New Gal Here

Name's Kotryna. I'm glad to be here and participate!

Ok, so I've got a question for you all. I am overweight, currently pushing 185 and I'm 5'5". My ideal weight would be 140. I have had two children and reached 200lbs with each pregnancy, and I am struggling to get the excess off. Now, I might be having another child in the fall (if all goes as planned) and I'm wondering how I can get in shape, not gain weight, and have a healthy pregnancy. Is it possible or safe to not gain weight while pregnant when you are overweight already?

My New Year's Baby Steps

Like I mentioned to Angela... if I set too many parameters at once, I get easily overwhelmed and I give up easily! So I'm going to start with a few simple goals that I personally need to work on.

I really liked Kim's suggestion of no soda. We have 8 bottles of soda left in the house, and as soon as the stash is gone, I will say goodbye to soda FOR-E-VER! (Quick note: An occasional root beer float is NOT a violation of the no soda rule, for me! By occasional I mean one every few months or so, max.)

So absolutely no soda for me.

I also have to admit a gross weakness of mine. I have terrible dental hygiene. A lot of times, I only remember to brush my teeth if I know I'm going somewhere and I don't want to gross people out with my breath or food stuck in my teeth, etc... I can't remember the last time I flossed! A lot of times when I DO floss, I only floss the front teeth that I think people will see.

Disgusting.

So, my goal is to brush my teeth at LEAST twice a day, and floss my teeth at LEAST once a day. Brushing them after every meal and flossing them before bed would be ideal!

Keeping your teeth healthy also keeps your heart healthy!.

So, I need to improve my dental hygiene.

Okay, those are two small goals that I can live with. I'll keep checking back, and I'm doing well with my goals a month from now, I can add another official goal to my list!

Shapefit, weightloss resource

The internet can be a very resourceful place, accessible anywhere, and at anytime. So, I decided to find some info on healthy snacks and anything else relating to weight-loss and fitness.
I came across this website called, Shapefit (click on Shapefit to go to the website) that offers FREE workouts and meal plans. I wanted to share this website with everyone because we're all in it together.
I'm going to give this a try and check back in three months to see if I progressed any. At this point, I have nothing to lose (except for losing weight, lol!)

parameters

OK friends, let's talk about our "challenge," and what are we gonna do about it? What are some parameters?

1. Treats. What is a treat? How about I say, what is not a treat? I deem "OK" for myself: hard candies, sugar-free treats, and beverages like hot chocolate or cider. What do you guys think about this?

2. Journals. I have many many many journals, so I'm just planning to write in at least one each day: a personal journal, this blog, my personal blog, a gratitude journal, a family history research journal, or any one of the many others.

3. Exercise. This is the one I'm most nervous about. I just like sleeping in lately... but I am motivated to do this. I think if I really exercise 45 minutes a day and cut out the sugar, the pounds will drop off. I am sure of it. So, to achieve all this exercise, I'll do aerobic videos, time on the elliptical, yoga/pilates, walks with my son, core/strength training (mostly with a resistance band and ball), and anything outdoors like hiking or biking. I'm gonna keep it varied so it stays interesting.

How about you guys? What are your parameters?

up for a challenge?

My friend told me about this really tough "resolutionary" challenge they did at the beginning of 2009. (I think it plays on the term "revolutionary," since this is supposed to revolutionize your life.) It goes on for 12 weeks (with just one day off per week -- Sunday), and it has 10 rules.

1. Get 7 hours of sleep (not necessarily consecutive -- naps count, too!)
   
2. Exercise 45 minutes every day (again, not necessarily consecutive)
   
3. Drink 48 oz. of water each day
   
4. Eat 2 fruits and 2 vegetables each day
5. No soda, alcohol, unhealthy snacks, or fast food (at least avoiding the booze will be easy)
   
6. No sweets (ARGH!)
7. No eating after dinner or 8 pm, whichever you decide
   
8. Read 15 minutes of religious text each day
9. Write in a personal journal each day (any length, any journal)
   
10. Express sincere appreciation to your spouse or another person each day

There you have it -- all things we'd all like to work on. ALL AT ONCE.

Evidently, you get 10 points a day for 12 weeks, 100 days or something like that. She missed quite a few points (um she did it while she was pregnant!), but her husband only missed a couple points and they were always sleep points. Sunday you can do whatever you want (eat a gallon of ice cream, for example).

My friend said that before this, she didn't think she could live without chocolate. She thought she was addicted. But after doing this, she can honestly say she can do without it if she decides to. She said this whole experience really changed her life.

Anyone want to do it? I am seriously considering it. I've got to jump-start myself, and I figure this is a good way to do it. I want change. I don't want to feel like how I feel anymore. And this way, this plan, is a plan that is sort of extreme but sort of isn't. Eating more healthy, getting the exercise we need, making time for personal reflection, those are all steps in a good direction. The only thing extreme for me is the no treats... sigh. But I am one of those people where if I get going, sometimes I just don't feel like I can stop. So really, no treats is a good rule for me, because I can do it. I've done it before. If I try to tell myself, "oh one treat is fine," it never ends there. I give up my convictions.

Anyway, I'm getting excited. I think I'll start January 1 and to go April 11, or 100 days. I'll keep track of my points and at the end -- ideally! -- I'll have 1,000 points. It's a little more than 12 weeks (14 weeks actually), but that's OK.

I have a feeling I'll buy a chocolate stash on Saturday so I can inhale it on Sunday... hehe.

i got up this morning!!

I did it! I feel great! I did an aerobics video and it's so gratifying. As much as I love that bed -- getting out of it sometimes feels even better!

I think I'm going to do an informal personal survey to figure out how I feel on:

1. Days I sleep in
2. Days I get up when I'm TIRED and exercise
3. Days I get up when I'm well rested and exercise

Do I feel better after one or the other? I seem to recall in the past that getting up and exercising sometimes makes me feel MORE tired, like I need a nap, etc. So it'll be interesting to actually keep track.

Anyway, I'm finally getting the week going -- on Wednesday!

i'm asleep and i can't get up!

We have a problem in our home. Well, it's a great success and mode to happiness that is now a problem.

For Christmas (come early!), we got a new mattress. Wowsers, it's heaven. We did a ton of research, went to a bunch of stores, got to know a lot of salespeople, and did crazy research online. In the end we went with a Simmons Beautyrest Worldclass Firm Mattress, sans the pillowtop.

It is amazing.

So, my problem is: I can't get up in the morning.

I'm trying really hard to get to bed by 10 pm so I can wake up at 6 am (8 hours) and exercise. Wesley sleeps in until 8, so that gives me plenty of time to get my groove on then shower and even eat breakfast, read the paper, and play online for a little bit. But when it's time to get up, I can't make myself move! This happened all last week and today. It's the new mattress I tell you!

How do YOU get out of bed???

cucumber confession

Here's my goal for this week: eat a lot of salad.

Should I eat a salad every day??? Maybe I will challenge myself to eat a salad every day. I wonder what that would do? Do any of you eat salad EVERY DAY?

See, today, I bought a cucumber. Whenever I buy cucumbers (for salads), they always go bad. Always. I haven't finished a cucumber in months. I buy them with the intention of eating a lot of salads, and it doesn't happen. The poor little cucumber disintegrates in the bottom of the veggie crisper. It is just so sad. The forlorn, forgotten cucumber.

Well, not this week, blog friends! I'm challenging myself.

Since Rose asked, I haven't lost any weight or any inches. I'm not sure what in fact I have done, besides skip my workouts and go on vacation. But, here I am now -- back from vacation and ready to get back into the swing of things. I want to work out 4-5 times this week (as I've previously challenged myself), I want to eat a lot of salads, and I want to limit the treats and carbs. I'm not waiting until January 1 to make changes. Change has to happen now!

Cucumber, be prepared to be eaten! You're not going rotten on my watch!

How is Everyone?

Okay, how is everyone doing on their goals? Any pounds loss? Inches lost?

As far as me... my hands and fingers appear to be shrinking. My wedding ring just fell off yesterday without me noticing right away (don't worry, someone found it). I've been pigging out this week, and my weight was 147 this morning, so I'm not TOO far up there.