Measurements

Okay, so I am not sure what is more embarrassing...posting my weight every week or posting these measurements that I just took. I recently read that the ideal measurements for a female model are 34-24-34 (Bust-Waist-Hips). Wow! That is a rude awakening. I am far from the ideal. The Weight Watchers online tool allows you to track several measurements, so I have decided to take measurements monthly; I feel that weekly is way to often.

So here they are:
Bust: 42.5
Waist: 39
Hips: 49
Arm: 15.5
Thigh: 28.5
Calf: 15.5
Dress Size: 16

So my thigh is bigger than a model's waist? That kind of makes me want to puke. I also have recently read that women with a waist measurement of more than 35 inches have a higher disease risk than people with smaller waist measurements because of where their fat lies, in the abodomen. So, I need to at least get my waist below that number. The good news is that at least my measurements are kind of like an hour glass; my hips are my biggest problem area...any suggestions on how to reduce them??

A Good Week

Well today was a good day. I was only 2 points over and I burned 7 activity points with my workout. I went to the gym early so I could spend some time on the elliptical. I brought in my iphone and blasted the 80s rock in my ear buds. It is amazing what a little music can do for your workout. When ever I listen to music with faster beats I guarantee that I burning more calories and moving my legs faster. I love listening to Poison, Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, White Snake, etc when I work out. I also like some pop and hip hop to workout.

My workout tonight with Tammye was good too. She is encouraging me to do measurements. Maybe I will do that soon. I feel like I am going to have a good week. I am actually excited for the weigh in on Sunday. I am off tomorrow so going to try and get some time in on the treadmill. Tammye has challenged me to increase my speed on the treadmill to 6 or 6.5 even if it is only for 30 second intervals. I am going to try it and hopefully I won't die.

STRESSED spells DESSERTS backwards

Have you ever noticed that if you write the word desserts backward that you get the word stressed? Well, today was a hectic day at work. I have been doing so good. I have been tracking my points and eating things I am supposed to. I still haven't been on the treadmill much but I have been drinking my water and my diet has been spot on. It helped that Nov 1 was a Monday. Doesn't get any better than that to start a fresh again! But...even though I have been good the end of my day today at work was very stressful and ended in what seemed to be a confrontation with a friend. I am not quite sure why it was that way but the room felt very tense like you could cut the air with a knife. I could bore you with the subject matter but I will spare you the details but in a nutshell I just try my best to make sure that everyone is aware of all of their options, the benefits/disadvantages to the product and the financial gain/loss of the item. I thought that is what I was doing today but for some reason it was just really high stress, high tension and combative.

At my job I have to be pretty tough. My job is to create change in the hospital and as you probably know..people hate change. I try to be a good listener, and a good moderator but I get in the zone and can be pretty tough sometimes especially with the vendors that come in unannounced or unprepared, etc. I think because of this, I get the persona that my feelings don't get hurt and that I am tougher than I am. However, I do have feelings and while honestly I really don't care what MOST people think of me, I do care when it my friends or family or someone that I really care about and value. The problem is that sometimes my work can interfere with those people. Well, I still can't put my finger on why the air was so tense today but I left with feelings hurt and stressed out about it.

As soon as I got home I was stressed out and proceeded to tell Travis about my last meeting of the day which did not go at all as planned. I opened up Hudson's cookies and started indulging. I purposely buy Hudson M&M cookies because I don't particularly like them but they just sounded good tonight. I also ate a very small handful of cashews. I had a pretty high point value lunch so I didn't have many to spare. So..to make a long story short I went 5.5 points over tonight. 2 cookies were 3 points and my small scoop of cashew pieces was 2.5. Darn it. Why couldn't I control myself.

I do have to admit that it felt better after eating it and that my stress seemed to dissipate as the chocolate cookie hit my lips. I usually try really hard not to sweat the small stuff and to allow myself to get stressed out but this has been a crazy week and today did not help it any. Hopefully there will be a better day tomorrow. I recently read this quote by George MacDonald, "It is not the cares of today, but the cares of tomorrow, that weigh a man down". So, I will put this behind me because I don't want to be weighed down...literally!

Have your Dessert and Chew it too

Today my friend at work asked me if I liked Key lime pie; I answered with yes and she said, "you have to try this gum, it tastes just like it". I was hesitant to try it as I am usually a classic gummer. I love bubble and mint but dont really get into the fruity flavors but.... I gave it a try. Surprisingly it tasted exactly like key lime pie, right down to the graham cracker crust. It was so weird but yummy at the same time. It really did taste like easting a dessert. The gum is called Extra's Dessert Sensations. Tonight when I ran into Walgreens I saw another gum flavored mint chocolate chip. This sounded nasty to me even though it is my favorite flavor of ice cream. I usually hate any fake chocolates but curiosity killed me. I had to get it. Again, to my surprise it was good and did taste like the ice cream. On the way home from the store I called my friend Amanda to tell her. She also had tried the key lime and loved it and said that her favorite is the strawberry shortcake. I am going to have to try it next. Anyway, I know it sounds weird but it was really good. It is great for when you are craving something yummy and you don't have any extra calories.

Today I ate really good. Only one point over my threshold. Tonight I just stared at the Halloween Candy craving some....but then I stuck in a piece of my gum and I have been okay. Gum has many health benefits too. It has been proven to help relieve stress, improve oral health, increase alertness, as well as aid in weight management. It can help reduce calorie intake, end mindless munching, and increase energy. It also burns about 11 calories an hour while you chew.

Pics from Weekend Warrior

So my post from yesterday talked about our pumpkin workout but a friend posted some pics on facebook and I thought I would give you a better idea of some of the stuff we did. Here they are!

Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle

So I am starting a new book. It is called "Burn the fat, feed the muscle". Here is a little review of the book that I found online. I will be doing my own review after I read it.

Introduction
In burn the fat feed the muscle, Tom Venuto stresses the importance of some principles such as no quick fixes, weight loss is not the same as fat loss and that the book is not even just about fat loss but more about making people healthier.

Goal setting, strategies and motivation.
As we all know goal setting is very important to reaching what you want with your health and although I have written extensively about this subject in the past Tom Venuto has done a fantastic job in burn the fat feed the muscle of really crystallizing the art of goal setting so that it will work much better for almost anyone.

Body types, how to identify what you need
This is the first place in burn the fat feed the muscle where I like the way that Tom Venuto has really broken down how people have different body types. Almost every trainer I have ever seen thinks that every person’s body will react the same way with the same diet and exercise and this book stops that idea dead in its tracks.

Eating, Food, Liquids, and actual meal plans
Tom Venuto covers a couple of very important points that are very often overlooked in most other books and those are proper intake of liquids and foods that you should eat. Tom Venuto uses about 20 pages to cover foods that you should and should not eat including replacements for some of the bad foods that you are already eating.

Supplements
Tom Venuto, in Burn the fat feed the muscle, and I are of essentially the same mind on the use of supplements and how this industry is very good at marketing many overpriced products with very little benefits to almost any user unless they are in a very sickly state. Let’s face it, in North America our prosperity has not lead most people to under eat so the supplementation is not the most important thing.

However, Tom Venuto has included information on the most important supplements and I was a little surprised but happy to see how straightforward he is about many of the supplements in the bodybuilding industry and the effect that magazines advertising has had on the objectiveness if those magazines.

Cardio training
We all know how important exercise is in losing weight and the diet that has been created in Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle is definitely geared toward having both cardio and weight training as an essential part of the package. I have never seen a diet that did not at least mention exercise but this book stresses it as very important part of the equation and many other diets would do their followers more justice by stressing a lot more exercise.

Weight training
What would you expect from a natural bodybuilding champion. Tom Venuto covers the exercises that you should do to gain strength and muscle as easily as possible and goes into a lot of detail with tactics that you have never seen before.

source:http://www.fitnesstipsforlife.com/burn-the-fat-feed-the-muscle-complete-review.html

Weight Watcher Results: Week 28

Wow! Well, I have been kind of slacking on my blogging. Not really on purpose but it has been a busy week. I didn't post a weigh in last week but sadly it was exactly what I weighed today. This week has been hard. Lots of challenges. An out of town (overnight) business trip, visitors from out of town and Halloween.

I have got to get better about tracking my points! That is where I am really slacking as I know it is mostly diet that keeps this train going. I can't lie though, I have been slacking on the treadmill too! Confession......I am totally hooked on 24. The bad part is...that I have watched 8 episodes (none of them on the treadmill). I better get Travis to hold me accountable. He tried once and I just blew him off.

I am running out of time. I only have 4 weeks till Thanksgiving and if I don't get down to 185...I might just die. I have been hovering between 195 and 200 for like 3 months. What the hell. I mean, I have been far from perfect but should still be going in the right direction. I think I am going to dedicate myself to eating portion controlled lunches (lean cuisines, smart ones, etc) at least from now until Thanksgiving. I need something to jump start this engine again. I am feeling discouraged. I also have not been eating breakfast, which I know is so important.

Lots of goals from now until Thanksgiving:

1) Track points

2) Treadmill at least 3x per week

3) Eat breakfast

4) Drink two Nalgene bottles of water per day (64 oz)

I know that this is the secret to success! I have got to quit slacking off!