Monday, July 31, 2006

Exhausted

Our company is gone now, and I'm still trying to recoup my energy level, which today seems none existant. I really had to drag myself out of bed this morning. I'm thinking of drinking another pot of tea, which at least has practically zero calories.

While entertaining we did a lot of eating, good food but bad for the diet. Ugh.

But, what is a host to do? Serve up a pile of lettuce with fat free dressing?

Today I'm back on it, though I'm easing into the exercise thing. Hopefully, I'll feel better tonight so I can go for a short walk. My house is still very (very) clean, but I miss my walks. Even with the 100 degree heat and 100 degree humidity, it feels good to move and get out of the house.

Friday, July 28, 2006

Groundbreaking Exercise Program!

Get a total body workout!
No special equipment or training needed!
Melt the pounds off of you!


This is my testimonial to a new workout program I've discovered called High Intensity Housework:

Like the average busy person, I clean, but I do maintenance type cleaning, the type you need to do on a weekly or so basis: laundry, vacuuming, etc. This is enough to keep the house livable, though not necessarily spotless as it definitely always looks lived-in.

With company coming this weekend, though, I had to shift gears into major cleaning or high intensity housework. For me, when I shift into this mode I start doing all kinds of wacky things like deciding to clean out the linen closet that is crammed full of stuff, odds and end of various sheets and towels that we have collected since moving in here about 8 years ago. Why do I have 20 pillow cases that no longer match any of our sheets? It's a mystery, and this is one of the many chores I find myself doing when I get into this kind of cleaning frenzy.

Since I start finding all these side jobs to do, I ended up making a lot more work for myself. What could be a one or two day cleaning turns into a week long grueling workout routine. And, of course, my guests are due to arrive any minute and I'm exhausted. All I can do is think about taking a nap, and as it so happens, my nap-buddy-kitty is now waiting for me right now, with a look of shock that I'm not snuggled up next to him.

On the up side to all this cleaning - other than having a super clean house where you could (at least at this moment in time before my husband comes in with his huge boots) eat off my kitchen floor - is that I feel like I've run a marathon. Every muscle in my body, back, legs, arms, ache. So, that must be good. At least, it is good in a sore owie kind of way.

Wednesday, July 26, 2006

My Fruit Mojo

While sick, I sort of lost of my fruit mojo. I was scarfing down 2 to 3 servings of fruit a day and loving it. But, of course, when I got sick, nothing tasted right except for crackers.

Today is my weekly shopping day, so I plan to pick up some much needed fruit. Our frig is so empty I actually had to clean it some, ick. When it's full, I don't see all those funky, sticky things that seem to some how appear on the bottom shelf.

I do have a little fruit in the house, but it's funny how you fall out of the habit. So, today I'm going to start the retraining effort. Instead of picking up a piece of bread (even if it is low fat and zero sodium), I'm going to pick up a piece of fruit.

Tuesday, July 25, 2006

It is Just So HOT!

Yesterday I did manage to go for my walk, just twenty minutes around this large circle of pavement in our neighborhood. It has been so hot, and of course, I am way out of shape and still fighting a tiny cough. I did do it, but then it took me awhile to recover afterwards. I was hot, shaking, and starving! Don't you hate that?!

Today, I'm planning on substituting house work for the walk, and actually, I'd much rather do the walk, but I have company coming this weekend, and I have to make the house look like it is spottless, like we live in a perfectly neat and tiny house every day of our lives. So, that means a lot of cleaning, mainly clutter. We are pack rats, both of us.

So, that's my exercise for the day. I will get a break though and have lunch with C. over at Crispers. Normally, I really love this place to eat because you can see into the kitchen and they have a lot of health (and not so healthy) food, but I just got on their web site to try to check the nutrients listings and of all things they do not list calories. What the hell? I sent them a snippy email. That is just idiotic to have all the other info, fat, carbs, fiber, and not calories.

Oh, the food thing went okay yesterday. I ended up with something like 1500 calories, though my sodium was way too high. I swear. To me, the sodium is much harder to get a handle on than the calories. I was a little hungry yesterday. My taste buds are still not totaly back to normal, and I haven't been to the store in awhile to stock up on fruit and other good things, so it was just hard for me to find something I wanted to eat that was good for me and located in my kitchen.

Boy, I could just keep writing and not go clean, but then I know it will be sitting here waiting for me when I return from lunch.

Monday, July 24, 2006

Back at It Today or Mondays Suck

No wonder everyone hates Mondays - It's the beginning of the work week and the day most of us start on our diets - And, today, that means me.

I've still got a tiny bit of a cough, just now and then, but I'm well enough to start walking and watching what I eat again. I plan on taking an edited version of what was my daily walk. I'm sure with this Florida heat (it was 76 degrees with, like 100% humidity, at 8:00 this morning) it will be a rough one, but with all the afternoon showers we've been having lately, it looks like I'm going to have to switch my walks back to the mornings.

I'm actually a little relieved to feel well enough to go at this again. I do miss my walks. It always feels good to get a little exercise, no matter how fat and forty I am. The eating thing, not so much fun, but at least I get the feeling I'm trying to do something about this extra tire around my ass.

I was talking with a woman at work the other day about dieting, and of course, I got the usual, "You look good. You don't need to lose weight." But, of course, this was coming from someone who really, really needs to lose weight. It is even affecting her health now in a major way, but she told me she didn't care. She was just going to eat what she wants and if she gains weight so what. Knowing her as I do, that didn't really surprise me that much, but I just can't feel the same way. I can't buy into the idea of liking your body no matter what. I liked being thin, wearing cute clothes, not having to worry about how I was going to get a zipper closed. I miss that, and I want it back, damn it!

So, I'm easing into the diet thing again, or the eating right thing since "diet" is supposed to be a dirty word. I have company coming at the end of the week, so that is going to be difficult, but right now I just need to think about today.

Thursday, July 20, 2006

The Saga Continues

Yes, believe it or not it is Thursday and I'm still on the icky side. I'm still coughing, and the nose is still going somewhat a well.

To say that I'm sick of being sick by now is, well, not necessary to say, is it?

The only upside to still having some of this is that I'll get to share it with some of my coworkers tomorrow and the next few days. I've missed a few days of work, and I only work there 3 days a week, so of course, there's the usual grief people have to give you who hate you and don't believe you are really sick.

When I went into work on Sunday, which of course is a day very few people at the library other than myself work, I saw a nasty "sick again" sprawled across the schedule. The b* or should I saw robot who does the schedule and isn't my boss but think she should be had to write that because, well, she's a jealous old woman who has no life.

I actually had this horrible urge to lick or spit on her phone receiver. But, then, I thought, well, she's old and skinny and would probably get sick too and maybe she'd die so then that would make me a murder and I'd live the rest of my life knowing I killed someone, and that would not be good for me, so I didn't do it.

I'm sure when I go in tomorrow and see her laser-beam eyes shooting at me I will have wished I'd had. Just leave your desk for a few second old woman...that's all I need!

So, I'm still fat and eating way, way too many fish crackers.

Monday, July 17, 2006

On the Up Swing

I'm at the coughing, coughing, coughing stage now. According to C. I should be like this the rest of the week. I was feeling kind of good last night after a few hot toddies. (Check out DrinkStreet for a recipe.) I was pretty mello when I went to bed to say the least, and it did last for a few hours. But, sometime during the early morning hours I guess they wore off because it was back to hacking and coughing.

I've actually been sleeping in our guest room so my poor husband can get some sleep. At least someone is sleeping around here!

I can't believe I'm going to be like this the rest of the week, but after last week, I wouldn't be surprised. So, hopefully, a week from today I will be back on track.

Thursday, July 13, 2006

Still Sick

It's Thursday and I'm still unbelievably sick. I can't remember the last time something hit me like this. I've heard it's been going around and that it's lasting 2 weeks, but come one! How much snot can one person's nose really hold?

I went ahead a weighed myself today and so far, I'm about the same. So, considering my diet has been wacko since Monday, that's okay.

What really bothers me is that my whole eating and excersie routine is gone and once I get better it will feel like I'm starting all over again. I started seriously walking January, and haven't take more than a day here or there off since then, so to not walk for almost a week now is very disturbing.

While I try to just get through this, I'm reading Hsien-Hsien Lei's new series on Hearty Habits over at A Hearty Life. You may see me mentioned over there once I get back to my routine. So far, she's got 2 installments:

Hearty Habit #1: Losing Weight
Hearty Habit #2: Water Weight

Tuesday, July 11, 2006

The Diet is Off!

I figured that would get some attention.

Actually, temporarily the diet isn't going so well because I am sick. And it sucks. Being sick sucks.

The night before last I woke up about 3am with a tickle in my throat. By the time I got up for good, it was a full blown soar throat.

When I'm like this, I am really not into eating anything good for me. I crave salt and while I don't eat all day long, what I do eat is pretty much junk. I prefer Fresca and those little cheese crackers shaped like fish. That's about it.

I know it's wrong, but when your throat feels like you want to lodge an ice cube in it, fruit, vegies, and all the good things I've been eating just don't taste right.

I cancelled my lunch date with C. today. I have another lunch date tomorrow with a friend who is moving out of the state, so I really feel like I have to go to that. The good news is she's in the mood for Thai, which is loaded with salt, so I doubt I'll have trouble eating something. I just hope I don't get her sick. That would be some going away present, huh?

Saturday, July 08, 2006

Good Moments and Bad Moments

I haven't blogged here for a few days, life ya know. Basically, I'm hanging in there, though I need to really get serious. I tend, like I'm sure most people do, to have really good moments where I'm totally on top of the whole eat right thing. For example, I went out to lunch with my friend J. on Friday and I knew the place we were going to didn't have any low-cal salad dressings, so I brought my own. It's a small sandwhich place downtown, so the guys running it had to raze me some, almost begging me to use their dressing, but when I asked if they had any low-cal stuff, "Oh, nope, don't believe in that." I replied, "Well, if I don't use low-cal then I may as well have a cheese burger." Ga-zing.

So that was my good moment.

Today, my bad moment including going to my nephew's birthday party and eating my weight in spinich dip.

I have lunch on Tuesday with C., so I need to be really good the next few days or I'll have to confess all my sins to her when we meet up. Weds. looks like another lunch date with a friend who is moving out of state, and I just have a feeling one of those bad moments will happen!

Wednesday, July 05, 2006

Fat Pants Trouble

I still haven't gotten on the scale, but I'm wearing a pair of what I consider my "fat pants" and they are tight. So, that tells me a lot.

I'm not going to beat myself up about it too much. That's one of the things C. keeps telling me not to do because eventually you may just give up. And I don't want to do that of course.

But today is yet another day to begin and as it happens it is also grocery day, which is actually a good thing because it gives me a chance to sort of renew my vows.

Tuesday, July 04, 2006

Back on Track Today

Yesterday was fun, and the burgers were fabulous. I mean, wow! Both Michael and I were totally amazed at how good they were. I also was bad at breakfast and had eggs with carizo (sp?) and cheese in them. Those were my "bad" but tasted oh-so-good meals of the day. For the rest of the day, I drank a ton of lemon water and ate a lot of fruit, so we'll see if that made a difference or not.

Today, though, I'm back on track. That means keeping the calorie count low, sticking with my fruits, drinking water, and as soon as my breakfast setttles, going for a walk. It is going to be a majorly hot walk today, but since tonight there will be yeehaws out there with their fireworks, I figured I should try to get it over with.

I may step on the scale in a few days and take my medicine, but for now, I'm just going to pretend like it doesn't matter and concentrate on getting back to the plan.

BTW, Happy 4th of July! I know there is a lot crap going on in the world, diet aside, it is a good day to also remember why it is so great to be an American and why we should be grateful that we live here.

Sunday, July 02, 2006

No Scale Monday

With the 4th of July holiday coming up, this means I actually get to spend a few extra days during the week with my husband. He is a major work-a-holic, usually leaving the house before 8 and getting home no earlier than 6 ever day. In fact, at least a couple days a week, he has to go to evening meets as well. So we really appreciate having extra time together, and he's taken off Monday to give himself a long weekend.

As it turns out, along with the holiday, I also have a reason to celebrate because Friday I got my final book manuscript finished and out the door!

So, I'm declaring Monday as a "No Scale" day. Usually, it is my day to do a weekly weigh in. Not that I haven't been stepping on the scale during the week here and there, but I'm trying to go by what it says on Mondays for the most part.

After Michael learned of my cooking success the other day, and after he recoverd from the shocked that I didn't burn something or ruin another pot, he asked about doing a real burger cook out. (He knows I'm trying to keep things low, low, low on the food now.) And, since we have a lot to celebrate, I'm going to go for it tomorrow.

That means, real burgers on the grill, and even a few brewskies. I may still go for the low-fat cheese on top, but other than that, I'm just going to enjoy our next few days together, and pay for it the rest of the week (and probably the week after that too!).