I AM BACK!

I am so fortunate to have Wednesday and Thursday off of work this week. It is so beautiful out! I decided to make Wednesday a day for me and do things that I want to do! So often I am doing things for other people, trying to make them happy, make their lives easier but in turn, I sometimes make things harder on myself. The last couple of weeks have been tough in that area.  As I mentioned before, we had birthdays, Valentine's Day with numerous celebrations to go along with the special holidays. Don't get me wrong, I love doing things for others and want to make "it" special for others but sometimes it's just plain tough especially when you try, try, and try and things don't turn out as special as you hoped for.

   
   









      These are the times when I get weak, fall off the wagon, or as Krista and I say,"The wheels are off the cart." I knew exactly what I was getting myself into.  I planned for it and am paying for it. I am up about 2-3 pounds. It's mind boggling to me how at one point I can be so focused and nothing will derail me and then the next moment I am giving in to temptations that I don't want to reject at the moment of weakness. That's all I am going to say about that. We all know that story....... The good thing is never for a moment did I think this was over, I am done, back to the old me. No, I am moving forward and with strength and power to do this! To make things easier for me, in my mind at least, I have challenged myself to giving up chocolate completely, in every form until April. I feel this will take so many hard choices away for me. So far so good....:)

 So back to a beautiful Wednesday....... I took 2:15 minutes out of today's day to ride my bike . I rode 27 miles through Griffith Park and our LA River Bike Path. I  feel a bit nervous on that bike path being alone with so many interesting people along the way. I told myself I would keep going as long as I felt "good." It may not be Idaho, Oregon, or Colorado (beautiful places we have traveled to) but I am thankful that we have this designated bike path for us here in Los Angeles.  

Pony and train rides. Great memories when the kids were small. We spent many days here travelled by car. Now only by  bike.:)

       I felt good when I got home and worked on a healthy dinner. I prepared a White Bean with Kale Soup which turned out really good!

 I have been trying new healthier recipes and am enjoying it.
This week has been good!  I am working out hard every day, feeling good, making great food choices,and seeing results. The wheels are back on!

My workout buddy!

Lunch

One of my favorites.

Last weeks delivery...mmm good!

A good snack.

   

P.S. A proud moment: Carissa placed 3rd overall out of 2 heats on the 100 hurdles. This was a 1st Annual
event for this Invitational at John Burroughs High School. Something really to be proud of...and I am!

Too Cold for Comfort

     It's been a very cold weekend here in Burbank. It's in the low 50's which is very cold for us. Too cold to want to do anything that is "good" for me. It's really amazing to me how fast you can revert back to your "old" ways if I just give in. In this weather, I just want to bundle up, bake, eat, be lazy and cozy. I have done alot of talking to myself to resist these urges.  I have managed to get my exercise in both Sat. and Sun. on my elliptical and I worked out for an hour rather then 45 minutes. So I give myself a pat on my back for that. Keith went out on a mountain bike ride this morning and Christopher who is out on a 130 mile road bike ride today with friends. I don't think these guys think twice about going because of the cold.
      Towards the end of the day today, I went downhill. I gave in and indulged in too many "treats." I realize I am only human and hopefully this will be out of the way for me since next week is a big week of celebrations. We have Valentines Day on the 14th, Keith's B-day on the 16th, a BBQ for Carissa's B-day on the 17th,  and Carissa's actual B-day on the 18th. In the past, it's been a week of over indulging. I plan to do it differently this year. I will let you know how I handle this week when the week is over.
     On a more positive note.....When I weighed in at my Weight Watcher's meeting last Wednesday I was down 2.4 lbs. I am now 6.6 lbs away from my goal weight with my total weight loss being 59.2 lbs. So close but yet so far away.......

I hope you all have a great week coming up! Happy Valentine's Day.

Here are some food/meals I made this week. Yum Yum!

Arugula Salad with Spaghetti Squash and a veggie burger patty.

Roasted Veggies before roasting.

Blackened Salmon with Crunchy Coconut Couscous and Roasted Veggies.

Brussel Sprouts with Cranberries and Walnuts

   

While the Cats away the Mice will Play

While the cats away the mice will play...Keith and Christopher are off in Louisville, KY watching the Worlds Cyclocross Championships.

There's my Keith!

 Even though I would love to see the races, I decided to hang back at home. This is the first time EVER the Worlds are being held here in the US, which is really cool! As it looks freezing there, its a nice 76 degrees here.

I started my day off with a 25 mile bike ride through Griffith Park and the La River Bike path with my friend

Nancy. We had a great time! It felt so good to get back out there. It's nice because we don't get to see each other often enough and this way we get a workout in and we get all caught up on each other's lives. 

 When I got home, I made a delicious Panini sandwich for lunch. I was super hungry after the ride.

Before toasting it, I splurged with this blue cheese slice. YUM!

Finished Product. A perfect lunch for me!

Here's back in 2010 when I first bought my bike. Keith really wanted me to have a bike so we could ride together. I never imagined how much I would really like this sport. I am not interested in racing or competing  but I really enjoy getting outdoors, sharing this time with Keith and friends, and all while helping me achieve my weight goals. Back then, it was very frustrating to me because I couldn't fit into a cycling jersey and biking clothes. I would wear biking shorts and an XL t-shirt. I remember thinking, "If I could just lose enough weight to be able to fit into my own cycling gear, I would look like I belong and not look like a rookie."

March 2010- Pismo Beach

Even though it took me a very long time to finally commit to making a change to make this happen, I finally started to make changes in June 2012, By Sept.,2012 I was able to wear Keith's men's extra large or large hand me downs. Now I have a full drawer full of my own cycling gear that I feel proud to wear. I never plan to go back to those hand me downs! I have actually thrown them all out...:)

September 2012-Santa Barbara

I cleaned out my pantry this week. I got rid of all this  "white" pasta and rice with only leaving the "healthier" whole grain versions. I plan to only purchase the healthier versions from here on out. I also moved all my baking supplies up to the top shelf ( hard to reach) 

White pasta and rice

Whole grain versions.

 So here it is. I ordered a delivery of organic produce from Farm Fresh To You. I wanted to try out the service a few times and see if it works good for my family. I was pretty pleased with what came in the box. I have to make sure I use all the items so I don't waste my money. I plan to make Kale chips with the Kale. Christopher keeps telling me how he broils it tossed with lemon and garlic. I will let you know how it comes out.

List of what came in the box.

Box it came in.

What came in the box.