We had an argument

There was an entire (internal) argument that took place on the couch earlier. I wanted to go for my run, but I really didn't. Today was a bit of a rough day. This resulted in the kind of day in which food just seems to randomly find its way into my mouth. This resulted in the desire to each a leftover cupcake and sit on the couch until bedtime.

After many biting remarks to myself, I got up and went running. I even argued about actually running. It would have been okay to make it a walking day instead! Alas, I lost that argument too. We went running. My run went better today than Monday. I felt better, I ran faster (albeit, still slower than that heard of turtles), and my breathing was a little smoother.

Bonus, I'm home now, drinking water and not really wanting that cupcake. Good times.

Total Voyage to Venus miles: 44

Making Time

Ok, so I really haven't lost any weight and my measurements haven't changed. But really, I've been working out 3 times a week when I go running. I play with my kids too and we go for walks, but that isn't really going to show any change in my weight. They are all good things, but I need to do more. I've been doing better at meals too. I fill up on veggies, but snacks are my downfall. I'm not even eating "bad" snacks, but they do add up!

One of my excuses has been that I don't have time to exercise during the day with the kids and my parents (remember, I live with them right now) are watching TV at night, so I can't use their TV. I had a brilliant plan though...today I took the kiddos outside to play. They have a water table and a whole backyard to go nuts in and while they were playing I would do a workout video on my phone (small screen, yes, but still better than nothing). Yeah, so that was the plan. And anyone with kids can guess how that worked out. On the plus side, I played with my kids outside. Then it hit me...I could use my computer to do workout videos after the kids are in bed! Ta-Da!!! That is when I usually get my runs in, so it is perfect!

Tonight, I did my first video and I feel nice and sweaty.

This is probably a really good things because I made salted caramel cupcakes for family dinner tonight and they were amazing! I feel okay about eating my cupcake and the sampling I did with baking because they were just too good and they were worth every single calorie and carb I put into my mouth.

Does anyone have any really good workouts videos they like online?

My Pinterest Dinner

One of the things I'm supposed to do is watch my carb intake and try to spread it out over the entire day (keep in mind, when I say "watch," I do mean reasonably-I still get 45% of my calories from carbs). I'm also trying to eat more veggies and make half my plate veggies. Now, I'm not a huge veggie fan and I don't know enough about most to make something yummy. Which is why we have Pinterest!

I searched for different recipes to match what I wanted and I found lots of good ones. I decided on roasted veggies, non-breaded chicken cordon blue, and corn and black bean quinoa. You can find all three on my So Yummy board. I really liked all three, but the quinoa was by far my favorite. I will say that filling half my plate with the veggies was easy though (beware of molten tomatoes!), but I shouldn't have used dried rosemary :)

My portion sizes were just right and it was the perfect amount of food. I'm not usually a fan of squash or asparagus, but it was yummy! And I discovered that fresh cilantro smells so good.

Now, I need to go for my run.

Heat Rash

Seriously! I hate heat rashes and I get them all the time now. I have one between my legs right now and not in some embarrassing private place. Just above both of my knees. I wore shorts the other day; instead of capris. That part of my legs should not be rubbing together. That is so not good. On the plus side, I make a really good diaper balm that also works well for heat rashes.

I have just completed week two of the Couch to 5K training program though. Tonight was really tough, I just wanted to pass out on the sidewalk! But I pushed through and I finished my run. I'm up to 2.25 miles.

I also decided that I should sign up for Diet Bet again. I like the fact that you lose a percentage of your body weight and it really isn't a contest against everyone. You are up against yourself because everyone that reaches their goal wins. I did it before and I like it and the community was fun and motivating. I signed up for The Transformer, so I have 6 months to lose 10%. There are a lot of rules and stipulations to keep it healthy and try to prevent crazy diets or radical moves, which I also like (my parents got really into the Atkins craze and it wasn't good for them).

I'm trying to get more people involved in my process this time. In the past, I've kept it a secret. This was for many reasons.

1. If I failed, nobody had to know I tried. (LAME!!!)
2. Nobody really knew that my weight was an issue; it was just my little secret. (???)
3. I didn't need anyone to know how hard it was for me to control my eating and my weight. When I magically lost a lot, they would just think it was easy and I was amazing. (RIGHT?)
4. I was more than a little embarrassed that I had a weight issue.

This time, I'm using my blog to share to anyone that feels like reading it. I am part of a Facebook group and using Diet Bet. I want as much motivation as I can get from outside sources.

Tomorrow is my weigh-in and measurement day...

Ouchie!

Today should have been a run day, but it wasn't. My lower back started hurting today. I don't know what happened, but it is not comfortable. I didn't run because I didn't feel the need to make it worse, so I went for two walks today. I took the kiddos for a ride in the wagon and then I went for a walk during my normal run time. I think I go in a little over 2 miles today. I feel good that I at least did something. It would have been easier to just do nothing because I didn't feel good, but I didn't!

As far as my eating is going, it is a little tough to control my carb intake! I haven't analyzed what I was eating, but my guess is that I was even going for the 65% of your calories/day that is the upper limit of what average people should eat. Considering that I'm not average and should be on the lower end of the recommendations, that would explain a lot. I'm researching some lean protein options tonight and plan to go grocery shopping tomorrow.

I'm also thinking of replacing sugar in my morning coffee with stevia. I gave up all artificial sweeteners when I was pregnant because my doctor pointed out that the effects of fetuses hadn't been studied, but considering how much sugar I like in my coffee, I'm thinking this might be a good switch. I thought about giving up coffee, but that doesn't really seem like the best option because I don't need to be grumpy from no coffee on top of everything else. I'm looking at it as the lesser of two evils. Hopefully as I go along and continue to make changes, I can let go of my coffee or sweeten it less, but for now, this is my plan.

Calories and Carbs

As I said the other day, I found a book that I've been reading and I'm finding it really useful. "The Prediabetes Diet Plan" explains how your body uses carbs and how insulin is used by your body. It is a very detailed, yet easy to understand explanation of how things should work in your body and how they actually work when you are insulin resistant. It also provides a lot of statistics on prediabetes and the link to many health problems and how even small changes can prevent diabetes.

She also offers a really good explanation on how to classify the foods you eat into different categories and how to build a healthy plate that reduces our calories and carbs that we are taking in to lead to healthier choices. This can be done without actually counting calories or carbs! I just finished reading about how to estimate the total amount of carbs you should get each day and an easy way to track that. What I like is that she offers a variety of ways to get started! You can start by simply filling your (smaller) plate differently and then choose to count calories and/or carbs or not. There are even tables to make it quick and easy to estimate how many carbs certain foods will give you.

Please keep in mind, this book and the recommendation of keeping your carb intake on the lower end of the RDA is designed for people that are insulin resistant or prediabetic based on actual blood glucose tests. I have been to the doctor and my fasting glucose is higher than it should be and it is, unfortunately, getting higher (as is my weight).

I'm currently using the Lose It app to track my calories and by adjusting my preferences, it will show my carb intake as well. The benefit to tracking what you eat as you eat it, is that you pay attention to what you eat and people tend to make better choices if they actually take the time to notice how much we are eating. I took the kids for a short walk this morning and I went for a jog this evening, so I was 200 calories short and 15g of carbs short of the recommendations. I could have left it at that, but cutting too many calories can do more harm than good, so I let myself have a little treat of M&Ms (measured out!). I enjoyed them and I didn't feel guilty because I knew that 1) I wasn't eating the entire bag at once and 2) I was still within my allotted calories for the day!

I also signed up for the Voyage to Venus. It looks pretty cool! I love the idea behind it and they do some pretty cool charities. I signed up for the Space Ranger level and hope to reach 100 miles this year. I felt this was perfect for me. I'm not really a runner, so setting a goal of 500 miles seemed a little overly ambitious. If anyone is reading this, you should check it out and tell them Heather sent you!

Overall feeling for today: happy

Lazy Kid Day

Today was actually a really good day. I didn't do a whole lot, but I had lots of fun with my kiddos. We played games and chased each other and laughed really hard. That may not be official exercise, but I'm counting it anyway! I'm a little sore from yesterday's run, so I pulled the kids for a walk in the wagon and we went to the park. I tried to do the monkey bars, but I could only hang there. So, I helped Stoney across instead!

As far as my eating, it was okay. My dad wanted to take us to lunch, so I has a club sandwich and not a cheeseburger or anything fried. I did have a Coke. I've had lots of water today though. Plus, when I was digging through for a snack, I pulled out a banana and not the bag of M&Ms :)

Here is something I have noticed about myself. Stress makes me want to eat. There is plenty of stress to go around right now. Stoney is not happy about the move and is letting me know it. After one of his tantrums today, I found myself looking for something to eat. I settled for a glass of ice water, but it was a close one. I need to find some ways to avoid grabbing unhealthy snacks, but still relieve my stress.

Several years ago I was diagnosed as insulin resistant and I have polycystic ovaries. I didn't think much of it at the time, though my doctor told me I should lose weight. I've started looking into the health problems associated with insulin resistance and decided I needed a bit more research and I really need to change my lifestyle. I found a library book about prediabetes and insulin resistance that I just started reading today. I'm excited and I hope I will find it helpful.

I think my biggest challenge is going to be to stay positive, but change isn't about changing everything at once. Little changes will add up!