Day 72 - BFFs & Sweaty Chocolate Cake

Oh yeah. Today was a rebirth. After getting hit with that super-bug last week and into the weekend, it felt GREAT to wake-up today feeling 95% well. The BFF took the day off so I grabbed the rest of my Birthday money and we hit the Hard Rock circuit in the morning.

We love poker. She's better than I am. She's rock solid. Poker is an endurance game, but not in the sense that you might normally hear the word "endurance." It's more of an emotional and psychological endurance.... especially after sitting at a table for 3 hours.

I came home in time to get the house cleaned, get Lil C from the bus stop, fix dinner and hit the gym.

It was good to get back into the gym....flipped on the iPad and caught up on Grey's Anatomy. I'm almost through with Season 6...it's getting better as the season goes on. I started sweating and I swear I tasted chocolate cake. (That was for you, Matt). I am actually starting to enjoy the heat and the sweat. I get hot, and then I sweat, and then I get cool again. It's becoming a cleansing ritual...like a shower from the inside out... only, you need another shower afterwards. While I was walking, I noticed this big football player sized guy next to me. He was plugging away...just like me...watching his own show on his teenie weenie iPhone. I felt bad for him. He must be reading my blog. Hahaha. Wouldn't THAT be funny!

Photo: Me and the BFF - Circa 1990

Day 71 - Harry Potter meets The Beverly Hillbillies

Sunday. Charlie and I decided to go check out the Gun Show at the Florida Expo Hall. I really don't know why I was so surprised by what I saw, but that was a freaky group. What scares me the most is the fact that all of those people were gun-carrying citizens. Some didn't look intelligent enough to get through life, much less have the money to purchase expensive weaponry.

There were those who were clearly hunters, decked out in their camouflage. Then, there were those well-dressed folks who I assumed might be collectors. Aside from those two groups, it looked like Harry Potter meets The Beverly Hillbillies. I think Gandalf from Harry Potter was there...he was wearing overalls.

We didn't stay long.

When we got home, I felt very tired and so I decided that I would rest one more day before jumping back on the wagon full force. My body was telling me something and so I listened. Good thing. I slept for about 2 hours on the couch. I should be good to go tomorrow. Fingers crossed.

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Day 66 - Truth, Love & Consequences

I'm back on my daily wagon, but, boy, am I feeling the repercussions of eating fast food three times last weekend. My wedding band is tight and I can feel the swelling all over my body - especially in my face...around my eyes and cheeks. If you're a chronic fast food eater, there is no way to sugar coat it. You need to stop. On a monthly basis, we might eat "fast food" three times, with two of those times being pizza from Bosco's or Marco's. This weekend, however, I ate fast food 3 or 4 times. We were going non-stop all weekend and fast food was easy and cheap.

In the past, I would blame it on my busy schedule, however, now, I know that it's not because of a busy schedule. It's a simple lack of preparation on my part. It's not difficult to pack a lunch and a few snacks in a cooler and throw it in the back of the car. It would take less than 10 minutes to prepare lunch and snacks for the entire family, pack it in a cooler and put it in my car. Pure laziness. SMH. I'm paying for it now. I'm hoping that if I drink lots of extra water this week, I can flush out the swelling and get back to feeling normal.

I hit the treadmill again today. Managed 45 minutes before my episode ended. While I was walking, an older gentleman opened the door and just stood there. I watched, curious as to what he was doing. Turns out he was holding the door for an older heavyset lady, who I assumed was his wife. She came into the gym on a motorized wheelchair. My heart broke. Here is this man, who loves his wife so much that he loads her into the car, drives her to the community gym, helps her out of the car and onto her wheelchair, and then helps her squeeze into the gym (it's a tight entrance...but I'll be up there tomorrow to re-arrange the equipment for her). He goes to, what I can imagine, a great extent, just so she can do pull-down exercises while sitting in her wheelchair. You could tell that they had been at this routine for a while because once she was in, he let her go her own way. She did her arm exercises while he did the elliptical. They didn't speak. They didn't smile. Then they left.

I don't want to be that couple. When Charlie and I retire, I want us to be physically healthy. I want to go on cruises and travel the world, not be confined to a wheelchair. I want to believe that 2012 will be my turning point. 300 days to go.

Photo courtesy: www.sodahead.com

Day 60 - IN YO' FACE

I spent much of today getting my two photography blogs up and running, with tags and keywords and content and photos and links and OMG. I was so drained by 4pm that I could barely keep my eyes open. Managed to cook Charlie some dinner, chat with the BFF for a few minutes, make plans for the weekend and then had to head out to my 8:15pm hair appointment.

As soon as I got there, I was graced with 5 minutes of free time before she was ready to get started. BAM! 25 push-ups. She finally finished wrapping up with her previous client, started my foils, and then about 3/4 of the way through, she had to leave and go mix another small batch of color. BAM! 25 push-ups.

She finished the foil and then headed out to make a few phone calls while my "highlights" processed. BAM! 25 push-ups. She came back in a few minutes later to check the color. "Two more minutes," she says. Guess what... BAM! You guessed it... 25 more push-ups.

Now, if my calculations are correct, that would be a total of 100 push-ups.

BAM! (Or as my 7yr old would say: "IN YO' FACE")

The only problem is, because I was so preoccupied with getting my push-ups in, my stylist and I had some sort of miscommunication and now I'm a brunette. Oh well. I'm down another pound. Still just a total of 7 because of my shenanigans last weekend.

7 lbs in 60 days, not dieting, just eating smart proportions 85% of the time, and eating chocolate cake and ice cream the other 15%. WINNING!!!

Day 51 - Fried Cheese

I skipped breakfast AND lunch today...surviving on 3 cups of coffee and a diet pill. No joke. Oh, you don't have to tell me how bad that is, I know exactly how bad that is for me...but the fair only comes once a year and so I sacrificed my health for one day in the name of caloric intake. No biggie.

Today had to be hard core because I knew I would be going to the Pasco County Fair with the BFF and kiddies... and I knew I'd be eating some fried bits of heaven. Corndogs and Fried Cheese to be exact. Oh yeah. I did it. I'll probably gain a pound or two...but I have 316 days left in the year to adjust for it. That's .000632 pounds per day. I think I can manage.

Talk about a freak show. If you're in the neighborhood and are into people watching...you have to check out the Pasco County Fair. I have absolutely NO idea how some of these people survive daily life. Lots of crack or lots of inbreeding. Makes me thankful for my crazy-normal life. Love you all. Have a wonderful week!!!

Be sure to check in tomorrow to see how much a corndog and fried cheese can wreck your diet.


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Day 4 - The Longest Run-On Sentence Ever

So, I went out with my sisters last night to celebrate my Lil Sister's birthday. In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have committed to that 7:15am Networking Meeting this morning. My yesterday and today did not like each other very much when they met this morning. Managed to put on a pretty face and made it to the meeting. After sitting through an hour of networking, I ran home and got there just in time to leave again to take Sierra to school, come back home, make breakfast for Lil C, take him to Karate, run to the Chiropractor, pick him back up, run back home, make lunch, run BACK to the school to pick-up Sierra, drive her all the way to Zephyrhills (30 minute drive) to get her hair done, drop her off, run to Publix to pull out some cash and pick-up some pimple medicine, run back to pick her up, head back home, make a pitstop at another Publix to get a few things I was missing for dinner, run home, start dinner, and Charlie walks in the door. Whew!

And I didn't even work today.

I hope you didn't assume that this was going to be my first excuse post. When Charlie walked in the door at 6:30p, I handed over my knife, headed up to the gym to collect my 20 minutes and returned back home just in time for dinner. Booya!

Day 1 - Taking Back Twenty

Today is the day. Technically, I started about 10 days ago to help me gauge just how difficult this was going to be. I mean, how embarrassing would it be to start a blog like this and then puss out after a week?? Today I vow to take back the 20 minutes a day that I need to keep my sanity and waistline in check. Thinking back 20 years, the simple idea that I would be writing a blog like this at all would have been absolutely absurd. I was a skinny kid. I was athletic as a tween and normal size and weight as a young adult. Worrying about my weight was not something that I had planned on. I honestly thought that I would be a size 4/6 forever. Ha! Surprise!!!

About Me? I married at 19 (seriously, what was I thinking??? My parents claim that I would have gone through with it whether they tried to intervene or not). Then, I had my beautiful daughter, Sierra, at 21, ....made a few necessary "adjustments," started a career at 23, earned my Bachelor's Degree at 27, married Charlie (a.k.a. "Daddy") at 29 and had Lil C at 30. Yes, I was pregnant on two HUGE milestone birthdays (21 AND 30). You really should think these things through...however, thinking back, those two milestones very well may have resulted in two more siblings, so we'll just take what we have and be happy with that. After all, college tuition doesn't grow on trees!

This year, I plan to take back 20 minutes every day, from whatever I need to take it from, and invest it in myself, in my health, in my well being, in me. I deserve it. My children deserve it. My family deserves it...and I plan to document my journey in daily photos. Every day. It's My 366 Leap Year Photo Project. I will not sugar coat my journey or censor the descriptions of my thoughts or feelings. If you are offended, please either de-friend me, or block my "Taking Back Twenty" posts. I have an extremely diverse group of friends, ranging from church-builders to bar-hoppers, so, understanding that I might offend someone with each and every post is ok with me. I am generally polite and respectable by nature, however, I have been known to throw a wrench in things from time to time. Mom always said that my 40's would be liberating, and she was right, only I'm not going to wait another 2 years. Carpe Diem, right?
So, here I am. Approaching 38. Faster than anticipated. Also, approaching a weight that I know with 100% accuracy that I will NOT be happy with. My goal? Fix it. Excuses? No more. Are you taking my 20 minutes? If so, it's time to step back. It's mine and I'm taking it back.
I would love for you to join me in taking back YOUR 20.