Update

Well, here's an update on me......

The last month and a half has been challenging to say the least, but I'm ok.

This last weekend I attended an emotional eating seminar taught my a near and dear friend to me.  I haven't seen her in over a year and tears filled my eyes before during and after the seminar.  Not only was I seeing a friend of mine that I value so much but I knew the topic was hitting home....HARD and I was not the only one in the room that felt that way.  The gal sitting next to me was in tears for half of the seminar as well.  It forced us to THINK about our emotions and taught us coping skills and thought processes to tackle the demon that is emotional eating.  There was a lot of AWESOME information shared in the seminar and I'll try to remember to bring my folder to share some of my personal exercises from the seminar, in hopes to inspire others who struggle with the same issues.

This weekend, I also chose to "clean house" as far as food goes.  I cleansed the house of all of the less than healthy foods and snacks we'd accumulated, mostly donating to the food shelf, and restocking the kitchen with healthy options.  I can't even BEGIN to tell you how much this one little thing makes such a HUGE difference for us (the kids and I).  Normally the worst part of the day for mindless eating is the evening.  We have very little time together and hence we don't want to spend it preparing dinner.  It's much more fun to snuggle and read books and play together, so typically I try to plan meals or we eat leftovers.  In the case that system is flawed and we come home to nothing prepared and no great ideas, we all literally just choose a variety of things from the cupboard and fridge and as long as it's a variety, it's considered a meal.  I RARELY take my children out to eat, so once we are home and the only option for constructing and impromptu meal are healthy options....guess what we choose?  HEATLHY OPTIONS!  I've also noticed that when you eat healthy your cupboards are fairly scarce with exception of seasonings, etc, but the fridge is overflowing with color.  How amazing it is to open the fridge and rainbow of NATURAL fresh fruits and veggies shines out in your face....yup, you're doing it right!

This weekend I also made a near famous dish at my house....Noodleless Lasagna.....mmmmmm I just finished some of the leftovers for lunch too and it's JUST as amazing for lunch a couple days later as it was for dinner, fresh out of the oven.  All you really do is replace the noodles in your regular lasagna recipe with thin length wise sliced zucchini (I left the skins on for extra fiber).  I also use spicy italian sausage, italian cheese blend, organic garlic spaghetti sauce (Organicville brand), and if I have them in the house a handful of Ellsworth Garlic Cheese Curds over the top....and all of that baked at 350 for about a 1/2 hour or so is heaven on a plate and I'm not the only one that thinks so.  Everyone that tries it, loves it.  YAY for good carb lasagna!

Back to work for me.  Enjoy your week all!

Run #2

Well today wasn't as cold as a couple weeks ago but I sure learned that cars aren't the only ones that spin their "wheels" on a glare ice hill. LOL. The road/sidewalk looked just wet and it was misting out but apparently that left a thin little layer of ice on one of the hills. Even when I stopped running, stopped walking, stood perfectly still I was sliding backward. It was scary and funny all at the same time.

Anyway, I survived the ice and by the .45 mile mark I was at a 10 min pace, but of course THAT didn't last. Between lake sized puddles at the park and the hill on the outside of the park headed up to the school there was no way I could keep that pace. I finished nearly 3 miles with a 15:30 pace. Now clearly that's not a great pace but my first mile was 12 minutes, and my thought is.....a 12 minute mile is STILL a mile and I'm lapping everyone on the couch. And ooooooooh the adrenaline! Look out world!

Happy weekend everyone!!

Best breakfast!!

This is the yummiest breakfast I've had in a long time and I'm using it for fuel before my run :-)

1/2 yellow onion, diced
3 baby Bella mushrooms, sliced
2 slices of ham (not lunch meat), diced
2 eggs, scrambled
And a handful of Ellsworth Garlic Cheese Curds

AMAZING!!!

Motivation

I've been searching and searching for motivation and there are a couple pictures from when I was the smallest I've ever been (a year and a half ago) that are super helpful and make me want to make good choices.

One of them is this one.

This picture was taken at a "bra party" because I was amazed at the "lift" I got from said bra, now I was just amazed that this was me and I still wanted to lose another 70 lbs!  This one definitely proves that I CAN make the changes I need to make and I CAN accomplish my goals.

I also wanted to share some of my "before" pictures to remind me just how badly I don't want to lose control of my body ever again:

It's amazing to think that was even me!!  So while I still work every single day on the body I want to have I can easily look back and be proud of my accomplishments so far.  Being healthy is a way of life, not a short stint of time.  I've been working on my goals for almost 3 years now and have made TONS of progress.  Even if my progress has stopped or slowed a little here and there, I am still much better off now than I was in the last three pictures, mentally and physically.

The things I'll be eating today: chicken taco, clementines, apples, yogurt, almonds, chicken vegetable soup, a hardboiled egg, and probably more soup when I get home from work.

Have a happy hump day all!

Well.....it's Monday

My weekend was utterly amazing as far as time spent with my little people, but not so much when it comes to food.  I struggled....A LOT, but I'm doing my best to see this as just a bump in the road.  Just another little low that will help me appreciate the highs.  This weekends menu consisted of everything from pumpkin cookies, to pizza, to candy, and everything unhealthy in between.  We DID get a walk in and while it was about a mile walk, it was slow because the little people OBVIOUSLY have short legs, but a walk is a walk and all three of us enjoyed the fresh air and the sun on our faces.  I also got a walk in exploring the antique shops in town with a dear friend that I haven't seen in a while.  Visiting with her and her family was definitely one of the many highlights of the weekend.

So today is a new day and while I'm not in any better mood than I was over the weekend (hence the bad choices) I do not feel so defeated as I did yesterday.  Today's menu includes a portion of an egg bake with cheese and jalapenos, yogurt, apples, oranges, chicken taco, a hard boiled egg, and some homemade chicken vegetable soup waiting for me at home.  After today and tomorrow's snow storm, I can NOT wait for the tummy warming soup.

Enough of the bad choices, I'm going to put the weekend's choices behind me, focus on the fun and love that was shared and move on with my week.

Happy Monday all!