A Revelation!

Wow!

If I'm puzzled about something, I find the answer often comes to me like an epiphany when I first open my eyes in the morning. Today was no exception... though I really didn't need it at 6 a.m.

I've done so well with my weight-loss in the respect that even if it wasn't going down, it wasn't going up. Well... last week I gained 5 pounds! I was mortified that I'm a pound shy of where I began 3 years ago. Yikes! I kept going back over my week and couldn't imagine 3 small ice cream cones over the course of the week could do that much damage. I only had one 8 oz pepsi the whole week, though I did cave in to a taste for a piece of Chocolate cake... the first real chocolate cake I've had in over a year.

Well, those things didn't help because of all the sugar BUT that isn't where my excess sugar was coming from. But sugar IS the culprit.

I've been outlining a book in prep for a new area of discussion on one of my other blogs. I get a lot more done with my hand work when I get away from the house. So every morning I'd pack up my notebook and the book I'm reading and drove the 4 miles into the cafe for breakfast. I was keeping breakfast to a minimal.. usually a sausage/ egg/ cheese biscuit and the coffee... Multiple cups of coffee.

Okay, coffee alone isn't a bad thing but I can't drink it black. Just isn't going to happen. So 3-4 cups of coffee every morning .. and maybe again later for lunch... laden with sugar was adding up.

So for this week, I'm not leaving the house except for 1 day. And it WON'T be for breakfast/ coffee. I CAN NOT be like this the rest of my life. I REFUSE. And only I can make the CHANGES needed to fix it.

And the journey continues...

The Uphill Climb

Why does everything worth having/ doing have to be an uphill battle? I tell you, if I could get credit for that alone I'd be in the best shape of my life.

I had a great time with my friends last week... and gained 4 pounds. So I'm back to the drawing board. Good thing is, hubby is also gone for the next 2.5 weeks so I can stay on track and see if I can get it off. I've already lost 2 of the gained pounds in a week so I'm doing something right.

It's been cold and dreary for the past week. Downright miserable for May. Today is a bit more spring-like and I'me feeling like doing something again. Before it gets too hot - and we all know weather seems to go from one extreme to another - I'll be getting a lot done out in the garden. Hubby taught me how to run the tiller so I can get more of the spots tilled up that I want. It just wouldn't dry out soon enough for him to do it AND complete the living room remodel before our guests arrived for the long weekend.

The bonus to the living room remodel is I have room to work out again. I LOVE to dance. I keep looking at ZUMBA. It looks like a blast. But then I look at all the dance/ exercise videos I have on my shelf and think maybe I should give them a chance before I invest in any more. Don't laugh but I love Richard Simmons dance workouts and have 4 or 5 of them. I also have Latin, Country, Hip Hop... and the list goes on. I have a wide variety, to say the least. I'm just going to start trying them all until one hits me that I want to do routinely.

My goal is still 1 pound a week but if I could squeeze in 2 per week here and there, I'd be ecstatic.

In all the chaos I never got in here to post the results of that new Pumpkin Spice cake recipe. One word... YUM! okay.. maybe 2 ... HEALTHY! And I have Hungry Girl to thank for the inspiration! I promise to post the recipe on Wednesday.

Until next time...

Enjoy the Journey!

Off to a slow start

Did you get your pedometer? Did you check out the 10,000 Steps website? I hope you did both. I was so excited about getting out and walking. But as usual, when I set a course a wave will crash into my plans. The Monday after my last post we began getting rain... and rain... and more rain. It rained pretty much for seven days straight, leaving us 17" of rain. For three days we couldn't even get out our road. Needless to say, I wasn't walking anywhere.

Treadmill might have been an option. However, everything from the living room was stripped out and piled in front of the treadmill in preparation for a complete room remodel. LOL I told you it crashes!

I did walk a lot today. It was finally a beautifully sunny, dry day in the Ozarks. I have two writer friends visiting from central IL. I treated them to a surprise field trip to the Laura Ingalls Wilder Museum and homestead in Mansfield MO. We walked through the gift shop, the museum and both of the houses Almonso and Laura lived in after they made the move from DeSmet S. Dakota to Mansfield MO.

After leaving there, we went in search of lunch. Not a lot of great options but we ate light in anticipation of our dinner later. Then we went back uptown to a used book store where we wondered and shopped.

Then we made the 2-hr drive back East to West Plains MO where we walked the entire Town Square going into shops that were still open (it was after 5) and just window peeking in others.

Dinner was at Kings Garden Buffet where I enjoyed Mongolian stir fry while my friends ate their fill of fresh-made Sushi. I don't care for sushi rice but doing the Mongolian stir fry was a healthy alternative to the normal buffet stuff drenched in sauces.

We then walked our dinner off in the WalMart SuperCenter while Cheri (one of my friends) shopped for the ingredients she needed for the Cuban dinner she is making for us tomorrow. I LOVE her black bean soup. YUM! And she drove down here special to make it for me. What a friend!

The only thing detrimental to my journey this weekend is the alcohol. I don't drink a bunch but I have had 1 Cowgirl Quencher each night they've been here. After they leave, I'll be lucky if I have more than one over the course of the next 3-4 months.

I guess the moral is here that everything in moderation and it's okay to treat yourself once in awhile as long as you keep that 'moderation' thing in mind.

Enjoy the Journey!