weight watchers update

you know what's great? exercise. i had one of my best workouts (dare i say it?) ever last night. not only was i able to push myself harder, faster, stronger (ok, ok, so i stole that line from kanye, who stole if from daft punk, who stole it from... um, illegal substances?), i had a great time doing it. my initial plan was to run intervals for 25 minutes and complete 2 circuits of my weight training program. however, i was feeling so great after my first two intervals on the treadmill i decided to up the ante by increasing incline and resistance. but even that didn't feel like enough of a challenge for me, so back to the settings feature i went - to once again increase the difficulty of my workout. my run ended up lasting for 35 minutes (4 activity points). i run for runs like the one i had last night - i crave the physical and emotional strength that comes from long, hard workouts. anyways, after my run i stayed on the treadmill for another 15 minutes (1 activity point), walking steep inclines as i listened to bill clinton's speech at the democratic convention (interesting fact about yours truly: i'm really into politics - i did minor in if after all!)

when i returned from my trip in july i weighed in at about 157 lbs. while this really upset me at the time, in retrospect it was a small price to play for the many adventures i had overseas - the exotic foods i tried (alright, so maybe the meat pies i had in australia weren't crazy exotic, but nothing cures a "pure blonde" hangover like minced meat wrapped in layer upon layer of puff pastry with... aaand now i'm drooling at my desk), the people i met over drinks, the 20 + hour airplane rides, ... i tried sparkpeople.com for a few weeks, but found the program to be too restrictive, so i went back to the tried and true - weight watchers online. i rejoined on august 1st, weighing in at 154.5 lbs. since august 1st, i've lost about 3.1 lbs. tomorrow is my weigh in day and i'm hoping to be down another 3 lbs to bring my total loss for the month of august to just over 5 lbs. keep your fingers crossed for me!

during the school year i had zero success loosing weight. while i was able to maintain for the bulk of it, i packed on a few extra pounds in the spring (it being my last few months of undergrad, i was no stranger to the bar scene... on any night of the week). i finished the school year about 5 lbs heavier than when i started it. so why, you may be asking, am i back on a program that didn't "work" for me the first time? because in many ways i believe that ww did work for me - if i hadn't been on it, i truly believe that my 4th year gain would have been much, much higher. this time i'm in an entirely different place, both physically and mentally, and am fully committed to achieving my goal weight of 135 lbs. i no longer feel the need to get out of my mind drunk 5 nights/week, to grab post-bar food, to smoke myself into oblivion. i finally want to learn how to balance my social life with my health and fitness goals. and that, blog world friends, is my current focus. it is my theme of the moment, my color for fall.

my menu for today:

breakfast
1/2 cup plain yogurt (1)
1/2 cup fresh blueberries (0.5)
2 slices ww toast (1)
1 tbsp. pc blue menu jam (0)
1/2 cup egg whites (1.5)
1/4 cup skim milk in large coffee (0.5)

snack 1
1 kashi cherry chocolate granola bar (2)
1 source yogurt (1)

lunch
1 ww wrap (1)
3 oz. deli-sliced turkey (2)
1 tbsp. light cream cheese (1)
1/2 cup lettuce (0)
tons of cut-up veggies (0)

snack 2
1 hg's grab and go breakfast cookies --> found this delicious, and i mean delicious, recipe online at www.hungry-girl.com
1/4 cup low-fat milk (0.5)
1 small apple (0.5)

dinner
tbd --> most likely going out for dinner, as sisters are leaving for uni tomorrow

exercise - cardio day
35 minutes elliptical trainer (2) --> probably much higher, but i like to be conservative
20 minutes stationary bike (1)

my very own challenge!

today was weigh in day. recall that on thursday morning i weighed 147.0 lbs. however, when i stepped on the scale this morning i weighed a staggering 152.7 lbs.! yikes! i don't even remember the last time my weight was this high. how can i have gained 5.2 lbs. over the course of 3 days? how is that even possible? i'm hoping that the gain is largely due to water retention, but who knows. god, i feel miserable about this.

what makes it worse is that i'm hoping to shed a few pounds before i leave for my trip on may 8th. i can't let this let diversion get in my way - 3 days is not the end of the world. i can get through this little blip (positive self talk, positive self talk, ...) doesn't help that my self esteem has reached all time lows thanks to this weekend's events.

so what am i going to do about this? i'm going to start my very own 23 day challenge. nothing is going to get in my way - university is done, i'm moving out in a week or so, and all of my toronto friends still have exams. let's call my challenge, um, i need a name... ah yes, "dbc's pick yourself up out of the gutter and get moving 23-day challenge". notice how i don't make mention to my trip or trying to look hot or anything like that. right now i'm thinking of weight loss as a means to end - and that end is to get rando dudes to like me (and by like, i mean want to pick me up at the bar... sure, too much information, but the truth of the matter nonetheless). i have to shed this mindset. i want to start thinking about weight loss as a means of improving myself - eating better, exercising more often and effectively, trying new things (foods, group classes, etc.). my mantra going forward is, "i'm doing this for me, and no one else." not even you - asshole boy who rejected me at the bar! f*ck y'all, i'm shedding these pounds to make me feel better, so there - nah!

now that we're all thoroughly impressed by my maturity, allow me to share my plan with you:

1. follow weight watchers. yes, i'm tempted to try other "faster acting" plans, but i know that they won't work. i want this weight loss (however minor it may be in just 23 days) to be permanent. i want to have my healthy habits set in stone by the time i leave - binging on delicious asian food while away = not on plan
2. reduce daily points to 24. normally i adjust my daily point values to be 25, but for these 23 days i'm going to do exactly what the site tells me -and today it told me to eat 24 points per day (normally 23 - ouch that hurts!)
3. work out minimum of 5 times a week. and try different exercises too! incorporate more weight training and yoga (both for the peace of mind and health benefits)
4. post progress on blog each day. you'll soon notice a new sidebar dedicated to my challenge. watch it as i tackle this baby head on
5. do not get drunk. you hear me? that's right, i am not getting drunk once in these 23 days. i'd love to say no drinking altogether but i know that's unrealistic for me. instead, 2 - 3 drinks when i got out max. none of this binge drinking and throwing myself at randos business. nu uh - i'm done with that (at least until australia...) i'm trying to solve all of my post-break up problems at the bar and - get this - it's not working. i need some quality sober time
6. taking a page out glams book here, but on the morning of may 8th, my 24th day on plan, i'm going to post a picture of myself in a bikini. on this very website. with the caption "i did it!" no ifs, ands, or buts about. this sh*t is going down

also, you may have noticed my self deprecating post last night and thought to yourself, "geeze, why is this chick such a debbie downer"? well, i'll tell you straight up that i got shut down on saturday night. cute guy, known him for a while now, just wasn't into me. i put myself out there for the first time since matt, and i got slapped in the face (not literally). and it suuucks. i felt horrible about myself. even now when i look back on it i get this awful sinking feeling in my stomach (ok, guess the "even now" bit wasn't necessary - this did just happen on saturday). ahhh well, live and let live. i've learned some lessons from this one and they will not be soon forgotten.

i have about 7.5 hours of school left - project due at 5 pm - so i should probably get down to it. god, can't wait for school to be over. it's such a drag.

here's to my new challenge! i know i can do it.

sometimes i count...

... foods that are 2 points as 1 point. take my (second) afternoon snack today: 1 apple and 1 cheesestring. now technically the cheesestring should be 2 points (60 calories, 4 gm. fat, 0 gm. fiber), but i think that's just too much for 1 measley stick of cheese. ok, i take that back. it's not a measley stick of cheese - after all, you can make some sweet hoola girls and furry things out of it. but still!

this brings me to my second weight watchers confession: i eat 2 more points each day than i should. everytime i do the quiz i add 2 points to my total. the extra 2 points makes the program that much more manageable for me. when i eat more on a regular basis, i tend to binge less. after all, my primary focus right now is handling my bingeing and not loosing the 10 or so extra pounds i'm carrying around.

onwards with the news. or my news, i should say. today started off great: got up, made french toast for breakfast, went to the gym, had a healthy lunch and afternoon snack. and then about an hour ago intense hunger hit. eff! i could eat a cow. i think part of my problem is the copious amount of snow that is currently being dumped on southern ontario. i can't see out of my window, let alone go for a walk, shopping, coffee. i literally can't leave my house! this is bad news bears for my growling stomach, as i find leaving my house the best way to get my mind off of eating. ugh!

my menu for today:

2 ww bread (1)
1 egg (2) --> notice how i counted this as 2 points. i swear i don't cheat all of the time!
2 tbsp. light maple syrup (1)
1 source yogurt (1)
1/4 cup frozen unsweetened blueberries (0)
1/2 cup soy milk (1/4 cup for french toast and 1/4 cup for coffee)

1/2 cup garbanzo beans (2)
1/2 can of drained tuna (in water) (1.5)
1 tsp. olive oil (1)
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar (0)
lettuce and veggies (0)
1/4 cup soy milk (for tea)

1/2 scoop whey powder (1)
3/4 small banana (1)
1/2 tbsp. peanut butter (1)
1/2 cup soy milk (1)

1 medium apple (1)
1 cheesestring (1)

8 points remaining plus 4 activity points. 12 should do quite nicely for today.

dinenr is tba, but looking like white fish with sweet potato fries. i might even cave and make some pasta. pasta always fills me up!

some of my friends want to go out tonight, but right now i would rather stay at home and get caught up on work. i hate going out when it's blizzarding out. i spend about an hour getting ready only to end up looking like sasquatch upon my arrival. real cute.