Week 4 was another good week. I was down another 2 pounds. That’s a total of 11 pounds in 4 weeks. This was probably the toughest week so far though. I was around all kinds of party food, and wasn’t really in the mood to excercise. Vacation mode kicked in bigtime!!

Weight Watchers: I stuck to the system. I didn’t even use all my extra points. Not because I didn’t want to, but because I was SO paranoid about all the party food I could have eaten that I figured if I took one bite, I would have taken 100. I ate before we left for the Christmas parties, yes PARTIES. I also had a little stash of healthy snack bars with me. I managed to stick to veggies and the fruit trays. When we got home Christmas night I still had like 20 points left to eat. That’s how paranoid I was all day. Oh well, the plan worked and I survived the holidays and dropped some pounds in the process.

Excercise: I only hit the eliptical machine 3 times last week. I try to do it everyday, but for some reason I was in “hang out, watch tv, play with the kid” mode almost all last week. We cleaned the house so I guess that sort of counts for excercise. Once again, my personal bribe of watching some of my favorite old TV shows on my mp3 player was the motivation I needed to get on the machine.

Mental: It was a tough week. With the holidays, there was food everywhere. At work, almost everyday there was a HUGE pile of goodies. At home, there were the parties. We ate out with friends one night. The opportunity to eat crap seemed to never end. All in all, I’m happy I behaved myself but at the same time I feel like I really cheated myself out of some good eats. I guess I have to readjust my thoughts on food. Not eating things wrapped in bacon is probably better for me in the long run, but when you’re in a room filled with great smelling and tasting things, it just feels wrong to walk past all that stuff and eat veggies.

      It’s pretty cool to see the weight dropping. I got myself into this mess and now I have to get myself out of it. This is a marathon. I won’t be done with the process until probably late summer. Even then it won’t be done, then I’ll have to maintain it. I think that will be tougher than losing the weight in the first place!!

     So how did YOU do this week?

Popularity: 2% [?]

The BEE Morning Coffee Club returns to the air on Monday, January 5, 2009

Popularity: 2% [?]

   Aidan is going to have a little sister this spring : )

Popularity: 2% [?]

  Another successful week. Down another 2 pounds. That’s a total of 9 pounds in three weeks. I think I’ve really gotten into a groove with the food and excercise. I’m planning ahead more. Even with all the food that’s around during the holiday season I’ve managed to stay on the plan.

Weight Watchers: I am a creature of habit. I could eat the same thing all day everyday as long as it’s easy and I don’t have to cook. (Just ask the guys at Subway, we’re on a first name basis.) That’s why planning ahead is so important. Last weekend I knew I was going to a party that would have TONS of home made goodies. So I saved all my points and worked out all week so I’d have plenty of points for the party. Good thing I did. I way undersestimated home many points I’d actually used. BUT, even with that misstep, I still managed to stay at the points limit for the week. By the way, all the stuff I at at the party almost made me sick, which is good incentive to stick to the plan.

Excercise: I did 25-30 minutes 5 days last week. I’ve found a great way to pass the time on the elipse machine. I have a little mp3 player that you can watch movies on. So I’ve loaded it up with some old tv shows and some of my favorite movies and made a rule for myself that the only time I’m allowed to watch it is on the elipse machine. It’s a great incentive to workout! There was one evening last week that I had no intention of working out, but I really wanted to see the next episode of the show I had been watching so I hopped on and got 30 minutes of excercise. The weight training is still a work in progress. I didn’t hit the weights at all last week, but again, being a creature of habit, once I do find a way to work it into the routine the weights will become part of the plan on a regular basis.

Mental: I’m felling better every day. Just yesterday, for the first time, a coworker stopped a conversation as I was walking by and asked if I was losing weight. Another coworker asked me the same question today. What a difference a few pounds makes. I’m looking to lose 60 or 70 pounds, so I can’t imagine how different I’ll look in a few months. At the pace I’m losing weight, I should be to my goal by mid July. It was tough getting started. Just the thought of months of excercise and restricting what I’ll eat was not a happy thought. Now, it’s become a game to me. A challenge. July seems so far away, and at times it’s easy to think “I’ll take a week off, not a big deal.” Those 2 little pounds don’t sound like much but add it up week after week, month after month, and the goal will happen. In the big scheme of things, a few months isn’t a big deal. I’ll be happy and more importantly healthier. I can already feel the lovehandles melting away. Walking up and down the stairs here at work and in the parking garage is easier. I can’t wait for July. Hell, I can’t wait for another 10 pounds.  

So how did YOU do this week? Hit the “comment” button below, let’s get thru this together!!

Popularity: 2% [?]

FIREPROOF YOUR TREE AND ENJOY THE FRAGRANCE OF EVERGREEN

This year, take the oath: there won’t be an accidental fire in your house or apartment. All you need do to stop this possibility is to fireproof the live evergreen displayed indoors at Christmas!

HOW TO FIREPROOF

Once you get home, get a saw and immediately make a fresh cut at the base of the tree trunk. This is mandatory for any tree you’ve bought. Go down about an inch above the bottom of the trunk and make a fresh cut there with your saw.

Immediately after making your cut at the bottom of the tree trunk, mix your homemade preservative.
Fill a two-gallon bucket with hot water to within an inch or so of the top of the bucket. Then, into the hot water, add the following ingredients:

¨       two cups of Karo Syrup

¨       two ounces of liquid chlorine bleach

¨       two pinches of Epsom salt

¨       one-half teaspoon Boraxo

¨       one teaspoon of chelated iron (also called iron chelate – available at most nurseries)

Stir these ingredients thoroughly in the bucket, then immediately stand the trunk of the tree in this solution. Leave the tree in the bucket until you are ready to decorate inside.

When the tree goes indoors, stand the trunk in the tree stand and decorate it as you always do. Then get the bucket filled with your ingredients, draw off the mixture from the bucket and fill the tree stand right up to the top.

Someone in the family must see to it that every day, without exception, the well of the tree stand must be kept filled with the solution from your two-gallon bucket.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?

1.        Your tree will be soaking wet with water, in fact, at least 800 per cent more water than when the tree was growing in the forest.

2.        The tree will not become a fire hazard in your house because it is soaking wet, almost like a sponge.

3.        No needles will drop, no matter what variety of evergreen you choose.

4.       At the same time, the tree will give off a fragrance like that you’ve sensed when walking through a forest of evergreens.

So, fireproof your live evergreen this Christmas and enjoy a safe holiday!

Popularity: 2% [?]