My weekend in Pictures

First attempt at a wonder mould cake. I under baked it and had to restart ~ and avoid the temptation to eat it all.  I succumbed to eating just the part in the bowl.

Really tough Saturday morning circuit class - 647 calories is almost a new record.  I died!

First hot car sighting of the day - the gym I do Saturday circuit at is upstairs and a guy rents the downstairs to store 2 very nice sports cars

A healthy and successful shopping trip to Costco - veggies, strawberries, egg whites and 4 new perennials!

Hot car sighting #2 - I think all the sun Saturday morning brought them all out.  I'm not complaining!

And then after shopping - a nice nap on the couch.  This is how my dog sleeps - hiding his head under the coffee table.  I swear he thinks that we can't see him this way.

Saturday evening was spent making a birthday cake for a girl's 3rd birthday.  The second attempt at the wonder mould cake worked much much better and left me with no scraps to eat - wohoo!

Sunday morning I was up early posting wedding items and misc items on craigslist.  This is part to help accomplish 2 items on my 101 things to do in 1001 days.

Lots and lots of laundry today - these are the last 2 loads.  Aren't you just jealous of my hot pink carpet? lol.

To Be Accomplished Still:

Picking all the wonderful dandelions that have popped up in the last 2 weeks.  I also want to plant the new perennials I picked up yesterday

Gotta get my veggies in!

Chicken defrosting - I will be batch cooking the chicken and broccoli tonight so I have healthy lunches and dinners for the weeks

Canucks Game at 5!  Go Canucks Go!

Overall, fairly healthy, fairly active, and getting much accomplished!

What I'm Reading

I've ramped up my reading of blogs and other sites lately trying to keep my motivation.


Here is what has struck a chord with me in the last week:

And She Ran
A blog I just started following ~ this particular blog post reminded me of me.  How I've used my excess fat as an excuse as to why no on likes me.  But it isn't my fat, it is me!  I shut myself off from the world using my fat.

There's a reason hamsters dont have six packs
Another blog new to me ~ I liked the advice in this one about mixing up the workouts, something I'm trying hard to do!

2 posts from Skinny Emmie:

• Accepting the Struggle A great read on why the struggle and the journey are just as important as the final destination.
• Weight Loss Ninja Although not explicitly a motivational post, to me, since I also struggle to overcome the feelings of inadequacy and self-doubt, it was.  It is necessary to remind myself that the definition of failure can change and even the best laid plans go sideways but that the final goal is always there even if the path to reach it may change. 

Day 2
Another blog new to me that I came across looking for people's experience with skin removal surgery.  When checking out blogs, I almost had a panic attack since I know once I reach my weight loss goal, I will have plenty of excess skin to be removed.  It scares the shit out of me.  The wonderful blogger at Diary of a Former Food Addict just went through surgery for her arms and legs and I'm really looking forward to watching the progress.

Don't just sit around
I came across this when reading the Sweat Science blog at Runner's World.
I sit all day long, and this is a perfect reminder to move on a regular basis.  I find the study quite intriguing as it goes to show that obesity is a very complex issue.

Paying the Price of a Fat Pet
"The problem in pets mirrors that in overweight humans, often stemming from lack of exercise and too many snacks and calorie-dense foods – or, in this case, treats and table scraps – between meals."

So true!  I'm lucky my dog is hyper active and maintains his weight  perfectly.  I only wish my doctor would tell me that "You have a nice figure" like the vet told Haru!

Deprived
A reminder that you shouldn't feel deprived for the whole weight loss journey

Healthy Habits Make Healthy Fatties

A reminder that the number on the scale doesn't mean much in regards to health and morbidity!

For the second spin class....

I survived!

201 calories burned

I'm taking a 30 minute beginner spin class at a local recreation centre about 15 minutes from my house.  4 half hour classes for $12, taxes in.  I can't go wrong.

I figured after my hour long class, that maybe, to prevent my bum from revolting on me, I should ease into this whole spin thing.

I know when people look at me they assume that I never work out, must be in horrible shape etc.  Given that this spin class is at the back of a large, very busy, weight and cardio area, I felt very awkward and unwelcome walking through there to find the spin area.  The class is not separated at all from the rest of the workout area, the benches were about 6 ft from my bike ~ so not knowing this I worse a tight tank top.  BIG mistake.  I felt so self-conscious as we were sprinting because my second wave arm flab was just a-moving.  I caught a glance of myself in the mirror and immediately thought, T-SHIRT next time, big baggy t-shirt.  *sigh*  All these hot young guys do not need to see my arm flab or belly roll.  (hmm... wasn't I just talking about not caring about what people thought last time... apparently I do care)

Anyways, back to the spin class.

There were 8 of us in total.  Four of them were all younger (mid-20s) girls who all knew each other.  One single middle aged lady and then a mother daughter pair.  All were much thinner than I was, other than the mom.  Boy, did I ever feel sorry for the mom.  She reminds me a lot of my mom, shorter, large busted and carrying all her weight around the middle; she was the only person in that gym bigger than me.  About 10 minutes in, the instructor showed us jumps (standing up then sitting down again).  On the last jump, that poor woman slipped, missed her seat and ended up stuck in an incredibly awkward position. Her feet were stuck in the pedals and her knees were on the ground.  Her daughter and the instructor rushed to her side to try to help her up.  Since I was on the bike beside her, I too got up, but there wasn't much I could do.  Her feet were eventually unstuck and the instructor and daughter lifted her up.  She was a trouper.  She got right back on and kept going (however not doing the standing up when we were doing hills) for the rest of the 30 minutes class.  I was so glad that no one stood around and stared at her and I felt nothing but compassion for her.  She was there, she was trying and I really hope they come back for the second class.

I think I will continue with the spin.  I need to definitely work harder on pushing myself.  My average heart rate was only 112bpm.  In boot camps and circuits it ranges anywhere from 130-160bpm.  The class did show me that I do need someone on me to push me in order to get the calorie burn I want when I'm feeling unmotivated.  However, 200 is 200 and it got me moving!  So far, I'm doing well, working out or doing something very active 6 times a week.   I just need to learn to push myself.

Tomorrow morning is our 7 am boot camp class.  Depending on who the trainer is, I'm going to ask them to kill me.  I need my ass kicked after a week of lacklustre workouts on my part.

So I've got the workout thing under control.

Food... *sigh*  How about we don't talk about the 1/2 box girl guide cookies I ate on Monday?  Or the 1/2 bag of mini peanut butter cups I ate till I felt ill yesterday?  My curse is having no healthy snack food in the house and boredom.  I started eating stale pretzels when I got home since I knew I needed something.  I should start my knitting again to keep my hands busy, but I can't motivate myself to go searching for all my needles and cast something on.  I desperately need to go grocery shopping and organise my crafts so I'm not sitting around home doing nothing.

I have a children's birthday cake to do this weekend, so I know I'm going to indulge in a icing and cake batter, so I really shouldn't make cookie dough tonight or eat any of the chocolate in this place.  I don't even have milk to have a bowl of cereal.  I think peanut butter on crackers is what it will be.  I REALLY want to make myself some cookie dough but I am going to be good and resist. I want that number on the scale to be down at least 1 lb on Monday morning.

So to everyone out there: stay strong on your food and don't be afraid to try new workouts; if you fall, get back up!