Last day of visit / Running book list

Today is my son's last day hangin' with us.  He catches a plane in the morning.  I thought about working late today to make up for the time off I'm taking tomorrow dropping him at the airport.  But then I figured I'll just work late tomorrow - after he left - means more time with him now.  All that to say I didn't work out today.  Ate ok though.  But not enough water - again.

I wonder if this will ever get easier.  I hope so.  I've been at it for over 3 months - you'd think it wouldn't be so easy to slip up, but it is.  It truly is.  I know this.  This ain't my first rodeo <she says with a strong southern accent>!!  How many times do we have to learn a lesson before we ACK!!!  What am I saying?  It's not like I didn't CHOOSE to skip my workout.  I did.  I chose that.  I accept the consequences as well.  Moving on...

I've been looking into running books lately.  It started out by accident.  There was this conversation at work that lead me to check out a book electronically from the library (btw, how cool is that?!?).  The book is "Born to Run" by Christopher McDougall.  It's about the Tarahumara Indians of the Copper Canyons of Mexico.  It's on the best seller list, so you may have heard of it, but I hadn't.  I'm not much of a non-fiction reader, but this is a very well written book.  I'll give it a solid review later, but for now I'll just say that it's about this guy (McDougall) who looks for and finds this tribe of the world's greatest distance runners.  They can run hundreds of miles without rest - amazing.

While I'm still reading "Born to Run" I'm also looking for other good books on running that will inspire me to get out there.  I'm thinking of these:

"Pre"

"The Courage to Start"

"Running & Walking for Women Over 40"

"5-Minute Plantar Fasciitis Solution"

"Daniels Running Formula"

"Paula Radcliffe Paula: My Story So Far"

I'm not sure where to start or even if I'll read them all.  I just know I'd really like to run.  I know I won't be able to do much at first.  I also know my knees/feet may not be able to take it.  Motrin may be my new best friend.  But I'll never get anywhere unless I try.

I know where I'm starting though - I downloaded an app a few months ago and just haven't worked up to using it yet - "Couch to 5K."  I may repeat several weeks of the 8-week program, but that's ok, because I feel like I'm worse than the "couch potato" more like "in bed with covers over my head shaking in fear of pain!"  Anyway, it's a starting point and along with that, I'd like to fill my brain with running knowledge and inspiration.

So, have you read any good books on running?  Please share - I'd love the input!

How to eat out at a BUFFET!!

So, I started on this post early because I didn't know what time I'd be back from dinner... 

We're meeting friends for dinner and to catch up each others' lives.  And we're eating out.  I knew we would, but fortunately it's only one day this week.  

But wait, it's a buffet.  I don't have a lot of control when it comes to those, but I'm going to try to stick to meat and veggies tonight.  Meat is expensive and veggies are good for you - sounds like a winning combo, right?  Yeah, right - I always try to eat my money's worth at these places, uggghhhh!  It's a new place for me too - a Brazilian Grill.  Never done that before, so it should be interesting - and filling!  This was a last minute thing too, so I'd already eaten according to plan all day.  If I'd known, I'd have cut back a bit in preparation. 

Ok, we're back from dinner.  It was AWESOME!!!  Very cool experience with the meat servers coming to your table.  I had several different marinated steaks, sausage, bacon wrapped filet mignon and I even tried a teensy tiny taste of marinated chicken heart (yep, tastes like chicken!).  They basically cook it and bring it to all the tables on a skewer then slice you a bite-sized piece right on your plate.  I waited til I had tried all the meats-maybe eight bites, then went and grabbed a nice salad, some fruit, and after that, a small spoonful (maybe a heaping tablespoon size) each of brown beans, black beans and rice.  Oh and I had water to drink.  

No room for dessert of course, but we did see the dessert tray.  There was this cake called "Death by Chocolate" and I'm fairly certain it would have been true had I tried to eat it.  If you can imagine your standard two-layer chocolate cake, then just make it SIX LAYERS THICK!!!  Oh my gosh I can't imagine trying to eat that alone.  It was easily 6 servings - probably 12 and literally a 12 inches from the top of the first layer to the plate.  Anyway, I was fine without it and so was my wallet!

I don't know if that was the best way to eat at this particular restaurant.  But I was very satisfied when I left.  I know I ate too much, but I wasn't in pain like I usually am after a buffet-type of meal.  I felt like I was on this protein high (or low?) after all that meat.  And a bit sleepy too lol!  

In answer to my title exclamation though... How to eat out at a buffet?  I came up with some "rules" I can tell myself

1. Well, first get over the cost. All-you-can-eat places are typically pricey.
2. Next, you don't literally have to EAT all you CAN!
3. If you eat meat and want to feel full, eat a meat portion first and add on a side of veggies or salad that fills half the plate.
4. If you like, after you've had meat and veggies, you could go back and sample (like a tablespoonful) some of those "carb-loaded" treats you love so much.  If there are just too many choices, pick your top five favorites and remind yourself that the restaurant will likely be here next week and you can come back and they will cook more food.

Now, if we stick to those 4 rules, I bet we can walk out of a buffet-type restaurant for less than 600 calories.  What do ya think?  Can we do it?!?!?

Finally, the fitness notes of today... my eating was questionable (I came up with the "rules" AFTER I got home from the buffet!)  I walked a little, but not nearly what I wanted to do. And I didn't drink enough water.  Good thing it's only Wednesday and I can kick it into high gear for the rest of the week!  

How's your week going?

Do You Pronate?

Used the headphones today during my workout and they were great!  It was truly serendipity that I found those things!  We were actually out shopping for new running shoes for my son.  I took him to a shoe store that analyzes your running and then recommends highly overpriced the right type of shoe for your type of gait.  It would seem my son inherited my overpronation.  He got to try on several pairs of shoes then run out the door and jog around in the back parking lot to see how they felt.  Oddly enough, he chose the exact same brand and style as me - Brooks Addiction.  I've got customized orthotic inserts for mine due to plantar fasciitis, but isn't that weird that he chose the same ones?  He didn't even know until afterwards.  Haha dude, you got shoes like your mom!!!  I only pick on him a little - he's 22, he can take it though - plus he got new shoes, right?  Check these out...

That huge sole is what makes these so awesome - lots of
support and cushion when you move!

Have you ever checked out your walking or running gait?  It can really mean a world of difference if you suffer from foot or knee pain or even shin splints.  Here's a pic of pronation...

If you check the wear-pattern on a well worn pair of old shoes, you might be able to see it there as well if you've never done the treadmill test.  (Btw, the test is typically free!)

After my son picked out his shoes, I asked the sales dude if it would be ok for him to jump on the treadmill and record his run again with the shoe helping to correct.  Wow!  You wouldn't believe the difference - you could actually see it.  Everything lined up just like it was supposed to - how cool?!?  So, yes good running/walking shoes can be expensive, but it just might be worth it.

Change of subject... I finally trimmed my puppies' nails yesterday.  I don't think I've mentioned it before, but they were starting to sound like high heels on the hardwood!  Well, maybe not that bad, but they definitely needed to be trimmed.  I told them they'd get a nice long walk afterwards - I even got their harnesses on them.  I like to use the sidewalks to file their little claws down after I clip them - much better than using ME as the nail file/launching pad!  Well, call me a rotten dog owner, but I lied to them.  We didn't go on our walk.  I looked at the time and was like HOLY NO-DINNER-ON-THE-TABLE Batman!!!

I ran around like crazy and got dinner served.  Forgot the corn-on-the-cob, but everything else was nice.  I'm on Week 2 of the meal plan, so it was Hawaiian Burger night.  I love me some fresh pineapple!!

Anyway, after dinner, it was too dark out to go walking, so I promised them we'd go today... and we did!!  Yay!  It was a little over a mile, but where we went was fun.  At least for me - we walked to our new vet office - only a half mile away.  The doc is soooo nice!  They welcome/love social visits, so that's where we went.  My black pup, Coal (a.k.a. BubbaFace) has been there twice - once for diagnosis of an ear infection and once more for a follow-up to be sure it was clear up.  It was my white pup's (Gabbie, aka the Gabster, aka the Gabinator) first time.  She can be seen on the floor behind me in one of my scale pics.  Anyway, fun was had by all - there were treats and lots of lovin'!!  My vet's so cool =D

Oh and I used my new headphones on my walk as well.  One problem is the cord is too short to go behind me and around/down to my phone in my right front pants pocket.  The left bud kept tugging at my ear because the cord was taut.  Next time, I'll have to find my arm band or just deal with the cords bouncing all over the place in front of me.

Now, on to the fitness/food part of the blog!  Eating was good today - I ate according to plan minus one of the snacks (just wasn't hungry for it).  I'll work on dinner as soon as I'm done typing this post.  I did my upper body resistance training today with a warmup on the punching bag (it's so fun to beat up the bad guys on that thing!).  Did quick stretches afterwards, then it was off with the dogs on our walk.  Like I said, it was a little over a mile.  I paused the workout timer (Map My Walk app) while we were hanging at the vet office, so the actual walking time was around 20 minutes.  Not bad considering the temp was in the mid 80s and I didn't take water and it was uphill - lol!  But all three of us hydrated as soon as we got home!

Well, I hope you had a wonderfully productive Tuesday!  We'll talk again tomorrow, k?

New Earbuds that actually STAY in Your Ear!

I'm calling last week a maintenance week.  Yep, I'm fairly pleased with my weigh-in considering what I put my body through the week prior.  So my weight was up from last week but down from the week prior.  What can I expect though?  There was some eating out, some more eating out and oh, did I mention a bit of eating out?  That, coupled with an almost complete lack of exercise, put me exactly well, here.  Sooooooo, on to the next!

It's a new week and even though the weigh-in really can't be considered a loss, it still keeps me on track with my WeightLossWars goal.  I'm on track to be within 5 pounds of my goal weight to split that pot.  Looking forward to crushing that goal and also breaking the ol' 200 pound barrier.

Looks like I'm going to change up my meal plan again.  Nothing too drastic, it's just some of the recipes I've added don't quite do it for me anymore.  There are certain meals I really enjoy, so I'll probably just swap those in.  Look for those changes coming up in the next week or so.  

Today, I bought myself an early birthday present.  Headphones that don't fall out of my ears!!!!  WHAT?!?! Yes!! Can you believe it????  I love walking/exercising with music, but those little earbuds always hurt my ears.  And if I'm REALLY working out hard, half the time they fall out, which can really break your momentum.  I'm sure there are other brands that do this, but today was the first time i saw them and so I scooped them up and they are mine.  But you too can check these bad boys out at this link on Amazon.  

I tested them out.  They look a bit big for my ear, but it's the second to the smallest size.  I read the instructions and that helped.  They kind of "lock" in place.  In fact, I think that's the whole point.  So I slip them in my ear, lock it and crank up my tunes.  I'm movin' my head this way and that and lo' and behold, they. stayed. in.  I know right?  I couldn't believe it myself, so I had my daughter try them on.  She ran all over the place and sure enough, they stayed in.

As for the pain typically caused by in-ear buds, these didn't cause any discomfort at all.  Now I didn't have them in for long, so the true test is yet to come.  But the standard earbud hurt almost as soon as I put them in.  I'll keep you posted.

No Way! Yes Weigh?

To weigh or not to weigh?

That is the question.

Well, for me anyway.  I think tomorrow, no.

I had far too much meat tonight.  Not just any meat - steak!  And chicken!  Sooooo, yeah, off plan A LOT for dinner (though the rest of the day was very good), we went out for my son's b-day celebration at a local Japanese restaurant.  He enjoys the whole hibachi experience and my daughter had never been.  Well, it was very delicious but I kept watching the chef pour on the oil and whatever the solid stuff that was melting - shortening????  I don't know, but we had a lot of fun.  And even better, my picky eater daughter promised to keep an open mind on the food.  She was pleasantly surprised at how good it tasted.  It wasn't too salty, but I didn't use any extra soy sauce.   I had a few glasses of water with my meal instead of soda.

Baby steps on this restaurant thing, right?

And of course as I type this, I realize that tomorrow is the midway point in my weightlosswars comp and therefore, a mandatory weigh-in.  BOOOOOO!  I didn't even think about it before we headed out to dinner.  Ah well, at least I know it's tonight's dinner that'll be weighin' me down!  Ugghhhh, it's still gonna stink though - seeing a gain for any reason never does much for the motivation level.

Well, all I can do is keep on keeping on, right?

I think my posts are getting shorter.

Nope, I know they are.

It must be a sign.

Alright, alright, back on track tomorrow...

So, until Monday...

I leave you with this weigh-in...

Is it bad if you've actually thought of cutting your hair to lose weight?  Who me?  No way!

Honestly...

I haven't been on my game this week.  I think I'll just call it a recovery from last week.  I'm tired all day and while I didn't take a nap when I got home, I also didn't work out.  I'm eating according to plan though, so hopefully I won't have a gain this week.  I've found that my menus are good for me as far as calories go in that even if I don't put forth 100% effort in the exercise department, I still tend to maintain instead of gain.

I think it's important to focus on the other areas even more than usual if you slack off in one.  And right now, I'm slackin' in exercise.  I know it's because my son is here and I'm trying to spend every minute I can with him.  I don't have enough time off saved up to take off a bunch of days, so after work - you know, when I'm supposed to be exercising, I'm hangin' with him.  We were going to go on a walk today, but my daughter has caught some type of cold, so I had to run to the drugstore (in a car - not literally!) and get her some meds.  By the time I got back, the weather looked bad yet again.

Needless to say, no walk.

Tomorrow I hope.

In order to do that, I need to get to bed right now so I'll have the energy!  So, you got the short post today.

But I will leave you with this...

Take care all!

'Nite.  

Eyelid twitch anyone?

First though, I've gotta tell you, I love cereal.  It's my absolute favorite of all breakfast foods.  I know it's not the healthiest choice which is why I only eat it 2-3 times a week instead of everyday.  Since I go to work so early, I usually buy two small cartons of milk a few days in advance and stick them in the fridge at work so the milk doesn't get warm in my lunchbox.  I typically put my lunch in my lunchbox/cooler thing around 5am and then don't eat breakfast until 7 or 7:30.  So today, I grab my milk out of the fridge, grab my cereal container (GrapeNuts today) and pour on the milk.  I took a couple bites and something just didn't taste right.  I thought maybe it was leftover toothpaste - you know how that can foul things up, but no, it wasn't that. I thought maybe it was my coffee because I started using sugar free creamer - but no, while it does taste different, it wasn't that either.  Then I took a sniff of the milk and yeah, it was a little off.  So, silly me, I wanted my cereal soooooo bad I took another couple bites before I finally decided I was done.  Hungry, but done. =(

Before I knew it, it was lunchtime and I was very hungry.  We were busy at work, so I grabbed a couple pieces of beef jerky out of my snack stash to hold me over 'til I could heat up my leftovers.  Finally did that around noon.  It's now 3:30 and I'm hungry again AND have a headache.  So, of course I feel like working out - NOT!!  What I really feel like is taking a nap!

Speaking of shuteye, my left upper eyelid has been twitching all day and it's driving me crazy!  Have you ever had that where you just wanted to punch your own face to make it stop?!?  Ughhhh!! What causes this???  Well, let's find out... a quick internet search leads me to Medicine Plus Medical Encyclopedia:

"The most common things that make the muscle in your eyelid twitch are fatigue, stress, and caffeine. Once spasms begin, they may continue off and on for a few days. Then, they disappear. Most people experience this type of eyelid twitch on occasion and find it very annoying. In most cases, you won't even notice when the twitch has stopped."

Ah-HA!!
Fatigue?  Check!! I went to bed after midnight last night and my alarm goes off at 4:45.
Stress?  Check!!  Work is always stressful, especially today.
Caffeine?  Check!!  I drink one cup of coffee everyday - That's not a lot, but it's still caffeine.

Maybe I need that nap after all =D