September 14th, 2016: Jumping Rope & Clapping Thighs....

Today was a crazy day. Work was pretty busy and went by pretty quickly. Thankfully my stomach was about 70% better, so I was a much happier camper at work today. Thank Goodness. I was totally off my game yesterday, and didn't get nearly as much done as I needed to. Today, I killed it. Lol

After work I headed to my home away from home. Haha. I was planning to meet up with my cousins, but the bus was running super late for them, so I had to get started by myself. I wasn't able to stay as long as I normally would have after missing 2 days in a row. We had our realtor coming over to go over a contract for a house! We already found the one we want. I know it's SUPER fast, but we have been looking at houses for years and we already knew pretty much what we were looking for and what was most important to us. And we found the one. The cool thing is that it is owned by someone in the house selling business, so all the paperwork is in order and our realtor told us that she thinks everything will move along quickly. How exciting. How terrifying. LOL! Big changes are a little hard for me. Especially when they involve chaos! And no matter how hard you try, moving is chaotic. Ugh, I'm getting a little stressed just thinking about it. 

Anyways....so back to the gym....

It was raining when I got there, so I was feeling a little unmotivated. Rain makes me want to curl up in a ball on the couch and drink hot cocoa and watch movies or read a good book! Lol, but nobody has time for that right now! So I went in and got my workout clothes on and I jumped on the Eliptical and started with some intervals. I pushed out 20 minutes of torture and then headed upstairs to walk & jump rope. It's my new favorite thing! I walked a couple of laps and jumped 20 then went around again and my cousins showed up. We had fun doing the combo and before I knew it I had put in another 40 minutes of cardio! I burned almost 1,000 calories on a NON Zumba day, which is kind of a big deal to me. I was feeling proud of myself. Afterward we headed down to the sauna for about 10-15 minutes (I forgot to time us this time) and then I headed home.

We spent waaaaaaaaaaaayy to long talking to our realtor. Lol. She's just a really nice lady and of course we had to talk about makeup and pictures for her grandson while she was here! Haha...so it was a very successful night!

Thankfully I had already cooked some steaks up the other night, so we popped those in the microwave and made salads to go with them and bam! Dinner is complete. Lol. Even if it was 9:30....eek! 

Here is the breakdown of my food choices today:

Breakfast

Banana Smoothie w/ Pumpkin Spice = 236 cals

Morning Snack

Slivered Almonds = 164 cals

Lunch

Chicken Chef Salad with Baby Carrots and 2 String Cheese = 322 cals

Snack

Salted Caramel Greek Mousse (AMAZEBALLS!!!!) and a small orange = 125

Dinner

Petite Sirloin with a side salad = 375 cals

That put my at 1222 cals for today. For those of you that use MyFitnessPal, I have to throw something in here. You know how at the end of the day when you complete your food diary and it will give you the 5 week projection of where your weight would be if every day were like today? Well Mine now says under 300 pounds almost every day. THAT makes me soooo excited!!! I CAN'T WAIT!! The last time I got under 300 I said I would never go over 300 again. Well, this time...I really hope I mean it. Lol. I don't EVER want to be this big again. I really feel like a learned a lot from that failure though and I think I've got it in me. I can and WILL do this all the way and do it right. Soooooo many people do it. I KNOW I've got the power to do it. So...I've got my game face on and I'm ready to play ball! Lol. 

I love you guys and your amazing support!!! Have a great Thursday!! Get up and move a little extra tomorrow!! You can do it!!

Goodnight

xoxo

September 7th, 2016: The Cookie Temptation

I don't know about all of you guys, but if I worked in a Cookie Shop, I'd have to quit for my health! I mean, don't get me wrong, I want EVERYTHING that is bad for me right now. It's been 3 months and I am really getting close to a crazy, calorie filled, cheat day. I feel like, maybe I need it, to keep on track. And I DO know that one day of craziness isn't going to throw me all off course. And I also know that I'm going to feel like garbage afterward. But it's gonna happen. Lol.

So anyways...on with the cookies. I was at work, minding my own business, just eating my healthy calories and here comes the boss man with a giant box of cookies that one of our partners send over. Why couldn't they send a veggie platter?? Lol. I stayed strong for a few hours, but like...seriously....every time I walked in to the kitchen to get a water, the whole kitchen smelled like cookies! So I tried 1. 60 calories....not too shabby. I can deal with that.

OH....that was a GOOD cookie. I mean, I don't really know how good it was because, let's face it, junk food tastes 10 times better to me right now. Lol. But it was really great...then I ate 2 more....and then a little later another. 4 cookies. 240 calories. Not going to break the bank, but wow. I felt like I had very little self control. I mean, 3 months ago, I probably would have eaten at least twice that amount...but, I still felt very naughty.

Today was swim day at the gym, but I brought my tennis shoes, thank goodness! So I tossed my tank top and tennis shoes on and went ahead and did 15 minutes of intervals on the Eliptical to try to help get rid of some of those cookie calories. Then I went swimming with the cousins. I think we had a good time! I really enjoy our swim days because I have more time to visit. :)

After we hung out in the sauna for a bit we went to the showers. I was so pleased to deal with some stupid drama because the people that were in the bathroom before me, thought they left their phone in the bathroom. (they didn't) They had it in their heads that I kept their phone. Lol. Really? A track phone? No thanks folks. Get real. Lol, but whatever. Life goes on. I told my cousin, Jessica, after how rude they were, and all talking smack outside of the bathroom, and how nasty they LEFT the bathroom, that if I had found it, I would have seriously thought about flushing it!! LOL.

I came home from the gym and threw together some Doc's Chili, and stuffed my face! And now I'm ready for bed!!

Here is the breakdown of my food choices for today:

Breakfast
PB Pumpkin Spice Smoothie and a banana = 286 cals

Lunch
Chicken Stir-Fry, Celery & Baby Carrots with Veggie Dip, String Cheese, Small Apple & Cherry Tomatoes = 360 cals

Afternoon Naughtiness
4 Chocolate chip cookies = 240 cals

Dinner
Doc's Chili (3 cups), Oven Roasted Turkey Breast, V-Fusion Light Peach Mango Juice = 636 cals

Total Calories for the day were 1522, not bad considering. ;) Y'all have a great day tomorrow!!

Goodnight!
Honor
xoxo

August 30th, 2016: Last Gym Day for a Whole Week!!

Yup, today was it. One last workout until NEXT Tuesday. How will I ever survive?? I just HAVE to hit that 50 pounds lost mark this week! It's important to me!

Today was a good day at work. A little hectic, but doable. It went by pretty quickly and then I was off to the gym. My cousin Becky that lives in the same town as I do needed to hitch a ride to work today (she also works in Sikeston), so I went and picked her up this morning and then picked her up after work and kidnapped her. Lol. I brought her to the gym for torture and that's exactly what we did. We met up with my other two cousins, Jessica and Star, and we all worked out together. It was pretty darn great! I love that so much of my family is getting in to going to the gym! Becky is even going to try to get a membership too!

We started on arms today and thoroughly maxed out all of our arms. We were feeling pretty great, haha. Then, because we are addicted, we had to get on that Linear Press again. I said last time that I did 518...well today...I did 608!! Ha...I think my legs are pretty darn strong! After that, we headed upstairs for some intervals on the Arc Trainer. Jess and I made it 20 minutes which was pretty hard considering how tired we were. Next we did 20 minutes of walking. After that, I was DONE. It was already after 7 and I knew that I needed to get home or I would be having a crazy late night.

Here is the breakdown of my weight training for today:

Biceps Curl - 3 sets of 10 on 70 pounds
Triceps Curl - 3 sets of 10 on 80 pounds
Back Extension - 3 sets 10 on 150 pounds
The Core Machine - 2 sets of 10 on 10 pounds again, yay!
Chest Press - 3 sets of 10 on 60 pounds
Pectoral Fly - 3 sets of 10 on 80 pounds
Pulldown - 3 sets of 10 on 80 pounds
Torso Rotation - 1 set of 10 on 130 pounds on both sides
Linear Leg Press - 2 sets of 10 on 608 pounds <3

I came home and threw together a pretty yummy meal using some steaks that I had cooked up Sunday morning and some sides. It was quick and easy and I love that! And that's about it.

I am pretty sure I am going to be pretty darn sore tomorrow, but pain is gain baby!! Or maybe in this case...pain is loss...haha!

Here is the breakdown of my food choices today:

Breakfast
PB Smoothie = 210 cals

Lunch
Turkey Chunks, Cottage Cheese, String Cheese, Brocolli & Cauliflower with Veggie Dip = 335 cals

Snack
Light & Fit Yogurt and some Rice Crackers = 250 cals

Dinner
Petite Sirloin Steak, Quinoa & Brown Rice with Salsa, and a side salad = 446 cals

That put me at 1241 calories total for the day. I am feeling really good about my day! My only wish is that I would have hit the 10k steps today. Sadly I'm around 1800 short and too tired to care at this point. Lol. So to bed this girl is going!

August 18th, 2106: We Can't Always Be Perfect!

Well, today was a good day. Work was good, I got a lot a catching up done. It always feels good to get caught up doesn't it? I know it does to me. I hate feeling like I'm constantly rushing and going crazy trying to catch up. It turns me into a basket case! Lol...like, no joke, I have felt like a crazy ditzy girl all week! But today, I felt soooo much better! I'm headed into my slowest week of the month, so it feels great to get everything going.

After work, I headed to the Chiro, then the gym. I got to meet a couple of really nice ladies and talk about makeup, and then on to Zumba. It was a good class. I didn't burn as many calories as I wanted, mostly because my knee was feeling pretty funky and I'm always a little afraid of overdoing the twisting and stuff when it's feeling that way. I don't want to take a chance of re-injuring it and getting myself in a world of trouble. So I took it kind of easy.

See, that's my, "I'm having a good day" face. Haha

I came home and went straight to work on cooking dinner. I felt like I was starving! I ate dinner and then chilled out on the couch for a bit to catch up on some Bold & Beautiful (it's important!) and I somehow ended up with a bag of Trail Mix in my hand WHICH isn't really bad for you, but it is when you eat...like....3 or 4 servings. Yup...I did that. I haven't done anything like that since I started eating healthy again. But I just kept eating and eating. It tasted SO good, and I didn't want to stop. How sad. :( I was doing so good! I think I still had less than 1800 calories today, but I honestly don't know for sure, because I didn't measure it. We can't be perfect all the time. So....I just have to make piece with it and move on with my life. And maybe do some jumping jacks before I go to bed to make up for it a little, lol.

Alight, that's all I've got for tonight. Tomorrow is Friday and I am soooo ready!! People always talk about struggling more with diet and exercise on the weekends, Shoot! Not me! Those are my BEST days! I don't get it at all. I feel more energy and get my workouts in early so that I can feel accomplished for the day! Especially Saturdays! Haha... And something about staying busy throughout the day just helps me keep from feeling like I want to snack all the time.

Anywho...here is the breakdown for my food choices today:

Breakfast
PB Smoothie = 210 cals

Lunch
Turkey, baby carrots cottage cheese, 2 string cheese, peach yogurt = 415 cals

Dinner
Petite Sirloin Steak, Roasted Red Potatoes, Boiled Broccoli = 441 cals

It's ok to be jealous, it was amazing! Lol

Too much Trail Mix = Aprox 420 cals

I put my total at 1690 calories. I'm sure it's actually a little higher than that, but I just don't know. Tomorrow is a new day to make better food choices. I REFUSE to let that one failure dictate how I feel about my day. I had a good day until then. I WILL do better tomorrow.

August 16th, 2016: Jail Yesterday, Court Today, What is this world Coming to!?!

So, my day started out like any other. I stayed in bed to long and then rushed to get ready and get out of the house on time.

See, pretty normal. I had no idea that my day was going to turn out how it did. So not to long after I arrived at work I got an email from our licensing worker at the Children's Division. We haven't pulled our license or anything, because that feels too final. I had totally neglected to consider the fact that even if we don't decided to foster anymore, we can still adopt. I sold our beds. I have been dealing with a lot, emotionally, and I just didn't want to see that empty bed in the bedroom. So, without much thought, I sold them and we started converting our extra room into an office. Done.

Then, I get an email today. A profile for a child available for adoption. I could almost literally feel the blood drain out of my body. What am I doing? How did I forget this was an option? I haven't gotten a profile in MANY months because they knew we were trying to get the placement of our niece. And before, when we would get the profiles, they would be for multiple children, kids too old for daycare, kids too young for school, etc. All kinds of things that don't work for a couple that both work and don't have family that can just watch two or three kids whenever we need them too. With the system, everyone has to have background checks and all this stuff, and people just don't want to deal with all of that. I can't blame them, it's not their kids. So...I kindof just closed my brain to the thought that we would ever be able to have a child. It's almost too much for me to take. All of this getting your hopes up, only to have them choose another couple. It's very, very hard. I don't like it. I don't like the constant reminder that I'm not adequate. I do that to myself enough, so why should I put myself through that. I just don't know. But I requested the long profile (pretty much just more info on the child and their history). We would love to be able to have the chance to adopt her, but I guess we will see what is in store for us on that front.

So, I had all of that going on, and then I get this call from this woman on my work phone, asking for me and telling me that she has papers that she needs to deliver to me with an affidavit for court. I ask her what in the world for and she tells me the records are sealed and she can't tell me, but she gives me the contact info for the person who can tell me. Long story short, this guy tells me that "his client" bought an old medical bill of mine and they are going to SUE me for the payment because I have deglected to respond to their requests via mail. I had never received a single thing! I am a little crazy about that stuff because we have been working out BUTTS off for two years trying to clean up our credit so that we can buy a darn house. And here comes this crazy call saying that a $750 original bill is going to cost me $1500 if I pay it today before 3pm to keep it from going to court, but if it goes to court it will be $3600. I call the hospital, they show a $94 bill...that's it. This guy knew my full name, social security # (which he blurted out over the phone, who does that) and my address and my work and cell #'s. I can't fathom how he would have gotten all of that info unless he was legit. I was losing my dang mind trying to figure out what to do. My cousin Brandon did some digging and the number that I talked to him on had been reported as spam, other complaints had him knowing all of their info and using a different Law Offices name. What a mess right??

I decided to just wash my hands of it. I requested the information that the hospital told me to request and he denied me and told me he would be sending me a summons. Well if that really happens, I sure have a LOT to tell the judge!

By the time my work day was over, I didn't get NEAR the amount of work done that I needed to, so I will be doing double duty tomorrow to catch up, but also, I was just a super stressed out hot mess! As I'm sure you can imagine. I set in the gym parking lot for 30 solid minutes, before I made myself go in. It was hard. I did NOT have it in me.

See that pouty face? Lol...I was totally done with the day and ready to eat a cheeseburger, some pizza, potato skins and a big ole blizzard...I wanted to say screw it all and go crazy. But did I? You know I didn't! I took my big booty into that gym and I very poorly pushed through Zumba. Lol

I screwed up a meeting time that I had with a few ladies about makeup, so I ended up going to the China Buffet and grabbing dinner and ate mine on the way home since I felt like I was about to starve to death. The end.

Lol...ok not the end...I went home and, if you don't already know, my apartment and my sister's are across the hall from each other, so I peaked in her window. She has been sick and so have her babies, so I just wanted to see how they were holding up. I ended up just having to go see them because the boys were playing so darn cute and I needed to play with them! Haha....I stayed way longer than I meant to, but it was a great visit. NOW, I'm ready for bed!

Here is the breakdown of my food choices for today:

Breakfast
2 packets of Strawberries and Cream Oatmeal = 260 cals

Lunch
Celery w/Peanut Butter, turkey, string cheese x2, Dannon yogurt = 374 cals

Dinner
3 chicken on a sticks, broccoli beef dish, breaded shrimp and some black pepper chicken = 773ish cals

Which puts me way high from what I've been at for a few weeks with 1567, but after the day I had, I say, blah...I don't care! LOL Praying for a waaaaaaay better Hump Day!!! Talk to ya then!!

August 12th, 2016: Late Night

Well I had a pretty normal day at work. I've been meaning to tell y'all that I've decided to quit eating sandwiches for lunch, at least for now. My main reason is because it allows me to be able to have a bigger, healthier lunch without the added carbs. My lunches have a LOT of food in them these days. I have this thing where, if I don't feel "full", then I still think I'm hungry. That's just not true at all, and in my head I know that. But in my tummy...I don't. Lol

So I probably should be breaking up my lunch into two smaller meals instead of one big one. But it sure does stick with me for a while and it's working for now, so why mess with a good thing?

After work I had a short workout planned. Friday's are always more chilled and less hardcore anyways, but also because I had company coming over and had to be home at a certain time. So I decided I was going to watch some videos to help me with my makeup business while I was on the eliptical. It sounded like a great plan. I mean...when I'm talking to someone or listening to them talk, the time just flies by. Well I don't know if it's just that the videos are different or if I just had a case of the lazy, no-good, lack of motivation blues...but every single minute on that eliptical crept by today. I made it to 30 minutes and I was 100% done.

I headed home and made dinner for Jamie and I and then one of my very good friends that I haven't gotten to see in a while came over. :) We had a great time visiting and I got to meet her finace (I can't get the little accent over the e on there) and we did a makeover. :) She kept calling it my 'fancy' makeup, lol, so I gave her a fancy makeover. :) We had a lot of laughs and a lot of fun....but that's the reason my blog is so late tonight!

Now I have to go to bed and get some rest so I can wake up early and go to Zumba! I might just take a nap after that! LOL

Here's the breakdown of my food choices today:

Breakfast
PB Smoothie w/ an extra scoop of Peanut Butter (cuz I was feeling extra nutty, haha) = 235 cals

Lunch
Small tomato, baby carrots, string cheese, turkey breast, cottage cheese = 351 cals

Snack
Small Orange = 45 cals

Snack
Celery w/1tbsp Peanut Butter & a Protein Shake = 211 cals

Dinner
8oz Pork Chops, Green Beans and Corn on the Cob = 373 cals

That puts me at 1215 calories for today. (I've been cutting closer to 1200 calories this week because my workouts have kindof been lazy feeling and I want to still lose weight, not sure how it's going to go, but I guess we will all find out Sunday!) Good night friends!

August 11th, 2016: Learning to be Grateful

Today I was listening to a Podcast about something...yea,,,I can't remember what the point was, but what I do remember was that he kept talking about being grateful. Oh yea...it was about being Happy. He was saying that we set our expectations too high, and then we are easily let down and create our own unhappiness. Part of his advice was to be grateful of everything positive in your life, so that you can overcome the negative. It's kindof funny because I JUST got a big old lesson on gratitude Sunday night during the closing session of the Younique Convention. One of the founders was talking and she was delivering her finial speech and giving us her "wishes for us" in the next year. One of her wishes is that we would become "Obsessively Grateful". Grateful of our circumstances because they bring us to our successes. And you know what? That can be applied to my weight loss journey too! I am grateful that I got so big so that I know how hard it is and how much WORK it takes to lose the weight.

I'm grateful for the sore muscles because they mean that I am making progress and my body is changing for the better. I have gotten to a point now where I almost crave those achy feelings because I KNOW that means I'm doing something right. I woke up this morning feeling every muscle in my back and shoulders area. That pool attacked me when I wasn't looking last night! Lol. I am definitely not used to using those muscles at all!

Work was nice and crazy busy as it has been all week. I feel like I'm finally starting to get caught up a bit from being out for a week. I tell ya what though, our phones just won't let up. We have had the highest volume of calls in the past month than I can remember ever. I am definitely ready for it to lighten up!

See, I was feeling it! Lol

I survived the work day and headed to the Chiro, then my first Zumba class in a week and a half! I was actually a little nervous! But there was no need to be. I was welcomed back with open arms and we had a good time. She did a lot of the older songs tonight and I loved it. I burnt around 800 calories and was really happy with that.

Afterward, I headed to my bestie's house (Barb's) because I am her dog torturer...lol. No I give her dogs all of their Parvo and 7 in 1 shots because they are all pansies. :) :) I had a very short, too short, visit and headed home to cook dinner. It's 10:00 and I literally just ate. I had some issues with my stove that made me a little crazy but I got it done and we ate and now here I am. I'm watching TV for the first time in weeks! It's weird, I used to think I couldn't live without it, but I really don't care anymore. I have way to many things going on to be thinking about tv shows.

Here is the breakdown of my food choices from today:

Breakfast
Peanut Butter Smoothie = 210 cals

Lunch
Turkey, Baby Carrots, Celery with Peanut Butter, Cottage Cheese, Doc's Chili = 501 cals

Snack
A yummy sweet baby orange = 45 cals

Dinner
Chicken & Veggie Stir fry with a tiny bit of rice because I burnt half of the rice (I thought I turned the burner off, but I didn't, oops, lol) = 368 cals

Dessert
2 cups of cantelope = 108 cals

That puts me at 1232 calories for the day. I feel like it should be more than that because I ate a LOT today...but I guess not. That's all folks! You all have a wonderful Friday! I sure plan to!

August 8th, 2016: Back to Work & My first Workout in a WEEK!

Well today started out just spiffy! I had insane insomnia last night. I could NOT get my brain to shut down and let me rest. The crazy part was that I was super tired. Can we say annoying?? I finally fell asleep after 2am just to get up a little after 6. Yuck! I didn't feel too bad, just tired. But I got up and got ready.

Work was INSANE. Lol...it was like 4 Mondays all rolled into one! Yuck! And it just kept going and going! I laid down to rest on my lunch. I didn't know if I could nap, but I could at least lay there in the dark and take a time out. I took about a 20 minute nap and felt more recharged and ready to finish out the day.

After work I headed to the Y for my first workout back. I was NOT looking forward to Zumba because the instructor on Mondays does a ton of hard moves that I can't do right now, so I do modify moves or walk in place or whatever and I just don't burn as many calories. So I go in and head to the Zumba room, but I run in to my cousins. I wasn't sure if they were gonna be there while I was there and neither of them care for that class either. So, I went crazy and decided to just go to the fitness area and work out with them instead. I chose the eliptical to start with. I was thinking 20 minutes on it and then 15 on the arc trainer upstairs after I walked it out a little.

Well I got on there and started blabbing to my cousin, Jessica, about my vacation and everything I learned at Convention and BAM...we were 30 minutes in...so...we decided to see where we could go with this craziness. So...we pushed a little more and a little more and then...we were done. Finito...jello legs. You do know that jello legs means you have really succeeded in the gym right? That's my professional opinion on the matter! Lol

After that, I decided that was pretty good for my first day back at the gym, and went to the sauna for more gossip and lots of SWEAT! Lol

The whole way home I was trying to decided what I was going to have for dinner. I had quite a few calories left and wanted to do something yummy & healthy. I just kept thinking about that pesto pasta I made last night and it sounded amazing! I'm hooked! So I made it again. Lol. Cuz I'm a boss like that. ;)

And that's my day! I hope you had a great one!

Here's the breakdown of my food choices for day:

Breakfast
PB banana smoothie with the new protein mix stuff = 300

Lunch
Turkey (no bread, I'm living on the edge!), Pickles, baby carrots, and cottage cheese = 235 cals

After workout cuz I knew I needed more calories
Slivered almonds = 170 cals

Din Din
Pasta tossed with Pesto and feta, butterfly pork chop and a cup of fresh cantelope = 649 calories

Which brings me to 1354 for the day. And I feel gooooood. LOL

Goodnight! Talk to you lovely folks tomorrow. :)

July 9th, 2016: What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger

Ok my title is a little dramatic sounding today, but it's because I've had that song in my had since this morning. I woke up way too early for a Saturday morning for someone who doesn't have kids. Haha..but I got up and got moving, had breakfast and headed to the gym with my motivation partner, my sister. She REALLY is my motivation partner. We are on different diets, but we have the same goals. We are about the same weight, so we have a lot in common. What cracks me up is how different we are when it comes to working out. I can get on the Arc Trainer and go to TOWN, but she is more interested in getting conditioned enough to start running. I'm pretty sure you couldn't pay me to run. LOL...

When I think about running, I'm sent back to my childhood and running the mile at school. It was my LEAST favorite thing in life. I would have chosen anything else. I was always the very last one that came in and I usually did my mile just over 10 minutes. Yup, you read that right. I know a ton of adults that are busting but to run a 10 minute mile, yet when I was a teenager, that's what I did and I was dead LAST every time. If I only knew then, what I know now.... yea I said it...lol. When I was a teenager, I used to always joke that I wouldn't be the person who, 10 or 15 years later said, "Boy I wish I were as skinny as I was in High School!". Pshhh puh-leez!! I would give anything to go back in time and smack some sense into that girl!! Ha! Yea...I was overweight...but I graduated High School right around the 200 pound mark. Geez...what I wouldn't give to be there again! I was the same height as I am now. 5' 6", yet when I looked in the mirror, I saw someone that is as big as I am now. I saw ugliness and fat. And I hated myself.

Here I am now...15 years later, I got to almost DOUBLE that weight. Wow. That's craziness. And I'm having to bust my BUTT to make it all go away. I did an hour of Zumba this morning, followed by 15 minutes on the Arc Trainer, and then I think I walked for 15-20 minutes. We were just walking to finish up the time we had left before the pool opened. OH and I did legs today. So I had very effective Jello Legs. Haha. I always tease that Jello Legs is how you know you worked hard enough at the gym. By that test...I get a gold star today! I pushed extra hard because the scale has NOT been kind to me this week. In fact, I don't think I'm going to lose a single pound this week. Partially because last week was so big, but also because I have some serious water retention/sodium issues and on top of that, I'm having some very bad female issues that the doctor said is because of my extreme change in lifestyle, because of the PCOS. My body is literally revolting against me. So I thought I would give it an extra push today to see if I can get anywhere. Of course I've been pushing all week, I haven't gone over my calorie budget one time since I started. I've been very dedicated. So...if this week a loss isn't in the cards for me, I'm going to roll with it.

The Diet Bet ends on Tuesday. I've got that 4% loss in the bag, so I'm not stressed about that. I had planned to do another one right away, but I realized that my Younique Convention in St. Louis is the first week of August. Although I plan to work out and watch (and log) my caloric intake, non of it will be from home, and I won't have 100% control over what is available to me. So, I don't want the added stress of another Diet Bet to add to it. So I've decided to wait until after the convention and then I'll join another one. I love the added motivation it gives me!

I was feeling good today! And this pic really helped, because I am NOT that thin..haha, but it's nice to look at!

Ok here is the breakdown of my food choices today:

Breakfast

I'm addicted-  Strawberries and Cream Oatmeal = 260 cals

Lunch 

Half a Turkey Sammy & fresh Strawberry Slices = 209 cals

Afternoon Drink

I've been CRAVING a Strawbettey Lemonade from the Lemonade House Grille, and today I had one. I had plenty of calories = 190 cals

Afternoon Snack

Unsalted, Roasted Sunflower Seeds = 180 cals

Dinnah!

Spinach & Mozzarella Stuffed Chicken Breast, Salad, & Baked Potato with Salsa and Sour Cream (if you've never tried it with salsa you TOTALLY should, it's great and you don't miss the butter at all!) = 572 cals

So I'm sitting at 1411 calories for the day. I feel good about that! So say a little prayer for me and the scale tomorrow...I don't wanna break it out of anger...haha!

That's not diet food, that's just TASTY!! :)

July 7th, 2016: The Two-Day Tornado

And I here I was thinking that yesterday was a hard day! Pfff...I could go along with that, if today weren't EVEN WORSE! Storms...2 days in a row....I tried to quit...but they wouldn't let me leave. Lol...I very, very much hope that tomorrow is better. Being one-man down is hard enough, but with all of this added junk to make me miserable, I was..well...just that - miserable.

The day DRUG by and I was NOT about to be going to the gym after dealing with all of the craziness. So 5:00 rolled around, and my boss asked me to stay over a little while because we had a few towns that didn't have service, so I did...and at 5:30, I headed to the gym..haha (you thought I wasn't going didn't you!)

It was bad, really bad...lol.

I begrudgingly headed in to the Y to go to Zumba. My muscles were already hurting thanks to being stressed all day, and my head was not in it. About half way through the fronts of my thighs were cramping so badly that I honestly thought I wasn't going to make it. But then, as Zumba does...a song I really liked came on, and before I knew it the last half was over. I wasn't happy with the amount of calories I had burned to I went up and did 15 more minutes on the Arc Trainer. I'm happy to report that I burned 1,000 calories before I left. I kindof like that number. I feel like I've had a pretty successful workout.

Tomorrow will be a light day at the gym. I plan to do a quick workout and then go swimming. :) So I really had to push it today. Check!

I came home and cooked some veggie Rotini (good stuff!) It has a serving of vegetables in each serving of pasta. I like that a LOT. And the plus side to that is that Jamie will eat it too. I make my own homemade sauce because it has less calories that way, and in my opinion it tastes better.

So here is my breakdown for my food choices today:

Breakfast
2 packets of Peaches & Cream Oatmeal = 260 cals

Lunch
Half of a Turkey Sammy, Doc's Chili, & Celery w/Peanut Butter = 586 cals

Afternoon Snack
Protein Shake & sliced fresh Strawberries - 153 cals

Dinner
Veggie Rotini Pasta w/homemade Meat Sauce = 550 cals

That brings my total caloric intake for today to 1549 which is right in my target. Yay!!

My yummy lunch today.

Mmm mmm good! :)

Alright y'all...I'm exhausted! I'm looking forward to my Friday! I hope you enjoy yours!! Talk to ya tomorrow night. :) (It will probably be pretty late tomorrow since we are going swimming..just a heads up.)

July 6th, 2016: This girl is POOPED!

Have you ever felt like you worked your brain so much that you actually felt physically exhausted? I feel that way after a busy day at work a LOT. For those who don't know, I work at a cable company. My primary job is Customer Service and Billing, but I also do advertising, web design (not well, lol), tech support, various reporting and who knows what else. I work for a tiny company and that's just how it goes with small family owned places. I am the Jill of all Trades in the cable industry. Lol. Today was an absolute insane day. My office parter (we share one large office area), Brandon went on vacation. Insert grumble here. Haha. We only have a team of 4 and that includes the Office Manager. So when one of us is out, it's very noticeable to whoever is left. Today was h e double hockey sticks (if ya get my drift). Storms are bad for the cable world...and we had a whopper. Plus our channel guide is currently messed up, so I took 5 million calls about that too. I worked through my lunch, but was able to grab my lunch at my desk. Then, before I knew it, 5:00 had rolled around! I did not get done anywhere near what needed done. But, what are you gonna do?

So....by the time I walked out of my office, I would have loved nothing more than to hop in to my truck and go home and go to bed! But did I do that? You know I didn't! I drove my booty right on over to the Y. As I pulled in, I saw my sister struggling to get her two boys to go in without a fuss, so I went to help her. Her boys have my heart. I don't think I have ever loved two little brats more than I love those boys. Haha. They are just so dang cute and precious!! So after we got them settled I headed in to the Fitness Area for Arm Torture. I was supposed to do arms yesterday, but I thought it would be ok to push it back a day since I had the whole Root Canal and all.

Today was only my 3rd time on doing arms (and a little abs), but it's been 3 weeks of Cardio, Ypump and everything else and I just have to tell you, there's a noticeable difference already in how difficult it is to do those exercises! I do 2 sets of 10 on all put 2 of the machines. On one machine, it's like a core ab machine or something, I started only doing 4 reps and that was it. On the lightest possible weight. You have to pull down with your arms as you are pulling up with your legs and it is SUPER hard! I have a note in my phone to keep track of how much weight I do on each machine and that machine is labeled "El Diablo" for very good reason! Haha  I actually did 5 reps on it today and I really think I could have done more! It was actually doable! I was so proud. I also did this back extension machine that I remember the first day doing it, I actually bruised my back! But now that weight doesn't seem bad at all. I can't believe how fast your body can adjust to those things.

After the Arm Torture you know I had to go to Zumba. Wednesday nights are officially my favorite night for Zumba. The instructor is super fun and so upbeat and I just love it. I always love it, but just a little extra lovin' on Wednesdays. :) The class went by pretty fast today. I didn't push it as much as I needed to because my calorie burn was kindof low, but I'm not sad about it, because I did have a really long day.

By the time I reached home, I was really ready for a quick dinner and bed. But that just wasn't in the cards. I had too many calories left and wanted to use them as wisely as possible. So I made what I call "White Pizza". It's soooooooooo yummy! I used Pitas this time for the crust, they are a little thicker and worked great for all of the ooey gooey toppings I put on top.

And that's a wrap! It's after 9:30 (my supposed bed time) and I'm super POOPED and ready for that soft smooshy pillow I have waiting for me in there.

P.S. I think my dog is feeling a little neglected. Someone needs to come and pet her. Lol...She did get some Pizza though, so she's pretty happy right now. :)

Here is the breakdown of my food choices for today:

Breakfast
2 packets of Strawberries & Cream Oatmeal = 260 cals

Lunch
Half a turkey Sammy, Doc's Chili, tomato slices, and some Apple slices = 492 cals

Afternoon Pick-me up
Protein Shake

Dinner
White Pizza (grilled chicken, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, spinach & cheese on Pitas- the sauce is light ranch and garlic powder) I had two of these = 519 cals

And now I am totally and completely stuffed, but only ate 1371 calories today. Oh well. Not to shabby, I just would really like to go between 1500-1800 at a minimum, but I almost refuse to eat if I'm not hungry. That just seems counter-productive to me.

I mean really, who could call that diet food? Not me! Yum!!

Alright y'all, I'm outta here. Goodnight!!

P.P.S Pray for me...tomorrow is Leg Day! Lol!! :) ;)

July 5th, 2016: Sometimes I Impress Myself!

Ok y'all today has been crazy!! So I had COMPLETELY forgotten that I had a Root Canal Scheduled for today until pretty late last night. So...I had already taken a day off. I'm not 100% against having two days off in a week, depending on the circumstances, BUT I am totally against having two days off in a row. So this morning before work, I packed my gym bag like normal. I had made up my mind that, even if I felt like total crap after the root canal, I would at least, at a bare minimum, go and walk on the track until I hit my steps for the day (5,000 on a work day).

So I had a crazy busy day at work today. Coming back after a 3 day weekend is always crazy, and then you add leaving at 1:30 and that adds a whole new level of chaos. So I stayed pretty busy and the day flew by. I headed to the Dentist with quite a bit of anxiety, because the last time I had a root canal it did not go well and I ended up feeling pretty bad for a few days. I definitely was NOT prepared for that. Then when I get there, I find out he's doing a different one because it was causing me some pain a few weeks ago, so my anxiety shot through the roof, because I apparently have some kind of screwed up nerves in that area and it takes a ton of Novocain to get it numb. We found this out because he started the root canal over 9 months ago on that took and it wasn't as numb as it should have been and I had a moment of severe pain. Skeery!! I'm the girl that they used to prescribe a "cocktail" (3 different drugs that they mix with the gas and I go to lala land for the whole procedure and the rest of the day) just to get me in there. But then I found out how much extra that cost and I gave myself a pep talk and decided I could put my big girl panties on and do it like everybody else. I just had a super traumatic dental experience about 10 years ago and I was having some super bad anxiety when going to the dentist. This was the first dentist to offer me a solution (the cocktal) so I did that up until about a year ago. Now I am only Novocain when I go...I feel like a grown up. Lol!

So he did a few fillings before he started the root canal, and then he did it and it was great and it was over before I knew it! I was sooo excited! My mouth was all numb, but my jaw wasn't stiff like before and I really could tell it was not too bad at all. So I went back to work for a while to finish up some stuff and then I took my booty to the gym! And guess what??? I did the Whole Hour of Zumba! That's right!! You read that right! I. Am. A. Beast! LOL...ok it's probably not that impressive, but I'm pretty proud of myself if you can't tell. Haha.

I decided that, since I was such a Beast today, that I deserved to have the night off on cooking. Haha. So I swung by the Mongolian Grill and had them cook me my fav (Broccoli, Beef, Mushrooms & Water Chestnuts) and I got Jamie some of his favorites. The super cool thing about getting it to go is that I can fit dinner for both of us in one takeout container. So meal for two for the price of one! Cha-ching!

Now I'm sitting here watching the Food Network, because I'm cruel to myself like that. Lol..not really, I just really love Cooking shows and they give me some great ideas! I took some silly pics at the dentist's office to share with you. :) I also took a pic of their chairs because I need to know if anyone else's heart drops when you walk in to places with chairs like this? I mean really? The arms on these chairs are seriously about 18 inches apart! I don't know how wide my hips are, but I'm gonna say...a LOT more than that! Ugh! I did find that they have two chairs snuck in there that don't have sides, but I've never noticed that before because they all blend together. I've always stood while I was waiting to be called back there (among many other places).

Evil Chairs

Here is my food breakdown for the day:

Breakfast
PB & Banana Smoothie = 340 cals

Lunch
Half Turkey Sammy, small tomato, cottage cheese & a serving of apple slices (yum!) = 430 cals

Afternoon Snack
Pretzel Stix = 120 cals

Dinner
Broccoli Beef Stir Fry, Fried Shrimp, 1-Chicken on a Stick = 471 cals

Yummy Lunch

Even Yummier Dinner! :)

Total calories are at 1361 so I'll probably throw in a late night snack before bed. ;)

**Don't forget that you can see the detailed version of my food diary every day by connecting with me on MyFitnessPal (username: honorwarren) I'd love to see you on there!

Goodnight y'all! Thanks for tuning in!!

July 4th, 2016: Happy Independence Day!!!!

Well I have had an extremely uneventful and lazy day. It was my day off from the gym AND my extra day off from work, so I took it easy. I watched some TV and hung out with my hubby and then before I knew it, the day was almost over. I just HAD to get to the grocery store to stock up on fresh foods and such for the upcoming week. So we got cleaned up and headed that way.

I have a love/hate relationship with grocery shopping these days. The very first thing I spot when I walk through the door is some Chips Deluxe Cookies...ooooh my. I have never been what I would consider to be "super bad" at the whole sweet tooth thing. But, I could eat half that container with a tall glass of milk. And I want them sooooooooooooo bad now. Lol. But I walked right on by and didn't give them another thought until just now.

I already had a pretty good idea of what I was going to be getting when I got there. But, of course, some ideas just develop as your there. I'm not the only one right? Lol. Somehow...every time we go to buy groceries these days, we spend a small fortune. I mean it's stressful for me! One thing I added was a digital scale. I've been needing one of those and I am excited to get to use it!

When I came home from the store I told Jamie I feel like I've walked 10,000 steps today, but nope. Not even close...less than 4k! And you know what? I hurt. Every time I get up my feet and muscles hurt. I'm not excited about it. He said, "Pain is only weakness leaving the body". That's one of the smartest things he's ever said! LOL..but that's exactly how I feel! I am flushing all of this weakness out, so that I can be STRONG and OVERCOME this miserable shape I've allowed my body to get in. I have no one to blame but myself, so really, I guess I need to feel this to make sure I don't let it happen again. Starting all over is GARBAGE! I'm 3 weeks in to this and I just can't wait to fast forward 6 months or a year down the road. I'm not trying to wish my life away. I just want to see where this journey takes me, and I really want to SEE the difference other than just on the scale.

Anyways...I came home and put away groceries and then cooked up some dinner. We both loved the last batch of Doc's Chili so much that I had to make another batch. ;) That means I've got some yummy lunch add-ins for part of the week! I'm also going to try these things called Joseph's Pitas..I've seen a lot of people using them for a variety of things, so I'm excited to try them out.

Alright y'all, I'm cutting this one short, because I'm going to sit here and relax and find a movie to watch with my hubby. :) Happy 4th of July!! I hope you guys have had an amazing weekend and are ready for the wonderful work week (*note sarcasm here, haha)

Here's the breakdown of my food for today:

Breakfast
PB & Banana Smoothie = 340 cals

Lunch 
Half Turkey & Mozzarella Sammy w/ Cottage Cheese & a Boiled Egg(protein baby) = 408 cals

Afternoon Snack
Coconut Almond Protein Bar = 140 cals

Dinner
2 servings of Doc Chili, 3oz Cube Steak, and some tasty Brocolli! = 460 cals

Total for the day is 1348, but I'm just gonna need to have some watermelon later...haha

July 3rd, 2016: Weigh-In #3 & Fireworks :)

Alright y'all, it has been a super crazy day! I started out my day with my weigh-in, of course. I was really hoping for a 4 pound loss this week (I snuck a peak a few days ago, I'm a weigh-in addict) anyways, so last week I weighed 357 when I weighed, and this morning I weighed 351!!! That's a 6 pound loss this week!! What what?!?!! Oh yea! I am THAT cool. Lol, no I just busted my BUTT this week and it actually SHOWED on the scale. AND I ate a cupcake this week! So in my way of thinking, I lost a pound every single day I worked out this weekend. :) I know, I just know that it won't keep coming off like this, but I sure wish it would. I would never lose momentum if I had results like this every week. I mean really, who would? So, I definitely earned my Mean Bean for the day and I don't feel the slightest bit guilty about it.

I was pretty lazy this morning. Mostly because I knew I was going to have a very eventful afternoon, but also because I was pretty achy and not in the mood to do much. So I went to Y Pump & Zumba today, because I like to torture myself. Hahaha. Ypump is mostly weights and strength training so I don't get many calories burnt that way, but that stuff is super important too. I left Y Pump with a super sour stomach and not feeling certain that I wouldn't be sick once I started moving and shaking and wiggling and waggling....so I did what any reasonable person would do and I moved the trash can to the wall in front of me...just in case. I'm pretty sure the sweet little Mexican instructor thought I was a little nuts, but I thought, "better safe than sorry".

As the class got started, I was pretty dang positive I was not going to make it. I looked at the clock about 4 times in the first 30 minutes. But...eventually I got distracted by a few good songs that I remembered from the last time I used to go to Zumba, and the last half flew by. I ended up burning over 1200 calories at the gym today, so that felt pretty darn successful. So at this point I had eaten a serving of Life Cereal (3/4 cup) and 2 boiled eggs. I usually try to eat something after I work out so I have a little bag of healthy goodies that I carry with me and I had some almonds.

My sister and I had decided to go check out Rue 21's new Plus Size line of clothing (I knew it would be a tad bit too small, but I was looking for some motivation!). They just have some of the CUTEST stuff! I know I'm not in my 20's anymore, but I don't care! Lol As soon as I'm small enough to wear their stuff and it looks nice, you can bet your butt, I'm gonna buy some of it. I did get a really cute water bottle while I was there and I snapped a pic to show you.

"Train Like A Beast Look Like A Beauty"

I mean really? Isn't that just adorable? Lol! I'm pretty excited to use it! I also snapped a few pics in the Zumba room. Full body pics are very unusual for me, but I figure, if I'm going to be honest with myself then I should be with you guys. I need to see them. I can definitely already feel the differences in my body. I can feel it changing. I hurried up and got a tape measure to do measurements because I totally neglected to do that in the beginning this time. I haven't measured everywhere yet, but I did measure my hips because I was curious where they were right now. I just want to point out that I am 66 inches tall. My hips are 67 inches around. That is INSANE! I'll be soooo glad to see that number GONE forever. FOREVER I tell you!

After my little impromptu shopping trip that took me a few other places, I was headed home. I ended up on the phone with one of my besties and I could just tell that she needed a shoulder and some time to de-stress from life. So I swung by to see her on my way home. As usual, a quick trip to her house ended up lasting waaaaaaaaaay longer than expected (but it was worth it, because I love her and her family to death) so before I knew it, it was 8:00 and I hadn't even had LUNCH yet. We had already planned to go to the fireworks show and had to get headed that way right away to get a good spot! So on my way home I called and had Jamie make me a quick sandwhich and grab me a protein shake and we were off to see the fireworks. We had a really great time with my sis and her family and my momma and daddy came out too! It was a really nice time to visit, waiting for the show to start. Then watching my sisters kiddos seeing the fireworks was just precious. And then I came home and here I am...sitting here writing my blog at nearly 11 pm! This girl is TIRED! Tomorrow will be my day off because the gym is closed. I will talk to y'all tomorrow evening! Have a great day tomorrow and don't eat to much BBQ! 

Here's the terrible breakdown of food for me today:

Breakfast

Cereal with 2 eggs = 309 cals

Snack

Almonds = 170 cals

Mean Bean = 220 cals

Lunch @ 8pm

Turkey Sammy & Protein Shake = 370 cals

And that's it. Geez! 1069 calories. Not good. I will do better tomorrow. I wanna lose weight, but not in a way that will put my body into starvation mode. Alright I'm ready for bed!

July 2nd, 2016: 300 Loads of Laundry

After a terribly late night last night, the last thing in the world I wanted to do was get up at 8:00 on the first day of my 3 day weekend and go work out. BUT, Zumba is at 9 (the gym is 30 mins from my house) so...I forced myself to get up. I don't know what is wrong with me, but I have been sleeping sooo terribly for the past 6 months or so. I started taking Melatonin to help, but then I decided I didn't want to be dependent on a drug to go to sleep so I weened off of it. Then I started working out and eating healthy, so I thought, "Hey, maybe I'll sleep better now that I'm voluntarily kicking my own butt every day!" Nope. So, I started taking Melatonin again. I really got a few nice, heavy sleeps in there..but now it's back to the same old same old. If you could see the graph from my FitBit of my sleep quality, you can see that I'm restless ALL NIGHT LONG! So that does make it pretty hard to push as much as I'd like in the gym and in normal life stuff. 

So I get up and go to the gym with my sister. We were a few minutes late to Zumba, but we jumped right in and had fun. Then we went upstairs to the Arc Trainers and I put in another 15 minutes of interval cardio on that. (30 seconds of going as fast as I can stand and 90 seconds of going a relatively slower pace, and then again, and again, until you pass out-haha) I felt pretty good walking out of the gym today. I burned over 1,000 calories. Can't be sad about that! Of course, by the time I made it home, I was sore, tired, and hungry. Sore & tired won, because I took a nice long nap! Lol...I definitely felt much better after that.

I had planned to go to the Lake to watch the fireworks over the water tonight, but...the forcast showed rain and my sister didn't want to go, so I ended up staying home. I did about 300 loads of laundry (4-but it felt like 300!) and straightened up my house a bit and enjoyed two-2 hour long episodes of America's Got Talent. :) The one thing I hate about watching TV is all the food commercials. They make want things that I know I don't need and I end up feeling like I want to munch the whole time. Luckily, what I was watching was pre-recorded, so I was able to jump past most of that today.

I ended my super exciting day by cooking a flatbread pizza for me and one for Jamie. I thought it was pretty great. I think he's still adjusting to the healthier style of eating. I'm pretty proud of him though, because the last time I was eating all healthy, he was very resistant to anything at all. I ended up having to cool two totally separate meals every night and it was exhausting! But this go around, he's really on board since he's already lost 40 pounds. I'm actually seeing him be calorie conscious for the first time in the (almost) 14 years we've been together! Yay - score for me!

So it's nearly 9:00 and I'm sitting right over 9,000 steps! I'm gonna finish this up and get to my 10k before bed. ;)

Here is the breakdown of my food today:

Breakfast
Protein Shake and 2 sticks of light String Cheese = 200 cals

Lunch
Salad, half a Turkey Sammy and Cottage Cheese = 380 cals

Snack
2 Boiled Eggs, Dill Pickles, and tomato slices - 158 cals

Dinner
Flatbread Pizza = 410 cals

Night Snack (because I had too many calories left)
PB & Chocolate Protein Smoothie = 320 cals

Total Calories for today was 1468

Weigh-in tomorrow!!! I'm ready to see how I did this week! I'm pretty sure that if I have a good loss this week, I'm going to treat myself to a Mean Bean. :) It's been two weeks and I just really want one. (Splurging every now and then is NOT bad, splurging every day, multiple times a day is what is bad.) So let's say...as long as I've lost at least 2 pounds this week, I will have earned myself a Mean Bean. :) You guys have a great night and a wonderful day tomorrow!

Lunch

My super weird combo for a snack :)

Dinnah!!

July 1st, 2016: 3 Day Weekend & Surviving the Hardest Temptation Yet!!

So...with a 3 day weekend on the horizon, today has been a very difficult to focus!! All I could think about was getting out of there and getting on with my weekend. I have HUGE plans...tonight was gym & pedicure. Tomorrow - gym, Sunday - gym, Monday - nothing as of yet. So...yea....so much to look forward to! LOL. I feel like I spend my entire week hoping for the weekend and then on the weekend, I don't do anything. What's up with that? Anyone else feel that way or is it just me?

So I went to the gym with my sister right after work. I had every intention of doing 20 minutes of cardio and calling it a day. I knew I needed to do arm weights, but I'm so exhausted, I really just wanted to do the 20 minutes and then go. I did have a pedicure to look forward to after all. So the first thing I do when I get in there is I get on this weird side-stepping machine. I don't really know how else to explain it. I've never seen anything like it. All I know, is that it works if the exact set of leg muscles that are already more tender than I can even describe to you. So I made it a big ol whopping 5 minutes on that machine! And then I moved it to the elliptical. I did 10 minutes on the elliptical, so I was already up to 15 minutes before I headed upstairs. So I get onto the Arc Trainer, thinking I'm probably not going to make it very far. And wouldn't you believe that I went 15 more minutes on the Arc Trainer! I mean seriously, am I a Beast or what! LOL I was really feeling pretty proud of myself. So then we go downstairs and why not do some weights too while we're at it! I mean I really did have a lot of fun at the gym tonight, much more fun that I usually have on non-Zumba days. And the time kindof flew by. The crazy thing was that, after I did my cardio, I was actually, for real, sweating! I hardly EVER sweat! I mean I had some serious glistening going on buddy. It was exciting. LOL

<--Us being silly at the gym. :)

I love this pic because it makes me look way thinner than I am! Lol --->

That is some real life sweat right there! Haha

After the gym, we headed over for our pedicures. We tried to make appointments ahead of time, but they said they weren't doing appointments today. So we arrived around 6:30 and I walked out of there at 8:45!! Wowsa!! And let me tell you, I was STARVING. As I drove through town, passing fast-food joint after fast-food joint, it was TOUGH. My mind was literally racing as I drove past each place and thought to myself "Is there anything low-calorie or remotely healthy I can eat there? Nope" "Well maybe I can just have one cheat meal, just one. It won't throw me off track." "Maybe I should get a salad somewhere?" "I could go in to the Chinese place and have them cook me something real quick, nope, closing at 9" I mean I seriously tried really hard to find somewhere to stop and a reason to make it ok. I wanted something BAD. But...I drove right on past and got onto the highway and headed home. 30 minutes later, I didn't die of starvation. Lol...I came in and chugged a protein shake and then threw together ham & cheese scramble. Ta-Da! I did it! I overcame my urges by sheer will power! Go me. Now it's 10pm and I am SUPER tired and planning a trip to Zumba in the am...and then maybe a nap! Haha!!

Here is how my food broke down for the day:

Breakfast
2 packets of Straberries & Cream Oats = 260 cals

Lunch
Turkey & Cheese Sammy with Yogurt & Granola = 520 cals

Snack
Almonds = 170 cals

Pre-dinner Salvation
Protein Shake = 100 cals

Dinner
Ham & Cheese Scramble with Turkey Bacon = 482 cals

Dinner!

Total Calories for the Day: 1532

June 30th, 2016: Losing Weight & Mood Swings

Did you know that being on a restrictive diet can literally make you cranky?? It can! It's a very common side effect! I've done some research on it (because I experience it like crazy) and there is a lot of truth to it. It can be caused by a lot of different things, like low blood sugar and a lack of certain nutrients. I do take a multi-vitamen every day, so I hope that's not what is causing it. I just know that I hate feeling like I'm ready to snap everyone's head off. I usually start feeling better by the later afternoon, but the mornings are ROUGH and right after I get home from working out is usually pretty bad too. I seriously went into a crazy woman rage last night over a misplaced pair of shoes in the living room. I mean really? Get control of yourself woman! And when I am in the middle of this little hissy-fit business, I seriously feel like I have no control to stop it. Of course, afterwards, I'm all in my feelings and feeling sorry for my poor hubby who has to endure my craziness. I hope this is just a passing phase, because I can't stand being this emotional. It's not just the anger either, I can also cry at the drop of a hat. Annoying. I hate to cry for senseless reasons. It makes me feel weak and I HATE to feel week.

So anywho...I did my leg weights at the gym last night before Zumba, and I want you to know that my legs are singing the praises of almighty King! Lol!! They are hurting something fierce! Honestly, I almost crave that feeling. It's like...I know that if I am feeling achy muscles, then I'm doing something right! That's the feeling of my muscles growing, and the more you build muscle, the higher your metabolism will be. I pretty much have NO metabolism...haha...so I need all the help I can get!

So I pushed through and went to Zumba tonight. I'm glad I did, but it kicked my butt! I love feeling like I'm a part of something. The ladies that were there tonight were super nice!!

Alright I'm off to bed. I'm Sooo ready for the weekend! By the time I get off of work, go workout, get home and cook dinner, prep for lunch the next day and then repack my gym bag and all of that, its 9:00! There aren't enough hours in the day!!

Here is the breakdown of my food for today:

Breakfast

Strawberry Protein Shake with a bowl of strawberry oatmeal with fresh strawberries = 255 cals

Lunch
Doc's Chili, Turkey Sammy, & Cottage Cheese = 432 cals

*I skipped my afternoon snack today on accident.

Dinner
Brown Rice w Chicken Tenderloins, and a side salad = 591 cals

Total calories for the day =  1448