Up and down week

I guess you could say that I met my goal of 3 days of exercise for the week. I did two elliptical workouts, and took two 30-minute walks with the dog. The two dog walks were not exactly tough cardio workouts, but at least I got out there on days I didn't think I was going to get any exercise at all. So, I'm giving myself credit and counting those days as exercise.

My eating wasn't the greatest this week. DH got kind of tired of cooking, and we were both getting a little sick of eating at home. Heck, we used to eat out at least once a day. So, we went out quite a bit this week. It is much harder to eat clean when you aren't the one controlling the cooking. We tried to make decent choices and minimize the damage. Despite eating out twice on Tuesday, I still lost 2.8 pounds at my weigh-in on Wednesday morning. I'm pretty darn happy about that.

We took Wednesday as our "see, metabolism, we're not starving" day and ate way too much of the foods we both have been wanting since we started this new diet. We went out for breakfast, lunch and dinner that day. Breakfast wasn't clean, but it wasn't all that bad since we split a breakfast. Lunch was horrible, but we've both been craving a burger and fries, so we went for it. Dinner was more yummy sushi, and not the healthy just-raw-fish-and-a-little-rice kind either. DH then left for the airport for a business trip, and I came home to a hot fudge sundae. Ugh! I definitely did not feel well by the end of that pig-out day!

I took the dog to the vet on Wednesday for shots, and found that he has gained quite a bit of weight in the past year, too. DH feeds him more often than I do, and I know he's been overfeeding him. See, we have one of those dogs that eats, goes outside to do his business, then comes back in to the laundry room and licks the bowl and the floor around it, making sure he didn't miss anything. DH takes that as a sign that he's not getting enough to eat, so he puts more in his bowl at the next meal. So, now we have a fat dog (though he doesn't look it). This is part of why I'm going to try to take him for at least 2 walks around the neighborhood per week. I'd like to work him up to daily walks by the end of summer, but right now he just gets so tired with each one that I don't want to overdo it. He is over 9 years old now.

I need to make a goal for next week. The accountability of setting these goals is really helping me stay on track. So, I think my goal for next week will be to get in at least 2 weight workouts, along with at least 3 cardio workouts (which can include the dog walks).

Baby steps

My workout plan isn't exactly going well, but the eating part is. I got on the scale and after only one week on the plan, I've lost almost 5 pounds (4.8 to be exact)! I'm pretty happy about it, especially because the weekend didn't go very well in terms of eating on the plan. Saturday night went fine--I went a little too long between meals, but I did manage to eat everything I packed to get through 12 hours. Sunday night was another story--way too busy, in charge, no time to eat or drink or even pee! I got my smoothie in around 9pm, but that was the last of my intake for the night. I stopped at McDonald's on the way home Monday morning, knowing full well it was a bad choice and doing it anyway.

More importantly, I got right back on track. In previous weight-loss attempts, I would have let that slip-up ruin a whole day (or week) of healthy eating. This time, I started fresh when I woke up Monday afternoon and have been on track ever since. In fact, I have managed to give up my Pepsi habit (HUGE first goal) since Monday. I know, it's only Thursday, but for me to have gone 3 days without caffeine of any sort or my beloved Pepsi is a ginormous accomplishment! Knock on wood, I didn't really get the caffeine withdrawal headache either.

Last week's goal was to get the healthier eating started--check! This week's goal is to give up the Pepsi habit--check! Goal for next week--at least 3 days of exercise. Feel free to keep me accountable.

Getting there

I finally made it to Whole Foods and spent way too much on all sorts of yummy food. I bought lots of fruit (fresh berries--yum!), some veggies, organic dairy and eggs, plus a lovely salmon fillet that I cooked for dinner tonight. I'm home alone, so I didn't have to worry about making dinner for DH and could just make what I wanted. It was so simple and quick--I'm not sure why I ever let it intimidate me before. All I did was sprinkle some blackened seasoning on it, then toss it in a hot skillet with a smidgen of EVOO for 3 minutes per side. Talk about yummy! I had a nuked sweet potato on the side with just a bit of butter and some pumpkin pie spice. I had really planned on making a salad to round out the meal, but I started cooking the fish right away and was too nervous to walk away from it for long.

DH and I decided to join a nearby gym since we both want to work on getting healthier. I had belonged to a national chain for a few years, but it was too far away for me to visit on a consistent basis once we bought this house (I'm not driving 40 minutes each way for an hour-long workout). A smaller chain opened here in our tiny little town, so we signed up. We paid for 6 months in advance, so now we both have to go often enough to get our money out of it.

When we joined the gym, they offered us a free health assessment. I had mine today and let's just say it was pathetic. The only part that I scored above average on is my flexibility. I can always rock the sit-and-reach test, but I know my numbers today were worse than they usually are. I was supposed to do as many sit-ups in a minute as I could, but I pooped out before the minute was over. I did lift more on the bench press than I thought I would, but still way below average for my age. My cardio has declined so much it's frightening--you would never know I did a marathon a few years ago!

But, like I said to the very nice trainer lady, everybody has to have a starting point. My plan is to haul my fat ass into the gym or off to the hills for a hike on every day that I'm not working. I have an extra night off this week, so that means I have to get there tomorrow and Saturday.