Food Philosophy: A Reaction

I've been thinking about Sandy's last post, about food, record-keeping, other's people advice. So, this post is me trying to work out my food issues, or analyze them, or at least address why I think the way I do.

First, I was strangely drawn to Sandy's itemized sparknotes list. I found myself listing the food I ate that day in my head, again and again, judging it. I thought about listing it for you to see, half-confession/half-brag. I don't even count calories, so the whole thought was ridiculous, but still, I liked her list, the record of it. It was like my brain saw a way to classify my days, to judge my progress on the eating front.

Second,we classify food as good and bad, giving it some moral authority. We are good when we eat "good" food, bad when we "bad" food. The world thinks this way -- even the way the people at the magazine refer to it as eating "clean" has a moral judgment with it. I think this way, but I don't think it's true. If I eat right (there it is again), does that make me a better person? And when "right" changes, adding more protein or calories or whatever, will I feel bad or insecure about the boundary lines of eating?

And then I thought about my classifications of "good" and "bad" food, and they are so unscientific. Basically, my brain classifies all home-made or grown food as "good," even if that homemade food is chocolate-chip cookies. How dumb is that? I'm linking "good" with the thought and emotion that go into the food.

But, what if it's all "good"? What if food can't really be classified? I remember telling a friend I was making catfish one night, and they asked in horror if I was frying it. That night, I wasn't, but now, when I do fry it, I remember that exclamation. She was truly horrified at the thought of all those fatty particles clogging up my blood stream. Can one night of fried catfish, undo a lifetime of salads?

I'm not sure where I'm heading with all these questions. Only, Sandy's post made me think. People's frustration made me think, and they also made me yearn for something much simpler. I want to disassociate food with bad/good. I want food to be food: nourishing, yummy, essential. That doesn't mean I don't want to feed my body good things -- I do -- and it doesn't mean I'm not dreaming already about shedding this ball on my belly -- I am. It does mean I want my food choices to be smart, not based in condemnation or guilt, and I want to be a follower of moderation. Carbs won't kill me or make me less of a human being. The rare night of grease won't ensure a heart attack. This find skinny way of life is hard, but I want to make it a doable way of life, and I can't do that if it becomes a moral thing for me.

So, that's a whole lot of nonsense, that would probably best be ignored.

Here's a link that works. :)

Updated Menu

Venting My Frustration!

After raising my calories to 2300/2400 I cut back to 2000/2100 and lost nothing. Absa-freakn-lutely nothing. So, I posted over at Oxygenmag to get advice and only became more frustrated. First, someone tells me that my maintinace should be 3000 calories a day. No where have I read that. I've read everything from 2400 to 2800, but never as high as 3000. I don't even think I could eat that much in a day. I mean, it would be nice to be able to eat that much, but I'm just not sure it's true. Then they totally ream me for the coffee that I have 3 to 4 times a week. Which is a short, nonfat, no whip, why bother sort of coffee anyway, but at least it makes me feel better about having to be awake before the sun makes his appearance. Then they tell me I shouldn't have my 2 dark chocolate hershey kisses that I have maybe 3 times a week. Lastly they said my sugar free nonfat 50 calorie fudge cicle is a no no. WHAT THE HECK! They were all very nice about telling me that I wasn't eating 100 % clean which I already knew, and I'm not sure they could have told me in a way that I would have been happy about it anyway.
I guess my frustration is that I always hear small changes can make a big difference. I've made a lot of small changes and only seen very minimal results that don't even last. Obviously, I've gained muscle and feel better, but there has to come a time when the weight and size fall in line with everything else. I can't be 200 lbs and a size 16 forever. It's not fair to do all this work and still look the same so that anyone looking at me would think I don't know what the inside of a gym looks like. Not to mention, everyone and their mother (outside of the Oxygenmag people and Kristen), feels the need to tell me that I am eating way too much. ARGGGGGGGGGG! I can't keep this battle up on faith alone. Results are necessary at this point. If I had just lost 1/2 a pound I would have been okay.
Here is my Daily Menu at 2100 calories. (No mention of the coffee, chocolate, or fudge cicle is needed.) :)
Okay, I've vented now. Thanks! :)

More Griping

Circulation. Don't have it. Feet and hands not getting blood at night, which forces me to wake up, throw hands above my head and feet above my heart to get the whole business pumping again. Lovely and quite restful for Nate.

Confessions of the Eighth Month

I know A has already sung the virtues of Flaxseed Oil on this site, but I have to join the chorus. Great stuff, that seems to start working rather quickly for a supplement. All the pregnancy books write (rather gleefully) about how pregnant women walk around constipated for nine months -- not so with Flaxseed Oil. Plus, I think it's also helping me avoid stretch marks, at least on my torso. My chest is shot, but what does one expect when one jumps three bra sizes in a week? So, take Flaxseed Oil. I shoot it into my food because I'm too big of a weinie to take it straight.

And, this is bad, but confession is so freeing. For the first three months and for a long time before I got pregnant, I took my mulitivitamin religiously. I don't now, and haven't for a few months. I hate it for no legitimate reason. On the good side, I really pay attention to what I'm eating to make sure I hit all the major stuff baby needs.

Oh, and I should have kept running. For some reason, in the first few months, I had this idea that I was going to become instantly huge and cumbersome and unable to run. That didn't happen, and I think I could have comfortably kept running at least until now, even if it was only a mile. Now, I'll have to start completely over with no base after the baby is born. Sigh.

I was sad because I gained two pounds in two weeks at yesterday's appointment, bringing me to 17 lbs. total, but the nurse practitioner acted impressed. With the recent heat, she said all the other pregnant women were gaining between 5-7 lbs. in two weeks. When she checked out my swelling ankles (what ankles?), she said they were the best she'd seen all day and hardly swollen. So, sigh, once again, all the other pregnant women are more miserable than me, and I am a weinie.

The eighth month has made me tired at the worst time. There is so much to do, and all I want to do is find somewhere to prop my feet and sleep. This weekend I will get the crib refinished if it kills me.

Extremely cool

I'm going to start working out after work instead of trying to pull myself out of bed in the morning. My hubby has graciously "allowed" (you know how that works) me to push back our dinner time as long as he gets a good snack beforehand. (He's hypoglycemic, so it is always imperative to get some food in him at certain times--even when he's not hungry--just to keep that blood sugar going.) I'm really excited about this. No more guilt-ridden mornings, "Ugh! I didn't work out!" Woo-hoo! Plus, more sleep, another great thing. I think it will also help me get out my "frustrations" after a long work day--work has been incredibly "GARRRRRGH! I'm going insane!" lately for me.

I went swimsuit shopping and ended up getting a fairly cute one, but I still, after all these months, wish to high heaven I could somehow cover my legs. They just seem chunky, fat, ugly to me. Cellulite city! I wonder if any of those coffee and Preparation H treatments work?...

I'm trying to focus on the positive. We're going to a water park in July with some friends. Honestly, normally I would wear a bikini (nothing too provocative) because my upper body looks great, and I'd rather have the attention there, but with all the Christians I'll be with, I'm nervous...I ended up buying an extremely modest tankini. Meh. I don't worry about the guys lusting over my tiny B-cups or my flat tummy, but you know girls...can be judgmental...

I worked out for the first time last night on our new bench. I like the leg work out but I was not at all comfortable doing presses on it. I don't know if it is the bench or me.
It came with one of those curvey bars and I really don't like it. I'm going to have to buy us a straight bar. I started out really light. I did probably 50 leg lifts with 20 pounds, 10 bench presses with 35 pounds and then 2 x 10 with 20 pounds and 3 x 10 preacher curls with 20 pounds. It felt good to be lifting again. I haven't done it in a while.
I've been having some health issues. My last period lasted 12 days with lots of cramping so I haven't been doing much exercising.
I'm hoping to work up to more weight pretty quickly as I get comfortable on the bench.

Testing ..Testing..Lets see if eating more really works.

This week, I've cut my calories back to 2000. I'm feeling pretty good about it. If it doesn't result in weight loss, I'll try increasing for the next two weeks and go from there. I feel like I've done a pretty good job of increasing the calories and not falling back into the "eat less" mentality. It has been a struggle. It's also been a constant battle to not just give up. The workouts have only been about 90%, but I can feel the results in what I'm able to lift. Last night I had a really strong workout and it inspired me to just keep on keeping on.

fashion update

I don't know what you girls have done but for the first time in a very long time I am excited about buying clothes... what is up with that?

I received the blue dress from ColdWater Creek and am very impressed with the quality. It is so pretty. The fabric is rich and feels expensive, fully lined, it fits me nicely. It is a little big on me thru the hips but I have to order it big to get the bust to fit.

I found a lacy little jacket at JC Penny's this weekend. I almost choked on the price of it but Mark said "buy it!" and when I got to the check-out it was 1/2 priced. Yeah!!

I didn't find any shoes, yet, to go with but had fun looking.

Living the Low Carb Lifestyle...

I'm doing something a little new. I'm trying to wean myself off refined, starchy carbs. According to the research I've been looking at, the first 3-4 days are killer (energy levels plummet, etc.), but your body needs very few carbs to function well. You still need fiber and vitamins from fruits and vegetables, but breads and sugar-filled stuff--you don't need it to survive. (Duh!)

I'm inspired by Aola and Becky's examples; I can do this!

Confession time...

Although I had a wonderful time with my family this weekend, enjoyed everything we did, my self-esteem really took a beating.

I felt good enough about myself to wear a sleeveless shirt out in public, something I haven't done in years because of the flabby arm syndrome and felt sure I could enjoy swimming with the kids, too. But, once we got to the hotel I just could not make myself wear my old swim suit. It is too small in the bust and I just squeeze out everywhere in it. So, I thought... well, I'll just go buy me a new one that fits a little better and then I will go swimming with them. I found Emily and me both really cute two piece tankinies (sp?) and went back to the hotel. She looked adorable in hers. I put my mine on and couldn't even come out of the bathroom. I really don't think it looked that bad on me it was just ..... just... looking in that huge mirror at that 51 year old woman in a swim suit. No one should have to look at a 51 year old woman in a swim suit, especially not the woman standing in front of the mirror.
I just couldn't go parading through the lobby and into to the pool room. I just couldn't do it.

The kids were disappointed. Mark was disappointed. I was disappointed that I couldn't make myself feel better about being who I am... an old woman.

I keep telling myself that our society and culture is so screwed up, that we don't know how to embrace each season as it comes. We have very little appreciation for our elderly. As women we have a skewed idea of what beauty is.

I know all this stuff.

But, I still couldn't come out of the bathrooom.

Emily

The swimming season is about to begin here. As long as it doesn't hurt her, Emily will swim every day for at least an hour sometimes longer.
I was thinking about putting her on a diet (hate that word)during this season and see if we could take off some weight. She is soooo fat, probably 100 pounds overweight which I know makes her life even harder.
I sat down with paper and pen and started figuring what she eats now and I'd bet ya' that on an average day she doesn't eat but about 1200 - 1500 calories a day. Her metabolism is so slow and, of course, she gets almost no exercise because of her leg.
She walks around the house, dances in her chair (moving arms and legs while sitting)and that's about it, except for the swimming.
So, after looking at her calories I don't think I can cut them anymore.

I'm thinking I will just up her protein intake and see what happens.

She does love peanut butter!

What do you think?

Last night David and his friend Jeremy tried one day of the workout Kristen pointed me to at Oxygenmag.com. It was the most hilarous thing! Never in my life have I seen two grown men complain and gripe more than they did last night. When they did the squats their legs hurt. When they did the military press, the barbell was too long and off balance. They paid no attention to the recomended number of reps and sets. They both gave out after 3 sets. At one point I couldn't help but laugh. David got a towel and rolled it up to rest the barbell on his back while he did the squats. Boys think they are so tough, but when it comes down to it, they aren't all that tough. I do that work out once a week by myself and never complain. Sure it's tough. Sure, I'm sore the next day, but it is what it is. Silly boys. I'm so glad he doesn't read any of these posts. He wouldn't be happy about this one. I have to mention that when I started this routine he refused to do it because he didn't wan to do a "girl" workout. I explained to him that it's acctualy a workout for anyone and that a guy who's as big as The Hulk created it. It still took me several weeks to get him to try it. I think he will not make the mistake of calling it a "girl" workout again.

the dress

I bought this from Cold Water Creek, now I just hope it fits right.

How far should I go in my quest to expand my caloric intake? I'm currently pushing 2200 and feel full pretty much all the time. According to the scale I've gained a minimum amount of weight. It's nothing I'm freaking out over. Should I push through to 2500 and then begin to decrease once I've reached that point? I've tried looking up what my caloric intake should be but have come up with everything from 1700 to 2800. Is the truth somewhere in the middle? Should I just listen to my body? I'm ready to start cutting back, but only if it is the right thing to do. Whats the most high calorie food that is still really good for you? I need a way to increase without adding bulky food as I'm already sooo full!
Confession, the last two days I've eating brownie bites. I froze them thinking that would keep me away, and normally it would, but I'm close to starting my period and nothing chocolate is safe in my house.

Warning: Non-fitness related

I can't exactly post this over at my other blog, but I had to share this with you, my friends, many of whom helped me when J and I were considering not attending church, at least for a while:

I have a few friends who are trying to “save me” all over again, since J and I aren’t attending church at the moment. (We haven't since December.) In spite of the fact my morality, attitude, and general happiness have not gone…well, to hell…because I do not darken a doorway once a week, I need “ministering to and prayer.” (And apparently a good dose of gossip, although I'm used to that from church folks by now, so it doesn't bother me so much. Wow, seriously, that's kind of sad.)

I keep asking myself if I ever did this to other people...insisted on their church attendance. Thing is, I didn't. My dad didn't go to church for a large chunk of my childhood, and I didn't doubt his salvation. Besides, I had been raised on stories about Christians in other countries who couldn't meet with other Christians for church, either because it was illegal or dangerous or there were no other Christians to meet with. So I guess I grew up with a rather liberal mindset when it comes to church membership...

Anyway, just needed to get that off my chest. Sorry it's not "Skinny" related material. :)

Grasping At Straws

I haven't been successful in this venture at all lately. 5:30 a.m.s are good for me, but Chris has a really hard time with it and it is not nearly as easy without a partner.

So tonight I was in one of my moods, the dark ones that feel like emotional tornadoes. I'd been in it all day long and by the time Chris got home, i was exhausted from my own emotional weather. Beat down by it.

I was at the point where I was ready to take it out on someone else. and that is when I said

Let's go workout.

Yep, that is right.

And we did. We took Judah to that nursery where they FALSELY labeled him aggressive last time and he did just fine. (that is the first time i have ever given anyone a second chance with my son and it worked for me.) I upped my elliptical workout by two levels of resistance and did Just Great. Great. GREAT.

And I am feeling better.

I have no idea if I will be a fit person, but i know that today I made a good decision. that'll have to be enough for today.

Thanks for praying!

I found the suit! I'll try to post a picture of it soon. I paid what I wanted to--about half of what I was expecting to. Thanks, y'all.

My workouts last week were almost non-existant. I came down with a cold on Monday, but still worked out. Not a very smart idea. By Tuesday I had no energy. I finally felt better by Saturday, but not before passing my cold on to David. I'm such a giving wife. :)
I'm ready to start back tomorrow. My eating hasn't been too awful, but hasn't been spot on either. Yesterday was the worst! We had a poker game and I made chocolate fondue.
This week I will be increasing my calories to 2100. So far I've gained one pound, but I've lost inches. Hello muscle! :) I'm going to really push myself in this weeks workouts. I'm feeling really great with the food choices I'm making and being able to eat more is awesome!
Here't to a great week ahead ladies!

New routine I've been working on...

I'm still thinking about the gym thing...leaning toward a "yes." I'm trying it out next week, and I'm also trying a yoga class at the gym. Should be fun!

I went shopping for the suit today, but was unsuccessful. I'm going to a bigger town tomorrow...hopefully I can find something!

Just thought I'd share with you gals a new routine I've been working on...

Monday
(5X6)
Bench
Bentover row
Squat
Stiff-legged deadlift

Wednesday
(3x10-12)
Upright rows or lateral raises (for deltoids)
Hanging leg raises (abs--this will be my first ab work in months)
Walking lunges
Good mornings

Friday
(5x6)
Overhead press (either a push press or military press)
Pull-up (I really want to learn to do these; I'll do them assisted until I can do them on my own)
Front squat (or Split squat)
Sumo deadlift

Another question for you ladies...

Should I join a gym?

A little background: I’ve been wanting to join one for a while, but couldn’t find one that a) I was comfortable in, b) wasn’t prohibitively expensive, c) had free weights and a squat rack (my top priorities), and d) Jason was real happy about.

My friend, Becky, is joining a new one soon. It’s open 24 hours per day, isn’t too expensive (my dues would include all the classes, too!), has the equipment I need, and because I’d be going with a girlfriend, Jason is okay with it. I need to actually go there and see how busy it is during the times I want work out and make sure it doesn’t have a “meat market” feeling to it, but I’m feeling enthusiastic about it so far.

Pros:
-Spending money would probably motivate me to hit the gym more often. I’m a total cheapskate.
-Becky would be there most days to watch my form and “spot me” if I need her to.
-Meet new people, take new classes, etc.
-Lose the fat, increase the muscle!
-A place to run when it rains.
-I'll be able to lift more than one hundred pounds (when I get there, that is--my weight set at my parents' house only goes up to 100 lbs).

Cons:
-Wouldn’t see my folks as often since I lift weights at their house (although lately, I haven’t been doing it as much as I’d like to since the weather has been so nice, I’ve been walking sometimes over two hours a day).
-I have a really hard time getting my butt out of bed in the morning…oi vey.
-Stupid guys either hitting on me (no matter how hideous you look all sweaty, someone will do it!), staring, or trying to tell me how to do an exercise (usually they're totally wrong).
-I'm kind of a solitary person, so I like working out on my own.
-Jason will probably give me a hard time about it since he thinks all you need to be in shape are push-ups and sit-ups and a daily walk. Kinda true, but...

Advise me!

And lastly, I have a really dorky prayer request. I need to buy a dress suit this weekend, and I need to find that is classy, but inexpensive. Can you pray that I’ll find the right one for the right price? Thanks.

Sandra's Super Smoothie

I used to make this every morning when I worked at Michales. My friend,Nicky, and I would have a morning smoothie. Now, I tend to make one after my workout.

Ingredients

4 oz plain fat free yogurt
2 oz of water (or just enough to mix things up)
3 ice cubes
1 tbsp all natural peanut butter
1/2 a banana
2 scoops Carb Solutions chocolate protein shake or shake of your choice

Place all ingredients in blender mix and enjoy.

Calories 280
Carbs 28
Fat 10
Protein 31.5

I posted this on my blog, too, but...

which class should I take this summer? Which one would you take?

Yoga

Pilates

Belly dancing

I have a quick question about something thats been confusing me for a while now. What is the difference between Quick Oats, which have listend in the ingredients only 100% rolled oats, and Old Fashioned Oatmeal which has the same ingredient? The nutritional value seems to be the same, but I see on all the boards that everyone says Old Fashioned Oatmeal only. Is this just to say no instant oatmeal which has all the yucky aditives or Quick oats too? I'm very confused.
I didn't lift Friday because David wanted me to show him my routine Saturday. He ended up having to work and I went to an art and wine festival and walked for four plus hours. By the time I got home at 7:30 I didn't feel like lifting. I think it was a combination of being out in the sun all day and not eating every 2-3 hours like I normaly do. I didn't eat any of the yummy food that tempted me at the festival, but I did have two slices of pizza when I came home. Evil pizza!

Well, I keep thinking... slow and steady wins the race but it sure doesn't give you much to blog about :)

I was just thinking about me running down the street in that little black jogging bra and a whole crew of roofers falling off the roof and dying from laughing so hard.....
that'd teach the pigs, huh!

No, really, I've had a pretty good week. Eating was fine except for one day when some sort of junk food demon must have possessed my very soul because I ate french fries twice in one day, once with a Braum's (ie.. huge) burger. But, I came to my senses after having indigestion along with nightmares all that night.
Exercise was good. Having to mark it off every day makes me think twice about skipping it.
It is not getting much easier to lift that 20 pound dumbbell but I'm increasing slowly.
I noticed something last night I had not noticed before.
I was lifting it with my right hand over my head and without thinking put my left hand on my waist ( I guess to steady myself) but I could really feel the lift working the muscles in my side, hmmm.. I didn't realize it was working those muscles, too.

Mark and I looked at weight benches this afternoon and I showed him which one Seth and I want. He is going to stop and get it next time he is in town with his truck. Cool. It has a thingy for leg weights too. Very cool! I guess we will put it upstairs in Seth's big bedroom.

I am still hooked on salad with kalmata olives, feta cheese, lots of onions, and a hint of olive oil dressing.
My favorite snack still remains my smoothie with everything healthy or a 1/2 cup vanilla yogurt with blueberries and a spoonful of soy protein mixed in.

So, what has been your favorite health food this week?

Congratulations to all of you for working so hard at getting and staying lean and mean and especially to Mcmom for her huge weight loss of 9lbs and counting in the last few weeks.

I weigh on Fridays. This morning I had lost 3 pounds but that's liable to change by tomorrow.

Have I mentioned that the ladies who go to my Curves are the best! Today I was feeling really down about the diet/exercise and they gave me the best pep talk. It was nice to know that they believe in me and can see the positive changes I'm making. The difficulty I'm having is believing that what I'm doing will work. It's probably because all that I've ever heard about weight loss is eat less. Logically, I can see that eating more is the way to go for long term results, but that little voice that says "You are going to gain 100 pounds if you don't stop eating!" won't shut up sometimes. There is also the issue of working out. Everything in the media says "more cardio", and now for the first time since high school, I find myself doing less. It's a difficult adjustment, but one I am committed to. As we talked about it and I voiced all of my concerns to these ladies, they were so supportive and kind. It helped me to take my focus off of what may happen and put it on what is happening and on what I am doing now to make changes. The fact is, I'm from a "right now" generation. We want what we want when we want it. Waiting is foreign to most of us. Waiting weeks or months to see results is tough, but it's what I have to do.

My workouts have been great! I lifted Monday and Wednesday. I ran yesterday, but didn't do too much because I've been fairly sore. I'm not putting too much pressure on myself thanks to Kristen's advice. My eating has been fantastic! I'm learning that the things I thought I wanted when it comes to food aren't really what I want at all. Healthy food just makes you feel better!

So I've been wondering...

if it's okay to run in my jog bra (and shorts or pants, of course)? I'm not as skinny as this chick (above)...but, okay, I'm just gonna say it: I don't have big boobs, and I don't think anyone would be mesmerized by my flat chest, especially without any bouncing going on. (The bra smashes them down pretty well.)

I live in a liberal area...I don't think anyone would even look twice at me. Many people exercise like this; I'm just not used to doing it myself. What do you ladies think? Is it a do or a don't?

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As a side note, I've been doing great with the exercise this week. Monday I ran in the morning and lifted at night. Tuesday I walked over two hours over the course of the day. Wednesday I ran at lunch (I work from home on Wednesdays so I can hit the showers after a run) and walked with Jason at night for 40 minutes. Today I lifted weights and am going for a walk with a friend tonight. Tomorrow I'll probably run in the morning...we'll see. Eating...mostly good...probably about 85% good, but I think I'm eating too much. I'm eating at maintenance--my measurements haven't changed although I feel a little firmer. I think I need to eat below maintenance so I can see if I can lose a little fat off my legs, though it's going to take a lot of time. We'll see. Power to my girls. Try to kick a little ass today, ladies.

Did anyone else watch Oprah on Monday? I tivo'd it and watched it this evening. Other than being completely grossed out by the open heart surgery, I thought it was a great show. It was full of information, most of which I already know, but some stuff was new to me. The doctor recommended keeping raw almonds and olive oil in the refrigerator. He said that eating roasted almonds is about the same as eating hydrogenated oil. The roasting ruins the good fat. His list of foods we should be eating at least once a week included; tomatoes preferably in a paste or sauce form (mixed with olive oil for best absorption), spinach, olive oil, raw almonds, and pomegranate fruit or juice.
The flag words on food labels are partially hydrogenated, sugar, high fructose corn syrup, and enriched. If any of these are in the first five ingredients you should throw it out. Surprise, the Zone bars I was eating up until two weeks ago have high fructose corn syrup in them. I knew it was a no no but didn't realize it was so bad. Basically he said that it interferes with lectopine (?) which is what gives our mind the signal that we are full. One of the things he said that surprised me was that it's not the 150 calories in a soda that are so bad for a person. It's the fact that a person who has a soda with a meal tends to eat an additional 100-200 calories at that meal because the brain does not receive the signal that they are full due to the high fructose corn syrup.
If anything, this show is helping me make better choices for Erin. I tend to be a little more slack where she is concerned because she doesn't gain weight at all, and she is a picky eater, but this show helped me to see that it's the things I teach her now that will follow her through her life and if I don't want her to struggle with weight and health related issues caused by a poor diet I need to teach her now. There are only a few things in her diet that I can see need to be changed. She eats enriched white bread, really bad cheese, and sugary cereal. The difficult part of changing these things is that they are things David eats. I'm going to have him watch this show. Maybe it will open his eyes a little too. I can't complain much. He gave up soda two weeks ago. I'm pretty proud of him.
I'm thinking about getting "You The Owners Manual". Has anyone read it?

My weight training sessions are going well. I think I could be lifting a little more if I had someone to spot me. I would wait and do my workouts in the evening with David if he didn't get home so late and if it seemed like he and his friend had any idea what they were doing.
The lifting routine at OxygenMag that Kristen pointed me too is great! My legs were so sore last week! I went easy on the weights so I could find the right level. I'm still making adjustments.
I didn't do so well with cardio last week. Even though I only do HIIT twice a week, I managed to skip both days. My goal this week is to include them in my workout.
The diet side of things is getting better. It's difficult to convince myself to eat more. Gaining weight scares me even if it is only temporary and better for the long run. I just keep telling myself it is the right way to do it.
I bought the most delicious Tilapia at Costco this weekend. I also bought some yummy soy nuts and soy/flaxseed chips from TJ's.
I've convinced Erin that all natural peanut butter really does taste great especially when put on an apple.
small steps, very very small steps.

Yesterday was strange for me. I ate breakfast, waffles with sugar free syrup and scrambled eggs, around 9:30 a.m. Then our day got busy and we didn't have lunch until 1:30 ish. By the time we decided to eat, my hands were trembeling and I felt really weak. I've had the shakes from not eating for a long period of time before, but this felt different. My arms felt so weak that holding up a glass seemed like a risk. I felt better after eating, but was tired the rest of the day and just felt a general blah sort of feeling.
Today, I have felt great. I'm not sure what caused the difference. I didn't really do anything very different on Sunday. I'm going to keep an eye on it, and if it happens again I will go to the doctor to see what's going on. Hopefully it was just something random.

Hey ladies

I've had a really good day so far. I got up for a run this morning, and I'm hoping to hit the weights tonight. I feel really proud of myself when I get up in the morning, so I had to share. I've got two "walk dates" with two different girl friends on Tuesday and Thursday night. It should be fun! We're supposed to get some CRAZY sunshine this week. Maybe up to 85 degrees on Thursday--woo-hoo!

How was your weekend?