I ate McDonald’s today. Yeah, I know. I was really craving something salty and new something from the Golden Arches would do the trick.  It really sounded good…and I don’t eat their non-breakfast food very often — once, twice a week (usually it is when I do my grocery shopping for the week on a short work day and I don’t bring my lunch)

Well, today, I just craved it. and I got some.

Verdict. It was nothing special and I really regretted it later.

On the bright side, I fixed a nice pasta dinner. I will be the first to admit, I  can get a little carried away with how much I get…or how many times I go back…but I was surprisingly good. Had one reasonable helping and a nice salad.

Getting back to doing the right thing is a seemingly long process.

Right now, I really want ice cream but I don’t need it. I’m just saying no.

g

Monday was a day that will live in infamny.

It was long and busy — I didn’t leave the office until 6:30 p.m., and my day started at 6:16 a.m.

Mr. X grabbed some subs from Subway for dinner, but I wanted something cool. Something sweet. Something comforting.

Yeah, the food junkie was going to have a pint of ice cream.

And I found myself in front of the ice cream cooler trying to decide what to get.

Ben and Jerry’s Strawberry cheesecake.

Ben and Jerry’s Mint Chocolate Cookie

Dreyer’s Butterfinger ice cream

Haagen Das Chocolate Peanut Butter.

I was getting dizzy. So many tempting and tasty flavors.

I didn’t know what to do.

I grabbed what Mr. X would want and then …and then…well, I made my selection….

Do you really want to know how bad I was?

Seriously?

OK, I got lemon sorbet. Less sugar, low calorie and low carb.

By the way, I think it is evil that they have strawberry cheesecake, butterfinger and mint chocolate cookie ice cream. EVIL

I started last week in a bit of a funk. I was on the verge of getting the flu and overall feeling blah. As a result, I ditched my workouts for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. Wow, what a difference three days can make. When I finally resumed my routine on Thursday it felt like I hadn’t flexed a muscle in months. I really had to push through that workout (I might even call it tortuous), but the next day I had more energy, and by Saturday I was back to my energetic self.  It reminded me how difficult exercise can be after taking a hiatus, even just a three day one. But also what a difference it makes to my well being. Without those daily workouts, I was sluggish and testy. And instead of taking a walk to boost my mood as I normally would, I turned to a pint of Ben and Jerry’s (yup, ate the whole thing). Even though that first workout back may have been miserable, it was worth it. I can’t say there has ever been a time when I’ve regretted forcing myself through a dreaded workout. But rather than beat myself up about the temporary lapse, I learned from the experience and worked out extra hard over weekend. Now, if I could only remind myself of that next time I’m debating lacing up my sneakers. 

Tip of the day: Push yourself through the workout, even when you don’t feel like it. You’ll feel better afterwards.

What is your favorite, and healthy way, to dress up veggies?

Then my friends must be my best allies.

I have no problem ever saying a discouraging word about myself.  And yes, I don’t think of myself as pretty.

Never have, and probably never will.

But I had dinner with a friend and we were talking and I made a comment….my friend was quick to point out a few good things about me.

It made me feel good…and made it appreciate good friends. And this one is a good one.

So it has been challenging so far this week. Started after a stressful weekend trying to frame out my capstone paper (it is a shorter form of a thesis) for my master’s program.

I am tired and I have taken the easy way out a lot and have relied on a lot of sugar…a lot.

But there has been a shining moment or two that started yesterday after talking to my grandmother. She reinforced the eat smaller portions and make better choices.

It always sounds so simple but it can be so difficult to follow, especially for someone like me who uses food as a way to handle stress, fatigue and low self-esteem.

But I thought, well, what harm can it do to try once more. Trying never hurt anyone, right?

So I opted for some sugar-free oatmeal that only has a 100 calories…I don’t remember right off hand how many carbs it had but it was 20 or less. It stayed with me this morning and figured it was a good alternative to just grapefruit (which I’m not going to give up totally because I love grapefruit in the morning with a cup of coffee)

I bought sourdough lunch bread. I know I know, I should do whole grain bread. And generally, that is what I do. But the sourdough sandwich bread is smaller…the slices are…and each slice has 70 calories instead of 110 like the whole grain whole wheat does.  So when I have a whole sandwich, it is smaller…140 calories from bread instead of 220.  Even today, I too just a half of peanut butter sandwich.

And I remembered how much I like carrots and celery so I made time to cut some up to take for lunch…heck I had some spinach dip left over from the weekend and decided it would make a nice addition…two tablespoons (the serving size) about 50 calories. It is a nice way to dress up the ol’veggies.  I got some hummus today that will be good on celery. It too only has 50 calories in a serving size and that is all you really need at lunch with celery and carrots.

Sweets, well, I wish it was Lent again because that really helped me tackle the sweets. I am going to limit the sweets I eat and will take a lot of will power, something I frequently don’t have.

And guys, I do feel like I have let  you down…and I’m sorry. Losing weight is not easy and it is always easier to give up that stay on course.

G

I have to admit, I feel pretty low right now.

I don’t really know why…probably just a culmination of everything: Work and school have been kicking my butt right now.

As a result I turn to old habits. Since Easter, I didn’t give eating sugar a second thought…I just did it.

Now I feel like I am  paying for it.

And I am ashamed. I felt like I was turning a corner.

But I took steps to fix it yesterday…I bought some strawberries and some fat free whipped cream so it can feel like I am strawberry and cream (ice cream)

Still feel like a loser but feel like I am trying to be better.

First, let me say sorry for not posting more lately. My blog link at home hasn’t been working and work has been busy.

Trying to fix both of those issues.

But I took a week off from really eating right. It was…well, food junkie gone wild. Burgers and beer and almond brittle….and yeah, ice cream.

But after a frenzy of sugar, I feel sluggish. Go figure right.

So today I am proud to announce that I am back on the horse and really don’t want anything sweeter than my grapefruit and apple.

It was a nice break but I can’t eat like that  as often as I use to.

Oh,  and I discovered something about myself…I really don’t have to eat unless I am hungry. That was the case last night…had a late lunch and well, brittle. But I never got hungry later in the evening…so no dinner.

Greetings readers. I, aka the workout warrior, am the latest to join our blogging crew here at The World. This blog is for anyone fighting the never ending battle for fitness, as I am. 

A little bit about me. I played sports and danced for most my childhood. Exercise has always been a part of my life, but that’s not to say it’s always been a consistent one. I’m one of those annoying people who actually enjoy running and working out. The hard part is summoning the inner motivation to pry myself from the couch to actually go to the gym. 

But fitness isn’t just about exercise. It truly is something I live every day, with every decision. 

So, I’m on day 76 of a 90 day exercise program. Goals, goals, goals. Without them I am lost. Setting goals not only makes me accountable, it gives me something to measure my success by. With this program I have specific workouts each day of the week with a rest day on Sunday (that’s also my cheat day, which usually means pizza for dinner!).  

This is what my week looks like… 

Monday- 1 hour of chest and back, 15 minutes abs 

Tuesday- 1 hour plyometrics (which is jump training and the most productive of all my workouts)

Wednesday- 1 hour biceps, shoulders and triceps, 15 minutes abs, 30 minutes cardio

Thursday- 1 hour 30 minutes yoga

Friday- 1 hour legs and back, 15 minutes abs, 30 minutes cardio

Saturday- 1 hour cardio and core and about 10 40-yard sprints

I haven’t lost any weight with this program, but I have lost inches since muscle weighs more than fat. I suggest taking before and after pictures. Also, you may want to start with shorter goals… 30 days. It’s easy to loose sight of the finish line when you set goals too far away. I hit a roadblock about two weeks ago. But now I have a wedding in Vegas at the end of the month to look forward too, so I’m using that as my motivation.

Tip of the day: Set a short-term goal. Something to motivate you and measure success by.