To End the Stagnation

An Update........
Okay, so it's been nuts since school has resumed and my work schedule blows. I have 1 day off every 7, which isn't really a day off at all considering all of the housework and other sundry chores I have to accomplish in that single day. Aubreigh is not handling it well. I barely see her anymore. My relationship is strained at home simply because we really don't see each other.

25% of the semester is over. Technically I have a B- average. We've only had 1 test in each of our courses. I just wrapped up my forever long Med/Surg rotation at WMH. On to SMH next week for a mere 2 weeks. I don't know how I feel about everything just yet.

C25K is all messed up. I think when I run on Tuesday I'm doing W8D1. It's been tough finding time to run. When I ran yesterday it was ugly. I also think Aubreigh was kind enough to give me her cold.

At work I pretty much work every Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. I get up at 4 am 5 days out of 7. It downright blows. I try really hard to be in bed by 10pm, but some days I don't get off of work until after 10, so that makes it even worse.

40 DAYS UNTIL MY FIRST 5K!!!!!!!!

I know I'll finish, but it might be in 59:59 at this point. I know I can walk 3 miles in 45 minutes. The only time I've done the 3.1 miles I did it in 40 minutes. So somewhere between 59:59 and 40 minutes will be my finish time.

As for weight loss, the stress is making me hold water and all of that nonsense. I was at -26# the other day. I am solidly a size L in shirts now, which makes me happy. No tight fitting shirts, no depends on which brand. None of that. Just size L and fits like it should. I *think* I'm down 8 pants sizes at this point, but I haven't been brave enough to test that one out. I'm sitting in the size 7 sizes from where I started and my belt is definitely working hard to hold my pants up.

I'm about 2 weeks out from my 27th birthday. I'd like to be at -30# that day. Just to have a nice round number on my birthday. I doubt I get it, but hey, it'd be great.

Send some happiness my way

Stuff & Things

So C25K is going well. Need to step up the strength training though. New pilates mat is awesome! Makes doing ab work at home easy.

School has started well. We shall see.

Work is work. Enough said.

Week 5 Day 2 postponed until tomorrow.

When you are feeling lazy

NO EXCUSES

Finding a place

Today feels like I am stuck in limbo.
Meh

Training Plans

C25K

14 Workouts left

W4D2 today

Should finish Sept. 23, 2011

FIRST 5K ON OCTOBER 29, 2011

10K PLAN

Begin Sept. 25

36 Workouts

9 Weeks

NEED TO PICK A 10K!

A Whirlwind of Updates

VACATION

August 7-14 Myrtle Beach, SC, USA

Visited: Waccatee Zoo, Myrtle Beach State Park, Huntington Beach State Park, Broadway at the Beach, Build A Bear Workshop, Grandma's Pool, Seafare Seafood Buffet, Above Par Vacations at Island Green Country Club, Liberty Brewery, Wee R Sweets, Dad's Condo

All in all a good vacation. Not so good in the food journal tracking category, but I LOST 0.2# while on vacation. So PFFFFFT! Kept up with C25K as well. But, I did get my first ever cold sore. It's still here and really sucks.

EXERCISE

C25K

START DATE: AUGUST 1, 2011

WEEK 1: Did Week 2

WEEK 2: Did Week 3 while on vacation. iPod threw a fit day 1 so I "winged" it with the intervals since I hadn't read the routine before heading out that morning. Learned the hard way that jogging at night while at the beach is the best plan of attack. :-)

WEEK 3: In Progress. Doing Week 4.

AB ROUTINES

Getting back on the wagon this week. Doing my Week 2 scheduled Ab routine. Reverse crunches, planks, and leg lift thingies.

WEIGHT ROUTINES

Again, getting back on the wagon. Just following my current template. Maybe some pool work will make an appearance sometime soon?

WEIGHT LOSS

-22.5# to date!

I restarted my journey May 30, 2011. It's been good so far.

 Family Photo. Lunch on the Boardwalk. This is Doodle's "Ta-Da" pose.

 Nathan getting his jelly fish sting treatment.

 Zebra-Donkey love child at the Petting Zoo.

 Daddy and Doodle at Putt-Putt.

 Making a new friend at Build A Bear.

 Nothing like a juice box on the beach ;-)

 Grandad Mike's Harley.

Riding the rides from the old Pavilion now located at Broadway at the Beach.

One (Long) Year in Afghanistan: Extortion. Always.

One (Long) Year in Afghanistan: Extortion. Always.: "I've found that in war, I turn the enemy into my own personal demon. Singular. It is not a collection of enemy fighters, but a single dynami..."

W2D2 C25K

Done. In the record books. Finished. God I need new shoes! It took me around 13:43 on the indoor track at the gym (13 laps/mile) to do 1 mile. This was from the start (warm up) until I think I did 13 laps. Or maybe it was 14 laps but definitely not 12 or less ;)

So my question:

Should I feel like I could do it a second time without walking again when I finish? Or does this mean I'm on too easy a stage? Do I even have a readership to answer this question?

Off to search for new shoes that I'll be able to afford........

New Shift Blues

CSo yesterday was my first weekday on my new shift. I used to pride myself on my ability to work with anyone but I guess that isn't the case anymore. I really am not having a good time with my new partner. I've worked this shift before but with someone else so it's different.

No gym yesterday. Was way tired. Did my ab routine though. 100 standard crunches and 100 Russian twists.

Today is C25K W2D2 after work. Tomorrow is insanity packing for vacation. Woohoo.

Haircut

I look deranged at 0500

I Want!

Buy these for me!?!

Brooks PureCadence $120
Release Oct 2011

I wear Brooks size 8 B width

kthxbai

W1D2 C25K

W1D2 done. Except I accidentally queued up the "Week 2" podcast. Still didn't walk at all. Hooray for me!

So last night I dug out my Camelbak so I'd have hydration easily without figuring out how to run with a water bottle comfortably. Filled it. Set it by my purse so as not to forget.

Fast forward: 0700 today
I hasn't rained in MONTHS! but today it is raining. And as surprised as I am now to say it, I never once though "oh I'll do it later then" or "not today". I thought: "crap. do any of my rain jackets fit?" The answer: not really. My lightweight rain jacket is too small and my heavyweight rain jacket is technically too small if I needed to zip or button it, but since I needed something the heavyweight was the closest to working.

So I get to the track and it stops. Now what do I do with my jacket? I balled it up pretty tight and stowed it under the bleachers. I guess this is proper track running etiquette? Someone correct me if I'm wrong.

Again, hadn't used the Camelbak since I was smaller and so I just kept fumbling with the straps trying to get it to "fit" right. On top of it, I was wondering to myself "why is today so hard?". So I went over my workout last night at the gym. It wasn't anything crazy or any harder than usual. 70 oz of water in my Camelbak is only like 4 pounds, so that isn't it. And then the podcast ended, Ullrey said "and for those of you finishing Week 2......" There! I was a dingbat and selected the wrong podcast. Thank goodness! Then I was even more proud of myself for going out in the rain, not walking, and accidentally doing a harder week.

Now I need new shoes. My left foot hurts and I think it's because my shoes are old. Ugh. Money Fairy please come by my house!

kthxbai!

Thanks for coming along for the ride!

Yay!

Size 16 shorts!

No Dying--Just lots of Sweating ;-)

DAY 1 COUCH TO 5K (C25K)

No stopping. No dying. Lots and Lots of sweating. It wasn't bad at all. Me, my iPod, and the gazillion degree heat index started our ambitious plan successfully today. The podcast I chose for today's workout was great and the Narrator wasn't terribly peppy or droning either.

I start out on my front porch and do my warm up walk to the local Middle School track. I complete all of my intervals on the track and then do my cool down walk home. It is rather convenient. Today I was able to cover just short of 1.25 miles during my intervals. Very proud of myself!

What I Learned:
Lengthen my stride--it's way more comfortable!
Not all shorts ride up (thank goodness!)
I need to drink more before I leave

I CAN DO IT!

So I weighed in this AM as I do every stinking Monday morning and I'm down 18.0 pounds. Hoorah! So from 5/30 until today I've done a very good job! This is week 10 overall and I am feeling great.

This week:

C25K: Mon, Weds, Fri

Weights: Tues, Thurs, Sat

Abs: Tues, Thurs, Sat

Work: Sun, Mon, Thurs, Fri

We leave for VACATION on Sunday! Just hope I can complete Week 2 without much trouble while vacationing.

Thanks for coming along for the ride!

-14 Baby!

Down 14 pounds!
Feeling good.

Updates Galore!

EXTRA EXTRA EXTRA

Okay, so this was Day 33 Overall since I decided to lose weight for good and for real.

Day 16 since I started taking Phentermine (15 days on 30mg but now I'm on 37.5mg).

Day 6 of the Beck Diet Solution.

I was down 12lbs at my follow-up visit yesterday! Woohoo!

I'll post more later, just didn't want my lil' blog to go dormant.

Thanks for coming along for the ride!

Homemade Veggie Burgers

A Homemade Healthy Treat

Ok. So I tried my hand at homemade veggie burgers for lunch. A pretty darn delicious first attempt. Served on an Arnold's Sandwich Thin, topped with guacamole, sauteed mushrooms, caramelized onions, and fresh sliced tomato.

Want the recipe? Here goes:

Garbanzo Mushroom Burgers (makes 4 large patties)

1 can drained garbanzos

1 8oz pkg mushrooms

1 egg

1 C panko crumbs

1 med red onion

1/4 C chopped cilantro

1 T lemon juice

1/2 T sea salt

1/2 t cayenne pepper

1/2 t smoked paprika

1/2 t ground black pepper

3 T olive oil

Finely chop 1/2 of the onion and 1/2 of the mushrooms. Slice the other half. Puree the garbanzos, egg, lemon juice, and spices. Add the chopped onions, chopped mushrooms, and cilantro. Add the panko. Stir til combined. Form patties. Caramelize onions. Sautee mushrooms. Cook patties. Top and enjoy.

I, being the Tupperware Lady, used my Quick Chef to make these. I hate my blender and the Quick Chef, for those of you not in the know, is an ultra cool manual food processor. Except it takes no effort and isn't one of those stupid slappy choppy things. It took me 15 minutes of prep to get the patty mix made. Simple. Oh and if you don't like just a hint of heat omit the cayenne or cut it in half.

The nutrition breakdown per patty (if you make 4) is 15g fat (2g sat fat), 49g carbs (7g fiber), and 12g protein.

HOORAY

Momma Molly IS NOT Injured!!!!

So when Doodlebug got up this AM I was a bit scared to check on Momma Molly fearing that she had succumbed to her injury, but there she was, hovering in the birthing chamber. AND her back is no longer bent.  So I guess it was just a stress thing. Good thing, because I felt like shit thinking I'd accidentally hurt her!

I tried to take a picture of the fry from the first birthing who is now almost a month old, but she's too darn tiny and quick to snap a pic of.



Thanks for coming along for the ride!

Say What?!?

Who Do YOU Think YOU Are?

So I had a blast from the past txt me last night and it really shook things up to say the least. The audacity of some people! We had a thing, a small thing a long time ago and it turns out that our little casual non-exclusive thing could have become something legit, except neither one of us said anything at the time.

Well that's all well and good and I'm all about getting things out in the open, but hey!, I am in a committed relationship, I have a lovely, beautiful, smart 2 1/2 year old and I'm not looking for something new, old, or otherwise.

Needless to say, Mr. Ego didn't get what I was laying down. And just the information itself threw me for a little loop. Well luckily today was Day 1 of my 6 day break, so I got to see my happy little family and we all ate dinner together and--VOILA!--back to happiness and reality for me.

It's funny how these things make you think though, it really is. For a couple of hours I contemplated the "what might have beens" but when it was all said and done I reaffirmed that I have it pretty darn great if I do say so myself. I'm not rich or beautiful, but my man loves me for all of my vices and virtues. And my Doodlebug is just about the best thing since sliced bread.

Weight Loss Woes

I will weigh tomorrow and see how this whole nonsense is going, but I am not feeling too optimistic about it. I have a follow up with Dr. Harden-Mack on Monday, and I guess we'll see what she recommends.

I just had to have a steak tonight. I was dying for some red meat. My body was just screaming for some iron.

I AM A TERRIBLE PERSON

While moving Momma Molly (one of my daughter's fish) to the birthing box in the tank I caused her traumatic spine injury. I felt so bad. I hope she delivers before she dies, if she dies. I hope she doesn't hurt.

I suck at life. However, I will get another fish if she dies, and I know the Dalmation Molly wants to have babies too, so she'll probably be preggers after this batch of fry no matter what. 

Thanks for coming along for the ride!

Welcome to Blogland!

Warning: Insanity to Ensue

So I'm going to try this "blog" thing out. I mean, who knows, it may actually be therapeutic. I've had alot going on these past few weeks, moreso than normal.

A Quick Recap:

My boss got fired/"resigned" unexpectedly. This alleviated SO much stress from my life. I couldn't quit, so this was a godsend. I didn't realize exactly how bad it had gotten until she was gone and how much better I feel.

I got a scholarship for my final year of school. This helps so much because I'm broke.

I'm WAY overweight again. I've gained almost 30lbs since January of this year! Yuck! So my new plan is to get serious help--in the form of a bariatrician. Protein loading is my game.

Okay, back to the now. I work 3 12hr shifts in a row each week, presuming I get off on time. Noon to midnight. You might think that this would be an interesting shift, I chose it because at the time it meshed with my school schedule. It blows really. So I get anywhere between 6-10 hours of sleep each night, depending on work and school. It can tip as low as 0-4 when things get really crazy.

My daughter is super smart and growing up so quickly. She was born in January 2009. I am so proud of her. Luckily my preschool understands parents with crazy work schedules and is such a top  notch place.

Nathan. My Nathan. We've been through the shit together and I think it has made our relationship that much better. He works at Kohl's Distribution Center. He's their most productive employee, but he doesn't understand basic social and professional skills and probably won't ever advance above where he currently is. Kinda hard to get a promotion when you are cussing all the time ;)

So I thought I wanted to get my MSN right after I graduate, but I'm starting to consider getting my doctorate. We shall see. I'm such a patient advocate that I'm really interested in Family Psychiatry/Mental Health NP.

Well that's it for now.

Thanks for coming along for the ride!