A Smidjin at a time

For starters, Where have I been? Obviously not blogging that is for sure. I would try to catch you all up, but it has been way to long. So I will just tell you a couple stories from the past couple of weeks. Two weeks ago, yours truly managed to walk right into a door as it was being opened into the hallway. Caught my arm on it (thankfully not my face/head), shook me so hard I had a headache almost immediately. Dealt with the headache for several days (including a trip to the docs for a shot of pain meds), and then the neck pain started. I've had my neck adjusted twice so far by a chiropractor and I might me doing that for a while. Yes it has been an adventure. I started boot-camp at the gym again. It is so much different than a year ago. For starters there are only 3 of us in the class this time. Myself, my friend Jessica and a gal named Stacy. They were both in the class I did last year.  I haven't felt like it was gonna kill me, yet. I did have a little episode of feelin...

The beginning of the school year, even when you aren't a teacher or a student always has a feeling of a new years start over. This year even more so for me. See after a couple months of working 12 hour shifts, I am finally going back to my "normal" 8 hour shifts. Which means several things: *A schedule that allows me to get back to the gym consistently. No more working through my favorite classes. I have missed my Monday/Wednesday torture, I mean spin class. And I certainly can tell that I haven't been to yoga in a while. It's gonna be like starting all over again. I know it will come back, but I know it will also be frustrating to remember what I used to be able to do and not quite be there for a few weeks. But I will get there. I got there once, I can do it again. *Getting back on schedule means that I will be able to eat on a better "schedule" again. The one that is what I am supposed to be doing. These 12's have been hard on that. *Better s...

Sometimes I take the journey for granted. I get so focused on getting to the goal, or more accurately how far away the goal seems, that I forget sometimes but all the stuff I have learned, and loved and grown through on the journey itself. And so to remind me and you my friends and loved ones, here is a little synopsis of the journey. I was never a skinny kid, at least I never felt skinny. And that continued up into my teens where I always wanted to lose weight but never really did anything about it. And then there were the college years. Oh I took PE courses (easy A's and we all know an A is an A), but I made up for it in cafeteria food, and still I knew I was overweight. I even joined gyms, but still I never seemed to lose weight. And then somewhere in the middle of my really long season of working the 4-midnight shift I started using the gym/rehab room at work after I got off. Just me and the treadmill and worlds dumbest criminals. It was actually a good time, and if I didn...

Last you heard from me I said  would tell you more about 50 pounds coming soon and bike research. So here it is. A couple years ago, Mom made a deal with me. Knowing I had a lot of weight to lose it helped give me some goals. The Big one, Lose 100 pounds. If I can do that I have been promised an Alaskan Cruise or a trip to North Pole Alaska. But first, in order to get to 100, you gotta get to 50. Lose 50 pounds and mom gets me a BIKE! I have always loved biking, I just don't have one. So a bike, and a bike rack for the car, and a helmet (mom is an ICU nurse after all), and one pretty biking outfit complete with shoes. After my weigh in yesterday I am so close. 10 pounds in 10 days! Meaning I am only about 8 pounds or so away. I better hit up all the bike resources and do my research on what I want. Plus the Coach purse I promised myself for hitting the 50 pound mark. As I left my doctors office today I started thinking about where this all started, training for the half maratho...

I made it all week at work successfully avoiding all temptations (the CNO's candy basket, the leftover pizza from the meditech party, the cafeteria). I was little afraid for the weekend, the structure is not the same. When I went to work I would pack my little lunch bag and everything I needed was right there in the fridge. Weekend, with errands out of town, totally different story. So I planned and I did what I could. Usually if i had errands to run I would have grabbed something at the coffee shop while getting my latte. Today I had my breakfast at home before heading out to grab an Americano with a splash of half and half. And before i left the house I was sure to grab a couple of the meal bars to throw in the glove box and have ready. I knew I would be in Salem over lunch which meant needing to figure out a safe place to have a safe lean and green meal. My coach had said  that the Baja Ensalada at Baja Fresh with salsa as dressing is a safe choice, if you have them not put on...

As many know, I recently decided to take at least a break from Weight Watchers. I have been a stale mate for a while and my head and my heart could no longer take the lack of progress. Which lead to finally making the decision to try something I first thought about almost a year ago. At least I know it wasn't a spur of the moment decision. I decided to start Medifast. For those who don't know, Medifast is a very regimented program built on the 5 and 1 concept. 5 medifast prepackaged meals and 1 "lean and green" meal. A Lean and Green is pretty much what it sounds, lean protein and non-starchy vegetables. And it's actually a lot of food on the plate. I think I have seriously doubted my ability to finish every time I am done measuring out my food. There is an adjustment curve that is for sure, no fruit, no breads and not all the packaged meals are as good as the others. I love the Hot Chocolate, I know that is one I will keep drinking. Not a fan of the chocolate p...

Well, it's time to make some changes. I am very proud of the 32 pounds I have lost in the last 2 years. But to be honest, with you and myself, the first 24 were in the first 6 months. Meaning these last 19 months have been an up down, up down battle with the same 8 pounds. I have tweaked my weight watchers every which way in that time and I have finally decided to say "I'm Stuck". Which is why I have made the decision to back burner weight watchers for a while and try something else. I still love Weight Watchers and everything they have taught. I know that without the tools they taught me I would have regained those original 24 pounds in these last months. I still recommend them whole heartedly to anyone looking to lose weight. With that said however, at this point, my head and my heart aren't there. They can't handle the up one week down the next up the next down the next. I would like more than one week in a row where I have a loss on the scale. Which is why...