188 and Smiling

Well, I made it to 188 before we left on vacation. I have a picture but havent had a chance to download it, I will add soon. Not quite the 185 I had hoped for but close enough to be proud. Now the trick will be to keep it off and not gain a Thanksgiving 5 pounds. I am actually about to get on the treadmill right now but it will be the first bit of exercise I have had since we left. The first day we spent the entire day in an airplane and/or car and didn't really get to move around at all. We arrived in the middle of a blizzard. It has been so cold and snowy and several family members have been snowed in and practically unable to see us yet. Maybe today we will see some of them.

Since it was cold we spent most of yesterday inside just visiting around the fire and watching TV. I guess I am not used to the TV. While it was really fun to watch some shows I can see how it is easy to get complacent and to just sit around watching TV and to neglect the treadmill. I recently read that the average american watches more than 4 hours per day and that the average home has more televisions in the house than people. My bodybugg will give you a rude awakening; sitting down watching TV burns a small 1-2 calories per minute (about the same amount as you burn when you sleep). Maybe that is the problem that is leading to obesity in America. At home, we very rarely watch TV as we don't have one on our main floor but we have been sucked into spending too much time reading iphones, playing on the laptop, etc. What is your vice? Do you play video games? Even reading is bad in regard to burning calories. Check out this very short article. The most amazing thing I read is that the average senior citizen spends an average of 207 hours a month in front of the television, which is about 7 hours per day.

Well, I better go get busy! I am setting a new goal to reduce the amount of time I spend sitting around reading my iphone, watching TV and playing on the macbook. I do love the ipad as it has allowed me to be active while watching TV. Now I can go watch an episode of 24 and get my workout done too!

Gadgets & Gizmos of Plenty

So, this week is my gadget week! The other night I was making cupcakes for Hudson's preschool class, his birthday is this week and I ran out of paper liners. I called my neighbor and she said that she had some. So, I rushed over but on my way out the door I noticed a package on the front door. I automatically assumed that it was something for Hudson. I told Travis about it and he immediately said "oh...thats for me", I asked what it was and immediately looked at who it was from. I saw that it was from NBC. Well, it took me about 5.2 seconds to figure out what it was. It wasn't for Travis and it wasn't for Hudson.....IT WAS FOR ME. I have been wanting a bodybugg for years. The bodybugg is a very accurate calorie management system and can really help manage weight loss. The bodybugg system works by keeping an accurate daily record of calories consumed vs. burned making it easier to stay informed, make decisions and more effectively manage your weight. I was so excited!! I have worn it everyday and it works great. The results that you can look at on the computer are amazing. I'll write more about it soon but wanted to at least let you know I got one and that it is awesome.So, you know that I posted measurements. The next day after getting my bodybugg, Trav brought me home a myotape. They sell them at A1Supplments.com (where Travis works) and he got one for me. It is an accurate measuring tape for measuring all your circumferences. It makes it so you you always measure the same "tightness". It is pretty cool. The good news is that most of my measurements are smaller than what I had posted. I will do a new post soon. My Birthday is a week from Monday. Happy early Birthday to me! I am so excited to post my weight this week! I think all my gadgets and gizmos have really helped. Tomorrow is Hudson's birthday party. I just need to be careful and not consume too many calories. We are having a very fun pirate party. I'll post some pictures and details soon!

I really try to limit my fast food but sometimes it is absolutely necessary. At least once a week I work until 5PM and then teach a CPR class in Knoxville (30 minute drive) at 6PM and I need to be there a little early to set up. This means either eat at fast food, pack my dinner or wait until 9PM to eat. I pack occasionally but usually I end up at fast food. I found this article to be some good tips for eating at fast food when you dont have any other options. The article gives you your 11 best fast food post option workout snacks under 200 calories.

Here is the intro:
Some protein bars can be more like candy bars, providing sugar and fillers rather than actual healthy nutrition. While a fast food restaurant may not be the best choice for a quick bite after your workout, these options are good. They provide protein, carbohydrates and, most of all, satisfaction for fewer calories than a Snickers bar.

The articles gives you some ideas for the following:

• Best in-hand option
• Best breakfast option
• Best open 'till 2 a.m. option
• Best drive-thru hand held
• Best high protein option
• Best filling sandwich option for early risers
• Best sides as a snack option, plus a high-protein treat
• Best protein splurge option
• Best sweet treat option

So, when you are absolutely on the run...give these a try. I love Wendy's Chili and I can always enjoy a skinny Starbucks latte.

Surprise!!! We're leaving on a jet plane......

Wow..I am so tired today. I really need to go workout but I just can't get motivated to do it. As soon as I do this post I am going to bed. But first, I wanted to see how many people in East Idaho are still reading my blog. I feel a lot of pressure to meet this goal of being at 185 by Thanksgiving. I AM RUNNING OUT OF TIME!!! Wonder why I feel the pressure? Because we are making a surprise trip to Idaho for Thanksgiving. We get there on November 21st and come home on the 30th. It should be a fun trip. Last time we were there I was 7 months pregnant. We haven't told anyone about the trip up until this point and wanted to wait and just show up at the door step but then decided with the trip only being 2 weeks away, we better tell them. So....SURPRISE!!! See ya in 13 days!

Another exciting thing happened today....baby girl Reese (we call her Sissy)...started to crawl. I am so proud of her. She is so cute and to watch her determination to learn how to move that body keeps me motivated. It is so cute to see her crawl across the room and then kind of collapse cause she is so tired. I'm sure she will build up some stamina soon.

Well, my diet has to be PERFECT and I have to do cardio at least 5 days a week to meet my goal. The problem is that I am tired and getting burned out. Not burned out from my diet and working out but just burned out. Seems like we always have something going. Between work and the kids I stay busy and then this week for example, I have a CPR class tomorrow morning, need to go to my workout class on Tuesday night (cause I can't go Thursday), Wednesday night I have a meeting and I can't get out of it cause I am the president of the chapter, Thursday night I am teaching CPR...and the list goes on and on. It will be hard to get in those 5 workouts but I am going to try hard. We leave two weeks from today and I have 7 pounds to lose! I know that I can do it! Wish me luck and for those of you in Rigby....See ya soon!

Stir Fry

Tonight I am making Stir Fry for dinner. It is so easy and so yummy!

Clean & Cut the following in bite size pieces:

• Broccoli
• Mushrooms
• Bell pepper
• Snow Peas
• Bean Sprouts
• Zucchini
• Onion
• Carrots
• Water Chestnuts

Cook Shrimp, Steak or Chicken with 1-2 tsp olive oil until done (tonight I am using shrimp). Add vegetables to skillet and cover allow to cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Don't over cook; I try to keep my vegetables a little on the crunchy side. I have bought a variety of different sauces to add; you can find these in the asian section at your local super market. Tonight I am adding a General TSO sauce. Just be aware of the sodium content and get one with no MSG. You can serve with brown or white rice. I know that brown rice is better for you but for a special treat, pick up a bag of jasmine rice. It is very tasty.

I just googled the nutritional differences between brown and white rice and this is what I found:

White vs. Brown

Many health fanatics automatically choose brown rice when selecting a side dish to accompany their meal. The fact is, however, that both varieties of rice are good for you. A cup of white has about the same amount of calories as brown, but far less fat. (.8 grams per serving vs. 2.4 grams per serving) However, brown rice is much higher in fiber than the white variety, with 2.8 grams of dietary fiber per serving versus .6 grams. Most other nutritional values are similar.

Shocking Food Industry Secrets

I read an article on yahoo yesterday and found it to be interesting so I thought I would share. Some of the article was no surprise and some of it was shocking. Feel free to read the entire article from the link but here are a few things I thought I would share:

1. The average American has easy access to 2,700 calories each day, versus just 2,200 in 1970. If 500 calories a day doesn't sound like much, consider: that’s 52 pounds a year.

2. The average American drinks 450 liquid calories a day. That’s twice as much as we consumed 30 years ago.

3. Fresh fruits and vegetables cost 10 times more than junk food. A thousand calories of nutritious food cost $18.16, while a thousand calories of junk food cost a mere $1.76.

4. Your food can legally contain maggots and rat poop.

For more shocking secrets...check out the article

source: http://health.yahoo.net/experts/eatthis/15-shocking-food-industry-secrets

Weight Watcher Results: Week 29

A solid 2 pound loss. I was expecting a little more but I am still proud of that. I did good this week with my points; plus I did 3 sessions of cardio, 1 session of strength and drank my water pretty well. I need to do better about my water. My trainer Tammye encouraged me to try and do faster intervals on the treadmill. Last night as I was doing them, I increased my speed to 6.5 for 10 of the intervals. To be honest, it wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be. My legs work just fine, it is my heart and lungs that feel like they are suffering..but they feel like that at 5.0 so I may as well be going 6.5. I am going to try and continue to increase the number of faster sets this week; seems like I needed a little longer period of time to recover though.

Looking for a 3 pound loss this week. Going to increase my cardio sessions to five. It will take some time and dedication but I know that I can do it.