Phew!

I'm home! We had fun!

No, Dad... I did NOT write on (or even look at) my blog the entire week. Those posts were set to post ahead of time (thank you, Steve!).

Obviously, that means I haven't read any of your blogs either... my Google Reader says I have SIXTY NINE unread posts. Jeez, people!

Photos and such to come...

PS: I think I gained 5 lbs (no exaggeration here)!

A Look Back

Now that my Weight Loss Challenge is officially over, I can take a moment to reflect on how it went... also known as "The Good, the Bad, and the Bag of Tostitos."

November
6 lbs lost
8 workouts and 1 5K race
60,027 calories eaten
Average 2000 calories per day

December
4 lbs lost
11 workouts
57,360 calories eaten
Average 1850 calories per day

January (up to 1/19)
3 lbs lost
9 workouts
32,395 calories eaten
Average 1799 calories per day

Obviously, my workouts were pathetic (8? REALLY?). Also, there was a drastic drop-off of weight lost as time went by (but that's expected... the weight tends to melt off like butter at the beginning). Despite all that, I accomplished my goal, and I cut an average of 200 calories PER DAY off my diet!

Check out my calories chart...



The up and down line shows that I'm obviously not too good at keeping my calories in check, but the plus side is that my zigzags get smaller and smaller as time goes on, which means I'm slowly learning how to manage what I eat.

The hardest part: rationing out calories for each day. For instance, on poker nights, I would have to ration an extra 100 calories for the end of the day so I could have a beer at the bar.

The easiest part: not changing my diet all that much. I still eat the same junk I ate before, I just make sure I'm not over-doing it.

What I need to work on: My workouts. This past July, I had 23 workouts... which makes my 9 this month look totally pathetic. But that's not really a weight loss thing so much as an "I'm lazy" thing. It's this stupid weather... and the fact that I have no races to train for. Bleh. This will be fixed when I return from vacation.

I'm On Vacation

And I know you're all totally jealous!

My boyfriend and I landed in Miami last night and stayed in a NON-sleazy hotel (my mom insisted on this). We will leave port some time this afternoon after some serious boat-exploration.

Ryan and I discussed this trip numerous times (probably talked it to death), and we decided this would either be the best trip ever, or the worst. Neither of us have ever been on a cruise before, so we aren't sure what to expect (despite all of my exessive googling), plus we picked a cheapy. You get what you pay for, right? Well, we hope to get more!

We're sailing on the Norwegian Sky, so it's "freestyle cruising." It's kind of sad to admit, but the main turn-off for other cruise lines was that we had to eat dinner with total strangers (talk about anti-social!). So this should be perfect because we can eat whenever we want, wherever we want, and with whoever we want (aka just the two of us).

One of the workout perks on the cruise ship is their gym is open 24 hours a day. I'm going to pretend I'm all excited about this, until I return in 5 days and report that I did NO physical activity other than lift spoon-fulls of ice cream into my gapping mouth.

I retract my last statement, because I just remembered, our excursion at the first stop is a kayak tour through the mangroves.



Take THAT, laziness!

Well, I think that's enough bragging for the day. I hope you're all having a fabulous time in your COLD locations!

TGIF Photo Friday

(Theme courtesy Nikemom)

When I went to college (the University of Dayton), we had an annual trip to Daytona in May that EVERYONE went on. Our school typically rented out 4 hotels on the Daytona strip, but the first hotel was the coveted one because that's where the deck party and free beer was.

Students would sleep outside in the middle of February to get a room in the first hotel. The school eventually deemed this "dangerous." The alternative? Having us all line up behind some caution tape and then yelling "GO!" and whoever got there first got the room.

BRILLIANT.



Long story short... I was in that mob. I was named the designated "runner" for my group. I dropped my paperwork about 2 seconds into the race, had to go back for it, where I was trampled in the mud and ended up with a broken finger.

That wasn't the worst of it, though. One girl lost a tooth. One kid broke his leg.

And if you're wondering, I DID get us our room in the first hotel. I'm just THAT fast!

Packing, Packing, and Avoiding Maintenance Workers

My bed is covered in clothes. It was then that I realized I am bringing WAY too much stuff on our cruise. But as I told my mom, I don't know what I'm going to want to wear next week until that very moment arises. Better to be prepared (I usually have at least one "I should've brought that" moment on every vacation).

I didn't work out this morning because I realized just how much I have to do before Saturday. My scale registered another 149 3/4, which I'm counting as a 149 1/2.

For entertainment (and to appaul you), I shall leave you with this miniature story...

I shower with my bathroom door open (so what? I live alone and there are no nearby windows). Only about a minute after getting out of the shower yesterday, I hear pounding on my door. A deep voice yells "MAINTENANCE!" I didn't know what to do. I was afraid if I made the dash to my bedroom for clothes, the maintenance men might walk in on me mid-streak. So I just closed the bathroom door and willed them to go away.

But go away they did not. After hearing no response, they came into my apartment.
"MAINTENANCE!" he yelled.
"WHAAAT?!" I yelled back through the door.
"We are here to patch your ceiling," he responded.
"I don't know what you're talking about!" I called back in frustration and nudity.
"Do you want us to come back later?" he asked.
"Uh... YES, PLEASE!"

So they left. I really don't know what he's talking about. There is nothing wrong with my ceiling. However, that's not the point. The point is that they came into my apartment when I was in a less-than-decent state. And this isn't the first time. I once woke up to the sound of maintenance workers in my bathroom flushing my toilet and running my shower. That's unacceptable. I pay good money to live there. Unless it's an emergency, they should not be able to just come in whenever they want.

That's my rant for the day. And no, mom, I have NOT spoken with my landlord yet about this problem. I wish I could just move... my apartment building is becoming a nightmare.

Despite all this, I'm in a relatively good mood. Tomorrow is my last day of work, then I'll be home on Saturday and off to Miami on Sunday. Weeee!

I'm a Liar

So, I reported that my weight yesterday was 149 1/2, when it was actually more like 149 2/3 or 149 3/4.

I know that's not too bad. My justification was that I would SURELY weigh 149 1/2 by this morning. But when I got on the scale this a.m., a big 150 stared back at me.

WHY? Why? I worked out yesterday and I only ate 1641 calories. This should not be.

Maybe my scale is playing a cruel trick on me. It's going to hold off and hold off until the MORNING of my trip when I'll suddenly be at 149. If that's the case, I'm not laughing, scale! We need to talk!

_______________________________


Everyone wrote about the inauguration yesterday... how great it was, and change, etc. Besides the fact that I totally hate politics, and besides the fact that our station was on inauguration OVERLOAD yesterday (how many times do I have to make an Obama graphic in one day?!)... besides all that, I just wasn't all that impressed.

Don't get me wrong. I TOTALLY grasp how historic this is and wonderful and how far our country has come from the days when african americans weren't even allowed to vote. All of that is completely surreal.

HOWEVER, things aren't going to change any time soon. We can't go and put all of our hopes and desires on this one man to just fix everything.

I think we're setting ourselves up for a great dissapointment. And I think 6 months from now, people will start wondering, "when is this change coming?"

But I hope I'm proven wrong. Because I can't get a job, and I have some friends who are unemployed at 24. That's just tragic. And I KNOW the economy is to blame.

Happy Birthday, Ryan!

I know none of you care, but it's my boyfriend's birthday today!



He's OLD now... the big 2-3 (still younger than me).



So happy birthday, boy!

I'm gonna get him good and drunk next week to make up for our distance on the big day. AND I got him a super awesome birthday gift that I'll post photos of after our trip.

Come On!

Go AWAY, 1 pound! Leave now!

My sleeping has been off. I've been slacking with the workouts.

My cruise is in 7 days!

2009 Food Challenge

The past few times I've gone to the grocery store, I kept thinking that I should buy some eggs. Now, normally, I only use eggs to bake with. It's been 9 or 10 years since I've eaten an egg by itself. I had one once and didn't like it, so I never had one again.

Don't you think it's time I tried another egg?

So yesterday, at the store, I bought a half dozen eggs. And last night, at my apartment, I scrambled one.

Yes... only one. Which I realize now results in very little egg.

And after I scrambled it, I ate it. Well... some of it.

You know what? It wasn't horrible. Actually, it didn't have much of a taste at all. The texture was different... spongy.

While I don't think eggs will become my new favorite food, it really got me to thinking... I need to start re-trying more foods.

Thus begins the 2009 Food Challenge!

How does this work? Well, every time I go grocery shopping, I will buy ONE item that I have either never tried, or tried once and disliked.

For those of you who've been around for a while, you remember that I'm a SUPER picky eater. Therefore, this challenge should last me a looong time (all year, perhaps?).

I'll be blogging about the delicious (more like nauseating) results.

TGIF Photo Friday

(Theme courtesy Nikemom)

Time for an old photo (but not an OLD photo).



That's me going to my senior prom :) . Some days I wish I was back in high school. No job, no bills... only silly concerns like where to have my hair done.

I hope everyone had a good week. I am officially down to 150, which means only one pound left. Now that my weight loss challenge is almost over, I have a new fun challenge to tell you about later.

Only 14 Days Left

I worked out 4 days in a row... then took 3 days off. I don't know why. But, in order to ensure I didn't pack the pounds back on, I kept my calories under 1700 for each of those days.

And voila... I'm down to 150 1/2. Only 1 1/2 pounds left!

My workouts are pretty varied... some days I ride on my trainer, others I do stairs. Sometimes I go to the Y and run on the treadmill. Ryan keeps bugging me that I need to start swimming again (maybe he's right... I haven't swam since my last triathlon!).

I'm in the middle of a 7-day work week, so I'm a little burned out. Plus, I have another 7-day work week starting Saturday. All this just so I can get off for my cruise.

TGIF Photo Friday

(Theme courtesy Nikemom.)



6 of my friends came to visit me on New Years day. They got the idea to come to my station while I was working. After the 10 o'clock show, they just played around in the studio for a while. I think they are pretending they're on "The View" here.

Shedding the Pounds

This is how it's looking so far.



The starting date was November 2nd, and the thick black line is my goal for January 25th.

I got off to a really great start, but it's slowed down a little over the past couple weeks (which is to be expected).

Even after I posted yesterday about choosing a smoothie over a pizza, I did eventually give in. Shame on me! I'm just hoping that I can workout enough to counteract the destructive eating I tend to do.

_____________________________________

Changing gears... is anyone else SUPER excited about all these new shows starting? I'm so thankful for my DVR because I would likely miss most of them due to work or simply watching something else.

Here's what I'm watching...

The Bachelor - He's the reject from last season (and I adored him then). You can make fun of me all you want, but during the first episode, I always place the girls in a + and - column on a sheet of paper. Then I cross them off as they get eliminated or I change my mind. Unfortunately, Jason got rid of almost ALL my +'s! There are only 3 left... Melissa, Molly, and Nikki. Apparently he has bad taste.

The Real World - There is a woman (man) on there that is transgendered. It seems like the entire first episode had the roommates wondering what the deal was with this girl (guy). I'm a bit uninformed on the whole transgender thing, so there are so many questions. Like for instance... her boyfriend back at home. He was with her before she had her operation, and they are still together. Does that make him bi-sexual?

Scrubs - I'm not sure anyone on earth still watches this show, but I love it. Courtney Cox is the new Chief of Medicine and she does a great job. I will be so sad to see the show gone forever, but Elliot and J.D. better get together before that happens!

The Office - Not exactly new, but each new episode just thrills me to death. This past year has been unbelievable and continues to shock me. I can't wait to see what happens with Angela and Andy. I (along with the rest of the world) am IN LOVE with Pam and Jim.

Biggest Loser - This is a great show. And it always inspires me to workout... last week, I did abs and hand weights (a jar of spaghetti sauce) during the show. It's really nice to have this show on DVR because it's often 2 hours long (that is a lot of commercials), and they tend to drag things out quite a bit (like eliminations).

It's okay. You don't have to tell me... I'm WELL aware that I have too much time on my hands. I just LOVE television (I picked the perfect job, didn't I?).

(Speaking of job... I'm looking for a new one, and it's not going too well. The competition is seriously fierce. I wonder how long I should wait before I begin to get frustrated.)

Out From Hiding

I'm back out. I'm taking charge of my workouts and my weight and my eating habits.

I gained a little weight over New Years, but I'm back down to 152 with only 3 lbs left to go (and 19 days until our cruise!).

To ensure I shed those final 3 lbs, I've cut my calories to less than 1700 per day. This has been really hard, especially on my days off. But when I get hungry and want to eat a whole bag of chips, I try to step out of the moment and think of an alternative. Just 10 minutes ago, instead of eating a pizza, I made a strawberry and orange smoothie.

I did stairs on Monday before work. Yesterday, I went to the Y and ran on the treadmill for a bit. I'm going to ride on my trainer in a few minutes.

To help in my training, my parents bought me new shoes! My old shoes were a little too big and weren't running shoes, so they gave me blisters every time I ran for more than 10 minutes.

My new shoes are Brooks, which I've never tried before... but they feel great. Plus, they're my favorite color!


Oh a slightly less inspirational note, it's 4:30 and I'm still in my pajamas!

Hiding in my Apartment

It's been a few days since I've posted.

I have no good excuse.

But here are all my bad excuses...

- I had 6 friends from home come stay with me the day after New Years.
- I have eaten WAY too much the past 4 days and thrown off my weight-loss momentum.
- I haven't worked out this ENTIRE YEAR. (Yeah... it sounds dramatic, doesn't it?)
- My work schedule has been super weird.
- I'm lazy.

Good enough? Good. I'll be back tomorrow.

Happy New Year!

Went out with coworkers last night. Drank too much. Had to take a taxi back to the bar this morning to get my car. A little hungover.

By far the scariest moment of my day was listening to the cab driver talk about all the times he's driven drunk. Ummmm.....

On that FUN note, I hope everyone has a memorable and SAFE 2009!

What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before?
Ran a 5K and a Triathlon!

Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don't think I had any last year. I already made mine for this year.

What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
A dog and more money in savings (I think those are contradictory).

What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Surviving a long distance relationship for 9+ months, losing 12 lbs, finishing my first triathlon.

What was your biggest failure?
Eating junk food, complaining too much.

What was the best thing you bought?
My bike, Reagan!

Where did most of your money go?
Rent and food.

What song will always remind you of 2008?
"So What" by Pink and "Shake It" by Metro Station

Compared to this time last year, are you:
a) happier or sadder? Happier... I had just gone through a really bad breakup and I was living in Nowhere, Wisconsin.
b) thinner or fatter? Thinner, but I don't know how much.
c) richer or poorer? Poorer... I don't make enough money to live on, so I had to dip into savings.

What do you wish you’d done more of?
Going out with friends, Biking.

How did you spend the holidays?
Working.

Did you fall in love in 2008?
Yes.

What was your favorite TV program?
The Office.

What was your favorite film of this year?
Sex and the City.

What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
Ryan was here. We went to the bar with some coworkers. I was 23.

What kept you sane?
More like "who"... my mom and Ryan, who listen to me whine.

Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.
All you really need to be a triathlete is willpower.