Soccer Sundays...Strike Back!!

Yeaaaaaah baby yea!! Soccer season is back!  And it couldn't have come soon enough.  I'm so bored/stressed/consumed with studying that being able to get away from the books just to run around on a turf field for an hour is like a vacation for me!

I actually had to scale back on soccer this spring (believe me I'm not happy about this), I couldn't play with my women's league because their games were scheduled during the hours I'm sitting in bio lab, so I'm only playing with my co-ed league this season.

We had our first game this past Sunday, and for some reason winter decided to pay us a visit.  I know it's only early march and it should still be cold out, but it was a low of 26 that night and right now, 3 days later, it's 70 degrees out *scratches head*.  We've had a really mild winter here and the weather keeps flip flopping lately.  So I had all my cold weather gear on, hat, gloves, smart wool socks, running tights and a few layers of long sleeves. (I found these super awesome light Marmot shirts at REI on clearance, they're wicking and great for a base layer, so worth the $12 I paid for them :)).

We ended up tying 1-1, the other team scored a nice shot that hit the side post and bounced in in the last minute of the game.  I'll give them credit where credit is due, it was a close match.  We played really well I think considering it was our first game and most of us hadn't played together before.  More importantly I had an awesome time, made some good passes and didn't make a fool of myself.  I left the field kind of with an "I really needed that" feeling.  I really missed playing.  Taking all winter off was not fun.

Of course several days later I'm still feeling the effects of the game...not in a good way though lol.  My hamstrings were killing me for two days after the game.  I had an epsom salt soak Tuesday after bootcamp, but I think acupuncture really help clear that up.  Of course now my right hip is not feeling so hot, it started bothering me during today's leg work out.  I made sure to do an extra long stretch.  I go through this every start of the season after taking some time off.  No matter how much I condition and sprint, it's so not the same as actually being out on the field during a game!

So the moral of this post is stretch stretch stretch! Soak and rest...and also make sure you keep doing things you love as your work outs, it makes it so much more fun. :)

Ok, so theres been a lot of soccer news goin' on so here's my mini soccer news section: 

The Lionel Messi Show stomped all over Bayer Leverkusen.  Messi scored 5 Goals during a Champions league match, the first player to ever score that many goals in a champions league game! No one is better than him right now, no one is even close!

US Women's National team place 3rd in the Algrave Cup against Sweden.  Alex Morgan scores a hat trick.  This girl is on FIRE as well.

Ok, to me this is the most important news of all...

Arne Freidrich signs to Chicago Fire!!! No I'm not a Chicago Fire fan...but this latest signing is testing my allegiances. Who is Arne Freidrich you ask?  If you follow the German National Team you know... if you've followed any of my past soccer posts you might know as well.  He's a defender, which I dig because that's my position usually, but I've had this liiiiittle crush on him for oh... since the 2006 world cup, and he's now playing on American soil!!  Guess who's going to the next DC United v. Chicago Fire match... this chick. (See MLS...take a lesson from kickette, this is how you sell tickets!)

 Seriously... look at the man...

how can you not?!...just.  

No words right now.

Crushes aside this is good news for MLS.  The league needs more signings like this.  We need to attract more talent over here to make the games more exciting.  He was a big name on the German National Team (82 caps and a goal scored during the world cup--if you're thinking so what one goal?  Just remember he's a defender, we defenders rarely get the opportunity to score.) he played in 2 euro cups and 2 world cups, it's an impressive international career.  My only wish is that he signed with DC.  I'm sad that I never hear of DC getting any big international signings.  Is the club broke?  Their stadium situation is a mess, there's even been rumors of moving the team (which I'm ok with because the rumor was a move up to Baltimore and that's my home town)....but what's going on DC?

And now for some funny shit... Shit Soccer Girls Say from @soccergrlprobs


Yeah, I would so be the chick crying over a broken head band I can NOT work out with out my headbands! and the "T-shirt tiiime" was definitely me too, until I decided to clean out the drawers and donate to good will, now I only have a few colors that I really like (Black x2, red, purple, white, grey, navy...oh I guess I really didn't clean them out)

Treadmill "Backpacking"

This is actually what the Fitness Dweeb command center looks like...

I just wanted to share this little exercise I do with you all. The nutritionist I've been seeing for the past two months told me about it. He's an old school body builder and knows how to shred the fat. I've not seen much of a drop in scale weight since I started following his meal plans, BUT that doesn't mean I haven't dropped any body fat. According to his caliper measurements I've dropped a ton of fat and built up a ton of muscle at the same time. When I went to him two weeks ago I was only seeing a 1lb drop on the scale, well it turned out that I lost 10.5lbs of body fat, but gained 9.5lb of muscles, so there would be my one pound scale difference. See, it's not always about the scale.

Anyway, he introduced me to a new exercise that is guaranteed to make you sweat your butt off and shred body fat. It's not a cardiovascular exercise.  The point of this exercise is not to get your heart rate up, but to make you work your muscles hard over a long period of time at a slower pace and lower impact.  This is an exercise that should put you in "fat burning zone".  I've been curious what exactly  "fat burning zone" meant so I had to search it:

The fat-burning zone. Yes, it exists, but it has been misinterpreted. The fat-burning zone is a concept that the body burns a greater amount of fat at lower-intensity aerobic exercise than it does at higher intensities. Actually, the body burns a greater percentage of fat at lower intensities than at higher intensities. At lower intensities the body may burn 50 percent of the calories from fat, while at higher intensities it may only burn 35 percent. But at higher intensities you burn way more total calories—and more fat calories overall—than you do at lower intensities.(from active.com) (Further reading: another article on Fat Burning Zone in USNews)

So basically it's a long slow burn, and you're targeting the fat calories more effectively than doing high intensity training (which is basically anything like kick boxing, bootcamp work outs, sprint intervals etc.), but you also have to do these exercises for a longer period of time...so seems to me it's a toss up as to what type of exercise is absolutely 100% efficient.  I do this exercise in ADDITION to my bootcamp work outs, running, and soccer, so while I may shred fat with this activity the other exercises I do help me tone muscle.  

I like this treadmill work out because it really is a great sweat...I'm sweating out the toxins as they say :) and it's an exercise anyone can try.  You don't need to be fast or strong or coordinated, you just need to be willing to put in the effort and the time!

Anyway, here's the exercise:

TREADMILL "BACKPACKING"

All you need is a backpack, access to a treadmill and some free weights.

Try this out with out the backpack first...

• Set the treadmill at the highest incline which is 15.

• Don't let your speed go over 2.5, try to stay between 2.3-2.5

• If walking uphill at 2.5 is too easy, add weights to a backpack and walk on the treadmill with the backpack. Try starting out at 10lbs, increase to 15 or 20lbs if necessary (I use 15lbs).

• Walk "uphill" for a minimum of 45 minutes, 3x a week.

• DO NOT HOLD ON TO THE TREADMILL, that is cheating and you are not using your muscles to get yourself up that "hill".

Your heart rate should not spike or get high for a long period of time as if you were running or sprinting, but you WILL sweat so so much! This activity is supposed to feel like walking up a mountain.  I promise you that's what it will feel like.  You will be tired and worn out.  Make sure you have a water bottle with you to stay hydrated....also it can get kinda boring on a treadmill for 45minutes so have some good music handy or grab the one in front of the tv and catch up on the news.

Also, make sure you have a good backpack.  I actually didn't own one since I'd been out of school for so long, but I went out and bought a bag that I think will be pretty versatile for me.  I can use it for school, hiking, travel and these exercises :)

I bought this Kelty bag...because it was extremely comfortable, it has a waist belt to keep the weight off my shoulders (if you have a bad shoulder like me this is a BIG plus...probably a MUST have for your next backpack purchase), and the shoulder straps are contoured and very comfortable.  The back of the pack has an aluminum "spine" for even more stability.

I asked my resident backpacking/hiking/all things outdoors expert (my cousin's hubby...we'll call him Bearded Vegan) if this was a good bag and he said that Kelty bags were good middle of the road packs, and he also recommended that I use sand bags instead of free weights because they won't wear out the fabric as easily and it will extend the life of the bag...Really good advice!!  Plus I have a lifetime warranty which I didn't know because clearly I don't read tags.  So thanks Bearded Vegan!  I'm happy with my purchase :).

Ok, so now that we've gotten the technical part of this post out of the way...I just wanted to share an email from my cousin (she's the one who married Bearded Vegan ...we don't hold that against her), anyway, I told her I hadn't given up on the blog...and this is her response... she knows me TOO well: 

"Imagine how excited you would get if the characters from true blood made a guest appearance on Game of Thrones and played a soccer match with their characters.  That is how excited I am that you are blogging again."

!!!!!!!!

Like I said she knows me TOO WELL.  AND did you actually picture what that soccer match would be like between these characters??  If you're anything like me of course you did! But what advantage would Game of Thrones characters have over the super naturals of True Blood.  If true blood had a mixed bag of players, no more than two vamps on the field at one time, none could be keeper.. .and also no shape-shifting allowed on the field..hrm, well I'm thinking the only way Game of Thrones characters could have an advantage is if they wore silver pinnies to stop the vamps.

Welcome to my brain!
It's a strange place to be.

Anyway, this post needs more soccer so I'm stealing this video off of Kickette because it's awesome... and this is how the game of golf should be played...  Here's Diego Forlan, Uruguayan national player, kicking ass on the links.

p.s. Even if I played this way I'd still be shooting like 5 or 6 over par every hole. MULLIGAN!

p.s.s. Half marathon training is chugging right along. I'm improving my time a lot this year. I finished 8 miles in 1hr23mins on Saturday before that "little storm" called Irene hit our area.

Where Has the Time Gone?!

See that little counter widget on the side of my page?? It says only 10 DAYS TIL RACE DAY!?!... I'm not freaking out nope, not gonna freak out....even though I'm quietly screaming on the inside...I'm not gonna freak out. I'm ok... I'm cool. I swear.

Why am I kinda sorta not really freaking out? Because even though I haven't been blogging I've still been working hard at my fitness levels to make sure I own this race!...If owning that means I finish in 2hrs and 30 minutes (which is almost a 12 minute mile and compared to some that makes me a slow poke) WHAT the freak EVER!! I'm going to OWN it!

My furthest training run has been 12 miles, which I completed last weekend in about 2hr and 15mins (oh and yes it was ALL hills baby), this weekend I ran 9 miles and then took a much needed yoga class to work on some of my muscle tightness. I went to bootcamp 4 times last week and played soccer last week and this week as well. I kinda haven't been doing my shorter runs but I know between the bootcamp and soccer and the training runs that I have the endurance to finish.

Plus I know the 2nd half of the course, I ran it last year in the team relays. Everyone keeps trying to scare me and say the first half is hilly as shit, but guess what, all i've been doing for the past month on my training runs is hills. I'll get past them. The second half is pretty much flat ground. Guess who loves running on flat ground? This chick. So yeah, I'd say I'm pretty well prepared for the race at this point :)

This weekend I will be running a charity 5k for children with learning disabilities, and then I have to tack a few more miles on top of that and it will be my final training run!

I am also still trying to raise money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma society for their Light the Night Events so PLEASE if you can, donate to my page so I reach my goal of raising $655 ($50 per mile I run in the half marathon). I am $430.00 away from reaching my goal. So if you're reading please donate if you can... if you can't please help me spread the word!!





Also in the middle of all this I've decided I really needed to push to lose those extra pounds to reach 100lbs of total loss. I'm anywhere from 3-5lbs away depending on when I weigh myself (I know I'm only supposed to do it first thing in the morning I will from here on out). It's been rough trying to kick start my metabolism again. For two weeks I eliminated (almost completely there were some weddings thrown in there that I enjoyed myself and the open bar at a little too much) but anyway, for two weeks in early September I completely cut out sugar (including fruit), salt, saturated fats, refined carbohydrates and dairy from my diet. I was on 1100 calories / 6 meals a day. Yes, I finally went to a nutritionist (after 2.5 years of doing it myself) to seek this advice.

I know what you're thinking 1100 calories a day that's impossible to live off of that... it's not trust me, if you limit your diet to only the good foods, whole grains, lean proteins, and lots of veges you'd be amazed at the amount of food you can eat. I felt like I was force feeding myself at the end of the day...I just couldn't eat that much food.

I've practically perfected every type of egg white and vege omelet I could think of.

Try this out for a relatively quick, filling and delish breakfast:

(my portions are 4 egg whites and about 150g or more of the veges this number could be more or less for you)

egg whites
mushrooms
red and yellow peppers
Mrs. Dash (salt free) grilling spice

saute the veges with a spritz or two of olive oil and the Mrs. Dash seasoning, then add to the eggs.

PLAIN instant oatmeal. (my portion recommendation is 2pks)

The oat meal can be cooked with water, or try Original Almond Breeze milk if you want some added creaminess and a little sugar 7g in a cup, or go with the Unsweetened version for NO added sugar, just a creamy texture for your oatmeal. Add a ton of cinnamon and enjoy!

I promise you will be FULL and you will be full for a LONG time!

After two weeks i lost 4lbs of body fat and increased my lean muscle mass. Two lbs a week of loss is healthy. Since then I've lost 6 total. I took a week off from being so strict but now I'm back on.

Here's an idea for a lunch you can cook completely in the microwave! Perfect for gals on the go, slackers like myself that hate taking the time to pack a lunch, or those of us stuck in the office.

This product has been a life saver for my diet:


No, I don't own stock in their company, and I'm not being paid to promote this product. They cook food quickly and the food is healthy!!

So here's my idea for a lunch:

Buy individually wrapped frozen tilapia (white fish) fillets.
Add two slices of lemon and squeeze a little bit of juice to the bag
Add salt free seasoning to taste, my recommendation: Mrs. Dash

Frozen broccoli (can be steamed in the bag, but you might want to use a separate one than the one you cook fish in to avoid a fishy taste)
1/2 sweet potato (also can be cooked in a microwave, pierce with a fork several times - I haven't tried cooking these in the bag) sweet potatoes are naturally sweet but also rich with complex carbs, dietary fiber, and Vitamins A, C and B6, add cinnamon for more delicious flavor...cinnamon is also very high in antioxidants!

You will have a complete meal with lean protein, veges and a carbohydrate in less than 10 minutes.... I'm all about quick and easy. (Ash if you're reading this DON'T even go there! Hooka! ;))

So yea that about sums up my life since my last post... I'm still here, I'm still running, still going to bootcamp, still playing soccer and still focused on my diet.

Once race day gets here though I will be SO happy to have my Saturday mornings back...AND once I lose that 100lbs I think I'll crack open an expensive bottle of wine and go to the Indian buffet... maybe not in that order but I can't WAIT! Then I need to refocus and lose another 5lbs because I know I'll gain it back through the holidays because I will enjoy a few cookies and slices of pumpkin pie, then I need to lose that after the holidays. It's a life time commitment, but SO worth it especially when you see that little dress in a shop window and you go to try it on and it looks FAB-U-LOUS on you... or when you reach a new running goal/weight loss goal and you have that extreme sense of accomplishment. It's worth it just to try for that feeling alone!

Ok, enough philosophizing from me...off to cook up my lunch! (Chicken, broccoli, carrots and a small portion of whole grain pasta! lean protein, veges and a whole grain!)

More Running Adventures: Staying Hydrated and Sports Drinks Myths

Hello friends, sorry it's been so long since I've updated... I'm still scratching my head pondering where all my free time has gone since I came back from vacation...Aside from the running, bootcamp, soccer, miscellaneous real life things....


It's all kinda a blur of pretty really. But it started with seeing those pics and ended in a downward shame spiral of fan fiction...this is why I will never be an adult...I discovered that there are blogs that are only dedicated to reviewing and recommending new stories...this is HIGHLY dangerous. HIGHLY. Because I can all of a sudden have 5 or 6 stories lined up to read...bad news bears for the amount of time I spare for blogging.

But anyway, I'm still here... I'm still running, I'm still watching what I eat (when I don't have a wedding to attend that has an open bar with top shelf liquor...but then again my philosophy has never been to count alcohol yea yea... I know about the sugar, I know about the crashes, but I also know bad music at weddings are much more tolerable and easier to dance too with a few gin and tonics and long island ice teas in my system....I'm sure there have been studies done to prove this.)

That being said... my current diet (when not tossing back beve's at a family wedding) is consisting of no sugar, no salt no dairy for two weeks to get my metabolism running again. I'm eating lots of lean proteins, vegetables and very filling whole grains...but enough about that ON to the runs!

Since I've been back from vacation I've had three training runs:

First run was 10 miles of flat running. I have never run this far before. I was concerned about a few things during this run. Obviously staying hydrated is my biggest concern. I had previously purchased a little hand-held bottle when I was training for the 7 mile relay last summer/fall...

This is the Nathan Quickdraw Elite. Nathan makes a whole line of different hydration products for runners. This particular bottle I recommend this for short runs or for walkers. For a longer run it's not going to hold enough water, and to me it was really annoying holding on to it for a run, I kept switching hands so again...not for the longer runs.

Obviously I needed something that was going to hold more water. Since I've been having problems with my hip I pretty much knew I shouldn't have gotten a belt system, but I decided to try one out anyway. I didn't want to fiddle with little bottles of water so I looked at camelbaks line up of products...

This is the Camelbak montara. Camelbak specializes in hands-free hydration. Very convenient to just grab the hose and take a sip instead of trying to unhook and reattached a water bottle. This particular product though, I only recommend for dudes... because men, unlike us ladies and myself in particular, don't have hips or a shelf-ass. No matter how much I tried to tighten the straps once this was filled with water the water pouch kept smacking against my lower back. If I tightened the straps too much they dug into my hip bones. Unfortunately this had to go back.

So I ultimately ended up with this:



The Camelbak Charm. Isn't is so freakin cute? I didn't want an excessively large pack. This is slim and sleek and doesn't bounce all over the place if you wear it tight enough. Back packs are great because the weight is evenly distributed. The colors are bright which I like for when I'm running on roads. Have to make sure the cars see me! Safty first friends! It holds just enough water for a longer run (1.5liters), the only draw back is that I think I probably should have gone up one more size so that I can carry just a little bit more water especially if it's a hot day. Fortunately, we're heading into the fall so I might not need to think about that until next summer.


Sports Drink Myth Buster!

My other concern was my energy levels. If I'm running 10 miles do I need sports drinks or an energy gel or shot blocks or whatever other latest greatest performance product there is on the market? My research and after speaking with a nutritionist has all signs pointing to NO!

After a certain point in activity the body burns off more than just sweat...but for 90% of us hitting the gym for a 30 minute treadmill exercise or even up to an hour of exercise doesn't justify the need for sports drinks. They add extra calories and sugar that just aren't necessary...if you're eating healthy meals your body should pull enough energy from the calories and nutrients you consume during a regular meal to sustain you through your gym routine. However, if you're doing a strenuous work out (ie. more than an hour of strenuous activity - more than 10miles of running) then the body starts to deplete in electrolytes sodium and potassium.

So my advice ladies is to leave the Gatoraid, poweraid, sobelife water, vitamin water or whatever other sugar/chemical filled GARBAGE at home and just take a big bottle of water with you to the gym. If you do an exercise that only burns 150-200 calories and you add that back in a sports drink you're really not going to burn those excess calories. At one point in my life I did actually think that grabbing a sports drink was a healthy alternative to soda. Now that I know better I've only ever worked out with water in my sports bottle since I started my weight loss.

If you need to replenish your body with potassium try a natural alternative such as coconut water. I'm not going to recommend a brand, I only included a link to a google search so you can do a little reading...but coconut water is all natural and loaded with potassium. Banana's are another good source of potassium.

If you would like, please read this article in the Baltimore Sun, this is the first article I stumbled across while reading the morning paper that made me want to delve a little more into the topic of sports drinks. (It's also interesting to note that Vitamin Water is being sued for misleading that their product actually healthy for you. Guess what it's sugar content makes it more like a soda than a "health" drink...and yup yup back in the day I did also think this product was a healthy alternative to soda.)

Again dear readers... Just Drink Water!!!

Ok, back to the 10 mile run!!!

I was so so happy to reach the five mile marker and turn around. I finished in 1hr. 58mins. I wish I could have gone a little faster for but some strange reason my left hip did not like me on this run...or the two runs previous. I've worked past most of the pain with a few chiropractor visits, but It's still a little tight especially when I'm playing soccer...lots of stretching on the sidelines for me.

2nd run we scaled back and did 7 miles of hills! Hills. ugh...but surprisingly this wasn't so bad! I finished in 1hr 18mins. And even more surprisingly my hip did not bother me. It was a good run on a beautiful morning!! Ahhh... I love fall weather starting to set in!

My 3rd run was this past Saturday. It was supposed to be 11 miles of hills... I crapped out after 9. Adding those two extra miles of hills in the middle of my run really did me in. I turned off my regular route onto a side street that was ridiculously steep for almost an entire mile straight!!!! Once again, I got a side stitch going down hill but once I hit flat ground I focused on deep breathing and taking my mind of the pain and was able to push past it. My time wasn't so great for the 9 miles, but I know I was also pacing myself more in anticipation of those really steep hills.

P.S. So far I've raised $175 towards my $655 goal for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society!! Thank you very much for your donations!!!

Half Marathon Training: Run 4ish? ...FML Hills.

I'm not quite sure what number I'm on for my training runs. Officially with the group I think this is week 4, but I've done a few short runs in between on my own. I missed last Saturday's run because I was out of town, so I missed our 7 mile run, but not to worry I'll be running 8 miles next week...oh the joy! Mind you it will be flat again, however this week was our first week of hill running and I knew it was going to kick my ass and it sure as hell did.

But even though I missed the 7 mile run last week, I did get to see this instead:

Shenandoah National Park

and then I went hiking and came across this on the trail... a field of ferns

and when we reached the top of the trail there were lots of neat looking rocks to climb around and a pretty stunning view.

But anyway, on to this weeks run...

The run: A shaded country road that lots of runners and bikers flock to. It winds along our water reservoir and there are a lot of hills...big ones. It's closed to cars after 10 am on the weekends so even before that traffic is pretty light. We got out there at 7 am.

Distance: according to this handy little website called mapmyrun.com the run was 5.12 miles minimum elevation was 164ft and max elevation of 423ft and an ascent of 354ft decent of -358ft... guess what I really don't know what all that means for my run....except that it was hard.

My time: 63 minutes... pathetic. Almost ten minutes longer than it takes me to run the same distance on flat ground.

Problemas?: Yeah, I bit the dust on the way back running down hill...well not really but I got side stiches running DOWN hill... that's supposed to be the easy part the breeze to the end, and I got side stiches! ugh!

Anyway after the run I stretched a bit, drank lots o water and made breakfast. I think I have perfected the sunny side up egg... I've been eating a lot of eggs recently since I've been buying the free range ones from the farmers market they just taste better... I have also perfected the transfer of said eggs from the frying pan to my plate with out breaking the yolks... Don't mock me I am normally allergic to the kitchen and all things involving cooking so this takes concentration ;) ...Ta-Da!


Sorry if I have offended my vegan and vegetarian readers... I know there are at least 3-4 of you..but yea I gotta get that protein in there!

Half Marathon Training: Run 1

I have officially signed up for the Baltimore Half so that means on Oct. 16th my ass is running that 13.1 miles because I'm not wasting that entry fee!

This morning I set out for Day 1 of my half marathon training with my boot camp groups starting at 8am. Which means my alarm was going off at 6:50 in the morning on a Saturday. FTW.



We're starting out an hour earlier next week because of the heat so I better get used to it. I was armed with some new running shoes, arch hugging socks and some new shorts I couldn't resist buying....they were on sale and super light weight! (I'm not one of those runners that needs the newest gear even though I sound like it lol, my shoes were a year old and worn to crap, and it's hot as balls out hence needing light weight shorts...good shoes = good support and less chance of injury my friends :))


I can't speak highly enough of my Brooks running shoes... they're like love for my foot. My last three pairs of shoes have been Brooks. No matter what other brands I try on these always work out best for me.



So anyway...

The run: completely flat trail and it was shaded...soooo nice. The second I stepped off the trail into the sunny parking lot to stretch after the run... buckets of sweat, it was sweltering!

Distance: 5 miles, run/walk 4 mins/1min. I think we will be run/walking for the actual race because honesty I would probably keep the same time if I ran straight through.

My time: about 56 minutes which is an 11 minute mile. I kept pace with our leader and one other guy so I felt I did pretty well for our first run. Basically I was the first chick, but I backed off at one point because I heard one of the guys talking about how his kid vomited all over his back. Seriously why do all parents do this... making us non-parents suffer through their stories of their children's bodily fluids. I felt like I was going to puke on the side of the trail. fml. Shoot me if I ever become that kind of mom.

Problemas?: Nope, felt great. Really glad I went out this morning. A little sore in the right hip still from when I pulled it several weeks ago playing soccer but LOOOOOOOTS of stretching afterward.

Motivational Songs: I was kickin' it old school listening to an old mix on my ipod that had some of my favorite songs from highschool and college on it. This mornings songs on the way to the trail were:

Rebel Rebel - David Bowie
Bittersweet Symphony - The Verve (there are rules for listening to this song in my car...I must have control of the volume at certain moments for maximum crescendo factor ;))
Lucky Man - The Verve
Words - Doves
High and Dry - Radiohead
Someone Great - LCD Soundsystem. (2006...just after college)
1976 - Smashing Pumpkins (can't ever get over this song... ever.)

Good songs for a nice Saturday morning. Nothing fast paced or dancy for me this am. It was too early for that, and since I killed my shuffle I don't run with music...just the sounds of pounding feet.

p.s. Also... follow this blog! http://halfasstohalfmarathon.blogspot.com fellow fans Fat Girl Slimmed and Muffintopped (LOVE those names) are also training for a half marathon!

How Important is Exercise??

So I've been reading a lot of articles lately about the importance (or lack there of) of exercise. It seems that some studies say exercise is very important, others say diet is more important. I think what all researchers agree though is that exercise is necessary but how much and how often is the question.

Remember it used to be suggested 30 minutes a day three times a week that was enough? Well clearly that did not help stop obesity rates from soaring. Now the CDC is suggesting the following for adults:

Adults need at least:

	2 hours and 30 minutes (150 minutes) of moderate-intensity aerobic activity (i.e., brisk walking) every week and
	muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms).

	1 hour and 15 minutes (75 minutes) of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity (i.e., jogging or running) every week and
	muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms).

	An equivalent mix of moderate- and vigorous-intensity aerobic activity and
	muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week that work all major muscle groups (legs, hips, back, abdomen, chest, shoulders, and arms).

For "greater" health benefits they suggest 500 minutes a week of exercise! So that number has increased greatly over the years...but lets face it America has a lot of excess calories to burn!



The how and why of weight loss is pretty simple burn more calories than you take in and you're going to lose. So exercise works hand in hand with diet:

The mathematics of weight loss is, in fact, quite simple, involving only subtraction. “Take in fewer calories than you burn, put yourself in negative energy balance, lose weight,” says Braun, who has been studying exercise and weight loss for years. (Source: New York Times)

But the same article says that women's bodies are prone to want to maintain fat stores! Because of... you guessed it, reproduction. Ugh it's always an uphill battle for us isn't it ladies...Essentially, when we exercise we want to eat more! And I know this is true I was just complaining about my appetite when i'm at my most active. In spring and fall when I'm working out 6 days a week playing lots of soccer I'm always hungry!! This must be why:

A study that Braun oversaw and that was published last year by The American Journal of Physiology had a slightly different outcome. In it, 18 overweight men and women walked on treadmills in multiple sessions while either eating enough that day to replace the calories burned during exercise or not. Afterward, the men displayed little or no changes in their energy-regulating hormones or their appetites, much as in the other study. But the women uniformly had increased blood concentrations of acylated ghrelin and decreased concentrations of insulin after the sessions in which they had eaten less than they had burned. Their bodies were directing them to replace the lost calories. In physiological terms, the results “are consistent with the paradigm that mechanisms to maintain body fat are more effective in women,” Braun and his colleagues wrote. In practical terms, the results are scientific proof that life is unfair. Female bodies, inspired almost certainly “by a biological need to maintain energy stores for reproduction,” Braun says, fight hard to hold on to every ounce of fat. Exercise for many women (and for some men) increases the desire to eat.

But this doesn't mean you should throw your hands up in the air and say it's impossible for you to lose weight because your body wants you to be curvy with a little too much junk in the trunk. Just because things are the way they are doesn't mean it's the way they have to be! It will take work but Exercise is STILL incredibly beneficial...it's proven that exercise helps keep the pounds off!

In one representative experiment from last year, 97 healthy, slightly overweight women were put on an 800-calorie diet until they lost an average of about 27 pounds each. Some of the women were then assigned to a walking program, some were put on a weight-training regimen and others were assigned no exercise; all returned to their old eating habits. Those who stuck with either of the exercise programs regained less weight than those who didn’t exercise and, even more striking, did not regain weight around their middles. The women who didn’t exercise regained their weight and preferentially packed on these new pounds around their abdomens. It’s well known that abdominal fat is particularly unhealthful, contributing significantly to metabolic disruptions and heart disease.

Scientists are “not really sure yet” just how and why exercise is so important in maintaining weight loss in people, Braun says.

I hope you're not scratching your head saying well great I have to lose the pounds first before I start working out to maintain the loss.... Not true! You should start a routine as soon as possible... this Harvard study shows that at a molecular level people who exercise show more metabolic evidence that their bodies are burning fat... so essentially if you think dieting alone will help you lose weight think again!

These findings suggest that exercise has both “acute and cumulative” effects on your body’s ability to use and burn fat, says Gregory Lewis, a cardiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston and an author of the study. After only 10 minutes of exercise, even the least fit showed evidence that their bodies were burning fat; the more fit, the more metabolic evidence of fat burning.
The researchers then took a number of the metabolites that had been elevated by exercise and infused them into mouse muscle cells in a laboratory dish. Almost immediately, the metabolites, in combination (but not individually) ignited a reaction that resulted in increased expression of a gene involved in cholesterol and blood-sugar regulation. In other words, the metabolites weren’t just marking activity that was happening elsewhere in the body; they also may have been sparking some of that activity directly. (Source: New York Times)

If for no other reason exercise because it makes you feel better!! I guarantee you this is true!! I always feel better about myself after I exercise. If there is a time where I'm feeling down, where I'm doubting myself and starting to feel fat and lazy exercise yanks me right out of that mind set. I always say I NEVER regret exercising...EVER! How many of us can say the same about eating a few cookies??

How Exercise Combats Anxiety and Depression from the MayoClinic:

Exercise probably helps ease depression in a number of ways, which may include:

• Releasing feel-good brain chemicals that may ease depression (neurotransmitters and endorphins)
• Reducing immune system chemicals that can worsen depression
• Increasing body temperature, which may have calming effects

Exercise has many psychological and emotional benefits too. It can help you:

• Gain confidence. Meeting exercise goals or challenges, even small ones, can boost your self-confidence. Getting in shape can also make you feel better about your appearance.
• Take your mind off worries. Exercise is a distraction that can get you away from the cycle of negative thoughts that feed anxiety and depression.
• Get more social interaction. Exercise may give you the chance to meet or socialize with others. Just exchanging a friendly smile or greeting as you walk around your neighborhood can help your mood.
• Cope in a healthy way. Doing something positive to manage anxiety or depression is a healthy coping strategy. Trying to feel better by drinking alcohol, dwelling on how badly you feel, or hoping anxiety or depression will go away on their own can lead to worsening symptoms.

Want to read more?? Check out these articles:


A Work Out for Your Blood Stream - New York Times

Weighing the Evidence on Exercise - New York Times

Depression and Anxiety: Exercise Eases Symptoms - Mayo Clinic Online


p.s. The world cup is now winding down.  I was pouting and throwing a fit like a two year old when my German Boys lost today...they worked so hard and played so well for so long!! But such is the luck of the game it only take one goal to make a difference...and seven Spanish players playing defense. *grumbles* Now I'm going to go pout again. I'm muttering this under my breath right now:

Stupid Spanish team,Stupid La Liga players...even though I love you FCBarcelona and Charles Puyol I'm a fan of the German team and they deserved to win they proved to have better defense with less men playing back but that fucking undeserved yellow card on Muller made a big difference and I want to see Klose beat the record for most career goals in the world cup...Stupid Spanish!

*end grumble*

What's Stopping You from Reaching Your Goals... Or Getting Started?

Our motto in bootcamp is to be "unstoppable"... We chant it after every work out. Usually afterward I do feel like I might just be unstoppable... ready to conquer the world... or at least another day at the office. So it got me wondering, what is it that makes us feel "stoppable" some times and what can we do to make sure we always have that feeling of being "unstoppable" when it comes to our weight loss goals?


We all have our vices...our weaknesses, our reservations and fears. Do you have a hard time keeping your diet in check... do you have lack of time or motivation to exercise? Or are you really just making excuses?

I wanted to make this post brief but I'd like you to share something in the comments section... don't worry you can post anonymously if you want! Talk about anything that you might be struggling with in your diet or exercise and maybe together we can talk you through it and find a way to break past it. :)

I'll start with mine... I plateau and it frustrates the hell out of me. I've been teetering on the edge of 85lbs of weight loss for a month now and today the scale was up a pound. I exercise just as much if not more than ever... Soccer season is in full swing and I'm playing 2-3 games a weekend (which means I'm sprinting like crazy up and down that field) I do 3 days of boot camp workouts a week and I run 1 other day. That's 6 days of intense exercise, and sometimes I feel like it's not enough! But my weight is still staying nice and even, and I beat myself up because I work so hard and see no results at all! Then to see the scale go up on top of it makes me want to throw my hands up in the air and scream! I don't want to work out 7 days a week because rest is important too to avoid injury, and sometimes I'm too tired after work to add a second work out in the evening. I don't know what else its going to take, what else I need to do to push myself that extra step?!

I'm concerned with my braces that I'm not getting enough of a balanced diet but it hurts to chew sometimes and I'm also not allowed to eat really crunchy foods, so I haven't been eating as much salad as I used to. Maybe I need to redouble my efforts on my diet again and give something up?

Ok now it's your turn! Please share... it helps to vent...trust me :)

It is Not in Your Character to Give Up

That was my fortune in my fortune cookie yesterday. I had a 1/2 dish of pad thai with chicken according to calorie king that's roughly 560 Calories..but that's also all I had for lunch...It was a rush meal kind of day because I had to run an errand for the boss man and I had to make an important stop at REI....I needed a new toy :)

I got a sports watch :)

It's purple :)

I know a certain fashion conscious friend of mine is cringing right now... *cough*shoewhore*cough*... I like purple :). Plus I needed this kind of watch for a specific reason... I needed it to be light weight and have a stop watch... because I'm running with this baby.

Yesterday I got one of my co-workers motivated to go run with me. She's not a regular exerciser or runner for that matter so I told her don't worry we'll do a run/walk. I've talked about run/walks a bit on the blog. I really like them because it's a good way for beginners to mentally prepare themselves for a run. The idea is to run for 4 minutes walk for 1, then repeat. I think it helps beginners to push themselves because they know that little break is coming soon.

But even if you're not a beginner the break actually helps you to run a little faster..so even though you stop to walk you end up keeping the same pace you would if you had jogged straight through because you usually don't slow your jogging pace. It's a good way to train and build up your endurance.


She actually said to me a few days ago when we were talking about going for a run that she shouldn't run with me because she's not a runner and she felt like she shouldn't even bother trying to run...that maybe she should try it some other time.

My only response was well if you don't start now when are you ever going to?

To me it doesn't matter if you're not the best, it matters that you try!

What bothers me is that people give up before even trying..that my friends gets you no where!

So my new handy dandy little stop watch kept time for me. We made sure to stop every 1.25 miles to stretch and rest a bit, but by the end we completed 3.75 miles with hills. For me that's not much of a run anymore (a year ago I would have laughed at you if you asked me to run that far though), but for my co-worker it was a major accomplishment and she felt so good afterward! She said she never would have done it with out me, but I didn't do anything. I couldn't make her run with me she did that on her own...I just kept time ;)

So we're going to try and do this once a week and I'm working on getting a few other co-workers motivated to join in. Trust me ANYONE can try a run/walk.

I've also noticed my new stop watch will be handy for other things... office chair races, timing how long a windbag boss talks on the phone.... and in my case measuring timing myself to see how quickly I can blog. :)

Legs and Ass

As opposed to tits and ass... this post is dedicated to Legs and Ass :)

You know who's ass that is... don't ask, just enjoy it.

and if by chance your ass is that tiny... kiss my you know what
(however if you happen to be owner of said ass... call me ;))

So there's lots of muscles in the legs which means lots of different spots to tone... quads, hamstrings, inner and outer thighs, calves and glutes.


So how can we tone each of these muscles and what all women want to know particularly is how do we get rid of the cottage cheese around our thighs? Well I hate to tell ya there is no magic cure like hundreds of google ads claim there to be, the cure is diet and exercise ladies. Burn off the fat and tone the muscle underneath and you'll see definition in some areas and smooth curves in others. Slowly but surely I'm seeing definition in my leg muscles and my hips are becoming more trim. They're not where I want them to be yet, but I've learned a lot of exercises to help tone and trim.

First things first... make sure you warm up! You want to warm up before trying any exercise, it's important for several reasons:

A proper warm up can increase the blood flow to the working muscle which results in decreased muscle stiffness, less risk of injury and improved performance. Additional benefits of warming up include physiological and psychological preparation. (source)

Some warm up exercises you can do are a light jog on the treadmill for 5-10 minutes, or the elliptical for the same amount of time. If you don't have access to exercise equipment you can warm up with jumping jacks, running in place, mountain climbers, high knees, jumping side to side or front to back on your toes, or even a brisk jog around the block..what ever you do you want to move around, get your heart rate up and break a bit of a sweat first and then you know you're warmed up.

Ok, so here's some exercises so you can get those toned sexy legs! (rawr!)

Lunges:

Starting Position

Stand with your feet about 6 inches apart from each other toes pointed forward.

Action

INHALE: Step forward with one leg and lower your body to 90 degrees at both knees. Don't step out too far. There should be 2 to 2.5 feet between your feet at this point. Keep your weight on your heels and don't allow your knees to cross the plane of your toes.

EXHALE: Push up and back to the starting position to complete one rep. Repeat all reps on one leg, then switch to complete one set.

Special Instructions

Keep your back upright. The further you step, the more you work the glutes (buttocks) and hamstrings. The closer you step, the more you work the quadriceps muscles on the top of your thighs. Place your hand on a chair or wall or balance if necessary.

Muscles Worked: Quads, Glutes

If regular lunges are too boring for you, or you want to change them up and make them more difficult then here's a few things you can do to modify your regular lunge:

Add some weights

Add and oblique twist with a medicine ball

Add a step

OR use a paper plate and do a reverse lunge. Place one foot in a paper plate instead of stepping forward you will slide the foot in the plate back behind you doing a reverse lung. The paper plate will reduce any friction and you'll see that it works your muscles more trying to balance yourself and slide back at the same time.

Lateral Lunges.... for those thighs!

Starting Position

Begin by standing with your feet shoulder width apart, hands on hips.

Action

INHALE: Step out to the right and shift your body weight over your right leg, squatting to a 90 degree angle at the right knee. Try to sit down with your butt, keeping your back as upright as possible.

EXHALE: Push off and bring your right leg back to center to complete one rep. Finish all reps on this side, and repeat on left side to complete one set.

Special Instructions

Keep your weight on your heels and make sure your knees don't go over the plane of your toes. Hold your arms out in front of you to help with balance.

Muscles Worked: Quads, Glutes, Inner thigh

Here's some ways you can modify your lateral lunge:

Add a dumbbell press

Add a resistance band. We use resistance bands in bootcamp to increase the intensity of our leg exercises. You can get bands that comfortably strap on the ankle and don't dig into the skin for under $20.



With these bands you can increase the intensity of leg lifts or lateral lunges. They will definitely do a lot more to tone your hips and thighs! You can also do a standing oblique sit up with these to add a little ab action into the mix.

Squats!! (these also come in handy for when you need to do the drunk bar-toilet hover ;))


(image source)

Starting Position

Begin this exercise by standing with your feet wider than shoulder width apart and your toes pointed forward.

Action

INHALE: Slowly lower your body and remember to bend slightly at your hips. Keep your weight back on your heels and your back as upright as possible. Make sure your knees don't cross the plane of your toes. (don't extend your knee past your toes)

EXHALE: Straighten legs and come up to the starting position to complete one rep.

Special Instructions

Do not go past 90 degrees at the bend in your knees because this causes additional stress on your joints. If you feel pain in your knees, just go down to where you don't feel pain and come back up. If you have difficulty performing this exercise you can also use a chair or wall to help with balance and the movement until you build sufficient strength.

Muscles Worked: Quads, Glutes

Here's some ways to modify your squats...

Single Leg Squats (use a chair for balance)

Wall Squats with an Exercise Ball

Wide Leg Squat with a Dumbbell

Or you could do a squat but hold in the down position for ten seconds before coming back up.

Or... you're legs will hate me for this one... Do a wall sit. Trust me you use a lot of muscle control trying to hold your self up and sit still against a wall. Hold these for one minute...want to challenge yourself even more... Lift one leg off the ground!

Bridges... now these (when done properly) will tighten that ass! Bridges will also tone up your hamstrings and the back of your thighs.

Starting Position

Lie with arms at sides, feet on floor, knees bent. Press into heels.

Action

EXHALE: Slowly lift hips off of floor toward ceiling, squeezing the glutes.

INHALE: Return to starting position.

Special Instructions

Squeeze glutes through entire rep. Try not to let butt touch ground when lowering between reps.

Muscles Worked: Hamstrings, Glutes, Quads

Just remember to squeeze everything when you're doing these, suck your belly button down to your spine and tightened your glutes towards your belly button, nothing should be hang out loosey goosey.

If you want to modify this to make it more challenging.... lift one leg off the ground. Trust me your hamstrings will be screaming at you later for that ;)


So there's just a few toning exercises you can do to tighten up those legs, thighs and ass. Remember you want to keep doing cardio as well so you burn those calories. So go for a jog, use the elliptical, or play some soccer! Soccer (in my opinion) is the ultimate leg work out. You're constantly cutting, back pedaling, shuffling, shifting, turning, sprinting...basically you're going to work every single muscle in your legs playing this sport and get a great cardio work out as well.

No wonder soccer players have such sexy legs.

Mmmm Iker Casillas you sexy beast you... shame he plays for Madrid.

All images/exercises can be found on sparkpeople.com unless otherwise noted.


p.s. This post is dedicated to shoewhoreninja (holy crap look at the LAMB shoes she posted!!)... who will probably tell you that walking around in a sexy pair of heels will do wonders for your legs and ass as well... and guess what she's right, heels give your tush a nice lift.

Kick Starting Your Work Out Routine

Hello to my new readers! I've had a few new peeps follow my blog lately and some new comments too which is AWESOME!! Thanks so much for coming around to hang out! Welcome aboard!

So if you're new to the blog, new to trying to figure out all this weight loss stuff you probably have a lot of questions. Don't worry, I did as well when I started and I'm certain everyone does... I still have lots of questions, so I'm always looking for more info.

If you're wondering how I got started with my diet I have an older post on that topic. Read about it here!

So what's next? You've read up your diet, learned a bit about healthy eating, but what about working out?

17foreverlisa asked me what she could do to kick start her work out routine, which is a great question! So how in the world do you make the change from being a couch potato to getting fit?

Ask yourself this question...

What motivates you?

There has to be something that motivates you to want to get in shape... think about what that is...is it your family, is it your future family, do you want to do it for yourself...

What is your favorite physical activity?

You might not be in shape right now but maybe there's something you've always wanted to try, always wished you could do, or wanted to start doing again after adult life got in the way...


Did you play a sport when you were younger that you really enjoyed?

Do you like being outdoors?

Do you like riding a bike?

Hiking?

Swimming?

Running?

Skiing/snow boarding?

Dancing?

Do you work well alone? Or with others?

I'm asking all these questions for several reasons:

• Boredom kills your work out! Plus, if you associate working out with being painful and exhausting instead of fun and invigorating then honestly do you think you're going to work out? Probably not.
  
  Find a fun activity that you enjoy that's going to get you out there, and make that part of your routine.
  
• If you like being with a group, then group fitness classes or rec sports are definitely for you!
  
  Even if you don't like being in a group I would recommend trying to push yourself out of your comfort zone! If you don't push yourself out of your routine, out of your existing everyday comforts then you won't see results.
  
• A benefit of group fitness classes is that you have a set time to meet. If you're the type of person that says "oh I'll just go to the gym whenever" but never actually set a time to go, do you think you'll actually make it to the gym?
  
  If you take a group fitness class or join a sports team that has set times to meet and a set schedule for games, then chances are you're going to be there because you've made the time for it.
  
• Working out with a group gives you the added benefit of camaraderie and motivation. You'll see once you get out there that you always feed off each others energy and you'll push yourself harder as a result.

For me, it was soccer. I LOVE soccer! But I was really bad at soccer when I first started playing so I wanted to get better. Soccer has always been part of my routine and every day I work out I feel like I work towards improving my game.

Here's an example of how I boosted my work out routine which helped improve my soccer game:

I needed better cardiovascular endurance... So I started taking regular spinning classes.

I needed to be faster... So I started running and doing sprint intervals on the treadmill.

I needed to improve my ball skills... So I started kicking the ball around after my runs.

I needed to be stronger to have more powerful kicks... So I started lifting weights.

Start Small, Baby Steps!

Note: To be on the safe side I would consult with your Dr. before starting any work out routine. Get a physical and make sure everything is running smoothly! :)

Do you think I was able to get out there on my first soccer game and bend it like Beckham? Hell no! I'm still not even remotely close and never will be at that skill level, but now I feel like I can hold my own out on the field and that I've gained the respect of my team mates as a reliable defender.

But that didn't happen over night. It took time. Achieving fitness is going to take time, remember this is a life style change not a quick fix.

If you're trying to start a work out routine, start small. Set small goals for yourself. Here's an example:

Let's say you have access to a treadmill...even if you don't you can try this outside...

Start off doing 30 minute walks at least 3 - 4 times a week.

If you can handle that, it's time to add a little bit of jogging to your routine.

Try to jog for intervals of 30 seconds to 1 minute, then walk to recover...and again set small goals for yourself to improve the length of time as you grow used to it...before you know it you'll be able to run a mile straight!

If you want to read more about doing run/walks, check out this article on runners world.

Just remember having to stop an activity to take a breather does not make you weak or less of an athlete! What does make you weak is if you had never gotten up off the couch that day in the first place...never get down on yourself for getting out there and trying!

Which leads me to my next segment... ;)

Discomfort is OK, Pain is not!

Remember the expression, no pain, no gain? Forget that expression! PAIN IS NOT GOOD! What you want to shoot for is discomfort, which should happen anyway if you're pushing yourself harder than what your body is used to. Make your self sweat, get your heart rate up...but if you experience severe pain STOP what you're doing. I'm not saying be a total wuss...Just make sure you know your limits.

Experiencing soreness after a work out is normal though. This is often referred to as delayed onset muscle soreness. It's very important to stretch after each work out and to keep yourself moving the next day to minimize your recovery time. For example if you did cardio yesterday and your legs are sore, make sure you do a different activity today such as lifting weights. Remember to stretch, or do a light activity such as walking...don't just sit around.

I've found working out over all has not been a smooth process. I've had minor muscle pains, bumps/scrapes/bruises, a shoulder injury (which has been on going since I was 22 I have to modify my work outs around it) and a foot injury from soccer and not laying off of it. Don't expect everything to be smooth sailing, but also don't let a little soreness make you stop! Listen to your body, listen to your doctor, do what you think you can, but above all keep active!

To summarize my advice... keep it fun, push yourself out of your comfort zone, do your best and most importantly don't give up!!!

Now it's time to put away the lap top and get started!

Hope this helps, and let me know what your favorite way to work out is!

No Sugar: Day 39

Captain's Log: The end is drawing near...

"Want any pudding?"

No joke, my mom just asked me that question. Mom... seriously, you were with me on Jan 1st when I said I wasn't having any sweets for 45 days.

I've been snowed in with my family this weekend in an effort to avoid being snowed in with my roommate (trust me roommate is the worst option of the two....and oh yea we got 2 feet of snow dumped on us this weekend just an FYI)

Guess what we were in the "totally screwed" bubble! YAY!

Friday. The day the snow started we had two office birthdays to celebrate. I made the cake since my good friend and sometimes bloggy buddy Plain Jane was celebrating a birthday.. I did not eat the cake and I did not touch the batter! Of course since the office closed early because of the impending doom of snow, and the state of Maryland literally hits the panic button at the sight of the little white devils falling from the sky... there was left over cake I had to take home... AND there was another cake at home that my mom made for the house...you know since we needed one there too! There was cake in my face all weekend and I had to sit and watch the entire family enjoy it. No wonder I read a lot of fan fiction this weekend!

Mom: want a slice of cake?

Me: No, no sweets.

Saturday. The snow stopped about 4 in the afternoon. We started the dig out. Brother and I stayed out til a little after 8 at which point a increasing cold and numb toes made me call it quits. It took about two days of four people working about 3-4 hours to clear our cars and drive way.... it was a lot of snow. Trust me.

Mom: Want some hot chocolate to warm up??

Me: *grumbles...hell yeah I really want hot chocolate* No, Mom. NO chocolate, remember?

Mom: Oh, ok tea then.

Me: *smiles* yes please! :)

Sunday morning. Day 2 of digging out. Mom made cinnabuns as an afternoon snow shoveling snack.

Mom: You want a cinnabun??

Me: No, Mom... no sweets remember.

Mom: Oh, well give your dad and brother one.

Dad: Why aren't you eating one?

Me: NO sweets.

The shoveling of snow (and food) commences.

Sunday afternoon. Mom bakes brownies for a superbowl party. I decide to fore-go the festivities. I know it's going to be a glutton-fest and I don't like football. I stay home with a bottle of wine, twitter, and masterpeice theater. I'm also working on revamping my work out mix since I had a "little" time to do nothing this weekend.

Monday. Plow finally clears the court, I can venture out in my little car.

Let's play find Team Six Pack's Versa....

Off to the gym I go!!! *HAPPY DANCE!!!!!!* Seriously I had major cabin fever. Sure I got a great work out shoveling all that snow, I also think I discovered new muscles in my back and new bones to be cracked back into place...but I needed to get some cardio in! I ran 3 miles on the treadmill which felt SO SO good and was fun with my new work out mix and I did lots of abs. Trust me I didn't need to work my upper body after all that snow.

Monday evening. Haven't made it home yet (parents live closer to work and the gym than I do so it makes sense to stick around for a little bit), kinda thinking it's not going to happen til later this week anyway because...we're expecting ANOTHER 12-20 INCHES OF SNOW TOMORROW THROUGH WEDNESDAY!!!!!!! GAH! Enough already!

Run for your lives!!!! It's Snowmageddon!

SO anyway as I was saying, this evening I'm sitting with my lap top and my mom walks by and asks me...

"Want any pudding?"

*facepalm* haven't we discussed this already Mom???

Welcome to my life :)

Ok just because I haven't been able to eat all the sweets around the house doesn't mean I don't enjoy dessert...My dessert options this weekend were unsweetened apple sauce with cinnamon, grapes, apples and natural peanut butter, sugar free protein shakes....and Daniel Cudmore...

Don't mind if I do!!