Vacation = weight loss? Yes, yes it does!

My hubby and I flew out to Los Angeles last Thursday for a
weekend band tour. The band was set to do a series of shows in the area. I wish I could say we were able to get a lot of sightseeing in, but that just was not the case. Show business certainly isn't all glamour, that's for sure. It's an awful lot of hurry up and wait. Still, it was nice to get away--and the hotel suite was nice. I kept my eating in check (ok, well technically we went to In-N-Out twice) Other than the burgers, which by the way were delish--I did really well. And we ended up doing a lot of walking, so I am sure that helped counteract the extra calories a bit. The shows were a huge success, and we all had a really great time. I feel very fortunate that the band members are such wonderful people and enjoyable to hang out with.

We returned from Los Angeles on Monday. The bad news is, I was sick with a cold by the time I got off the plane. The good news is, I managed to drop a few pounds during a good chunk of time that involved travel. Yay! I am so excited about my loss that it almost makes up for the crappy way that I have felt the last few days. One of my issues when I am sick is that I crave comfort food. Anything creamy is what I want most--macaroni and cheese, mashed, potatoes, etc. Clearly these are foods that are high in calories and fat and certainly foods I should be avoiding and only indulging in occasionally. However, I am sure that my ability to portion-control is even more diminished since my head is congested and I'm thinking cold medication won't help my thought process. Today I was craving chicken-fried steak, mashed potatoes and green beans from our local diner. Outrageously delicious --but not a meal I have more then a couple times a year. I had a left-over chicken taco instead and hot tea by what seems like the gallon because it makes my throat feel better. I am finally making some progress and I don't want to defeat myself my making a less healthy choice. I'm hoping to get to the grocery store tomorrow to stock up on healthy fare--we are dangerously low on even the basics at this point.

Anyway, back to my loss over the last two weeks---it's actually not a great loss for that amount of time, but honestly, right now a loss is a loss. I'm not going to dwell on how long it took. The scale is moving and I am getting a little farther away from 300-ville. I never want to see that number again and so the farther away I get the better I feel. My BMI went down a few points as well, which definitely feels good. So, my goal for May 10 is to lose 12 lbs, which means I have 9.2 lbs to go. That's just under a month, so it's going to be tight, but I know that if I work hard and be consistent, I will reach my goal. I need to think of a reward for myself. Any ideas for rewards?

Whoa.

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Don't look now, but it's my second post of the week. Sometimes I amaze even myself.

My week so far has been good--I'm hoping my weigh-in next Monday will reveal the evidence of my work this week. I have cut way back on diet sodas--in fact, I think I have only had a couple in the last week!

Here's a wrap up of my week so far. Thank goodness it's a short work week, yay!

Monday-- I was not feeling well and took a sick day. I made a point of eating healthy and slept a lot. We still went out for an evening walk though as I was feeling better and needed to get some fresh air. Hubby grilled chicken and we had that plus small baked potatoes and fresh broccoli for dinner. We spent the rest of the evening catching up on DVR'd shows--Amazing Race and Rules of Engagement.

Tuesday--Went to the office....tried to stay away from the The Candy Jar, but did succumb to a snack size M&M's and one rolo. Not bad. I took my lunch, skipped breakfast and ate my apple/peanut butter for a snack. We walked again in the evening and for dinner we had left-over grilled chicken, brown rice with toasted pine nuts, olive oil, parsley and a bit of parmesan and a side of lima beans. And lots of iced tea with splenda! Does anyone know of any issues with using a lot of splenda? Tuesday is Biggest Loser night! My typical routine is to watch the show while I prepare dinner, which is great motivation to cook up something healthy and not snack mindlessly, which I am so prone to do when I get home from work. I am going to be sad when Biggest Loser wraps up the season--the contestants are such an inspiration to me.

Wednesday--Worked from home...hubby made breakfast of one egg and slice of 2% cheese on a sandwich thin (love those!), coffee with flavored creamer and splenda. Lunch was left-over spaghetti with meat sauce (a small portion) and snack was popcorn. Lots of tea and water. Took our pup for a walk. For dinner, we went out (these days meals out are not common) and went to a fave italian place. I ordered a veggie calzone (which was ginormous) I took more then half of it home for lunch tomorrow. Splurged with a diet dr. pepper! ha We went to Target to pick a few groceries, a baby shower gift, and a new stability ball (ours developed an inability to hold air).

And this brings me to Thursday--my Friday this week. I just need to persevere through one more day of work and then playtime on Friday. We are planning to jump in the car with our labrador and drive to the hill country to see all the wildflowers and picnic. Looking forward to getting away from the city.

I just remembered that I didn't say what I am thankful for in my last post. That will never do!

Today, I am thankful for:
*my hubby and our home
*the money to buy fresh, organic produce
*my pup, who gives great hugs, I swear
*one more work day!

feelin' guilty

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Had a rough day.....work was crazy. I hadn't really craved The Candy Jar, but I did give in today and grabbed some chocolate out of the jar. I immediately felt guilty. Not because I had chocolate, because I don't really believe in completely depriving myself. One or two little pieces would have been acceptable. Unfortunately, I grabbed more like 10 pieces and devoured them. Boy, they were good. The steaming hot bowl of guilt that accompanied the chocolate was less than pleasant. I had also fully intended to work out tonight before leaving The Office, however I ended up working until almost 9pm and by that time all I really wanted to do was go home. So I did. Other than the candy, I stuck with my eating plan and did really good. Hopefully, it will all balance out.

I arrived home and ate a bit of dinner (roast beef) and settled in to watch Melrose Place on DVR. Starting to feel a little better now.

Today, I am thankful for....

....my DVR. (What? That's the best I can do right now.)

Everywhere I look....Cake!

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Cake is following me. It knows my name and how much I like it. It's in my fridge, in the form of my hubby's left-over birthday cake. It's at work too. A celebration for something or other. A gift of chocolately goodness provided by the evil wenches in the marketing department. No, I'm kidding, they're sweet. Sort of.

I ate a piece before I even realized what I was doing and before I remembered...wait! you are supposed to be cutting back on sugar! How does that happen? How does one scarf down cake on auto-pilot?

Thankfully, the rest of my eating habits today were decent.
Oatmeal, grapes, a turkey sandwich, a hamburger (however--made at home with 97% lean beef and the tiniest wheat bun you have ever seen), 120 calories worth of baked french fries, fresh carrots and celery, and yes, more cake. Oh, and coca-cola. Darn it. I need to switch to diet. But I mostly drink water.

Today was a scheduled work out day. I multi-tasked and read my book club book while on the elliptical. I was able to do 20 minutes, which is super considering my most recent exercise routine has involved getting off the couch to get a soda from the kitchen. It is really convenient to work out in my office's gym right after I stop work for the day. I also belong to a 24hr Fitness, but am much less likely to head there after work. I save alot of time doing cardio at work and am much less likely to blow it off.

Today, I am thankful....

...that Autum has finally arrived. I love this time of year!