Simply Fitting Into Life...and my old jeans

Sitting At a Buffet: How to Ensure You're Not Staring at Temptation

2011-05-20T21:05:00.000-04:00

Guest post by Dan Seitz

Buffets are the enemy of any diet. Full of fatty foods, and sometimes with only a few healthy or low-
calorie options, you can find yourself undoing months of work in one night. But it doesn't have to be
that way, not with the help of science.

A study conducted by two Cornell economists found some behaviors that show why you bust your
belly at the buffet table...and how to avoid it.

− Don't sit in front of the buffet: put your back to it or sit with it at your side. When it faces
you, it's easier to see what's available...and easier to tell yourself one (or one more) serving of
beef stroganoff won't hurt.
− Use a smaller plate; larger plates will look empty when you properly serve yourself,
convincing you that just maybe you haven't had enough food.
− Before serving yourself, look over the entire buffet and see what's available, instead of
going for the first option you see. Not only will this help you plan your meal, it'll also allow
your stomach to get caught up with your hunger, so you'll know how much is hunger and how
much is just an interest in how that alfredo sauce tastes.
− Put a napkin on your lap. It may sound odd, but it'll keep you from automatically getting up
and going back to the buffet; you'll have time to think about what you want and whether you
really need a second serving.
− Chew your food thoroughly. As any dieter knows, a big part of the problem is that you can
serve yourself faster than your stomach can tell you you've had enough. Chewing slowly and
thoroughly will make sure it's got time to gauge how much you've had.

Beyond that, there are strategies you can use to avoid the buffet in the first place:

− If you're with family or friends and they suggest a buffet restaurant, see if you can talk them
into going to a sit-down restaurant with more options...and less temptation.
− If it's a sit-down restaurant with a buffet, order from the menu instead of getting the buffet.
That way, everyone's happy and you won't be faced with unhealthy choices.
− If it's a social occasion where a buffet is the only option, use the strategies above and focus on
the socializing. After all, you're there to talk with people: the food is just a courtesy.
− For potlucks and other buffet-like situations, bring a big batch of your favorite healthy
option. Not only will it ensure there's something for you to eat, the rest of the group will be
grateful for a little variety.

Buffets are a part of life, but there's no reason you can't go to one. All it takes is a little control...and
being mindful of where you sit.

Dan Seitz is a freelance writer who has posted previously about self-improvement through lifestyle changes, as well as making sure your home is kept up via techniques such as gutter cleaning.

Thank You All!!

2011-05-18T18:30:00.000-04:00

I want to truly thank you all for your kind and helpful comments last week. JR and I have been working through this and we are making progress, but it is taking time. We have been talking out our issues and life feels so much better than it did a week ago. Thank you all so much!

So, what does my normal schedule look like you may ask....

Monday

7:50 Get Joclyn on bus

9- Spinning class

10:40-11:15 Aqua baby with Bella

11:30-2:30 At my moms helping her & my grandmother

3:10 Get Joclyn off bus

3-5 Make sure Joclyn gets homework done & house work

5-6 Make dinner

6-7 Eat dinner and relax a bit

7-8 Kids bath time

8 Kids in bed

8-10 Get stuff ready for next day

Tuesday

7:50 Get Joclyn on bus

8-11 Get stuff done around the house. Get on the computer a bit.

11-2:30 At my moms helping her and my grandmother

3:10 Get Joclyn off bus

3-4 Make sure Joclyn gets homework done & house work

4:15-5:30 Lap swim

6-7 Eat dinner and relax a bit

7-8 Kids bath time

8 Kids in bed

8-10 Get stuff ready for next day

Wednesday

7:50 Get Joclyn on bus

9- Spinning class

10- Run

11:30-2:30 At my moms helping her and my grandmother

3:10 Get Joclyn off bus

3-5 Make sure Joclyn gets homework done & house work

5-6 Make dinner

6-7 Eat dinner and relax a bit

7-8 Kids bath time

8 Kids in bed

8-10 Get stuff ready for next day

Thursday

7:50 Get Joclyn on bus

8-11 Get stuff done around the house. Get on the computer a bit.

11-2:30 At my moms helping her and my grandmother

3:10 Get Joclyn off bus

3-4 Make sure Joclyn gets homework done & house work

4:15-5:30 Lap swim 6-7 Eat dinner and relax a bit

7-8 Kids bath time

8 Kids in bed

8-10 Get stuff ready for next day

Friday

7:50 Get Joclyn on bus

9- Spinning class

10- Run

10:40-11:15 Aqua baby with Bella

11:30-2:30 At my moms helping her & my grandmother

3:10 Get Joclyn off bus

3-5 Make sure Joclyn gets homework done & house work

5-6 Make dinner

6-7 Eat dinner and relax a bit

7-8 Kids bath time

8 Kids in bed

8-10 Get stuff ready for next day

Saturday -Family time

Sunday -Family Time

Softball is also thrown in 2 times a week as well. I Mom is doing really well, although we had to go back down to Pittsburgh last week because her incision was not healing right. She had old scar tissue from her previous surgery that was not getting enough blood to it and was not healing, so the doctor debreid it and put in 4 stitches.

Life has been crazy, but all in all things have gotten a lot better! I hope you all are having a wonderful week!

.........

2011-05-03T12:04:00.000-04:00

I would love to tell you all that I am so happy right now(I am down almost 3 pounds this week), but I am not.... My husband and I had a huge fight last week and it is still trickling into this week. I cried my heart out last week and yes he is still the unemotional man from the first time we met. I have been through an emotional roller coaster the last few days. My stomach has been in knots since this all started and it hurts so bad, emotionally and physically.

We have been together for over 8 years now and married almost for 2 of those years. I don't know how this all started, but I am scared to death that we won't get through this. I honestly don't know what to do to help mend this.....

Checking In

2011-04-27T20:37:00.000-04:00

Happy belated Easter everyone!! Life is crazy and it's just awesome! I have not been this busy in I don't know how long and I am loving it! I hate being stagnant and that is what I have been for so long and it just feels like life has a purpose once again.

I have been busy taking care of my own house as well as my moms since her surgery. Joclyn turned 7 on Easter this year! She has also started playing softball and taking swim lessons. I won't dwell on the bad things I at last week... Needless to say I maintained last week. DONE moving on!!

I am swimming like a fish in the pool and totally loving it! Water is bliss for me.....I didn't get my third run or bike in for the week last week, but that's ok. I think I am doing well so far.

Monday

BRICK(Bike and then Run right after)
Bike 6 mi- 24mins
Run 3.04 mi- 30 minutes

Tuesday

Sculpt 30

Swam 960 yards- 30 min

Wednesday

Bike 12 mi in 55 min

Thursday

Upper 20

Lower 20

Abs 10

Swam 1600 Yards- 40 min

Friday

HIIT 30

Saturday

Fire 60

Abs 10

Sunday

Rest

I hope you all have a wonderful week!!

Another Monday, Already?!?!

2011-04-18T21:13:00.001-04:00

All I can say is what a week it's been. It feels like it's never ending.... Well, mom had her back fusion last Tuesday and all went well. She is doing very well and moving as much as she can. I brought her home Friday afternoon. It was a long drive,(having to stop every 30 minutes or so, so that she could stand and get the pressure off her back) but we made it. I have pretty much been her little nurse helping her out as much as possible. She kept asking me "why didn't I get this done 15 years ago?" I told her that she more than likely would not have had the wonderful surgeon that she had do it. She said I was right about that.

My mom has been an RN for my whole life+. One night she was working in the ER and a gunshot victim came in and they had to literally drag this man out of a car. Well, needless to say that was the first time she really hurt her back. that was in 1986. Later that year she had her first back surgery and did not want to have another. She put this off as long as she possibly could. She put up with her pain and almost never said anything to me about how bad she was hurting. I want to stress something here.... Take care of your back!! Stop and think before you do something "In the moment" because it really could cost you. Mom yells at nurses all the time for not being careful and tells them that yes someday it will cost you if you are not careful.

On a happy note I ate a bit better this week, but did not get in as much training as I would have liked. All in all though it was good. I try and keep reminding myself that I am fueling my body to perform at it's best. When processed junk enters it I perform like crap and that is also what happens when I do eat it! LOL This kind of thinking has really helped to curb those cravings and bad thoughts...

I did not have another Apple Dumpling incident, but at Bible Study there was CHOCOLATE CAKE & CHOCOLATE MILK that was thrown in my hands! I did eat the cake, but did not touch the milk, because I know better than to put all that dairy into my body, when my body HATES IT! I might just bring in fruit salad or something HEALTHY at the next bible study, something other than JUNK!!

So, I did not weigh in last week because I was so scared to after the Apple Dumpling incident, but I did today and it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

Weight 142.8

Down -1.8!!!

Monday

Ran 2.06 mi- 30 minutes

Tuesday

Upper 20

Lower 20

Abs 10

Swam 1000 yards- 30 min

Wednesday

Rest

Thursday

Walk/Jog 2 mi in 40 min

Tone 30

Core 20

Swam 1200 Yards- 40 min

Friday

BRICK(Bike and then Run right after)

Biked 6 mi 21min

Ran 1 mi in 13 min

Saturday

HIIT 30

Housework all day long!! I never stopped from 8am to 6pm!

Sunday

Fire 60

Have a great week!

Remember take care of your body!! It is the only one you will have for the rest of your life!

Late Monday Check In 4/11

2011-04-12T20:50:00.000-04:00

Sorry for the late post.... it was bad this weekend!! Ashamed.... but I think I learned my lesson! At least I hope so. It all started Friday night, I got a Kashi Mediterranean pizza for me and a Digorno Pepperoni pizza with cookies for the rest of the house. I though I would be good and only have ONE cookie, but ONE cookie led to another and another and another and so on.

Saturday for some reason I ate Cinnamon Toast Crunch for breakfast. I did manage to have a Shakeology for lunch, because my church was having and Apple Dumpling thing and I didn't want to totally over do everything. We got there and well I had ONE Apple Dumpling, then my daughters only liked the ice cream, so there sat two perfectly good Apple Dumplings. I hate to waste things especially when money is really tight right now, so yes I ate another, but I did not eat three!! After church we headed out to our friends house to meet up with my husband JR. Oh, and we are now the proud owners of a four wheeler! Well, we went mudding!! And let me tell ya I had a blast!! Getting on that four wheeler and pounding through HUGE mud pits is just so much fun!! This was the first time we took both our daughters. Joclyn(oldest will be 7 on the 24th) had a blast! Bella(2) she did not like being dirty! We got home around 9 and everyone was starving!!! So, we ordered pizza........ Sunday wasn't too bad other than I finished off a bag of Doritos...

Yes, that is mud plastered all over my face.

Monday, I spent almost the whole day paying for what I had done over the weekend.... I was almost glued to the toilet seat! My stomach felt to awful!! Well, that's behind me. I picked myself up and started fresh Monday and so far have been great today.

I never fail at my exercises though, that's my true addiction..... And yes I will admit, I am addicted to Fitness!! If I don't get something in I feel like crap!! Will do an update on how the swimming is going later this week. So, here was my Tri training for last week!!

Monday

Ran 2.02 mi- 23 minutes
Bike 4 mi- 18 min.

Tuesday

HIIT 30
Lower 20
Abs 10
Swam 400 yards- 30 min

Wednesday

Ran 2 mi 23min
Biked 12 mi 45min

Thursday

Upper 20
HIIT 30
Swam 1200 Yards- 40 min

Friday

Ran 3.07 mi in 33:45min
Biked 3.38 mi 22min

Saturday

Rest Day

Sunday

Rest Day

I hope that everyone has a great week!!

Fitness Friday Giveaways- 4/8

2011-04-08T21:56:00.000-04:00

Over at the Mamavation Forum on Bookieboo Enter for a chance to wina pair of New Balance 890 Running Shoes!!

Enter to win 10 Pounds Down Meal Plan over at Huff and Buff!! 2 Winners!! Ends end on 4/10/11 @ 10p.m central!

Enter to win a copy of Bob Harper Pure Burn Super Strength over at Fitness for the Rest of Us!! Ends 4/15!!

Before and After Results of Turbo Fire!

2011-04-04T21:56:00.000-04:00

Here are my before and after pics! I have 12 weeks of Turbo Fire down! I was originally planning on doing the Advanced after I was finished with the first 12 weeks, but that was before I decided to train for a Triathlon!

Over all I lost about 6 pounds and 4 inches total! I feel so much more toned and my clothes, well let me tell ya I can fit back into My Old Jeans!!! and lots of other clothes. They even fit more differently than what they did before I was pregnant!

Before

After(No she isn't crying, she smiling REALLY HARD!)

After

Before

After(Even Bella worked out with me a time or two)

Before

After

Monday Weigh In 4/4

2011-04-04T13:51:00.002-04:00

All I can say is ugh. I just feel so yucky today. I hope that what ever this is passes soon. The rest of the family seems to have what ever this is too. So everyone is a little slow and sluggish. Well, last week went really well. I ate well with the exception of Saturday evening.... A friend of mine got married, and well ya know how that goes with the Reception. I pigged out a bit, had 2 pieces of cake, about 20 or so jello shots, and 4 glasses of champagne. And shockingly I was not even close to being drunk. I couldn't quite figure that one out. We all had a wonderful time though. Sunday I really tried to make up for all the stuff that I ate and drank. I will keep it short and sweet this week.

Weight 144.6

Loss of 1.2!!!

Monday

Ran 2.38 mi

Tuesday

Biked 2 mi

Wednesday

Ran 2 mi 25min
Biked 2.91 mi 15min

Thursday

HIIT 30
Lower 20
Abs 10
Week 4 Day 1 of the Push Up Challenge(Total of 101)

Friday

Ran 2.7 mi in 30min
Biked 4.14 mi 17min

Saturday

Rest Day

Sunday

Fire 60
Abs 10
Upper 20

As for the 100 Push Up Challenge, well I didn't get all the days in on Week 4 so I will be repeating it.

Sayings Sunday 4/3

2011-04-01T18:58:00.001-04:00

I have decided to start a Sayings Sunday! I truly believe in the power and wisdom of the written word to help us achieve our goals and dreams. Feel free to link up your favorite sayings or quotes!

AND IMAGINE

Recall the things that have held you back. And imagine how you now
can get beyond them.
Think of the problems that have frustrated you so. And imagine how
you can now rise above them.
Look at how far you've come. And imagine how far you can now go.
Think of all that you've learned. And imagine what you can now do
with that knowledge.
Consider all you've done in the past year. And imagine what you'll
now be able to do.
You're now in a better position than ever to imagine the very best.
And what you can imagine will lead to what you can be.
-- Ralph Marston

Fitness Friday Giveaways- 4/1

2011-04-01T18:52:00.000-04:00

Fitness for the Rest of Us is giving away Attitude Ballet & Pilates Fusion!! Ends 4/8

Over at the Mamavation Forum on Bookieboo they are giving away a pair of New Balance 890 Running Shoes!! Ends April 13.

Weigh In- 3/30

2011-03-30T12:56:00.000-04:00

Last week went well, I think... Although, the scale didn't think so. Last week was officially the last week of Turbo Fire, so it was really light with the exercises and I did more yoga.

Here is what last week looked like:

Monday
Ran 2.17mi

Tuesday
Fire 45EZ

Wednesday
Fire 55EZ

Thursday
Yoga
Ran 2.28

Friday
Yoga
Ran 2.03

Saturday
Fire 45EZ

Sunday
Rest

Food wise I didn't think I did all that bad either, except that pizza Saturday and a sweet roll Sunday. Frustrated, but ya know I am over it! I am working on a spreadsheet of the last few weeks and I am going to see just how much I need to eat and work out to reach the goals I want to achieve.

So here is my weight: 145.8 down .2 pounds from last week. BOOOOO. Oh well this week I am going to rock it!! By the way I signed up at the YMCA so I can get my swimming on!! I went today and ran on the treadmill and biked! It felt great!!

I hope that everyone has a great week!!

Fitness Friday 3/25

2011-03-25T10:26:00.001-04:00

Enter to win a Rumble Roller over at Tuff Phit! Ends 4/2!

Enter to win a Bios Pedometer over at Fitness For The Rest of Us! Ends 11:59 pm on 4/1

Enter to win Supreme 90 Day System over at Huff and Buff! Ends 3/31/11 @ 10p.m central!

Enter to win pair of Yoga Cargo Capris from alo over at Rachel Reviews and Giveaways! Ends 4/2 at 11:59 PM ET!

Enter to win 65 Larabar mini’s over at Clean Eating Chelsey!! Ends Saturday, March 26 @ 11:59 PM!!!

Head on over to Setting You Free and enter to win a Running Skirt! Ends TONIGHT!!

Weigh In 3/23

2011-03-23T19:46:00.000-04:00

My running is slowly starting to improve I think. Since the weather was so beautiful a few days last week, I really took advantage of it and ran outside! The first day I couldn't quite make it a full round around the park, which is about a 1/4 mile with out having to slow down to a walk. By Friday though I made it around without stopping! It felt so great! This has been such a learning process because I have never ran before. I think I really need to get a heart rate monitor, so that I can see where I can push myself to go farther. I think I am really ready to step it up another level. I have really stepped it up with my food (that is until the weekend hits).

Now if I could only get some sleep!! For the last few weeks I have not been able to sleep all that well and I'm not sure why. My mom had some extra melatonin, so I am going to try that tonight.

As for the 100 Push-up Challenge I am doing good. I got a few days behind, but I took the 3 week test and I pumped out 26 like they were nothing!!

Oh, and by the way.... I finally broke down and bought a brand new bike!!! I will be picking it up later this week!! Will post pictures when I get it!

Here is what I did last week:

Monday

HIIT 25
Sculpt 30
Ran 1.38mi

Tuesday

Fire 45

Wednesday

HIIT 25
Tone 30
Ran 1.2mi

Thursday

Fire 55 EZ

Friday

HIIT 25
Sculpt 30
Ran 2.14 mi

Saturday

Rested

Sunday

Fire 30
Core 20

Weight:146

Shredded .8 pounds!!!

Thigh- 21- Same

Hips- 35- Same

Waist- 34- -1 inch!

Arm- 11- Same

Goals:

Don't let the weekend get me off track!
Try and get some sleep!

Win this Bike!

2011-03-22T15:06:00.001-04:00

WOW, what an awesome bike!!! This is a Trek Speed Concept 9.9. You can enter to win this bike over at Triathlete!

Pitfalls

2011-03-21T14:14:00.000-04:00

What is your healthy/weight loss pitfall? Mine, is the weekends and I have realized this! Weekends are a time that there is no set schedual with anything and things happen on their own accord. Like this last weekend. We ended up moving the rest of my grandmothers things out of the house and I ended up vacuming both the up and down stairs. My parents went and bought McDonalds for lunch. Then by the time we were done I was totally exausted and we ended up getting pizza for dinner.

I did wonderful all week with my food, that is until the weekend hits then it is caos.... Sunday though I do have to say I did somewhat better. I also went to church for the first time in a long time and I have to say I enjoyed it and needed to get back in there. I will be back next Sunday! At the begininning of the year something said to me that I need to go back to church and I really thought about it, but didn't know where to go. Last weekend a friend of ours invited us to their church and so we went(the girls and I, I cann't get JR in there yet).

I am still so in love with the app FatSecret! It is so easy to use and I have been tracking everything, the good, the bad and the ugly!

I will be weighing in later this week and will post then! I hope that everyone has a great week!!

Fitness Friday-3/18

2011-03-17T21:47:00.000-04:00

Head on over to Running to Health to win a Moving Comfort Sports Bra!! Ends 3/28 !

Enter to win this AWESOME Allied Medal Display over at Baby Weigh my Fat Ass!! Ends Friday March 18th at 9pm central time!!

Head on over to Life of a Modern Mom and enter to win 21-Day Weight Loss Kickstart

Head on over to Rockin Mama and enter to win a fitness gift bag!! Ends March 25th, 2011 at 11:59 PM PST!

Over at Your World: Healthy and Natural enter to win a copy of YogaPulse Weight Loss Dance! Ends March 30th at 11:59 pm EST!

Over at Huff and Buff you can enter to win a copy of Jari Love’s Get Extremely Ripped Boot Camp!! Ends 3/20/11 @ 10p.m central!

Weigh In 3/17

2011-03-16T18:34:00.000-04:00

I did very good last week, other than maybe for the weekend..... I found this really awesome app to help me track my calories. It's called Calorie Counter by Fat Secret. Here is some more info on that.

Anyways Saturday I had a Bridal Shower to go to and after us girls were going to go out as well. I did some really great planning with my food choices that day. I also planned that I was getting a spinach and chicken salad at the party. I was in at about 1200 calories for the day. After the Bridal Shower we went out to the bars and we all let loose. There were about 6 of us moms that never get to go out and have fun. So we danced like we never danced before, let me tell ya(or maybe it was just me). I think that any of the 5 or maybe 6 Alabama Slammers that I did consume, I burned off dancing. I danced almost non stop from 10-12:30. It was a great night! Then the hubby came to pick me up and we went home and played cards with another bunch of our friends. The only thing I regret is coming home and devouring 3 or 4 pieces of pizza. I was starving from all that dancing! We played Swap and I swear this one game lasted 2 hours! After that we danced some more and decided to call it a night at 5 in the morning. lol I have not done this in I don't know how long! We ended getting up at about 3 in the afternoon. Sunday was recovery day! Hubby and I sat and watched movies the rest of the day and the MIL dropped off the youngest. But, wow it was a great weekend!!

I am still on the bike hunt! Only if I could get rid of this darn elliptical.... As for the 100 Push Up Challenge, ow....my arms are shaking just thinking about it! wow did it get intense on week 2!! I hope to get in more running this week, so far I keep getting interrupted and it gets so frustrating at times. I cannot wait until the weather gets nicer!

Here is what I did last week:

Monday

HIIT 20

Tone 30

Ran 1.83 mi

Tuesday

Fire 45

Ran 1.89 mi

Wednesday

HIIT 25

Sculpt 30

Thursday

Fire 55 EZ

Ran/Walked 2.14 mi

Friday

HIIT 20

Tone 30

Saturday

Fire 30

Core 20

Sunday

Rested

Weight: 146.8

Shredded 1.4 pounds!!!

Thigh- 21- Same

Hips- 35- Same

Waist- 35- Same

Arm- 11- Same

Fat Secret- Calorie Counter

2011-03-15T20:27:00.000-04:00

For the last week or so I have really been hitting it hard on my food intake. I wasn't quite sure as to how many calories I should be eating. I started using My Fitness Pal. It's really great! I found out that I should be eating about 1400 calories a day.

I started using it and well didn't get very far with it because unfortunately they do not have an app available for a BlackBerry. So, I started logging on a check book register, until I discovered an app for my BlackBerry! It's called Fat Secret! This app is so awesome and I just love it!

It has just about any kind of food you can imagine on it! If you cannot find a food then you can simply just add it in. This is a super easy to use tool to help you track your calories, exercise, weight, and it also has a food diary. You can even go to the site and track everything there as well. I was even surprised to find out that they even have an app for it on Facebook!

It also keeps a calendar and tracks how many calories you have consumed for the week. It really helps me to stay on target with my goals. I have gone over a bit, but I think I am doing really good with it. This is one tool that I highly recommend to anyone! I give it 4 out of 5 stars!! The only thing that gets me is that you cannot track how much water you consume, but other than that I love this app!!

Here is what I ate today!!

total calories: 1435

This is some of what I ate
This is exactly what I ate

RDI(%)	Sod(mg)	Fat(g)	Carbs(g)	Fiber(g)	KCals
102	3544	62.45	181.01	27.0	1435

Edit Preferences

Breakfast

2.89

53.95

7.1

255

1 medium Bananas

0.39

26.95

3.1

105

1 serving Old Fashioned Oats

2.50

27.00

4.0

150

Add Item

Lunch

1544

31.71

49.73

7.2

528

8 medium Baby Carrots

0.11

6.59

1.5

2 stalks medium Celery

0.14

2.38

1.2

1 cup, seedless grapes

0.26

28.96

1.4

110

2 servings Light Cucumber Ranch Reduced Fat Dressing

1040

9.00

6.00

100

1 serving Pink Salmon

360

2.00

1 serving Romaine Lettuce

0.20

1.80

1.1

1 serving Walnut Halves and Pieces

20.00

4.00

2.0

200

3 cups Water

Add Item

Dinner

1969

22.85

70.33

12.7

572

1 serving Artisan Ovens Savory Herb with Rosemary & Basil FlatBread

240

3.00

30.00

8.0

140

2 servings chicken tenderloins

1200

18.00

24.00

340

1/2 cup pieces or slices mushrooms

0.12

1.15

0.4

1 serving prego

480

1.50

13.00

3.0

2 cups spinach

0.23

2.18

1.3

Add Item

Snacks / Other

5.00

7.00

1 serving Pure Coconut Milk

5.00

7.00

Add Item

Fitness Friday-3/11

2011-03-11T09:16:00.000-05:00

Enter to win a copy of Pilates Powerball Sculpt over at Fitness For the Rest of Us! Ends 3/18

Head on over to Fitness For the Rest of Us and enter to win Kukuwa Move Your Boombsey: Youth - Dance Party Workout!! Ends 3/18

Enter to win the book 21 DAY WEIGHT LOSS KICKSTART over at Libby's Library!! Ends 3/29

Enter to win RUSHFIT: George St. Pierre’s 8 Week Training Program over at FitBlogger!! Ends March 18 at 11:59pm MT

Enter to win Bob Harper: The Ultimate Cardio Body over at FitBlogger!! Ends March 13 at 11:59pm MT

Weekend Blog Hop

2011-03-10T19:56:00.005-05:00

Blog Hops

Hi and welcome to my blog!! I hope you all have a wonderful and fantastic weekend!

START SOMETHING POSITIVE

Momentum can be difficult to establish. And that's what makes it so valuable.
Because once you have it going in your favor, momentum can be hard to stop. With momentum on your side, small efforts can bring big results, and those big results can lead to even bigger ones.
Yes, momentum takes some effort and commitment to put into motion. And it is very much worth the trouble.
Take the time and make the effort to start something positive. Even though, in the short term, it would be easier and more comfortable to just do nothing, look past those immediate concerns.
Look ahead to that point where momentum kicks in, and consider the value of putting it to work in your favor. Then get up, get going, and get to work on building that momentum.
Start something positive, and create some valuable momentum. You'll be able to ride that momentum as far as you can imagine.
-- Ralph Marston

Weigh In

2011-03-09T14:30:00.000-05:00

I weighed in this morning.... Last night I was dreading it and didn't want to do it, but as soon as my feet hit the floor this morning I was on the scale. I have been eating really good the last few days and by really good I mean tracking everything that goes into my mouth! Another thing is it's like a light went back on in my head. Since December it's like something in me lost all desire to truly do this and get back down to my goal of 125. I mean yeah I was working out everyday, but I was just going through the motions and my eating got way outta wack as well.

I am going to do my Dam Tri this summer, my first Triathlon on June 26th and then on July 10, I will be doing my first 5k the Trail Blazer 5k. Am I doing this backwards? Yes, but that is the story of my life! I have yet to find a bike.... I have been searching Craig's List and Ebay like crazy, but with no luck. I went into my local bike shop last week and talked to the guy there. They actually keep a running list of people that want to sell their bikes when they do trade up, so he took down my info. Haven't heard anything yet, but I hope he calls soon! If he can't find anything by the end of the month I will be getting a new one I think.(That's if I can get someone to buy my darn elliptical! So, if you live in Northwestern PA and are looking for an elliptical, it's yours for $200!) It's a Trek Lexa.

Ain't she perdy?

I also started the 100 Push Up Challenge on Monday! On my initial test I did 17! Woot woot! I can't believe I did that many on my first try! You are supposed to rest 60 seconds in between sets, but I rested a little longer than that. Can I say WOW my arms are killing me!!
Day 1:               Day 2:

Set 1- 10                        10
Set 2- 12                        12
Set 3- 7                           8
Set 4- 7                           8
Set 5- 10                        14
Total- 46                        52

I also did a few extra ones in my regular workout. 16 to be exact!

Weight: 148.2

Shredded 1.6 pounds!

Thigh- 21- Same

Hips- 35- Same

Waist- 35- Same

Arm- 11- Same

#Mamavation Monday 3/7

2011-03-07T09:47:00.002-05:00

Last week went well. Although I was sick for a day and didn't get any exercise in that day, but I ate healthy. I think I really needed that as a rest day anyway, because my shoulders were killing me! I was bad only one time last week and that was yesterday. A friend came over and ordered pizzas for us for dinner. I was so completely tired, that I just ate. For the last 3 nights I have only been sleeping 3-4 hours, then I wake up and can't go back to sleep.

With this frustration of not loosing any weight and not loosing any inches(now that I am looking way back, wow!) I have stayed about the same since December! One thing that I do remember is I started having a snack in between breakfast & lunch and lunch & dinner about the same time I stopped loosing. I would have a snack weather I was hungry or not. Last week I realized this and I decided to stop with the in between snacks, but if I am really hungry I will munch on some veggies, fruit, or almonds. Another thing that I was not accounting for was coffee creamer! So, I have started today with one cup measured out and that is all that I will use. By the way I LOVE Coconut milk!! We will see if this helps anything. One big thing that I have been so unsure of is "How many calories should I be eating?" I think about 1200 is good, but I am not sure. If any of you want to chime in that would be great! I have been eating around 1500-2000 a day, so I think 1200 should be good. I know not to go under that though.

I am also doing the 100 Push up Challenge! I did 16 on my initial first test and I will be starting the program today!

Yesterday, we also found out that it was the last week for JR to apply for his unemployment. We are hoping that he can get an extension, but who knows. He is on his way to find out as I write this. With in the next month or so he will be back to work, but this is just so scary. I have applied for a few jobs, but have yet to hear back.

Update on my mom: She had her appointment with the surgeon from Pittsburgh and it went really well! He is expecting her surgery to only take 2-3 hours instead of the 7-8 from the other guy. Also she won't be out of work for as long. This guy was totally different from the other doctor and has heard nothing but good things about him.

Here is what I did last week:

Monday

HIIT 15

Sculpt 30

Tuesday

Fire 45

Wednesday

HIIT 15

Tone 30

Ran/Walked 1.38 mi

Thursday

Sick

Friday

Fire 55 EZ

Saturday

HIIT 20

Sculpt 30

Sunday

Rested

I won't be weighing in until later this week and I will update you all then.

My goals for this week:

Get in more running!
Track my food

I hope that everyone has a wonderful week!!!

Oh, and by the way I have been 45 days smoke free!!

Fitness Friday 3/4

2011-03-07T08:04:00.000-05:00

Enter to win a nuun Gift Package over at Girl Get Strong! Ends March 9,2011.

Enter to win a Power Balance bracelet over at Running to Health! Ends 3/9!

Enter to win a pair of Jockey® sport active pants over at Moomettes Magnificents! Ends March 8, 2011 at 11:00 pm. EST

Enter to win Tri-Clips over at COOK train EAT race!!!! Ends March 7th at 12pm CST.

Mamavation Monday 2/28

2011-03-02T16:36:00.000-05:00

I have been trying to write this post since Monday, but things just got in the way and I just didn't have time to finish it until now!

I hope that you all had a great week last week!! Last week consisted of caring for a sick kid, and it looks like this week might consist of caring for the other one(it's touch and go with this one.) My oldest came down with the flu or something last week. She ran a high fever and felt like crap all week, so she stayed home from school the whole week. We also found out that most of the school was also out! She only had 6 kids in her class that weren't sick, out of about 23! The one day the school nurse sent home 40 kids before noon! Yeah, that is just craziness. Needless to say due to the sickness I was not able to make it into my mom and run on the treadmill at all.

Tuesday I went to a surgeon with my mom. She has had back issues since 1986 and did have back surgery in 1988. In all reality she has needed surgery again for the last 10 years if not longer, but she has just been putting it off and dealing with the pain. She has degenerative disks, which means that there is no cushion in between the disks. The one is almost completely cutting off her nerves, I honestly cannot believe she isn't in more pain than what she. For the last, I don't know how many years she has been getting epidurals in her back to help her with the pain. About a month ago the doctor told her he can't put them in anymore because there is no more room to put them in her back. He prescribed her morphine then, but she has yet to start taking it. She has been an RN for over 30 years and she has gotten "foggy" as she has gotten older and does not want to get any more foggier than she already is. The morphine would make her terribly foggier. Thus she needs to desperately have surgery.

The surgeon told her that she needs to loose as much weight as she possibly can. She has been over weight my whole life, but is about the smallest I have ever seen her right now. She told the doctor that when you hurt so bad it's hard to move. And his response was and I quote "stop stuffing your pie hole!" I was in total shock and mortified when he said this! My mom was just listening and taking in everything at this point. Right before we left we met with another woman about her next visit. My mom asked her about how long would she have to not work and the woman told her a year! Financially my parents cannot afford for her to be off an entire year and not only that, she won't have a job to go back to! She has worked for the hospital for over 30 years and they won't let her take off a year. So, Thursday she will be meeting with another surgeon that is out of Pittsburgh. He does the non invasive kind, but she may be to far progressed for him to do anything, but it is worth a shot! Fingers are crossed!

And yes this is about what I feel like doing! We are just not even going to go there today! So, I am focusing on today and that is all!

I am at such a plateau and I don't know how to get off of it! I get so frustrated and that is when I just relapse with the food. In 2 weeks all I lost was .2 pounds. My measurements have also stayed the same! Such frustration! I do have to say though, I tried on pants that I wore before I got pregnant with the second and they actually are a bit to big! I think I am down to an 8 or 10 depending on the brand.

Weight:

149.8

I hope that next week will yield better progress, but we shall see.