I've been cooking!

Yes...cooking...I put out 3 meals this past week!  Oh...and breakfast this morning! vNow...that may not seem like much to many people...but for me, it is.  I am not a domestic goddess...nor do I resemble one in any way, shape, or form.  I am not a fan of cooking, I don't keep the tidiest house, I don't have a sewing machine on hand to repair or even make my own clothes (or Stella's)...I just don't do any of that.  I am NOT Molly Homemaker.

But back to the cooking thing.  I am attempting to point us (or, at least me) more in the direction of a paleo diet (but I hate the word diet).  What is paleo?  I'm not going into great detail here, I'll let Wiki handle that:  Paleo Diet.  In this house, we've always been big on prepackaged food, fast food, food of convenience.  However, as anyway who has looked at this blog realizes, my husband and I are both on a fitness kick and have been for about a year now.  So I bought myself some paleo cookbooks, downloaded a few more on my kindle as well as an additional app.  The following is a sampling of what I've been doing (as well as the cookbooks):


The dishes have been surprisingly simple (remember...I don't cook) and taste really really good!  I've got a list of meals for the next week already put together so I can head to the store tomorrow!

Ahh...back to the Y tonight...

The new session started last week and I finally made it tonight.  Boot Camp followed by Spin.  And both were great!  While in spin class, just sitting there pedaling away and dripping with sweat, I had the following realization:

We joined the Y approximately one year ago.  We joined primarily so my husband could swim (remember, he's training for tri/ironman races).  Now...I only go to the Y for my classes as I primarily use the gym at work for most of my exercising (and occasionally utilize the living room at home).  In the time we have been members of the Y...I have dropped approximately 40 lbs. (176 to 136).  I have gone from a size 12 (and at least one pair of size 14 jeans) to a 4.  And recently, the 4s have seemed a bit too big.  I've gone from larges and extra larges in tops to mediums.  And some of those are now a little loose fitting.  My bra size (yes, I'm going there...I'm going to share my bra size) has gone from a 38DD to a 32DDD.  But dammit...my shoe size hasn't changed at all!

The Y definitely doesn't get all the credit, not even a good portion of it.  It goes to me.  I'm the one doing it.  I'm the one that quit making excuses.  I'm the one getting it done.  It is no longer a matter of forcing myself to exercise - I stopped doing that quite some time ago - it is now a habit.  And by habit, I mean I am not happy if I can't get at least a small workout in.  Like cranky unhappy.      A kind of crankiness that could rival Stella's legendary crankiness when she's tired.

And here's the thing.  If I can do it...why can't so may others do it.  I work full time (and then some), I have a toddler.  I have a husband (a husband who works a complete opposite shift and has his own fitness goals).  But I do it.  I hear all kinds of excuses from people of why they can't (and many of those excuses I used at one time or other myself).  I hear that from people and yet they tell me what an inspiration I have become.  What exactly am I inspiring because they certainly aren't joining me in the gym...but rather contentedly complain about what they dislike about their body, health, etc.  I understand, I do...been there done that...but geez...if you say I inspire you...prove it!

2013 Goal Progress (and a few reviews)

Okay...so we're not quite into two weeks into this new year, so is an update really necessary?  Probably not, but still.  This is, in part, to keep me accountable.

Running

I now have one week in the books of a C25K program (this is the one I have opted to go with).  I survived.  I followed it without pause and survived.  I haven't yet actually looked for a 5k race to sign up for, although the husband did mention the one tied to the Arnold beginning of March.  He was talking more for himself, because I haven't told him and I don't think he knows that I am making my final attempt at running....but if he does decide to do it, I may surprise him and join in as well.

Along with the running, I finally got myself a decent pair of running shoes:

Nike Air Max 2012.  Love!  (and saved a few bucks by ordering them on eastbay.com rather than buying them at Dick's).  Seriously...I have been in search of a decent pair of shoes for a few months now (well...not totally dedicated to the search, but looking when I had time) and I love these.  No achy, hurting feet as yet (and hopefully this doesn't happen).

And I've bought more workout clothes from Old Navy.  Sale.  Gets me every time.  But loving their compression pants and tees...so I got more (four pairs of pants and four tees/tanks).

Improving Strength/Tone/Definition

I haven't made great strides in this area...but now I have a more immediate need for this:  we are taking a cruise in April for my birthday (been talking about it for more than a month now, but we are now ready to book) and I most definitely want to be bikini ready by then.  I know that diet is a big part of this, so I'm going to be doing a little experimenting.  I'm planning to give a paleo diet a whirl.  I've got a couple of books to get me started (and these books appear to go beyond just recipes...once I've really had a chance to review for myself, I'll comment further here and if I really like it, perhaps I'll share some recipes as well).

I also mentioned previously that I bought a couple of kettlebells to do some stuff at home.  I didn't realize it at the time, but the kettlebells came with their own dvd (apparently I didn't read beyond the weight on the package).  I gave the dvd a spin this past Thursday morning (part of my ongoing effort to do more here, so the husband is freed up for more time for tri training).  It was quite the sweat-inducing workout!  And, of course, made me realize that I am still not in the shape I wish to be in...I had to take an occasional pause.

Speaking of trying to do more at home, I have been referring to skimble more and more for workouts that I can do at home...primarily workouts that focus on abs, butt...that sort of thing.  I found one this morning - a 20 minute 'Brazilian butt' workout...that, once again, caused me to break a sweat.  This is good!

So that's my goal update.  For now.  As i said, the point of this post, really, is to keep me accountable, so perhaps if I update every few weeks, I will maintain that accountability.

the progression of me...

Kinda hard to come up with some comparison pics to do this post...seems that since I've had Stella, pics of me are rather scarce (or rather, pics of me beyond just my face)...so I am just pulling odds and ends from the past 5 years (and one from 10 years ago).  Here goes:

The above photo was from the summer of 2002. My first round of major weight loss was almost a year prior. My priorities then? Partying, enjoying the single life (I ended a very long term relationship - 10.5 years) that previous fall, working on my tan (pre-melanoma days).




Summer of 2007 - I had been dating my husband a year by this point - you know what that means! Yep...getting too comfortable in a relationship, start going to hell. I don't think I realized yet that I was starting to pork out.

  

Late summer 2007 - preseason football...rapid expansion it seems.

Now that (above) is attractive!  I am going to venture a guess here that it was taken summer of 08...sometime before my wedding.  And to think...I possibly thought I looked good!  One of the big problems (in other words...one of the problems attributed to my bigness) can clearly be seen in my left hand.

January 2009 - MP Ball.  At the time, I thought I looked pretty darn good!  In hindsight, not so much (well...except for my hair...loved my hair).

Mother's Day 2009...again...the hair looked good at least!  Sad part...this is a few years before I got pregnant.  No excuse that I looked like this (nevermind the fact that this particular photo was taken right after we got done pigging out at Biaggi's).  The other photo was a Florida vacation June 20009...I made it my mission to drink as much Yuengling as possible during that 6-day trip to Ft. Myers.  I was awesome.

These three pictures were over the summer of 2010...not too much before getting pregnant (the photo in the blue tank was perhaps just a few weeks before).  Around this time, I had gotten a new job, and started Weight Watchers shortly after...and then had to quit the WW due to becoming pregnant.

I am not going to bother with any photos from my pregnancy...and after having Stella...there's not a lot of 'just me'...because, well...she's a cute kid, she became my world, so not much getting out and taking photos.

So fast forward the holidays of the past two years:

2011

2012

The picture from 2011 - quite possibly the largest I had gotten (outside of being pregnant).  While they are not visible in this picture, the jeans I wore that night were a size 14.  14.  Never had I gone outside of a 12.  DEPRESSING!  Still didn't find that motivation I needed...not for several more months.   The picture on the right - from just a month ago - on the verge of the best shape I have ever been in.  The dress I am wearing in that photo - a size 4.  4.  Never in my adult life have I been in that size.  And not just a size 4 from one particular store, but all stores I typically shop!  I suppose if I was posting the above two photos on my instragram account, I could tag them as #transformationtuesday.  I mean...it is Tuesday and I think these two pictures do a pretty good job of showing my transformation from December 2011 to December 2012.

Review: Kindle Fire HD & Otterbox case

Been awhile since I've posted a review of anything...book, clothing, shoes, equipment, food, etc.  Actually, I've been slacking as a whole with the blogging thing...in case you haven't noticed.  So I'm going to do a little catch up...I mean, hey, Christmas and year end bonus has come and gone (and trust me...that bonus is definitely gone) so obviously I am going to have some new purchases to review!

Let's start with:

Kindle Fire HD (7")

My third kindle.  It has become something of a tradition between my husband and myself.  Third Christmas in a row he has bought me a kindle (first one was the 'regular' one, second was the original Fire and now this one).  Love!  I don't have the largest one - size-wise or memory-wise, but it suits my needs just fine.  I really have no need for an iPad.  I am happy the latest version has a camera.  It seems...faster?...than my first Fire.  There are some differences between the two...the new one is thinner...reminds me a lot of my husband's Samsung Galaxy (I suppose that they are actually quite similar).  

What don't I like about it?  Not much...really...I read a lot, and that was the original intent of the kindle is to satisfy that need/want and free up space I was taking up with all of my books.  There are a few things, however, that I am not all that excited about.  One being battery life...yes, it does still last a couple of days.  However, one of that awesome tings about my original Kindle (pre-Fire days) is that the battery would quite literally last a month before needing to be charged (unless it was in the lighted case and the light was on).  The other?  The camera.  yes...the addition to the new Fire that I was really excited about.  It just leaves me wanting more.

So with the new Kindle Fire, I found it necessary to be a complimentary case for it...one that could stand up to my toddler (and me, for that matter).  I found one.  And it is awesome.  It is an OtterBox case.  LOVE it.  Not just love it...I LOVE it.  Yes...it is heavier...much heavier.  Don't care.  As much as I tend to drop things (it is a wonder that i didn't kill the last Kindle Fire...but it survived to be  passed on to my mom), this was necessary.  I didn't need something to keep it nice...I needed something to protect it from being dropped on the floor, handled by a toddler, etc.  Yes...it was pricier than the other covers.  Yes, it was back-ordered when I initially ordered.  But, in my opinion...worth.every.penny.  It is pure awesomeness.  Although...I will admit that it took me some time to initially figure out how to open that damn thing!

My Goals for 2013

I don't do resolutions.  Resolutions just seem bound to fail.  I will do goals instead.  I've already kinda mentioned them before...but I think I have a better picture of my goals now.   Yes, it would seem that health and fitness tops my list...but quite honestly, outside of Stella and Shawn, that is what makes me happy.  It is my stress relief since I no longer smoke and rarely drink these days.  It makes me feel better about myself and, apparently over the course of the last several months, I have become an inspiration to others....so health and fitness has earned it's spot at the top of my list!

Health & Fitness

Running.  I want to finally be able to run.  I'm not going to hold my breath on this one, since I have had unsuccessful tries in the past, but I'm hoping this time I can success!

I want to continue to improve upon my strength and tone and definition.  It's slow going, and I haven't always been the most dedicated...but I'm working on it.

I want to make a better effort eating.  Eliminating the bad.  I am already avoiding that most of the time anyway...but I need to be better about cooking and eating and making better choices for myself and my family.

With my goals...particularly my fitness goals, it is going to be a bit more difficult to dedicate the time I want to be able to in the gym as my husband is ready to take his triathlon training to the next level and...well...I am putting that as a priority over my gym time.  Even so, I have made some purchases that will hopefully enable me to do a little more at home:

I plan to take what I've learned from the kettlebell classes and work with that at home and have found some websites and instruction that should further help.  And the thicker exercise mat to replace the yoga mats I was used to.

I also bought this journal:

Quite honestly, I am not sure how much good it is going to do me, but perhaps a bit better than trying to track my workouts on My Fitness Pal, I guess.  As a bonus, my husband passed down his old heart rate monitor watch since I bought him a Garmin 910xt for Christmas.  Now I just need to figure this out.

I'm waiting on my new shoes - they should arrive Thursday - and of course I will share when I do get them.

Organization

I am quite possibly one of the most disorganized people I know.  That's not a good thing, not something to brag about...but it has a lot of truth to it.  At work, at home...I am just a disorganized mess...and it hurts!  It hurts my job performance, it stresses me out, it can make living with me miserable at times (just as my husband)...it just sucks.  I haven't found any tools yet that are going to help with this...but I am leaning towards lists, lists and more lists.  Work and home.  Create a filing system that works for me - work and home.  Get rid of what I no longer use.  Last weekend, I went through my clothes and bagged up A LOT.  Some will go to a resale shop (clothes I bought within the last year and wore very few times before they go too big), some to Goodwill, and some just to one of those clothing bins.  I have a bag of pants and jeans that I have offered a few people, but if no takers that will also be divided between resale and Goodwill.

Finances

I was able to knock out some of the smaller debts with my year end bonus...but I am aiming to put a large dent in the bigger debts...including and especially the student loan.  I do really want to get one more degree...but I want the debt for what I have already earned gone before pursuing that! I have also started a savings account for Stella, started once again saving for retirement (like that will ever actually happen) and just rebuilding a decent savings account.  The last several years were rough...quitting a job, being laid off from another, wedding, child, etc.  The past year...even with Stella...things have finally started turning around and hoping to stay on this path.