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Oct 20, 2010

Better for BlogHer – Three Months Later

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Three months ago I took on the Better for BlogHer challenge by Healthy Choice. I was asked to replace one meal a day with a Healthy Choice meal for three months to see if it would aid in my goals of losing weight and getting healthier. I already liked Healthy Choice meals, so I gladly accepted this challenge.

Now, at the end of three months, I can report my success. Since starting the Better for BlogHer challenge, I’ve lost 10 pounds. This was after being stuck at 187 pounds for more than 2 months prior to the challenge. Sure, it’s not a tremendous amount of weight, but it is 10 pounds that I no longer have to deal with.

What’s really impressive is that I continued slowly losing weight throughout a three month period that was filled with stress and temptation at every turn, especially during the last month. I’ve had to put in a lot of extra time at work during the past month, and all of that extra work has often meant convenience foods and practically no exercise whatsoever. And then I went to Las Vegas a week ago for BlogWorld Expo, and after indulging in some of the excess of Vegas, still managed to come home without gaining any weight.

I don’t have to tell all of you what stress can do to a body. It makes me want to eat nonstop, and it makes my body store every calorie it takes in. Yet during this past month I lost 3 pounds. While I fully pat myself on the back for this accomplishment, I also give a lot of credit to Healthy Choice for this loss for a couple of reasons.

First, the frozen meals are quick and easy to prepare without skimping on taste. When I needed to eat fast, I could toss one into the microwave and have a healthy, complete, portion-controlled meal in under 5 minutes. (And still get other things done while it was cooking!) It was so simple to toss one in my bag as I was walking out the door to go to work and know I didn’t need to spend more time thinking about what to eat for lunch.

Second, each Healthy Choice meal helped me learn about portion control. The meals are filling and tasty, but at the same time not too much food. One tip Tara Gidus taught me was to eat only enough to get you through until your next meal, and Healthy Choice meals are the perfect size to provide enough food to feel satisfied without feeling overly full. When I did go to BlogWorld in Vegas, it was far easier for me to enjoy all of the delicious foods there and stop eating when I was satisfied, rather than keep eating until I felt stuffed. I feel like I better understand what a meal portion should be now.

Overall, the Better for BlogHer challenge has been an extremely positive experience. I’ve enjoyed trying new varieties of Healthy Choice meals – including their new Steaming Entrees – and finding so many delicious flavors to add to my list of favorites. Eating one Healthy Choice meal a day was probably the easiest challenge I’ve ever accepted, and that one small change did help me lose the weight, along with making sure I got more veggies, fruit and whole grains into my diet.

Even though the challenge is coming to an end, I have no intention of stopping my new habits. Working third shift, my lunch choices are often limited, and in choosing between late-night takeout pizza or bringing a Healthy Choice frozen meal, I know the latter option is the one I will turn to most of the time. It’s easy, it’s delicious, and I know it’s better for my body and my health goals.

I certainly wasn’t perfect through the whole challenge. I had days where fast food won out, or office parties filled with pizza and cake, and of course the entire past month I’ve had no time to exercise. It’s possible I could have lost more weight had I stuck to the plan closely, but let’s be honest – I’m not a saint, and life is going to get in the way of the best plans.

I’m thrilled that despite my slip-ups and mistakes, I’m still 10 pounds lighter than where I started. It came off slowly and I have every intention of keeping it off for good. If you saw me dancing at BlogWorld on Friday night, then you know I’m loving my new weight and feeling more comfortable in my own skin.

I’ve learned that small changes can have a big impact. If you’re starting this journey of losing weight, and you’re worried about failing, start with small changes that can become permanent lifestyle changes. It’s so much easier to commit to one small change, master that change, and then make another small change.

Thank you, Healthy Choice, for the Better for BlogHer challenge! I’m grateful for your support in helping me lose weight and explore healthier eating habits, and I think the lessons of the past three months will continue on as permanent lifestyle changes.

Full disclosure: I was selected to participate in the Healthy Choice Better for BlogHer challenge, and as a participant I was provided with compensation for my time as well as coupons for free Healthy Choice meals. All opinions of Healthy Choice and the challenge are my genuine and honest opinions, and are most definitely influenced by my losing 10 pounds over the past three months.

Filed Under: food, success, weigh-in · Tagged:


Oct 12, 2010

My Tivo Runneth Over

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Oh network television, you’re killing me.

When the Fall lineup was announced, Aaron and I sat down and mapped out our TV strategy. It wasn’t a pretty sight. Most of our favorites avoided the axe last year, and combined with new must-sees we required a chart to keep track of them all.

It seems all of our favorite shows are mostly on at 8pm, with very little on at 9pm. This wouldn’t be a problem, except for two days a week when we have three shows on at the same time. Our Tivo can only record two at once, and I’m not quite willing to admit I’m that much of a television addict to pay for a second Tivo service on another TV. To combat this, we let two shows record while we run upstairs to watch the third in our bedroom.

Everything else we planned to get to during the 9pm dead time, or use Wednesday as a catch up night, when we have nothing scheduled. (And yes, the kids are already in bed before 8pm.)

It was a good plan – although a little crammed – at least until my work schedule blew up.

(And I’d like to say here that everything is back to normal, as I hoped it would be soon in my last post, but the truth is it’s still busy and may be for quite awhile.)

We’re now at least a full week behind on most shows. I think we’re caught up on Glee and The Vampire Diaries, but only because I beg to watch them before older TV.

I’ve tried cutting back. I gave up The Biggest Loser this season, finally admitting that the show is too long for its value. (Honestly – do you need an entire hour for the weigh-in? Skip the suspenseful music and cuts of shocked faces and just get on with it already.) And I’ve already committed to skipping out on American Idol in the spring.

But everything else is just too good. Chuck. House. Castle. Parenthood. The Big Bang Theory. The Mentalist. Bones. Smallville. (And Glee and The Vampire Diaries, of course.) I love all of them in their own way, and couldn’t think of dropping any of them right now. I’m a sucker for a compelling story, exciting cinematography and emotional acting.

So please, network executives, can you toss in a mid-season break soon? I need a couple of weeks to get caught up again. Maybe a baseball or some other sporting event could get in the way for a few weeks?

I really don’t want my Tivo to start threatening to delete programs to make space for new ones. And I’m going to BlogWorld this week, which means I’m going to fall even further behind.

TV overlords, have mercy.

Filed Under: geek paradise, pop culture · Tagged:


Oct 11, 2010

The Leaves Are Falling & My Weight Is Too

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The stress of the past few weeks has been hard. Not only was I sick with a stomach virus, right in the middle of a crisis situation at work that required mandatory overtime, but then I came down with a cold last week just to feel completely miserable again.

It’s true – stress robs you of your ability to stay healthy. When you’re stressed and lacking in sleep, your body’s defenses are down and any passing infection can breeze right in past security without even a pat-down and get to work making you feel horrible. Viruses and stress are the original terrorists, working together to take us down from our position at the top of the natural order.

I’ve barely slept the past few weeks. I certainly haven’t had time to work out. And many of my meals haven’t been the best. (Although I’m still sticking to one Healthy Choice meal per day for my Better for BlogHer Challenge – honestly, grabbing a meal out of the freezer is the easiest part of my day.)

I knew my weight crossed into the 170’s after the stomach virus from hell, but I also knew it was likely temporary and that once I replaced my fluids it would bounce back up. As predicted, I stepped on the scale several days later and it was back at 181 pounds. Seeing the 180’s was a little depressing, but I knew that my short dip into the 170’s was really just a mirage brought on by dehydration.

For two weeks now I’ve avoided the scale. I haven’t had the time to focus on myself due to work, and I made the mental decision to not worry about the damage that happens during this stressful time and accept that once work calms down again, I’ll get back to running, get back to really focusing on my diet, and get back to finding some inner peace again. It seemed like the best decision to make, considering what I’ve been up against: stress, no sleep, long work hours, fast food when necessary (which is often), and no time to work out.

So I’ll admit I was a little surprised when I stepped on my scale before my shower Saturday morning and saw this number greeting me:

(Sorry for the blurry pic. I never expected to report the number, but when I saw this my iPhone camera was the only thing in reach.)

Of course I’m thrilled to see 177.8 pounds, although I’m not exactly sure how I got there. I know I’ve had more than an acceptable share of McDonald’s to eat and my running shoes can attest that they’ve been neglected for weeks now. Losing weight easily is a myth to me, so I’m a little perplexed by this development.

But I’ll take it, and as soon as work calms down I hope to get back to taking care of myself and working hard to drive that number even lower. My next mini-goal is to see the 160’s before the new year – a difficult challenge, indeed, considering the season of holiday eating is nearly upon us.

Anyone else ever have a surprise loss on the scale when you were certain you’d see a gain?

Filed Under: success, weigh-in · Tagged:


Oct 5, 2010

Down but Not Out

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There are times when everything is going great in my life, and I can’t wait to write out all of the good here on my blog.

Then there are times when I’m frustrated, or something isn’t going the way I’d like, and I turn to this blog to vent or get advice.

And then there are times like the last two weeks, when life hands me a body blow – body blow – uppercut TKO and I’m left sprawled out on the mat faster than you can say Mike Tyson’s Punchout.

Right after Cordy’s birthday, my job went from your normal 8 hour job to a crazy mess. Overtime was strongly encouraged and soon I was only working – sometimes sleeping and sometimes eating – with the rest of my life simply put on hold. I was happy to help out in the situation, because we really needed everyone to give everything they had, but it quickly wore me down.

At the same time, Mira was also in the middle of a strange stomach virus. She had vomited the week before, then went a few days without eating much, then vomited three times in one night. Lather, rinse, and repeat the entire pattern two more times, and we’re left wondering what kind of virus can skip a few days and come back again. It also took away my chances at more sleep, meaning I’ve been extremely underslept for the past two weeks. One night was bad enough that I was sure I was hearing voices and hallucinating.

Then, just because a work crisis and a sick child weren’t enough, I developed the stomach virus as well, although mine was more of the single 48-hour variety. But in that 48 hours I purged everything from my digestive system and developed a strong aversion to food. It took several days for me to gain the ability to eat more than a few bites of food at a time, which was a shame considering my work was provided gorgeous meals for everyone working overtime that I couldn’t enjoy.

Add in a broken water heater, a three year old who cut her own hair on one side only, a headlight out on the car, and one aggressive school nurse threatening to pull Cordy out of school if we didn’t get her vaccinations updated ASAP, and I was starting to think it would be easier to stop trying to get up every time the karma bus ran me over and just lay there instead.

Everything else was in stasis for the week. We used any clothing we could find for the girls because I didn’t have time for laundry, other than laundry that involved puke. Pizza and fast food were regular meals for the family. I would often turn the TV on and nap on the couch when the girls got home from school. And I haven’t ran or exercised in any way since the March of Dimes 5K. Internet? Ha. I barely knew what was going on in the world.

There has been some good in the past two weeks, though. Seeing everyone at work pull together to get the job done has been inspiring. Aaron has a temp job – where I work, actually – helping out with all of the little extras that need done during this crisis. Cordy read every one of her birthday cards this year, impressing everyone with her previously hidden reading talents. And Mira…well…Mira only cut ONE side of her hair. You could call it a fashionable asymmetrical look.

What energy or personality I possessed was ruthlessly drained from me in the past two weeks, and I’m now desperately trying to pull myself back together and refuel my life force with small servings of Facebook, Twitter, cuddling on the couch with my family, and phone calls with friends and family.

Things are slowly going back to normal. Slowly. There is still a lot of overtime expected at work, but I got to sleep 8 hours this weekend. And do a couple loads of laundry. I got to spend more than a couple of hours with my husband and children, when we were all awake and no one was sick. It was short-lived, and I’m back to only sleeping and working, but I know those peaceful moments will be back again soon.

And I’m slowly inching my way back out into being social again.

Hope you haven’t forgotten about me. I’ve been here the entire time, missing my blog, my friends, and my leisure time. Life should get back to normal soon (whatever normal might be), and as it does nothing will get in my way of getting back to what I love.

Filed Under: clearly insane, fate laughing at me, me me me, plague, the J-O-B · Tagged:


Sep 24, 2010

Proven Ways To Lose Weight That I Wouldn’t Recommend

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Stomach virus.

Enough said.

I’m now seeing my weight in the 170’s, but I don’t feel like celebrating at the moment.

Ugh, slinking off to rest some more. As you can imagine, any working out has been completely derailed this week. But I also haven’t eaten anything more than stale saltines for the past 30 hours.

I do not endorse this method of losing weight.

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