200 days and counting!

Yesterday was my 200th day in my streak on MyFitnessPal. That means 200 days since my weightloss/healthy journey began. It doesn't feel like its been that long! As I've said before... I'm glad I started when I did. I didn't wait for "monday". Didn't wait till "the first of the month", or even "first of the year". I just started. What I was currently eating was what was maintaining my obesity/helping me gain more. As hard as it may be for some people to accept, your weight is in your complete control. No one else's. No one is holding a gun to your head, telling you to keep eating. Telling you to eat another cupcake or piece of chicken or slice of pizza or whatever your drug of choice is. I say drug because researchers are now finding that eating certain foods for most people triggers a dopamine release in the brain the same as a drug addict's when they get their fix. It may not be as strong as say, heroine or cocaine, but it is the same thing that happens. You sink your teeth into that pizza or bloomin' onion or doughnut and your brain says "YESSSS!" obviously, that rush soon subsides and the brain wants it again. We are wired biologically to be pleasure seakers. The Good Lord put this in us because it helps us servive in the natural world he first created us in. But nowadays... there are calories galore... too many... and when that gets combined with low nutrition per calorie, you have someone who is literally starving from a nutritional standpoint but yet they are quite noticeably overweight or obese. You've got to eat nutritious foods. Sure, treats are fun now and then. Like Sunday... I ate fried Calamari and Fish n Chips! (Probably why I only lost 0.4 pounds this week haha) but it was a fun treat, I enjoyed it and am done with it. That's the first time in months I have eaten anything deep fried. I don't do it everyday or I will blow back up to my obese self. 

So yeah. Not to lecture, but that stuff has been on my mind lately.

Anywaaayyysss things have been going aight. Like I said, cheat meal happened on Sunday evening. And I went a little over my calories on friday and saturday so today my weight is 127.2. I'm totally happy with that. I have been sick now with a bad cold for over a week. Despite that, I still have the energy to train for our half marathon. The mileage has been low (5 miles was my biggest run this week) but at least I'm getting out there! Never before would I have been able to comfortably run 5 miles with a sinus infection!! I guarantee you, it is because of what I have been eating. I eat to fuel my body now. Not to please my tongue. (Ok, sometimes I please my tongue...).

I think that's pretty much it for this week. Thanks for reading :)

Transformation pic I forgot to post here!:

The winds are a'changin!

What's that, self? Run a 10k, half marathon and full marathon by the end of August this year? Sounds like a plan!

Its on like Donkey Kong! Saturday May 10th 8am: Human Race (Santa Rosa) 10k! That's $35.

Then Sunday May 18th, 8am (my brother Benjamin's bday!) The Windsor Town Green Half Marathon ($75). We are beginning half Marathon training this week!
Once we have completed the full, we will begin full marathon training for:
August 24th 6am, the Santa Rosa Marathon ($125) I'll use mainly my dietbet winnings to pay for everything and no doubt I'll need new trainers too but if anyone wants to donate money towards races I won't say no! ;) haha no but seriously. Haha. Its gonna be like $400 this summer in races and shoes. Of course, you don't need to do races to be in shape. But its something really cool that I feel passionate about and I really want to do it!

I'll be running these races with my cousins Rebecca and Gabriella Elliott (Gabrie will be in Germany for the full though, so obvs she can't run it), my cousin Janae too and then my sister Julia is on board too I believe! I'm seeing if my sister Bella wants to run. Its gonna be so fun! We have to come up with a team name and we're gonna make shirts and everything! Fitness and health are contagious! I'm soooo excited! We are crazy but we're gonna do it!

I'm back on track with weight loss too! 127.6 pounds this morning! On track for diet bets and everything!

I killed my abs last week and did squats and deadlifts. Just need to keep it all up! This is the first summer of my teenage and adult life that I will be in shape! I am soooo looking forward to it!

The weather has been absolutely fantastic the past few days! I know we need more rain here in California but I'm getting spring fever already!

My heart is happy, my body healthy and my spirit is content and at peace today. God is good! In His will, may these plans succeed!

Whoosh!

Last Sunday (Superbowl) I pigged out to the max. I seriously ate so much food. Chips, dip, nuts, celery dipped in blue cheese dressing, strawberry/banana skewers, homemade jalapeño poppers (baked instead of deep fried, but still...) and probably like 20 hot wings and honey bbq wings. Oh and 2 Shock Top beers. I was so full, it hurt. I weighed in monday morning 5 pounds heavier than the previous Friday. So I dropped my calories back down to 1220 and got back on track. I know a lot of that was just my body bloating and retaining water from all the sodium I consumed, (my fingers were noticeably swollen by bedtime) but I have another dietbet round ending on the 21st and I need to be 128 for that. 

Well I took a peek on the scale yesterday and hadn't lost much weight. So all day yesterday I drank tons of water! (109 ounces... no joke) It helped my cravings and then this morning I got on the scale and put up 129.8!!!!!! I can't believe it!!! I'm in the 120's!!!! And the fabled "whoosh" is real! Haha. So yeah that is some crazy stuff!! Hard work is paying off!! The scale seriously said that! 

My cousin Rebecca and I finished our distance training yesterday! Today we did a shorter run with my other cousin Gabriella (Rebecca's sister) but tomorrow we plan to begin our crazy intense speed training. Yay! Its supposed to be 5 days/week but I doubt we will be able to train that much. We'll try though! We have 12 weeks till the race. Just enough time to complete the program if we stay on track. So we might not complete it but every little bit will help our time. week one starts us out just running 4 miles but we have to really push our speed. So that's totally do-able.

Wow I'm in the 120's... sorry I just remembered! Haha

I went shopping a few days ago at the thrift store my sister Julia works at (one of the Crossing The Jordan stores. The boutique-y one in Rohnert Park) and got a whole bunch of new (to me) clothes! Its still a strange cool feeling to go right to the "small" section to shop. I can pick out cute things and know they won't "make me look fat". Among the things I bought was a pair of jeans size 3. They are still about 2 sizes too small. I can barely button them. But they are my new "goal" jeans! They are actually the right length too haha. Jeans have almost always been too long on me for as long as I can remember.

There they are! Can't wait till they fit! 

So that's this week's update! Hope your day goes well and all! 

Get yo head in the game!

Well, as of today I am the same weight as I was the last time I wrote, two weeks ago. This morning I was 131.2. Which is a good weight, I'm not complaining by any means, but I've just been maintaining my weight lately and I feel like I need to recommit to my goals. I keep having "cheat days" which turn into "cheat weekends". It isn't even bad food. Just more food than I should be having in order to continue towards my fitness goals. Especially when I go to my parent's. I just want to join in the fun there and enjoy myself! But. Time to buckle down again. by the end of February I want to put up a 126. That's about a 5 pound loss for February. Easily achievable.

Training has been going well. Rebecca and I are right on track! On Tuesday, she didn't have time to run so I just ran alone. Decided to try to do a fast 5K and see how my speed was. I thought I wouldn't do very well since we've been training for distance so much lately but I put up a brand new PR! Sub-25 minutes with a 24:46! Over a minute faster than my previous best. I don't know how it happened. I just went HARD the whole time. Sprinted the last 0.10 miles. And it just happened. I think this next week is our last week of distance training and then we will begin our speed training.

I officially won two more Diet Bets as of today! They are still finalizing other player's numbers so I won't know how much money I have won until another day and a half but I expect it to be around $100. So that is pretty cool :)
and I signed up for a few more to keep my motivation going and to kick February into higher gear! I figure I can pay for the new ones with my current winnings and then once I win the new ones, THAT money can go for my Human Race entrance fee and whatever else.

My husband Daniel has been doing amazing still! he had a cheat day last Sunday and still managed to put up an incredible loss this week! He's losing more than what most people recommend, but he started out at a higher weight and so its different than if someone like me was to be putting up numbers like that. Once again, he's going to be posting a blog which I will share on my facebook, so I don't want to give away his stats... But it has been a month so he is posting some non-scale victories and they are shocking!

Sunday is Superbowl Sunday. We are going to my sister-in-law's new place for a party. We'll be bringing hot wings, bbq wings, and some healthy appetizers and deserts. That will keep me on track. I may have a beer or two, we'll see what my calories allow for, haha. I will probably let myself go over a little, since I'm only at the beginning of the month and diet bets, but I'm not going to pig out a ton and eat too much. I will be avoiding potato chips and dip, as that is one of my food weaknesses and once I have one, I just can't seem to stop. So that is my battle plan.
Valentine's day is coming up soon too. I plan to just have a few of whatever sweets I get. Just a little treat or two. Won't let myself pig out. I need to focus on myself again. Get my head in the game!
Since I've only lost another 5 pounds since my last progress pictures I'm still not posting any new ones. Maybe by the end of this month there will be a noticeable change if I drop another 5 pounds.

I really really need to stop procrastinating weight training. I am a cardio gal. Heck, I have lost over 40 pounds with cardio! But I seriously need to do some squats, deadlifts, work my arms and my core. I need to just buckle down, lift the heavy weights, and get stronger. my arms are too skinny. They need some meat on them. (actual meat, not more fat...)

I have been feeling guilty lately for being this thin. I had a few comments from a couple people (who are overweight themselves) that I need to make sure I "don't go too far" and "You will not look good if you lose more weight. It will just be gross. 120 is WAAAYYY too thin for you!" (Nevermind the fact that it is a PERFECTLY NORMAL weight for someone of my height. that would only be like a 22(ish) on a BMI scale. I would have to weigh less than 108 for it to be considered underweight. and I don't think its possible to weigh that little and still maintain the muscles I have. Seriously. I will never get THAT skinny.
But yeah, after those comments I have been feeling bad and self-conscious and afraid to lose more weight kinda. That's one reason why I didn't post a blog last week. I guess I'm just afraid of people thinking I'm getting too thin. But I seriously am not! Maybe I should post more pics so you can see I still have a very flabby stomach. I know that's a lot of pregnancy loose skin but trust me, there is plenty of fat in there still. And I want a version of a 6-pack by summer so, ya know. Gotta cut the fat and grow the muscles. 120 is just a goal. its more about what I look like now than what the scale says. It is just a number I'm shooting for, but the real finish line will be that stomach definition. You know what, I'll do it. I'll show you guys my stomach when I DON'T suck it in:

Yeah, there... you see? Def not too skinny. Its very squishy and jiggly and flabby. Not anything compared to what it used to be, but I look 15 weeks pregnant if I don't suck it in! Again, not complaining. I guess I'm just trying to justify my goals? So there! Haha well that's all for now. Thanks for reading!

Oh wait! I almost forgot to show you guys this picture! I must have been 13/14 in it and I am obviously woofing down nachos. This was in my very chubby days. My sister Julia found it and sent it to me a couple days ago:

Ugh, SO embarrassing! The ultimate "fatty" picture! Ok bye for reals now :)

Greener grass

Everyday I keep going. Everyday I'm doing this. It has become a lifestyle for me... keeping track of what I eat, seeking out healthier versions of my old favorite foods, running a heck of a lot. I think, sleep and breathe it now. I LOVE the new body I have and what it is capable of. I can run and bounce around, playing kangaroo with Hailie, I feel so free!! I used to look down and I felt trapped with all this fat stuck to me. I was in Petaluma last Sunday for my birthday (24 now, woop woop!), walking down E. Washington street and realized I wasn't trying to tuck my muffin top into my pants. I wasn't subconscously paranoid about a bulge sticking out somewhere. Didn't have to try to suck it in for pictures. I was just free. Holding hands with Hailie as we walked around the seed bank there. So free. And it is wonderful! I wasn't wearing baggy clothes either!

This morning I weighed in at 131.2. So that's better. I think that's a 2 pound loss... the max of what I want to be losing every week. But I should probably still eat more calories.
My cousin Rebecca and I are getting better at running! We did a run this morning (6.33 miles out past Cotati over some hills out in the country... BREATHTAKING.) and our average miles were almost exactly at 9 minutes/mile. Which is suddenly a huge jump in speed and I don't know how or why. You'd think the hills would have killed us, but we kicked butt! Got a great calorie burn in!

My husband Daniel started losing weight too, just a couple weeks ago and I can already see a difference! I won't give away his stats because he has a blog too that he will probably post later and I don't want to steal his thunder but he is doing FANTASTIC. He will blow you away with his progress! He is so driven and commited! He seems stronger in all this than I was! Especially when I first started. He is so inspiring, be on the lookout for his post soon! I'll put a link in my facebook when he posts his!

So other than that stuff, my legs have gotten some crazy definition going on! I have skinny ankles and big feet so it looks like I have frog legs but check it!:

Oh, and excuse the messy room!

Day 152

Well I hopped on the scale this morning and it said 133.6! So I lost like 3 or 4 punds this week which is more than I should be losing. So I'm upping my calories to 1600/day. But I  am now sub-previous goal!
I assume its from the 10k training... massive calorie burn.

Speaking of the training, its going very well! My trusty running buddy and cousin, Rebecca and I are up to running about 5 miles now (with our short walks every 2000 yards, as prescribed by our program). That doesnt include warm up/cool down distances. We are almost finished with week 2. Just need to run tomorrow. 10k is the equivalent of 6.2 miles, so we have a little ways to go before we're putting up that number. 4 more weeks to be exact. Then its on to speed training! Its way more fun to run with a friend than to run alone. To me anyway.

It has been easier to eat clean now with my husband on board doing the same thing as I am. No more junk food temptations in the house haha.
So I just wanted to give a little update. My stomach has noticeably gotten flatter. Here's my measurements:

Last time (12/13)           Today:

Arm: 10.5"                      Arm: 10"

Waist: 29.5"                   Waist: 29"

Hips: 34.5"                     Hips: 34.5"

Thigh: 22"                      Thigh: 21"

Calf: 14.25"                    Calf: 14"

So I have definitely lost inches everywhere but my hips! Fine by me! I feel so free! Its fun :)

So yeah that about wraps it up for today.

Here's some motivation:   :)

Update

I feel good starting the new year off like this. I just ran 5 days in a row! Still working off those holiday treats. I forgot to weigh in this morning before i chugged 24oz of water but when I did, I was 136.4. So I have definitely lost weight again.

My cousin Rebecca recently moved back home from North Carolina and we have been running a lot. She lived there for almost a year with her brother's family while he was deployed (he's a marine).
So she's back now and we are running buddies! We are training for a 10k race in May! (The Human Race.)

I finished my 5k improver app program this week and so we both started a 5 to 10k program yesterday! My calorie burn is already doubled and we aren't even running full 10k's yet!
So I'll be taking a break from working on my speed for 6 weeks of 10k training. Then we will start a 5days/week grueling 10k speed improvement program, hopefully finishing just before the race!
So yeah lots of cool exciting things on the horizon! I'm thinking of doing a few more diet bets to pay for it. Its only $35 but hey, if I can win my entry fee, that would be great :)

Other than that, everything has been pretty good. I've been staying on track with my eating. Been working in the garden a little. Doing some prep for spring. I get sprung fever too early every year. But I'm planning where everything will go, picking out seeds, turning soil etc.