Joined the gym!

Well, my running has been non-existant this year. I've had a couple of hiccuped starts, but always stopped because it's too cold or too dark. Soon it will be too hot. Thinking back, when I first started running, I had a 10 minute commute to work and no warm husband to cuddle in the morning (best time to run). Now it's a lot harder to get up early.

Scott's work has a huge, very nice gym. We finally got around to getting me an access card for it. We've gone twice so far, Monday and Wednesday. The first time I tried out an elliptical (too scared to get on the treadmill). It didn't feel like much of a workout compared to running. Right before we left, I decided to be brave and try the treadmill. It wasn't nearly as scary as I expected.

Last night I went right for the treadmill. I did a 5 minute (1/4 mile) warm up walk and then sped it up to a breathless 13:30 minute mile. I was able to sustain that for 1.5 miles before deciding to go back to walking and cool down. Overall, I did 2 miles in about half an hour. I plan to aim for at least 2 miles 3 times a week until I feel comfortable working up to more.

I've also been journaling WW points for the last two weeks with a devastating hiatus over the weekend. I took Friday off to go riding and made my way to Pickett House in Woodville, TX for lunch. Fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and peach cobbler are not conducive to weight loss. On Saturday, I met up with several friends to go out to dinner at Sambuca before seeing "Billy Elliott" at the Hobby Center. The crab stuffed salmon entree was fairly healthy, but the crab bisque soup and sticky caramel bread pudding a la mode most definitely were not!

It's now Thursday and I've finally worked myself back down into the 170s (179.0) and planning to be better this weekend.

One more item of pride. I haven't bought Girl Scout cookies in years, but I'd been dreaming about them lately. They were setting up a stand as Scott and I walked into the supermarket last Sunday. He saw the look on my face and handed me a twenty (I don't usually carry cash). On the way out, I picked up 4 boxes (note the restraint, they're only $3.50 per box). 5 days later, I've had exactly 4 cookies (Lemonades - yum!) and noted each serving faithfully in my journal. Scott tends to go through cookies like a monster, but he's been good about only touching them when I'm having a serving. These 4 boxes will probably last over a month at this rate.

Something different

It's not diet or fitness related, but I finally applied for an NCARB record. It's an architecture thing.... beginning to take the steps to become a licensed architect in Texas.

Next steps: get Cal Poly to send them a transcript and talk to my boss about verifying various areas of work experience.

Then I get to take tests! Yay.

Update

I tend to go all quiet when the weight loss isn't going my way (ie down).

Well, back on Thursday, April 22, the hotel that I've been working on for the last two years had it's grand opening celebration and I was invited! (this doesn't usually happen)

Scott and I also obtained tickets to the big ($250/plate, thanks boss!) dinner honoring donors and alumni.

OMG

OMG

OMG that food was good.

The scale was not kind that next day. I spent the last week coming down from that and am finally back in the 160s again. At 168.6, I'm at a new low for this iteration of weight loss and am 4 lbs down. Only one pound to go for my Vegas goal!

I'm Back!

...in the 160s! 169.6!

I got down to about 164 before the holidays last year. It's good to know that my low is just about 5 lbs away. Sure, that's probably a long hard month away, but it seems so much more attainable when I'm in the same weight decade!

Tuesday Weigh In

At 170.4, I'm down 2.2 from Friday, when I started this iteration of the "diet". Overall, down 20.8 lbs.

It has only been a few days, but I'm feeling successful already. I really hope this isn't just some natural body weight fluctuation and I'm going to find my weight back up for no good reason tomorrow morning.

I'd sure like to ditch these pesky 170s.

Counting Points

It sure is nice to have a supportive partner.

We behaved over the weekend and both of us lost weight. I think our main strategy is going to be to massively cut down dinner. We love my cooking, but it does tend to add up calorically.

I started formally counting WW points on my custom spreadsheet this morning. I've essentially finished the day with 4 points to go (goal is 0-5 with higher being better), so I'll count it a success.

On to tomorrow!

New Goal - With a Time Limit...

OK,

So he proposed a week ago. We haven't set a date yet, but it's probably going to be July or August.

I'm also going to Las Vegas (the annual convention trip) in about a month.

It's time to face the fact that I'm up about 10 lbs from my low.

Let's see if I can lose 5 lbs by Vegas and then go from there...

I'm currently at 172.6. That makes it a goal of 167.6 by May 18.