Today’s Exercise
Method: Elliptical
Duration: 20 Minutes
Distance: 3.60 Miles
Okay. After about an hour, my head started feeling MUCH MUCH better. So I got on the elliptical. After about 10 minutes, my head started pounding again. I pushed it as far as I could, which only ended up being another 10 minutes. But at least the day wasn’t a total loss.
Posted on December 21st, 2008 by schmalger
Filed under: Exercise Confessions | 8 Comments »
What a week this has been. I’m so tired of talking on the phone. I’m so tired of going to Wal-Mart and grocery stores. I’ve finally gotten everything I need to prepare the things I’m doing for Christmas. EXCEPT. A punch bowl. I can’t find one anywhere, and I have no idea what to put the punch in. Maybe I’ll buy a freakin’ trash can and brew it up in that. HA! Wouldn’t the family just die?!? Just kidding.
So anyway. Here it is after 10 PM, I’ve been on the phone most of the day. I just got back from the grocery store, Office Depot, and Fred’s (hunting for a punch bowl). I just now ate dinner, and I still haven’t exercised. My head is pounding, and I feel like steamed dookie. Yeah. It’s not pretty.
I just took some ibuprofen - first time in a long time I’ve taken anything for a headache. But this one is bad enough to warrant giving it a shot. I’m really hoping that I’ll feel better within the next hour or so, because I WANT to exercise. I’m serious; I’m not just saying that. I feel worthless and unproductive when I don’t exercise. What a change that is from a mere month (5 weeks?) ago. So I’m glad I feel that way. But in the meantime, I’m sitting here with a pounding head and feeling guilty for not just pushing through it. I mean, I didn’t formally exercise yesterday, and now this???
If the ibuprofen helps, I’ll exercise and make an exercise post later tonight. Ugh. I just had to share that, because I want to be honest about every day ya know? And if it doesn’t get better? Well, crap. It is what it is, I guess, and tomorrow’s another day. But damn. I sure hope I feel better tonight…
Posted on December 20th, 2008 by schmalger
Filed under: Excuses Excuses | No Comments »
WARNING: Gratuitous discussion of oh-so-tasty and tempting goodies ahead. Those who do not want to read the tempting menu, STOP READING NOW! (If I knew how to make this red and flash, I would!)
So I’m cooking/making most of the Christmas goodies, as usual. My main task, when not hosting the whole shebang, is the cornbread dressing, which became my job when my grandmother’s arthritis got too bad in her hands to do the dinners. This is a huge responsibility, as it is the number one thing that people look forward to, besides the pies. I love that it was passed down to me, and I enjoy doing it. So that’s cool. Aside from that, I am the designated pie and cookie maker. This year, which believe it or not will be MUCH LESS than usual, I am making the following:
2 pecan pies (one just for DH) - no real threat to me; I rarely eat more than a sliver of that, so it’s no big deal to bypass it altogether
1 chocolate dream-whip pie - Uhm, that’s gonna be a bit more of a challenge…quite a bit.
2 coconut pies (one just for my stepmother) - Dear God, save me now.
1 german chocolate pie (never made one, but this is strictly for my father) - No threat, for obvious reasons.
2 batches of chocolate crinkle cookies - Yeah…that’s gonna be another problem to overcome.
Pina Colada Punch (non-alcoholic) - Okay…let’s face it. There are going to be MANY problems… This punch is so freakin’ tasty…
Oh, and I’m bringing the little smokies, but I’ve never gorged myself on those either. I never really have more than 4 or 5, so I can probably just stay away from those, too.
My brother is getting a turkey, probably not fried this year (both fortunate…for obvious reasons and unfortunate, cuz dang they’re good), and a ham. I can probably decide to have no ham, which shouldn’t be too hard. But we have to have one for people like DH; the freakin’ weirdo hates turkey (unless it’s fried, hence REALLY juicy). My mother is making the broccoli casserole (BLECH!) and sweet potato casserole (BLECH!). And when I get to DB’s (dear brother) house, I’ll make mashed potatoes (with turkey gravy on the side) and heat up Leseur peas (really, is there any other brand?!?), whole kernal and sweet cream corn (JUST for DH), and rolls. I think that’s about it. There’s always a can of cranberry sauce, just for DB. He’s the only one that will touch the stuff.
Okay. So what is it that I am worried about, in particular? My main concern is snacking before the meal. The meal is ALWAYS much later in coming than planned. ALWAYS. NO MATTER WHAT. It matters not how carefully things are planned out, something always happens for the meal to end up being late. And I’m talking maybe planning to eat at 2:00 and then not eating until 5:00 or even 6:00. This year, DB wants to plan for 5:00 or 6:00. Yeah, I’ve gotta talk him out of that. There’s no way I’m gonna eat, in reality, at 9:00 and then make a 2 hour drive home. Not gonna happen. So inevitably, I get really hungry and graze for hours - on cookies mostly and occasionally chips and dip and a few little smokies. So you can see how things can rapidly get out of hand, especially since I’m doing the punch this year, for the first time in a long time. Once dinner comes, I usually have a small helping of: turkey, mashed potatoes and a little gravy, cornbread dressing, peas, corn, and a roll. That’s it (none of the casseroles and such). And by then, because of the grazing, I usually am not up for pie…until late that night of course.
Why am I thinking about all of this now? Because I’ve been on the phone about it for nearly 3 days straight now, and it’s beginning to drive me crazy. And now all of this food is on the forefront of my mind, especially since I just bought most of the ingredients to make the stuff I’m making. Pray for me people. I’m going to eat a normal meal for Christmas dinner, but I’ve got to be ever-mindful of the grazing. I’m gonna try to have a decent breakfast before DH and I leave that morning, and hopefully that will help stave off the hunger. And maybe I’ll bring a couple of healthy snacks to have right before we get there. As long as I’m not feeling hunger pangs, all I’ll have to overcome is my DESIRE to have those things. But that will be easier to deal with if I’m not hungry.
Okay, I just had to get all of that off of my chest. And now for bed. My internal clock is all screwed up now that school’s out. I’ve been staying up too late and getting up later than I’d like to, which just screws my day all up. Good night!
Posted on December 20th, 2008 by schmalger
Filed under: OT Ramblings | No Comments »
Okay, so some may not consider what I did today exercise. But I’m counting it because it’s 12:30 AM, and the elliptical is not gonna happen. My boss is moving his office in a couple of months (that’s what he said a couple of months ago too; things are moving slowly). So today after getting my work done, I boxed up lots of things, rearranged some things, and stayed very very busy. I was sweating like a pig, and believe you me it felt like a workout. That went on for a couple of hours. Then I came home and did some rearranging around the house - mostly boxing up books, unstacking, organizing, reboxing, and restacking the boxes. And I was sweating again. I lost count on how long that took me, and I’m still not done with it…and here it is inching closer to 1 AM by the minute.
After dealing with work around the house, I went to Wal-Mart and was there for 2 hours. Yep. You read that right. 2 hours. I’m glad I didn’t wait until this weekend or the first of the week to go. We’re doing the Christmas get-together at my brother’s this year, but I’m doing a lot of the cooking. So I needed to get groceries for that as well as groceries for the house. And already, Wal-Mart was out of a few key things I needed. So I’m gonna have to run to a grocery store tomorrow, but I wasn’t up for it today after all of that.
Even though I can feel it in my muscles that I worked some things today (and no, I’m not counting the trip to Wal-Mart), I’m going to plan to get on the elliptical twice tomorrow, because it doesn’t feel right not having done “formal” exercise. On another note, I picked up a head band/sweat band at Wal-Mart while I was there. I’ve been meaning to get one because sweat just pours into my eyes while I’m on the elliptical, and it drives me insane. Wiping my face does no good if my hands are sweaty. So often, I’ll lift up my shirt and wipe my eyes, my forehead, and the top of my head with that. But that’s pretty ineffective too, plus it tends to break my stride. Anyway, I looked for one and found the little sucker for under $2. Sweetness! :)
Hopefully, the uber dorkiness of the sweatband will be worth it. I put in on tonight in front of DH and we had a good laugh. Anybody remember those 80s videos? Where people like Olivia Newton John wore workout gear, leg warmers, and sweat bands while singing their incredibly lame songs? Yeah…that’s me…minus the snazzy workout gear and leg warmers of course.
Posted on December 20th, 2008 by schmalger
Filed under: Exercise Confessions, Honesty - Brutal Honesty | No Comments »
Today’s Exercise
Method: Elliptical
Duration: 30 Minutes
Distance: 5.05 Miles
Now that’s weird, because that’s exactly how far I went in 30 minutes last time I exercised - the day before yesterday. Yes that means I didn’t exercise yesterday, and it was unavoidable…well I could have exercised at 2 AM yesterday (this morning) when I finally got off the phone with practically every person in my family. You see, I didn’t realize that Christmas is next week. I know, I know, but being out of school just completely whacks my sense of time. So I made one stinkin’ phone call when I got off around 6 yesterday, and it snowballed into a marathon session of phone calls, one after another. Suffice it to say that I’m very very happy I hadn’t taken a break on Tuesday as I had wanted to. If I had, then that would have been 2 days of no exercise in a row. It was nearly another one today, but I just squeezed it in now…barely before midnight. It was another long one, but when I imagined 2 days snowballing into another year of my life with no progress, I got to it. Now I’m beat but proud of myself. I had more to say, but I’m too tired to think straight.
Posted on December 19th, 2008 by schmalger
Filed under: Exercise Confessions | 5 Comments »
I will no longer be the fat wife to the thin husband. I am so ashamed of myself that I absolutely detest going out in public with my husband. Now, I have to say right here and now that this has never been because of my husband. One could not ask for a better husband. Some may argue, but I’ll fight it to the death. :)
Really, when we go out in public together, he will kiss me or even grab my butt (which drives me nuts and he knows it…which is at least part of why he does it). He tells me that he’s proud of me and likes to show me off, which to me seems like utter nonsense. And I am not ashamed of him; that’s not what this is about.
This is about the fact that DH could hide behind me if he wanted to (we have rules about that, too, lol). I feel like when we got out in public together that people are immediately thinking, “Why in the world is HE with HER?!?” He thinks I’m completely retarded for even thinking such things; he has self-esteem issues of his own. He’s been at his current job for over a year now (we just work part-time jobs while in school), and I’ve not once met any of his coworkers. I’ll think to myself that I will somehow cause them to lose respect for him, which is absurd when I analyze it. He doesn’t like the people he works with anyway, and he typically could not care less about what ANYONE thinks of him.
I’m ready to lose that sense of shame and walk with pride next to my husband, anywhere we go. (Oh and an added bonus would be being able to sit on his lap - maybe that should be a separate motivation.)
Posted on December 17th, 2008 by schmalger
Filed under: Gotta Keep 'Em Motivated | 4 Comments »
Today’s Exercise
Method: Elliptical
Duration: 30 Minutes
Distance: 5.05 Miles
I worked out today after feeling pretty apathetic. I wanted to take a break today, and I very very nearly did. I was worried about my knees, because they hurt so badly last night. But later in the evening, I realized that my lack of desire to exercise actually had very little to do with worry over my knees and much more to do with simply wanting a break. And I don’t want to be the Fat Girl who cried I can’t! LOL There will be those days that I simply can’t, but today wasn’t one of them. And how counterproductive would that have been? To REWARD a successful exercise challenge and weight loss with LAZINESS and APATHY?!? Yeah. And wouldn’t that have been a slap in the face to my wonderful challenge friends who rooted me on every day! As soon as that hit me square between the eyes, I got my butt up and got on that machine. I can’t take a day off because I WANT to; I have to save those for when I NEED to.
On another note, I did the exercise straight again (no inclines or programs), and I also did not do any high intensity intervals. It was actually hard for me NOT to do that, because I felt I wasn’t pushing myself hard enough. But after the sharp pains in my knees last night, I thought it best to just go at a steady pace. Interestingly, I went pretty much the same distance in the same amount of time. I guess after the usual interval bursts, I slow down enough to make it all pretty much balance out. But I sure missed the sweat and extra fat loss from the intervals. I may try to push it again tomorrow and see how that goes.
Posted on December 17th, 2008 by schmalger
Filed under: Exercise Confessions | 3 Comments »
Today’s Exercise
Day #21 of 21-Day Challenge - CHALLENGE SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETED!!!! 
Method: Elliptical
Duration: 30 Minutes
Distance: 5.08 Miles
Wow. I don’t know what it is, but my legs are aching more and more every day. Well, obviously it’s the consistent exercise. Duh! But now even my knees are starting to hurt, and that concerns me. I’ve had a lot of knee pain off and on over the last few years, and I really don’t want to make things worse. However, that’s not to say that I’m going to stop exercising. That’s not an option. But I’m not sure quite what to do about this - I did the elliptical straight again today (no inclines/programs), and about halfway through, I had shooting pains in my right knee. And now my left one is hurting. Maybe tomorrow I’ll swap back over to the 30DS and see how that goes. It does have squats and jumping jacks, which will probably put MORE pressure on the knees than the elliptical does. But it’s worth a shot. If I can’t handle the squats, I’ll do what I can on the elliptical.
Anyhoo! I completed the challenge! AND I only used 2 of 3 pauses that I allowed for in this challenge. That means, except for 2 pause days spread throughout the challenge, I essentially worked out for 21 days straight. I know that’s not *really* straight, but it is absolutely phenomenal for me. Woohoo!
For now, I’m not going to start another challenge on the thread, but I may do a personal one just for me here on the blog. It helps doing challenges and allotting only a certain number of pause days; it helps keep me more accountable somehow.
Okay, that’s all for now. I’m going to update the challenge thread and maybe read or play some video games. (DH gave me an early Christmas present - Metroid Prime and The Legend of Zelda Collector’s Edition. Don’t act surprised! I’ve warned y’all already that I’m a dork. :) )
Posted on December 15th, 2008 by schmalger
Filed under: Challenge!, Exercise Confessions | 7 Comments »
Starting weight (November 17, 2008): 285.00 lbs
Weight last Monday (December 8, 2008): 281.80 lbs
Weight this Monday (December 15, 2008): 278.40 lbs
Difference: -3.40 lbs weight loss!
Cumulative Weight Loss: -6.60 lbs total weight loss!
Yay! 2.32% of my starting weight and 5.28% of my **125 lb weight loss goal achieved! Woohoo!
I am just slap giddy, y’all. Slap giddy. I can’t believe what I saw on the scale this morning, seriously. I mean, I know I’ve been behaving myself, but still. I was hoping last week that I would get to see that 7 on the scale today, but I was thinking it would be like 279.90 if it reached that at all. Especially after the small gain last week, I wasn’t sure what was going to happen. I would have been very happy with 280, but 278.40?!? YIPPEE!! This is really working, y’all. And I can’t begin to tell you how happy I am, although I think a lot of you already DO know from your own personal experiences. And you know what? This is not that damn hard either. The elliptical is kicking my ass, but I can handle a 30 minute whooping on a daily basis if this is the tradeoff!
Posted on December 15th, 2008 by schmalger
Filed under: Weigh-In | 7 Comments »
Today’s Exercise
Day #20 of 21-Day Challenge
Method: Elliptical
Duration: 33 Minutes
Distance: 6 Miles
Oh yeah, baby! Despite the constant protests from my quads, I stuck with it and did better than I anticipated. Of course, today, I didn’t do any inclines or programs. I just did it straight and flat, but it was still one heck of a workout, let me tell you. Whew! I nearly took my third and final pause today, but I’m so close to the end of this challenge. I don’t want to get into the habit of taking too many days off, either. I don’t think I’d respond well to that, and it would more than likely make it harder and harder for me to keep at it consistently.
On another note, I bought some veggies the other day. Nothing much – some lettuce, a bag of carrots, one cucumber, and two tomatoes. Still, this is HUGE for me. I haven’t gotten up the guts to try the tomatoes yet – last time I tried it, I HATED it. But I fixed DH a salad last night (the one healthy thing he likes – very strange), and I tried some bites of cucumber and was pleasantly surprised. It reminded me of watermelon without the sweetness. I can definitely eat it; it will just be a matter of figuring out what it goes good with. (I wish I was a salad person – I hate eating them dry, but I have also hated ALL salad dressings I’ve ever tried: mustard/Dijon types, Italian, thousand island, a few vinaigrettes, etc. I’ll figure something out.)
Posted on December 14th, 2008 by schmalger
Filed under: Challenge!, Exercise Confessions, Uncategorized | 3 Comments »