May Goals

May 1st, wow!!!!  I am excited that we are in May (really excited for today because a friend and I are going to the Luke Bryan concert tonight which will be amazing.  He puts on a great show!!).  The grass is turning a great shade of green, the trees are starting to bud, the weather is warmer etc.  

I am going to use this post as one to reflect on the past 4 months and how far I have come with my weight loss journey and kind of regroup to help get the remaining 20 lbs off my body.  

Back on Jan 1st when I started to get back on the healthy lifestyle wagon it seemed like it was going to be such a hard journey.  I had been struggling for a few years to get back on but to be honest something just clicked on Jan 1st and I jumped with both feet on the wagon and haven't looked back.  I am not saying that it has been all easy but I am so motivated which really helps.  

exercise:

I have been going out to Jills pretty consistently 2-3x/week and really working hard with the workouts that she provides for us.  Even when I had my back injury I still went and modified my workouts.  Now I am back to doing the ones she has provided.  When I have a lot of shifts on weekdays I tend to get up before work and head to the gym and do some workouts that I have from previous programs that she has provided for me.  I am feeling stronger and for sure can see some definition.  I have also started running again and will be starting officially training for my 8th half marathon which is in september.  Knowing that I have this race coming up + the weather being nicer = motivation to run again.  I am really hoping to have a good race and then my next big one will be the around the bay 30K.  I really want to do that one.  Maybe if I have all these races to train for it will help me stay on the healthy wagon (well that and plus how amazing I feel when I nourish my body with healthy choices).

food:

Menu planning and meal prep.  These 2 things have been so key in my success is getting the lbs off.  I take the time to think of fun things to eat and then more time to prepare them so they are basically at my finger tip and don't have to scrounge to think of something to eat and then make it.  

I have reached the point that I have roughly 20 lbs that I want to get off and just need to focus on planning the menu's and prep the meals and hope that the weight comes off.  I will keep doing everything that I have been doing and hope for the best.  I do like where my body is right now but I know it can be better and I am willing to do the work to get to that point.

Something I try to do is still go out and eat and enjoy the one meal out.  I don't get dessert and I don't go crazy with my choices but I haven't banned it completely from my life.  I just make sure that I get right back on track which is something I have always struggled with and really am working on this.  I will not let one meal derail me and I will not have a cheat day.  If I had a cheat day I would just feel gross and it isn't really worth it.  

Tonight is an example.  We will be going out for supper and of course I will be having a few drinks but I will get right back on track as soon as I get home.  I don't want to go too crazy cause I want to run 7K and go to yoga.  

Have a great weekend everyone.

Days off…a great thing

Well the last 2 weeks have been so busy.  Between the nashville trip, doing an OT shift, and then a pick up at the beginning of my set I can say that I am really looking forward to my days off.  I actually marked myself off in the schedule so I won't be called by work if they are looking for OT.

Exercise has been really good this week and mostly independent because of what I have been working.  Just not able to make it to Jills classes so I went to the gym instead and really feel like I had great workouts…especially yesterday because I had time to do some intervals on the treadmill after my strength training.

I had my weekly menu done for the week and meal prep done which made it very easy to gather my foods for my 5 shifts.  Tomorrow will be the day that I plan my menu for next week.  I only work 3/4 of my next shifts…took a v-day on friday for the LUKE BRYAN concert.  This will be the 4th time I have seen him and he does such an amazing job each time that I am so excited to see him on friday evening.  Tonight we are going to friends house and I will be having some wine.  I need to watch how much I consume.  I really want to be feeling ok to go and workout at Jills tomorrow.  I am hoping to get 4 workouts starting tomorrow out at her place.

I went for a 6K run when I got up this afternoon and it was my best time yet for the 6K.  I even had a few walk breaks in there when I felt I needed them which really helped me be able to run a bit faster in between the breaks.  I think I will try for 7K next saturday (so I will have to watch what I eat/drink at the concert).

My WI yesterday was amazing….I did have some stomach issues when I first got home from work so I am not sure if a lot of it was water weight but I am still going to go with that result.  I was down 4.6 lbs for a grand total of 42 lbs.  That is so crazy.  I tried some clothes on and even just in the last 2 weeks those clothes are much looser.  I actually asked the person in charge of the scrubs at work to put me down a size.  I am for some reason not quite ready to go to that size but I happen to have a pair at home with me so I will try them on and see what I think.   I have 17.2 lbs to go until I reach my goal weight.  Even if I went with the weight on the scale today I am still under 20 lbs to goal which is such an amazing feeling.  When I started this journey in January it seemed so far away and really I have done so well and am feeling so amazing.  I need to remember this and not fall off the wagon like i did last time.  I love exercising and feeling strong while doing it.  My big focus last time was on the running when I reached a good weight but I am determined this time to do strength training 3-4x/week and as many of Jills classes as my schedule allows.

On my days I will for sure have to do some major house cleaning.  Not much was done since getting back from Nashville.  Just too busy with work to do it.  I will work on a to do list today. (I really don't want to be hung over tomorrow!!!!)

I want to try and come up with some new meal ideas.  I made a tuna salad with tortilla strips and had some lettuce with it and it tasted amazing.  Tuna is one of those things that I like but if I eat it too often I get turned off.  I hadn't had it for ever and I think that is why it tasted so good.  That is what I am having again tomorrow for lunch.  Things like that are good for lunches in the summer.  I need to start writing my recipes in my book so I will have them at my fingertips and rotate through them.  Pinterest is such a great site for healthy recipes too.  I want to utilize everything possible to help my maintain this healthy lifestyle.

Well have a great weekend everyone :)

weekend musings

I cannot believe how nice the weather has been since getting back from Nashville.  It was so warm when we were there that I was worried about how the weather would be when we got back.  Thankfully the weather has been in the teens everyday since being back.  Today is amazing sunny and warm…yup I will take that!!

Nashville was everything and more that I had hoped for.  I did the best I could with eating and managed to get some exercise in.  I did a couple of treadmill interval workouts and I know I did a ton of walking and dancing.  When we got back I got right back into my healthy habits with eating and exercise.

I did an OT shift on thursday night which kind of threw things off a bit with what I had planned for my workouts but I worked with it.  Things are not always going to go as planned and I am becoming more adaptable with these little changes in my schedule and not letting it make me fall of my healthy habits.

Exercise:
this week I have done running, yoga and a couple of classes at Jills and one strength training workout at home.

Food:
Made a menu and followed it.  When I felt like I was still hungry I have started to eat a boiled egg which helps.

Weight:
so when I got back from Nashville I weighed myself and was not surprised to be up a bit.  With my eating good and exercise I did my official WI today and was down 0.8 lbs from my WI before nashville.  I have lost a total of 37.4 lbs since Jan 1st.  I feel amazing.

I have a stag and doe tonight which should be fun.  I have to behave myself as I want to run 6K in the morning.

Have a great weekend

another goal met

Last night I could not get myself feeling satisfied when it came to food.  I had my usual snack but I still felt so hungry.  I ate a lot more in the evening and between the food and weather I feel so hungover today :(

I got up early and headed out for a run at 7 am.  The one day I could sleep in and of course I wasn't able too.  I guess a week of waking up at 5 didn't help.  Technically I slept about a little over an hour longer then I had been all week.  I did a 6K run.  I haven't ran that distance in a long time and really it felt pretty good.  Very happy that I was successful with this run.

Up until last night my eating has been good even though I had to buy 2 meals through the week.  It is amazing when you eat 99% home cooked meals how different boughten meals taste.  I much prefer the home cooked meal :)

I am pretty sure that I have enough food to do me until we go on our trip for myself.  I will have to buy stuff for the boys but I am good for me.  Speaking of the trip I met my weight that I wanted to be for this trip.  I had a great week for loss…3.6 lbs which totally shocked me as I was and still am feeling a little bit bloated but I was 159.4 lbs!!!!!  that is a total of 34.8 lbs since Jan 1st.  I am feeling great.

I have a lot of exercise sessions scheduled before we leave and I really hope that I get to all of them.

I can't believe 3 more sleeps until we leave.  It seemed like it was going to take forever to get here since we started planning a long time ago but finally our trip is just around the corner :)  just one more shift tonight too and then off for a week.

End of March

I cannot believe that today is the last day of March.  These 3 months have gone by so fast.  I have to say that these 3 months have been exciting and a bit of an adventure.  It all started on Jan 1st when I told myself that I would try and be healthy again.  Menu planning and meal prep have been a huge part in the last 3 months.  Finding foods that keep my diet fun and interesting has been a bit of a challenge but I was up for that challenge.  I was hoping to have 30 lbs off by the end of the 3 months and I met that goal which makes me extremely happy.  I have gotten back on the exercise wagon too and when I went for a 4 K run this morning I felt like I am getting back into the swing of things when it comes to running.  I was actually able to run the entire 4K which is something I have not been able to do for months.  I have a half marathon schedule for september so it is motivation to keep up with the running.

I am going to start making monthly goals for myself and reward myself each time I succeed with reaching the goal.

April goals:

organize my house

find new recipes to try

be more responsible with my spending

work on spring cleaning

strength train 3x/week

run 4-5x/week

yoga 3x/week

These goals are pretty realistic since I am already doing a lot of them but when I look back I want to make sure that I have done them all.  Now I just need to think of a reward.  Weight loss won't be a goal as I know that it will come eventually and don't want to set the numbers.  If I eat as clean as possible and exercise that is all I can do and I am sure the scale will continue to go down.

I really do want my house to be much more organized.  Such a struggle for me.  I need to set small tasks because when I set big ones I just start feeling overwhelmed and don't want to do anything at all.

well I should get going.  I am so tired.  the last 2 days I have had education days and then worked 4 hrs of OT yesterday.  I will be so happy when this set (start thursday) is over.

Race weekend

I can't believe that around the bay is on sunday.  My goal for next year is to be trained for the 30K.  I so want to do that again, but for now I am excited for the 5 Km race.  I feel somewhat trained for it but I know that I will not get a PR on sunday.  I will just be happy to run 5K with my husband and it doesn't matter what my time is.  I had really gotten out of running and am just happy to be getting back into it.  I have a half marathon booked for sept so I will be motivated to keep up with the running.

Work has been busy for 2/3 days and I work again tonight.  I must say though that after being off with my injury I am happy to be back at work.  Even though things can make it suck at times overall I love my job.

I have been doing well with keeping up with my strength training too.  On wednesday before work I actually went to the gym and did ST rather then just running.  I did 3 different things before each day shift.  I did intervals one day, ST the 2nd day and yesterday I ran 4K outside (have not done a run before a day shift in a long time and it felt so great).  I went to yoga on monday night and can't wait to go again on sunday.  This week did not really give me the chance to go.  Once hockey is done for my husband I may be able to go to some later classes on my way home from work if they are offered on the days it would work for me.

I have a 2 day course next week which really cuts in to the 5 days off thing I usually have going on.  So no OT shifts for me which is ok since I have the best easter schedule for getting the OT.  friday and sunday night.  I did a switch which means I am losing out on 4 hrs of OT but that is ok.  Normally I like working nights but this thing I have going on with working 3 days 1 night feels great when the 3 days are over and knowing I only have 1 night ;)  not sure how often this will happen but it will be nice to do it every once in a while.

Still doing awesome with the meal prep and menu planning.  I was all set for the week which feels so awesome.  I even had a menu  made for the boys too which is helpful.  what did suck though was how much we spent on groceries when we went earlier in the week.  I haven't spent that much ever for a week I don't think.  I am going to try and get most of the groceries where they do price matching.  I have an awesome new app on my phone that you can just find the items on sale at different stores and show it to the cashier and they will match it.  I don't think my local grocery store does it so I will have to find somewhere else to do the majority of my shopping.  the produce is always awesome at my grocery store so I need to find somewhere similar.

Well I had another loss on the scale this week.  I was down 1.6 lbs!!!  I have lost 31.2 lbs since Jan 1st. I really hope I reach my mini goal on April 8th (the day we leave for nashville).  This seriously is the first time I am going away where I am not freaking out about my weight before we are leaving.  I am happy with how well I am doing and doing my best to make it a lifestyle change.  I am amazed that my 40 yr old body is doing what it is doing.  I want to be healthy from now on and can't allow myself to slip back into old habits.  I really need to help my little man too be more healthy.  He has been packing on the pounds so I need to help him with this.  What a struggle though with a fussy boy who is on meds that can cause weight gain.  We really need to help him stay active which may help get some of the extra weight off that he has.  I will talk to the paediatrician in June when we have the appt.

Well I hope everyone has a great weekend.  Mine will be working one night, menu planning, some meal prep?, housework and the race!!!

Spring in in the air...

So tomorrow is the first day of spring.  We are having ok weather but it is nice to know that the end of winter is in site and even if we get some more snow I know that it won't last.  I need to make a spring cleaning list and make sure that I do each of the tasks on it before we go on our trip.  I want a nice and clean house when I come back from our trip.  Some of the items will be daily tasks but I need to have a 2nd list of bigger things that need done like washing the cupboards in the kitchen (lots of dust etc), cleaning the fridge etc.  Then I will have a weekly/daily list of things that need to get done.  I am determined that by the end of the year I will have my house in much better order then I ever have which will be such an accomplishment for me.  it will be so great to be able to know that my house would always be clean incase people just stop by.

I am almost done my set of work and it actually has been going ok.  yesterday I had a bit of a set back with the other side of my neck/back but it is so much better today.  I am having a bit of an issue with my left knee too.  Nothing major but it keeps wanting to almost give out which is a weird feeling.

Exercise:

I have been doing my running, yoga and going to Jills.  This week has been a bit harder as I have been working this week.  I am going to do my best to make it out there in the morning after work but I am nervous to even say that since the last time I was thinking about doing that I was in the accident.  I went for a 4K run when I got up today and it was great.  The best one I had on that route which makes me feel great.  I am doing good about getting my workout in before my day shift too which makes me feel good.


Food:

Still doing good with the clean eating but I am allowing myself to not feel guilty about going out to eat as long as I make the best choice with the menu provided and then being back to clean eating.

Mood:

It is amazing how being healthy can make your mood so much better.  I feel more relaxed, and just a happier person.

Weight:

I did my weekly WI today and was down 2.2 lbs for a total of 29.6 lbs.  I can't believe that I am almost at 30 lbs loss.  I remember when I first started I kept thinking how can i get as much weight off as I had wanted too.  I was so discouraged.  Thankfully I took each day at a time and look where I am now in the 3rd week of March.  I want to keep this up and come the summer I wont' have to keep think how I need to lose weight.  I have said this before but I need to say it again.  if I reach my healthy weight I want to stay there.  I know the older you get the harder it is to get the weight off but right now it is still going good so i will just keep doing what I am doing and know that eventually I will be at a healthy weight for me.