There are a couple of things going on in my life that are huge.

I can’t talk about the life-changing thing.

(Sorry, I hate it when people bring up things they can’t talk about on their blogs, but I needed to say something about it because I need to talk about it in SOME fashion or I would explode. This blog is also the journal of my life and I need to record it in some small way. Let’s just say that it is both necessary and sucks a duck, ok?)

I CAN talk about a couple of things that I am starting TODAY that are making me freak, though.

Today I start going to the gym.

This means that I am also on a 1,200 to 1,400 calorie a day regime.

Why?

I DO need to do it for my health. I always feel better when I’m working out.

BUT.

My primary motivations boils down to vanity and necessity, my friends.

I put back on some of the pounds that I lost last year to fit into this gorgeous (And custom-tailored) concert dress for my solo performance in “The Messiah”.

I am reprising that role again this year and if I don’t lose those pounds before the end of March I will be singing in front of an orchestra and audience buck nekkid.

(And I would really not like the audience’s eyes to start bleeding, so it really is best for all that I just lose the weight.)

My dress used to fit like THIS:

Currently, my dress fits like this.

I’m not shelling out hundreds of bucks for a new dress, so I suppose the only thing to do is get my heiny to the gym. Don’t worry, I will be safe and responsible. This is not extreme dieting. I still have a lot habits from doing this last year that have stuck, so I am hoping that it is easier.

AND!!!

As of today, I am also taking a break from Diet Coke.

(Yes, those were the sounds of Satan making ice cubes down in the formerly fiery pits of hell.)

No, I have not been abducted by aliens and given a mind transplant and an anal probe. No, my blog has not been hacked. No, this is not a vast right-wing conspiracy.

I.am.doing.this.

For the next 47 days I will attempt to be “Diet Coke Free”. (I can’t bring myself to say “I am giving it up forever”, so I’m just saying I am going to abstain until after my performances are over.)

I don’t know if I am completely crazy or totally brave.

To quote Victoria Beckham, “This is MAJOR.”

I love Diet Coke.

I drink a LOT OF IT A DAY. So much that it is both nauseating to normal people and embarrassing to me. So much that I can’t talk about exact amounts. It is my security, my friend, and my constant companion. I can always rely on it to be there.

It is probably my #2 obsession and addiction and I am going to feel like I’m missing a limb without it in my life.

Not that you need any convincing but just in case you are not grasping the “Bigness” of this decision, see photographic evidence:

Sigh.

Diet Coke, how I shall MISS THEE!

The next few days are not going to be pretty my friends, no not at ALL. I’m giving up Diet Coke, junk food, a lot of my non-junky-but-still-really-not-conducive-to-weight-loss-foods and there’s other stuff going on in my life.

I feel like Linus from Charlie Brown and I am giving up my blankie, but it isn’t just one blankie, it feels more like ELEVENTYHUNDRED BLANKIES.

I hope I don’t totally fall on my ass in front of you all. If I do, I will fess up. While I want to succeed, I’m sure there will be some falling off the wagon, but I need to be accountable to someone.

I have taken measurements and before shots, but I am just too wiped out tonight to post them.

Wish me luck.

Better than luck, if any of you have any low-calorie foods, recipes, snacks or work out tips, let me know.

I am going to need all the help I can get.

P.S.

I know that there are many of you who have significant weight struggles and are probably going ‘Oh, WAH for her, the big whiner!” I get that, I really do. Think of it more this way…I am more frightened about giving up the biggest obsessions/addictions in my life than any amount of weight I have to lose or exercise I have to go through. I need to be accountable to someone. I am not meaning to seem like a whiner or seem like my plight sucks because I have 6 weeks to drop a small amount of weight, really I don’t.

Thank you for understanding.

**Edit-Or shall I say “Tons of edits”. This post has changed quite a bit from the original. I MUST call attention to the fact that I am also wearing my NEW GLASSES in this posts photo. Yup. I went with the “Naughty Librarian” pair. They rule. Now, I really must work on not tinkering with posts once they are up. You poor, pestered, feed readers! What I must do to you! I can’t help it, it’s like picking at a scab. Walk away from the keyboard, Loralee. Now. You can do it!

I know many of you will run shrieking from the length of this post. For those less drama-infused, you will just scroll down and let your eye take in a few of the more pertinent words in each paragraph. This is more a post written for me to look back on in future years and (Hopefully) measure my progress. You could just skip it, but you will be missing a ROCKING photo of me in sweats and tiara.

Don’t let the title of this post scare you. I’m not going to stand up on a desk and go all “O, Captain! My Captain!” on y’all, but I do want to talk about the phrase made famous by cardigan-clad Robin Williams. Continue reading →

EDIT***

I have been doing really well with this whole “Eat better and exercise” thing. I realize that it is still early on, and that I will most likely (No, ABSOLUTELY) falter and stall in this progress, but I am really enjoying how I am feeling.

My gym experiences have been good, except that I need to figure out the whole music thing. Music is a must have to stay motivated for me. I made Michelle’s day when I told her that when I need to kick ass and get motivated I listen to Olympic Fanfare themes. I don’t think she guffawed that much since she found out that my father called the hideous pink inside my corner cupboard “Titty Pink”. (Yes, yes he did. Sigh)

Back to the music thing. My headphones are too small to work with the TV treadmills and since I prefer music anyway, I am going to have to get some kind of pocket/waistband carrier for my portable CD player.

Over all, it is going differently than other fitness programs I have tried in the past. Instead of feeling like I am getting my ass kicked by my work out, I feel like I am making IT work for ME.

I have certain things in place that make my chance of succeeding in this venture much higher:

1. I have a dedicated “Work Out Pal”. That would be, Bridgy. She is very dedicated. What keeps her motivated is that she knows I have no vehicle at my disposal during the day and so she knows that if she doesn’t come pick me up, I won’t be able to go. It’s good for both of us.

2. I joined a gym. It is just easier for me to have a set place to go with everything I need in it. I love the improvements they have made and it has a lot of perks and pluses. In addition, the hot tub and steam room really help in the recovery process so I don’t feel like hud when I am finished.

3. I am motivated. I freaked out at my recent weight gain and back injury and just how I have been feeling lately. I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired, my health sucks, I have significant medical problems and I need all the help I can give my body, so it is time for a CHANGE.

4. I have long term and short term goals for diet and exercise. My short term goal is to have lost a total of 25 pounds by the end of March when I perform “The Messiah” . I am also planning on being able to run one full mile without stopping by then (I don’t care how long it takes, I just want to be able to run it). My long term goals are to continue to cut out as much refined sugar and flour as I can, up my iron intake, drink more water and to eventually run 2 miles in 16 minutes. I am also going to work to a 5 K. race this year and quite possibly a much longer relay race the next.

5. I have good supplemental tools: I have been reading a lot more fitness magazines. My friend Michelle is the running goddess and has loads of good tips for all things healthy, and I found the coolest online meal and fitness tracker thanks to Jess in Logan.

www.sparkpeople.com

I have mentioned this before, but I’ll say a bit more about it. First, it is FREE. Second, it is awesome. You can make it as much or as little as you want in terms of involvement. There are forums, articles, goal charts, meal plans, exercise plans, you can make your own personal page, contests, award points, it has EVERYTHING. And did I mention it is all FREE?????

It has really helped me to keep track of my diet and work out goals, and it includes quality of life goals as well. I track everything I eat on there, which is essential for me to do at first since I want to lose 15-ish pounds by April. Here is a sample of the nutrition tracker. I couldn’t get the whole thing on here because it is too big, but this is the weekly progress chart that is on the bottom of the page of every day you track so that you not only see the daily information, but the bigger picture as well.

NUTRIENTS:	GOAL	2/1	2/2	2/3	2/4	2/5	2/6	2/7
Calories:	1200 - 1550					787	754	1,233
Fat:	27 - 60					22	11	24
Carbohydrates:	135 - 252					98	139	181
Protein:	30 - 136					56	35	37
Iron, Fe:	100 - 150					25	123	51

I have lost 10 lbs. since January!

Yay!

Only15-17 pounds left to go…

I have been really proud of myself housekeeping-mommy-being healthy-wise. In spite of house suck I have been making dinner consistently for my family, and they have been ROCKING meals at that.

When house suck is finished I am going to do a 2-week “Cleanse” and get a lot mroe hard-core about healthy eating. I will also be working out at the gym with Brigitte. Until then, I am getting used to the idea and trying to correct my thinking patterns and some of my habits so it isn’t such a shock. I have been replacing most of my grains with whole-grain varieties and trying to watch what I eat. I am also striving to make very balanced meals that my family will like, which is trickier than you would think.

My last three meals have been such a success of thrift and inventiveness, I had to share. (I know, I know…Another blog with posts about recipes. Sorry!) First off, I hate leftovers. I rarely ever end up keeping them and when I do, I often end up just throwing it out. I had an idea to make my roasted winter vegetables stretch over three meals and I DID IT!

Day 1
Marinated sirloin and gravy over long grain rice
Roasted winter vegetables (Yams, squash, carrots, red potatoes, onions and turnips)

Lunch Day 2
Soup and Turkey sandwiches on whole-grain bread with mixed greens and vinaigrette dressing
(Take the left over veggies, add chicken stock, 4 pieces of whole grain bread (To thicken it) then grind in a food mill or processor until smooth. Then add 1 can evaporated milk and 1 cup 1% milk. Heat until bubbling and serve) Not using cream and using the whole grain bread, makes this soup so much healthier.

Dinner Day 2
Cut chicken breasts into strips. Put in 3 cups wild rice into a casserole dish pour4-5 cups liquid (In this case I took the 3 cups of soup left over from lunch and 1 cup chicken stock and some water. This way I didn’t have to play around with spicing the dish.)
Cover with foil and bake on 400 until the rice is tender. Wild rice takes longer to cook, so I let mine cook for 2 hours.

It was all so freaking good and I felt awesome because I finally made use of leftovers in completely different ways.

I also made shortbread thumbprint cookies with my boys. Make a basic shortbread, refrigerate, roll them into balls, put in an eggwash, roll in coconut and then fill with assorted jams. In my case: Apricot, strawberry and blueberry.
These are NOT healthy, but the process was soothing to my soul and the boys LOVED it.
I think the “Deal” James was trying to make with Christopher is indicitive of the success of them.

“Christopher, if you let me have the rest of your cookies, I’ll do your homework for the rest of the year.”

“Ok, but only if you call me Optimus Prime and let me have your bike.”

Needless to say, I nipped that little arragement in the bud. However, they still might have come to some kind of agreement because James keeps referring to Christopher as, “Oh, Mighty One.”

Sigh.