Turkey Day Recap

27 November 2009 at 11:41 am (Weight Watchers, family, food, holidays, weight loss)

My Dad is coming over tomorrow morning to help me bring my Christmas tree up from the basement, so I really need to get moving on this whole distasteful cleaning thing.

But before I do, I thought I’d recap how my Thanksgiving went from an eating standpoint. Below is a recap of my six-point-plan from yesterday’s post, with comments on how I did (or didn’t do) on each one.

  1. Cut the pie. I didn’t cut the pie before I left the house, but I did cut it once I got there. I wanted to have just half a slice, but ended up having a whole slice and a small piece of carrot cake. Half-check.
  2. Turkey Day workout. I went, I exercised, and today my whole body hurts. Check.
  3. Limit pre-dinner snacking. I did a GREAT job at this, compared to previous years. I had a small amount of the Mexican slop dip I love (and feared my aunt would make this year) with some chips, but then stuck to a small amount of M&Ms, and carrots and cucumber from the veggie tray (no dip). Check.
  4. Eat calories, don’t drink them. I did a great job with this as well, having just two glasses of wine. Before dinner I drank a TON of water, and then had two cans of diet soda the rest of the night. BIG Check.
  5. No leftovers allowed. While I enjoyed a small amount of dessert at my aunt’s house, I did take two pieces of pumpkin pie home with me, and they were gone before I went to sleep. And, truth be told, I didn’t try that hard — well, at all — to get someone else to take them home. Uncheck.
  6. Post-dinner walk. It was cold and windy, but I did get my cousin, three aunts and two other gals to go for a short walk around my aunt’s neighborhood. We were probably only gone ten minutes, but it was something. Also, I did the dishes which, while not burning a ton of calories, kept me moving and is something I don’t normally offer to do. Check.

You may remember my goal was to accomplish at least four of these goals and, by my complicated and top-secret check/un-check equation, I count that I completed four-and-a-half of these goals. Add to that the fact that I didn’t go back for seconds on the main meal, and I declare this Thanksgiving a rousing success.

I tried to tally up all my WW points when I got home last night. By those standards, I didn’t do so great of a job. (Let’s just say my 35 weekly allowance points are no longer available to me until they reboot six days from now.) When I put this Thanksgiving up against previous ones, however, I have to say I hit a solid triple.

If you take out the two pieces of pie I ate when I got home, it would have been a home run.

But I’ll take the triple.

Hope everyone who celebrates had a good time spent with family, friends and food. Now off to clean!

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Turkey Day Plan

24 November 2009 at 10:30 pm (Weight Watchers, exercise, family, food, holidays, weight loss)

I’m too ashamed to write here how well I’ve not been following Weight Watchers these last weeks, so I won’t. Suffice to say it’s a miracle I’ve squeaked by with the few small losses I’ve enjoyed the past few weigh-ins.

Motivation has always been a challenge for me, and fortunately the holidays don’t make this problem even worse. Being single and not having in-laws to visit makes life a lot less hectic this time of year. Still, I’ve decided to at least be conscious of the pitfalls of holiday eating and take it one occasion at a time. And when there’s no holiday, one day at a time.

So here is my plan for Thanksgiving, which my Dad and I are spending at my aunt’s house:

  1. Cut the pie. I’m baking a pumpkin pie Wednesday night, and am going to cut it into slices before I leave for my aunt’s house so I can control the size of piece I get. If I cut it into 16 slices, it’s four WW points per slice. (Note: I’m already planning to lower the fat content of the pie by using egg substitute and fat free evaporated milk. Can’t do much about the homemade — by request — crust.)
  2. Turkey Day Workout. I’m meeting my friend/co-worker Melissa at the Wisconsin Athletic Club at 8 a.m. Thursday for a one-hour strength training class. I’m so glad she wanted to go, because it will virtually guarantee that I drag myself out of bed and get to the gym. Left to my own devices, I know I would hit the snooze (or not set the alarm at all). I suppose my back-up plan if she bails is to try my hardest to go anyway.
  3. Limit pre-dinner snacking. Part of our family festivities this year is the Packer game, which starts at 11:30 a.m. We’re not eating until 3 p.m., so that’s a long time and a lot of snack foods.
  4. Eat calories, don’t drink them. I will have a glass of wine or two, but then am going to switch to soda and water the rest of the day/evening.
  5. No leftovers allowed. I will use the response I use every year when asked if I want to take anything home. “No, because I’ll just eat it.”
  6. Post-dinner walk. The plan is to suggest a walk after dinner to settle our stomachs. I don’t think I’ll have trouble getting takers on this, as this is a semi-regular occurrence at our family get togethers. I just don’t usually participate.

Barring some kind of unnatural event, Nos. 1, 2 and 5 will happen, no question. If I can accomplish at least one more of the above goals, I will consider this a successful holiday, foodwise. I’m not planning to track what I eat on Thursday, but having these six goals in mind will go a long way in helping me to be successful, even though I’m not writing down every bite that goes in my mouth.

Happy Thanksgiving, my American friends!

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59

10 November 2009 at 10:03 am (Uncategorized)

My mother would have been 59 years old today. This is the third birthday since she’s been gone.

I’m planning to go to the cemetery over my lunch hour today to visit her … it gets dark here now before I leave work, and I don’t think she would approve of me hopping the fence at the graveyard just to stand by her headstone for a few minutes.

When I was 10, my aunt (and Mom’s youngest sister) Susie got married. After the wedding, my mom and I stopped back at the house to pick something up. When we came out of the house she realized she had locked her car (and house) keys inside.

It was August, so the windows were open. She walked me around to the front porch and proceeded to bust in the screen and make me crawl into the kitchen to get her keys. The window was right over the sink, so I was trying to step around dirty dishes, while not killing myself in the process, so I could get the keys.

We then drove to my Grandma’s house — where everyone was gathering to spend the bajillion hours between the wedding and reception — and she told me never to tell my father the “stupid” thing she had done.

I don’t remember, but I’m pretty sure I blabbed it to someone that day. I was 10, for cripes sake! :-)

Miss you, Mom.

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Shameless Plug for Donations — Help me Raise $500!

11 October 2009 at 5:54 pm (charity)

Bells will be ringing this holiday season as thousands of runners and walkers hit the nation’s pavements, pathways and parks this winter to fight arthritis, the nation’s most common cause of disability.

I will be one of those people, tying jingle bells to my shoelaces to participate in the Jingle Bell Run/Walk for Arthritis, a 5K fun run/walk to benefit the Arthritis Foundation. And YOU can help, too!

‘Tis the season for giving! Won’t you sponsor me in my effort to raise funds to fight arthritis? Arthritis affects more than 46 million Americans, including 300,000 children, costing the U.S economy over $128 billion annually. The Arthritis Foundation needs our help.

Please visit my Web page to join my team or make a secure, online contribution to help me reach my fundraising goal. The donations I raise will help fund the Arthritis Foundation’s mission to prevent, control and cure arthritis.

Follow This Link to visit my personal web page and help me in my efforts to support Arthritis Foundation, Wisconsin Chapter

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10 Percent Society

24 September 2009 at 1:27 pm (Weight Watchers, food, weight loss)

No, I’m not talking about the gay and lesbian organization.

I’m talking about the Weight Watchers 10 Percent Society.

This week I regained my 10-percent-body-weight-lost status with a three pound loss.

During today’s meeting we were talking about the importance of setting goals, meaning that “if you don’t know where you’re going, you’re probably not going to get there.” I have been goal-less in my weight loss efforts for a long time now, and I think that’s why I’ve stalled at the scale. According to our meeting leader, a goal should be

  • Specific
  • Realistic
  • Attainable
  • Easily fits into my life

That being said, I’ve made a new goal for myself, now that I’ve reached my initial 10 percent. I’m now going to shoot for five percent of my current weight, which would be a total of about 12 pounds. I think if I go in 5 percent increments, the light at the end of the tunnel won’t seem so dim.

I realized that my past weight tracker charts update everytime I update my weight, kind of negating the ability to see progress. So I am now going to present my tickers in jpeg format. That way I (or anyone else) can go back and see how far I’ve come.

(Old) 10 Percent Ticker
9-24-08

(New) 5 Percent Ticker
9-24-09

(Ongoing) Overall Ticker
9-24-09

I really need to get back on track, both with my eating and (even moreso) with excercising. I am hoping that this new goal will help that in some small way.

Oh, and in case you didn’t know, here’s all the health benefits you could realize from losing 10 percent of your body weight.

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Adventures in Business Travel

21 September 2009 at 11:06 am (Work, travel)

I’ve been in Portland, Oregon since Saturday night to “man” a trade show booth on behalf of the client I work on at my agency. There have been some challenges — one of my product banner stands didn’t get shipped, and 80 percent of the product literature for the booth wasn’t shipped, either. The show started on Sunday and there really wasn’t much that could be done, so I didn’t worry myself too much about it.

What a beautiful city! The view as we landed was breathtaking, and I can see Mount St. Helens from my hotel room. Last night I had dinner at a little Italian restaurant in the Pearl District with a college friend who just so happens to live in Portland. We figured out that we hadn’t seen each other since 1994, so it was great to catch up.

Today I’m sitting at a trade show  booth from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. After I’m finished I’m going to explore a little Asian grocery store I discovered across the street from the convention center (a headache is coming on and I needed aspirin). They have some interesting collectibles, so maybe I’ll come home with a few souvenirs.

My body still thinks it’s on Central time, unfortunately, so I’m yawning by 8 p.m. I’m sure I’ll be acclimated by the time I get ready to go home on Wednesday.

Since I won’t get many daylight hours to sightsee, I also want to try and get a few pictures, even if they are only in the vicinity of the convention center. It’s just so beautiful here!

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Need Your Help!

18 September 2009 at 3:32 pm (animal cruelty, animals, cats, ginger snap, pit bull, pit bulls)

My kitty Ginger and I are fans of a great organization called All Aboard Animal Search and Rescue in California run in part by my friend Valerie. They work very hard to rescue and find homes for animals, particularly pit bulls who have been mistreated by their past owners.

Please read the story below (originally posted by my friend ) and consider making a donation in any amount you can to help this wonderful organization.

Ginger and I thank you!
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Dearest Readers:

I am posting a special story today and asking for your help. This week, a reader asked for my help with a dog case (out of Leland, Mississippi)  she’d heard about, wondering if there was anything I could do for this animal. Our rescue policy prohibits taking dogs from out of state because we operate with the spirit of saving the dogs in our community as a #1 priority. Six million dogs die every single year in America, put to sleep due to over over population, and Sonoma county is full of homeless dogs. I told her I would look into it, but in the back of my mind, I knew, taking on a dog that wasn’t local was going to be a hell of a job.

Once I read April’s story, and saw her picture, I sent in on to Mary, our director. In an instant, we knew, we had to act. We’ve been in constant contact with the rescue authorities in Leland, Mississippi, and they’ve agreed to let us take April. Ladies and gentlemen, here is April and her story:


April, the burned Pit mix, on death row!!!!  April survived a fire, rescued from a burning building, as she tried to save her puppies, who all perished. April spent months at the vet’s recovering from her burns which was a painful and difficult process. She suffered permanent disfigurement to her back and feet from the burns. April has been cared for by angels in the Mississippi Delta, who operate with almost no resources. After 8 months, nobody has come forward to adopt her so she was about to be put down. The rescue ladies at  arrf-arrf.org did not give up and fought like gladiators to get help for this dog. April survived heart worm, the fire and losing all her puppies.

All Aboard Rescue, my rescue, agreed to take April. Once she arrives, we will hold her at our ranch until suitable foster care can be found (like my house after Kitty gets a home) and we will ensure she is adopted by the best family possible, no matter what or no matter how long, it takes. We will insist on an adoption contract that allows us to follow up on April’s progress, in person, for the rest of her life. April is going to California, for permanent security and care.

I am asking for donations for the considerable transport costs and for money to take care of April. I want her seen by a vet at UC Davis to evaluate her skin. April’s days of suffering are over. Period.

As a mother, I could not let this dog die in a shelter like a piece of garbage. Life is not black and white and sometimes, rules need to be broken. We have a rough website that isn’t even finished yet, but the PayPal link works. Any donation you make will go 100% for April. Stuff we need for administrative tasks, like envelopes and pens, we steal LMAO! BUT ONLY FROM OUR FRIENDS. We need to get her here and that’s my first concern. Anything you can do, whether it’s give money or send her a prayer for wellness and strength, is appreciated. Also, I am begging on my knees like a money whore so this is what my life has come to.

My first Live Journal dog rescue! Donation link is below.

http://allaboardanimalsearchandrescue.com/index.html 

THANK YOU! Please re-post if you can and I wish you a great weekend. Things are looking up for April. Many thanks to Linda and Ann from arrf-arrf. You are fighting the good fight sisters…. and the only way to win is never, ever, give up.

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Weigh-in, Week 30

11 September 2009 at 11:49 am (Weight Watchers, food, weight loss)

Not much new to report on the weight loss front. I seem to keep gaining and losing the same 1.5-2 pounds. I know I’ll get over this hump, I just need to re-commit myself to the process.

To that end, I started a paper weight loss journal so I can immediately record miscues and triumphs. If I think something might be helpful to the few of you reading, I may post it here. Otherwise, I like having something tangible I can turn to when I’m not at a computer, to help remind me why I’m doing all of this.

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Weigh-in, Week 29

4 September 2009 at 3:00 pm (Weight Watchers, weekend, weight loss)

Yesterday was our penultimate weigh-in before our current session ends.

I’m still making my way back to the 10 percent goal I reached awhile back. Counting the 1.6 pounds I lost yesterday, I have nine-tenths of a pound to go before I’m back at 23.7 pounds lost.

(If you do the math you’ll figure out how much I weighed when I started WW. I’m okay with that, life is too short to obsess.)

10 percent ticker (one pound to go):

Overall ticker (many pounds to go):

So, our current session ends on Thursday, Sept. 10.

Thankfully, I think we have enough people to continue on for another 15 weeks.

This makes me happy.

If you recall, back in Week 10 I was pretty anxious when our first session was coming to an end. It didn’t look like we were going to have enough people, and I was worried for myself as to how I would cope.

It worked out then, and it will work out now.

I’m also not as anxious this time around because I’ve resolved that I will keep attending, even if it’s not at work. Another girl and I decided we were going to find a meeting after work to go to together if the lunchtime Thursdays don’t continue.

I found out today we may have reached our quota to continue on, which is great. But if we don’t continue here, I will most definitely continue somewhere else.

Hope my U.S. friends have a great holiday weekend! And my non-U.S. friends — have a great weekend in general!

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Weigh-in, Week ?

27 August 2009 at 12:19 pm (Weight Watchers, food, weight loss)

It’s been a long time since I posted about my weight loss efforts (or anything else of substance, for that matter). I’m still plugging away, though not with the same gusto I once was.

That has to change.

Convinced I gained, I was pleasantly surprised to be 1.4 pounds down this week. This puts me 1.2 pounds away from re-achieving my 10 percent weight loss goal.

Once I do that, I plan to pretend as if I’m starting Weight Watchers from scratch. The plan will then be to lose 5 percent, and then 10 percent, of my current weight.

Here are my updated tickers with today’s weight.

10 percent:

Overall:

Today’s meeting was extremely motivational, the next step is to carry it over into the real world.

I know I can do it.

I’ve already done it, it’s just reminding my brain of that fact.

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