Quickie Post! Weekly Weigh-in (down 14)

Overall I gained about 3 lbs since the last time I weighed in.. I remember hitting at least -17 lbs at some point during the summer. I was so close to 20!

This morning I got my walk on with Chris Freytag on Exercise TV and got 48 mins of exercise, it was pretty intense for me, I'm kinda glad I didn't go to cardio classes this past week I would have been overwhelmed. I didn't do BD drills today but in Kris's cooldown there were yoga stretches included in her cool down.. I really like that.
I didn't reach my goal today (2 out of 3) but I came close..baby steps..

Goals--Weekly Evaluation

Cardio Time: 0
MCAT Time: 0
Healthy Eating: 4 (1-10 scale)
Budgeting: 8 (1-10 scale)
Other workouts: 0

I would have taken my MCAT today. Thank God I cancelled it...
I haven't studied any MCAT stuff since two weeks ago, I feel like such a bum. In regards to studying I attempted to study with a study group last week but I quickly realized that I would not be doing anything productive because one person in the group talks aloud while studying and I find that I cannot concentrate. That plus parking at this library is hellacious so I will not be studying there. I had a backup study person but they are not reliable for a study wing person.

Soo I'm kinda at a loss..but I do think that I will start studying at the local public libraries..usually the study areas are nice and quiet..
But, I study better if I know that someone else is studying near me, it is very weird, but I dunno that's what works for me..

Part of the no-study problem is that I was too ambitious in thinking that I will actually go to a noon cardio session because by the time noon rolls around I'm already busy doing something.
I would actually stick to early AM workouts and start my day better when I workout, eat then work (study) It allows me to have a set routine..I think I'm going to start tomorrow and perhaps add daily yoga and belly dance drills to my morning routine.
Also, I have a bunch of fiction books that I've been reading in the morning between 6a-10a this usually takes 3-4 hours and is sucking up my workout time, so I'm going to try and break myself of this new habit..

I must, must, MUST manage my time better..

I know I rated my budgeting at 8, but that was before this afternoon's shopping excursion.. I dropped ~$300 on goods from TJ Maxx..boo hisss!!
Some things were not needed (ie the Cuisinart Oval Enameled Cast Iron pot for $60--on amazon its $99) But alot of things were not purchased randomly I got Christmas gifts for the baby cousins, a Birthday gift for a friend and some much needed home items, etc...

Goals to work on for next week.
1) Stop re-reading books in the morning
2) Workout in the morning for at least 1 hour (not including yoga (10-15 minutes) and BD Drills
(10 mins)
3) Study after my workouts

Hiatus Over and a Spiffy renamed blog

Back with a new name!

 I wanted to change the name because I felt that having my name in the title was a bit self-centered. I don't know it just didn't feel right.   Yes, this is a personal blog but I don't want it to be narcissistic.

I chose this name because if I could only do two things to feel  pulled together, it would be black mascara and red lips. I would like to incorporate more of my interests into this blog instead of making 50 different blogs. I'm more likely to keep up with one. Weekly weigh-ins and link love/weekly reads will still be ongoing.

I didn't take my MCAT. During my two week vacation where I visited Las Vegas, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Williams, AZ ) I wasn't able to study enough to stay on track. 

So with this new semester, I would like to stop doing things that do not work and focus on the things that have helped me in the past. An example is that for the past 3-4 months I've been been attempting to do intense studying at local coffeehouses where it is often noisy instead of the quiet solitude I get at a library. I love the atmosphere of  our local coffee shops, but I cannot do any serious work (like ahem-MCAT study) there. 

And I didn't realize that until I read a comment on this blog post at lifehacker.com "If you can do your work well in a coffee shop, let's be honest, you're not working that hard." 

Another example is with my weight-loss goals, I've been at a standstill. What worked before was 6-7 hours of activity per week so -- I need to exercise for at least an hour everyday and track my calories--period. I've already put ongoing cardio classes into my Gcal for every day of the week because I need variety and I only have so many workout DVDs.

I'm going to try and do a personal (better yet a blog post) weekly evaluation on my goals this whole semester like this one I read about on Lifehacker.

1) continue to study for my MCAT so that I can take the January or March one next year

Get through and understand 2 lessons a week, in addition to my weekly school work. 

Ban coffeeshops from my study spots

Go to the library before class or work. 

2) Get my booty to the gym (or wherever) I can sweat it out at least 6 days a week.

Sounds like a good start :)

2 days down!

I'm officially two days down in my unofficial challenge to myself. I cannot buy anything to eat this week. I have to make everything myself. I've done pretty good.
I've been eating Chicken Malai Curry and vegetable Korma that me and a friend made over the weekend and also making quick little tibits to eat. I made (healthier) chilli dogs yesterday (2-100 cal turkey dogs, little bit of hog dog sauce with alot of mustard and onions on one pair of 100 cal sandwich flats). About 350-400 calories for the whole meal.

I have to say I may be buying a cupcake from my fav cupcake shop Friday and possibly getting some froyo from Michigan Saturday but this is preplanned so I don't think it counts ;).

Just keep swimming....

I'm so happy that I swam 3 times this week in the pool at my local gym. It felt so good to get back into the pool, after I did my first lane I realized that I really can't swim for long periods of time. I'm going to have to work on my stamina but I already feel my arms and legs getting more toned.. My only issue is keeping my textured hair from getting damaged and the time it takes before and after pool time to get back into the swing of my daily grind.  I'll shoot for swimming at least 2 times a week in addition to my other cardio pursuits.. I haven't done any other cardio this week.  I forgot I did do WATP 2miles on Monday. So I got 4 days of cardio in this week! I surprised myself.

I did finally weigh in and I came in at 12.8 lbs down! I was really worried I had gained I believe now I'm back to my recent lowest..I had a bad, bad eating day yesterday but I've had a pretty good one so far today. Problem is that the people I go to swim with like to eat out after swimming and that usually leads to chitpotle, penn station, indian food buffet, etc.. Penn Station-- I shouldn't be eating in the first place. Chitpole (veggie burrito bowl with a wee bit of rice heavy beans and fajita veggies) isn't bad every once in a while, but it has soo much sodium! Indian food buffet don't even get me started--expensive and I end up eating ALOT of rice and fried pakoras..

I'm going to hit up a new TJ Maxx store opening in my area, Rossford, Ohio, tomorrow. Wish me luck! I've been getting alittle outta control with the spending, I need to reign it in and stop buying random crap but there are things that I'm on the constant lookout for such as thick 500 thread count sheets, casual skirts for the summer because i look horrid in shorts..

Oh ho!

Well, I haven't done too much in the past two weeks besides nurse my sprained ankle. Of course when my ankle felt good enough to start working out on, I got a lovely spring cold that I'm just now getting fully over (until today a flight of stairs still left me totally winded)

Besides all that negative juju, there is a silver lining in these clouds, I got to focus on my eating more. Ever since, I read Confessions by Gawande a chapter has stuck out in my mind. In this chapter it was mentioned that  1) most overweight people were that way for 2 reasons..1) because they scarf down their food and your brain misses the "I'm full" memo for a full 10-20 minutes after the fact ( and 2.  I forgot the other reason because it didn't apply to me)

Then I realized that I am always rushed and in a hurry when I eat for one reason or another. Lately, I've been slowing down considerably AND it was mentioned that fats make you full for longer... Yes, this is probably a no-brainer--but at the time I had a stockpile of avocados and I bought some lavash tortillas/wraps and made veggie wraps with avocado, alfalfa sprouts, onion, garlic, bell peppers and Greek yogurt as the stars. I noticed that I stayed full longer when i ate this compared to my normal very fat-free breakfast (NF greek yogurt, fruit and skim milk)

The take home message to me from this chapter was that I needed to rearrange the order of my meals so that i eat the fattier foods first then I eat everything else. This in addition to slowing down has helped me with my eating immensely I get fuller on less food.. Yesss!!

I know that this is probably not a new concept ( the fats/eating thing) and it is most likely in somebody's diet book but it personally works for me.

Weekend Fail..

I feel awful because Friday, Saturday and Sunday I didn't workout at all, or eat very well either. Sunday was really bad I had: cornbread (150) , ice cream (150), cookies (450) then topped it with cheese and crackers (400) and a small piece of carrot cake (150) . I had all this plus 2 cups of my soup (400)  for the whole day (1700 calories is my guestimate). It wasn't very bad calorie-wise but it was very bad because I consumed too much sugar and fats for the day and my I hardly had any protein for the day.  The only saving grace I had is that I finally made my black bean veggie soup so I have a healthy, prepared meal that I can pack to work for at least a week.

I've been doing much better today
Breakfast
1/2 tomato and pesto sandwich on Whole Wheat bread
1 cup of my black bean veggie soup
2oz of baked tilapia

Snack
1 cup of hazelnut coffee with 1/4 c skim milk + 1 packet sugar in the raw + 2 splenda packets
1 sour cream cookie

Lunch
I have 2 cups of my soup + 2oz of tilapia shredded into it. that I will eat when I get hungry while studying..

I WILL be working out later this evening..

Getting back into fitness

I am soo out of shape, and I can tell because I did the Walk away the pounds 2mile workout this morning and I felt my muscles going, noooo! Before I use to do this DVD on my "easy" days and did the 30 day shred on my "moderate/hard" days. I dare not try the 30 day shred until I get stronger..

I decided to add exercise to the mix because I think that those 7lbs that fell off so easy, were they most recent fat gain and for some reason they fall off easier (with just a diet change). I hopped on the scale today and I'm at 9.4 lbs down from my starting weight! I need to remember to not be discouraged when the numbers fluctuate (due to water weight)  because I can get into the mood of, I might as well eat what I want because this isn't working!

I'm now closer to the weight that I've been around for the past 2 years.  I think its time to ease into exercise to help melt the fat away along with staying on top of my eating habits. Also, its been since October when I stopped exercising regularly so alot of my muscle mass is gone. I can feel it and that's what I enjoy the most about exercise even when I didn't lose a pound of weight, I feel strong and its liberating to be able to push your body to do things you thought you were not strong enough for.

ETA: I think I'm plateu-ing right now because my body got used to me eating less food. So hopefully adding exercise to the mix and weight training helps to boost my metabolism. I forgot to mention this earlier.

Shopping Blues

I'm sitting here wanting to go out and shop but I'm going to stay put. I need to get out of the habit of retail (or thrift) therapy. I've noticed that when I have alot of things that need to be done. I distract myself with shopping--thrifting is the best because I can be busy for hours. Instead of shopping for items that I need and doing things that keep me on the straight and narrow. Such as buying groceries, cooking and saving leftovers for the rest of the week so I don't have to buy outside food. It less expensive, healthier and it tastes better, too. I just need to stop the impulse shopping and buying when I don't need.  There are some things that make me curse at my shopping ban like these zippered Jeggings from Lane Bryant , I almost died! LB isn't usually on top of it like that, very rarely do I get very excited about things over there. I may make an exception for these jeggings, I have a LB gift card that's burning a hole in my pocket and I can wear the jeggings winter, summer, fall, spring. I'll think about it, they are sold out online (except size 14/16) Hopefully they will still have some in the local stores if i do decide to get them at a later date.

Moving away from my shopaholic tendencies, making a lighter version of THIS chicken soup is on the agenda for the weekend.Other things to do are taxes, fasfa, putting in alot of MCAT study hours in. (I'm wayyy behind) and  my hair(washing, conditioning and redoing).

First Post-- the ground rules

I've been wanting to start a blog for a while but I really didn't have too much to write about. Ever since I've started this new year with my three goals in mind plus grad school and preparing to apply to medical school some of my ambition has faltered. I figure if I write about it I will stay on the straight and narrow.

Goal #1: Losing 10 lbs a month.
Good thing: I lost 7lbs the first week in Jan, bad thing that's ALL i lost in January. I kept gaining and loosing all month. Its a good start, i guess.
Weigh in days are fridays. So I will try and post my losin then.
What really helps me is Sparkpeople's nutrition tracker, I was shocked to see how many calories some of my favorite foods were packing.

Goal #2 I rediscovered TJMaxx and discovered fat fashion blogs and both of those things are not good ideas.. I kept buying, buying and buying. I decided that I would not buy any clothes (with few exceptions--like shopping interview clothes or if i see basics that I don't have and need) I also began heavy-duty thrifting and I was buying some things that i really don't need. I'm allowed to thrift (the adventure is in searching for me) as long as they are items that are needed. In fact I spent $11 on pins last week. I acquired a  ladybug pin and I dubbed her Penelope, if you see her say hello! Also I was so disgusted when one week (albeit it was during finals week-so i was really short on time) I spent $45 in 3 days on dining out. I had fallen out of the habit of making my food at home and my waistline was larger and wallet lighter because of it.

Goal #3: I forgot about my hair goal! 3) Take better care of my hair and see how long and healthy it gets!