ve been drinking more wine lately, adding a serving of pasta here or cheese there. I’m falling back into old habits, and I need to slap myself in the face to stop. Metaphorically, of course.

I’m scaling back my diet to all-shakes this week. I went in there today knowing not to expect as big a loss as usual, and I was planning on asking my doctor what she thought about me doing the all-liquid plan for a week (this is the same plan I did my first week on the diet back in late November, just to get the ball rolling). She thought it was a great idea and said she sometimes suggests people in my position try that.

I’m feeling two things here – one, I’m glad that I’ve decided to put my foot down and wipe the slate clean, so to speak. Much like a New Year or Lent affords an opportunity to start anew, I’m using this week to springboard back into progress like some people use a cleanse or juice fast (neither of which I’ve done, by the way). On the other hand, I’m worried that I’m using it as an easy way out; should I have stuck with my regular plan and just dealt with my issues head-on? Is my decision the equivalent of tucking my tail and running? Not to say that an all-liquid diet is an easy fix, though, because it definitely sucks balls. But I’m a bit worried that this might contribute to my trend of “all-or-nothing” thinking. Either I’m cheating left and right or I’m restricting totally and drinking my meals. Hopefully this week will just give me that metaphorical slap I need and I’ll emerge disciplined and motivated on the other side.

I’m sure this might open up some very opinionated comments, but I wanted y’all to at least know where I’m at for the next week and to know that it’s not a decision I came to lightly.

Because I haven’t done a traditional “look at my food” post in awhile, I’ll share a couple of pictures from today. First off, I thought I looked effing cute this morning on my way to my appointment. This picture was taken in the bathroom about 30 minutes before I turned into a huge sobbing mess of a puddle (PS – I HATE crying in front of people; not because I feel weak, but because I CAN’T TALK. It’s so awkward to sit there crying, trying to control yourself, when someone’s watching you, waiting for you to calm down so you can continue talking. Grr.)

When I went to step on the scale, I took off my (favorite) scarf, and it got stuck on my necklace, breaking the necklace, and pulling some threads in the scarf. I think I got the fibers all back where they needed to be, but it set the tone for the rest of the day. Bollocks.

I had tentative plans to meet up with one of my cousins for lunch (he’s like the brother I never had), but he was busy at work (we’ve rescheduled for next week!) so I went to Mom’s hospital to eat with her. Another awkward anecdote: cafeterias make me feel like I’m back in middle school again. Every cafeteria has a different protocol, and everyone knows it except for me. I never know where to start, who to ask, what to grab, how to pay, and it’s usually wicked crowded which sets me off in a tizzy anyway. My best friend Catherine and I got our lunch from the cafeteria on our first day of middle school, and we were scarred for life – I took my lunch to school every day after that for the next 7 years. So today Mommy held my hand (again, metaphorically), and I got meatloaf and squash for lunch. Don’t hate – I’ve been craving meatloaf lately.

When I left the hospital, I went to Jewelry Warehouse because I got a $10 off coupon for my birthday month – wahoo!! They didn’t have exactly what I wanted, so I left empty-handed…boo. Hopefully I’ll find it in the next 10 days; I want a simple ring I can wear on my left middle finger all the time as a visual reminder of my dedication to weight loss. I’ve got lots of Mafia wife cocktail rings, but I want something simple and understated. They had really nice sterling silver micro-pave CZ bands that I really wanted, but they don’t make them big enough. The search continues.

All day I’ve been feeling kind of sickly, and super-depressed. I hate to be such a Debbie Downer, but on the way home from downtown Columbia, I listened to “Show Me What I’m Looking For” by Carolina Liar on repeat and just sobbed, only to come home and PTFO for a few hours. The bright spot in my evening was chatting with Rachel, Chandra, and Dori on g-chat like a circa-1997 AOL chat room. I did eat dinner, but I didn’t take a picture of it…I was feeling too blah, if that’s any excuse.

So wow, this post started out depressing and ended up depressing. The great thing about going to sleep is that tomorrow is a new day and a fresh start.

How do you shake things up when you start getting sloppy in your eating habits? Have you ever done an all-liquid diet? Do you have any visual reminders of your commitment to your health, i.e., jewelry or a tattoo? What’s your favorite “turn it on and sob” song? (I’m also partial to “Let Go” by Frou Frou for that purpose!) Do you use g-chat? Hit me up any time! My email address is lowfatkatherine at gmail dot com

NSV: Bridesmaid dress

2010-02-17T01:11:00.003-05:00

(NSV = non-scale victory)

On August 11, 2007, my friends Deidra and Arthur got married, and I was honored to be a bridesmaid in the wedding! I remember crash dieting beforehand to fit into my size 20 dress, and even then it was a really tight fit.

I’m really sucking it in in this picture, hence my boobs crushing my throat. I’m trying to point out that I’m an inverse of the chairs, but the dress was so tight, you can barely see my sash because my fat rolls were trying to eat it. (Sidenote: I NEVER go without sleeves – it pains me to share these pictures)

See how the waist is SUPPOSED to look on the other gals versus how it looks on me? (More on my big-as-Texas hair in a sec)

Just UGH.

So why bring it up now? I was cleaning out my closet of all my fat clothes, and I decided to try the dress on (with no makeup – brace yourselves)…

I’m the smallest I’ve been in 2.5 years! It’s not photographing well, but the dress is loose now! Now, about those arms…

Oh – my Texas hair!! At the time, my hair was this short:

(I guess I’m telling a very animated story about boobs to another ‘maid while I should’ve been paying attention during the rehearsal.) The hairstylist didn’t have much to work with (short + fine = not a good combo for an updo), so she curled, pinned, and sprayed the bejezus out of it:

And it stayed up even after the pins came out…

A pretty cool miracle, right?

PS - I've lost 60lbs since my highest weight and have 60lbs more until I reach my goal - officially halfway there!!!

Society Series: To compliment or not compliment?

2010-02-16T23:32:00.001-05:00

That is a tough question!

Recently I ~~whined~~ opened up to Twitter about getting my first real compliment on my weight loss from a friend I hadn’t seen in a couple of months. I had been bummed when I saw her (and other friends I see even more infrequently) at Christmas/New Year’s and nobody commented on the weight I had already lost at that point. I assumed since I had already lost ~30lbs when I saw everyone at the holidays, I’d get compliments left and right.

No dice.

So, I thought, maybe those 30lbs were just a drop in the bucket? Maybe it’s not as huge a difference to others as it is to myself? I got over it and went about my business.

Nearly two months and 20 more pounds went by, and I finally got my first compliment on Sunday night (aside from my parents). Now here’s where Kelsey’s Society Series post - “When they STOP mentioning it” – comes into play. Why was I so bothered that nobody had said anything? Some people on Twitter said “maybe people see you so often that they can’t tell small differences every time they see you” – but I’m talking about people I hadn’t seen in months. I’m losing this weight for myself and my own health, but there’s some vanity there, too; I can’t escape it. I want some validation that I’m making myself look better on the outside while improving my longevity. However, I’m realizing that weight is SUCH a taboo topic that even those who you feel close to are hesitant to mention it. It’s been THE foremost topic in my brain for 20 years, so I kinda want everyone to pat me on the back when I lose it, and shut the hell up when I gain it.

Compliments can totally backfire, though, and make even the best intentions look horrible. Saying “wow, you look so amazing now!” could imply you looked like crap before. “What are you doing? You look great!” might give way to a less-than-savory answer (“it’s a tapeworm, man…thanks for mentioning it”). Unless they’re your best friend or parent, some people are just too afraid of somehow hurting your feelings in a backhanded way, and I need to accept that. Just because they don’t compliment you doesn’t mean they don’t notice. As someone who has wrestled with weight her whole life, I know how much I appreciate compliments, and I like to address others’ hard work when I notice their weight loss. However, someone who hasn’t seen the world through fat-colored glasses might not know how to approach it. [And maybe others who are losing weight are embarrassed and don’t want comments – are you that way?]

The funny thing is, the day after Kaycee complimented me, our neighbor gave me a compliment by way of my mom (while I was out at a new Zumba class – go me!). She admitted she didn’t feel comfortable saying something to me, and I (am beginning to) understand that.

Again, I refer to Kelsey’s post: since I’ve gotten both of those compliments, I’ve been dressing a little snazzier.

I’ve been checking myself out a little bit more.

I’ve been carrying myself differently.

I don’t want to be THAT GIRL who thrives on compliments and validation, because then the motivation becomes external and the reasons for losing weight are wrong. However, like sprinkles on a cupcake (mmm….cuuuupcaaaaake), compliments add a little something extra to an already sweet victory.

Do you have a policy on complimenting others’ weight loss? How do you feel when people say (hopefully positive) things about your weight loss? Do you agree with me that weight is too taboo to comment on unless you’re really close to the person?

Snowmageddon!!

2010-02-13T12:32:00.001-05:00

I can hardly contain myself – we got about 6” of snow here last night! The airport (about 30 min away) got 8.5” – this is the 5th highest snowfall in recorded history for Columbia, SC! I’m a freak when it comes to snow…it is ALWAYS welcome when I’m around, so I’m a pretty happy camper at the moment!

It started around 3:30pm as teeny tiny little icy flakes – no actual flakes were seen this snowfall.

Then the tiny ice shards started clumping together…

…and pretty soon, it was coming down hard!

We still have our Christmas tree on our deck (long story), so we decided to pull it out in the open so it could get some snow.

Maddy was starting to get excited! (this was about 4:30pm)

Sophie is camera-shy.

Here we are at 5pm…

And an hour later, around 6:15

And here’s the snow at 8pm!!

3.5 inches!

We ate dinner in there somewhere – the dill/horseradish/panko-crusted salmon we tried last week, and one of my favorite concoctions – squash simmered in consommé or broth, then topped with sour cream and parmesan and baked. Oh, and there was wine. A few glasses…

…and then a little sliver of cheesecake. I’ve been doing well with my “no sugar” rules, so I’m (semi-) happy to report that the cheesecake gave me a sore throat!

This was a little over 5.5” a bit after midnight. We waited until after the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics to take the dogs out.

I put Maddy on her retractable leash so she’d have some slack (i.e., not knock my tipsy ass down)

(that’s our driveway!)

Obligatory snow angel.

I made a snow-Jabba (it was too powdery to form into balls).

And I totally wiped out when walking from the road to the yard. But I stayed down. And wallowed in the snow. Literally. Don’t worry – I got back up! (In my Christmas PJs. Don’t hate.)

And it’s still gorgeous as ever this morning, even though it’s starting to melt away…

And since I love you guys, I’m letting you hear my uber-annoying voice. Gah, do I really sound like this in real life? At least you know I say things in real life like I do on the blog – crude jokes and sartorial mistakes and all.

Sugar Free’s the Way to Be

2010-02-09T00:39:00.001-05:00

Yesterday I made a cake. This cake. For our friend Debbie’s birthday. It had 3 different kinds of chocolate, real butter, and real cream.

A brownie base, mousse layer, cake top, and ganache frosting.

I made it, stored it in the fridge, and cleaned up the dishes…with my tongue. Today, I had my one piece I requested Mom bring back for me (the party was at work)…

…and tonight I ate more of the mousse and ganache that I had left over from yesterday. I should’ve thrown it away last night. Why on earth would I keep it? If I keep it, I’ll eat it. Case in point: I DID. Not all of it, but some. Enough that I’ve got a stomachache and a headache (I actually feel drunk right now, and it’s all because of that sugary crap), and I’m super mad at myself. There was NO reason for me to keep those cake constituents when I knew in the back of my mind I was just keeping them to eat them. It’s an old trick of mine – I’m “afraid” of throwing stuff away, and when I don’t throw it away, I just eat it. OK. I did it, I regret it, I’m moving on.

So along with my 13 by 26 challenge (which today’s setback might’ve totally screwed up), I’m giving up sugar. It shouldn’t be a big deal – my current diet is should be sugar-free anyway. This huge declaration of “I’m giving up sugar” should already be put into play. However, sugar leads to sugar cravings which lead to BIGGER sugar cravings. One little episode of slipping up led to even more episodes of slipping up, so I’ve got to nip this in the bud before it gets even worse. My weight loss over the past few weeks hasn’t been nearly as impressive as it was a month or so ago, and I know it’s because I keep slipping up in small ways that snowball into bigger screw-ups. It’s got to stop.

Earlier today after my one slice of cake, I had a sugar crash from hell – I could’ve laid down on the floor and taken a nap, it was so bad. And now I’m sitting here with a post-sugar headache to rival that of a hangover. So I’m catching up on Google Reader, and Mary has written a post about cutting sugar out of her diet. I’m not sure I believe in “signs,” but I definitely took it as a cue to action.

No more sugar. No more random, undocumented spoonfuls of peanut butter out of the jar, no more mini handfuls of chocolate chips when I need a pick-me-up. No more chocolate, no matter where I get it or in what quantities. Also, no more alcohol! I’ve had a few drinks in the past couple of weeks, and that’s a few too many! I was perusing cake recipes tonight (coming down off my “I just baked a friggin’ awesome cake” confidence high) to make for my birthday in a couple of weeks, but I’m not going to bake one after all. We’re going out to a tapas restaurant and a place with awesome desserts for my birthday, and that’s it. I don’t want a big cake here at the house that I’ll have to eat for a few days to get rid of. I want to practice the one-shot-and-it’s-done thing; I’ll have my slice of cake and be done with it.

I see myself falling down the same paths I’ve been down way too many times. I can’t keep falling victim to my own tricks, because I’ll be 270lbs again and battling heart disease or diabetes or a gallbladder attack. So here it goes – DETOX.

This sounds terrible, but please don’t leave a comment about how dangerous it is to let yourself do the things I’ve been doing, because I know, and I keep beating myself up about it. It sucks so much to be chastised by others for the things you know you’ve done wrong. I’m saying it in a public forum because I’m trying to be honest to y’all and to myself. “Saying it aloud” is a lot healthier than other coping mechanisms I’ve turned to in the past, so I’m trying this for the sake of my sanity and for accountability.

It’s not enough to say “no more sugar” because that’s putting a lot of pressure on my willpower; I have to help myself by putting healthy habits to work. I’ll be getting some healthy snacks to keep my hands and teeth busy when I’m craving something sweet instead, and I’ll be putting a few barriers between myself and my triggers (i.e., putting peanut butter and chocolate chips in multiple boxes; it’s not realistic to throw them away at this point since I’m not the only person in the house).

This post has dragged on long enough, and my headache isn’t getting any better, so I’ll end it there. Does anyone else want to join Mary and me in kicking sugar to the curb? Have you done this before with success? What kinds of things did you do to ensure your success?

Society Series: The Double Standard of Dating

2010-02-08T00:15:00.003-05:00

While I’ve been mulling over how to write my first post of The Society Series, I happened upon this quote by Ellen DeGeneres from Us Magazine that introduces my topic:

"It's a double standard because there are men with really beautiful women that don't have great bodies, and yet nobody's saying anything about that," she tells Katie Couric on CBS Evening News. "Women [think they] need to keep themselves up to look good for a man or for society. It's not fair."

I’ve only had a couple of boyfriends in my relatively few years on this earth, and while most of my dating history can probably be attributed to my…quirks, I can’t help but blame my appearance most of the time.

[source]

It has always irked me that society tells us that boyfriends/husbands can be fat but girlfriends/wives should be slim. You see slender girls with larger boys all the time, but how often are those tables turned? It’s rare to see an overweight gal with a “normal-sized” dude. And in the chicken-egg debate of “does art imitate life or vice versa?” there are several TV shows that perpetuate this relationship rule.

[source]	The Honeymooners This pairing is probably just a product of 1950s society; the pretty little housewife catered to the bread-winning man. Maybe this was one of the first instances of the fat-husband-skinny-wife TV template?
[source]	The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air Philip and Vivian Banks belong to high society; he’s a wealthy businessman, and she – well, does she work? I don’t remember. I do remember one episode when she went to dance classes or a big audition, and she was one helluva dancer (read: in good shape). Regardless of occupation, he’s fat, and she’s thin.
[source]	The Drew Carey Show Drew was the lovable big guy who often dated girls smaller than him. I used to watch it but am only vaguely remembering – did he and Kate date a few times? Did they end up together? Nevertheless, it follows the pattern of the larger dude with smaller chicks.
[source]	The King of Queens This is the one that always sticks out in my mind. She’s hot, and he’s fat. He’s funny and charming and sweet (like Drew up there), so that’s what won her over, I guess. However, “funny, charming, and sweet” rarely ever get fat gals dates – it’s the looks that usually reels in the fellas.

So we see patterns here – the man is either the breadwinner or he’s funny and charming. I mentioned a chicken-egg argument earlier, and here’s another: is the man’s weight a moot point if the couple/family adheres to the paternalistic bread-winner model? Should I be attacking that model instead (because trust me, I do)? Is he “allowed” to be fat because he should be the “head of the house” and should be “taken care of” at home? Maybe that’s why the balance between fat spouses is skewed toward the man – historically, excess weight has meant excess wealth. Are we still brainwashed to believe that? Are guys actually so shallow as to say “no fatties,” or are they afraid to look “weak” by taking a partner who looks physically bigger?

I think the main reason we don’t see more large women in relationships with smaller men is because of those historical gender roles. The man is “supposed” to be larger because big = masculine, and the woman is “supposed” to be smaller because dainty = feminine. While society has largely moved on from the single breadwinner financial model, I think we’re stuck on the body image stereotype that accompanied it. It’s definitely difficult to break down social mores and protocols that have been hammered into society over several generations. If men have always understood that slender = beautiful, they’re afraid to even entertain the idea of getting involved with larger women for fear of looking like “less of a man.”

I’m starting to feel rants and tangents coming on here, so I’ll just open it up to comments.

Also, I did a few quick Google searches to see if there were any links I should include or resources to back up my rants, and I came across this post from Back in Skinny Jeans. I’m glad to know I’m not the only one who is bothered by this pattern!

Do you agree or disagree that it’s more taboo for an overweight gal and slender dude to date/marry? Why do you think that is? Does age have anything to do with it – might those stereotypes get weaker as we get older? How does race play a role in these rules? Am I completely off-base and only seeing what I want to see? For the record, I’ve known very few big girl/small dude pairings but plenty of the opposite, so maybe my little corner of the world is skewed.

Update: I just knew I'd come back and edit this for some reason. Laura brought up a good point with her comment - I'm not just ranting about dudes, because I am totally subject to this "brainwashing" as well. I don't want to date someone who's thinner than me; I look for bigger, burlier dudes. I don't want to be the big one in a relationship, but I wouldn't mind having a guy who's a little bigger than me. However, it's not often that dudes can say the same thing. So while it sounds like I'm bashing guys for having this skewed mindset, I'm really questioning the status quo and society in general. Carry on.

Gymrat in the making

2010-02-04T22:57:00.003-05:00

I’m headed to bed soon – I’ve been visited by the Exhaustion Fairy, and that bitch punched me in the gut and pulled my pigtails. But first, I wanted to brag on myself:

Pay no attention to that weekly goal thing…my “week” of taking things seriously started halfway through. Rachel and I went to the Y and did the elliptical, then I jumped on a rowing machine for a few minutes (the other one was taken, so Rachel tried some stupid machine that didn’t do much for her, so we both moved on), and then we did the upright bikes hard ‘n’ heavy (har) for 10 min before tackling the weight machines!

I need to remember to bring a notebook in the weight room next time so I’ll know how much weight to use (I’m not 100% certain about the weights on those two press machines), and I need to schedule a session with a trainer to show me the height settings for each one. They got all-new equipment in December during my fitness hiatus, and I have no clue what settings to use anymore. I had just gotten comfortable with the old ones! Also, I need heavier dumbbells. Those 5-pounders didn’t do much for me.

I look forward to going to the gym with Rachel because I’m actually doing well at it so far, and I get to hang out with one of my BFFs, and what’s even better – two of our other friends are joining the Y in the next week! One of whom I’ve known since I was 5! I can’t imagine how much fun it’ll be to have all four of us working out together – it’ll really motivate me to get there and have fun with it!

About me posting my first Society Series post tonight – that ain’t happening. Sorry, y’all, but I’m PTFOing. Night, guys!

13 by 26

2010-02-03T23:01:00.002-05:00

Hey all! I had another checkup this morning, and I only lost 4.5lbs since January 20th. I say “only” because I’m used to losing as much as 2lbs more than that; however, I know I’ve been slipping up lately, so I wasn’t that surprised I didn’t do as well. I’m just happy I pulled out as much as I did.

13 by 26
I turn 26 in 3.5 weeks (February 28th – mark your calendars! I want everyone dancing in the streets!!), and I’m going to try my damnedest to get below 200 by then. I’ve got just under 13lbs to go, which translates to ~4lbs per week. Can I do it? God I hope so. There’s no prize if I do or consequence if I don’t, but it’s a neat small-term goal that I can keep my eye on. I’ve never really had a goal like that, so I’m hoping I’ll be able to keep up with it since I’ve got actual numbers to work with. I’ll keep ya posted.

Zumba
Tonight I went to my first-ever ZUMBA class! Rachel and I looked in on it last Wednesday when I went back to the gym, and it didn’t look too bad from the outside. Little did I know how hard it would be…. There were maybe 40-50 people there (I’m terrible at estimating numbers, though, so don’t listen to anything I say), and it started at 5:45pm. By 6:15, the windows and mirror were completely fogged and the floor was slick. That many hot bodies in the room really does a number on the nonporous surfaces. The class is comprised of a lot of dance-type moves that are Latin in origin (salsa, merengue, and cha-cha steps a-plenty) and that make you move your hips. As a general rule, I don’t dance unless it’s choreographed because my hips don’t know what to do with themselves. I have a feeling that if I keep taking Zumba classes, my hips will be liberated from their nerdy white prison, a.k.a. my lower half, and I might actually find some rhythm. (Rachel did give me what I consider to be a friggin’ awesome compliment; she said “I can tell you used to dance,” because some of my tap and jazz moves came back with my fancy Zumba footwork )

I sweat an embarrassingly large amount when I work out hard, and I felt like I was going to pass out a few times, but other than that, I had a blast! A couple more classes, and I’ll have the moves down pat! I’ll definitely be going back next week! Oh, and when I got home and changed, I split a Magic Hat Circus Boy Hefeweizen with Mom, and it was the best beer I’ve ever had in the entire world forever and ever amen. Burning a kajillion calories probably had 70% to do with that, but it is a pretty good beer all on its own, too.

Dinner
Tonight for dinner, we tried a new recipe we found in Good Housekeeping, salmon with a dill, horseradish, and panko crust with a baby spinach and cucumber salad (recipe can be found here). I’m sometimes weird about fish, but I can say with 100% confidence that this is the best fish I’ve ever had. I was worried either the dill or the horseradish would be overpowering, but they balanced each other PERFECTLY. It was AMAZING!!

I made steamed zucchini on the side. No big whoop here. Let’s see that fish again, shall we?

Wow! I’ll probably make this again in a few days.

The Society Series
So I hope everyone’s got their thinking caps on about today’s earlier post. I’m sure you guys have some neat ideas to throw around with everyone about how your healthy lifestyle fits into your little corner of society. I’m still working on my first entry and will try to post it tomorrow night! I’ve titled it “The Double Standard of Dating”

And now I'm going to go PTFO. I'm going to sleep soooo well tonight after my hour of bustin' a move and bustin' my ass!

Launching The Society Series

2010-02-03T12:00:00.004-05:00

Over many conversations about our own experiences and frustrations with society and how we fit in it, Jenny from Color Hungry and I decided a few weeks ago to start addressing these issues on our blogs. We’ve both studied sociology and are fascinated by how societies and their constituent members shape one another, so we wanted to create a platform where healthy living bloggers could share thoughts and ideas. Admittedly, the development has been slow-going, but we’re ready to reveal it to the Blogosphere and invite you all to participate!

We present to you:

The Society Series consists of blog posts written about how society looks upon weight, diet, food, health, and fitness in regard to to gender, race, socioeconomic status, religion, or anything else “society-wise.” The posts can be rants and personal narratives about issues you (or people you know) have faced, or they can be treated as articles backed by serious research.

These won’t be guest posts on our blogs, but rather posts on your own pages. When you write a post for The Society Series, let either Jenny (@Colorhungry on Twitter or xprssblues at yahoo dot com) or me (@LowFatKat or lowfatkatherine at gmail dot com) know, and we’ll add a link to your post on our pages. If you’ve written a post in the past that fits the bill, we’d be more than happy to include links to them, too!

We’re each adding a tab to our own blogs where you’ll find a list of all the posts (possibly by topic? We’ll have to see how this all unfolds). If you’d like to add the badge to your page, you’re more than welcome to, and we’d also appreciate a link back to both of us (http://colorhungry.wordpress.com/society-series/ and http://www.lowfatkatherine.com/p/society-series.html). Also, if you want to carry the conversations over to Twitter, use the hashtag #thesocietyseries so everyone can join in. (Update: We changed it from #societyseries because that one seemed to be in use already).

Jenny and I are each posting our own first entries in The Society Series soon after this introductory post, and we really hope hope you’ll join us in the conversation!

I’m Lost

2010-02-03T00:36:00.003-05:00

I just watched the premiere of Lost and will most likely be re-watching it again soon. I tried doing some “mindless” activities while I watched – it just can’t be done. I miss key points, I lose track of what’s going on…when Lost is on, I need to sit with my nose to the screen and not budge. Having said that, I’m so glad it’s back, and I’m looking forward to some answers finally as this final season wraps up (not that I’m in any hurry for it to end!)!.

Yesterday I was delighted to sign for this…

…even if I had to face my poor mail carrier in my PJ pants and a wifebeater. At 1pm. No shame.

Jaime from Embracing Balance and I did a cross-border exchange (see what I sent her!) and I got some flippin’ awesome goodies all the way from Nova Scotia!

My loot was contained in this sweet tote bag (can I be inducted into the Lululemon club now that I own something with their logo?):

And here’s the awesomeness contained within…

Smarties candy-coated chocolate…same concept as M&Ms, but oh so different
Peppermint-spiked dark chocolate – I split this with my mom last night while we watched Meet the Fockers. The chocolate was amaaaazing. I love nibbling at dark chocolate, and the peppermintyness made it soooo good.
Cute Canadian tissues! I’ve got a couple of packs of this brand from weddings and parties, but they’re so cute I don’t want to use them! I’m DEFINITELY not wiping my nose with these!
Authentic, real deal, no tricks here, pure Nova Scotia maple syrup. I see some pancakes in my future.
Some black tea I have yet to try; I’m definitely a fan of black tea, though, so I know I’ll like it!
Ketchup potato chips. Holy crap these are awesome! They taste similar to salt and vinegar chips, but they’ve got a little extra tang to them. Unlike the chocolate, I’m able to pace myself with these, so I’ve got about 2/3 a bag left (and yes, I’m sharing!) [Sidenote – the bag popped in transit and spilled a few chip crumbs in my little bag, and I ate every last crumb. Germs and contamination be damned, they’re that good.]
A sweet little calendar filled with lovely images from Nova Scotia!

Jaime, thank you so much for doing this exchange with me! I really appreciate all the local goodies you shared!

Tonight I tried a pulled pork recipe that Mary Clare was so sweet to send me after reading my crock pot pulled chicken post. It would’ve been perfect had I paid 100% attention to the instructions, but my roast was like 50% bigger than the recipe called for, so it didn’t shred like I had hoped it would by dinnertime.

I used my Sticky Fingers Carolina Sweet BBQ sauce on top and had green beans and some fake cole slaw on the side (cabbage + dollop of mayo + dollop of sour cream + cider vinegar + squirt of mustard + Splenda + pepper). I thought I was only using a little bit of mayo and sour cream, but it turns out I would’ve been fine with 1/3 the amount I used. I had a recipe for the slaw in mind, but it would’ve taken longer than I had, so I threw this together at the last minute. After dinner, I kept the rest of the roast in the crockpot for a couple of hours, and it turned out PERFECTLY. I have a feeling I’ll be using this for several meals to come.

Alright, I’m waaaay past loopy with tiredness, and I’m dreading my weigh-in tomorrow morning. I haven’t been doing so hot lately. Oh, and that goal checkup I posted the other night? Not doing great in that regard either. Sigh. How can I be unemployed and still so busy as to let stuff like exercise slip? I’m such a headcase.

So, wrapping this up, if you were sending a care package to someone from another country or distant state, what local goodies would you put in it? Does your region have any weirdly unique items that make “foreigners” cringe?