Happy Birthday Kenyon

It’s a very important birthday today!!

We are celebrating Kenyon today, who happens to be one of my very favorite person.

I’m looking forward to a mix of birthday and New Years Eve later today.

I Faced The (Home) Scale

I decided to step on the home scale this morning.  I stopped weighing myself at home before my WW meetings because it was doing more harm than good.  So, I don’t really have much to go by on how my home scale compares to the WW scale.  But, it wasn’t as bad as my mind made it out to be: 217.3

My last WI at my meeting a week and a half ago was 216.0.  I swear in my mind I have felt like I’d be seeing a 5+ pound gain, or worse yet, I would have slipped back into the 220s.

Now, with that being said, this week still has many days of eating out and alcohol planned.  Stepping on the scale allows me to be mindful of where I go from here and what all I decide to consume.  And, tracking is definitely key.  Since I have not gained 5+ pounds, I sure as heck don’t plan to before I get on the WW scale next!

What is interesting is that the home scale has an app and it graphs your weight, body fat percentage, muscle mass, and BMI.  Here are the results from the last year:

BMI is down.

 

Body Fat Percentage is also down.

 

Muscle Mass is up!

 

That is some exciting stuff.  It doesn’t make me want to get on the scale regularly as having to face the WW scale is stressful enough.  It got to the point where it was easy to talk myself out of going to my meeting if my home scale was up.  So, I stopped getting on it each week.  While I’m on my weight loss re-journey, I like being able to focus on my official WW weight once a week.  And, I’ll continue to do so. 

As we close out 2018, there is so much to be happy about and so much positives moving forward.

Confessions Part IV

I’m a bit depressed.

It usually happens this time of year and for many years, I was also working graveyard which seemed to amplify it.  I don’t like the cold weather.  I don’t like the dreary cloudy sky.  I don’t like snow.  I feel like I’m tired all the time.  And, it doesn’t help that it gets dark so early.

Sigh.

I also have zero motivation right now.  Every evening I go to bed with thoughts of getting up to exercise with no follow through.  For examples, this is how today went:

 

(alarm goes off)

I’ve got 30 minutes to wait for my egg cups to cook and I still have several episodes of Queer Eye to watch.  So, I’ll get the egg cups in the oven and hit the treadmill

Continue to lay in bed scrolling Facebook and Instagram

Finally get up and shuffle downstairs to start the oven and make the egg cups

Sit down in front of TV with a cup of coffee

 

Yep, that is pretty much how my days have been going.  The motivation to get on the treadmill, do an exercise DVD, or go the gym is just not there.  I know that boredom is what is behind my lack of motivation for both exercise and eating healthy/tracking.  I am just bored with what I’ve been doing and I’ve not figured out how to shake things up.

I also don’t have a WW “home” and that is bumming me out. My plan was to hit up Monday evenings and/or Friday morning meetings.  But my work schedule is all over the place and now that I’ve just signed up for overtime for next month, it got even crazier.  I’m going to have to sit down and really take a look at where I can find a solid meeting time/location each week so I can maintain that consistency. 

Oy, that depresses me even more.

Is it Spring time yet?

Weekly WI: Coffee Is My Friend Today

Hello from the dispatch console.

 

After working my regular week and being a team player and offering to work part of Christmas Day for a coworker, I was supposed to have today and tomorrow off.  Well, when your phone starting ringing at 4:30am, that can’t be good.  Despite hoping maybe one of my other coworkers would cover it, here I am.  At least the overtime pay benefit is really nice this week.  And, I’ve had my coffee so I am less irritate.  Honestly, I am just super tired and worn out.  I may or may not have had a mental breakdown while taking a shower to get ready to work.  I need a break and thankfully (fingers crossed) I have four days off all in a row coming up here soon.

Before I called in to work, I called Mom to see if she was still up for attending a back-up WW meeting.  She was but also okay with skipping and she understood my dilemma with being a reliable employee.  I've been on the fence on even wanting to step on the scale.  I was planning to attend the meeting even if I took a pass at the scale. 

 

With the end of the month and year upon us, I’d like it to end on a positive note and not one that results in a gain.  While I have no idea if I have gained, I am reminded that I was on track for weeks on end with a maintain, small gain, or small loss.  Since I’ve been quite off track this week with my food and my program, I’m sure I’ve gained. 

We will either pop into a meeting next week or I'll find a new meeting location/time to get me through the next three months with "hopefully" a renewed focus.  This last week of loose tracking has made me realize that I feel so much better ON track than OFF track, that is for sure.  My days off are about to change so I’ll need to find a new WW home as well.  It will only be temporary as in April, I’ll be able to get back to my Tuesday morning WW meeting/workshop/studio/location.

I’m ending the month of December with a 0.6 loss and my total loss for 2018 is 15.8 pounds.  I look forward to another year of tracking my monthly losses and watching those totals add up! 

 

100 pound charm, I’ve still got my eye on you.

From Our House To Yours

 

It is a wonderful life indeed. 

Lots of Love,

Lindsay

Merry Christmas (Eve)

Merry Christmas

 

I wanted to wish you all a Very Merry Christmas. 

If you are traveling this holiday season, please drive safe. 

Enjoy the time with your loved ones.

Continue To Show Up Every Day

On Tuesday after my WW meeting and deciding that I needed to take a bit of a “mental break”, I went back to look over my weight record.  I find that when I am feeling frustrated, I need to step back and take a look at the bigger picture.  Often, gaining new perspective can be helpful for me.

 

I am really happy to see that even though I’ve been maintaining during the month of December that my last WI (216.0) is down 2.8 pounds from the same week in 2015.  And, that I’m up 15.4 pounds from the same week in 2014. I used the word “only” because I’ve got 16.2 pounds to go to officially be under 200 pounds.  That is super exciting AND feels totally attainable.  That makes me twice as happy!

I know I’ll be able to reach the small goals I have in mind for 2019.  This is why I needed to take a step back, a breather per se, and re-gain my focus.  I very much want to get under 200 pounds and I am going to continue to work really hard at it.

 

As I said yesterday, I am feeling the effects of my lack of tracking and excess food/treat/alcohol intake.  I am really bloated, sluggish, tired, and have canker sores in my mouth.  It’s a nice, although painful, reminder that getting on track again ASAP is what will make me feel 10x better.  **I have thrown away all the crap that made it's way into my house this last week.  AND, I am itching to throw away all the crap here at work.  But, I'll avoid it in the meantime.  It already makes me feel so much better and in control.

Mental Break Update

Good Morning.

How is it only Saturday and day two of my work week?  This feels like it is shaping up to be a long few days, especially if the expected snow comes into the Valley overnight.  We had a great day at our work party/potluck and also later in the evening celebrating with my family at our house.  When I woke up this morning to a clean house, I was extra glad I decided to clean up last night vs. this morning.

Kenyon wanted to go to breakfast this morning and we are now having a cookie exchange at work.  This will be the last of the parties until the big day on Tuesday.  I’m already feeling a bit exhausted and I suspect it is because of all the holiday treats I’ve been enjoying.

So, how is the “mental break” going?

I’m almost positive I’ve not had as much sugar in entire year as I’ve had this week alone.  Holiday Sugar Rush is in full effect.  Each day I think, “I’ll take a break today” and yet here I am, eating cookies from our cookie swap.  (insert face palm)

The week started off really well and the mental break was good for me and my WW program.  When I thought about what taking a mental break would mean, I was confident that it could possibly make the scale move in the down direction.  But, as the week progresses, I’m now thinking I’ve done more damage than good.  If there is a gain at the end of all this, it is only temporary.

 

The connection to tracking, and lack thereof, is what can make or break my week.  However, I’ve been tracking religiously and earning my blue dots but the scale isn’t moving (and yes, maintaining this time of year is great…this I know).  So, even if this experiment goes terribly wrong and I gain five pounds, I’ll still be okay.

 

I think this is the reset I was looking for, although I didn’t intend to go this far off course.  In a weird way, my mood changed from excitement of a cookie exchange today to dread since I’ve had so much sugar this week.  I’m pretty much ready for this week of indulgences to be over although I am still excited for turkey, mashed potatoes, and stuffing on Tuesday. 

It is the sugary treats and alcohol that is surely doing the most damage.  After this week, 2019 is going to bring a clean slate for sure.

Feeling Festive

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year.”

 

I’m feeling very festive after seeing Love Actually last night.  And, today is our Secret Santa/Dispatch Party Day.  So, we got the approval to wear jeans and an ugly sweater.  I’ve recently purchased an “ugly sweater” thermal fleece at Old Navy so I’m super stoked to be wearing it today.

 

I wished I had thought to wear it last night to the movie theater.  We went to The Egyptian downtown as part of the Boise Classic Movie event.  The nice part about these types of movies is that there is always a costume contest before it begins and you win a free movie pass just for getting on stage.  Last October, I won with my Flo From Progressive costume at the Rocky Horror Picture Show.  At Love Actually, they were having an ugly sweater contest.  Doh!  We had fun though.  I love that movie so much.

 

Jenny and I went downtown ahead of time and had dinner Gyro Shack.  Jenny wasn’t feeling 100% so I felt bad for her.  We still had plenty of time to kill so we hopped over to Flatbread Community Pizza and had half priced cocktails.  It was delicious.

The movie was packed and the crowd was very active.  I think I’m officially ready for Christmas.  I’m hosting my immediate family this evening so we can watch my nieces open gifts.  Tomorrow my team at work is having a cooking exchange.

The big day will be here before we know it!

New Addition To Our Household

While other people are buying pets and birthing babies, say hello to thenew addition to our household.

We’ve waited a water softener since we built our new house. The plumbing has been there but the choices of softeners through the builder was limited. So, we waited a while. After visiting the Boise Home Show abs talking to all the local dealers, we really liked Aquatech of Idaho. The owner came out to the house a couple weeks ago and did our water testing. Yesterday, we had our softener installed.

It was a lengthy process and since we also added the chlorine filter, the guy has to get under the house in the crawl space. The nice part is it gave me an opportunity to declitter, reduce, and reorganize. It feels so good to have the under stair storage looking better.

So far, I’m not sure I’ve noticed much difference. I’m hoping soon we will see a big difference in all our hard water build up. And, with the added chlorine filter, we don’t have to buy filters anymore for the fridge. Yeah!

If you are looking to install a water softener or have your water tested and get a quote, give Aquatech of Idaho a call.

Weekly WI: A Loss

It was a really busy day yesterday so I never had a chance to report in on my Weekly WI. Today had been on-the-go too!

I lost 0.8 pounds. It wasn’t quite the large drop and celebration I was anticipating. A loss is a loss and that means I’m on the right track. Plus, when you look at the monthly graph, a 0.8 drop after several weeks of maintains looks pretty impressive.

My three month chart looks good too.

Despite all my success at the scale this year, I am feeling I need a “mental break.” I don’t know why but I’m struggling. So I’m giving myself some slack this week and trying to not focus so much on points and tracking but to enjoy food and not stress.

This could be great or it could backfire but I need a break. 

We had a great time at the Holiday Jamberry Mani Nite. I’m all ready for the holidays.

New Recipe: Bean Dip - Instagram For The Win

I found a recipe on the WW Instagram that peaked my interest.

 

So, I decided to try it out since I was still a little skeptical on how it would actually taste.  It was really yummy.  Since there are no measurements, I had to wing it.  Here is what I did.

• I cooked two chicken breasts ahead of time in the Instant Pot.  I shredded them and put it in the fridge until I was ready to put it all together.
• I added one can of fat free spicy salsa refried beans and one can of black beans, drained.
• I mixed the chicken with the refried beans first.  Then, I added the non-fat Greet yogurt.  I thought it mixed a lot easier once the yogurt was in there.  I added a few globs at a time until I liked the consistency.
• I added the black beans next so I wouldn’t smoosh them too much.
• I forgot the corn (doh) but I will next time.
• I tasted it and then added the salsa since all we had on hand was medium and I don’t like too much spice.
• I tasted again and though it needed taco seasoning.  It was then perfect.

This made a very large Tupperware-size amount.  I debated adding the Greek yogurt right away or waiting until I portioned it out and was ready to eat.  I don’t like how Greek yogurt releases moisture and worried it would be soggy.  But, the next couple of days it still tasted okay.

I picked up a box of the Good Thins corn variety for dipping and also dipped carrots.  This dip makes a very large serving, which I portioned into smaller containers and plan to eat on it for a few days.  You get several of the corn crackers for 3 points, which make snacking fun.  I’m planning to make this for our family Christmas so my Mom and I have something to snack on before the big dinner that is very low in points. 

Enjoy and thanks Instagram for the win.

Sunday This N' That

Good Morning and Happy Sunday to you all.

 

It is bitter cold in the Treasure Valley today and we’ve been dealing with some crazy winds the last few days too.  I hate this time of year but there is never a good time to stop and fill up your gas tank.  Before I know it, I’m below a quarter tank and having to face the elements.  Thankfully, we have no snow.  I really am not a fan of snow…or winter for that matter.  I ordered my coffee iced today and wished I had gotten a hot beverage.  I redeemed a freebie Barista pick for a skinny peppermint mocha.  I prefer them hot vs. iced so that should have also swayed my decision.

I’ve been watching season 4 of Fuller House and it makes me jealous of their sunny San Francisco weather.  I loved the episode with the traffic jam during Steve and DJ’s date.  Since they film on the Warner Bro’s lot, I get so happy knowing I’ve been there and have seen the behind-the-scenes TV and movie magic.  If I lived in CA, I’d totally visit the WB Studios often.

Fuller House is what ended up getting me onto the treadmill for my workout this morning.  I think I’m starting to feel a little bored with my at-home workouts.  I’m going to have to shake things up and look for other ideas.  I thought I would do a WATP DVD workout but the thought of expelling all that energy was exhausting.  I’m also still feeling sore from my Wednesday gym class and my lack of activity on Thursday and Friday.  So, I’m trying to make up for it the rest of this week and walking on the treadmill while watching Fuller House allows me a little movement before I start my day.

 

Today is my Mom’s 65^th Birthday.  I’d like to end this blog post by wishing her a very happy birthday.  The family will be together on Friday for our Christmas celebration so she decided to also celebrate her birthday that day too.

Wreath Making Class Through The City Of Eagle

The wreath making class I attended last night was a lot of fun.  But, I wouldn’t say I’m quitting my day job to make wreathes. 

 

I didn’t really love working with all those individual pieces and all that wire.  Our group of three had a great time.  I got there early and had just ordered a beer at The Local next door when my friend Jenny and her Mom had arrived early too.  So, the joined me at the bar for a drink.  We ended up having to chug our drinks since the class was about to begin and we wanted seats together. 

Jenny’s mom, Syliva, who attended the class with us, bought me a glass of wine since we were at a Pop n’ Pour event.  Sadly, I spilled my glass when I was messing with all the wreath decorations.  Whomp! Whomp!  Then, Syliva spilled her.  I don’t think we can be trusted to drink and craft at the same time.

We had many options/ideas for how we wanted to make our wreaths and all three of us chose a half style.  I was really happy with how mine turned out.

 

And, we enjoyed our gal-time so it was totally worth it.

 

I think from here on out I’ll stick to paint and sip events but who knows.  It was fun to think outside the box and do a different type of craft.  Plus, we didn’t have to clean up the mess.  And boy what a mess it made.

Change In Plans

It has been a chaotic day and it isn’t quite done yet.

 

I got up earlier than usual so I could be at POST this morning to assist with training scenarios for the Basic Dispatch Academy.  My group had police/radio scenarios where there was shots fired, pursuit, warrants, and other emergency radio traffic.  It went very well.  The group also passed their final exam so they will be all set to graduate tomorrow.  Nicely done.  Our newest employee to complete training, Vickie, will be graduating.  Idaho had a big legislation push to develop a certification for all dispatchers around the state of Idaho.  Prior to July of 2018, you didn’t have to be certified to be a police/fire/emergency services dispatcher.  We are very happy about that.

I was headed out to do my errands between helping at POST and coming back to work for my scheduled 4-hour OT shift when I got a slew of text messages that they might need coverage in dispatch.  I offered to help and after a quick bite of lunch, I’ve been in dispatch since 1pm.  It will have been an 11 hour work day but hey, it is all OT so that is more money in my pocket.

I have to be back bright and early tomorrow as I have plans after work at a wreath making class with my friend Jenny C. and her Mom.  I’m looking forward to the class and the time with friends.  It is at a Paint N’ Sip location so I had best save a few points for a glass of wine.

Since I had to miss out on running my errands, I’ll have to do those tomorrow after work.  I’m not looking forward to visiting the post office in the late afternoon but I have some packages that need sent and I don’t want to delay them to next week. 

I also had to miss out on my activity with the change of plans.  I won’t have time to exercise tomorrow either and our treadmill has been moved out of the way so we can use the extra console.  I might see if I can get it moved back so I can use it.  If not, I’ll resume my activity on Saturday.

Sometimes things just don’t go as planned.

Plugging Along On A Wednesday

Hello

I’m waiting on my friend to meet for lunch to celebrate her Belated 40th Birthday.  I left the house early to run some errands and finished early. I’m now getting hungry. I killed time at Albertsons and picked up some grapes on a $1.29 per pound sale. I used my water in the car to wash them and had some as a snack.  But, I’m ready for lunch for sure. We picked Mongolian BBQ because Kenyon never wants to go.

I did some pre-tracking yesterday for my meals out today. I even tracked a beer Incase I decide to indulge. I’m using some WSPA and I got my activity done for today.

My Apple Watch rewarded me with my December award but my records show I’ve only logged nine workouts. It doesn’t matter because I’m still going to exercise the rest of this month.

I’ve got a few errands to run after lunch then this evening is a meet up with Kenyon prior employer who is in town. 

Let the socializing commence.

Weekly WI: Another Maintain

My WI didn't go as I had hoped, but looking over my weight record, I may have to wait another week.

At my 10/23 WI, I lost 1.4 pounds then had three weeks of maintains (or small losses/gains) before losing 2.8 pounds on 11/20. So, this week makes three weeks since my loss of maintains. Yep, I weighed exactly the same this week as last week.

I'm going to keep at it and hopefully will see a loss next week. I have double the social/meal plans on Wednesday. Right now I am thinking I'll enjoy both my meals out and try not to stress this week. I've been earning blue dots like a Rock Star so I know I'm doing great.

We talked before the meeting began about slow struggles with losing. I was sharing that I like to look back at my weight record to remind myself that I'm still winning. I'm down 17.6 pounds from last year. I'm super excited about that.

Fit Points 2.0 rolled out this week. If you have not updated your WW app, you'll need to do so in order to see the new information. It appears they are rewarding activity with higher Fit Points for high intensity and strength training. Taking a walk is still a great form of activity, it is just less points now.

They also rolled out Get Active (scroll down below your main tracking under My Day, to find this link.

WW had added some audio sessions to assist with activity. I listened to bits and pieces of a few and am excited to start using them during my activity. I was thinking I might go to the mall and complete a mall walk with the Basic Walk session. But, I was hungry and planned a rest day today.

I typically use my Apple Watch to sync with my WW app for my Fit Points and I don't really ever eat them unless I blow through my WSPA (which has happened a time or two). So, I'll plan to continue to sync the activity and see if the Fit Points start to adjust in anyway.

It's late in the afternoon. I didn't have motivation to blog after my WW workshop because I am bummed I didn't have a loss. On the positive side, I didn't have a gain either.

It's Best Not To Stress It

Good Afternoon and Happy Morning to you all.

Raise your hand if you wanted to say in bed today?

 

I sure did.  But, alas, I rolled out of bed and completed my 30 minutes on the treadmill.  Whenever I get my activity done, the kitchen cleaned up, and the bed made before I leave the house, I feel so accomplished.  Plus, it’s my Friday and I am looking forward to the next two days off.

Of course, I’m nervous about the scale.  When I have a stellar week, I gain 0.2 pounds.  So, that keeps my mind on edge and now I’m doubting if this week was as stellar.  I got some kudos from WW via email.  It even showered me with confetti.  That was pretty neat.

 

I have earned my blue dots each day but Thursday.  I’ve also been earning back WSPA with my rollover points.  So, I know I’ve had a great week as far as losses go.  Now, it’s up to my body to give me the reward (ha!).  I have a multi-agency dispatch party after work tonight.  I do want to go and visit but I'll keep my snacking/alcohol to a minimum as I have WI tomorrow.

 

I hate having to freight over my weekly WI and get back to when weight loss felt semi-effortless.  I think if I can get a few back-to-back losses under my belt, I might stand a change on upping that confidence level.

Until then, it is best not to stress it.

Finding Things That Challange You

Look at the cute mini poinsettia I got a Trader Joes last week.  I feel so festive now.  Plus, it has glitter on it.

 

I was looking over my Apple Watch Activity app to check my progress of the December Challenge I’m working on.  This month I have to log 10 workouts of at least 15 minutes.  I’m so close to completing it.

 

This has me thinking that maybe next year I’ll work really hard to complete each of the monthly challenges.  Here are the awards I earned in 2018.

 

It is nice having something to challenge me, especially now that the weather is so much colder.  Once I switch shifts in January, I won’t be able to make to the gym classes as frequently either.  That leaves me with home workouts on the treadmill, home DVD workouts, venturing to the gym for a workout on the machines, or doing a mall walk.  I was recently thinking it would be fun to start a weekly group walk at the mall each morning before it opens.  The hardest part is when it is cold and snowy, you have to drive to the mall.  But, working out with friends is so much more fun.

My home treadmill set up

Speaking of friends, I met Rebecca for coffee at Starbucks this morning before work.  I love one-on-one time with my friends.

 

Happy Sunday.

Feeling A Lull

It feels so good to have control of my schedule again after training for the last five weeks.  We have many new trainees so I’ll have a short break before putting my training hat back on. 

I’m feeling a bit lost in the motivation category.  I think part of it comes from being underwhelmed with my food plan these last few weeks.  The other part is most likely due to work.  We used to rotate schedules every eight weeks.  Then that got pushed to 10 weeks and finally now 12 weeks, if you even rotate at all since we now shift bid.  I don’t describe myself as a creature of habit even though I do like routine.  I also crave change and I don’t like being stagnant for too long.  With the new shift bid combined with Kenyon’s work schedule, I’ve been hanging out on day shift for several months.

Most likely, I’m just feeling the lull and ready for a change.  I will be rotating days off in January and I will have days off with Kenyon again, with will be so nice.  Sad to say even though we see each other every day, it isn’t the same not having days off together.  We are super lucky we aren’t on opposite shifts too, which is what should have happened but I was able to get a switch. 

I was thinking about what I shared yesterday from IG.  You just can’t be motivated all the time.  But, as long as I’m disciplined, I’m ahead of the game.  So, I woke up this morning, put on my workout clothes, and completed another day of activity with a workout DVD.  I wasn’t really “feeling it” but I got it done. 

 

I put together a comparison for #facetofacefriday which I see on IG and the WW boards often.  Here is my starting photo from my pre-WW days (304.8 pounds) and the photo I took a few weeks ago when I earned my Old Chicago pullover half zip sweatshirt (219-ish). 

 

It feels good to look back and see for comparison that I’m still on the right track, even though my maintenance journey was short lived.  I’ll need to do a better job of planning my meals next week in hopes of getting out of this lull.  I would love to see success at the scale as well.  I know I need to focus on other than besides the scale…but darn it!  I want that reward.

Some days motivation is low.  It is pushing past those days that really build success.