Birthday and Running....

Long time no post.  I have really been wondering what to do about this blog.  Keep it, get rid of it, try actually posting here once in awhile.  I realize that it would be silly to quit blogging.  Keeping this blog over my journey to getting my Lifetime membership to WW was an important part of the whole experience.  And I have come to realize it's not over.  The journey continues.  Do I need to post weigh ins?  Do I need to post more often?  Do I have anything to say that anyone wants to hear?  I don't know.  But I do know that I need to start posting more often.

Recap of my life in the past few months.  On June 3rd I turned 49 years old.  I can't believe I'm almost 50!  I don't feel that old.  But I'm in better shape now than when I was in my 30's so that's a good thing.  My birthday was great.  I walked the Weight Watchers 5K Walk it challenge with my sister in law Laurie (a new WW member) and my sister Nancy (a lifetime WW member).

Laurie, Nancy and I

I went and had a pedicure and manicure.  It was wonderful.  I got a bright pink color on both.  

One of the highlights of my day was getting a Tweet from Jennifer Hudson herself!  I was so excited!  For those of you that are into Twitter you know what this is all about.  

Then my parents had a Birthday supper for myself and my two boys (Brett was working and couldn't make it).  Mitch's birthday is May 19 and Brett's is June 2.  The day before mine. 

Mitch and I with our cake 

I was also training for my first 5 K race.  I was getting very nervous and really having a lot of doubts about my abilities and if I really belonged in this group of people that call themselves "runners".  I had dinner with my sister Nancy on Friday night and told her how I was feeling.  She told me not to worry, that I'd be fine.  I had to work on Saturday before the race so I had my sister Nancy pick up my "race package".  She left it at my house for me.  In it was a little card with words that I will try to always remember.  She is so good with words.  

"Just remember that no matter what we have or do, there is always someone who appears to do it faster, better, stronger.  The key is to find joy in our own accomplishments and successes.  We don't always know their stories, nor they ours.  You have accomplished so much this past year.  Be gentle and loving to yourself and try to silence the critical, perfectionistic voice that wants you to believe that none of it is good enough.  That voice is lying!  You are a beautiful, amazing, kind, strong woman and I am so proud of you!  I will be running with you in spirit tomorrow and maybe in real time someday."

Wow, words to live by right?  Well, race day came and it was pouring rain.  My sweet husband agreed to come and cheer me on.  

doesn't he look so happy to be here?

I was nervous but I just told myself, you having been running 5K for awhile now so just get out there and run.  Don't worry about anyone else.  So I just tried to relax and run!  It went great.  Lots of people went by me at first but I kept my pace similar to what I would normally run and soon I was passing some of those people!  I ended up with a time of  31:22.  Which is a personal best for me.  I have been doing it in about 34  so I was very happy with that.  Here are some photos from the race.

I was very wet by then!

almost finished!

Finish line!!

It felt so good to run a race.  That day was also our 23rd Anniversary.  I was so happy to have my husband there to cheer me on.  We have been through a lot in 23 years but I wouldn't change it for the world.  We ended the day with a supper out to the Keg with or boys.  It was great.

23 years!

Sadly, after that race on June 10th I hurt my foot (left foot, same one that has had 2 surgeries).  I have been struggling with plantar faciitis ever since.  I have only tried to run once since that day and it was agony.  I have been icing it and stretching it and hoping that it will go away.  I have gone to the Dr. and she says I just need to rest it.  I also have some physio scheduled.  I am frustrated, just when my I was finally able to run a whole 5K I now have to stop running.  Hopefully temporarily.  In the meantime I have gone back to weekly yoga and hope to add one more class a week.  I am still doing my Body Pump weight class at the gym and loving how that makes me feel.  So onward and upward from here. 

Bad bad blogger.....and my "crack"

First off, I know I have been very bad at blogging lately.  It's really been tough now that I don't have a weekly weigh in.  Trust me, I recently have been thinking about going back to that!  I go through scale ups and downs and I am having trouble sticking to it these days.  But....I seem to have my mojo back.  I am really watching what I'm eating again (tracking) and my exercise has been great!

Ice cream.  My "crack".  I swear I live for this stuff.  I obviously did fine with it for the 14 months that I was losing weight but it seems like now I have been craving it and giving into the cravings more often.  I realize that I can still have it and just have it in moderation but what is my deal?  I end up at the store and it ends up in my cart, then it ends up in a bowl and ultimately in my belly!  I have seen people writing letters to their "crack" food.  Something like this........

             Dear Ice Cream,


             I have loved you forever and you have left me feeling sad and bloated.  You have gotten in the way of my weight loss and I just can't have that anymore.  It's been great knowing you but I have to tell you, it's over.  We cannot just be friends.  You are taking over my life and I want it back.  So goodbye ice cream......sniff, sniff.  


            Love you forever,


            Me


But I'm afraid that just isn't going to work for me.  I need it to be in my life.  I bought a Yonanas machine.  It's great!  It takes frozen bananas and other frozen fruit and grinds it into soft serve.  Google it and watch the video, it is really amazing!  Very creamy and it's really only fruit (unless you add things like chocolate chips and peanut butter - not that I've ever done that, no way not me!).  I love it but in all reality it's not ice cream :-(  I also love frozen yogurt.  I could eat that every day too.  What I am thinking of doing is making a deal with myself.  Letting myself have real ice cream only once a week.  A whole bowl full of the stuff.  Guilt free.  Instead of trying to "work" it in to my daily points (because trust me that aint working).  Then the yonanas or fat free frozen yogurt I can have whenever, but just allow myself the once a week ice cream.  That's my plan.  I'll keep you posted.  


Still running.  I took a bit of a break because, well gee I really don't know why?  But I'm back again and doing good.  I don't know if I will ever be able to run more than 5K (3.1 miles).  I have heard that if you can run 5K you can run 10K.  I don't believe that for a second!  I'm dying by the end of 5K, but I will try.  I think just increasing by a little bit every week or so.  My first real 5K is on June 10th.  The Bridge City Boogie.  I can't wait!  On Sunday it's my 49th birthday.  I am going to walk the Weight Watcher's Walk it 5K with my sister and sister-in-law.  Should be fun!  I will try to get a few pics and post them here.  

Deep thoughts and First weigh in as a Lifetimer!

First things first!  I have been really stressing lately about the whole "Weigh in" thing.  I almost think it would have been better for me to just keep weighing in weekly for awhile.  That was suggested to me by my wise leader Roz.  It feels like it's just way to easy to let things slide, then frantically try to get to a good place in time for the monthly weigh in.  But, I'm doing good.  So far.  I just have to get it in my head that I'm doing this all the time, every day.  Tracking and eating right has to happen every day for me.  Unfortunately, lately that hasn't been the case.  Today was a good day though so after my run (5K still haven't tried to do more than that) I headed over to WW.  I was a pound under my goal so I was very happy with that number!

My exercise has been going really good these days and that makes me happy.  I have been doing my weight class (Body Pump) 2 times a week and then running on the opposite days.  I feel like that is "do-able" for the long term.  I still really miss Yoga, Spin, and Zumba and want to try to find a way to fit those in on occasion.  I think it's funny that all I'm using my gym membership for is the 2 classes a week, but when I think back to all the times I have joined a gym and then not gone AT ALL it isn't so bad.  It's always there for me to use, when the weather is bad or if I decide to take a different class.

For the "deep thoughts" portion of this post, I was asked the other day at work how I had lost all the weight.  A question I get asked a lot actually.  Mostly I just say, Weight Watchers and the gym but I said this "I said no to food when I really wanted to say yes and I said yes to working out when I really wanted to say no".   No easy fix folks.  Eat less and move more.

I think I'm a runner!

It's weird, I really never thought I would be saying this but I'm a runner.  I actually like to run.  The problem that I face now is that I really don't like to run on the treadmill anymore.  Running outside is so much better.  There are interesting things to look at, there is all that fresh air, and well I just like it.  The other problem is that I really don't like running outside when the weather isn't good.  I live in Saskatchewan.  For anyone that lives here you know that we rarely have perfect weather.  I need to somehow get over this.  Either suck it up and run when it's crappy out or learn to love the treadmill more.  One solution would be to watch TV or something while I run.  We don't have a TV that's hooked up to anything where the treadmill is.  I could remedy this I guess, and that might help.  That being said, I know when Winter comes again next year I will not be running outside. I will have to figure something out if I am going to continue to do this running thing.  And I want to.

I was asked by my Sister-in-law today how did you do it?  Run a whole 5K.  She was so impressed and very jealous that I can do that and she can't.  I told her that if I could do it anybody can (that is if you don't have health issues).  I explained the "couch to 5K" program and how it works.  You don't even need to use that program, it's just about starting off with short running intervals and slowly over time increasing the running till you are running the entire time.  Start slow and increase that's it.

I have been struggling a bit with food this last week.  I have had stress at work and I turned to food.  I was eating a fairly large amount of chocolate one day and I just kept thinking, what am I doing?  I'm mad at a certain person at work and I am solving this by eating chocolate??  It doesn't make sense.  I'm feeling better about things already but I had a few bad days and I haven't tracked other than a few days here and there since I got my Lifetime.  My weight is still doing OK but what I would really like is to try to get BELOW my goal by a few pounds so I'm not so stressed about it.  I'm back to tracking and I will get there.  I have to get it into my head that I'm not DONE.  There is no ending to this journey of mine.  Everyday I will need to watch what I eat and stay active.  I can't eat a ton of chocolate or candy (yes I got into some candy too) and stay at my goal weight.  I can eat a bit of those things but all in moderation.  A taste is one thing, but binging is another.  Old habits die hard.  The old Kim is still there.  I will fight with her every day.

It's Official!! I'm a Lifetime member :-)

Friday the 13th.  Actually quite a lucky day for me.  Even though last week was when I reached my lifetime status at Weight Watchers, because of Good Friday I didn't weigh in at my regular meeting.  I wanted to wait till my regular meeting to make it official.  Also my leader Roz was back from her vacation this week too.  She was with me through most of this journey so I thought it would be nice to share this with her.  It felt pretty good to stand in front of the group and share some of my secrets.  I feel like I fumbled a bit when asked though.  Funny how I kept thinking of things I would say but when the time came I only said to not ever doubt yourself and to be prepared.  That is packing lunch, etc.  Hopefully I gave some people inspiration and hope that it can happen for them too.  I remember seeing others in my spot and felt that way.  My sister Nancy was there too and she brought me a beautiful bouquet of pink Gerbera daisies.   I got my gold book, my lifetime membership card, and my little key charm for my key chain.  It's official!!  What a moment.  I won't forget it.

 my leader Roz and I

(Roz is so tiny I'm crouching down a bit, hence the "muffin top"!!)

my sister Nancy and I both Lifetime members of WW

(standing tall here, muffin top is gone!)

I really have to apologize for not updating my blog more often.  I think I was just waiting for the Lifetime member post!  Other exciting news.....I actually ran a whole 5K!  I have started running outside and I measured a few routes in my neighborhood.  I ran one that my husband mapped out for me on Thursday and I ran all of it.  No stops.  I'm not fast, but I don't care.  I can't believe that in January 2011 I had tendon repair surgery number 2 and was in a cast.  I really didn't think this could ever happen.  I have signed up for a 5K run on June 10th, called the Bridge City Boogie.  I am planning to run that one.  And....after work on Friday the 13th I walked in a 5K Iam's fun run.  It is an annual run planned by the Veterinary students where I work.  I have worked there for 7 years and every year I think "I would love to do that" but somehow find an excuse not to do it.  There was tons of dogs and lots of "kids" (that's what we call the students!  they look so young and seem to get younger looking every year!!).  The long-legged girl that won the "run" had a time of 18:02.  Wow!  It was lots of fun, I look forward to doing it again next year.  Next year I will run.

 getting ready....

Kayla ready to go!

 found some new friends!

and away we go!

My buddy Kayla and I post race

Weigh in day

Good Morning!  Yesterday was my weigh in day.  I was having a super busy day at work so I had to really rush to get to my meeting.  Then of course there was extra traffic on the bridge that I normally take.  It never fails.  I'm not gonna lie it will be so nice to not have to go to meetings every Friday!  I ended up being 1.4 lbs over my goal (didn't have time to pee first so I'm sure that's why!  haha).  That's OK because I'm still within the 2 lbs that I need to be but I really have to work hard to be under for next week.  It's very stressful!!  I only have 2 more PAID weeks left of Weight Watchers!  I can't believe that I will soon be a Lifetime Member.  It's something I have dreamed about for years.  I looked ahead and it ends up that my day to become a Lifetime Member will be on April 6th which is also Good Friday.  Bummer because there won't be a meeting that day :-(  I think I will weigh in on the Wednesday that week then get my Lifetime the following Friday at my regular meeting time.  After that I only have to weigh in once per month and not be over 2 lbs of my goal weight.  I'm going to do this!  But I have to say after being on Maintenance for a few weeks now it's not OVER and it really just feels the same as losing does.  I guess that's what they mean when they say "it's a lifestyle not a diet".  I will be watching what I eat and exercising forever.  The alternative is to not do that, gain the weight back and be miserable and unhappy with my body / health.

Thursday night I took a Step class at the gym.  I had been wanting to try it for a long time and finally got brave enough.  It was so great!!  Lots of fun and I was literally dripping sweat by the end!  So, I am talking with the instructor after and telling her how much I liked the class, etc and she tells me "oh, it's not on the schedule at this time after the end of March".  Damn.  It will be at 5:00 on Monday.  I work every day from 8-5.  Oh well. I will find something else.  There are so many great classes at the gym I go to.  I just have to be brave enough to try them.

Have a great weekend everyone!  I'm going to Hunger Games tonight (I'm on book 3 love them!).  So excited.  Even though the name just cracks me up.  Isn't that really what weight loss is all about?

I'm Back!

Vacation is sadly over and I'm back to reality!  We had an awesome time!  I will give a quick lengthy recap of our time away.

We started our vacation in Mesa, Arizona.  My husband's work flew us there for a "leadership convention" for employees and spouses.  So all expenses paid!  It was great.  We stayed at a golf resort which was a bit run down but still very nice.  Not really much down time as there was lots of activities planned and of course meetings for Dean to attend.  I did spend part of a day by the pool and it was lovely.  So nice to feel the warm sun on my face and body.  There was lots of the wives that I had met before at other functions in 2008 we were in Jamaica for a work retreat, then in 2009 in Lake Louise, AB and the occasional party).  Of course they hadn't seen me since I had lost weight.  I received many glowing comments on how great I looked.  It was overwhelming but felt so good!  The first night there we had a reception.  Then the next day listened to a speaker, then some of us ladies went shopping.  That evening we all went to a NHL hockey game.  We had a buffet dinner and drinks.  It was lots of fun!

The next day I got up early and walked to the Target store.  It was about a half hour walk each way.  I love Target!!  Looked around, didn't buy much but enjoyed shopping.  In the back of my mind I kept thinking, you are going to Vegas don't buy too much!  So I didn't.  I did get some OPI nail polish in "Quarter of a Cent-Cherry".  I thought it would go great with my black dress.  Then as a group we went to a go-cart racing place for a day of racing and lunch.  It was a warm day and I decided after talking to some of the people that had gone before that I would opt out.  It just didn't sound like something I would like.  So I sat and watched in the sun, it was glorious!  Fun day.  

Dean ready to race!

That night we went to a catered dinner at the owner's home.  It was beautiful!  I wore a yellow (and I never wear yellow!) shirt that I bought the day before with my black Gap leggings.  I also bought some dangly earrings with yellow and black in them.  No picture.  I seem to have a problem with getting pictures of myself.  Anyway, I thought I looked pretty good.  lol  

Monday we had another speaker in the morning then it was a choice of either a MLB baseball spring training game or shopping!  Guess what I chose?  So off to the mall I went.  It was a very high end mall with stores like Jimmy Choo, etc.  Scottsdale Fashion Square Mall  I didn't buy much again!  I did get a nice pair of Sketcher's wedge sandals and a few things at Sephora.  That night was the banquet.  I wore my black Calvin Klein dress.  No picture!  One of the wives and I became friends though (her name is Kim too) and she is a part time photographer.  I asked her to take a picture of Dean and I that night.  When she sends me the pictures I will post them.  We had a great time.  Sat at a table with the owner's 2 sons and their wives.  Very nice people.

Tuesday we packed up and hopped a Southwest airline flight to Las Vegas!  We stayed at the Aria.  Beautiful hotel.  Bathroom so luxurious and even equipped with a digital scale!!  OMG!  A scale on my vacation, how dare they!!  I did not get on right away.  

bathroom with scale

Long story short (hahaha) we had a great time in Las Vegas.  We went to a few shows.  We checked out the strip and all the gorgeous hotels and casinos.  We spent an evening cruising Freemont Street (old Vegas strip).  And we also went to a NASCAR race.  To my surprise I really enjoyed the race.  We also did a TON of shopping!  Dean loves to shop too.  We had to buy an extra suitcase to bring home all our treasures.  I got 2 pairs of jeans, 4 pairs of shoes, a lot of tops, a ring, some earrings, a jean jacket, 2 pairs of capris.  I think that is it!!  I did end up getting on the scale on our second day there.  Funny thing was that no one had ever used it.  I had to turn it over and take out the plastic battery protector!  To my horror it said 168 lbs!!  I thought I had been making good choices up till then, and I had gotten in some exercise (hotel gym in Mesa and some walking).  Dean and I went to the gym in Vegas one day.  We had planned on going more but it just did not happen.  It was a beautiful facility.  Tons of cardio machines all equipped with TV screens and ipod docks, lots of weights, etc.  It had it all.  

not a great pic but you can see how nice it was.....all treadmills looked out over pool area

I tried not to let it bother me too much but it was weird I could just tell that I was gaining weight.  My stomach felt fat.  I did not feel right.  Even though I tried to make good choices sometimes it did not happen.  I was on vacation.  When we got home my scale at home said 170 lbs.  I was very upset.  I am happy to report though that I was able to get things in control and I am thinking a lot of that weight was sodium and water perhaps because when I weighed in at WW on Saturday I was 165.8.  Still in goal range!!  Phew!  So I am now back at the gym, back eating what I normally eat, and back feeling in control.  My Mom always says the pounds you lose at the end have been there the longest, that is why they take so long to lose.  I guess she was right and those 5 that I gained on my vacation were not there very long so they went away fast too!! 

Caesars Palace

Supposed to be Celine Dion night but she cancelled due to illness....off to see KA instead

Viva Elvis show

NASCAR

One more thing....on Friday I had a NSV (non scale victory).  I have been working at the Vet College for 7 years and the students put on a Iams fun run every year.  I always thought it would be cool to go in it.  I think most do not run it mostly walk with dogs.  It is a 5 K.  I have had excuses not to do it before but this year I thought why not!  I got an email that Friday was the last day so I went to sign up.  The girl asked me what year I was in first of all!  Hahaha!  I said no I was staff, not a student.  Then you get a shirt for participating so she says what size, as I was looking the samples over she says you better get the medium, the large will be big on you!!  I walked away feeling pretty darn good about that.  So on April 13 I am going to do a 5 K.  I am not going to run it because I am planning on taking my dog Kayla.  But it is a start.  And it feels good :-)