The school year is coming to a close...I tend to measure my years not in calendar years anymore but rather school years. I've been doing that since Ke$ha Barbie started school.
So now my year is coming to a close...and summer vacation is ahead of me...
so I look back on this past year and I see what I have gained and lost...some of it pounds, some of it baggage...some of it...well some of it was a husband.
The school year started with me having to go to the school and do the day of first aid and CPR training...that was where the head of school announced I had lost 63 pounds to the entire faculty and staff.
EMBARRASSING....
Guess what...I have doubled that number...more than doubled it...yippeeeeeee.....
The school year also started with football.
Now I like football but don't love it...well, maybe I love it when my son plays but otherwise...
notsomuch...
I do love lacrosse...don't ask me why...I still can't figure out that game but there is something about how crazy it is that totally appeals to me...
I think my new ambition should be to become a lax bro...
anyhoo....
so the school year started with football...
That would not be really significant except that football gave me the greatest gift of all...
DIMPLES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You see, Dimples, the best trainer in the world and my personal therapist and adopted baby brother, is the bomb...and he was The Cutest Boy In the World's football coach.
A friend of mine who coached one of the other teams introduced me to Dimples. He (my friend) was afraid that we weren't going to get along all that well...
hahahahahahahahahaha....
we get along a little too well...he is not only my personal trainer and therapist but some day he needs to show up in a priest's collar because I confess ALL my sins to him...and some of them he figures out on his own.
We get along just fine...but my friend was afraid that I was going to kill a coach...be it him or his assistant...
all coaches were alive and well at the end of football season.
This same friend did the same thing with the lacrosse coaches...he introduced me and then warned one of them that I possessed witch powers. He warned the poor guy that if he didn't do my bidding I would "make the monkeys fly" (a reference to the Wicked Witch of the West and her flying monkeys). That coach never made me call out the flying monkeys but I did enjoy him fearing me for a bit...but now he loves me...
That's my talent...I get coaches to do my bidding or at least think I am awesome...
Not sure Dimples thinks I am awesome but he SOMETIMES does my bidding...and for some strange reason I do his bidding...
except for jumping jacks...still saying "no" to those...
But I digress...
So football season comes with the start of school and I discover that Dimples is not just the best football coach ever...he is a personal trainer.
So one day we have a conversation that goes like this:
Me: So, what do you do when you aren't coaching football to 7th grade boys?
Dimples: I am a personal trainer.
Me: So, do you train "real" people or just athletes?
Dimples: No, I train real people too...
Me: do you train housewives?
Dimples: yes
Me: Do you want a challenge?
he looked at me with a puzzled look...
Me: I am the challenge...you game?
Poor baby didn't stand a chance...he said yes and I think he regrets and loves it all at the same time...
School year rolled along...I lost weight, my son's football team went undefeated, Dimples started training me and I got fit and lost more weight.
After the holidays I decided to lose 260 more pounds...
in the form of a husband...
So I moved on from a husband but realized that I really had a second chance to live my life...
I have a second chance to find someone to spend my life with...
I have a second chance to keep my body in shape and stay fit and trim and more importantly, stay healthy...
I have a second chance at moving my life forward...
I wish I had a second chance to meet Oprah....but you know what, once might just be enough because it was a dream come true...
I spent the year moving toward my second chance...
So now I have my second chance...a second chance to live a new life...in a better body, with a better frame of mind, with all the good things about my life still intact.
I'm excited to see what next year brings me...because this year has been great!
I know some of you might wonder how I can say things have been great when I am getting divorced but I can assure you it is one of the best things I have ever done...along with Dimples...and I have the greatest kids ever that just keep amazing me day-by-day...
I"v been given a second chance to get it right this time...with my health...with my life...with my love...
And I am damn lucky...
And as for summer vacation...well, that is for laying in the sun and enjoying my kids...and keeping on the path of health and wellness I have maintained this year. I may take a vacation from being "super volunteer" but I won't take a vacation from the rest of it.
And next year...well, I'm not gonna worry about next year...I still have 3 months of fun in the sun to enjoy before that comes about....
So for now...I will be grateful for the second chance I have...and I thank God and all of you for it...
Inspiration Song: "Second Chance" by Peter Bjorn and John...very very very cool song...I have to listen to it every day...really...
Bye Darlings...go and find your second chance...at whatever...
Showing posts with label football. Show all posts
Showing posts with label football. Show all posts
Friday, May 20, 2011
Monday, March 7, 2011
The Ballroom Blitz
Ah...Lacrosse season has started and is in full swing.
I have come to love lacrosse...even though I still don't understand one single thing about the game. I am trying to learn...
Last year I wrote a blog (not on this blog site) about my complete and utter lack of understanding of the game of lacrosse.
Because I am lazy, I am basically going to copy it here...but add a bit to it...edit it...update it...but not much has changed about my understanding of the sport since I first wrote it a year ago...
So here goes...here is me vs. lacrosse...
What the heck is this sport called lacrosse?
It's not like other sports...it not only has its own rules and lingo, it has its own culture (and strange wardrobe)! This was not clear to me until Ke$ha Barbie came home and told me that she didn't want her brother to become a "LAX Bro".
"What is a LAX Bro?" I asked.
"Oh, they are the dudes (yes, she said DUDES) that play lacrosse and think that lacrosse is the greatest sport ever invented." She then went on to explain that they have a "look"---most have longish hair (the better to wave out behind the helmet), preppy clothes, and all they do is talk about lacrosse and use the lacrosse lingo. Frankly I thought that was what a "preppy" was---polo shirts and prep school sports---but apparently this goes one step beyond...it seems that they are not terribly nice to the girls (at least at her high school), but rather looking for the "hottest chick" to hang on their arm and come cheer them on until they find a prettier/cuter/"hotter" girl in the stands to romance via...TEXT MESSAGE...
She used the word "tool"...I don't want to know what that means if it is anything other than something you can buy at Lowe's but I think I have a pretty good idea...and from what I understand now, it seems that the various traits of the lax bros varies by geographic region...I won't even try and figure that out.
Thank goodness her boyfriend is a motocross guy...and I can't believe I just typed/said that...he is also an Eagle Scout.
So this conversation got me thinking:
WHAT THE HECK IS THIS SPORT?!?!
(yes, at the time I thought it in all caps with exclamation points)
I know nothing about this sport. Football I can somewhat understand. After all, I was the only cheerleader on my squad who could tell if our team was offense or defense when we were playing at a school that didn't have the little football light up on the scoreboard next to the name of the school that had possession (yes, I do know a couple of football words) of the ball. Perhaps this is my only achievement in understanding football (we have the ball=offense), but it wasn't alien and foreign to me and I had heard the words and lingo before. And now that I have a football coach that is also a personal trainer as MY trainer, I am learning all kinds of football lingo like "depth chart" and "left tackle"...thank you, Dimples...
When my son decided to wrestle I knew I was entering a new world...very strange sport, wrestling is (wow, that makes me sound like Yoda), but although I could not understand one thing that was happening on the mat, and could never tell what gets you points, I did know that it was hand-to-hand combat and it only took a few (very long) minutes...and that they wear a leotard to do it...You want it to end and end quickly...your son is out there fighting another boy...something we send them to detention for doing unless they are wearing a very strange-looking leotard thing and are grappling each other on a mat...
very. strange. sport.
So my son then selects as his 3rd sport to play at middle school---Lacrosse. Maybe it is the fact he is an Aries and although I don't attribute anything to astrological signs and what they supposedly say about you, I did find it ironic that my boy is born under the sign of a RAM. As in a sheep that wants to RAM things...hit things...
How about track? Let's do that...that's what I thought when he started playing lacrosse last year...track I would have preferred...
I get running, I just don't do it myself...not since my orthopedic guy informed me that I can only run short distances lest I risk my knees.
I like my knees so I think I will skip running...
But no, he picks the sport that the coach tells us from the get-go that the boys will be hurt and beat up and must wear the dreaded...cup...
How about track? Let's do that...that kept running through my mind...
that mantra ran through my mind ALL last year...
Football is violent...sorry guys, but it is. The sole purpose is to hit each other while some guy runs the ball down the field trying not to get hit. Wrestling is combat on a "I am a guy and I will beat the @$#% out of you" level...but LAX is a sport not unlike hockey where your bruises and scars are like some badge of courage.
I remember my cousins, who all attended East-coast boarding schools where lacrosse has been played since the beginning of time, showing up to our family reunions with new scars...all the result of some violent thing called "lacrosse". I'm pretty sure they didn't wear all the padding, etc. that they wear now...at least I hope that is the reason I remember those scars and broken bones and knocked out teeth...
How about track? Let's do that...
So I decide to look on the internet and find some rules and explanation of the sport. Ke$ha Barbie did not play girl's lacrosse. She ran TRACK in middle school...
And in the ultimate act of irony...she now plays lacrosse...never played before but as a junior in high school she joined the JV girls lax team because she needed a PE credit...and her best friend wouldn't do dodge ball with her (and yes, they give PE credit for dodge ball at her high school) so they decided to join the "no-cut" JV team...
How about track? Let's do that...
over and over in my brain until the season got running last year...
So I find the rules, etc. about lacrosse. And I tried to make sense of them.
Last year I asked Precious and Adorable History Teacher about it---he went to a prep school so I figured that even though he was a baseball and football player he may have had some exposure to it. The man is a coach (a LAX coach at that) and a very fine teacher, but once I asked him to explain it to me I decided I was better off letting him tell me that there was some culture called "Kush" (he teaches 6th grade ancient history) that I never heard about in all my schooling, than to ask a guy who understands and "gets" sports as a whole to tell me about it. I am "sport stupid" and bless his heart, I am amazed he didn't fire me as a parent as he tried to explain a sport to me.
So he (Precious) goes and grabs a marker and takes me to the white board in his classroom and starts drawing "x's" and "o's" on the board and starts in explaining the game to me. I almost burst into tears of frustration...about the time he said something about a "crease" I must have gotten an extremely confused look on my face and he just gave up.
He literally looked at me, reached out and hugged me and said:
"why don't you watch a few games and we will try this again"...
I wish I could tell you that after watching an entire season of lacrosse that I have a better understanding of the game but I don't, but I do know what the crease is. And this year Precious is The Cutest Boy in the World's coach so as I stand on the sidelines taking photos and I hear him yell things like "wheel! wheel!" I just keep looking in the viewfinder of my camera and pray that once I look at my photos I might understand what I am taking photos of.
I have a college education. From a good school (and yes, you UT people, A&M is just as good as your mecca of orange and white). But I don't get this sport. I still have no idea what any of it is about. I get that you put a ball in the net and the goalie tries to stop you...my kids both played soccer and my daughter played the female equivalent so LAX (field hockey...girls LAX is way tamer). I get the "ball in the goal" thing. But it is all this other stuff? There is a whole dictionary devoted to lacrosse terms:
http://www.e-lacrosse.com/laxicon.html
I don't understand most of them...
How about track? Let's do that...
I tried in vain to figure it out last year...I almost decided to pay some 8th grade boy to sit next to me and explain the game to me as I watch. I really wanted to know what the crease is and why the attacker can't enter it...thankfully this year, I do know what the crease is...but not why the attacker can't enter it...
But we got through the season, and I did learn a few other things---like the goalie can leave the goal and score...but most of it is still very foreign and strange to me.
But, weirdly, I really like the game...and Dimples will not be happy to hear that at all...sorry, Baby!
So this year our season started and the boys have won 2 games. Precious and Adorable History Teacher is the coach. I am the team mom (a deal we struck last year...because I am the worlds best team mom and I love Precious so he got me...).
And in another act of irony---I am the boys lacrosse equipment manager for the school. Yes, I am in charge of helmets and shoulder pads...and I used my witch powers to obtain the boys some practice jerseys...and now I have 4 men really grateful to me and happy for my witch powers...
I'm trying to learn the sport, so that I can understand how that equipment is used...but mostly I still just take photos and get the concession stuff ready and take it out on the golf cart.
Now about me and that golf cart...
Before the first game I was struck with terror that I was going to have to get the cart out of the shed and drive it. Last year I almost turned it over the one time I drove it so I was a little afraid to try again.
I expressed my fears to Coach Supersweet...while the darling 8th grade coach is watching this with a bemused expression on his face. 8th grade coach likes me...it's the practice jersey thing...but I think he also thinks I am nuts (which I am...but shhhh...don't tell...)
I tell Coach Supersweet and Coach Darling (8th grade coach...guess I will name him too if I mention him more than once in this blog)that I am afraid I will overturn the golf cart and that I am afraid to drive it.
Coach Supersweet tells me it is like riding a horse after you fall off...I just need to get back on.
Coach Darling contines to look bemused and a bit confused by this whole conversation...
So off I go and I get that darn golf cart...
And I drove it like Danica Patrick...
Me and the golf cart...we are friends now.
Although I did make Precious put it back in the shed for me...there are limits to my witch powers and my golf cart driving abilities.
So LAX season is here...I'm pumped...let's see how much blood we can get from the kids...
and as for track...I'm glad we aren't doing that...
I like lacrosse...(sorry Dimples---I like football too)...
Go LAX!
Inspiration Song: "The Ballroom Blitz" by Sweet...because watching lax is like a ballroom blitz...and I couldn't come up with anything else that fit...
Bye Darlings...go and learn about something new...for me it is lacrosse...
I have come to love lacrosse...even though I still don't understand one single thing about the game. I am trying to learn...
Last year I wrote a blog (not on this blog site) about my complete and utter lack of understanding of the game of lacrosse.
Because I am lazy, I am basically going to copy it here...but add a bit to it...edit it...update it...but not much has changed about my understanding of the sport since I first wrote it a year ago...
So here goes...here is me vs. lacrosse...
What the heck is this sport called lacrosse?
It's not like other sports...it not only has its own rules and lingo, it has its own culture (and strange wardrobe)! This was not clear to me until Ke$ha Barbie came home and told me that she didn't want her brother to become a "LAX Bro".
"What is a LAX Bro?" I asked.
"Oh, they are the dudes (yes, she said DUDES) that play lacrosse and think that lacrosse is the greatest sport ever invented." She then went on to explain that they have a "look"---most have longish hair (the better to wave out behind the helmet), preppy clothes, and all they do is talk about lacrosse and use the lacrosse lingo. Frankly I thought that was what a "preppy" was---polo shirts and prep school sports---but apparently this goes one step beyond...it seems that they are not terribly nice to the girls (at least at her high school), but rather looking for the "hottest chick" to hang on their arm and come cheer them on until they find a prettier/cuter/"hotter" girl in the stands to romance via...TEXT MESSAGE...
She used the word "tool"...I don't want to know what that means if it is anything other than something you can buy at Lowe's but I think I have a pretty good idea...and from what I understand now, it seems that the various traits of the lax bros varies by geographic region...I won't even try and figure that out.
Thank goodness her boyfriend is a motocross guy...and I can't believe I just typed/said that...he is also an Eagle Scout.
So this conversation got me thinking:
WHAT THE HECK IS THIS SPORT?!?!
(yes, at the time I thought it in all caps with exclamation points)
I know nothing about this sport. Football I can somewhat understand. After all, I was the only cheerleader on my squad who could tell if our team was offense or defense when we were playing at a school that didn't have the little football light up on the scoreboard next to the name of the school that had possession (yes, I do know a couple of football words) of the ball. Perhaps this is my only achievement in understanding football (we have the ball=offense), but it wasn't alien and foreign to me and I had heard the words and lingo before. And now that I have a football coach that is also a personal trainer as MY trainer, I am learning all kinds of football lingo like "depth chart" and "left tackle"...thank you, Dimples...
When my son decided to wrestle I knew I was entering a new world...very strange sport, wrestling is (wow, that makes me sound like Yoda), but although I could not understand one thing that was happening on the mat, and could never tell what gets you points, I did know that it was hand-to-hand combat and it only took a few (very long) minutes...and that they wear a leotard to do it...You want it to end and end quickly...your son is out there fighting another boy...something we send them to detention for doing unless they are wearing a very strange-looking leotard thing and are grappling each other on a mat...
very. strange. sport.
So my son then selects as his 3rd sport to play at middle school---Lacrosse. Maybe it is the fact he is an Aries and although I don't attribute anything to astrological signs and what they supposedly say about you, I did find it ironic that my boy is born under the sign of a RAM. As in a sheep that wants to RAM things...hit things...
How about track? Let's do that...that's what I thought when he started playing lacrosse last year...track I would have preferred...
I get running, I just don't do it myself...not since my orthopedic guy informed me that I can only run short distances lest I risk my knees.
I like my knees so I think I will skip running...
But no, he picks the sport that the coach tells us from the get-go that the boys will be hurt and beat up and must wear the dreaded...cup...
How about track? Let's do that...that kept running through my mind...
that mantra ran through my mind ALL last year...
Football is violent...sorry guys, but it is. The sole purpose is to hit each other while some guy runs the ball down the field trying not to get hit. Wrestling is combat on a "I am a guy and I will beat the @$#% out of you" level...but LAX is a sport not unlike hockey where your bruises and scars are like some badge of courage.
I remember my cousins, who all attended East-coast boarding schools where lacrosse has been played since the beginning of time, showing up to our family reunions with new scars...all the result of some violent thing called "lacrosse". I'm pretty sure they didn't wear all the padding, etc. that they wear now...at least I hope that is the reason I remember those scars and broken bones and knocked out teeth...
How about track? Let's do that...
So I decide to look on the internet and find some rules and explanation of the sport. Ke$ha Barbie did not play girl's lacrosse. She ran TRACK in middle school...
And in the ultimate act of irony...she now plays lacrosse...never played before but as a junior in high school she joined the JV girls lax team because she needed a PE credit...and her best friend wouldn't do dodge ball with her (and yes, they give PE credit for dodge ball at her high school) so they decided to join the "no-cut" JV team...
How about track? Let's do that...
over and over in my brain until the season got running last year...
So I find the rules, etc. about lacrosse. And I tried to make sense of them.
Last year I asked Precious and Adorable History Teacher about it---he went to a prep school so I figured that even though he was a baseball and football player he may have had some exposure to it. The man is a coach (a LAX coach at that) and a very fine teacher, but once I asked him to explain it to me I decided I was better off letting him tell me that there was some culture called "Kush" (he teaches 6th grade ancient history) that I never heard about in all my schooling, than to ask a guy who understands and "gets" sports as a whole to tell me about it. I am "sport stupid" and bless his heart, I am amazed he didn't fire me as a parent as he tried to explain a sport to me.
So he (Precious) goes and grabs a marker and takes me to the white board in his classroom and starts drawing "x's" and "o's" on the board and starts in explaining the game to me. I almost burst into tears of frustration...about the time he said something about a "crease" I must have gotten an extremely confused look on my face and he just gave up.
He literally looked at me, reached out and hugged me and said:
"why don't you watch a few games and we will try this again"...
I wish I could tell you that after watching an entire season of lacrosse that I have a better understanding of the game but I don't, but I do know what the crease is. And this year Precious is The Cutest Boy in the World's coach so as I stand on the sidelines taking photos and I hear him yell things like "wheel! wheel!" I just keep looking in the viewfinder of my camera and pray that once I look at my photos I might understand what I am taking photos of.
I have a college education. From a good school (and yes, you UT people, A&M is just as good as your mecca of orange and white). But I don't get this sport. I still have no idea what any of it is about. I get that you put a ball in the net and the goalie tries to stop you...my kids both played soccer and my daughter played the female equivalent so LAX (field hockey...girls LAX is way tamer). I get the "ball in the goal" thing. But it is all this other stuff? There is a whole dictionary devoted to lacrosse terms:
http://www.e-lacrosse.com/laxicon.html
I don't understand most of them...
How about track? Let's do that...
I tried in vain to figure it out last year...I almost decided to pay some 8th grade boy to sit next to me and explain the game to me as I watch. I really wanted to know what the crease is and why the attacker can't enter it...thankfully this year, I do know what the crease is...but not why the attacker can't enter it...
But we got through the season, and I did learn a few other things---like the goalie can leave the goal and score...but most of it is still very foreign and strange to me.
But, weirdly, I really like the game...and Dimples will not be happy to hear that at all...sorry, Baby!
So this year our season started and the boys have won 2 games. Precious and Adorable History Teacher is the coach. I am the team mom (a deal we struck last year...because I am the worlds best team mom and I love Precious so he got me...).
And in another act of irony---I am the boys lacrosse equipment manager for the school. Yes, I am in charge of helmets and shoulder pads...and I used my witch powers to obtain the boys some practice jerseys...and now I have 4 men really grateful to me and happy for my witch powers...
I'm trying to learn the sport, so that I can understand how that equipment is used...but mostly I still just take photos and get the concession stuff ready and take it out on the golf cart.
Now about me and that golf cart...
Before the first game I was struck with terror that I was going to have to get the cart out of the shed and drive it. Last year I almost turned it over the one time I drove it so I was a little afraid to try again.
I expressed my fears to Coach Supersweet...while the darling 8th grade coach is watching this with a bemused expression on his face. 8th grade coach likes me...it's the practice jersey thing...but I think he also thinks I am nuts (which I am...but shhhh...don't tell...)
I tell Coach Supersweet and Coach Darling (8th grade coach...guess I will name him too if I mention him more than once in this blog)that I am afraid I will overturn the golf cart and that I am afraid to drive it.
Coach Supersweet tells me it is like riding a horse after you fall off...I just need to get back on.
Coach Darling contines to look bemused and a bit confused by this whole conversation...
So off I go and I get that darn golf cart...
And I drove it like Danica Patrick...
Me and the golf cart...we are friends now.
Although I did make Precious put it back in the shed for me...there are limits to my witch powers and my golf cart driving abilities.
So LAX season is here...I'm pumped...let's see how much blood we can get from the kids...
and as for track...I'm glad we aren't doing that...
I like lacrosse...(sorry Dimples---I like football too)...
Go LAX!
Inspiration Song: "The Ballroom Blitz" by Sweet...because watching lax is like a ballroom blitz...and I couldn't come up with anything else that fit...
Bye Darlings...go and learn about something new...for me it is lacrosse...
Friday, December 31, 2010
Days Go By
Goodbye 2010...Hello 2011!
Another year has gone but for me it has been a huge year of change...change for the better!
The days have flown by...
As I look back on the year, I have some very good memories that I will carry with me into the new year...
Last New Year's started off as I will this new year---celebrating with a quiet evening with some dear friends. Once upon a time I enjoyed a big spalshy party but now I prefer staying in the neighborhood and spending the evening having wine and dinner with people I truly love...and tonight I will get to do that, with the same people I did it with last year. THAT is a good thing...
Last February I saw my very beautiful daughter, Ke$ha Barbie, as a real grown-up girl as she took my breath away when she went to her Cotillion. She looked beautiful...
March changed my life. I went up those stairs with Precious and Adorable History teacher and realized that there was no good reason for me to spend my life getting winded as I walk up some stairs. When he asked me if I was ok, I knew that even though at that moment I wasn't...I would be...
March also brought me back to the gym...by the end of March I had decided that I needed to add exercise into the mix and so I stepped on the elliptical and pushed "go"...
In April I returned to my true love---spin class! Spinderella taught classes that reminded me that sweating on a bike was how I liked to do cardio. April also was when my son's class had Greek Festival and I had a blast helping Precious do it. The kids had fun and Precious and I survived...and I had more energy to do it since I had been working out for almost 6 weeks by then. And April is when I discovered "My Fit Foods" and I'm not tired of it yet...I love their food!
In May we presented Cinderella...and the lovely girl who was "Cinderella" in her beautiful blue gown took my breath away. Having to tell her I found a better dress than she did almost killed me because I hate making a 14 year old cry, but when a small child in the audience screamed out "Look! It's Cinderella!!!!" I burst into tears...it was a good, no make that GREAT show!
In June I stared this blog...what a difference it has made to me to be able to share my thoughts, frustrations, feelings, highs, lows, triumphs, tragedies, ups and downs, and ideas with you all. Thank you, V, for getting me to do this!
In June I also had a blast helping GOTT and TTG do a summer drama camp and I met Fitness Goddess at the gym and she showed me how to use the weight machines for a good workout. I missed The Cutest Boy in the World (TCBITW) while he was at camp but stayed busy with our camp, working out, and having fun in my pool. Oh, and it was Jane's birthday...Jane (you know, the best person in the world?!?!)...we had a blast...she has great friends to have fun with!
July---celebrating GOTT's birthday was a high point. Once again I was reminded that I absolutely cannot bowl to save my life. And once again I was reminded that GOTT can do anything...
I also got to share TCBITW's joy that he won a big award at camp and I was overjoyed to pick him up and see his adorable face again. July also brought a big goal to fruition...50 pounds lost. I also was hit with an attack of diverticulitis (ok, that is NOT a memory I will treasure). It's a lot easier to say "no" to movie theater popcorn (with all of it's fat and calories) since I know I could get very sick from it!
I also got to see the worlds best Sister-in-law and the cutest niece and nephew ever in July. I love my SIL...she is beautiful, sweet, and a great mommy. And I got to see my Aunt Gayle and my cousins...family is a treasure...
August...ah, August...school started again, football started again and I was down over 60 pounds. It was hot but I didn't mind. I loved having Precious walk right by me and then realizing it was ME because he didn't recognize me with the weight loss. And he wasn't the only teacher at the school that did that. LOVE THAT...I don't mind not being recognized because I look so much better!!!!! I also had a great time celebrating GOTESS' birthday and NOT singing karaoke with the rest of the musical theater people. I can't bowl, I can't sing...next year GOTT and GOTTESS need to have parties I am not a "fail" at!
September...it's almost a blur because it feels like all I did was photograph football games. I gifted myself with my new camera that month and Coach Sweetness has had his hands full trying to teach me how to use it properly. Oh, but I got another good gift in September---Coach Dimples! I started running his life (football-wise) at that point when I walked over and told him to quit moving the boys' backpacks and to go coach my son. I reminded him of that moment yesterday and he laughed and said he was glad I did it and barged into his life screaming and waving my arms at him to "Stop! Because I have minions to do that!". I'm glad I did it too...because now I have him helping me and he is EXCELLENT at it.
October---more football, Ke$ha Barbie's other Cotillion (and the supershort dress), and GOTT, TTG, me and the kids gave our audiences a great "Seussical" show. GOTT's Halloween party was a blast and I learned that maybe risking my blonde locks for one night of black hair was not a gamble I want to take again.
November brought another birthday for me...and I was glad to welcome it as a healthier and lighter person. TCBITW's football team went undefeated! I also started working out with Dimples because football season was over. I didn't want to start training with him until football was over because I needed him to love me as a team mom until then...and I needed to love him as a Coach...now I love him because I love him (he is a really good guy)...and because he is helping me to reshape my body and taking me to a new level of fitness. Oh, and I discovered my new obsession---Tasti D-Lite for a healthy treat that helps feed my need for something sweet. If you haven't gone yet, go and try it...try the peppermint sundae...yummy!
And now December is coming to a close. We had a nice quiet Christmas, I cooked a perfect turkey, I've worked out like mad and the scale hasn't moved but clothes are looser so I am letting it go as far as my frustration with the scale. My family is happy and healthy and I am blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life.
It's been a year of many changes.
I drink more wine but gave up fries and cookies.
I've logged about 5000 minutes on the spin bike...yes, I did break out the calculator to try and figure it out and 5000 is just about right. That is 83.333 hours...
I've spent about 10,000 minutes doing other cardio...166.67 hours...about 4.5 per week...yes, that is about right...5 hours per week at cardio and another 1-2 hours at spin...I rarely take a day off. OCD, I know...and I am lumping my training time in there too...Basically I work out for at least an hour every day but some days I do 2 hours...again, it is the OCD...
And no, Oprah has not called to tell me she is featuring me on her show and getting Vera Wang to make me a dress...yet...
In the past I have found myself making resolutions on New Year's Eve that I know I won't keep. This year I will make ones I can keep...because I know what I CAN do. I'm not going to promise myself a dress size, but I will resolve to continue to be fit and healthy. I'm going to help others as I help myself. I'm going to de-clutter my house. I'm going to think about getting a teaching certificate (notice I said "think about" it because I need to see if I can do it...but I do resolve to give it thorough research and thought). I'm going to put up a Christmas tree next year and decorate my house for the holidays. I'm going to cook another perfect turkey. I'm going to get to the point of being able to burn 400 calories in a session with Dimples (it's harder than you think). I'm going to be able to run over a mile...maybe 2...
And at some point I am going to put on my Mama's dress and wear it to a party. And I know she will be proud of me...and I will be proud of me too...
I might just wear her charm bracelet too...and as it jangles on my wrist, it will be music...
Inspiration Song: "Days Go By" by that country hunk Keith Urban. Oooh la la...Nicole Kidman is a lucky girl...
Chorus...take these words to heart:
Days go by
I can feel 'em flying
Like a hand out the window in the wind the cars go by
It's all we've been given
So you better start livin' right now
'Cause days go by
Happy New Year, Darlings! Look ahead to 2011...how can you change your life for the better? And how can you change someone else's?
Another year has gone but for me it has been a huge year of change...change for the better!
The days have flown by...
As I look back on the year, I have some very good memories that I will carry with me into the new year...
Last New Year's started off as I will this new year---celebrating with a quiet evening with some dear friends. Once upon a time I enjoyed a big spalshy party but now I prefer staying in the neighborhood and spending the evening having wine and dinner with people I truly love...and tonight I will get to do that, with the same people I did it with last year. THAT is a good thing...
Last February I saw my very beautiful daughter, Ke$ha Barbie, as a real grown-up girl as she took my breath away when she went to her Cotillion. She looked beautiful...
March changed my life. I went up those stairs with Precious and Adorable History teacher and realized that there was no good reason for me to spend my life getting winded as I walk up some stairs. When he asked me if I was ok, I knew that even though at that moment I wasn't...I would be...
March also brought me back to the gym...by the end of March I had decided that I needed to add exercise into the mix and so I stepped on the elliptical and pushed "go"...
In April I returned to my true love---spin class! Spinderella taught classes that reminded me that sweating on a bike was how I liked to do cardio. April also was when my son's class had Greek Festival and I had a blast helping Precious do it. The kids had fun and Precious and I survived...and I had more energy to do it since I had been working out for almost 6 weeks by then. And April is when I discovered "My Fit Foods" and I'm not tired of it yet...I love their food!
In May we presented Cinderella...and the lovely girl who was "Cinderella" in her beautiful blue gown took my breath away. Having to tell her I found a better dress than she did almost killed me because I hate making a 14 year old cry, but when a small child in the audience screamed out "Look! It's Cinderella!!!!" I burst into tears...it was a good, no make that GREAT show!
In June I stared this blog...what a difference it has made to me to be able to share my thoughts, frustrations, feelings, highs, lows, triumphs, tragedies, ups and downs, and ideas with you all. Thank you, V, for getting me to do this!
In June I also had a blast helping GOTT and TTG do a summer drama camp and I met Fitness Goddess at the gym and she showed me how to use the weight machines for a good workout. I missed The Cutest Boy in the World (TCBITW) while he was at camp but stayed busy with our camp, working out, and having fun in my pool. Oh, and it was Jane's birthday...Jane (you know, the best person in the world?!?!)...we had a blast...she has great friends to have fun with!
July---celebrating GOTT's birthday was a high point. Once again I was reminded that I absolutely cannot bowl to save my life. And once again I was reminded that GOTT can do anything...
I also got to share TCBITW's joy that he won a big award at camp and I was overjoyed to pick him up and see his adorable face again. July also brought a big goal to fruition...50 pounds lost. I also was hit with an attack of diverticulitis (ok, that is NOT a memory I will treasure). It's a lot easier to say "no" to movie theater popcorn (with all of it's fat and calories) since I know I could get very sick from it!
I also got to see the worlds best Sister-in-law and the cutest niece and nephew ever in July. I love my SIL...she is beautiful, sweet, and a great mommy. And I got to see my Aunt Gayle and my cousins...family is a treasure...
August...ah, August...school started again, football started again and I was down over 60 pounds. It was hot but I didn't mind. I loved having Precious walk right by me and then realizing it was ME because he didn't recognize me with the weight loss. And he wasn't the only teacher at the school that did that. LOVE THAT...I don't mind not being recognized because I look so much better!!!!! I also had a great time celebrating GOTESS' birthday and NOT singing karaoke with the rest of the musical theater people. I can't bowl, I can't sing...next year GOTT and GOTTESS need to have parties I am not a "fail" at!
September...it's almost a blur because it feels like all I did was photograph football games. I gifted myself with my new camera that month and Coach Sweetness has had his hands full trying to teach me how to use it properly. Oh, but I got another good gift in September---Coach Dimples! I started running his life (football-wise) at that point when I walked over and told him to quit moving the boys' backpacks and to go coach my son. I reminded him of that moment yesterday and he laughed and said he was glad I did it and barged into his life screaming and waving my arms at him to "Stop! Because I have minions to do that!". I'm glad I did it too...because now I have him helping me and he is EXCELLENT at it.
October---more football, Ke$ha Barbie's other Cotillion (and the supershort dress), and GOTT, TTG, me and the kids gave our audiences a great "Seussical" show. GOTT's Halloween party was a blast and I learned that maybe risking my blonde locks for one night of black hair was not a gamble I want to take again.
November brought another birthday for me...and I was glad to welcome it as a healthier and lighter person. TCBITW's football team went undefeated! I also started working out with Dimples because football season was over. I didn't want to start training with him until football was over because I needed him to love me as a team mom until then...and I needed to love him as a Coach...now I love him because I love him (he is a really good guy)...and because he is helping me to reshape my body and taking me to a new level of fitness. Oh, and I discovered my new obsession---Tasti D-Lite for a healthy treat that helps feed my need for something sweet. If you haven't gone yet, go and try it...try the peppermint sundae...yummy!
And now December is coming to a close. We had a nice quiet Christmas, I cooked a perfect turkey, I've worked out like mad and the scale hasn't moved but clothes are looser so I am letting it go as far as my frustration with the scale. My family is happy and healthy and I am blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life.
It's been a year of many changes.
I drink more wine but gave up fries and cookies.
I've logged about 5000 minutes on the spin bike...yes, I did break out the calculator to try and figure it out and 5000 is just about right. That is 83.333 hours...
I've spent about 10,000 minutes doing other cardio...166.67 hours...about 4.5 per week...yes, that is about right...5 hours per week at cardio and another 1-2 hours at spin...I rarely take a day off. OCD, I know...and I am lumping my training time in there too...Basically I work out for at least an hour every day but some days I do 2 hours...again, it is the OCD...
And no, Oprah has not called to tell me she is featuring me on her show and getting Vera Wang to make me a dress...yet...
In the past I have found myself making resolutions on New Year's Eve that I know I won't keep. This year I will make ones I can keep...because I know what I CAN do. I'm not going to promise myself a dress size, but I will resolve to continue to be fit and healthy. I'm going to help others as I help myself. I'm going to de-clutter my house. I'm going to think about getting a teaching certificate (notice I said "think about" it because I need to see if I can do it...but I do resolve to give it thorough research and thought). I'm going to put up a Christmas tree next year and decorate my house for the holidays. I'm going to cook another perfect turkey. I'm going to get to the point of being able to burn 400 calories in a session with Dimples (it's harder than you think). I'm going to be able to run over a mile...maybe 2...
And at some point I am going to put on my Mama's dress and wear it to a party. And I know she will be proud of me...and I will be proud of me too...
I might just wear her charm bracelet too...and as it jangles on my wrist, it will be music...
Inspiration Song: "Days Go By" by that country hunk Keith Urban. Oooh la la...Nicole Kidman is a lucky girl...
Chorus...take these words to heart:
Days go by
I can feel 'em flying
Like a hand out the window in the wind the cars go by
It's all we've been given
So you better start livin' right now
'Cause days go by
Happy New Year, Darlings! Look ahead to 2011...how can you change your life for the better? And how can you change someone else's?
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
Lisztomania
Coach Dimples and I have a new partnership...we gonna play "who wins that bowl game" together and defeat the empire known at GOTT the GREAT...
GOTT always always always wins these things. He lets me play because I am so dreadful at it.
So he has set up some "predict who wins the bowl games" thing...there are 35 games...and we all know that I know less than a microgram about football. I take photos of football but I don't understand it.
Remember, Dimples had to explain what a "linebacker" was to me recently...he did it patiently and without irony I might add...
So I tell GOTT I will play his little game with him and I have high hopes of doing better than I did last spring in the March Madness contest when I came in 3rd from dead last.
But this time I have a secret weapon. I have Dimples! And he knows his football, oh yes he does...he even knows the name of the mascot for the team from Florida International (I didn't even know that was a college). So he picks the teams, I put up the $10 and we are going to split our fabulous winnings after we beat GOTT and Coach Supersweet (who always wins if GOTT doesn't).
I'm going to look like a football predicting superstar. But, because I am unfailingly honest about these things, I will admit I had the help of a football coach. You see, no one in my house wanted to help me...and I think Dimples has a better handle on this than they do. I did try and watch ESPN last night when they talked about bowl game predictions but completely zoned out after 45 seconds. Maybe if they broke out into song like the do on "Glee" I would have paid more attention.
People keep asking me what "diet" I am on. The truth is, I don't have a "diet" per se, but rather I am eating clean and healthy.
But here are some tips I have picked up along the way and some things that I eat...
This is in no particular order of importance...it's just as I think of it. Think of this as a roadmap whether you want to lose 5, 10, 15, or 50 pounds or just want to eat better...and remember, I am not an expert, just a woman who is trying to lose enough weight for Oprah to notice her (she and Dr. Oz are doing a weight loss thing for her new network...I could be on that...but I really would rather sit on her couch and talk to her...but again, this is all fantasy...)
OK, so here are some things to do/eat/try...
1. Dont' try and cut everything out at once. Try cutting out one or two things each week. Like, cut out corn and fried foods one week, the next week cut out something else.
2. Buy a water bottle. Fill it. Drink it. Repeat many times throughout the day. If you don't like water, add some lemon juice or make flavored water in your fridge. To make flavored water, simply put some fruit (orange, lemon, watermelon, canteloupe, lime, strawberry etc.) or cucumber, and or a bit of mint in a pitcher and add water. The fruit needs to be sliced or cut up. A delicious mix, courtesy of the Kahala Hotel in Oahu, Hawaii is the following: mint, cucumber, strawberry, apple, orange. You can add more water as you drink it down but I would pitch it after a few days or when it loses its taste.
3. Eat more good protein. A serving of protein should be about the size of a deck of cards...or maybe if you are really hungry and working out, the size of your hand (but only if you have a SMALL hand). Good protein: fish, chicken, turkey, lean beef, lean pork. Not-so-good-for-you protein: fatty steak, hamburger meat, dark meat from poultry (but that is not as bad as sausage), sausage, pork and beef ribs.
4. You don't have to eat "breakfast" foods for breakfast...sometimes I eat some ground turkey (wrapped in lettuce leaves for some crunch), or leftover fish. But I always eat some form of protein for breakfast and if I eat carbs, it is usually steel cut oats...and protein.
5. Egg white omlettes can be good if you cook them right. You can even add an egg yolk for every 2-3 whites if you don't have cholesterol issues. Try leftover veggies, spinach, fat free cheese, picante sauce, or ground turkey in one. The fat free cheese isn't bad inside an omlette. I like smokehouse pepper on mine...makes me feel like I am having bacon. Smokehouse pepper is in one of those red and white cans and it has a smokey taste...really good.
6. Have dessert occsionally so you won't feel deprived. But ask them to bring you only half and box the other half up. or give half to a friend. or eat a few bites and then pour salt all over it...I'm serious...
7. Eat salmon. I haven't liked salmon much in the past but I have made it part of my diet and now I don't mind it. It is best not overcooked. Order it medium rare and I promise it will taste better. Salmon is so good for you---full of Omega 3 and a good source of lean protein. I'm a little obsessed with it these days.
8. Get rid of corn. Dimples made me do this. It doesn't offer you much nutritionally and, this one shocked me, they use corn products in batteries and diapers. I like the taste of corn but I have cut it out of my diet...even corn tortillas. Now when I am at the Mexican food restaurant, I ask for lettuce leaves to wrap my fajitas in...that is Asian style and it is good!
9. If you want an alcoholic drink, choose wisely. Believe it or not, champagne is a good choice. Red wine is good and has antioxidents. White wine is good. Not so good for you: margaritas, lemon drop martinis, cosmos, anything with sweet-and-sour mix or simple syrup. Too much sugar. Or try wine mixed with club soda to cut calories further and cut out some of the alcohol.
10. No good ever came from eating a french fry...unless it is from Houston's and then it is totally worth it. But it is better not to have even one or you will want more...the last time I ate fry---February...
11. Google "EAt this Not That" before you go to a restaurant...they have great suggestions.
12. Dark chocolate is my friend. It gives me a bit of sweet when I need it. The darker the better. I eat a tiny bit a couple of times a week. No, I don't eat a Hershey bar...just a little square of very dark chocolate. I eat it slowly and savor it and it really feels like a treat.
13. Eat your veggies first. Order extra veggies at a restaurant but ask them to cut the butter. Steamed or grilled veggies are best. And no, a baked potato is not a good idea unless it is a sweet potato...with no butter.
14. Don't eat "white" food...no white rice, no white bread, no white veggies (unless it is cauliflower and then you can have all you want).
15. EAt 3 small meals and 2 snacks...way better for you than 3 large meals. My daily intake is usually breakfast (egg white omlette and oatmeal, or ground turkey and egg whites, or something from Fit Foods), a mid-morning snack (fruit, yogurt, protein bar), lunch (protein and veggies as my carbs), mid-afternoon snack, and dinner (like lunch). Sometimes I add dessert. See below:
16. My form of dessert: I love cottage cheese mixed with a bit of sweetner (Splenda...yellow packets) and fruit, or fat-free Greek yogurt mixed with Splenda and fruit, or a Skinny Cow dessert, or a small square of dark chocolate, or a couple of gingersnaps, or yogurt.
17. Cottage cheese is good for you...calcium! So is Greek Yogurt...
18. No sodas with sugar. In fact, cut out or cut back any soda...
19. Roast your veggies. In fact, if you THINK you don't like a vegetable, try it roasted. My favorite veggies to roast: asparagus, brussel sprouts, butternut squash, sweet potato, cauliflower, and fingerling potatoes. For asparagus, just trim off the tough ends. For brussel sprouts, cut in half. For the squash and the rest, just cube it up. Toss the veggies with a few teaspoons of olive oil and some sea salt. Roast at 450 degrees until tender. Fantastic...it will change your mind aobut some vegetables. They take on a nutty flavor and get sweeter. Email me when you have done this so I can say "I told you so"...
20. My new favorite treat----Tasti D Lite. One location is on Post Oak near Berryhill. Another location in Highland Village. Coming soon to Dallas.
21. Try quinoa and couscous...they are good. I love couscous tossed with some cinnamon and dried cranberries and raisins.
22. Dried cranberries perk things up...salad, grains, pasta, roasted veggies...
23. If you go to a restaurant where the portions are really big, ask them to bring you a to-go box right away and put half of it away. Then don't forget it when you leave...
24. Try whole-wheat pasta. It is so good. Many Italian restaurants have it so ask.
25. If you live in Houston, go to George's Pastaria. It is worth the drive even if you don't live in far west Memorial. It is between Briar Forest and Westheimer on Dairy Ashford very close to the roller rink. Heatlthy food (and bad-for-you too). Great wine selection. Great prices. My dish: whole wheat angel hair pasta primavera with shrimp and extra spinach. Try it, you'll like it.
26. Keep a food log/diary. It will make you think about every morsel you put in your mouth.
27. I have found that I can eat (fairly) healthy just about anywhere. Most places have a chicken sandwich (ask for no mayo, be sure the chicken is grilled not fried), or have a small hamburger and only eat half the bun if you are forced to---but a lot of burger places now have salads. You can do it...you just need to look harder at the menu.
28. Order salads with dressing on the side and ask them to cut the cheese if it is on it. Dip your fork into the dressing. I promise you will get all of the taste and not so many calories. I can't stand over-dressed salads now.
29. Keep protein bars in your purse/bag/car. That way you always have a snack and keep your metabolism going and won't overindulge when you do get to eat.
30. Eat slowly. You will eat less. I promise...
31. If you have a My Fit Foods near you, try their stuff. There are other companies that do what they do----make fresh, healthy food in controlled portions that are convenient to pick up and eat. I've been eating it since April and I'm not tired of it yet...
32. Cut out all but natural sugars like those that you get from fruit. Try it for 2 weeks. You won't miss it. And if you commit to it for a couple of weeks, you will find tht you lose your taste for it.
So there you have it...basically this is how I have been eating for the last 9 1/2 months. There is no magic to it. It is just making good choices. Cutting out the bad stuff. You don't have to go "no carbs" or "juice fast"...just eat clean and healthy.
Don't try and tackle this all at once...just pick some things and I bet you will begin to see changes...if not in how you look, but HOW YOU FEEL. I feel GREAT now...I don't look great but I feel great. I have energy. I sleep better. My skin is better. I don't crave things.
My trainer writes a blog about food and excercise. It is GREAT information. I have learned a lot from him (when I am not yelling at him about making me run up the hill). Take a look:
http://trainingwithjesse.wordpress.com/
OK, now I have to go and look at football stuff...so I'm not completely stupid about it all...but then again I might just go to bed and let Dimples handle it all.
Inspiration song: "Lisztomania"---because it was the only thing close to having "list" in the title on my iPod. It is by Phoenix. It is a really good song!
Bye Darlings...let me know what works for you...
GOTT always always always wins these things. He lets me play because I am so dreadful at it.
So he has set up some "predict who wins the bowl games" thing...there are 35 games...and we all know that I know less than a microgram about football. I take photos of football but I don't understand it.
Remember, Dimples had to explain what a "linebacker" was to me recently...he did it patiently and without irony I might add...
So I tell GOTT I will play his little game with him and I have high hopes of doing better than I did last spring in the March Madness contest when I came in 3rd from dead last.
But this time I have a secret weapon. I have Dimples! And he knows his football, oh yes he does...he even knows the name of the mascot for the team from Florida International (I didn't even know that was a college). So he picks the teams, I put up the $10 and we are going to split our fabulous winnings after we beat GOTT and Coach Supersweet (who always wins if GOTT doesn't).
I'm going to look like a football predicting superstar. But, because I am unfailingly honest about these things, I will admit I had the help of a football coach. You see, no one in my house wanted to help me...and I think Dimples has a better handle on this than they do. I did try and watch ESPN last night when they talked about bowl game predictions but completely zoned out after 45 seconds. Maybe if they broke out into song like the do on "Glee" I would have paid more attention.
People keep asking me what "diet" I am on. The truth is, I don't have a "diet" per se, but rather I am eating clean and healthy.
But here are some tips I have picked up along the way and some things that I eat...
This is in no particular order of importance...it's just as I think of it. Think of this as a roadmap whether you want to lose 5, 10, 15, or 50 pounds or just want to eat better...and remember, I am not an expert, just a woman who is trying to lose enough weight for Oprah to notice her (she and Dr. Oz are doing a weight loss thing for her new network...I could be on that...but I really would rather sit on her couch and talk to her...but again, this is all fantasy...)
OK, so here are some things to do/eat/try...
1. Dont' try and cut everything out at once. Try cutting out one or two things each week. Like, cut out corn and fried foods one week, the next week cut out something else.
2. Buy a water bottle. Fill it. Drink it. Repeat many times throughout the day. If you don't like water, add some lemon juice or make flavored water in your fridge. To make flavored water, simply put some fruit (orange, lemon, watermelon, canteloupe, lime, strawberry etc.) or cucumber, and or a bit of mint in a pitcher and add water. The fruit needs to be sliced or cut up. A delicious mix, courtesy of the Kahala Hotel in Oahu, Hawaii is the following: mint, cucumber, strawberry, apple, orange. You can add more water as you drink it down but I would pitch it after a few days or when it loses its taste.
3. Eat more good protein. A serving of protein should be about the size of a deck of cards...or maybe if you are really hungry and working out, the size of your hand (but only if you have a SMALL hand). Good protein: fish, chicken, turkey, lean beef, lean pork. Not-so-good-for-you protein: fatty steak, hamburger meat, dark meat from poultry (but that is not as bad as sausage), sausage, pork and beef ribs.
4. You don't have to eat "breakfast" foods for breakfast...sometimes I eat some ground turkey (wrapped in lettuce leaves for some crunch), or leftover fish. But I always eat some form of protein for breakfast and if I eat carbs, it is usually steel cut oats...and protein.
5. Egg white omlettes can be good if you cook them right. You can even add an egg yolk for every 2-3 whites if you don't have cholesterol issues. Try leftover veggies, spinach, fat free cheese, picante sauce, or ground turkey in one. The fat free cheese isn't bad inside an omlette. I like smokehouse pepper on mine...makes me feel like I am having bacon. Smokehouse pepper is in one of those red and white cans and it has a smokey taste...really good.
6. Have dessert occsionally so you won't feel deprived. But ask them to bring you only half and box the other half up. or give half to a friend. or eat a few bites and then pour salt all over it...I'm serious...
7. Eat salmon. I haven't liked salmon much in the past but I have made it part of my diet and now I don't mind it. It is best not overcooked. Order it medium rare and I promise it will taste better. Salmon is so good for you---full of Omega 3 and a good source of lean protein. I'm a little obsessed with it these days.
8. Get rid of corn. Dimples made me do this. It doesn't offer you much nutritionally and, this one shocked me, they use corn products in batteries and diapers. I like the taste of corn but I have cut it out of my diet...even corn tortillas. Now when I am at the Mexican food restaurant, I ask for lettuce leaves to wrap my fajitas in...that is Asian style and it is good!
9. If you want an alcoholic drink, choose wisely. Believe it or not, champagne is a good choice. Red wine is good and has antioxidents. White wine is good. Not so good for you: margaritas, lemon drop martinis, cosmos, anything with sweet-and-sour mix or simple syrup. Too much sugar. Or try wine mixed with club soda to cut calories further and cut out some of the alcohol.
10. No good ever came from eating a french fry...unless it is from Houston's and then it is totally worth it. But it is better not to have even one or you will want more...the last time I ate fry---February...
11. Google "EAt this Not That" before you go to a restaurant...they have great suggestions.
12. Dark chocolate is my friend. It gives me a bit of sweet when I need it. The darker the better. I eat a tiny bit a couple of times a week. No, I don't eat a Hershey bar...just a little square of very dark chocolate. I eat it slowly and savor it and it really feels like a treat.
13. Eat your veggies first. Order extra veggies at a restaurant but ask them to cut the butter. Steamed or grilled veggies are best. And no, a baked potato is not a good idea unless it is a sweet potato...with no butter.
14. Don't eat "white" food...no white rice, no white bread, no white veggies (unless it is cauliflower and then you can have all you want).
15. EAt 3 small meals and 2 snacks...way better for you than 3 large meals. My daily intake is usually breakfast (egg white omlette and oatmeal, or ground turkey and egg whites, or something from Fit Foods), a mid-morning snack (fruit, yogurt, protein bar), lunch (protein and veggies as my carbs), mid-afternoon snack, and dinner (like lunch). Sometimes I add dessert. See below:
16. My form of dessert: I love cottage cheese mixed with a bit of sweetner (Splenda...yellow packets) and fruit, or fat-free Greek yogurt mixed with Splenda and fruit, or a Skinny Cow dessert, or a small square of dark chocolate, or a couple of gingersnaps, or yogurt.
17. Cottage cheese is good for you...calcium! So is Greek Yogurt...
18. No sodas with sugar. In fact, cut out or cut back any soda...
19. Roast your veggies. In fact, if you THINK you don't like a vegetable, try it roasted. My favorite veggies to roast: asparagus, brussel sprouts, butternut squash, sweet potato, cauliflower, and fingerling potatoes. For asparagus, just trim off the tough ends. For brussel sprouts, cut in half. For the squash and the rest, just cube it up. Toss the veggies with a few teaspoons of olive oil and some sea salt. Roast at 450 degrees until tender. Fantastic...it will change your mind aobut some vegetables. They take on a nutty flavor and get sweeter. Email me when you have done this so I can say "I told you so"...
20. My new favorite treat----Tasti D Lite. One location is on Post Oak near Berryhill. Another location in Highland Village. Coming soon to Dallas.
21. Try quinoa and couscous...they are good. I love couscous tossed with some cinnamon and dried cranberries and raisins.
22. Dried cranberries perk things up...salad, grains, pasta, roasted veggies...
23. If you go to a restaurant where the portions are really big, ask them to bring you a to-go box right away and put half of it away. Then don't forget it when you leave...
24. Try whole-wheat pasta. It is so good. Many Italian restaurants have it so ask.
25. If you live in Houston, go to George's Pastaria. It is worth the drive even if you don't live in far west Memorial. It is between Briar Forest and Westheimer on Dairy Ashford very close to the roller rink. Heatlthy food (and bad-for-you too). Great wine selection. Great prices. My dish: whole wheat angel hair pasta primavera with shrimp and extra spinach. Try it, you'll like it.
26. Keep a food log/diary. It will make you think about every morsel you put in your mouth.
27. I have found that I can eat (fairly) healthy just about anywhere. Most places have a chicken sandwich (ask for no mayo, be sure the chicken is grilled not fried), or have a small hamburger and only eat half the bun if you are forced to---but a lot of burger places now have salads. You can do it...you just need to look harder at the menu.
28. Order salads with dressing on the side and ask them to cut the cheese if it is on it. Dip your fork into the dressing. I promise you will get all of the taste and not so many calories. I can't stand over-dressed salads now.
29. Keep protein bars in your purse/bag/car. That way you always have a snack and keep your metabolism going and won't overindulge when you do get to eat.
30. Eat slowly. You will eat less. I promise...
31. If you have a My Fit Foods near you, try their stuff. There are other companies that do what they do----make fresh, healthy food in controlled portions that are convenient to pick up and eat. I've been eating it since April and I'm not tired of it yet...
32. Cut out all but natural sugars like those that you get from fruit. Try it for 2 weeks. You won't miss it. And if you commit to it for a couple of weeks, you will find tht you lose your taste for it.
So there you have it...basically this is how I have been eating for the last 9 1/2 months. There is no magic to it. It is just making good choices. Cutting out the bad stuff. You don't have to go "no carbs" or "juice fast"...just eat clean and healthy.
Don't try and tackle this all at once...just pick some things and I bet you will begin to see changes...if not in how you look, but HOW YOU FEEL. I feel GREAT now...I don't look great but I feel great. I have energy. I sleep better. My skin is better. I don't crave things.
My trainer writes a blog about food and excercise. It is GREAT information. I have learned a lot from him (when I am not yelling at him about making me run up the hill). Take a look:
http://trainingwithjesse.wordpress.com/
OK, now I have to go and look at football stuff...so I'm not completely stupid about it all...but then again I might just go to bed and let Dimples handle it all.
Inspiration song: "Lisztomania"---because it was the only thing close to having "list" in the title on my iPod. It is by Phoenix. It is a really good song!
Bye Darlings...let me know what works for you...
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