WOW

i need a vacation to recover from my vacation. this morning at work i had to buy coffee from the coffee truck. i needed it real bad. there is this truck that drives up to my building several times a day and sells goodies ... don't ask me why!

anyhoo, the weekend away was pretty good. i was a bit crabby on the drive up because my mouth hurt and it was traffic city. the two hour drive took 3 and a half hours! we even drove through this crazy rainstorm ... i thought the sky was falling. we got there eventually and everything was dandy. what fun! i had a great time - although i had way too many bud light limes and wine and other drinks as well.

on saturday i roped another guy there to go for a run with me and so i strapped on the garmin and we went 2.5 miles one way and 2.5 miles back. on the first half we saw a baby fox. it was so cute. we also saw a dead squirrel on the road but it wasn't squished. it looked as if it wandered into the middle of the road and just decided it had enough of life. on the way back it was actually squished but i didn't look. gross. :(

at night it was freezing. here i am wearing long pants, boots, a long-shirt, two zip up hoodies, a leather coat and a hat. yes, chilly willy nilly.


on sunday my bf and i played some "catch" with this velco game i bought at walmart. it's fun - like catch for dummies. you just have to put your catching hand in the general vicinity of the ball and it's easy.



if you can't see the ball (it's above my head and orange) i have no chance of catching it haha.

monday = back on track. i ate way too many things this weekend. hamburgers, cheese wieners, potato chips, sugary coolers, BEER. we did pack carrots and hummus, and whole wheat buns. oh yeah, we packed these delicious looking angus burgers but our cooler was on the patio and raccoons came and opened it in the night and ate them all ... just the burgers! those sneaky buggers. luckily (luckily...) there was lots of food.

what was i saying? oh right, monday = back on track. i just went for a 5-mile run and it was pretty good. i hate running on mondays but it's nice to be active. i've started to start each day with 500 ml of water (even before coffee or tea) and i'm really liking the way it feels. for breakfast i ate 1/3 cup oatmeal with 1/4 cup all bran, blueberries and some vanilla yogurt.

lunch was a spinach salad with a chopped vine tomato, 1/2 chopped red pepper, some sliced white mushrooms, 1/2 cup blueberries, 1/2 cup black beans, and two leftover slices of deli chicken with low fat balsamic dressing.

for a snack i had a multigrain vitatop and some unsalted roasted soybeans. they sell them at the walmart supercentre and they are SO CHEAP and so good for you. they are only made with soybeans and canola oil. 1/2 cup has 120 calories, 10g fibre and 22g protein.

for dinner i had a green smoothie made with frozen banana, tons of spinach, a few blueberries, a scoop of chocolate protein, 1/2 cup milk and 1/2 cup water. alright i'm sick of blabbing and i need a shower big time!

monday madness

a few things:

1) i bought a garmin forerunner 305! i bought it last night. i can't wait to use it because i live very close to lake ontario and now i can go for runs by the lake without being scared i'll run too far and collapse in heap and die from thirst and tiredness. (i couldn't track the trails correctly on mapmyrun). i don't have it yet though... being shipped.

2) i guess i'll sell my cute cherry ladies polar f4 on ebay ... unless anyone here wants to make me an offer. nudge nudge wink wink.

3) vitalicious.ca is having amazing incentives. if you buy $100 worth of products before April 30, and you live in ontario, shipping is free AND you get a skipping rope with a jump counter and calorie counter (regular $20) thrown in for free. i think the skipping rope is free no matter where you live, but i think the free shipping is limited to ontario and quebec. sorry, rest of cananda. i got a 24 pack of triple chocolate vitatops, a 24 pack of blueberry bran and a 24 pack of multibran. yes the chocolate ones are good, but i prefer to eat the bran-ier ones in before a morning workout, or as a mid-morning snack. they feel really hearty and delicious.

4) i am going swimming in the next ten minutes. i have book club later tonight so i've got to boot it!

5) i am going to cancel my weightwatchers online subscription before May 8 (when my month runs out). i like it but i'm just not using it and i could be using that money for other things. i can count points without the online tracker, it just takes a bit more effort.

6) i bought tempeh to try today. should i make a tempeh and pb sandwich a la kath?

yoga jeans

i have found the best jeans of all time. well, i found them based on the recommendation of my blog friend, amanda. they are called yoga jeans and the gimmick is that they are so comfortable and stretchy, you can do yoga in them. love them. they weren't cheap but you can't put a price tag on comfort.

today had its good and bad points. pretty good day at work, came home went swimming, went to my friend's house and she has a 6-week old kitten cccccuuuuuuuttttiiiieeeeppiiieeeee. the bad points are it's freezing outside, i made my lunch last night but FORGOT it in my home fridge, my apartment is pretty messy. ah, the usual.

my weekend was good but i could have tried harder to eat well. on saturday i went for a walk with my bf, and on sunday i went swimming until i was rudely interrupted by a family who didn't get that i was swimming laps along the wall and just needed them to move over by half a metre. they had to stand in my way, even though the rest of the pool was free. lunatics. i could have said something, but didn't want to start something. and they didn't speak English and that could have been awkward.

my goal this week is to use the gym at work and start a weight lifting strength training routine. i brought my stuff to do it today, but since i forgot my lunch at home (doh), i had to go and get lunch.

it wasn't completely unproductive. i went to the bulk barn where i bought whole flax seeds. i am a fool for buying the expensive pre-ground seeds from the organic section in the grocery store. 1) they were so cheap. i bought a huge bag and it didn't even cost $2. 2) i ground them coarsely in my coffee grinder (which i never use for coffee) and they taste so much better. there is no comparison. now they are totally yummy and before it was just bland tasteless nothing.

howdy doody.

what a coincidence

after posting my piece on weight maintenance last week, i came across this article on yahoo canada which sums things up very nicely. worth reading for sure. i love these yahoo and msn.ca health and fitness articles. many are very redundant, but a few have new and interesting things to say. and it's all free. oh, internet, how i do love you.

i would have to say i went a little overboard on the eating this weekend. especially last night at my girlfriend's house watching gone with the wind. a lot of veggies, some whole wheat pasta with chicken, nachos with taco cream cheese dip (!!!)... that kind of stuff. so some healthier choices but some... not so much. my downfall were these macaroon madness bars from m & m's meat shop. they tasted like butterscotch blondies with coconut on top. heaven!

so now i'm back in healthy living mode. i didn't swim on saturday, but i did go yesterday and this morning. i might go for a treadmill walk tonight as well. i have finished reading thin is the new happy and now i've moved on to chasing harry winston, the latest book from the author that wrote the devil wears prada. exciting! i have to have it finished by the 5th (back to library), so reading while walking on the treadmill is a perfect way to kill two birds with one stone. not that i want to kill birds of course.

my goals for this week are: 4 x cardio sessions, 2 x yoga/pilates sessions, at LEAST 7 hours of sleep per night, following hunger cues, and grabbing the bull by the balls. happy monday.

back on it

ah monday, you kill me every time. actually today i'm feeling alright. i just want to go to bed and read lots of books and drink copious amounts of tea.

my weekend was pretty good. i did some relaxing, some shopping, had a 40-minute swim on saturday, and went to a girls holiday kris kringle exchange party. i got a book that i really wanted to read (three cups of tea), and i also overindulged in holiday treats. but that's ok. i didn't feel stuffed. i just wanted to try everything once. and a few things twice. ;)

i am back on my game this week. i don't really have any evening events this week, so i am going to do the same thing as last week (monday to thursday). small portions, higher protein, only eating when hungry, and walking 2.5-3 miles a day. it was easier than i thought it would be last week and really effective. i forgot how good it felt to be back in the middle of my maintenance range, instead of at the very top. the week after this one is a crazy one for holiday parties.

i feel so sleepy today! z is for zombie.

not much to say

this weekend was really lame. i did nothing! i wasn't feeling that great and my boyfriend was even sicker, so we just mostly stayed in and took care of ourselves. on saturday during the day we went to the one of a kind show, and on sunday i went to my second book club which i just joined. it was a lot of fun - i love meeting new women who are so nice and genuine.

needless to say i didn't get any exercise in this weekend. just feeling too weak and weary. i don't think swimming is the best idea until i am fully recovered, so i am going to take it easy and just do some treadmill walking. food wise this week i think i'm going to try reducing my portions but eating more frequently. and not adding salt to my food (very difficult) and choosing more protein sources. i've noticed recently that when i'm eating alone i go for days and days without eating any meat at all. it's not necessarily a bad thing, but i'm not really choosing protein-y alternatives, like peanut butter or beans. food for thought. pun!

monday mania

good morning. there are still two minutes until noon so it's still morning! welcome to monday... bleh!

i had a great weekend. on friday i watched across the universe which was pretty good. how can anything made entirely of beatles songs be bad? the first half was better than the second half.

on saturday i had a 40 minute swim, and also walked to the library and back. i had some resume and cover letter books on hold to pick up, and i got two new amazing audio books for the car. i also got a book by madeleine wickham called the gatecrasher. did you know that is sophie kinsella, author of the shopaholic series? pretty *wild* ;)

on sunday, i went with my family to see jersey boys, which is a musical about the four seasons. amazing!

this morning i did some reading, and then went for a 40 minute swim. i am going to try and get some walking in later.

and finally, here is a photo from halloween (i am slow to upload things!) - my boyfriend and i were 70s olympians. i made the medals and the shirts... crafty!

why oh why

do i never feel that great on mondays? i had a good weekend, and i let myself sleep in a bit today, so i should feel great! but i don't really. i want to go back to bed but i won't because then i won't be able to sleep tonight. i didn't lose any weight this week. i don't know what i am doing wrong. i'm eating within my points, exercising, etc. but nothing. i'm not too concerned right now anyway. this week i am going to keep at it, but maybe try to eat less carbs and more protein. i really do eat a lot of bread. why is it the best food?

yesterday was an active day. i rode my bike to queen's park for the word on the street book and magazine festival. i watched some people speak, subscribed (for cheap) to toronto life magazine, talked to people at my old job's booth, and saw some old friends. and i ate a small twist soft ice cream cone from a truck. it was delicious! anyway it was sort of far away and i did a lot of walking. when i came home i did day two week two of the couch to 5k program and it really hurt my bottom. it's piriformis syndrome which i can't really prevent except by stretching so that is what i'm doing. i feel weird stretching before running because my muscles are so stiff. does anyone else stretch before running or warming up at all?

today i have big plans to apply for more jobs, and i have an interview in the early afternoon. wish me luck!

bloaty mcfat feet

i am so pooped today. i have been watching heroes season one on my computer and last night it was too exciting and i stayed up really late watching it. i am paying for it today!

i am so bloated today. number one: my skinny jeans, which fit with lots of room on friday, didn't fit today. they fit in the thighs and waist, but not the calves! isn't that so weird!?!? i am so bloated. i put on sandals to go outside and it's like i was wearing a smaller size of shoe! what could have caused this crazy bloat... i have no idea. today i'm taking it easy and drinking lots of water and hopefully it will be gone by tomorrow.

i finally reached a "happy weight" on saturday, but today i am back up five pounds. there is no way i gained five pounds on the weekend, especially since i didn't drink anything on friday or sunday, and made relatively healthy choices. all of my excess weight must be water that is retaining in my lower legs and feet. seriously, it's so weird!

i got up early today because i thought i was going to help my mom at work (for a little extra cash) but they didn't need me today. i went grocery shopping and bought a lot of fruits and veggies... things i desperately needed! and that's about it. oh right, photos of my hair. i will upload some today and post tomorrow. :) now maybe a nap!

what to do what to do

i have a dilemma. since i am not working my life is pretty lax. i go to bed late, wake up late, do whatever i want (within reason) and eat whatever i want. this lack of routine kind of has me feeling drained. especially lately. is it allergy season or something? i can't decide if the tickle in my nose is allergies or an oncoming sickness that is threatening me but never comes.

i think i need to eat better. i know it's easier to eat healthily when following a routine (for example, working) but i don't want to wake up two months from now and be a blob or something resembling that. i'm not really gaining weight but since i'm not running i think i'm losing muscle mass and my shape is changing. maybe i'm losing muscle weight and gaining fat weight and since muscle weighs more i'm gaining fat and that's not good. maybe. i need one of those fat scales but at this point in my life that might be an excessive investment!

so what do to what to do? i don't want to be that strict with myself but i want to feel better. maybe an 80 to 20% ratio of good choices? instead of 90 to 10% i mean. not sure. maybe smaller portions? trying different foods? who knows. writing everything down?

that sounds alright. today i will write everything down. maybe later i will look at the canadian food guidelines to see if i'm missing anything.

time passes fast

can you believe it's july 7 already? where does the time go?! it is so hot today and i love it. bring on the heat. my weekend was good. i went to a wedding and it was fun times. here i am at the garden ceremony.

i changed for the actual reception. i haven't uploaded any of my own photos yet, although i've been tagged on facebook way too many times already.

next weekend i am going to a cottage. this means bikinis and bathing suits. ayayayayayayayaya! it's not so bad but this week i'm going to really focus on my stomach. i always feel bloated after the weekend. and over the course of my lifetime i've done about 50 million crunches so there must be abs in there somewhere! my plan for this week is to eat sensibly, make my smallest meal dinner, exercise everyday, and increase protein in the form of protein shakes. last week i didn't drink any protein shakes at all. i just forgot all about them, even though they are yummy and delicious.

yesterday i went for a 5-mile run. normally i take sundays off so it really made my day feel like saturday. i haven't done any activity yet today but i don't have anything to do after work so i'll hit the gym for a bike or fast walk. this post is boring me a little. yesterday at my parent's house my mom gave me fresh pineapple... so delicious! i love summer fruit.

eating new stuff

the title is what's going on, i'm eating new stuff. i've heard a lot about two different super-grains. the first is quinoa and the second is the wheatberry.

QUINOA:
A recently rediscovered ancient "grain" native to South America, quinoa was once called "the gold of the Incas," who recognized its value in increasing the stamina of their warriors. Not only is quinoa high in protein, but the protein it supplies is complete protein, meaning that it includes all nine essential amino acids. Not only is quinoa's amino acid profile well balanced, making it a good choice for vegans concerned about adequate protein intake, but quinoa is especially well-endowed with the amino acid lysine, which is essential for tissue growth and repair. In addition to protein, quinoa features a host of other health-building nutrients. Because quinoa is a very good source of manganese as well as a good source of magnesium, iron, copper and phosphorous, this "grain" may be especially valuable for persons with migraine headaches, diabetes and atherosclerosis.


WHEATBERRY:
The term wheatberry or wheat berry refers to the entire wheat kernel (except for the hull), comprising the bran, germ, and endosperm. Wheatberries have a tan to reddish brown color and are available as either a hard or soft processed grain. They are often added to salads or baked into bread to add a crunchy texture; as a whole grain, they also provide nutritional benefits since they are an excellent source of dietary fiber.


last night i made a bunch of quinoa and a bunch of wheatberries. the wheatberries took a whole hour to cook on the stove. that's a long time in my world. they are pretty good though. i am going to add some to oatmeal and yogurt. the quinoa is alright... i used it until red lentil curry in place of brown rice. it wasn't bad but i prefer the rice. i am going to look into cooking it a few different ways, which might help as well.

my weekend was pretty good, but too short. exercise-wise, on saturday i went for a 5-mile run, and on sunday i swam lengths for about half an hour. i wore my HRM in the pool (i checked online if i could do this first) and it was pointless. i only wore it for about 5 minutes, but it said my heart rate was about 69 bpm. obviously that's a false reading. i stood up and it shot up to 126 or so. i just wanted to look at my heart rate in the pool. even though the polar website said i could wear it in the pool, today it was acting all funky and stupid, giving me inaccurate readings. i am going to clean it with soap and water and see what's up. otherwise i'll have to cause a scene and nobody likes that.

this morning i just did a quick workout. 3 x 10 minutes running on the treadmill, with some arm-weights in between. it's monday and i'm kinda pooped. today on the menu is:

strawberries
4 organic animal crackers

cinnamon oatmeal
1 T flax
1/2 cup all bran
2 T pumpkin
1/4 cup wheatberries
fat free strawberry yogurt

1 cup plain 2% yogurt
strawberries
carrots with hummus
regular oatmeal

red lentil curry on quinoa with mixed veggies

monday whoopah

i need this week to recover from the weekend. on saturday night i didn't go to bed until 5am and then slept until 1pm on sunday. what am i, a teenager? i mean, come on. i am really enjoying coffee this morning. other than that things are pretty good.

so my summer challenge week two vegetable was... eggplant. i have had eggplant before but haven't cooked with it. i don't even know if i can say i "cooked" with it. i cut it into slices, brushed it with oil, and then bbq'd the slices. not the most exciting. i probably wouldn't make it again. it was chewy and not in a good way, although the taste is nice. i've heard of eggplant parm, and once i had eggplant stuffed peppers which was quite nice as well. did i mention i charred them a little? oops. it was my first time using the condo bbq and it wasn't the best time i ever had.

so onto this week. for breakfast today i made "overnight muesli" which is: 1/3 cup oats, 2 x 100g fat free yogurts, 1/4 cup skim milk, 1/2 chopped banana, 4 blackberries, and 1T slivered almonds, all stirred up and covered with plastic wrap overnight. then this morning i chowed down. it was cool and refreshing. i missed hot oatmeal a little but it's good to switch it up. variety is the spice of life. i ate really crappily all weekend—not overdoing it, but not healthy and poor nutrition choices—so this week i want to do a detox of crap, if it can be avoided.

my menu today is:

breakfast:
overnight muesli described above

snack:
1 string cheese
1 royal gala apple

lunch:
lean cuisine chicken cacciatore

snack:
1/2 cup baby carrots
1/2 cup baby tomatoes
1T hummus
1/2 banana

dinner:
not sure yet actually.

today i wore my heart rate monitor on the bike ride to work. from leaving the door to my apartment, to coming in the door at work, it took 25 minutes, 0 minutes in the optimal heart rate zone (not surprising), 91 bpm average, 116 max bpm, and 61 calories burned. how interesting is that. i will wear it again on the way home. today was a really pleasant ride - no wind, nothing weird. fun times. su

hello monday

well - it's monday and i feel pretty good today. but only because i forced myself to get into bed at midnight, and slept until 7:45am, skipping morning exercise. i am going to workout later.

i am at home right now. i was at work for a bit. on friday at about 3pm the roof in the hallway collapsed from the rain, and big pieces of black mold and ceiling and the lighting fixtures and wires all crashed down to the ground. i work in an old building... really old. it used to be a shipping dock when the waters of lake ontario came further up the shore. part of my building is an historic site that can't be destroyed, but part of it (my part) can. they are trying to sell it to build condos, but somebody along the lines is having trouble with permits... anyway, they refuse to do any maintenance on the building because they want to sell it and tear it down. so our hallway has been flooding and small pieces of the roof has come down and finally it really came down.

so we sent some "samples" of the mold to a mold detection company, so see if it's safe or whatever, and until we know, we are working from home. i couriered myself a bunch of stuff so i'll actually be working. but it's good because now i feel like a lady of leisure.

summer challenge:
i finished up 15 miles for week one. it wasn't easy. 15 miles is a lot. it's three, five mile runs, or four shorter runs. but i prefer not to run on consecutive days so something has got to give. i think i'll aim for three longer runs, but if it's not possible, then i'll just do more.

my week one new veggie is a total cop out. i looked in the grocery store but all the new veggies looked so weird to me... i would have no idea how to prepare any of them. i'm going to have to pre-plan this stuff and come up with a recipe beforehand. so my week one veggie is BOK CHOY. i had it in a beef chow mein dish in a chinese food restaurant in china town. it was wilty and gross. i'm sure if i prepared it myself it would be better. that is why it's a cop out haha.

today's menu is:

1/2 cup mixed berries (0.5)
1 serving special k satisfaction cereal (3)
1 cup light silk soy milk (1)
coffee (0)
(4.5)

1/2 piece rye bread (0.5)
source yogurt with pumpkin and fibre sprinkles (2)
(7)

pita (2)
lean chicken (1)
cheese (1)
avocado (1)
honey mustard (0.5)
lettuce (0)
tomato (0)
(12.5)

source yogurt (1)
oatmeal (2)
(15.5)

big salad with lettuce (0)
poppyseed dressing (2)
peas (1)
veggie burger (2)
almonds (2)
(22.5)

yawny mcyawn

why do i do this to myself every weekend? i stay up way too late and don't sleep enough and suffer the consequences in a major way on monday. i feel like a dead person today... zombie-rific! i did have a good weekend though. friday dancing, saturday running and more dancing, sunday parental visiting. my boyfriend and i signed up for an introductory package of dance lessons. on saturday we learned more swing (fun), the foxtrot (fun), and the waltz (boring).

i think i'm going to get one of those heart rate monitor watches. my first opinion was that they are unnecessary and sort of silly, but i find myself thinking about them a lot and looking up prices on ebay and froogle, etc. it would be really neat to know if i'm reaching my target heart rate and find out how many calories i'm burning. i wonder if you can wear it all day to find out how many calories you burn in just a normal day, without exercise. does anyone know if this is possible? what is your opinion about heart rate monitor watches? i'm leaning toward the polar f4 if anyone is wondering. it's about $100 including shipping on ebay. maybe that's a lot... i don't know.

in other news, i went running this morning. i didn't really want to but i sure as hell know that i won't feel like going tonight. ;o) and it wasn't so bad... it felt great to have done it (4 miles). i might do some strength training in the gym downstairs tonight but that's a big maybe.

my nice boyfriend bought me two larabars, one banana something flavoured and a cocoa one, too. i tried the banana one and it was really tasty, but really little for 210 calories. it's only banana, prunes (i think) and almonds mashed together. that's it - not one other ingredient which is pretty amazing. however, i think a) the price ($2.99 each) and b) the size (too small... i like some volume) outweigh the taste and nutritional value for me. i am still excited to eat the chocolately one though. :)

today i'm eating:

1/2 larabar (2)
almonds (1)
(3)

oatmeal with flax (3)
slivered almonds (1)
(7)

yogurt (1)
clementine (0.5)
(8.5)

yogurt (2)
more oatmeal (2)
(12.5)

grapes (1)
yogurt (1)
(14.5)

dinner? veggie burger with peas maybe.

easter monday

nobody should have to work on easter monday! what's going on!? actually i think most people are working. and i'm happy to be back to work today because being at work really helps me stay on track with eating during the day. despite my gain on friday, i still ate like crap on the weekend. i went to a girl's sleepover on saturday night and on sunday went to easter brunch/lunch/dinner at both my boyfriend's parent's house and my parent's house. it could have been worse but it wasn't great. anyway, now is the time for action.

lately (the past month or so) i've been feeling really lethargic. maybe it's because it's STILL cold outside, and i just want to run outside and ride my bike to work again and that isn't happening yet, or maybe because i'm stressed about all of my home improvement projects that just seem to loom over my head all the time. i need to slap some sense into myself. and this is my plan.

1) count everything (points) during the week, and be sensible on the weekend. by sensible i mean not going overboard by drinking too much, not going to mcdonalds (not that i ever do that anyway haha), eating more healthful meals, etc.

2) get more sleep, especially during the week. i love staying up at night because it feels like my own personal quiet time. sleeping personal time is good too.

3) try to become less ocd about working out. run three times a week, and vary activities for the other days.

4) create a to-do list for home stuff and knock stuff off the list that way.

this morning i walked to work (2.3 miles) and after work i am going to get movie tickets for a saturday canadian film fest screening of spencer rice's new movie. spencer is spenny from that showcase show "kenny and spenny" which is really funny. he should be at the movie on saturday which is neat to the o.

and today i'm eating:

source yogurt (1)
(1)

regular oatmeal with added flax (2)
5 oz. strawberries (0.5)
(3.5)

source yogurt (1)
(4.5)

lean cuisine (6)
5 oz. strawberries (0.5)
(11)

source yogurt (1)
1 cup grapes (1)
(13)

dinner: ?

happy st. patrick's day

i am wearing a green shirt - not for st. patrick's day because i am of german descent - entirely out of coincidence haha. monday morning - tired again. last night i couldn't get to sleep until 2am! so obviously i did not wake up this morning and run. no way jose, not happening. i did get a lot of activity in on the weekend though. on friday i thought i was going to take a rest day, but after work my boyfriend couldn't meet up with me until around 10 so i killed some time on the treadmill. saturday was absolutely beautiful outside so i went for a run. and then yesterday i walked on the treadmill again.

yesterday i thought it would be a good idea to take care of some more home improvement business, so i painted this tv stand unit and my old desk with two coats of bonding primer. let me tell you, bonding primer is not like regular paint. it is gross and powdery when it dries and it's pretty much impossible to get out of paint brushes, so don't even bother trying... so at least that is done... except after i painted the second coat i let my cat out of the bathroom (where he was locked in to avoid messing stuff up) and he jumped on the top of the tv unit, leaving a trail of cat paw imprints... and then white paw prints all over the floor. gah!!! thank goodness he didn't jump on the couch. i feel mean for locking him in the bathroom while i paint these things, but obviously he is a shifty character and can't be trusted.

i brought my running shoes to work to go for a walk at lunch. it's cold but nice and sunny. tonight is my last night of photoshop, so i had to bring all my food to work.

here is today's menu:
1/4 cup red river cereal (2)
unsweetened almond joy (1)
strawberries (1)

yogurt (1.5)
all bran (1)

chunky chicken noodle soup (3)
english muffin (2)
peas (1)

bread (3)
grapes (1)
peanut butter (1)
jam (1)
banana (2)

exercise: lunchtime promenade

busy week ahead?

oh boy, monday again. actually it's not so bad for a few reasons: 1) it's not freezing. it's actually going to be 8°C or something like that today which is practically tropical. 2) i already worked out today. normally i run on monday evenings, but today i did it in the morning and i'm done and it feels pretty good. 3) i did other stuff before work too which makes me feel productive: i went to the grocery store and bought frozen berries for breakfast and dropped off my white winter coat at the dry cleaners because it was getting really gross looking. 4) i went to bed at a somewhat reasonable time last night (around midnight) so i am not dead tired.

so on saturday my boyfriend came over and we had some coffee then jumped in the car and went to canadian tire to buy paint. i bought paint for every room in the house. "castle stone" gray for the living and dining room (one big long room), "blue jeans" blue for the bathroom, "citrus swirl" yellow for the kitchen and hallway, "pic nic" green for the bedroom, and "passion pink" for one wall of the den. yes, my house is going to be a crazy colourful wonderland but so what? it's my house and i can do whatever i want and i love colour! and it is only paint, which can be re-painted easily if it looks hideous. for the "passion pink" wall, i also bought this debbie travis paintable wallpaper. basically it's a raised design and it gives your walls a really neat texture. i got this victorian looking floral pattern which is going to look really wild with the pink. i'm not going to paint yet. first i have to hang up that paper and do all of the boring stuff like taping everywhere. boring!

so this morning i had a nice run - 4 miles, then did strength training and sit-ups and stretching. i got some new workout shorts and headphones at wal-mart on saturday, too. just cheap headphones, panasonic or jvc or some brand that isn't sony but is still a name brand. i like the kind with buds that stick in your ear, but have that sport ear wrap around thing. they were only $12 or so, which is a good price. now i need to stop spending money... i am burning a serious hole in my pocket.

menu is erratic today, since i'm going out for lunch and having guests for dinner:

breakfast:
pc blue menu multigrain oatmeal
1 T flax
1 T splenda
1 T cinnamon
3/4 cup frozen berries

monday, a new start

i have to say despite my best intentions, my eating on the weekend was pretty poor. yesterday i went to a joint birthday party for my dad and sister and ate: caesar salad, spaghetti and meatballs, pillsbury crescent rolls (plural), chocolate cake with cream cheese icing, and mint chocolate *and* heavenly hash ice cream. and THEN i went to an oscar party and ate: indian samosas, other indian things, handfuls of chips, brownies, a slice of homemade pizza, and cranberries. yes, all this food was eaten in relatively small(ish) portions and over a long period of time, HOWEVER, it's not really acceptable eating behaviour. and i should not be in the same room as mint chocolate swirl ice cream. i become a gluttonous savage beast. 

i have gained a bit of weight recently and i'm feeling kind of bummed about it. i'm still exercising, so i must be really overeating to be actually gaining weight. obviously i'm not monitoring my portions correctly, or i'm snacking - a bite here, a bite there, not recording it, whatever. so that's got to stop. especially before spring which is quickly approaching (thank the good lord above).

so i thought to myself, what is a good way to control portions while still eating the foods i love? the answer to that is another question: what food do i love most right now? oatmeal! i love love LOVE oatmeal. it's sweet and nutritious and filling and delicious. so here is my new plan for this week: oatmeal and fruit for breakfast, oatmeal and yogurt and fruit for lunch, then a more balanced dinner, like fish and veggies and yams and rice, etc. oatmeal is so quick and easy to make, and i really look forward to eating it. so here goes nothing - obviously i can only eat like this when i'm on my own and nothing "social" is happening. did i mention that i LOVE oatmeal? i love it. 

breakfast:

weight control maple brown sugar oatmeal

clementine

lunch:

banana bread oatmeal

cappuccino yogurt 

grapes

dinner: ? 

snacks:

clementine

cherries

more oatmeal? just kidding.

also, for a monday laugh, everyone should check out the everyday normal guy on youtube and his second video here . seriously it's hilarious. 

emotional eating

for once i'm happy that the weekend was over. it was really terrible in a lot of ways, although good in some as well.

the good: i had fun dancing with my friends, my bf made me a nice breakfast, i ran 4 miles on the treadmill saturday morning even though i *really* didn't want to, i got curtains for my condo and put them up so now i feel like my every move isn't on view to the world.

the bad: extreme family drama, drinking way too much, overcrowded bars and ikeas, very bad food choices including poutine (twice), burger king (whopper... what was i thinking although it was tasty), making cookies and eating 1/2 the dough, nachos with cheese melted, and probably more i'm blocking from my memory.

i definitely fall into the category of "emotional eater" which bothers me but what can i do about it? not do it? not that easy. i have started reading this book and it basically says that recovering from an eating disorder is very unlikely and symptoms in adults (as opposed to adolescents and young women) tend to be ignored because they assume that adult women a) have "recovered" whatever that means or b) grow out of their problems. binge eating and emotional eating should be considered eating disorders as well. it's like alcoholism. you wouldn't expect a recovering alcoholic to walk into a bar every day and have one drink and be satisfied and happy. but those who have/had a problem with overeating in the past still have to deal with food and reasonable portion sizes at every meal. sucks! i know i'm a negative nancy today but it really is the pits.



here is today's menu:
brown sugar cinnamon weight control quaker oatmeal.
clementines
lean cuisine pizza
spinach salad
chicken hot dogs

and i am going to the gym after work even though i don't want to. exercise = happy. happy = no more negative nancy. maybe some sunshine would help too.