Wednesday, July 23, 2014

A Week of Goals

I was talking with my bestie, Julie, about how frustrated I was.  That I can't seem to commit to anything since April.  I can't commit to eating well, to exercising, going to my TOPS meetings or my blog.

I am just frustrated with the whole process, yet can't bring myself to make the changes necessary.  Each week I tell myself it will be a better week, I will exercise each day and count my calories....but by lunch time the next day I have forgotten and blow it completely until the next week when I vow to start over.

With oh-so-wise advice, she suggested I take it just one day a time....set one goal each day and do your best to stick to it.  If I don't, just start fresh the next day with the new goal.  I have gotten into the mentality that it's all or nothing with this journey.  I have to have everything on par because if I don't, they will work against each other and the whole thing is pointless.

So, inspired by her wise words and a TOPS exercise of creating a daily inspiration calendar, I have put together some goals for the week.

Starting yesterday, my goals for the week are as follows:

Tuesday - go to TOPS
Wednesday - drink 8 glasses of water
Thursday - be thankful
Friday - walk
Saturday - eat in moderation
Sunday - walk
Monday - remember...1 pound at a time

Well, I managed to hit my goal for Tuesday and am par with my water challenge for today.  To help with my goal today, I put a sticky note on the water cooler and am marking each glass I have.

What goal can you set for today?


Tuesday, July 22, 2014

The Truth of Tuesday Night

Here's to hoping this post is back to it's regular self.

It's been 3 weeks since I last went to my TOPS meeting.

Last time I was there, the scale weighted in at:

247 lbs

This week:

246 lbs

Yes, I lost a pound, but it took me 3 weeks to do that.

It was hard going back...it goes to show just how easy it is to quit.  If I didn't have a role as leader at TOPS, it would have been so easy to just not go anymore.

What about you?  Have you ever quit something because you just didn't want to face going back after an absence?



Weigh In Wednesday

Sunday, July 20, 2014

Road Trip Review - 2014 Edition - Month 6

Julie and I are now more than half way through this challenge.

I'm still wavering, but how about we don't re-count all that crap, let's just look at the numbers, the pictures and get on with it.

The Facts:
  • First Pit Stop of the journey is Crowley State Park, Arkansas - 1399 km
  • Next stop and final destination is Devil's Den State Park, Arkansas - 325 km
  • Total of 1724 km
  • 5.70 km a day, 40.95 km a week and 172.40 km a month
  • We have 10 months to complete the journey, from January 1 - October 31
  • Our daily, everyday walking counts, but only up to half of our required distance - 2.85 km
  • Each 30 minutes of non-walking/running exercise counts as 0.50 km, up to 3.20 km of our total
The Road So Far:

Month 1 - January

- total walked: 197.53 km
- total eligible: 174.22 km
  ( + 1.82 over)

Month 2 - February

- total walked: 180.13 km
- total eligible: 160.05 km
  (- 12.35 behind)

Month 3 - March

total walked: 242.54 km
- total eligible: 201.23 km
  (+ 33.22 over )

Month 4 - April

- total walked: 176.30 km
- total eligible: 141.75 km
  (-27.91 behind)

Month 5 - May

- total walked: 204.43 km
- total eligible: 165.64
  (-10.97 behind)

Month 6 - June

- total walked: 182.40 km
- total eligible: 136.42.64
  (-34.58 behind)

GRAND TOTALS:
- total walked: 1183.39 km
- total eligible: 979.31 km
  (-50.77 km behind)






So, I have wound up in the woods, just outside the campus of Vincennes University in Indiana.

And my fabulous wall map?




Saturday, July 19, 2014

Garden Update # 2

It's amazing how fast things come along in the garden.  Just a quick little update for tonight.

We are now eating more than just lettuce!


This is our first cucumber and there is another ready for tomorrow.  Hayden is a HUGE cucumber eater and this one lasted about a day.  I did sample it too, pretty good!

As for the carrots, Hayden wanted to pick one to see how they were coming along and about 12 came out together.  I will pick some for dinner tomorrow though.

Sunday, July 13, 2014

Rant Time

It's my blog and I'll rant if I want to!

Now that you have been warned, I am going to rant about one of my many pet peeves.

I see this on Facebook quite often and it drives me crazy.  What is it you ask?

It's the term FML

Do you know what that means?  It means F**k my life!  I should add it took me forever to figure it out....it's not a thought process that crosses my mind, nor language I use often.  I had so many other ideas first

Seriously, if someone had told me when I first saw this acronym that it stood for this, I would have believed it!

Anyway, this rant came about because one of my best friends, challenged me to 5 days of gratitude, where I have to post on Facebook 3 things everyday I am thankful for.  It's not the first time I have done an exercise in gratitude and I think everyone should do it at least once in your life.  It's eye opening and humbling.

Anyway, I see people use this a lot and it bugs me.  We are a society of privilege and wealth.  We have food in our bellies, roofs over our heads, free healthcare, etc.  I mean, I get it....they are trying to say they are having a crappy day and things didn't work out like they planned, they don't really mean their whole life has gone in the crapper...but that IS what they are saying.  Your life could always be worse, even if it doesn't  seem like it at the moment.  Your child is sick and you need to take them to the hospital on a weekend?  Lucky you...you can do that!  You don't have to worry about how you are going to pay for that visit or have to decide if they are THAT sick or can wait a couple of more days until you can take them to your own doctor.  A FML moment should be "oh the sweat shop I work in just blew up, now where am I going to work to bring home my $12 a day?"  Even that situation could be worse...you could have died in that incident.

A little extreme of an example perhaps, but you get my point.  Perhaps a more appropriate term would be  FTD (F**k this day)

So, if you are one of the people who uses this term, please re-consider...start your own lesson in gratitude and for the next 5 days, right down 3 things you are thankful for.

Saturday, July 12, 2014

Garden Update

I know it hasn't been that long since I did my post about the garden, but it has changed SO much.  A burst of warm weather and rain is what it needed.   Let's have a quick looksi-poo:

Tomato plants....most have flowers now

Better picture of the tomatoes

Green pepper plants...they have flowers now too

Carrots in the front, tomatoes in the back

Romaine Lettuce

Onions

Potatoes are flowering

English cucumbers
 (this was taken Wednesday, they have at least doubled in size by now)

Flowering cantaloupe

Carrots

Lettuce




My helper holding the lettuce we picked for supper

Carrots are coming along nicely!

Thursday, July 10, 2014

Non-Scale Victory - # 21

It has been a crazy long time since I have participated in this link up...way back in March actually!

That's roughly the same time I fell off the wagon, got trampled on by the horses pulling it and landing their pile of crap!  That really is the perfect description to sum up the last few months for me.

But, it's a new month....I've picked myself up, found a stream to wash in and jumped on a new ride!  This new wagon has higher sides, so hopefully I won't fall off so easily.

Getting back to it is a victory in of itself.  However, my victory for this week is that I managed to plan and pack a semi-healthy lunch.

Lunch is my nemesis.  I hate it...not the eating it part necessarily, but the making it and planning it.  I am not a typical lunch food kind of person.  I don't care for sandwiches unless they are made fresh and I wouldn't eat anytime of healthy salad to save my life.

Today's was a compromise and I brought out the big lunch dish again.



Today's lunch includes some ham and turkey...red pepper and cucumber, dip, cheese strawberries, cottage cheese, yogurt and 2 marshmallows.  Ever since I was pregnant with my daughter...I find I need something sweet after each meal.  I picked marshmallows because I had them in the cupboard and they are 25 calories each.

Come join the link up and share what you are proud of this week!