Tuesday, August 24, 2010

1 Down...Only 54 More To Go!

I am on the weightloss bandwagon, again. But, this time I'm going semi-solo.

By semi-solo, I mean I'm not paying into a program, like Weight Watchers, this time. However, I will be relying on the education and materials gained from being a previous participant in such program.

With the help of this blog and its readers, I hope to remain accountable through this process.

Here's the deal...

You all know that I'm married. I have two adorable boys. My husband and boys deserve a wife and mother to be around for a long time. Some things I can control in that area and others I can't. Why not try to control the things I can? (Insert Serenity Prayer here.)

So, I'm giving it to you straight.

My weight is out of control (again). I know a lot of it has to do with emotional eating and lack of exercise (deadly combo, indeed). My portion sizes could use a major overhaul (again). And, I could drink A LOT more water (and reduce A LOT of pop drinking...soda to those of you not in the Pittsburgh area).

Why am I re-committing to weight loss, again?

The scale scared me...again.

195 pounds!!! 5 pounds away from 200?!? Is that possible?!

To get to my target weight goal of 140 pounds (a healthy weight based on my height & body type). I need to lose 55 pounds.

I joined my local Bally's Total Fitness gym. I've mainly been focusing on cardio for now (treadmill & elliptical).

And, I'm happy to report that I've lost 1 pound so far! Yay! Celebrating victories (no matter how small) is good. I'm now at 194.

On the food side, I'm gradually re-introducing myself to more fruits & veggies. I do love them. But, for some reason, when I'm not "paying attention" they tend to disappear from my diet.

Why broadcast my weight on a public blog linked to my Facebook?

Because I need accountability. I need my friends and family (and even complete strangers if they care) to realize how important this decision is to me to get healthy. This is not just to "look sexy" for a bathing suit type of weightloss. This is to lose weight so that I can make it to at least my 60th birthday type of weightloss. (Heart disease, obesity and diabetes run in my family.)

My husband does help, obviously. What kind of runner would he be if he didn't? His discipline astounds me.

But, sometimes you need your friends to give you that "swift kick" in the behind...so to speak. Or to give you that "atta girl". So, any helpful hints, comments on this blog or Facebook or otherwise are greatly encouraged!

Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Slow Metabolism

With a little over a month away from my 32nd birthday, I feel like my metabolism has drastically slowed down. It's much harder to shed the pounds now, especially after having two kids.

But, I must perservere.

45 minutes on the elliptical tonight.

It felt good. I purposely let the sweat drip down my face to feel like I was really getting a tough workout. I stuck to the heart rate prescribed by the machine. Slowing down when it indicated I was going too fast for my target heart rate.

I have a food and exercise journal I haven't used, yet. I'll start that tomorrow. It will keep me accountable. Accountability is a good thing for me. Weight Watchers worked for me I think mainly because of the accountability it offered. Once I went off of WW, I started getting lax, again, with portions (my true downfall).

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Busy, busy, busy...On Vacation!


Rachael, Evan & Tyler on the porch of The Casselman Inn
Well, sorry to all my loyal blog fans for not posting regularly lately.

I had a week off from work last week. You would have thought...perfect time to post, right?! Um...not so much...Busy with the boys, who both got sick (my luck) during my week off. Tyler with an earache (due to teething) and Evan with a summer cough/cold. I do have to say, though, that I enjoyed playing my Mommy role and taking care of them!

We did take a family trip to the Deep Creek Lake, MD area the weekend before last. We stayed at a wonderful little hotel/motel called The Casselman Inn in Grantsville, MD.While there, John bought me a gorgeous turquoise sterling silver ring as an early anniversary gift from Sacred Ground, a jewelry shop that sells authentic Native American turquoise jewelry. Going to that jewelry shop piqued my interest in how turquoise is valued. So, of course, I did some research online to look up information on turquoise mining. I found a couple of really good resources. One is http://www.skystonetrading.com/. Another good resource is http://jewelry.about.com/cs/turquoise/a/orvil_jack.htm. Apparently, the value of turquoise goes up if a mine has closed or if the turquoise is hard to find. The turquoise on my ring came from the Blue Ridge Turquoise Mine in Lander County, Nevada.

John, Evan & Tyler in front of the Casselman Bridge.
Our anniversary is September 18th. We'll be celebrating 6 years married! Technically, we've been together 8 years. We met November 2002 at Matrix dance club in Station Square. He actually asked me to dance. And, well...the rest is history! A house (with a mortgage) and two babies later...Here we are!

This past weekend we took at day trip to Mill Creek Park in Youngstown, OH where we visited Lanterman's Mill. What an absolutely gorgeous view! It's one of the largest "urban parks" in the country. I love how it weaves in and out of residential areas.

The Casselman Inn
At the Lily Pond in Mill Creek Park, we saw turtles sunning themselves on logs in the middle of the pond next to ducks. And, we met THE FRIENDLIEST squirrel alive! I'll post pictures later...You won't believe how freakin' cute this squirrel was. It came right up to us! Apparently, someone is feeding this squirrel. LOL ;)

Tyler playing in the sand at the lake in New Germany State Park (Maryland).
Evan is "King of the World"!! Tyler could care less...hahaha
Chillin' with my homie, Tyler! :)
Me @ The Stanton Mill near the Spruce Forest Artisan Village
Kayaks @ Deep Creek Lake (Maryland)
Friendliest Squirrel Award goes to...
I've never seen this many turtles in "the wild" in my life!
Lanterman's Mill, Youngstown, OH
Another view of Lanterman's Mill
Flowers in a tree stump...pretty!