Monday, February 9, 2009
Mileage Report
I logged 8 miles last week - not great, but not zero. That puts me at 39 miles. I will make better effort this week. No test looming over my head. Yay! I have not weighed myself. Maybe tomorrow. Sahm's scale said 151.5, but I need to weigh on my own scale to see how that's going. After this past weekend, I'm guessing not so great. sigh.
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Back to the Drawing Board
Well, this weekend is a semi-bust on the diet scale. I did Turbo again yesterday for a whopping two workouts and the day is not over today, so perhaps I can make three workouts this week. I went to our office Christmas (Valentine's?) party last night and ate way too much, as is the case at those events. Chips, dips, (no chains or whips), and scotcheroos and chocolate frosted brownies! Yummy.
Today I took my neuroscience test, and it was awful, but I passed. I've never been so happy to get 87.5% in my life. You have to get 80% to pass. Whew. I was literally shaking at times, I was so stressed out by it. Unfortunately, I can also now explain all of the fine neurological points of WHY I was shaking and which path those neuronal signals took in my body to express the shaking. So, I stressed myself out AND upped my nerd factor by at least 10.
We are supposed to have cards this evening, but I don't think anyone is coming. Is it bad to say I am relieved? I want to stay home and watch movies and knit. Unfortunately, I need to read more for class and pay bills. waah, waaaaaaah. This may call for a trip to Sahms for more scotcheroos.
Today I took my neuroscience test, and it was awful, but I passed. I've never been so happy to get 87.5% in my life. You have to get 80% to pass. Whew. I was literally shaking at times, I was so stressed out by it. Unfortunately, I can also now explain all of the fine neurological points of WHY I was shaking and which path those neuronal signals took in my body to express the shaking. So, I stressed myself out AND upped my nerd factor by at least 10.
We are supposed to have cards this evening, but I don't think anyone is coming. Is it bad to say I am relieved? I want to stay home and watch movies and knit. Unfortunately, I need to read more for class and pay bills. waah, waaaaaaah. This may call for a trip to Sahms for more scotcheroos.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Stressed = Desserts backwards
I believe that I have mentioned my latest quest for furhter education. I'm taking classes toward a new master's degree, and made it through the first semester and am part-way through the second. The first semester was about general physiology, and was a lot of new vocabulary, but at least most of our physiological systems make some intuitive sense. This semester, we are working on Neuroscience and later, Neuropharmacology. Neuro.. having to do with the brain.
Our noodles are complicated little organs, and involve intricate little parts with crazy names. In addition, the way that it works deals with electrochemical forces and equations and junk like that. Needless to say, it's hard stuff. Our first test has rolled around, and we get to take it online, though there is a time limit, so you can't just sit around looking up the answers to every question as you go along. We have until Sunday to get it submitted, and it is stressin me out!! I am re-reading everything, so this takes up every evening. I have one more chapter of review and then I will take the flippin thing. One chaper is about 25 pages long, and it takes me about 1.5 hours to make it through that, taking notes as I go and pausing to scratch my head and re-read the sentences three or four times.
This is as unpleasant a task as I can stand. It makes me frantic, wondering if I'll get it and pass, or whether I will flunk this class. And not understanding it fully on the first read-through frazzles me. What do I do?! I want cookies and chocolate and buttered popcorn, that's what. See, normally, I would have a bunch of sweets and tasty treats right there, and this would bring enough pleasure to counteract the pain of the task and make it bearable. What do I do now??! I'm not gonna lie. I have eaten at least one cookie (vanilla sandwich cremes, Fareway brand - normally no temptation at all but I'm desperate) and Dove chocolate each night that I am working on this. Last night I was two steps from the buttery popcorn.
Exercise is supposed to be stress-relieving, but if I do that, I will not have time to get my reading done after the kids are in bed. Shoot. And it's not the immediate counteracting force that cookies afford. Last night I tried one of those flavored mix-ins for my bottled water. Sweet, without the calories. It helped me avoid the popcorn, but it was not the same satisfaction. Maybe I'll try chewing gum. Next week will be better.
Our noodles are complicated little organs, and involve intricate little parts with crazy names. In addition, the way that it works deals with electrochemical forces and equations and junk like that. Needless to say, it's hard stuff. Our first test has rolled around, and we get to take it online, though there is a time limit, so you can't just sit around looking up the answers to every question as you go along. We have until Sunday to get it submitted, and it is stressin me out!! I am re-reading everything, so this takes up every evening. I have one more chapter of review and then I will take the flippin thing. One chaper is about 25 pages long, and it takes me about 1.5 hours to make it through that, taking notes as I go and pausing to scratch my head and re-read the sentences three or four times.
This is as unpleasant a task as I can stand. It makes me frantic, wondering if I'll get it and pass, or whether I will flunk this class. And not understanding it fully on the first read-through frazzles me. What do I do?! I want cookies and chocolate and buttered popcorn, that's what. See, normally, I would have a bunch of sweets and tasty treats right there, and this would bring enough pleasure to counteract the pain of the task and make it bearable. What do I do now??! I'm not gonna lie. I have eaten at least one cookie (vanilla sandwich cremes, Fareway brand - normally no temptation at all but I'm desperate) and Dove chocolate each night that I am working on this. Last night I was two steps from the buttery popcorn.
Exercise is supposed to be stress-relieving, but if I do that, I will not have time to get my reading done after the kids are in bed. Shoot. And it's not the immediate counteracting force that cookies afford. Last night I tried one of those flavored mix-ins for my bottled water. Sweet, without the calories. It helped me avoid the popcorn, but it was not the same satisfaction. Maybe I'll try chewing gum. Next week will be better.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
The Magical Fruit
Last week I got my hair colored and cut, effectively wiping away any trace of the fact that older age is marching its way across my head. Ahhh. I love my hairstylist. Really! I believe I have mentioned her before. She and I have been asked if we are sisters, which we both find amusing and fun. If we WERE sisters, she'd be the hot and sexy one and I'd be the pretty but average one. She has a perfect figure - or at least my version of perfect. Hourglass. She works at it - working out regularly, staying away from fried foods most of the time, focusing on healthy eating habits.
Last week while I was getting my hair done, she shared that she has been eating this bean salad stuff, and had some and gave me a taste. Mmm, tasty. So I got the recipe and made it, and I really like it. Here's the basics:
2 cans each of garbanzo beans, black beans, red beans or kidney beans. Broccoli slaw (shredded broccoli, or you could use finely chopped along with julienne carrots and some raddichio) - and you just add as much or little of that as you'd like. Pine nuts or whatever kind of nut you might enjoy. Chopped green onion. You mix all this together and then mix together some olive oil, balsamic vinegar, packet of stevia (sweetener - good stuff), dried mustard, sesame, garlic powder, or you can chop up a garlic clove and throw that in instead, tarragon. Then you pour the dressing over the whole mix and toss that around to coat. Stick it in the fridge and voila! Bean Salad.
Great! But it makes a popcorn bowl full of this stuff, so I have a ton. I eat it with a fork. I eat it on crackers. I eat it rolled up in a tortilla with some shredded chesse. I eat it as a side dish at dinner. I could eat it at breakfast. And there is still some left. Oof. But it is very healthy - lots of protein and fiber and veggies and stuff. Again, Great!
Um, but what's that old rhyme about Beans?.... (see title) Yeah. I guess this is why man made products like Bean-o.
Last week while I was getting my hair done, she shared that she has been eating this bean salad stuff, and had some and gave me a taste. Mmm, tasty. So I got the recipe and made it, and I really like it. Here's the basics:
2 cans each of garbanzo beans, black beans, red beans or kidney beans. Broccoli slaw (shredded broccoli, or you could use finely chopped along with julienne carrots and some raddichio) - and you just add as much or little of that as you'd like. Pine nuts or whatever kind of nut you might enjoy. Chopped green onion. You mix all this together and then mix together some olive oil, balsamic vinegar, packet of stevia (sweetener - good stuff), dried mustard, sesame, garlic powder, or you can chop up a garlic clove and throw that in instead, tarragon. Then you pour the dressing over the whole mix and toss that around to coat. Stick it in the fridge and voila! Bean Salad.
Great! But it makes a popcorn bowl full of this stuff, so I have a ton. I eat it with a fork. I eat it on crackers. I eat it rolled up in a tortilla with some shredded chesse. I eat it as a side dish at dinner. I could eat it at breakfast. And there is still some left. Oof. But it is very healthy - lots of protein and fiber and veggies and stuff. Again, Great!
Um, but what's that old rhyme about Beans?.... (see title) Yeah. I guess this is why man made products like Bean-o.
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
My Newest Excuse! Thanks, Paul Harvey!
Paul Harvey read a story yesterday on his little program that noted that women are less able to control their appetites than men. Don't believe me? I have included the link to the story...
http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1625785/women_less_able_to_control_appetite_than_men/index.html
So I say, "AH HA!" I fly the "no fair" flag high in the air and do a march around it with my bugle. I knew it! I'm programmed to be a ravenous hog! It's harder for me to deny that brownie than it is my spouse or brother or brother-in-laws. Add this to the fact that it is harder for me to lose weight than it is for a man, and well, I think we can all see the inequities here. What is even more off-puting is that the pressure for thinness is squarely aimed more at women. Join me in my "no fair" parade, will you? And we'll all hold signs that read: WTF?!
http://www.redorbit.com/news/health/1625785/women_less_able_to_control_appetite_than_men/index.html
So I say, "AH HA!" I fly the "no fair" flag high in the air and do a march around it with my bugle. I knew it! I'm programmed to be a ravenous hog! It's harder for me to deny that brownie than it is my spouse or brother or brother-in-laws. Add this to the fact that it is harder for me to lose weight than it is for a man, and well, I think we can all see the inequities here. What is even more off-puting is that the pressure for thinness is squarely aimed more at women. Join me in my "no fair" parade, will you? And we'll all hold signs that read: WTF?!
Pain - Acceptance = Misery (and other random stuff)
If you note the tracking space, I weighed myself this morning, and the scale certainly said better things than 154.6, but still not great. My logical mind KNOWS that 2 pounds per week is a healthy weight loss (and I lost 2.6, even better), and actually one pound per week is great. And if I lost 1 pound per week for four months, I would be at my goal. Heck, if I lost 1 pound per week for three months, I would be pretty happy at 140 pounds by May 1st - fitting comfortably back into my Spring/Summer wardrobe from last year.
I KNOW these things, but I have trouble accepting them. I don't accept that it will take concentrated effort for three or four months to reach my goal and then more effort to maintain it. I don't accept that 2.6 pounds in a week is something to celebrate. No, I reject that notion and internally pout about why I couldn't have lost five pounds and be back in the 140's. It's the 150 and over weight range that gets my undies in a bunch. I just have this thing about 150... it is a baaaaaad number. So, I guess my options would be to be grumpy about it or keep on trekkin on, denying myself cookies and cake and the breaded pork tenderloin with chips that is available for lunch in the cafeteria. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can....
I got on my Wii Fit again last night and it said I had gained .2 pounds in four days, but I'm chalking that up to different workout clothes or perhaps I just needed to make a deposit at my local bank of poo. I did the yoga section, and it was ok. The hula hooping kicked my butt again, but I got a new record of 423 spins on one side. My core was burning!
AND, I was at a meeting from 6:30 until 8:45 last night and they had a giant jelly-roll pan full of chocolate brownies with chocolate frosting. These things were plated up in 3-inch by 3-inch squares, and it took every ounce of strength I had to not eat one.
I KNOW these things, but I have trouble accepting them. I don't accept that it will take concentrated effort for three or four months to reach my goal and then more effort to maintain it. I don't accept that 2.6 pounds in a week is something to celebrate. No, I reject that notion and internally pout about why I couldn't have lost five pounds and be back in the 140's. It's the 150 and over weight range that gets my undies in a bunch. I just have this thing about 150... it is a baaaaaad number. So, I guess my options would be to be grumpy about it or keep on trekkin on, denying myself cookies and cake and the breaded pork tenderloin with chips that is available for lunch in the cafeteria. I think I can, I think I can, I think I can....
I got on my Wii Fit again last night and it said I had gained .2 pounds in four days, but I'm chalking that up to different workout clothes or perhaps I just needed to make a deposit at my local bank of poo. I did the yoga section, and it was ok. The hula hooping kicked my butt again, but I got a new record of 423 spins on one side. My core was burning!
AND, I was at a meeting from 6:30 until 8:45 last night and they had a giant jelly-roll pan full of chocolate brownies with chocolate frosting. These things were plated up in 3-inch by 3-inch squares, and it took every ounce of strength I had to not eat one.
Monday, February 2, 2009
Superbowl Fatday
Woo, this past weekend was a bit of a calorie-fest. There was a party on Sat. night with a buffet of goodies, and I practiced restraint, but still. Then there was Sunday, where I was really tired and sore and so I did not get on my Wii Fit or Hamster Wheel. Later on, pizza was had, and I ate some sour cream and onion dip on flattened pretzles (I love those things). Guilt ensues and I have not weighed myself. Maybe tomorrow.
12 miles this past week. So, add that on, and where am I? Past Britt! 31 miles or so, right? Lisa, where you at?
12 miles this past week. So, add that on, and where am I? Past Britt! 31 miles or so, right? Lisa, where you at?
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