Two days in a row

I'm still here. At about the same weight I was back in May. Which is not surprising since I've been totally slacking off on the exercise, and only marginally paying attention to food.

But this weekend was a bit of a turning point. Not a fireworks and marching bands kind of a turning point, or a rock-bottom, I need to change something, turning point. Just a small nudge toward being just a little bit healthier.

I went to the gym both days this weekend and did 30 minutes of cardio. Sweaty, 150+ HR cardio. And it felt really good.

I can count on my fingers the number of times I've been to the Pro Club since I went back to Microsoft. That sucks. It's such an awesome gym, and it's FREE.

Yesterday and today, I saw a TV special on Discovery Health based on 'You on a Diet' which is a very reasonable book about getting healthier. No boot camp, no elimination diets. Just some good advice, mostly stuff I already knew. So it inspired me just a tiny bit, to get a little healthier.

Baby steps. 20 minutes of working out each day this week. That's it.

Exercise: Walked with Aimee at the Pro Club, 100 minutes and just under 6 miles. Woot!!

Food: Ate the usual cereal-milk-banana breakfast, protein shake for lunch, and went to the Outback for dinner.

What I did right today: Walking! Bought new shoes for walking, so I can do the half marathon. Protein shake to get some extra protein into my carb-heavy life. Also didn't have any caffeine after lunchtime. So I might actually be able to sleep!

What I could have done better: Gotten the salad without dressing at Outback. Stupid salad was drowning in heavy dressing. Skipped the cheese fries. Oh, I am powerless when faced with the two things i love most: cheese and fries.

Plan for tomorrow:
1. Walk to work, at least from TJ's building if not from home (feet are very sore today)
2. Bring lunch to work plus snacks
3. Eat at home for dinner.
4. Actually review plan so I know what I'm supposed to do

I guess this log will only work if I actually write in it. So I'm going to try to write at the end of each day just to check in with myself and review what I've done. Again, this is more for me than any external readers. Because it's boring.


Exercise: Walked on the Microsoft campus with Aimee and Spike today, for about 40 min. It felt good even though it was HOT.

Food: Ate the usual cereal-milk-banana breakfast, Canyons nachos for lunch and a nice light dinner of yogurt, naan and V8. (Weird, I know.)

What I did right today: Definitely the walking. I told myself last night it was a top priority for me, and that seemed to work.

What I could have done better: Not given into my chicken nachos craving for lunch. As usual, I waited until I was so hungry I couldn't see straight. And as usual, it led me to a bad choice.

Plan for tomorrow:
1. Walk with Aimee at Pro Club at 8:30am
2. Clean out fridge
3. Track my food on WW Online (for reals)

Day 6 Already!!

Well, so I've nearly survived a week on WW. And I haven't completely blown my point allowance yet (though I'm down to 6 extra points for today and tomorrow).

I figured something out - I can eat out once a day and still stay within my points. My unscientific study indicates that my eating out meals are way more points than the grub I can rustle up at home, so in order to absorb the "cost" of those meals, I need to eat pretty conservatively the rest of the day. WHich isn't so bad.

Today TJ and I went to breakfast at the Village Square Cafe in Redmond. We'd never been there before, and it's YUMMY. American comfort food at its finest. So after that 13 point breakfast, I've got to chill for the rest of the day. And get in some walking.

Today's Peanut's turn. Yesterday Beagle and I did the standard 35-ish minute loop down the street around the block and back up the street. Because our hill is so steep, it was a rough climb, but today that soreness feels good. Like I actually *did* something.

So far so good :D

Hoofin it wit da puppy

Peanut and I took a 35 minute walk around Redmond this morning, which was good for both of us. Peanut is about 15 lbs overweight, and as he gets older I worry more about that affecting his health.

We started out at the vet's office, where I had to pick up some more spray for his hotspots - allergy season is in full force around here for both people and dogs. Then we walked around the Bella Bottega shopping center a couple of times. It was just before 9am so it was nice and empty.

We tried out the new Flexi-leash today and it wasn't bad. Took some getting used to on both our parts, but it really does absorb a lot of the shock when he pulls forward. (And when a 115-lb strong dog is pulling, it's a lot of impact!)

I have eaten a great breakfast and lunch today, very simple. It's always hard to get back into writing down what I eat and trying to stay within the number of WW points I'm allotted. I'm trying not to focus too much on the exact number right now - just focusing this week on the habit of tracking everything first. Oh, and trying not to eat junk.

A friend of mine was diagnosed with diabetes a little while ago and he's the same age as me, so it's starting to worry me a bit more, especially since I'm carrying around about 25 extra pounds since my wedding nearly 3 years ago (!). He did mention something very interesting - that if he takes a walk right after he eats, it really helps his blood sugar numbers.

So I might try it, just to be able to squeeze more walking in, especially while I'm off these next couple of weeks. I may draft The Peanut into this plan as well...