Go Away Fair Weather Exercisers!

You can always tell when the holidays are here. Those people can't seem to make it to the gym every other day of the year and are too busy shopping before Christmas. But today, the old guilt set in. I went to Body Pump, like I always do at lunch on Monday. It was full and I was turned away. I couldn't believe it. I'm a regular for God sake! Do they know who I am? Those people have no right to show up and take my space! My entire week was thrown off track! I mean really, I had last week off and still make it there for Body Pump three times! Doesn't that earn me a spot?

I fumed for a while and then drove home and changed and went for a run outside. After all, it was really nice out and I could be months before I can do that again without slipping on deadly ice and knocking myself out. I will hold this against the Body Pump instructor for a long time though. I don't care how hot he looked in his crushed velvet Santa shorts last week!

I've been on the "Detox Diet" since Christmas. I figured the week between Christmas and New Years presented an opportunity. I could keep from ending the holiday season with a weight gain. I caved tonight just a little. You see, I'm having a colonoscopy Wednesday and will have to go nearly two days without solid food. I decided to splurge on some wine and some wholegrain toast with peanut butter. OK. It was a little splurge. It's been bran cereal, fruit, veggies, hummus, and brown rice for three days! I've really been so good and missing BP today really sucks! I can't make it again until Sat. if then.

OK, the colonoscopy. Normally they don't recommend till age 50, but my maternal grandmother died in her 40's of colon cancer so I wanted to be proactive. You should all take care to be preventive as well. Trust me, no one wants to do this, but it could save your life. I've got way too much living left to do and too much to leave behind.

Holiday parties and snow, oh my!

Three Christmas parties and a Christmas concert in two days. I'm exhausted not to mention all those munchies! Last week was a bad body week. I only got in two work outs! I headed out to go running yesterday, but it was sooooo cold and the park was all icy. I could just see me laying there with my head split open after slipping. I did slip while running outside last year and I really had the wind knocked out of me. I wasn't taking any chances. I did get to sport my new winter running hat and gloves that I got as a Christmas present from a friend. I was the coolest looking person in the park. Oh wait, I was the only person in the park.

Well, let's see. Only three parties this week. Yikes! I'd better watch it or my ten pounds will be back quicker than the Grinch can steal the rare Who Roast Beast!

I did have lots of fun at all the parties and the food was great. I don't think I ate too much. Today, I'm just sitting around watching Christmas movies on Lifetime and eating the Sweet potato, black bean, and turkey chili I made. Sundays are the best!

Tomorrow, I'm at least making body pump class before I blow the whole week!

Is wrapping presents exercise?

I kind of had a slacker week. I didn't blog, much, and I only got in three workouts! I'm shooting for a better week, but not feeling so good so we'll see.

Previously I mentioned that shopping should be a sport, but I have another one. . . wrapping presents. It really is a lot of work. You've gotta relocate all the presents to the wrapping room, find the tape, all the paper, bags, ribbons, bows, tags, etc. By the time you've done that, you've cleaned out a closet or two because you can't just dig all that stuff out and leave a year's worth of junk all over the place. Then you sit down with the presents and figure out who gets what and wrap. At this point, I'm completely exhausted because it took me so long to find everything. I just bought a bunch of fancy gift boxes and I still have plenty of gift bags. Those are the best. They sure take the work out of wrapping.

Oh, let's not forget decorating the house. . . same drill. Gotta find everything. I remember a long time ago hearing someone talk about hiring someone to decorate for the holidays and thinking it would take all the fun out. I've changed my attitude. I'll all for it. It's just not that much fun when you have all the responsibilities of life.

There are so many parties this week/weekend. . . four in fact, that I just don't know how I'll get in all my workouts and eat healthy too. I did make Body Pump today, but felt like crap because I think I'm getting a cold.

Come to think of it, that Smart Lipo is sounding better all the time! Oh wait, there's the oozing fat thing after. Oh well. . . tis the season to eat, drink, and be merry, right?

Head to stomach: Thanksgiving is over! Get over it!

My stomach was growling all day. I went back to my healthy eating, well except for the french fries I stole from my son, but those don't count since they weren't mine. My stomach is used to eating much more after the Thanksgiving four-day food frenzy! It's probably not a good idea to eat a fiber one bar and a bean burrito in one day. Between the growling and gurgling my stomach could have played the symphony!

Good news though, the scale is still the same and oh news flash, It's Not All About the Scale! I've been running more lately. . . mainly to make up for all the eating. Yeah, leading up to and following Thanksgiving, I've been kicking it up. So, I put on a skirt this morning and it was way too big! Then I put on some fairly new linen pants, too big too! I'm talking clown pants big. You look like you're playing dress up big. They were not an option. I had to pull out a skirt I haven't worn in a while that is a size smaller. Yup. The scale is the same, but the running is really trimming off the inches. I did not measure myself, so I can't say how many inches, but at lease one size down. Maybe more.

Teach your old food new tricks

By now, you're probably completely sick of your Thanksgiving leftovers, if there are any left. Yeah, I felt the same way, so I came up with some new ways to serve them. Risotto became risotto cakes by adding an egg and forming into cakes, then dipping them in flour and sauteing in a pan. Some other ideas I tried out this weekend. . .

Squash and Sweet Potato Strata:

Saute 1 cup bread in olive oil and garlic. Place in baking dish, add green onions, 1 1/2 cups grated cheese, mix 6 eggs and 1 cup milk with leftover sweet potato and or squash. You can add other leftover vegetables too, if you like. Bake and serve.

Potato Pancakes:
Leftover mashed potato
1/2 cup green onions
1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup milk
1 cup grated hard Italian cheese
2 eggs
salt and pepper

For into small pancakes saute in olive oil until browned and firm. About 2-3 minutes on each side.

Turkey Pannini:

8 slices sourdough bread
leftover turkey
leftover stuffing
Brie
leftover whole cranberry sauce or cranberry chutney
fresh sage

Place brie on half the bread. Top with turkey, stuffing, and sage. Spread other half of bread with cranberry sauce. Cook in Pannini maker or frying pan with olive oil until golden brown and cheese is melted. Cut in half and serve.

OK, these aren't low-fat ideas but they are a really great use of your leftovers. I really hate to waste food. Be sure to go for a long run after you eat.

That's what I did this morning after eating this for brunch. My sister and I went for a 3.6 mile run. It's so hard not gaining weight during the holiday season. It's only just begun.

I did say I was going to get all the bad food out of the house. I succeeded without throwing it away. Now I've gotta be good, at least till the weekend when I have the first of many Christmas parties. Oh what fun it is. . .

Leftovers. . . a blessing in disguise

Thanksgiving leftovers are great, except they extend the eating frenzy. I'm happy to say the scale this morning had not changed since Wednesday, before the mass eating began. I got in a three-mile run today along with an hour body pump class. I think I made up for it once I got home and dug into leftover stuffing and risotto. I need to get this food out of my house! I'm heading to my sister's tomorrow and all bad food will be gone this weekend. It's back to veggies and Lean Cuisine for me.

I think I got in a little extra weight lifting while shopping with the crazies this morning. Let's see, you have to run to beat the other customers, wrestle to get those sale items before they're gone, weight lift those bags while you continue to shop, squat to reach the items on the bottom shelf, and walk to the next store. Yes, shopping is officially a sport. It should be an Olympic event!

I did get some good deals this morning, but I could probably have done just as well by sleeping in and shopping online on cyber Monday. I think I will sleep in next year. I'm exhausted.

I ate it. . . ALL

I can't believe I ate the whole thing! Yup, I ate so much awesome food I think I could actually explode. The Julia Child in me truly came out today, right down to the 50's style apron and the pearls.

Let's see, I made the spinach with white truffle oil, Brussel sprouts with bacon, butternut squash risotto, dates stuffed with goat cheese and walnuts (I could leave those) and mushrooms stuffed with lobster and goat cheese. Those were a last-minute addition and really worth it. Here's how to make them in case you want them for your holiday party:

Lobster and Goat Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms
1 pound stuffing mushrooms
3 gloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped leeks
sherry
1/2 stick butter
Lobster from about a 1 to 1 1/2 pound lobster
4 oz crumbled goat cheese
1/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup heavy cream
salt and pepper to taste

Remove stems from mushrooms and chop. Melt butter, add leeks, garlic, and mushroom stems and saute until soft. Add lobster cook a couple of minutes than add sherry. Cook until slightly reduced. Add cheese, bread crumbs, cream, salt and pepper. Heat through. Remove from heat. Cook mushrooms in a pan or microwave until some liquid comes out. This will shrink them a little before you stuff them. Fill mushrooms with stuffing, drizzle with olive oil. Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes, or until browned on top. Let cool slightly and serve.

Other food we had today included Cranberry and Walnut stuffing with chestnuts. I got that at Williams-Sonoma and my son's girlfriend made it. The two of them made crab mornay in phyllo cups. My sister made pumpkin and carrot soup with curry. Of course, we had all the traditions too, and pumpkin chocolate chip cheeses cake, chocolate cream pie, pumpkin pie, butterscotch gram cracker pie, carrot cake, and apple crisp. I had a small bite of everything.

Oh, and for brunch since our big meal was at dinner, I made omelets with lobster, spinach, fontina cheese, and white truffle oil. OMG! They were so good. I had something like that at a hotel once and I wanted to replicate it. I think I did it. It was a big hit!

I alleviated some of the guilt from today by going for a 4-mile "turkey trot" with my sister. Of course, I got a little case of the "turkey trots" and we had to stop after the first mile, but I was able to continue. We went jogging by our old high school and did a hurkey jump in the parking lot. You know, for old time sake since we were both cheerleaders.

I've been gearing up all week for this day by running and hitting the gym. Got in three smaller pre-turkey trots and a body pump class. I came close to walking out the other day when I realized, after I was completely changed, that I had no socks. There's nothing worse than running with no socks! I stuck it our for three miles. After all, I had spent all that time changing, which was no small task considering my five pounds of jewelry and tights! That was a workout in and of itself.

My challenge tomorrow is Black Friday shopping. I'll hit the stores at about 5 a.m with one or two of my sisters and my neice and battle the crazies. I do it more for the sport of it. Not really looking for anything. I do think shopping should be a sport. I was actually sore last weekend from carrying all my bags and walking so much.

Well, gotta rest up for the shopping. Happy Thanksgiving!

Planning for Thanksgiving.

I'm loving this warm November, because I got up early and went for a run. I knew I'd have a crazy day, so I wanted to get it in. After all, it's going to be a tough week for the diet with Thanksgiving and all. I'm planning my food. I'm going to attempt the truffled spinach I ate over the weekend because it was so amazing. The good thing about truffle oil is that you only need a small amount.

I'm also planning on caramelized Brussel sprouts with bacon, my usual pumpkin risotto, I think some dates stuffed with goat cheese. I'm still working on it. I should probably consider some really low fat options as well. I bought some chestnuts at Williams-Sonoma over the weekend. I just opened them and ate some. They are surprisingly low in fat. Only a half a gram in five chestnuts. I think I'll add them to my cranberry pecan stuffing. I may attempt a pumpkin and white cheddar souffle too. Hmmmm. I really need to find a low-fat option!

Oh wait, my sister is making Weight Watchers pumpkin pie. I'll just eat that!

OMG. I'd better get in a long run tomorrow too!

Not the biggest loser!

I'm not the biggest loser in the sister's weight-loss contest. I lost ten pounds, and my sister Laurie lost 12. I made the mistake of not making it the largest percentage of weight loss. Otherwise, I'd have won!

I'm still happy with ten pounds. I splurged a little and had the most amazing food at The Grill Room in Portland. I like to be adventurous, so I actually tried Sweetbreads. If you've never tried them, they are the edible glands of animals such as cows, lambs, etc. I know, gross, right? But they were breaded and served with a lemon caper sauce. They were really good. I also had escargot. That was OK. It wasn't garlicky enough for me. I had fillet Mignon with Bearnaise sauce, grilled sweet potatoes, and Brussel sprouts with bacon. I wanted to try a bunch of stuff, so I shared and tried bites of other people's food too. The truffled spinach and tuna tar tar were amazing as well. I did not over do though. I actually left half the fillet and gave it to my son to take home. I hate that feeling when I've over stuffed myself. I also drank lots of water during dinner, so that would fill me up some too. It was totally worth it to try everything.

It's back on track tomorrow, at least till Thursday when the Thanksgiving feast is on. I have a 4-mile turkey trot planned that morning with my sister to alleviate some of the guilt.

Some really good news though, I bought a top and a dress at Banana Republic in size medium, but they were too big! I had to return them for a small. How great is that!

Well I'm exhausted from all that shopping. I actually hurt! My shoulder is killing me from carrying all those bags. I was sweating my but off at the Mall. Oh, and I got up and ran on the treadmill at the hotel. At least I didn't totally blow the weekend!

Tomorrow, it's planning for Thanksgiving dinner!

I can't believe I said that!

I was in Body Pump class today. Feeling good. Having fun. Then our instructor was talking about growing a mustache for a Lance Armstrong prostate cancer awareness campaign called Mo (short for mustache) details are at www.livestrong.org. We were kind of making fun of him, and I meant to say he looked like Ron Burgundy, you know Will Farrel's character from Anchorman, http://www.imdb.com/video/screenplay/vi4080861977/. What I actually said was Ron Jeremy, the porn star. I was about 300 shades of red, and of course he probably thought I was a complete perve! I was so flustered, I didn't change my weight for bicep curls and ended up doing way more weight than I normally do. I guess that's good, but I'm afraid I'll be super embarrassed going back.

Oh well, I have to. I have to lose 1.2 pounds by Saturday to win the contest with the sisters. I was soooo good today. I ate salad for lunch and dinner. I'll be pooping the rest of the week. I'm also going to run like I'm being chased by a crazy person. I'm determined to win! It's the competitor in me! Ok, gotta hit the hay so I can get up and run! TTFN!

Lessons learned

It ain't over till the fat lady sings! Oh wait, I sing every day. So, I ended my ten-ten-ten contest losing ten pounds. I didn't get every one's official weigh-in but I'm pretty sure I won. I'm not done yet, so I will continue my quest. . . plus the sister's contest ends Saturday.

What have I learned?

You have to move.
You have to reduce your fat/caloric intake.
You may have everything in moderation, not everything.
Hang out with friends you want to be like, not ones who make you feel better about being fat.
Work out. Whether you want to or not.
Hair color and manicures don't make you look thinner.
People won't like it when you lose weight.
True friends will encourage, not discourage.
You can't diet your entire life. You must change your ways.
Drink wine. In moderation.
Laugh at yourself.
Laugh at others.
Splurge. Not just on special occasions.
Accept compliments.
Stop making excuses.
Cook, eat and enjoy it!

Bon appetite!

The Great Pumpkin (cookie) Charlie Brown

They say never eat anything bigger than your head. The cookie I had today might be right up there. I had to go out of town, slightly. I stopped at a store I used to frequent frequently. They make these giant low-fat pumpkin cookies. They are huge and awesome. I just had to stop. It was sooooo good!

I grabbed some vegetarian sushi too that I had for dinner. Everything was organic and the rice was actually Bulgar wheat. Totally healthy. I don't usually get too concerned with organic. There's so much hype and it's way more expensive and I've read that nutritionally there's really no difference. Plus, I'm sure I've said this before, but shit is organic. I sure don't want to eat it. Even when people tell me to.

When vegetables are fertilized with manure, there's a better chance of e-coli contamination too. I just let my vegetables grow in the back yard without fertilizer or any chemicals. Yes, some things are eaten by bugs, etc. before I can get them, but for the most part they're OK and I know they haven't been contaminated.

Well, tomorrow is the day that my ten-ten-ten contest is over with my co-workers. Ten weeks to lose ten percent of our body weigh to be a ten! Not sure any of us lost ten percent, but I am probably going to win. I could have done better, but I chose to just chance how I eat and have lost nearly ten pounds. I won't feel bad about that. I'm not done yet, but I think the most important thing is to reduce body fat in a healthy way. Stay tuned!

Sorry Jack!

I couldn't let that jack-o-lantern go to waste. Actually, it was just a pumpkin anyway, since I didn't carve it up. Rather than waste it, I carved, scraped, chopped, and roasted. Ended up with some yummy pumpkin risotto and today some pumpkin chicken chili. Did I mention that pumpkin is full of cancer-fighting beta carotene? Yup. Sorry Jack, you had to go at such a young age, but just know that you'll help me live longer!

Just remember, anything you can do with pumpkin or squash puree, you can do with your leftover Halloween pumpkin. Not only will you save money by not wasting the pumpkin, but you'll benefit from the nutrition of fresh rather than canned. Oh, and it tastes way better too. You can even make it into pumpkin pie! I have another on my front step. I think I'll roast it and save it for Thanksgiving.

Too polite not to eat. . .

Sometimes it's just not polite to not eat something. I had a lunch meeting yesterday. They wanted to pitch a sponsorship opportunity to my company. I was invited, along with my boss, to the home/office of a prominent business person in the community. The home was lovely. Lunch was lovely as well. It was a very nice cream of broccoli soup, a salad with shaved parmigiana reggiano and very good quality calamata olives, olive oil, and balsamic vinegar. Then there were cannolis from a local Italian bistro. It really would have been rude not to partake. What do you do?

I did scoot out at the last minute before lunch to make Body Pump. I was going to skip. Didn't have any buddies, and had my excuses all lined up. Funny, those excuses don't always work with my conscience. My raking blister injury lost out in the end. My two-hours of sleep lost out too. I really did feel great after the workout. Big surprise. I always do. I was especially glad after lunch.

Funny, today wasn't much different. My son is in town, and I always like to make breakfast. I made egg and brie sandwiches on baguettes toasted in olive oil and garlic. They were quite yummy. It has been a long time though since I've eaten brie and my stomach instantly felt it. It is so rich! Then guilt set in and I went running. Then I did cardio kick boxing and skipped lunch. Good thing because I made Chicken Marsala and pumpkin risotto for dinner. I did skip the heavy cream, except a splash to finish off the Chicken Marsala. Oh how I love food! There's just not enough time in the day to work it all off. Plus, I kind of ache from trying to do so.

You know what's really cool though is that a girl in class at the gym asked if I was losing weight and said it showed. That made my day. That makes all the hard work worth it. No one wants to be a fatty!

I hurt. . . so good!

That's right! Day off today, and I made it count! Started off with a Chocolate Banana Vivano from Starbucks and a coffee. That kept me going, and it's a healthy option too. They put a whole banana in it. I didn't realize that one time, and almost gaged when I got a piece of banana in the bottom because it was all slimy. I felt much better once I found that out. For a moment, I thought the workers were playing some kind of sick joke!

I think this is the hardest I've worked physically in a long time. I cleaned out my car and washed the inside. It needed it for a while, and today I finally had the time. Squeezed in some laundry, then headed to the gym for Body Pump. All my workout buddies weren't there, since we had the day off. I actually look forward to going to the gym when I don't have to rush back to work. Not as much fun without my buds though.

Stopped at the store to get some healthy food. I actually had time to use all those coupons they keep giving me at the checkout. The clerk gave me major attitude though. I mostly bought items that I had a coupon for such as Healthy Choice, Lean Pockets, and Weight Watchers dinners. I also had returned bottles when I was cleaning out my car, so I had those slips too. So, I handed her my stack of coupons and she said "for just this?" Then she proceeded to make sure I had each and every item, like I was some kind of coupons cheater or something. OMG, no wonder I never use them. I just had so many in my purse because every time you go to the grocery store these days, they give them to you with your receipt. If they don't want you to use them, they shouldn't give them to you. And they should lose the attitude! I saved $14, so take that attitude girl!

I took a break to catch up on As the World Turns before heading out to rake leaves. That's not fun! I'm sure I'll hurt tomorrow. I think all the leaves in town are in my yard! Usually I can con someone into raking them, or at least pay someone, but I decided to do it myself this time.

After the leaves, I went for a three-mile run. I figured I had the time, might as well make it count! I felt great.

Then, I pampered myself with a manicure and pedicure. I will sleep like a baby! And, hopefully this will help my bottom line, if you know what I mean!

Well, I'm completely wiped out! Good night!

The Secret is Out!

I just watched Biggest Loser. I was very disappointing because the biggest people on the show were voted off. I hate it when the leave and they don't continue. They've had the opportunity of a life time, and they totally throw it away! Many of them change their lives, and that it amazing that they do that. I'll never let myself weigh enough to be on the show, but I'd love the opportunity to go to a ranch and only have to worry about eating well and exercising all day. It's life that gets in the way.

I felt great after a three-mile run at the gym today. I'll feel even greater tomorrow when I can go to the gym for a couple of hours. I actually look forward to going to the gym when I don't have to rush back to work. I know many people don't go when they have a day off like we do tomorrow because of the holiday. I could spend it eating badly and watching TV, or I can do something good for myself. I just love the feeling after and knowing we're heading into the holidays, I think any chance we get to work out is an opportunity.

Plus, I've gotta beat 8.8 pounds in the sisters weight-loss contest. I'm somewhere between 7 and 10 pounds. I think I need to stay away from salt for the next week and a half and find foods that are a diuretic.

I had bran cereal with bananas on top for breakfast and a bowl of fruit salad, and a Healthy Choice Turkey and Sweet Potato meal for lunch. I drank plenty of water, but there was that United Way reception tonight. There was smoked salmon, buffalo wings, and meatballs. All loaded with salt and/or fat. Good thing I ran today and will again tomorrow. I think I need to make a vegetable soup tomorrow and eat it for the next week!

I saw an old friend the other day. He asked me why I never age. How do you say to people that if you eat well and exercise, you can actually slow the aging process. You can't really have that conversation in five minutes. People just don't want to hear it. I just smile like I don't really know the answer. Just taking care of yourself is the secret, but I don't consider it a secret. People really want a quick-fix that doesn't require work. Here's a secret, there is no such secret! Oops, it's out.

The old wedding dress, and Yes! a good body day!

When I went to my niece's play last night one of the girls wore a wedding dress. It looked kind of familiar. There was a reason, it had been my sister's wedding dress nearly 24 years ago. I could hardly believe it. . . it was so tiny. The girl wearing it couldn't have weighed more than a hundred pounds. Come to think of it, I didn't weigh much more than that when I got married ---- years ago! I could never fit into my dress again. (Then again, why would I want to?)

Why is it the we gain so much weight with age? I don't buy that our metabolism slows down, it's that we slow down. Think about all the running around we did, sports, etc. Always on the go. Never time to eat. Now we come home, eat, get ready for bed and go to bed. OK, yeah our metabolism slows down because when we are active, we speed it up! We just need to get active again!

If only I could have more days like today. I didn't have a chance to eat breakfast until about 10:30. I had a healthy egg-white flat bread sandwich from Dunkin Donuts. Since I usually eat lunch around 11:00 or 11:30, I didn't eat again. I just had an apple after the gym and a bottle of water.

That's right. . . ate light, went to the gym, ate an apple, and drank water. Like I said, if only I could have more days like this. It was a fast-food Monday I have to say. I did not have the energy to tackle the grocery store, and the cupboards are bare. I picked up some KFC grilled chicken, potatoes, and green beans for my son and I had my Fresco favorites from Taco Bell: Fresco Bean Burrito and Fresco Chicken Ranchero Soft Taco.

With only one week and a day left of the contest with my co-workers and 12 days left with the sisters, I NEED to have more days like this!

Jillian and Julia would be so proud!

Is it possible to get your whole week's worth of exercise in in one day? Not really, but I certainly tried to get in as much as possible yesterday. I walked for a half hour, did a half hour of cardio kick boxing, then a half hour of circuit training, and a half hour run. That's like a freakin' quadrathlon or something, isn't it? I know, not quite. I was determined to get in a really good workout because I only had the chance to get in one workout last week.

Since this wasn't my usual workout, I discovered some new muscles that I haven't heard from in a while. Hello muscles, thanks for reminding me you are there! Schedule looks good for making Body Pump tomorrow.

Of course, I kinda cancelled out all my hard work yesterday when I got together with friends for drinks and food. There were all kinds of little snack-type appetizer things, which of course I ate because I was starving at that point. Then I made Chicken Marsala and roasted garlic and rosemary potatoes. Oh, and my mom's Swedish Apple Pie. Oh man, I've got some running to do this week! Jillian and Julia would be proud of me! At least if you're going to eat well, you've gotta do something to burn it off!

Only one week left of my diet challenge with my co-workers and two weeks with the sisters, but we do have a new work challenge that I hope will keep me on track. It's maintain, don't gain. We all had to get weighed in and will weigh again in January. The idea is to get us through the holidays without putting on too many pounds. It's good to have some competition to keep from gaining weight.

slackin off and Big Fat and little white lies!

Oh no, I had a total slacker day today. Couldn't hit the gym because my son had an appointment, and I didn't make it there after work either. I did make it to the Ground Round for dinner. Lifting that wine glass counts as exercise, right?

So, as always, I plan to make it all up tomorrow. That means I have to work out 3 hours and 20 minutes. No problem. Anyone want to join me? This has been a bad week. A very bad week indeed. In spite of it, my scale tells me I've lost ten pounds. It will probably be a completely different story tomorrow. I will be good, I will be good.

At least I had salmon, broccoli, and a plain baked potato at Ground Round. I don't mean to be mean, but there were a lot of really large people there tonight eating giant portions of fried everything. Don't they ever feel guilty? I was feeling bad for not going to the gym, eating a few hand fulls of popcorn, and drinking wine. I guess I'm glad the guilt kicks in before I reach 200 pounds! My mirror may tell big fat lies, but my scale can only tell little white lies. It can't be off by too many pounds. Those are the cold hard facts and I know when to cut back! Some people apparently don't have a scale or mirror. Is life happier in that world? I think not. There are still dressing room mirrors. They're cruel to everyone, they do not discriminate.

Do heels make you look thinner?

If you're a woman, you know that wearing heals makes you look much thinner. I'm only 5 feet 4 inches, so heals are almost always a must. I left the house rockin' a black suit with a crisp white shirt and argyle vest, and of course some pointy-toed high heels. I didn't think my day through when I got dressed. I knew I'd be going to the March of Dimes Chef's Auction and might be helping out at the event. I ended up spending ten hours, other than a few breaks, on my feet in my high heels! That must be worth about a million calories burned, right? It's at least gotta be a great calf and but workout. Probably not, but man I was ready to get off my feet! At least I looked thinner. . . at least in my mind.

My friend's husband thinks that's the funniest thing, that women think about what they wear on their feet to make them look thinner. I know men don't have to think about that, but it's really important to us. I just heard the other day on Cosmo radio that it's true, so it must be scientific or something.

The Chef's Auction had lots of food from many area restaurants. Most of it was super fattening. The cannolis looked devine, but I stayed clear. I did indulge in some seafood chowder and a small piece of lasagna. At least I had a Weight Watchers egg sandwich for breakfast and a Starbucks Vivano for lunch, so I don't think I was too bad. There was salad, but of course I didn't make it over to the healthy stuff.

I'm pretty psyched, because I ended up with two auction items. . . one for a mani, pedi, hot-stone massage, and $50 restaurant gift certificate and one for a but-load of coffee! Five pounds of Dunkin' Donuts coffee, two pounds of Starbucks coffee, 12 cups of McDonald's coffee, and one month of Tim Horton's coffee, plus two Starbucks mugs. Hmmm. What should I keep and what should I give for Christmas gifts. That will be a tough decision.

It's snowing, and that makes exercising outside a lot more difficult. Not that I'll actually do it, because I didn't today, but I always think I'm going to get up early and run. I at least have the snow as an excuse tomorrow.

Competition heating up, asparagus, and running in the dark

Well, the competition is heating up in the sister's weight-loss competition. I have one who is at 8.4 pounds lost. My scale said 9 this morning, but that could change drastically by tomorrow.

So, I went to body pump at lunch and then went for about a three-mile run tonight. I was so tired and it was cold and dark, but I did it anyway. How did it get so cold and dark so quickly? I was a little creeped because I kept hearing things while I was running. It was only 7:15 when I went, but maybe I should run at the gym next time. I just like to go home first, check the mail, eat, etc. then go running outside. I need to get my ipod fixed so I don't hear all the creepy noises.

I ended up eating the same thing for lunch and dinner. It's a Healthy Choice Pumpkin Ravioli with asparagus and butternut squash with a sage butter. It's really good. I think they make another Pumpkin Ravioli that I didn't like as much, but this one is good. Asparagus twice today will surely make my pee smell like burnt rubber! I wonder why that is? I read once Asparagus detoxifies your liver. That's not a bad thing. Just means you can drink more wine, right?

Everyone in body pump today was really quiet. I think the time change has everyone messed up. I feel like I could sleep for a week. What happened to that extra hour? I want it back!

So many people are sick too. Maybe I'll get sick and lose some weight! That never works for me for some reason. Then again, I'm never so sick I can't eat. I can always eat. Even when I don't feel good, I want to eat. Is it "feed a cold starve a fever," or "starve a cold, feed a fever?" I can never remember, so I just feed everything no matter what it is.

My plan is to get up early and go running again tomorrow. That's if my old-lady muscles and joints aren't aching so bad I can't get out of bed. I'm going to have to do something I almost never do. Set my alarm clock. Maybe I should start doing that more often and I wouldn't always be late for work. Nahhhh, It's not that I don't wake up, it's that I don't want to get up. I want to be one of those people who don't think about it and bounce out of bed and workout before work. I know I'll never be one of those people. I hate them anyway.

Two weeks, Yikes!

I heard this on the radio today: nothing tastes as good as it feels to be thin. I love that. Too bad we only feel that way after we've eaten that pint of ice cream.

No rational statement in the world can come between us and our food when we really, really want it. It's like we have no control. I mean, do people really want to weigh 200, 300, or 400 pounds? No, but sometimes (most of the time) we just have no control. Food is like a drug!

That's exactly why women pay big money to get it sucked out! Because they do not have the willpower to say no. Look at Kirsti Alley. She's gained all her weight back that she just lost three years ago. Now she's getting a television show to chronicle her weight-loss challenges. I sure hope it works for her this time.

Me, I've got my own battle to fight. Stuck at eight pounds lost the last few weeks. Only two weeks left in my challenge with my co-workers. I couldn't even talk myself into going to the gym. I think I've lost my drive. I will go to Body Pump tomorrow, and I'm not letting anything get in the way. I'm also going to try to run after work. I know, very ambitious goal. I really need to get back in the grove. Any advice? I think I need a visit from Jillian!

Time is running out!

I realized today that I only have 2 weeks and one day left of my diet contest with my coworkers. Yikes! Time to kick it up for the home stretch. That worked out well until just before lunch. I sat and waited to be called into a meeting and couldn't go to the gym. The frustrating part was that if I had known, I could have actually gone to the gym for Body Pump class.

Realizing my diet deadline, I ate really healthy, but had a business dinner, so again it all went well until around lunch. I ate a Weight Watchers breakfast Quesadilla for breakfast and a Healthy Choice Roasted Turkey lunch. I actually even drank water. I passed on the leftovers from the meeting, although they all looked scrumptious. Funny, when you really set your mind to it you can pass on anything. Why is it that that works some days and not others?

But, try to go to an upscale Italian Restaurant and eat healthy! I had a green salad and some red wine. I did go with the Tilapia with a lemon caper sauce, which came with Swiss Chard and Roasted Potatoes. I'm sure it was all cooked in lots of oil. I do think it was the healthiest option. There is a big difference between "weight maintenance" mode and "weight loss" mode. I need to get into the latter in a big way. I can get back into maintenance mode once I've reached my goal. At least I haven't gained it all back. Just one pound, and that really depends on the day of week and time of day that I weigh myself. It can all change in a second.

What's scarier than only two weeks and one day left of the contest is that there are only 3 1/2 weeks till Thanksgiving! Getting through the holiday festivities without becoming a tub of lard is always fun. It's best to head into the holidays down a few pounds.

Time to cut out the wine, the gym interferences and become one hot mama! It's on baby. It's on!

Flying Food and Burnt Chili

Nothing like a four-year-old to help you with your diet. I'm in Target picking up some Lean Cuisines, toothpaste, etc. with my four-year-old when suddenly it all turned violent. He climbed out of the cart seat, while buckled into the cart. . . you know, the one they tell you not to put your children in. That's when he started pitching the Lean Cuisines at me. I could barely dodge them. Maybe he was trying to tell me not to eat them. Maybe he was trying to tell me not to eat anymore!

Of course, there was also the major workout that I got while trying to keep him under control. I know people must have been horrified, but you'd think a few people could have helped by picking up the food instead of walking around it. I think just one person actually lended a hand. Amazing how people are unwilling to lend a helping hand. The cashier even had the nerve to ask me if I wanted to save ten percent by opening a Target credit card. Was she kidding? This was while I was being slapped in the face by my son. I know they're supposed to ask, but couldn't this have been an exception? Clearly I was not going to take the time to fill out an application.

One way to save money on groceries, I guess. Not worth the stress though.

Here's another way to cut down on what you're eating. Burn it! Yup. I made some black bean and sweet potato chili, but I cooked it in my Mario Batolli risotto pan, which I paid way too much for and I really don't like. Everything cooks on in it. So, I got a little too into catching up on episodes of Desperate Housewives and by the time I went back to check the chili, it had burned on. I still ate some, but it had a burnt taste. Just not my day today. I tried to cheer myself up by eating a Reece's Peanut butter Cup. I didn't feel better, I felt fat. I think it's time to go to bed. Maybe it was the time change that screwed everything up today. Well, good night.

GRRrrrrr!

The scale is about the same. Not cool. I couldn't go to the gym today, and the food overall was not what I would have liked to eat today. Not fair to make you work through lunch and not give you a choice about food. I usually keep some Lean Cuisine or Healthy Choice in the freezer, but haven't had time to stock up!

We had the same Italian sandwiches with the cured, fat-injected meat. Salad with 16 gram-of-fat dressing, and some cheese-garlic bread things that must be loaded with fat. Then, I had an evening events with appetizers. You know that stuff is horrible for you, but I was starving to the point where I was shaking.

The good news is that my all-day event tomorrow is rescheduled and I WILL go to body pump! I need it soooo bad.

I made another really quick item for breakfast tomorrow. Grilled cheese with Havarti with Dill cheese and turkey bacon. Not low fat (except the bacon) but really quick and a great way to use up some cheese I had. I hope they like it. With my busy schedule, it's a wonder I had time to make anything!

Well, here's to a healthier tomorrow!

fast food breakfast homework

I have another meeting tomorrow that will include breakfast and lunch. You never really know what you're going to get, so I offered to pick up breakfast. I know Tim Horton's has some really healthy options, such as yogurt and berries. You can get vanilla yogurt (160 cals and 2.5 grams of fat) or strawberry yogurt (140 cals and 2 grams of fat.) My 4-year-old son loves this! I get it for him all the time, as it's a healthy snack. We drove off the other day at the drive-through and he didn't see that I had it, and his eyes welled up with tears. It was so sad. He wasn't feeling well and he really wanted yogurt. Once I handed it to him, he was all smiles.

I also ordered bagels with light cream cheese. I looked them all up so I'd know the best option in the morning. A 12-grain bagel has 330 cals and 9 grams of fat. More than I would have thought, but 6 grams of fiber. A honey-wheat bagel has 300 calories and 3 grams of fat, but only 4 grams of fiber, and a plain bagel has 260 calories and 1.5 grams of fat, but only 2 grams of fiber. I guess it all depends on if you're looking to up your intake of whole grains, or consume fewer calories and fat. It probably all evens out in the end weight wise, an the 12-grain and wheat bagels have more nutritional value.

Muffins, as I mentioned last night, are always scary. I can't actually remember what I ordered. I think it was a cranberry blueberry bran muffin, which has 290 cals and 9 grams of fat. I may have also ordered the whole grain raspberry muffin, which has 17 grams of fat! Yikes! And 400 calories. If it sounds healthy, it doesn't always mean it is healthy. I'm really hoping I ordered the low-fat cranberry muffin, which has 290 calories and 2.5 grams of fat. Not bad. Just for the heck of it, I checked out the wheat carrot muffin. Sounds really healthy, right? Try 400 calories and 19 grams of fat!

OK, well I certainly will make an educated choice in the morning. Regardless of my choice, I'm sure it's better than the store-bought pastries that often show up. They have so much shortening in them, I can't even imagine the fat content. I'll look that up for another day.

I'm again working on my breakfast for Friday. Tonight I made smoked Gouda, sun dried tomato, and turkey bacon quiche. It is not a low-fat or probably even a healthy option, with all that cheese, sun dried tomatoes packed in oil, and pie crust. I did use half eggs and half egg-whites. Well, not everyone will be looking for a low-fat option. Those who are will have my low-fat mini pumpkin and dried cranberry bunt cakes.

I'm feeling quite relaxed tonight, which I truly needed today. I hit the gym at lunch. I'm so glad I took the time, as I won't have a chance tomorrow. I really could have worked right through lunch, but needed the stress relief. After work I had a massage. She said my muscles were really, really tight. I'm not surprised. I need to do that more often. I actually booked another one next month. The salon really surprised me, as they are a "no tip" salon. I had never heard of that. It's kind of a good feeling. There's always the tip dilemma. . . how much, which services, etc. Well, I should sleep well tonight with my relaxed muscles. I often wake up sore from my workout.

Well, off to check on my quiche. I'll pop it in the freezer till Friday!

Wow, the days keep getting crazier and crazier! That means working out and eating right gets to be more of a challenge. Today, I had another meeting through lunch. I hate to say that lunch today was not nearly as healthy as yesterday. The salad was good, although the dressing had 16 grams of fat per 2 Tablespoons. I skipped that, so the salad was bland.

There were also some Italian rolled bread things with cheese, spinach, etc. Not low fat at all, I'm sure, so I skipped those as well. Finally, there were small Italian sandwiches. The veggies in them were healthy, but the meat was all that cured Italian meat, prosciutto, salami, and mortedella. If you didn't know, mortedella not only is cured, which adds preservatives and tons of sodium, but they actually inject fat into it. That's what all the white spots are. It is about 1/3 fat. I pulled it out along with the salami, which can have up to ten grams of fat per ounce, depending on the type. I kept the prosciutto, which has the lowest fat content of all the Italian meats at between 3-5 percent. I don't think people think about how much fat these types of meats contain!

In preparation for my breakfast day at work on Friday, I decided to get a head start, as the week will be so busy. I made low-fat pumpkin-cranberry mini bunt cakes. Well, they are semi-homemade.

1 Pkg. Pillsbury pumpkin bread mix
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup apple sauce
1 cup skim milk
2 eggs

Bake according to package directions. Makes about 12 mini-bunt cakes or muffins. Top with frosting glaze and chopped dried cranberries and apricots.

I'm really trying to make things low fat. People don't realize how much fat is in an ordinary muffin. For example, a Dunkin Donuts Pumpkin Muffin has 560 calories and 24 grams of fat. My low-fat muffins have about 2 grams of fat.

In the first six months at my current job, I gained about ten pounds. I must have underestimated the fat and calorie content of the everyday muffin. Add that to the fact that I had been working out about ten hours a week, and cut that back significantly when I started the job.

You can eat healthy fast food though. I love the Fresco menu at Taco Bell. Especially when I don't want to cook or get out of the car to go into a store! I ate the Fresco Bean Burrito (330 calories and 7 grams of fat) and a Fresco Chicken Soft Taco (170 calories and 4 grams of fat.) Not too bad for dinner and there's lots of fiber, and fresh tomatoes.

Caught a little of Biggest Loser tonight. They sent Abby home. It was sad, but it looks like she's doing great and she's lost 80 pounds. Very sad story, as she lost her husband, and two children in a car accident. I can't even imagine! I'd eat everything too. And probably drink a lot too.

Well, TTFN. Eat well and don't forget to breathe!

Why can't we all just get along?

I was thinking about this after my blog last night when I mentioned that some people try to sabotage you when you're losing weight because they aren't. I mean, you hear all the time about thin people hating fat people, but I think it happens just as much the other way around. I think I can comment without any bias, as I am somewhere in the middle. My sister on the other hand, is very thin. People will make comment like, "why do you exercise, you don't need to exercise." Hello, why do you think she's thin? It doesn't just come naturally to most people. And then people at her office made a rule that those who were exercising at lunch couldn't change in the office bathroom. Huh? Simply because the ones who can't get off their fat asses to exercise wanted to sabotage the workouts. People can be really ridiculous. If you want to be fat, be fat. Not anyone else's problem but yours. Oh, maybe the people who will have to take care of you when you have a stroke or something.

On the other hand, I know people who are thin who make comments and I don't think they even realize that they are being mean.

At different points in my life I have been the victim of both sides. I decided to google "why do fat people hate skinny people?" It's amazing what you can get out of a google search. For example, in the article below, some people in London believe fat people should be protected by hate crime laws. Not really sure how the law works there, but at least in the U.S. don't basic laws protect you from hate crimes because you're human? I guess I've gotta dig out my old Mass Media Law book. So, now we need special laws because we're fat? That's right up there with disability for those who are fat. Don't get me started on that one again.

http://www.opposingviews.com/articles/news-should-fat-people-be-protected-under-hate-crime-laws#

This should end up being a pretty good week as far as eating, because I won't have time anyway! I ate some microwaved dry blueberry pancakes for breakfast, while I was jetting off to a meeting. Then, lunch was pretty healthy (thank goodness some people at work take that into consideration. . . thanks Karen!) Ate half a sliced turkey wrap and some salad and I actually drank a bottle of water! Yeah, I know, crazy right? I usually end up trying to fit in all my water in the evening. Makes for a lot of trips to the bathroom during the night.

So glad I fit Body Pump in yesterday. I almost let other people's needs come before mine again, but I thought twice and made it happen. Now, if only I can sneak in a quick run tomorrow, I'll feel great! I know how easy it is to just accept there's no time to exercise, but really there's all the time in the world now and if we don't fit it in now, it will be too late and we'll wish we had. It really does make you a better person, not just physically but mentally as well, especially in the winter months. Nothing like a good work out to stave off seasonal affective disorder. Check out this article:

http://women.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/women/diet_and_fitness/article5157336.ece#

Well, an early night as I've got an early morning and a long day!

Party weekend!

OMG! I think I hate food! I spent all day Friday getting ready for my daughter's 21 birthday, and making all kinds of food. I actually cheated and bought some pre-made stuff. I had to, I was about to go insane trying to get everything done.

All this after the pumpkin cook off, and then another party on Saturday. I know I said I'd share my risotto recipe, so here it is:

2 Tbs. olive oil
1 small onion
2-3 cloves garlic
1 1/2 cups arborio rice
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 pound roasted pumpkin or butternut squash (drizzle with oil, shake on some salt and pepper, cumin, and coriander)
1/2 cup dry white wine
6-8 cups hot chicken stock
1/4 tsp each nutmeg, ground cumin, ground coriander, cinnamon
1 cup three-cheese Italian blend
1 cup lite coconut milk

Saute onions and garlic until softened, add rice and cook until translucent, add wine, and cook until evaporated. Add spices. Add stock one ladle at a time and cook until absorbed. Continue to add stock until rice is al dente. Add cheese and coconut milk. Heat through and serve.

Enjoy!

This week is going to be the best ever for my diet. With all the parties behind me, I'm not going to let anything stop me from losing the weight. Sometimes you encounter people who want to sabotage what you're doing because they don't have the will power. That's OK. They're just unhappy with themselves. Not my problem.

I can't go to the gym tomorow because meetings were scheduled during lunch, but I went today to make up for it.

Dinner tonight was a simple healthy pizza

1 Boboli crust
1/2 cup fat-free ricotta
1/2 cup grated butternut squash
fresh sage and rosemary, chopped
1/4 cup goat cheese
salt and pepper
Drizzle with olive oil, if you like.

Bake at 350 until browned.

Well, time to get ready for another crazy week!

Pumpkin cookoff, busy schedules, and the evil scale!

Yeah! I won the "healthy recipe" entry in the pumpkin cook off. My healthy dish was a modified version of a dip I had a few weekends ago at the girls "spa day."
I called it:

Curried Pumpkin and Cream Cheese dip
1 8 oz pkg. reduced-fat cream cheese
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
2 Tbs. Curry powder
About 6 oz. spicy Major Grey or mango chutney

Soften cream cheese and mix with pumpkin, shake curry power on top of pumpkin/cream cheese mixture, top with chutney and bake at 350 until bubbling. Serve with baked pita or tortilla chips.

The other two dishes I made that tied for "next runner-up" were Roasted Pumpkin Risotto and Thai Curry Pumpkin Soup with Shrimp.

The soup I've made before and written about. It's very simple:

1 15 oz can pumpkin
1 15 oz can low-fat chicken stock
1 15 oz. can light coconut milk
1 Tbs. curry
1/2 tsp. each cinnamon and ground cloves
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small onion, chopped
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 lb. large shrimp
Salt and Pepper

Saute onion and garlic in olive oil. Add shrimp and saute until pink, add salt and pepper. Place in slow cooker along with remaining ingredients and cook on med-high for 3-4 hours. Top with fresh cilantro. Serve.

The risotto was not really low-fat but I guess it was reduced fat. I'll share the recipe tomorrow. That one was a bit more time-consuming.

So, the Pumpkin cook-off raised $175 for United Way, plus my company matches it, so that's $350! Plus, I won a Williams-Sonoma cook book, knife set, and cutting board.

Didn't make it to the gym, but I am going tomorrow before my day gets crazy! I have the day off, but I have a birthday party for my daughter. I have a lot of running around to do, but will hit the gym before everything else gets in the way. Not liking what the scale is saying. Hopefully, it's just water weight gain, but it said I gained two pounds. Not cool at all! I need start putting me before everyone else's needs, which is what I always tend to do. Sometimes, we just need to say no! I guess I started when I said no to a charity meeting tomorrow. I probably could have done it, but I have so much on my plate tomorrow, and they called at the last minute. I can't do it all!

I will feel much better after an hour or so at the gym. It really is as mental as physical!

Indian food

I did what every good mother would do. . . I skipped they gym to have lunch with my daughter who turned 21 today. She wanted to go to the Indian restaurant. I was nearly headed to the gym when plans changed. After all, your baby girl only turns 21 once. And it was Indian food. I mean, all those veggies and spices it's just going to go right through you. And the hot spices are supposed to be good for your metabolism, right? So, as always, I'm heading back to work and my stomach started gurgling. I wasn't too bad off though. I think I've built up a tolerance. I do eat curry a lot!

I had my hair colored and my nails done after work, so that was good for keeping me out of the fridge for about three hours. I still don't look any thinner with the new do. Is there actually a hairstyle that makes you look thinner?

Then, I had to go to the grocery store to get ingredients for the Pumpkin cook-off tomorrow at work. It's to raise money for United Way. My problem is that I couldn't narrow in all my options. I could cook every meal with pumpkin. I just love it. It's good for you too! I mean pumpkins are high in beta-carotene, potassium, fiber, and zinc. There are some ancient "healing" properties as well, apparently. Check out this article: http://hubpages.com/hub/Health-Benefits-of-Pumpkin

I will share my recipes for my dishes tomorrow. I narrowed it down to three, finally. There are so many additional items I could have, would have loved to make. I decided on savory dishes. I did already make pumpkin chocolate chip cheese cake for the United Way auction a few weeks ago.

It will be hard to avoid eating too much tomorrow with all the pumpkin options. I'll have to be sure to hit the gym at some point. Maybe I'll even get up early and run? Or maybe not.

Stale scale, beet and goat cheese pizza

I think I'm in a rut again. . . Scale hasn't changed. Not eating bad, but not being super good either. I guess my downfall has been chips and crackers. They've been low-fat but I know I should avoid them altogether. Tonight I made a simple, healthy pizza:

Beet, Mushroom, and Goat Cheese Pizza with Fresh Sage (for one)

1 Boboli pizza crust
1 thinly sliced beet
hand full of fresh sage
1 fresh Rosemary sprig
2 slices thinly-sliced red onion
1/4 cup fresh sliced mushrooms
2 Tbs. crumbled goat cheese
1 Tbs. olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Place sliced beets in circular pattern on crust, top with mushrooms, sage, Rosemary, onion, and goat cheese. Drizzle with oil. Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes until beets are cooked through.

Tomorrow night, I have to create something for a Pumpkin cook off to raise money for United Way. I will attempt to make something healthy. I will also attempt to kick up my weight loss. I need to work it! Maybe I need a few one-on-one sessions with the hot instructor! Hmmm. Food for thought.

Eat out or go to the gym. . . hmmmm

For a split second I thought I'd chose lunch when my friend Kristi and I were heading to the gym, but for that one hour we would be enjoying our lunch and kicking ourselves for the rest of the day. We made the right choice. It can all go bad in a split second. Don't let those last-minute temptations get to you.

Trust me, I was completely exhaused since I had to start my day about an hour early, and I am so not a morning person. Since I got started earlier than normal and had to travel out of town this morning, I didn't have time for breakfast or even coffee till about 10:30! I can't even believe I made it through the morning.

I scarfed down a couple of toaster waffles before the gym, since I rolled back into town about 15 minutes before class. There was no way I was hitting Body Pump without breakfast or lunch. I do not skip meals. Food is my life! While I'm eating one meal I'm usually thinking about the next! It probably wouldn't hurt me to miss a few meals. . . but I did tend to snack a bit more than usually later in the day. I tried to keep it healthy. . . a piece of cheese, an apple, then I ate some baked jax and baked chips. Yes, they were baked but still not the healthiest choice. I should just avoid buying those. Actually, they were left over from my son's birthday party.

Fortunately, I had some leftover "Spoof Bourgignon" from last night, so I didn't have to think too much about dinner tonight. Monday's are long. My son crashed early and I'm not far behind. I don't think I'll make it to the end of Dancing with the Stars. Oh well.

Spoof Bourguignon

Jillian would be so proud. Julia, probably not so much! I finally had a chance to try the recipe I promised a while ago. . . my healthy version of Julia Child's Boeuf Bourguignon. Mine replaces all the high-fat ingredients with low or non-fat substitutes. So here's what you need:

1 Tbs. olive oil
5 slices extra lean turkey bacon (instead of lardons of pork or bacon)
3 six-ounce packages meatless beef strips (I used meats desire by Yves)
salt and pepper
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1 1/2 cups chopped carrots
6 sprigs fresh thyme
10 parsley stems
3 bay leaves
1 head garlic
1 large tomato, cored and chopped
2 cups good (sturdy and fruity) red wine such as pinot noir or cabernet sauvignon
2 cups strong dark stock (beef or vegetable)
10 oz. pearl onions (fresh or frozen)
10 oz. fresh baby button mushrooms, whole

Heat oil in pan over med-high heat, add turkey bacon and cook a couple minutes, add beef strips, salt and pepper. Cook 2-3 more minutes, add onion, carrot, herbs (tie together so they can be easily removed), garlic, chopped, tomato, 2 cups wine, stock. Cook about 1 1/2 hours. Add pearl onions and mushrooms. Cook until mushrooms and pearl onions are tender, about 1/2 hour. You can thicken if you like with flour or corn starch. You can also serve with potatoes or egg noodles.

The stew serves about six and has less than 4 grams of fat! I was surprised how good it was considering the low fat content. Even my four-year old liked it! Don't worry, the alcohol cooks out of it.

Not sure exactly how many fat grams in the traditional version, but from what I can see it's at least 20 grams per serving. I haven't taken the time to figure it out. Probably a lot more. Famous food expert James Beard once said, "A gourmet who thinks of calories is like a tart who looks at her watch." He was a rather large man. I will not argue that the full-fat version would be better. I've never made it, but I'm sure I will some day, but how can it not be delicious. For now, I'm still working on losing those 20 pounds. I guess I'm a tart! Bon appetite!

So, the cold weather forced me to pick my butternut squash, but that just means I have a bunch of fresh squash to cook. Tonight, I made a delicious quesadilla with one of the small squash and some fresh sage from my garden. Here's how to make it:

1 cup butternut squash or pumpkin, peeled and thinly sliced
1/4 cup fresh sage, chopped
1/2 cup fresh baby bella mushrooms, sliced
2 Tbs. dried cranberries
1/4 cup goat cheese
1 Tbs. olive oil
2 whole wheat tortillas

Heat oil in med. frying pan then saute squash until tender, add sage, mushrooms, and cranberries and cook until mushrooms are soft. Remove from pan and place tortilla in pan, add half of squash mixture and half of goat cheese. Cook until cheese is melted and tortilla is browned, turn over an cook until other side is brown. Remove from pan and repeat with second tortilla. Cut into four pieces and serve.

You could add some chipotle spiced fat-free sour cream too. I just love fresh garden veggies and herbs!

It was a nice day for a walk outside, and probably one of few where it will still be warm enough to go without bundling up. Lots of dogs in the park. The only problem with that, is that my son likes to kiss them. He sticks his tongue out and lets them lick his. Ewwww it's so gross. I can never grab him away quickly enough! Well, we got a nice hour-long walk in anyway!

Weekends have so much potential, but somehow I never seem to accomplish what I set out to. I always think I'll spend so much time working out, cleaning the house, writing a novel, etc. and just relaxing and recovering from the work week just seems to take too much time. I mean, we spend all week saying how hard it is to find time to go to the gym, then we spend all weekend justifying why we aren't spending that time at the gym. Excuses, excuses!

WWJD (What would Jillian do?) I wonder if she ever just eats a big fat burger or anything like that? I know what Julia would do, she'd make a Boeuf Bourguignon . OJ, I wrote about it a while back, but I finally picked up the stuff from my healthy version, Spoof Bourguignon and I plan to make it tomorrow. If it's edible, I will share the recipe tomorrow.

Cold weather keeps the gym rats home

The cold weather seems to have affected how many people go to the gym after work. Aero-step class was pretty empty tonight. I can't let that slow me down. I mean yeah, I'd rather curl up on the couch with a blanket and a glass of wine after work, but it's a long cold winter and it's just beginning so I've gotta keep pumpin' and crunchin' and so should you! I've never been one of those people who goes all winter without exercising then starts again to get in shape for "swimsuit season." It's best to never get out of the habit.

My new workout clothes arrived today. I think it's fun to get new workout clothes. Not only that but when it gets busy during the week, I may not get them washed and who wants to wear old stinky workout clothes that smell like a dirty sneaker? Not me. So you've gotta have back-ups. Plus, you just feel better in the new clothes. You want to show them off, so you have to go to the gym and work out, right? It also makes a big difference now that I've lost nine pounds because I have less of a belly and less back fat. I'm only 11 pounds away from my goal of 20 pounds! Of course, I may want to set a new goal at that point because I'll want to drop a few more. We'll get to the first goal and see how we're doing. That brings me to the holidays, and those can be a challenge! Maintaining at that point till Jan. may be a better goal. That's what my company wellness team is focusing on. Many people put on 5-7 pound over the holidays. I really do not want to do that!

Those garlic mashed potatoes can have fat-free cream, fat-free margarine, and fat-free sour cream. It's really better than you think. And of course, there's my favorite curried butternut squash soup. Baked sweet potatoes are really good for you too. I'll see what yummy things I can come up with. Oh, how I love cooking for the holidays.

Since I didn't have a chance to catch biggest loser this week, I caught the two-minute recap. Coach Mo was sent home. He's lost 76 pounds so far! Another guy lost 73 pounds in just four weeks! That's amazing! I guess when you have a lot to lose you will put up big numbers each week. I will be pretty happy when I reach my 20-pound goal.

The Sleep Diet, Portobello, portabello, portabella. . . what? Go to sleep!

Maybe it's the sleep diet! Bad lack of motivation day yesterday, but I went to bed early, woke up energized, ate really well, hit the gym, and lost another pound! Yes! I'm at Nine pounds in four weeks. I know it's not the numbers they're putting up on biggest loser, but I really only have 20-30 pounds to lose anyway. OK, 11-21 pounds now.

I have read many articles that say getting more sleep helps you lose weight. I'm not sure about that. I think I've always found that when I stay up late and get up early and don't eat more, I lose weight. I'll leave that up to the experts. I do think you need to get 7-8 hours to function well and it's better for your health. Not to mention, my skin looks way better when I'm hydrated and well rested. I performed way better in Body Pump today too. . . and I got my Scott fix. Yeah, he teaches body pump and totally motivates and has dreamy eyes. Yes, he's married, but it's fun to at least dream your way through class. Makes it more tolerable. I hope he's not reading this! Oh, BTW, here's an article on the "sleep diet" http://www.glamour.com/magazine/2009/02/the-sleep-diet-is-here.

I really need an update from my weight-loss challenge buddies. It's hard to know where you stand and sometimes the close race will cause you to kick it up a notch or two! Six weeks left to lose at least six pounds. I'm quite sure I can do it.

No recipes tonight. Today was good food wise. Another low-fat banana blueberry muffin to start, lunch of Lean Cuisine Pumpkin Squash Ravioli, and dinner at Applebee's. Had their Weight Watchers Steak with Portobello mushrooms and some red wine. No time for snacks today. I love it when it's busy. So much better for the diet! (BTW, did you know it's acceptable to spell Portobello three ways, also including portabello and portabella. Just an FYI!)

Well, off to sleep. After all the jury is still out on whether that helps with weight loss. Either way, it's enjoyable!

OK, so today seemed like a Monday because of the holiday and the weather completely sapped my energy! That means I did not make it to the gym. I only start feeling guilty if this lasts more than a day, so it's off to Body Pump tomorrow. Tonight I'll get to bed early and hit the gym extra hard. No, really!

I give myself two days a week to just chill. I just hate it when those days come so early in the week. No wiggle room at the end. It didn't help matters that I received the Thanksgiving editions of Food and Wine and Williams-Sonoma in the mail today. Makes me want to cook lots of comfort food. I was pretty good. I had frozen some of my low fat blueberry banana muffins that I made last week, and I had Healthy Choice Pot Stickers and HC Beef Merlot for lunch and dinner. I did have one glass of red wine. Fortunately that's all that was left. I also had a small bag of baked jax for a snack, some raw green beans, and a few bites of the low-fat pizza I made last night that my son wouldn't eat. OK, that's everything. Could have been worse, could have been better. Just need to get some water.

I weighed myself today, and the scale was about the same as last week. That and my lack of motivation today is not a good sign. I've gotta get in gear. I hope it's just a one-day thing. Maybe my new work-out clothes will motivate me. I really hate to lose momentum. The real bummer is that I don't even have the energy to stay up and watch Biggest Loser tonight, which might motivate me. I guess I stayed up too late last night. Maybe the flu shot I had today affected me somehow. Who knows. I have to get them, I don't want my son to get sick. Well, I hope to have a more motivating story to tell tomorrow.

For some reason Monday holidays are really unproductive. I mean, I always have great intentions of running about ten miles, plus getting in some weights and additional cardio. I guess I should feel pretty good about my three-mile run. At least I got it in early on so I didn't spend most of the day coming up with excuses. I'm supposed to weigh in tomorrow. I was at eight pounds lost last week. I've been fairly good, but somehow I don't feel as though I've lost any more. I guess I shouldn't have made that sweet potato thing with the white truffle oil.

I did make a nice low fat pizza today that was really good:

Two Boboli pizza crusts
1 cup fat-free ricotta
1 cup fat-free mozzarella
Two garlic cloves
1 diced fresh tomato
1/4 cup chopped fresh sage
1 Tbs. olive oil

Mix ricotta, mozzarella, and garlic together and spread on crust. Top with tomato, sage, then drizzle with olive oil. Bake about 15-20 minutes at 400. Serves two. Enjoy!

A little trick I try to practice on the weekends is to get up and put my workout clothes on. That way I'm ready for my workout anytime. And really, it's best to do it early on because there are so many things that come up on the weekend. I also find that investing a little money in some nice workout clothes is well worth it. First of all, you feel better at the gym. Secondly, you can also wear them on the weekends and they are super comfortable and attractive enough to wear to run to the store as well. I find I wear those clothes more and more. They just feel good! Plus, I ordered a bunch of new stuff online today! Got the new Athleta catalog today. I was good though, I didn't order the new stuff. I went online and picked out some sale stuff. It's still expensive, but a lot more reasonable and usually well made.

Another thing with those Monday holidays is that they screw up my workout routine. I mean, I usually go to body pump on Monday, so I'll have a hard time getting in three body pump workouts this week. I guess I'll just have to do more cardio instead. I guess I need the extra fat burning anyway. I guess it's good to mix up your routine. It shocks your body into losing weight. It shocks my joints too, unfortunately. I really notice that in my old age!

OK, wish me luck on the scale tomorrow. I'll be sure to weigh after running a kazillion miles or so!

Ok, Body pump was good today, which is especially good because a day with the girls, and an evening with the other girls can be hard on the diet. My dish today was Sweet Potato, Leet, and Fontina Cheese Tart with White Truffle Oil.

One package reduced fat crescent rolls, rolled out on a round baking sheet.
1 thinly-sliced sweet potato
1 thinkly slilced leek (about a half cup)
8 oz. sliced fontina cheese (this is not low fat, so feel free to substitutute with low-fat cheese)
salt and pepper to taste
Drizzle with white truffle oil (use very little, as it is very rich and high in fat!)

Spread thinly-sliced sweet potato on rolled out crescent rolls, cover with leeks, top with fontina cheese, sprinkle with salt and pepper, then drizzle a little white truffle oil on top. Bake at 350 for 30-45 minutes, or until brown. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

I thoroughly enjoyed my day of pampering today. The fifteen-minute mini-massage just made me realize just how much I really enjoy and need that, so I booked a one-hour massage. And I realized how much I forget to breathe. I mean, we do it when we have to to live, but we can save so much stress by doing it deeply and regularly. OK people, it's not just for sex! Breathe! Do some yoga or pilates or a massage. It's for you're own good! Your life could depend on it!

My Oprah moment!

OK, so like any other Friday, which is dress-down day at work, I opened up my drawers and looked for some jeans that would fit over my J-Lo booty. Not finding anything, I pulled out some that I've put on several times this summer, only to peel them off frustrated when, if I could actually get them over my but and legs, buttoning them was a completely different story. I figured I'd try them again, just for the heck of it. After all, I've lost eight pounds, so it was worth a try, right? I was right! I got them up over my but, lets, and thighs and buttoned them no problem! Yes! There is no feeling like that. These are really low-rise jeans, so that was an amazing feeling. It's kind of like that time when Oprah finally fit into her size ten Gloria Vanderbilt jeans. So, they will look a little better when I lose a little more muffin top, but I could wear them with a new top that had a ruffle that hit right in the muffin top area.

Nothing motivates you even more to eat healthy than fitting into something you haven't been able to wear for a while. I ate really healthy again, grabbing some Healthy Choice dinners that I fortunately had on hand. Those keep me from eating something bad when my day gets crazy, which today did. Heading into a three-day weekend is sometimes not even worth the effort! OK, I'll take it anyway and like it!

Didn't make it to the gym at lunch since I didn't get a lunch break today, so I forced myself to get in a quick three-mile run on the treadmill before picking up my son at daycare. I just have to go on auto pilot and not make it mental, or I wouldn't go. Besides, the competition is heating up. I'm only ahead by a few pounds ahead in this diet challenge. I think some of my competitors are holding out. That's OK. Nothing like a little challenge to really get you motivated! We do it in class at the gym all the time. You can't go wimpy on the weights if your workout buddies are kicking it up, right? OK girls, it's on in a big way. Eight pounds are nothing. Think of what I can do if I really try!

Jillian would be so proud. Julia. . . yes, I miss the butter but not the weight!

Grrrrrrr I hate buffets!

I feel gross! Not only did I not make it to the gym today, but we had two big company meetings. . . one at breakfast and one at lunch. So I had to eat hotel food for two meals. I tried to be good, but buffets are never really good because for one you don't know how the food is prepared, and two they tend to be breeding grounds for bacteria. People don't always practice safe food serving techniques, so they touch things, etc. I tried to go through the line early, but it doesn't always work that way. Let's just say my tummy isn't feeling all that good.

To top it off, I'm exhausted and I'm making a pumpkin chocolate chip cheesecake for a United Way auction. Funny how I'm always volunteering for this stuff, then when the time comes it's always a bad day for it. Cheesecake takes so long to make. I doubled the recipe, so it will take a total of at least an hour and a half to bake. God, I just want to go to bed!

I wanted to eat something super healthy tonight, so I made a quick stir fry with stir fry veggies, shrimp, fresh mushrooms, a little sherry, brown sugar, and soy sauce. It wasn't bad, but guess I just wasn't in the mood. Do you ever get burnt out on veggies? I need a new veg. Gotta kick it up or I'll get in a rut and go back to my evil non-veggie eating ways.

I'll hit the gym hard tomorrow and I'll feel much better!

Cheap fat on, Expensive fat off!

Last night I mentioned that it would cost me about $14,000 for Smart Lipo, referring back to one of my earlier posts. They do it in "zones" such as stomach, back, inner thighs, outer thighs. . . and one of my friends said "fat isn't cheap!" But, I said it's only cheap going on. Think about it. . . you go to the drive through, or the grocery store and you can get just about anything that's bad for you for a buck or so. . . I think pound for pound and dollar for dollar you should be able to get it removed for the same price it went on. We spend next to nothing on the crappy food we eat, then spend hundreds, even thousands trying to get rid of it! I guess it's worth spending the extra money to eat healthy food, huh? I mean, I've been spending alot more money buying all kinds of fresh fruits and vegetables, but it still doesn't add up to the $14,000 I'd spend on Smart Lipo. Not to mention that with that I would likely put it all back on in no time because I wouldn't be changing my bad habits.

Oh, and I know that looking good is our primary reason for wanting to lose weight, but consider the added benefit of reducing our risk of heart attack, stroke, cancer, high blood pressure, etc. Why are the health benefits not higher on our list? Those who are naturally thin quite often don't exercise. It's not until our clothes don't fit that we do something about it. . . or we have a reunion, wedding, etc. that we really get crackin on the weight loss thing. So, dying prematurely isn't really such a big deal it's really just about how we look right? OK, just wanted to get it straight!

I'm really trying to just change my overall eating habits this time. I mean, I don't do drive through often anyway, but I do so love cheese, and foods with cream sauce. Risotto is one of my favorites, with lots of cream, butter, and cheese. I know you can lighten it up, and it's just about getting in the habit. I'm thinking too about all the nutrients in those colorful veggies and fruits. I know that I'll be so much better off in the long run. And these changes have resulted in me dropping Eight pounds, without counting or tracking or writing everything down. That's a change I can live with. If I eat something I know might be a little higher in fat and calories, such as the turkey and pesto sandwich I had today, I make it up at dinner. So, I had some Chinese bean curd and vegetable soup and some carrots. The soup was basically broth, a little tofu, and veggies. A little bland, but it helped keep my day on track and it's better than skipping a meal.

Once again, it would have been so easy to skip the gym at lunch. My workout buddy Kristi and I pulled in to town almost on two wheels from an out-of-town meeting and arrived in the nick of time. We pushed ourselves even more today. I felt amazing after the class. Kicking it up with a little more weight really makes a difference in the results you get. That and a significant reduction in fat and calories is what it takes to drop the weight. I mean, I've exercised all my life. I'm not one to take months off. A bad week for me is only working out 2 or 3 times. So, although that exercise has kept me from weighing 200 pounds, it was not enough to lose weight. You must do both!

I don't know if the gym will happen tomorrow as I have an incredibly hectic day, but I always have my Jillian tapes to back me up.

Desperate times call for desperate measures, right? A while back I wrote about Smart Lipo, but the fact that it would cost me about $14,000 to lose the equivalent of 24 pounds and I'd have fat leaking out for a day or so prompted me to scrap that idea and make some lifestyle changes. An old friend suggested Lipo Dissolve recently, and I said no, no, NO! I'm no expert, but I've read that they inject a solution that melts the fat, but it has no where to go, so it gets absorbed by your organs and can cause long-term damage. I have to say that's one I would never consider. If you're going to go there, go all the way and have it sucked out! It has to be removed from your body to be effective!

I'm watching Biggest Loser while I'm writing this. They went out to eat and discussed how to order your food without all the added fat. That's so hard to do, because either restaurants aren't willing to work with you or they don't get it right! I've actually had to wipe butter off asparagus in the past. Should have just sent it back. I don't think it adds anything except disgusting fat to your dish! I doesn't really add flavor, if you ask me. Longhorn Steakhouse has sweet potato and asparagus as options, so I always get those as my sides, but be careful, because even when you ask, you don't always get it without the butter. I'd recommend avoiding the steaks though, as they have 50 plus grams of fat. Yeah, I know. I was shocked! I will give them credit, as they are one of very few steak house chains that will actually give the nutrition info. It's so much better to cook at home or if you do not have time, pick up some Healthy Choice, Lean Cuisine, or Weight Watcher dinners. Especially if you are rushed, you can make them quickly and avoid binge eating. I try to keep some on hand so that I don't get home and get tempted to order take out. I also keep a few extras on hand at work so I don't end up running out for fast food.

I don't know if you do this or not, but I like to make deals with myself. I'll sometimes make the exercise thing mental and talk myself right out of it. I say I'll work out double time tomorrow. We all know tomorrow never comes. By the end of the week, there's no way you can make it up. It's better to say, "I'll just do a half hour today since I'm tired or busy." That way, you get something in and it all adds up. Usually, once you get started you keep going anyway. Today I wanted nothing more than to just go to sleep, as I stayed up way too late last night. But, knowing me like I do, I knew the week would get busy and I would be disappointed with myself. So, I went to the gym and ran three miles. I didn't over do it, but just got in some good cardio and cleared my head, making me a better person before going back to work.

So, I'm pretty excited to announce that after just three weeks of really crackin' down, I've lost Eight pounds! That's right! Think about that. . . that's 32 sticks of butter! Could you actually smuggle 32 sticks of butter under your clothing without anyone noticing? Yeah, I didn't think so. Not even inside a panty girdle! So why is it that we think no one will notice it when it's in our body? Oh, the lies we tell ourselves.

So, I always have some article of clothing that I think will fit me again someday, so I refuse to throw it away. The last time I did that, it was my Louis and Francois Girbaud jeans. I loved them. They were like size five or six. I finally got back into them, and guess what? They were out of style! They were like mom jeans. C'mon, I was so hot in those when I bought them. Needless to say, they are gone. My recent "item" is a really nice size 8 Banana Republic wool skirt. It fit me nicely last year, but I quickly grew out of it. I tried it on this morning. I still look like Mrs. Sue Wiggins from Carol Bernette in it, but it's much better than it was a few weeks ago. I think another five pounds and I'm back in, baby! (remember her, with the but sticking out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vHQsVXUM8vQ&feature=PlayList&p=A36E961BB657679F&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=56

Meanwhile, I'll keep eating bags of carrots for evening snacks. Somehow, that makes the left-over cupcakes with bright green butter cream icing and chocolate ice cream cups look really disgusting.

OK, I'm shooting for another two pounds for next week. The original goal was ten percent in ten weeks. I'm almost half way there in just three weeks. Hopefully, my friends and family who are in this contest with me are being honest! Well, back to my body icon, Jillian. TTYL!