STOP THE PRESSES!!!!

I have exercised!!!!! (do you hear the angels singing???) Went to the pool after work today. Walked/swam/did water aerobic exercises for NOT LESS than 45 mins. That's pretty decent. Definitely an improvement. Its the small victories :-)) Gonna try for more tomorrow. Two days in a row though, is that possible???

Food was good today. I had some fruit and a Weight Watchers version of an Egg McMuffin for breakfast. I had a Boar's Head chicken sandwich with lettuce, and some baked Tostitos for lunch. I had barbecue on a "sandwich thin" (they are wonderful if you haven't tried them--and some are 100% whole wheat) with some marinated veggies. Pretty good. WAAAAAYYY better than what I would have eaten in the past. PLUS, I exercised! I'm feeling pretty good about myself right now!

OOOOHHH! So, last night Brian & I were driving home, and he said he'd like to have a big, fat cheeseburger. Well, now that I have eaten better for so long, when I think cheeseburger, I think about the acid reflux and terrible indigestion I'm going to suffer with after eating it--kinda takes all the good out of it. SO, (this is the good part) in Mt. Juliet, beside the new Wal Mart there is a Five Guys (hamburger joint). Beside Five Guys is SUBWAY!!! So, that's where we went--he got a burger from Five Guys, and I got a veggie sub at Subway! I know this is a boring story, but its a good example of the changes I am making--even when there is temptation!

**Week Eight Weigh In**

Woooohoooo! I lost 4 lbs! I knew last week was water retention. Which means I really only lost one pound this week, but considering how much pizza I ate Thursday, and how little exercise I've done, I'll take it! So, that's 18 lbs total. Now we're back on track!

This has been a very busy weekend. We have been at the pool mostly. I've done an excellent job at NOT eating the chips and dips that I love so much. Yesterday we grilled chicken legs and had barbecue and I made marinated veggies instead of potato salad--which would have been really good. But, it would also have been VERY fattening. The veggies were good, and a nice change of pace. All this "healthiness"!

I have a busy day today. Going to a funeral, need to take some pictures and put out a sign for a real estate listing, and need to clean a house (not mine). So, I'm on the run again today. Brian's on vacation, so this will change our eating plan for the week. Not sure what's in store. (pretty sure he's cooking though!) I haven't even seen my Sunday paper yet to know what's on sale at the grocery, or what the coupons are. Being busy is sometimes hard on the ol' diet. I'll let you know what my challenges are. Let me know how you're doing. Hope you have a great day!

Well, the birthday is over. I AM trying to drag it out for the whole weekend if I can. BUT, I ate my ASS off last night! We went to Painturo's. They have incredibly good pizza--if you like thin crust, which I do. So, last night I ate all the pizza I wanted, and one cheese pinwheel thingy, and REAL coke--none of that diet shit! But again, my birthday is over, so today I was sipping the DIET Mtn. Dew at the pool :-))

I've been waking up at 5:00 a.m. for like a week now. I don't know if its the fact that the sun is up @5:00, OR if maybe God is trying to tell me something--you know, like "Get your ass out of bed and get on the treadmill!" I don't know. Maybe its just me being paranoid, but I'm starting to think there's a reason for this early morning rising. I haven't given in though. Not yet. I have not been NEAR my treadmill. Hey, I don't have any clothes hanging on it though. That's good, right?

That's all for now. I'm going to bed now. When you wake up at 5:00 a.m., you need to go to bed a little earlier than you normally would! PLUS, I DID have another birthday, and I'm pretty sure old people go to bed early. Have a great weekend. I'll keep you posted on my success or failure with milking the whole birthday thing!

Diet Blahs

So, I got an email today because I have not blogged since Monday. Hmmmm. Well, I'm not sure why, but I kinda have the blahhhhhs about this whole weight loss thing. That doesn't mean I'm quitting--I'm not. I am just a little burned out on all of this right now. I think its largely because I know the time has come. I MUST exercise, and I just can't seem to make myself do it yet. I can almost always come up with a reason why I should NOT exercise. I figured everyone is probably tired of hearing how I need to exercise, and then I never do. Anyway, I will overcome this LARGE obstacle.

On to better things! Tomorrow is my birthday! I'm getting older, and I don't know how good THAT is, but your birthday is like having your very own national holiday. (unfortunately, not everyone observes this holiday, but, hey, you can't have everything) The ONE day a year when YOU are a very important person. Its also a good excuse to get a bunch of old friends you don't see nearly as often as you would like. If you are REALLY good, you can drag your birthday out for a whole weekend, and some experts (Stephanie) can even get a WEEK out of it. I'm not quite that good! But, I digress!

My birthday relates to my blog BECAUSE . . . . . . you have to have a "birthday dinner". Its like a LAW--especially in the South. C'mon! And, I'm all about a birthday breakfast and lunch too! LOL! SOOOOOOO, I have to decide WHERE to go, and WHAT to eat. I have decided that I'm going to eat anything I want to on my birthday. I think your birthday should be a "freebie". Having said that, as I think about where to go, I am automatically thinking of what I'll eat--and how fattening it is. This is progress!!! Until a few weeks ago I would have ordered something terribly fattening and THEN thought "Wow, I shouldn't have ordered that. It's very fattening." Now, I'm thinking of that in advance. Even so, I am going to eat something BAD if I want to.

I'm actually STARVING right now! So, I'm off to round up some dinner! See you soon! Leave comments--I love them!

P.S. (do you p.s. a blog???) I think blogging may have helped me with my "diet blahs".

**Week Seven Weigh In**

Well, bad news . . . . I gained THREE POUNDS! Dammit! I have to say I'm actually not terribly troubled by this. On Sunday nights (the night before weigh in) I normally serve salad for dinner, or maybe a veggie sub from Subway. However, I scored some beautiful T-bones in the manager's special section at Kroger. SO, while I'm thinking lets eat salad 'cause I'm weighing in tomorrow, Brian is thinking let's grill a big, juicy steak.

My friends who have had lap band surgery tell me it takes your body as long as 72 hours to fully digest and process a big slab of beef. Plus, Brian puts sea salt and pepper on steaks before grilling. So, I'm hoping this gain is the steak and possibly water retention from the sea salt. It always sucks to gain, but I have eaten pretty well otherwise, so I really believe this does not truly reflect my efforts this week.

Now about exercise. I totally SUCK! I never went to the Y. However, I did get a lot of swimming (really swimming) in on Saturday. So, I feel okay about counting Saturday as a day I exercised. If you never swim laps, try it. You think "Oh I can do that all day". I bet you can't--unless you are in some hell-acious good shape. I know I was surprised how quickly I was ready for a little break! I challenge you to try it :-)) (Hey, its what the skinny people do)

This week I am going to try something new. I love to get up before work and watch the news. My plan is to get up, get on the treadmill, and walk while I watch the news. Tomorrow will be my first day, so I will blog in the morning, and let you know if I held up my end of the deal!

Never give up!

What To Eat At The Pool??

Well, its Saturday morning. I'm soon off to the pool. Have you ever noticed how you just have to eat when you're at the pool or on the lake? I'm not sure why this is. Its not just overweight people either. My mother even munches on the water, and she's not at all overweight. The trick is to find healthier snacks.

I have to tell you, my favorite thing is chips and dip. I LOVE it. However, this love for chips and dips is a lot of what has made me fat. I have been trying to figure out better snacks--that are also satisfying. If I'm thinking I want chips and dip, a bowl of fruit is NOT going to suffice. Last week I took Chex mix--its baked, so it has considerably less fat than chips. Its still salty and crunchy--so its a decent swap. Sometimes I take baked Tostitos and salsa/guacamole. Yesterday I took a bowl of fruit and some chicken salad w/fruit & Reduced Fat Triscuits. I would love to hear some of your ideas.

I must go now. As much as I don't want to, I need to do a little housework before I spend the day at the pool. It sucks, but I guess its necessary :-) Have a GREAT weekend!

It's Hump-Day!

Well, it Wednesday morning, and I don't think anything super-exciting has happened. Monday after weighing in, I went to the pool again. We still had that smoked turkey/barbecue left, so that's what we ate. It was very good. I am learning I can eat a sandwich only--no chips, and it fills me up. On workdays I take a sandwich with fruit instead of chips. I like the fruit a lot more than I thought I would.

Obviously, its "pool season". So, we will be at the pool as much as possible. I'm trying to remember when we're just hanging out in the pool, to walk, swim, or exercise in some way in the water. A lot of the time we are in the water talking, so why not walk while you talk? I HAVE been doing that. Now, I might need to buy a Super Soaker. Brian has one he puts ice in. It seems to encourage running. When people see him with it, they run. Then he has to run too, in order to shoot them with that ice water! Until now I've never realized that he's kinda encouraging exercise--kinda like a personal trainer--but a LOT more fun to watch!!! LOL! (He doesn't shoot me--he has to live with me, and I have threatened him with physical violence) Hmmm. Something to ponder I guess.

I have to exercise today, or I don't stand a chance of meeting my goal. So, I don't know if I'll go to the Y, or get on the treadmill. I'll keep you posted. I wish now I had said 30 mins of in the pool exercise instead of treadmill. I may change that, but we'll just see how today goes. See you soon!

OOOHHHH! I taped the new Jillian Michaels show--you know, where she moves in with them. I can't wait to watch it. I like Jillian, but the thought of her living with me is a little scary!