Polar vs. Garmin

 

Polar F7

 I seriously love my Polar F7. It's a solid heart rate monitor that is easy to use and has a lot of basic features. When I got it in June '10, I wasn't sure long term what I would need (or if I would even like wearing a device) and didn't want to make a huge investment. I wear it for bootcamp, gym workouts, and treadmills. BUT since I haven't been asked to be a "Polar Ambassador", and my feelings are HURT, I don't wear it for my half training...nah, that's not really the reason, but I do think I'd be an AWESOME Polar Ambassador!

 

Garmin Forerunner 305

The Polar doesn't provide me with distance (GPS), pace, or any type of easy functionality (at least that I can figure out) to get splits. So, I decided to get the Garmin Forerunner 305 for my training runs.

When I opened it, while I had been warned, I was still a bit shocked at how big it was. Thankfully though it actually fits on small wrists and snugly too! I was still intimitated though and it took a few weeks (OK, hubby asking me if I was ever going to use it) to get it charged up and plow through the manual...which turned out to be easy to understand

My running challenge for the half was that my pace SUCKS. Seriously. I have no idea what my pace is and have not figured out how to moderate it. This is fine for a 5K, but for longer distances it's a killer---pace too fast which leads to running outta "gas" later. That's where the Garmin comes in. I have it set for a narrow 1 minute window of pace time and I've been using it for my training runs. The first couple there was a whole lotta beeping going on - GO SLOWER! GO FASTER! etc., but I'm getting better and just as my buddy said I would I am enjoying long runs much more!

Interested in getting a device? Here's some thoughts...

• What features must it have? Figure out what you want it to do before you start looking. For example, I want a device that monitors my heart rate, time, and calories.
• What's your budget? These things can be expensive! I said that I would not spend more than $100. When I got mine, I scored a coupon to a local athletic store that totally helped.
• Do your research. Research devices on the internet. Read manufacturer's sites where you can get a lot of information on features and benefits, but I also read a lot of reviews. I looked at major retailers that have customer comments as well as blogs to see what "real" people had to say.
• What's the return policy? Check out the return policy of where you decide to purchase the device. I always like to have the flexibility to return it if it turns out that I don't like it or it doesn't meet my needs.

Have one of these or another? I'd be interested in what you think or hints/tips you have for either!

Surprising Reaction

Yes, it is another "one day at bootcamp" post, my week is filled with work and bootcamp until the weekend - believe me work isn't worth blogging about, so it's bootcamp. I was talking with this lady whom I have gotten friendly with at camp and she has been trying to lose weight. In my opinion, she has done an awesome job and honestly most women would kill to be her size when she started. She's definitely "fine tuning".

 

Anyway, in talking with her about how hard losing weight is, she looked at me and said, "Hello skinny, like you know what I'm talking about?" It completely stopped me in my tracks. I told her that I have a lot of experience and that I don't want or plan to tell anyone -- so telling you in confidence, but it wasn't that long ago that I was over 100 lbs more than I am currently. Her face was priceless. She asked me if I was kidding (yes, for real), there was just no way, and that I didn't look like I ever had a weight issue let alone 100 lbs. It was a weird experience for me and one I wanted to be sure to write down so I could see it as "proof" that my before is really gone.

And, nope, I didn't tell her about my band. I still choose not to tell anyone except the few that already know. At this point, even those people that do know about it seem to have forgotten---or at least cease to mention it. I think they see what I'm doing, eating, etc. and realize that the band isn't magic whereas in the beginning it may have appeared to them it was.

Well, it's a picture...

I survived the wedding, but there was a LOT of wine involved. Way more than I've had in a long time and boy did I pay for it yesterday...and still feeling ill today! And, in typical fashion, I didn't get a picture of me in my dress. But, I did get a picture after my 10 mile training run. Unfortunately I had to do this run on the treadmill. The distance really wasn't the challenge as much as it was mentally---man, was it boring! There was a little TV on the treadmill, but I couldn't figure out how to plug in my headset and didn't want to stop. So, I just kept the music going and gazed at the soundless screen. Fun, huh?

It took us forever to get home last night. Our flight home was late, but then there were a couple delays. Between the lack of sleep and just not feeling great from the drinking, I didn't make it to camp this morning.

Weekly Round Up

• 5 bootcamps
• 2 runs (10mi/3mi)
• Calories: 4638

Tolerance?

I'm starting to wonder if I'm just a b#%&?& and my expectations are unreasonable. This trip is getting on my last nerve.

We got here and there's no plan. Keep in mind, we travelled much less distance than most. So three quarters travelled all day. We then find out that the hotel that they chose for the guests is one hour from the "festivities" for the night. 

There's some event thing in town and rentals are scarce, but more importantly nobody should be drinking and driving. Keep in my, these are my husband's friends. So I have been trying to go with the flow and keep my mouth shut, but it's nearly impossible at times.

Back and forth about the first night--how we getting there, I don't know, etc. Finally, I was just fed up. I went and figured out transportation for all of us and gave them the time to be in the lobby.

To shorten my rant, we get there under the impression we are doing something. Um, no. Stayed at the house. Time to leave, back to hotel, and yep WE paid for the transportation to the tune of 300(!) bucks. I left him with his friends and went to bed which was perfect because I was irritated.

Next evening, no plan. Seeing a trend? I say to my husband with this many people we need to make reservations. There is no way to simply walk in with such a large party on a Friday night. I suggest some restaurants as we are familiar with the area. Said if we go to X, it's more expensive and he should make everyone aware. Whomever he spoke with wanted to go to this restaurant so my husband made the reservations.

Yep, then "how are we all getting there" starts up again. So yet again I take care of that and get taxis lined up.

On the way to the restaurant I expressed concern that we would end up paying a lot for dinner. He told me they aren't like that and not to worry. Fine. Not saying a word. What I had seen so far and my gut impression of most was not giving me a good feeling. 

While I watched bottles of wine, appetizers, steak and crab being ordered by people I tried to tell myself they would do the "right" thing. Well, I had the most expensive 1/2 spinach salad, baked potato, and iced tea ever (less than $15). To the tune of 70 bucks. So, $140 later dinner is over. I f#$%*&%$ hate that!

Luckily for me, another wife needed to go back to the hotel. I volunteered to go back with her while everyone else went out. Needless to say that was a blessing.

Today as I type this, my husband is now driving a guy an hour one way to pick up his car. My husband said something to the effect that's just what you do or something and how could he say no? (Uh, it's easy. I'll sound it out for you: sorry, we have plans) To which I replied that we have done enough and that I'm feeling taken advantage of. He responded that he should have just come by himself. Nice.

My fingers are now crossed that I can fake my way through the afternoon and the wedding.  Maybe I could use  more tolerance, but not so sure on this one that I don't have a right to feel the way I do.

Maintenance is Personal

As a bandster, I think everyone starts out with this hope and excitement to get going on this journey and motivation is 110%. Many people lose initially (some the entire time - lucky!) without a lot of effort. Then there are others that have to work hard to get every stinking pound off. Regardless of whether it is "easy" or "hard", changes have to be made. You can't (and shouldn't) eat the amount you used to, are encouraged to change your eating habits, and encouraged to exercise.

Along my journey, there were ups and downs. It's life after all, right? But man, those highs are awesome! Losing weight, fitting in clothes, looking better, and oh, the compliments. It's a real head rush. Then I got to goal weight. It was scary as I struggled with the "shoulda's", "can's", "what if's". Should I lose more weight? Is this it? Can I keep this off? What should I do now? What if I go back?

Over time, the compliments lessened. And, for me, the compliments were not so much an ego boost as when I thought about it I realized in hindsight that for me it was more pressure or accountability to those around me that I would NOT fail again. With less of the comments, this crutch wasn't there. I was just Fluffy as I am now. In fact, when I run into people that haven't seen me and I get a reaction now, it takes me by surprise because I have also gotten to where this is "just me".

It was a big adjustment to not freak out. And, rest assured, there were freak outs along the way, but I had to figure maintenance out. Having lived so focused on the scale, my weight, losing, etc. to now find myself "at goal" and that I had made it ---pretty much scared the crap out of me. What was the next step in my journey?

This is an over simplification of maintenance for me, but when I sat down to write this, it's what stuck out for me in the past 3 years of maintaining. So, I'm assuming that means it's the "important stuff". ; )

I looked at a lot of blogs of people that either had or never had weight problems and were now healthy (ate well, strong, physical, etc.). I read and read and looked for things that struck a cord with me. This led me to wanting to be "healthier". Sure, I had the number on the scale and I had smaller clothes, but was I really healthy? (see Skinny Fat post)

I treated myself like a project. Where did I have challenges or "opportunities for improvement"? What did I want? How was I going to get there? Here's what I came up with for me:

Portion size = bandster portions. Food/healthy bloggers - whatever you call them. Have you noticed their portion sizes? Bottom line for me eating the right band size portions had to be done. I had a dilated pouch at one point during my journey and wasn't going back there. Plus, I had also self-diagnosed myself with portion distortion. While there is hardly any fluid in my band, the band is still there and I am a firm believer that pouch can be stretched by eating too much regardless of how much or little fluid is in the band. I just refuse to do it. Period. I eat the amount I'm supposed to and if/when I get hungry again. I just eat more. So, portion control - check.

Eat healthier. People that are healthy eat a lot of fruits and vegetables. Neither my husband or I were eating enough. I now make sure that every meal includes a fruit or veggie as before unless I was in "diet" mode where I was making sure I had x of this and y of that, I was lax in this area.

And sure, I still eat crap. Remember the mini bundt cake? But it's not often and it HAS to be good. Because if it isn't worth the calories, I'm not eating it.

True story - my husband is in the military. He has physicals. This year when they took his cholesterol it was super low (it was good before, but now it's even better). The doc asked him what he's been doing in the past year and my husband said eating what my wife puts in front of me, she packs my lunch, etc. (and I'm sure something about me losing my mind and all that, but that's OK). The doc said to tell me good job and to keep up what I'm doing. THAT made me feel super good!

Exercise. I've exercised throughout my entire journey. But what I wasn't doing was strength training. I don't like going to the gym and using the weight machines. That's where bootcamp came in. Sure, I was scared at first, and boy was I sore! But I knew that if I hung in there that it would pay off and it has.

Find an exercise you enjoy. It's important because consistency is important. If you hate your exercise you aren't going to do it long term. But also remember, when you start something new, it will be hard. Don't think hard = hate. Give a new exercise a chance and ease into it.

Stop the diet mentality / step away from the scale. I am really not a fan of saying that I have stopped dieting, but I can't think of another way to describe it. Because regardless of what you eat, do, etc., you are "on a diet". It's just what is that diet. What I mean by stopping is not looking at things based on calories and can I or should I eat this. I look at the quality of the food and do I want it. Because if I really want to eat coconut M+M's for lunch, I'm better off having them for lunch than having something "healthy" and continuing to think about the stupid candy. And yep, I did do this one lunch and haven't done it since. Not because "I can't" or "shouldn't"....or "won't", but more so (I think) because I have told myself I can and find that I don't want to as a result. (Yes, I am weird that way!)

Also, I stepped away from the scale. I started weighing myself less and less. The number is only one measurement, yet it's one that consumes me from all my baggage. If my clothes are actually getting looser, does it matter that I weigh 2-3 more pounds than I did the week before? For me, the answer is no. This is a work in progress, but I have not weighed myself since December and frankly I can't say I miss it.

I should also say in regard to the scale that I think it's an evolution. I would never have considered not using the scale during the weight loss phase, but did not weigh daily. It's important to have the measurement. In fact, I think it's important to have your weight and your measurements.


Figure out what makes me feel good. What makes me feel good isn't going to necessarily make someone else feel good, but what I figured out is that I need to exercise during the week. It helps me manage a stressful job and just makes me feel good! And honestly, I eat better without even thinking about it on the days I have exercised. Go figure!

I found that having tools such as my Polar and Garmin while they may or may not be accurate on calories, they provide me with a sense of accomplishment to see the calories and time they display. It just works for me.

I figured out what made me feel good by getting into slumps and looking at what had changed recently and why I didn't I feel good. Two things for me surfaced pretty consistently: not eating generally well and not exercising.
 
Continue to assess and re-assess. I check in with myself periodically. It may sound stupid, but I find that if I don't consciously check in that I just keep going on auto pilot and then I project something is wrong some other way. For example, I realized a while back that I wasn't enjoying my bootcamp as much anymore. I was coming back from morning camp grumpy. Unfortunately, I was taking it out on my husband now and then (boo me). I sat myself down and had a talk with myself (funny picture, huh?). I realized that my trainer's style was no longer meeting my needs. So I started looking at other camps in the area and go to that camp as well.

In summary, this is a journey. One that will continue to evolve and I hope only get better! Just like the decision to get a band, all the other phases are also very personal and you have to figure out what works for you. Try not to compare yourself to others, but do try to learn from others or appreciate what they are doing as you might find little nuggets that also work for you!

Holy crap, I almost forgot my blogging! The intent of my blog has been to document my journey , but I had also hoped that it might be helpful to others as I had wanted to find long term successful people in the beginning and couldn't. This many years later my blog may not be specifically "all about the band", but I'd be a freak if at this point day in and day out it was about it, right?! I can't tell you how helpful it has been to be able to go back and look at past posts. I highly recommend blogging about your journey....and please don't blog and then disappear leaving everyone wondering! There are so many blogs I used to follow from over 5 years ago and *poof*.

Threat of Swimsuits Ahead!

Did you shudder? March 20 is the first day of Spring! Which means we are just that much closer to SWIMSUITS! (Uh, yippee?) And for anyone doing something for Spring Break it might mean getting in one sooner than later.

I'm using the first day of Spring for motivation to step it up a notch. I figure what the hell? Might as well pull out all the stops and start Spring off right.

My running training "coach" told me that I could sub in bootcamps for my training runs during the week since there is so much sprinting and running in them. The only deal was that I had to ensure to get my long runs in.

Weekly Recap:

• 7 bootcamps - replaced two training runs with bootcamps
• 9 mile training run
• Calories: 5274 - Do I think this is accurate? Who knows. It's just something that I like to see. I used to also track the time, but calories give me more of an idea of overall exertion.

Coming this week:

• A post with my thoughts on maintenance - I can just feel the excitement!!!

CAUGHT!

What is that? OVO! The other night I went to Cirque du Soleil - Ovo with hubby. I had to take one picture and it was when everyone was coming in and no flash. Yes, I'm rationalizing because pictures are not allowed, but I had to have one for here, right??? So, this is the star of the show---an egg. Sadly, I was caught taking the picture and was chastised for doing so. I bowed my head and said that I was oh so sorry that I thought it would be OK prior to the show as the sign seemed to indicate it was during the performance. OK, I know, ya right. But what was I supposed to say? Well, I need it for my blog post? HA!

When we got close to the arena, I was wondering why they directing us to a parking lot that was away from the arena. Then I saw it, a big huge tent! It was so unexpected that I didn't even think to get a LEGAL picture of it. Idiot.

The show was great and we were really close. I was concerned that I might be pulled up during the audience participation part, but thankfully some other poor girl was the victim chosen.

Wedding Outfit Nightmare Update

"Richard" - I'm not sure who you are since you put your comment under your husband's name, but I have to tell you when I read it I thought, "Wow, a dude took the time to put that?" - LOL - thanks.

I'm taking everybody's advice (and the hint on sales!) to see if I can find something this weekend. Turns out that I looked at what hubby has and....uh, um, no. And yep, I am one of "those wives" that I did give him a clothing makeover. I hated his jeans and a lot of his shirts. Just not the right fit for his body. And, please know that he didn't mind/care and got a ton of compliments from his friends, so it worked out all around. Here's how the wedding clothing review went...

Hubby: Why do I have to show you now?
Fluffy: Because I need to see what you have to make sure it is ready to go. (White lie.)
Hubby: Here are the three suits I have.
Fluffy: These are nice, but "vintage". (Ha ha - pretty good huh? Translation: No way jose. These are outta style. You aren't wearing any of the three.)
Hubby: So you don't like them?
Fluffy: It's not a matter of like really, I think we should just check the sales this weekend and get you a sport coat that you can wear with your work clothes if you ever need to.

Happy weekend!

Wedding @ 4pm???

I have a wedding to go to next weekend in Arizona. It *should* be warm there (the weather has been so whacko, who really knows!). The wedding ceremony is outside a country club at 4pm. And lucky me, nothing on the invite about what to wear. I had hubby ask the best man (his good buddy), but as far as I know there hasn't been a response.

The invitation is quite formal and the reception is at the country club (adults only). I'm assuming there must be some sort of sit down dinner or buffet as well. But I'm struggling. What I have dress wise, while nice, is not appropriate for the time of day. I have one dress that could work, but it's black. The neckline doesn't allow me to add a scarf for some color, so it would be the black dress with some jewelry and heels. I am on the fence about whether or not it's appropriate considering the time of the ceremony.

And normally I would just find something and go with it, but this wedding is a bit different. When I got married, it was me and hubby. That's it. His friends are spread all over the US and I have not met any of them. This IS the big meet and greet. Added bonuses:

1. My hubby was tagged as the one that would never get married and it came as a huge shock to them when he did. Some have even told him they don't really believe that I exist.
2. I'm 5 years older than his friends and even older than the wives.
3. Numerous emails, etc. stating how they are looking forward to meeting me.

Fun, huh? They're curious...I would be too, so I get that. But I keep hearing in my head these valley girl things:

• "OMG, can you believe she's like wearing THAT?"
• "OMG, she's like so OLD!"
• "OMG like he married HER?"

*SIGH*

So I need to be dressed appropriately and comfortably to settle my nerves and manage the stress of it all. Uh, is it over yet? ; )

What do you think of a black dress at a 4pm wedding? What would you wear?

List o' Food

• Chobani Pomegranate Yogurt - 140***
• Beef quesadilla thing - take two tortillas (160). Spray one side of both lightly with olive oil. Place one (oil side down) in a heated skillet. Layer on: two reduced fat provolone cheese (160) and thinly sliced beef lunch meat (70). Put on other tortilla - oil side up. Cook until nice and brown on both sides. Then I took it off and the non-cheese side I took off and added a ton of tomato, some thinly slided red onion, and then some lowfat mayo/horseradish sauce I made (25). --- I ate half and then the other half later. - 450ish?
• Salad - green leafy lettuce shredded, broccoli slaw, tomato, leftover steamed asparagus, cucumber, a few black olives, tablespoon of bleu cheese, and some sugar free balsalmic vinegrette. --- 150ish?
• Banana - 100ish?
• Clif Bar - 240
• Popcorn cheese puffs - 160
• Greek Yogurt - 140

***Pomegranate. I like your flavor and juice, but I do not like that seedy thing inside of you. I know that there is nothing wrong with eating the seedy thing and I don't have any issue with them with my band, but I just don't like you. So, I didn't really like my yogurt and I am holding a grudge! For now, you are persona non grata. Hmmm, not a person...you are fruta non grata!

What'd I eat?

I see a lot of people that track what they eat, etc. For grins and giggles I did that yesterday. If I ate it, I made a little note. When I was in weight loss phase, I tracked and paid way more attention to overall intake. In maintenance, that has changed. I have more thoughts on that after...

List o' food

• Chobani Greek Yogurt with Peaches - 140
• Egg sandwich: 1 slice toast, slice cheddar cheese, 1 egg, lettuce, and lots of tomato - 250ish?
• Hot & Spicy V-8 juice - 30
• Leftover Mexican chicken packet - chicken breast, black beans, corn, rice with sour cream & salsa - 300ish?
• Steak, asparagus & 1/2 baked potato - 175?+30?+100? - 305?
• Gummy Vitamins - 50
• 6 peanuts in shell - 30?
• I drink a lot of hot tea with skim milk - 40?
• Reduced Fat Cheez-its - 130 (this was kinda weird, but I had put some in hubby's lunch because he loves them and then just couldn't get them off my mind!)
• A mini bundt cake - Hey, Valentine's day treat! 9,234,545 cals? And, worth every single one!

Excluding the cake, it was roughly 1300 cals. There would likely would have been 250-300 more cals in there somewhere without it. A mini meal, snack, or a Clif bar if pressed for time. This is a pretty average day.I don't count calories or protein intake, some days I eat more and others probably a bit less. I eat bandster size portions, but I stop eating when I'm full even if it is not the entire portion. If I get hungry later, I eat again. I eat whatever I want, but I do generally try to make healthy choices and make sure that I

am getting in fruits and veggies.

Most importantly: What's life without some really good cake now and then? : )

Awww, Valentine's Day

When I came home from bootcamp this morning, I found this waiting for me:

To me, there's nothing better than a handwritten note! It definitely made my morning and look at the cute little correction for the missing "r". BTW - Unrelated to a run, I did have some tummy issues (crampish) related to fake time of the month. Feeling much better this morning though.

We aren't really exchanging gifts with the holidays and our birthdays not too long ago. We are exchanging cards though, but he wasn't home all weekend and I missed him. I ended up getting him a few things that I would have anyway, but left them in a pile for when he got home last night.

The strings are to a dozen red heart balloons, 6-pack of 60-min IPA beer (treat), coffee, pistachios in single serve packs, trail mix in single serve packs, Reese's Pieces (treat - mmmmm), and yep - that really is a box of copy paper (hey, he really wanted some!).

Tonight I'm making ribeyes that I put on some coffee rub (sounds weird? seriously good!), steamed asparagus, and a baked potato. We had talked about going out to eat for a fancy meal, but decided that not too long ago we had his birthday dinner. It was good, but it was expensive and full of calories. Strangely enough, we tend to love our home cooked meals just as much!

Wishing everyone a happy Valentine's day!

Success!

Glad to know I'm not the only whiner out there! ;) I did knock out my training run. It was a super beautiful day and, as usual, once I got going it went well. Bullets from the run:

• My tummy held out. There's definitely something in my diet during the day that is whacking it out when I run in the evenings.
• My socks are still a bit of an issue.
• It was a challenging run! A lot of elevation, but I am focusing on it will make me more prepared for the race.
• I still have room for improvement on "pace not race".
• New music makes a big difference!

Wrap up from last week:

• 5 bootcamps
• 2 of 3 training runs (3 mile didn't happen, 6 mile & 8 mile completed!)
• 4248 calories

Don't waaaannnaaaa!

Feeling like I have a case of the terrible two's. Although my mommy friends have said two is nothing, it's three that's horrible. Regardless, I am in my running gear thinking, "I don't wanna and you can't make me." And, nobody can, but me. But I don't waaaannnaaaa.

My husband said to me last night if I hate the training so much, then this should be the only one (half) I do. But blog truth (kinda like pink swear), it's fear. Stupid stuff like will the route I choose be too hard, will my stomach hang in there, should I take water, will my stupid sock issue surface...can I do it?

Some of these things may come up, but so what, right? I'm not 2, I'll deal with it when/if it comes up. I can do it. I just need to get out there and get it over with. (Hey, I never said I am perfect!)

So, I will give my breakfast a bit more time to digest, put on my shoes, and suck it up and head out. I can do this. What about you? What will or are you doing that's taking you out of your comfort zone to get you to the next level---exercise or something else?

(BTW, I told hubby that I don't hate the training, I just need to whine out my fear and he gets to be the lucky one to hear it!)

Gym Gripe

I am not a treadmill fan for more that a quick 3-mile knock it out sort of run, but I am a klutz. The ice has not fully melted and I didn't want to risk running outside and getting injured. I have been doing my last few runs at the gym. I'm not a gym snob or whatever is the description, but there are some things that drive me NUTSO.

When I encounter them, I do what I can to block it out, move, or whatever. Well, the last time, it didn't matter what I did, it still bugged me. So I figured I'd go at a different time yesterday. O-M-G, he was there. GRRRRRR

So what's the deal? He's like a heard of elephants. Even if I'm on the far end away from him, he's so loud that I can still hear him. Impossible? NOPE. I had meant to take a picture of the sticker on the treadmills, but it essentially says on the console: "Hey, idiot DO NOT hold on to me" --- OK, maybe not quite that, but you get the idea. And why? Cause if you are holding on to this part of the treadmill, not only is it bad for it, but most likely you are like this dude and you are holding on for dear life because you have the treadmill going TOO FAST! So he is POUNDING on the platform to try and keep up. GOOD GRIEF, I cannot tell you how much I wanted to go over there and just slow his treadmill down.

And, please do NOT read this as me trying to get in his business or show him "how's it's done". I really did think it was me, but last night I overheard two ladies next to me say essentially the same thing. Man, he's loud. The other one replied with, ya he needs to slow down. And just saying that to make me feel better, but GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

OK - end of rant. : o)

Anyone else have any gym pet peeves? Please share to help me feel like less of a B)(*#$)#($*%!!!!!

The results are in...

So I had my body fat percentage taken at the gym. I asked for the most experienced guy and asked him about his error rate. Turns out he's a former body builder (and looks it too) so he's pretty adept as he used to measure his own. Anyway, he said that if he's off, it's 1% max and that he measures multiple times and stuff like that. Honestly, once I heard he was +/- 1% I was good. So the pinching began and he said he could tell I was lean---flatterer! Well he said, I'm 19%! He asked about my exercise and eating and said he wouldn't be surprised if it went lower.

I checked here to get some "recommended" fat info for women:

• The recommended amount of body fat is 20 - 21%.
• The average American woman has approximately 22 - 25% body fat.
• A woman with more than 30% body fat is considered obese.

I'll take it!

And a little more on the gummy yummy vitamins---yes, I'm cheating...Justaflower - exactly -  it's the chalk taste! Nella - Sam's and Fitby40 (hi!) says they are at Walmart. Something about Kellie - Maybe online? Tracy - I'm surprised having vitamins before bed hasn't given you heartburn! But at my age, it's getting to where a lot of things do (*sigh* margaritas!). Thanks for reading and commenting!

Mmmm, gummy bears...

My general doc said to me last year (or longer), you should consider adding a daily multi-vitamin, it can't hurt. I did ask if it wouldn't hurt, would it help because I HATE pills of any sort. Always have and always will - even pre-band. She said that she thought I could get benefit from it and whatever I didn't need my body would flush out. (Doc translation to normal person speak: You're getting old. Take a multi-vitamin. *sigh*)

I did think about it various times. Thought about chewables, but when I asked about the yummy kid kind she said she preferred me taking an adult one intended for woman. Grrrrrr. She said there are multiple liquid ones out there. Uh, have you tried those? They make me want to barf. And yes, I am a whiner, but reality is if I can't stand it or it's going to make me feel like I'm going to barf, I'm going to take it all of 3-5 times max.

The other week I was at Sam's and what did I spy? Gummy vitamins---bear shaped vitamin yumminess for kids. But wait! There next to them FOR ADULTS. Well, what made these different then other ones? Let's just say they are D-LISH!!!!!

And while some people may be deterred by the 50 cals per daily pack, not me. I have faithfully eaten my pack every day and it even gives me a candy fix as an added bonus, which works for me somehow. I might not be the best barometer for these in regard to the band since I don't have much if any fluid in my band (.2 whenever the heck I was last in), but I have zero problems with them.

All hail the gummy bear vitamin!

Skinny Fat

My journey has evolved over time. Making the decision to get banded, weight loss, maintenance, to focusing on improving my overall health and strength. After hitting my first weight goal, I switched to focusing more on health---not only the number on the scale. When I got the band I wanted to be thin again, but I also wanted to be strong and healthy.

Most of us, including myself, are a bit obsessed with being thin. But the body is a funny thing. You can look thin, but still be fat even though your BMI is within the healthy range for your weight and height. It's one of the weaknesses of both the scale and BMI---there is no body composition component. So while I have always believed exercise was critical and was doing a decent amount, I started wondering am I skinny fat? Did I have a high body fat percentage to my lean body mass? Had I lost lean body mass along the way vs. maintaining or ideally increasing it?

I don't know where I started body fat wise, but I know I was fat both scale wise and plain ol' fat wise when I started out (just look at that pic!). Unfortunately, I never got my body fat percentage taken along the way either. I've mentioned in the past year that while I have lost a few pounds, I have seen more changes in body shape / size since I made the shift to focusing on strength/health. I'm also definitely much stronger. So, I've decided to get my body fat percentage taken this week.

In the meantine, I thought I'd look at my own comparison from my final goal weight of 138-142 lbs.

• I could jog five miles in under an hour.
• I could finish a 5K in about 30 mins.
• I could run a mile in about 9:30 mins comfortably.
• I was wearing a size 6.
• My arms were squishy---no real definition. My legs were better from the running.
• I could not do a full man push up.
• I was scale dependent. I weighed in once a week and, if I am completely honest, it either made me feel good or bad about myself.
• I think I was at least a bit skinny fat. I looked thin, but not lean.

At my current weight range 132-136lbs:

• I can jog five miles in under 45 mins and still have plenty of gas left in the tank.
• I can finish a 5K in about 28 mins.
• I can run a mile in about 8:30 mins comfortably.
• I am wearing a size 4 (solid designer 4 - in other brands I wear a 2 or 3 juniors)
• My arms and legs are solid with definition.
• I can do at least 10 full man push ups (I haven't tried to do more than that in a row, but have done multiple sets of 10!)
• I am not scale dependent. I have not weighed since before Christmas. My clothes were a bit tight right after the start of the new year, but are no longer tight. Last time I weighed 129lbs. I'll weigh again eventually, but not sure when.
• I believe I am no longer skinny fat.

I see plenty of women that are not what is commonly defined as "thin" in camp, at races, the gym, but damn are they fit! And, I am a firm believer that they will outlive those women that have a small number on the scale, but aren't fit. So my point is that it's more than a number on a scale---a low number does not automatically equate to healthy. How fit are you? What are your fitness goals? Are your goals more than a number on the scale? And most importantly, do you believe? (Wish is a 4-letter word!)

Super Bowl Sunday

**Ice, snow, maybe a frozen pipe here or there, it isn't that bad when put it in the context of the torrential rains hitting Australia. As a child, I lived in a flood zone. Other than fire, I don't think there is anything as destructive. I hope the rains stop soon.**

How did you start off Super Bowl Sunday? We went and fed the ducks and geese. There were lots of them and we even saw some goose butts? geese butts? goose butt?

Then my hubby made a friend. Um, no we can't take the goose home. They're kinda mean and poop a lot!

The weather disrupted my training schedule. I'll be honest though, I could have done some home workouts, but didn't. So, 1 bootcamp and 2 training runs.

• Bad news: Missed 4 bootcamps and 1 training run
• Good news: The missed training run was a short one (3 miles) and I still got in my long run (7 miles).
• Calories burned: 1992

Deja SNOW?

Have you heard the slogan everything's bigger in Texas? Well, I guess that also applies to the weather. The forecast was for a "dusting" of snow. Well, 6-7 inches later the "dusting" has stopped, but another inch is expected. Good grief! Originally we were supposed to be out of this by today, but another front developed. I can't remember a streak of below freezing days (teens actually) in the entire time I've lived here. They are saying it will get above freezing tomorrow at 11am.

There is no way to drive on the residential roads by my house and the highways are a mess. All the snow is on them because nothing melted (and don't forget the ice from a couples days ago that wasn't cleared). So, I'm pretty much housebound again today. There's just not the equipment to deal with snow here and the last thing to be dealt with are the side streets. Ironically, before this storm hit I actually went to the store. Normally I just figure there's no way it's going to be that bad. I'm glad I didn't this time.

It sucks big time for the SuperBowl though. Flights have been cancelled all over the place and there were and continue to be huge events planned throughout the metroplex, but I'm not sure how people will get there. Definitely not what people expected for a SuperBowl here.

Oh, and did I forget to tell you that we had rolling blackouts the other day? Fun, huh?!

Oh look, it's snowing again! *sigh*

Slow Cooker Chicken Posole-ish Recipe

When it's cold, I like to make soups. Heck, I like to make them cause they are simple and nutritious. That's even kicked up a notch when I can make it in my slow cooker. Here's one I whipped up after reading various Posole recipes and making it easier and healthier. The amounts are approximate.

• 1 rotisserie chicken (you can substitute canned chicken, but I find it salty and kinda tough. I buy a rotisserie chicken that doesn't have hormones, etc. and take all the chicken off and chop it up)
• 1 can R0tel (the tomatoes with chilies) - I use hot, but it makes it really spicy, so you might want to stick with regular.
• 2-3 cans chicken broth
• 1 tablespoon garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• A half bag of frozen chopped onion, pepper, and celery mix (uh, yep I'm lazy)
• A bag of frozen mixed veggies
• 1 can hominy (don't drain---white or yellow whichever you prefer)

Put it all in your slow cooker. Depending on how quickly you need it and either cook it on low or high. Since the chicken is already cooked, you are really just trying to get everything hot and the flavors mixed together. Enjoy!

Thanks for all the supportive comments on the half. I'm falling a bit behind on my training with this whack-o weather, but I'm not stressing about it. I'll pick it back up when I can.

Lap Band Gal asked that I do a post on maintenance. I'll try to do one in the coming weeks after I get my thoughts together. I have made a few brief references to it in some posts in the meantime: Five Years Out , My Most Important Rules , WOOT , Maintaining

GULP!

It's Ice Day 2 here. Most companies are closed for a 2nd day - including mine. Oh, but the fun has increased, now we are in rolling brown outs of 10-45 mins! I have yet to experience one, but friends are getting them and they are lasting more like an hour. The temp is in the teens and with the wind chill is sub zero. They aren't expecting it to get above freezing until Friday. And yep, this isn't "bad" for a lot of people, but for Texas this is very extreme weather.

Unfortunately this has also meant that bootcamp was cancelled yesterday and today. I'm thinking it's possible that it might be for the rest of the week. I have a bootcamp and a run in for the week, but I better consider a video or something.

What better way to spend my time, then to suck it up and register for the half in March????

GULP!!!!!

Rat Boots

I looooovvveeeee shoes. Right now boots are on clearance. Well, who am I to pass up a bargain??? So, I got myself a new pair of boots. Now that my legs are thinner, I'm really liking the tall boots. Plus this skinny jean trend works out well too.

Even if this fashion trend changes next year, I figure these boots will look cute with a skirt. I am more curious about where the trend on jeans is going? I am not a fan of jeggings. I wasn't ever a fan of leggings the first time around when they were all the rage and I think it might be carry over. Eh, I'm sure there are plenty of people that love them.

It's always good to find more purposes for shoes though. It makes it much easier to rationalize to hubby that there is just no way that I have enough.

A friend of mine has put live traps in her garage (yah, I'm not sure either - I said to her that I thought she was actually encouraging them to come in). Anyway, there was a rat in the trap and she was freaking out because she was going to have to deal with it because her hubby is out of town all week.

So off I went in my "rat boots". And just cause EVERYONE loves a picture of a rat, here ya go:

S/he was actually pretty cute. OK, maybe I'm sick, but I can take dealing with a live one any day over a dead one. And hell, she's lucky to have me as a friend, right? Loaded the cage in the car and off we went. The hardest part was figuring out how to get the cage to open and I wish I had a pic of his release, but here's a pic of his new home:

Go rat go!

Success!

The birthday was a success! We went out to a fancy restaurant and hubby had half a cow (that's the pic with the two round, extremely healthy, butter discs on it). I ordered a filet which for some reason I neglected taking a picture of, but yet I got a picture of all the booze - go figure. We also had caesar salad, which I would have preferred that they cut up for me, and some lobster macaroni and cheese. For dessert, we ordered some handmade truffles which were also just OK.

So, restaurant wise, I thought the food was OK. We definitely thought that it was an "experience" meal, but not a place we plan on going to again because we felt it was too expensive for the quality of what we had. It just didn't live up to my expectations, BUT we had a great time. We had an intimate booth and just enjoyed the time together. It was romantic and just loads of fun. So that made it all worth it.

Last week was definitely a week of food, food, and more food. Between the meetings I had for work which are always foodfests and the birthday celebration, I definitely ate more than a normal week. But when I look back at what I chose to eat, I really didn't do too poorly overall. Unlike the birthday meal where everything was very decadent, I made better choices the rest of time. Overall, I am very happy with how I navigated through it and that I just didn't eat everything in sight (there was plenty of oh so band friendly high calorie slider food!).

Unfortunately bootcamp was cancelled a couple days last week and I had a bad run on Wednesday. My tummy was NOT happy. I had to come home. I know what it was though - just too much food that I am just not used to eating. Not volume per se as I tried to keep to bandster portions, but in richness.

I still have not weighed this year. I thought about it last week and decided that it was crazy. Eating high sodium, etc. - why am I going to weigh in and freak out? Which for me leads to a lot of stress and other crap. I put on my dress slacks and they fit fine - so forget it. Plus I wore a tight skirt with a form fitting sleevelss top on Friday. When my hubby saw me, he looked at me and said, "you look hot". What more does a girl really need than that?!

Last Week's Plan

Monday – BC / 3 miles (3)
Tuesday – BC
Wednesday – BC / 4 miles (2.33 major tummy issues! Had to cut it short)
Thursday – BC was cancelled : (
Friday – BC was cancelled : (
Saturday - 6 miles (6)
Sunday – OFF

Calories: 2762...The () is actual mileage.

Wrong bag

It's my hubby's birthday this weekend. He has been away all week. A week or so ago, I went and bought a bag that I knew he wouldn't like and then asked questions about traveling bags. I knew he'd want one with wheels, which this one didn't have, so I let out a big sigh and said to him that I better show him what I bought so I can go ahead and return it. I showed it to him and no surprise, it wasn't what he wanted. I returned it that same day. He told me not to worry about getting him anything for his birthday, that it was just Christmas, he doesn't need anything, etc.

Well, little did he know, but I was messing with him! I've had his gift for a while. I'm excited to give it to him and since he's been traveling this week he'll be coming home to a few other surprises. He's been mentioning a particular restaurant for a few months and I kept just pushing it off...because that's where we're going to dinner tomorrow night. Tee hee.

Now, if I can just figure out what to wear...

That's it???

I was thinking that some might stumble across detail of my plan and think that I'm not running enough to train for a half. Why? Cause I looked at it initially and I said, "This is all I have to run????" "Am I going to be able to do it with this little (and not die)?" I did get my plan from a runner. She's run over 4 marathons (not sure how many) and too many halfs to even count.

I am by no means qualified to make up a running plan, there are many available on line, but if you look at them they are pretty much all running. I have bootcamp 5 days a week---it's too intense to do it and a running plan like what can be found.

So here's what she told me: A good plan is made up of some speed training, strength training, runs, and long runs. I go to bootcamp 5 days a week. The camp provides the speed and strength training (and explains why my mile, 5K, etc. speed has improved). Then I have two runs a week and a long run on the weekend. She considers me to have a quality base at this point.

My goal is to finish and finish comfortably---no records here. I don't want to hate this half. I just want to do it and check the box as part of my overall banded journey.

All this being said, if I don't get enough quality sleep, the thought of an evening run is torture. My plan is really run Mon, Wed, and Sat. The good news is there's some flexibility in this plan. I need to get the 3 runs in. She doesn't want me doing them in a row, but I can move them around as needed.

Let's take today as an example, I had commitments that meant that I was getting a maximum of 5 hours of sleep Mon and Tues night. This morning it was hard to get up and go to bootcamp. Really hard. I wanted to just stay in bed, but I got up and went. But this afternoon, the 4 mile planned run - it just was not happening. I was exhausted and I was going to hate every minute of it. Thankfully, I'll get a full night's sleep tonight. So I moved this run to tomorrow.

Wanna run a 5K, 10K, 15K, half, or full marathon? With a good plan, you can do it! Scared? Guess what, I personally think that's totally normal! Don't have a runner friend? Concerned about an online plan? Look to see if there's a running store in your area. If so, drop by and see what you can find out. You might find out that there is some free "social" runs to participate in or a training class that you can join and then have a coach to help you get to your goals.

You never know, you might find yourself turning into F0rrest Gump, remember this?

That day, for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run. So I ran to the end of the road. And when I got there, I thought maybe I'd run to the end of town. And when I got there, I thought maybe I'd just run across Greenbow County. And I figured, since I run this far, maybe I'd just run across the great state of Alabama. And that's what I did. I ran clear across Alabama. For no particular reason I just kept on going. I ran clear to the ocean. And when I got there, I figured, since I'd gone this far, I might as well turn around, just keep on going. When I got to another ocean, I figured, since I'd gone this far, I might as well just turn back, keep right on going.

Wish is a Four Letter Word

I was cooling down from my long training run on Saturday when this lady I had passed previously said to me, "I wish I had your energy." Even after all this time, I get taken off guard and am not quite sure what to say. I ended up saying something like, I've been working at it for some time. She said in return that she'd like to get there. I said to her that you honestly can get there and we chatted about how.

• Showing up is 51% of the battle. I think it's more than half the battle to get to your workout. I think of all the reasons (excuses) why I can't (don't want to workout) and I can come up with plenty! Think about it, who really drags themself to a workout, gets there, and then turns around and goes home????
• Have the right equipment for your activity of choice. For example, walking really isn't "just walking". Longer distances, faster pace, etc. really does require good shoes. Shoes with the right fit and right support for you. Make sure the rest of your clothes are comfortable and you are dressing for the weather in layers.One other thing I didn't share, but I think is important. - protect "the girls"! Get a good sports bra.
• Don't overdo it. No one is going to get out there the first day and run a long distance. If you do, you will hate it and you will feel sore as crap. Consider trying a program such as c to 5K. Personally, I started with time. I said I will walk X amount of time regardless of the distance covered and went from there.
• Consistency is key. All the other pointers contribute to consistency. If you show up, are comfortable, and don't overdo it (so you don't hate it), you will be consistent. Does that mean everyday? Nope. It doesn't even mean 6 days a week or even 5. Figure out what is realistic and do it. (I suggest starting out with 3 days a week increasing to 5 days over time).
• Change "I wish" to "I can". Wish is a four letter word. I believe that unless there is something that physically prevents a person from achieving a weightloss or fitness goal that it's possible. You just have to want it, do the work, and believe (I can do it!) . Hell, I am trying to take my own advice on this one in regard to the half marathon! If I don't think I can do it, I guarantee that I won't be able to!

That made me think of something else, I read frequently on blogs "I hate exercise". Honestly, I don't think people "hate exercise", I think they hate what they are doing or possibly it's one of the other things I've talked about that's contributing to these feelings.

If you find yourself hating the activity, try another one! Keep on trying different ones until you find one you like. Oh, and one other thing, please consider hanging in there for a while on whatever you choose. Anything that is "new" or "hard" is going to take a bit of time (Are you thinking: "I can't do this?" If so, knock it off!!!!). Give whatever you choose a couple weeks and you might surprise yourself and find yourself thinking "I kinda like this!" "I can do this!" or some other thought that may take you off guard....off guard in a good way!

And on a band note, it's a tool, a piece of equipment, but the rest of it is up to you. If you think about it, these items can be skewed a bit and apply. Believing in yourself, consistency, etc.

Thanks for the chat to the lady on the trail and I hope to see you out there again!


Last Week's Plan

• Monday – OFF (Holiday & I enjoyed it!)
• Tuesday – BC / 3 miles (3.4)
• Wednesday – BC
• Thursday – BC / 4 miles (4)
• Friday – BC
• Saturday - 5 miles(5.25)
• Sunday – OFF

Calories: 4110...The () is actual mileage

My Office Mate

For the most part, I am lucky that I work from home - no commute, no makeup, reduces clothing budget, more productive, and many other things! Anyway, sometimes that means I start work at butt-crack-thirty and at times I'll plan in one room before I go to my office. My office mate was very active today and she was very very busy. I had to take some pictures.

Hey, let me help you with that. You aren't doing it right!

Oh, let me get a better look at that. What do you mean you can't type?

BREAK TIME!

Back to work!

BREAK TIME! (Notice now in a different position)

You need a lot of supervision! I have my eye on you!

Safety first! Security patrol.

I'm not sure what my office mate was up to after this point, but I am sure she was very busy the rest of the day!

Yesterday's training run was C-O-L-D! The temperature was 29, which is not bad for most areas in January, but it was the wind that was the killer! It was something ridiculous like 11 with the windchill. But I told myself you HAVE to get this run in. There are only 3 training runs a week and no way to move this run because I also have to have a day of rest. Bright sides: it was dry, I have warm clothes, and I did it. And, as usual, I was glad I did it...after it was over!

I tried to view my training schedule on my last post and realized it's super hard to read. I'm going to have to work on an alternate way of recording it so I can go back and check it out.

My New BFF

I had heard people say how great foam rollers are, including the a$$kicker at bootcamp, but figured my stretches were good enough. Some days I am sore, but not miserable sore, just I've worked out sore. Yesterday I got an instant cash coupon in the mail for 15 bucks to a local athletic store and figured I could make a 10 buck investment to find out what was sooooo great about this foam thing. My hubby went with me and said, "I bet we can get that same thing at H0me Dep0t for 5 bucks" (funny guy, huh?). So, while watching tv last night I just rolled away. I even got hubby to try it out. Well, this morning after 8 billion swings and my training run yesterday, not a lick of soreness. My foam roller is my new bff. Got foam roller?

Sucking it Up!

I honestly have started the year feeling a bit blah. I can't quite put my finger on why. Weather? Job? I have no idea. I've hit the point that I just don't care to try and figure it out anymore and am just moving on to "sucking it up".

I turned down the new job. That position is setup to fail. It was a very difficult decision as passing up on any role can have a negative impact on your career progression. I explained what I thought were the challenges of the role and how I thought they could be addressed and thanked them for the opportunity. Don't you worry though, I still mentioned in all of that I was looking for a promotion! ; ) I won't be holding my breath though, I am honestly very very thankful to have a job I mostly enjoy and work for someone that respects me and my work.

I have not been reading blogs either! Good grief!

So, in the whole sucking it up theme, I am posting my training plan. I might have to modify it now and then because of things going on, but I still need to get the mileage in for the week. I need to see if I can force my own hand and sign up for the race. In the meantime, to help with my accountability, I am going to go ahead and post my plan with strikethroughs/changes as the weeks go on. Wish me luck!...or just kick me in the butt now and then if you don't see anything.

My favorite number: 11

11 has always been my favorite number. It was always the number I had in the sports I played and I HAD to have that number. Today is a really cool day, but not only cause it is 1-1-11 (oh, and yes, 11:11 on the clock is also my favorite)...I had said that I was going to say something about my job, well I started that conversation and it seems that I might have a new job...go figure.

I'm honestly in shock more than anything - and not in a bad way. You know how you have those talks now and then in your head and you plan it all out cause you are sure if you don't you are going to massively screw it up? Yep, I spent an entire day of conversations of how it could go with me raising the concerns that I head. I barely got started and this was never one of the scenarios. Anyway, I'm one of those put it in writing people, so who knows.

I have a training plan. A training plan for a half marathon, SIGH. I AM GOING TO SUCK IT UP AND DO IT! I want to talk to my "coach" before I sign up as I am considering a pace team and want to get her thoughts on it. I plan to knock that out tomorrow. Then I am going to bite the bullet. And ya know what is stupid? I have done one before. It was one of those things - "I am going to do a marathon by the time I'm 30" deals for me. I hated the half and decided I never needed to do a marathon unless I was in a car.

My goal is to finish the half. No time requirements, nothing. My friend is convinced this is where I went wrong. I was set on a time and come hell or high water I was going to do it. As a result, I was gutting it out and I HATED it. So, that's right. No completion TIME, just to finish. Stay tuned and please plan on beating the hell out of me if I do not get a half marathon in, because I will NOT have a valid excuse. (This is another reason I am putting this all out here today. I won't have to think very hard about where this post is when I need to give myself a kick in the ass. So for future reading: QUIT MAKING EXCUSES AND JUST DO IT!)

Crap!

So, I did my 5K on Saturday. My goal was to enjoy the 5K. I just went with the flow and finished in under 28 mins. WOW, was I shocked! Honestly, I wasn't pushing it. When I got close and saw what my finish time could be I was shocked. My fitness has seriously gone through the roof from bootcamp.

The crap? Uh, I "misplaced" (lost!) my transmitter for my Polar. It's the thingy that snaps on to the strap and works with the watch to give the heart rate. OOOOPPPS! I have continued to look high and low for it, but I think it could be gone. That little sucker costs half of what a new Polar costs! I am pissed at myself. I am going to wait a week or so and see if I can find it. I am guessing that my hubby will suggest me wearing my Garmin instead. Which is fine for a run, but not for bootcamp. It's just too dang big. *sigh* (Oh, and if anyone has seen my transmitter - or has a spare that they want to give me (ha) - please email me!)

And as a grand finale...SNOW in Texas. Pictures to prove it!!!

And it continues...

Nope, I did not win MegaMillion$, but two lucky people shared the big prize. I remain behind and have started the new year with a bad attitude about my job. I am going to have to figure out how to navigate through it stat! Otherwise, I am concerned it could get worse and go into other areas (more important areas too!) in my life. I have a meeting on Monday with my boss and plan to have my areas of concern PC'd by then. Ah well, can't think about it too much, cause honestly it's just not worth it. It will work out and I need to remember to focus on the things that I can change.

Anyway, bootcamp was good last week, but my Polar was acting up. It just kept dropping the heart rate. I actually broke down and READ the manual and am trying all the things that it says. I am thinking that my rinsing of the band may not have been enough to clean it after 7-8 months. Not sure.

Embarrassing, but true, the decorations are almost down, but one room remains. It will be finished this weekend, but then the cleaning starts to try and get up all the damn glitter. Hubby was nice about that though and said why don't we just have someone come in and clean the house to take care of it so you don't have to. So, unless I am feeling it, I might just do that.

I am still feeling a bit fluffy in some of my clothes, but figure I'll remain away from the scale. I'm just back in maintenance mode - generally eating well and exercising. Band wise - it's just there. For me, this far out, I will just remain where I am - which was years ago at this point when there was .2 (does that even count?) - that I last knew how much fluid is in there. I will continue what I have been which is I eat band portions, but when I'm hungry, I'll just eat more.

I'm trying to think of things that I'd want to ask/know reading this (please leave things in the comments if you do want to ask something!) and come up with - well, aren't you on a diet then? And, my answer is no. Band or no band, you have to make choices. I think it's one of the things that people learn on this journey. If I had eaten crap the majority of the time, then I know I would not have gotten to where I am now (which even surpassed my original expectations - blew them away really!).

Over the years, the band has helped me develop a different relationship with food. For me, this was the key. I also rediscovered activities that I used to love and new ones that have led to a very active lifestyle. So, while I have a band, bottom line what is also there is generally good food choices and moving. Funny how that sounds exactly like someone without a band, huh? And, I also am a firm believer that this was not an easy way out. It was a ton of work mentally and physically. Ooooo, getting on a soapbox, please if you want to know something though, please ask and don't be shy. I can remember when I started my journey wanting to ask questions, but there wasn't anyone out there that had the band a long time to ask!

I'm off to a 5K! Hopefully my Polar will cooperate!

Day 4 and Behind?

Yep, that's me. Behind. That's how I'm starting 2011, but probably the most important thing is: I don't care. Seriously, I am continuing my work on balance. Not sweating the things that don't really matter - or maybe "matter", but I need to put into a better, more balanced perspective. So a list of random crap...

• I have 1000 unread posts in my Reader. I haven't been on the computer for pleasure in weeks. Weird.
• Work does not own me. I have proven that this holiday season. I worked reasonable hours and took time off. You know why? Because it didn't matter. Spending time with family and friends mattered. I prioritized and focused on the important stuff and got what had to be done, done. Go figure.
• I worked out my 4 times a week goal for the holidays, but I also ate whatever I wanted and enjoyed the season. I do think I gained some weight as my jeans are a bit tight, but I am the only one that notices (self, read and repeat - I am the only one that notices). This doesn't mean that I am not back on track with better choices and working out, it just means that there is a little bit of fluff, but it's temporary. (The scale is NOT the boss of me!)
• My Christmas decorations are only partially down. Yep, I'm behind. Oh well, by the end of the upcoming weekend everything will be put away.
• I am running a 5K this weekend. My goal is a bit different. My goal is to slow down. Strange, huh? Well my buddy has told me that I need to work on slowing down to finish a half marathon more comfortably. So that's what I am going to do. Oh, the half marathon comment? Uh yep, doing one. Don't know when, but this year doing one. (My BC buddy is doing TWELVE this year. Yep, 12, so I figured my lame ass could do one.)
• Wild hogs are a problem in Texas. Seriously. And, I am not just talking about the country or fondly referred to as the sticks. Also, since I am on a "wild" bullet, it's Opossum, not possum. Just sayin'
• I got really cool stuff for Christmas. A kettlebell (YAH!), a Garmin (I'll have to post more on that), a NEW Kindle, boxing mitts (cool ones that are more like gloves that hopefully my partner at BC can't knock them off as easily!), and some other stuff that I'm not remembering at the moment. Yep, me = spoiled.
• Biggest L0ser Couples starts tonight. There is a contestant (dude) that is 650lbs...yikes!

Oooo, Mega Million$ is like 8 bajillion dollars (OK, like $330 million) tonight. I have to go get a ticket! Gotta go!