Life Is Beautiful

Phew!  Baby, I think I might be coming back. I haven't had a good bout of bronchitis in a long time.  Years maybe!  I started coughing at the gym last week on Thursday.  My swim on Saturday was full of sputtering and gagging and by Sunday I was down and out.  I spent the week trying to do the barest minimum to ensure the survival of the children and relied on my husband as soon as he walked in the door from work. The up side to being so sick is that I got more rest in the last 5 days than I probably have had in the previous 5 months.  I went to bed as soon as I could in the evenings and only moved from the couch to change a diaper, fix/serve a meal (used the crock-pot a lot) or break up a fight.  I laid on the floor of the toy room a lot, "participating" in the daily play.  Unfortunately, my Kindergarten child did not get through her assignments this week. Today I feel about 50% better.  I even did my hair and makeup.  We got thr...

This letter was posted on the I *heart* to run   FaceBook page yesterday.  I don't like the word "fat" unless we are talking about a macro-nutrient in food.  I almost changed it to post on my blog - but I don't want to offend the original writer - whomever it was at I *heart* to run.   It was somewhat serendipitous that I noticed this post, because after I ran on the treadmill at the gym, I came in to the locker room to see a very overweight young lady testing her blood sugar.  She was obviously post-workout and exhausted.  I tried to catch her eye a couple of times, but she wouldn't look at me.  Me, in my running gear and no-longer-overweight skin.  She judged me just like she assumed I was judging her.   I wish I could wear a shirt that said "I used to weigh 70lbs more than this."  Maybe I should get some tech shirts made up.  I wanted so badly to give her some encouragement, a hug, a high five.   So - enjoy this lette...

Went for a little retail therapy this afternoon and bought a running skirt. Yeah - I know - but I think they are cute. Previously, I had tried some on and thought they made my legs look stubby. I'm 5'4", and many times athletic clothing tend to run on the long side. Anyhow, saw one today that looked a little shorter and * cha - ching * all better! In my victory dressing room dance, I noticed something I have been noticing a lot lately - the belly. I have ran, biked, swam and elliptical-ed (is that a word?) off 60+ pounds, but my tummy is being a stubborn one. After 4 children, I would expect it. But what do I do about it? Well, one thing I know, is that there is no way to target reduce. If any diet or machine tells you that it will reduce "stubborn belly fat" they are LYING. The reason I, or you or anyone, has that little pouch left near the end of the battle is that it's just the last to go. Simple. My tummy loves me and wants to stay "plushy...

Everyone who is overweight has a magical number in mind for their "wow, if I could just be that thin again" number. Even if you have been heavy your whole life - you can look back to 20, 50 or 100 pounds ago and long for that size that, at the time, you abhorred. If you've ever lost weight only to gain it all back, you know what I'm talking about! This is actually my 3rd stab at this weight. Well, up until 4lbs ago. I have gone from 225 - 175 twice. The first time I went all the way down to 145 (still NOT to goal, btw), and the second time I got to 175, ran a half marathon, then promptly got pregnant again. :eyeroll: So there is some mental block about that 175 mark. Today I sit here at 171, feeling pretty good that the last 4lbs are some oldies. I've been carrying these around for 4 years. When I was marathon training, I couldn't get below the magic number. I was also nursing a baby, and I don't think I allowed my body enough calories to do ever...

Since my disgusting blister post I have run 10 miles and that toe doesn't seem to be getting any worse. I did put a band-aid on it for my 7 miler on Sunday, but left it off - to no adverse reaction - on my 3 mile run this morning. I can safely say that this morning was the HOTTEST weather I have ever run in. It was 87 degrees and pretty muggy. It sorta felt like running through warm water with a hair dryer in your face on low. That first mile was all about my body refusing to cooperate. I brought hydration with me and fought the first 15 minutes not to drink the whole thing. After I got into the groove, swished some water around my mouth and relaxed - I was able to finish. Monday's weigh in brought another milestone - my BMI puts me in the "overweight" category as opposed to "obese". Only took me an entire year and 53lbs, but I did it! Only 29lbs to go til I'm not overweight anymore! Twenty-nine pounds! Dude...I can DO that!! Okay, enough with ...

What a relaxing weekend. We didn't do a darn thing for Memorial Day. The six of us stayed home and enjoyed some time together. Later, we went for a walk, but that was about it. This morning I ran one of my faster 5K's. I have a goal in mind for the end of the summer that involves reducing my pace time by 1 minute per mile. Judging from this morning, I'm well on my way. I figure if I continue to loose 5lbs per month, I will be hauling around 15lbs less by then as well. That's 60lbs of pressure lessened off of my knees and hips!! I'm sure to get a little faster, then. Tuesday is my "run faster" day. I try to push myself and cut some time off of my short run. Today I did better at spreading the effort out over the whole 3 miles. It seems like before, I would look at my watch in the last half of the run and try to kill it to get in under time. That - was - difficult - on the old bod. I'm learning. I also started a challenge on the site I use to...

Yesterday's weigh in left me feeling a little deflated. Though, since I'm an every day weigher, I knew what was coming. That scale had been at a standstill all week long. I ran, I climbed, I lifted, squatted, curled and pressed. I ate my protein, said no to most things naughty and still the scale sat still. I was stressed. Way. I feel like last week was probably the most worked up I had been in a long time. Just lots of things going on, busy busy busy, and nothing - it seemed - was either a. controllable by me, or b. going off without a hitch. I totally wigged out over a couple of these and even cried...twice. All that is behind me. I'm continuing to workout really hard and eat well within my guidelines. I'm shooting for more protein and trying to get 100g per day. It take a little effort, but isn't much above the RDI for a sedentary person (.8 x weight in kg = 65). I don't remotely consider myself sedentary so I upped it just a scosch. Here's a...

The last week has been to busy for blogging. I started cultivating a nice infection on Sunday and by Monday had full blown mastitis. I even had DH stay home from work to help me with the children. I was one sick puppy! My weightloss last week came out at -3.8lbs. Oooh, just shy of 4! I was pretty surprised to post a big loss again. That's almost 7lbs for January - only 3 to go for my 10lbs per month goal! I only got to exercise 1 day last week, but I counted every little itty bitty calorie. Sticking to 1800, still. It sounds like a lot compared to most of the ladies on the weight loss boards, but I guess I burn a lot. Whatever works! Back to the subject of my difficulty last week. This was the second HUGE pain and in this area in the last month. I suffered with some terrible scabbing a couple of weeks ago that made me want to *scream* every time I fed him. He has 4 teeth and nearly chews through a feeding. All things considered, I decided to try some formula in a bot...

A frequent topic of discussion among people trying to shed pounds is "When/how do you weigh yourself?" If you are on a maintenance plan and happily sticking to an exercise and healthy eating plan, then weighing yourself once a month is best. But if you are working daily on calorie restriction and working an exercise plan to loose weight, once a month may not be enough. I had been weighing myself once a month, and ended up waiting till the last 2 weeks of the month to follow my eating plan. :-o Most weight loss programs recommend weighing once a week or less. Weighing at the same time of day is helpful as well. You will almost certainly weigh more at night than you do in the morning. Weighing right before you hop in the shower will give you the ol ' Birthday Suit weight. For a long time I was a once a week weigher . Monday morning before breakfast. That was me. But it seemed like I suffered from accountability issues in that amount of time as well. Either I wait ...

Had me one of those days where I just wanted to run away. I placated them with cartoons long about 4pm and just stood in the kitchen for a while. Made some coffee, chugged some black, and moved on. Getting back into the swing of things with school has been hard. For me. The kids are happy to have something to do on these sub-zero days, but it's extra work and I had just gotten used to not doing it. I love accomplishing something though, and getting done by 2pm gives me that feeling. Cameron is sleeping better than ever and that's a plus. However, the kids haven't been outside since Sunday when we went to Church and I'm ready to bash The Biggers heads together and tie up one of The Littles and throw her in a closet. **Of COURSE I wouldn't do that** I've been easily able to stick to my diet plan this week. I decided that I'm to busy to log food on the computer and have been keeping a running total on the white board. Works great - most foods have a...

I have been given many reasons to decrease my body weight and increase my health. I have four beautiful children to chase after. I also have some athletic goals that I set before we had these last two young babies and my weight got out of hand. Half Marathon - check, Marathon - next, Triathlon - after that. Having been a smoker through the teens and twenties, I am happy to now have the health and the option to participate in sports. I have a bike, would like to learn more about that. Swimming...we'll see how long it takes me to tackle that one. It seems that running is best for me - I am only able to concentrate on the one foot in front of the other thing! Most of the time, I am blissfully unaware of my weight. The kids don't remind me, my husband loves me heavy, thin, whatever. I don't look at the tag on the pants when I put them on (though I do notice they are w-i-d-e-r than they used to be!) I don't shop much for clothing, and have a regulated home based li...

I realy wish I was the type of person that was shy. I sometimes think at how much easier my life would be if I was one of those cute little women who waited to speak until spoken to. Who never offer thier opinion and keep largley to themselves unless drawn into the conversation. Well, I'm not. I offer my opinion, make jokes, initiate conversation and generally like to be in the spot light. While I don't feel that I am overbearing or obnoxious (hmm...note to self: ask others about that) I do think that sometimes I say to much. As I get more mature, I see the merit in choosing my words and editing my responses - especially when emailing. That Send button can be killer. I frequent an online community that recently hosted a question that made me want to pick up my computer and smash it on the ground. This question (posed by the creator of the site but not actually asked by her) can be viewed here. "Would You Hire a Plus Size Nanny" Not only was I dissapointed and disguste...