Talk about Long and Overdue - New Beginings

At least less than a full year, barely, has passed.

I'll spare all of the details for now.  Crossed the major milestone of getting myself to the gym tonight.  Using podfitness.com neat tool, I did the following workout on the elliptical:

38:30 minutes
3 miles
400 calories

A very long way to go again, but its gotta start somewhere.  Best guess is current weight is right around the dreaded 200 mark.  Only one way to go from here.

 

Long Overdue Update!

I've been away for too long! Thanks to those who checked in on me.

So, last I updated, I had just begun my new job. Its been 4 months now
and I love it. The work is challenging, diverse and I am learning a
lot. The travel is a bit more than I expected - about once per week. I
don't mind the travel per se, I really enjoy being out of the office and
the variety of meeting new people and being in new cities. However, my
DIET has definitely suffered.

If any of you travel for work you'll be able to relate to long hours in
the airport (with very few good food choices available), and catered
meetings and dinners. Of course, I COULD always go out of my way to
ensure that I have healthy choices most of the time, but I'm working
hard, tired and the chicken parm and cookies smell so good!! And the
dinners out....always at great places and very rarely healthy! I also
try to never check luggage so I am limited in what I can bring with me.
For some reason, every time I step foot into an airport, I am starving!
Got to be psychological....for some reason I fear being on the plane
with no food available and starving. (As if I would ever really
starve!)

Exercise is also down. I used to get in my 4-5 spin classes per week,
that is down to a moderately consistent 2 on the weekends (as long as we
are home). Not good. Also, my legs used to be super toned from
spinning and my stomach was approaching flat. Not so now.

Now, this is not going to be a woe is me post. Its been 4 months and I
am probably up 10-15 lbs - as all of you know, its so damn easy to
"find" the lost lbs. I am not panicing but AM acknowledging that this
behavior has to change NOW. I had a "come to Jesus" talk with myself
last night. My new size 8 Lucky Jeans that I bought in March as a
special reward to myself are just about too tight to get away with now.
My new work suits are starting to get snug. I WILL NOT do this to
myself again. I will acknowledge that the fun is over, the time of
being carefree and careless and I will start making smart decisions and
doing the things that I KNOW I need to do in order to manage my weight.
Some of those things are:

* I will not treat every meal like a celebration.
* Dessert is not a requirement, especially during lunch
* I will CHOOSE foods, not eat everything that is there
* Just because there are cookies, brownies, cake, etc, does not
mean I have to eat them
* Every dinner on the road is not a special occassion, I do not
have to order steak every time I am in a steakhouse
* I will be realistic about finding time to exercise on the road
(many times just not possible, but SOMETIMES it is)
* I will use the 2nd gym membership that I purchased near the
office
* I will eat small portions, not eat until I am full. I will
remind myself that on JC all of the portions look small (and are small)
and that I ate JC food for 60 some weeks and did just fine, did not
starve.
* I can eat yummy things, but must stop at 1 serving. There is no
need to overindulge, even if it tastes good.

DH and I had a long talk about all of this last night. It seems like I
never really allow myself to really enjoy being down in weight for a
long enough time. Its as if I get complacent, or confident and think I
can "afford" to cheat a little. It feels so good to feel good about
myself and how I look and I should be able to care enough about myself
to continue to let myeslf feel this.

Week 65, Day 7 - Or Where the @*&# did I go?

Whew, exactly a month since I’ve blogged.  Sorry to have stayed away for so long….this place is never too too far from my mind, especially the “friends” I’ve made and followed on their journeys here.

So, started the new job about 3 weeks ago – LOVE it!  It is crazy busy and there is so much to learn and so many people to meet.  It challenges me everyday, which is exactly what I need to stay productive and engaged.  I had my first business trip last week to Chapel Hill, NC (beautiful) and Atlanta , and will be making probably about 8-10 more trips by June!!!  Lots of travel with this job, which is new to me and I really like so far.  Of course, it brings up the whole issue of eating on the road and having somewhat less control about what and when to eat.  

 

The good news is that my weight has been relatively stable since Vegas.  I went back to JC 2 weeks ago and had been down just a bit, which was surprising, but I’ll take it.  I won’t be able to make it weekly, but I am going to try to go every other week.  While I still NEED to lose the last 5 lbs or so, I also am focused just on maintaining through this new lifestyle.

I’ve had to buy a bunch of new suits and it feels amazing to like what I am buying and feel confident and good in my clothes.  I am wearing size 8 petite or 10 petite and couldn’t be happier!

I decided to join another gym which is pretty much next door to my new office (which is too far from my gym to get to spinning classes during the week).  This is a luxury, but I think a necessary one.  I can be there in 5 mins, no excuses to not go, and best of all, the spinning classes are not crazy crowded like my gym.  The bikes and instructors are totally different and will take some getting used to, but it is a small price to pay.  Joining 2 gyms is definitely a luxury but I think it will just be another tool to keep me on the right track. 

 

I’m struggling a bit with feeling hungry and snacking.  And, at work, it is so busy that sometimes I just grab what’s there…and I definitely don’t have the time to leisurely sit down and enjoy my salad and JC meal like I used to.

So, consider me to be in a state of flux and transition.  I’ll try to check in when I can and I definitely want to catch up with you guys and see how everyone is doing!

Week 61, Day 3

Ok, so, yeah, I fell off again.  Shoot.  It is.so.hard.  Good habits are so HARD to make and so EASY to break!  So, I missed 2 WI’s this week and last.  I have been eating out way too many times and last week I missed all of my spin classes.

Granted, I have a lot going on in my life right now.  The good is that I was able to negotiate more $$ from the company that made me a great job offer.  Then at the last minute, I had 2 large pharmaceutical companies who wanted to interview me and make a quick decision.  I decided not to go with one of them and the other is still up in the air.  SO, I have been living in a state of flux, not really knowing where my next job would be, only that it would start on the 26th!  I gave notice to my current employer on the 5th and finish work next Tuesday then head to Vegas with a girlfriend for 3 days – FUN! 

At this point, I accepted the 1st offer – its with a great company and I’ll have great advancement potential so I am thrilled.  One major factor is that this job will require a pretty significant amount of travel – 30-50%!  I think that this will be a great change for a while, I really enjoy travel, but it will definitely force changes to my work out and eating habits.

I’d love to hear from others who travel regularly for work – how do you make it work for you? Challenges? Tips? 

I guess I’ve just had so much on my plate lately, between the new job and being worked to death on the old job, that I haven’t quite had the energy to devote to JC – POOR EXCUSE but, as I’ve been saying often lately, “It is what it is”. 

 

Overall, I am still in a pretty good place mentally, I’m not beating myself up or discouraged….its more of being aware that it IS easy to slip into bad habits and knowing how hard I have worked and trying to find balance.

Thanks to those who have checked in on me and hope everyone is doing well! 

Week 59, Day 3

I got the job offer!

Wow, I feel great and having the confidence to go into an interview not concerned with my appearance or my thighs definitely made a big difference!

So,I got a great job offer, its a Human Resources Business Partner position with a very large Fortune 500 company!  Great company, great career advancement, great opportunity.  I haven't accepted it yet, as I need to ask them for more $$$!!!

Yay!  Doing the happy dance for sure!

Week 59, Day 2

I was down 1.6 at WI tonight

Had a pretty good week, got my 4 spin classes in, only had 2 meals out.  I still am having an issue with the 100 calorie snacks...the issue being that I am eating too many of them.  I usually have at least 1 a day in addition to my JC snack.  They seem so harmless, ONLY 100 cals, but I'm sure that if I limited this behavior I would have an easier time getting to goal.  It definitely feels great though to get back on track.

I have been deep in the process of interviewing for new jobs and being down almost 50 lbs has had some great implications.  For one thing, I feel so confident in my interview suits...feel like when I show up they are not noticing my weight....its just in the normal range.  Before, I would have felt so self conscious and that would have gotten in the way of my interview.  The companies I am interviewing with are pretty high profile, Fortune 500 co's and I know that part of the interview process is seeing if the person would be a good ambassador or "face of the company' to the public.  Right or wrong, it feels great to be confident about how I look and the impression I am making.

I certaintly hope to have some great job news for you all soon...send me your "new, high paying job" vibes if you don't mind!

Week 58, Day 7

Yum, Indian buffet was delicious as usual.  I limited myself to one plate of food (various rice and chicken and lentil dishes) and one plate of fruit/dessert/rice pudding.  Usually I have 2 plates of the main courses.  Progress, huh?

Workouts were great yesterday...it felt great to get back into it.  I've been wearing a heart rate monitor that someone gave me and its pretty cool to see which moves (during spinning classes) make the heart rate go higher.  Its also a great way to self monitor and motivate myself...dont' want to see it go below the target range.

Wanted to comment on a few new JC foods that I've tried (Steph, are you still eating JC??)

• Teriyaki Salmon dinner - Yum. I love salmon so was really looking forward to this one.  Granted it doesn't take like salmon when I put it on the grill and has a strange perfectly rectangular shape...but the flavor of the sauce is good, the brown rice is yummy and there's pleny of veggies with it.
• Mexican Chicken Tortilla soup - another good choice.  I like the convenient microwavable bowl it comes in.  Soup itself was a bit bland, I had to add just a little salt (I know, defeats the purpose of low sodium soup, but it was needed.) and I had about 3 wheat crackers with it.  Good flavor, love the beans and rice in it.

I didnt' try the Italian Wedding soup - has anyone else?  Someone told me they got the new triple chocolate cheesecake - has anyone tried this yet?  How could it be bad, right?

So, my goal is to continue to do well this week and have a good loss at WI on Wednesday.  I 'm hoping for the 2 lbs I "found" last week.

On another note, a new JC center opened up inthe SAME shopping center as my gym, and about 10 mins closer than my current center.  I've been going to my center for well, 58 weeks, and I love my consultant......but I'm definitely considering switching.  I think it may actually be good to have someone new pushing me...since I haven't gotten to goal yet.  It will be bittersweet though!

Hope eveyone is having a good week so far.  So great to hear from old friends here!!

Week 58, Day 6

Yay, Maureen is back too!

I'm back on the JC/EXP wagon this week!  Had my WI at JC on Wednesday and I was up 2 lbs...as expected.  I am up a total of 3 lbs since 1/17 - not bad for almost a full month of misbehaving!  However, this now puts me at 7lbs to go to get to my goal...not where i want to be!  I recommitted this week - mostly because I feel like crap when I eat crap and miss workouts!

It is so scary how easy it is to fall out of good habits.  Due to our houseguests last week and then the clean up this week, I had missed about 1.5 weeks of spin classes.  Yesterday morning it was so tempting to just sleep in and worry about my work out later - would have been BAD news!  I jumped back in yesterday and did my 2 classes this morning!

My consultant is making me stick to only 2 meals out this week - we had mexican last night and are going to do Indian buffet for lunch, so I'm done.  I have been back on JC food and I must say I missed it.  I can be a control freak  so having my regular foods back feels much more comforting than having to wing it --- and there is much less room for errors (uh, I mean cheats) when all the good choices are there.

So, count me in as having a very good OP week.  I consciously decided not to have snacks at work and did not buy any chocolate bars (um, did I forget to mention that bad habit that I had started??).  I did have  few pieced of chocolate here and there, but MUCH less.  I ate JC meals for all my meals and got 3 out of my 4 workouts in.  A good week, and so much improved over the past few.

It feels SO good to be back...back OP, back IN CONTROL and back at the gym. It feels so good to know that I am doing the right things!

Week 58, Day 1

Trying out the email to blog feature and hoping it works!  UPDATE: this feature will post your email signature and possibly personal info...

SO, Yeah, its been a month.  Wish I could say that I had met my goal and then just become bored of EP and decided to desert you all :-P    Alas, not the case!!!  I guess you can say that I have been on a break of sorts.
I've been under a good deal of financial stress and haven't been able to buy JC food for a few weeks.  I did have some leftovers, so just now am I running totally out and I'll be going tomorrow to restock.  The good part of this is that I have had to find substitutes.  Some of the things I have been eating include:

Lean Pockets (their whole grain choices tend to be similar, nutrionally to JC, although smaller)
Frosted Mini Wheats cereal
Smart Start Maple Brown Sugar cereal
Lean Cuisine Spa meals
Pria 100 Calorie Chocolate Mint Vitamin Bars
Assorted 100 calorie snack packs (they make these in all sorts of great varieties now.  Some of my favorite have been chex mix chocolate and carmel, oreo, mini fudge stripes, cheetos, doritos, etc)

I like being able to branch out a bit from JC and add some variety.  I do have to be careful with how many 100 calories snacks I have in a day!

The other good news is that with the exception of last week, I have been very consistently keeping up with my workouts - 4 spinning classes per week.

The not as good is that I have had houseguests for the past week and we have been eating junk food galore!  I'm talking pizza, cheesesteaks, french fries, strombolis, chinese food, cheesecake, chocolate, you name it!!  Also, I've been giving in to the girl scout cookies at work.  As much as I enjoy these foods, it makes a definite difference in my energy levels and overall feeling of health.  I feel bloated, full and overall tired!  It has been great to just continually indulge every whim, but at the same time, it is TIME to get back to it.

I only have about 5 lbs to go (maybe a few more at this point).  I know that there is some psychological stuff happening that is trying to sabotage my reaching my goal.  This is what happened in the past, and I must not ignore this, I must fight through it.  I so enjoy feeling "thin" and comfortable in clothing.  Its like a huge weight being lifted off of my shoulders.  I don't want to get complacement or over confident and think that the work is done....IT IS NOT.  It will likely never be done, it will likely continue throughout my life.

So, I will be making my JC appt tomorrow for the first time in several weeks, and I will return to balanced eating, reigning in the snacking and getting into the gym.

I do have some good motivation coming up - I'll be in VEGAS for a business trip next month and one of my best friends is coming to meet me and spend the weekend after the conference!!!  In honor of my almost 50 lb weight loss and needing to up my "coolness" factor for Vegas, I did make a fantastic purchase.  I bought a pair of "cool jeans".  They were more than I have ever spent on a single item of clothing before - usually shop at Marshalls!!, but I love 'em and can't wait to wear them in Vegas!

Ok, I feel better for catching up.  Thanks to all of those who have thought of me and checked in on me in my absence!

Week 54, Day 2

Welcome to eveyone who has found EP in the new year!  This is a great website/community and has been so helpful in keeping me on track and motivated throughout the last year.  I intend to respond to eveyone who has commented to me, and read their stories and hope to give back some of what this community has given me.

With that being said, looks like I fell off the posting wagon yet again!  The good news is that I had a 3.2 lb loss last week!  Totally unexplainable though.  Was weird, told my consultant I thought that at this point, my weight loss was more random and doesn't seem to be as tied to my actual weekly activity.  BUT, I'll take it!

Have had a pretty decent week, and hope to be down tonight....I'm inching closer to my goal - only 3.6 lbs as of now to go!